Surrender

by Alvania Scarborough

  "Present yourself."

  Darias couldn't believe his ears. Surely she wasn't really asking that of him?

  "Now."

  She was.

  Jaw locked, a wave of heat stinging his neck and face, Darias turned slowly, his hands moving to clench the cheeks of his ass. Just as slowly, he bent over, making the dark, tight ring clearly visible to her.

  "Move your legs farther apart and lean down more."

  When he had power back, Public Punishment would be the least of her worries, he vowed, even as he obeyed.

  "More. Until your chest touches your legs."

  Oh, yes, he was going to enjoy making her pay for this humiliation.

  Bent over like he was, legs spread widely apart, his hands holding open the cheeks of his ass, Darias couldn't ever remember feeling so vulnerable. Not when she first Punished him in the garden. Not even when she first bared his ass over a chair. He was excruciatingly aware that from her position in the chair everything was visible to Riana. His anus, his balls, the pulsing head of his cock as it leaked a steady stream of pre-come.

  He stayed that way for what seemed like forever.

  "You may take Gaith's Punishment."

  Chapter Eight

  By the time she entered her chamber that evening, Riana was weary to the bone. Her talk with Bryta had been enlightening. Far from coming to accept the reversal of roles for the men, Darias had stepped up the campaign to undermine and erode the women's grasps on both the businesses and estates. If she had not thought to link her ship's computer to Nexar's, in all likelihood Darias would have succeeded. As it was, there was much work ahead of them to repair the damage.

  Bryta hadn't wanted to stop Gaith's public punishment.

  Riana sighed. For such a gentle woman she had a streak of stubborn that rivaled her own. Only reluctantly had she conceded that Darias bore more blame than her mate.

  She straightened her slumping shoulders when she caught sight of Darias standing by the glass doors, then realized he hadn't heard her enter. She took the opportunity to study him. One hand rested beside his head as he stared out the open door into the garden. There was a pensive look to the strong, masculine features. As she watched he closed his eyes for a moment. She thought she saw a flash of pain on his face but couldn't be sure in the subdued lighting.

  She wanted to cross the space separating them and wrap her arms around him and lay her head against his broad back and tell him she understood his actions. But she couldn't. The lines between them had been drawn the moment he put those thrice-curst manacles on her wrists. She'd lose not only the hard-wrought respect she'd wrested from the warriors, but of the women as well. More importantly, Darias would see it as a weakness, a sign that women were inferior to males.

  Sometimes she just wanted to get in the Midnight Mischief and fly away. Away from Nexar, away from the Void. Just ... away.

  Unfortunately, that wasn't an option. The women needed her and, without being overly arrogant, Nexar needed her. She had to see this through. Lifting one slender hand, she rubbed the hollow spot in the middle of her chest that seemed to creep up on her every now and then.

  She shifted the long, thin case she held in her other hand and closed the door with an audible snick.

  Darias’ shoulders stiffened before he turned to face her. Tension carved grooves around the sensuous lines of his mouth. “I am ready for Punishment in the Great Hall."

  Until that moment, Riana had fully intended to punish Darias before all, warm his ass and then make him cry and plead for fulfillment before both the women and the warriors. Now that the time was at hand, she at last admitted the truth to herself.

  She couldn't do that to him

  It would abase him in the eyes of his warriors. And in the eyes of the women.

  Never again would they see the man that had been Supreme Chief, who had ruled with honor according to Nexarian tradition and by their rules. Sure, she disagreed and downright hated some of those traditions and rules, but they had governed Nexar for over a millennium.

  Punishing him in the Great Hall would strip all dignity from him.

  She kept her expression contained, not allowing even the slightest hint of her turmoil to show as she considered her course.

  He had to pay for his actions and the punishment could not be a light one. The offense was too serious and too many knew of it.

  So what ... ?

  Just that quick, the perfect solution came to her. She turned it over in her mind, considering all aspects. Yes, it would work. A knot that she hadn't been aware of until that moment, relaxed in her stomach.

