Sisterhood - Temptation Ch. 50

"Hrissa'ul," Marianne intoned the word quietly this time, in a deeper, soothing voice. She sounded also slightly out of breath. "Sisters. The Goddess thanks you. And so do we all, all yrranahi under her protection and under the protection of the Sisterhood. Mrikht," she paused then lifted her arms, "The boon, is upon us. Take it."

Reeling from the shock and relief of her escape from Leah, the disbelieving joy of having survived with her deception intact, Katharina lifted her arms in a daze. When she looked around she saw that the other Sisters were not imitating Marianne's gesture, but were simply standing behind their final partners, at ease, relaxed, their heads hung down. Katharina quickly followed suit and let her arms fall.

As she waited, her nervousness crept back. For just a moment, she had forgotten what she had done. She had come inside a girl, inside Leah. This had surely not been part of the rite as intended. Miriam would have told her that, or there would have been some indication from the others. She looked to her sides to make out the other girls as best she could from beneath her hood. She could not tell whether any of their partners' pussies were oozing with cum, but it did not seem that they were. The wetness around Leah's opening, and across her thighs and the cushions, was conspicuous. It even glistened on the stone side of the altar. And even if Katharina were not found out now, there was the dreadful possibility that Leah would become pregnant. Katharina could only hope that it would not occur. It wasn't a surety, after all.

Leah at least appeared to be well and to have recovered from her strange fit. She was breathing deeply, her chest rising and falling, and her head was moving, snuggling against the cushions as if in sleep.

Katharina's ruminations were interrupted by what felt like a hand on her head, from above. She startled. But the sensation was ephemeral, on closer examination not the clear touch of a real hand. More like a prickling glow at her scalp, the pleasant, tingling feeling of being touched but without any discernable physical pressure. She hesitated, but glanced up to look at the other Sisters. She needed to know what to do. Ahead at the center of the altar the pillar of blue flame was fading, sinking back into the small circular depression from which it had arisen. As it faded, the space of the garden was bathed in a clearer light. The light of the dawn sun, now fully risen and showing the colors of the grass and the stone, the green of the robes, the tan and pink of the dmurrhisi girls' bodies. Katharina glanced briefly higher, lifting her head until she could see the other Sisters. They remained standing, their heads bowed. But above each of their heads was gathered a misty cloud of the same blue light from the flame, shifting and hovering. This, Katharina assumed, was the source of the ghostly touch she felt.

Despite all her anxiousness, the gradually gnawing guilt at what she had done, Katharina's skin prickled with excitement. If the flame itself had not already been confirmation enough of the reality of the Sisterhood's magic, this now dispelled any lingering doubt. It was at first difficult to distinguish the tingle she felt on her scalp from the excitement that now animated her body and lifted the hairs on her skin, but then there came upon her a sudden and unmistakably external warmth, sinking into her from above and spreading out through her chest then on into her limbs. It felt like a tonic, animating her heartbeat, flooding her muscles with readiness, and her chest with a directionless but powerful sense of strength and energy, and joy.

"Mrikht," Marianne said softly. After a pause, she continued, "So Sisters, your ka'ini have been dedicated to the Goddess, to the service, and to the pleasure, of the Sisterhood. Take them. And treat them well. Good day."

Katharina almost giggled at Marianne's quaint phrasing, at the odd formality of her parting formula. The rush of vigor that was now pulsing through her, and that was presumably what Marianne had referred to as 'the boon', animated Katharina with a childish giddiness, a pressing desire to laugh, to run or to flex, to exercise herself and expend her energy.

One detail struck Katharina as very curious, and almost worried her except that she found her worry swept away by an innocent curiosity, part of the exuberant confidence that had possessed her. She could taste quite distinctly in her mouth a metallic flavor. It felt oddly like the taste of her mouth watering in anticipation of eating or drinking, or maybe the faint tang of salivation that sometimes accompanies a particularly intense orgasm. But her mouth was not watering, and the taste was much more concentrated, almost overpowering.

Katharina looked up, smiling. She almost forgot herself and clasped her fingers to the edges of her hood to throw it back, but then let go. The power of the boon, clearly some sort of benediction from the Goddess, was propelling her with confidence, more of it than she was accustomed to. She had to master herself, and to rein it in. She held her senses alert to her own thoughts and actions, watching herself. It felt a little like being slightly drunk, but knowing it and trying to compensate.

She observed as the other Sisters fell back from the circle and the light about their heads faded and then was gone. There was a murmuring of movement, the sound of girls exhaling, perhaps readying themselves to talk. But then to Katharina's relief nobody actually spoke. Instead each robed figure relaxed and stepped away. Some sighed deeply, some flexed their arms or stretched their legs.

