The Sultanah Ch. 07

Story Info
Hermaphrodite Sultanah saves and soothes a peasant girl.
19.9k words
4.81
28.6k
41

Part 7 of the 14 part series

Updated 06/07/2023
Created 11/08/2015
Share this Story

Font Size

Default Font Size

Font Spacing

Default Font Spacing

Font Face

Default Font Face

Reading Theme

Default Theme (White)
You need to Log In or Sign Up to have your customization saved in your Literotica profile.
PUBLIC BETA

Note: You can change font size, font face, and turn on dark mode by clicking the "A" icon tab in the Story Info Box.

You can temporarily switch back to a Classic Literotica® experience during our ongoing public Beta testing. Please consider leaving feedback on issues you experience or suggest improvements.

Click here
YKN4949
YKN4949
5,861 Followers

Dear Reader, thank you so much for reading this story. It has taken nearly a year of my writing life to get the whole thing finished. This is Chapter 7 of 14 chapters and the total is over 250,000 words. It is my Dirk Diggler/Jack Horner act of hubris: my attempt to write an erotic adventure story that pulls you in with a story you want to read, even when there isn't any sex going on (though there is a lot of sex. Crazy, weird, fun sex). It is the most ambitious piece of erotic fiction I have ever attempted. So I hope you enjoy it.

With that said, this book is not for everyone. It will be too long for many people (no shame in that, it is a big time investment). Some of the sex scenes are intense and include themes like hermaphroditism, non-consensual activity, incest, etc. For some people, that will likely be the appeal. In fact, while this story is definitely not for everyone, I think for a select group of people this story will essentially have everything you could ever ask for. So if that is you, congratulations, you found that thing you have been searching for. You can skip ahead to the sex and I won't be offended, but I think this story is more than the sum of its parts. If you read this whole story, you will not be disappointed.

In Chapter 1, our main character, Princess Varis, finds that her father has died and that, by virtue of the fact that she is a hermaphrodite and can father a child, she is now the Sultanah. In Chapter 2, Varis unearthed a conspiracy to destroy her Empire led by Rahip, the Cardinal of the "New Religion" and later she received her coronation. In Chapter 3, Varis humiliated the New Religion and raised the morale of her besieged people. In Chapter 4, Varis lifted the siege through a daring midnight raid. In Chapter 5, Varis survived an assassination attempt and visited her harem. In Chapter 6, Varis faced a challenge to her authority and seduced a noblewoman to maintain it.

Some recurring characters you might want by name are Varis (the Sultanah and narrator), Cin (the head priestess of Gunes), Arkadas (Varis' friend and servant), Kardes (Varis' older sister), Nislani (Varis' younger sister), Rahip (a Cardinal of the 'new religion'), Duke Hain (an important lord opposing Varis), Lord Sadik (a minor lord who has spoken in support of Varis); King Sican (the leader of Dusman, a rival kingdom), Prince Lider (Sican's son); King Köylü (the leader of Temsilci, a rival kingdom); Agiz and Got (Subordinate Sun Priestesses); Saygili (Varis' guard); Soyguncu (a pickpocket and spy for Varis); Tutuklu (the head concubine of the harem); Kukla (a noblewoman). Further, Gunes is the name of the Sun God, Tanri is the name of the 'new god.' The city where the story is set is Şehir in the country of Ülke and the Empire of Bütün Dünya. If you need more...reread the earlier chapters.

Please, please, please, please, please tell me what you think after you read this. I put an embarrassing amount of work into this and I want to know what you think. Especially if it is good things.

*****

Part IV: Breaking the Stranglehold

Chapter 7: The Body of the Empire

"Sultanah, please we must rest!" a voice said from behind me. I turned quickly and placed my finger to my lips, unable to hide my annoyance with the source of the complaint. We were traveling on a narrow forest path near dusk, our horses traveling in single file. The forest path was flanked on either side by steep, wooded hills. I had no military training and was certainly no expert, but even I could tell we were in a prime location for an ambush.

"It is getting late," another man behind said, in a whisper. Saygili and his top two lieutenants were the only soldiers ahead of me. He turned and looked at me, shrugging. I knew that he was at least as annoyed as I was with the pace and tenor of this expedition.

