The Courier Ch. 24

"A condition of this collar is that you will never discuss with anyone in the Realm of the Living why you are wearing it. Your Penance is between you and the Creator. Do you understand me, Anyia Dukov?"

"Yes, Priestess."

Anyia was still scared, but the Priestess's last words greatly put her at ease. She actually would be prohibited from ever talking about the actions that had led her to the Temple, which meant that she never would have to explain herself to anyone. No journalist could question her; no one could speculate about why she was doing what she was doing. By taking the collar, Anyia would free herself from her past and the consequences of what she had done over the past several years. She knew that was the only way she could hope to redeem herself.

The Priestess recited the basic protocol that she would have to follow once the collar was on her neck. She would have to properly kneel every time she spoke to any public employee or Church official and she would officially become property of the Danubian Church, with the Priestess as her assigned custodian.

Just as the sun was rising, the Priestess finished her recital of the protocol. She placed her hands on Anyia's shoulders. After a short prayer she asked Anyia if she was ready to accept the collar.

"Yes, Priestess. The collar is my Path in Life and I accept it."

"Very well, Anyia Dukov."

The attendant handed the Priestess a special set of clamps specifically for permanent collars. Anyia felt the metal surround her neck. The Priestess placed a small flat piece of wood under the open latch of the collar to make sure her skin would not be pinched when the device was closed. She nodded at the attendant, who squeezed the clamps. The collar clicked shut and the Priestess removed the wood.

"Stand up, Anyia Dukov."

Anyia stood up.

"The Church will always refer to you Anyia Dukov, because to us, that is who you are. However, when you leave this Temple, the world will see you as the Grand Duchess. You will serve; both the Church as Anyia Dukov and the nation as the Grand Duchess."

"Yes, Priestess."

"I will summon your father and your husband to escort you from the Temple. My understanding is that you are to perform a service for the public today."

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Anyia discovered that the Temple had an underground pool and bathing area beneath the main floor. Normally the area was off-limits to anyone other than Clergy members and attendants, but the Priestess decided that Anyia should be properly cleaned up before leaving the Temple. She ordered a male attendant to take Anyia downstairs and bathe her. She also decided that because the Grand Duchess was about to make her first public appearance after being collared, it would be important that she be properly shaved.

Anyia expected another frigid bath, but the pool was fed by a natural hot spring that had been the reason that location was chosen for the Temple 3,000 years before. While the attendant watched, the Grand Duchess gratefully immersed herself in the hot water and allowed the soreness from all that walking to wash away. When the attendant called her attention, Anyia got out of the water and knelt. The attendant led her to a wash room and told her to stand with her hands behind her head. He shaved her armpits with an old-fashion straight-edge razor before turning his attention to her vulva. He lathered her with soap and quickly scraped away the final vestige of any modesty. He ordered her to get on her knees and stretch forward so he could shave the small amount of hair remaining on her backside. She felt his fingers spreading her labia and moving her skin so he could remove everything. Whenever the Grand Duchess knelt, everyone present would have an unimpeded view of her vulva and sphincter. Once she was properly shaven, the attendant ordered her to return to the pool.

A few minutes later the Anyia's father and husband showed up at the Temple to retrieve her. They were initially surprised that the Grand Duchess already was collared and that the ceremony had not been made public. However, the Priestess explained that Anyia's collaring was between her and the Creator and that there was no purpose in making that into a public spectacle. The Priestess then told the two men what she had told Anyia; that she was strictly prohibited from ever talking about why she had been collared.

The Priestess then sent for Anyia. She was freshly bathed and shaven and naked as a person possibly could be, with the pale skin of her recently shaved vulva contrasting with her tanned body and highlighting its exposure. It was obvious her personality was deeply changed, just by looking at her. She was very quiet and seemed to be withdrawn. The Grand Duke and the Prime Minister realized that she was in no mood to converse about anything, so as they escorted her from the Temple they left her alone with her thoughts. The Grand Duchess was grateful for the few moments of silence.

