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Twins of Trallis: Snowstorm

By: xelliebabex



Twins of Trallis Chapter 2

A physician standing at the back of the tent of the council of nine with the men of Stolle had watched the tiny dancer from the desert realm horrified. 'It couldn't be,' His mind raced backward in time and he relived the moment the dancer had come into the world unloved and unwanted by her father and left without a mother as the cold hand of death had snatched her away, he had often wondered what had become of the girl who now danced so erotically about the room. 

The memories of that day were still vivid in his mind. Squalling loudly and totally unaware of the nature of her dramatic birth the first newborn girl was wrapped in a soft blanket and held by the kine, Clio. The physician scrambled around the bed of the bleeding woman to no avail. The watchers could do nothing as the crimson tide flowed over the sheets and the last breaths rasped from the dying woman. The Lord of the realm cared not for the woman or her daughter he required sons. "Stupid bitch," he muttered, "Brand the infant and take her to the kennels," and with no remorse for the child he had doomed to slavery he left the room.

Unbeknownst to those who had left the room, the dying woman's belly stilled throbbed with life and as the physician took her hand the dying woman grimaced and rasped hoarsely, "Do not let this child be a slave." Her eyes implored him and he nodded. Letting out a feral howl she pushed again and a second child emerged into the world. The placenta flowed with a gush of blood and the mistress of Lord Gerahn faded quickly and was gone. Bundling the child into a makeshift wrap with the placenta, the physician pronounced the woman dead and rushed from the room.

No one would question his taking the placenta to test for foul play, but time was of the essence. He knew of a family in the town that had just lost their child to the sleeping sickness and he hoped fervently that the apothecary and his wife would help care for the orphaned child. No one would question the child's legitimacy with the placenta as proof and the heart ache of the bereft mother could perhaps be healed in some way. 

Having delivered the baby to the couple and happy that he had fulfilled the dying woman's wish he had returned to the palace prepared to let the fates decide the futures of the twin girls. He had done all he could for them now and he let the deep sadness of the loss of their mother wash over him. He had loved Dana deeply and his heart broke at never seeing her smile again.

Roused from his thoughts the physician, Janus, looked again at the tiny dancer as she leapt to land at the feet of her Master. The fate of this girl haunted him and he watched the young girl knowing in his heart exactly who she was and that her identical twin sister dwelt back in southern mountains of Stolle. He worried now that the new Lord of the Mountain Realm would see the resemblance and what his reaction would be. A quick glance told him that the truth would have to come out. Gerahn the last Lord of the realm and father to the twin girls had succumbed to a viral fever. His many sons had engaged in a bloody battle that saw Arimus take the throne. No daughters were thought to have survived Gerahn and only he, Janus, knew that both of Dana and Gerahn's daughters had survived against the odds.

*****

Allora's story.

The kine clutched at the baby as the blanket was folded back and the red hot iron bearing the insignia to seal her fate burned into the delicate new flesh. Running from the room the woman fled to the kennels picking up the small bowl of egg whites she had readied earlier in case this moment arose and poured it over the burning flesh. Watching it seal the burn with its own white skin. The babe was quiet. Its frail life hanging in balance as its small body hung limply in shock and began shutting down. Sitting quickly Clio opened her blouse and squirting a few drops of milk to the babe's lips encouraging it to suckle.

A slave herself, she had been deemed a kine, when her own babe died within months of birth. Kine, was old tongue for cow, and the men of the brewers guild had kept her breasts engorged, milking her every six hours for the sweet fluid that was then taken to be fermented to make Koumiss, a very potent drink enjoyed by the lords of all nine of the lands in this kingdom. The other lands made their koumiss with milk from cows or goats, and the subtle differences made the koumiss of Stolle, a more desired and expensive product. She did not mind being seen as a cow, her life was easier than that of other types of slaves and now she had a babe to care for if she could just will the baby girl to live.

The child not only lived but thrived under the tender maternal care of Clio and as she flourished the scar of her brand healed and faded. Having once been married to an apothecary Clio knew how to treat deep wounds like the brand inflicted on the babe and the pale scar became barely discernible except by those who would peer knowingly at it.

The days were filled with mundane chores and Clio taught the small girl she had named Allora about the kingdom, the caste system and her place within it from the earliest age. She explained about the history and culture of the people and on cool winter nights when the sun set early she taught the little girl to dance in the snow. To her surprise the flakes seemed to whirl about the little girl coating her skin in a shimmering sheen of sparling light. It was Allora's favourite thing to do and even as she grew older they still met late on winter's nights when they were sure no one else was about and danced the snow maiden's dance.

Clio explained to the girl over and over again about the brand upon the girl's arm and what it meant encouraging her to keep it covered at all times. As a slave her life would be difficult enough but should others know she was the daughter of their lord and master her life could be made significantly worse and infinitely more dangerous.

The child thrived under the tender care of Clio, and the other kine women and as she grew Clio fostered friendships with the kitchen slaves in the neighbouring kennels hoping they would find a spot for the girl so she would not be taken further afield, to serve in the gardens or worse in the upper floors of the castle where she would come under scrutiny. No other daughters had been born to their master that had survived the branding and by the time the child was five she had more brothers than fingers such was the lords desire to breed sons.

Forgotten and unseen by anyone who would recognise the brand on her upper arm Allora took her place amongst the kitchen slaves at the age of five and fell into the exhausting rhythm of the days looking forward to the times she would see Clio again though they became rarer as she grew older and took on more tasks. She bloomed into womanhood hiding behind a quiet docile compliance and the long hair she let fall constantly over her face, she saw how new girls tried to fight their status and the punishments they received with wide eyed terror. On her coming of age not long after the beginning of her time of bleeding she was sent to the physician where she endured a humiliating inspection.

Strapped to a hardwood table by her waist her hands her secured at her sides by cuffs of hard leather, her knees bent when her feet, secured together by rope were brought up to almost touch her bottom. Standing at each side of her the assistants pulled her knees apart and secured them in place to leather straps from the table, Allora felt like a frog on its back. She had been warned by Clio what would happen and not to fight, it would not last long, the physician would declare her fertile and able to be bred, and then give her the bitter herbs to prevent the breeding from occurring each month and ultimately pregnancy.

What Clio had not told Allora was how vulnerable she would feel bound in such a way, her body open and accessible to the men in the room. Cold large hands roamed over her starting at her throat, they poked and prodded into her skin and she swallowed noisily closing her eyes and willing herself to breathe deeply and be calm. 'She must not give them any reason to look at her as more than a worthless kitchen slave lest the secret surrounding her birth came to light,' Allora reminded herself. All of her life Clio had instilled her the need to remain in the background, The Lord had hopefully forgotten her now and it was best kept that way, for who knew her fate if the evil man discovered her existence, he was a harsh and cruel man to any that did not please him.

Allora screwed her eyes shut as fingers travelled over every curve of her torso, her breasts seem to swell under his hands as he pressed the soft flesh between his fingers seeming to feel around and into them before pulling on her nipples. Allora felt a strange tingling course through her, her eyes opening momentarily as her breathing quickened. His hands travelled lower over her ribs and belly to finally caress her womanhood. The physician looked up in surprise at the whimper that escaped her mouth and she bit her tongue clamping her mouth closed tightly. 

Allora closed her eyes once more as one of the fingers delved inside her. Pushing further into her he felt at her lower abdomen as she whimpered, 'It wasn't pain really more an uncomfortable and unknown sensation to add to her humiliation. His hands finally withdrew after what seemed an age and he stroked a wet finger over her rectum, lightly testing it.

He stood next to her undoing her left arm, "Prepare the bitter herbs and an armlet for..." the physician's voice trailed off. "Bring me a candle!"

