I cuddled into Sam, her shapely curves cushioning me. The travel rug was our only modesty as we were bumped about on the backseat, the smooth leather providing no traction under our bare-asses. We had been travelling down twisting single-track roads for hours. We passed the last house around 10 miles back (if you could call it a house; a ramshackle croft turned holiday cottage, waiting out the lonely months till the life spark returned). We had seen no signs of life other than a few small herds of bedraggled goats, sheltering behind crags.

We peered ahead into the gloom as the car slowed. The waxing demon moon was just starting to show her face, the faint red glow felt eerily appropriate for the night we had planned ahead. I made a swift study of Col's handsome profile as he swung the car off the road onto a dirt track. His strong stern face suited his muscular, if stocky build. On first impression Col looks like he was born for the military, but while he was a strict disciplinarian by nature, a fighter he was not, or at least not in the physical sense of the word.

"We're here", he said a few minutes later. He drew the car under the partial camouflage of a dark copse. The trees provided sufficient cover for our purposes, in the remote likelihood of anyone else traversing the isolated countryside at that time of night.

"OK, out you get girls", said Jay; the dim gloom hiding his features, but highlighting his height and outlining his slender, yet strong, frame. Jay is my life-mate; ours souls are linked on another plain. His wily-strength and verging-on gaunt features, rough with stubble, are reminiscent of an ancient gunslinger from the west. His kind nature and cunning vast intellect are a constant source of intrigue and pleasure for me.

We stumbled out the backseat and the cool night air cut through us like a knife, our nipples immediately standing out, hard and insistent in the almost wintry nip. Looking up the stars sparkling on a bed of inky black velvet (a far cry from the ambient peachy ethereal glow of the city we were used to) sullied only by the blood red glow of the rising moon, her full face nearly present now, I let out the breath I had been unintentionally holding; the evening had begun.

Jay grabbed my loose long brown hair and wrapped the length around his fist, using it to pull me down to the earth. The intense pain made me react quickly, the damp grass and dirt felt slippery and gritty beneath me, with sharp twigs prodding and wet slimy leaves slurping across my skin.

He pulled my arms roughly behind my back and loosed my hair as he crouched down behind my head. I felt a coarse rough rope looping around my wrists, binding my arms, rendering them useless and me partially helpless. As he got up to move around to my front, I glanced over to where Sam was receiving the same treatment from Col and caught her eye, we smiled in mutual anticipation and I watched as Col started to wrap the uneven hemp rope around her leg just under the knee; the start of her leg rope. Jay had almost finished mine, he had left me enough rope for a small stride, just the right amount to be a hindrance but not a severely limiting; we had a long walk ahead of us.

Sam and I waited on the ground while the boys got their packs and locked up the car, we were eager to be going to try and warm up a bit, even summer nights in Scotland were cold and the wind was straight off the North sea, bitingly bitter at best.

They helped us to our feet and we all started along the path leaving the copse and the car behind us. We could walk double on the faint track and Sam and I took the point, or rather our nipples did! We set as quick a pace as our bindings allowed, which wasn't fast, and made progress towards the gloomy, slightly rising, slope that heralded the start of our journey to the Stanes. The Pictish site is remote and isolated, perfect for our ceremony.

We had been walking for some time and I was starting to feel the effort of traipsing barefoot and restrained. The coarse springy heather was catching at my ankles and the sharp tufts of tough grass were biting at my soles and heels. The landscape was heather as far as the eye could see, interspersed with large boulders, like rocks arising from a sea. Trees lined the distance on the right and ahead lay a steep hill, the top shrouded by the cloak of darkness. The moon, a large orange discus now, was full and ominous, rising to take her position as shining head of the sky.

Suddenly I heard a SWOOSH and felt a stinging brand of pain flash across my bum. Jay had picked up a thin whippy branch, to offer some "gentle" encouragement, the ache in my legs a minor discomfort compared to the searing welt forming on my backside. I heard a second SWOOSH and smiled as Sam got the same treatment. We picked up the pace and the boys grinned as they kept up the punishment, I could feel my excitement start to build and the delicious pain in my nether regions was threatening to consume my thoughts.

As we started on the almost vertical slope, the boys moved closer behind each of us to offer any assistance we might need. The going was strenuous, but not dangerous, that being said it was difficult to climb with our restraining bonds. At one point we needed the boys to carry us, Jay climbed up with both the packs first, while Col hoisted Sam over his shoulder and started to ascend. I waited at the bottom, I could see Jay at the top waiting for me and I felt moisture seep between my thighs as I looked at him in the moonlight, wondering what delights were in store for all of us that evening.

Jay left to grab Sam for the rest of the way and I could see Col making his way back down for me, I moved closer to let him grab my thighs and hoist me over his shoulder. I could feel the rough material of his shirt scratch against my nipples and his strong muscular shoulder was digging into my crotch. As he climbed, I swayed gently across his back, my need growing with every movement, the yearning for pinching biting pain on my nipples and receiving nothing but scratchy light contact, was making the entire tips of my breasts burn with aching desire.

