Author´s Note: As you might have guessed this is the third part of what has turned out to be The Remuneration series, based on Dark Angel´s excellent and very moving story, Chattel. (You can tell I loved it, can´t you? She´s written a sequel by the way, called Thrall which you should read if you haven´t already.) Okay, back to basics, it still isn´t necessary for you to have read the two previous stories, but I think it all might make more sense to you in the end if you do. As to whether there´s going to be a fourth part, I´ll have to say maybe… probably… it´s likely… yes, I think so.

Comments are welcome at: dayze11@hotmail.com
 
 

Night has fallen over the castle. A pale full moon casts its bright light upon the dark walls, small rays of light penetrating the shadows and halfway illuminating silent rooms.

In one of the rooms, the moon paints a wide grey patch on the floor just beneath the window, but the woman lying in the beautifully carved and decorated bed isn´t paying attention. She´s tossing and turning restlessly in silken sheets damp with sweat. Her long dark hair is ebony against the white pillows, a sharp contrast that also brings out the bronze glow of her skin.

She turns again, tangled hair covering her face thus effectively shielding her from the light of the moon, or any other light that might disturb her fitful sleep. A hand is suddenly flung across her face accompanied by a few whispered words whose meaning is only known to the sleeping woman. The hand pushes a few strands of hair away from her face and reveals abruptly moving eyelids indicating that she´s caught up in a vivid dream that won´t release her from its hold.

Her lips move again and this time the words which are uttered to the silent room can be distinguished and understood, "Dead? What do you mean dead…"

"Dead? What do you mean dead?" The Conqueror takes a step closer and glares down at the shivering farmer who is unable to hold her gaze for more than a second.

"Wh-what I said, My Lord. M-my daughter died yesterday, she… she drowned in the river." The man starts to sob, "It… it was my fault. I told her to go fetch more water. I knew the buckets were too heavy for her, I knew the current would be too strong this time of the year. I… I shouldn´t have-."

"Shut up!" The Conqueror´s voice cuts through the famer´s wailing and he instantly quiets, taking a few steps back only to be stopped by two guards on either side of him.

"So…" The tall woman dressed completely in black armour and leather tilts her head slightly and studies the sorry man in front of her. "Your daughter´s dead?"

He nods and is about to begin speaking again, but a look from the Conqueror halts him.

"In the river?" He nods. "While fetching water?" He hesitantly nods again, obviously afraid to annoy the dark woman who has just completed her conquest of Greece and who, without doubt, is the most powerful person in the world right now. The very same person who came through his village the other night and took a liking to his eldest daughter.

Blue eyes shining with a strange cool fire stare at him dispassionately, "I want to see the body."

The farmer blinks, but quickly composes himself, "We… we haven´t found the body yet. It must have been dragged away by the river."

She just looks at him, not a single movement betraying her thoughts. When she´s convinced the man before her is so terrified that he might die from a heart attack any second, she allows her mind to wander, remembering a slender and girlish figure and brilliant green eyes. Eyes which had seemed to be windows, offering a clear view of the young girl´s soul.

She had noticed the girl while riding through the village and the Conqueror, who could have any man or woman she wanted, when she wanted them and how she wanted them, had been intrigued. Intrigued by a mere peasant girl from a worthless and insignificant village.

She had decided to make camp with her men outside the village for the night and had ordered the girl brought to her the next day, but when her soldiers came back, they nervously informed her that they couldn´t find the blond girl and now the girl´s father said she was dead. Or at least… that was what he claimed.

"You´re lying," she states coldly and the two soldiers beside the farmer exchange a furtive glance, both recognizing the dangerous edge to the Conqueror´s tone. "Where is she? Bring her to me immediately and I might not kill you."

The man is fighting the shaking of his hands and is trying to control his breathing as he slowly raises his head and looks the Conqueror square in the eye, "She´s dead, My Lord. I cannot bring her to you. It´s not in my power to bring back the dead."

"No, but it´s within my power to make sure you join them," the Conqueror says, letting her displeasure shine through and the farmer pales. She stares at him for a second then continues, "For every hour she´s kept away from me, I´ll execute a child from your village. After two hours it will be two children, and after another hour it will be three. It´s up to you…" She studies him intensely, an almost curious expression on her face, "How many lives are you willing to have on your conscience? How many children will you sacrifice for your daughter?"

She lifts her head and looks at one of the guards, "The hour begins now. Take him away. When the time is up, come and get me and I´ll execute the first child myself."

The Conqueror turns in a swirl of black and strides away. After a moment´s hesitation, the soldiers grab the farmer by his arms and drag him back toward the village.
 
 

The hour is almost up and the Conqueror has been pacing the river bank for almost the same amount of time. She is restless and agitated. She is reluctant to believe that the pathetic man she met earlier really is prepared to sacrifice the children of the village in order to save his own flesh and blood, his daughter. After all, he can always get another one. She stops pacing and stares at the flowing water, racing past her.

The current is strong. It would be difficult, not to say impossible, for a slender young girl to escape its grasp once she had been caught up in it. She could have drown…

A predatory smile suddenly flickers across the dark woman´s face, she has heard something. Tentative, carefully quiet steps approach her slowly from behind, and the Conqueror allows the person to step almost up behind her before she abruptly turns around and stares directly into the face of a young frightened boy.

