Today hasn't really been my day.
Okay, so maybe this whole week hasn't been on my side at all. I've been ambushed, beaten, bound and shackled, drugged so I can't use my magic, and sent to who knows where. Maybe the captain knew, but he probably died with the rest of the ship as it sank in the storm this morning. Hell, the only good thing that has happened this week is that I survived the shipwreck, and I haven't decided yet whether it actually is a blessing.
You see, I washed ashore of the island of Azaries, the race of hermaphroditic, four armed, amazonian women. They, of course, didn't welcome me with open arms. Can't really blame them, though. Most people find my ashen skin and unnatural, red eyes suspicious enough, and those who don't, think I have either demonic blood in me or have done some infernal contract because of my more... unusual features. Granted, having a hidden third eye, spikes on my heels and a long, spade tipped tail may mean that there actually is demonic blood in me. But who knows.
And from what I've heard, Azaries have a pretty good reason to be wary of outsiders. The slave markets have Azaries pretty much on the highest demand, so it might be common that a few slavers try to sneak into the island to steal a couple of young ones, and any and all Azarie convoys to outside the island need to keep a low profile and stay on high alert in order to keep themselves safe. I once saw how all hell broke loose when a small Azarie convoy was discovered about a year back. Every wannabe raider crawled out of their hole and tried to capture the convoy.
Ended up helping the convoy to escape, but lost my staff in the process. I loved that staff. Still do. Buried so many weeks making it, and it had travelled with me for almost as long as I've been free. Haven't replaced it - out of sentimentality, really.
But now I'm shackled in a chair, flanked by two guards in a courtroom full of people, and sitting in front of the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. She's over a head taller than me - and considering that without my heels I'm already taller than a regular human, she towers over everyone - with a picture perfect face filled with freckles and lips that seem bee stung. Her knee-long hair shines in all the shades or red, and her skin has taken a bronze hue. Unlike normal Azarie, she has six arms, each well muscled but not obscenely so. Her free hanging breasts are as big as fully ripe watermelons, and her buttcheeks are at least as big, if not bigger, with hips like of a mother that has birthed many a child. Her legs are as muscled as her arms, if not even more so.
Queen Alicia, matriarch of the Azaries. And I highly doubt that she has heard of my "heroics".
"So, to what we owe this... unexpected... pleasure, stranger?" she asks, her voice having a melodious tint on it. "It is not often that we receive unannounced guests, and even less often are those guests coming with... benevolent intentions."
"My name's Kyrie, Your Majesty. I was captive on a ship that sank in a storm this morning. The sea brought me here. I have no ill motives, since coming here wasn't planned. I only wish to return home, if that would be allowed of me," I reply, keeping my head lowered in a humble manner.
"And why were you a captive on that ship? Did we get a hard boiled criminal walking in our land, hm?" she counters, her tone slightly teasing on her second question. Or maybe I just imagined that. Either way, it made me blush.
I don't feel like lying or withholding the truth would be in my best interest, so I answer honestly.
"I was to be sold as a slave, Your Majesty. My guess is that those slavers considered my... exotic... looks to bring about a hefty sum, not to mention my abilities in mysticism."
"So not only are you pretty, but you're a witch as well. Impressive," she says with a wink. Am I hearing her wrong? I look up at her, and see that she's smirking at me. My blush deepens and I can hardly believe what I'm hearing and seeing. The ruler of Azaries, one of the more reclusive races, is flirting with me. Just what is happening here?
"With all respect, Your Majesty, I deeply apologize my intrusion to your land. I will do my best to leave as soon as possible, so -"
"You will do not such thing!" The queen yells out, silencing me with a frightening glance. "You have come to our land uninvited, and you shall bear consequences for doing that!" She then takes a deep breath, and a serene smile returns to her face. "I am not without sympathy, of course. Your tale is saddening, and I won't punish you for actions that were beyond your control. Therefore, I'm going to give you a choice. Your first option is to stay on our island, as a... permanent guest. You will be subjected to all of our laws, but your status as an outsider will always remain. You won't be allowed to leave, but your movement in our island won't be anymore restricted than a normal citizen's."
I shift uncomfortably. "So what's my second option?"
Aaaand now she smiles at me. Gods, how can her smile look so evil and so seductive at the same time? "Are you aware of the hormone Azaries produce?" she asks simply.
That makes shivers run on my spine. The Azarie hormone - called the Love Goddess's Kiss - is a highly addictive aphrodisiac. Only one dose of it and you're pretty much addicted. Rumours say that it also strips the addict of his or her mind, turning them into a nymphomanic, submissive bimbo. While we don't always agree, I really like my mind, so I don't want to lose it.
"Yeah, I know of it. What about it?"
"While our saliva and sweat also contains traces of the hormone, biggest concentrations of it can be found in our semen and vaginal fluids" she says, and I try my best not to blush at that. "The reason I'm bringing this up is that your second choice is to accept my challenge: have sex with me, and take in as much of the hormone from it that you can. If by the week's end your body has rejected it, you'll be a free woman, able to leave on the first ship that sails out of here."
I gulp. "And if I don't make it?" I ask, even though I don't want to know the answer.
Alicia leans forward, and her smile blooms into a full out grin. Her eyes are sparkling from amusement, but I can see that behind the amusement there's something else, something that I can't make out. Perhaps the true motive behind this challenge of hers, which honestly seem pretty unreasonable. With a joyous but even tone, she says "If you don't, you will become mine."
... Okay, so the queen wants me to become her slave? That... actually explains the teasing and flirting. I guess that it's want and lust behind her amusement. But why would she desire me? While my demonic features might bring a good price in the realm of the common races, in here it seems rather doubtful. It can't be my looks, since I'm pretty gangly. My boobs are almost bigger than lemons and my butt barely has shape. Maybe it's my magic that she's after? But if it were that, then why try and turn me into bimbo? I need my mind to cast spells, and the addiction would take that from me. Or perhaps she doesn't want me to be able to use magic, instead wanting the magic itself. That might be the case, considering that I have ridiculous amounts of magical power. But it would also require her to know that, and it isn't that I heavily advertise such a thing.
Either way, this would provide a chance to get out of here. Were I to take the first option and try to leave regardless of that, it would be pretty hard. Since I don't know where I am exactly - nobody knows where the Isle of Azaries actually is - I can't really fly out of here. I don't know which direction I should be going, and how long I must fly in order to reach land. I would most likely get exhausted before reaching land. Transportation magic would not only have similar difficulties, but also it would require me to gather vast amount of power for a pretty long time to actually do it. The Azaries would notice it long before I would be done, interrupting the spell and making that route almost impossible.
Should I stay in the island instead?
No, that isn't a good option. I already know what's it like to live as an outsider. At least out there, I have the option to leave when the atmosphere becomes too hostile. Also, there's no telling whether someone would try to get me addicted then.
But at least then there's a better chance that no one will enslave me. On the second option the chances of me getting out are slim, so it's more likely that I'll become a toy for these people. I almost cry out as old wounds start aching again, and old fears return to me. No, I won't be a slave. Never again.
But I can't stay in a hostile culture, either. So, to take a risk or play it safe?
"... I accept," I say after a few moments, and Alicia's eyes sparkle with joy, even though her face still holds a calmer expression. She seems so sure of her victory. I try to keep a neutral expression in order to not give away my nervousness, and continue "When and where shall we proceed with this... duel?"