Kiera of Gor (19)

19: We return home to Por Kar to find an unexpected visitor

“Kneel beside me in the stern, Kiera,” said Brinn as he stood facing the bow of the gondola with the large singular wooden oar in his hands. I did as he said and knelt facing him, my knees resting on discarded sack cloth. “Strip,” he added. Without hesitation I removed my diminished tunic and cast it to the side of the boat, smiling up at the master as my heart skipped a beat. I knelt now in tower for there were two free women on board and I had not been commanded by the master to do otherwise.

“Why have you told my slave to strip herself?” asked Marisa as she knelt in tower herself near the bow.

“I wish a pleasant view as I pull the oar,” said Brinn. He propelled our boat silently through the calm waters taking one forward stroke and then one backwards stroke repeating the sequence as we glided towards the distant walls of Port Kar. We were far enough away from the islands now and close enough to the city walls that Brinn had ordered me to light two lanterns on the deck of the gondola. In the flickering lamp light he could clearly see my tempting slave flesh.

“Very well,” said Marissa, “you have my permission.”

“That is kind of you, Lady,” said Brinn, though I think he no longer cared about asking the permission of my mistress. “Are you comfortable now that you are no longer naked?'

“It is better than nothing,” said Marissa as she tugged at the hem of her single garment, holding it in place as she knelt.

I glanced at my mistress and smiled, seeing her dressed now in a shapeless grey sack in which three holes had been cut, one large one for her head and two smaller ones for her arms. We had found several of these sacks in the rencer skiffs and Brinn had customised one into a tunic. It bore the words 'rence seeds' in stencilled letters upside down across the front. Unfortunately the sacks were quite small and barely covered Marissa's sex. In fact she was in danger of exposing herself to a degree that even a slave wouldn't do unless she kept her hands firmly on the ragged hem of the sack, holding it as far as it might go. It made mini-skirts look demure by comparison, but at least her breasts were hidden from view now.

“It will be dark when we reach Port Kar, Lady. I will conduct you safely home and then you can wear whatever you like.”

“This has been a day I would rather forget,” said Marissa sadly. “But at least we have a prisoner for Samos to interrogate.” She glared at the Lady Ameena whom she blamed fully for her lack of clothing and the various humiliations she had endured since setting foot on the marsh isle.

“I will co-operate fully with Samos,” said Ameena. “I only ask to retain my freedom in exchange.”

Marissa laughed. “A forlorn hope if ever I have heard one. There will be no striking bargains with Samos. Your only hope is to avoid whipping and torture, and you will avoid those things by telling Samos everything you know about the Shadow Council without seeking to open negotiations which would only anger him. After which you will be taken to the basement below his house to be branded and caged. That is as inevitable as the sun rising tomorrow morning.”

To her credit the Lady Ameena remained stoic in the face of such threats. Terrified she might be, but she didn't want to show it in front of Marissa.

We approached one of the great canal gates that offered entry to the city and this is why Brinn had ordered the lamps to be lit. There was to be no possibility of being mistaken for thieves in the night or raiders creeping in from the vosk delta. Normally of course entry to the city after nightfall is blocked by the barred sea gates, but this small canal entrance, large enough for a gondola, had been ordered to be left open by Samos himself. Guardsmen stood watching from the crenelated battlements and other guards stood on the narrow cobblestone foot paths either side of the canal gate, weapons ready. Brinn identified himself as he approached with a password given to him by Samos and was permitted to sail through. As we passed into the interior of the city we heard the grinding of gears and the canal gate being lowered like a portcullis to seal the entrance behind us.

The guardsmen had inspected the contents of the gondola and had seen what appeared to be three slaves, two naked, and one almost naked. The semi-clad slave in the rence sack seemed particularly shy and turned her face away from the hand held lamps as they shone their beams across her body.

“You have a shy one there, captain,” said one of the guardsmen to Brinn. “A new capture?”

“Yes,” said Brinn as he regarded the distraught figure of Marissa. “Chain luck proved favourable today. Pay her no heed. Its the collared kajira you should be looking at.” The men swung their lantern beams over my body now and they seemed to like what they saw.

“You are a lucky man, captain,” said one of the guards.

“I suppose I am,” said Brinn with a smile as he stroked my flanks. I felt the heat between my thighs as he touched me. It was slave heat. I so desperately wanted to be touched.

“Master...” I said plaintively. Back on the rence island he had asked to use me. Surely he still wanted to use me? I gazed up at him as he exchanged a few more words with the guardsmen. How I wanted him to use me like the slave I was!

“Quiet, Kiera,” was his only response. I had been spurned for the time being, but perhaps later once he returned my mistress to her home?

