Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 ï>¿The Courier by EC

   Chapter 17 - The Royal Estate

   As she exited the main chamber of the Central Courthouse, Criminal #
101025 cast a final forlorn look over her shoulder at her former
Spokeswoman and her former housemate.  That moment was just as she had
envisioned, but she could not have foreseen how jealous the Royal House was
of any contact between its property and the outside world.  The moment
Maria Elena's escorts had her outside the main door, they covered her head
with a cloth bag.  One of them snarled into her ear:

   "Since you like looking around so much at things that don't concern you,
we're taking that privilege away from you.  Your eyes and what you gaze
upon belong to your mistress every bit as much as the rest of you. 
Anything in this world that is not focused on her is of no interest to
you."

   Suddenly the prisoner felt a horrific jolt on her shoulder, a surge of
electricity from a handheld electronic zapper.

   "That was the lowest setting.  The next time you disobey me, I will turn
it to the maximum and use it between your legs.  I will hold it there and I
might just keep it there until you die.  Do you understand me?"

   A terrified sob welled up from the hooded criminal, but she forced
herself to respond: "Yes, my Lord."

   Maria Elena expected to be taken to the Royal House immediately and to
deal with whatever the Grand Duchess had in store for her.  However, she
felt the minivan turn off onto a dirt road and drive several kilometers
over some small hills.  When the vehicle stopped and one of the Lords
pulled off the bag from the prisoner's head, she noticed that she was in an
isolated part of the countryside, with no house or any other building in
sight.  The Lords took off the prisoner's manacles and gave her a drink of
water.  They forced her to kneel in the posture of submission, on her knees
and elbows with her legs spread wide and her back arched, to place her
genitalia in full view.  The humiliation was overwhelming, but the menacing
sight of the zapper kept her focused on the need to obey without question
what the Lords wanted from her.

   The two officials unpacked some camera equipment.  The prisoner realized
that before going to the Royal Residence, she would be subjected to a
photography session.  At first she was not particularly worried, because
she had become used to being naked anyway and there are many things in life
that are worse than having one's picture taken.

   The Lords had her pose for hundreds of photos.  She walked along the
road, sat on rocks, crouched next to a stream, strolled though some woods,
and ran across a field.  Some of the shots were modest and others forced
her to lewdly display herself.  After two hours the Lords seemed satisfied
with their collection and ordered the naked male servant to serve Maria
Elena a large cup of cold water.  She drank greedily.  The Lords ordered
the servant to refill her cup.  When she took the cup a second time, the
young man gave her a strange pleading look, as though he were trying to
tell her something or issue a warning with his eyes.  He dared not speak,
but Maria Elena was under the impression he was trying to signal her not to
take the second cup.  That was strange...  why wouldn't he want her to have
water on a hot summer day?

   The Lords ordered Maria Elena to kneel and for the servant to unbraid
her hair.  The prisoner gasped, because she knew that for a man to see a
woman with unbraided hair was a serious violation of Danubian protocol. 
She imagined, rightly, that for a man to unbraid a woman's hair was an even
worse insult that just seeing her with her hair loose.  One of the Lords
sensuously ran his fingers through the captive's hair and touched her face.
The male servant, horribly embarrassed and thoroughly dishonored by having
to touch a woman with unbraided hair, knelt with his head touching the
ground.

   Maria Elena shook with terror.  She knew enough about Danubian culture
to understand she had been subjected to several serious insults, before
ever setting foot in the Royal House.  A thought passed through her mind;
that perhaps the Lords wouldn't be taking her to the Royal house at all,
that instead they were going to use her for their own pleasure and then
dispose of her.  The terrified, humiliated look of her fellow servant was
not reassuring.

   As the sun rose in the sky and became hot, the Lords forced Maria Elena
to repeat everything she had done in the morning, including posing for
hundreds of additional pictures as she moved about the countryside.  Later
she realized that they wanted two full sets of photos, one with her hair
still braided and the other with her hair loose.  Some of the final poses
forced her to lewdly expose herself with the hot sun shining directly on
her vagina or bottom.

   Among the images she had to pose for was a series of pictures walking
along a creek and holding several peeled willow switches.  She had to touch
herself with the implements and look seductively into the camera...  to
implore the viewer to take the switches out of her hand and to use them on
her uncovered body.

   As the afternoon wore on, Maria Elena was hot, but her captors made sure
she had plenty to drink.  Several times she felt the male servant was
silently imploring her not to accept any more.  Strange he would do that,
considering the weather and how good that cold water tasted.  When the
Lords finally were satisfied they had enough pictures, they packed up their
cameras, refilled a large thermos with additional cold water, and pressed
their captive to drink even more.  Maria Elena no longer was thirsty, but
the Lord insisted.  When she tried to shake her head, he touched his zapper
to one of her bare nipples.  Yes, you will drink, slave, whether you want
to or not.

   As she struggled to swallow a full liter of cold water, Maria Elena
suddenly realized she needed to go to the bathroom.  She had not relieved
herself since the transfer ceremony and since then already had drunk at
least three liters.  Now that she was aware that she badly needed to pee,
she felt with dread the new water working its way into her stomach, fully
knowing that within a few minutes she would be in real agony if the Lords
did not allow her to use a restroom.  Then she understood that her captors
had plied her with water on purpose.  They had no intention of letting her
use a restroom.

   Shaking with terror and her bladder already starting to ache, the
prisoner knelt in the proper position while the two Lords ran their
fingertips around her bottom, massaging her vagina and teasing her clit. 
They dared not have sex with the captive, at least not before the Grand
Duchess saw her, but that did not mean they didn't have plans to violate
her in the future.

   The Lords shackled and hooded Maria Elena for a short bumpy ride to
Royal Residence.  Every jolt, no matter how small, sent spasms of pain
through the helpless captive.  During the ride, one of her custodians
fondled her breasts and painfully pinched her nipples.

   Finally the van arrived and Anyia's newest toy was ready for delivery.
Dressed in a fine silk dress and wearing a diamond crown, she imperiously
strode out to the driveway, carrying a switch.  A small two-pronged whip
was attached to her belt, an item she found especially useful for "breaking
in" new servants.  Following the Grand Duchess were her other living
possessions, young human beings that had been turned over to her as
personal property.  As always, they were silent, naked, and extremely
careful not to do anything that might set off their owner's temper.

   By the time Maria Elena stepped out of the van her bladder felt like it
was going to explode.  The pain and pressure were unbelievable, forcing
tears into her eyes and sweat to trickle down her cheeks.  The girl's world
was reduced to her bladder...  If only someone would let her go to the
bathroom...  if only...

   Lord Horskti and Lord Vidmarkt forced the Colombian into a kneeling
position and took off her shackles and hood.  Now she was completely naked
and unencumbered except for her collar.  Trembling with terror and pain,
Maria Elena knelt forward...  trying as hard as she could to assume a
correct position in spite of the mounting crisis in her bladder.  The Grand
Duchess walked around her new servant, gently kicking her in the same way a
car owner in the US might kick a tire.  Anyia pushed her switch into Maria
Elena's hair, flipped it a little, and then tapped her shoulder.  Suddenly
she twisted back and laid a fearsome blow across the servant's shoulders.
Maria Elena screamed.  The Grand Duchess grabbed a fist-full of her
captive's hair and violently shook her.

   "What's the meaning of this?  Why did you choose to insult the Royal
House...  to insult me...  by coming here with a tangle of obscene,
dishonored hair?  How dare you do this to the Crown!  How dare you!"

   Before Maria Elena had a chance to respond or even react, Anyia snapped
her fingers.  Two security guards grabbed the new servant and forced her
into a standing position.  The Grand Duchess tightened her lips and laid
several fearsome slaps across the captive's face.  She grabbed Maria
Elena's thick black hair and pulled hard on it, as she landed several more
cruel slaps.  By then the Colombian was bleeding from her nose, her lip was
cut, and the entire left side of her face was swelling.  The Grand Duchess
pulled out her whip and ordered her guards to toss the captive to the
ground so she could flog her.  Maria Elena tripped as she fell.  At that
instant her bladder gave out and a torrent of yellow liquid gushed onto the
ground.  The other servants stared in horrified silence as their newest
companion knelt in an ever-expanding pool of her own urine.  The Lords
smiled knowingly as the Grand Duchess went white with shock and rage. 
Anyia's mood worsened when she noticed that the hem of her expensive dress
had fallen into the puddle and now was stained yellow.  The Duchess
shrieked with disgust and trembled with fury.  Never before had a servant
so thoroughly dishonored herself in her Divine Presence.

