Chosen for Vudamali

The third day, they camped within sight of the city and the tops of some of the buildings could be seen even from that distance; particularly the steely hall and the rising tower. The troop stopped before they normally would at a spot that was clearly prepared; stores were set by and there were wagons waiting with teams of strong horses. The meal that night was larger than any they had taken in their journey yet; a thick stew of pork and vegetables, bread baked that very day in the city, fruit, and wine. The Chosen were instructed to eat their fill and then get to bed; the next day would be long, glorious to be sure, but they would need their strength.

When she woke, the Vuda were already up and the rest of the camp cleared away and put into the wagons. They were all armed and armored as always but their breastplates, and every bit of metal on them, gleamed from being freshly polished. Their boots were cleaned and there was no causal greeting called out by any of them; they stood in formation, silent and daunting.

Captain Arista was in front of them, her red feathered helm upon her head, a majestic figure as she towered over the Chosen and her own soldiers alike. "Chosen! The day of destiny is upon you. You will enter the city as the first of your kind did." She gestured to the wagons, "Borne from your homes by us, bound and blinded so as not to flee, until wisdom and tradition and honor took root and brought awareness of the greatness of this exchange between us. Do not fear. This is ceremony and tradition. You will be taken within and made ready for your Presentation. Obey those who guide you and master your worry as best you can. This day, this wonderful day, you will finally be ours." There was a joyous heat in her voice at that word and Elde swore her eyes lingered on herself and Lan. "We will take and give joy to you, the will of Vudamali and your God will be carried out, we will be joined, and all that is good will be strengthened in it. Silence now. Do not speak until you are bidden."

They were split into groups and taken to the wagons. Before stepping up into their wagon, each had a white blindfold tied over their eyes and their hands were loosely bound with a soft cotton cord. The wagons lurched forward in darkness and she felt her stomach flutter. Oh, God. This was it.

She whimpered and reached for the hands of Lan, her cousin seated beside her. Her smaller, softer hands found his larger rough ones and squeezed. He drew her to rest against him and felt his lips press a kiss to the top of her head. He did not speak as they had been bidden but she felt his words. It'll be all right. Don't be afraid.

When the wagon came to a jittery stop, there was the sound of many people approaching. Caria's familiar voice spoke, "Come out now, Chosen, nice and slow. You'll be taken to be prepared for the Presentation. Obey your minders, you may speak to them while you are alone but once you leave their company, you have to be silent again."

Elde shivered and pressed herself against Lan. His strong hands gave hers a firm squeeze and then he sighed. His form shifted and rose beside her and he was gone, moving away to be led off for preparation. Elde carefully stood and made her way to the end of the wagon where hands helped her down and took hers. They were soft and warm, smaller than a man's or a Vuda's. "Come with me, Elde," said a happy voice that was naggingly familiar. She knew that voice but couldn't quite place it. "We must get you cleaned and ready. Oh, what a day you will have!"

Elde was led away from the others into a building, that familiar voice urging her to step up a few times before entering. Whatever was under her feet felt solid; stone, maybe? They took a few turns before she heard a door shutting behind her and then the hands holding hers gave them a squeeze. "Here we are!" The air here was warmer than outside and thick with moisture. "Let me get you undone. Such a silly tradition but that's how the goddess wants it!"

The cord was pulled free with a faint rustle and then the blindfold was untied and pulled off. Elde blinked her eyes a few times and peered about her for a moment; the room was small and the stone floor had a pool set in it that steamed with freshly poured water. The pool was large enough that four people could sit in it with some space between them. There were towels set near it as well as a number of bottles and two lumps of soap on a leather thong, one smaller than the other.

She took all that in with one glance before focusing on the woman who was in front of her looking her over with a smile. "Elde Walker, as I live and breathe, I was surprised to see your name in the record but I'm happy to see you again. You've grown up so much in just a few years!" She shook her head, curly brown hair falling to her neck and dark eyes bright and merry. "I don't know if you remember me-"

"Ronil," Elde breathed. "Of course! I knew I recognized your voice!" She felt a rush of excitement and no small amount of comfort at seeing someone she knew. "It's so good to see you again! I thought, well, what anyone would!" She reached out and the two young women met in an embrace.