Brinn berthed the gondola by the side of the canal wall closest to the plaza where our compound was located. In any other city of Gor Marissa would have had to walk many streets and thoroughfares clad in the rence sack to reach her house, but because Kar was interlaced by canals she had been able to crouch low in the gondola until we were at a point just two streets away from her home.

It was early in the morning now with hardly a man on the streets, and this being Port Kar, the men that were on the streets were probably not honest citizens. Brinn kindly helped the Lady Marissa up from the bow of the boat, but in taking his hand to step onto the stone pathway she had momentarily had to release the frayed hem of the rence sack. I smiled as I caught a glimpse of the curves of her ass as the sack cloth shifted upwards. Her hands pulled and held the frayed hem back down again as soon as she was steady on her feet. Lady Ameena was next and on account of her wrists being bound behind her back Brinn simply lifted her over his shoulder, head to the rear and carried her onto the pathway. With me, Brinn lifted me in his arms. “Master...” I said again in a soft voice as I felt myself held against his chest.

“For a while silk girl you seem to have needs...” he said with a chuckle.

“I have needs, Master,” I whispered, afraid that my mistress might hear. “They are slave needs. Please, Master...”

He said nothing as he carried me up onto the stone pathway by the side of the canal and gently placed me on my knees. What had changed? He had asked for my use on the island! Why did he not still want me? I felt angry, rejected. Could he not see I was a desirable woman? I wore a collar? I was kajira! Why did he not simply use me now? I pressed my head against his thigh and of course Marissa saw that.

“Enough! Kiera, stop that!”

I cried out as I felt her pull my hair back and twist it in her grip. “Behave yourself,” she hissed.

“She is obviously in heat,” said Brinn. “It happens to women.”

“Women? It happens to slaves. There is a world of difference.”

“Of course, Lady. The, um, hem of your garment...” he tried not to look.

“Oh!” Marissa jumped back, releasing me as quickly as she had seized me, conscious now of the mistake she had made as she hastily pulled the frayed hem of the sack back just far enough to conceal her sex again. “Take me home, Brinn!”

Brinn led us through the two darkened streets to where the small walled compound was situated. Lanterns had been lit on either side of the stone gateway and the matching gates were closed and locked. A guardsman stood guard on the inside of the gates, watching as we neared.

“Head down in apparent shyness,” suggested Brinn to Marissa. She did as he suggested.

“Ho there,” cried the guard who couldn't see Brinn's features in the gloom. “Step into the light and state your business at this Priest King forsaken hour.” His hand hovered close to the hilt of his sword. Somewhere else in the compound a second guardsman would be doing a patrol of the walls. They were both hired men, paid for out of a mutual fund set aside by the women who occupied the various buildings within the compound. They were the nighttime shift and would be relieved in the morning by the daytime shift.

“You recognise me of course,” said Brinn as he stepped into the light.

“Captain,” acknowledged the guardsman with a slight bow. “This is late for you.”

“Or perhaps very early,” suggested Brinn. “I assume the Lady is in residence?”

“No, Captain, she is not. She has not returned from her business this night. We are not to worry though for she told the daytime shift that she might not return for some time.” The guard glanced briefly at the three slave girls, one of whom wore a makeshift tunic fashioned out of a rence seed sack, and recognised me but obviously not Ameena or, with her head bowed low, the Lady Marissa.

“I see. In that case I shall wait for her return inside. The gates, if you please.”

There was a grinding of metal hinges as the gates were unlocked and swung open to admit us through.

“Nice ankles on that one,” said the guardsman as he regarded Marissa's legs.

“Indeed,” replied Brinn with a cursory nod of acknowledgement. He marched us across the compound ground that was shared by the various buildings in an irregular U shape. “Where do you keep a spare key, Lady?”

“Under that stone, to the side,” said Marissa, indicating some plants close to the door. Brinn found the key and unlocked the door to the building. As soon as the door was open, Marissa hurried inside, not wishing to spend one moment longer away from the safety of her walls.

“Thank the Priest Kings we're back,” she said as she passed her hand over the energy bulb close to the inner door. It sprang into light immediately, but as soon as the living room was illuminated Marissa saw a man lying on the main couch, waking from his slumber by the sound of the door locks rattling. Marissa screamed in shock and ducked behind Brinn as the stranger raised himself from the couch and rubbed sleep from his eyes. Brinn's sword was drawn as he sprang across the living room space to place the tip of the blade at the stranger's throat before he could reach for his own.

“Move without permission and you are dead,” said Brinn with a snarl. 