  "Remove your clothes."

  Surprise flashed across his face. He started to speak, then stopped. She could see the wariness in his eyes as he tried to guess what she meant to do. She let him wonder. Piece by piece, his clothes dropped to the floor until he stood before her splendidly naked.

  "Do you mean to make me walk naked to the Great Hall?” The words sounded torn out of him.

  "We're not going to the Great Hall."

  Tension seeped out of the massive shoulders.

  "We're going into the garden."

  The tension returned. “Punishment will be private, then?"

  "Not quite.” He opened his mouth, but she forestalled him. “No more questions.” She crossed to the bed and laid the case on it and opened it. When she turned, she held a paddle, about half a meter long and the width of his palm. She motioned for Darias to go into the garden. He headed for the alcove without further direction.

  Even though the night was warm, almost hot, chill bumps lined his skin. It was amazing the way she could almost see into his mind, hear his thoughts. She didn't have the slightest doubt what was going through his mind right this minute. He was wondering if anyone was watching him walk, naked, to his punishment. For a Nexarian, that was the ultimate humiliation. As a race, they repressed their sexuality, only letting themselves explore the more adventurous aspects of sex during punishment. It was even more restrictive for a warrior. Warriors were forbidden to embrace their sexuality. All their energies were directed toward work and fighting, not the weakening emotions of passion.

  How would he handle what she intended to do next?

  Was she pushing him too hard? Would he break his oath to obey her?

  Stilling the flutters in the pit of her stomach with a surreptitious deep breath, Riana could only wait and see.

  Her bond on Darias was mental, not physical.

  Would that bond hold?

  Affecting a confident air, she stopped in front of the Punishment Stone. Unlike the first night of punishment, tonight the moon was full. She smoothed a hand over the warm stone. “Lights.” Immediately, a muted glow radiated from the stone, supplementing the moon's brilliance.

  "You Nexarians are amazing. Somehow, you've crafted a stone that is malleable, able to take whatever shape is needed. Yet, you created it as an instrument of punishment instead of pleasure.” She shook her head, knowing that the light of the moon and the artificial light of the alcove found the red highlights in her long hair and turned it into a waterfall of liquid fire.

  Now that she was here, her doubts fled. She felt confident and in control.

  "Tonight, that suits my purpose.” Adjusting first the wrist cuffs and then the ankle cuffs, she patted the seat of the smooth, white rock.

  Lips a tight line, Darias started to slide onto the stone. Riana quickly corrected him.

  "No. Not on the Punishment Stone, over it."

  He went still, then licked his lips. “Over it?"

  "Yes."

  When he was lying, face-down, over the end, she fastened the wrist cuffs so he arms were pulled taut over his head. Next she moved his legs so they were spread far apart, feet planted firmly on the grass, and then cuffed his ankles.

  "What of the privacy shield?"

  She heard a note of panic that she knew he wished wasn't there. Good. Perhaps before the night was over he'd realize she was up to any challenge he t
hrew out.

  "Not tonight. Tonight your punishment remains open to all who wish to see or hear.” She canted her head to one side, a bit of her anger from this afternoon resurfacing. “What do you think? Will the women stand in their gardens in hopes of a glimpse of your punishment? Will they bring their men with them? Or will the garden, itself...” she swept her hand in a circle ... “protect you?” Only she knew that everyone was within shouting distance of the Great Hall, waiting for her to bring Darias down. Let them wait and let Darias wonder.

  He didn't answer.

  She fought to subdue her anger. Rage would not rule her. She would not injure Darias this time. Picking up the stim paddle, she calibrated the controls on the handle. Darias thought he knew what to expect, but this stim was different in one very important aspect from the paddle she'd used on him in bed play. That stim paddle was designed for pain-pleasure. This paddle was designed for those that gained their pleasure from pain. It stimulated the pain nerve endings alone.

