Chapter 16

Marris sighed as he stood just outside the carriage which had served as the slaves' sleeping quarters after their night with the Urisi sailors. Wind whipped off the ocean and blew his hair before his eyes. "This is most unusual, my Lord."

"Nevertheless, you will honor my request," said Mandas. He stood facing the wind so the breeze would push back whatever few strands of hair had escaped his ruthless brush and gel. "Or are you to tell me the renowned hospitality of the great Ambassador Norlan extends only to foreigners and not his peers?"

"Normally, I would have to clear this with Lord Norlan."

"Normally, a proper Lord Ambassador would not have one with such proclivities in his employ," said Mandas in a lofty voice. "I could still make that possible."

Marris bit his lip. He wanted to say such threats would go only so far, that everyone had a point beyond which they would no longer participate in such duplicity. Yet he had changed his identity three times in his life because of "proclivities" which he could neither ignore nor change. He did not want to suffer it a fourth time. "Very well, my Lord," said Marris in a low voice. "But I cannot guarantee there will be no questions asked."

"Then you had best find some good answers before those questions materialize, for I am sure I will no longer be around to help you."

Marris resisted the urge to give the Lord Ambassador a disgusted look, but he could not stop himself from wrinkling his nose for a moment. "I will prepare her," Marris said in a sullen voice as he turned towards the carriage door. He pulled back a flap of canvas which had been buttoned over the entrance to shield against the wind.

Mandas rapped the end of his cane against Marris's hand. Marris snatched his hand back and clenched his jaw as Mandas gave him an oily smile. "First listen to how I wish you to prepare her..."

Marris listened and uttered another small sigh, though he replied with a meek nod before stepping inside.

Marris pulled the canvas over the opening and buttoned it back, but it flapped in the wind regardless. He shivered at the chill which seemed to blow straight through the flimsy fabric walls. His eyes flitted between the slaves still curled up in slumber, most draped in the blankets he had procured. A few had tossed them off during the night, and at least one writhed in the throes of an erotic dream, her bloodstream still saturated with the arousal drug. Spots dotted the furs where a man's seed had leaked from her tunnel during the night.

His eyes shimmered as he looked at the chains whose ends still lay coiled on the floor. Even this "oversight" would have been enough to cost him his job, but he had not the heart to secure them to the slaves' collars, not after he had witnessed how worn and ragged many had been upon their return from the fleet.

His gaze grew more wistful as it settled on Amanda. Marris was still amazed. Not only had she not been as worn out as the others, but she had appeared as if she had actually enjoyed herself. Now he was reluctant to wake her, her sleep the most peaceful of any of them. Nevertheless, he bent over her and nudged her shoulder.

Amanda let out a low groan and drew her knees towards her chest. A slow sigh escaped her lips, and she appeared to slip deeper into slumber. Her lips twitched into a small smile.

Marris shook his head and gently shook her.

"Mmm, what?" Amanda mumbled. She turned over and opened her eyes, then jerked to a seated position. "Oh! Um, yes, Master? What ... what may this slave do for you?"

For a moment, Marris felt the urge to explain everything, as if in need of understanding and forgiveness from her. Instead, he stood and gestured for her to rise. "I need to take you into the next compartment and ... and prepare you."

"Prepare this slave, Master?" Amanda asked as she stood up, blinking the last vestiges of sleep from her eyes and training them on his.

Marris had never seen a slave so bright-eyed. He tried to strike a more authoritative tone. "Yes, of course, slave. You are not presented to someone of his stature unless you are properly prepared."

Amanda blinked in confusion and glanced around her. The bright morning sun made the fabric glow. It seemed far too early to be summoned to the fleet again.

Marris took her arm and prompted her to follow. "Here, come along," he said in a reluctant voice.

Vortas found Gedric standing at the railing in the aft quarter of the ship, staring across the ocean. The Lord Admiral paused a moment before he approached the Fleet Captain, clearing his throat for no other reason than to alert Gedric of his proximity. "Longing for the open seas once more, Captain?"

