The Trikingdom Ch. 04

"He asked the dryad to marry him? That's unbelievable. Did he know what she was?" Kalas asked.

"Not yet," the queen said. "But it wouldn't have mattered. He was in love. She, of course, didn't understand exactly what it meant to be married, and assumed the prince, now king, only wanted to honor her for saving his life. She agreed, and the defenders, now heartened by the return of the prince, managed to fight off the Bloody Queen's men. She was defeated before she could return, and the people survived," she said with a smile.

"What happened after they were married?" Kalas asked.

"Well, she was already bearing his child, and decided to stay long enough for the new king to see it born and then planned on taking the child back to the grove so it could start its own tree. She didn't tell the king this, of course, but by this time he knew she was a dryad. When the baby was born, they were both surprised to find that it was a boy. The night after the birth she slipped out of the castle and back to the forest, but she left the baby boy behind. The king was devastated that she had left, but he began raising the boy, who seemed perfectly human except maybe a little more attractive than most."

"Did she ever return?" the duke asked. He hadn't realized it, but the queen's story had put him at ease as they walked further and further into the forest.

"She came back less than a year later. She was curious about her son, and truthfully missed the king. He was ecstatic to see her and they made love again. She ended up staying a couple of weeks then went back to the forest for a few weeks, then back to castle. For the rest of the king's life she would stay a few weeks with him and then a few weeks in the forest. They wound up having three children; two sons and one daughter. Their sons were more human with a few dryad features, but their daughter was more dryad with a few human features. And that's the way it's been in my family since."

"So if your son and my sister have a daughter...?" Kalas questioned.

"Then I will bring her here, shortly after she is born to plant the seed that comes with her," the queen responded. "Does that bother you?"

"No," he responded quickly. "I have no prejudice against any of the fairy, it just amazes me."

"Good," she said, "it pleases me to hear that."

The pair continued to walk, arm in arm, for nearly an hour. The rest of their conversation was small talk, catching each other up on their families. The queen was so much friendlier and down to earth than her son and husband, Kalas was once more glad that he had chosen to come with her rather than suffer through the company of her son and husband. He did feel sorry for leaving Careena alone with the insufferable pair though.

They finally arrived at their destination. "This is my tree," she said, releasing his arm and running up to it. She hugged the tree tightly and kissed the trunk. "It was planted next to the trees of the others in my family." She pointed out her mother's and grandmother's tree. Both of them were absent from the forest, visiting the duchy.

"How far have we come?" Kalas asked.

The queen smiled. "We are near the southern edge of The Great Forest," she responded.

"I did not think we had walked so far," Kalas said.

"The Great Forest isn't like a typical forest. We were able to travel in a straight line with few impediments; no hills, no roots to stumble over. How far could you walk on smooth, flat land in two hours?" she asked him.

"Several miles," Kalas responded as he nodded his head in understanding. He hadn't thought about it before, but the queen was right.

"It would take a man on horseback nearly a day to ride around the outside of the forest, to travel the distance we just did in two hours," she said. "Of course, even if a man could travel through the forest he would never be able to get his bearings. Everything looks the same to humans."

Kalas realized that she was right. As he looked around he couldn't even determine which direction they had come from. He could spend days trying to find his way back to Daarkscrag.

The queen slowly released her tree and turned to him with a smile on her face. "And now, Duke Kalas, that you are out here, at my mercy, I have a favor to ask."

"Anything, my Lady," Kalas responded sincerely.

"Show me your cock. I wish to see if it is as large as your father's."

***

Careena watched her husband disappear with the queen a little envious. She wished she was brave enough to enter The Great Forest, but she had heard too many tales about dryads stealing people away. Besides, she didn't want to be rude to the king and risk offending him. One of them should suffer through his tour.

Two hours later she was regretting her decision even more. The king and prince had shown her every picture, every tapestry in the castle and given a long explanation about its history and import to their family. Then they had gone outside to the gardens and she was sure she now new the story of every plant out there. They had also shown her the door that led out to The Great Forest, and she almost begged to be let out so she could try to catch up to her husband and the queen.

