A Daemon-Horn Blade Ch. 07

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The Lady Ayleth, indeed, spent the first couple of days of the voyage mostly below, alone in her tiny cabin, but, at length, she became bored enough that she at least pretended to forget that she was offended by the near total nudity of the crew. At first she approached Rowan for conversation, but the two soon found that they aggravated the other's nerves, quite beyond measure. Wearied, at last, with her self-indulgent whining and complaining, he soon gave her the full measure of his pent-up anger he had been holding inside of him, since Cedany's death.

"I have sworn an oath to help restore the alleged comeliness that the Daemon was said to have taken from you by his attack, but frankly I have never seen any trace of beauty or grandeur in you, even from those carefree years before the attack. Although our paths seldom crossed during your summer visits, and we have never once before spoken, in terms of friendship, I have found much in your manner and behavior to object to, particularly in your callous treatment of your lady attendants. My Cedany was more worthy of life than you are, and I begrudge that she willingly sacrificed her life, at once and without doubt or reflection, to protect and save yours. That most of your other maidens also gave their lives, in such a sad and terrible manner by your side, while you have never once shed a single tear in pity and sorrow for them, galls me beyond words. Are you really such a cold, cruel, and heartless bitch that you have no regrets at all for their loss? How can you not lament their deaths, as the pointless acts that they were, at the hands of a horrific creature, frankly, only summoned in a fit of despair by an otherwise probably worthy young lady that you had tormented beyond all common bounds of decency and respect?"

The Lady Ayleth was speechless with shock, and found no words with which to defend herself. Unchallenged, Rowan continued his tirade.

"Lady, your station might be one of the loftiest in this land, but I find your manner and behavior only suitable for one of the meanest harlots, in one of the lowest flesh-dives. Your beauty, such as you might claim to have had, was clearly shallow and but a layer of makeup that you painted on each day, hiding your greater perverse and wickedly obstinate soul. True beauty shines from within, and that quality you do not possess. That Cedany gave you her complete love, loyalty, and devout attendance speaks well of the woman I loved and would have married, should you have allowed any of your maidens the joy and the right to their own personal happiness. Instead you amused yourself with them, toyed with their affections, and then willingly sacrificed each and every one of them to expediency... and without any regret. You are unworthy, in my eyes, of even tending to my beloved's night-soil pot, and until you are capable of uttering even a single sincere tear of remorse from your grubby and soiled soil, there are no further words that I would ever wish to utter to you. Begone from my sight, and leave me to my memories of the happier days that Cedany and I shared, before you brought evil and destruction to us all!"

His words were harsh, and definitely not ever suited for the ears of a Duke's daughter, no matter how spoiled she was, but they did have the desired effect. The Lady turned ghostly pale and she fled back to her quarters for the remainder of the day. Thereafter, she gave Rowan the widest possible berth and found, instead, the more forgiving Boyle to be a pleasanter source of conversation.

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"You really are quite the contrary, young Lady!" Boyle laughed at her, later the next day, as he watched her scowl at the nicely suntanned bare breasts of Brenga, who had just walked past, giving Boyle a bit of a wink as she wiggled her hips a bit more, perhaps, than was usual.

"How so? Besides, I take after my father - and as a woman I'm allowed to be as inconstant and contrary as the wind."

"Certainly, and indeed you are! But I've noticed that you've never been particularly modest before, while bathing and sunning along the shore near your pavilion. Also, your comely attendants were often quite encouraged to fully display themselves, to better enjoy the breezes and take the sun. Furthermore, it is common knowledge that you in fact quite enjoy the sight of the naked female form, and other associated pleasures that you shared with them... I have this on rather good authority. In this instance, your dignity isn't actually affronted in the slightest; instead, you are merely piqued that these winsome young ladies are not under your command or sufferance. So instead of exotic naked beauty, it just common jealousy that aggravates you, that you cannot seize one of them and make them writhe under your will!"

"Not so! I am not entirely the cruel debaucher that everyone thinks I am." She insisted, looking away to avoid Boyle's probing and honest eyes.

