Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85794 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 429(@200wpm)___ 343(@250wpm)___ 286(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85794 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 429(@200wpm)___ 343(@250wpm)___ 286(@300wpm)
After a moment, Y’sfer’s hand reached under the table and tapped the girl beside her on the head.
“That’s enough for now, Be’ti’ta,” Phoebe heard him say. “I need to be able to concentrate on the table conversation. I’ll call for you again when I want more pleasure.”
“Yes, my Lord,” the girl murmured submissively. She cast a sidelong look at Phoebe. “He never wants to come right away because he can’t get hard again for ages,” she murmured so only Phoebe could hear. “’Lord limp-dick’ we call him in the harem!”
Phoebe put a hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter.
“Sounds like an apt nickname,” she whispered back. “But maybe ‘Lord little-dick’ would be even better,” she added, nodding at the tiny finger-sized member still on display between Y’sfer’s thighs. “Or maybe ‘Undersecretary of Micro-penises!’”
This time it was the other girl who put a hand to her mouth to stifle her laughter.
“Oh, don’t!” she begged softly. “If I laugh too loud he’ll punish me!”
“Sorry—I’ll keep it to myself.” Phoebe grinned at her. “You’re Be’ti’ta, right?”
“Yes, that’s me.” The girl nodded. “And who are you?”
“I’m Phoebe,” Phoebe said. She would have offered to shake hands but since she was sitting between Sirex’s spread thighs and Be’ti’ta was sitting between Undersecretary Y’sfer, it would have been too awkward. Plus, she didn’t even know if people shook hands on this planet. She’d had a shot of Translation Bacteria before leaving the Mother Ship to help her understand alien languages, but it didn’t do anything to help her understand alien social norms and customs.
“So how long have you been here? In the palace, I mean?” she asked.
Be’ti’ta sighed.
“Oh, ages…a year at least,” she said. “My father sold me to Undersecretary Y’sfer on my coming of age birthday and he brought me here to try and curry favor with the Emperor. How about you—are you going to stay for a while do you think?”
“Only until my mentor, er, my Master can get a Royal Audience with the Emperor,” Phoebe said. “How hard is that, anyway? Getting an audience?”
“It’s not easy.” Be’ti’ta frowned. “Lord Thruck restricts access to the Shining One severely. Why, there are people here who have been waiting months to see him!”
Phoebe tried to imagine living for months in the palace, wearing the harness that fucked her with every step and the non-con bracelets that kept her from touching herself and shivered. She loved submitting to Sirex, but the situation they were in would get old very shortly.
“Isn’t there any way to speed up the process?” she asked, frowning. “I mean anything my Master could do or say to Thruck to maybe gain an audience sooner?”
“Well…Lord Thruck loves a public display of pain or pleasure,” Be’ti’ta said frankly. “Once he had my Master tie me up and flog me for an hour. It was shortly afterwards that he made him the Undersecretary,” she added, casting a glance up at Y’sfer who was talking to the male beside him.
“So he just likes to watch other people getting busy?” Phoebe asked. “Is that why he doesn’t have a girl of his own between his legs?” She looked at the tree trunk legs on the other side of her and made a face.
“Exactly—Lord Thruck never takes a woman of his own but he certainly likes to watch other males with their women.” Be’ti’ta made a face. “I’ve always thought that was strange. Not that I’m complaining,” she added quickly. “Y’sfer would give me away to him in a heartbeat if he asked, so I’m thankful he never has.”
“I don’t blame you for not wanting to be given to him,” Phoebe said. “The sane head is bad enough but that crazy head of his is so creepy.”
“It really is! Especially when the third eye opens and it speaks prophecy.” Be’ti’ta’s own eyes opened wide. “Why, do you know the other day it foretold someone’s death?”
“What? How could it know when someone was going to die?” Phoebe asked skeptically.
“I don’t know, but it was right. It said something like, ‘behold the dead—he fell on his head’—or something like that. I can’t remember exactly,” Be’ti’ta said. “But then the very next day the male it was looking at when it spoke, fell off his gallumpher during the weekly hunt and broke his neck and died.”
“That’s awful!” Phoebe wondered what a gallumpher was—maybe the Salacious Prime version of a horse?
“Yes, it was! And his poor female, Ta’li was one of my best friends. I begged Y’sfer to keep her here, but he wouldn’t. He had her sold on the open market and now I’ll probably never see her again.” Be’ti’ta looked so sad that Phoebe really felt for her.
“I’m so sorry,” she said softly. “But it’s awful how women are bought and sold on this planet! Like they’re nothing more than property.”