Royal Flush Ch. 06

"The road to Olympus has many trials," Voluptua continued. "Are you ready to be tested? Do you take this road willingly?"

"I take this road willingly."

"You must be proven with the trial of fire. To be accepted into Olympus a goddess must bring fire from the heights and down to the people. Do you accept this trial?"

"I accept this trial willingly."

"Bring forth the fire of the gods!" Voluptua ordered a little over pompously. Tamsin couldn't help smile to herself as she imagined the bossy schoolgirl of all those years ago whose dorm games had evolved into this nonsense. Secret societies and all this trial of fire tosh; really!

Odyne fetched two candlesticks from an alcove at the side of the dais. She lit one before placing it on the dais at the foot of the statue. She then took the other and the assembled Dommes and handmaidens moved to the sides of the temple so that it could be placed on the floor at the far end of the room. When she returned to the dais, she went back to the alcove and returned with a yet a third candle, one that was longer and thicker than the others. She handed this to Voluptua.

"Let the neophyte see the trial before her!"

Odyne removed the blindfold. Andrea, blinking somewhat, glanced about her.

"Your trial is to carry the fire of the gods from Pan to the people. Use this candle to lighten their darkness."

Andrea knelt up and reached for the candle with her linked hands but Voluptua held the candle out of reach.

"To show proper humility the supplicant may use neither hand nor mouth to carry the flame. At befits one as yet untested, she must remain on her knees so that the candle can be suitably positioned. Bow down and kiss the feet of the statue so that you may be properly prepared."

'Here we go,' Tamsin thought to herself. As she had suspected, for all Voluptua's grand words and semi mystical nonsense, this was just another sex game. When Andrea turned and bent forward to kiss the statue's feet her backside was presented straight towards the temple. Voluptua dipped the bottom end of the candle in a pot that Odyne was now holding and stirred it around. As she took it out again she held it by the middle to reveal that the bottom had been shaped so that, whilst nothing when compared to the one currently lodged in Tamsin's backside, it was still effectively a butt plug. Voluptua leant down and, with as much ceremony as she could muster, separated Andrea's buttock cheeks with one hand and, with the other, pushed the candle firmly against Andrea's sphincter. Then, with a certain amount of twisting back and forth, Voluptua pushed it deep into Andrea until her sphincter could grip the groove that had been carved around it for exactly that purpose. Whatever had been in the pot must have been some sort of lubricant for, although Tamsin had seen Andrea's backside clench, and Voluptua had to push quite hard at first, once the candle had passed the sphincter, it had slid straight in without too many problems.

"Have a care, goddess Pheme. Do not allow the flame to fall or die for to fail at either will have its forfeit. And time is of the essence; should you tarry too long and the candle will burn too short you will surely fail." She reached down and unclipped the leash. "You may begin."

As Andrea was about to demonstrate, there can be few things less dignified than crawling around with a candle pushed up your backside. Her first difficulty was getting it lit. She backed up towards the candle at Pan's feet but, in order to see what she was doing, she had look back between her spread thighs and perform endless undignified contortions. Tamsin glanced around at the Dommes. All were smiling and waiting for Pheme to falter. Tamsin guessed that most, if not all, had been through this at some point and all would be aware of the contortions needed just to get this bit done. And that would only be the start of her problems. Andrea had been warned to hurry but even the smallest movement of her thighs made the candle wave about wildly and, after only a yard or so of the first attempt and several yards the second, this waving about was enough to extinguish the candle forcing her to go back and relight it. What is more, although the candle was maybe twelve inches long and more than an inch thick, being on its side meant that it burnt much faster. The backs of Andrea's calves were quickly getting spattered with wax where the candle was dripping.

But even that wasn't the full extent of Andrea's problems. Although the candle was grooved like a butt plug the groove was not that deep and, with the best will in the world, Andrea's bodily reflexes were trying to expel it. On her third attempt Andrea managed to crawl the whole length of the room but, as she was turning so as to reverse up to the unlit candle, she lost her grip and the candle fell to the floor to the jeers and merriment of the onlookers. On Voluptua's orders Andrea had to blow out the flame and pick up the candle in her teeth so as to return it to the dais where it was refitted. She took great care to pick up the candle by the right end as she did so.

