It`s a Long Way 9

The first soldier trying to lay his hands on Janika got her unchained foot into his stomach, sending him into the arms of Abbot Lorenzo. The two were thrown against the wall and Janika balled her fists, ready to fight off any further attack whilst Jelena tried to hide behind the blonde`s back.

The soldier was aching and pressed his hands against his stomach. With an annoyed grunt, the Abbot pushed him away from him and brushed some dust from his habit. Then, he retreated from the cell, but only to make room for another man who held a crossbow in his hands.

Janika cursed. The man was just out of reach and inside the little cell, he would not even have to aim to hit one of them. Beside him, the Abbot now showed up again and said:

»Will you keep on resisting?«

Janika took a deep breath and answered, trying to sound cool and brave:

»If we didn`t, what would be the difference? You have trialed us already! So, it doesn`t matter whether we will die here or at the stake!«

Jelena involuntarily positioned herself beside her friend, taking a more dominant position, too. It impressed her that Janika still showed courage, though even by fighting, she could only delay their fate.

Abbot Lorenzo seemed to think about what she had said. After a few seconds, he said:

»There is also the chance of freedom! As long as you are innocent!«

Janika scoffed. It would be kind of difficult to prove innocence in a trial where it would be allowed to torture the accused. The Abbot now made a gesture, sending the man with the crossbow away. Then, he tossed a key to Janika.

»You may get rid of these chains now!«, he said. The girls looked at him with disbelief. Sure, he had something evil in mind. But as Janika tried, she found that the key indeed allowed them to open their ankle chains. For a second, she thought of attacking the priest, maybe even to take him hostage, but she decided to wait for what he had to offer.

»Currently, Pater Michele is on his way to Rome, together with that black witch. There, the highest authority will see how great her guilt is. If you were there, too, it could maybe be proven that she just bewitched you and you are indeed innocent and can be saved from evil.«

Janika and Jelena exchanged a worried look. Now, they finally had a clue about Tabea`s whereabouts, but they were no closer to safety, let alone helping Tabea. Suddenly, Jelena asked the priest:

»If we are in Rome, what will happen to us – and the black girl?«

»Well, you will be interrogated by the Inquisitor General, of course. He will find out whether you can be saved in this world – or another.«

The fluttering gesture he made with his left seemed to indicate the flames of a stake. Jelena gulped before she asked:

»A-and if w-we refuse to g-get to Rome?«

Now, the priest laughed before he answered:

»Well, then, I will give you a week to think about it – without any food or water, of course!«

Now, Janika wanted to throw herself against him, but the priest stepped back and one of the guards slammed the door shut. Then, there was the scratch of the latch being pushed. Angrily, Janika slammed her fist against the iron door. A small lid was opened and Abbot Lorenzo said:

»You will go to Rome, either on your on will or on mine. It`s your choice!«

He shut the lid and Janika leaned against the door and sank down. Jelena came close to her and whispered:

»It seems that we have to surrender!«

Janika spat on the ground.

»Not as long as I am strong enough to defend myself. I know we will die, but I don`t want to make it even easier and faster for these bastards!«

Jelena nodded, but then, she grabbed Janika`s hand.

»If we go now, we will still have some strength left. Maybe, we can escape during the trip. They won`t have a mobile dungeon and perhaps, if we behave well, they become a bit careless and we may escape. At least, we now know where Tabea is!«

She could see Janika fight her inner demons. Of course, this plan was almost as lethal as just waiting for starvation, but at least, it contained a tiny little chance. After a few seconds, she sighed and nodded. Then, she rose and knocked at the door. It seemed that Abbot Lorenzo had waited for a reaction, for the lid was opened immediately.

»So?«

»We will accompany you on your trip to Rome!«, Janika said. Now, the priest showed a sardonic smile.

»Good. To show me that you are meaning what you say, you will leave your cell once I open the door – naked and with your hands on your head!«

Before one of the girls could protest, the lid was shut. A second later, the latch was pulled back and the door swung open. Jelena looked at the dimly lit corridor where she knew the priest and his henchmen were waiting.

»Our only chance, eh?«, Janika asked her, but Jelena could see she was rather accepting the lesser of two evils than actually blaming her. Jelena nodded.