One by one, clearly in no particular hurry, some of the other Sisters stepped up to the altar and each unbound the hands of one of the dmurrhisi girls from the iron rail on the altar. Marianne was first, her bulky hips distinct beneath her robe, wisps of red hair at the edges of her hood. She stepped closer to Katharina and unknotted the cloth around Caroline's wrists. Then Lisa untied Josephine, and then another girl stepped up.

Katharina sprang forward to copy. As she bent over Leah, she noticed again the mess of wetness across the folds of the girl's pussy, her legs, and the cushions. Among the smears of the liquid there were a few more viscous streaks of cum, that stood out to Katharina as obvious. Hurriedly, she gathered up one corner of her long robe and bunched it in her hand before pressing it between Leah's thighs. She swept it around, dabbing and scrubbing as discreetly as she could, rubbing it into the cushions as well. When she lifted it away, there remained a simpler dark patch of wetness, one that might believably be only sweat and the secretions of Leah's pussy.

Katharina leaned further over the altar and reached to untie the strip of cloth around Leah's wrists and hands. But as the knot came loose she felt a hand on her shoulder, definitely a real hand this time, and she startled.

"Uh-uh," Julie's sweet voice was tinged with a giggling laughter, "This one is mine."

Of course. Katharina chided herself. Leah was Julie's ka'ini now. Katharina stepped back, nodding, letting her hood fall further over her face. She refrained from looking at Julie and turned away with a gesture of deference. She found that it nagged her a little, having to cede Leah to Julie now. Without realizing it, the unconscious assumption had crept up on Katharina that she would somehow be taking possession of one of the girls herself, and that that girl would be Leah. What had happened at the altar with Leah, though it filled her with foreboding, also curiously bound her to the girl, made her feel as if they were lovers. But most likely Leah did not even know who had come inside her. She probably did not even realize that it had happened. She had seemed only half conscious during her spasm.

Observing the other Sisters, Katharina saw now that they had all finished untying their respective new ka'ini. Katharina looked around for Marianne, to see what would be expected of her next. She saw to her surprise that Marianne had lifted Caroline's bulky, unconscious body and slung it over one shoulder. Marianne turned, Caroline's limp arms swinging behind her, draped down Marianne's back. Katharina's surprise deepened as she watched Marianne stride over to a pile of high-heeled shoes that lay discarded on the stone paving beside the tunnel entrance to the garden, then bend with ease, with Caroline still on her shoulder, and pick out two of the shoes before stepping into them and tying them around her ankles.

Marianne turned and strode away, ducking into the tunnel and stepping carefully down the first few stairs until she was out of sight. Another figure followed, likewise with a dmurrhisi girl slung over her shoulder, the taller one with thick dark hair who was wearing a long dress. When this second figure slid her legs out from under her robe to step into a pair of shoes, Katharina recognized Anna. Anna seemed to turn and look at Katharina once more before departing, and Katharina saw the same shining confident smile on Anna's lips. Then she too was gone down the tunnel.

Katharina turned back to the altar. Only one dmurrhisi girl still lay face down on the cushions, her very first partner, who was presumably Miriam's new ka'ini. Katharina approached her, and realized only then that she had in fact seen the girl before. The girl's long and distinctive silver-dyed hair was bright in the gathering daylight, and lay pooled in waves across the cushions around her head. One of the other Sisters had untied the girl's hands already, and removed her gag and her blindfold. Katharina saw a sliver of the girl's face behind her hair, and the pink streaks across her pale skin at her temple and her cheek, the imprint of the tight tie of the cloths. This was a girl she had seen somewhere in the North Wing, perhaps more than once, only she could not remember where exactly. The hair stood out, and so too did the girl's striking figure, narrow at the waist but plump and soft below the hips.

Cautiously, Katharina put her arms around the girl where she lay. She crept her fingers under the girl's body to take a firm hold of her. Her stomach was slim but soft, and very warm against the cushions. Katharina's finger snagged on something. The lattice of fine silver chains with which the girl's body was adorned. She slipped it aside and then leaned back to test the girl's weight. Katharina almost gasped aloud when she found herself lifting the girl with ease into the air. She staggered back, surprised by the swiftness of her own movement. The girl was small, and her figure was slim, apart from the striking big bulge of her hips and her backside. Still, it should not be so easy to lift her. Katharina recalled having lifted Mari at the dance, and even that had not been as easy as this.

Katharina got her footing and then hefted the girl once more. Her body was completely slack, and offered no assistance, yet Katharina found that with a flex of her arms she could easily heave the girl over her shoulder, just as Marianne had done with Caroline, and Anna had done with her girl. Katharina stood for a moment, testing, worried that whatever magic was levitating the girl might dispel. But then it dawned on her, and she noticed with a clear sureness that the girl was not somehow levitating, nor was she lighter than she should be. It was the curious strength of the boon in Katharina's muscles that was propelling her. She could tell, as she adjusted, that the girl was indeed heavy. She could judge the weight, feel it, and it was definitely greater than Mari's weight. But Katharina's arms were animated with power, moved with greater ease than before, and the muscles of her thighs and her calves were taut and steady, holding her firmly upright.

