Where Princes Kneel

"Wait," she said, sporting a huge grin. "Not yet. You're gonna lick me, but first, I want you to strip."

"How?"

"I'll help you with your sleeves. Just get your dick out."

I paused for a moment, processing this, then Fara released me, and I wasted no time in working my hand into my pants. Once I had them in, I stood on my knees and gently worked my pants down. I looked up and saw six female eyes all locked on my body, staring at the shaved stubble just above my treasure.

I stopped, abashed.

"Keep going, bitch," said Fara. "You're not done."

Swallowing my pride, I shoved my pants down, then winced as my penis flopped out, half erect.

How on earth was it already hardening again?

My pants settled around to my knees, and I sat back, exposing my balls, then shoved the pants off.

As quickly as I could, I got back onto my lower legs and grabbed at my shirt. The tear opened further, exposing my soft nipples, but nothing else gave. I looked miserably up to Fara.

"Hm," said Fara, "not bad. Now hold still."

Fara brought up a knife, and I flinched, then her blade dove in and out of my shirt sleeves. The cold, smooth back of the blade kissed my skin, and the shirt fell away.

Now I was fully exposed. I tried to keep my heart from racing as the women took a moment to gaze at me.

"Nice," breathed Fara. "Now get over here. You're just making me hotter."

I shuffled forward.

"Ah-ah-AH! Crawl."

I rolled my eyes, then got down on my hands and knees and crawled towards her.

Ahead, her tough hands hastily undid the buttons on her pants, and she pulled a little pocket open, revealing a swollen pussy that glistened with moisture. I could feel its warmth from a few inches away.

This time, I did not wait for her to force me. Leaning in, I gave her an experimental lick on one of her walls, then the paused a moment. Fara shuffled with dissatisfaction, then grabbed my hair and shoved me into her.

Now I licked more intensely. My tongue went out, then pushed her walls apart as it forced its way in.

She shuddered.

Emboldened, I brought my tongue up, passing over the rigid spot that I knew was her clitoris.

"Aah," sighed Fara, as she stroked my hair, "Yeah, that's it. Keep doing that. Oh, you Fulzoran men are even sluttier than ours."

She grabbed my leash, and my collar tightened around my throat as she pulled me away.

"Not bad," she huffed. "Not bad for a first-timer."

"That wasn't my first time."

Fara gave out another heavy laugh and slapped Eleode's ass.

"I'm guessing you've got something to do with that," she jeered.

Eleode said nothing. To my surprise, she did not even look at Fara. Instead, her eyes were locked squarely on my unclothed form. I could see little droplets falling from her pussy.

I gave her an apologetic look.

"Okay," said Fara, "now I want-"

"We're here."

Fara stopped. She and the smaller bandit looked ahead. From where I sat, I could see nothing, but the other two made it clear through their posture that we had reached our destination.

Fara stood up, then her partner did the same, and I heard a pair of small feet clap to the ground outside the cart.

"Get them inside," said the smaller bandit. "I'll take the boy. Fara, you take the princess. And be gentle this time."

The two bandits reached for us, then hoisted us over their shoulders like sacks, exposing my naked ass to the air.

I closed my eyes, hoping that no one saw me. Before I knew it, we were under a roof. Lamplight reflected off my exposed body, and the warm air was infused with a stuffy musk.

The smaller bandit brought me into a dark stall secluded from the lamplight, then shouldered me off. I let out a squeal of panic for just one moment, then fell softly into a dry, scratchy pile of hay.

"Stay there," she calmly ordered.

A door creaked shut, and the lamplight vanished.

I shuffled, feeling around my tiny enclosure, then settled into the straw pile, trying to get comfortable. Outside, I heard footsteps, then the rustling of straw. Fara's husky voice slipped through the door, followed by slapping, then feminine moaning.

To my embarrassment, I was stiffening.

I heard a harshly whispered dialogue, then the sound of approaching footsteps. I braced myself.

The door creaked open, and the smaller bandit appeared, holding a small lamp. For the first time, I got a good look at her face, which was drawn and sallow, and half-covered by thin, medium-length blonde hair. Her wide mouth frowned softly, and there was a restless look in her little blue eyes.

"Hey..." she whispered.

"Hello," I stiffly returned.

She sighed and knelt beside me, setting down the lamp. Her hand ran gently through my hair for a few passes, and I could feel her thin fingers savoring the softness.

