I shook off the strange feeling and took in my surroundings as the full weight of the nightlife of the witch resort on Thunder Island hit me. The air reeked of debauchery as moans filled the evening as well as a few shrieks I had no care to investigate.
"Anna?"
I ignored Pierre as I took it all in. Splashing came from the hot tubs, giggles, moans, and laughter rang out all around, but there was near pandemonium at the wolf chess. Of all the dark things calling to us in the night, the subtle lights illuminating the large chessboard drew my attention. Wolves posed with headgear denoting which piece they played stood statue-still, all but for two.
A wolf whose headdress designated him a rook was currently thrusting deeply into a pawn, bent over, writhing in her pleasure. They were both beautiful creatures in their prime, hell, everyone on the island was, but to see them was sheer erotic poetry. The outfits they wore covered little and were designed for easy penetration. Wolves moved with inherent grace the witches did not, it struck me. We had used magic to make us graceful, but the wolves were creatures of pure magic and it showed in everything they did. Never had I seen what poetry two wolves giving one another pleasure could be, and looking away was near impossible.
Around the chessboard witch and wolf alike watched with the same focus I did, and I saw the crowd reflected my flare of arousal. Oh, that was no good, I moaned to myself. I didn't want to have anything in common with the rest, but this was a feast for the eyes. A voyeur always struggled with the arousal of watching others and the guilt of watching. If I knew the wolves were perfectly willing and not forced into the game, I would be free to enjoy, but I felt a sliver of shame at my desire.
"Oh." I jumped at Julian's light touch on my arm. "Are they...are they forced to do that?"
The crisp fabric of his evening suit brushed my bare skin and made me shiver in the pressing humid heat of the ocean air. "Think of this island as more a modern example of serfdom. The wolves who participate in wolf chess choose to do so, none are forced. They are forced to be here and work, but they can choose what work they do."
After the pawn wailed in orgasm the rook withdrew, and resumed standing straight and still. Beneath his loincloth his unsated arousal was plainly visible, but his eyes were hard and distant. She struggled off the board and other discarded "pieces" helped her. Above the board on two cushioned platforms witches sat, the real players of the strange game. The woman called out her move and her pawn captured another.
Her pawn was female, the losing piece male, and this time it was the female wolf who pinned her conquered partner down and rode him. A dark tremor ran through me at the sight. I knew I should look away but I just couldn't. the male wolf had already been aroused, doubtless the winning piece numerous times. My eyes went to the female riding him, trying to hold back her own pleasure. How did she do it? He was magnificent, and his cock looked so hard. My own body clenched in need as I thought of riding any one of my lovers.
"How is it played?"
"Like regular chess," Andre said behind me, his breath on my ear making me jump.
"But when one piece is driven from the board, he or she is made to orgasm. They only cum when they are knocked off," Pierre said, crowding my other side.
I tried to speak but it came out a strangled moan as the male pawn howled with orgasm, and being a wolf it seemed to go on and on. I held my breath as I watched, entranced, and my wolves remained close but did not interrupt the moment. After an eternity the male pawn left and stumbled aside, and the female stood up though she panted with obvious arousal. Her witch waved her hand the trailing remnants of the male's orgasm disappeared from dripping down her leg. The surreality made me shake my head.
The male witch playing smirked and called out his move and a knight took a bishop, both male. I cleared my throat, but of course my wolves knew by a million tells how much this aroused me. I had always been a voyeur, and while the idea of wolf chess had seemed odd and off-putting, the reality was powerfully arousing. They had chosen this path, and pleasure was being given out, and so I felt free to enjoy.
Andre's hands slid onto my shoulders and I jumped with it, my mind completely on the board.
"But that means whichever piece wins the game is left unsatisfied?"
Pierre chuckled. "This is why king and queen are both played by a male wolf. Whoever wins will be auctioned off to the crowd."
"And male wolves fetch a higher price, particularly ones who have proven stamina," Andre murmured.
I turned to them in horror. "Auctioned?"
"Before we reach puberty it is decided to what place or line we'll be gifted, Anna. We are possessions in the eyes of witch law." Julian was bitter.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't be enjoying this." I turned away and found my nose in Andre's chest.
"Only you can decide what you feel is right. Anna, there are many corners of the world where witches congregate, and our home will be one such place, it is the curse of rule. You must be familiar with all the entertainments of this world. They will come to expect you to enjoy such things, and offer such entertainments." With a hand on my chin Andre turned me back to face the board, and I felt lost in madness for a moment.
"Remember, it's one thing to be aroused by what you see, another to take away a person's will," Julian whispered.
"Surely it's the same," I countered.
At that moment a bishop looked our way as he flipped up the skirt of another pawn. His eyes met mine as he thrust in and I whimpered. In his eyes I saw arousal, fear, and hope. It was terrifyingly beautiful even as his gaze invited me into the erotic moment.
"Indeed it seems those who volunteer like to be watched," Pierre said softly, a smile in his voice.
The strange wolf continued to hold my eyes as he pumped into the female wolf. His expression was one of sensual promise, the oldest look any man had ever given any woman, but more than that it was hope, and sharp desperation honed into an offense. He'd heard our conversation.
In that moment, even as my body softened, swelled, and heated with arousal, something in my soul clicked into place, like a puzzle piece sliding home. This was the strange feeling I had sensed on the air, the little piece of fate I couldn't explain. He was beseeching me, this strange wolf. In his mind I was queen, a great power, the only power that could free him. He might enjoy the feel of the supple, lithe wolf body he sank into, but he wanted true freedom.
"This has to stop," I said aloud, though more to myself than my pack.
"The game?" Pierre asked.
"These laws, these customs." I broke free of them and walked a few steps, whirling to face them. "These idiots, most of them have been alive long enough to have lived when absolute monarchies ruled. Perhaps it's time they remember what that meant."
"Anna?"Julian asked.
Andre smiled. "The words of a true queen."
"Oh, stow it, Andre. I don't give a shit who my ancestors were. I only care that I seem to be one of the few people with a lick of sense on this damnable island!" But it was a lie. I had made my decision. Come what may, these people believed me to be a power to reckon with, and by any god, I would be.