One of the assistants jumped to his feet from his half dose and moved forward with a lantern. The physicians eyes widened as the light grew brighter. "You know what this is?"

"No." the assistant said.

"I wasn't talking to you dungbrain, girl do you know what this is?"

She had been coached for this her whole life and she whispered unconvincingly, "A birthmark, Sir."

He turned then looking at his assistants, "Both of you need to know that as the best physician in this god forsaken place, I can poison you in a hundred different ways and no one would be the wiser. Any information given in this room is not to be divulged, we are physicians not spies." He looked back at her kindly, "You know what this is girl?"

She pressed her lips together and shook her head slowly. "I can see the fear in your eyes, you do know and you need not tell me. Now, who healed it so well an untrained eye would never have seen it for what it was?"

Again he was met with stubborn silence. Allora turned her head away a tear escaping down her cheek she could not betray Clio. He wrapped a bandage about her bicep, "Fine," he sighed, "you two unbind her and give her clothes to her."

The Physician paced the floor as she was released and dressed in the rags that served as her clothes. Sitting at his desk he penned a quick letter and beckoned her over to him. "You two sad cases sit over there and have some tea or something." He pointed to the far wall.

He spoke to her softly in whispered tones, "I know you. I was at your birth and I knew your mother well. There is only one girl child I know of with that brand that I did not sign a death note for," Allora's eyes opened wide in shock, "You could not have survived that branding on your birth without skilled hands, you can tell me quietly and I can thank the physician for sparing the child of a woman I admired or you can stay silent and I can raise a fuss searching for answers bringing the Masters wrath down on you; a girl child he thought was dead!"

She was frightened and trembled as she looked at him, "You admired my mother," Allora stalled. 

"More than you will ever know. Now speak girl for I lose patience. How did the kine who held you get you to another physician so fast?"

"She didn't" Allora stated truthfully. "She healed me herself and raised me and loved me and I will not give her up to you or any of the Masters men."

"I should have expected as much from Dana's daughter." He paused as she physically blanched, 'of course she didn't know her mother's name.' he thought sadly. 

"I want you to tell the kine what I have said and bring her immediately," Allora took the piece of paper he handed her and glanced around to the assistants who had fallen asleep against the back wall. "They will sleep for two hours or so you must be back within one if you wish to protect the kine. Go now, you will not be followed and the piece of paper will keep you from being taken off your path." 

Allora had a keen mind and she had learned to read from Clio, sitting with her night after night writing out the stories she told on dusty pieces of old roof slate that could be erased so no one would know. 'The physician thought they were brainless slaves, an hour they had to plan, Clio would think of something' she consoled herself as she stood and left the room.

*****

"Well there is nothing for it," Clio sighed resigned to her fate as Allora showed the letter and told her the story. "We must go see the physician and quickly," She took in Allora's horrified expression, "if he meant you harm he wouldn't have let you come to find me, we don't have much time I expect it must have taken you an age to find me here."

Allora looked around the weaving room, "What are you doing here?" 

"I am going through the change my milk is almost dry, I am being reassigned. Now let's go. The supervisor has seen the letter so he must wonder why we dally."

Taking Allora's hand before she could ask more Clio walked out of the building and across the bailey toward the house of the physician. Allora was still asking questions as the door opened wide for them on their arrival the physician smiling. As Allora sat to the side the physician who introduced himself to Clio as Janus, he began to quiz the kine. Allora was entranced as the story of how Clio had once been a free woman, daughter of an apothecary she had married a physician in a neighbouring kingdom before the lord and master staged a small war to expand his lands. Her husband having died she was taken as a slave with the rest of the women of her village.

Clio had been pregnant but the child had died after a premature birth and she had been taken to the milking room to be branded as a kine. Encouraged to lactate by the primitive machine pumping at her breasts she had quickly become a favourite of the chief herdsman who had used her for his pleasure often between her milking times. He was a master of rope and knots and took pleasure in tying her like a yearling calf before taking her body as his, often binding her breasts to leak the remnants of the coveted milk and lap at it while he violated her. He had sent her to Dana as a reward for particularly harsh use on the day of Allora's birth and found another in the herd to play with.

Impressed by old kine and filled with surprising joy that Allora had inherited her mother's brilliant green eyes and beautiful smile, the physician had petitioned to have them assigned to his personal home due to Clio's knowledge of medicinal herbs and Allora's cooking ability. He had often felt guilt over the years for not doing more for Dana's daughters and now almost two decades later he was finally in a position to help them, if he only knew where the second child had gone.

The family who had taken the new born babe had disappeared during a civil war. The Barons of Stolle were constantly at war with each other over mining rights, livestock and the like. The only hint he had was a bird that had come heralding the physician's death. He had hoped the child would return to him but she never did and he assumed she had suffered the same fate as her adopted father but could never find out for sure.

Clio's slavery was granted to the physician easily, she was old and little good to any of the guild masters. The head of the kitchen, however, argued the need of young strong bodies and once he had noticed Allora, he was loathe to give up the pretty young slave girl and she began to receive more than her share of attention from the kitchen master and his underlings.

Having come of age and been given the bitter herbs, Allora now wore an armlet to show her new status of maturity and found that there was little escape from the men who ruled the kitchen. Janus Promised he was doing everything possible to have her reassigned to his hospital but that it was more difficult that he had first thought it would be. He gave her errands and sent for her as often as he could but time moved forward and so did the advances of the kitchen Master.

Allora continued to hide behind her long hair and try to stay in the background meekly doing the more mundane tasks that others avoided in order to befriend the other girls in the kitchen and afford her some protection from the wandering hands and caresses that came her way but it could not last forever. 

The day came when, frustrated with her lack of attention to him the kitchen master called her to his office. The female slaves of the castle had no rights to speak of and each of the guild masters knew they could do as they wished with their assigned slaves within reason.

Clio had prepared her charge well for all facets of living within the castle slave caste and Allora knew well why he had asked her to his office. She had seen other girls enter the office and come out again in one way or another. Some had fled in tears, others had returned to their stations clearly shaken, a few though did not emerge during their shift only to reappear days later after having been admitted to the infirmary for a time. A few had returned to work without any sign of distress or discomfort and those girls were often bullied by the older women when the kitchen master was absent and within the kennels.

With great trepidation Allora approached the door and knocked gently when she had been summoned. The voice of the large man boomed through the heavy door and she opened it and walked through standing before the large desk and the even larger man sitting behind it. She stood for long minutes as he surveyed her making her increasingly anxious and uncomfortable. She knew there was little choice in what she must do here but the look in the man's eyes frightened her beyond reason.

"Seems a few people have asked for your release from my kitchens," he said suddenly surprising her. A slow lascivious smile crossed his face. "You must have given that physician the ride of his life. He has been unyielding in his petitions to have you reassigned." Shock registered on her face and made him curious about why the physician would want her so much. "Tell me what you did for him, and Ari, son of Gerahn, he also has suggested you be reassigned to the upper floors. If I think it is worthy of interest I might let you go to one or the other." It was a masked effort to find the real reason for not only the physician's interest but that of Ari, Gerahn's third son.

Again shock registered on Allora's face. Though she had never met any of her half-brother's she knew all of their names. Why would Ari want her release from the kitchen and what would that mean for her. She remained silent waiting not realising his statement had required a response.

"Well?" The kitchen master roared at her.

"I have never met Ari," she said quickly her obvious fear in her voice. "I have not even heard the name until today." Allora continued as she remembered all of the training Clio had given her.

"And the physician?" He prompted narrowing his eyes and not commenting on her remarks about Ari.