"I'm sorry about Fara," she said. "I teamed up with her because I needed her. I never approved of the things she does to men. Or even to women, for that matter."

"You're not like your partner, are you?"

"No, and I shudder to think what she'd do if I wasn't around to keep her in line."

"What's your name?"

"I'm Nina. And this isn't what I wanted. I didn't want any of this. The princess- the whole royalty, really- is an artifact. It's just a holdover from an earlier time. But that's no excuse to take an innocent woman from her home. I hope this can all blow over without too much bloodshed, but... I'm not so sure."

"I'm sorry."

Nina looked straight into my eyes. Her eyebrows twitched and her eyes welled up, but I could see a fragile smile on her long, thin lips.

"I wasn't always a thief," she sighed. "But times are tough."

"I understand. A woman has to eat."

Her eyes closed and her smile deepened.

"But you will give this up when you get the chance, won't you?" I said.

"What?"

"When legitimate work comes, you won't turn it down, will you?"

"I... you have to understand. Sometimes, it's just too much. Some people don't realize that we all have our limits."

"You can do it. If you can kidnap a princess, you can till a field. Twenty years from now, don't you want to look back on your life with a clean conscience?"

She grimaced.

"You can do it. I know you can."

She smiled and curled her arms around me.

"Your arms are tense," I said.

"Sorry."

"It's nothing to be ashamed of. You lead a rough life, don't you?"

"Yes."

Her head fell against my shoulder, and I could feel her fingers tighten and loosen on my other shoulder.

After a minute, she shifted, then got up to her knees. She looked back to me and brought her head close, then stopped herself.

"It's okay," I said. "Go ahead."

In an instant, she pounced and pressed her lips to mine. Her whole body slowed as she savored the contact, stroking my shoulders with her hands. Then, after a few seconds, she slowly pulled away.

"Thank you," she breathed. "But I thought you belonged to the princess."

"I do. But you needed that. It doesn't take a sage to see it."

A few tears trickled from Nina's eyes, and she smiled once again.

"Thank you," she said again.

Taking the lamp, she left the stall and gently closed the door.

As her footsteps crunched away on the floor of the stable, I heard her mumble, "Men truly are a gift."

There was a mumbled conversation, then the lights dimmed to nothing. With a peaceful little sigh, I sat back in the straw pile and descended into a soft, shallow sleep.

The next morning, I awoke to what felt like a soft breeze. I curled up tighter in the straw, then my eyes eased open.

"Wake up."

I looked to the source of the voice. Nina crouched over me, hastily clutching at my wrists. In one shaky hand, I saw her maneuvering a knife in between my hands. Instantly, I knew what she was dong.

"Nina?" I gasped. "But... what about you? You have a bounty to collect."

"On the princess, yes. You were never supposed to be a part in this."

She stopped and put a hand on my shoulder.

"If I let you go," she said, "will you promise not to rat us out? I don't want you to get swept up in this, but I can't let my friends down either."

"You have my word."

She continued sawing, and, in just a few seconds, my hands were free.

"Follow me," she whispered.

The door inched open, and she gently led me by the leash through the stall, around Fara, who slept with her arms and legs wrapped around a nude and bound Eleode. I saw a third figure in the other corner- Liz, I presumed.

After forty seconds of tiptoeing, we reached the threshold and slipped out into the chilly morning air.

"Now go," said Nina. "Be safe."

I looked out at the shadowy streets, then back to Nina.

"Thank you," I said. "Women are truly a blessing."

Nina beamed, then ducked back into the stable.

With that, I was on my own. The air was misty and the skies were cloudy. The sharp edges of worn old wooden houses leered down at me, glowing with faint candlelight.

I looked around, unsure of what to do. It occurred to me that this was first time I hadn't had anyone- male or female- to guide me.

After a minute, I took off down the road.

Before too long, I found a woman shuffling away from me down the road, holding some kind of tool I did not recognize. Furtively, I ran around in front of her.

The woman did not look drunk. Instead, her bushy eyebrows were knitted with somnolence, and her grizzled mouth was pursed with concentration. Her gait was uneven.

"Ma'am?" I started. "Excuse me, ma'am... can a man's body buy him transport?"

The woman stopped and stared at me. Her eyes widened with what could have been anything from pity to fright.

"You're..." she said, "you're not a real street whore, are you?"

"I am now, I'm afraid."

The woman faced me earnestly and demanded, "Who are you?"

"I... I'm Prince Emilio of Fulzore."