   Maria Elena sobbed with despair, because she knew that her disgrace in
the eyes of the Grand Duchess and the other servants was absolute.  What
she felt was not so much fear, but humiliation that went beyond anything
words could have described.  It did not matter, not to her, not to Anyia,
and not to anyone else in the household, that the Lords were the ones
responsible for her condition.  Maria Elena was the one who was at fault.

   The Grand Duchess was insane with anger.  In barely coherent shrieks she
yelled at the guards to chain the Colombian so she could be properly
flogged.  Still sobbing from terror and reeking of urine, Maria Elena was
roughly grabbed by the guards.  The men put cuffs around her wrists and
ankles before dragging her to a whipping post that was set up in the middle
of the courtyard.  They attached her wrists to a loop in the wood before
stepping back to allow Anyia to punish her.

   The other servants remained immobile, kneeling and looking straight
ahead.  They were as still as statues, and betrayed no emotion in their
expressions.  The Grand Duchess, meanwhile, was gritting her teeth with
rage at the insult.  It never occurred to her to ask why Maria Elena's hair
was unbraided or why her bladder was so full.  In the mind of the Grand
Duchess, the newest servant had not bothered to properly prepare for her
transfer and had affronted her new mistress on purpose.  She did not notice
the smirking expressions of her two Lords, and even had she noticed, she
would have thought nothing of it.  The fact they were the ones at fault for
the servant's condition was of no concern to Anyia.  The only thing that
mattered to the Grand Duchess was the criminal's unbraided hair and the
huge puddle of piss contaminating her courtyard.  It was a deliberate
affront that needed to be severely punished.

   Anyia pulled hard on Maria Elena's hair and jerked her head back and
forth several times.  She screamed at a naked servant holding several whips
to bring them forward so she could make a selection.  She grabbed the one
closest to her, a short whip with several tails.  By shear luck it was the
lightest implement of the selection.  In spite of her rage, the Grand
Duchess would not be able to break her servant's skin, no matter how long
she flogged her victim.

   Maria Elena was thoroughly terrified.  She was shaking from fear and had
completely lost control of her bladder.  Urine continued to dribble down
her legs and pooled at her feet, further enraging the Grand Duchess.  Anyia
slashed hard across the criminal's back several times, criss-crossing her
olive skin with small reddish welts.  The sting was terrifying, and Maria
Elena, whose resistance already was worn down by the treatment she had
suffered under the Lords, screamed and sobbed pitifully.

   Anyia punished out of sheer rage.  There was nothing calculated or
controlled about the way she was whipping the Colombian.  She spent a long
time flogging the criminal's back and shoulders until her skin was raw,
then moved to flogging her bottom and thighs.  Maria Elena twisted to avoid
the blows, but Lord Vidmarkt turned on his zapper and jammed it between her
thighs to force her to keep her bottom sticking out.

   Lord Vidmarkt turned out to be every bit as sadistic as the Grand
Duchess.  He used a high setting and zapped the servant on her vagina. 
Maria Elena screamed and flailed helplessly as the Lord sought out the most
sensitive spot to land the shocks.  Maria Elena desperately wanted to pass
out, but Lord Vidmarkt made sure the device's setting was not enough to
make her faint.  Finally the criminal managed to get her feet back on the
ground and arched her back.  The Lord held the zapper in front, ready to
shock her again if she tried to avoid the blows from Anyia's whip.

   Anyia spent an eternity belaboring the Colombian's bottom and the backs
of her thighs.  She hit hard and quickly followed up with a back-hand
stroke...  over and over and over.  Maria Elena continued to tremble,
scream, and cry, but with the zapper menacing her vagina, she dared not
move forward.  Anyia wore herself out...  by the time she was satisfied
that she had flogged her servant's bottom enough, sweat was pouring down
her face and she was breathing heavily.

   Anyia ordered the guards to turn Maria Elena around so she could whip
her legs from the front.  Lord Vidmarkt took the liberty to zap the servant
several more times.  The guards hooked the victim's ankles to rings in the
ground to force her legs apart.  Yes indeed, Anyia would hit her... 
there...

   The Grand Duchess struck Maria Elena many times across the thighs, but
she had worn herself out and her strength was ebbing.  She weakly struck
the servant between the legs, flicking the whip's tails on the girl's
exposed vulva, but not as hard as she would have liked.  Finally she was
done.  She finished with a couple of strokes across Maria Elena's breasts
and tossed the whip to the ground.  She turned to the two Lords and her
guards:

   "Take this dishonored piece of filth and put her in the pillory.  I want
her to have time to think about what she's done to me and what a true
disgrace she is.  I'll decide what to do with her tomorrow."

   "Yes, your graciousness."

   By the time Anyia finished flogging her, Maria Elena was beyond crying.
She hung limply from her cuffs in pain that she could not have imagined. 
Her entire body stung horribly, she felt the burns where she had been
shocked, and to make matters worse, she had pulled a muscle in her shoulder
when Lord Vidmarkt had electrocuted her between the legs.

   The guards unhooked the prisoner from the whipping post and dragged her
across the courtyard to a pillory.  A Danubian pillory was different from
the ones used in England and Colonial North America.  It consisted of two
thick wooden posts that were about 5 meters high connected on the top by a
wooden crossbar that was about 2 meters wide.  About a meter and a half
from the ground small platforms for the criminal's feet were attached to
the posts, along with chains to secure the ankles.  Two additional sets of
chains and cuffs hung from the crossbar, which were used to secure the
criminal's wrists.

   In traditional Danubian society criminals were always stripped naked
before being pilloried, usually before the formal reading of the charges
and the sentence.  A person being punished stood with a foot on each
platform, which forced the legs to be widely spread and the genitalia to be
prominently displayed.  The criminal's wrists were secured to the chains
attached to the crossbeam, forcing the arms to be spread as well.  The
chains were drawn tight to prevent the criminal from moving much, leaving
the limbs completely spread and the body totally exposed.  The criminal was
not suspended; most of the weight was concentrated on the foot platforms,
but after several hours of standing immobilized in an uncomfortable
position the muscle cramps became unbearable.

   The Danubian pillory was a traditional form of public punishment
commonly used in villages and small towns for offenses considered too minor
for a formal collaring.  Petty criminals normally were pilloried on Market
Day, placed on display in the town square for about eight hours.  If the
Grand Duke's officials felt the criminal's family shared any blame for
their relative's behavior, parents or siblings could be sentenced to having
to kneel next to the pillory as a way to dishonor the entire family.  The
pillory was a harsh punishment for a society obsessed with honor and
protocol.

   Pillories were phased out after the Second World War and became little
more than objects of historical curiosity and tourist attractions. 
However, one of the changes Anyia brought to the Royal Residence was to
re-introduce the pillory as a way to punish her servants.  As soon as the
Royal house carpenters had built the Grand Duchess the pillory she ordered,
she gleefully started putting it to use.  As offended as she was by the
newest addition to her collection, it would be nice to see that Colombian
stretched on the pillory, her body covered in whip-marks, and her face full
of tears.  Yes indeed...  that is what that pathetic creature deserved for
so completely dishonoring herself.

   The other servants continued to kneel quietly while the two Lords
ordered palace guards to force Maria Elena up a small ladder so her feet
could be placed on the small platforms.  When the criminal's feet were
attached to the ankle chains, the guards attached the cuffs on her wrists
to the chains hanging from the crossbeam.  Once the length of the chains
was properly adjusted, the criminal stood with her arms and legs spread and
her body completely on display.  She winced in pain from the pulled muscle
in her back and the throbbing welts that covered her body.  Anyia and the
Lords looked at her with satisfied expressions, while the other servants
continued staring straight ahead, seemingly oblivious to her plight.

   After a few minutes Anyia turned around and the two Lords fell in behind
her.  The servants immediately placed their heads on the ground as the
Royals made their way back towards the main entrance to the house.  Two
servants ran ahead to open the doors, while the others quickly got up and
followed their mistress.

   Maria Elena was left alone in the courtyard, her body still stretched
tight and immobilized on the pillory.  She felt absolute despair, but at
the moment she was in too much pain and discomfort to really think about
anything other than her current situation.  She still was in shock over how
badly her first day with the Grand Duchess had started and how horribly she
was being treated.  Yes, she had known her new owner was a cruel and evil
person, but it never dawned on Maria Elena that the Grand Duchess could be
as bad as this.  And those two Lords...  it was obvious they had the
confidence of Anyia because they were every bit as bad as she was.

