1,036 – 1,066 A.D. CHAPTER 13 The bones of my naked backside seemed bent on burrowing through the thin skin of my tired ass from the inside out as I sat on the log in the sweat lodge. I was thankful that the log had been stripped of all its bark, making it a smooth surface on which to sit, but sitting there completely naked made me more aware than ever of my age. Seventy years I had roamed this earth and now I sat alone with Hurit, each of us naked, seeking some peace at the outskirts of the village. In the years I had been with the woman, we had visited the lodge many times. Most of the time I found the occasion ripe for spilling seed into her and she was usually most receptive. I think that it was on one of those occasions when the seed that became Alsoomse found itself planted Hurit’s womb. Times had changed, however. First, her monthly bleeding became erratic until it eventually ceased altogether. When she told me what was happening to her and that it was the path of life for all women I was initially enthusiastic as I thought the woman would have no reason to withdraw herself from me for the week of blood every month. The reality proved less thrilling than my imagination.
