Posted by Moore on March 19, 2004 at 18:20:43:
The author would like to gratefully acknowledge the unwitting contributions of Diana B.; from whom the personality of the cage girl has taken in a most unexpected, and hopefully delightful twist.
I started thinking about a story that warns against letting just anyone in your bed. The wizard Riccoco was a skilled adventurer, but was lonely. (The wizard Riccoco may still live in Perpignan.) Riccoco was infatuated with a beautiful but common farm girl. Riccoco tried every method to woo her. He gave her gifts, he wrote her love letters, he even put on an extensive illusionary show for the town in her honor to impress her. At last admitting defeat, he asked her while she was not interested in him. She replied that he was too ugly. Riccoco was relieved, and told her that his appearance was easily altered with magic. She refused him, and told him that she was to clever to ever be fooled by such trickery. She told him she could easily see the person underneath any magic, and it was the person inside that really mattered, not what they looked like.
Enraged, Riccoco came up with an evil plan for revenge. He traveled to the capital and purchased a male black panther. Riccoco changed the panther to have a human form and mind. The former panther moved with catlike grace even as a human, and had a natural animal magnetism that women found attractive. Riccoco had the panther schooled in etiquette and the social graces. After the next rainy season, they returned to Perpignan. Riccoco introduced the farm girl to his "apprentice." The farm girl and the panther fell passionately in love. The farm girl had no idea her new love was anything but human. When she brought the panther home to her bed for the first time, Riccoco lurked nearby, invisible and full of rage. As the two lovers grew comfortable with each other that night, Riccoco dispelled the magic keeping the panther in human form. The animal mind of the panther panicked and the beast tried to flee. The farm girl, not understanding what was going on, tried to push the panther off of her, making it think she was attacking it. The panther devoured her. Supposedly, the panther has some measure of its intelligence, and managed to escape into the forest, where it seeks revenge against Riccoco.
The panther has green eyes, just like Diana. She could even be a necromancer. What have I done?
I need to have a talk with her before I start my day.
--------------------------
Same day, later that morning. I have met someone that has blown my mind. There are a few times in your life when you meet someone who is so much more clever and charming then you would have thought. They push your boundaries of what you thought was possible.
I am not sure where to start this. Diana, the former cage girl, is not a slave. The papers Donavan gave me last night, the ones I assumed were her slave papers indicating her ownership, were actually correspondence between Diana and Donavan.
Diana loves being dominated by her partners, and often fantasize about being a slave, as I found out last night. She also enjoys bondage as well, and she loves being tied up. She also has a vampire fetish.
I am not sure where this is going to go, but I am going to devour her as much as possible. Devour as in to take in greedily, not to swallow up. Devour, as Diana says, as in horrible and savage, primal and messy. I'm not really sure what that means, but I am eager to find out. Diana is lovely and lively, and one of the best trades I have ever made.
----------------------------------------------
Same day, mid morning. I made some mutually beneficial trades with fishermen along the riverbank as we waited by the barge for the tide to come in. They were most pleased with the metal fishing hooks I had, and gave me generous amounts of fish and vegetables. The fishermen seemed surprised when I treated them decently. I think I have a lot of work to do to repair the damage my predecessors have done to the office of monopoly license holder. The fishermen also warned me about "Hand Keeper," a large and nasty troll that lives in the river.
"Hand Keeper," like most aquatic trolls, is a seaweed green color, with long arms which end in sharp claws. "Hand Keeper" has an exceptional large mouth, even for a troll, which is filled with needle-like teeth. "Hand Keeper" has the habit of biting off its opponent's hand, even if its opponent has a sharp weapon in the hand. "Hand Keeper" is also practically indestructible, as it will regenerate any wounds it sustained if it is in the water. Everyone's favorite weapon against trolls, fire, is useless because "Hand Keeper" is always wet.
"Hand Keeper" is also famous for killing Lady Alarmariage. Lady Alarmariage had come to the frontier to prove herself, and brought with her a suit of magical chain mail. When Lady Alarmariage heard the "Hand Keeper" had attacked some children playing near the river, she did not rest until she fought the beast. Lady Alarmariage and two of her men were in a small skiff when they were attacked by the "Hand Keeper." She managed to strike a serious blow before the troll bit at her hand.