“Ah...” the stranger held himself very still as I moved closer to confirm I wasn't seeing things. It was Sadric! Sadric the slaver who had dragged me across Gor from the wreck of the silver ship to the slave markets of Corcyrus. Sadric who had sold me to the Lady Marissa. But what was he doing here sleeping on Marissa's couch? I could see that my mistress was as shocked and surprised as I was. She of course recognised the man too, but thankfully as he had only ever seen her veiled and clad from head to toes in the encompassing robes of concealment, he had no idea who she was. He would presume my mistress was simply a slave dressed as she was. “Your sword point is sharp, Brinn...” said Sadric with a cheeky smile.

“You will find the point even sharper as it slides through your throat. Who are you, what are you doing here, and how do you know me?”

“Amber Larl Suna,” said Sadric by way of reply and as he said those three code words I saw the sword arm of my master relax, though knowing Brinn he was still tensed to plunge it deep into the intruder if his next words proved false.

“Samos's code words,” said Brinn. “Who are you?”

“Sadric of Corcyrus, a gentleman of bold adventure and currently in the employ of Captain Samos since my previous business ventures shall we say, crashed and burned. I am here with his blessing and instruction.” As Brinn returned his blade to its scabbard Sadric winked at me. “I know this lovely piece of slave flesh. Tal Kiera.”

“Greetings, Master,” I said as I dropped into tower position before him.

“You know this slave?” said Brinn, surprised.

“I certainly do. In my previous business venture I sold her to the Lady Marissa. I am here to speak to the Lady Marissa in fact but she hasn't returned home yet, so I chose to make myself comfortable and wait.”

I noticed a small occasional table close to the couch on which there were the remains of a good bottle of ka-la-na and various delicacies 'liberated' from Marissa's kitchen.

“How did you get in?”

“With the spare key that the Lady keeps hidden under the flat stone in her flower bed.”

“How did you know it was there?” enquired Brinn.

Sadric laughed. “That's where most free women hide their spare keys. Everyone knows that.”

“I didn't know that,” said Brinn with a frown.

“Well now you do, captain. May I rise?”

Brinn nodded and watched Sadric as he sat up on the couch.

“Why is Kiera kneeling in tower?” enquired Sadric. “There are no free women present.” He had no way of knowing of course that a deeply embarrassed Marissa was standing just a yard or two from his couch. She was keeping her head lowered and probably wished she might have an opportunity to dim the energy bulb.

“A good point,” conceded Brinn. “Nadu, Kiera.” I happily slipped into nadu before the masters, for my slave heat was burning now. I desperately wanted the touch of a man. The danger in the fens had opened up my body to feelings of deep submission. They would of course fade. I wasn't a natural slave after all, but right now I felt needful, aroused by the presence of strong men while I knelt before them with no choice in the matter.

“Well, haven't you blossomed in your slavery since we last saw one another,” said Sadric with a smile as he gazed at my naked form. “Not the clumsy girl of Earth any longer, I see.”

“A slave is pleased if she pleases the master,” I said breathlessly.

“The other slaves aren’t kneeling,” observed Sadric as he rose from the couch to regard them both.

“They’re not kajirae,” said Brinn. “They’re both captive free women. This one is the Lady Ameena, who it transpires is a member of the Shadow Council that we have been tasked to investigate.”

“Ah. A pleasure to meet you, Lady,” said Sadric with a smile as he placed his hands on the hips of her body and briefly assessed her, running his hands down her flanks.

“Please…” she whimpered. “I am to be kept as an honourable captive.”

“For a while anyway,” added Brinn. “Samos may have different intentions when you meet him.”

“I will co-operate fully with everything you ask of me,” said Ameena to Sadric. “I am eager now to work for the Council of Captains. Glory be to Port Kar!”

“She seems keen to convert to our side,” suggested Sadric as he lifted her chin a little to gaze into her eyes.

“Yes, I am very keen to switch sides, Sir,” confirmed Ameena. “Let me work now for this great city against the despicable women who plot and scheme to bring down the rightful authority of men. My eyes have been opened to the insanity of their cause. I only wish now to aid the noble Samos and of course fine gentle men such as yourself.”

“Be quiet,” said Brinn.

Sadric chuckled and turned to regard Marissa who had her head down and stood as far back as she could. “And this one?”

“You need not concern yourself with her. She is my personal captive.”

“She has lovely ankles,” said Sadric as he admired my mistress.

“So I am told,” said Brinn.

“She really is an exquisite beauty. Look at those legs! You’ll be keeping her?”

“I think so,” said Brinn as he regarded my mistress with a smile. She fumed, knowing he was only claiming she was a captive in order to conceal the truth of her identity from Sadric. “Only a fool would free a woman like her,” added Brinn with a mischievous smile meant for the attention of my mistress.