   *****

   Several hours passed.  Groups of ordinary workers and gardeners from the
Estate passed by when their shifts ended, many of them stopping to take a
look at the Grand Duchess' newest acquisition.  Their reactions varied:
some of the workers looked at her with curiosity, others clearly enjoyed
seeing her predicament, and others felt sorry for her.  Maria Elena's
despair and humiliation intensified, because she found having ordinary
workers see her exposed on the pillory much more embarrassing than having
the Grand Duchess and her servants see her.  The workers were just normal
people, and the criminal knew that in their eyes she had been turned into a
freak.  As the hours wore on and the daylight faded, the prisoner's
discomfort slowly became agony.  She desperately needed to move her arms
and legs.  As the courtyard became dark, she hung her head and quietly
cried.

   Shortly after dinner, Lord Vidmarkt approached the prisoner, accompanied
by two naked female servants.  He shined a large flashlight into Maria
Elena's face and addressed her:

   "Criminal # 101025.  I'd imagine you'd like to be let down from there,
wouldn't you?"

   Maria Elena didn't answer, fearing that whatever she said would make her
situation worse.  The Lord immediately pulled out his zapper and touched it
to the criminal's vagina.  As the electricity surged through her body she
screamed and jolted.  Even when the Lord Vidmarkt the device away and
turned it off, his victim continued to cry and shake violently.

   "Criminal # 101025.  When you are asked a question, you will answer.  Do
you understand me?"

   Between sobs, Maria Elena managed to say "yes my Lord."

   "Very well then.  I'll ask you again, I'd imagine you'd like to be let
down, wouldn't you?"

   As fearful as she was of Lord Vidmarkt and what he might do to her,
Maria Elena figured that with him she'd not be any worse off than she was
at the moment.  Besides, her muscles were so cramped that she couldn't see
how she could stand being on the pillory much longer.  Still sobbing, she
answered:

   "Yes my Lord.  I'd like you to let me down."

   "Oh really?  You are asking me to do you a favor, then."

   "Yes, my Lord."

   "Why do you want to be let down?"

   Maria Elena didn't have the vocabulary in Danubian to explain that her
muscles were cramping and she couldn't take being immobilized much longer.
All she could say was:

   "My body...  bad...  bad feeling...  please...  "

   "Ahhh...  poor girl...  so you find this painful?"

   "Yes, my Lord."

   "But this is only what you deserve.  You dishonored yourself before the
Grand Duchess today.  You insulted her with your behavior and your failure
to control your bodily functions, and now you are experiencing the
consequences of your shortcomings."

   The Lord shined the flashlight in the criminal's eyes, temporarily
blinding her.

   "You will understand, and you will admit, that it was entirely your
fault that you chose to show up with your hair undone.  No one undid your
braids; that was a decision you took upon yourself.  As for losing control
of your bladder, you pissed intentionally as a direct affront to the Grand
Duchess, because obviously you did not understand the need to show proper
respect.  The flogging and being pilloried were the natural and proper
results of your disgraceful and disrespectful behavior towards your
Mistress.  You are entirely to blame for your own predicament, and it will
be up to you to make amends to both us and to your Mistress."

   It was at that moment that Maria Elena broke.  All she wanted was to be
let down, to have nothing more than the freedom to move her arms and legs
and get the circulation going again and get rid of that agonizing cramping.
Lord Vidmarkt would have his way with her.

   "I'm sorry, my Lord.  I'm sorry I'm such a bad servant."

   "To say you're sorry is easy when one is in the situation you are in. 
You understand that words have no meaning."

   The Lord paused as Maria Elena continued to cry.

   "If I let you down, Criminal # 101025, what will you do in response?"

   "I will obey you, my Lord...  I will do whatever you want."

   "Oh really?  And what about your Mistress?"

   "I will try to please her, my Lord."

   "Excellent.  Maybe you will learn what it is to be a servant after-all.
Do whatever I want, that's what you are saying, Criminal # 101025?"

   "Yes, my Lord.  Whatever you want."

   "You see...  that should have been your attitude from the beginning.  If
only you had the correct attitude this afternoon, you wouldn't be where you
are now, would you?"

   "No, my Lord.  It's all my fault."

   The official turned to his servants and ordered them to unhook the
criminal's cuffs.  A guard joined the group to catch the prisoner as she
fell, knowing that there was no way she had the strength to remain standing
once her arms were released.  As she fell off the pillory, the man caught
her and lowered her to the ground.  He spat on her and walked off.  Maria
Elena moved weakly, trying to get the circulation going in her arms.  Lord
Vidmarkt turned to his servants:

   "Pick her up and take her to the washroom."

   The two female servants grabbed Maria Elena's arms and led their
semi-conscious companion to a small tiled room that contained a metal
platform and several showerheads and hoses.  The women washed off their
fellow servant, thoroughly soaping her body and massaging her arms and
legs. The Lord stood watching with his arms crossed.

   "Touch her."

   The two servants obeyed.  Both of them pushed their fingers into Maria
Elena's vagina and opened it up.  Each touched her clitoris.  One of the
women then raised Maria Elena's legs while the other inserted a soapy
finger into her bottom.  The women continued to hold Maria Elena with her
legs up and a finger in her bottom while the Lord approached her:

   "You will understand that you have no honor.  You are dishonored and I
want you to remember that every moment of your life.  You are dishonored.
Do you understand me?"

   Maria Elena sobbed: "Yes, my Lord."

   "Say it.  I need to hear you say it."

   "I am dishonored, my Lord."

   "Very well."

   The two servants dried off the Colombian, who by that time had started
to recover from her ordeal on the pillory.  Lord Vidmarkt ordered the women
to take her to another small room that contained various sets of chains and
cuffs, as well as several strange-looking pieces of furniture.  The
servants pulled out an item that looked halfway between a bench and a small
table.  There were four sets of cuffs attached to the surface, along with a
much larger ring to immobilize the subject's waist.  Maria Elena was
ordered to get on her elbows and knees and position herself so her waist
could be restrained along with her limbs.  Once she was in position, she
was lewdly exposed.  The Lord massaged the criminal's welt-covered bottom
and commented:

   "This is called the 'dog' position.  It is a position suitable only for
dogs, which is what you are.  You will understand that you are not a human
being...  in spite of what the Ministry of Justice might have told you. 
You are property...  in the same way that a dog is property.  The Mistress
can hang you tomorrow and throw your body in the trash if she so desires. A
good dog, one that doesn't want to be euthanized, will obey her master or
her mistress at all times."

   "Yes, my Lord."

   With that one of the female servants dabbed some jelly into Maria
Elena's vagina and sphincter, pushing her finger in to make sure both were
properly lubricated.  Meanwhile Lord Vidmarkt began undressing.  Maria
Elena looked back with horror, noticing he was erect.

   "Dogs like this.  They like sex.  That's why they're dogs."

   As the two naked servants knelt facing the wall, the Lord positioned
himself behind Maria Elena, grabbed her hips, and forced his way into her.
He pushed hard against her welt-covered backside with vigorous thrusts. 
Maria Elena closed her eyes and whimpered, unable to believe what was
happening to her.  After what seemed to be an eternity, she felt the man's
penis pumping semen into her body, and then felt it slowly going limp.  He
pulled out and grabbed her hair.

   "Thank me, dog.  Thank me by barking like the bitch in heat you are."

   Maria Elena could only sob.  Lord Vidmarkt let go of her hair and pulled
a heavy belt from his pants.  He struck hard across her exposed bottom. 
Maria Elena screamed as the belt tore into her already battered backside.

   "You heard what I told you to do, bitch.  Now do it.  Bark."

   Maria Elena, shaking violently and still crying, managed to let out a
weak bark.  The Lord struck her hard across the bottom a second time.

   "You know what you need to do, dog.  Do it."

   The prisoner managed to bark much louder.  This time Lord Vidmarkt was
satisfied.  He traced her bottom-hole with his finger and began
masturbating himself.  Within a couple of minutes he was hard again and
ready to enter his victim a second time.  He positioned himself and pushed
in, this time boring into Maria Elena's intestines.  She grunted with
discomfort and humiliation as her tormentor thrust into her over and over.
Finally she felt his penis throbbing and going limp, but her intestines
still ached and her bottom-hole felt raw from the newest intrusion.

   Lord Vidmarkt ordered his servants to clean up Maria Elena a second
time. They took her down from the bondage table and returned her to the
wash room.  The Colombian did not resist when the two young women soaped
her crotch and massaged her with their fingers, nor did she react when she
felt a fingertip vigorously rubbing soap into her sore bottom.  The women
rinsed her off and dried her.  They helped her into a kneeling position
before assuming kneeling positions themselves.