We had set out from Şehir almost a week earlier under cover of night and with the highest hopes. The goal of our expeditionary force was to find raiders from Dusman and engage them in battle. Since the collapse of King Sican's siege, many professional soldiers had stayed behind to keep pressure on my Empire. They worked in small bands and seemed to have no interest in taking or holding territory. They sought only to disrupt trade and make life miserable for my subjects who lived outside the protective walls of the city. They posed no existential threat to Bütün Dünya on their own, by they were weakening us a little each day. They were severely limiting food entering the city, which would leave us with few, if any, reserves when King Sican returned to resume his siege with new levies.

All of our various efforts at finding ways around the raiders had gone nowhere. The various alternative paths that Soygyncu had skillfully and bravely mapped out were rejected by merchants for various reasons. In fact, the attacks were getting worse. The cavalry from Dusman was becoming wealthy from attacking villages outside of Şehir and sexually sated by taking scores of peasant women against their will. This kind of activity attracted mercenaries and other unsavory types, eager to join in the plunder. That meant that even if we could avoid them now, the problem was only going to get worse.

The only alternative to avoiding the raiders was taking them out. But this looked like it might be even more difficult. About a month after Lord Sadik was elected chancellor on a 3-2 vote (to the astonishment of nearly everyone), the Executive Assembly had issued a report estimating that there were no fewer than 15 armed cavalry groups within 20 miles of Şehir and that they varied in size from 15-25 soldiers a piece. The total number was estimated at 315 armed men. I feared that this considerably under counted the total number. The report also listed the Empire's mounted forces, which consisted of the three members of the city guards. On the other hand, the Peers had considerable numbers of horsemen at their disposal. Not counting the actual Peers themselves, lesser lords and common mounted soldiers numbered close to 600 men. The issue, of course, was that I had no right to these men and could only use them if their Lords permitted.

Saygili, as Constable of Şehir, was present in the Executive Assembly chamber when the report was read aloud by Sir Sakşakçı (who had insisted on holding the title Executive Speaker, an office he invented. I wondered what Kukla thought of that.). Having heard the report, Saygili had made a suggestion. He offered, as one of the three members of the guard with a horse, to lead an expeditionary force. The force would not need to number even close to the 315 armed men present estimated in the field. If he could get around 65 men, he would vastly outnumber enemy troops as he found them in squads of 15-25. If he could manage to find and destroy even a few of the squads, it would become too dangerous to keep them in the field. They would return to Dusman.

I, of course, wholeheartedly endorsed this plan. I had come to trust Saygili's instincts. If he was not a brilliant soldier, he was at least determined and loyal. This seemed the perfect task. The only problem was getting access to 62 additional soldiers. No one seemed willing to offer any men. Mounted troops were highly trained and exceptionally expensive. Even Loyalists were afraid that sending out troops would only result in a major loss in investment. Lord Sadik offered a handful of soldiers and several other Loyalists added one or two. In the end, Saygili's force amounted to no more than 40 men, hardly the overwhelming number needed to put his plan into action.

Finally, I made a momentous decision. Above the objections of Cin, Kardes, Arkadas and Saygili, I promised that I would accompany the soldiers on their mission. Soldiers who knew that I was out in the field would fight harder. Some, because they loved and respected me. More, because they recognized that I controlled an immense amount of wealth and would be able to reward them handsomely if I witnessed any acts of bravery. Further, I knew from my experience during the siege that if I went with the troopers, I would be given credit for any successes we had. However, I promised I would only go if I could raise 70 mounted troops. Several more Loyalists contributed troops. More importantly, several shrewd Collaborationists, hoping I would die on the mission, sent enough men to ensure we reached the requisite 70 but no more.

I assured Cin that I would keep these Collaborationist men split up amongst the loyal troops and sleep as far from them as possible. I avoided my sister and my friend, not wanting to hear their objections in private. Instead, I asked Soyguncu to go into my chambers, collect my clothing, and fetch me a horse. And so it was that the next morning, before news could spread, I left the city with my small force.

From that point forward, nothing had gone right. We moved slowly, despite the small size of our company. The mounted troops we had were used to posing handsomely in their expensive armor for ladies at court, not tracking enemies through rough terrain. Or trying to track, at least. We have extreme difficulty finding any of our quarry. We would stumble into burnt out villages days after an attack and find traumatized citizens (who loved their Sultanah) trying to come to terms with their loss. They would point in the direction their attackers had left, but the trail would already be cold. We rapidly became low on food and were forced to forage from the country side, taking scarce food from people already scarred by war.

