Riding the Gauntlet

Chapter One : The Harem

Lea was a young woman of the Horalle tribe, a tribe that wandered the plains, finding food and shelter for their herds of cows and horses. They were known as the best for raising and training horses for the mighty Brukeval, King of the Plain lands. His mighty empire was rich and strong, and he ruled all people in his domain with harshness and cruelty. It was said that his city even had new inventions from northern lands, the kind that Lea's people could hardly understand -- they and their people had hardly changed in many centuries of wandering with their horses.

One day, the leader of her tribe had his men gather together the horses that would be brought to the city for trade, for things like metal cookware, silks, foodstuffs, and some of the new things, like cooking stoves that used large batteries that were one of the new inventions at the King's city.

Lea was an orphan and had been raised with the leader's children until she became of age and was lodged with the other young woman of her tribe. All unmated women of her tribe shared the maiden's lodge, with some of the older women who no longer had mates, and it was they that taught the young women all they would need to know to be good mates for a man of their own tribe someday.

It was a surprise for Lea to find out that she would be one of the women chosen to accompany the men to the city. Usually it was only the older women who would make the trip, cooking and caring for the men whose duty it was to herd the horses that would be traded. The maidens of her tribe were rather isolated from others until they were mated to a man that the leader had chosen for her. But she was pleased and excited and nervous all at once, wondering what a great city would look like.

Lea traveled for many days with her people until the city came into sight. It was huge! Large, stone walls surrounded a massive amount of space where there were many, many people. Lea had never seen so many different people. There were many already set up outside of the walls, selling their goods. She had never seen so many things in her life. So many glorious colours of cloths and silks, pins and needles and threads of many colours, pots and pans and dishes and furniture were everywhere, and the people all were yelling and shouting to get attention to what they had to sell.

The leader of her tribe had left most of his men with the horses quite a distance from the city. Lea knew this was because the animals would have been very frightened and difficult to control to try to bring them through this crowd into the city. She wondered why she was allowed to join the leader as he entered the city gates, but was fascinated and frightened too by the many sights.

After a short time walking, her leader and one of his men went to a large stone dwelling, ducking inside. Lea waited outside with the other two men that had come along. She was glad of their company, because the noise and the people were frightening, especially some of the strange men that were staring and leering at her. She was dressed simply in a long robe that was tied at her waist, sandals on her feet, and her sleeves hung down long enough that she could cover her hands as well to protect her fair skin from the sun. Her hood she pulled up high to cover more of her pretty face and dark hair from these strange and frightening men. She thought it strange though that her two companions rarely spoke to her, hardly even glancing at her, but they made sure that no other men came near her.

After a short wait, the leader returned outside with a man from the building. He was dressed richly in silks, with gold stones and threads elaborately sewn into the cloth. His head was covered in a rich headdress with small shiny bronze bits flashing in the sun. He looked Lea over, from her head, all down her body to her feet, then reached forward and grasped her chin to better see her face. She was shocked and nervous, but the leader motioned her to be still while this stranger looked her over. The man let go of Lea and began speaking to the leader in a language that she didn't understand. They were haggling, bargaining, Lea assumed for the horses held outside of the walls. They spoke for a time, back and forth, until some agreement was made and a pouch of money was handed over to the leader.

Then the leader looked to Lea. He told her that he had arranged a mate for her! Lea was terrified, she knew none of these people, and this strange man was frightening. She knew nothing of living in a city and wanted nothing to do with it! She began to plead with the leader; she wanted to return to her tribe! The leader's face became hard and he listened to her pleading. He cut her off with a gesture of his hand, and told her that it was done. She would go to King Brukeval as his newest wife! Her mating had secured wealth and prosperity for her tribe and she would be dutiful to her leader and to her new mate.

Lea tried not to break down in miserable tears. She had had no idea that this would happen to her when she came to the city. She wanted nothing more than to return to her people, but she must obey her leader. She was told to go with the trader, and that he would bring her to the King, and with that the leader and his men walked away, big smiles on their faces knowing how much wealth was in that pouch. She had been sold.

The trader lead her deeper into the city, and she followed in misery, barely looking around at the sites near her. She realized that they were nearing a large wall, and wondered if it was the wall of the city. When she looked up, her jaw dropped. It was a great, beautiful palace! It was massive and golden and pink from the stonework and towering peaks with copper and gold and iron!

The trader lead her to a door, guarded by two large men wearing only loincloths and head covers, but the cloths were of beautiful silk, with golden chains tying the material closed. They listened respectfully to the trader, and then they were lead inside.

Lea waited with the trader in a good sized room, stone walls smooth, and there was a pitcher of cool tea and cups waiting. The trader pointed to it and said something in his language, so Lea poured a cup for him and served him. That seemed to be what he wanted as he sat down on one of the sumptuous cushions scattered on the floor.

