Nimah Eze | Nine
A Prayer of Seduction
—
I had never met a single servant that spoke about the queen with so much admiration. Politics amongst servants was undivided. No one supported the queen without a sharp sword to their throat. Was she clueless or just brainwashed? Perhaps she might have been trapped in this sinful temple all her life I assumed, studying the certainty of her eyes.
Everything about the way she spoke contrasted the opinions I formed. If she was the brainwashed, manipulated girl I believed her to be, how could she be so brazen and upfront. There was a strength in those blue eyes, and I held my breath in awe.
"Mmh?" She raised her brow at me in question.
"K... kiss me? You don't know me?"
"Take off your mask, reveal your name to me, and I will."
I tore away from her gaze and hid my smile. "I must take my leave." I began towards the door.
"Halt," she commanded and I did in the same breath. "You've never visited the temple before, have you?"
"Maybe," I answered, turning around. "You can't possibly know every slave here."
"There are no slaves in the temple of Oshun. They worship because they believe in her the same way I do."
"You serve the Goddess of the old, under the command of the queen. That is not freedom."
She laughed softly and slumped into a nearby cushion, crossing her legs. "You are fascinating, Little One."
"Why do you seek honor in her name?"
"I will tell you if you come sit." She tapped the space beside her.
"I... I... cannot stay... I must..."
"Come sit, Little One," she insisted, deaf to my protests.
I glanced around with apprehension. The loud moans and cries of pleasure streaming in from the hallway made me feel uneasy, welcoming the idea of sitting next to her, alone, in a dark corner, still semi hard with vain thoughts clawing through my head. Nonetheless, I advanced and took a seat beside her cautiously.
"You don't owe me an explanation for your loyalties, neither do I demand it. In truth, my question was rhetorical," I explained, pinning my gaze on the floor.
"You don't know the queen like I do. She has her faults. And there might be areas in her kingdom it seems she has failed to oversee properly. But she has her heart in a good place."
"Very well." I made to move when I felt her hand wrapped around my wrist.
Her palm was hardened, and calloused. They were rough against my skin, nothing like that of a high chief who never did any hard labor with their bare hands. The roughness of them solidified my previous conclusion that she was indeed, a brain-washed servant girl. Not a high born, preaching the gospel of queen because they had no knowledge of what it was like to be born white.
I lowered my gaze to our hands and found myself leaning into the calloused texture. Her thumb rubbed over my hand slowly and heat rushed through me.
"You have left my previous question unanswered."
Slowly, my gaze traveled up to her eyes and I parted my lips just a little to allow myself breathe easier. "If you kissed me... would you finally free me from your presence," I asked, feeling the weight of my troubled cock between my legs.
"I haven't held you captive, Little One."
"But you have," I whispered.
"Then you must forgive me. It is not within my ability to restrain myself. I feel as though I am charmed by the finest of witchcraft." A little smile crept between her lips and mine followed.
"No one says things like that," I said.
"To you?"
"To anyone."
"You must change the quality of people that surround you. Leave only the ones that understand the art of words."
"How can we understand? Most people without color don't attain higher education." I leaned into her, my curiosity now growing. "How did you learn?" She laughed widely, it was an earnest girlish laugh. "Why does this question amuse you?" I pressed on, interested in the sound of her laughter. Mesmerized by it. Eager to learn how to make her do it again. "It was a simple question."
"I could tell." She rested her back on the cushion, her thick curly hair falling beside her in the same manner.
Her grip tightened around my palm and she pulled me close. I drew in a sudden sharp breath, falling onto her chest. My chin gently grazed her right nipple protruding through her robe before I could stop myself from going any lower. I lifted my gaze to catch hers on me. Her calloused warm hands cupped my cheek as she softly exhaled.
"I wish more than anything to unmask you, to hear your name and know you." Blinking, I began looking away. She stopped my face from turning and held me in her gaze. "But for whatever reason... you do not wish it." Her hands ran through my hair slowly, making my veil fall to my shoulders as she brought her smooth face so close to mine. "I have no doubt, under this mask is an incomprehensible beauty."
"Why do you speak such words with great ease?"
"When you've seen as many years as I have seen come and go. Time spent with people becomes precious. If you think someone a beauty, you must tell them. Foe, stranger or friend, you must tell them. Soonest, their skin will kiss the ground and the soil will steal all the beauty you never got to praise." She pulled my nose just a little in a tease, and though she couldn't see the entirety of my face, I smiled just a little. "It all comes and goes in the blink of an eye, Little One."
I blinked. "You're still here."
She laughed wholeheartedly, beaming with effortless regality. I joined her in the short laughter, admiring the curves of her oval face. She was a joy to behold. I was a man whose heart was falling faster than Amadioha's rain.
