The Great Khan Ch. 05

His words encouraged her, and she knelt before the dais and bowed again. He beckoned for her to rise and patted a small chair to the right side of his own. She stepped up onto the dais and joined him, keeping her head bowed as she sat. She subtly flicked her eyes up, to observe the space around the ger, to see things from his point of view, his commanding gaze as it swept over everything below.

It was a heady feeling, one of power. She had to admit, she liked it. Turkina be damned, this would be her position at his side.

Now he just needed a bigger ger.

"Come now," he pressed, seemingly impatient for her to tell him what brought her here. "Something has brought you to me, I would know what it is. My patience is not infinite, Sarantuya."

She bowed her head and spoke, having already rehearsed in her head what she would say to him. "It is no great matter, my khan, but perhaps a delicate one, and I believe you alone are qualified to speak on it."

"This is not something my mother could have seen to?" he queried. "I allow her to decide most domestic matters in my stead."

"In this particular case, my khan, the lady Turkina is the last person I would approach." Sarantuya said, her voice conveying a note of uncomfortable truth. "Though I wish it were otherwise."

"Speak, then, woman."

Sarantuya drew in a breath and began. "Your brother's daughter refers to all of us as 'mother,' my khan."

Boldbator nodded. "Bolorma calls you mother."

"Yes, my lord," she confirmed. "All of your wives and concubines."

He considered her words carefully. "Including Mai."

She nodded but said nothing. Boldbator sighed. "Then we are in agreement that it is just as well you did not go to my mother. Has she heard this from the girl?"

"I do not believe so, my lord."

"What is your opinion on the matter?" he asked.

"It is... complicated, husband," she replied, trying to sound less formal now so that the conversation could be more earnest. "Bolorma treats her readily like a mother, which is to be expected. I find myself not wanting to suspect Galina's motives in reciprocating."

Boldbator was silent for some moment, staring at the hearth flames. "You suspect that Mai considers Bolorma a hostage against her own safety."

"I do not suspect as such, my lord, but I cannot deny the common sense of it," Sarantya confessed. "Your concubine would not be remiss in finding every advantage she could to protect herself."

"Did you not tell me that you have recently come to an understanding, the four of you?" he asked. "And that even Khorijin agreed to stop trying to kill everyone?"

"Yes, my lord, but Mai will always be the weak link in our chain," she explained. "Not by any fault in her character, but simply because of who she is. Were your protection ever removed from her, I truly believe that only Toragana, Solongo and myself would not try to kill her instantly. Even your sister would, if she were not frightened of Galina poisoning her."

"And my mother would kill her more quickly than anyone," Boldbator muttered, scowling as he looked at the flames. "You are here because you worry that Bolorma calling Mai her mother will start a fire in various unwelcome corners, is that it?"

Sarantuya shrugged her shoulders almost helplessly. "The girl wants to call her mother, it makes sense for her to want to. Galina has slept with the child in her arms. I do not know if it is a good idea or not, my khan. But what I do know is that however you rule on the subject, everyone will accept your decree, without question. None will contest it."

Boldbator knew she was mostly referring to Turkina, and rightly so. His mother's hatred of the Chinese concubine was almost palpable. It was perhaps the one and only thing he could never expect her to be level-headed or reasonable on. To order her and force her to accept Galina would come at some cost, at least one of which he was certain of.

But he needed to pillow with Mai. He did not need to do so with his mother. Turkina needed no protection. Mai needed all the protection she could get, especially to keep her from taking matters into her own hands concerning her safety. This had to be dealt with, whether he liked it or not.

"Bring my mother to me, and then leave us," Boldbator instructed. Sarantuya nodded and hurried out of the ger, leaving him to think. He found himself wishing he had other matters to ponder, such as his raid against the Xia-Xia or even fights with other clans, but no such diversions presented themselves. He had done all the planning he could until Toragana returned with the lumber he needed, and his savagery in battle had made other nearby clans wary of attacking him, even for a prize the likes of the treasure of Targetai.

