Queen Yavara Ch. 35

To those who did not read Queen Yavara: Adrianna's Story, I've included a synopsis of it below. The story was a novella that detailed Adrianna's transformation and evolution of character, and bridges Book Three and Book Four. For online readers, it is chapters twenty-eight through thirty-four.

Adrianna's Story synopsis

Adrianna employs her skills as a commander to rule over the wild population of tribespeople and Ardeni immigrants. She earns their respect through a brutal show of force, and in turn, proves to the other hybrids that she is capable of being governess, even if she reluctant to do so. There are seven other hybrids that Yavara changed. The women turned hermaphrodites are: Eva Alecia, Furia Agustinia, Alexa Jenania, and Kiera Lestria; the men turned women are: Faltia Dafian (formerly Faltias), Soraya Poneria (formerly Soren), Brianna Dedaclia (formerly Brian), and of course, Arianna Alkandra (formerly Thomas Adarian, whose family name was stripped of him by Yavara).

After Adrianna meets with the population on their first day, the hybrids pair up, and explore their newfound desires and sexualities. Soraya realizes she's a masochist, and so pairs up with Eva, the sadist. Alexa and Faltia had always been attracted to one another when they were rangers, and so they couple. Kiera and Brianna are likeminded free spirits, and they find sameness in one another. Adrianna finds a shy girl in Furia, one that she can give comfort to, and in turn, be comforted by. Furia also has a massive cock, and I probably spend too much time describing it.

The next day, Adrianna begins to delegate power to the other hybrids. Faltia becomes the watch commander, as she was a company commander when she was a ranger. Brianna becomes the populations director, as she has excellent interpersonal skills. Soraya becomes the first scribe, as she is bookish, and it was her former position when she was a ranger. Alexa becomes the lead engineer and architect, as she has an astute mechanical mind. Eva becomes outreach director, for she's excellent at putting on a show. Furia is assigned to help Brianna, because Adrianna does not yet know her skillset, and thinks she needs to be bolder. Kiera is made agricultural liaison to Arbor and the nymphs, who plant the fields and raise the crops at unnatural speeds.

Arbor worries after her favorite daughter, Rose, who has exhibited signs of the corruption, a disease that turns nymphs into succubi. She tells Kiera that no hybrid may touch Rose on pain of death. Despite this, Kiera and Rose form a friendship. Meanwhile, Alexa and Faltia go into town to recruit new members for the city watch and construction crews. Eva assists in their recruitment efforts by offering Soraya up as a sexual reward to anyone who signs up. Soraya wholeheartedly agrees, but Faltia is disgusted by it... at first. As Faltia struggles with the temptation of sucking the entire city dry, Furia struggles with the idea that Adrianna doesn't trust her as much as she trusts the other hybrids. Setting out to prove her new girlfriend wrong, Furia confronts Certiok Terdini, the she-orc princess, and Brock's daughter-in-law.

Certiok seduces Furia against Furia's own will, but the tables are turned when Furia's incubus genetics take hold of the enterprising she-orc. Adrianna comes upon the pair, and through sexual grandstanding and lecherous combat, Adrianna and Certiok form a tenuous partnership. Certiok says she will only help Adrianna govern the ungovernable tribespeople if she bears Trenok's child, and Adrianna, seeing no other choice, agrees. Meanwhile, Faltia and Alexa succumb shamefully to their slutty desires, and exuberantly assist Soraya and Eva in the endeavor of blowing the entire city. Brianna and Kiera soon join the fun without any trepidation. When Certiok leaves to join the town's debauchery, Adrianna tells Furia in secret that Elena Straltaira is alive, and that she is in love with Leveria. She makes Furia swear that if Yavara ever invades the Highlands, that Furia will help Adrianna kill her.

After six days, each of the hermaphrodites has impregnated their respective partners. Adrianna, who is saving herself for Trenok when he arrives with the tribespeople of the Ten, is in a state of hyper-ovulation, and cannot think straight. Arbor tells her it is Adrianna's succubus genetics that are the culprit, and she will go insane with desire if she doesn't get knocked up. The hermaphrodites feel the effects of the hyper-ovulation within themselves, but it is tempered by their incubus genes.

