Queen Yavara Ch. 57

"The conquering hero kneels before me." I mused with a smile as he bowed to kiss my ring.

"And the court's infamous pacifist dresses herself for battle." He said wryly, and planted his kiss, "But pacifism isn't her only claim to infamy."

"Careful, General. This pacifist has bloodied her sword a hundred times already."

He made an imperceptible glance at my crotch, and muttered, "So I've heard."

"What was that?"

"The queen's hearing is excellent, I'm sure."

I gave him an appraising smile. "You may rise, General."

"Always for you, Your Highness."

"You're incorrigible." I chuckled, "You would do well to remember how many ambitious men I've left as corpses to get to where I am." I glanced over at the dead Peter Shordian, "Now go pay your final respects to the field marshal," I pinned a medal on Krakis's decorated chest, and smirked, "Field Marshal."

He was much less forward after that. He accompanied me as I stepped out of the tent, and assessed the full breadth of the Highland army. It was a magnificent sight to behold. It stretched from the plateau of the Highland Rift, through the walls of South Fort, and down the great causeway that led to the fields before the marshlands. The tens of thousands of golden helms glinted in the winter sunlight, seeming to illuminate the very ground in a gilded aura. They marshalled on the old highway that banked the Knife River, the cavalry out in front, standing proudly before the pine-tree tunnel of the Great Forest.

"I will follow behind your cavalry, Field Marshal," I said, mounting Shordian's old horse. "You are going to suffer great casualties trying to get through the forest. Arbor won't let you walk into it freely."

"You know the forest spirit?"

"We have rapport, but my clout won't count for much anymore, especially with this crown on my head." I sighed, and watched the horizon, "There's a lot of my history out there. I'm destroying more than just the enemy today."

Krakis cleared his throat. "If I may be so bold..."

"Your timidity was getting dull."

Krakis laughed uncomfortably. "There were rumors—"

"There are a thousand rumors surrounding me, and some of them are very hazardous. Be careful with your next words."

"There... there were rumors that you didn't come back completely yourself when you returned from your espionage mission in the Dark Queen's court." He gestured to the horizon line, "Rumors that there was another hybrid of Alkandra."

I smiled dangerously at the field marshal. "Field Marshal, which way is the enemy?"

He pointed to the eastern horizon.

"And when we destroy her, who will be your next foe?"

He just looked at me, perplexed and unsure of himself. I smiled, and tapped him on the lips. "That mouth of yours will get you killed if you don't learn to keep it shut. I have no use for a cocksure killer. I can find a man like that anywhere. If you want to find out how many of the rumors you've heard about me are true, then you're going to have to learn discretion." I drew my finger down his chin, let it linger there, then pulled it back. The man looked ready to melt into his own armor. God, he was easy. All soldiers were. Shordian hadn't stood a chance against me, and Krakis was already my loyal dog. I almost missed the serpents of the Noble Court. Almost.

"Field Marshal, I won't presume to know anything about pitched battles or sieges, so I won't disturb the plans set in motion by Shordian and yourself, but there is one thing I want you to change."

"Anything."

"The hybrids of Alkandra are to be taken alive, and unharmed. Alive and unharmed, Field Marshal, do you understand?"

"After what Governess Adrianna did to Bentius?!"

"Are you questioning my orders?"

Krakis averted his gaze. "No, Your Highness."

"Good." I smiled, and patted his armored thigh, "Well, off you go then. God's speed to you and your riders."

"And to you, Your Highness." He said, some of his bravado returning to him. He kicked his heels into his horse's flank, and thundered out to the front. I watched him go, then pondered the eastern horizon.

Yavara, I thought, fly away. Fly far, far away before I get there.

"Your Highness?" someone called behind me. I turned around to see five of my new mages walking in formation toward me. I had to stay the instinct to draw my sword.

"Yes?" I asked.

The lead man stopped before me, and bowed. "Your assistant is asking about you."

"Bring her out here."

"We could probably heal those amputations if given enough time. And the mental trauma—"

"Bring her out."

He glanced around. "Is it wise to be seen in public with such a woman?"

"Bring her out!" I snapped, and the mage bowed profusely. A moment later, Dog Meat was carried from the tent, only she was no longer naked, for the mages had dressed her little body in a burlap sack. I hoisted her up onto my horse, secured her to my lap, and nestled her fat little ass into my crotch.

"Do you think you can keep that spell up for a whole day?" I asked her quietly.

"Yeah," she answered, "are we going to Alkandra now?"