"He examined me many weeks ago on my coming of age. He gave me the bitter herbs and an armlet before sending me back to the kitchen kennels," She said honestly leaving out many pertinent details but looking the kitchen master in the eye as Clio had told her she must do when wanting people to believe she spoke the truth.


Twins of Trallis: Snowstorm



The kitchen master surveyed the girl stand before him. She was pretty but her hair constantly hid her face and the clothes she wore concealed her body. He knew that for once he was in a position of power. He had something others wanted and until the order came from Lord Gerahn himself he could play the odds to his own favour. The girl before him was a curious creature. She was not so beautiful as to be coveted by others. She was not so very skilled as to be wanted for her abilities. She was nothing more than a pleasing slave at best and the kitchen master being a shrewd man was determined to find the reason why more than one person demanded her release from his kitchen.

He knew that should he hurt the girl she would be sent to the infirmary by the kennel masters and he did not want to play into the physician's hands and so restrained his baser urges instead deciding a path of seduction and encouraging her dependence on his good-will would be the best course of action. Changing his tack he motioned her forward.

"Come closer, sweet girl. I only want to make sure you are well looked after and I do not believe the men requesting your company have your best interest at heart," His voice was softer in his efforts to entreat her. As she moved closer he captured the girl and pulled her to his lap. Dandling her on his he knee as he would a child rather than the young woman she was, he attempted to convince her of his patriarchal duty to protect her.

"There is no need to fear me," he began, "I just want to make sure you are doing the work you are meant for. You have learned much in the kitchen. It would not be fair to send you to a place where girls have been for a longer time and learned the ways of the masters when you have learned so well here, with me."

Allora looked into his eyes, as she had been taught, trying to read the truth of his words. It was with a swipe of her hand that she finally revealed her face fully to him. From behind the long locks that usually shrouded her face from him in his kitchen came a face that was beautiful and unique in its own way. Prettier than what he had thought on his first inspection of her with big sea green eyes that looked into his own with innocence and trust. Those eyes were bright and inquisitive and her mouth he had thought pursed tightly in dissatisfaction was more like a cupids bow. It now took considerable effort to restrain his baser urges as he ran a hand over her cheek and down her neck lightly.

"Now sweet girl," he began, "Why do you think these two people are offering me such recompense for your slavery?"

Allora truly had no idea what 'such recompense' meant and she hated to ask but in her expressive face her confusion shone. Seeing her perplexed expression he explained further, "You are safe here with me, no harm will come to you in my kitchen you have my word." He put his hand on his chest in a symbol of oath taking. "Why do you think they would want to take you from the life and the master you know?"

"My kine is a slave of the physician," Allora answered honestly looking into his eyes.

The kitchen master tried not to let the surprise show in his face. He knew the kines were only used in the case of the Lord's progeny. Slaves who died in childbirth were usually buried with their children unless a mistress of the lord or one of his sons. Even then girl children rarely survived the ordeal of branding. He knew he needed to see the girls arm to confirm his suspicions even though within his being he knew that the price for her release had just gone higher along with his desire to use the girl sitting so innocently on his lap.

The kitchen master warred with himself, knowing the value of the girl without even seeing the brand. He wanted her as much because she was a valuable commodity as he did because of her looks and vulnerability. 

"So you are the daughter of our lord?" He tested her, wondering if she knew herself who had sired her.

"No!" She said too quickly and with fright, giving herself away.

Reaching quickly before she had time to react he ripped her sleeve and dragged the armband down her arm exposing the small white mark that was the faded brand of Gerahn. His mind calculated what she was worth as he gazed at the brand and how he would handle the negotiations. His mind ticked over still warring with his need to fuck the young nubile young woman. Sliding her from his lap to the space between his feet, he began to untie his pants bringing forth his semi-erect cock before her.

"Please me while I decide what to do with you girl. It is as if I have been wasting my time on an ungrateful girl who will leave the kitchen after all the training she has been given," he shook his head disappointedly at her as he held his cock out toward her.

Allora tried without success to keep the smile from her face. Clio had warned her that men believed their cocks far bigger than what they were in reality and as she looked at the small rigid lump of man meat between the kitchen masters fat fingers relief flowed through her. It was not so big. In fact the thought of it entering her held some appeal. After her physical examination by the doctor she had become more of aware of her body and its responses to touch and she had often considered the men she worked with and met as to what they held within their trousers.

"Well don't just stare at it girl. Suck my cock like a sweet piece of honeycomb," he put his hand on the back of her head to force her forward between his legs. Allora moved forward opening her mouth. Clio had been very graphic in her instruction of what she should do in this situation but the reality of the moment was quite something else. The smell of sweat and urine assaulted her nose and she wrinkled it in distaste before tentatively licking out over the tip finding it softer than it appeared.

Closing her eyes and thinking of honeycomb as he had directed, Allora parted her lips and took the cock into her mouth and began sucking. There was no technique as she had no experience so she rolled her tongue and sucked not knowing if she was doing it right until he moaned and she stopped all movement thinking she had hurt him and waiting for punishment. Instead he groaned, "Do not stop, you little slut." His hand pushed on the back of her head making her take even more of the cock into her mouth and gag slightly.

She began to move her head up and down his shaft listening to his moans realising they were moans of pleasure not pain when he breathlessly gasped, "Oh yeah, just like that." Once again she closed her eyes trying to imagine sweet honeycomb even though the acrid smell assaulting her told her otherwise. Her jaw began to ache as she continued to suck and slobber. He startled her when he gripped each side of her head holding her in place and rammed as much of his cock into her mouth as he could. He groaned deep and long before and shooting jets of white sticky cum into her mouth. Her surprise and shock made her choke and she coughed spilling the milky fluid from her lips.

"Swallow it," he threatened hoarsely and she gulped. Finally releasing her and pushing him from him Allora sagged onto the floor breathing raggedly and retched. Her hair hung down covering her face once more and as he surveyed her he realised that despite her coming of age several months ago she was still obviously inexperienced. Unusual for castle slaves, with so many sons of the lord within the castle, the female slaves were constant targets of their attention and that may be the reason for Ari's interest in the girl. He laughed to himself, the boy probably didn't even know she was his half-sister, not that it would matter in all likelihood.

He continued to survey her as she dabbed at the bodice of the threadbare dress in an effort to clean herself up. Only the girls who worked in the upper floors of the castle were given decent clothing, a uniform of sorts to show their place within in the slave castes. The rest made do with the cast-off's from those slaves and linens that were no longer used in the castle proper. He would like to see this girl in a proper dress rather than the shapeless sack she wore and her hair pulled out of her eyes. He had an idea of the figure it hid after holding her in his lap for a time.

"You will stay here," he said abruptly. Her face came up and watched him as he stood suddenly and left the room. She heard the key turn in the lock immediately after the door closed and trembled, was she one of those girls who would end up in the infirmary? She wondered staring at the locked the door. She felt a shiver run up her spine but tempered with the knowledge that a trip to the infirmary would mean time spent with Clio and Janus she managed to convince herself that it was nothing to be frightened of.

*****

Allora did not return to the kitchen that evening nor did she return to the kennels in which she had lived since the age of five. Instead she found herself locked within the office and under the constant scrutiny of the kitchen Master. He offered no explanation for her imprisonment and she sat quietly in a corner unnerved at having nothing to do after a life full of mundane but time filling chores. He had not forced himself on her as exhausted from the evening meal he had returned to his office, locked the door and taken her through a second door to a small bedroom. Leaving her fully dressed he placed her in the bed on the side resting against the wall and had climbed in beside her imprisoning her with his body.

