The Slave Queen Of Etherion Ch 04

Chapter 1

Malachite Palace, Lysannum

"How was it?" Xenia had asked Princess Jade right after the princess had returned to the palace after displaying herself to her potential suitors, as she helped her friend into her robe.

"Good, actually... but I'm so

horny

, now," Jade replied. "I don't know how much of this business of remaining a virgin I can

take

."

"Did anyone in the crowd catch your eye?" the faun had asked.

"Now that you mention it, there

was

a big knight in the crowd who I've seen around The Kings' Inn, and occasionally in The King's Temptation over the last few weeks or so," Jade mused.

"Anybody else?"

"Oh... there were a lot of people I recognise from around the city... even though I couldn't put a name to a lot of them," Jade answered. "The only one who really stood out was that knight... and a shady-looking man with a goatee, I suppose."

"They must have made an impression, then."

"I might go over to the The King's Temptation and see if that knight wants to play with Aichiko tonight."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Xenia asked.

"Of course I'm sure. Why wouldn't I?" Jade replied immediately.

"Oh, no reason, really," Xenia replied. "Maybe I was being silly."

"If that shady guy is there, I might change my mind, though," Jade added.

The King's Inn, Lysannum

After the announcement of the Princess' nuptial challenge, Prince Rodger returned to his lodgings at The Kings' Inn, which was almost directly across the square from the royal palace. It was an expensive establishment, though nowhere near as expensive as some that he had stayed in prior to his banishment, and not nearly as expensive as The Sword and Crown either, which was right next to the palace. He might have preferred lower rent lodgings still. While he was a prince, he was living on the dividends of his investments, which were not as great as he would have liked, he would have preferred to reinvest the dividends for a few more years, had he not made that unfortunate error of judgement with his uncle's wife. He also had a remittance — 'stay-away' money — which, along with the dividends from his investments, allowed him to live a reasonably comfortable life. He couldn't afford to live

well

, by his own standards, but that was the price he was paying for his recklessness and stupidity.

Part of the reason that Rodger had chosen The Kings' Inn was that the inn's lodgers received a substantial discount from The King's Temptation, the brothel that was right next door, and probably shared ownership with the Inn. Indeed, Rodger's experienced eyes had quickly identified just which of the women who frequented the bar were merely single, which were attached, and which were prostitutes. Many of the serving staff were also prostitutes. However, regardless of the ready availability of whores, Rodger had acquired enough self-discipline not to overspend his limited funds on whoring. While he might have liked to have a different girl every night, the reality was that he could afford no more than one each week or two. While it had been only a few days since he had last hired a whore, his encounter with the unexpectedly sexy princess had aroused him, and that evening, he made a mental note as he began to look around for a whore that this encounter would have to satisfy him for the weeks to follow.

As Prince Rodger approached whore after whore, only to be told by each that she wasn't available, she was waiting for another client who had made a prior appointment, he began to feel frustrated. Soon, there was only the Maingarian whore whom he hadn't approached before, as there was something odd about her, some nights being bold and direct, some nights seeming awfully shy, and other nights being quietly confident. Rodger observed that it appeared that tonight was one of the confident nights, as the beautiful, exotic woman approached him. He might have turned her down, as he had on previous nights, except that there was no other choice just then but to wait or accept her invitation.

"I'm Aichiko. Would you like some company?" the Maingarian woman asked in a surprisingly locally accented alto voice, after sashaying sexily across the room to him.

Rodger hadn't had a Maingarian woman for years. For some reason, most seemed to be either far more innocent than Rodger liked, or far too slutty, with little in-between, but this one seemed to be just knowing enough, without being vulgar.

"Rodger of Galadon," he introduced himself. "I'm in the mood for some kinky stuff," he warned the woman.

"What did you have in mind?" she asked calmly.

"Some bondage and discipline... maybe some exhibitionism too?"

"That all sounds like fun," she said, with a genuine smile that reached all the way to her eyes.