The flap of the ger parted and in came Turkina, followed by Sarantuya. His wife nodded her head quickly and exited without a word, returning to the wives' domicile. Turkina walked forward, her expression almost cheerful. It wasn't often his son was free of so many of his wives.

"You have asked to see me, my son?" she intoned, approaching the khan, but she almost stopped short, once she noted his body posture on the dais - he was leaning forward slightly, resting his weight on his right forearm, gazing down at her rather grimly.

He hadn't asked to see her. He had summoned her.

Her gait slowed, and she struggled inwardly to decide what to do. She had intended to step up on the dais and sit beside him, as she was wont to do most of the time. But something in his demeanour told her this was not how things would play out.

Did she kneel in deference? Like she would have with her husband, Arslan? Did she merely stand and wait for him to speak?

Did she want to turn this into a power struggle between the two of them?

She stood in front of the dais and folded her hands in front of herself before nodding her head. This was her compromise.

"I have summoned you, mother, because I need to see that something is made clear," Boldbator began, his eyes not leaving her. Turkina simply waited, not making eye contact. She was renowned for her imperious looks, her gaze intimidating even the doughtiest warrior. But even she could not out-stare Boldbator. There was something in his eyes that overwhelmed her.

"Your blatant hatred for Galina will end," he said, his voice making it obvious that this was not even open for discussion or explanation. "It is a nuisance to me, and one I cannot afford to waste time worrying about."

"Why should you worry about such trivialities at all, my son?" she asked, now turning her gaze up to meet his. "The Song whore will -"

"Because she is mine," he almost growled. "You know as well as I do exactly how dangerous that woman is, mother. You are no fool. Worse, your obvious disdain for her inspires others to speak against her and to act in an aggressive manner toward her. I would slit the throat of any man who acted toward her the way you do."

"I am still khatun by my right of marriage to your father," she said quietly but firmly. "My word must carry weight."

"That may be," he replied, slowly rising from his chair and towering over her from the dais. Though her outward appearance did not change, inwardly, Turkina felt a chill of fear. Her son's presence was overwhelming and terrifying when his mood was dark. "But your will and your words do not suit me, mother. You cannot be an agent of discord in my life or be seen as such."

He stepped down, the wooden platform drumming under his boots, and the dull thud as his foot came to the ground. Turkina resisted a shiver, composing herself. She would not show fear, whatever happened next.

"I do not care one yak chip if you like her or not," he said, his voice quiet, but also like iron. "But from this day forth, you will, to all outward appearances, accept her as my concubine and my advisor. She is invaluable to me, not only because she can fuck like no one else under the vault of Heaven, but because she can tell me things I need to know, things that I must know. Were I to give you the whole of the treasure of Targetai, you would fail to hire for me a sage who could provide me with such insights."

Turkina said nothing, but the warmth of her ears reminded her to control herself. This wasn't Kula having one of his tantrums, where she could scare him into calming down and behaving. This was Boldbator, the mightiest warrior on the steppes, telling her that he found her disposition unacceptable to him. And that she would change.

"I don't expect you to formally announce your change of heart or say you accept her or anything," he continued, his voice losing the iron quality but remaining firm. This was not a negotiation. He was telling her what he was willing to allow from now on. "But do not speak ill of her, to anyone, and you will treat her as you treat any of my wives. She saved your life, and one day, she will take it from you, if you keep treating her this way."

Turkina's eyes widened in shock. "You would allow that harlot to poison your own mother?!"

"Now you're being a damned fool," he snapped, his expression one of irritation. "Were she to do so, I would have to kill her, painfully. And then I would have no mother and no concubine. Because you will not give up some petty hatred for a Song woman. What then am I left with, O khatun?"

Turkina bit her lip, feeling her face flush.

"She is not leaving," Boldbator said. "Galina is mine. You must accept this. I have no time for such pettiness. I will unite the tribes and I will conquer the Song. But to do that, my people must be united behind me. All of them."

It was not enough to suppress the turmoil she felt. Turkina now understood that she simply had to release the turmoil, to not feel it. She may not have liked it, but Boldbator was telling her, quite simply, that she had to change. Whatever it was she was doing was not good enough. Cast it aside; there were bigger issues to face.