"Yeah." I whispered back.

Dog Meat excitedly wiggled her little stumps, and giggled.

YAVARA

I knew I was dreaming, but the dream was still vivid. It was a memory, or something like it. The sun shone high above the Highland Basin, sparkling off the blue tributaries that stretched for as far as the eye could see. My feet dangled over the top of the eastern wall, taunting the ground a hundred feet below me.

"Your dad is going to kill us if he finds out!" Elena hissed nervously. She was a thirteen-year-old girl, with fair skin and hair. I was the same age, and even then, I was beginning to notice Elena in different ways than I had before. I was much better at hiding my curiosity than she, however, whose eyes wandered. She didn't yet understand why her gaze sought my body, but she would soon, and she would wear that shame like an albatross for the next five years. As for now, her gaze was only locked on the horizon-line, trying to avoid the vertigo of the drop just below our feet.

"Dad won't care." I said, "He told me school is only for stateswomen, and I am already a lost cause. Let Leveria learn about the history of different inbred noble houses; I'll learn about shit that matters."

"You shouldn't say that." Elena admonished, and though she spoke with her juvenile voice, she was her older hybrid-self now. It didn't bother me. It made sense for some reason.

"What? Shit?" I tittered, "Shitty-fucking-cunt-whore-slut-damn-titty-dyke-faggot-skank-bitch. Oh, and also: booger-heck-darn-poop."

"Booger-heck-darn-poop?"

"Elena!" I gasped, "Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

"I'd like to kiss your mother with that mouth." Elena muttered, then laughed a little too forcefully.

I giggled with her, and enjoyed the view. "Can you see the Jonian Spire from here?"

"It's a hundred miles away." Elena responded, now back in her adolescent Highlander body.

"But it's three-thousand feet tall."

"So if we take the inverse tangent of five-hundred-eighty-two-thousand over three-thousand, we get zero-point-three-two-five degrees, and factoring the curvature of the earth—"

"Shut up, nerd."

"...and factoring the curvature of the earth, we still wouldn't be able to measure the circumference of your fat ass."

I burst out laughing, and pitched forward. I'd forgotten where I was. My stomach lurched, and I went flailing off into the void.

I opened my eyes, the feeling of freefall still fluttering in my belly. I swore I could feel Elena's hand in mine. She'd saved my life that day. She'd caught me in midair, and yanked me back over the wall, then she'd screamed at me for minutes while I laughed manically, the exhilaration flooding my mind and senses. I remembered that I didn't feel fear when I went over, but I felt it now. Mortal fear suffused my limbs, leaving me petrified in the bed. Only the memory of Elena's hand kept me from panicking, and I held onto that memory like it was physical, and let the world settle down.

Someone was knocking at my door. I groaned, and rolled out of bed. I was naked and filthy, and none-too-pleased to be rising at this ridiculous hour. Why, the sun was hardly up! A princess of the Highlands should never have to—oh... oh yeah.

"Wait a second!" I called to the door, and quickly washed myself with soap and a water from a basin. I toweled myself off, then looked through my outfits. Everything was lingerie. Even my armor was made more for fucking than fighting. I looked for a pair of panties, realized I didn't own any, then I donned my leather one-piece with the cutout in the crotch and bosom (my "armor" as it were), tied by blonde hair back in a ponytail, and shoved my feet into a pair of tall stripper boots. I walked in front of the mirror, and struck a fighter's pose. The outfit was not exactly intimidating, but it was at least somewhat functional. It wouldn't stop even a butter knife, but it would stop the grazes and nicks that could pile up during a battle. A battle. I was going to fight in a goddamned battle! Was I out of my fucking mind?! I'm going to fucking die!

"Stop." I told myself in the mirror, "Just... stop. You've done this before, Yavara. You single-handedly killed the orcs that ambushed your father, and you hunted Brock's squad of Terdini down to the last man. You did that. Alkandi was only along for the ride. Deep breath in, and deep breath out. You are going to get through this."

I settled myself, laced my boots, and walked to the door. I opened it to see the Dark Queen lounging against the wall, casually smoking a cigarette.

"Done having your little freak-out?" Leveria smirked.

"Oh, you figured out telepathy, did you?" I sneered, and made her slap herself, "How cute."

Leveria glowered at me, attempted to make me shit myself, and then farted loudly when I counterattacked. She immediately broke off her attack.

"I was trained by Prestira Rasloraca; you'll never beat me, Leveria."