Once on the street the group was escorted by two cops as they walked to the Parliament Building. Anyia quietly followed her father and her husband, trying to ignore the shocked expressions of passers-by. She knew that the entire nation would have their shock later that day, because she had to attend a public event dedicating Danube City's new power plant. As the Grand Duchess, she would be the most important person at the ceremony, which would be televised. All of Danubia would see her exposed body on their television sets that evening. If it was a slow news day, it was very likely the fact Danubia's Grand Duchess was publicly naked would make international news.

Anyia cringed as she entered the Parliament building. As her father led her and her husband to his office, dozens of deputies and staff members saw her naked body. She noticed most of her spectators cast glances not only at her attractive figure, but also at her collar. She felt a small relief as she entered the Prime Minister's office, but she knew the relative privacy would be only momentary. She also knew that, at that very moment, the people who had seen her were telling their co-workers about having seen the Grand Duchess wearing a Church collar...and not just an ordinary Penance collar, but a lifetime collar.

Dukov's receptionist let the group into the back office, where a lawyer from the Interior Ministry already was waiting. Dukov took his place behind his desk, while the Royal Couple and the lawyer stood together. As soon as the Prime Minister was still, the Grand Duke and the lawyer saluted and the Grand Duchess went to her knees. Vladim saluted back, ordered Anyia to rise, and ordered his guests to take seats.

"You will understand that, as salaried employees of the National Parks Service, you will need to review and sign contracts to continue performing your duties to the nation. The Minister of the Interior has prepared contracts for both of you. Please review them, and if you find the conditions acceptable, you will sign."

The Royal Couple followed the Prime Minister's order to read their contracts. The positions of Grand Duke and Grand Duchess were described as "historical ceremonial performance", a term that typically was used for any public employee paid to perform historical re-enactment on properties owned by the National Park Service. The contract outlined health benefits, a salary, specific duties, and also included causes for dismissal and grievance procedures. One major difference from an ordinary contract was that the agreement stipulated that the Royal Couple had to reside at the Royal Residence and perform their duties on a 24-hour basis. Another major difference was that the position was semi-hereditary, that if at all possible any new Grand Duke should be a direct descendent of the previous Grand Duke, as long as that person was qualified to hold the position. In the case of breach of contract by the current Royal Couple, the Interior Minister had the right to dismiss them. In such a case, all direct descendants of King Vladik the Defender would be eligible to apply for the position of Grand Duke or Grand Duchess, from which a panel of history professors would choose the most qualified candidate as a replacement. Treating other National Park Service employees with disrespect, any contact with foreigners not previously approved by the Prime Minister, and any financial transaction not approved by the Minister of the Interior were included as grounds for immediate dismissal.

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Later that afternoon the Grand Duchess of the Republic of Danubia took her position with her husband and her parents at the entrance of the new power plant. The ceremony was typical of such an event, with traditional dancers and music, as well as several songs performed by the children of the new plant's employees. When the singing was over, the unclothed Grand Duchess passed out flowers and prayer cards to the multitude of children crowding around her.

No one said anything about the naked Grand Duchess, because doing so would have been an act of disrespect towards the Danubian Church. However, throughout the event the news cameras focused on documenting Anyia's body and there were plenty of spectators and plant employees who wanted pictures of her. She had to kneel in the traditional position of Penance during parts of the ceremony, placing her shaven vulva on full display. The news cameramen had no reservations about getting close-up shots of the Grand Duchess while she was kneeling. Anyia was well-aware of her exposure, but she was performing Penance and had forfeited her right to any modesty.

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That night the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess returned to a house that now was property of the National Park Service and ate dinner at a table that no longer belonged to them. The cooks already were back at work, having signed contracts with the Interior Ministry. The Royal Couple was served by a uniformed National Park Service employee. Eventually several collared criminals would be hired to replace Anyia's servants, but they, like the cooks, would work directly under the newly-appointed administrator for the grounds. No one would be taking any orders from either the Grand Duke or the Grand Duchess, because their "servants" were public employees and role-playing actors, just as was the Royal Couple.

Anyia was not sure what to say to her husband, now that they were alone. Really...what could she say to him? Eventually they would have to start talking to each other, but what on earth could they say?