  She finished fiddling with the controls and double checked her settings. Satisfied that it was on a level where she could use enough force to heat his backside without bruising it, while still keeping the neuro-pain below an intolerable threshold.

  "You asked to take Gaith's punishment and Bryta agreed to leave the manner of that punishment up to me. This is what I choose.” She stood behind him and slightly to one side. Riana took a moment to admire the picture he made with the taut, muscled buttocks bared for her pleasure. The internal light from the stone backlit his heavy sacs. Shaking off the need that swelled to life at the sight, she made her voice brisk. “I will give you ten strokes of the stim paddle on this setting before giving you ten more on one-quarter setting higher.” Still within safety margins, but the result were sure to stay with Darias for days.

  * * * *

  That was all the warning Darias got. At the first stroke, he gritted his teeth to hold back a startled yelp. Krel, this was much worse than the previous play with the stim paddle. This burned like fire without the mitigating rush of pleasure to follow. By the fifth stroke, he was panting in an effort to contain the pain. By the eighth, his palms were biting into the smooth stone of the arm rests.

  Ten. He only had to get through two more. He could do it. He was a warrior.

  Then it was over. His breath caught in his chest at the sharp jolt of pain when she laid one hand on the curve of his ass. Just as quick, she removed it.

  "You may rest."

  Neck muscles aching from strain, he let his forehead dropped to illuminated stone as he breathed in through his nose in measured breaths. He squeezed his eyes and then blinked rapidly. Getting his ass beat was bad enough, but the dispassionate tones Riana was using cut far deeper, inside, where it didn't show.

  Always before, under the commands, under the anger, he could sense her arousal, her enjoyment of his response to her. Not tonight.

  And he didn't like it.

  The sharp crack of the paddle hitting his ass caught him off-guard.

  "Shevets!” The curse hissed from between his teeth. Pain radiated up his spine and down to his toes. Four more strokes in rapid succession had him biting down on his lip, determined not to make another sound. That satisfaction he would not give her.

  The last five strokes followed in short order. Somewhere, in the haze of pain, he realized that unlike the first ten, these strokes had not been delivered in an even-spaced, deliberated manner.

  In silence, she unfastened the cuffs and went inside.

  Darias was much slower to follow. Every movement was reflected in renewed fire in his ass. When he entered the chamber, the lights were off and Riana was in bed. Darias stretched out on his stomach on top of the covers. Part of him expected Riana to move next to him, cup his ass in her palm and soothe him even as she aroused him. She didn't. He fisted his hands in the bedding to keep from touching her.

  Hours later, she slipped from bed and left the chamber.

  For the first time since Riana arrived in Nexar, Darius once again felt totally alone.

  * * * *

  "Darias, Nexar needs the Far Islands. They have a viable, expanding economy and are eager for new trade partners. Furthermore, unlike Trinearia they are not looking for an excuse to invade. You know as just as well as I do, if not better, that if Trinearia senses just how bad the situation is here, they will declare war."

  "We can manage them. We always have,” he argued, frustration clear in his midnight voice.

  "That's why you did no more than make the most tentative of contact with their representative?” she challenged, bounding out of the chair. Stubborn, stubborn man. It had taken her less than a day to see that Darias, for all of his talk, had been reluctant to respond to Trinearia's overture. Hands on her hips, she dared him to speak plain.

  "If you had more experience in negotiating trade contracts, you'd understand my strategy,” he drawled, making her want to smack him. Understand the art of negotiating, she snorted. She'd cut her teeth on the life of a trader.

  "Look, I have more exper...” A knock on the door cut off her sharp retort. The door opened and a woman walked in. “Sharri! You made it."

  "You rang?” An impish smile lifted the brunette's lips.

  She hurried around the desk and hugged her friend. “Thank you for coming,” she whispered, fighting back an unexpected rush of tears. “Come, let's go to my chamber.” She grabbed the brunette by the arm, then stopped at the door to level a hard glance at Darias.

  "We'll finish this conversation later, Darias."