Could she truly be the mother of the Great Khan if she could not let such a tiny and petty vice go?

Turkina closed her eyes and sighed, her decision made. Galina meant nothing.

"It shall be as you command, my son," she intoned humbly, bowing her head. "I may never like the girl, but I promise you, I shall present no further threat to Mai, or give you cause for consternation about her. Nor shall anyone around me."

"That is well, mother," he grunted, nodding. "It was brought to my attention that Bolorma calls her mother, and that is as it should be."

"Yes it is, Boldbator," she forced herself to say. "Is that all you need of me, my son?"

"Aye," he replied. "That will be all for now."

"Then I take my leave of you." Turkina said, bowing and turning to walk away. He hadn't thanked her for her compliance. Of her children, he was normally the one respectful of her position. But this had not been an honoured audience with his revered mother; this had been a khan putting someone in their place.

Boldbator watched as his mother exited the ger. It would take time for her to adjust, and he knew he would never fuck her again, but Turkina would become a great asset again soon enough. He had not wished to be so stern with her, but it could not be helped. Her petty antipathy for Mai was an unnecessary distraction, he would no longer tolerate.

One of his bahatur entered the ger moments later.

"My khan," he began, bowing his head. "Your brother has returned from his raid, seemingly successful. Should I bring him to you?"

Boldbator shook his head. "If all is well, then I will see him in due course. Let him enjoy his victory."

The warrior knew only too well what his khan's words truly meant.

***

The woman shook and cried out while her face was shoved roughly into the furs that covered the kang. Pain splintered through her as the huge, brutish warrior kneeling behind her pushed his cock deep inside her pussy with no regard for her comfort. His massive hand clenched handfuls of her hair and held her in place.

"Scream and cry all you want, saltai," Kula grunted as he thrust back and forth inside his new slave, not caring about her pain. "You can even struggle to escape, if you like. It makes no difference to me." He looked to his left and saw his other captive standing in the corner of the ger, looking on in terror as she ridiculously tried to cover her nudity. Her brown eyes were wide with fright.

"Get over here before I kill you, like I killed your father and mother!" he said harshly. The woman shivered at his words, but seemed too frightened to move. Her reticence angered him and he slammed his hips into the girl he was fucking, making her screech in pain.

"Now, curse you!" he snarled, his hand moving to a knife he kept beside him on the kang. "Come here now, or I'll rip your throat open and fuck the hole while you die!"

Timidly, her whole body shaking, she crept forward, her hands arms across her chest. She was thinner than the cow he was currently fucking, though clearly of breeding age. It didn't matter, he had no desire to have any snot-nosed children grubbing around his floors at the moment anyway. He hadn't even deigned to have a child with Chambui yet.

Solongo, she was attractive enough, even if she didn't scream of fright when he fucked her. It annoyed him vaguely that she considered herself more than simply a vessel for his seed when he was bored. It made him want to hit her, but he did not, because her sister was Boldbator's newest wife. Toragana may yet prove a formidable woman, one he was not certain he was prepared to cross.

He reached out and grabbed the woman before flinging her onto the bed violently. She yelped and burst into sobs at his hateful touch. He then leaned forward, pushing deep inside the first girl, who screeched again at his penetration. A coppery scent flared in his nostrils and he gripped the thin girl by her ankles and yanked her toward them, whimpering in protest.

"Lick her," he barked, slapping the girl he was fucking across the back of the head. "You'd best make her wet, or I'll be using your blood to slide inside her..."

Shaking in pain, humiliation and fear, the first girl reached up to take the new addition by the calves, her wet eyes red and tears streaming down her cheeks. The thin girl seemed frightened, even horrified, and Kula thought she might kick the first girl in the face when she realized what would come next. They were from the same clan, the hated Yorul, so he didn't know if perhaps they were closely related. He didn't care either, mind. They would do as they were told, or die. There would be more captives to fuck.

Shaking still, the stouter woman pressed her face into the thin girl's pussy and wept as she began licking. The girl tried to lay still, looking at the ceiling of the ger, eyes glassy with despair, or disbelief. Her world had been destroyed and she was plunged into Hell, the plaything of this monster.