Ronil was two years older than Elde and had been apprenticed to the apothecary; she'd been Chosen two years ago and taken away by the Vuda. The two girls had come to know one another well, the healer did a great deal of business with Ronil's master. Elde remembered her as a serious girl, often sullen, but well meaning. She was pretty and had a modest body that she'd always kept well-honed and trim, enhancing her overall appearance. Elde stepped back from the hug and looked her over; she was different in some way. She seemed cheery and there was a sense of general happiness about her that was different from the girl Elde remembered. She looked a little different too; which was only to be expected but then Elde noticed the swell of her stomach. "Oh, my God! Ronil, you're...?"

"Yes!" She beamed and rubbed her stomach with one hand, "I've only been showing for the last month. Isn't it wonderful?"

"Yes, congratulations!" Elde smiled, "Will I get to meet your husband?"

Ronil's expression was bemused, "Not exactly." Her left hand lifted to run over the collar fitted around her neck and her fingers lingered on the clasp, which looked rather like some sort of antlered animal. "But you will meet the one whose child I'm carrying, I'm sure. Now, off with those clothes and into the bath," she clapped her hands, her manner become very much like the serious apprentice Elde remembered. "I've got to get you ready for the Presentation and getting you clean is just the start!"

"But-"

"No buts!" Ronil shook her head, "Undress and into the water!"

Elde bit back her questions and nodded, beginning to pull off her clothes. A proper bath sounded heavenly. Ronil took her clothes and folded them simple and set them along a wall. "My, you really have grown up!" Ronil chuckled as Elde blushed, "You didn't have those the last time I saw you." She took the last article of clothing, "Good, in you go!"

Elde stepped into the hot water and moaned as it lapped over her body, the heat sinking into her muscles. She found the pool had a kind of bench in the stone about three fourths of the way down and sat down, leaning back and letting the hot water cover her up to the neck. She heard Ronil moving and the rustle of cloth but ignored it; the glorious feeling of hot water was just too much to take her senses away from. A few moments later, the water rose as Ronil joined her in the bath, the pregnant Hestian now bare as well. "Take a minute or two just to luxuriate; it feels so good after the road. I remember what it was like myself. The baths are a perk of living here; I hope you get to stay within the walls."

Elde didn't answer. Her friend's words had pulled her out of the spell of the bath and reminded her of what was waiting for her. The rest of her life to be decided for her and a collar for her neck to show she was owned. It made her shiver even in the hot water. She knew that the Hestians weren't slaves but they were far from free. And yet...Ronil was never happy before. Was it being with child? Or was it more than that? Was it her new life that made the serious girl smile and her eyes dance?

Ronil let her soak for a few minutes before starting to wash her. It was embarrassing at first but it soon became a decadent delight. The soapy cloth being guided over her body by the apothecary's skilled hands scoured off dirt and grime but also rubbed away soreness and polished her smooth skin to a healthy glow. She flushed as the other woman lathered her breasts, commenting on how nice and big they were, how she wished her own were more like that. Elde flushed and responded that Ronil's were nice and pert, just the right shape and size. The collared woman smiled and leaned in to kiss her on the cheek, letting her lips linger a few moments, her modest tits and swollen belly brushing the younger's wet body. Then she was back to washing, humming merrily.

Her hair was washed as well and thoroughly combed. Then Ronil had her sit by the side of the tub as she used a different soap to lather up her legs, armpits, and to Elde's shock, her...her private place before producing a shining razor. Elde's eyes went wide but Ronil just laughed and told her not to worry, she'd done this plenty of times! It was clearly true as with easy, skilled strokes, Ronil denuded the younger woman's body of hair.

Elde then lay down on a towel by the waterside and watched as Ronil took one of the bottles and poured some thick looking liquid into her hands before placing them on Elde. She gasped at the feeling and then let out a moan that made her flush as Ronil's hands began to move to rub the oil over and into her skin. She kneaded it into her back, her shoulders, her legs, her ass, and it felt sooo good! Elde turned over when prompted and the front of her body got the same treatment, the younger woman blushing and biting her lower lip to keep from making wanton sounds as her breasts were readied. When Ronil touched between her legs, she almost jumped off the towel and, but the older girl laughed and eased her back down, promising she wouldn't do anything bad but Elde needed to be ready all over.