   Criminal # 101025 trembled as she knelt and tears continued to roll down
her cheeks.  She was a classic picture of absolute submission.  At that
moment she realized how truly awful her new life would be.  Hatred welled
up inside her, not only towards the woman who had enslaved her and the man
who had raped and sodomized her, but also towards the other servants.  As
she was being beaten and humiliated they didn't even have the decency to
react.  From her two companions there was no reaction either.  She hated
them, as undoubtedly they hated her and they hated each other.  Among
Anyia's servants there was no friendship or solidarity, nothing but selfish
silence.

   Noting that Maria Elena was weak, her custodian rightly assumed that she
needed to have something to eat.  He ordered one of his servants to go to
the kitchen and bring something to eat.  She quickly returned with a plate
of food, a mixture of potatoes and meat that she placed on the floor. 
Maria Elena, who had not had anything to eat all day, looked longingly at
the meal.  Lord Vidmarkt tapped her body with a switch.

   "You may eat, servant.  You are not to touch the food with your hands,
because as the Grand Duchess's property you have not yet earned that
privilege.  But you are granted my permission to eat."

   With difficulty Maria Elena got on her hands and knees and dipped her
face into the food.  Eating like an animal was yet another humiliation, but
she was so hungry that she didn't care.  Already she had lost any semblance
of self-respect.

   Lord Vidmarkt contemplated Criminal # 101025 with deep satisfaction,
knowing that she would make a good addition to the Royal Household. 
Already her spirit was broken and it was obvious she would do what she was
told.  She would be properly trained and become like the others, a silent
slave whose only Path in Life was to serve and provide pleasure to her
superiors.  With any luck at all the Grand Duchess would quickly tire of
her, and he would be able to take the exotic-looking girl for himself.  He
already owned several other cast-off servants, a direct benefit of being
one of only two Lords who had the complete confidence of the Grand Duchess.

   Lord Vidmarkt's desire to take Maria Elena for himself did have a
momentary benefit for her.  Had he not wanted her he simply would have put
her back into the pillory and left her there until the next morning. 
However, because he had his eye on the new servant, he wanted to keep her
in good physical condition, as well as make her psychologically dependent
on him.  He shackled her and took her to a small room that had a sink with
a toothbrush and washcloth, a toilet, and a small bed.

   "You will understand that I brought you to this room by choice.  The
Grand Duchess authorized me to keep you in the pillory until dawn, but it
was my decision to bring you here instead.  It is by my choice that you
will sleep here, even though what you deserve is the pillory.  My choice.
Do you understand me, dog-bitch?"

   "Yes, my Lord."

   Lord Vidmarkt put out his foot.

   "Show me your gratitude."

   Maria Elena understood what he wanted.  She needed to kiss his foot.  It
was the ultimate degradation, even worse than being raped or having to eat
with no hands out of a bowl.  However, the pillory loomed in the criminal's
mind and the idea of having to endure several more hours of agony with her
arms stretched and her legs spread filled her with horror.  She was
genuinely grateful to be taken down and allowed to eat and sleep.  She
would do what was necessary to avoid the pillory.  She kissed the man's
shoe.

   "Thank you, my Lord."

   "Good.  Clean your face and brush your teeth.  Tomorrow you will receive
the honor of serving the Grand Duchess."

   With that Lord Vidmarkt closed the door and bolted it from the outside.
Maria Elena did as she was told, brushing her teeth and washing her face.
Then she lay on the mattress, so exhausted and worn out she barely could
move.

   *****

   Just 24 hours before Maria Elena had been in the house of her lover. 
She still had her self-respect and pride in herself.  She had her friends,
her love, her modest life, and the simple freedoms that made her life
worthwhile.  Most of all, she felt that she could control how she felt and
what she thought.

   Now all that was gone.

   Dog.  Bitch.  Dog-bitch.  That was indeed what she had become, within
just 24 hours.  She had been broken, and now was willing to degrade herself
for a bowl of food, a bed, or the privilege of not being whipped or
tormented.  Her life would be one of fear, silence, and isolation; the same
as all of the other servants in the Royal House.  Not only would she be
subjected to suffering, she would be subjected to a solitude she couldn't
even have imagined before entering the hellish mansion in which she now was
imprisoned.  She had lost everything that made her life worthwhile, her
friends, her lover, her job, even the right to speak.  Her reality was her
maniacal owner and the man who had raped her, humiliated her, and called
her a dog.

   Now she knew what enslavement truly meant.  The life she had, all of her
relations and her loves, now seemed part of another reality, a sweet dream
from which she had woken up.

   To have a broken soul...  to be possessed by the Destroyer...  for the
first time Maria Elena felt she understood the meaning of her life.  The
Destroyer had taken over her world and pulled her into the abyss.  She did
not see how she could ever escape.



   Chapter 18 - Property without honor

   The next morning Maria Elena woke to the sound of the bolt that secured
her cell door being unlocked.  Immediately she scrambled to her knees and
put her head on the floor, just in time to be in position for when the door
opened.  She was not surprised to see Lord Vidmarkt, the man who had both
raped her but also rescued her from spending the entire night in the
pillory.  With him was one of the naked servants who had accompanied him
the night before.  The young woman was carrying a pair of wrist cuffs.

   Maria Elena stood up and placed her hands behind her back to allow her
fellow servant to restrain her hands.  Lord Vidmarkt's servant then brought
in a plate of oatmeal and an apple to place on the floor.  With a slight
gesture of her hand she indicated that Maria Elena needed to kneel.  She
quickly assumed a kneeling position as well, staring straight ahead.  The
Lord addressed the newest servant:

   "Very well, dog.  Show your gratitude with a nice loud bark, and then
you may have your food."

   Maria Elena choked back her tears and barked as loud as she could.

   "Good dog.  You may eat."

   Maria Elena leaned forward and buried her face in the oatmeal.  Her
hands were behind her back so she had trouble keeping her balance.  Lord
Vidmarkt grabbed her hair to help steady her, and with great difficulty she
managed to position her mouth to be able to eat.  With rude sounds she
sucked at the plate's contents, licking and slurping the oatmeal as though
she truly were an animal.  She had to finish the plate, and by the time she
was done her face was covered with food.  The Lord kicked her and told her
what a disgusting sight she was.  The other young woman took a wet washrag
and cleaned off her face.

   Eating the apple was even worse.  Maria Elena had to push the piece of
fruit against the wall and only with great difficulty managed to take a
small bite.  With her legs spread to steady herself, she pushed her face
against the fruit over and over, in an effort to find a spot where she
could sink in her teeth and take a bite.  She was desperate to finish,
because the Lord was standing over her with his zapper and lecturing her
about wasting food.  Finally, after a horrendous struggle Criminal # 101025
managed to eat the majority of the apple, or at least enough to satisfy the
Lord.  Maria Elena had to pick up the core with her teeth and drop it into
a trash can.

   Lord Vidmarkt's servant held a large glass of water to Maria Elena's
mouth and forced her to drink.  She drank reluctantly, remembering the
awful experience from the day before, but with the zapper only centimeters
away from her body, she knew that she had no choice.  Finally the Lord
allowed her to stand up and ordered his servant to brush the prisoner's
teeth.

   The Lord and his servant led the newcomer back to the washroom.  By then
the dreaded pressure in her bladder was building, because she did not have
time to go to the toilet when she was woken up.  The Lord led Maria Elena
to a tiled section of floor with a small hole in the middle.

   "I need to house-train you.  Bark if you need to piss."

   The criminal's voice cracked as she let out a bark.

   "Very well, dog.  You have spoken so I am giving you the privilege of
pissing.  You may kiss my shoe in gratitude."

   Maria Elena did as she was told, before squatting over the hole.  With
her hands behind her back she had great difficulty maintaining her balance.
The Lord was standing in front of her with his zapper.  A small red light
indicated the device was turned on and fully charged.  Trembling from the
awkward position and from absolute terror and humiliation, Maria Elena
managed to relax and empty her bladder, in plain view of the Lord.

   "A good dog, one that does not want to be euthanized, pisses on demand."

   Lord Vidmarkt ordered his attendant to take off the cuffs from the
newcomer's wrists.  He then ordered her to get on her hands and knees and
to spread her legs.  The servant took a tube of lubricant, dabbed some on
the Colombian's waiting bottom-hole, and gently massaged it in.  She pushed
her finger up Maria Elena's rectum and moved it back and forth while the
Lord continued to watch.  Tears welled up in the other servant's eyes, and
Maria Elena trembled with fear and humiliation.  She knew that in Danubian
society what was happening was a severe insult for both women.