He told her to stand up and approach him. She obeyed him and knelt. At that moment the Grand Duke realized that he did have one servant remaining, his wife. She was collared and he wasn't, which meant that according to protocol she was obligated to kneel whenever she spoke to him. She would indeed follow protocol...he would see to that. She would learn to serve and feel the consequences when she fell short of his expectations.

Without telling her to get up, he went to the main reception hall and retrieved the finely crafted switch that had been hers, right where his father-in-law had thrown it after whipping her legs. He returned to the dining room and touched her on the shoulder. She knelt upright and nervously looked at the implement in her husband's hand.

The Grand Duke touched Anyia on the cheek, just as she was accustomed to doing with her servants. She took a deep breath as he offered her a hand to help her stand up. He led her to an antique table and told her to place her hands on the top. He gently stroked her backside...her shoulders, her legs, and her bottom...with the implement.

"You've never been switched, have you?"

"No. I never have."

"Your father told me something...on Monday. I had just finished my speech in Parliament and he had me join him for lunch in his office...and he talked about you a bit. He told me there was one time that he threatened to punish you, but he didn't want to...and ended up just threatening you."

"Yes, I was upset my parents wouldn't let me wear my school uniform the way I wanted to. I screamed at them...for days I insulted them and totally freaked out over it. And my father sat me down and told me he'd punish me if I didn't shut up."

"He talked about that. He told me that he deeply regretted not punishing you. Your mother wanted him to, but he didn't want to hurt you."

Anyia didn't know what to say. She wondered what would have happened had her father gone ahead with the switching. Maybe she would have hated him all that much more...but she knew that on that day she had learned the wrong lesson from him. She was not grateful at having a father who couldn't bring himself to punish her for insulting him. Instead she continued to secretly resent the limits that he had placed on her. From that resentment she developed a sense of entitlement, a feeling that was re-enforced by everything that had happened to her since her father became a candidate for Prime Minister. Everyone adored her, and she knew that was only natural because she deserved to be adored.

The Grand Duke interrupted her thoughts by tapping her bottom with the switch.

"I won't tie you, because to be tied is unfitting for a Grand Duchess. But I do expect you to keep your hands on the table until I am finished."

Anyia nodded, positioning her backside for the first stroke. The Grand Duke twisted back and stuck her in the middle of her bottom. The stroke was not very severe, but Anyia took a deep breath as the pain mounted. The Grand Duke struck a second time, again with a stroke that stung sharply but was not overly severe.

The Grand Duke wanted to switch his wife for a very long time, so he did not hit her as hard as he could have with any single blow. Instead he struck her repeatedly; on her bottom, her thighs, and her back. None of the strokes was severe enough to make her scream, but her body heaved with sobs as the switch landed on her over and over, with no hint that the punishment would stop anytime soon. There were breaks during which the Grand Duke walked around the table tapping his hand with the implement, but she knew that soon enough the break would end and the punishment would begin again.

As the whipping dragged on, Anyia experienced something very strange. As desperate as she was to have the punishment end, there was a part of her that wanted it to continue. She was in pain, but also she felt increasingly satisfied, and even excited. When the Grand Duke finally did finish, she hugged him as she cried into his chest.

A few moments later the Royal Couple was in the antique bed that no longer belonged to them. She was on her hands and knees, with her husband vigorously thrusting into her as he ran his hands over her welt-covered back. Out of all of the orgasms she had enjoyed, this one was the best.

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That same night, Anyia's fans and admirers watched her performance at the power plant dedication ceremony on television, transfixed by the idea she was performing Public Penance. Because the public did not know the real story behind what had happened the previous week, most of her audience assumed that she was collared because she had regretted her materialistic lifestyle and "the evil worship of cloth", as the Church put it. That assumption had a very strong impact on thousands of young women who had been following her wardrobe. The Grand Duchess had repented of her materialism, inspiring many others to do the same thing. Over the next week hundreds of young people, mostly women but also some men, reported to Churches and Temples around Danubia to ask for collars and start performing Public Penance. Many of her admirers took oaths to remain collared as long as the Grand Duchess remained collared, not having realized that she was wearing a permanent collar that would never be taken off her neck.