She relaxed again, "I don't understand why I'd need to be-ohhh!"

Ronil grinned at the younger woman, her ring and index fingers having spread Elde's labia and her middle finger carefully probing into the sweet flesh. "I think you'll be fine. You're nice and warm and wet down here. And...oh, you're a virgin? Oh, Elde! What an honor to Vudamali you are!"

She frowned as Ronil removed her hand and took up one of the other bottles. "I don't understand."

"It's all right, you will. Now stand up, we're almost done."

"I'm getting very tired of hearing things like that," she grumbled. She stood nonetheless and then spread her legs when Ronil gently pushed on them. The Hestian poured yet another syrup-like substance onto her hands and then began to rub it over Elde's body. The oil before had sank warmth into her muscles and given her body a smooth and almost shiny finish; this brought a tingling sensitivity as it was rubbed over her, Ronil pausing several times to pour more of it onto her hands as she went from the bottom up to again caress the younger girl's entire body. She even did her face, instructing Elde to close her eyes as the stuff was rubbed into her chin, her cheeks, forehead, nose.

Ronil stepped back and looked her over, "You look gorgeous. How do you feel?"

"I feel...relaxed." It surprised her. She should be nervous, about to scream with anxiety over her whole future being stolen away, and she did but oddly faintly and distant. Instead she felt at ease; her body loose, limber, and warm. More than warm, wanting. Her skin yearned to be touched again, especially on her breasts or...or down there. "And I feel warm inside. I don't know how to describe it. I want to feel...more. More of what I felt when you," she stopped speaking and felt her cheeks heat.

The pregnant woman beamed, "Then you're ready. Just a few last things." She took up the last of the flasks that had sat beside the bath and broke the wax seal, holding it out to Elde. "Drink this while I fetch your Presentation wrap, then I'll dress you and lead you out."

Elde paused with the bottle's mouth just touching her lower lip, "What is it?" It smelled like licorice and ginseng, she thought, and a few other things.

There were faint sounds of the other woman rummaging through something. "It's a tincture to help you stay calm but also to prevent any confusion resulting from the Presentation. Otherwise, there'd be no telling who was whose and we can't have that. Lineage and succession disputes are even messier here than in our history, from what I'm told."

"I thought the collars showed that." Elde pursed her lips and then grimaced, "This is another thing you'll say I will understand later, isn't it?"

"That's right! I'm glad you're getting it." There was a teasing edge to Ronil's voice as she came back into view carrying a length of scarlet cloth and a water skin in her hands. "Drink it, Elde. It won't hurt, it doesn't taste bad for medicine, and you must do so before you can be Presented."

Elde felt a brief rebellion stirring in her stomach but then quashed it. The Vuda had been very kind to her. She wasn't sure she should but she trusted them. The auburn haired beauty lifted the bottle to her lips and drank the contents in a series of long, slow pulls. It wasn't too bad but there was enough licorice aftertaste that it made her shiver as she set the empty bottle down.

"Good!" Ronil took the bottle and set it by the bath and then gave her the water skin, "Get the taste out of your mouth and then drink a bit. You'll want to have some water in you." Elde nodded and took several mouthfuls of clean water. "All right, legs spread, arms up, let's get you dressed."

Calling her dressed afterward was a bit generous. The wrap was a long piece of a soft red silk that was split into two about halfway up its' length. Ronil slid it between her legs, arranging the strip to cover Elde's sex and then took the split one up the Chosen's front. Each length went over her tits, slightly lifting them up and together, barely covering her areolas before going over her shoulders. Ronil tied the ends together between Elde's shoulder blades in a tight knot, but one that could be undone with a single tug. Her hair was then pulled back and gathered into a loose tail tied with a red ribbon.

She felt more exposed now than she had while naked. That was just with Ronil but after the other woman stepped back to look her over and gave a few satisfied nods, Elde realized that this was the entirety of the clothing she was to wear for the Presentation. She was appalled and yet that feeling too was distant. She also felt pleased, somehow. She knew she looked very appealing, more rawly sexual than she had even in her life and she...she liked that. She still felt that want for more contact, to be touched, and for something else...something to fill an odd empty ache in her and she knew that the wrap would certainly allow for her to be touched all over with ease.