Faltia tries to discipline her new soldiers before the coming of the ten tribes, but struggles with making orcs listen to her. She goes to Eva for advice, and Eva decides the best course of action is to tie Faltia to a cross and have her whole platoon take their turns. Faltia disagrees initially, but she's easily persuaded. Brianna and Soraya use similar methods to bond with their employees. While Kiera and Rose are alone, Rose makes a pass on Kiera. Kiera leaves, fearing Arbor's wrath, and Rose is gravely disappointed. Adrianna worries that Furia doesn't exhibit the same boldness as the other hybrids. Having exhausted all other options, she takes Furia to Eva so that Eva can teach Furia how to be... "bold." Eva tries to seduce Furia, and Furia objects, believing that sex between other hybrids is cheating. Eva tells Furia that hybrids are different, that they are faster, smarter, and wiser than most people, and so they are above the fetid bonds of monogamy. To prove it, Eva rapes Furia in the ass. Now, that probably wouldn't go over well with most people, but Furia fucking loves it. Furia comes to the self-realization that she is powerful and controlling, and she turns the tables on Eva. Eva delights as she's horrifically sodomized, and concedes that Furia is that alpha of the group.

Meanwhile, Adrianna suffers greatly from her hyper-ovulation. Fearing that she will try to sate her appetite and ruin her deal with Certiok, she locks herself in the castle. Certiok realizes that Adrianna will be of no use to her if she's a manic, blubbering fool, for Adrianna will need to be at her keenest when meeting with the matriarchs of the Ten. She gets the others for help. When she arrives at Eva's tent, she finds that all the hermaphrodites have broken their vows of monogamy, and are fucking each other. Furia is the most sexually dominating, then Eva, then Kiera, then Alexa, who learns that her male homosexual side is very submissive, and nearly as masochistic as Soraya. Brianna, Soraya, and Faltia bear witness to the orgy, and they realize they feel no jealousy. They all agree to go back to the castle and help Adrianna. Since Adrianna can't take seed into her womb, an anal orgy ensues, and they fill her rectum with countless loads before plugging it up.

The next day, Trenok leads the tribes into Alkandra. The tribespeople are marvel at the wonders of architecture Alexa has created in such short time, but Trenok is focuses only on his hatred for the man (now woman) who killed his mother. He is shocked by Adrianna's beauty, and by the way she tactfully outmaneuvers the matriarchs' attempts to bring her down. He admires her, and it scares him, so he challenges her to a duel. Adrianna is too fast for him, and she toys with him throughout the battle before bringing her blade to his throat. Instead of making him surrender in humiliation, or forcing him to accept death, she fucks him in front of everyone. Trenok succumbs to a lust the likes of which he's never felt before, and he forgives Adrianna.

Later that night, Certiok and Adrianna trick the matriarchs into giving up all their power, making Adrianna and the other hybrids the official rulers of the country. Trenok confides in Adrianna that he's glad she bears his child, for he knows now that the time of orc tribes is over. Arbor finds Rose in a manic state, nearly dead with her desires. Arbor makes love to her child, knowing now that Rose has become infected with the corruption. She vows to find a way to save her.

After two weeks, Prince Matthew Dreus of the Lowlands arrives in the Alkandran Bay to become Alkandra's first ambassador. After several days at sea, he establishes contact with his father, King Albert Dreus, via magical mirror relay. Mirror relays work much like phone towers, where mirrors "see" each other over distance to communicate messages. The Alkandran Horn, a massive peninsula that juts from the eastern coast of Tenvalia, prevents mirror communication to Ardeni for nearly a week. Matthew's father tells him that their ambassador to the Highlands, Fran Wentz, was murdered, likely by Leveria's assassins. King Dreus expresses concerns that if Yavara's army prevails in the Tundra, that she will become too powerful. His greatest concern is that Elena Straltaira has returned to Bentius, and is acting within the Noble Court. The Straltaira family is third in line to the throne behind Tiadoa and Ternias; Ternias, who has the tentative backing of King Dreus. King Dreus tells Matthew that he will send assassins to Bentius if Yavara wins the battle.

Adrianna appoints Furia as head magistrate, reasoning that Furia is fair and just, and always seeks to do what is right. Furia appoints the tribal daughters of the matriarchs to be her law students, and naturally, she creates a sex cult with them. All of the hybrids get their bodies tattooed with their escapades, some of them covering their entire flesh in the orc fashion. Brianna is showing off her new anus tattoo to Adrianna when Prince Matthew arrives.