“Oh!” said Marissa in outrage and frustration as she fumed some more.

“You have dressed her in a rence seed sack I see.”

“There was a scarcity of garments to choose from in the vosk delta,” said Brinn. “It is better than nothing. Her modesty is concealed.”

“Provided she doesn’t make any sudden movements,” said Sadric as he saw how brief the ragged hem was on her thighs.

“What is your caste exactly?” asked Brinn, seeking to steer the subject away from Marissa and her abundant charms.

“Well, that is open to interpretation. My father’s caste was of the warriors but I never knew him so I never trained formally. I am self taught with the sword, but to an acceptable degree. My mother was of the scribes but in truth my writing is poor and I can only read simple phrases. I like to think of myself therefore as being of the caste of adventurers!”

“I know of no such caste,” said Brinn.

“That’s because I’m the only member to date! I have a desire to see the world, to experience far off lands and cultures and win a fortune with my sword. I want gold, coffle chains of beautiful silken women and fine wine.”

“I see. You are a mercenary then? A sell sword?”

“When it suits me,” said Sadric. “But my loyalty is reliable once I settle on a master who pays well. Which Samos does. But tomorrow? Who knows. I have the urge to travel north one day, far to the north, past the glaciers and the fjords of the Torvaldslanders.”

“What is there that far north?”

“A good question, captain. I wish to be the first to find out.” Sadric reflected for a moment before adding. “I have heard many people speak of Brinn of the Sardar mountains, Captain. They speak of how you are the hero of the Sardar, and how many years ago you had rich adventures in the Tahari when you were known as the desert raider, Abid.”

“That was indeed many years ago,” said Brinn. “I was young like you in those days.”

“They speak of your adventures in the feasting hall of Samos where sea captains drink paga at the great tables while red silk clad slaves crouch at their feet,” said Sadric with a trace of excitement and admiration in his voice. “They talk of the desert cities you visited; of Zobeide, the white city, exposed to the moons with streets winding in concentric circles like serpents; of Hypatia with its floating magnolia gardens where veiled slaves dance with fluttering pieces of scented silk tied to their wrists; of Leandra, the city protected by two warring tribal Gods; of Baucis, the city built on stilts so that nothing of the city touches the earth and where the sun casts intricate shadows over the jewelled spires; of Sophronia, the city of insane grinding gears and wheels, a city ruled by the caste of builders who devise great clockwork creations that tower above the main gates to peer down at weary travellers in warning. Such adventures you have had!”

Brinn smiled and nodded.

“But they also whisper in the great halls of Samos that Brinn of the Sardar mountains has fallen in love with a slave girl? They say he permits her the use of his own bed and that she comes and goes as she pleases, that she speaks her mind and that she has bewitched him. They say that this slave determines if and when her master ever sleeps with another slave and that she has given him children.”

“Men talk too much when they drink paga,” said Brinn. “And these men do not know me.”

“But there is such a slave girl in your holding? You dress her in fine silks and jewels and favour her above all others?”

“Gor owes Emma a great debt that it will never repay. But in the end she is still just a common kajira, and I do not hesitate to remind her of that when necessary.”

“But do you love her?” asked Sadric with a smile. “Is that possible? The sea captains say you do. They say Brinn of the Sardar mountains cannot live without his precious blonde barbarian slave girl?”

There was silence in the room for a while. “Emma pleases me greatly, and so I keep her. One day she may no longer please me, and come that day I shall sell her in the Sardar markets and find pleasure with other slaves in her place. But that day has not yet come. I think I was a little like you in my youth,” said Brinn, “my head inspired by tales of adventure and the promise of gold, reputation and perfumed silken slaves. I wish you well in what you choose to do in the years to come.”

“We should drink to that, captain,” said Sadric eagerly. “Some ka-la-na? Kiera, serve us!”

I did so, moving softly to the flask of red wine and pouring measures into two crystal glasses belonging to my mistress. I knelt before Brinn first and brought the glass to my slave belly, offering it then to him with both hands. “A girl offers you wine, Master.” He took the glass and then I repeated the serve to Sadric.

“To the fortune and favours of Captain Samos,” said Sadric as the men raised their glasses and drank together. “And all who swear an oath to him!”

