Dethroned

Queen Ellendre, former queen of the Lu'lu straits, served drinks to her former advisors and generals. The air was thick with smoke, and the general chatter of a crowded inn reverberated around her ears. Her neck felt bare without the weight of the chain against it, and despite her nakedness, she was relieved. A smack, followed by applause carried over from the other room. She sighed. They were on one of their adjourns again. The inn they visited this time was in one of the lower rings of the city, and the crowds here so liked to watch Erik fuck the life out of former royalty. Aptly named The Royal Drink.

Elle swerved around a few handsy patrons and found herself next to Tara, former queen to a kingdom far to the north, Sai. They squeezed in together next to the door to the kitchen, their entirely nude forms drawing eyes that they had now gotten used to.

"Anything?" she asked her. Delirious with drink, none of the men was likely to eavesdrop on them.

"He's ready to meet you. But Elle, he won't accept the usual payment."

A particularly loud scream signaled the arrival of Nikolai's orgasm. "He won't?"

"No. So unless you have something solid to give him..."

Elle felt the beginnings of a headache slither between her eyes. "I just want to talk to him. We'll see about payment later."

Tara shrugged, her heavy jewelry clinking. It was the ancestral silver that came from the mines of the country she had once ruled. Now she wore it on occasions such as these, showing off the brutal conquests Erik had ordered. Tara was pragmatic, and Elle had decided she could be trusted a week ago. Some of the women in Erik's harem had carved out tiny spaces of freedom, and for Tara, it had always been the public inns Erik would frequent in newly conquered cities. Somehow she could eye out who exactly could be bribed. And once that was established, she could move, if in a limited fashion. As for her source of money, no one could say.

"Come," she said, opening the door to the kitchen. The men colored as they glimpsed their former queen, completely naked, march through them. The bolder ones managed to touch her. She knew she could just tell Erik and he would have them flogged, but the man was too drunk to do anything right now. Tara led them to a man chopping onions in the corner. He did not look up as he spoke, "Have you told her my cost?"

"Of course I did," Tara replied. "She doesn't have anything right now, but do listen to her. For all we know, she could still have the key to the royal coffers."

They chuckled, and Elle huffed. "Tara, a little privacy?"

"Of course, my

queen

."

Elle liked her. At least she made her contempt open for everyone to see. As she left, Elle sat down on the chair, feeling the grains of wood under her butt. The man continued to chop, unheeding of her body.

"I need to find someone's grave."

That caused him to stop. He looked up, seeing her for the first time. "A grave?"

"Someone died a traitor's death recently."

He chuckled. "Forget about it. Anything of value was probably pilfered."

When someone died a traitor's death, all their belongings went to the earth with them. Well, at least, that was how it was supposed to be. "What I'm looking for is still there."

"I find that hard to believe. Who is it?"

"Aren. Worked at the palace stables."

His gaze turned suspicious. "Weren't you the one that got him--"

"Forget about all that. I want discretion and efficiency."

"It'll cost you."

"How much?"

"Let's say a dozen gold pieces?"

It was too much. She clenched her jaw and leaned in, whispering, "How much will my mouth cover that?"

He chuckled again, leaning on his chair. "Stop it with the slut act. It won't cover anything. Twelve gold pieces, or nothing."

Twelve gold pieces for something that would take an hour at most. She clamped her anger down, but before she could declare her his queen, someone tapped at her shoulder. Tara.

"I'm Finn, by the way," he called out as she was towed away.

In a few moments, they were kneeling next to each other, her master's slick cock pulsating in her mouth as she worked him with her tongue. The cold touch of Tara's silver warred with the aching in her jaw as she massages him. The jeers of the crowd slid past her bare skin unnoticed. It felt so queer, to be reduced to nothing in front of her people. They were supposed to be her

worshippers

, cheering her as she helped better their lives. Instead they cheered on their subjugator. The chime of the bell ringed in her ears as she let go of him with a

pop

, pulling back. Tara leaned in and began gagging on his shaft almost immediately. They each had a minute to finish him off; the victor was spared the humiliation of finishing off a peasant in front of everyone to see. The men watched with tense gazes, hoping that Tara would wring his seed out so they could get their hands on their former queen. So far, Elle had managed to avoid that fate. She looked at Nikolai, watching them from her seat, mesmerized with drink and sex. Though she was devoted to Erik more than most, she did not hesitate direct commands to sleep with other men when he deemed it necessary.

