Chapter 19

The alarm came all too soon in the morning. David didn’t have much time before he needed to be in game.

It looked like he had a couple of items to take care of. The first was a note from Celebrex Security, detailing their success at protecting the biggest stars in Phoenix Rising, again forwarded by the company to preserve his identity.

David felt the knot of panic at the thought of his identity being disclosed loosen as he read the material. Celebrex focused on protecting their clients with minimal disruption of life. They started with small steps like making sure residential security systems were up to date and rapidly filing privacy letters with anyone who attempted to leak the locations of their clients. When necessary, they provided more intrusive services like package screening, security drones, and even guards. But as much as possible they tried to limit the impact on someone’s life.

The cost structure was also interesting. They did have a time and materials option. But they had a deal with Phoenix Rising call the assurance option. You paid a percentage of your game income and any external sponsorships. To get service, your income needed to be high enough, at least initially. After you bought in, though, you were given protection even if your income fell. Current stars ended up paying to keep past stars safe.

David laughed at one part of the note:

We get a lot of interesting requests, but this is the most unusual yet. We were asked to describe our services and tentatively offer protection with no knowledge of who you are in game or in the real world. We’ve done our best, but as you can see some of it is guesses.

You must be someone who has a lot of views, and who is stirring things up in game and outside enough to be really paranoid. So probably LordOfDisorder or Emperia Angelicus. At least based on people who’ve recently made enough of a stir in the real world that they would be looking at protection now. But hey, destroying a city or overthrowing an elven dynasty will get people excited in game, and of course some of that carries to the real world. We’ve based our tentative projections on that sort of controversy.

But we could be wrong. For all we know you’re some entirely new face like Ariel (an unknown player who opened up the whore class). You probably aren’t actually Ariel; we can’t find any reason for her to be this paranoid about her real-world identity. But as you can see, even with very little information, we can do good guess work. And we have excellent knowledge of who’s who in the Phoenix Rising world.

When you are ready to give us more information about your needs, we look forward to a consultation.

David dealt with a couple of issues for his job and then logged in.

From the Video Blog of Ariel, the First Immortal Whore

Today is the big day: my initiation. Jonathan performs a magical ritual and I gain the Whorecraft skill.

That is what Whores use as the basis for their sex magic abilities. I’ll definitely get Cure Disease and Remove Pregnancy as spells, because all Whores have them.

A big part of the skill is tracking and recording the last few moments of a whore’s life. The guild learns where their members die and how. With that, they can punish anyone who forces or kills their members. That’s less of a big deal for immortal whores, since we will return to tell the story.

And of course there is the change in status. Under guild law, I’ll be able to receive payment for my services without gaining the enmity of the Whores Guild.

I’m excited. I’ve worked hard for this. After my initiation, I will have more freedom in what I can do.

Florence is waiting outside my room. “Annika asked if I could come take you over for your initiation.”

“Annika?”

“Master Annika Kessler.”

“I guess I assumed Bruce and you would take over your students.”

She shakes her head. “Remember Master Kessler is your trainer now.”

Oh, right. That will take getting used to. I knock on Nathan’s door, but there is no one in his room. “I wonder where Nathan’s off too.”

“In here, just a minute.” Nathan’s voice comes from Susan’s room. he emerges, still fastening his robe.

“Will Master Kessler be joining us for the initiation?”

A look of horror crosses Florence’s face. “She might wish you luck before you join Jonathan, but no, I’m quite sure she will not join you for the initiation.”

I am relieved. I appreciate that she is starting to believe that I will work with the ephemerals, but because of our history, I still find her difficult.

We walk over to the main guild building. Jonathan and Master Kessler both meet us at the membership desk.

Master Kessler speaks. “Ariel, I want to congratulate you on reaching this point.” She hesitates. “I have doubted ... in some ways, I still doubt you. But all the people I trust tell me that I am being too hard. Regardless, you have met the requirements for initiation into this guild. You should be proud of that.”

“I am.”

