Steampunk Harlots Ch. 35

"What did I just say!" Liddy yelled.

****

Leira was happy with the new dial on the side of her tub. It let her set the temperature of the water. While she was perfectly suited to the cold temperatures, something she credited to her extra fleshy figure, she prefered it a bit warmer.

"I think I was meant to be a tropical fish," she commented.

"You do have the pretty colours for it," came a voice from the hall.

Leira turned to see the four-armed woman resting on her snake-body in the hall. Her snake tail hair twitching on its own.

"Thank you. We never really talked before. I'm Leira." She extended her hand to greet her.

"Tonna," one of the pair of right arms came to take her hand in greeting.

"Your scales are so smooth," Leira commented as she ran her fingers over the light line of scales that ran down the back of the arm.

"So are yours. Neither of us were meant to be rough to touch."

Leira stopped herself from directly asking if they were flirting. "Rough can be fun in other ways."

"I'm starting to regret keeping to myself so much in the last two weeks." Tonna pulled Leira off her feet and held her with her four arms to kiss her deeply.

After the kiss, Leira spoke, "We weren't sure what was going on with you. Figured you needed time or whatever."

Tonna felt the breasts of the mermaid inflate as they pressed against her own. "I did need the space. But the funny thing about dealing with issues is that once you are done, you wonder why it took you so damn long. Sometimes."

"I hear that. I'm leaps ahead of where I was when I first joined up. Looking back, I wish I could redo so many things now that I know better. But hey, I'm here now and I have a real family. If calling us that doesn't make sex awkward for you, you are welcome to join." Leira laughed.

"I get what you mean. And I do want to join, hard, right now, but there isn't a lot of room in your tub."

"Oh, the workroom with the bath isn't ready yet. I was supposed to start it filling. Help me move the hose and we can just use Liddy's bed. It's tradition with our crew."

After some wrangling with the hose, hauling it from the dock, up two flights of stairs to the workroom bath, they started the tub to fill. Tonna stripped out of the silk robes Vile had lent her and pushed Leira into the tub with her. Leira responded by turning the hose on Tonna's womanhood, getting a surprised moan in return. After some tumbling, Leira rested on the coiled snake body, letting the hose fall to the side.

"Your snake hair, can you feel with it?"

"Of course. It does have a mind of its own, but I can still feel it and direct it when I want to."

Leira leaned forward, feeling the snake tongue sliding over her breasts as she did so, and took one of the tails from the head into her mouth and pulled away slowly. Tonna moaned again, having never had it done to her before.

"I've been so ashamed of my body. Scared that others only pretend because they are scared or just ignoring it to get what they want from me. I never thought someone would look at me and wonder what they could do to please this body."

"And you just go along with it because you want some intimacy in your life, so you can pretend for a little bit that someone cares?"

"Yes!" Tonna cried, feeling another tail on her head being slowly sucked by the mermaid.

"I used to think the same, and neither of us is wrong. What we are will cause some to react that way. But that's more because we are people, rather than monsters. I've seen regular human women who have to deal with that crap. It's just more obvious for us because nobody tries to hide their issues with Emberborn. I've learned to just live for myself and my friends. They matter. Hateful people don't."

"Thank you. Now, this water is cold and I know we both prefer to be warm."

"Right, back to the original plan then."

Getting out of the bath and letting it fill, Leira went down the stairs, followed by Tonna slithering after her. They went into Liddy's room.

"The captain said I'd be able to stay with her in this room. It's a lot bigger than the rest, and I like being able to sleep on a pile of pillows."

"She also has a huge fetish for our kind. Loves getting fucked by us."

"I saw her with the men who unloaded the clockwork. It was intense."

"Yeah, she goes for it, hard. How about you?"

Tonna slithered onto the bed, using her body to make rings around Leira, who sat watching her move. "Never had anyone since I was made this way. Long story. I miss sex with men so much, but couldn't really indulge myself in the harem. I'd feel too guilty if I pressured one of them into it. The rest were guards I'd rather kill. Had to handle my needs by myself all the time. The men didn't mind that part so much. I just wish they talked to me. They were always so silent. Talking in whispers among themselves. Can't really blame them, they had to satisfy that wretched woman while she made them watch their wives satisfy her guards."