The bell rang again and Elle dove in without a thought. Unlike Tara, she no longer choked on him, but still put up as much resistance as she could. She could hear the onlookers place their bets for her, as she hadn't lost yet. But others remained skeptical. She kissed his tip and slid down to his balls, gargling them in her mouth. Then in one swift motion, engulfed him again, watching his expression go slack. The roaring around her filled her senses, so much so that she missed the bell, and Tara had to forcefully pull her back by her hair. Recovering her breath, she watched Erik with trepidation. He had been close, she could feel it. Tara bobbed her head rapidly, as if she could anticipate his climax as well. And before she knew it, Erik grabbed her head roughly, pinning her to his body as he orgasmed in relish. Excess semen leaked out from Tara's nose and mouth, but she looked happy. Elle's mouth ran dry as she looked around at the predatory men.

"Draw your lots!" Erik screamed, pulling Tara out of his cock and dumping her to the floor. "Tonight, your queen serves you once more!"

In the end, it was some young man, probably a full five years younger than her, who won. The others looked disappointed and muttered dissent. They wanted the man to provide a show, not empty himself in a minute.

"What's your name, lad?"

"Lev, your highness," he said excitedly, watching her with ravenous eyes.

"Well, Lev, what did you think of your queen?"

"Well, she makes a fantastic whore."

The inn reverberated with the heavyset laughter of the men. When it quited down, Erik continued, "That she does. They say she never ruled well?"

"Oh, never. All we heard was never ending taxes! Even after she'd looted my family's coffers dry."

"Did you now? Well, now is your time for payback then!"

That ungrateful prick. She could not even hide her glare this time. The only reason taxes had increased was standing right next to them. If Erik had not bothered with his invasions, she could have revived her stagnant economy. But all her plans were useless now. The man, Lev, dragged her by the hair to the center of the inn. She wanted to make sure he would not last even a minute under her tongue, but the thought of pleasing him enraged her. Too bad they weren't allowed to fuck the losers properly. Erik was too scared of them getting pregnant by anyone but his own hands.

As he unbuckled his pants, the crowd egged him on. She still could not believe that these were her people. If that was how they thought of her, then they deserved to be conquered. After all, she contemplated bitterly, as his manhood entered her mouth, Erik

was

right. The men of her country were soft, weaklings. A gag escaped her throat as he thrust rapidly inside. All they could think of was the next warm meal, or the next warm mouth.

"Hold!" Erik said. "The lad is going to end our entertainment!"

He'd correctly gauged what she could feel in her mouth. The boy was going to erupt soon. He pulled out, but before he could mumble excuses, Erik roared out, "Nikolai! Go help him."

Bile filled her mouth as Nikolai stood, calmly walking over. But she did not kneel as Elle had thought she would. Instead, she stood by Lev, grabbed his shaft and gently prodded

it into Elle's mouth. "There, now. My sister is far too good at this thing. You need to take her slowly."

She tasted precum as her tongue swirled around his head. Nikolai's fingers twirled around Elle's hair, tugging painfully. Nikolai modulated her pace so calmly, with such authority that both Lev and Elle succumbed. Even the crowd grew subdued as Nikolai whispered how much of a whore her sister was into Lev's ear. And despite it all, Elle felt her defenses began to crumble. The whispering was music to her ears, and as Lev groaned under their paired onslaught, she felt warmth spread through her body. Nikolai's touch was both painful and blissful, knowing when exactly to push and pull. One moment she was gagged to the hilt, and in the next she simply rested him on her tongue as Nikolai stroked him. Elle refused to touch herself, and only prayed that this ordeal would be over soon.

