Lords of Eros Ch. 05

5. The Seduction

Fortunately, what appeared to be a dark opening in the ceiling of the pleasure dome turned out to be an opening in the ceiling of the pleasure dome. Oddly enough, though, once they passed through that opening, they found themselves in a well-lit office, completely different from the over-the-top and dramatic Hall of the Crimson Mountain King they had just left. The circular couch was in the middle of an area flanked on three sides by oddly conventional chairs of the metal and plastic variety, the kind intended to be sat in for hours but designed to be uncomfortable after five minutes. There were potted plants in the two corners, and Don was pretty sure they were artificial. A beige carpeting covered the floor. It had vacuum track marks on it and there wasn't a speck of dust to be seen. The fourth side of the room was dominated by a large welcome desk, identified as such by a friendly sign that said "Welcome," behind which sat a middle-aged woman wearing glasses and her brown hair piled high on her head. She glanced up at them as they came to a halt, peering over the rim of her glasses, and then promptly looked back at the computer screen off to her right. For some reason, it was the slightly yellowed screens between them and the fluorescent lights in the ceiling that seemed most incongruous to Don.

Don, Nicole, and Stephanie shared puzzled looks for a moment before Don got up and moved toward the welcome desk. A name plate identified the woman at the computer as Gladys, who he now saw was fully clothed, in a fashion that seemed to him to be most appropriate in the 1970s. Don found himself suddenly acutely aware that he was stark naked, and was a bit happy that he wasn't sporting a raging erection at the moment.

***

Tascha couldn't stop laughing and let herself fall over in the booth. Don waited patiently, but with a smile on his face, until she pulled herself back up and laughingly said, "Please, go on."

***

"Hello, um, Gladys," Don started. "We're here about, uh, getting some rings."

"Case number?" Gladys asked without looking up.

"I don't think we have one," Don frowned and looked over to Stephanie who just shook her head. "No, we don't have one."

Gladys rolled her eyes a bit and fixed Don with an exasperated, over-the-rims look before finally saying, "Names?"

They told her and she typed them into the computer. Without looking back up, Gladys told them to "Have a seat. Someone will be with you shortly."

They turned to return to the sofa, but it was already gone, presumably back to its place in the pleasure dome, so they reluctantly sat down on the plastic chairs, doubly uncomfortable in their nudity.

"This is not at all what I was expecting," Stephanie admitted.

"What were you expecting exactly?" Nicole wanted to know.

"Uh, definitely not this."

"Yeah, I was thinking something a bit more majestic or mystical or something," added Don.

They sat there in awkward silence for what must have been half an hour. This was easily the longest bit of completely idle time they had spent without anyone starting any sexual mischief. There was something about the setting, and Gladys's presence, that proved to be a wet blanket, or a cold shower. If Don had realized this was his last opportunity to have a threesome with these two women, he might have instigated something, but as it was, they waited quietly without much in the way of even conversation.

***

"Wait, what?" Tascha cut in.

"Yeah, this was the last time the three of us would be in the same room."

"You never saw them again?"

"Oh, yeah, we ran into each other now and then, but never all at the same time."

"Still..."

"Yeah, but at the time we were each just dealing with what was going on at the time. It was only later that we realized we should have said goodbye and had one last fling."

***

There was a buzz at the welcome desk, Gladys picked up an old-fashioned phone, listened for a moment, said "Yes, ma'am, right away," hung up the phone, and called out "Stephanie Ayers," as if there were more than just the three people waiting or as if Stephanie might have stepped out somewhere.

Stephanie shot to her feet immediately and crossed to the desk. Gladys looked up, actually smiled, and said, "They will see you now." She gestured to her left, indicating a door that Don was quite sure had not been there before. There was a black plaque on the door with white lettering that said "Interviews."

A bit nervously, Stephanie smiled and waved to Don and Nicole and went through the door.

If anything, the mood in the waiting room was now even more awkward. Fortunately for him, Don was called in only about ten minutes later. He gave Nicole's hand a squeeze as he smiled and said, "See you on the other side, sexy."

"Good luck, I guess, Professor!" she smiled up at him.