"That depends," said Gedric without turning his eyes towards his superior. "As to whether or not it is a vain hope."

Vortas heaved an earnest sigh as he draped his arms along the railing. "That I cannot tell you."

"Of course, you believe I will see them again, but only as a prisoner on my way back to Oceanus for trial on whatever ridiculous charge they may dream up."

"And for that I am sorry."

Gedric looked at him. "Sorry you said it or sorry you believe it will come true?"

"I have no such insight into the future, and I have no business in speculating. And for doing just that in the past I again apologize."

Gedric sighed and shook his head. "Nothing makes sense. I almost regret you foisting the Oceanus slave upon me."

Vortas raised an eyebrow. "Almost?"

"She made me remember what I miss from the Nobility, damn her," Gedric muttered.

Vortas ventured a small smile. "Then I take it she did not, ah, soil your bed as you had feared."

"Yes, I enjoyed myself, perhaps more than I should have." He looked over the waters again and glanced down to where the waves broke against the creaking timbers of the hull. "Though I do not remember Oceanus slaves being quite as she is."

"She is a D'ronstaq slave, you know."

"It goes beyond that. I look at her, and I feel there is something else lurking below the surface, something she either intends to show me or tell me."

"Then perhaps it behooves you to take her to your bed again this evening."

Gedric narrowed his eyes and straightened up, turning away from the railing. "Yes, if for no other reason than to prevent her from being used by others. As much as I am impressed and grateful for the skills and dedication of this crew, I do not trust them to treat such a prize properly."

Vortas nodded, his eyes cloudy. "What pains me is having to leave such a girl to the Urisi."

"That she has survived their training with her skills and Oceanus-bred demeanor intact says she has either a very kind owner or she is far more intelligent and resilient than even the vaunted D'ronstaq slaves," said Gedric. "And I, too, wish we did not have to leave her."

Vortas shook his head. "Do not let that line of reasoning go any further, Fleet Captain."

Gedric was already waving a hand. "Yes, yes, I know. Having a slave permanently on board is bad luck. A stupid superstition which has no basis in fact."

"What matters is how the crew will see it."

"Understood. But you cannot stop me from wishing it could be so."

Vortas looked askance at Gedric. "How have you become so enamored of her in such a short span of time?"

"Perhaps she reminds me of what we have lost. I do not believe it truly had reached me until now. I do not want to accept it, because it means she would be nothing more than a relic of something we can never have again."

Vortas clasped the Fleet Captain's shoulder. "This is not over yet. The Urisi are holding their cards close to the vest, but I feel they have at least one more play to make. We must be ready when they do."

Gedric allowed himself a small smile. "Then perhaps I have more incentive to accept Amanda to my bed again tonight, as it would be proper to show appreciation for the generosity of our hosts."

Vortas chuckled. "Now that's the spirit! I will remember this personal sacrifice you are making for the men!"

Gedric smiled and laughed for the first time since he had joined the Lord Admiral's fleet.

Amanda knelt quietly on the furs which lined the bottom of the carriage and wished she could relax her arms so her wrists did not feel so strained inside the shackles. A short length of chain lay taut between the shackles and her collar, drawing her wrists up her back, her arms tight and strained. When she tried to relax them, the collar tugged into her throat.

Her thighs ached. Her knees were forced to spread wide by shackles which bound her ankles in a crossed position. Another taut chain connected her ankles to her wrists, preventing her from rising lest it pull on her wrists and her neck in turn. She dared not relax her thighs lest the chain attaching her collar to a hook high on the wall behind her also tugged against her throat.

The arousal drug she had been given the day before had all but worn off, yet she managed to make her pussy damp in anticipation. It was pure duty and nothing else. She let out a ragged sigh and wondered if the night before had been a dream after all.