Then it was back inside to the library. The prince had left to attend to some other matters so she and the king had toured the library alone. It was not as impressive as the library in DuGuerra, but she had to admit it was very impressive. She just hadn't wanted to sit through an explanation of every important book in their collection.

She had nearly reached the point of screaming, "No more!" when the king suggested they sit on the terrace off the library and have some refreshments. The duchess readily agreed, relieved for the reprieve.

"Maybe we should wait until the queen and my husband return before we continue," Careena suggested as she sipped her glass of wine.

"Oh, they won't return for another few hours yet," the king responded. "From what my wife tells me it's about a two hour walk to her tree from here. I expect them to return just in time to join us for dinner. Besides, the tour is over, unless you want to see that ghastly business my wife was talking about," he said.

"What is it exactly," Careena asked absently. She really didn't want to hear an explanation, but she didn't want to appear impolite.

"My ancestors used to do, ah, experiments in catacombs beneath the castle. It's really quite horrid and I don't wish to offend you," the king told her.

Careena sensed that King Drakin was more concerned with avoiding his own embarrassment over his ancestor's behavior, than with offending her sensibilities. After what he had put her through over the past couple hours, she felt like embarrassing the poor man.

"What kind of experiments?" she asked.

"Mostly magical, on, ah, the fairy," he answered, his face turning a little red.

Despite her good sense telling her that she would be disappointed and bored, the scholar in her was intrigued. "I would like to see what's down there."

"Are you certain? We could stay out here if you wish. Look, down there, we will be able to see when the queen and duke return," he said, pointing down at their view of the garden.

Sitting and waiting with just the king for company didn't sound very appealing to her. "I'm certain," she said. "I've always been interested in magical studies."

The king reluctantly agreed to take her down there after they finished their wine. He led her down through the kitchens and servant quarters to a guarded door. "You may wait here, if you wish. The duchess and I will be perfectly safe," he said to the guard detail that had been trailing behind them all day. The men looked relieved and Careena noticed that none of them followed. "They are very superstitious about the catacombs. There have been silly rumors for centuries that it's haunted by the ghosts of the fairies that died here," the king explained as he grabbed a lit torch from the wall.

Careena nodded in understanding as she followed him down a long flight of stone steps. The steps led to a large empty room that had several doors, made from bars, leading out. "This used to be the guard station. One of my ancestors had all the locks removed from the doors so that no one accidentally locked themselves in. The keys had all been lost ages ago."

King Drakin walked over to one of the doors and pushed it open. The metal door creaked on its hinges but swung easily. She followed him through the dark corridor. In the torchlight, she could see doors on either side further down. The king pushed the first one of these open and gestured for her to enter as he followed behind her.

"This was one of the standard torture rooms. My ancestors believed that they could force the fairy creatures to give up the secrets of their magic, so many were brought to rooms such as this, and forced to endure all manner of unspeakable evil."

Careena looked around the room with disgust. The king's words were accurate. The devices there would only have been used on the most vile of criminals in her own kingdom. She couldn't imagine using them on innocent beings. She was glad to see that they were all covered in heavy layers of dust, and most were disintegrating with age.

"The fairies, of course, never gave up any of their secrets. How could they, it would be like you or I trying to explain how we think or feel. Magic to them was just a part of their life," the king said sadly. He let her look around for a few more moments before leading her out and heading further down the corridor. Some of the other doors were open and Careena saw many more rooms like the one they had left.

The king stopped again at another door and pushed it open. She followed him inside. "This room was used for dissection of both the living and dead. They thought maybe the differences internally of the fairy let them use magic. We now, of course, know that the differences are minimal, and that what gives them their innate command of magic can't be seen by the human eye."

Careena was equally appalled by this room. There was a large slab of stone with metal restraints attached to keep the live subjects from escaping their fate. She was grateful that time had washed away all traces of blood. She could hardly believe the barbarism that had occurred here.