Don stepped through the door to find himself in a rather unimpressive and entirely mundane meeting room. A long wooden table took up most of the room and gathered around the far end of the table were five black-robed, hooded figures. Don assumed they were watchers and realized he hadn't seen any of those mysterious folks in quite some time.

To his surprise, the one at the very end of the table gestured toward the chair at the end of the table nearest to Don and said in a clearly feminine voice, "Please have a seat."

Don was happy the seat he was offered was more comfortable than those in the waiting room, and he noted that Stephanie seemed to have warmed it up a bit for him. As he sat down, the woman at the other end asked, "Do you mind if we do without the hoods, Don?"

"No, of course not," Don answered, a bit surprised that he had been asked.

As they each reached up and drew their hoods back, the one at the end explained, "The higher-ups insist on the hoods. They say it lends a certain gravitas to the situation, but we find it just makes things unnecessarily formal and uncomfortable."

It turned out that the woman under the hood was an attractive black woman with her hair buzzed down very close to her scalp. She smiled warmly at Don and said, "Welcome, Don. I'm Pamela, and I'll be conducting this interview. My associates are here primarily as witnesses."

On Pamela's right were an older gentleman with ebony black skin and short white hair and a white woman with short, straight dark brown hair. On her left were a young east Asian man with surprisingly light blond hair and another white woman with long, curly blonde hair. None of these "witnesses" said anything while Don was in the room.

"Pleased to meet you, Pamela," Don smiled. He took a sip from the glass of water that had been set there for him.

"You have an interesting file, Don," Pamela said, gesturing to a black binder on the table in front of her. "I was surprised that you didn't go home with Tascha."

"I would like to be able to return here after I go," Don said.

"Of course," Pamela smiled. There was something completely uninviting about that smile, which Don found odd after all his time in Eros. "Otherwise, why would you be here?"

"Right," Don nodded.

There was an awkward moment when Don wasn't sure if he was supposed to say something else, but Pamela finally said, "You understand that you will have to complete a number of trials, yes?"

"Yes," Don nodded again.

"You seem a bit nervous, Don."

"Perhaps," he smiled. "This is an odd situation, and I appreciate that I'm asking for something significant."

Pamela smiled again, "It will perhaps reassure you to know that we have a policy of allowing anyone who comes before us to try to earn a ring."

"Well, yes, that does help."

"Whether you accept the challenge and complete the trials is, of course, entirely up to you."

"Naturally."

"These trials will be difficult and may include a significant investment of time and energy, and may even pose a risk to yourself."

"I understand."

"Having reviewed your file and considered your case, we have decided that you will be given the standard seven trials. These will be selected specifically for you and may be substantially different from the trials given to others. Failure to complete the trials will permanently disqualify you from attempting a second set of trials but will incur no other penalty. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Do you have any questions?"

"Well, yes," Don frowned. "Is there a limited time in which I need to complete the trials?"

"There may be a time limit imposed on a particular trial, but in general no. You may take as long as you like to complete the full set, though some of them may not be the sort of thing at which you can make multiple attempts."

"Cool," Don murmured. "Will you be giving me all of them at once, or...?"

"You will be given one trial at a time. When you complete the trial, you will return here for evaluation and your next trial."

"Evaluation?"

"There may be some question as to whether you have met the challenge satisfactorily."

"Hmmm, is there any way to appeal a decision that I think is unfair?"

Pamela smiled, "What if I say there isn't?"

Don frowned, imagining that there might be any number of ways in which things could go astray.

"Let's cross that bridge if we come to it, shall we, Don?"

"Okay," Don smiled. "I probably don't have any other options anyway."

"Probably not," Pamela nodded. "Any other questions?"

"Well, will I be able to ask for clarification when I'm given a task to complete?"

"Of course, within reason."

"Okay," Don nodded. "I'm good."

"So, Don, do you accept the trials?"

"I do," he said very seriously.

"Then your first task is to seduce Captain Sage."

Don gaped down the table at Pamela. He wasn't expecting anything quite so personally targeted.

"Do you have any questions?"

"Uh, no, I guess not..."

Then Don found himself sitting on a towel on a sunny beach. Blinking around in shock at the abrupt transition, he slowly realized he was back on the beach outside Rendezvous.

