The multi-faceted land of Perversia contains many strange rituals and beliefs throughout its sprawling continent, but perhaps none are so strange as the marriage ceremony of the village of Tarr. For within the stone walls that protected the inhabitants of Tarr from raids by the beastmen, the ceremony of marriage was one which involved the worship and involvement of an ancient tree. This tree -a gift to the village of the Earth Goddess, or so the elders claimed - was instrumental in joining husband to wife.
Once a man of Tarr had been assigned his wife from the pool of unmarried virgins in the village - a decision taken by the Elders, naturally - both bride and groom were led to the Tree of Conjoining. It was here that, in view of the Elders, the bride and groom would consecrate their marriage. The groom would do so by inserting his erect penis into a narrow hole in the tree on one side, whilst the bride opened herself to the phallic-like, smooth protuberance on the other.
With their arms around the circumference of the tree, holding hands as the tradition dictated, both bride and groom then, by the light of the moon, had their fill of pleasure from the Tree of Conjoining. This ceremony - as stated, one of the strangest to bless Perversia - ensured that the bride and groom recognized their subservience to the Earth Goddess first and their obedience to the Elders of Tarr second.
The fact that the notoriously fickle Earth Goddess cared not a jot for this ritual and that the Conjoining Tree was no more holy or magical than a common pebble was something the Elders were more than happy to ignore.
It was this tree that Shay of Tarr stood before one night whilst the rest of the village slept. By her side, her best friend Darla was goading her on.
"I dare you," Darla whispered into her friend's ear as they stood side by side, each taking warmth and comfort from the other. Shay hesitantly took a step towards the Conjoining Tree, looking around for the tell-tale signs of candlelight from any of the nearby stone houses. There were none, however. The village was asleep, and Shay and Darla were the only two awake.
"I'm not sure..." Shay replied.
"Touch it," Darla urged, "it cannot harm us."
Shay observed with a mixture of curiosity and superstitious fear the low-lying phallic protuberance at the base of the tree. A smooth wooden offshoot, it stood as tall as the width of a man's hand, and was slightly less thick than the pole the village girls danced around in summer. The end was rounded, and equally as smooth as the rest of it. Shay wondered if it had always been so smooth, or if generation after generation of women marrying had caused the wooden phallus to become worn down to its current evenness. Perhaps once it had been much larger, and with gnarled protuberances, but countless wet pussys riding up and down it had gradually reduced it to its current size.
"First you, and then me. And then we shall be married," Darla urged.
"It is forbidden," Shay muttered.
Darla pouted, "The Elders have forbidden so many things that it is a miracle any of us are still allowed to breath. Tarr is such a backwater. Why, in Shareem the marriage of two women is perfectly normal - and more than two if they wish it. If the Elders allowed us to be trained as Holy Courtesans, we would be considered strange if we did not do such things. And we could do all of them together."
Shay grinned at her friend's saucy tone. Not for the first time she wondered what it would be like to lay with both her friend and another woman, or with two other women. Or for both of them to lie together with a man. Or two. Or for the two of them to lie with a large number of people, as they had been told by a passing bard was normal in Shareem. Ever since Darla and Shay had begun their illicit affair, the two young women had taken much pleasure fantasizing together of the various ways in which, free of Tarr's archaic laws, they might enjoy themselves.
The truth was that Darla and Shay were much alike; two young women on the cusp of marriages to husbands neither wanted, they had reached out to each other. Consoling themselves on the choices the Elders had made for them had rapidly escalated to love-making, which in turn had led to declarations of love. Indeed, so frantic and passionate had their discreet activities become that Shay was no longer sure that either of them qualified as a virgin any longer. The law of the Elders stated that, until a man had taken a woman she was a virgin, with the Conjoining Tree acting as an intermediary. Despite this, Shay no longer felt in the slightest virginal. Instead, she felt lustful and full, a woman as made by her friend.
And now they had decided to marry each other, at least in secret.
No matter what occurred the two of them would marry each other first. This was the agreement they had made. Practically, to do this according to the law of Tarr, it required them to engage with the Conjoining Tree.
Of course, it had been Darla's idea, but Shay was more than agreeable to the notion, at least in principle. Over the past weeks, Darla's fingers, tongue, various vegetables and the lovestick they had fashioned had inspired Shay's body to heights of pleasure that, with her own fingers, she hadn't discovered before. The lust that the two provoked in each other was like a wild force of nature, with inventive words whispered in each other's ears stimulating both of them to further heights of passion.
Were it not for the foolish rules of Tarr, Shay would have no hesitation in marrying her friend. As it was a clandestine ceremony seemed to be the only way they express their belonging to each other.
Shay took a quick, last glance around the darkened village and then hesitated no longer. She approached the tree, her pussy already starting to grow wet. This forbidden act was arousing to her, she realized. She bent down and placed the wooden protuberance in her mouth, licking it and letting her saliva wet the thick shaft. Her heart beating so loudly she was sure the village guard would hear it, she lifted up her simple skirt and positioned herself over the wooden, horn-like phallus.
Above her, the branches of the Conjoining Tree swayed in the wind.