Plaything of the Gods

CH2. The initiation.

The door to the main hall was open. I entered.

Women were seated in the main hall of the temple. They sat on comfortable pillows on the floor of the main hall, and their heads turned in my direction when I entered. A quick glance told me there were more then forty, so probably all inhabitants of the temple had turned up to see my initiation.

I turned my attention to the stage. By the way it was lit with candles I knew that the initiation would take place there. I walked up to the stage and ascended it, ignoring the women looking at me. I stood in the middle of the stage, facing the statue of Aphrodite, and waited.

I heard music, and knew that several of the women had musical instruments. I heard at least two drums and a harp, but decided not to look back to the women, but straight ahead to the statue. The drums reminded me for a moment of the war drums that were played during my initiation into Ares' service, but then set that thought aside. The tune they played had some importance, but it was nothing like the ferocious beating of the war drums. Their tune gradually increased, however, the musicians playing faster and louder. The music rose to a crescendo, and as their pace became nerve-wrecking. I decided that I should not be afraid. I held my head up high as the drums set a feverish beat. At last, with a final bang on the drums, the music stopped and the door behind the statue opened.

High priestess Leda entered and walked up to the stage. She was several years older then me, perhaps more then ten, and yet her beauty was breath-taking and somewhat otherworldly. She was tall, her skin slightly darkened, her figure slender yet round like a mature woman. Her hair was dark brown and long, stopping just above her hips. She wore a white, thin dress, which did nothing to cover her nakedness. The dress only put more emphasis on her huge breasts, her erect nipples clearly visible trough them. She wore a necklace of blue stones, and I immediately recognized it: it was identical to the one the statue of Aphrodite wore.

She walked up to me until she was but a few feet away. She was slightly taller then me, and I was not that short myself. Then she spoke.

"Aphrodite, immortal Goddess of Love, bringer of Lust, She whose beauty is unmatched, the bringer of children, Goddess of Fertility and Joy, calls. Who answers?"

"I, Michael of Thebe present myself before her." I knelt before the high priestess.

"Will you serve your Goddess with all the skill and passion you posses, will you follow her call as your command, obey her words as your laws. Will you do everything in your power to please her, in every aspect of your life, so that She may call you her loyal servant?"

"I will."

"Then rise, Michael of Thebe."

The words had not been so different from the ones spoken in my pledge to Ares. I rose to stand on my feet. I looked into the eyes of the high priestess. Her gaze was piercing, as if she tried to look into me, but I dared not lower my eyes.

"Close your eyes and clear your mind, Michael of Thebe, and let me see what you offer."

I closed my eyes and tried to think of nothing. It was not easy: even with my eyes closed, I was strangely fascinated with the woman before me. She was the embodiment of sex, somehow more female then any other woman I had ever seen. Her age did not diminish her beauty, as if the faint lines on her face only underlined her features. And somehow, her beauty was scary.

I knew she studied me in a way no one ever studied me before, and then she spoke again.

"I sense lust." Several women in the crowd behind me softly laughed as she put much emphasis on the word.

"I sense desire. A strong desire." More giggling sounded from behind me.

"There is not only a desire of the flesh, however. No, you have a strong desire to prove yourself."

I guessed that this public display was meant as a test, the reaction of the crowd showing how I was valued. I decided I could take it. A man of Ares never runs away from a challenge. Still, it was uncomfortable to be judged like this, amidst a group of strangers.

"Pride, yes, you have some too. It is only a thin mask, however. You don't yet know your true potential. You are still influential. But there is a lot of potential in you."

Approving sounds from the crowd, and some giggling. I knew she was truly judging me, and could really see some of my qualities. There was power in her voice, but something else too, as if she was telling the women behind me a joke I didn't knew.

"You can do great things, but this is not all I sense. There is uncertainty, doubt. You don't know your place yet, but you'll need to find it soon. And there is fear, too. He who wears himself as a great warrior is not beyond fear, even as he is surrounded purely by women."

The laughing sounded different this time, perhaps even crueler. I suddenly knew where the fear she described came from: I was not in command here. I might be a warrior and physically stronger than any one of them, but I was to be judged. The audience was my jury. My fate was in their hands, while during my initiation to Ares my own skills had decided my fate. I didn't like my own observation, but I knew it to be true.