***

Tascha laughed again, "They got your number, eh, Professor?"

Don rolled his eyes, "So it seemed."

"We should get out of here," she said, fishing through her purse.

"Please, let me," Don grinned, easily getting his card out. "I've been dying to see you again, and this food has been wonderful."

"Okay but let me leave the tip. We've been taking up this booth forever."

"Is there somewhere we can take a walk?" Don asked. "If we're not going to be getting naked and sweaty, I'd like to stretch my legs while we talk."

"Sure, I know just the place, and maybe we'll get back to that other stuff later."

***

While there were several groups of people enjoying themselves on the beach, Don was disappointed to discover that there was no sign of Sage or the Maidenhead, and not even any gorgeous Price Is Right models about. He even checked in at the tavern where they had met the crew and captain on their first visit, but without luck. Don reasoned that, at least for now, he should assume that the watchers' council (thinking of them by this term made him laugh) had sent him to this location because it was the best place for him to run into Sage. At the very least, he could hang out here, more or less, for a few days. If Sage didn't show up in that time, he could decide on another course of action.

He spent the rest of the day there on the beach. Fortunately, it wasn't too long before a young woman asked him what he was doing there all by himself. Don looked up a pair of gorgeous long legs to see a lovely thin woman with full breasts, orangish red wavy hair hanging down to her shoulders, and blue eyes smiling down at him.

"I'm waiting for a friend," Don smiled back up at her.

"I could be your friend, if you like," she suggested with an undeniably Scottish accent. She held out her hand, which, considering the fact that they were both stark naked, struck Don as funny, and said, "Viola."

He took her hand and drew her down to join him on the beach blanket, "Well, Viola, I'm Don, and I would like that very much."

Don spent the rest of the day there on the beach with Viola, in an unusually monogamous affair. They got to know each other there on the blanket, went for a refreshing swim, which naturally included more play, and then returned to the beach for more fun. From time to time, Don cast a glance out at the water and the tavern, but there was no sign of the Maidenhead. As evening drew on, he and Viola went in to Rendezvous itself in search of some fruit and a change of scenery.

Not too far into the city they found a club called "Ambrosia's," which turned out to be a smoky little jazz club that provided not only fruit but an assortment of juices to enjoy. There was an actual jazz combo on the little stage, and there were cozy dimly lit booths, a bar, stand-alone tables with little candles, and a dance floor where a few couples were slowly swaying to the music. The smokiness was the oddest part, for there seemed to be no one smoking, and nothing cooking. Second to that was the fact that the three musicians (bass, piano, and drums) were completely clothed. The patrons were all mostly naked, though one woman had stiletto heels and very sexy fishnet stockings. A pair of waitresses with very short skirts and breasts pushed up nicely by tops that were much too small for their job moved about serving drinks and fruit to their guests.

After securing some fruit to satisfy their hunger, and sipping at their juices, Don suggested they dance. Viola was delighted by this idea, and, in a few seconds, he was on the dance floor with this beautiful, warm, naked, and very sexy woman in his arms, her body moving slowly against his own. Of course, his cock was rock hard between them, but since they had spent the afternoon having almost continual sex neither of them was in a hurry to get back to it. Again, Don found himself a bit amazed by how wonderful life was in Eros.

He was a bit surprised when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned to see a man of decidedly Mediterranean appearance, with short, black hair, brown eyes, and an athletic physique. The stranger smiled and asked in a decidedly Italian accent, "May I cut in?"

Don looked down to Viola who smiled and shrugged. So, Don nodded to the new guy and stepped aside. As he slipped around to go back to the table with their drinks, Don noticed that Viola's new dance partner was blessed with a rather prodigious cock.

Leaning on the table and sipping his juice, Don watched Viola dance, and that dance was gradually getting more overtly sexual. The gentleman's hands were moving over her slender, pale body, lingering understandably on her butt. Viola was returning the favor, and soon the two of them kissed for a rather long time. Don expected they would soon be moving at least to one of the booths, and wondered what he should do in that event, but then a new guy appeared and tapped Viola's current dance partner on the shoulder.

