****

Part 2
THE CITY OF THE RAINBOW

LASHAYETTE theme:
Real life, by Simple Minds  play.spotify.com/track/7dg0177…


"Wonderful, just wonderful."
Dana stared at the Alshaonysette, the giant colored waterfall. The water fell into a lake, were the colors mixed. The waterfall fell down from a massive wall, behind it was a large building of light blue shiny stone.
"How is it done? The waterfall is not at the river." Marule asked, who saw the Alshaonysette for the first time too, just like Zusha which didnt seem impressed.
"In the building there are giant, powerful pumps, their energy being magical in nature. Many magical crystals are needed daily to keep it running. It costs 20.000 zarines daily."
"That are 400.000 dublones! Daily!" Dana exclaimed. Her arithmetic skills were good, though she couldnt read and write. She had learned it in the inn in Moravan, as it had been necessary for her work.
"About the yearly income of a doranian archduchess, yes." Tashmal said, obviously more than a bit proud.
Zusha asked, seemingly totally unrelated:
"Why hasnt Achaia conquered Dorania long ago?"
Dana didnt understand, but Tashmal chuckled and answered:
"Achaia is not an aggressive country, Tra Ka Dar. We dont start wars, we only fight to defend ourselves. Besides, war is robbery written large, and in the empire there is nothing we want to rob."
Zusha nodded. Dana ignored them and drank the beautiful sight before her with her eyes.
Lashayette, which they had entered an hour ago, was unbelievably large, full of Achaians and others, and, like Tashmal, filthy rich. The blonde was a bit overwhelmed by all the impressions attacking her senses.
"Anyway, lets head for the embassy. We can come back here another time."
The four friends turned their horses about and left the wide plaza before the waterfall, riding down a broad avenue. It was full of coaches, carts, riders, palanquins and people on foot. To both sides were arcades, under which merchants offered their items.
Tashmal led them away from it as soon as possible, as it was immensely crowded. Through smaller streets, they got to another plaza. The petite brunette in blue led them towards a large building behind a wall, a banner in yellow with a red lion hanging down from its highest tower.
Dana knew that was the flag of the witchdom of Albor. At the gate in the wall, two women were standing guard.  They wore yellow boots and gloves, trousers and blouse of the same color, and shiny armor, were armed with helebards and swords. They were tall, thin, had long faces and fair skin, and both womens hair was a reddish blonde.
Tashmal showed a paper, and they were let in. Maids in yellow wear, tall, thin, with long faces and blond, light brown or red hair appeared and took care of their horses.
The blonde was nervous. She wished for a smoke, but that was surely bad manners now.
One of the maids guided them into the building. They reached a small chamber with some cushioned chairs and small low tables, and the maid offered juice and cigarettes. Dana immediately took a stick, the maid lit it for her.  The three others mouthed filmus too, and the maid lit them all. She poured them juice into four heavy glasses, asked them to wait a few minutes, and left.
Dana puffed on her stick nervously. The others seemed total at ease, sitting down in the chairs. The booted blonde remained standing, started to pace. A few steps left, a few steps right, and back.
They had just finished their smokes, as the door opened again. A young woman about Tashmals age entered. She wore a long gown of light green silk, long dark green leather gloves and a conic hat, which was pointed and very high. An alboranian witch directly out of a story. The hat was dark green too, and a silken band in lighter green crisscrossed up to its point.
Like guards and maids, the witch was tall, very thin, had a long face and fair skinn. Her hair was in a plait behind her back, it was dark red. Her eyes were grey like the fall sky  and well made up, her lipstick a dark green.
"Welcome to our house, Madamelle, Lady, Ejrvrou, Red warrior."
Her voice was cool, her smile reserved. Tashmal and the others rose and the witch approached the group.
"Madamelle Tashmal, I am sorry, but the ambassador is back in Albor for important consultations. She wont be back before the next week."
"I see, Witch Brith-orl-Meo. Too bad.  I will take my friends to my house, they will be my guests. Please send me a message when the ambassador returns."
Suddenly, a small black snake appeared between the witchs bossom and hissed at Tashmal.
The Achaian laughed.
"Hello Osh. I see you still dont like me."
The witch took the petite animal out of her bra and stroke her. She said something in Alboran to it. Dana assumed it was alboran anyway.
"You had no problems on the journey?"