   Lord Vidmarkt pointed to the side of the room, where a full enema bottle
was hanging on a movable pole.  The servant withdrew her finger from Maria
Elena's bottom.  She knelt and touched her head to the floor before getting
up to retrieve it.  She moved the assembly to where the Colombian was
waiting on her hands and knees.  The servant silently pushed the nozzle
into her companion's rectum.  She looked at her owner, silently asking him
if she should open the clip that sealed off the tube.  He nodded and with
that Maria Elena felt her intestines fill with warm water.  As soon as the
bottle had completely drained, the Lord's servant immediately withdrew the
nozzle and removed the enema equipment to clean it.  Maria Elena quietly
remained in position as the pressure began building in her guts and she
waited for her companion to return.  Meanwhile the Lord slowly walked
around his captive, tapping his zapper to threaten her.

   By the time her fellow servant returned, the pressure in Maria Elena's
intestines was becoming unbearable.  The Lord commented:

   "You know Criminal # 101025, the most dishonorable thing a woman can do
is defecate in front others, especially in front of a man of high stature.
A woman who does such a thing is truly nothing more than an animal.  But
then, that is all that you are, isn't it?  An animal...  a piece of
property.  You see, the idea that you are a human being is an illusion, and
a stupid illusion at that.  You are dishonored...  like I told you last
night.  You are completely dishonored."

   Maria Elena grunted in agony as tears poured down her checks.

   "Say it."

   "I...  I am dishonored, my Lord."

   "Good dog.  Position yourself over the hole, and I will allow you to
relieve yourself."

   Maria Elena was desperate.  She did as she was told, squatting over the
hole and releasing the contents of her intestines with a loud splashing
noise.  Lord Vidmarkt did not take his eyes off her the entire time.  The
pain in her guts subsided, but humiliation and anguish swept over her.  She
could not look at either the Lord or her fellow servant.

   The next ordeal was for the prisoner to be bathed so she could be
formally presented to the Royal Couple.  The Lord addressed the other
woman:

   "Clean her up."

   A second female servant entered the washroom and together the pair
soaped and rinsed-off the Colombian.  They paid special attention to her
bottom and vagina, fondling the newcomer to further humiliate and degrade
her.  The pair washed Maria Elena's hair and combed it, but because she was
in such disgrace, the Colombian would not be granted the privilege of
having her hair braided.  Until the Grand Duchess granted permission,
Criminal # 101025 would have to endure her life at the Royal Residence with
her hair loosened.

   *****

   A few minutes later Lord Vidmarkt led a shacked and trembling Maria
Elena into the Great Hall, where the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of the
Republic of Danubia were seated.  The couple sat in matching thrones.  A
red carpet led from the thrones back to the room's main entrance.  As
usual, kneeling along the sides of the carpet were naked servants, young
men and women, collared and absolutely still and silent.

   As the Lord led his terrified captive to the Royal Couple, Maria Elena
noticed a big difference in their expressions.  The Grand Duchess seemed
eager to take control of her newest servant.  Her newest piece of property,
her newest toy.  Her face reflected arrogance, cruelty, and lust.  The
Grand Duke's face reflected nothing more than boredom.  He always had to be
present for the formal introduction of a new household servant out of
protocol, but clearly was irritated at being pulled off the Royal Golf
Course just to satisfy his wife's latest whim.

   By tradition, a criminal honored to serve in the house of the Royal
Family always was formally presented to the Grand Duke.  The new servant
officially became his property, and it was up to the ruler to assign a
task. There was some ceremony involved, but since becoming the nation's
ruler, the current Grand Duke simply handed each new servant over to his
wife and it was up to her to decide what to do with them.  That was the
case with Maria Elena.  The Grand Duke looked at her welt-covered body and
terrified expression with indifference while she knelt at his feet.  He
stood up, hooked his finger into the ring of her collar, and dragged her in
front of his wife.

   "Love of my life and Grand Mistress of Danubia, I present you with the
gift of human service.  Take this prisoner, and train her to suit your
needs.  She is yours, my Precious."

   "Thank you, my Lord and Grand Master of the Danubian people.  With
humility and gratitude I will accept this gift that you have bestowed upon
me."

   With that Anyia kissed her husband's hand and took hold of the ring in
Maria Elena's collar.  Now it was official, the prisoner was the personal
property of the Grand Duchess.

   The Grand Duke then stood up, along with the three most attractive naked
women in the room.  Most of the servants formally belonged to Anyia, but on
three occasions the Duke had kept a new female servant for himself. 
Everyone in the Royal Residence knew that those three women were
extraordinarily lucky.  Yes, the Grand Duke's personal servants did have to
provide him with sexual favors and do things such as carry his golf clubs,
but to serve the Grand Duke was infinitely better than having to serve the
Grand Duchess.  Once he selected a servant he treated her well, gave her
plenty of food and rest, and never did he beat anyone.  If a servant
displeased him, he simply threatened to turn her back over to his wife, and
that threat was enough to keep her obedient.

   The Grand Duke departed with his small escort.  The three women huddled
close behind him, knowing that he was the only person who stood between
them and a life of humiliation and terror under the Grand Duchess and the
two Lords in whom she confided.

   *****

   Anyia attached a leash to Maria Elena's collar while the prisoner knelt
and trembled.  She was fully expecting another whipping or being returned
to the pillory.  However, Anyia had moved beyond her temper tantrum from
the day before.  Instead, she was livid over the horrific lack of respect
that two male servants had displayed towards the household and towards the
rules that, in her divine wisdom, she had established for the benefit of
everyone in the residence.  The offense was that the two servants had been
caught talking to each other.  Talking among the servants was strictly
forbidden.  They could communicate with a simple sign language, but to use
their voices was a serious breach of the rules Anyia had imposed on the
servants shortly after she became Grand Duchess.  Such disgraceful behavior
could only be atoned for by assuring that the perpetrators understood the
true meaning of being dishonored.

   The two disgraced young men lay on their stomachs on the floor with
their feet cuffed together and their hands behind their backs.  Both young
men were typical-looking Danubians, of average stature and with brown hair
and brown eyes.  The other servants knelt in absolute silence while Anyia
paced the room angrily, yanking her newest servant's leash as Maria Elena
tried to keep up with her.  The Grand Duchess was screaming in Danubian,
berating the entire group about their total lack of respect for the Royal
Couple and their disdain for Royal Tradition.  Maria Elena could only
understand part of what her owner was saying, but she could tell that Anyia
was spewing threats ranging from daily floggings for everyone in the room
to being left in the pillory for several days.

   Anyia only stopped when the two Lords who enjoyed her confidence entered
the room.  Behind them a group of naked women struggled to carry a heavy
wooden table through the door.  When she saw that the table had several
sets of straps bolted to its surface, Maria Elena realized what it was. 
Except for being wooden instead of metal, it looked exactly like the table
she had been switched on following her trial.  She cringed, thinking that
the young men were going to be punished.  Yes, indeed, they were going to
be switched, but Anyia and her Lords would not be satisfied with merely
inflicting physical pain on their victims.  Before their switchings, they
would be dishonored.

   The Lords placed a hard pillow in the middle of the table and secured it
with buckles.  Then they grabbed one of the prostrate servants and forced
him onto the table, lying face up with the pillow under his hips.  Once his
wrists and ankles were restrained, the pillow forced him to arch his pelvis
and placed his penis and testicles on lewd display.  One of the Lords
casually groped him as a prelude to the horrific humiliation about to be
imposed on him and his unfortunate companion.

   The Lords turned their attention to the other servant.  They grabbed him
and forced him to stand next to the table.  They uncuffed his hands, but
left his feet shackled so he could not move.  Then both officials grabbed
cattle prods and turned the devices to their maximum setting.

   "Since you like making love-talk to each other, we will grant you that
privilege, the honor of making love in front of us.  Criminal # 100934, you
will arouse Criminal # 100833.  You will touch him with your hands, and you
will caress and love him until he is hard.  When he ejaculates, you will
allow him to expend into your mouth, and you will make sure no mess is left
behind."

   In spite of their training to not betray emotion, Maria Elena could tell
that both young men were mortified at what they were being forced to do. 
They were being ordered to degrade themselves in the worst way a Danubian
man could be degraded.  She was aware that in Danubian culture there was
nothing more dishonorable for a man than to have his genitals touched by
another man.  Kim and Cecilia had emphasized the extent to which all
Danubians (especially men) were totally paranoid at the thought of having
their bodies being touched by someone of the same sex.  It was a taboo with
a severity particular to Danubian culture.

