Empire

Dear reader,

This story, and those that may follow, involve a place, time and people that never were. There will be a healthy dose of lesbian erotica; plus some BD/SM, non-consensual, adult-youth and possibly some (gasp) hetero as the plot progresses. Any comments -- good and especially bad -- are very welcome and encouraged via the e-mail address at the bottom. One cannot progress without feedback.

THE LEGAL THING: This is a work of fiction. Any similarities to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. Any similarities to characters in other fictional works, other than those pulled from classical mythology (and therefore within the public domain), are also coincidental. If individuals feel that this story impinges on their person or work should take no offense, as none is meant or was intended. They should also relax and obsess less.

Remember, if we stopped writing when we ran out of original themes, literature would have died with the Greeks.

Enjoy,

The Author

Chapter 2

The encounter with the mage, Roquan, in the great hall had put Choura off balance. She was used to encounters going her way -- one way or another. Those who weren't immediately cowed by her size were most often scared off by a sense of directed and focused menace; a formidable aspect she had trained herself to project. Then, if all else failed, she was content to batter obstacles into the ground and walk over the rubble. Hanging helpless in the air and in the mage's control had shaken her, now Choura was angry. She strode down the corridors toward the suite the Empress had prepared for her, close on the heels of a page dressed in bright colors decorated with a double circle emblem in the middle of the back. He was young still, not nearly through his change to adulthood, and gangly. As he walked quickly before her he would occasionally look back at the Amazon, more out of fear than concern for the duties of his job. When he was first summoned to the throne by the Empress, Paulinius smiled at the idea of escorting the black-maned war Goddess to her room. He would have escorted her anywhere. He would have escorted her straight to the gates of Hell just as long as he got to walk behind her. Besides, he thought, the walk is just long enough to get to know her. Knowing was half the battle. After a syllable of his small talk the Amazon slammed down her faceplate, replacing her dark eyes with a roaring lion faceplate. His heart sank and his stomach churned. He had made a serious error. Combining a desire to flee with his desire not to anger the Empress, he quickly led her down the hall. Choura followed the cringing page as she was led out into the bright courtyard she had been looking over before their meeting with the Empress. The sunlight shone off statues made of marble, metal and a glistening black stone. They were much smaller than the giants in the great hall, but far more detailed. Warriors twenty feet tall raised their swords to the sky, howling to the heavens. A mounted archer, holding his hand against a vicious tear in his side stares into the long distance. A young girl holds a book. An old man stands content with a serpent coiled at his feet. The sunlight on Choura's armor sent beams of white and golden light all over the courtyard to bathe the statues. The reflection glittered off reflecting pools filled with colorful fish and granite walls draped with dark purple flowers hanging on vines. The scent of roses, wafting up from densely planted rose gardens, filled the air. Through an arch overlooked by a smiling dragon, Choura passed into the northern wing of the palace. As Paulinius scurried before her, Choura picked up the pace and started to close in on the boy. Hearing the metallic clack of her armored feet increasing in speed he hurried faster. She sped up again, taking comfortable strides as she stalked ever closer to her guide. The boy pushed himself as close to a jog as he could, he was starting to breathe hard and the muscles in his shins had begun to burn. He finally reached the high, arched door to the Amazon's suite and yanked open the door. Too out of breath to risk trying to speak, he gestured inward with his palm upraised. Choura, like a rolling boulder coming to rest, came to a stop and looked into the room. She turned back to the page and looked down at the frightened boy, "This will do." Paulinius nodded as she stepped into the room, this time not daring to chance taking a last look at her retreating form. He closed the door as soon as he could without hitting her.