"We had problems aplenty. Wait till you see my bill."
The witch nodded, still not smiling. It looked like she didnt like Tashmal very much. She put the snake back between her breasts.
Producing a red pack of Malegos, she said:
"Will you stay for dinner?"
"No, thank you, Witch Brith-orl-Meo."
The witch mouthed a stick and offered the pack to Tashmal. She petite brunette took one. Both lit up. Dana allowed herself another filmu too. Somehow she was relieved that the ambassador was not here.
Tashmal and the witch fell silent , watched each other smoke. There was tension between them.  Suddenly, Dana smelled Tashmals love honey, and another love tube, one she hadnt smelled before. She realized with no small surprise the two women were hot for each other.
"Well," the redhead finally said, killing her smoke in the ashtray, "then I wish you well till we meet again."
She nodded to each of the woman and left. The maid appeared again, leading them out.
Outside, as the waited for their horses, Dana couldnt hold back to ask curious:
"Is the witch an enemy of yours or a lover?"
"I am not always sure," Tashmal said, smiling amused. Her snake hates me, and thats no good sign. But when we made love, Megan was always hot as hell."
"You called her, wait, Brith-orl-Meo."
"The Alborans always call each other by their family name in public. Only in private they use their first names. The redheads name is Megan, as I said. I heard it for the first time during our first love session. I had to sex interrogate her to get at it."
She smiled, the memory seemed to be a good one. Dana was a bit jelaous of the witch. She had nearly no boobs at all!
***
"Just as I said, Tashmal, you are filthy rich," Dana affirmed.
They had reentered the city, brought the horses to a large stable, and continued in a rented coach, a so-called "Taxaje", to Tashmals home. It lay in the outskirts of the city, on a hill in the west.
Like the other houses in the neighborhood, it was large and surrounded by a huge garden with exotic plants and flowers. In the garden there was a pond with a nearly quadratic form, clearly artifical.
They were standing before the main door, which was decorated with silver figures. Dana noticed it were pairs of women in different sex positions.   Tashmal pulled a silver chain hanging down beside the door. Inside, a sweet melody was audible at that. Magic again, Dana assumed.
After a short while, the door was opened. A petite black skinned woman, a Mambaka, immediately went to her knees, beaming up at Tashmal.
"Mistress has returned. Ugumbe is so happy."
Tashmal bent down and kissed the Mambaka on the red painted mouth. The girl shuddered in pleasure and heat.
"I missed you too, little plum pudding. Now hurry, we want to bath and feast. You have much to do."
"Yes mistress, Ugumbe is hurrying, mistress."
"Wait. This are Lady Dana, Lady Zusha, and Ejrvrou Marule. You will service them in all ways they wish and a command of them is like one of me. Understood?"
"Yes, mistress."
"Have you tended to the plants as ordered? Never forgotten it?"
"No, mistress. I have serviced them every day."
Tashmal laughed.
"You are worshipping your Frazzu again, little liar. Be on your way, quick, before I whip you."
The slave rose with grace and vanished in the house. She was as petite as Tashmal, but more meaty, with large breasts, a broad face and curly, thick black hair falling down to her waist. She wore a red silken loincloth and a silken bra of the same color. Her feet were bare. Her face wore good makeup, red for both eyes and lips.
"Ugumbe worships Frazzu, the daughtergoddess of lies?" Marule asked.
"Yes, but come in, you three, it starts raining again. Anyway, every day, the plum pudding has to tell at least one lie, otherwise Frazzu would be angry with her. You know, the Mambakas worship only the dark aspects. I consider Ugumbes deity quite harmless compared to others."
"She was all alone here the weeks you were gone, Tashmal? Why didnt she try to flee?"
"Several reasons, my blonde beauty. First, she loves to be a slave.  Second, she loves to be MY slave, as I am rich and she has an easy live here. She thinks I am a kind mistress. She is allowed to drink, eat and smoke as much as she likes, she is allowed to use my magical dreamer, and so on. And third, Megan has checked on her and the house regularly."
"I see", Dana said coldly. The redhaired witch again, wonderful. Her hat was ridicilous. And dont forget this mini boobs. And she is so thin, when you put her in a hogtie she will break in half. Dana imagined the Alboran in a hogtie, gagged too. She felt a bit better.
***
"OOOHH! AAAHH! UGG! Thats wonderful, Ugumbe. Your hands!"