But then the door to the carriage opened, and she understood. Her eyes glistened but never wavered. They remained locked upon Mandas' slim form as he stepped into the coach, flickering only briefly when he thumped his cane against the floor.

A smarmy smile stretched across his narrow face as he stepped forward, each step punctuated by another tap of the cane. Amanda remained still and resolute; only a very faint ragged sigh and a slight tremble as he loomed over her betrayed any other emotion.

Mandas regarded her and tapped his cane once more. In one smooth motion, he twisted his hand and withdrew the rod hidden inside the cane and whipped it between Amanda's legs.

Expecting a blow, Amanda flinched, her breath wheezing as chains drew tight and yanked the collar against her throat. Her hands writhed inside their restraints, shaking when her muscles tensed too hard for her to relax the pressure around her neck.

After another few moments of struggling for air, she realized the rod now rested against her folds. It slid slowly back and forth, each methodical stroke drawing a less strangled breath from Amanda's lips. When a low moan emerged, the rod had become slick with her gathering moisture. Amanda's eyes drifted closed as her hips rocked against the rigid shaft, her now easier breath becoming a soft pant.

"I have no idea where Oceanus men get this unfettered slave fetish from," Mandas sneered. "Slaves are so much more fun restrained."

He slowed and lowered the rod, holding it a bare finger's breadth from her needy flesh. Amanda whimpered and tried to lower her pussy to it, but the chains pulled tight against her collar once more.

"And so much easier to control and discipline." Mandas smirked as he drew the rod to his side. "No orgasm for you, slave, until you have earned it."

"Th-this slave has some information to--"

Amanda's next word became a tiny yelp when he whipped the end of the rod across a nipple. First pain flared bright white, then pleasure spread pink and warm, her pussy throbbing along with her nipple.

"And you pick up such bad manners from these Oceanus barbarians," said Mandas. "I suppose they give you leave to speak all the time."

Amanda swallowed and said nothing.

"I would tell you to remember your place, but I suppose you are hoping that will not matter after a time, hmm?"

Amanda did not want to react, but she could not suppress the hopeful look in her eyes. If the Oceanus fleet was sent away, she would not mind leaving with it and remaining Gedric's personal slave.

"Much better. Now tell me what you know of this Gedric V'riis..."

Norlan had given orders to his servants not to awaken him at the usual hour, and now he regretted it as he struggled to shake off the throes of a disturbing dream.

Norlan squinted at the light and wiped his face with his hand as he sat up. The sheet fell away from a chest still broad, but exposing a belly which was soon to match. He frowned as he kicked off the beddings and thumped his feet to the floor beside his bed.

He hated recalling his dreams. He saw them as nothing but annoyances and did not believe half of what either the Healers or the Mages said about them. Not that the two groups could ever agree as to what they were. They served only to distract him from more important concerns, such as how he was going to stop the insufferable Mandas from disrupting relations between the Urisi and the new regime in Oceanus.

This was the only conclusion Norlan could reach. Mandas must believe a ripe opportunity existed in driving a wedge between the two nations. What frustrated him was that Mandas, a man who possessed only a fraction Norlan's diplomatic skill, could see something which Norlan could not.

Norlan summoned his servants, and they began to draw his bath. Word was sent to the kitchens, and a proper breakfast would be waiting for him once he was done with his morning ablutions.

The dream itself had made little sense, and he chided himself for bothering to recall it as he stripped off his night clothes. It had been little more than the scene by the docks playing itself out again, with Mandas leading the slaves to the ship. What had been different were the slaves themselves. They would not stop staring at him with glowing scarlet eyes.

The worst came when he had turned around and was confronted by a servant, holding a long-bladed knife, which he raised above his head as if about to plunge it into Norlan's heart. That was when he had woken up.

Now naked, Norlan left his bedchamber. Steam drifted from his bathing chamber, and a servant was already on hand with a robe for when he was done.