He had rapidly fallen into a deep sleep while she lay awake and stared at the ceiling. Her thoughts were muddled. She understood that the masters of each guild felt it was their right to use the women in their domain as they saw fit. She understood that she could not have gone on forever being ignored and staying within the background of the bustling kitchen. What she did not understand was what this man wanted from her. He obviously did not find her attractive enough to force himself on her, so why was she here in his bed? Why didn't he trade her to Janus or Ari for whatever reward he could get? 

Her mind leapt from the large man beside her to her half-brother Ari, trying to picture which one he was in her mind and wondering why he would petition to have her reassigned. The female slaves of the castle were usually only traded for one of two reasons, extraordinary skill at a certain task or their beauty had captured a master's eye. She had no real skill to speak of, and she certainly was not what others considered beautiful it seemed mystifying that someone other than Janus had petitioned for her. She fell asleep still puzzling over the idea.

She felt like she had been asleep mere minutes when she was pulled from her dreams into dimly lit consciousness. The covers had been pulled back and he forced her head down his body murmuring, "Suck my cock and make it quick, we have the morning bread to start." Dazed and more than a little sleep deprived Allora opened her mouth and took the thick sausage like cock between her lips. She began sucking on the head alone before beginning to take more in and out of her mouth at his urgent pulling of her hair to increase her pace and depth. He came surprisingly quickly and hearing his warnings again to "swallow it all" she gulped as the hot thick cream spurt into her mouth.

Satisfied he pushed her from him and sat up on the edge of his bed for a moment before standing, redressing and leaving the room. Allora crawled back into the bed and dozed fitfully until he returned some hours later. "Get up you lazy slut," his voice boomed above her making her jump and scramble from the bed. "Seems that Ari has made me an offer I can't refuse for you, so you will be leaving the kitchens for good." Allora's eyed widened and she shook her head in fear. She knew what happened to girls on the upper floors, she had heard all the rumours and seen the Janus's disgust when he spoke of various accidents and injuries. 

"Please no," she said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper, "I will be good I will do what you want. Don't make me go!" There was panic in her whispered words making the kitchen master stop and look at her.

"I need the money, if I am ever to retire comfortably. Do you know what happens to cooks when their masters are murdered or usurped?" It was the inevitable end of rulers in this realm, no ruler of Stolle had ever died of old age. The kitchen master planned to be long gone when Lord Gerahn's time came. This transaction should finally give him enough money to set himself up in a small baker's house in a nice little town in another realm. He took her by the arm and led her from his office through the kitchen, her wide tearful eyes earning her looks of interest from women she had been kennel mates with.

Taken through the maze of the lower floors she was delivered to the servant's bath house. A tall richly dressed man met them. He led a small chest which he opened for inspection. Allora's gasped as she looked at the gold and jewels held within it before it snapped closed and she looked up into cool grey eyes. His hand reached out to pull her hair from her face and he seemed to scrutinise every detail before letting it go again and addressing her directly.

"Are you a virgin still?" he asked the voice seeming as cool as the eyes she looked into as she nodded speechlessly.

He turned to the kitchen master, "You saw the brand yourself?" 

"Yes, but I have told no one as agreed," he said softly knowing he was on dangerous ground and plotting in his mind to leave the castle sooner rather than later. It was to his surprise that the prince had asked about the brand directly showing his knowledge that the girl was his half-sister and seeming not to care. 

"Does anyone else know of your brand girl?" The gentleman asked, locking his piercing gaze with hers. Allora shook her head terrified by what was happening and unwilling to endanger Clio.

"She has been in the kitchen's since the age of five, I doubt anyone has ever noticed the little mouse aside of yourself, and I am unsure how she came to your attention," the kitchen master said carefully considering that he could still negotiate with the physician if this girl disappointed the prince and was returned to him. He would tell Janus that Ari had come and taken her without warning in a few days' time if she wasn't returned to him and let him deal with Ari.

"We all have our own reasons for what we do," Ari said enigmatically and passed over the chest taking Allora by the arm and pulling her to his side. He turned his head and nodded to an unseen alcove and two men came forward taking control of the girl and leading her away. "Go back to your kitchen before I decide you have outlived your usefulness. My father may favour you but there are many cooks in that kitchen keen to take your position." Ari sneered as the threat was made clear. The kitchen master bowed his head in understanding and farewell then returned the way he had come, leaving Allora to her fate. 

Ari turned to survey the girl again. He did not think she was like the more flirtacious slave girls and servants of the upper floors but he decided to warn her anyway. "These two men are incorruptible. Do you know what that means?" 

"Yes, Sir," Allora said softly. "Good then there will be no misunderstandings during your transformation." He nodded to the men who walked her resolutely toward the bathing rooms. Ari followed his thoughts on the mother of this girl who had been kind and loving to the young boy of a deceased mistress of Gerahn. Only a few years older than himself at the time of her arrival the young man had become quickly besotted with the woman, Nyx, and hated his father for his treatment of her. She had encouraged Ari's artistic temperament in a time when he was increasingly required to show his strength and leadership skills as a prince of the realm. It was with her that he had found a love of music as well as art that he hid from all else, while he hunted and learned the art of warfare and diplomacy.

After the death of Nyx, he had gone to the physician who had been at the only other person to show the woman some compassion. The physician in his own grief had told the grieving boy the story of how she had come to the castle of Stolle. Janus had left out pertinent details like her true name and her link to the legend of the storm-dancer but told the boy of her abduction and her sadness of leaving her family behind. When pressed for details of the family Janus had just shrugged and claimed that Nyx, as she had called herself then rarely spoke of it and had taken a new name so as not to put her family in danger.

Having no taste for the art of warfare, Ari became a diplomat in his father's service and travelled widely for many years attending the births, weddings and even funerals of nobles in other realms on his behalf. He took opportunities as they arose to increase trade bargains and ally the realm of Stolle with other realms and he became a popular liaison between leaders and other diplomats.

It was at the naming ceremony of the new prince regent of Solaris in the strange city above the sea wall that he saw the face of Nyx again. The Lady of the coastal people was the exact image of the woman he knew as Nyx and he began to make inquiries. She did indeed have a twin sister. The sister had gone missing the night of her wedding and had never been found. The timing of the disappearance had roughly coincided with when Nyx had arrived at the castle of Stolle, had his father truly abducted the twin sister of the legendary storm-dancer and her heroic brothers. No wonder her name had been changed and he wondered if rather than of her own doing as Janus had said, his father had done it knowing they would search for her.

Ari attempted to spend time in the presence of Kerys during his time in the coastal city and by the time he left he knew that the woman he had known as Nyx was in fact, Dana, the lost sister of legend. He knew that to tell anyone what he had found would bring turmoil to the realms, so he stayed silent. His inquiries, however, came to the attention of the ruling family and rather than face the inquisition he had left the week-long celebration the day after the naming ceremony and returned to Stolle. The ceremony had caught at his heart as Kerys had held her twin girls and spoken of her own sister and the wrong she had done to her during their short lives together. She wished more for her own girls and would see that they both knew how special they were in their own right. She had ended the speech with the fervent hope that her sister would return to her one day and Ari had nearly broken his resolve to stay silent.

In that very poignant moment Ari remembered how Dana had died and resolved to find her child upon his turn to Stolle. It had not taken long to locate the kine that had attended Nyx, who he now knew as Dana, and from there find that the girl he sought worked in the kitchen. Over time his initial curiosity about the girl turned to obsession. As he waited for her coming of age when he could request she be assigned to him, she became more like her mother in looks and nature and his thoughts about her grew darker.