"We'll see."

I made her fart again, and she jolted upright.

"Ok, you win! Fuck!"

I grinned, and sniffed the air. "Smells like... Eva Alecia."

Leveria raised her brows. "Impressive."

"She always had a pungent aroma, and an even more... tropical flavor."

"She drinks pineapple juice for that exact reason."

"Ah," I muttered, and looked Leveria over. She was wearing one of Eva's outfits, a dominatrix corset and chaps that had been retrofitted with leather armor at the shoulders and chest. Though her breasts were nearly exposed to the nipples, the chest-piece covered her all the way to the chin, giving the armor a turtle-neck appearance. Her cock was proudly highlighted with a silvery codpiece in the shape of a phallic dragon, and her muscular midriff was exposed from the bottoms of her breasts to the converging lines before her pelvis. With her black hair done up in a dramatic swirling do, her black eyeliner and lipstick giving her features a menacing allure, and her platinum hooped earrings dangling from her pointed ears, she looked like the empress of hell. Pure, wonderful, evil. I had to fight the urge to prostrate and spread my cheeks for her.

"No need to fight your urges, Yavara." Leveria smirked, her black-sheened lips pouting supplely.

"You can't read my mind."

"I don't need to." She said, and made a show of pursing her lips around her cigarette, and sucking it sensually, "Come on, baby sister; this may be our last chance."

"Then you should probably just fuck yourself."

She exhaled the smoke through her nostrils, and shuddered pleasurably. "Oh, Yavara; I can't wait until your coronation night. I guess it's a good thing your favorite hole isn't the right one. No need to fear transforming you. I'll fuck your tight little asshole until you're shitting my cum."

"Promises, promises." I sneered.

"I have six credible witnesses that can testify to my prowess," she sneered back, "They all called me 'Master' before the end. Even Furia. When Adrianna gets back, I'll—"

"WHAT?!"

"Oh, you didn't know?" Leveria grinned wickedly, "Zander exiled her; he didn't kill her. I'll be granting her a full pardon."

I was nearly overcome with emotion. I wiped away an impending tear, sniffled, and smiled. "That's so good to hear."

"D'aw, you're just a little sweetheart now, aren't you?" Leveria laughed, and punched out her cigarette on my door. "Anyway, the hybrids have been getting the people together on the streets outside. We've got quite a bit of explaining to do before you formally coronate me." Leveria grinned, "I want it to be you who puts the crown on my head, just so you know that I own your little ass."

"Little? It's certainly bigger than yours," I said, then drew my eyes down to her codpiece, and purred, "and deeper." Leveria's codpiece jolted, and I sneered. "So responsive; like a trained dog. My dear sister, I do believe it is I who owns your ass."

"Just get that fat ass downstairs," she grumbled.

The castle had been blessedly emptied before I made my journey down the steps. I led the way before Leveria, and though she tried to jostle in front of me many times, I simply moved my fat ass in front of her, and blocked her way in the narrow corridors. If this was to be a coronation ceremony, then I was still the queen. She grumbled and growled her way down the winding staircase, and finally walked hastily past me before we reached the throne room's atrium. There were two people waiting for me there. Certiok Terdini gazed upon me with comingled loathing and satisfaction, and Drake Titus simply looked upon me with pity.

"You look so pale and sickly, Your Highness." Titus said.

"Even after everything, you still call me 'Your Highness?'"

"But of course. You're still royalty, are you not?"

Certiok spat on the ground. "I have no problem calling you what you are, you weak white-skinned slut! This is what you always were on the inside anyway!"

I just nodded, and walked past her. There was nothing I could say to Certiok that would do either of us any good.

"Your Highness," Titus said, taking my arm, "if you're interested, our original agreement still stands."

"You were so reluctant to give me that offer the first time." I raised a questioning brow, "Now you give it freely?"

"Freely?" He laughed, "No, of course not. If all goes as planned, you will be queen of the Highlands."

"Hedging your bets, Titus?" I smirked, and looked toward Leveria, "Or did she refuse your offer?"

His lip twitched. "Your sister is... well, she's a much tougher negotiator than you."

Leveria laughed at Titus. "It's very easy to negotiate when I have all the leverage. If you don't like it, I suggest you go back to Ardeni Dreus and see how well they receive you."

Titus scowled. "I am having regrets about you, Leveria."

