remember the old Tournament field of the Crusader Knights?”
“Aye, I do,” Lara replied. “I remember my father winning his victory on that field, and hence his place among the Crusader Knights.”
“Well,” Ilona said, “they have built a wall about it, and seats for spectators to come and watch. The Crusader Knights hold tournaments in which they battle against other knights, not of their order, to the death. And there are fights between men and women using whatever weapons they can, including their fists. These are also to the death. It is quite savage and disgusting,” Ilona said.
“Why on earth would any man or woman involve themselves in such enterprise?” Lara asked, truly horrified.
“For silver, gold, copper and bronze coins,” Ilona said. “There are a few licensed shops in The City that are permitted to take coin. The goods they carry are special and greatly coveted. But you can only enter those shops if you have the coin to pay. The magnates are still cleverly pitting the people against one another for their amusement, and the people love these spectacles. Razi kiosks surround the amphitheater. The customers drink deeply of the drugged frine, which is ridiculously inexpensive, and then go into the stadium to cheer their favorites on. Sometimes they are so drunk they leap down onto the playing field. If they do, they are considered fair game. They are caught and tortured before the spectators in a variety of unpleasant ways. Then the player who can make the victim shriek and scream the most is awarded a bag of coppers.”
Lara shook her head. “This is worthy of Kolgrim,” she said sadly. Then she dipped another sugar cone into her mint tea and consumed it before drinking down the liquid in her cup.
“Aye, he will encourage this evil to even greater heights,” Ilona said. Then, changing the subject, she asked, “Has he mated his bride yet?”
“I don’t believe so, but his mating cycle is coming to an end shortly. He must do so soon. I’m sure he will find me to tell me when it is done,” Lara replied.
“You must leave Hetar with the rest of us, Lara,” Ilona responded. “You know you cannot withstand the darkness alone, my daughter. If you remain, he will take your magic from you, and you cannot allow that to happen.”
“I know,” Lara told her mother. “But it is Marzina I fear for. Kolgrim has developed a strong attachment to her.”
“He barely knows her,” Ilona scoffed.
“That is true,” Lara agreed, “but once he learned he shared not just a mother with her, but a father as well, he suddenly decided he must have
“Do not fear, Lara,” the Queen of the Forest Faeries said. “I can reason with Marzina, and I promise you she will come with us. We will be gone within the month. The last Autumn has begun, and once it has ended, Kolgrim’s power will be strong enough to begin to bring the darkness.”
Lara set her cup down. Her eyes were filled with tears. But Ilona watched proudly as her daughter hardened her cold faerie heart. “There will be other springs on other worlds,” she said. “Hetar will come to regret its own foolishness.”
“Kolgrim’s victory will in the end be a hollow one. The light cannot be extinguished forever,” Ilona said quietly.
The door to the queen’s privy chamber opened, and her consort, Lara’s stepfather, Thanos, stepped into the room. He was pale and looked exhausted. “Is there more of that tea?” he asked the two women, and Ilona at once magicked him a steaming cup, which she handed to him. He sat down in a comfortable chair and sipped the minty brew.
“You look so tired, my lord,” Lara said. “Mother has told me of your great efforts in removing the rare flora and fauna from Hetar to Belmair.”
“It is just about done,” Thanos replied. “It has been hard, but worth it. These plants and creatures will die out in the darkness to come. I could not bear seeing that happen. Nidhug has been most generous, offering her garden as a transplant nursery. I pray all of what we have taken will survive.” He dipped a sugar cone in the hot tea and quickly ate it. “And the creatures we have removed are managing to overcome their confusion at being taken from the places of their ancestors. We have done our best to place them in similar environments. Many of the beasts on Belmair are related to those of Hetar.” He yawned several times, his faerie green eyes began to close, his blond head drooped, and he fell asleep where he sat.
Ilona reached out and took the cup from his elegant hand before the remaining tea spilled. Then without another word she transported her consort to his bed. “He has a truly amazing touch with all he loves, and he does love the flora and the fauna,” Ilona remarked with a fond smile. “He is really a perfect mate for me.”
“You mean he allows you to do as you please,” Lara said with a chuckle.
“Aye,” Ilona agreed. “He has done his duty as my consort. He gave me a son, appears with me on formal occasions and leaves me to rule without interference. Thanos is really quite perfect for me, as Kaliq is for you.”
“I do not rule anything,” Lara said. “I am no queen.”
“You have your own destiny, my daughter, and Kaliq is a part of it. Be glad for it, Lara. In the morning you will go home to him. I will not see you again until we have safely evacuated to Belmair. Make your farewells to the forest of your ancestors before you leave tomorrow.”
“You will not forget about Marzina, will you, Mother? Kolgrim must not have her! I could not bear it if he did.”
“I will keep my promise to you, Lara. Marzina will come to Belmair with me,” Ilona, Queen of the Forest Faeries, promised her only daughter.
KOLGRIM, HOWEVER, HAD PUT aside his plans for his little sister, Marzina. The time had come for him to seed his new bride. Nyura was proving a delightful sexual partner.
So far he had not found her hesitant to perform any act. Even after having her virginity taken, Nyura retained a look of innocence. Kolgrim found it particularly exciting, and her interest in playing sex games with him was a delight. While she had retained her virtue she was Hetarian. She had been taught and trained in all manner of games to keep lovers amused and satisfied. His bride, Kolgrim quickly learned, was not only adept but enthusiastic regarding such activities.
She loved being the captive ravaged by the enemy general. She equally enjoyed being the cruel mistress of a sex slave. She would whip his bottom lightly in this particular scenario, but then the sex slave would turn on his mistress and violate her. And she enjoyed being spanked, playing the naughty girl, teasing him wickedly until he mounted her and rode her to exhaustion. Kolgrim could not believe his good fortune in the bride the Book of Rule had chosen for him.
But now the matter of creating his only son was at hand. And for that special night he decided he would begin the process by bringing two of his concubines from his House of Women. “This will be a most extraordinary night for you, my darling,” Kolgrim told Nyura. “Tonight I will seed you, and in several months’ time our son will be born. But I must remind you from this night on I will not touch you. We will next come together at the Completion Ceremony when we join our bodies publicly before our people, Nyura. I want you to always remember this night, however.”
“What shall we do to make this night memorable?” she asked him.
“You have never flinched from anything I asked of you,” he began, “and so this night I will ask you to share the beginning of your passion with two of my concubines.”
Nyura smiled slowly. “You wish to see me make love with other women, my lord? Is that what would please you?”
“Aye, ’twould please me greatly,” he answered her.
“Rather than two of your concubines, why not invite my cousins Divsha and Yamka to join me,” Nyura suggested wickedly. “I know you have fucked them, for each could barely wait to tell the tale after you chose me for your bride.”
Kolgrim smiled a slow smile at her. “You have an unusual talent for exciting me, my pet,” he told her. “I should very much like to see you with them.”