During the intervening years envoys from both the coastal realm and the grasslands had visited and made delicate inquiries about a woman matching Dana's description. Dana had not been allowed to move around the castle as some mistresses were, so very few people had come in contact with her when she lived and all of those were unlikely to ever have known her true origins. He cursed himself for his clumsy inquiries during his time in the coastal realm but as nothing came of it year after year he relaxed.

Bringing himself back from the memory he had of Nyx he watched from a comfortable chair near the entrance to the room as his men undressed the girl, almost ripping the drab rags from her body. He smiled as her flesh came into view. She had a most pleasing figure regardless of her small stature and frame. Her breasts were well rounded and topped with high nipples, sitting up upon her chest as if begging for attention. Her waist tapered in as if she had been made to wear the corset that would become part of her new livery, all of her life, and then smoothed out again over well rounded hips and a heart shaped bottom. He was delighted by what he saw and felt the stirring of his arousal even at this early stage of her transformation.




Twins of Trallis: Snowstorm



Allora cried out as near boiling water was dumped over her head and her skin was scrubbed to a rosy pink shine from head to toe by two bathroom servants. Finally allowed to sit within the cooling water her hair, neck, face and ears came under the same harsh scrubbing her body had. Sweet smelling soap and lotions were applied to her hair and washed out over and over again and the nails of her feet and fingers were cut, cleaned and polished to a high shine.

Taken shivering from the water she had been in for so long she was walked to yet another room. An older woman waited there. It was here that she sat in a high chair and her hair was brushed until it dried, shining and golden. A beautifully decorated hair comb was used to pull her hair from her face and keep it in place. Small tendrils curled about her face highlighting the shape and she looked into the mirror it was an oddly different version of herself that stared back. All her instincts told her to pull the comb back out and hide behind her curtain of hair so she shifted and sat on her hands rather than appear rebellious.

Within the mirror she could also see Ari seated in a chair behind her with the two men close by. Each of Lord Gerahn's sons had men at arms that never left their side such was the precarious nature of being a ruler in this realm. Ari had grown up with these men beside him, each only a few years his senior, he paid them well, rewarded them often and they had shown their loyalty to him on more than one occasion. There were no other men in this realm he trusted as much as the men beside him, not even his own family. Unusual maladies and hunting accidents had claimed more than half of his brothers in the last decade, his good health and good luck was entirely due to his men.

Fine charcoal lines were added to her eyes lids making her eyes seem wider and the juice of warberries, so named for their blood red colour, were used to stain her lips. The woman pinched her cheeks and held out a hand to help her stand from the chair. Taking a small pair of shears the old woman knelt down and closely trimmed the find blonde hair from between her legs. Once done she turned to Ari, "Will that be all, Prince Ari?"

"Yes thank you, Nahn. You may go, and see to the other arrangements," he dismissed her with a wave of his hand. Allora watched the woman go. Self-conscious in her nakedness she did not look at the men directly but waited for instruction feeling a blush rise against her glowing skin.

Ari's boots appeared before her as she looked at the floor and she tensed a moment before his hand lifted her face up to look at him. He took a cape and wrapped it about her shoulders covering her nakedness and, allowing a small smile to soften his features for a brief moment, pulled a hood forward to conceal her face. Taken forward the three men surrounded her and walked up a spiralling staircase from the servant's baths to an upper floor.

Allora trembled, safety was in the anonymity of the slave caste and within the kennels, the servants and slave girls of the upper floors were held above those who dwelt below the castle and as she moved higher up the stairs she felt the safety of knowing her place and having Clio within reach slip away from her. All she could do now was listen and do her best to please those who commanded her. She tried desperately to remember the little Clio had told her of the upper floors, which amounted to almost nothing she realised, making her tremble in fear.

Dark corridors lined with rich tapestries passed by her as they seemed to walk for the longest of times. She had become confused as to which direction they had entered the floor from the stairs and knew she would never find her way out of the upper castle without help. By the time the men entered a suite of rooms, Allora had turned pale with fright and could barely hold herself upright her trembling legs felt so weak.

The two men at arms moved away as Ari lead her deeper in the suite and through to another room. Allora took a look at the sumptuous furniture in the large bedroom and finally overcome with fear and dread, wilted, falling in a heap to the floor shrouded by her cloak.

Allora woke slowly and blinked her eyes feeling the strange softness of the mattress below her and quickly standing and smoothing out any wrinkles she had left on the rich quilt covering the soft bed. She stood uncomfortably not sure what she should do when a woman bustled in and stopped seeing her standing uncertainly beside the neatly smoothed bed. Allora recognised her from the baths down stairs, they acknowledged each other with a look and a slight incline of their heads, but neither of them said anything. The woman placed a basin and pitcher on the night stand along with several towels and left the room quickly.

Almost as soon as she left Ari walked in and Allora froze. Ari smiled, it was almost like having Dana back from the grave and all the fantasies and feelings of puppy love he had held as a young man came flooding back as he gazed as at the girl he had purchased and transformed into the image he had always held of his perfect mistress. He closed the door behind him. 

"I have dreamed of you," Ari said softly. He stepped toward her and she gathered the cloak around her without thinking. "You have no need to fear me. You will be cared for and looked after here, within these rooms." Her eyes showed her lack of comprehension. "You will not be returning to the kitchens. You will stay here, with me. You will learn the ways of the courtesan, starting with reading then music and artistic endeavours. Above all you will learn what is pleasing to me and my men at arms."

He was close to her now and his hand reached out to stroke her face. Allora jumped at the contact of his fingers upon her. She had questions she wanted to speak but so well trained in her slavery by Clio and the women of the kitchen and kennels she mere stood and tried not to shy away from his tender touch on her cheek. She knew what pleasing Ari would entail and while she was more than a little frightened, she was also very curious after the events of the last weeks since coming of age and all she had experienced. Tilting her eyes up to him she noted that the cool grey eyes seemed warmer now, less calculating than when he had been speaking with the kitchen master.

Ari's hand drifted lightly from her cheek down over her shoulder pulling the cloak back from her body gently. He knew he could take the girl by force. He was a prince of the realm. He could merely have just walked in and removed her from the kitchen taking her how he wished but he did not want his father or brothers to know of his interest in the girl and bring her under their scrutiny. His obsession was such that he did not want to share her with anyone, not even his men at arms, the fewer people who knew of her whereabouts the better as far as he was concerned. If the kitchen master had not left for a new life within the week he would be dealt with as his thinly veiled threat had implied.

Glancing down and taking in her form he let his face soften further as he bent to kiss her lightly. His smile widened as she tilted her head up and returned his kiss albeit tentatively. Encouraged Ari kissed her deeper parting her lips with is tongue. Nearly twenty years her senior the young girl before him was delightfully soft yet firm, tentative yet yielding, just as his fantasies had told him she would be. He found himself suddenly nervous to finally have the girl he had dreamt of for so long within in grasp. Stepping back slowly he pulled his tunic over his head leaving him bare chested. His fingers fumbled clumsily with his belt as he watched her face.

Allora watched with interest as Ari began to undress. His chest was broad and covered generously with thick curling black hair. She could see the well-defined muscles of a man who trained regularly and her eyes drifted down his abdomen noticing the ripping muscles there as he dropped his belt and trousers to the floor stepping out of them. Her eyes fixed on his manhood. The large cock jutted out from a groin unhindered and surrounded by tight curls of dark hair. The sac holding his royal jewels hung below seemed well proportioned to the cock that had captured her attention.

Ari stepped forward again tugging at the ties of her cloak that held it around her neck. She had not said a word or even so much as uttered a sound from the time he had seen her approach with the kitchen master and he longed to hear her voice. He bent to kiss her once more pulling her against his body. 