When the laughter came to an end, she kept her gaze on the ceiling, drawing a circle on my hand with her finger without paying attention to it. It felt the same way blooming cotton felt against my palm while I plucked them as a boy. Soft and tender. The same way the warm sun felt on my skin in the middle of a short rain. Her hands might have been rough and calloused from labor of whatever sorts, but they were not void of warmth and care.
"You won't let me kiss you. You won't let me unmask you." She turned to me. "Keep my company then, so I may know you."
Her eyes glimmered with a nurturing affection that compelled me to say words that were not mine to say. I waited a moment as I watched her lips widen into a smile. "There is a place in the city. They provide refuge for servants like you. Protection. They will hide you away from the eyes of the enforcers and find you work. If you choose to escape this place with me, I will see to it that you are brought safely to Uwari."
"Uwari?"
"It is my village. The safest white village in all of Arjana."
"Why would I need protection?"
"Because..." I swallowed, then sat up, making sure to keep the space between us close. "I have come tonight to commit a grave sin. After it is done, I fear enforcers might suspect us. They will retract certain mercies we've been given so far."
"What grave sin?"
"I fight a fight for our liberation."
She turned her body to mine and her long fingers with pointed nails seductively caressed my chest. "An assassin." It was a statement, not an accusation. I squinted at her in question, a bit surprised by how quick she found her answer. "For the queen?"
"Of course not. Assassinating the queen is an impossible quest."
"But if you could, you would?"
"Yes," I said, not wasting a breath. And I truly meant it.
She giggled. "Under those innocent eyes, lies a tempting snake."
"Will you come with me? Let me keep you safe."
Her hands traveled up to my neck and slowly wrapped around it, commanding a rush through me as I blinked uncontrollably. It was an unwelcome thrill that made me grow larger in my undergarment.
"W... what are yo–"
"A man with honor, ruining it all for the sake of justice." She smiled widely. "You will be mine." Our gazes were locked without a single blink.
I was not ready to watch her face disappear from me. I wanted to stay and try convincing her she was indeed trapped and enslaved. I squeezed the side of my gown and resisted with a sigh as her lips came closer to my masked face.
"This is not good fate. I am only but a servant. I have nothing to give you. Cowry or polished words."
"You think my company is good enough for the chiefs but not you?" Her grip around my neck tightened and I grew more needy.
"I think you deserve more than the company of the chiefs. You deserve... you deserve jewels, gifted by the gods, and a high castle that towers above that of the queen."
"Some might consider that blasphemy against the queen," she teased, lifting my jaw.
I joined her in a little laugh before bracing myself to hold her eyes again. "Come with me," I whispered, her breath brushing against my face.
"My only desire in this moment, Little One, is to have my breasts fondled by your innocent hands."
I shifted as the heat and disbelief flashed through me. "You are too quick to sin."
"You think it sin. I think it worship. Unrobe me and we may find a mutual conclusion."
My eyes traveled down to her chest and I held the view of her full breasts, tempting and soliciting. I released a breath, turning to her eyes once more in search of a reason not to unrobe her. It was an offer I could not resist, but one I needed to resist by all means possible. Staring at another in a lustful way, with vain intent, was a great sin. Once again, I was at the verge of disappointing Ala.
Slowly, I tugged at the robe and it fell apart.
For a second all I could still see was her cleavage and I was uncertain about wanting more. Second guessing every move I made, every stare. I didn't want to appear desperate or eager. But my hands were aching to be filled by them and my lips salivated at the thought of sucking them.
"I can see it in your eyes. Your hunger and thirst." She cupped my chin. "Go on. Quench your thirst."
Another deep breath was welcomed into my lungs, then another as I fought the sin that lingered in my mind with my withering strength. She was persistent in her unholy ways, and I knew for certain if I stayed any longer I would forsake myself. I shoved her to the side and leaped across the room, catching my breath as I forced my legs to keep me standing.
Keeping myself for marriage was the ultimate form of dedication to Ala. Purity and chastity brought good luck to her worshippers. I couldn't. I wouldn't. Not with the other greater sin I was set to commit that night.
"The... the goddess I worship does not condone fornication. My sincere apologies... but I must–" I turned around and caught a quick glimpse of her body exposed to me, her legs spread wide apart and between them, the glistening gates of life, shaped like a flower, commanding me to my knees.
She flicked a finger and without hesitation, I was crawling back to her. Inching closer and closer until I was staring down at the most holy piece of creation. A place I was never supposed to see until joined in marriage. It was sacred. It was pure. It was wet.
Her fingers ran over it slow and I shivered, lowering myself to it. A forceful command grew in my head and I was losing the battle of fighting it.
"This is where you worship," she said with a tone so smooth, caressing my ear and my groin. "Now pray."
***
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