After Rodger had paid the Madam the girl's price, she took him to a room full of bondage equipment, where Rodger selected a polished steel slave collar with a ring on the side. He then called the patiently waiting woman over and looked her up and down. Without saying anything, he grasped the neckline of her simple but sexy gown, and with a jerk of his powerful arms, made a tear in the multiple layers of black cloth, then tore the front of the dress open from top to bottom, before pulling it off down her back. He was pleased to see that she had been nude beneath her now-ruined dress, and looked her up and down, appraising her slender but curvy figure, eyeing her breasts with their thick nipples.

"Kneel!" he commanded her, and when she complied, he lifted her long black hair and fastened the metal collar around her neck, then let her hair fall once more. "Stand, slave!" he commanded.

"Yes, Master," she said as she complied.

"You don't look enough like a proper slave yet," Rodger mused. "Slave, what more do you need?" he asked.

"Piercings, perhaps, Master?"

Rodger raised one eyebrow. "Certainly... but you're mine only for the evening, slave. I doubt that the madam would like you to be... altered."

"May I make a suggestion, Master?" she asked.

"Please do so, slave."

"That drawer contains non-piercing rings," she pointed.

Rodger went to the drawer and looked inside, where he found a pair of springy, almost completely circular heavy wire arcs with beads on the open ends. The beads were pressed together, but it was a simple matter for Rodger to pull them apart and place one on each of Aichiko's nipples. He stepped back and looked at the results.

"Excellent," Rodger said, reaching out to caress and lift Aichiko's breasts briefly and tug lightly on the rings. "Almost as good as the real thing," Rodger concluded. He turned back to the displayed equipment, and after a moment, selected a light chain leash which he snapped onto the ring on Aichiko's collar.

"Come along, slave. We are going to dinner. As a reward for your excellent suggestion, I will allow you to eat sitting down. Please lead the way."

Aichiko hesitated. "Where shall I lead you, Master?"

"Good question, slave," Rodger approved. "I shall be dining tonight at The Underworld. Do you know it?"

Lysannum, Tharnirion

When (presumably Sir) Rodger agreed to an evening of entertainment with Aichiko, and then proceeded to collar her like a slave and put non-piercing nipple rings on the doll, Jade was secretly delighted. He even wanted to go to The Underworld, which was a rather poorly known restaurant, save amongst people in the B&D scene. Jade/Aichiko had never been inside, but she did know

where

it was, having almost got through the door on one previous occasion, only to be stymied at the last moment when her client had finally succumbed to the effects of a surfeit of strong drink consumed earlier in the evening, practically on the doorstep, just before their cabman had reigned in his horse outside.

"I know

of

it, Master," Aichiko/Jade replied. "I can take you there, but I've never been inside."

"Very well, slave. Lead me there."

"Master...?"

"Yes, slave?"

"May I get dressed?" Jade wanted to see just how strict Rodger might be.

Rodger raised one eyebrow. "No, you most certainly may

not

,

slave

." He replied sternly. "You forget your place. You are a slave, and you will wear whatever you are given without complaint, even if that is nothing but a collar and leash. Perhaps five strokes will teach you discretion. Legs together, knees straight, and bend over and put your fingers under your toes," he commanded.

"Yes, Master," she said, and did as she was instructed.

Rodger put his left hand on the small of her back. "Count with me," he instructed.

Smack

... It was just hard enough to sting her buttocks. "One," she said.

Smack

... "Two." It was a good thing that Rodger had his hand on her back, else she might have fallen, given her posture.

Smack

... "Three."

Smack

... "Four."

Smack

... "Five." Her bum was stinging a little from the spanking.

"What do you have to say for yourself now, slave?" Rodger asked calmly.

"Thank you, Master," Aichiko/Jade replied, suppressing a smile of satisfaction.

"Good," Rodger nodded. "Let us be on our way. We shall be walking tonight."

Aichiko/Jade led Rodger out onto the street, twilight rapidly giving way to night, and the cool evening air making the doll's exposed nipples become erect. She walked proudly, flaunting her nudity as she led her current master through the lamp-lit streets, drawing him onward through the tension of the chain between her collar and his hand.