"Yeah, I heard. But I also got to see them reunited. Now you are free. And don't for a moment think this snake body is going to keep men away. Some sure, but that can be said for anyone's body. Me on the other hand..." Leira trailed off as she used her hand to slowly push inside the snake body while keeping her eyes fixed on the snake eyes looking back at her.

"Oh yes... deeper," Tonna muttered, desperate to keep eye contact as the whole fist started to push into her.

Leira suddenly had four hands on her head, pulling her into the breasts of the woman who couldn't resist any longer. She noticed the nipples were tougher looking than a normal person's, so she decided to test them with her teeth and got a pleased scream in response.

Almost desperate to return the favour, Tonna flipped the mermaid around so she could put her tongue deep inside and put all four of her hands to use. One on each breast while another massaged the clit and her last penetrated deep with her tongue. It was then they heard voices and footsteps outside.

****

"Technically, you are present," Leira stated, arm still deep inside Tonna.

"Not before now, and I am certain you have been doing this longer than a few moments," Liddy replied trying to sound terse.

"You don't have any proof of that," Leira rebutted instantly.

Liddy narrowed her eyes. "Everyone, in case you haven't been introduced, this is Tonna. Tell us about yourself Tonna. I think we all need your full story."

Tonna slowly withdrew her tongue from deep inside Leira, who moaned at the long slithering sensation within her core. Eventually, she set Leira down within her coiled body before talking. Still feeling the fist inside her flex and release over and over.

"Well," she started, slightly off guard. "I used to be one of those lowborn girls who was pretty enough and classy enough to pass for highborn as long as I was sleeping with the men who covered for me."

Hannah coughed and Ving cleared her throat while Liddy looked away for a moment.

"That was fun except that I gathered an admirer, who didn't know I was sleeping with anyone or that I wasn't highborn. He thought he found his perfect highborn princess and got a little obsessed. One night he snuck into the garden of the estate I was staying at and started to serenade me. He had opened a window, started his song, then the wind blew the curtains open and he saw me getting my face rammed into the carpet by a man while two more were waiting their turn."

More than a few women present nodded their personal understanding of that situation.

"So he ran away, and I didn't think anything of it. We all laughed while they finished with me. Except he had just run out of view. He listened to the whole thing. Hours, having to hear the woman he was obsessed with, getting savaged by men while talking about the fool with the lute. More than a few crude innuendos were made."

Everyone took a moment to exchange a few instrument-related jokes and puns.

"So, I didn't even know who he was until he caught me fetching wine in the cellar while taking a break with another man months later. He babbled about himself, me, and what I had done. I knew from experience that it's best to let irrational men just say everything they wanted to say rather than interrupt. But then he started saying things that didn't even sound like words. He was putting a curse on me. I promptly started to freak out but I couldn't move. My legs were stuck together. In hindsight, I am glad I was naked at the time."

Leira finally withdrew her hand and listened patiently.

"He said something about my legs never spreading again and my sultry hair would slither like the snake I was. And 'May all men you gaze upon turn to the cold stone you made of my heart'. Then something about my curse growing as I suffer. When it was all over, the first thing I noticed was that I was staring at an extra set of arms. Like my body needed four limbs and if I didn't have legs then more arms. Next was my hair, the snake tails. I used to have pitch black hair and now they are pitch black snakes. Nothing can quite shatter your nerves like a mess of snakes on your head that you can't get off. Also, they hurt when you yank them in a panic."

"Lots of things hurt when you yank them in a panic," Cat commented, getting laughs from every woman who had been accused of pulling on a man too hard.

Tonna smiled. "Yes. The thing that calmed me down was the sight of a stone statue in front of me with the most vindictive smile of arrogance mired by the first hints of confusion. The moron cursed me with something that turned him into stone as soon as it was done."

"What a dumbass!" Emma shook her head.

