**557 years since the Sundering Enlightenment, 519th year of the reign of Emperor Tyros**
Cast-
Nitta: Princess of Ulstead. King Lann's daughter. Paying the price for her father's cruelty.
Attendants: Slave courtesans tasked with entertaining guests and escorting them around the Imperial Palace.
Ohai: Matron of the Attendants.
Miresta: Imperial Princess. Half-elf.
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Nitta was shaking violently as the older attendant helped her up and led her down the hall. "I can't be a slave," she kept repeating to herself, the effect of Darienne's spell having worn off. The Chief Advisor, for her part, wordlessly headed for the exit and returned to her duties.
"Come, my child," the elder said, softly. "Let's get you in." The former princess could only whimper in response.
The doors opened and revealed a hedonist's dream. The entire room was made of finely carved marble. Erotic murals were painted all across the walls accompanied by various statues of nude women in bronze and marble. The room's occupants were, each and every one of them, quite beautiful. While the was one who wore a golden collar with blue enamel and had with her two more in black silk chokers, most of the women, here, had golden collars with white enamel. Other than that they were all nude, save for a few in white silk briefs. Thanks to the commotion outside, all eyes were already on the door before the two even came in.
"Is this her, Matron Ohai?" the one in blue asked uncertainly.
"Yes, Teni," Ohai answered. "Nobody had told her about this until just now."
A second later, Nitta found herself right in front of more than a dozen worried faces, some offering words of sympathy or encouragement. It made her almost vomit. Slaves...all talking out of turn to her. Back home she would have had them all beaten for their impertinence! She could feel the rage boiling, inside.
And then she saw her. Green skin. Tusks protruding from her lower lip. She was the perfect target. Triggered by the sight, Nitta broke free of the Matron and lunged forward, delivering a hard slap to the face.
"FILTH!" she shouted with all her might. "YOU FILTH! Why is there an orc, here?! It belongs in the Pit with rest of its foul kind!"
The room erupted with a collective gasp while two of the Attendants moved in front of the once royal, blocking any further. The orc Attendant, though unhurt, nonetheless looked shocked and was about to cry while suppressing her anger while Nitta continued to spew curses and epithets at her.
The tirade was cut off by by Matron Ohai with a slap of her own, shocking Nitta silent. Struggling to control her anger, the Matron kept herself from yelling, outright. "That's enough out of you!"
Ohai was shocked to find herself doing anything violent. She took a deep breath before continuing. "Look, I'm sorry about all of this. I even begged the Emperor to reconsider. I do not why King Lann kept this from you, but it's done, now. This is your home, now. We will do everything to help you adjust, but cannot be hitting anyone, especially poor Murtha, here!"
It was clear Nitta was unwilling to accept the situation. "I will not stand for this." Her voice quivered as tears welled up in her eyes. "I will not become like you! I will not be a slave! Someone will get me out of this! You will see!"
The blue-collared Attendant, stepped into the argument. "I think we need time for things to cool down for a bit." She offered her hand to Nitta. "How about my novices and I give you a bath? It has been a long journey for you, and a good hot soak will help while we work things out, okay?" Reluctantly, Nitta agreed.
At home, she had a copper tub brought in and filled with preheated water. Here, she was led to a heated marble pool and was scrubbed down by three Attendants. She had sorely underestimated what it was like to live in luxury.
"Tell me," she asked. "What exactly did my father do to the slave?"
All three of the Attendants froze with the novices visibly nervous. Teni was the one to finally speak. "Her name is Kasna. He...he beat so badly that nearly every bone in her body was broken. It took the healers weeks for their magic to finally heal all of her injuries."
As she went on, she started sounding angrier. "On top of that, the process had weakened her to the point where she has to learn to walk all over again! She's still not too sure on her feet!"
"And I take it your emperor didn't like that?" Nitta responded.
Teni permitted herself a smile. "There are three things he cares about in the palace more than anything else: his family, the Peace of the Palace and the Attendants. He may not act like it in public, but he is fiercely protective of us and the role we play."
Even then, Nitta's upbringing showed through. "But why go through all that to heal her up? Why not just put her out of her misery?"
She felt herself grabbed by the jaw and her head spun to look into Teni's angry eyes. "Pray you never have that choice on you!" the Senior said, sternly. "Believe it or not, you're one of us, now, so I sugg-..."
Nitta slapped Teni's hand a away, now full of defiance. "I am not one of you! I am not a Slave! I am of royal blood, not some whore who dares to worship the Queen of the Gods!"
She quickly scrambled out of the pool and stood up. "Where's my dress!? I demand to see the Emperor about this!"
Not even listening to anyone's answer she started looking around frantically for her clothes. Moments later, she found herself bumping into the worst possible person. "Are you okay?" the orc asked meekly.