"Your Highness." Leveria hissed, and elevated Titus from the floor with a spell, "I'm not trying to be your best buddy, Drake. I am your queen, and you are a self-serving treacherous little rat. If you want your blood in my veins, then you will have to earn it." She dropped Titus, looked at him like he was a piece of shit, then smiled warmly to Certiok. "Certiok, would you do me the honor of announcing our procession?"

"Certainly, Your Highness." Certiok beamed, and strolled past Leveria. Leveria gave the she-orc's plump rump a hearty smack, and Certiok grinned approvingly over her shoulder before disappearing behind the threshold. Her voice carried loud and true when it announced, "All hail Queen Regent Yavara Tiadoa, and Princess Leveria Alkandra!"

Her voice echoed in the adjacent hall, and though there was silence in its wake, it was not an empty silence, but a pregnant one. Hundreds of beasts were in that room, and tens of thousands were on the steps and in the streets outside. They'd all been assembled, and had been expecting me to give a rousing speech the morning before the battle. So when they heard me called by my old name, and my sister called by my new one, the cheer that had been poised on their lips was torn away, and only a stunned silence remained. Leveria enjoyed the silence as much as I hated it. She took a deep breath, then another one, and let them out slowly through her nose. She turned, and extended her hand to me. I took it, our fingers interlocked, and we walked hand-in-hand through the threshold.

LEVERIA

The throne room was full. Only a thin strip of open floor divided the myriad beasts that packed around the columns and into the balconies and alcoves. When I'd first entered the expansive hall, it had been filled with raucous revelry and motion. Today, it was as if the people that lined the room were statues. Only their eyes moved as they flitted from me to Yavara, uncomprehending of what they were witnessing. The six hybrids stood in their white robes upon the steps leading to the Black Throne, their faces cast in solemn ceremony. I threw back my shoulders, tilted my chin, and walked boldly through the beasts, a vision of sex and power, an empress of debauchery and violence. Or rather, that's what I would've done if the dead weight in my hand hadn't yanked me backward, causing me to stumble awkwardly and nearly fall on my ass. I whirled my head around, and glared at my little sister.

"What?!" I hissed.

She swallowed, her eyes wide and trembling. "I can't do this!"

"Are you fucking serious right now?!"

"Just do it yourself!"

"I need you to legitimize me, or they'll tear me apart!" I gestured at her, "They'll tear us both apart!"

"You're good at explaining things, why don't you just—"

"Yavara," I said, clasping my other hand over our joined grip, "the people are terrified, and they're watching us right now wondering what the fuck is going on. They are about ten seconds from deciding to just ransack the castle, and make a run for the forest, but they're going to rape us to death before they do that. So please, for the love of god, stop being such a fucking pussy."

Yavara nodded tentatively, and stepped forward. Though she trembled visibly, and though she moved with the stiffness of a board, she walked with me through the rows of beasts, and bore the incredible weight of their gazes. Each step felt like an eternity, and every footfall could be heard echoing through the hall. It seemed as though we made no progress to the hybrids until we were finally at the stairs. Once there, Yavara relaxed somewhat, and I allowed her to lead me up each of the stone steps toward the Black Throne. Zander stood next to the ebony chair, holding a black crown in his hand. It was different than the one Yavara had worn. This one was an elaborate and ornate piece of iron encrusted with orange gems that glowed with astral power. He must've made it himself. How cute. He and Yavara exchanged meaningful looks, then she reached the step before the throne, and turned around. I stopped where I was, and got on one knee. I heard the shuffle of hybrid robes when they knelt, and following their cue, the masses behind us all knelt as well.

Yavara stood in silence for a moment, looking out at the hundreds of beasts in the hall, the thousands that littered the steps beyond the open doors, and the tens of thousands that witnessed the moment from the streets below. She swallowed, took a deep breath, and held an astral gemstone against her voice-box.

"People of Alkandra, brothers and sisters, mothers and daughters, sons and fathers. I understand that you are all likely very... very confused right now." Yavara laughed nervously, and was answered with thundering silence. I could feel the tension in the air like a physical thing, suppressing my bowed shoulders. Yavara cleared her throat. "Before I explain what has happened, I just want to say that it has been an honor and a pleasure to be your queen. You all have proven to the world that those deemed 'beasts' can form a great and strong society. Though Alkandra is named after one woman, it is you who are Alkandra. Long after I am gone, long after the Dark Queen is gone, Alkandra will endure and thrive, and it is you who will make that happen. Thank you." Yavara paused, and there was a smattering of applause that was quickly silenced. She swallowed again, and knitted her fingers.