»Our only chance«, she assured Janika and began to open her dress.

***

Had Tabea been travelling under more convenient conditions, she would have noticed that the cart she was in actually was state of the art. It had been the travel cart of a salesman and thus, it wasn`t just a box on wheels, but had a real suspension, consisting of heavy leather straps connecting the chassis and the body. However, this luxury somehow even added to Tabea`s discomfort.

The suspension provided her from being thrown around whenever the cart hit a bump, but it kept the whole body constantly swaying. And since Tabea was tied to the cage fixed inside the cart, it meant she was swaying, too. Especially her hips were following every move of the cart and so, the girl literally was riding the knotted rope between her legs.

First, Tabea hadn`t even noticed it, for she had been distracted by her fears and growing frustration, by her aching shoulders and legs and by the numbness in her arms. Being blindfolded for an entire day now also tore on her and her gag nearly was choking her. But all the time, the rope had been there, embedded between her buttocks and labia. And suddenly, she had felt a slight tingle down there.

»Mmhhmmmmm!«

It hadn`t been more than just an inconvenient itching, but then, the cart obviously was driving down a steep hill road. Thus, gravity pressed her body forward and so, the knot placed directly over her clit was rubbing harder against her. Tabea had tried to raise her hips, but to no avail; her own movements only made things worse, for it intensified the massage. In addition, by wriggling her hips, she made the ropes in her cleft also send small tingles through her body.

Tabea felt a growing warmth in her loins and she groaned. She knew that giving in to the unwanted caress would only make things worse. Either, the priest would take this as a further proof she was a sex-obsessed demon – or his henchmen would think she liked what they did to her!

However, her situation was terrible already. She was helplessly bound and gagged, stark naked and with no idea where she was or where they brought her. Tabea`s thoughts suddenly went to Androsch. Androsch, who had saved her more than once and who had been both tender and strong. She remembered how he had rescued her from the death trap she had been in, weeks ago. How he had not immediately freed her, but caressed her first. Caressed her down there, there, where this damned knot was-

»Uuuhmmmm! Mhhmmmmm!«

Involuntarily, she pressed harder against the knotty rope and accelerated her moves the little her tight bondage allowed.

***

When Janika and Jelena, now both stark naked, left their cell, they were surprised to find the corridor empty. But since there was only one direction they could go, they walked on to an open door behind which they could see light and hear voices. Janika took a deep breath. Then, she raised her arms, folded her hands over her head and entered. Jelena followed her two seconds later.

The room turned out to be a veritable torture chamber, but at least, no torturers with red hoods and glowing iron pliers were waiting for them. Abbot Lorenzo was sitting behind a table, looking at the two naked women without showing any emotion. With him were five soldiers who seemed more interested in naked flesh and stared in a way that made Jelena blush all over. It took all her willpower not to lower her hands to cover her bareness. Janika didn`t seem to bother. However, both girls noticed that now, two of the men were aiming at them with their crossbows.

For a few seconds, the priest just looked at them. Then, he smiled and said:

»So, you decided to obey. Which, of course, shall be rewarded.«

He made a gesture and one of the soldiers handed Janika a water hose. The blonde drank and then handed it to Jelena. Once they had quenched their thirst, the Abbot spoke again:

»Now, let`s start with you!«

He pointed at Janika and immediately, she was flanked by two men of whom each grabbed one of her arms. She wanted to protest, but one of the crossbowmen was aiming at her heart and the other one now held his weapon close to Jelena`s head. So, she didn`t resist as the two men escorted her outside, followed by one of the crossbowmen.

The last remaining soldier now stepped behind Jelena, grabbed her arms and tied her wrists behind her back. Then, he gagged her with a large rag and a cloth he tied between her lips. Jelena tried to remain calm, but then, she was made to walk towards an iron device standing in a corner.

It was an iron cage whose form vaguely was that of a human body. It had been opened and the girl, knowing what would come next, mmphed with protest, but now, the soldier pushed her inside, putting his hands on her breasts and kneading them as he pressed her against the bars. His comrade put down his crossbow and stepped behind the cage. A few moments later, he had slung a strap around Jelena`s elbows and tied them not only together, but also to one of the bars. So, she was fixed inside the cage and also had to thrust out her boobs. Laughing, the other man now shut the cage and locked it. It was so narrow Jelena could feel the bars touch her nipples and she could not bend her legs, let alone sitting down.