The room was tall, ending in a curved ceiling with arches reaching to the five corners of the room. The centerpiece of the room was a three-foot tall green statue of a nude woman bearing a jug. In one corner there was a large mass of furs and pillows, in the other there was an empty bath. In another, a writing desk with parchment, quill and ink sat. Choura took off her helmet and plunked it down over the head and shoulders of the statue with a clank. She loosened her belt and laid its plated length over one of the statue's arms as she walked to the large window and looked out over the city. Donai sprawled over the hills like an unbroken blanket of white stone. Near the harbor, a large open-air market pulsed with the cries of merchants hawking their wares and the smells of livestock, spices and smoke. On her other side, throngs of peasants came and went about their daily business; working steel, selling clothing, buying the evening's dinner or just taking in the afternoon air. In the main square in front of the palace, men and women of all stripes were standing on small pedestals addressing the public as they passed. Fevered warnings about plague in the northlands and equally hysterical screeds about the impending wrath of the sea gods mixed with the ministrations of petty politicians to merge into a melange of human cries that echoed off the palace's marble exterior. "What sheep," Choura said, without feeling. "We do not have lamb today, I'm afraid," came a voice from behind the Amazon. "But I can make sure that some is prepared for you tomorrow." Choura turned to see a slim girl carrying a tray filled with food and jugs of wine. She was more than a foot shorter than the Amazon and her frame suggested about 110 pounds with her sandals on. She had sepia-toned skin and long, silky black hair that poured down her back like a sheen of running water over smooth rock. She wore a simple sky-blue wrap that extended just below her mid-thigh. Her eyes were dark, the lids long and angled at the outside. An Eastlander, Choura thought. "Who are you?" she commanded more than asked. Her posture returned to its forward, menacing stance. "I am Yue, honored warrior," she said as she laid the tray down on a small table next to a low, backless chair. "I am your servant for the balance of your stay here in the palace." "I didn't ask for a servant." The girl nodded and performed a short half-bow, "The Empress has ordered that your stay is to be made as pleasant and comfortable as possible. I presume with great respect that she wanted to be sure that your needs were attended to. Surely there is something that I may do to make your burden lighter." Choura eyed the plate of food and shrugged, "Then make yourself useful, take this." She pulled her war axe and its holster off her shoulders and handed it casually to the girl. The axe, heavy and sharp enough to cleave a rider in two and still slice the spine of the horse underneath, pulled the girl to the floor as she tried to follow Choura's orders. The weapon fell to the floor with a loud clang, which was followed immediately by a deluge of abject apologies from Yue. The Amazon took no notice and continued removing her armor. By the time the girl had dragged the axe across the room to an appropriate spot, the Amazon's entire compliment of battle gear laid in a heap next to the table. Panting but still apologizing, Yue moved each piece to rest near the axe. Choura had torn through most of a cold haunch of lamb and had started in on some cured meats when Yue finally came to stand in one of the corners of the room. Her hands trembled from the exertion but she controlled herself enough that she was no longer breathing hard. As if remembering some training, she approached the table and lifted one of the jugs. "May I serve you wine, honored warrior?" The gaze Choura shot at the girl nearly caused her to drop the jug, "Let's be clear about something, child." "Of course, great..." "Quiet," Choura snatched the jug from Yue's hands and took a long slug. She wiped the drips on her chin with the back of her hand. "I don't need a slave, I can pour my own wine. I'm not some fragile piece of pottery that falls over and breaks in a slight breeze. And I certainly don't need to hear your fawning prattle. So keep your inane comments to yourself until you think of something you can offer that I can't do alone. Understand?" Yue nodded, bowed and padded silently backwards to her corner of the room. Choura shook her head with disgust and went back to eating. Inwardly she noted that the sweet wine was better than any she had had in months and made a decision to bring some home as a gift to her troops. As she reached over for the second jug, Choura let out a low grunt and twisted a bit, favoring her shoulder as she brought its mouth to her lips. Yue glided up to her and waited until she was noticed by the Amazon. "What?" "Gre... warrior. I fear that you may be in some discomfort, perhaps from your long sea journey. Might I do something to make you at ease. I am trained in massage." Normally she would never admit the slightest weakness to anyone, but the idea of someone working the knots out of her back made good sense to Choura. She nodded and followed Yue to the bed in the opposite corner of the room, jug in hand. She laid out on her stomach on the welter of furs, leaning her head off the side so she could continue drinking. Yue sat down beside her, "Please," she said as she pulled gently on the top of the Amazon's tunic. Choura reached back, winced again, and pulled the top of the garment to her waist. Immediately the girl went to work kneading the thick muscles covering Choura's back. The feeling was immediate and relaxing. The girl's small hands worked with surprising power as they pulled and pushed the Amazon's flesh back into shape. Choura took a long pull on the jug and grunted, "Roquan. Bastard." "You speak of the Shadows' Brother, the Empress' wizard?" Yue asked carefully. "Piss on all Mages and be done with them," she said, a slight slur of drink in her voice. Choura fought hard when Roquan used his magic to pull her off the floor, and she had twisted something in her back as a result. She had fought Mages before; they were wily and certainly dangerous, but still vulnerable to the same mistakes as any other warrior. The most common was vanity, and the most lethal. A Mage could usually be counted on to come up with something flashy and large. Effective tactics against large groups of opponents, when a sudden loss of morale could mean the end of the battle, but very weak when in single combat -- when the opponent is more focused. More than one wizard had paid dearly for making that blunder, some of them in her bare hands. But Roquan had broken with form. He merely stopped the conflict with the minimum of effort until the issue at hand was finished. The thought of being helpless, loathsome as cowardice, loomed in Choura's mind. "Please, you must relax, Warrior," Yue said. "Roquan is very sly." "What do you mean by that?" Choura turned and glared at the girl. Her breasts, held high by the powerful frame beneath, jutted forward. "What are you saying?" Yue dropped her head and her voice took on a completely neutral tone. "Great Soldier, I only meant to say that he is often rude to the guests to the palace. One such as you should not be offended that he took sport with you." Choura's eyes narrowed and the beginnings of a growl rumbled up from her throat.