Katharina flexed her legs. She enjoyed the feeling of strength, of suppleness. Curiously, the notion that most captured her imagination was how good she must look, taut and strong, how desirable she felt, now charged with the power of the Sisterhood's magic. This was the Goddess' blessing. And if Katharina had indeed done something wrong at the altar with Leah, then the Goddess did not seem to care. Katharina felt somehow, tentatively, absolved. She stood for some moments longer, luxuriating in her power, and in the thrill of her clandestine achievement, her remorse pushed temporarily aside.

She watched the other Sisters gather their ka'ini. Lauren lifted Emmie, and the girl's huge breasts flopped free of her flimsy black lace chestband and slouched against her face as she was turned upside-down. Julie was already gone, disappearing down the tunnel after Anna. Lauren and then another girl who Katharina could not distinguish beneath her hood, followed.

Finally only Lisa remained. Katharina recognized her because she had drawn back her hood. Lisa's temples were damp with sweat and her fine black hair clung to her face. She had Josephine, naked, in her arms, draped across them. Though limp, Josephine was stirring, her pretty face knotted in a frown and her fists clenching and unclenching. Lisa knelt and laid Josephine out on her back across the cushions of the altar. Then she stood and lifted her arms to cast off her robe completely. Lisa's tall, slim body was bared, her faintly tan skin glistening with sweat in the beam of leaf-filtered sunlight that now shone onto the altar. Lisa's dick was long and fully stiff. As she knelt and spread her legs, poised above Josephine's body, Lisa turned and looked at Katharina, her dark eyebrows creasing into a questioning frown.

Startled, Katharina turned away before Lisa could speak. She hefted the girl on her shoulder, shunting her closer to her neck and wrapping her arm up around the girl's waist, then she made for the tunnel and ducked under its arch and into the dimness.

Katharina trod very carefully on the stairs for the first several seconds after the gloom of underground enveloped her. But she found quickly that she did not need to move with as much caution as she had thought. Even before her eyes adjusted she felt a solid surety to her step. The new strength in her legs kept them perfectly poised, their movements acute and thoughtlessly smooth.

The curious power of the Goddess' boon throbbed through Katharina's muscles. The metallic tang, too, lingered in her mouth. But the euphoria and the excitement that had overcome her at the conclusion of the rite were ebbing. It was Lisa that had unsettled her. Katharina doubted that Lisa had recognized her. Katharina had kept herself well cloaked, and there had been no flash of surprise on Lisa's face, only a mild irritation, or curiosity perhaps. But for the briefest moment Katharina had felt sure she was about to be discovered, and revisiting that moment now her mind set to work on all the ways in which she might still fail to escape detection.

The thought of Lisa at the altar reminded Katharina that she still did not have a clear idea of what she was doing. Why had Lisa of all the Sisters remained in the walled garden with her ka'ini Josephine after the others had left? The detail seemed arbitrary, and perhaps it was indeed inconsequential. But if it were not, then there might other aspects of the rite that had yet to be fulfilled, in its aftermath. Katharina had assumed that she should now hurry to bring her girl back to Miriam's chambers, to return her to Miriam, along with the robe. But what if there was some other final task? One that was obvious but that she had somehow missed, or that Miriam had omitted. Katharina found she was becoming now less and less sure that she could trust Miriam.

As they spiraled, her thoughts orbited around the image of Lisa kneeling naked over Josephine at the altar. A piece of information surfaced in her memory, something she knew about Lisa. Lisa was a doctor. She had finished medical school before joining the Sisterhood, and occasionally she tended to other girls if they fell ill. Perhaps then Lisa had been about to examine Josephine or offer her medical assistance for some reason. But why Josephine? Why not Leah? Clearly Lisa, like the others, had remained unaware of what was happening to Leah during the final round of the rite.

Katharina was reminded again of what had happened to her when locked inside Leah's spasming body. And reminded also of how just now before leaving the garden she had hurried to mop up the evidence from between Leah's legs and then simply stepped aside to let Julie carry Leah away. Katharina felt now profoundly ashamed of herself. The arcane knowledge that she had won for herself about the rite and about the Sisterhood's magic seemed suddenly very poor compensation for what she had done, hardly justified it.

Katharina found herself at the foot of the staircase, her thoughts having carried her unaware all the way down. She peered out through the arched gateway and saw the stage of the amphitheater, the chamber now brighter and colored in the daylight. The space seemed still, was silent.