Lady Alarmariage's armor prevent the troll from shearing off her hand, although the bones underneath may have broken. Her men told other people what they saw that day from their safe vantage point in the skiff. "Hand Keeper" pulled Lady Alarmariage underwater with her hand still in its mouth. It started to twist and spin her, probably to try to disorient her so she would drown. But Lady Alarmariage's armor also allowed her to breath under water. Under the water, "Hand Keeper" was able to attack with all of its limbs. "Hand Keeper" tried to slash her with its terrible, sharp claws. It tried to rake her legs with the longer talons on its feet. But "Hand Keeper's" main bite attack was directed at her shoulder. Most of "Hand Keeper's" attacks were unsuccessful. Only a few of its needle-like teeth penetrated the enchanted armor. But Lady Alarmariage had difficulty thrusting instead of slashing with her sword. The resistance of the water slowed her down and weaken her blows. Neither one of them were able to damage the other seriously for a while. Then one of "Hand Keeper's" claws got stuck in her chain mail, according to the men at arms, and it realized it could move the chain mail out of its way. "Hand Keeper" lifted up her chain shirt, and bit her stomach.
The pain of hundreds of needle-like teeth sinking deep into one' stomach can scarcely be imagined. "Hand Keeper" then closed its mouth and ripped out her entrails in one huge bite. The men at arms had trouble seeing what happened next because of the cloud of blood that billowed forth from her mouth and belly. "Hand Keeper" was not finished though. It anchored itself to her with its foot talons, and lifted her chain mail shirt over her head. The magic that enable Lady Alarmariage to breathe underwater was likely disabled at this point. The troll snapped its powerful jaws shut on her breast, gnawing the soft flesh all the way to the bone. Lady Alarmariage probably drowned as the monster devoured her.
Lady Alarmariage's men cowardly left her to be devoured by "Hand Keeper." Her magical armor, which is probably indigestible, is probably in "Hand Keeper's" lair. I may want to fund an expedition to recover it.
I traded for some extra fish and meat with which to distract the troll, should he make an appearance.
--------------------------------------
Same day, late morning. We are underway toward Perpignan, and should be there in a few hours. The barge's rowers have been entertaining us with tales of the monsters along the riverbanks. There is one rocky area that is home to several giant snakes. A shepherdess and her flock would come through the area to get water. The rowers and the shepherdess would greet each other, and became friendly. The shepherdess told them how she was barely making a living because the snakes kept eating her sheep, but she had no where else to graze them. Her flock of sheep grew smaller and smaller, and she fell into despair. One day, near the hottest part of the year, when the snakes are most active, the barge and its crew where heading up the river near the rocky area. They saw the shepherdess lying naked on a rock. The largest of the snakes was flicking its tongue and approaching her, slithering from side to side. It was over thirty feet long, the rowers claim, but that seems very large. It slithered on over to her and flicked its tongue against the sole of her foot. The shepherdess did not move, scream, or run away. The snake opened its mouth wide, wide enough to swallow her. The shepherdess squirmed as the snake moved its mouth forward, up over her ankles, then to her calves, then up to her thighs. The snake's tongue continued flicking and tasting as it ate the shepherdess.
The barge's crew watched the whole thing from the river. They yelled at the shepherdess, but she either could not hear them, or chose not to. She was up to her chest in the snake's mouth. The rowers said that she had a calm, almost pleased look on her face. The huge snake's muscles worked to swallow its meal. The snake finally swallowed her completely. It laid out in the sun with a very distinctive set of curves to its reptilian body. There was nothing the barge's crew could do; there were several other, albeit smaller, giant snakes in the area, and the largest had already devoured the shepherdess. They had no choice but to row on.
Other shepherds and farmers live in the area, and have to travel a great distant around this rocky, snake filled area to get water. I will first need to talk to the residents of the area, and see what sort of payment they can offer for the destruction of the snakes. Then when I hire mercenaries, I think I will have them kill the snakes as a demonstration of their skills. The farmers should not have to put their lives in danger just to get water.
I do not like the way the rowers are looking at Diana. I am making a note to purchase her some decent clothing in Perpignan. All she had when she left Donavan's was a corset. I have let her use one of my shirts and a pair of pants. She looks adorable.