As Andrea set off for the fourth time there was a look of determination on her face that Tamsin recognised. For Andrea this had gone way beyond some silly game she was playing so as to become accepted into the club; she wanted to win. Like Tamsin, Andrea would know, or at least guess, that all the other Dommes had tried this and succeeded. This time, Andrea was simply not going to let herself fail. She relit the candle and set of, slowly but surely, along the floor. With great care, she turned around and started to reverse up towards the unlit candle. It was difficult for her, looking back between her legs, to see where she was going and she nearly knocked the candle over on her first approach but she tried again and, this time.... The whole room seemed to hold its breath.

"Bravo! Bravo!" Voluptua called out and there were similar cries and a round of applause from the goddesses. "The task has been completed and you are on your way to glory. However, you failed three times along the way. Twice did the fire fail and once did it strike the ground. For these sins there is a price that must be paid. Remain on your knees as you approach the statue."

With the candle now lit Andrea, with an air of relief, expelled the candle from her backside before crawling back across the room towards the dais. Odyne went over and, rather carefully, picked up both the discarded end along with the candle Andrea had just lit and, following behind Andrea, brought them back and tidied them away.

"Three times you failed," Voluptua said as Andrea knelt before her. "Three times the flame did not reach the people. To shrive you of these failures you must become one with Pan, you must give yourself up to him, surrender to him. Are you willing to be his bride?"

'Here we go,' Tamsin thought to herself. 'As soon as I saw that statue I knew someone was going to be impaled on it. At least it isn't me... yet.'

"I am willing," Andrea replied.

"Prepare the way," Voluptua ordered.

Odyne came out from the wings with a block which was maybe six or seven inches higher than the plinth on which the statue stood. This she placed in front of the statue as a sort of step. Andrea was helped up onto it and, slightly to Tamsin's surprise, arranged not facing the statue but out into the room. The statue's phallus must have been jabbing between Andrea's buttocks but neither Voluptua nor Odyne made any move to impale her. Then Voluptua got up on the block and lifted Andrea's arms up, over her head so that she could use a quick release clip to attach the chain that ran between Andrea's wrists to the metal bar running between Pan's upraised hands. There was plenty of slack and Andrea was able to grasp the bar with her hands. As she did so the statue wobbled a bit but the ceiling chain stopped it from falling. Voluptua then stepped back down off the block and faced the room.

"Where is Alethia, handmaiden to Pheme?" Voluptua demanded.

'Her handmaiden! Oh god, that's me. I thought it was too good to last,' Tamsin thought to herself. Chelone, behind her, nudged her forward and Tamsin, still on her knees, shuffled into the centre of the room.

"Approach, Alethia, approach and assist your Goddess."

Tamsin shuffled across the room until she reached the dais. Voluptua and Odyne helped her up and across the dais until she was in front of where Andrea hung from the statue.

"Alethia, as handmaiden to Pheme, it is your duty to prepare your Goddess, to make her ready for Pan. Open her up, prepare her womanhood, make her bounty flow that she might accept Pan with ease."

Tamsin put two and two together, untangled Voluptua's appalling prose, and realised what was required of her. Knelt directly on the dais she was too low but, by kneeling on the edge of the block that Andrea was stood on, her head was level with Andrea's groin and she was in the right position to 'make Andrea's bounty flow', as Voluptua had so theatrically put it. This was a bit of a milestone for Tamsin. It was one thing being forced into sexual acts with strangers; it was quite another to do so with a work colleague. Although quite a few of the barriers between them had been brought down by this assignment this was going to be the first time that they had actually had any sexual contact. Still, there was no way out and, for a change, it was Andrea, not Tamsin, who was strung up and on display in front of a lascivious crowd. Tamsin leant forward and probed her tongue between Andrea's nether lips.

Slightly to Tamsin's surprise Andrea wasn't as immune to all these games as she made out. For all that she had taken the mickey out of Tamsin's penchant for puppy play and had held herself aloof as she did so, there was something about this particular game that had got to her and her juices were already flowing quite freely. Andrea reached up and grasped the bar from which she was suspended and spread her legs as far as she could. She still had her feet firmly on the block but she was at full stretch which opened her up and invited Tamsin in.