Ronil re-dressed quickly before stepping to the door of the bathing chamber, "Now, once we're out of the room, you must not speak until one of the Vuda claims you and then when spoken to, all right?"

Elde nibbled her lower lip. Whatever was in the formulas rubbed on her body or in the drink still kept her from feeling her fear and worry as strongly as she should be but at that moment, their power couldn't keep the negative emotions away fully. She licked her lips, "Ronil, I'm...I'm scared," Elde whispered. "And you...you're so happy. You were never happy. It's not bad but..."

Ronil nodded. "It's true, I'm not the girl you knew, not fully. But we all change and grow with time. Remember, the greatest lie is that things stay the same." Her eyes were distant, her mind in the past. "The Presentation, the next few months, will be full of change and you'll change too. But it's wonderful, this life. And there's more choice than you think. We're not Vuda but we become their kin and keep everything that is theirs while they go and fight. They're not foolish enough to think they can leave us care of their land and property and mistreat us; not if they want to get it back when they return."

That made sense. And scripture did say that change was inherently good, that one should never cease in becoming more and a different person. "It'll be all right?"

"It will be so much better than all right," Ronil answered and her voice rang with fervor. Elde's heart was still unsure but she had no doubt that the former apprentice believed everything she had just said.

"Then...then lead me out. I'm ready to be Presented."

Ronil reached out to give her hand a squeeze and then turned and went out into the hallway. Elde followed, and as they went, she began to hear the sound of speech; not individual voices or words but a great humming of conversation that seemed to leak down through the wood and stone above them.

Ronil led her to a great wooden door and then stopped, looking back. "When we go out, I will place you into a line with the other Chosen. You will stand there until you are called and claimed and then that Vuda will guide you to where you will be Presented. It'll seem scary at first but be brave and know that you are about to have the most incredible experience of your life!"

Elde nodded and then took a deep breath as Ronil rapped hard on the door and it was opened by a Vuda wearing highly polished and ornate gear; like that the ones who had escorted her wore but much more ostentatiously decorated and polished to gleaming brightness. Elde could feel the eyes of the warrior on her as she passed and felt a stir of both fear and excitement.

The door opened out into a sheltered doorway and then onto a great open space. She could see now that the building was built around a large oval space where there were no permanent structures; large enough that three of her town's square could fit within it and have a bit of space at the edges. A cloth had been laid to form a path to where the other Chosen stood. On either side of the path were strange chairs; they were u- shaped and had no back. Seated upon them were Vuda; they wore silken robes that were fastened loosely and exposed swathes of lovely skin and hard muscle, yet clung to their curves and most were wearing jewelry; necklaces, rings, armlets and bracelets wrought of silver and gold. She recognized Captain Arista and Caria, but the rest were strangers. There was one larger and more ornate chair with a low back on either side of the path that were put out ahead of the others.

The Vuda in them were dressed differently than all the others. The one in the throne to the right of the walkway wore a robe of gold cinched with a chain of gold set with gems. There was no silver gleam from her jewelry and much of it was set with stones of many colors save for one item. A crown-like circle of steel, polished to gleaming, adorned her head and forced her glossy, ink-black hair to pour down her neck and back. She was stunningly beautiful; her features regal and strong but utterly feminine with lush lips and steel gray eyes that were commanding and keen. Her skin was a few shades darker than Arista's, or the other Vuda Elde had seen. Her robe could not fully close over her breasts.

The one on the left was dressed in a robe of the same cut but it was of cotton rather than silk and was bleached a dazzling white that seemed to glow in the rays of the sun overhead. Her ornaments were carved of ivory and wooden and bone rather than metal. Her brown eyes, wise and intense, took Elde in as she passed. Her hair was a rich chestnut though she was starting to gray. She looked older than any of the other Vuda but Elde would not place her much past forty years; she had none of the tightness of skin nor the wrinkles or lines that came to older women. She had the same trim fitness of the other Vuda, but her figure was the lushest of all, her chest practically falling out of her robe as the fabric strained to contain her and her plush ass similarly tightened the long skirt of the robe.