After a short wait, an older woman entered the room. She was dressed in silks and was veiled over her face, but she carried herself with pride and strength. They greeted each other as the woman sat, then to Lea's surprise the woman spoke to her in her own language.

"Girl, I am Marianna, Chief of Wives to King Brukeval. You have been sent to be his newest wife. I will bring you to the Harem, and teach you how to be a good wife to the King." Marianna's voice was soft, but with a hardness that would not allow anyone to argue. Lea was too frightened to do anything but nod, yet strangely happy that at least the Chief wife could speak to her in her own tongue.

Lea was lead by the Chief Wife through many hallways and passed large rooms, all gorgeously done up with polished stones and bright lights and rich carpeting and many statues and vases, some of gold! What wealth was here that she had never before seen in her life?

The Chief Wife was also followed by two men that were dressed the same as the two guards that were at the entrance door. Before long, she was lead to two massive doors; all in pounded bronze that shown a rich reddish light in the sun. There were other guards here too, and they opened the door for the Chief Wife to enter.

Lea stepped into a room that could only be called sumptuous and decadent. It was a massive room, with silk draperies everywhere and polished stones and many areas of rich carpeting and thick, soft cushions for lounging. There was a great fountain of water right in the room, with a large pool of water. There were many young women dressed in little more than veils over their bodies, their hair done up richly with golden chains and gems studded throughout. Many stopped and watched Lea walking through these beautiful rooms with the Chief Wife, some smiling, some frowning, and many whispering behind their hands. Lea was nervous about all of these women, wondering who they all were.

There were curtained areas that looked like sleeping areas, and Marianna showed one area to her. "You are to sleep here, in the wives area. The King's concubines sleep across from us in their area, and the guards do not sleep here at all. Come to me in my chambers and I will instruct you for tonight."

Lea nodded and dutifully followed, wondering how one man could have so many wives and concubines. It was unheard of. The men of her tribe sometimes had more than one wife, but none had concubines. It was strange, and it made her think of the stories told about the King's appetites, how he had to have so much for himself, be it land, power, wealth, food, and now she could see, comfort and women. It made her uneasy.

The Chief Wife led her to a richly done area, surrounded by beautiful silk hangings that created a large room. Many hangings were pulled aside to allow the breezes form the large windows in the room. From here, she could see most of the huge room, including the fountain and pool, as well as many other lounging areas where women lay back, fanned by boys dressed as the guards had been, eating sweetmeats or fruit, most glancing at her and Marianna, some quietly, some openly.

"These will be your duties," Marianna began, after seating herself upon her cushions. She did not invite Lea to sit. "Tonight with be the ceremony and you will be wed to the King. There will be many guests, and many of the women of the harem will be called upon to entertain the guests. You will be submissive, do as you are told, and above all, please the King or he will toss you out or give you over to his soldiers for a toy. You would not like such a fate.

"The women here are only for the King to touch, only for his own pleasure, but we often provide entertainment in whatever fashion the King desires. If the King chooses to give his guests any women, it will not be from this group. You are never to let any man other than the King touch you, nor even be in this room. You will not leave this room without permission."

Lea thought for a moment, and asked, "What about those guards, near the doors?"

"The are eunuchs, the King's Guardians of the Royal Harem. They know their duties and would not trouble any woman here. You are to obey them as you do me.

"You will be cleaned and dressed for the ceremony. You will do as you are told, without any argument, especially not to the King. Do you understand?"

Lea quickly nodded, not wanting to have this hard woman upset with her. She was allowed to go and wandered into the central area where many women had congregated. She saw some to go the Chief Wife. None come to speak to her. She was lonely and nervous, not knowing what to do with herself.

One of the young women that had been with the Chief Wife came to her and smiling, took her hand and led her to the pool. Lea spoke a few words, but the woman only smiled and her and gestured toward the water. She removed the simple pretty dress that she had been wearing, and Lea saw that she was completely naked underneath. The woman took the steps down into the water, gesturing for Lea to come.

Lea looked around her fearfully, at all of the women who were now watching her, and the guards nearby. She had never removed her clothes in front of so many people. The woman of her tribe always washed separately from the men, but even all of the women of her tribe were not nearly as many as all of the woman watching her now. She flushed a bright red, from her face all down her neck and her chest. She knew that she had to obey but did not want to disrobe here, with no privacy. She clutched her clothing to herself tightly and shook her head. The woman pouted, and pointing to the guards said something that Lea didn't understand. Lea shook her head again. The woman sighed, and called to the guards. Two of them came over to the pool. Lea knew that if she didn't do as she was told, those man would make her. She quickly removed her sandals and untied the sash of her robe. The men stood near her and waited. She could feel the blush get darker and redder in her face. She quickly ducked out of her robe, dropped it where if fell and almost tripped down the steps to get into the pool.