The woman's face went slack.

"You're not... you're not lying."

"No, ma'am. My brother's name is Crístobal XII."

"The prince and princess were both declared missing last night. Prince, what happened to the princess?"

"I'm sworn to secrecy."

"Prince," said the woman, grabbing my shoulders, "if Princess Eleode is in danger, you need to tell us."

"Us?"

"I'm taking you to Anna."

"O-okay."

The woman's hand locked around mine, and she towed me down the street at the fastest pace I could keep up with.

A few minutes later, the woman stumbled to a stop at an inconspicuous door and darted in, still holding my hand.

Inside, a woman worked at a crafting table, surrounded by a few boys. A handful of other women stood by, some hauling around tools. Half of them stopped as I stepped in.

"Anna," said my guide, "we found the prince."

Now everyone stopped. The woman in the middle wiped her brow and took a long look at me. I felt a fresh wave of self-consciousness over my nudity.

Anna folded her arms and stared at me suspiciously. I stood up straight.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised," she said. "The princess was a famously voracious one."

"What?" I said. "No... that's not why I'm naked. She and I were kidnapped and stripped."

"Is she still alive?" asked Anna, suddenly worried.

"Yes."

"Where is she?"

"I promised not to tell."

Anna's brow furrowed with consternation, and she mumbled, "Why in blazes would the princess want to keep her location secret?"

"No- I didn't promise to the princess. I promised to the kidnappers."

"What on earth for?!"

"One of them let me go. She knew that what she was doing was wrong. She needed the money, but she didn't want to involve me in this."

Anna's face softened, and her arms unfolded.

"That's noble," she said. "That's remarkably noble."

"Yes. And I don't want her to regret it."

"We're loyalists, prince. All of us are. You can't expect us just to let the princess go. Not when so little of this country is still willing to fight for its rightful rulers."

"I understand that, but you know I have to honor my promise."

"We'll find a way. Men, get in the backroom. It's time to decide what to do."

The rest of the men stepped through a narrow doorway in the back of the room, and I reluctantly followed them, then I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Not you," said Anna. "We need you to help us plan."

I stood like an honor guard as the loyalists debated. Deep, serious feminine mutterings rumbled through the room as women hunched over the worktable, pointing to it with pencils and drawing diagrams on a map. Occasionally, someone would turn and ask me a question. Every time, I flinched, staring into eyes that stared back at me with the intensity of a loaded crossbow. Then I would stutter out my answer, and the women would get back to their planning.

One hour passed, then another, and so forth until dawn gave way to noon.

"That's it," said Anna, standing up meaningfully. "Women, we have a plan."

* * *

That evening, I crouched, fully clothed, in an alleyway with the loyalists. Just a few dozen yards down the street was the stable where Fara, Nina and Liz had taken me.

"You heard me," said Anna. "Go on. Get going. We need you to distract them."

"No," I whimpered. "This is wrong. Nina did right by me. I can't let it bite her."

"She'll get her bounty. Now move."

Stiffly, I tiptoed down the road to the stable.

There, I brought up a curled hand to knock, then thought better of it. Taking a deep breath, I placed my palm on the door and pushed it open.

No one was inside. There was an oil lamp burning atop a barrel, and there were fresh footprints in the straw and dirt.

Thinking I knew what was coming, I swallowed again and stepped inside.

All at once, someone's weight beat on my back, and I fell forward. A hand clasped over my mouth, stuffing a bundled-up cloth into it. As if guided by a second pair of hands, a bandage wrapped around my head, trapping the cloth, rendering my mouth useless.

I went limp, waiting with what calm I could muster as female hands bound my arms and shut my feet into some wooden contraption.

Feet stepped cautiously around me, then two hands gripped my leash and, with one choking pull, forced me to a kneeling position, then to my feet.

"Fara," said Nina's voice. "Put him away- separate from the princess. Then help me pack. Liz?"

"Ja?"

Before I could hear any more, my leash jerked again, and I allowed myself to be pulled down the familiar path to the back of the stable, then to a stall nearly as dark as the last one I had been in.

I was shoved against the far wall, and my skin pressed against moldy wood. Then, inevitably, I felt skin caress my torso, picking around my clothes, searching for openings to my undefended beneath.

"Ah, hell with it," said Fara's voice.

The hands turned me around to face her, and, Fara recoiled.

"You?" she gasped.

Her gape turned into a smile.

"Hah! It is you! You came back for another taste of this, didn't you?"