   Maria Elena was about to witness something worse than a simple touching,
because the two servants would be forced to perform a homosexual act in
front of a room full of other people; fellow servants, several guards,
three members of the country's nobility, and a camera that had been set up
to record their degradation.  And yet they would do their best to comply
with what they were being ordered to do, because they knew that if they
failed, their families would be brought to the Royal Residence to see what
loathsome and dishonored creatures they had become.

   Criminal # 100934 started massaging Criminal # 100833's upper thighs and
stomach, slowly working towards his penis and testicles.  As he began to
fondle his companion's penis, it wasn't too long before Criminal # 100833
began to get hard, in spite of the overwhelming humiliation he was
enduring. As she watched with both horror and fascination, Maria Elena
wondered how many times those two servants had been forced to perform on
each other or on other male servants.  Then a more terrifying thought
entered her mind...  if Anyia was forcing her male servants to have sex
with each other in front of an audience, there was no reason to assume she
wouldn't force her female servants to do the exact same thing.  She glanced
with terror at the other naked kneeling women, wondering which one would be
the first her owner would force her to have sex with.

   Tears formed in Criminal # 100934's eyes as he placed his mouth over his
companion's penis.  He started sucking as he continued to stroke the shaft.
Criminal # 100833 closed his eyes and ejaculated, desperate to simply get
the experience over with.  As he struggled to swallow the semen in his
mouth, Criminal # 100934 coughed and gagged.  Suddenly he screamed and fell
on the floor.  The two Lords plunged their cattle prods at him, eliciting
more agonized screams.

   "You left a mess, you disgusting pervert!  You defied orders and you
left a mess!"

   Anyia spoke next.

   "That dishonored beast!  Take him to the whipping post!  I'll deal with
him!

   With that two guards dragged the sobbing criminal out to the courtyard,
while Anyia screamed at another male servant to bring her whips. 
Meanwhile, Criminal # 100833 remained strapped to the table, absolutely
silent.  With Anyia's ire directed towards the unfortunate Criminal #
100934, he knew that it was possible that he would avoid any further
punishment over the talking incident.  Anyia was as capricious as she was
vicious.  If she exhausted herself flogging Criminal 100934, then it was
probable she would forget all about punishing Criminal # 100833 and at some
point later in the day a guard would let him up from the table and he would
quietly return to his duties.

   *****

   While the other servants knelt in the courtyard, the Grand Duchess of
Danubia flogged Criminal # 100934.  He screamed pitifully as the whip
crossed his body over and over.  She concentrated on his bottom and upper
back, but she struck everywhere from his calves to his shoulders.  It
seemed she couldn't get enough of beating him, and the two Lords were all
too happy to give him an occasional shock in the testicles with one of
their zappers.  Finally Anyia stopped flogging, simply because she was too
exhausted to continue.  By the time she dropped her whip, her victim was
covered with horrific welts, some of which were bleeding.

   "Put him in the pillory."

   The Lords glanced at each other.  Maria Elena could tell their mood had
changed and that they became concerned about punishing Criminal # 100934
any further.  The two officials had been willing participants in the
servant's punishment, but never before had they seen Anyia flog to the
point of drawing blood.  He knew that needed a chance to recover and that
putting him in the pillory in his condition was not a good idea.

   "What are you waiting for?  Put that dishonored creature in the
pillory."

   As reluctant as the Lords were to do anything further to their victim,
they were not about to argue with the Grand Duchess in front of the other
servants.  They ordered the guards to unchain Criminal # 100934 from the
whipping post and put him in the pillory.

   Once he was chained, the young man hung limply.  The Lords became even
more concerned about his condition.  They knew that they would have to
somehow divert the attention of the Grand Duchess as quickly as possible,
so they could get Criminal # 100934 down and have him taken to the
infirmary of the Royal Residence.  They did not really feel sorry for him,
but they knew that a death among the Royal Servants was something they
needed to avoid.  A death was one thing that eventually would get out and
that would cause a scandal for the Royal Household.

   *****

   The Lord that had raped Maria Elena the night before spoke to the Grand
Duchess, suggesting that she try out her newest servant.

   "She is a lovely girl, your Graciousness, and you know what they say
about women from the tropics.  I'm sure she is eager to please you."

   Anyia tightened her grip on the leash holding Maria Elena's collar.

   "Yes, I suppose so.  I guess after what I've just been through, I
deserve a little pleasure."

   "Yes, your Graciousness.  You've had a difficult day so far.  Why not
take a break and enjoy yourself?  Lord Horskti and I will handle the
household.  Go and relax with the new servant, my Lady.  I will send
Criminal # 100504 to assist."

   The Lord whistled in the direction of one of the female servants, an
attractive blond girl who did not look Danubian.  Criminal # 100504
immediately stood up, walked over to the Lord, and knelt at his feet.

   "You will help Criminal # 101025 fulfill her Path in Life to provide
pleasure to the Grand Duchess."

   "Yes, my Lord."

   With that the Lord led his mistress and the two servants to the Royal
Bed Chamber.  As soon as they were out of sight, Lord Vidmarkt ordered the
guards to take Criminal # 100934 down from the pillory and to get him to
the infirmary for medical attention.  He clearly was in bad shape because
he was not able to walk unassisted.  Once he was safely on one of the beds,
a Royal nurse cleaned and disinfected the cuts.  The nurse tended to her
duties in silence.  Whatever opinions she had about the latest Royal
whipping she would keep to herself.  As with everyone else in the Royal
Residence, the nurse understood that her first duty to the Grand Duchess
was silence.

   As he studied the bloodied backside of the young servant, worry swept
over Lord Horskti.  Up until now the entire adventure with Anyia had been a
lot of fun and had brought many personal benefits for both him and his best
friend.  But everything has it limits and today it was obvious the Grand
Duchess had failed to understand that.  Assuming that Criminal # 100934
escaped any permanent injury, it was likely the incident would pass without
scandal, but...  what about the next time?

   *****

   Anyia and her two servants entered the Royal Bed Chamber alone.  Lord
Vidmarkt left them at the door and closed it as he departed.  In spite of
the fact he was one of her best friends, he had no desire to entangle
himself in a personal affair with the Grand Duchess.  He cared for her, and
in a way loved her, but he did not want his relationship with Anyia to be
anything other than platonic.  Anyhow, he did not need her, because he
already had a wife, a paramour who was a free civilian, and several female
slaves that he had taken as gifts from the Royal Family.  Anyia often
became bored with her servants after a short time, but out of principle she
never returned anyone to the Ministry of Justice.  Instead she reassigned
cast-off servants to her friends, essentially giving them away as personal
slaves.

   The room was large and sumptuous, decorated with curtains and rugs that
matched those used in the throne room.  Along with several finely crafted
dressers and wardrobes, the chamber boasted the largest bed Maria Elena had
ever seen.

   Without saying anything, Criminal # 100504 taught Criminal # 101025 what
she needed to do through example.  The Grand Duchess sat on small padded
bench so she could be undressed.  Criminal # 100504 undid the clasps
holding Anyia's dress and allowed it to fall, leaving her naked from the
waist up.  She oiled the monarch's shoulders and massaged her upper body.
The Grand Duchess was sore from the workout she had received while flogging
Criminal # 100934, so her tired muscles were due for a good rub-down. 
Maria Elena watched and then had to take over rubbing Anyia's shoulders. 
Criminal # 101025 moved in front of her Mistress to rub her sore arms and
kiss her breasts.  After a few moments Anyia started to become aroused. 
Criminal # 101025 then motioned to Maria Elena that the two servants needed
to switch places; that Maria Elena needed to kiss Anyia's breasts while she
returned to massaging the Grand Duchess's shoulders.  Maria Elena complied
and began sucking on Anyia's nipples.  It was the first time in her life
that she had ever touched another woman and definitely it was not something
she felt comfortable doing.

   Criminal # 100504 motioned to the newcomer that she needed to return to
massaging Anyia's shoulders so that the Grand Duchess could be completely
undressed.  The young woman knelt at her Mistress's feet to take off her
shoes.  Anyia then lifted up slightly to allow her servant to pull down her
dress.  She was not wearing any underwear, but she did have several
expensive pieces of jewelry that needed to be taken off as well.  Maria
Elena looked at the elaborate possessions coming off the Grand Duchess,
reflecting that any one of those items could have paid her living expenses
in Spain or anywhere else for the rest of her life.  How ironic that Anyia,
who was only three years older than Maria Elena, should have so much in her
life while everyone around her had so little.