Hours later, D'Anya swirled her hand through the soapy water of the large bath in the servants' quarters and furrowed her brow, "Say that again, Yue. You did what?" "I kissed her," said Yue as she lay on her stomach on a massage table with her long hair curled up alongside her head. Another servant, a tall, dark-skinned girl named Tamra, was rubbing scented oil into her naked skin. "It was all I could think to do. I thought she was going to break my neck." D'Anya stretched her arms along the sides of the tub, causing her breasts to bob to the surface of the water, "I heard about her run-in with Roquan just after you were sent to her room. I wish I could have warned you." Yue looked over at D'Anya with dreamy eyes and cooed as Tamra's thumbs found the right spot in her back, "Ooohh, if you do that again...I'll have to stop you some time tomorrow. It's all right, I had her spotted early on. Mighty Choura is an easy one to read." "So go on," D'Anya said gleefully. "I'm dying to hear the rest." "Me too," Tamra said and then kissed Yue's neck. "I'll tell, but D'Anya has to wash her hair for me." D'Anya smiled and stood up in the bath, revealing her milk-white skin. She took one of the large jugs and poured it over her thick, curly hair, "Anything for my Yue; I don't understand what you get out of it." Yue's eyes brightened as the girl started to work a dollop of soap into the long tresses, "Your hair is beautiful, I've never seen red hair." Tamra laid her long body alongside Yue's and licked the top of her shoulder, "You're stalling."

Choura was shocked stiff as the girl leaned in and kissed her firmly on the lips, her tongue slipping into her mouth in the same fluid motion. More out of reflex than any considered desire she returned the kiss tentatively. Yue pressed her body against the warrior's and cupped her breast, dragging the center of her palm lightly across the hardening nipple. Yue broke off the kiss, leaving a smaller one on the Amazon's cheek before planting more on her neck. Choura, still ready to have a good shout at the girl, was bewildered, "What...?" Yue looked up for a second and made an innocent look with her eyebrows, "I was just doing as you asked. I didn't think you could do that for yourself." Her palm made another slow circle around the nipple as her other hand gently squeezed the other. The sensations glowing out of her breasts took much of the edge out of Choura's anger. She pulled herself up to a half-seated position and regarded the tiny girl with skepticism. Yue took the initiative again and dipped her head to the Amazon's stomach. She traced a line with her tongue upwards from the warrior's hard stomach, between her breasts and ended the movement with a swirl at the top of her collarbone. Choura shivered at her touch. "Remember," she said in a whisper against her jaw, "The Empress has said that your needs are to be attended to. She has honored me with that duty." Choura leaned back into the pillows and took a long slug off of the wine jug as she appraised the girl. She smiled evilly and laid her free arm across her belly, "Remove your clothes." The girl stood and unfastened the small gold brooch that held the sides of her blue wrap together. The wispy garment fell to the floor like a feather, revealing Yue's slim form. To Choura, she looked barely like a woman at all. Her breasts were small, topped by tiny, dark nipples. Her hips widened only slightly and tapered down at the bottom to a pair of dainty feet. The Amazon peered at the girl's exposed sex, which was completely hairless. "How old are you, girl?" Choura honestly couldn't tell. "Two hundred sixteen moons," she said softly. "I'm sorry, just more than 18 seasons. Am I too old for you?" Her arms began to drift over her exposed flesh. The Amazon shook her head and Yue dropped her hands again, "What happened to your hair?" The servant was nonplused for a second before realizing what Choura meant. She brushed her hand between her thighs lightly, "It is the Empress' command. She prefers it that way. If you don't prefer it I can try to make other arrangements for you." Choura shook her head and pulled the bottom of her tunic away from her thighs, parting her legs to reveal her dark shrouded mound. She reached behind her head and pulled the tunic out from under her and cast it across the room, "It's time for you to fulfill Kaleda's commands." Yue nodded and crept onto the bed with the grace of a cat. She latched her mouth to Choura's in a passionate kiss. A second later, she was yanked back by her hair -- leaving her staring incomprehensibly at the Amazon. "We're past that," Choura said in a businesslike tone. "Get to work." Yue was dragged down to the Amazon's hips before being let go. The girl laid two brief kisses on each thickly corded thigh before nestling into Choura's already moist folds.