I felt Jay's finger roughly push between my ass cheeks for a quick fondle before he hoisted me up the final section. It was too steep to manoeuvre with someone over your shoulder. Col helped a little by pushing up from below, my attraction to him was so strong I couldn't help feeling a tingle of warmth in my groin, at his fleeting touch. The end was in sight; the dark silhouettes of the stones were prominent in a clearing of dark slender firs.

Sam and I hobbled along the path and counted nine stones evenly placed in a large circle as we entered the mystical surround. The beautiful face of the moon in full glory with a slightly pinkish hue as her bottom grazed the swaying treetops. The stones appeared slightly dappled in this light and the magical feeling that had drenched us as we entered, grew as we drew near to the centre of the power. The grass was soft and only slightly damp underfoot; it felt like a cool lush carpet on our tortured soles.

The boys had us kneel while they removed the ropes from our arms, it felt good to have them free and we both started to shake them out, after we had recovered from the cramp of having them in one position for a period of time. They left us with the packs in the centre of the circle and went off in search of firewood.

"This is Amazing", said Sam, over her shoulder as she opened one of the packs and started to unload candles. I admired her form as she gracefully took the items out and placed them on the nearby ground. Her curly blond hair was bouncing around her head and I laughed as she kept sweeping it out the way. Her large breasts were swaying too; I couldn't help but stare at the huge milky white globes, sitting proudly, high and upturned. I could imagine sucking and caressing the gorgeous stiff pink nipples, hard now with cold, but later with need.

"I know, I can't believe how much effort the boys have gone to, I mean, look at all this stuff", I answered, as I extracted piles of rough hemp rope and some curious leather bundles from Jay's pack. I started to unwrap the largest of the bundles. The smell of leather is an aphrodisiac to me and I took a moment to inhale the hardworking aroma, allowing it to whisk me away to memories of pleasure. The heavy object soon slipped free of its wrappings, the polished metal glinting in the moonlight. "Sam, look at this", I whispered, holding up the beautiful ornamented chalice for her inspection, feeling the need to respect its beauty with an awed silence.

I passed it over so she could get a closer look. "This must have been really heard to find", she said. She ran her fingers over the intricate celtic knotwork design around the rim. It was impressive, but I was not surprised at it, I knew Jay had been planning this trip for ages and he had spent a lot of time of Ebay lately!

It was perfect for the ceremony we had planned; tonight we would be as one. 'Two couples joined and mirrored to four corners of a perfect square. Coming together for that night only, to exceed the sum of our parts, to connect to a different plain, a journey to the spirit world where none venture anymore.' Well that was Jay's description anyway, the rest of us were happy to go along for the undoubtedly fun and mind-blowing ride, most things involving Jay involved these two elements as well.

"Jay said he wanted candles over by the two biggest stones, he said to put them in a rough large semi circle around the bases" I called over to Sam. She set off with a bundle of candles and a box of matches. I heard the boys tramping around the undergrowth and guessed we had a bit of time yet. I grabbed the bottle of red wine and the cup and went over to help Sam secure the candles in the ground and light them.

I poured the wine into the chalice and placed the full cup and the remainder of the bottle in front of the stones. I positioned them directly between the two like an offering, as I had been instructed. I then busied myself with stabbing the candles into the ground. I heard the breaking of branches and the swishing of tramping feet get louder, as Jay and Col returned with armfuls of dry firewood. Col was also dragging a huge branch behind him, it had hundred of smaller branches protruding; sufficient fuel for the whole evening and I admired their strength for bringing such a massive weight.

Jay starting setting a fire while Sam and I broke off small twigs for kindling. Col went over and grabbed the pile of ropes before going to investigate the alter-like area that was beginning to emerge, the two large stones as focal points and the remainder of the circle creating an ethereal border of protection and security.

Jay got the bonfire going and in no time at all and Sam and I were starting to heat up from our chilly walk. I looked around the clearing, the blaze highlighting and shadowing objects in its flickering glow. The seven smaller columns of stone and the two large behemoths were reminiscent of a bejewelled-ring shape. Thick red candles shaped in a semi circle around the two great hunks of primordial rock, outlining and projecting a focal point to the key energy of the encirclement. The moon was gleaming bright white now, almost gazing down on us from her apex; it was time to begin.

Jay grabbed me and pushed me face first against the slightly larger of the two stones, the rough cold stone was hard and sore against my breasts, my cheek was pressed flat against the rock and I could smell the musky cool scent of earth and age upon the surface.

He quickly wrapped rope around my wrist and drew my arm around the boulder in a wicked embrace, he grabbed my other arm and before long I was hugging the huge rock. The angular outcrops cut into my arms and grazed my skin as I felt my legs forcefully spread and attached around the base, leaving me helpless. Sam was undergoing a similar fate beside me, our heads were facing each other, and I couldn't hep moan as I looked into her eyes and saw my desire mirrored.