   Once she was completely naked, Anyia moved to a massage table to receive
her rub-down from the two servants.  Maria Elena had never given a massage
before, but she quickly learned from watching Criminal # 100504.  The
massage consisted of two parts, a relaxing massage for Anyia's muscles
along her entire backside, and then an erotic massage on her front that
would get her ready to have sex.  The daily massage and sex were important
parts of Anyia's routine.  Normally she alternated between having sex with
male servants and female servants, because each gave her a type of
satisfaction that the other was not able to provide.

   Criminal # 100504 rightly assumed that her companion would have
absolutely no idea what she needed to do when the moment came to sexually
satisfy the Grand Duchess, so she quietly showed the newcomer what was
needed to stimulate the Mistress.  She continued the relaxing part of the
massage on Anyia's thighs and arms, but once she moved to her Mistress's
torso the massage became more erotic.  She lightly ran her fingertips over
Anyia's breasts and stomach before gently rubbing and touching the insides
of her thighs.  As a well-trained servant, she was expected to know when
Anyia was ready to be touched on her vagina, when her labia would be
caressed, when it was time to touch her clitoris, or when it was time to
insert a finger inside.  She knew that misjudging Anyia's desires would
result in a whipping, so it was important that she understood the hints and
body language coming from her Mistress.

   Maria Elena watched in fascinated horror as Criminal # 100504 stuck her
face between Anyia's thighs and began kissing and licking her crotch.  The
Colombian, meanwhile, stood on the other side of the Grand Duchess,
massaging her shoulders and breasts.  A worse indignity awaited her,
because Criminal # 100504 signaled that Anyia needed to be kissed.  A
simple kiss, but for Maria Elena the thought of kissing someone she feared
and hated was almost unbearable.  However, she did as she was instructed,
leaning down to kiss her tormentor on the lips.

   Anyia climaxed as soon as Criminal # 100504 started licking her
clitoris. Her body tensed up and she grabbed Maria Elena's hair as she
gasped with pleasure.  It was a bizarre sight for the Columbian, because
never before had she touched another woman and certainly she had never seen
another woman have an orgasm in real life.  She was relieved to see the
Grand Duchess satisfied.

   However, Criminal # 100504 knew better.  She knew that her Mistress was
not yet finished.  The dirty part was saved for Criminal # 101025. 
Criminal # 100504 placed a large hard pillow on the bed.  The pillow had an
unusual shape, because it was triangular.  One side gently sloped down,
whereas the other side was at almost 90 degrees to the surface of the bed.
Anyia lay over the pillow, spreading her legs and completely exposing her
bottom.  Criminal # 100504 pointed at Anyia's waiting anus.  Her expression
and gestures clearly stated "This part is yours, Criminal # 101025."

   Faced with the prospect of another whipping, Maria Elena reluctantly
approached Anyia's waiting backside.  She cringed with disgust at what she
was being forced to do; perform oral sex on the sphincter of the Grand
Duchess of Danubia.  She would have to kiss and lick her Mistress's anus,
and undoubtedly stick in her tongue.  The awful part of the task was that
Anyia had spent the morning wearing herself out exercising, and thus her
bottom was sweaty and not clean at all.  It would be up to her servant,
Criminal # 101025 to clean her.

   Maria Elena grabbed Anyia's moist bottom and massaged the muscles of her
backside.  She spread her Mistress slightly and without any further
hesitation stuck her tongue directly into the Duchess's anus.  She tried
not to gag at the unpleasant taste and smell, thinking that if she could
just get through the first part, the experience would not be so bad once
Anyia was cleaner.  She ran her tongue in a circle around her owner's
sphincter and then kissed the entire area surrounding her back entrance. 
As she was doing all that, Criminal 100504 kissed Anyia on the lips and
massaged her shoulders.  It wasn't long before the Grand Duchess climaxed
for a second time.  Maria Elena was hugely relieved, because she was tired
out and did not think she could have continued licking Anyia's bottom much
longer.

   While the two criminals had been arousing the Grand Duchess, another
criminal had silently entered the grand bathroom and ran a large tub of hot
water for the monarch.  Knowing that the bath was waiting, Criminal 100504
signaled to her companion to assist the Grand Duchess to the bathroom. 
Anyia sat on the toilet to empty her intestines, and it was up to her
servants to clean her up.  Maria Elena did not understand why a perfectly
healthy 22-year-old woman couldn't go into the bathroom unassisted, but she
realized the custom must have been part of the rules of Royal Protocol.

   The three women settled into a tub as large as a hot tub, complete with
bubble-bath.  The massaging and rubbing of the Grand Duchess continued
throughout her bath.  While Criminal # 101025 kissed Anyia's soapy breasts
and shoulders, Criminal # 100504 dipped her head under the water to
stimulate the Mistress's clitoris.  Maria Elena was amazed at how long her
companion could hold her breath and stay under water.  Anyia climaxed for a
third time, which left her relaxed and in a pleasant mood.  The two
servants helped her get out, dried her off, and accompanied her to the main
bedroom to dress her.  And with that the Grand Duchess's morning had
concluded, because now it was time for lunch.

   Because Maria Elena had not yet earned the privilege to serve at the
Royal Couple's table, she missed the midday meal.  Instead of going to the
Royal Dining Room, Maria Elena spent the hour with her other tormentor, the
Lord who had his eyes on her.  He chained her and took her to the
discipline room.  He strapped her to the "copulation platform" as it was
called, and spent the entire lunch hour raping and sodomizing her.  He was
displeased with the lack of enthusiasm when she was told to bark, as well
as her lack of willingness to fulfill her function to present her body for
the pleasure of her Masters.  The result of her disrespectful behavior was
several vicious swats with a heavy belt that left cruel marks over the
welts from the whipping she had received the day before.

   Once again Maria Elena had to tell her tormentor how dishonored she was,
and that honor was something she could never have because she was nothing
but a beast, a pathetic barking dog.  By the middle of her second day she
believed what she was saying, that she truly was nothing more than a
dishonored beast.  She lost all interest in talking to her fellow servants,
because undoubtedly they too saw her as nothing more than a dishonored
beast.

   *****

   Maria Elena began her formal training as a servant the afternoon of her
second day at the Royal Residence.  She was in considerable physical
discomfort, because her body still hurt from the whipping she had received
the day before.  Her sphincter was raw and burned Lord Vidmarkt's
attentions, her mouth was sore from having performed oral sex on the Grand
Duchess, and on top of everything else, she was hungry from not having
eaten since breakfast.  None of that mattered to anyone in the Royal
Residence.  Criminal # 101025 was a servant, and thus it was her duty to
serve, regardless of her physical condition.  Her silent trainer, Criminal
# 100504, took her to the kitchen to show her how to serve tea.  There was
much more to learn than just bringing tea to the Grand Duchess, because
servants had to know how to watch for signals that the Grand Duchess wanted
her cup taken away or to be served something else.  Maria Elena also needed
to know about kneeling.  Normally servants knelt upright so they could see
if the Mistress needed anything, but when they were being spoken to they
needed to kneel forward, placing their hands above their heads and placing
their foreheads on the ground.  Kneeling forward was the ultimate gesture
of humility, because servants in that position had to spread their knees
and arch their backs to completely display their backsides and genitalia.
Criminal # 100504 made sure that Maria Elena understood the kneeling
forward position by demonstrating it.

   Another task Criminal # 101025 needed to learn was moving in unison with
the other servants.  The servants often dropped to their knees as a group
and stood up as a group.  Before entering the household Maria Elena had
wondered how the servants were able to coordinate their movements.  The way
it was done was for all the servants to watch the servant kneeling
immediately to the right side of the Duchess and follow whatever that
person was doing.  The servants closest to Anyia usually were the ones who
had been with her the longest and the ones in whom she had placed the most
trust.

   Following several hours of training, Criminal # 100504 led Criminal #
101025 to a room in the basement containing several pieces of exercise
equipment.  In spite of her fatigue, hunger, and soreness, Maria Elena had
to spend time on the treadmill and doing leg lifts.  Criminal # 100504 knew
that the trainee's back and bottom were in no condition for her to perform
sit-ups or bench presses, but she did have to practice push-ups, which she
did badly.  Maria Elena was not in good shape at that moment, but it was
clear that would have to change if the Grand Duchess were to be pleased.

   By the time she was finished exercising, the Colombian was extremely
thirsty.  Criminal # 100504 casually placed a large bowl of water on the
floor.  The new servant was so thirsty that she no longer cared about
degrading herself by drinking water on all fours.  She positioned herself
according to slave protocol, spreading her legs and lewdly exposing herself
to anyone standing behind her.  She drank desperately, coughing whenever
water went up her nose, but finally she managed to empty the bowl and
consume most of the water.  She felt better, but suddenly the memory of
those two Lords and her full bladder came back to her.  She wondered if yet
more humiliation awaited her.