"Mistress Danas muscles are very tense. She is angry about something."
"Dont stop, thats sooo good. AAAH!"
"Mistress is very beautiful. Its easy to see why my mistress is in love with her."
"Is she? I mean, in love with me?"
"Yes, she told me. She speaks freely with Ugumbe about such things."
"I see. UUH! Ugumbe?"
"Yes, mistress?"
"Does she love mistress Megan too?"
The slave laughed.
"Now Ugumbe understands. No mistress, but mistress Megan loves my mistress."
"Oh. Well, thats, well, I will have to think about that."
"Does mistress Dana feel better now?"
"Yes, thank you, Ugumbe. Whats next?"
"The oil, mistress. Your skin will become smooth by it like silk."
"Fine, go ahead."
***
"Good morning to you, Madamelle."
"And to you, Madamelle. I have an account here. I would like to know its present value."
"Please write down the code on this sheet, please."
Dana had started to learn reading and writing from Marule, who had much fun teaching it. Her efforts to teach Dana singing had been a total failure on the other hand. Tashmal had threatened to gag Dana immediately if she ever started to sing again.
She had the code memorized and a clear picture of its written form in her mind. She painted it on the sheet. Her handwriting was arkward, but one could read the signs.
The bank scribe, an elderly women in her forties with orange dyed hair, took the sheet and vanished into the interior of the bank. It was early morning, and there were few customers in the bank of the Silverblue cat.  Zusha was with the blonde, waiting patiently beside her.
It was their fourth day in Lashayette. Yesterday, snow had fallen for the first time this year. Tashmal had already shown them some places in the city, among them a pleasure house where they spent a wonderful night in the hand of a pleasure mistress and her trained slaves. They had been in a public bath too, a whole day long. It had been a pleasure in another way. And in a theater, watching a comedy, though Dana had had difficulty understanding everything, as the actors had spoken so fast.
This evening, Megan the witch would visit Tashmal. Dana didnt look forward to it. She dismissed the thought as the bank scribe reappeared.
She reached across another sheet of paper with a number on it.  
3.509 zarines, that was a welcomed surprise.
"I wish to take 100 zarines with me. In paper and gold both."
Achaia had paper money, another thing the empire could only dream of. Dana received the money, and she and Zusha left.
"I would like to go shopping a bit. Not only for me, for you too, Zusha. Dont object, you could use some better wear, and what about boots and gloves. Would you like that?"
"I have no problem with you spending money for me, but it is not really necessary."
"I will find pleasure in it, especially to see you hotly booted and gloved. A black like mine?"
"Very well, Lady Dana. Yes, I would prefer a black set like yours. But without high heels. The sound those make are a danger in combat."
"I know, but I am vain."
"We all have weaknesses. "
***
"Two kaff and a piece of cherry cake and one of plum cake please."
"Yes, Madamellettes."
"As expected, you look VERY hot in boots and gloves, Zusha."
"I admit I feel so in them, yes."
"Do you wear such items in your culture too?"
"No, the preferred material is suede, and boots are only knee high, and we dont wear gloves."
Dana, now in bright red leg boots and gloves and a red corsage, her black outfit in a large bag standing beside her, lit a Laxago and inhaled. Shopping was fun if you had enough money, she had learned. And she understood why Tashmal had taken pleasure in outfitting Dana back in Maulburg. It had been fun to buy clothing for Zusha.
They sat in a crowded kaff house in the eastern part of Lashayette, at the bank of the Krisnishue river parting the city in the middle. Large bags were in attendance , the leather strained from all the clothing stuffed into them.
Their kaffs and cake came, and they spent some time drinking, eating and smoking, watching the other guests as they watched too. Dana noticed a young woman about their age working in a sketch block. She often looked at Dana. The girl was very beautiful. She was slender and petite like most Achaians, had blue, chin length hair and silvern makeup, wore blue latexa stockings and gloves, and a white silk dress and white slippers. Their eyes met, and the Achaian smiled at Dana. The blonde smiled back.
The blue haired girl put a filmu between her silvern lips, rose and came over, taking the sketch block with her.
"Do you have a light for me, Madamelle?"
"Sure, here, Madamelle."
The girl lit her cigarette at Danas match and inhaled deeply. She knew how to smoke seductively, Dana saw, mildly aroused.
"I would like to show you my drawing."
