Chapter 6

Paula Clothed And Roberta Still Naked

It was dawn on a crisp and very frosty winter's day. Paula was warmly dressed to protect her from the icy cold. The pair had earned plenty of money as a result of Roberta's strength and will to work hard. Roberta was still naked, of course. They had spent the night under the stars with the hardy Golden Guard sleeping apart from her assistant, disdaining to take any advantage of the warmth of her body. Even after all this time Paula still marvelled at Roberta's phenomenal powers of endurance.

Six months had passed since the sojourn in the bandit's cave and nearly seven since Roberta had managed to defy the swirling currents and swim ashore from Hell Island. And the pair seemed to be no nearer achieving their aim of restoring Roberta's repuation than ever.They kept getting distracted by one adventure after another and the one thing all these incidents seemed to have in common was that Roberta got punished for her obstinate refual to wear clothes.
"I'm totally pissed off with this discomfort, Roberta and you don't look too happy yourself with all that gooseflesh! And we're never going to get back to the Palace and save your reputation at this rate. Come on, Roberta!" Paula wanted to cover the remaining few miles to the Palace and get all these adventures over and done with. The King remained in danger and all Roberta could do was get the two of them into one scrape after another! Although it was mainly - entirely - Roberta who suffered from all these diversions. Paula just got to watch in comfort as her friend faced danger and physical pain.

"I'm sure we won't be long now, Paula! I've got a good feeling about today! No more silly sideshows from now on! At least, I hope not. It's getting to be rather boring!"

Paula nodded her agreement.

"That elderly mystic Philippa, six months ago, told me my future was one of great wealth and happiness, Roberta. Not much sign of that yet!"

"What did she say about mine?" Roberta wasn't really interested. She still doubted Philippa's powers in spite of her having been given such a very painful lesson in good manners.

"Lots of danger and a great deal of pain. She got that much right! You've had your share of both lately! How's the back feeling after your latest whipping? It looks just like it did when we first started living together - when the King gave me to you!"

"Fine, Paula! Now that my skin is getting hardened again I don't feel it so much these days. That ritual whipping they gave me at the cave was terrible, though. I don't mind admitting that it was touch and go whether I screamed out that day! That preparation they rubbed into my skin made sure I felt pain such as I've never experienced before! I shall remember that old bitch for as long as I live. And don't look at me like that, Paula!"

Paula always looked shocked at Roberta's scoffing disbelief. In spite of being horribly punished for it the girl still persisted in her wicked sceptical ways!

Roberta resumed. "That was the worst, though. After a few days my skin was getting harder and the six floggings I've been given since that terrible ordeal have been much easier to bear!"

"Is it only six whippings you've had since then! It seems so much more somehow. Over time one flogging seems to merge into another. But you should know, I suppose! You do ask for it, Roberta. You must realise that! But, having said that, I feel the way you got the first ones after we left the bandits behind was the most utterly unfair of them all. You hadn't a lot of choice, though. Not that time. You couldn't possibly have left those poor people to their fate."

It was late in the day and the girls decided to rest for the night. In the morning they would complete the journey and Roberta would hopefully win back her good name. Either that or go back to Hell Island and be flogged to death in front of all the other convicts as an example of what happens to escapers. And they would make no mistake this time. By the time they'd finished with her, she'd be dead right enough!

As she sat and went over the events of the last six months, Roberta relived her adventures since having her innocence established - rather painfully to say the least - by the seer Philippa, after that lady had made her mystic incantations chanted in a reedy elderly voice over a goodly measure of Roberta's painfully shed blood.

Adventure the First

Roberta and Paula left the bandit lair with all the brigands waving them farewell and wishing them Godspeed. Even the still vindictive Philippa hobbled out, taking time out from the preparation of whatever disgusting potion she was brewing up, to wish Roberta a successful defence of her good name. How sincere this particular benediction was, neither girl could be quite sure!

By mid day they had covered twelve miles across not terribly easy terrain and Paula's feet were giving her trouble. Roberta had no trouble stepping on thorns and razor sharp rocks, but Paula would never have such hard feet as her Mistress. Roberta made her lie down and put both feet in the air. Then she licked the torn soles, gently sucked out the bits of grit and generally soothed the pain out. After a few minutes of this treatment Paula agreed that she might be able to carry on for a mile or two longer, but it soon became obvious that the pair must rest for the night, even though several hours of daylight were still to come.