"Quite. But I still didn't know the whole deal with it. Finding out I had this giant snake body, I freaked out again. Finally noticing something was amiss, the man I had been with came down and turned to stone the moment I saw him. I knew something was wrong and I had to get away. So, a night of trying to move a snake body instead of legs stealthily out of the city later, I was in a cornfield. Longer story short, two more stone men later, I was found by a woman who just screamed and fled."

"How did you learn to control the stone thing?" Inky asked, sensing a pause in the story.

"Well, two things. It gets worse when I suffer. In my case, that means a lack of sex, so getting myself off helped me a lot. Mostly due to the fact he didn't include women in my curse. So I or any other woman can help keep it under control.

"So as long as you have sex with women, you can do the stone thing when you want?" Vile asked, twitching her tails under Inky's skirt.

"Seems like. At first, I just did it to distract me from my shattered life, but I got caught by a farmhand who didn't turn to stone for a full minute after seeing me. My goal was then to get myself off as much as possible so I could at least stop turning people into statues. Of course, I was being hunted and stone statues are big clues. Fleeing people being the other big clues. That's when the Lady found me. I was so hungry and frightened that I agreed to her deal. She said I could have the men in her harem and be safe. Just so long as I turned any to stone if they tried to flee. So yeah, I think that's the short version."

"Damn." Ving summed up the feelings of all the women.

"Well, hopefully, you find peace here."

"That's the plan. Plus, I figure if self-pleasure keeps the curse under control, getting it constantly from others might just break it."

"Your rampant fucking, getting yourself into and out of trouble. I think that should be our motto," Hannah joked.

After some additional laugher, Liddy called things to order again. "Right, well now, moving on. There are four bedrooms, two on either side of this hall. Hannah and Ving, Inky and Vile, Easy and Mari, then Catherine by herself - unless changes get made. See the stairs going up? That goes to the main workrooms, but we won't be taking those stairs yet. Leira, please go make sure the bath doesn't overflow."

Leira sighed heavily and darted up the stairs.

"Moving on, we are through the doors to the rear reception area. Doors to the outside like before, a walkway along the outside of the ship, stairs on either side of the doors to the bedrooms going up to the lounge. Ahead of us, halls down either side like before, but only two workrooms on this level. These are quick-fuck rooms, for clients who just want in and out."

Liddy guided the group down the hall.

"Like before, doors alternate, so only one workroom opens to either side. The door at the front, that goes to the client bathroom. Doors on either side, private stalls. Now we arrive at the main reception."

Liddy stepped up on the grand staircase that led up to the third floor as everyone flooded in to mill about the much larger bar in the shape of a horseshoe in the middle of the room. Hannah leant over, showing off a bright green pair of lace panties that Ving couldn't resist giving a soft spank, as she got herself a drink. Everyone admired the chandeliers and elegant hardwood railings covered in brass that lead up to the lounge.

"We now have a full bar, with the bridge right behind it - behind, of course, meaning the bow of the ship. If we exit out the doors and use the walkway to get to the bow of the ship, we have seats and tables lining the hull, and an outdoor bath on the deck. Now up the stairs."

Liddy led everyone up the stairs. It was wide at the base and converging to a narrow entry into the lounge, although everything was open to see. The lounge itself was magnificent. Seats along the walls with tables between them; there were couch islands, rose bushes, and in the centre towards the rear was a marble fountain yet to be turned on.

"Yes, much nicer than the old ship. Stairs to the rear reception at the back of the lounge. Then through the doors are the workrooms. Three on either side, giving us eight total. Double what we are used to, so less concern about having to resort to our bedrooms. At the far end of the hall, past the stairs to the bedroom, another small couch for clients who might be having difficulties. A place for them to talk about any issues without having to walk back into the lounge or occupy a room."

Every woman remembered a time or several where they had to talk their clients through issues that held things up.

"That's the tour. We still have lots of things on the Lucky Harlot to move over, so go do something useful without getting distracted by sex."

"I've got a script to work out for a show play, I'll hop to it," Ving stated with excitement.

Just before Liddy could reprimand her Vile spoke up, "I need to help someone break a curse. Could take weeks but I am willing to commit my body to the task."