It was a portrait of Dana, a very good one.
"You are talented, Madamelle. Whats your name?"
"Vimajas, and yours?"
"Call me Dana. This is Zusha."
"Hello Zusha."
"Greetings, Lady Vimajas."
"Would you like to join us? We can chat a bit."
"Thank you, Dana, I would love to."
The young Achaian sat down at their table after fetching her cigarettes, kaff and bag from the other table.
Dana lit a fresh smoke and asked:
"You are an Elevyn , a student of the arts?"
"Yes. I want to draw Klinguas." Which were picture stories special to Achaia.
"You speak Achaian well for a Doranian, Dana."
"I had a good teacher, and I like the language. Its much more beautiful than my own."
"How do you like Lashayette?"
"A wonderful city. A never saw one more beautiful. And I love the Alshaonysette."
"I dont know if the city is so wonderful compared to others. I have grown up here and never have been anywhere else. All I know about the world is from school and books. Have you traveled much?"
"No, only from Dorania to Lashayette."
"And you, Zusha?"
"I have traveled."
Zusha seemed uninterested in the girl, she still looked around. Dana said:
"We havent been in the city for long. What is worth seeing and doing?"
"Do you like football?"
"I played it until two years after my First Pleasures, but couldnt continue as I had to leave my village for my work."
"You two are warriors, right?"
"Uuuh, yes."
"Warriors often make good football players. What I wanted to say is, if you like football, you should visit the stadion and watch a game of the Lashayette Vixens.  They are the best team of the country and have won against alboranian, dorianian, liganorian and zillagolish teams too. Tomorrow they play against a team from Amelyn, the Panthers."
Amelyn was a big port city at the achaian south coast.
"Will you watch the game Vimajas?"
"I watch every home game of  the Vixens. One of my lovers is the left flank defender of the team. The league is very tight this year. The Panthers are our greatest rivals for the championship. Its a very important game."
"Is such a league not complicated, with distances between cities? Amelyn is several hundred miles away."
"The teams travel by dragon. Its different in Dorania?"
"There is no regular league in the empire, I am afraid."
"Oh, I didnt know that. Are you  interested? I could get tickets for you two."
To Danas surprise, Zusha said:
"I would like to see this game. I like football."
So it was played in Rondakalor too, Dana noted.
"Well, why not," she said.
"And afterwards, we will meet my player lover and have some quartet pleasure, what do you think?"
Vijamas was very beautiful, and Dana liked her already, so she said:
"That would be to my liking. Zusha?"
"I am always in when there is pleasure ahead."
The girl looked to the big clock at the wall.
"Uh, Klish, my next lesson starts in ten minutes. So we will see the game together?  Okay, lets meet tomorrow at the 14th hour, here in this house."
"Fine, Vimajas, dont bother with your bill, I will pay it."
"Thank you, Dana. Oh, before I forget it! Here, your portrait, a gift from someone already very hot about you."
Vimajas hurried out of the kaff house. Dana watched her leaving.
"She could be a scout or bait." Zusha said evenly, lighting a cigarette.
"I have considered that. I know the danger is not gone. We will be careful. And we will ask Tashmal what to do. Anyway, so you are into football. Did you play yourself at home?"
"Yes. I used to play right flank striker. I am very fast."
"I didnt know football is played in the Red realm too."
"Football is played everywhere on Matria. Its said it was the holy sport of the Ancients."
"Never heard that. Well, you know I am from a remote place in a remote empire."
***
"Could you tell us, Witch Brith-orl-Meo, how a witch in Albor chooses her animal?"
"The animal chooses the witch, Ejrvrou Marule."
"Please, Megan, will you allow my friends to call you by "Megan"?"
"Very well. As we will spent the night in the cushions of pleasure together, that is only fitting."
The witch, without her ridicilous hat, her hair open on her shoulders, lit a Malego. Dana could smell it watered the pussy of the bitch, oh, witch,  strongly.
"Mmmh, one day in the life of the witch, usually around the time of her First Pleasures,  an animal will appear and start to follow her. She adopts it, and it becomes her confidant, con-fy-deth in alboran. There is a magical bond between both, the witch and the con-fy-deth.  The animal will not die as long as the witch lives. Of natural causes, I mean. Even if its normal life span is only a few years."