Her skin was silky, a shiny honey colour, with a dark bush of hair between her legs, matching the dark colour of her hair, and the darkness of her eyes. Lea could see the guards staring at her, with small smiles on their faces. One picked up her discarded clothing and they walked away. Lea was almost frantic! She was naked here with all of these people watching her!

The young woman waded over to Lea and took her hand with a gentle smile. She pointed to herself and said,"Gisaine". Lea, distracted by her fear and grateful for the kindness of this woman, pointed to her the same way and told her own name.

Gisaine smiled, almost looking like a pixie, with her long dark mane of black hair, cute nose and smiling eyes. Her skin was dark, like smoke and her skin was oh so smooth. She had a tight little body, soft and silky with pert breasts, and hard nipples. Lea hadn't been trying to stare, was only amazed at Gisaine's disregard for her public nudity, but noticed that Gisaine had no bushy hair between her legs! Lea had no idea how that could be, but didn't know how to ask.

Another young woman entered the pool, completely naked, her shining skin more fair than Gisaine. She had a soft smile and seemed completely at ease there in the pool. She brought a few things in her hands over to Gisaine. Gisaine picked up a cloth and rubbed a soft soap into it, and began to wash Lea, starting first with her arms, then with her back. Lea felt very strange, never having such a thing done to her before by another person. She felt very shy, but strangely, her heart began to beat harder, and she felt a mild pressure between her legs. The same pressure she woke up with sometimes when she dreamt of different men of her tribe, dreaming of mating with one of those men. She was confused. This was a woman, why should she feel this?

Gisaine carefully shampooed and rinsed Lea's hair and Lea felt shivers of delight from the woman's soft ministrations. Then Gisaine led Lea to the steps and motioned for her to sit. Lea did, feeling more comfortable now that she was not the only naked woman in the pool, especially after seeing some of the others wearing so little that their bodies were nearly completely visible beneath their flimsy veil coverings. She didn't understand why they were so scantily clad, but it eased her fears. The other woman sat behind Lea and pulled her back so that she was leaning against her belly, between her legs. This felt strange to Lea, having never before such intimate contact with anyone.

Gisaine sat Lea on a step high enough that most of her body was out of the water, and began to soap and wash the rest of her body. The other woman used soapy hands to gently massage mildly scented oils into her shoulders and back, massaging away the tension that Lea had been feeling. Gisaine pushed Lea back a bit so that she was reclining against the steps, and her breasts were arched out, her wet nipples hard and tight in the air. Gisaine softly rubbed the soapy cloth over her breasts, cupping her breasts and running her fingers over those tight nibs of nipples. Lea barely managed not to moan at the sensations of those soft fingers. Gisaine soaped lower and lower, over her tummy and her torso, all down her legs to her feet. The feeling of someone soaping her toes gave her shivers that she felt all up her legs and strangely, felt a pulling at her loins. Gisaine worked slowly up Lea's legs, feeling the tension in her legs as she got closer and closer to her pussy.

Lea gasped and almost jumped up and the first touch to her skin between her legs. The other woman behind her, gently pulled her down and reaching around, began to rinse the soap from her breasts and belly, then using the oils began to massage the scent into her skin, rubbing her breasts and nipples from behind. Gisaine felt Lea relax, and using her fingers, softly soaped the bush spread out before her. Lea could feel those fingers and a great heat coming from her and gasped as Gisaine flicked her finger over that hard nub between her legs. Oh, the feelings were huge, hard in her body. She didn't know what it was or how it came to be there, but she didn't want it to stop. There were hands playing and teasing her nipples and rubbing her breasts, and she felt Gisaine begin to rub oil into her pussy. She felt fingers running along that secret, narrow slit of her womanhood and shivered in delight, another low moan coming from her lips. Her legs were held spread with Gisaine nestled between them and the woman began to play with Lea.

Lea moaned and arched her back as she felt fingers enter her pussy, which was wet and slick, from her or from the oils, she didn't know. She felt the flicking on that hard nub and jumped a little at every flick and the pressure from those fingers, entering and pulling from inside of her just building and building. She couldn't think or see or hear she could only feel those hands on her body.

The pressure mounted and she went rigid, her whole body tensing as Gisaine began to move her fingers more rapidly inside of her, and flicking and rubbing that hard nub, and those fingers pulling and pinching at her nipples all gathered together between her legs and she cried out, feeling a great pulsing and grasping of her pussy around those fingers. She pulsed and pulled, crying out in pleasure as waves moved through her from that center of strong heat and pressure, all throughout her body.

Lea slowly came to herself, realizing that she was still in the pool, and that many of the other women had come closer to see what was happening, and gasping in air, also realized that the Chief Wife was there as well, nodding in approval with a satisfied smile on her face. Lea wondered what that meant and shivered again at what might happen next.