"Do you understand that your life has changed dramatically this day?" he asked still talking softly.

"Yes, Sir," Allora whispered after a moment's hesitation.

"I want you to understand that I have no wish to hurt you," he kissed her again, remembering the punishment Dana had endured at the hands of his father. "This first time that we lie together may be painful at first but it will pass. Do not be afraid of me."

Allora nodded and accepted another kiss while Ari's hands travelled lightly over her body making her tremble slightly. She felt her fear being drowned by the anticipation and excitement she felt. Clio had trained her well and she knew what to expect she had known for some time and only her gift for melding into the background of the busy kitchen had saved her from previous advances that might have better prepared her for the life she knew she would have with the man kissing her and creating a flutter of butterfly wings in her belly.

Stripping back the covers, Ari picked her up and placed her Allora carefully on the bed and went to move beside her. Leaning up on an elbow he held her eyes as his hand explored more of her body. The rounded breasts kept their form and his hand cupped the soft flesh allowing his thumb to roll over the hardened nipple gently. 

New and strange sensations invaded her chest as Ari explored her. She breathed deeply letting out a long soft sigh making him smile down on her. "This first time may not be pleasant but it will not always be so," he reassured her. His hand drifted down her body and he could almost make himself believe it was Dana lying beside him. In that moment he realised how much better this was. Better than his fantasy. He would be her first, the one she would measure all men by. There would be no comparison to his brutal father, or a past love from an unknown land, this girl would be truly his. His hand cupped her sex feeling its warmth and he leant to kiss her wanting nothing more than to lose himself in the moment.

His fingers delved deeper while his mouth travelled the path his fingers had originally made down her neck and over her shoulder. He trailed kisses down onto her chest and sucked gently on her nipples, his fingers moving to her tight cunt and slowly testing the resistance within. Her breathing had changed, increasing its depth and pace and he moved up rolling onto her pinning her beneath him. Continuing his kisses he stole her breath and moved his legs between hers edging them apart and resting his hard cock against her thigh.

The cock against Allora's thigh felt even larger than what her mind told her she had seen when he undressed. She tensed as he moved forward spreading her legs wider and felt the red hot poker nudge at the entrance to virgin cunt.

"Relax, you will feel less discomfort if you relax. Trust me, I do not wish to harm you," Ari murmured in her ear feeling her body tense in expectation. He forced his cock into her slowly feeling the barrier stop the slow penetration. He raised his head to look into her face and smiled softly holding her tight and then thrust forward hard. He continued to move into her as he swallowed her cry of pain and surprise with a deep kiss, winding his tongue around hers in a dance almost as exquisite as the tight sensation he felt around his cock. Pulling out slightly he thrust again and yet again until he was fully buried within her. Stilling his movements he held her tightly until she relaxed in his arms once again.

Blinding lights of pain had lanced through her brain and behind her eyes she wanted nothing more than to close her legs and expel the intruder now that it was over. All of the things Clio had told her about sex and what would happen, she was disappointed that it seemed to be over so soon and let herself relax into the strong arms holding her so tightly aware of the trickle of warm fluid between her legs. 

Leaning up on his arms above her Ari began to move again slowly at first testing her reaction as he watched her face. She seemed surprised and looked up at him her face a mixture of emotions. Feeling his long held desire and need surface with the friction of her tight cunt he began to move faster eventually leaning back down to kiss her between ragged breaths as he tried to hold back the flood within him unsuccessfully. He groaned loudly as he came wrapping her tightly in his arms once more.

Allora was breathing heavily sensations rolling through her body, making her limbs tingle and the fluttering in her tummy taking control of her body and make it tremble all the more. They lay there for long moments before Ari rolled to his back pulling her to lie on her side resting her head on his chest his arms surrounding her.

"How do you feel?" he asked softly. Tilting her chin up to his face, he looked into her eyes, "Lingering pain?" Allora shook her head. She felt some discomfort but not pain. In the end far from the disappointment she had felt in the beginning she actually enjoyed the experience and was hopeful it might happen again before he sent her away back to the slave kennels.

*****

Allora hadn't known life could taste so sweet. Even though she was trapped within the suite of rooms, Ari and his men at arms were attentive and saw to her every need as if she were a princess bride from another realm. He had been pleasantly surprised that she was able to read and constantly challenged her to improve her skill furnishing her with books of music and art. He entreated Nahn, the only other woman Allora had contact with in those first weeks to teach her the dance of the snow maidens. Nahn had once been a great beauty within the women quarters of the castle and a favourite of Lord Gerahn.

A tentative friendship formed between Allora and Nahn. Ari had saved Nahn from being relegated to the slave caste of the lower floors of the castle by taking her as one of his attendants when age had begun to mar the beauty of youth that she had clung to for so long. She was loyal to Ari and trust-worthy and she helped Allora learn the ways of a courtesan. Her natural gracefulness and inquisitive mind made her a quick study in music and dance as well as the legends of the bards which fascinated her. Ari came to her often and when basking in the afterglow of their love making he would question her on what she had learned and her opinions of things she had found. He was thrilled to know she could dance the dance of the snow maidens and watched rapturously as she performed him on cold winters night marvelling at the way her skin and hair shone in the moonlight.

Unsurprisingly, she found in the legend of the storm dancer a poignancy that touched all the hearts of those who heard or read it. He warred with his feelings of wanting to tell her of her origins of her blood link with the heroes of legend but his desire to keep her happy to be his alone and remain with him stilled his tongue. Unwilling to share his love of Allora with anyone it was with two minds that when a strange fever swept through the upper floors of the castle he spoke to the physician about his secret mistress and asked him to ensure she did not have symptoms.

"Has she been to the women's quarters at all?" the physician asked.

"No, never," Ari responded still looking concerned.

"I believe," the physician said slowly, "That a girl infected with a virulent and fatal virus was smuggled into the women's quarters in order to decimate your family and kill your father who has recently survived as many as four assassination attempts." Janus's curiosity was peaked though and he continued. "It is best to be sure though, as it is only a theory at present."

Janus walked into the suite of rooms and stopped in his tracks as Allora danced into the room without noticing that Ari had brought the physician. Nahn appeared beside her startled by the sound of the door during a dance lesson. Ari and Nahn both saw the look on the physicians face before he resumed his normal countenance. 

"Allora!" She exclaimed and the girl stopped mid movement and glanced up. Allora smiled as she saw Ari had returned early to see her progress with the dance. Her eyes then travelled to the man beside him and lit up.

"Greetings," she said before adding, "How lovely to see you again, Janus. I am far from unwell, Ari, my love." She said, inquiring, "Why have you brought the physician?"

Ari's surprise turned to pride as Allora spoke as if she had been born to the life she now enjoyed. He watched as emotions played over the face of Janus before speaking. "Just a precaution, many people have succumbed to fever this winter. Allow the physician to examine you, please."

"Of course," Allora smiled and turned back to the physician, "Shall we go into the bedroom?"

"Yes, and I should examine your attendant as well. Does she visit the women's apartments?" Janus recovered himself and began to speak professionally again.

"No," it was Ari that replied, "She is unwelcome there. She has a small room across the hallway from this suite."

"Good, that bodes well," Janus said as he began conducting his examination starting with the attendant who he found in remarkable condition and health for a woman of her age. Ari had taken a chair within the room and watched as the physician worked. He held Allora on his lap as Nahn endured a thorough examination and then instructed her to wait in the next room as Allora was given the same examination.

Once Nahn had gone and Ari had resumed his chair he spoke to the physician as he worked. "How is it Allora seems so familiar with you, physician?"

"The kine of her childhood, Clio, works in the infirmary. Allora visited often when she worked in the kitchen. The woman has been inconsolable since the girl's disappearance," Janus spoke frankly.