She posed, showing off her mighty build.

"Yeah," she purred. "I bet you did. Well, since you're so eager..."

She stepped forward and pressed my back to the wall with her body. Her firm muscles and her small, sharply rounded breasts pushed against my chest.

Her curled fingers slithered their way into my hair, kneading and tilling it, then down my body to my ass cheeks, squeezing them and pulling at them.

I let out a weak little moan.

"Aah," she sighed, "that's good."

Her hands wrapped around my gag, then froze. There was a banging on the door.

"Fara, Liz, look alive!" came Nina's frightened voice. "Someone's here! Someone's here!"

There was a ragged crash, and wood scattered on the dirty floor. I could see Anna and her crew storm into the building, brandishing shovels and hammers.

"Fara!" said Nina. "Fara, drop the boy! Come on, we have to-"

"Don't bother," came Anna's voice.

She strode in and folded her arms.

"Damn it," said Fara, standing next to Nina. "I told you we should have moved earlier."

"Just focus, Fara. I'll get us through this... I'll get us through this."

"Oh yeah, and the new bitch is the prince. He came back."

"What?!"

Nina's face turned to me, filled with disbelief. One at a time, her face twisted with grief, then anger, then shame.

"Prince," she mumbled. "Why?"

I shook against my bonds, unable to speak. The next moment, one of Anna's women grabbed me, tore away my gag and positioned me in front of Nina.

"Tell her," said the woman. "She deserves to know."

For a moment, I stared into Nina's hurt look, at a loss. Then I put my words together.

"This isn't what it looks like," I stammered. "I made them promise that you wouldn't pay for this. I got their word."

Nina looked helplessly to Anna.

"A promise is a promise," said Anna. "Nina, we've got a plan to smuggle the princess into your boss' hands, then get her back out. They'll never know you were a party to it, you'll get your money, and the royals will go free. Everybody wins."

"That won't be necessary," said Eleode.

We all looked. Eleode strode in, unbound and stark naked. Her face was flush and sweaty, there were bands of whiteness on her wrists and ankles, and red rope burns encircled her breasts. Eleode seemed to notice none of this; she walked with the same heavy, stable strut she always used. Her small, sharply contoured nipples and her visibly swollen clitoris did nothing to detract from her natural, feminine dominance.

"Nina," she said, "this job is finished, but you did a noble thing by letting Emilio go. Whatever my bounty was, I would gladly pay it from the royal treasury."

Nina, Fara and Liz traded incredulous looks.

"Anna," said Eleode, "you and your women prepare the cart. We ride for the palace shortly."

One by one, the women turned and shuffled carefully outside.

The minute everyone was gone, Eleode lunged into me and smothered me with a fast, hard kiss. With my hands still tied, I nearly fell back, but her strong arms caught me.

"I'm so glad you're safe," she whispered. "I'm sorry this happened to you. I know none of this was your choice."

"It's alright," I said, "we'll be fine. You'll get back to the palace, and you'll be a princess again, and we can keep..."

Eleode let out a rueful sigh, and my voice trailed off.

"No," she said, "Emilio, we can't go back."

"What... what do you mean?"

Eleode stood me back up, then clasped her hands behind her back and paced broodingly.

"The days of royalism are numbered," she mumbled. "In truth, this nation has belonged to the people ever since the council took over. The exact minute the queen ceased to be the sole arbiter of her country, this day became inevitable."

"What?" said Anna, standing in the doorway. "No... we still need you, princess! This country can't live without its queen, and you're the last of your bloodline."

"The council is what truly rules Hayguía now. You people have proven that you are more than capable of self-government..."

Her voice soured.

"...and," she added, "today proves that the people want it, too. They're sick of the farce that we are still a monarchy- maybe as sick as I am."

Anna's whole face quivered as she processed this, then she stood up and mechanically said, "Where to, princess?"

"To the palace," Eleode reiterated, "but not back to the throne. Take me to the gate, and Nina will have her money, and I will have my freedom."

"As you wish, princess."

A few minutes later, Eleode and I sat together in the back of a wagon as Anna and her crew perched in front, egging the horse to motion.

Eleode sat with her arms casually draped around me, holding me close. With her other arm, she gently stroked my hair.

"Emilio," she said. "You know you've got a choice to make now."

"What?" I asked. "What do you mean?"

"I am officially going into exile. You were set to marry the princess of Hayguía. Now there is none. By word of law, you are free."