He led her further down the corridor and to another door which he paused outside of. "This is, perhaps, what I am most ashamed of," he said. Careena felt sorry for the man, all traces of arrogance had fled him as soon as they had begun the journey down the flight of stairs.

He pushed open the door slowly and, as if in a trance, walked inside the room. Careena hesitantly followed him, afraid of what horrors she might see inside. She was imagining all manner of torture devices and instruments of murder, and was surprised to find less sinister looking equipment in this room.

"Early in the history of Daarkscrag they attempted to cut down some of the dryad's trees to use in construction. As a test they sent a group of women with axes to cut down a tree. When they began chopping, the dryad came down to try to stop them. The women stopped cutting, and instead captured the dryad and brought her back here. Up until then they had never been able to examine a dryad as they had other fairy creatures, so she was brought here." His hand waved around the room as he spoke.

"They were very curious about the mating habits of the dryads. They knew that they required human males to procreate, but since no one had survived the ordeal, they were unsure of the particulars. I'm afraid to say that she was raped repeatedly in this room. She died after a few days in captivity when her tree died from the damage caused to it, but my ancestors now knew how to capture them. Another was caught, and they made sure that this time the tree was relatively unscathed."

Careena watched King Drakin as he recited the tale and he seemed to be filled with regret over what had happened so long ago. "Did she suffer a similar fate to the first?" Careena asked, dreading the answer.

"She did," the king said solemnly, "but for a much longer time. As you have seen from my wife, the dryads can be strikingly beautiful, and I'm ashamed to admit that several dryads were captured and treated to the 'procreation experiments'. This room is particularly disturbing because it contained a secret passage that led from the royal bedchamber."

"So the king was participating in the atrocities going on in this room," Careena concluded for him.

"Just so," the king acknowledged. "Of course, nothing came of the couplings that occurred between the humans and dryads down here. The dryads can control their when they choose to conceive, an idea that was borrowed for the spell that your kingdom uses to bond husband and wife." He paused and looked around the room. "If you look at the restraints here, you will see that everything was built to accommodate the dryads' smaller stature."

Careena walked over to the largest device in the room. It was a large wooden board with metal cuffs bolted near the top. The board was thick, and attached to A-frames on both sides with a long metal rod. She saw what the king meant; the cuffs were far too low for the average size human, male or female.

"If you raise your arm up, you'll see that the restraint is about the height of your forearm, not your wrist," the king said, close behind her.

She hadn't heard him approach and was slightly alarmed by his proximity, but she raised her arm by reflex at his suggestion, even though anyone could obviously see that the cuffs were too low. Suddenly she felt a sudden weight pressing her tightly against the board, and a tight grip held her raised arm.

"What are you doing?!!" Careena yelled at the king as she tried to push away from the board. The king was much stronger than she and her arm was steadily forced toward one of the cuffs. Careena found that the restraints were in perfect working order as one closed around her wrist. The king turned her around so that her back was pressed against the board and then easily secured her second wrist.

"What is this about, my Lord?!" she said in harsh tone. "This is an outrage!"

All hint of remorse and regret were gone from King Drakin's face and had been replaced by the arrogant look she had seen when they first met. Then she noticed another torchlight enter from across the room, opposite where she and the king had come in.

"Is she well secure, Father?" Prince Dumont asked as he hove into view.

"Yes, well and truly secure," the king responded.

"What is going on here? What are you two about?!!" Duchess Careena asked, growing angrier by the second.

"Why, we are preparing for the negotiations, my dear," King Drakin said with a smirk. "Are you ready to begin?"

***

Duke Kalas stood staring at Queen Ilende hardly believing what he had heard. He didn't know what to say, and his confusion was evident on his face. He had known her most of his life, and he had never seen anything in her behavior that would suggest she would ask him this.

"Are you shy, Duke Kalas?" she asked, still smiling. "Or perhaps worried you won't measure up to your father?"

"My Lady, I don't believe it would be proper!" Kalas protested, finally finding his voice.