I could see that my mistress was anxious to hide herself from Sadric’s sight. More than once she gazed at the nearby interior doors that led to other rooms such as her private bed chambers. In there would be robes, gowns, veils. In there she could at the very least conceal herself while the men talked. But here in the common room she had to at least pretend to be Brinn’s free captive. She had been through a lot since we had set sail in the gondola for the islands in the vosk delta. I wondered how her recent experiences might have changed her? Consider what she had been through – being stripped, being placed in slave bracelets, being abducted, being forced to kneel in nadu. All these things and more. I could only guess at the inner turmoil in her mind right now. She had even been touched to the point of visible arousal on the jetty. The signs on her body had been plain to see. Enlarged areola and erect nipples meant only one thing on a woman. What had she felt when she had been in slave steel? Had kneeling in nadu on the rough timbers taught her something of female submission? Had forbidden fantasies been made real? It was too soon to tell, but I knew how I had felt; how I still felt kneeling now at the feet of masters.

How wonderful men are when they stand tall and strong and put us to our knees. I wished they would touch me, command me, use me even. This feeling would not necessarily last, for I was not a natural slave like so many other slave girls, but I couldn’t help how I felt right now. My experiences in the delta had left me wanting. It was possible that Marissa didn’t feel this way of course. She was a free woman after all and free women I’m told are frigid.

“I had hoped to speak to the Lady Marissa at the same time,” said Sadric, “but never mind. Samos has assigned me as his liaison with her team. I am to be a resource she and you can call upon within Port Kar should you require anything at all from funds to equipment to passes and paper work to transport even. Samos can open doors within the city that would normally be closed to you. Whatever you need I’ll put in motion.”

“Thank you,” said Brinn. “For now I need nothing except sleep and rest, but I shall bear it in mind.”

“Will the Lady be back soon?” enquired Sadric.

“I imagine so,” said Brinn.

“It’s a small world really. I sell her a slave in Corcyrus and now I find myself working with her.”

“She will probably say you are working for her,” said Brinn as he regarded my mistress with a side glance.

“Women often think that don’t they?” laughed Sadric. “Let her think that if she wants. They have their vanities after all.”

I saw Marissa almost say something but she wisely held her tongue in time.

“It is time I think to walk the Lady Ameena to Samos's great halls where she can perhaps explain to him how eager she is to betray her former sisters.” Brinn motioned for the Lady to turn around and face the outer door as Sadric opened it. “Kiera, I will return tomorrow. Lock the door when I leave. Know that you are First Girl tonight. The free captive,” he indicated my mistress, “is to be ankle chained to the slave ring in the kitchen. She is permitted a blanket. I expect to see her so when I return in the morning, understand?”

“Yes, Master,” I said.

And with that the men and the wrist bound Lady Ameena left. I walked slowly to the outer door and slid the heavy bolts in place. As I turned round I regarded the open interior door that led to the kitchen where a slave ring was set into the tiles.

“Men!” said Marissa in disgust. “They are insufferable at times.” She regarded me and saw the way I looked towards the kitchen. “What? Oh, come on, Kiera, surely you understood that was simply for show. Sadric would have been suspicious if Brinn hadn't given you orders to secure me for the night.” She walked towards the low table on which stood the flask of ka-la-na that the men had drunk from. “Brinn was clever I suppose. He couldn't very well chain me in the kitchen himself, but by giving you an order he spun an illusion for Sadric's sake that I would be chained there once he left.”

I said nothing. I watched my mistress pour some of the rich red wine into a glass and raise it to her lips. The sack she wore now rose up, revealing a little of the space between her thighs, but of course it didn't matter if I, her slave, saw her modesty. “No doubt the thought of me in an ankle chain in my own kitchen amuses Brinn. He can be vulgar like that.”

I still said nothing. I imagined chaining my mistress in the kitchen, ignoring her protests, telling her that she would only have a blanket if she begged on her knees for one.

“Well, they're gone now anyway. Let Sadric think I am chained by my ankle. Let him think I will lie there helpless until Brinn returns in the morning. Men can be so gullible.” She sipped the wine and regarded me. “You do realise that wasn't a genuine order, don't you, Kiera?” Marisa sniffed. “Do I have to explain everything to you, you stupid girl?”

I imagined pulling my mistress now by her hair into the kitchen and switching her thighs if she protested the ankle chain. I had been given an order by a master after all.

“I will retire to my couch in my bed chamber now and in the morning you will heat water for a deep scented bath. You will attend to my needs and then after I am clean we shall see to your whipping.”

I must have looked surprised at that for Marissa's mouth curled into a smile. “Oh yes, you will be whipped Kiera, and it will be an extensive and lengthy whipping. You will be whipped for all the times Brinn lusted after you; you will be whipped for your sluttish behaviour; and you will be whipped for daring to look at me when the rencers abused me. I am sure there are other things I will whip you for as well. But not until I have enjoyed my bath and a very fine breakfast.”