"But certainly you are... or at least were. I notice that you take no oath to defend your word or honor, as a high Lady nearly certainly would, if accused. Like my friend, I ought to speak cruel, but bluntly honest words of reproach to you, but I can't think of much that either hasn't already been said, or you've thought of for yourself... assuming, of course, that you do possess, somewhere deep down inside of you, even the slightest shred of human decency. No, I would for now stay on friendly terms with you, albeit reluctantly, and keep my darker thoughts silent, unspoken. Long trips mean a change to ones routine, and this one will be longer and different than most. Tend to your soul and resolve to be kinder in the future, and I think we'll all enjoy the experience together in a much better way. Now, as for your more personal needs, show some honesty for a change, and just invite one of the young ladies to dally with you in private some evening. They might even say 'yes'! I certainly think that, at least, one of the lasses wouldn't mind a little quiet private time with me as well, certainly that wouldn't offend you at all... would it."

"Why should I possibly care with whom you dally!" she retorted with a wan smile, but her eyes didn't quite agree with what her mouth uttered. "As for my own dalliances... I will think on what you said. It is certainly not appropriate that I become much too inappropriately involved with any of the men. Even my attending officer is too far below my station, but, certainly, no dishonor would be associated with any private encounters with a suitable young lady."

Indeed, later than evening, Ayleth approached two of the young crew ladies and was apparently firmly, but kindly rejected. Both already had other preferred arrangements for bed companions for the night. Gaylyn was already rather intimate with her fellow crewman Daren, and Leresia had quite hit it off with one of the guardsmen, Fenenin, who was a rather tall and handsome brown-haired fellow, who had an easy way with the ladies. The remaining young lady, Grenga, indeed, had more than a passing interest in enjoying Boyle's intimate companionship that night.

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Even with a bit of distance and privacy from the other couples that night, the quiet sounds of sexual intercourse disturbed the rests of both Rowan and Lady Ayleth. Rowan had slept poorly each and every night, and often spent part of the night when sleep evaded him, assisting the other night guard, who watched over the dark fireless camp. Every night the risk of intrusion, from night-goers or other dangers, increased and, at any time, was there never anyone on guard, armed and alert for danger.

The Lady tried to quietly take care of her own sexual frustrations under her blanket, but she found that relief was elusive. In the past, she had attendants to keep her clit well-licked and satisfied at night, and her voyeuristic moments of masturbation during the day were generally casual ones, while she watched her maidens at play, just twiddling her clit often enough to keep the juices flowing and her desire aroused. Even now, as she tried to recall the memories of several especially satisfying lesbian encounters, the erotic recollections wouldn't focus in her mind. She could easily recall the nude sight of each of her attendants, especially the lovely Cedany, but the heated emotion of the sexual fun that they had shared kept slipping out her thoughts.

Instead, she nearly always now, recalled the blood of the pavilion field, and the unspeakable deaths that her ladies suffered, as they were impaled and their innards ruptured by the inhumanly massive penis of the infernal monster, and how her own body and cunt had briefly brushed up against that humongous cockhead as well. She had been just an instant or a moment, at most, from feeling it rip deeply inside of her own intimate flesh, tearing her cunt, guts, and stomach wide open, up to her chest, and in her last, final, excruciating and agonizing moments of life, feel its dark, smoky daemon-seed erupt into her ravaged flesh, to burn and stain her flesh and soul, forever tainting it.

Now, she found herself utterly unable to achieve even the smallest or feeblest orgasm, and her thoughts now remained, instead, those vivid ghastly memories of the grassy field of death. Feeling alone in life and utterly miserable, she clinched her teeth, to try and block out her feelings. She refused to allow herself to cry, but a few small, but entirely genuine, tears formed in her eyes. When she eventually found sleep, the horrid memories of the murder, and defilement of her maidens continued to haunt her dreams, unceasingly.

It appeared, however deeply buried, that the cruel, noble lady did indeed have a conscience, but perhaps extremely deeply buried, and frail with disuse. Now that it was released from its bounds, the Lady was quite afraid that her dreams would only get worse, in the days and weeks to come. Her pessimism was not to be at all disappointed.