Paula soon fell asleep and Roberta left her and went to look around. She was still more than a trifle upset with her so-called assistant after the way she had exulted in her torture. The relationship between the two seemed to be tilting away from Roberta and towards Paula as the dominant one. Paula might still be nude but Roberta could see that she would sooner or later revert to being clothed.

Roberta was about to go back and lie next to her friend when she saw three women coming up the hill. They were pushing a heavy wagon, full of fruit and vegetables. Below them was a series of fields and trees and above was the hilltop village where they lived. All three women looked exhausted. Roberta decided to lend a helping hand.

"Can I help with that, ladies?" she asked, as they came up to her. "You seem to be having trouble!"

"You also seem to be having trouble! What are you doing walking around without clothes? Have you been robbed?" asked one of them, a woman of about forty and taller than her two companions who looked some years younger.

"I am always naked. My body must never be covered. It is a life I have chosen." Roberta hesitated to announce herself as a Golden Guard. Her name had been pretty well known even before her disgrace, imprisonment for life and escape. She saw again the folly of not wearing clothes. If she had any sense she would disguise herself again and avoid this kind of embarrassment. But Roberta lacked sense these days and in any case she had made up her mind once and for all. Her body would never again be adorned by anything but the weapons and equipment of a Golden Guard.

"You could get into deep trouble in these parts by showing yourself so brazenely! Immodesty in women is always severely punished in our village. But you look very strong and we desperately need to bring supplies up to the barns quickly. We have so little time to gather our winter produce.

All the crops left in the fields by sunset are to be given to the Lord Gerald. Our men are all away in the Lord Gerald's service and working in the gold mines. Goodness knows when they will be back. Not in tome to harvest the crops - that's for sure. We will starve if we can't get more up to the barns than this. We are desperate and we gladly accept your help, shameless naked harlot though you may be! Beggars can't be choosers."

Roberta suppressed her anger. How dare this insolent peasant woman refer thus to one of the King's elite Golden Guard! But she could not stand by and see a whole community suffer deprivation when she was in a position to help. Roberta was kind hearted girl. She seized the shafts of the wagon and began pushing it uphill towards the hamlet. As she moved away she turned and spoke to the women.

"Go and help the rest of you pick more fruit and dig more vegetables. I'll get twelve wagon loads up the hill by nightfall. Never mind how full the cart is! I am incredibly strong and can lift three wagons like this off the ground at once!"

This was a bit of an exaggeration, of course, but Roberta knew her promise to deliver twelve loads to the barns was not. The women, released from the need to transport their produce, worked hard to denude the orchards of fruit and dig up and harvest every vegetable and every blade of wheat. By nightfall there was little, if anything, left for "Lord" Gerald and his band of bloodsuckers to steal from the hardworking villagers.

Roberta knew all about "Lord" Gerald, who was no lord at all but merely a gangster and a thief who would one day be destroyed, just as soon as the festering rebellion in other parts of the country could be eliminated. She had itched to be sent to deal with this evil man when in her first year's service, but the war against the rebels had been too fierce at the time. And she would not be able to deal with him now.

With only herself and Paula and a few womenfolk, Roberta knew she had no chance on her own of doing anything about the so-called lord the time being. But she could work until the sweat poured off her body and every muscle cried out in pain in order to deprive him of the fruits of other people's toil.

As soon as the work was done, Roberta found Paula and roused her and they both went into the village to brave the curious appraisal of the inhabitants. The villagers stared at the couple in open mouthed amazement. It was obvious that nothing like this had ever happened here before. There was a mixture of curiosity and shocked disapproval.

The children all came excitedly to see the two strangers, but pretty soon they were hurried indoors to shield their tender young eyes from the sight of those four bare breasts and two exposed pussies (especially Roberta's cunt which was very visible, despite her immensity of blonde pubic hair) Paula was offered something to wear and she looked about to decline, but accepted after Roberta explained to her that nudity was particularly disapproved of around here and it would be safer for her to be covered.

It would be safer for both to be covered, but Roberta had given her word and would never break it. But Paula was a different case and her Mistress knew she would be in plenty of trouble of her own before long. Having Paula dressed would mean she had only herself to worry about.