Prince Matthew is naturally taken aback by Alkandra, which has grown impressively under the care of Alexa's engineering core. Adrianna gives him a tour of the city, and after seeing too much debauchery, he flees in a panic attack. He finds himself in the company of Alexa, who immediately recognizes his homosexuality. They form a bond, and Alexa helps him come of his shell. Eventually, Prince Matthew turns into a total man-whore, gets fucked by all the hermaphrodites, and whole-heartedly accepts his role as a true Alkandran diplomat. As he's getting plugged, Adrianna decides to go out onto the town by herself, and have some fun. A few hours later, she finds herself passed out on a casino table, and Certiok is there to scoop her up, and walk her to bed. Along the way, Certiok notes that Adrianna has a new tattoo on her back. Adrianna tells her that the tattoo is of Sherok, Brock's wife, who Adrianna murdered when she was Thomas Adarian. When Adrianna wakes up the next morning, Yavara is sleeping in her bed.

In the final chapter of Adrianna's Story, Adrianna and the rest of the hybrids walk on eggshells around the emotionally unstable Yavara. Yavara tries to ignore their avoidance, but it hurts her greatly, as she views them as the only family she has now that Elena is (to her knowledge) dead. Kiera goes off to find Rose, and instead finds Arbor. Arbor regretfully confesses that she cannot save her daughter, and so beckons Kiera to have sex with her so that she may finally change into a succubus, and end her torment. The rest of the hybrids and Yavara go to the city arena, where Yavara shows herself to be callous and easily manipulated by the will of the crowd. Adrianna worries that this bodes ill for the war with the Highlands.

Later that night, Adrianna and the other hybrids all marry each other in a drug-fueled ceremony. Arbor acts as the priestess. A very drunk Yavara crashes the wedding, and in her grief and jealousy, takes control of Adrianna's mind, and begins to slowly kill her. Arbor decides to let it happen, as she fears what Yavara might do to her children if she intervenes. The other hybrids all try to tear Yavara off Adrianna, but it's not use. Yavara is the most powerful being alive, and their fists and knives mean nothing to her. Adrianna and Yavara have a mental conversation, and Yavara realizes almost too late what she has done. She allows herself to be beaten nearly to death by the other hybrids before she slinks off into the darkness. Adrianna goes to comfort her, and confesses that Elena is still alive. She does not tell Yavara that Elena has fallen in love with Leveria. Yavara is so relieved by the revelation that she forgives Adrianna for all that she's done, and Adrianna forgives her. They make love, and in so doing, the find their love for each other.

And so, Adrianna's Story ends.

Part Eleven: Stalemate

Chapter Thirty-Five

FIELD MARSHAL SHORDIAN

I looked through my telescope out over the Highland Rift. Though the Highland Kingdom border was technically drawn just east of the marshlands, geologically, this was the beginning of the Highlands; a three-hundred-mile-long cliffside that marked the uplift of the Highland Plateau. Legend said it was created by some heathen god ten-thousand years ago. I thought it was more likely the result of sediment erosion.

"She crossed the marshlands." General Florence Krakis said beside me.

"That, she did." I concurred, closing the telescope.

The cavalry commander watched the Alkandran horde flood the flatlands below, their banners stretching from horizon to horizon. "It's an invasion." He muttered.

"Not yet."

"What do you mean?"

I gestured broadly to the enemy line. "Do you see how they're stretching themselves so thinly? One arm of the horde is moving north, one arm is moving south, and the head is staying here. They're matching our forces at North Fort, South Fort, and Mid Fort. If they were inclined to invade, they'd bunch between the forts to minimize the effectiveness of our counterattack."

"You're saying they followed us across the marshlands just to form a line?" Krakis raised an incredulous brow.

I nodded. "An all-out assault while we're at full strength would be a pyrrhic victory at best, but if he draws our lines thin and whittles us down by the day, come midwinter, there will be mile-long sections of the Rift we won't be able to cover." I assessed the rows of engines that stretched along the top of the ridgeline, "This army is the full strength of the Highlands, but Alkandra is yet in its infancy. Their numbers will swell as ours dwindle. Time was never on our side in this war, but now it's our greatest enemy. Brock knows this."

Krakis shifted uncomfortably. "It's a stalemate then."

"For now." I grunted, spitting over the edge, "Our fate's in the hands of politicians now. God help us all."

ELENA

Leveria had the names of the ten major houses written on parchment and laid out in three piles on the table. In her pile was Tiadoa, Xantian, Shordian, Droughtius and Straltaira. In Ternias's were Ternias, Huntiata, and Jonias. Between them were only two pieces of parchment: Feractian and Feltian. A pile of poker chips represented the scores of minor nobles, but in the grand scheme, they meant very little. They were just numbers, and so were given no names.