Finally, four days into our expedition, we encountered an enemy unit. We had no so much tracked them as happened to run into as we approached a bridge from opposite directions. Our scouts had seen 20 enemy soldiers approaching the bridge through the forest. Rather than returning and allowing Saygili to plan an ambush, they had blown their horns, indicating an attack was appropriate. I had tried to hold the men back, but they were so excited to finally find an enemy that they charged.

The enemy had superior discipline. Rather than attempting to cross or trying to run, the raiders massed on the end of the bridge. By doing so, they created a bottleneck on the road. They essentially capped the bridge and prevented my troopers from crossing. In so doing, they turned Saygili's strategy back on us: they eliminated the strength of our numbers. Our troops backed up onto the bridge. Worse, pressure from behind pushed the front ranks directly into the swords and pikes on our enemies.

Luckily, I suppose, my soldiers were so poorly prepared for battle that it did not take long for them to break and run. Only five soldiers, all in the very front rank on the bridge, were injured. Two died of their injuries, dropping our number to 69 (counting me). The enemy suffered no losses. However, once my troops returned to me on the far side of the bridge, they could not advance. Our numbers were too great. Essentially there was a stalemate and we both slinked off in the night, avoiding further engagement.

The defeat had absolutely destroyed the morale of my troops. Whereas they had started overly confident and almost buoyant, they now seemed completely listless. It was not the death of their comrades (no one, apparently, was very close) but the crushing of their egos that seemed to destroy them. Now we were moping around the countryside at a snail's pace. We were tracking several different groups of raiders but we did not seem to be getting any closer to any of them. Worse yet, the men seemed frightened about the possibility of another engagement.

Now, nearly a week in, we were slowly making our way through the forest and, despite the fact that the sun had not yet set, the troopers were begging for a rest. Saygili and his two fellow guards were likely willing to push on, but we were vastly outnumbered by complainers. We had already discussed the possibility of being abandoned, or worse, by the noble troops and we had reasoned that it was best not to antagonize them.

"We cannot stop here," I hissed back, "We are surrounded by high ground on either side. The next time we reach a plain or clearing we will stop for the evening." The men grumbled something about this, by they seemed to realize that, in reality, they had won.

I slumped down on my horse and kept my eyes down. My morale was starting to flag as well. I had grown tired of exhorting the men to work harder and to be brave. I was losing faith in the success of the mission. In fact, I was considering returning now to the city. If I received all of the credit for successfully lifting the siege, what would be my share of the blame for failing to capture any raiders? Maybe it wouldn't matter; maybe my troopers would abandon me to my fate forty miles from the city.

"Fuck they are on us!" one of the soldier's shrilly cried behind me.

"Up on the ridge!" another screamed. I felt my blood run cold. I looked quickly to the left side, at the top of the ridge. The sun was setting in that direction and my eyes burned. But I saw no enemy on the crest. As I turned to my right I felt Saygili and the other two guards return to my side to offer me protection. I looked at the crest of the hill and for a moment I saw nothing. I felt my heart slow slightly; it had been a false alarm. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw something small and white moving on the side of the hill. The first of many soldiers? Once again on edge, I turned and looked.

For a moment, it was hard to see what was going on. My troopers were in an absolute panic. Many were trying to climb the opposite ridge on their horses. Others had turned and were running back along the path we had just traveled. The braver ones were turning toward whoever or whatever was climbing done the steep Western slope. The forest was alive with the sound of near panicked screaming and the various metallic sounds of bouncing swords, armor, and horseshoes. Finally, through the tumult I was finally able to see what had caused the commotion. Instantly my body and mind grew calm. In fact, my former fear was replaced with rage and embarrassment.

"Settle down you fucking fools," I yelled as loudly I could above the din. Some men near me, shocked by my language, go a hold of themselves. But there was still a large amount of commotion in the forest. I placed my hands in a cone around my lips, "Damn you cowards, it is nothing but a fucking girl," I screamed out so loudly that my voice cracked slightly. In just an instant, the tumult came to an end. The horses stopped stamping and swords were hastily returned to sheaths. Deadly silence fell over the forest. Half of the soldiers (many quite a ways down the path) turned and looked at me with sheepish looks on their faces. The remaining soldiers were already looking at the girl.