“Jonathan will take things from here.”

“If you would follow me,” Jonathan says, “I will lead you to my work room.” Nathan and I trail him as he walks past the membership desk and down the hall. He opens a door on the right and motions us in.

His work room reminds me of the larger room up stairs at the Roasted Pig. There is a couch near the door and a bed in the middle of the room. The room does have his personal touch: he has shelves against the wall. The bottom two shelves contain books. The top two shelves are cluttered with tools: wands, censers, vials of liquids I cannot identify and the like. I feel a tingle as I enter the room.

Jonathan motions to the couch. We all sit.

“Ariel, I thought you would bring your confidant, Goodwench Brown, not another trainee.”

“I thought Nathan would appreciate seeing how this works. He’s a mage. He will get more out of it than Goodwench Brown.”

Jonathan sighs. “Your supporter is there for your safety, not to learn magic.”

“Nathan is a mage. I was thinking he might notice if anything is going wrong.”

“That’s something at least. But your supporter is there for your emotional safety, someone you trust when you are at your most vulnerable.”

“You aren’t going to take advantage of me, are you?”

Jonathan’s voice is sharp. “That’s not the point. No, I’m not going to take advantage of you intentionally, but your supporter should be someone who knows you well enough to make sure you are okay and stop you if you will regret what you’re doing later.”

“I guess I don’t understand what the big deal is. I mean are you just worried because this is some sex magic thing and you’re going to need to fuck me? I kind of guessed that.”

Jonathan laughs. “Ah, and you might also guess that the ocean is wet and have an analogously complete understanding.” He captures my gaze. “I’m a Master Whore, specializing in magic. I’m going to Seduce you. I’ll use No Inhibitions and a couple of other skills. I will ask you to open to me magically, sexually, and in every other way you can.”

“Wait! Why?”

“Because I need you to be that open before the skill will take. Whorecraft will affect you permanently. To work magic like that, I need you to let down all your barriers.”

Nathan interrupts. “Master Whore, how deep ... what level is this ritual working on?”

“I write on her skin, and through contagion amplified by the openness, carry that all the way through to her soul.” He pauses. “Ah, I must adjust my thinking for an immortal. Of course I mean the part of her soul that is in this world. The true soul of an immortal is beyond even magic.” I’m glad to hear that he doesn’t think he can affect my brain outside of game. But I’m struggling with the rest.

Nathan gasps. “Ariel, I had no idea. He’s right. I’d love to watch a ritual that powerful, but this should be about someone you trust, not about me getting to see this before it happens to me.”

I don’t understand their concern. This is just an end of quest ritual. But they aren’t immortals; for them, it is not about the quest. So what would this be like from an ephemeral standpoint?

If Jonathan secretly turns out to be evil and to somehow manipulate me, being that open could be bad. I don’t know how compulsions and geases work in Phoenix Rising, but it sounds like Jonathan is powerful enough to cast something like that. If he does, there’s probably a way to get out of it, and besides I don’t think either Nathan or Hulda is powerful enough to stop things. But I don’t think he’s going to do that. Whores Guild is a big enough quest for my level even if it is entirely above board.

But I’m still meta-gaming way too much here to build empathy with the ephemerals. I will just have to talk it through.

“So, what happens if Nathan makes a mistake?”

“You get hurt,” Jonathan says.

“Accidentally? Because Nathan doesn’t know when to ask you to stop?”

“Yes, that is a possibility.”

“Are we talking about physically?”

“Ideally, your sentinel would have enough knowledge to stop things if there was a danger of physical harm. But for initiations into the Whores Guild, most sentinels are more focused on emotional harm. They trust me to know my magecraft.”

“And you’ve done the initiations for most of the whores in Berg’s Keep?”

“For the last twenty years yes.”

“Yeah, I think I’ll trust your magecraft too. I’m also going to trust your good intent. If the guild is not being honest with me, I have bigger problems.”

“Sloppiness like that has been the ruin of many who would deal with mages.”

