Anna had attempted to protect me from Princess Bedrohlich, unfortunately, her efforts at rescuing me failed, and on June the 6th, I was taken away to become a slave.
I was so nervous my hands were shaking. I was eighteen years old and barely out of high school. I was young, innocent, and inexperienced. Nothing in my life thus far had prepared me for the trauma of being taken away to a foreign land and becoming a sadistic woman's naked sex slave.
"What am I supposed to do?" I asked Anna, "Don't you have any advice?"
Anna turned to Naomi and Kiko, as if to ask them for their opinion. Both women shrugged their shoulders. Kiko looked apologetic.
"Nothing?" I asked, "You have no advice, whatsoever?"
"Nothing that will get you out of becoming Princess Bedrohlich's slave," Anna responded, "She's a Sidhe noble. And one of your forebears promised that she could have you as her slave. By Sidhe law, that's a binding contract."
"It's a thousand days," I protested anxiously, that's like, two and a half years!"
"Actually, it's closer to three years," Naomi opined.
"Naomi! That's not helping!" Anna snapped and Naomi shut her mouth and averted her gaze.
Yeah, this wasn't really the time to be correcting my math. This was a time for helping me deal with my trauma and keeping me from having a full-blown panic attack.
I collapsed on the couch and closed my eyes and sighed. I was emotionally exhausted. I was too young, innocent, and untried to become a sex slave. There was no way I was going to be able to handle it.
"When Beth gets back, we'll have a talk with her," Naomi said, "She's the oldest member of our coven and has the most experience when it comes to dealing with the Sidhe. Maybe she'll have some ideas."
"Will she be back in time? We don't even know when Princess Bedrohlich is going to take me away."
"Beth should be back tomorrow evening," Anna replied, "As long as she doesn't take you away before then, we have a chance."
"Tomorrow? Oh God, I'm not sure if I can wait that long," I exclaimed, "A lot could happen to me between now and tomorrow evening."
I ended up having a panic attack, my throat felt tight and for a few moments I couldn't breathe, my blood pressure shot way up and I broke out into a sudden sweat. Luckily my girlfriend had seen panic attacks before and knew how to deal with them.
"Candice, drink this," Anna said as she held out a glass in front of me.
My hands were shaking, but I took the container from her hand and drank it all down. Shortly after that my feverish sweating stopped, my heartbeat returned to normal and it became easier to think.
"Oh my God, thanks Anna," I said. My hands no longer shook, and I stood up and gave Anna a hug.
Impulsively, Anna kissed me. Her lips were warm, and I was grateful for them. I had never needed moral support more than at that very moment. I kissed back, hard.
* * *
Anna and her coven did what they could to find a loophole to keep me from becoming Princess Bedrohlich's slave, but they were at a huge disadvantage, and in the end they had to admit they couldn't save me.
It was four or five hours later that two of Princess Bedrohlich's loyal agents showed up to collect me and take me away to be her slave.
Her agents weren't at all worried about Anna and her coven. They simply showed up while, Anna, Kiko and I were in the garden. We were picking comfrey leaves for Anna to use in one of her potions when we realized we weren't alone.
Anna and I were down on our hands and knees, carefully selecting the best leaves, when we heard a strong, female voice say, "We are here for Candice Beck."
I turned around and rapidly stood up. Standing just beyond the catmint were two women with high cheekbones, skin as white as snow, long, cascading hair as black as midnight and dressed all in black.
"Who are you?" I asked, although they looked so otherworldly, I knew they must be from Princess Bedrohlich's kingdom.
"I am Leise," one of the women replied, "And this is my sister Getreu. We are champions in the service of Queen Eydis."
"Leise and Getreu?" I asked.
"Total badasses," Anna explained, "They killed a dozen trolls during the Great Northern War."
"It was twenty-six trolls," corrected Leise, "Their heads are still mounted on spikes on Krieger Bridge if you wish to count them and see for yourself."
I had never heard of the Great Northern War, or Krieger Bridge, but if these ladies had killed twenty-six trolls all by themselves, I was willing to believe that they were badasses, to be feared and respected.
"No, that's okay," Anna replied, "We believe you."
The potion Anna had given me was still keeping my fear in check, so instead of panicking or trying to flee, my brain was able to formulate a coherent thought.
"Wait a minute," I said, "Isn't it overkill to have troll-slaying war heroes to come and fetch an unarmed, teenage girl?""
"We go where the queen sends us," Getreu replied.
"Service to the queen is not always about glorious battle," Leise added.
"I'm Candice's protector," Anna said, "I need to know that Candice won't be harmed if I allow you to take her back to your kingdom. What's going to happen to her?"
"She will be given to Princess Bedrohlich," Leise replied, "She will serve as Princess Bedrohlich's slave for a period of one thousand days. During her time as a slave, she will be properly fed, groomed and given time to sleep. When she is returned to you, she will still be in good health."
"So, I won't be whipped or branded, or anything like that?" I asked.
"The queen has prohibited the branding and burning of human slaves," Getreu responded, "however, you will be whipped often. This will cause no permanent damage. Slaves are never whipped beyond human endurance."
"But," I stammered, "why do I need to be whipped at all? I'm not a bad person! I'm not a criminal! I'm just a sweet, innocent, teenage girl!"
My eyes were pleading, and my voice was sincere, however, Leise and Getreu were unmoved.
"A sound whipping does wonders for a slave," Leise explained, "It helps to keep them humble and obedient. Whippings also provide great entertainment for the royal family and their honored guests."
"Entertainment?" I exclaimed in outrage, "What kind of sick people would be entertained by the screams of an innocent girl in pain?"
Leise and Getreu were not moved by my moral outrage. Their society had different values than the ones I was taught. For them, public whippings were a legitimate form of entertainment, and no amount of outraged complaining by a human teenager was going to make them feel differently.
There were a few moments of awkward silence after I failed to convince the pale, dark-clad women of the immorality of whipping naked girls, and then they spoke up and said, "Strip."
"What?" I said, sounding childish and confused. I understood the word, but my emotions rebelled against it.
"You must strip before we take you to Verborgen," Leise replied, "You may not set foot on our territory until you are completely naked."
A mad moment of hope sprang to my mind and I desperately called out, "Wait! If I don't strip, does that mean that you'll leave me alone and I can just stay here with my family and friends?"
Leise and Getreu didn't even blink.
"No," Leise replied, "If you do not strip voluntarily, it means that my sister and I will be forced to strip you ourselves. Would you prefer that option?"
I most certainly did not prefer that option. I didn't relish the idea of those two grabbing me and ripping my clothes off by force. So, even though my hands were shaking, I almost immediately began to undress.
My shoes were the most obvious and easiest choice to start with. I slipped out of those and then blushed as I looked up and realized Anna, Kiko and two imposing females from a faerie kingdom were watching me. Next, I grabbed my t-shirt by the hem and pulled it off, over my head. I handed it to Anna and belatedly realized that I was undressing outdoors, and suddenly I felt even more exposed and vulnerable.
Apparently, I hesitated, as the Getreu then offered, "Miss Beck, if you're having trouble disrobing, my partner and I can help you."
Her tone of voice was polite, but the message was unmistakable. Either I take my clothes off without delay, or she would tear them off me by force.