The tone of Megan was cold, her face guarded. Dana now knew that was not due to a character fault, it was normal alboran behavior, a show of good manners. Marule had explained that to her as Dana had made an remark about the witch this afternoon. She didnt like Megan nonetheless. Mini-boobs was in love with her Tashmal, that was reason enough to dislike her if there ever was one.
The blonde mouthed a Laxago, as Ugumbe appeared with a large plate.
"No smoking now, mistress Dana, mistress witch. Time to feast!"
As always when Ugumbe cooked, it tasted marvelous. This evening, she had cooked an alboran recipe, as the witch was First Guest of the group. Meat Loaf in pepper sauce with butterfly noodles and mushrooms. As dessert she had prepared plum pudding with whipped cream - her specialty, the reason why Tashmal called her plum pudding so often.
Altough Dana was very curious about Albor and the witches, she didnt ask any questions. This was Marules part, who seemed just as curious, although she already knew much more about the country than Dana.
Zusha was quiet as usual, while Tashmal was mainly smiling at Dana, who wore here new bright red boots, gloves and corsage, and an also new short silken dress in a darker red. In Danas open hair red silken bands were interwoven, and it was kept out of the face by a broad red latexa band, from which she hoped the others would gag her with it during the nights pleasures.
Tashmals feet were playing along Danas booted legs under the table.
During dessert, the blonde noticed a sharp stare of the witch in her direction. Megan dropped her spoon and lit a cigarette, puffing obviously angry. So the witch had finally noticed Tashmals sweet smiles at Dana.
Later, they were meanwhile sitting in couches near a large fireplace in another room of the large house, they were talking about politics. Marule had brought the subject up with a remark about the civil war in the empire.
Dana hadnt even known there was a civil war in her home country. She listened intently. It raged in the north of the empire, and the opposing sides were the Kaisera, supported by the order of Kerke, against three archduchesses who didnt acknowledge her right to the throne. The southern parts of the empire,  Audenk and Moravan, werent really involved, but they very quasi independent, as they didnt pay taxes to the Kaisera anymore and their archduchesses didnt care for her orders and decrees.
Marule opinioned that the empire would break apart entirely. Tashmal thought otherwise. She feared the order of Kerke with its army of death knightresses would militarily win the war for the Kaisera, gaining more influence over her than it already had. Zusha objected that the death knightresses were mainly tied to the Kerkemark, in the constant war with the Rondakas.
Dana only listened, while the witch was very quiet too, smoking more than the others and drinking one glass of wine after the other. She was already drunk.
Her eyes were fixed on Tashmals left hand, which stroke Danas blonde mane during the entire discussion.
Last but not least, little Ugumbe knelt beside the fireplace and ate her own meal, a mambakian recipe, from a large bowl - with her fingers.
The conversation turned to other topics - fashion, music and Lashayettes gossip - and was largely between Tashmal, Marule and Ugumbe, the black slave providing the gossip of the weeks while Tashmal had been gone from the city.
Finally, Ugumbe asked when the nights pleasures would begin. Tashmal rose and exclaimed:
"Right now! The blue room is for me and my blonde beauty."
Marule asked Megan:
"Shall we take a room too, Megan? I am very hot about you."
The witch rose unsteadily and said ice cold:
"No thanks. I have drunken too much. I will take my coach home to the embassy."
She sent Dana a look full of pure hatred, grabbed her cigarettes and rushed out of the room. As she passed Ugumbe, she hissed:
"Slave! My hat and cloak!"
And out she was. Ugumbe followed her quickly.
"Have I said or done something wrong?" Marule asked, concerned and confused.
"No, Marule," Dana said and rose slowly.
"It is better that way," Tashmal said.
"You could have talked to her." Dana opinioned.
"She had to learn about it the hard way. She will get over it. Put her from your mind, blonde beauty."
"Still in the mood for pleasure?"
"In the mood? Yes. But today, it is I who got her menstruation. And as you wont do it with me during this, pleasures with you are postponed, Dana."
"So you planned the whole evening this way only to "inform" Megan about us."
Tashmal nodded, sat down again and poured herself some wine.
Ugumbe returned and looked at Tashmal.
"Mistress is so cruel," she giggled.
Dana changed a look with Marule. The bard shrugged, meaning: This is Tashmal. You wont change her.
"Where are you going, my blonde beauty?" Tashmal beamed.
"I am going to bed. Good night, cruel whore."