"After his son's disgraceful defeat and suicide, Lord Droughtius abdicated his position to his granddaughter, Sofia, and she has ambitions of her own." Leveria muttered, taking Droughtius's name, and moving it to the center pile. "Xantian has been a reliable ally, but I soon won't be able to keep ignoring his requests to help him with his dwarven contracts, and he'll seek other avenues." She moved Xantian's name to the center pile. "That leaves me with just your mother and my husband."

"Mother abdicated to me this morning." I said.

Leveria flinched in surprise. "What?!"

"She did it in a letter, which is just like her." I rolled my eyes, opening the missive in my hand, "She left for the estate last night without saying goodbye. Since you didn't win the battle you bet the entire country on, the Straltaira coffers are empty, and the peasants are wondering about their pay. She needs to secure the home front, so I'm to represent my family in court."

"You did it far better than her anyway." Leveria smiled, "You were already the representative in all but name. Now with you able to make official proclamations, we can really start corralling some of these nobles."

"Uh-huh." I said, and casually leaned over the table, selected my name from Leveria's pile with a single finger, and slid it in front of me.

She gawked at me, a look of utter betrayal on her face. "You fucking bitch."

"I thought you'd be proud of me setting out on my own." I pouted my lips.

"I fucking made you!"

"And you created a monster." I giggled, poking Leveria's nose.

Her pale face turned so red that I thought she might pop. She was absolutely adorable for a murderous psychopath. "Elena," she hissed, "if you don't put your name back in my fucking pile—"

"You'll do what?" I grinned, "Threaten me with wildly-creative torture deaths?"

"I'll skin you alive in the city square, and make you wear your hide as a suit! I'll cut off your cock and nail it to your forehead, then I'll ride you like a unicorn! I'll shove hot knifes up your cunt and carve out your womb, then I'll climb inside and make you give birth to me!"

"That last one was new." I giggled.

"Do not fucking betray me, Elena!" She snarled, "You've seen what I do to those who aren't loyal!"

"And I've always been loyal—to Yavara—as I told you from the beginning."

Leveria took two deep breaths through her nose, and let them out through her mouth, calming herself. Her rages were always a little tongue-in-cheek to mask her loss of control. I knew that scared her more than anything. She'd always been so measured and precise with her emotions, but since the day Yavara had won her battle, she'd been prone to wrathful outbursts. She eased herself against the edge of the table, and donned her analytical mask, studying the new layout like a chessboard.

"Who do you have in your pocket?" She asked.

No one I thought bitterly, but said, "You know I won't tell you."

She smirked at me. "So you do have someone. That's good to know."

"I will neither confirm, nor deny."

"Never mind, you have no one."

"You're so sure?" I asked with a raised brow.

She snorted. "Careful, Elena. Knowing your own weaknesses is a stateman's greatest strength, and you have become very arrogant."

"It's my bravado that's charmed the Noble Court."

"It's what you do behind the scenes that matters." Leveria muttered, "And we still don't know the breadth of Ternias's conspiracy. How many of these names in the middle secretly belong to him?"

"He plays things close to the chest, but we can make assumptions." I said, "He was a staunch proponent for war, and that has weakened him. His support from Ardeni is not as strong as it once was, and he can't guarantee his factors the money that would've come after reclaiming the Midlands. With the coffers empty, Huntiata's city watch has gone on strike, and Huntiata has lost faith in Ternias." I plucked Huntiata's name from Ternias's pile, and placed it in the middle. "If what I gleaned from my sources is correct, Jonias's loyalties run deeper. She intended on marrying Ternias once he got the crown."

"Stupid slut."

I chuckled. "Yes, she is. Ternias may have an ace up his sleeve, but I think it's more likely that whoever he had before the battle is now gone. Much like the rest of the country, the Noble Court has been thrown into chaos."

"And now that you're freelancing, you'll seek to pull nobles from me." Leveria said, then looked up at me, "So, are we going to address the elephant in the room then?"

"The familial line of succession."

"With you at the head of your house, that puts you third in line. As you said, the country's been thrown into chaos. Who knows what could happen?"

"That is something I can guarantee won't happen." I laughed.

Leveria smiled with her lips, but not with her eyes. "There have been whispers from some of the minor nobles. Whispers of vassalage. As the war rages on, and we stress the citizenry to the breaking point, the whispers might be given voice from someone who matters. Will it be you, Elena?"