As Tamsin's tongue worked its magic between Andrea's thighs she became aware of the expectant silence in the room. All eyes were upon them and were waiting for the next part. Andrea's arousal was getting more and more obvious but surely that on its own wasn't enough. A simple orgasm while hanging from the statue couldn't possibly count as 'becoming Pan's bride'. No, those who watched knew what was coming next and that was what was causing the anticipation.

Andrea was beginning to lose control. She was thrusting her groin forward and little moans of pleasure were being forced out of her. Just how much of Andrea's willingness to play along was feigned and how much was real had become a moot question. Her orgasm was fast approaching and there was nothing feigned about that.

"Are you ready? Are you ready for your god?" Voluptua asked, studying Andrea to gauge how close she was to her climax.

"Just a little more, please, just a little more," Andrea gasped. "Just... just... just..."

"Turn and face your god!" Voluptua ordered and she tugged Tamsin away. Voluptua and Odyne between them quickly turned Andrea around so that she faced the statue and Voluptua herself guided Andrea to impale herself on the phallus.

"Are you ready to enter paradise? Are you ready to give yourself up to Pan?"

"Yes, yes, I am! I am!" Andrea replied as she changed her grip on the bar between Pan's hands and, using it to gain purchase, squirmed against the statue, shamelessly rutting herself on the phallus.

"Then feel his power!" And, with that, Voluptua and Odyne pushed the statue so that it rocked backwards taking Andrea with it. The top fell maybe a couple of feet before the chain, which had been surreptitiously adjusted by Voluptua, snapped tight holding the statue at an angle with Andrea now astride it, one leg dangling either side, her weight supported by her arms and, more pertinently, the phallus which was buried to the hilt within her.

Although those watching had been expecting, nay waiting for this, there was still a collective gasp of sympathy as the statue's phallus was rammed so forcefully home. However, to be fair to Voluptua, she had waited until Andrea's grip on the bar was sufficiently firm that, when the statue fell, she could hold herself up by her arms and not rely on the phallus inside her for support. What is more, now that it was in this tilted position Tamsin could see how Pan's shaggy goat legs had been carved to form a sort of saddle which Andrea could grip with her thighs. Indeed, it was now clear that the statue had been designed to be ridden in this way. And riding it was exactly what Andrea was doing. Once she had adjusted to the new angle she was surrendering herself to Pan, just as she had been exhorted. And it wasn't all show, either. In fact, as Andrea flexed the muscles of her buttocks you could see the phallus glisten from her juices as it worked its way in and out of her. Although she would almost certainly use the excuse of 'doing it to gain acceptance' she wasn't entirely averse to what was being done to her.

"How many times did Pheme fail the trial of fire?" Voluptua called out to the room.

"Three! Three times she failed!" came the shout in reply.

"So how many times must she be shriven?"

"Three times! Three times!"

Voluptua went to the side of the dais and returned with a long wooden paddle.

"And is the supplicant ready to receive her penance?"

"Yes, I am ready," Andrea replied, her voice rather shaky. She had stopped working herself against the statue and was looking apprehensively over her shoulder.

Thwapp! Thwapp! Thwapp! Voluptua struck Andrea across the backside.

"Thank you, goddess Voluptua," Andrea gasped but, if she thought that was it, she was sorely mistaken. One by one, in slow procession, each of the Dommes present were called to the dais and, one by one they too gave Andrea three blows with the paddle. Each time Andrea would thank her tormentor but, with each set of three, she was losing control. Her backside was a fiery red and her thanks were getting ever more strained. What's more, her squirming from the blows combined with the increasing struggle to hold herself up which meant that the statue was doing what it had been designed to do. Time and again, whether through pain or pleasure, Andrea squirmed and shuddered as the statue did it's thing.

At last the final blows fell.

"The ordeal is over, be as one with the great god Pan!" Voluptua ordered.

Whether faked or real, Andrea worked herself against the statue, grinding herself down so that the carved 'pubic hair' would rub against her most sensitive flesh until, with an animal cry, she impaled herself as far as she could go and the whole room seemed to exhale. The flow of her juices down the thighs of the statue told their own tale. In the end there had been nothing faked at all.

"Behold our new goddess!" Voluptua cried out. "Behold sister Pheme! Let none deny that she has paid the price, let none deny that she is now one of us! Behold! Behold!"

