Authors: Monica Luke
**
Knowing she had to play her part well, Tagia wore a seductive bed gown that gave hidden peeks of her body, but in truth she could have worn sackcloth, and he would have been just as stimulated because he had set his mind to have her no matter what.
“Lovely,” he commented when he saw her standing at the door after waiting for her to come to his bed.
“Does this suit you?”
“It does indeed,” he lustfully answered, “You have always had a wonderful body Tagia.”
Slowly, she walked to the bed to get into it, but he stopped her. “Stand back and remove your gown.”
His request and words sounded like the hissed command of a snake and made Tagia shudder, which she quickly played off by pretending to be cold, then once her gown fell to her feet, he raised himself in bed.
“Ah.” Another hiss, as he removed his tunic, already naked from the waist down.
Her naked body in front of him, he didn’t call her to him yet. Instead, he leaned back and began to stroke himself, and then once his shaft was standing, he beckoned her to him.
When he did, Tagia slide beside him hoping she could stroke his already leaking manhood until he released, but he had other plans and wanted inside her virgin walls.
“This night is a good night by the moon’s count,” he said, “For my seed to take hold.”
Her eyes widened from his words. He had been keeping an account of when her bleeding began and stopped.
“
Not if I can end you first.”
She thought.
“Sit upon me.”
Slowly, Tagia obeyed and straddled him; then while grinding her body on his stomach, she leaned forward, and reached under his pillow hoping the knife she had a servant secretly plant was still there.
Once she felt the steel. About to grab it, suddenly he put both hands on her hips and in an instant lifted her.
Startled, she pulled her hand to brace her body, but he did it so quickly before she could react in time, she felt his sudden stab.
“Ah,” she could only gasp, when she felt her seal suddenly rupture and his manhood now inside her.
“Umm.” He felt it as well. Pleased with the heat of her walls half around his shaft, before without hesitation, he thrust upward hard pushing his already leaking organ deeper.
Quickly, she tried to lift her body, but he held in her place, making her unable to lean forward to get her hand back onto the knife, as each thrust was harder and seemed deeper than the first.
Although, she detested the man, he made her body react causing her bud briefly to swell and throb. Stimulated by his timed upwards thrusts, once she could finally push the new sensation between her thighs out of her mind, she again set her mind on her task.
Finally, after he thrust into her countless times until his fingers dug deep into her curved hips, and a grimace came across his face suddenly he seized.
When he did, she felt his heated geyser erupt inside her and although she felt repulsed, the feeling it of it made her walls spasm and wave.
“I have pleased.” His eyes opened wide when he felt it.
Tagia faked her smile, and fell forward; right away searching for the knife again, then when her hand again felt the steel under the pillow, she reacted quickly.
With one clean swipe at his neck’s artery, she sliced it open, and the expression on his face the same as when he exploded inside her, it made her feel sick.
“You…”
As he was about to utter some insulting word or curse, Tagia didn’t wait to hear what it was and ended him by quickly, plunging the knife into his heart.
“Sleep well from your passionate night,” she spewed, as she wiped his blood off her hands, then wiped away his still hot seed that seeped out her, before she put on her bed gown and a cloak, and hurried out.
“It is done,” she whispered to her seer who was waiting by one of the many secret doorways within Celgon. “We must get word to King Aderac.”
**
Belon slept with his body draped across Aderac. It was normally the other way around, but ever since they began to march this was how they slept, and although he was heavy, Aderac relished the feel his body on him.
He knew Belon now slept with him this way as a way of protecting him. Offering his body as a human shield should assassins slip pass the guards and try to kill him, and if Belon for some reason didn’t wake in time, they would have to go through him to get to Aderac.
As both slept soundly wrapped in the other’s arms after Belon’s promised declaration of love, their bodies spent, they slept soundly until…
Belon leaped out of bed at the sound of rapid pounding on the bedroom door.
“Great king!” the guard called out, but he should have known who would respond.
“Speak!” Belon said gruffly, once he opened the door, still groggy from suddenly springing out of bed.
“A message.”
Aderac sat up when he heard the word message listening intently.
Immediately, Belon took the message to Aderac, who after he broke the seal and read it, looked surprised, relieved, and a little wary. “He is dead.”
“Dead…”
“She took his life.”
Belon took the message out of Aderac’s hand and looked at, but written in Latin he wasn’t patient enough to study the words to understand it.
“What does it read?” he asked, giving it back to him.
“She took his life by slitting his throat and stabbing him in the heart,” Aderac answered, as he sat up more. “Celgon’s gate will be open and his body will be lying in court for me to see when I ride in.”
