Nobody tried to stop Foxy when she entered the viewers' gallery high above the auditorium. Either because she didn't have a collar and was free to do so, or because she had her rifle slung over her shoulder. It was strange, the stage was set in the middle with seating all around it with no clear path to reach it. Furthermore, although she could see Liddy, she had a hard time listening to her talk with the men seated around her. The acoustics in the whole room seemed to mute the viewers but amplify the stage, she could hear the servant pouring water into a glass on the podium clearly. Slowly she walked around the gallery, twitching her ears to try and pick up what Liddy was saying. The whole process made more difficult by the talking crowd but also how little Liddy was able to get a word in. She had lost track of her in the mix and leant over the railing to find her when she caught an earful of Liddy laughing at some lame joke. The voice didn't seem to come from the same direction of Liddy once she laid eyes on her again but it didn't matter.
"Here?" Hannah asked, admiring Foxy from the rear as she bent over.
"Yes, but only if I lean forward. If I stand back up," Foxy did so, "I get nothing."
"Well then, I'll keep the hands off you while you work." Hannah waved at Inky who directed the rest to hang out at the door closest to their perch without entering the gallery.
"What about yours?"
"No promises. Your fur is so soft."
****
Liddy decided against stabbing the presumptuous hand on her thigh with her hairpin. A screaming man flailing around with blood everywhere would be noticed. What bothered her was that she had been pleasantly flirting with the man on her left when the one on the right got jealous. Ignoring him, she scanned the gallery and quickly spotted Foxy leaning over the railing, showing off some furry cleavage. She cocked a quizzical eyebrow at her and received a shrug in reply before noticing Hannah behind her, who was shamelessly checking her out.
The gallery darkened and Liddy lost sight of Hannah but could still make our Foxy as the murmur died down. The man who had been setting up and pouring water on stage suddenly lowered into the floor. When the floor rose again, the Lord Captain himself rose with it in a fine suit.
"Welcome everyone!" His voice carried throughout the seating.
"Finally! The waiter has arrived!" Someone shouted from the lower seats.
Laughter flowed from the rest of the attendees and not least of all the Lord Captain himself.
"How many times do I have to tell you, uncle?" The Lord Captain asked. "Just because I fetched you drinks at all hours of the day as a boy, does not mean I'm a waiter." More laughter, followed by a call for silence with his outstretched arms. "Now that we have established that I am not here to serve drinks, I would like to officially announce the start of the meeting we have all come here for. Last year, we spoke on many things, yet a great deal has happened since then. Far more than usually happens in a year. The escalating conflict of war and the rise in war material manufacturing, the disruption and sometimes outright banning of the slave trade. The ember shortage, and even monsters threatening every level of the populous. Now, there are of course general matters of business to discuss alongside these issues, but they will be saved for later. The first topic to be discussed is the war. For that, I turn the floor over to Sir Modar Clat."
The Lord Captain nodded to the man he introduced as the light fell upon his seat. He stood and bowed to the Lord Captain. Liddy was certain she had seen him earlier, watching her girls walk by. Liddy listened to the man drone on about specific battle lines and so on but, without a map, it was tough to follow. The only thing she clearly understood was that almost every city was involved in the conflict across the whole of the old empire. For as much as he talked about military matters, he was clearly not a soldier. His clinical detachment, while he talked about casualties, gave it away.
"He was eyeing us earlier, tap whoever thinks he was staring at them the most," Liddy muttered, she saw Foxy nod and stand up to whisper to Hannah who was presumably still behind her before coming back over the railing.
****
Inky hadn't much care for the man behind her but appreciated that he was doing his share of the work thrusting into her as she rocked backwards in rhythm. Holding her by the hair, he laughed as she squealed at each thrust that yanked harder on it. She would have enjoyed the mirror facing her more if he had been more attractive, but it was a pleasing enough sight to see herself with anyone bringing her pleasure.
"Like that soldier girl?" he grunted the words out.
"Yes sir!" she answered firmly but with a touch of grateful begging.
With that, he couldn't take it anymore and started to mutter like he was trying to calm a horse as he pulled out and deposited his seed all over her back. Inky smiled and he mistook it for something other than her satisfaction at manipulating him. She lost the pool; she had bet she would have been the second woman to take a speaker after Hannah, not the first.