Ari mused over this information as he watched the examination. He had not considered that the girl would be overly missed by anyone. His observations of her in the kitchen had made him believe her friendless and uncared for as the kitchen master had said. Perhaps it was wishful thinking on his behalf but now more people knew of Allora's existence which would endanger her if she was seen as a weakness for his growing list of enemies could exploit.

"You are healthy. Are you happy?" Janus asked the Allora as the examination finished.

"How could I not be happy here?" Allora returned the question before answering more fully at the blank look on Janus's face. "Ari treats me as if I were a princess. I have been encouraged to read and learn. To dance and sing and wear clothes I have only dreamed of. He is a gentle and kind man who treats me better than I deserve. I love him," she admitted though she had never said it to Ari afraid of his reaction to being loved by a slave girl.

Ari's heart swelled in his chest, he loved Allora. His obsession with her mother had driven him to pursue her imprisonment here but over the weeks he had come to know the girl she was. She was so different from her mother, she did not possess that resigned sense of self defeat, instead she embraced every new challenge and experience with a sense of wonder and curiosity. She was his world. With her he could shut out the castle intrigue and sense of always having to be on guard against the machinations of the power hungry politicians and his brothers.




Twins of Trallis: Snowstorm



"I will keep your secret, Prince Arimus," Janus said looking the man in the eyes to show the truth of his words, "but we must speak in private if you will."

"I will send Nahn back in to help you dress, Princess," he smiled and walked toward her to kiss her chastely and whisper in her ear, "I love you also." Turning to face Janus, "Let's go have this talk we must have."

Janus explained that due to age and recent injuries, the fever would take Gerahn's life within the week. It would also take the youngest five of his many brothers who still had constant contact with their mothers and the women of the upper floors. It was a very clever assassination and by the end of its course it will have decimated the ruling family. Ari was in a unique position in that he did not have contact with any of those infected so far and Janus gave him instruction on how to keep those loyal to him from catching the virus which seemed to be transmitted by touch, hand to mouth as it were. The initial infected girl had been a food server in the women's quarters, the women then took the virus to their partners and the epidemic began.

"The battle for lordship of the realm will begin soon, with only a few heirs to lay claim to the throne if any. Whoever perpetrated this has done his job well," Janus finished his speech about the upcoming battles he saw in the future. Ari nodded deep in thought his mind ticking over his next move, aware that his men at arms were seated nearby and had heard all of what the Physician had said. All their lives would be forfeit if he did not join the battle and win but he had no long held desire to be Lord of the realm and be an even bigger target of attack. 

"Thank you for the warning of coming events," Ari said stiffly realising he had no real choice in the matter. "I will consider all of the advice you have given me."

"I am not done," Janus replied and looked at Ari seriously. "We both know who that girl in there truly is. I will not demean you by treating you as a simpleton and explaining it to. We both cared for her mother in our own ways as we both care about her." Ari nodded looking at Janus with suspicion. "You will be endangering her keeping her at your side during the battles ahead, and while many of your brothers may spare a pretty young girl and place her back into slavery, if her arm band remains removed, as you have done, they will recognise the brand faded though it is."

His words were not lost on Ari, who looked at the large closed doors that led to the bed he shared with Allora. "I have no wish to give her up." 

"Then we must plan the best way to approach the coming battle. For now you have earned my loyalty as your father once did before he turned cold and bitter. You have less than a week to raise a small army and protect not only yourself but those closest you." Janus said meaningfully. "I will move to the castle today and stay on this floor. I will bring with me several assistants including Clio. There is no one who could protect that girl better and prepare her for what she must do should you be defeated." Ari looked dubious at the last so Janus added. "Her love for Allora is so great, she will not betray any of us and she will see to what needs to be done if that time arises." Again Ari nodded dark thoughts clouding his mind. 

Janus was all business having been through this type of battle twice in his life already. Gerahn had held power longer than most in his position but Janus remembered the blood feuds well. "I will return to this room tonight an hour after the feasting time. Attend and be seen as hale and hearty but eat nothing unless the servant who serves you is willing to taste it first. I will bring antidotes with me just in case." Ari was taken aback at being given instruction and began to protest but Janus held up his hand. "You can choose to accept me at my word and that you have my loyalty for the battle ahead or you can have me killed upon my return tonight but take heed of my words, I have been through two such battles for lordship and I can keep you and those you care for alive."

Janus stood and left the room. Ari and his men at arms immediately began to plan, firstly they needed to confirm that Gerahn was gravely ill. One of the men donned soft gauntlets and heeding the words of the physician about how the virus was spread went in search of proof. Ari returned to Allora to reassure her that all was as it should be and to gently probe her about how she knew Janus so he could match the stories.

*****

The foresight and skill of the physician in conjunction with Ari and his men at arms, who had good minds for warfare and subterfuge, had pre-empted the battle. After the death of Gerahn, Ari kept a low profile safe guarding both himself and those he cared for. He watched from the sidelines as his brothered battled. No one thought him much of a threat and went after the more robust and warlike contenders that stood in the way of the throne first, not noticing the defections to the smaller more stable forces of Prince Arimus. The physician and his attendant Clio had been pivotal in turning the tide of the battle when it came to Ari. They had connections in every guild of the lower castes and they managed to form allegiances with the very people who were mostly forgotten in times such as these.

His brothers suddenly found themselves with broken equipment that was not mended in a timely fashion and food that lacked substance and taste. In the case of one particularly cruel and vile candidate for the throne, he found his food laced with a slow acting poison that killed him as he slept. With so any guilds refusing service to all but the new lord himself the coup when it came from Ari's forces was far from the bloody riots that had preceded it. 

He spent the first six months of his reign as Lord of Stolle making the promises Janus and Clio had made to the guild masters who had supported him so well during the battle a reality. The castle prospered and with that prosperity so too did the lands of Stolle benefit from good will. After the battle the remaining two brothers had been executed and the direct descendants of Gerahn's line aside of his own family had been sold into slavery as was the tradition. 

Believing all of Gerahn's progeny slain or sold into slavery at this point, the entreaties from Solaris and Cavalia regarding the whereabouts of the woman, Dana, vcc ceased and as time drifted on Ari remained a benevolent ruler and took Allora as his bride legitimising her right to be treated as a Lady of the realm alongside the lady's from other noble houses. He gifted his men at arms titles and large parcels of land which were then placed in the hands of care takers until they wished to leave the castle and claim them. Clio and Nahn became the constant attendants of Allora and the physician was rewarded heavily.

*****

It was two years after his ascendancy to the throne of Stolle that Lord Arimus stood in the tent of the Sand Lord his face frozen in a look of dignified disinterest as the mirror image of his wife, his great love, danced lewdly before them. His cold grey eyes locked instantly with his most trusted advisor, the physician Janus. 

Leaving the celebrations shortly after the dancer had completed her entertainment, Ari exploded. "I thought we were beyond secrets! Tell me it is just bizarre coincidence, a doppelganger, I dare you."

"Twins," Janus said sadly. "I believed her dead. What was the point in causing Allora distress? I had searched for years for that girl to no avail," Janus covered his face with his hands shock and relief at seeing her alive again warring within him as he reasoned with Ari.

"You should have told me! How could you not tell me!" Ari was still angry and disappointed in the man he trusted.

"What good would it have done to tell you of a dead girl? I was so sure she had died as her adopted father had when she would have been less than ten years old. I had buried the memory of her so deeply it has truly shocked me as much as you to see her here." Janus had no answer except his original statement.

"Tell me now then." Ari sat on the edge of a large chair within the big tent. "Tell me the whole story of how Dana died."