Eventually, it did end. Spurt after spurt of filthy, commoner semen landed on her body, squeezed out by her sister. As soon as the first rope landed, the crowd erupted into a force of nature, congratulating the boy, and the pair of sisters who were much better at sucking cock than sitting on a throne. Elle took it all with pride, cum running down her chin. It only made her arousal worse, but she remained steadfast. They would all pay soon enough.

She replayed the events of that night for a week afterward. As Erik took her in the bathhouse, in the courtyard, in the stables. Nothing would excite her until she imagined Nikolai standing over her again, leash in her hands and controlling every muscle in Elle's body. For that reason she avoided Nikolai completely. Well, as much as could be afforded. Erik fucked them as much as he made them fuck each other.

Shaking her thoughts away, she slowed her breathing. The room was quiet this time, even the ever-present rattling seemed muted. She could hear some of the women whispering among themselves, but the rest of them were soundly asleep.

"You sure he's trustable?" she asked Tara again.

"Yes! He is! You should be concerned about your sister."

"She's taken care of."

Elle had managed to procure wyldroot on their way back to the palace. Enough to put Nikolai soundly to sleep. "I can't believe she had that guard executed. And for what?" Tara mumbled. "Your own sister."

Tara had started showing far too much sympathy when Elle had accidentally revealed the truth of what had happened with Aren weeks before. Elle was discomfited, but even if it had been an accident, she needed to trust someone. She was beginning to worry when the door to the antechamber began knocking rapidly. The women grumbled, but one of them opened the door to let Lady Danica in.

"His Highness has requested an audience with Elle," she whispered to the woman. Appearing nonchalant, Elle stood, peeking over at the still-sleeping Nikolai. Sighing in relief, she followed Danica outside, where a guard unlocked her magical chain. Lady Danica was as prim as ever, and did not stop as she led Elle downstairs.

"I don't know why I'm doing this," she whispered. "But currying favor as a woman in this court... Well, you can guess how easy that is."

She sounded tired. Slowing to a stop, she held on to the wall. Elle replied, "I'm glad you managed it. The crown will see you rewarded."

"With you in chains, girl? Honestly, even death is preferable to the sheer bore this place has become. I'm interested to see just what you're planning to do."

It was far too much to ask Danica to scour for allies. But to risk herself and her family for some intrigue?

That

was far too easy, even if she grumbled about it. The only difficulty had been getting the message to her. But Tara had proven her worth regarding that. The night air stung her skin as Danica led her through the gardens. Unknown plants pricked her with impunity while Danica talked, "I assume you know the curfew has been lifted? You could have asked me for some clothes, girl."

Danica lifted her shawl and handed it to Elle. She gratefully put it on, even though she still looked like a prostitute. The hubbub of the night markets was getting closer as they approached the street that ran on the eastern side of the palace gates. She thought she'd have to climb, which she hadn't done since she was a child. But Danica produced a key to unlock the side gate out to the street.

"Now, remember, you

do

have an appointment with your... master in a few hours. If anyone scrutinizes our arrangements, we can blame the illiterate guard for not being able to distinguish third bell from sixth. It took quite some maneuvering on my part to get this to work."

"Thank you. I promise you will be repaid."

"Just make sure it's nothing like that guard, Aren," she winked before shutting the gate and stalking away without a backwards glance.

Lady Yun choked on her drink, her stately facade breaking for a minute. As she recovered, Elle scrutinized the dress she'd been given this time. A lot more flamboyant. Yun's recession had lasted only until the curfew. The resurging crowds filled the street now, and practically every whore was booked. Well, except for one. Hopefully.

"My queen," Yun began, "that won't be necessary. The amount you're asking... I'll just gift them to you!"

This was a lesson learned painfully by every monarch. Never be in debt, even with your closest allies. Elle had already crossed the line. Lady Yun could exact repayment whenever she wanted to, and she could destroy Elle if done at an inopportune moment. No, she definitely did not want another knife at her back.

"I'm aware that you would," she replied, standing up. "The only favor I ask is that the house keep a smaller margin. I'm sure my visage would provide a more... let's say, elegant clientele?"