****
When Sir Modar was finished, the lights dimmed on him and the focus was once again on the Lord Captain.
"Thank you, sir, that was most informative." He might not have been lying, but Liddy knew a patronizing smile when she saw one. "It is interesting to note how you speculated that some cities are forming alliances. Anyone have any comments to add?"
The lights moved to a man the Lord Captain pointed out who had raised his hand. "I've been finding that cities that either already share resources or are simply strong trading partners have avoided conflict, despite the proximity, only to engage more distant foes. I could see cities, in this case, formalising an alliance."
The lights moved to another. "Not to suggest that what was just said is false, I have witnessed the exact opposite. However, in such cases, it seems that the cities have shared strong rivalries in the past. If we are to plot potential alliances, we must consider how the people perceive their neighbours and not just the nobility."
There was some noise of agreement as well as resentment that the opinions of commoners be taken into account, but they were soon silenced.
"All so true." The Lord Captain took back control of the room. "However, these wars all sparked from the idea that there is a shortage of ember. To speak with us on that, I present Clerk Michal Roads. One of the most senior bureaucrats from the capital, who thankfully survived recent events. Since the capital has avoided conflict and shows no signs of getting involved, he will tell us why."
Liddy saw the man in a simple grey suit, nervously standing and struggling to speak.
"Hello everyone, I know I'm not the usual type you hear from." He took a nervous pause until a friendly smile from the Lord Captain urged him on. "Well, as far as I can tell, production from the capital mines as well as other cities we keep track of is not suffering. If anything, rates are higher since everyone is in a scramble to collect it. Simply put, there is no shortage to speak of."
Some confused murmurs interrupted him. Liddy took advantage of the pause.
"Whoever wants him," she said quietly. "Probably knows more than he's letting on or will be allowed to say. Either way, I think he needs some stress relief. A man that young shouldn't look like he's about to have a heart attack."
****
Easy rocked her hips back and forth as she gently massaged the part of the man inside her. He seemed torn between watching her breasts move in front of him as he touched them and her fluttering wings.
"You were so brave, talking in front of so many people. I'd have squeaked something and frozen right up." Easy kissed him and gave him a soft smile.
"Lots going on today I'm not used to," he mumbled. "I can't imagine what drew you to me. Talking in front of people isn't brave considering what others can do."
"Bravery isn't doing dangerous things, it's doing things you are afraid of. You had the most trouble of anyone speaking today and you did it. That's why I knew I had to meet you. Then you had to go and be friendly to me, an Emberborn, and I knew you were something special."
"Well it just seemed proper, to be kind I mean, I just..." he stopped the moment he lost control.
Easy felt his seed inside her, flowing through the grip she had on his shaft. She kept her face pleasant, but inwardly she chided herself for finishing too quickly. He did grip more firmly onto her breasts and she took a moment to just enjoy herself until he was ready to talk again. She would need to be more careful going forward.
****
Liddy watched the man sit back down as the room turned to shouted questions all asking various questions until the Lord Captain called for quiet and pointed someone out.
"I can vouch for production being as high as ever. I have four mines, and the only one that's exhausted its ember was because it ran into a major gold vein. So, not a loss really for me, but it made me check. The number of closed mines this year is actually lower than the previous years. Maybe we are all just trying to explore them more but production is higher, even if you don't count new mines built this year outside the yearly average."
Liddy sighed as he launched into some statistics before sitting back down. The next few speakers that were given the floor made similar statements. The current speaker talked about the production of weapons and made some comments about the new vehicles being used on the front lines. Maybe it was the look on his face as he described their killing power, or the fact that he failed to stop himself from drooling at their increased use, that Liddy knew what to do.
"All yours Hannah. Payback."
****
Hannah had to resist the urge to bite as she was slapped in the face repeatedly by his manhood as he laughed like a maniac. Just as she was about to try and ask him something, her mouth was filled when she opened it to speak and felt him push all the way down her throat. She hadn't been quite ready and choked a bit, and more tempted to bite down hard. He laughed at her sputtered coughing when he finally let her go and Hannah realised she had to win the game before she could ask him anything.