As he approached the chamber, he passed near the hall which led to the corridor just outside his suite, and an annoyed voice penetrated the closed door at its end: "Does he not care what is happening with his own slaves? Surely he will make an exception and grant me audience when he understands--"

Norlan sighed and stepped into the billowing clouds of steam. As he slipped into the warm water, he heard the door to the suite hastily open and close. He closed his eyes and waved off his servants when they motioned towards him with sponge and brush. He wanted to enjoy his few moments of respite before another servant advanced and crouched by the edge of the pool to whisper into Norlan's ear in a hushed and nervous voice, "My Lord, a thousand apologies, but Master Halno will not--"

"Yes, I know," Norlan said without opening his eyes.

The servant let out his own tiny sigh and shook his head, not knowing how to interpret the response. "My Lord, what shall I tell him? He is most persistent and most agitated."

"Tell him I will investigate the matter myself."

"Very well. Is that all?"

"No." Norlan opened his eyes. "Have Larra prepared for me and taken to my pleasure chamber."

The servant hesitated, but nodded. "At once, my Lord."

Mandas let Amanda speak without interruption, and when she was done, he spent a long silence looking thoughtful as he paced about the carriage, tapping the end of his cane against the floor.

Amanda almost wished to feel the rod against her pussy. The arousal drug had worn off, yet she felt needy, her body still conditioned to respond once it had been stimulated. Her arms and legs were tiring, the collar digging more into her throat. She doubted it could grow tight enough to asphyxiate her, but she was not sure she could stop herself from panicking and do herself more harm.

"And you have gleaned nothing more about him?" said Mandas in a crisp voice.

"I could not obtain any more information from him without looking as if I were prying," said Amanda. "The best I could do was coax him into taking me a second night."

"And will he?"

"I hope so, Master," said Amanda, her voice growing strained from the press of the collar against her throat.

Mandas' lips curled into a smirk. "Oh, I am sure you do." He strode forward and drew out the rod, which he rubbed against her folds. "You are still wet. Thinking about it now, are you?"

Amanda closed her eyes and moaned. "Yes, Master."

Mandas stroked faster, eying Amanda's reaction. As her pants rose to a moaning crescendo, he pulled the rod away, her wetness running down its sides as he drew it towards him. Amanda bit her lip to suppress a whimper, and her pussy ached for relief.

"You wish to ask something of me."

Amanda did not reply. Technically it was not a question. She assumed he was trying to tease her further by making her beg for sexual relief which he was not about to grant.

But then the tip of the rod suddenly appeared before her downcast eyes. She flinched, but he simply touched it to her chin and forced her to raise her gaze to his.

"Come now, no games," Mandas sneered. "I already do not think of you as a proper slave. You may as well speak whatever is on your mind."

Amanda gazed into his face and believed he was serious, yet it took her another moment to form the words. "Master, what is it you wish to gain from what I am doing with this man?"

Mandas smirked and withdrew the rod. "You are supposed to be the flower of undraughted intelligent goodness, yet you cannot figure this out for yourself. Oh, very well. Gedric is a means to an end. He has ties to Nobility. There must still be remnants of the Oceanus Nobility about. He is my means to reach them. They must be against everything the new regime stands for. And since Norlan seems very much in favor of the new regime -- which he helped bring about --"

Amanda allowed herself no reaction. Mandas did not need to convince her to move against Norlan. Whatever loyalty she was willing to show him had since vanished.

"-- then I am very much in favor of anything he is against." He smiled. "You see, through Gedric, I can reach the remaining Oceanus Nobility as if I were right there with them."

Amanda's eyes widened. His words had triggered a memory. For some odd reason, she was reminded of the mystery behind the Inonni and their fantastic Portal technology.

Mandas inserted the rod back into his cane and thumped the latter against the floor before he turned towards the door. "We will see what information you obtain from him tonight. But it best be more than you have presented thus far, if it is to support my plans."