The illusion only fools her for a second. Although the blond hair has been cut and her body dressed in a boy´s clothes, it´s not enough to completely hide the feminine curves of her body or the fullness of her lips. And then of course there are her eyes. Eyes the Conqueror would recognize from miles away.

The woman´s sudden movement startles the girl and she freezes to the spot, green eyes warily studying the immobile bronze face. For a moment they stare at each other in silence, then the Conqueror licks her lips and begins to speak, "Did your father tell you to come to me?"

The girl swallows and tries to answer, but has to shake her head instead when she finds herself unable to form words.

"Does he know you´re here?"

Another shake and the young girl fastens her gaze on the ground, carefully avoiding to look at anything but the tip of the black leather boots in the periphery of her vision.

"You came here yourself…? Of your own free will?"

A bitter smile briefly shows on the peasant girl´s lips and although the Conqueror can´t see it, she knows it´s there nonetheless.

"I came here because I didn´t want any children from the village, my friends, to be slaughtered." The voice is quiet, but surprisingly steady as the blonde raises her head and looks into pale blue eyes. "Not for my sake."

"How noble." The Conqueror replies mockingly, but pays more attention to the small almost successfully suppressed tremor running through the girl´s body the moment a rough hand reaches out and makes contact with her cheek.

A calloused thumb slowly strokes the warm smooth skin and the dark woman says in a sultry voice, "You think you´re very brave, don´t you? Very noble and heroic that you´ve dared to come to me, that you´re willing to sacrifice yourself to save your little friends." The hand moves down to tightly cup the girl´s chin, "You think it´s very courageous, don´t you? Almost romantic what you´re doing." The grip tightens and her face is tilted upwards, "It appeals to you, you think it´s exciting, exhilarating."

Blue eyes focus on full pink lips, "But you´re wrong, girl!" The gaze has suddenly become cold and the voice is no longer sultry or seductive, but harsh and cruel. "This is neither romantic nor is it exhilarating… at least not for you…"

Before the girl knows what has happened, she is lying on her back on the river bank, a heavy weight on top of her, pressing her body down into the soft grass. Strong hands are tearing her clothes in their attempt to rip them from her body, and for a second the girl´s mind is blank, but then she begins to struggle, franticly trying to push the tall woman off of her. All she gets for her efforts is a hard slap in the face and a low voice growls, "I can do this in two different ways, girl, and frankly I don´t care which, but you might."

The words paralyze the blonde for an instant and the Conqueror uses the opportunity to rip the flimsy shirt open, mercilessly exposing the white bandages which have been used to tie in the girl´s chest. "Ah ah, this won´t do." Long, slim fingers start to peel off the wrappings, "It won´t do at all."

As her breasts are exposed to the cool air, the will to fight flares again inside the girl and she begins to squirm underneath the Conqueror, desperately trying to get free. She is halfway expecting another hit, but is surprised when it doesn´t happen and her gaze strays to her assailant´s face. She´s caught up in a dark blue smouldering stare and she blushes with shame as she realizes the Conqueror is actually welcoming her movements, enjoying them.

She immediately lies still, but realize her mistake as she is quickly stripped of the last of her clothing and subjected to the hungry stare of the woman above her. The Conqueror leisurely lets her eyes roam the pale and beautiful body on the ground, keenly aware of the heat rapidly spreading in her own body in response.

There is fear in the girl´s eyes now and the fire in the dark woman´s body burns even hotter as she leans down and crushes her mouth against the blonde´s. First the girl is too startled to react and then it´s too late as the Conqueror has already forced her tongue inside her mouth, strong hands holding the blonde´s face in an iron grip, not allowing her the smallest of movements.

The peasant girl feels the Conqueror´s tongue hungrily thrusting into her mouth and for a moment she is afraid she´ll suffocate, but then the muscle becomes less intrusive and shortly afterwards abandons her mouth all together to taste her throat instead. The girl´s keeping her body absolutely still now, a state that belies the frantic and uncontrolled beating of her heart. She isn´t sure how she should react, if she should resume fighting or just close her eyes and get it over with, hoping the woman on top of her whose hands are now grasping her breasts won´t kill her after she has done to her what she wants.

The last thought brings back a memory of her mother standing in the kitchen chopping vegetables, a serious and almost sad expression in her eyes. "Should you ever find yourself in a situation where your life might depend on what you choose to do, then remember, sweetheart, remember what I´m telling you now. I want you to do everything in your power to stay alive. I don´t care what your father or what the other men of this village say, they might have use of a dead daughter, but I don´t." Her mother´s eyes had become moist, "Promise me, you will do what you can to survive, Gabrielle, promise me…"

The memory abruptly flees her mind as she feels a warm hand coming to rest on the inside of her thigh, and in spite of her mother´s words and her own fear for her life, she is unable to stop herself from trying to move her leg away, but halts the movement instantly when she feels the Conqueror´s finger dig painfully into her flesh.