“I am not sure I’m being sloppy. How long would it take for you to remove Nathan as an obstacle? Hulda?” It’s all well for someone to notice a problem, but if the mage is powerful enough, it doesn’t matter.

“I could neutralize either in a handful of breaths.”

“I doubt that,” Nathan says. “My magical shielding is advanced for my level.”

“I think neutralizing you without magic would be no obstacle.” Jonathan drew a figure in the air. “Although, if I did not mind damaging you, your shield would be of little consequence.”

“And if you neutralized Nathan, would that break me out of whatever you’re going to do?”

“No.”

Right then, Jonathan is powerful enough that I can’t stop him if he’s intent on preventing it. I’m willing to trust him. So the sentinel needs to be about preventing accidents or confusion because he doesn’t know me. “No, then I’m not being sloppy. I’ve just got to trust you. So what sorts of things might go wrong to hurt me by accident or because you don’t know me well enough?”

“I don’t want you to walk away from this experience traumatized because under the influence of my magic, you did things that you will regret.”

“Like throwing myself at you and being completely humiliated after the fact?”

“Yes”—Jonathan drew out the word—”that is the sort of thing I’m talking about.”

“And the same thing could happen to me every day as a whore. I could get carried away with a client. Or more probably I could open up and regret it because of something they say.”

“That’s similar in principle.”

“And I’d have to put myself back together. It might be a mess, but you all would help me out.”

“Yes, but—”

“Okay, this is simple then. I’m willing to trust Nathan to do his best. If we stumble then we work on putting ourselves back together. Nathan, are you okay with that—doing what you can, trusting me to understand that you only know me so well? I don’t want to put you under too much pressure.”

“I can do that. But why?”

“One reason is that I’d like to build the number of friends I really trust. I think this will do that.”

“I’d ... yeah, I’d really like that. You’re brave just trusting me so soon.”

“I think it’s an immortal thing.”

“Or a crazy thing,” Jonathan says. “Well, it’s mostly your risk to take.”

He shrugs. “Do either of you have any questions before we start?”

“What do I do?”

“You sit back and enjoy yourself. You answer questions truthfully, and let us know if you have any concerns or are uncomfortable with anything.”

“And me?” Nathan asks.

“Your job is to let me know if Ariel is pushing herself harder than she should. Let me know if you see anything wrong. Also, since you’re a mage, act as sentinel on the magical level too. Talk to her, help her feel comfortable. If you can help her trust, do that, but never create a false sense of trust.”

“Looks like I’ve got a lot more to do than she does.”

“Yeah, she’ll be struggling as hard as she can to just do that little.”

“Is this going to hurt?” I ask.

“Only in that pleasure and pain sometimes are hard to distinguish. You’ll be kind of blissed out.”

Jonathan has one final question before we get started. “Do you consent to being initiated as a Whore in the Berg’s Keep Whores Guild? And do you consent to me as a mage performing the ritual necessary to do that?”

Nathan stops me from answering. “Ariel, that’s not a simple question. It’s very magically powerful. Willful consent makes this kind of magic much easier; if you say yes, you give Jonathan huge power over you.”

“I understand. I’ve read enough stories. But I also understand that he needs that power. And obviously he’s not going to initiate me without my consent. I willingly give my consent.”

Jonathan hangs his jacket as we make our way over to the bed. In moments, I am cuddled between two men. Jonathan and I face each other. Nathan is behind me, his breath stirring my hair and his right arm draped across my belly. For the moment we’re all dressed.

“Doing all this powerful magic,” I say, “you must have a close connection to all the whores in the town.”

“Yes, sometimes very close.”

I run my hand along the stubble of his cheek just above the line of his beard. “I’ve met wonderful people over the last week. Hulda, Goodwench Brown, has changed my life. Master Craggs and Artisan Eslinger have supported and challenged me. And then there are the trainees.

“But not everyone has been happy with an immortal whore. If you are going to get close ... if I’m going to have to trust you, I hope you help me walk my path. I hope you can support me or we can be friends or something like that.”