"All right! I'm ordering Inky to conscript everyone. Get our stuff shifted. I need to go see the Duke and get us some practice clients scheduled. I need to make sure these clockworks can function while we work. We need guests who won't get upset if something goes wrong."

****

Blaze had been overwhelmed with meeting the Duke, being treated so casually and with respect. Then she was being fitted with a new arm, one delicate enough to do fine work and touch someone without trouble. She had insisted that it be reinforced and made as durable as possible, since she might not always have time to swap out. When it was done being tuned up, she had to have her shoulder mount modified before it would accept it. All said and done, she was amazed at how easily it moved. If she wore a glove, it would be impossible to tell it was fake without touching it.

"I don't deserve this," she stated, looking at Liddy as they rode the carriage back to the ship.

"No, you deserve your old arm and healed flesh. But that is unfortunately not possible, so you get the closest available alternative."

"Yeah, but you don't even know if any man will want to have a body that looks like this." Blaze indicated her face, the flame scars on her right side reaching up to her eyes.

"I won't lie and say it won't be a factor. Or that it won't be a problem for some. But the same can be said for so many things I can't list them. Some might have an issue with a woman holding a rifle. Going to let that stop you?"

"No, but it's not the same. I can act certain ways if I need to. I can't act like I'm not scared."

"No, but if you accept it, and you have in many regards, then it's more of a hurdle rather than a barrier."

Blaze couldn't refute the logic. She would just have to be as confident as a sexual woman as she was being a soldier.

****

Emma was watching the clockwork servant carefully. Like the world's worst undercover detective. Peeking in from the door so she didn't disturb it, she watched it make the bed in Liddy's room. It carried the dirty sheets downstairs to the rear cargo bay where the laundry machines had been set up, and watched it work. When it was done, it went back to its rest spot and shut down.

"How are they working out?" Hannah asked, Harriot behind her.

"Great! I think..." Emma paused. "They seem to respond to commands alright, but sometimes they can be frustratingly literal with directions."

"Maybe Inky or I should be in charge. They sound like soldiers."

Harriot grinned.

Emma sighed, "I mean, you can tell them to make a bed and they do it. They can avoid people or things in their way and will stop on command. But tell them to go somewhere and they use the weirdest path possible. You have to show them all possible paths before they do anything right. If they have never used a staircase before, they won't use it if the one they wanted is blocked."

"And each task is slightly different so you need to reteach it every time?"

"YES!" Emma yelled in exasperation.

"Okay then, it REALLY is like commanding soldiers."

Harriot escalated to a giggle.

Hannah saw Emma glare and decided to be helpful. "Assign them by staircase then. Spread them out. Just have them do only things that involve that staircase all the time. Use this stair to change these rooms on signal or whatever. That'll do until we learn or they do."

Emma sighed in acceptance of the good advice. "What are you two doing here anyway?"

"Oh, hiding from Ving. She is seriously set on us three having fun, and this is us trying to drive her up the wall."

****

Everyone was where they were supposed to be. Inky had all her girls assigned as guards at the doors, on patrol, or on standby. The rest of the girls were dressed up in whatever they thought to be their finest seduction outfits. There was no shortage of corsets, cleavage, or bare skin.

"Right, so let's play this like normal. Or rather, like we are trying to set a new definition of normal that's more formal and effective than our old normal," Liddy instructed, giving a hard glare at Hannah.

Hannah looked confused, and pointed at Harriot as if she might have been thinking about her.

Liddy rolled her eyes and opened the door to where the Duke had been talking with Foxy while he waited. "Welcome, sirs, to the Lady Harlot."

"Ohhhhh," cooed the girls waiting on the stairs.

Liddy fired a glance back at them.

"You should have told us the classy new name first," Mari stated with a smile.

Liddy turned back to the Duke and started admitting him and his friends who were pretending not to be test cases. The clockwork servant at the bar started giving out drink orders, its mechanical hands quickly picking out bottles the wiring lenses in its head indicated were the correct choices.

"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with a woman taller than me," commented the Duke as Vile came over to greet him.

They both burst out laughing before trying to stifle it. Vile heaved the man over her shoulder and hauled him up to the lounge. At the top, Vile turned around.