  Riana was excruciatingly aware of the Sharri's worried glances as they traversed the stairs and long hallway leading to her chambers but, for the first time in their long relationship, didn't try to make light of her friend's concern, Once inside her chamber, Riana hesitated, not sure of the best place to hold the type of talk she needed. Then, with a mental shrug, she decided she might as well go for broke and have it in the garden—the site of her and Darias’ most tumultuous encounters.

  She needed to someone to talk to, to sound out her jumbled thoughts so she could make some kind of sense of them, and there was no one better than her best friend.

  Sharri looked around with appreciation. “I can see why you wanted to stay. This place is incredible.” She touched one tiny flower, its translucent amethyst petals chimed with a clear crystalline note as she stroked it. She bent down and inhaled the sweet spicy fragrance that was released. Walking a little further down the graveled walk, she stopped and cupped a spectacular red blossom in her hand. Her eyes were bright when she turned toward Riana. “So, are you going to tell me what's going on? Your message sounded odd but when I hurry here I find you ... “She waved a hand around. “...amidst this."

  "I'm not sure where to start.” Riana scuffed the toe of her boot in the gravel, making intricate deigns in order to avoid meeting her friend's eyes. How could she hope to explain that she'd allowed herself to not only be captured, but kept as a slave? Restless, she began walking toward the back of the garden. Sharri caught up with her.

  "You can start by telling me why they call you Supreme Chief."

  "I won the right to rule Nexar in a battle with Darias."

  "That magnificent specimen I barely had a chance to glimpse in your office?” She sounded amazed. “I don't believe it. You battled him? Hell, girl, with a man who looks like a fallen god, you are supposed to make love, not war! Besides, he's built like a Hsadian battle cruiser. It'd take a sun going nova to defeat that man."

  Riana felt a hint of humor lighten her mood momentarily. “I told you the Lieutenant was teaching me a combat technique.” Her smile became an outright grin. “He was a very good teacher.” Her smile faded when she came abreast of the path leading to the hidden alcove.

  "I bet,” Sharri said dryly. “The next question is what were you doing battling him?"

  "Remember when you told me that my gut instinct was going to get me into trouble one day?"

  Her friend nodded, dawning understandi
ng in her brown eyes.

  "Well, one day arrived with a crash.” She took a deep breath and stiffened her spine. Sharri was her best friend in the whole galaxy, but revealing even to her what had taken place in this garden was, well, it was humiliating. Chewing on her bottom lip, she seriously considered turning around and going back inside. Before she could give into the urge, she headed down the path to the Punishment Stone.

  Her friend followed then came to a startled halt. “What is that?"

  "That is a Punishment Stone."

  "It looks like something from the fantasy room in Madame Bulivae's pleasure palace."

  "Trust me. It's no fantasy, but a fantasy warped into a nightmare.” Birds sang cheerfully from the concealing foliage, mocking Riana's memories of Darias’ punishment of her. Broodingly, she stared at the white stone. She thought punishing him here would make the memories go away.

  It hadn't.

  Shaking off the unpleasant recollections, she sat on a weathered boulder. That blasted stone symbolized everything that was wrong and twisted in Nexar; pleasure used as punishment, an entire half of a population bound and forced to be submissive to the other half. Even their economic policies were subjugated to their beliefs that women needed masters.

  "So, tell me.” Sharri traced the curve seat of the Punishment Stone.

  Riana could see the question in her friend's eyes as she fingered the leg cuffs.

  A sigh worked itself up from her depths. “Right after talking to you, I got caught in an ion storm and crashed near those mountains.” Riana tilted her head, indicating the range of mountains to the North. “To make a long story short, Darias found me and made me his slave."

  "You? A slave? How in the name of the Goddess Zaida did that happen?” Sharri held up one slender hand when she opened her mouth to speak. “Do not give me the abbreviated version. I want details.” A wicked grin curved her lips. “I especially want to know what being the slave of that magnificent specimen entails. Is he well hung?"