The couple were given the use of one of the unoccupied houses for the duration of their stay in the village. The women advised Roberta not to stay too long. It would be hard on her if the men returned and saw her like that.

Paula put on the clothes the villagers had found for her and looked at her friend anxiously. Roberta was looking more nude than ever these days - if that were possible!

"What about you, Roberta? What will they do to you? Not that they could do much. You are too strong and they all look exhausted anyway."

"These women will not harm me. They are all too grateful, but when the men return it will be a different matter. Maybe we should leave in the morning or as soon as those feet of yours have healed."

But Paula's feet had not recovered sufficiently in the morning. Roberta's healing tongue had not caused those cuts and blisters to disappear. The little girl would need several days of rest.

The grateful villagers willingly provided her with shoes and other clothing. Roberta was once again offered much finery to cover her own nudity but she refused with as much grace and gratitude as she could muster. There was obvious disapproval and Paula hoped she would be fit to travel before the men returned. Although Roberta was a very strong young woman, even she would be helpless against a score of armed men.

Three days after Roberta had helped so successfully with the harvest, Paula felt able to continue. But, as Roberta had feared and almost known, it was too late! As the pair made their way out of the village they saw a bunch of tired and dishevelled men coming up the hillside towards them. Surprise soon turned to anger as the men realised the naked Roberta, whose very presence constituted an affront to decency, had recently been in their village.

They forcibly stopped the two girls from going further. Roberta offered no resistance and told paula not to do anything. She saw claealry that she had mortally offended them. It was clear that, from these people's point of view, Roberta had been corrupting the morals of their children and women folk by being in their village. Roberta could see a very fearful retribution written in those angry faces! Her recently healed back started itching as if in anticipation of more pain to come! But she would not resist, as this would most likely be useless and might harm the husband of one of the women.

One of the women, Frederica, ran out of the village and shouted at the men to allow the couple to pass.

"They have helped us avoid starving. Without the nude giantess we would have gathered less than half what we needed. She worked herself into the ground to help us. I know she is wrong to be naked but we owe her everything!"

Marcello, the leader, was not impressed and Paula was obliged to watch her Roberta, firmly held so that even she saw the uselessness of resisting, being dragged away to the council hall. It was there, explained Frederica to an anxious Paula, that the Golden Guard was shortly to be tried for immorality. Since the offence was nudity and the evidence would be standing before her accusers in plain view, Paula was pessimistic about the verdict.

"What will they do to her!" she asked Frederica.

"Our laws are harsh towards shameless women. One who refuses to cover any of her body will be treated with no mercy. You should have left days ago. I'll try to do what I can. The men listen to me and I'll tell them how well your friend has served us. I am sure they will spare her the worst that they could do to her. But it won't be pretty to watch, I'm afraid. A thing like your friend's immodesty can never be allowed to go unpunished."

"Can I come and see the trial, Frederica?" asked Paula. She had a shrewd idea what they would do to Roberta after they had found her guilty of being naked. It was not exactly a difficult case to prove! Paula had seen the children, especially the growing boys, staring admiringly at her Amazonian friend and her succulent genitalia and guessed that they were seeing things that ones so young ought not to be exposed to! The idea that children should grow up with a total familiarity with the body had not so far penetrated into this unenlightened spot!

"Only members of the village can be present, apart from the accused."

Frederica promised to tell Paula what the court's findings and sentence were as soon as she knew herself.

An hour later Frederica came to tell Paula what Roberta's fate was to be.

"Your friend has been found guilty. I think our words of support may have had some effect. But it will still be unpleasant for her. She will be whipped out of the village in the morning. This is a very bad experience, Paula. I hope your friend is strong and brave, because she will need to be. So much more than whipping will be involved! The lashes she will be given will sap her strength with every cut, but she will need all that strength and need it for a very long time. If she weakens they will show no mercy.

Until then she will be tied down on the ground in the village square. You are not allowed to speak to her until you are both out of our parish. I am sorry. Her help to us deserves more gratitude. But our men are miserable cowards. They work for the Lord Gerald, that thief, and have no stomach for a fight. Roberta has shamed them by rescuing us all from starvation. They should have been working in the fields instead of the mines and they know it.