The plan was simple; we were to have a lattice of belt marks all across the back of our bodies. Jay would make all the marks going from top left to bottom right and Col would make all the closing marks, top right to bottom left. They would each do one of us then swap so we had corresponding yet opposite welts; a symmetrical yet mirrored pattern.

Jay stood behind me with his belt raised as I anticipated the first blow, unable to do anything but think of its impeding arrival. The solid rock beneath me gave me a tangible link to the earth and I gripped it tightly as I heard the sweeping swoosh of the leather cutting through the air, a short sound drawn out in my mind as if I were at the epicentre of the spinning world slowed by my consciousness. The burning fiery line of pain bit across my back and I gasped, sucking in a taste of the age of the ancient granite beneath me.

My breath quickened into gasping pants as more blows rained down, like a goldfish gulping when extracted from its normally watery atmosphere, I struggled for life-giving oxygen. The piercing pain of the blows is sweet ecstasy, it conveys me up to the apex of agony and throws me into the cushioning cloud. The puffy wasps float me to the place where I feel the blows as rhythmic thuds, like a drumbeat urging me on and on before the exquisite ride takes hold again, this time sending me further, higher before the cloud wraps around in its luxurious cotton embrace. I have no sense of the physical, the mental takes control and my mind soars.

All too soon Jay was finished and Col took up his stance behind me, I glimpsed over at Sam but she was too far away in her in world to see me, I soon found the reason why. Col's muscular stocky build gave him a shorter but more powerful stroke; I could feel the difference immediately, more force on impact resulting in a more intense roller-coaster voyage.

Once again I could feel the pain clawing at my soul, threatening to consume me, but the time in the changeover had given me a few minutes to realise the throbbing need in my breasts and clitoris. A blow would land, I felt the thud and then the sting the fire would then spread with fast tentacles across my skin, consuming me. The impact sent my thoughts shooting, like a dart, directly to the three disconnected burning centres on my front that seemed to arise from my sea of sensation, like tall iron spikes from a fuzzy haze. The grating of the rough stone as my body rebounded against it, was almost too much to bear. The sandpaper-like surface tore layers from my nipples, leaving raw sensitive nerves that were conduits to the pleasure centre in my brain. My internal vision would snap back as each blow struck, then would immediately bounce to the effects on my front. Col took me further than Jay had ever done before, I had always sensed that Jay held back to protect me, I felt none of that unwanted restraint here. Each strike sent me on an overloading whirlwind of awareness, driving me wild. I needed to be fucked soon, the aching need clamoured to be filled.

I hadn't realised that Col had stopped until I felt his body pressing against my back of fire and his caressing breath upon my cheek. He whispered in my ear, "Well done little girl" I shivered at his voice, my floating mind used the sound as point of reference, an anchor to return me to the moment and my inner-core purred in satisfaction at the feeling of being dominated by such a strong force. I felt his hand reach between my legs, my excitement obvious in the multiple streams of telling release running down the rock face, like rivers of passion. I felt his strong fingers pushing up inside me; my body immediately gripped around them as I peaked in orgasm. All the pain, all the fire, all of me, centred in on one singular point, like my whole being was rolled into a cone the point of which burst a massive bulging balloon of endorphins that exploded obliterating my universe.

I felt Col start to undo the grasping bonds holding my arms. I gripped the rock to keep my balance as he untied my feet, the pull of gravity was a stronger force multiplied by my weakness and I was struggling to hold myself up. Col nursed me to a fuzzy reality and helped me turn around. He then had me lower to a seating position on the ground, my raw fiery back resting against the stone; the rock cooling and soothing on my burning welts for an instant before turning to awareness as the uneven surface, scratchy with lichen, made its presence felt.

When we were both seated Col and Jay went over to put some more wood on the fire. My glazed eyes watched without thinking as the glowing fiery trail of burning embers spiralled into the sky, dancing and winking like devil fairies flying off into the night, reaching up to the luminescent face of the moon, her glowing face ever watchful as she reached her zenith.

We got to our knees as they returned and kneeled in front of us, the offering wine and chalice at the centre of our quadrangle, the candles creating a smaller arc and the stones completing a bigger ring. We could all feel the power of the moment; all shapes were complete all cycles of the earth were about to be reborn. We had travelled our senses and had been returned to an altered state of higher awareness; each individual leaf rustling in the breeze, entwined to generate a roaring ocean of sound every nuance was amplified in our sensitive existence. We each placed a finger on the rim of the cup and our other hand of the shoulder of the person sitting next to us, we started to hum under our breath, the combined noise, vibrating our bodies and resonating in our souls, bonding our spirits and linking us on the path of hedonistic discovery.

Jay leaned forward and lifted the gleaming ceremonial object; filled with blood red liquid, it's inky oily substance highlighted and reflected, amplified by the moonlit glow.

"I give this as the owner" he said as he brought the ornamental vessel to my lips. I leaned forward to receive a sip; our joining formed a diagonal across the square points of our group. "I take this as the owned" I answered, licking a drip of the sweet pungent liquid from my lips. He reverently returned the chalice to the centre and we leaned back to our previous upright positions.