The statue was lowered gently until it was parallel with the ground and Andrea could just lie along its length, her weight no longer held by her hands or the hook of the phallus. Drained and exhausted, she just lay there for a while. She was too spent to move, too spent even to pull herself forward so as to remove the phallus from between her thighs. Voluptua went over and undid the wrist cuffs before gently easing Andrea off the statue and helping her onto her feet. She was still holding her upright as she led her to the front of the dais where she was met by rapturous cheering from the congregation.

Whilst Voluptua was leading Andrea to the front of the dais, Odyne had fetched a brand new peplos and handed it to Voluptua who fitted it over Andrea's shoulders before giving her a sensuous kiss.

"Welcome, Pheme, welcome to the club," Tamsin heard Voluptua say sotto voce. "Now, you're probably a bit sore down below. I know I certainly was when it was my time to ride the statue. Can I suggest that you get one of the handmaidens to kiss it better? Take your pick and enjoy yourself, no one will deny you that. Oh, and don't worry about Alethia, we'll look after that pretty little maid of yours."

While Voluptua was still finishing off fitting the peplos Andrea was being inundated with well-wishers. There was a general feeling that she had given a good account of herself and, as with Voluptua, there was an assumption that Pheme would wish to celebrate her ascension to deity by making use of the services of one or more of the handmaidens. Of course, the natural corollary of this was that, should any of the Dommes wish to make use of Tamsin's services, then she was equally available and Tamsin's novelty value was making her popular. However, there was absolutely nothing that Tamsin could do about it so her only option was to kneel next to Andrea and await her fate.

As the Dommes chatted a handmaiden appeared carrying a tray of drinks and they each took a glass and clinked them together with a hearty 'cheers'. Tamsin sincerely wished that she too could imbibe. A stiff drink, preferably vodka, was just what she needed. However, for the moment, she was going to have to go without.

It was Chelone who made the first move.

"I've been admiring your Alethia all night," she said quite openly. "Such a pretty little thing. Stand up, girl."

Tamsin got to her feet. Chelone lifted her chin and looked her in the eye and Tamsin smiled nervously back at her.

"A little timid, perhaps, but then the timid ones are often the most fun. Do you mind if I borrow her for a while?"

"No, no, be my guest," Andrea replied. "Alethia, off you go, and don't let me down."

Chelone took Tamsin and Thalia, who had been patiently waiting beside her, and led the two of them to one of the alcoves, where, once they were inside, she closed the curtains and lay back on the chaise longue. She undid the belt of her peplos and, as she did so, the material slipped to one side revealing that she was naked beneath.

"Thalia, sweetie, poor Alethia has had her arms behind her back for hours. Unfasten her wrists and loosen her up a bit. You know what I mean."

Thalia went behind Tamsin and undid the clip holding her wrist cuffs together. It had, indeed, been hours and Tamsin's shoulders were stiff and awkward. Even so she had mixed feelings as Thalia stood behind her and massaged her shoulder blades. It wasn't the massage, per se, that bothered her, rather it was the way this was being done as some sort of show for Chelone's amusement. However, as always, she was out of options. If she didn't play along, if she let her true feelings be known, she and Andrea would be thrown out of the club and all their hard work would be wasted. But it was more than just playing along; she had to be seen to be actively enjoying this 'sexy fun', not just enduring but actively welcoming the abuse. She leant back into Thalia and tried her best to fake arousal.

But, if Tamsin was faking it, then Thalia certainly wasn't. Still standing behind Tamsin she moved on from the massage by wrapping one arm around to play with Tamsin's breasts while the other went for her groin. What's more, Thalia was no novice and, while Tamsin generally preferred a less direct approach, Thalia's fingers were gentle and soothing and it wasn't that hard to relax into her caresses. Tamsin glanced down at Chelone whose hand had slipped under the folds of her peplos and she was openly playing with herself. Tamsin, with gritted teeth behind her smile, determined that, if watching her 'slaves' play with one another was what turned Chelone on, then that was what she was going to get. If Andrea could ingratiate herself by getting off on being raped by a statue then playing along at being some sort of erotic dancer was next to nothing. She leaned her head back, turned towards Thalia who was looking over her shoulder and kissed her on the lips.