"Oh… There´s life in you yet," a husky voice close to her ear whispers. "Isn´t that a pleasant surprise…"

The woman shifts on top of her, her hand moving up to cup the girl´s sex, "So tell me, oh brave one, are you a virgin?" A finger rests calmly just outside the blonde´s opening and some part of the girl´s mind is surprised by the disappearing of the Conqueror´s haste and the sudden patience she is demonstrating.

"So…?" The finger pokes at her. "Are you?" Still no answer and the voice becomes impatient and sharper, "Tell me or do you want me to find out for myself?"

"What difference does it make?" Is the quiet answer she suddenly gets and blue eyes blink, then narrow.

"None, absolutely none."

The girl closes her eyes from the expected intrusion and she feels the Conqueror´s hand move, but it stops suddenly and a single finger slowly runs through her folds as if testing or searching for something. "No," hot breath caresses her throat, "no, you´re making this too easy." A hand grasp the girl´s chin and forces her to open her eyes. "I want you to remember this for the rest of your sorry life, girl, how it felt with me inside you, how you felt with me inside you."

To emphasize her last statement, the Conqueror moves her finger up and start to gently but firmly manipulate the girl´s clit. The blonde gasps in surprise and just barely manages to stop her hips from responding to the unexpected touch. She´s shocked and horrified by the dark woman´s actions. Why couldn´t she just get it over with, why does she have to touch her there, the dark, secret place she has just recently discovered for herself.

"I´m gonna make you enjoy this," she hears a voice rasp just before she feels a warm mouth engulf her right nipple and speak against her skin. "Whenever they try to comfort you in the future, when they tell you it wasn´t your fault, that I forced you and shamed you, then you´ll remember this and how you felt."

She begins to lick around the blonde´s nipple while simultaneously she doubles her efforts between the girl´s legs and the blonde jerks in response. The Conqueror can´t suppress a small groan of pleasure when she finally takes the blonde´s nipple into her mouth again, it´s been months since she last enjoyed herself or anybody else so much and she is determined to get the most out of it. No matter what the peasant girl might feel about it.

She growls in triumph when she discovers the smallest drop of wetness at the girl´s opening and abandons the blonde´s breast for to see her face. The girl´s eyes are squeezed tight and warm, salty tears are silently running down her cheeks. For a moment, The Conqueror stares at the pale face then she shakes her head imperceptibly and resumes her ministrations to the blonde´s chest.

The girl is fighting the sensations, the dark woman is causing in her. She´s angry with her body and its betrayal, its betrayal of her thoughts and what she should feel. She can hear her breathing change and knows that she is getting wetter, and the worst part is that she knows the Conqueror feels every single drop of moisture against her fingers. Weakly and without any real force she starts to struggle again, but stops when a hand grabs her hair and yanks roughly. "Enough of this!" The Conqueror hisses and pulls the girl´s hair again to show she means business.

The hand between the blonde´s legs moves with a new purpose, the girl´s eyes snap open and she gasps loudly. Then she squeezes her eyes tight from the pain, but the darkness makes it difficult for her to concentrate on the dreams and memories she´s trying to bring forward to distract her from what she´s feeling and the Conqueror´s grunts and increasingly heavy breathing, so she opens her eyes again and looks past the dark head attached to her right breast, and past the tanned arm thrusting between her legs, past the river to the dark green bushes on the other side and directly into the pale face of her mother.

Her mother holds her gaze for a moment then she has to look away and the girl immediately closes her eyes, and the only one again to notice the tears running down her cheeks is the Conqueror.
 
 

Covers are thrown aside and the dark woman sits up abruptly in the bed, her breathing ragged and her heart pounding in her chest. For a long time unseeing eyes stare out into the dark room, then she slowly raises her right hand and focus her gaze on that instead. She turns the hand, studying the long and slim, but undeniably strong fingers, the hard calluses inside her palm and the small white scars marring the skin across her knuckles. It´s a hand that has seen its share of battles, taken its share of blood. Some of it more precious than she realized at the time of the bloodletting.

Not that it matters. She rises from the bed and walks over to the nearest window. The moon is barely visible anymore and if she had been sleeping outside in her tent like she did only a few years ago, it would have been time for her to get up, prepare herself for the upcoming battle. She sighs quietly and turns away. There hasn´t been any battles to fight for a long time, at least no battles which were fought on the battlefield.

She doesn´t want to go back to sleep, so she dresses instead, her mind focused more on events from long ago than the rich and beautifully made garments she carelessly tosses on. When she is done, she walks to the door and reaches for the handle, but her hands rests uncertainly upon the cold metal. She stares at the wood, a small frown on her face. She dressed for a reason and she walked to the door for that same reason, but now she´s not certain what the reason is anymore. What it was she wanted.

She turns her head and glances back at the bed, back at the crumpled sheets and the tossed aside covers, then she looks back at the door, her hand still resting on the handle whose metal is now warm from her touch.

She stays like that, motionlessly for nearly an hour, until a guard knocks on the door to escort her to the courtyard for the daily inspection of her troops. As she walks soundlessly down the corridor with the sleepy guard a few steps behind her, she still can´t remember what it was she wanted.
 

The End
 

Part IV

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