The Collared Empress: Book One of the King's Collared by Douglas Demitria

Author:Douglas, Demitria
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-11-29T00:00:00+00:00

Splashing in the water roused her, and she blinked blearily, shivering. She opened her mouth, about to call out for Jared, stopping as she realized it might not be her enforcer coming for her.

Empress sat up with a wince, her arm aching from the cuts she had made. Her barrier was moments away from expiring and she was unarmed, unprotected, unable to use, her enforcer fighting a massive enemy without her. More noise from the water and she flinched, pressing back against the dead tree.

“Are you hiding?” A girlish voice asked out of the fog. Empress stiffened, holding her breath, scanning the area desperately. “Oh, don’t tell me you’re afraid of little old me. I won’t bite.”

The words were almost singsong, juvenile and playful. More movement in the water, and Empress shivered, cold, afraid.

The fog roiled, playing and flirting along the water’s edge, near where she rested against the tree.

“Do you want to play a game?” The girlish voice came again, closer. Empress bit the inside of her cheek, struggling to hold her breath. “I want to play. And you’re here to play with me.”

A figure in the water, swimming closer. Long, faded, matted red hair trailed through the water, a pale face staring up at her as the woman swam closer. And it was a woman, an older elven woman who pulled herself up the bank, her long hair stringy and matted with leaves and plants and debris, draping her body. Her dress was ragged, threadbare, barely covering her thin frame, exposing heavy scars all over her pale skin. Empress’ eyes snagged on the heavy, ornate necklace around the other elf’s neck, covering her from the bottom of her chin to the top of her shoulders, golden and bejewelled, strands of gold chains draping from around the base to the woman’s chest and back. It was crusted in blood, in dirt and mud.

Empress recoiled as she realized that the necklace was a collar, that the woman before her was a collared user, no different than she.

“Ready to play?” The woman smiled sweetly at her, batting her pale blue eyes. Her expression turned cruel, a baring of sharp teeth. “If you don’t scream, I’ll let you go first.”

Empress shivered, staring at the strange elf. “Who are you?”

She tilted her head, a mass of her faded red hair shifting, exposing a delicately pointed ear. She crept closer, crawling on her hands and knees. The other elf reached a hand out, nails long, dirty, ragged, and Empress recoiled.

“Why, I’m Guinevere.” The woman murmured, her voice low, affectionate.

Empress stared, unsure.

“Oh? You don’t know me?” Guinevere pouted, sitting back on her haunches. She frowned briefly, then smiled widely. “Well, that just means that we can get to know each other.”

Empress flinched as Guinevere was suddenly in her face, the other elf’s dirty hands clutching at Empress’ hair and neck, her fingers hooking in Empress’ collar.

“You’re just like me, aren’t you, little girl?” Guinevere whispered, pulling Empress close, her breath smelling like old blood. “I could take this off.

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