   *****

   Shortly before sunset, the Grand Duke returned to the Royal Residence
from a day on the Royal Golf Course, accompanied by his three female
servants.  One of the women carried the Duke's golf clubs while the others
followed closely behind.  The Duke's servants kept their eyes forward, not
exchanging glances with anyone else in the household.  Maria Elena noticed
that Duke's servants always stayed as close to him as possible and refused
to have anything to do with the others.  They were the lucky ones, the
three women who did not have to deal with the Grand Duchess.  Maria Elena
suspected that the Grand Duke's women feared that if they ever were
separated from him, Anyia would grab them and their luck would run out.

   Once the Duke and his servants had cleaned up from their outing, it was
time for dinner.  The Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess sat together at a
huge table in the elaborate Royal Dining Room while the servants knelt
along the wall.  Each servant had a specific task assigned for the dinner,
for example the wine was brought and served by a young man and the salad
was dished out by two women, one of whom was Criminal # 100504.  Each
servant knew his or her duty and each one moved on cue.  Maria Elena's task
would be at the end, helping to clean up.  She had not yet earned the
privilege of serving food.

   As she knelt and tried to keep her eyes facing forward, Maria Elena
noticed something that she found strange.  At the dinner table it was
obvious the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess cared for each other.  She had not
noticed much interaction between them earlier in the day, but at meal they
conversed, joked, and held hands.  Around the Grand Duke, Anyia's behavior
seemed much more "normal" than when she was alone with her servants.

   In spite of her fear and hatred of the Grand Duchess, Maria Elena felt
uneasy when Anyia and the Grand Duke left the Royal Dining Room.  The
Duke's three women scurried out together, eager to lock themselves up in
their chamber and get away from the other servants as quickly as possible.
The others tidied up the dining area.

   Maria Elena was about to grab a bottle of window cleaner when Lord
Vidmarkt showed up with a leash.  He hooked it to her collar and gave it a
quick jerk.  She let go of the bottle and knelt at his feet.  Without
saying anything, another servant brought two partially-consumed plates of
food, the same plates from which the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess had
been eating.  It was apparent that the Lord expected Maria Elena to eat
their leftovers.  He took off his belt, doubled it, and touched it to her
chin.

   "A good dog is allowed to eat from the Master's table.  So are you a
good dog?  Speak!"

   Trembling with fear and tears welling up in her eyes, Maria Elena let
out a loud bark.

   "Excellent.  You may be nothing but a dishonored animal, but at least
you know how to show gratitude.  Now, eat."

   Maria Elena pushed her face into the food, eating just like a dog. 
Fortunately the meal was simple Danubian meat pasta and cooked vegetables,
so it was relatively easy to get into her mouth.  Had she been forced to
eat meat off a bone without using her hands, she would have been forced to
do something nearly impossible.  The probable result would have been a
beating.  Still, the humiliation of having to eat on all fours with her
thighs spread and her backside on full display to everyone in the room was
unbearable.  Her meal concluded with a large bowl of water.  She was
horribly thirsty, so she drank greedily, even though water constantly got
into her nose and made her cough.

   Once she was finished drinking, Lord Vidmarkt ordered the servant to
help with the final part of the cleanup.  No one made any effort to
communicate with her; it seemed that all the other servants were trying to
avoid her.  As she worked, she noticed that she needed to go to the
bathroom and that the pressure in her bladder was rapidly building.  She
realized that she probably would not be able to relieve herself without
some new embarrassment.  Sure enough, as soon as she was done with her
chores, the Lord and one of his Danubian servants took her outside to the
lawn of the Royal Residence.  She was leashed and her master told her that
he was taking his dog for a walk.  Indeed he was, because soon the pressure
in her bladder forced her to ask for permission to squat.

   "Does my doggie have to go pottie?  Good dog.  Now bark if you have to
go."

   Maria Elena barked.

   "Very well dishonored doggie, you may go."

   He ordered her to squat in the grass and still holding the leash, shined
a flashlight at her.  In spite of her humiliation, she managed to relax her
bladder and a torrent of urine poured out of her.  When she was finished,
Maria Elena knew better than to rise without permission.  Sure enough, the
Lord handed some toilet paper to his silent servant.  She immediately
stepped over to Maria Elena, placed her hand on her shoulder to steady her,
and with her other hand reached between her legs to dry her off.

   "Put your finger in her vagina and make sure she is dry."

   The servant complied and rubbed her bare finger along Maria Elena's
vulva, but both women were mortified at the insult.

   "She is dry, my Lord."

   *****

   A few minutes later Lord Vidmarkt and the two women accompanying him had
returned to the room containing the "copulation platform".  The other
servant buckled Maria Elena's restraints so that, for the third time in
just two days, she was immobilized on her elbows and knees with her bottom
spread and her genitalia lewdly on display.  The Lord took several pictures
of her with a digital camera, then undressed.  He handed each item of
clothing to his servant, who took the articles and quickly folded them.  He
stepped back to masturbate himself while his servant rubbed lubricant into
Maria Elena's vagina and anus.  As soon as she was finished and Criminal #
101025 was lubricated for sex, the Lord grabbed the restrained servant by
the hips and thrust into her as hard as he could.

   The other servant turned to kneel facing the wall, but the Lord ordered
her to stand and watch.  She obeyed, trying as best she could to remain
expressionless.  Maria Elena did not know it at the time, but in Danubian
culture to watch other people have sex was considered an extremely
dishonorable act.  The Lord was dishonoring Maria Elena by raping and
sodomizing her, but he also was dishonoring his other servant by ordering
her to watch instead of allowing her to turn away.

   When he finished pumping semen into her vagina, Lord Vidmarkt paused a
few minutes while he groped Maria Elena's thighs and bottom.  The other
servant knelt and her master put his wet penis into her mouth.  She was
obviously disgusted at the thought of having to taste the sex of two other
people.  Maria Elena already knew that performing oral sex was another
practice that was considered dishonorable in Danubia.  As soon as he spent
his remaining semen into the other servant's mouth, he slapped her.  He
then ordered the two women into the washroom and instructed them to bathe
each other.  Neither could touch her own body; all washing had to be done
by the other.  Of course, the two servants had to pay special attention to
each other's crotches.

   "I shall smell both of you when you are finished.  If there is even a
hint of stench, I will flog you both.  Then I will have you flip a coin to
see which one of you will spend the night in the pillory."

   Maria Elena realized that Lord Vidmarkt was obsessed with dishonoring
women by making them humiliate themselves.  He was not as quick to flog a
Royal Servant as was Anyia, but he tortured them in a different manner
through continuous sexual insults and by doing everything he could to
destroy any hint of self-respect.

   There was a final humiliation for Maria Elena's fellow servant.  Lord
Vidmarkt ordered her to kneel and Maria Elena to undo her braids.  The
woman had held up well throughout the evening, but having her braids undone
broke her spirit.  As Maria Elena finished with her companion's hair and
ran her fingers through to straighten it out, tears rolled down the
Danubian woman's cheeks.

   "Why are you crying?  I'm sure you realize that you don't deserve to
have braided hair.  Braided hair is a privilege only for women who have
honor."

   With that Lord Vidmarkt locked up the two servants in the tiny cell
where Maria Elena had slept alone the night before.  As he closed the door,
he commented:

   "That mattress is large enough for dishonored women who wish to lie
together; as I am sure you two sexual deviants wish to do."

   Once the door was closed and bolted, Maria Elena thought about
whispering to her cellmate about making an arrangement to take turns
sleeping on the mattress.  However, it turned out that was not necessary.
Her Danubian companion knelt in the corner, facing away from her, crying.
She stayed in that position for hours, not moving and not responding, just
crying.  Maria Elena didn't know what else to do, other than get onto the
mattress and try to sleep.  She was so exhausted that not even the other
woman's crying could keep her awake.

   She drifted into slumber, dreaming of another time when, as a young
teenager, she was walking along a foggy mountain road that led through
endless forests and coffee fields.  She was 14 at the time, on a church
retreat.  Jose Pablo had been there, along with other friends with whom she
had long since lost contact.  Yes, when she was 14, everything was so
intense, and she knew that she and the others would be friends forever. 
Five years...  five years had come and gone since that church trip.

   Forever...  yeah, right.

   Maria Elena Rodriguez-Torres had not been able to appreciate that moment
at the time, but remembering it as an adult, she realized those misty
mountains was one place she could have found peace if she had not been such
a fool with her choices and wasted her life.  Whatever joy she had on that
misty road; the pleasant environment, her friends and companions, and Jose
Pablo, had long since vanished.