The two soldiers now carried the cage outside, followed by Abbot Lorenzo. After some stairs, they reached a small court dominated by a podium. On this podium, the moaning Jelena could see two things: the first was a pillory. In it, Janika was held, her neck and hands firmly locked inside a wooden board, forcing her to stand bent forward. She was gagged like Jelena and when the two soldiers carried her up the podium, she could see that Janika`s ankles were also shackled to the sides of the pillory, forcing her to stand with her legs open.

The other item looked like a gallows and Jelena moaned when she was carried there. From it, a hook was dangling and they fixed the cage to it, so Jelena was dangling some foot above the ground. The position didn`t hurt, but she could hardly move inside her cage and she felt very helpless. Now, Abbot Lorenzo stepped up the podium.

»As I said, you will both be brought to Rome where the Inquisitor General will decide about your fate. However, you also committed several minor crimes inside these walls and in the city: you resisted arrest, destroyed property and even hurt some of my men. This all happened here and of course, the people of Pescara demand justice to be done!«

He paused for a moment whilst Janika said some things into her gag that sure would have added to her punishment whilst Jelena just stared at the Abbot.

»So, you will be punished by being presented here until the noon bell. You«, he pointed at Jelena, »may be looked at by everyone, whilst you«, he turned towards Janika, »who has committed worse crimes, may also be touched.«

He slowly stepped down the podium where two of the soldiers had positioned themselves beside the stairs. Then, he turned back to the two naked captives again and added:

»Actually, you should be presented on the market place, but the trip to Rome will be expensive. And so, you will help us to finance the journey: everyone who wants to see you will have to pay a fee!«

He clapped his hands and now, the door was opened. It led to the court in front of the monastery and a large crowd already had gathered. Now, the first few dozen began to form a line in front of a desk. Two monks, escorted by one of the soldiers, were sitting there, cashing up the masses who wanted to see justice was done. Soon, the court was filling with onlookers and the look in their eyes told Janika and Jelena that they expected something for their money.

***

At about noon, the little group reached a small lonely chapel and since the horses needed a rest anyway, Pater Michele ordered a short break. Before he went into the chapel to pray, he decided to look after their prisoner.

»God almighty!«

Pater Michele knew about certain things only from some confessions and so, he could not help but seeing the pure evil in what was in front of his eyes: the woman was still bound and gagged, but she was wriggling her hips in a way that made him remind things the church usually condemned. There was a glistering between her legs, her hard and erect nipples seemed to point directly at him and there was a smell; a smell that was, though far from being called sweet, not quite unpleasant. The woman now let out a faint groan and Pater Michele hasted for the chapel. It was just big enough he could close the door behind him and he threw himself onto the cold stone floor, praying for help in handling with the succubus.

»Obviously, he doesn`t like the fact she likes it!«, Ettore joked. He had also looked after Tabea and of course, he knew that the Black was just aroused. Not enough to get her over the brink, but sure, the oven had been heated up. He saw that now, the girl seemed to have realized that they had stopped and that someone was watching. She ached and shook her head, obviously embarrassed. Ettore turned towards Angelo.

»Perhaps, we should relieve the Pater of his burden!«

For the last hours, he had continued to persuade Angelo in joining his plan to get the captive for themselves. He knew that the young man was about to agree and now, it could be done without having to hurt the priest.

He sneaked up to the chapel and pushed a piece of wood under the door. It would sure block it for a while, giving them a head start. Then, he told Angelo to tie Pater Michele`s horse to the cart. Slowly and trying to avoid noise, they disappeared. Obviously, the monk was so engrossed in his prayer that he could not hear the sound of the cart, for they could not hear him shout until the chapel vanished behind the next hill.

***

When the bell tolled, Abbot Lorenzo clapped his hands and told the visitors to go. Grumbling quietly, but obeying his orders, the remaining people left the podium and went for the door. Jelena felt a wave of relief and now, she allowed herself to cry.