I have a hard time placing the expression on his face. “If after this, you want my friendship and offer your trust, I will gladly accept both.”

Having two men take care of you is nice. Nathan is rubbing my back while Jonathan holds me.

“Can we get you out of those clothes?” he asks.

“Sure, I can do that.” I get up and shed my clothes. I return to my nest between them.

I am naked, but it is not yet sexual. Now Nathan is rubbing circles on my belly. Jonathan is still in front, but he’s rubbing my shoulders and upper back. Some of my nervousness bleeds away.

Jonathan’s back and shoulders are tense. While they are rubbing and pampering me, I work on them.

We chat. Nathan talks about how he’s hoping to combine his work as a whore with his magecraft. “I won’t even be able to experiment until I am initiated. But I’ve read about all sorts of ways sex can be used to charge powerful spells or build effects in a group.”

“It sounds like the two of you might have a lot in common,” I say.

Jonathan’s beard rubs me as he nods. “Perhaps. I come at things from the other side. I always guessed I would be a whore given my mother.

“Around the time I started to climax in my dreams, I also started feeling the energy of those around me. When I was initiated, I became fascinated by the power we bring to our coupling.”

“So who is your mother?” I ask.

“A powerful Master Whore around here.”

“I hope you introduce her to me some time.”

“I have no doubt you will meet.” Jonathan trails his hand along my leg. “Nathan, what was your first impression of Ariel?”

“There is this smith in our class, Nora. She was self conscious, worried about how she would come across, especially to an immortal.

“Ariel was there, trying to reassure her. Even though she’d already gotten a cold reception from Xavier Coggins, she was trying to help Nora out. I noticed that she got in the middle of everything; I guess that’s from being immortal. But she cares like some immortals don’t.”

“Oh, I think Ariel gets in the middle more than most immortals. I’m standing at the membership desk, and there she is. I send her around front, but she won’t go because she has some notion of joining the Whores Guild.

“And of course we didn’t let immortals join. Master Kessler threatened to throw her out. Somehow, though, she’s in the middle of everything and talks the guild into letting her join. And now we’re looking at how to let any immortal who will do the work in. It wasn’t magic she used. Just being in the middle of everything!”

“And a lot of luck.” I smile. “Jonathan, you are a lot easier to approach than when you’re at the membership desk.”

“Well Madam, in the pursuit of one’s guild’s interests, one must maintain a certain professional demeanor.” I punch him playfully.

“Are we ready to get started?” I ask. Behind the desk Jonathan is snazzy, but I have never been attracted to him. Here, when he is a bit more open, I have no problem trying to seduce him.

“Sure. Nathan, you can shed your clothes too if you would.”

“Will that get in the way of focusing on how Ariel is doing?”

Jonathan laughs. “You are attracted to her; you aren’t going to keep that out of things. Clothes will get in the way.”

“What about you?” I ask.

“Ariel, would you like to undress me?”

“Sure, I could do that.”

“I’d rather you not. Hold off until you can’t stand not to be able to touch me. Then I’ll let you.”

“Okay.”

They lay me on my back. Jonathan and Nathan are still pampering me. Their hands run along my legs and thighs now. They are teasing me.

“So, you want me to tease and play with her too?” Nathan asks.

“Unless you think she’s uncomfortable with that.”

“I’m not. I like Nathan as a lover.”

Notification

Your mind may be influenced by a character in Phoenix Rising. Adjust the immersion slider between fully immersive and third-person for your comfort. In third-person, your thinking will not be influenced and you will be detached from your character, but you will have the least control over what’s going on. When fully immersed, you will think and feel as your character. In no event will external influence prevent you from thinking about where you want the slider to be set or adjusting it.

Remember that you can withdraw sexual consent at any time, although as a Whore, this may have consequences including forcing your character to respawn.

The slider starts on fully immersive. I consider telling Jonathan that his skills are starting to work, but that’s silly because there’s nothing going on yet.