"You are young, aren't you," the queen laughed. "Young and inexperienced. I do appreciate a younger man, now that my husband is looking so much older." She approached him with that same warm smile, and reached up and seductively stroked his cheek. "You have certainly grown into quite a handsome young man," she remarked. While one hand ran along his jaw line, her other surreptitiously went to the bulge in his pants. "I don't think you have to worry about measuring up," she whispered.

"My Lady, please!" Kalas said, angrily pushing her hands away.

The smile on her face faded. "I see that you don't quite understand. I brought you out here so that we could enjoy each other's company. Now remove your clothes."

Kalas regarded her for a moment and then turned to leave, but stopped when he realized he had no idea which direction to go. He turned back to the queen, "Please take us back to the castle," he pleaded.

The smile returned to her face, but this time there was a hint of something a little sinister about it. "You have to take off your clothes first," she responded. "This will be so much more pleasurable for both of us if you just relax and enjoy it. Don't you find me attractive?"

"Of course, my Lady, but this isn't right," he protested a little more calmly. "I'm married, and I'm a paladin. You're married too."

"Marriage has nothing to do with this," she told him. "I don't want to leave my husband for you, just have a little fun. Don't you realize what your Blessing of Conception is really for?"

"I don't think I can do this," he told her honestly.

"If you don't, I'll make sure my husband won't agree to the marriage arrangement," she responded. "I'm aware of your father's conditions for your marriage to remain intact. You keep mentioning that this isn't right, but would it be right to end your marriage and injure relations between our two kingdoms so that you can retain your sense of propriety?"

Kalas was beginning to get conflicted. He loved his wife, and didn't want to do anything to injure her or their relationship, but he also realized that there were some things that were larger than him. What would it cost him anyway, a little time, and maybe a little dignity?

Queen Ilende sensed that he was wavering. "I promise that it will be enjoyable for both of us," she said. "Please, take off your clothes," she asked.

Kalas reluctantly started unbuttoning his clothing. He kept his eyes on the queen, watching her as she watched him exposing his body to her. He noticed her look of appreciation as he removed his shirt. He felt apprehensive as he stepped out of his pants. The queen was a beautiful woman, and despite his objections to the situation his body was responding in anticipation of having sex with her.

His blood engorged cock bobbed into view as he threw his pants to the ground. The queen squealed in delight and lifted her dress up over her head and tossed it near his clothes as she ran over to him. "I can't believe it, but you actually put your father to shame," she breathed as she grasped his hard shaft. "My husband likes to watch your father slide his large cock into me whenever he comes to visit. He'll get excited when I tell him that yours is even bigger. Now, quickly, lay on your back. We spent too much time arguing and must hurry."

She gently pushed the young duke to the ground and straddled his body. Her hands ran all over his heavily muscled chest. "You remind me of your father when he was much younger," she said as she raised her bottom up and pointed his penis at her wet pussy. "Don't allow yourself to become as fat as him," she said jokingly, before plunging down on his erect cock. "Oooooohhhhh!" she groaned as his large member filled her up.

The duke groaned out loud too. Since his only sexual experiences had been with his wife, he was not sure what to expect, but when the queen began bobbing up and down on his cock he knew he would have an enjoyable time. It felt very similar to when he and his wife made love, and when he closed his eyes he could almost imagine that it was her on top of him, until she squealed in her unfamiliar voice or raked his chest with her long nails.

"Oh gods ...I wish I had more time...more time to enjoy this wonderful cock," the queen moaned. She started rocking back and forth in his lap faster and faster. Her hands were gripping his pecks tightly, her nails biting deep into his skin.

The duke had been lying back passively, but he brought his hands up to grab her waist and began thrusting his pelvis up to meet hers. He started lifting her up and down; she was so small and light it was easy for him to do. They were moving so fast, both their bodies became a blur, and the forest was filled with the sounds of flesh slapping against flesh. Kalas grunted each time their bodies crashed together, and Ilende was letting out one long continuous moan.