"You are compassionate, kind. A bit naïve, too, but true of heart. Aphrodite values that. She has no place in her temple for people without the ability to love. If one cannot love, one is dead to the Goddess. However, being able to love means you're responsible for your actions to those you love, and those that love you. Disregard your responsibilities, and face the Goddess's wrath."

The crowd had become quiet. The high priestess was silent for a time before speaking again.

"Lastly, I sense shame. We need to cure you from that, for Aphrodite has no need for shame, and shame has no purpose when one serves the Goddess. We will soon find the reason for your shame, and we will try to cure you from it. Now, remove your clothes!"

It was a command. I loosened the dress, and it slid easily off my shoulders. I looked into her eyes, and her smile suddenly became triumphant.

"All of them."

My cheeks burned and the girls laughed as I slid down the shorts I wore. I tried to stand up straight again but my position was awkward. I did not want to admit to be so ashamed as to cover my private parts up completely again, but still could not help myself from holding my arms so that they half-obscured my nakedness.

The high priestess softly laughed too, but her tone did not contain any trace of viciousness. Then, she slowly walked around me. I held my head up high and stared into the distance. I tried to look at nothing, but I knew my cheeks were red with blood. The high priestess continued to judge me.

"Strong shoulders, yes. You have a good, slim belly and a firm chest. You trained and shaped your body well, warrior." Her slender fingers lightly touched the body she described, and it took me an effort of will not to move away from her touch. I tried to look forward.

"Your back is strong but oddly tight, warrior. You are not stressed, are you?"

Another tease for the crowd. She suddenly firmly touched my ass. This time, I could not help but move from her touch. She laughed again and then stood very close to me. She talked softly in my ear, her voice just loud enough for the other women to hear.

"You have a desirable body, young man, but you need to learn how to show it. You'll need to learn to use it."

She took a step away from me, and then completed her circle around me. My breath left me for a moment: while I had my back turned to her, she had silently slipped out of the thin dress she wore. She was now naked except for her necklace.

She bore her naked body with pride, as if to show me how it should be done. She pushed her shoulders backwards to openly display her large breasts. She slightly shook her hips to draw more attention to her folds, a line of dark hair above it. She slowly and sensually liked her red lips, as she saw how I could not help but take her figure in with my eyes. Then, her hand moved forwards and slipped between my arms. She took my erection in her hand as she continued to look into my eyes.

"Why are you ashamed, when you have got good equipment down here?" She asked. Her slender fingers ran down its length.

"You obviously find my body entertaining. Yet you are still so tense and reluctant when I invite you. Could it be?" She smiled as she interpreted my silence.

"Yes, it is! You are unskilled, untrained, unknowing in the ways of the body!"

I finally cast down my eyes, the women of the crowd loudly enjoying my humiliation. Leda didn't tease me with my lack of experience anymore, however, and moved her warm body closer to me. The hand she held on my erection slowly and skillfully moved up and down. The soft skin of her breasts lightly touched my chest, as her sensual lips moved to my ear.

"Do not be ashamed, my initiate. I will rid you of your fears; I will cure you of your shame. You are chosen by Aphrodite, and servants of the Goddess of lust are not ashamed, nor unknowing."

She pressed her lips to mine, and somehow my fears disappeared. She did not think less of me because of my inexperience, and she would guide me. I knew several women were yelling or whistling, but she held my focus now. She guided my tongue with hers as I returned the kiss, and I slowly touched her back and the side of her round ass as her hand teased my erection. Her other hand found mine and softly put it on her breast, encouraging me to fondle her soft flesh, my fingers touching her erect nipple.

She somehow managed not to let our lips part as she lowered us down, until I lay on my back and the floor as she sat on top of me. She ran her hands over my body, as I did the same to her. Her entrance touched my cock as she softly rocked her hips back and forth again.

She finally broke the kiss and she smiled at me fondly. A look of question was in her eye, a nod from me followed. She gave me at least a tiny bit of an illusion of control. She lifted her hips and used her hand to direct me towards the entrance of her folds. She lowered herself down, her warm pussy welcoming me as I entered a woman for the first time.