This new fellow was black, with a light skin tone, close cut hair and beard, and a fit body. Don smiled a bit to himself as Viola began dancing with this guy, and the ritual of increasing heat started to repeat itself. The gentleman with the big dick looked around a bit, and eventually decided to join Don at his table. He smiled and said, "Hello, I'm Geraldo."

"Don," he smiled and extended his hand.

"Viola is a lovely woman," Geraldo said, as he gestured for one of the waitresses.

"That she is!" Don nodded. "Do you come here often?"

"Most nights. It's my favorite club in the city."

After he got a few recommendations for other places to try, Don saw that Viola and her partner were again at a fevered pitch, and he decided to be mischievous. He excused himself from Geraldo, saying, "Don't go anywhere... actually, in a bit, follow my lead."

Then Don moved across the dance floor and politely cut in, taking Viola into his arms again.

"Oh, hello there, Don," Viola smiled up at him. "Welcome back!"

"Did you miss me?" he smirked.

"Of course!" she laughed. "I must say, though, that I have been kept very well entertained in your absence."

"That's good to know." He bent down and kissed her deeply.

As they swayed together, he made sure to continuously caress her body. For her part, Viola squeezed his butt in her hands and then reached between them to grasp his cock tightly in her hand. This might have led to mischief right there on the dancefloor, if Geraldo hadn't interrupted by cutting in again.

"Oh my!" Viola laughed as Don smiled and gave up his place.

He returned to their table to meet Viola's other dance partner, Daniel, who seemed to enjoy the game of getting Viola all riled up as much as Don and Geraldo. After a few rounds of the men taking turns dancing with fair Viola, Don asked Geraldo if there was a place nearby where they could take her that might be a bit more accommodating than the booths. Naturally, it turned out that there were rooms available upstairs. He told Geraldo what he had in mind, and then moved to take his turn with Viola. Don found himself remembering the situation he had orchestrated for Tascha back on their second day in the Manor.

"Are you having fun?" he asked after kissing Viola.

"Oh yes, very much!" she said in her adorable Scottish accent.

"Do you trust me?"

"I suppose so," she nodded. "What do you have in mind?"

"It's a bit of a surprise," he smiled as he nodded over to Geraldo and Daniel. "But you must be sure to tell me if you want to stop."

"Oh, okay," she nodded again. "Shall I say something specific?"

"How about 'professor,'?"

She frowned a bit and said, "Okay, then, if I want you to stop, I'll say 'professor.'"

"Excellent," Don smiled and then nodded to Geraldo who had come up behind her and who now took one of the cloth napkins that were on every table in the club and tied it about her head as a blindfold.

"Oh!" she said, grasping at Don a bit tighter.

Viola was cheerfully compliant as the three men guided her across the dance floor and to a staircase in the back corner of the club, where Geraldo promptly lifted her in his arms and began carrying her to the second floor. She responded to this by giggling and throwing her arms around his neck. Don led the way down a narrow corridor, past a couple of open doors, and then pushed open one that had been ajar. The room was lit with a red glow and was dominated by a king-sized bed with black satin sheets. There wasn't much room for anything else in the room but the bed. The room was just the kind of place he had been expecting from the club downstairs.

Don made way for the others, making a point to leave the door wide open, just in case anyone wanted to watch from the corridor, or perhaps join in.

Geraldo gently laid Viola on the bed, and she promptly reached out to caress the soft sheets. Having been lucky enough to enjoy Viola for hours earlier, Don was content to let the other two guys lead the way, and they did not hesitate. Geraldo was already on her right side, so he bent down to run his hands over her body on that side, while Daniel did much the same on the other side. Daniel was the first to lower his mouth to her soft pale breast, covering her hard pink nipple with his mouth, but Geraldo was first to move his hand up the inside of her thigh so that he could stroke her dewy lips with his fingers.

Don inched around Daniel and got up on the bed over Viola's head. He ran his fingers lightly over her pretty face and then bent down to kiss her upside down. She moaned a bit in Don's mouth when Geraldo's playful fingers found her clit. It only took a moment of manual stimulation before Viola was arching her back high on the bed, her fists clutching the sheets, as a long, intense orgasm tore through her slender body. Geraldo's fingers pushed into her and his thumb kept stroking her clit, and Viola was writhing on the bed as wave after wave of climax swept over her.