"Gods, I wish I were there," D'Anya said as she ran her hands through the sudsy parfait her hair had become. Her pale breasts bounced and rolled with each movement of her arms, "Was she really that muscular?" Yue had rolled over on her side so that she was spooned up against Tamra, who was worrying the smaller girl's nipples with an idle hand. "Oh yes, but different than what you're thinking. She is strong as any man I've been with, but her form is still womanly. It is a bit intimidating, though, to have one's neck between a pair of thighs that could crush a tree limb." "What did she taste like?" Tamra asked as she grazed her pinkie finger along Yue's slick nether lips then brought it to her own thick lips. "Strong?" "There's nothing weak about Choura." D'Anya ducked her head down into the water, sloshed it from side to side and came up abruptly, sending a cascade of water behind her. Her hair, now slicked back and nearly blood red in its wetness, laid down her back like a second skin. She rose from the water and sat at the end of the massage table near the other girl's heads, "What happened next? You didn't come limping back here after just kissing her flower." Yue took a breath to speak when D'Anya leaned back on her elbows and parted her legs. The tiny eastlander looked at D'Anya's wet sex, with its small triangle of neatly trimmed red hair and shook her head, "Why are you the only one?" D'Anya laughed, "I guess the Empress hasn't seen much red hair either. Go on with the story." Yue kissed the pale girl's clitoris, earning a small cry, and smiled up at D'Anya, "I can't talk and `kiss a flower' at the same time." "You have two hands, tell the story."

Choura kept her fingers tightly knotted in Yue's hair as the girl worked her tongue up and down her nether lips. She was trying, really trying, not to pull the girl's hair out by the roots as her insides churned. "MMMhh, oh that's good," she groaned as she tried to take another drink from the wine jug. She partially missed and drizzled her chin with rivulets running to her neck. "That's the spot. Don't stop." Yue dug her tongue harder against Choura's clitoris. All the while she was running her hands up and down her torso, occasionally reaching high enough to graze one of the Amazon's breasts. She had locked her thighs around one of Choura's shins, rubbing herself up and down its length. Choura thought for a second that the frills and ostentation of Donai's seat of power had some definite advantages. At home, sex was either a battle for supremacy between the sheets or the intimidating of a subordinate into doing her wishes. Both had their pleasures, but both could be unfulfilling. In one case you inevitably made someone sour, in the other you ended up with a fawning toady useless for anything other than bed play. But between her legs was something completely other; a life-size, if a bit smaller than what she was used to, toy. Obedient like a dog and completely subservient at the outset. There were no authority issues to deal with. You don't have to coerce the buffet, she thought. As her orgasm started build in her abdomen, Choura decided it was time to take the experience to a new level. She patted Yue on the head, "All right, get up." The servant looked up from Choura's groin with a look of utter bewilderment, "What?" "I said get up," she pushed the girl into a sitting position. A look of concern flew over Yue's face, "What have I done wrong? I can be different." Choura got up from the bed, spilling the girl on her side as she pulled her leg out from underneath her. She strode over to the bundles of her possessions the palace servants had hauled up from her ship. She knelt down and rummaged through them, "Oh, I'll bet that you can do a lot of things. But I've got another idea." >From a large blue rucksack, she pulled an apparatus with leather straps and another item from its side. Yue peered across the room, trying to see around the Amazon's broad back. She laughed, a nervous sound, "I could fetch some musicians, if you'd like that better." "No," Choura said as she stood. She laced one of the straps around her bare waist and cinched it tight in the front, "We won't need anything like that." Choura turned and Yue let out a sharp gasp. Affixed to the Amazon's pelvis was a pale shaft of what looked like bone. It was seven inches long and was topped by a rounded, bulbous end. Whoever had constructed the phallus the Amazon was wearing had only a notional idea of what a real one looked like. It bobbed obscenely as Choura walked back toward the bed, "You'll be making all the music we'll be hearing tonight." Yue slid backwards onto the bed before something ingrained in her mind took over and she moved up onto her knees. She reached to embrace Choura but was stopped before her arms could pull her in. The Amazon held her by the elbows. The kiss they shared was rough. "Lie back girl," Choura said as she pushed her down onto the bed. "I'll be doing the work from here on in." Yue's back had barely made contact with the furs when the head of the thing was between her thighs. Immediately, the wide end started to push inside her, boring its way into her center. She made a low, ragged moan as the Amazon's hips came closer to her pelvis. Choura stopped before pushing the rest of the way in, "Here's the best part." She rammed the dildo home, causing it's widened, ridged base to come in contact with the girl's inner lips and clitoris. Where the rest of the piece was smooth as marble, the substance it was hewn from was rougher and textured where it projected from its leather harness. Yue's eyes flew open as the Amazon ground the rough base against her, the rest buried deep within. "Just leave everything to me," she said and started pumping.