Act 3: Submission
As usual, Varassa woke up alone. Before retiring for the evening, she had summoned her scout commander, Maliveth, to her bedchamber. He had demonstrated reasonable skill at ulis'quarra, especially compared to the bumbling males the Matron Mother typically assigned to this outpost, and just as importantly he was smart enough not to overstay his welcome. One of these days she would reward his service—she might even grant him the honor of spilling inside her—but even a chosen servant of the Spider Queen couldn't ignore her duties forever, and right now it was time to get back to work.
After treating herself to a long bath in the steaming pools, Varassa donned her armor and then shared a small morning meal with the three acolytes serving beneath her. The steamed sha'veska stalks were nowhere near as delicious as the freshly-picked ones from the temple garden in Vel'shannar, but thankfully her new cook had the good sense to conceal their wilting flavor by mixing his mediocre ingredients together in a stew. Now more than ever, Varassa longed to serve in an outpost where supply shipments weren't so few and far between.
Once the meal was finished, she took a quick lap around the base-camp and supervised a handful of training activities before making her way to the Spider Queen's shrine. Under her close direction, the acolytes performed their daily rituals satisfactorily, though Varassa could tell they were all hankering to sacrifice one of the new surfacers as soon as possible. Most of their bloodlust was borne of simple jealousy, of course; they were envious of their mistress's new playthings. But Varassa really hadn't offered the goddess any gifts in quite some time, and sooner or later the Spider Queen would likely demand blood from someone or something. Perhaps, Varassa mused, she would ask the scout commander to choose his weakest warrior as an offering soon...
Evening rolled around quickly, and after another brief meal of mushrooms and greens, Varassa was finally free to return to the dungeon. The guard had rotated from the previous night, but he looked every bit as bored as his counterpart.
"Priestess," he said, dropping to a knee as she approached.
"Have my pets misbehaved?" she asked.
"No, mistress. They have not attempted escape."
"You left the gate unlocked as I ordered?"
"Yes, but they made no attempt to leave."
Varassa grinned. "You fed and bathed them?"
"The male, yes," the guard confirmed. "The female was left alone, as you instructed."
"Excellent. You have pleased me, male. Continue to do so, and perhaps I shall grant you an hour alone with her."
His lip twisted in disgust. "I have no wish to touch a niskaru whore..."
"You would refuse a gift from me?" Varassa asked, her voice cooling dangerously.
"N-no, of course not, Priestess," he blurted out, realizing his mistake. "I will serve as you require."
"I should hope so. This camp has no room for a disobedient male. If I give you the order to fuck that mongrel, I expect your cock to be inside her as quickly as you can open your trousers. If I order you to clean the prison floor with your tongue, I expect you to be on your knees and licking before I finish the sentence. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Priestess Varassa," he said, nodding. "I meant no disrespect."
"Good. Now I intend to visit our prisoners. Make certain I am not interrupted."
Varassa strode into the dungeon without waiting for a reply. The scene below was nearly identical to the way she'd left it: Solemi remained prone on the bed, wrists fastened behind her back and legs splayed in the air. Weylin's dried seed covered her from chin to cunt at this point, and there were enough new splotches that he had clearly taken her several more times during the night. He stood up the instant Varassa rounded the corner.
"Good evening, my pets," she said. "I trust you slept well?"
"Yes, mistress," Weylin told her as he shuffled to the center of the room and took a knee. He had clearly learned his place after just a single day; apparently not all surface males were as obstinate and prideful as she'd been led to believe.
Smiling, Varassa conjured her shimmering whip and approached him. The sudden illumination, dim though it was, forced him to blink awkwardly for a few seconds before he leaned down and kissed the tip of her boot.
"Good boy," she said. "Did you have fun with your mate after I left you? Did you punish her further?"
"Yes, mistress."
"I thought as much," Varassa said, rubbing her fingers through his hair. After a moment she pivoted back around and stepped over to the bed. "What about you, cunt? Did you enjoy being used like the whore you are?"
Solemi muttered something into her gag, and Varassa grunted in amusement before dragging her whip across the girl's breasts. Once again her pale surface flesh prickled in anticipation.