Soon the brightly lit streets gave way to dim alleys, some so dark as to threaten stubbed toes and bruises from unseen obstacles, and others not so much dim as shady, with people who all radiated an air of disreputability lurking in doorways and at intersections. A few emerged from the shadows to see who had been foolish enough to invade their domains, but to a man — or woman — most stopped short and tried to feign disinterest when they saw that Aichiko/Jade's master was wearing heavy plate armour that was both well-maintained and well-used, and moved like a man for whom mere footpads and street thugs might actually be a

welcome

diversion.

One young, muscular man actually took an aggressive step toward Rodger from a dark gated alley, and Aichiko/Jade glanced back nervously, but at Rodger's narrow-eyed glance, another, older man stepped out of the alley from which the young man had emerged and grabbed the first's shoulder from behind, almost inaudibly murmuring something urgently about there being less suicidal choices of mark.

The Underworld, Lysannum

The tavern known as The Underworld was well named. It was located at the bottom of a flight of bluestone steps, behind a rusty-looking iron door. The bouncer wore fanciful leather armour that made him look like a devil, and the barman and serving wenches were topless, but they wore horned half-masks and their exposed skin was painted red, making them look like devils too. The door bitch who collected the entry fee was a muscular woman with smallish, unsupported breasts and butch features visible beneath her half mask, though on getting a closer look, it could be seen that the busty serving wenches wore red leather shelf brassieres that both supported and emphasised their breasts and were unobtrusive against their red-painted skin.

The whole place was filled with a reddish glow, with unexpectedly red-flamed torches providing light, and scenes of the torment of the damned painted on the walls. It seemed that the pits of fire were painted on glass, with flickering flames behind them, so that they both looked more realistic and also provided light.

"A table for two, Sir?" a devilish, busty serving wench asked.

"Yes, please," Rodger replied.

"Will your slave require a seat, Sir?"

"Yes, she will."

"Come this way, Sir. You've arrived just in time for the start of the show." The serving wench led Rodger and Aichiko/Jade to a table next to the stage, which was a raised platform with well-worn red brick steps, topped with large, dull-black ceramic tiles.

"May I speak, Sir?" Aichiko/Jade asked after they had been seated, while they waited for the entertainment to begin.

"Always... provided that I haven't asked you to be silent. I'd like some conversation right now."

"Have you been in many battles, Sir?" Aichiko/Jade asked, curious about her client's status as a mercenary. "Is it really as glorious as they say?"

"'Glory' is a word that only a fool or a recruiter would use," Rodger replied in a non-judgemental tone. "War may be necessary, but it's an ugly business, one that seems to bring out the best or the worst in people... or sometimes both."

"How can war bring out someone's best if it is such an 'ugly' business?"

"I've seen a man sacrifice his hand to save a comrade's life, a man he didn't even know, and I've seen men volunteer to throw their lives away so that hundreds of their fellow soldiers might have a better chance at surviving the battle. I've even seen a man marry a woman he had just met so that she would have someone to protect her in the chaos of a war...

"But that's the sort of thing that you hear about, that might make you think that war

is

glorious. You don't hear about men and women lying groaning on the battlefield for days before they die or someone puts them out of their misery as you might do for a horse or a dog.

"You don't hear about the rapes... or even the mercenary companies where

every

soldier is a rapist, but they never get called to account because it would be too costly to capture them, and they're so useful that it makes more sense to keep them around for the next war.

"You don't even hear about the soldiers executed for cowardice, the men who only did what

any

sensible person might do and ran away from a dangerous situation... except that they were soldiers and they fled from a battle... and if their nation

didn't

punish cowardice and their enemy

did

, their nation would lose because they couldn't prevent further desertion.

"May I ask, how did you become a mercenary captain?" Aichiko/Jade asked.

"You

may

ask..." Rodger replied. "...But it isn't the right question. I am not — and never have been — a mercenary, let alone a

captain

of mercenaries. I suppose that I look like one, and even sound like one, though... hmm?"

"Well... yes, you do."

"That would be because my father insisted that my six older brothers and I serve time as officers in the army, so that we would know what it would cost to send them to war in the event that one of us becomes king."

"So... you're a Prince, then?"

"I suppose so. I may be in exile, but I'm still a Prince... they didn't take

that

from me.