“When you ride in?” Belon’s brows rose, as he looked at Aderac, “No.”
“Belon…”
Belon gave him a look, and Aderac knew it well. “What is your will?”
“I will go, and get word back to you of if a lie or the truth.”
Aderac sprang out of bed and into Belon’s arms.
“Honey,” he cautioned, “What if this is a trap?”
“Worry not.” Belon held him. “I will be more than careful.”
**
The rows of men stretch across the countryside on either side, and as both sides faced the other, Baric looked to his left and right.
Laad on one side, Ogorec on the other, he gave both men a nod and unleashed Laad on them.
Just as Laad reasoned on where beginning his attack, as if a sign, when he saw a hawk swoop down on a rodent that scurried across the grassy plain, he knew it would have gotten away if not blinded by the sun.
He divided the bowman to aim with the sun, so that when the men looked up, they wouldn’t see the deadly arrows coming towards them to get out of the way.
“Unleash the first wave!” Laad yelled.
Arrows sailed across the sky claiming men with deadly accuracy.
“Unleash the second wave!”
The men prepared for the second wave, put their shields in front of themselves, and after the last arrow fell, laughed loudly.
“Men of Worrlgen, they laugh! Shall we laugh back?” Baric cried out.
Returning their laughter by clanging their swords on their shields, while others chanted, it was so loud; it vibrated those from Hemrock’s eardrums.
“Dare they?” King Gegorad seethed, “Silence them.”
With a shout, King Gegorad’s first line of men charged, but just as Laad knew, the high sun would be in their advantage, and Worrlgen’s men charged to meet them.
Their swords bright, the sun reflected off them as they charged on foot into oncoming eyes, then almost as soon as it started, King Gegorad’s men lay sprawled dead, as Worrlgen cried out triumphantly.
“The sun was in their faces,” the other commander said.
King Gegorad’s jaws clinching, he looked up and squinted, then shielded his eyes, “Let it set.”
When Laad realized, they knew Worrlgen had the advantage of the sun and pulled back to let it set, he had other ideas.
“They now wait for the sun to set.”
Baric looked out. “Laad.”
“Yes, king.”
“Dare we be a thorn in the waiting for the sun to set men of Hemrock’s side? Do not let them be off their guard?”
Laad nodded, and looked at Loth.
“Taunt the men of Hemrock,” he said, as he rode beside his horse, “And, be careful my friend.”
As ordered, Loth and three bands of men taunted the men of Hemrock, and rode just out of range of their arrows, shouting war chants, while occasionally shooting arrows, and launching, rocks, decaying animal carcasses, and anything else they came across at them.
As they did, King Gegorad fumed, feeling they were insulting him, and after they kept it up for half the morning, couldn’t stand another second.
“Kill every last vermin known to Worrlgen.”
Hemrock commander’s head turned quickly to King Gegorad from his command. “Other than her…”
“Yes, other than her.”
**
Belon, Enek, and his horse guard entered the opened gates of Celgon. All within, lowering their heads to them, Belon made them raise them. Only one should all bow their heads to, and he wasn’t setting foot on as much as a pebble of sand until he felt it was safe for him to do so.
“Take me to your royal court.” Belon ordered one of the guards.
When Belon walked into court, he didn’t know how he’d feel, but when he saw Atorad’s lifeless naked body laying prone on the stoned floor, gratification wasn’t one of his emotions.
He truly had wanted to cut the man down himself, but gathered shamefully cut down by his own queen; instead of by invading force was just as good retribution.
“You did well,” he praised her.
Tagia simply humbly nodded.
“Hang him off the nearest wall,” Belon ordered. “That all know their king is dead.”
The men picked up Atorad’s body and carried him away, and after they did, Belon walked to the throne and stared at it for what seemed a long time.
“Do you have a council of men or quorum?”
“He only wanted his words obeyed and felt no need,” Tagia answered. “He banished them, but in truth I believe he had them murdered, just as I fear he had my brother’s young son murdered.”
Belon didn’t comment on her remark, or even turn to look at her.
“Answer this Lady Tagia. Now that your husband, the king, his brothers, and the young heir are all dead, what do you want?”
Tagia was careful about how to answer Belon’s question. If a test and she failed it, she knew without a doubt that he would kill her right then.
“Beseech not him. Beseech the king,” her seer whispered quickly.
“I beg,” she said humbly, “Words with the king.”
Belon’s head slowly turned and his eyes scanned her face and the blind woman’s face beside her, then saying nothing to either, he walked away.
“Clear the halls and this court and line their fighting men,” he ordered several of his men who walked inside with him. “Anyone unwilling to bow put to death in a savage way.”