Janus unburdened his guilt at not having protected Dana better, of not having looked after the girls with greater care, of having lost the small dancer that they had seen tonight. It was with tears in his eyes he finally stopped talking remembering his promise to Dana that her child not be a slave, and the sense of betrayal that seeped into him.

"I won't endanger Allora." Ari paced the room his mind working quickly. "We will go to Iken and see what we can find about how she came to be in his possession."

The following morning, Lord Arimus of the Realm of Stolle, followed by his second and the physician entered the tent of the sand people and stood stiffly looking at the Horse Lords. 

"I am quite the popular man this morning Lord Iken chuckled, "And what brings you here this fine morning gentlemen? Did my dancer also appeal to you?"

"The physician feels he may have knowledge of the dancer's parentage," Ari said stiffly, "I am here to see that his suspicions are put to rest one way or the other." Toka arrived as he finished speaking and he turned to eye the other men in the tent.

The four powerful Lords all eyed each other with a mixture of hostility and interest when Mahan arrived with Nyx. Dressed in the diaphanous garb of a dancer she went first to kneel before Iken and asked sweetly, "How may I serve you, my Lord?"

Ari and Janus hung on her every word as she recounted her early life with little to no detail. It confirmed to them however that Janus was correct about her origins. Then just as closely they listened to the questions and information brought forth by the other Lords. Ari remained impassive but Janus recoiled several times as some information was brought anew from Dana's long lost family.

As they left the tent to reconvene in the proper council tent Lord Iken called to them. "Lord Arimus," he called, "The man with you is a physician you said? The reputation of the physicians of Stolle precedes them, perhaps after the meeting he could prescribe me some balm to ease my old bones, in the dry desert heat."

Ari grunted in a non-committal way but Iken saw the look of interest flash over the doctor's face before they left his tent to reassemble in the council hall. Janus was mulling over what he had seen and heard. If they admitted to knowing that Dana was the mother of Nyx he endangered her from his own country men who did not like to leave the children of deposed Lord's alive to claim title to the throne. Even if Ari did not pursue that course of action his men at arms would. 

Ari pulled the physician aside before he reached the tent. "Your face gives you away. You cannot come to the deliberations, you will wait in my tent."

Janus appealed to him reasoning that while, somehow information had got out that Dana had in fact been abducted rather than having died as originally thought on the night of her sister's wedding feast and that there was a child, they did not seem to know that she was a twin. How could they, even those who had been in the room that day, twenty years ago had only seen the birth of the first of Dana's daughters.

Ari disagreed . They could admit to Dana having a child by Gerahn and discount the girl as being her as she bore no brand but then the search would continue and he would not wish to put her in any more danger than she already would be now that his men had seen her mirror image here at the Council of Nine. They decided to stay silent, no one had any proof, no one could for any certainty claim they knew the girls origins, no one but Janus, himself that was. If he stayed silent life as they knew it could go on for the two girls. 

The delegates from each realm had assembled again to form the council of nine and the tensions between the men of Stolle and the horse lords of Cavalia were palpable. The absence of the physician, Janus, was noted and Ari stepped forward to speak on his behalf claiming that the girl was a daughter to a physician that trained with Janus, he had died an untimely death and his family had fled before Janus could make the journey to offer them shelter in the palace grounds. Should he be allowed to return her to the country of her birth she would be treated as a princess not a slave.

It was Rhys who stepped forward saying that a freed slave woman had journeyed to the clan of the Horse Lord to tell them of a great wrong doing. A horse woman named Dana had lived when all else thought her dead. She had taken the name Nyx and lived an unhappy existence, weak and unwell she had died in childbirth. The child had been raised by herself and her husband until his early death and he had tasked his wife with finding a healer in the grasslands named Hohepa. As they travelled to the grasslands to seek out the child's mother's clan, they had been captured and sold into slavery. The woman had loved the child and once free she sought out the healer and told him her tale.

Keharn concurred with the Horse Lords story adding that his wife, the sister of Dana never believed she had passed over into the great unknown. It was sometime later that she said she had dreamt that Dana was free and happy and finally let the search for her sister die. 

After allowing the petitions to come forth Iken stood and looked around at the gathering of lords and Ladies, "They are all wonderful tales and I feel for each of you in what you say, but there is no proof that this girl is anything more than a slave and dancer. She has lived with the people of my realm for the last decade, where were you all then? I put it to you that her talent is so great the desire to own one such as she has created these entreaties for her release from servitude." 

Ari watched as the men of legend rose to their feet and Lord Iken waved his hands at them, "I know you brothers of legend and you Sealord in waiting, do not think to intimidate me with your status amongst this council, for whatever reason, the girl was sold into slavery, she belongs rightfully to me and I will not hand over such a valuable commodity on supposition and say so."

"At least let her hold the orb of the storm-dancers," the softly spoken Lady Camille said. "It cannot hurt to see if it glows, and then we can talk of proof."

Ari clenched his fists trying to think of a way to stop the testing as once again Keharn took an orb from his pocket and approached Nyx with a kindly smile, "Will you come with me to the center of the tent? No harm will come to you, I promise."

The orb seemed like all others of its kind. A white glow emanated from it and its contents swirled like clouds. In the hands of the dancer though the orb pulsed and changed rather than glowing brightly white and throbbing with her heartbeat as it would have if she had been a storm dancer, it instead pulsed deeply and changed from white to a deep golden glow. It was as if the clouds of white energy trapped within the sphere had turned to clouds of sand. Ari stayed strangely silent and stoic as the others within the tent gasped in shock.

"Give the orb back to its owner, Nyx," Lord Iken said softly his shock making him careless.

Keharn faltered in his step toward the girl as he whispered, "Your name is Nyx?"

"Yes," she said softly, "Named for my mother." It was the last shred of proof Ari needed. He prepared to finally speak when Lord Iken shouted above the din.

"It means nothing," Iken jumped to his feet, "It is a common slave name we all know that." The orb once in Keharn hands turned back into the pulsing white light, the energy clouds chased each other around the glass sphere. "It should be obvious to all who saw it that the girl is a sandstorm dancer."

"We all have legends from our own realms, I must admit that was an interesting example but I am not convinced, show me a stone walker or a water sprite from the fens and I may believe that the stuff of myth has returned but that was a trick, I am not sure how Iken but I think you have bamboozled us again," Lord Gabriel rumbled into the now hushed voices as the lords and Ladies of the nine realms talked quietly amongst their own kind.

"In any case," he continued, "It is no proof of anything, take your girl Iken, let the others find proof of this Dana and if she gave birth at all, someone who knew her that could say for sure." He measured each of the three men who seemed about to protest with a level gaze. "Should I come to your clan and tell you that your mistress is the daughter of my long dead sister would you just hand her to me?"

The three men spluttered to form a reply, "The code here is very clear, come next council with proof and we will reconsider your requests. Do you agree, Ladies and Lords? Or shall we put it to a formal vote?" Gabriel eyed everyone seriously looking for nods of assent.

The council disbanded to enjoy lunch and Ari stalked from the tent to the tent of Janus, "You will meet with the sand snake and you will find out if the girl is happy and healthy. No more no less," he fumed. "I will not endanger Allora for no reason. We must wait until and be cautious until council reforms again next harvest moon."

Janus agreed, the Lady of Stolle was a precious woman, the problem was that at that moment she was in danger from anybody at this council who visited Stolle and could put the two girls together in their minds or at worst the same room. "I am sending Gerhardt back to guard her, write your letter to Clio as I will to Nahn," he looked at Janus sadly, "You should have told me old man, this is not good news."

*****