"Since I can just

tell

that your next question is going to be how I came to be in exile," Rodger said, "I'll save time and just say that I made the mistake of becoming far too attached to my uncle's young second wife. When we were discovered in our indiscretion,

I

was exiled... but Lysette... wasn't."

Aichiko/Jade took note of Rodger's grim expression. "You mean...?" she trailed off, covering her mouth with her hand.

"My uncle had her executed." Rodger confirmed. "He had

me

on the executioner's block too, but commuted my sentence to exile even as the axe was falling."

"Oh! I'm so sorry," Aichiko/Jade apologised. "I shouldn't have..."

"Don't apologise," Rodger cut her off with a raised finger placed gently on her lips. "I asked for conversation, and I'll tell you if there's a subject that I want you to drop.

"Besides," Rodger went on, "It was a few years ago now, and one shouldn't be afraid of old memories."

Aichiko/Jade cast about hastily for another subject. "Did you hear about the Princess' nuptial challenge?" she asked, regretting the question as soon as she had uttered it. She suddenly realised that she didn't want to know, didn't want to interfere in the Gods' selection of Princess Jade's future husband.

Aichiko/Jade was saved by the start of the evening's entertainment. A red-skinned woman with long, straight black hair that flowed down her back between her larger horns emerged from a door at the end of the stage. She was not wearing a skirt like the serving wenches but wore a black leather harness that supported her sizeable breasts, but otherwise entirely failed to conceal anything that a modest woman would want to conceal. Her attractive face was not concealed by a mask as were the faces of the other employees. In her left hand was a coiled black leather bullwhip.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to The Underworld! I'm the devil in charge of this little slice of hell, and while I'm not going to give you my

true

name, you may call me Mistress Desdemona.

"Now, as you may know, audience participation is an important part of the entertainment here in The Underworld! For our first event of the evening, we are having a competition for straight master or mistress and slave couples, which will involve swapping slaves for another of the same sex. Do we have any volunteers?

"Shall we volunteer, master?" Aichiko/Jade asked Rodger.

"By all means, slave," Rodger replied. "You may volunteer for anything that you think I will enjoy."

'

What does he mean?

' Jade asked herself in the privacy of her own mind. It wasn't exactly part of her fantasy of slavery to be asked to think for herself... but if she was to be queen too, thinking would be a necessity. She decided to wait and observe any other volunteers first.

The first volunteer was an ugly, thin, bony woman with practically no breasts and facial features which would better suit a man, and her slave looked a little like a man who had at one time been overweight, but now his skin was practically hanging from his bones, and he followed his mistress with a dispirited sort of shuffle. The man was hardly Jade's type, and from the subtle changes in Rodger's expression, he seemed to find the woman as repulsive as Aichiko/Jade found them both.

The second volunteer was a tall, lean man with handsome regular features, perfectly groomed dark hair, and a waxed handlebar moustache above a shaved chin. His slave was a slightly plump but very beautiful young woman with long, straight reddish brown hair, who was wearing nothing but a long blue cloak and a broad, polished steel slave collar padlocked around her neck, and as her master arose and beckoned her to follow, she unclasped the cloak from around her neck and draped it quickly but neatly over the back of her seat with a casual flourish, and hurried after him. She was jiggling, almost jumping with excitement, so that the puckered, puffy nipples atop her large, firm breasts seemed almost to remain still while she bounced on her heels just behind her master. He looked back at her briefly and smiled indulgently at her obvious excitement.

Aichiko/Jade watched closely to see what would happen next and wasn't disappointed. She saw Mistress Desdemona look over the beautiful, eager slave girl, glance down towards her crotch where a suspicious glimmer of moisture adorned her legs beneath her neatly trimmed mons, and then she rolled her eyes briefly, almost involuntarily, in an expression of disdain.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we need at least one more master and one more mistress... with slaves of course," Desdemona announced.

Aichiko/Jade stood up. "My master volunteers," she said calmly.

Once a second mistress had volunteered along with her slave - she, being a rather muscular, busty, middle aged woman, he being a collared and leashed man with huge muscles - and after Rodger had doffed his armour in a private room, replacing it temporarily with a robe, Mistress Desdemona went on to explain the rules of the game.