She was a thin slip of a peasant girl, though undeniably beautiful. Like most peasant girls, she was shorter than most noble woman, probably only 5'0. She had very long, dark hair that, at the time, looked quite wild. She had very large, innocent brown eyes with long lashes. Her nose and ears were quite small in a way that made her eyes and red, sensual lips look larger. She was very thin with small breasts, a narrow waist, and a small round butt. Her hips flared slightly, more girlish than womanly. She had small, bare feet.

At the time she was wearing an unsightly collection of rags and nothing more. It was apparent after a moment of observation that she had once been wearing and simple, yet elegant, white dress that fell to about her knees, accentuated her slim frame, and was supported by two thin straps over the shoulder. The dress had been torn completely around the bottom so that it was ragged and uneven at the hem and barely fell to cover her cunny and her bottom. The dress itself was caked in an orange dirt and torn in at least a dozen places, exposing her youthful skin. Most dramatically, the thin strip of material holding the dress over her left shoulder was torn away entire. The flap of fabric covering her chest was flopped forward, exposing a firm young breast with a small, brownish-red nipple.

It took a moment for the troopers to fully recognize what was happening. The girl's eyes looked almost blank and she continued to move awkwardly down the side of the hill apparently oblivious to the chaos she had briefly caused. After a moment, there was some nervous laughter.

"You fucking women, running from a little girl!" one trooper yelled. I noted that his voice seemed to come from a slight distance and I wondered whether he was, perhaps, covering for his own flight. I smiled at this, but I felt my pulse quicken at the next outburst.

"I didn't fucking run," a voice called, just a few feet from the girl, "The slut belongs to me!" I heard the man's horse start to make in the girl's direction.

"Not so fast, I saw her first!" a closer voice replied.

"I haven't had a piece in weeks!" Still another soldier claimed. Then, once again, there was tumult. Except this time, rather than running from the girl, everyone was heading in her direction. Angry words were exchanged as horses bumped into one another and men were knocked from their horses. Horses slipped up the sides of the steep hill as the girl began to move closer to the crowd, seemingly oblivious.

"Form ranks damn you!" Saygili cried over the noise of the crowd. But whatever military discipline the soldiers may have once had was completely dissipated now. Some men had broken out into fighting, less over a desire to have the first opportunity to rape the young girl, but because they were scared and tired and wanted to take it out on someone. But whoever did reach the girl would claim a victory and would want to take the spoils of war. That man would get the ultimate prize in transferring his frustration to someone innocent and weak.

I stood and watched, paralyzed by the situation. I knew this girl was no threat to us in any way and that she was in obvious distress. Further, given our location and the fact that she was barefoot indicated she lived close by and was one of my subjects. Therefore, she had my protection. I desperately wanted to offer her that protection, my heart hurt for her obvious troubles. But I also knew I had no control over the men. If I tried to assert myself now they might simply ignore me and demonstrate my impotence. Worse, they could turn on me. Despite the fact that Varis, the woman, felt her conscience screaming at her to act, the Sultanah waited for something to change.

One of the troopers had now managed to dismount and was climbing up the hill towards the girl. He had an almost deranged look on his face. Another soldier grabbed at his ankle but he kicked his mate in the face. Finally, he made it to the girl and grabbed harshly on her wrist, dragging her down. At that instant it was like a fog was lifted from her eyes. She looked up at the soldier holding her in a moment of disbelief. She looked around and saw the other soldiers all around her. Her eyes grew wide.

"Come here you little slut. You are too thin, I have a nice big piece of meat for you," the solider laughed. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the girl's lips split. From somewhere deep inside of her, a piercing screech poured forth without warning. It did not build louder and louder toward a burst. Instead, she seemed to start in mid-scream. Her voice was high and quavering. There was an unmistakable note of sadness underlying the scream, everyone present could hear it.

The man holding the girl stumbled backward slightly, letting her go. His hands flew to his ears. Many of the other men closest to him followed suit. Farther back the noise was bearable, but heartbreaking. All of the men instantly froze, even those who were fighting their friends. Their heads turned once again to the girl, whose lungs seemed to hold limitless air to match the depth of her sorrow. Finally, her voice began to crackle. After another moment, she went silent. Her eyes rolled backwards and she collapsed in a small bundle on the ground. The echo of her voice was the only remaining sound in the forest.

YKN4949
YKN4949
5,861 Followers