Kula grunted as he watched, taking the girl he was fucking by the hips and thumping against her roughly, each and every smack sending ripples through her ample flesh and making her keen in anguish. She did not stop licking, though, meaning he felt no need to kill her, as yet.

His raid had been a success, catching the Yorul completely off guard. Deemed too insignificant a clan to bring into the fold, Boldbator had not in particular cared about their fate. Therefore, when Kula had asked to deal with them, his brother's only command was to lose no Tengger warriors in the destruction of this irksome pest family, the Yorul.

He had taken nearly two hundred heads and burned their three encampments. Twenty prisoners came back with him, mostly children, but also these two tamkhi, who would serve him well. Though he had burned the Yorul gers, he had returned with nearly all their ponies, yaks and sheep, along with any booty he and his twenty warriors could find. He had rewarded them handsomely, knowing that generosity with one's men was the key to loyalty.

From a low couch across the room, Chambui watched on unconcernedly. If they survived the night, these girls would make useful slaves and chattel for her.

If...

***

Khorijin grimaced as she looked toward the west, leading the little troupe onward. Far ahead, mountains spiked into the blue vault of heaven, their peaks a garish orange-pink, while a collar of clouds floated just below that on the tallest of them. Even in the glow of evening light, she thought she could make out what she assumed were endless clusters of trees on their slopes.

"The Tarvagatai Mountains," Toragana said as she rode up alongside her sister-wife. "At this point, we are beyond the boundaries of Sukh lands, and any means of my clan defending us."

"So they are as useless to us here as they are in my brother's armies?" Khorijin remarked, her words meant to taunt Toragana. The Sukh khan did not rise to the bait.

"Beyond those peaks, which we shall traverse with little-known or used passes, our destination lies at least another eight days of steady riding," she mused. "We should allow for ten, because of Solongo, Galina and the Uyghurs."

"What use are they if they only slow us down?" muttered the Mongol woman.

"I will happily ride more slowly to accommodate them rather than to rely on you to negotiate with the Kyrgyz." Toragana said simply. "Should I feel like dying, I will keep your shrewish tongue in mind."

Khorijin's eyes flashed and her knuckles whitened as she gripped her yataghan tightly, but she said nothing. Toragana continued on as if nothing had happened. Eight days or ten, it will not matter to Boldbator, as long as we return safely with his wood.

"The sooner we return from this menial task, the better," said Khorijin. "There is no honour in playing nursemaid to a merchant train."

"Oh, you complain endlessly," sighed Toragana, shaking her head. "Do you think all this bitching is going to improve your favour with our husband, or the gods when you finally die? What do you think they'll say when you arrive in their halls and whine incessantly that the carpets are the wrong colour or your jade clasps don't match your sword? No one is interested anymore, Khorijin. Not me, not Galina, not Sarantuya, and certainly not your brother. You're just whining to hear yourself whine about how unfair your life is."

"Your words are very dangerous, Toragana." Khorijin growled.

"Are you your brother's equal with a blade?" Toragana asked pointedly.

Khorijin frowned. "No."

"I have fought your brother, and he defeated me," continued the Sukh woman. "What need have I to fear a lesser warrior? Threaten all you want, Khorijin, but nobody cares anymore. Save it for our husband's enemies; I have greater concerns."

Khorijin flushed angrily as Toragana cantered ahead without another word, seemingly finished with her. Was the Sukh bitch right? Had she lost all power over these women? She knew deep down that her greater duty was to Boldbator and obeying him in all things, but the urge to slay these women was great, and she wrestled with it constantly. Her chest felt tight as she fought to not shout in frustration.

A thin, wailing howl carried to her ears on the wind.

***

"I thought you were not interested in this menial endeavour taking any longer than it had to," Toragana remarked as she approached Khorijin, who was peering around warily. They had stopped their ride westward and at Khorijin's instructions, pitched camp. The ger had been set up and Solongo, Mai, the Uyghur scribes and servants had been ushered inside, along with their treasure of gold and silver. The ponies were also corralled in a small pen attached to the ger. "So what are we doing?"