She was in full control as she moved her hips up and down, her hands on my belly for support. At first, only the head entered her, but as she slowly moved her hips, more and more of me entered her. She softly breathed out as most of my cock was inside her, apparently content, and then started to move her hips again. Without further instructions, I began moving my hips too, moving slowly and in the same rhythm as she. We found a nice rhythm together, and as I slowly began to breathe deeper I heard her breathing increasing too, a soft moan on her lips.

She leaned forwards, kissing me again as my hand explored more of her body. This time, I slowly increased the rhythm, my cock going more rapidly in and out of her pussy while my hands moved with more determination over her breasts. I played with her breasts, watching the signs of enthusiasm and joy on her face as I softly squeezed her left nipple between my fingers, while my right hand was squeezing the soft flesh of the other.

She broke the kiss again, but before she could sit upright again I stopped halfway, kissing both her nipples. She smiled to show she enjoyed that, and then sat upright again and began rolling her hips in a new way, sending waves of pleasure through my body. I put my hands on her hips and guided them into a faster pace, together increasing it until my hands brought her hips down so fast she slapped against my upcoming hips. A moan escaped her lips, she looked at me triumphantly and then she truly began to ride me.

We never held the same rhythm for long, but somehow flowed fluently from one pace to the other. She moved her hips in many ways, not just going up and down, but using the muscles of her hips to change the pressure on my cock constantly. She was always in control. She rode me like a master, like an Amazon would ride a young but willful horse. At one time, she was slowly and teasingly rolling her hips, and then she would increase until almost my full length moved quickly in and out of her.

My hands moved from fondling and squeezing her boobs to stroking her ass, and then stopping to guide her hips again. Her own hands would tease my body, her fingers stroking my abs and circling my nipples before she placed her hands on my chest for support, giving me more leverage to push in and out of her.

I almost forgot the other servants were there as well but a quick glance at their flushed faces told me they enjoyed the show as well. My mistress the high priestess would not allow me to be distracted for long, though. She brought her hips down with so much force I immediately exhaled, and I retaliated by using all the strength I had in my hips and abdominals to slam my cock in and out of her at maximum speed, before changing again to slower, deep strokes.

I was not sure how long it lasted, but I am sure it was mostly because of her skill and changes in speed I managed to last this long. It took a long time, but after a while a feeling in my stomach told me I wouldn't last much longer. She saw the change in my face and felt my muscles contract, but even though she said nothing her eyes told me to wait a bit longer. I nodded silently, telling her I would try, when a big smile came to her face. I clearly read the challenge: "See if you can keep up."

I bit my lip as I forced my body to give it all. I used my hands on her ass to force her to go faster, my cock pumping in and out of her as I made sure she felt my full length. She moaned and whimpered as she now had both her hands next to my body for support. I grunted as I refused to have it end. Her huge breasts bounced up and down in front of my head until I caught one of her nipples in my mouth. The necklace she still wore moved up and down out of control. Some of her long hair now stuck to her flushed face too, while I was sure my own face was now red with both exercise and focus to prevent myself from losing control.

Finally, as my testicles slapped against her round ass from the speed my hips created, I couldn't take it anymore. I grunted loudly as I finally came. I felt her pussy contract around my cock as I continued to shoot sperm into her. We kept moving our hips together and kept panting until the wave of pleasure finally lay down. I then noted several women wolf-whistling, yelling and making more noise as my hips finally halted on the floor.

She moved down as if to kiss my neck while I still tried to steady my breath. Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain just under my neck. I yelped in surprise, and Leda smiled guiltily at me while she withdrew something small and silver from her mouth.

I asked bewildered what it was she had done to me, while my fingers found a small wound on the left where my throat ended. She shifted her necklace and showed me a small ink-black scar she had on her throat, on the same place as where she had bitten me.

"Now, you belong to Aphrodite"

She pecked my cheek, and dismounted me and stood up. Suddenly, all the women were silent. I realized how much respect they had for her, and tried to find the strength to sit up straighter. The high priestess spoke:

"Michael of Thebe has passed the initiation and is now a servant of Aphrodite. As I said before, he is still unskilled and untrained, but he has proven he has enough potential to be one of us. With the Goddess' permission, we will now welcome him as one of our own."

I smiled. It was as close as a compliment I was likely to get. I had passed the trial. The ritual had drained me of my energy. As I tried to force my abdominals to obey me, I thought to myself that the initiation might have been less violent then Ares' initiation, it was not necessarily less exhausting.