"So it would," the woman responded faintly. She was probably racking her brain to figure a way out of the mess she had gotten in. If word got out that the

actual

former queen was whoring herself out in her brothel... but even with a smaller margin, it would be a sizable amount of gold she could pull in. Plus, if the tides of fortune ever turned toward Elle's way, lady Yun would suddenly become very important indeed. Elle felt her reach her conclusion the moment she opened her mouth again. "I'll do it. Though, gods, we seal this between us. No royalty should act this way."

She seemed to be conveniently forgetting how exactly she was already treated. But apparently sexual slavery for money was worse than for free.

"Then bring them in. I'll take as many as I can in the couple hours I have."

The first man that walked through the door actually brought a painting of her. He examined her, sitting regally on a chair made to look like a throne. Then he looked at the picture again.

"You sure you aren't queen Ellendre herself?"

She smiled. "Aren't you buying me to find that out?"

In the end, he was quite tame. Or perhaps she had gotten used to the brutality she suffered under Erik. He first took her mouth on the 'throne', foot over the arm, instructing her to act regal. Though she had been nothing else all her life, sucking cock was on the opposite side on the spectrum of propriety. She did her best, staring at him haughtily even as his dick twitched inside of her. Soon, the tang of his precum was all she could taste, and she glided down his slick shaft with it, encoating every inch of him with her saliva. He shook from excitement, his clean hands clenching and unclenching rapidly. But he let her do her job. Thankfully, the clients that paid for her would all be of noble blood. No peasant would have enough gold to afford her.

When he was thoroughly slathered, he dragged her by the hair and forced her to ride him on 'his throne', which she did. It was thoroughly unsatisfying. When he'd spurted out his shame, he lay there for a minute, breathing heavily.

"Here," he dropped his card in her hand as he left. "I've slept with many whore that looked like our queen, but absolutely none could match your austerity. I hope you will call on me, queen Ellendre."

He never asked for her real name, so she responded enthusiastically to it, bowed, and sent him on his merry way. In another life, she would've thrown the card into the fireplace, but now, she needed every connection she could get. The next two men were just as noteworthy, and she forgot their faces the moment they left the room. But their names. Lord Harrison, Lord Brent, and Lord Nik. They were all from minor houses and she may have even met them at some point, which probably explained their fetish. But these were connections she would need to hold on to, even as a prostitute. Sighing, she lay back on her makeshift throne, deciding to end it for tonight.

"I will be late if I stay," she said, wiping her body.

"Of course, your highness," Yun replied, looking extremely pleased. The three men had left enough tips to cover all the bribes Elle would need to pay for a month. "Just be prepared for next time. I'll send word out."

"I will. You just make sure the gold pieces end up in the right hands."

"I will, I will."

"Oh, and send for a carriage. I'm tired of walking all the way back. Have him drop me off at... let's say Diamond Way. I'll walk the rest."

"Yes, your highness."

She was beginning to feel like a queen again.

A fortnight later, at The Royal Drink, Finn handed her the contents of Aren's final belongings. As expected, there was nothing of value in there. Papers, a small bag, dice, and... a key. The tension inside of her dissipated. She'd found it. She'd actually found it.

"I want you to send this," she wrapped everything back again, hands shaking. No one needed to know that she was after that key. "I want you to send this to Lady Yun at the Golden Girls. I think she'll find it useful."

"As you say."

"I'll pay you another dozen gold pieces for your silence. This matter is of royal importance now, and I'll see you compensated more when I'm through with this."

Finn only nodded. His bored look had evaporated. Perhaps he was reconsidering just how much power the women in Erik's harem wielded. Well, let him. She had more important things to worry about. For instance, how Aren had ended up with a key to the strange chain that bound them together. And how nobody had noticed it. Well, it did look remarkably uncharacteristic. It did not even look like it could fit in the lock. But she knew it did. The miasma it gave off was as familiar to her as her own skin.

She sighed. Freedom was merely a good opportunity away now.