For the past two hours, hundreds of men – and also dozens of women – had come and looked at her, naked and helpless in her cage. They had commented her body, tried to get even closer and though one of the soldiers had watched, some had managed to touch and grope her. However, the situation for Janika had been even worse.

Tied as she was, she could not prevent anyone from touching her everywhere – and this, the visitors did! Janika felt as if her boobs had bruises from having been kneaded so much. Her nipples hurt and her buttocks were aflame, since for an additional fee, it had been allowed to spank her, although as an act of clemency, the Abbot had only allowed the use of bare hands.

Now, the monks from the door came, holding a sack full of small coins. The Abbot smiled: his idea had been a success and even if he paid the men more than they needed, there would be enough for some new candles and maybe even a new window, too.

»Now, get these two ready for transport! If you ride fast, you may reach Pater Michele by the evening!«

They started with Janika. The girl seemed to have not much fighting spirit left, but they took no chances. Before opening the pillory, two men grabbed her arms and they quickly tied them behind her back at wrists and elbows. Then, they freed her legs from the shackles, only to bind them, too. A sack that went down to her ankles was pulled over her and secured with more ropes. Meanwhile, a packing horse had been brought and Janika was thrown over its back and tied to it.

Then, it was Jelena`s turn. She offered no resistance when she was led out of the cage and her elbows were tied, too. Only before they tied her legs, she managed to communicate that she had to relieve herself. Six pairs of eyes watched her peeing and then, Jelena was put into a sack and tied to another packing horse. Minutes later, the soldiers mounted their own horses and left.

None of them noticed that they were followed by a lone rider and if they had, sure none of them would have recognized that this man had also been among the many visitors previously.

***

Despite being blindfolded, Tabea knew that something had changed. The short stop had made no sense to her, since it couldn`t have been more than just five minutes.

»Perhaps, the cart driver just had to pee!«

This thought seemed quite obvious, for she was feeling the same urge, now that her arousal had calmed down again. However, there had been no such stops the day before and she also felt that after a slow start, the cart was now driving considerably fast. She literally hopped each time the wheels hit a bigger pebble or a pot hole and she feared that before the next stop, her shoulders would dislodge.

Then, however, the cart slowed down again and once again came to a halt. Tabea guessed that it had been some hour since the last pause. She heard some indistinct murmur and other sounds she couldn`t identify. Then, she could hear approaching steps and she heard Ettore`s voice:

»Can you ride, Black Pearl?«

Now, after »Innocentia« and »Succubus«, it was »Black Pearl«. Tabea had been called that before, but now, an insulting nickname sure wasn`t her worst problem. The man repeated his question and this time, Tabea nodded. Ettore grunted and a moment later, she felt a tug on her crotch rope, only to be loosened immediately after. Obviously, he had untied the rope from the bar.

Next, the two men released her from the other straps tying her to the cage and cut her leg ties. They forced her on her feet and when she staggered, they dragged her out of the cart and then let her fall on some grassy ground. Tabea tried to get to her knees, but she was just too exhausted.

»If you can`t make it to the horse, we can also tie a rope around your neck and have you walk behind it!«

Again, it was Ettore. Tabea wondered where Pater Michele was, but obviously, the mercenary now was in charge. So, she bit down on her gag and fought to get on her knees. Suddenly, she felt her crotch rope tighten and a sharp pain between her legs made her get up. She could feel and smell Ettore who had used the crotch rope to get her to her feet.

»Nod if you can stand on your own!«, he said and pulled the rope upwards, causing Tabea to groan. Her legs still felt wobbly, but finally, she felt that she could stand and she nodded. Ettore let the rope go and shortly after, he removed it.

»No need to keep the door locked!«, he grunted, but instead of touching her there, he pulled her over to a horse and made her mount it. When he tied her feet under the animal`s belly, Tabea could feel that it had no saddle; obviously, they would leave the cart behind and she had been given the cart horse.

»So, they are kidnapping me! I wonder if they killed the priest!«

However, none of her captors told her and instead, they continued their journey. Tabea, who had to fight not to lose balance, repeatedly felt twigs on her bare skin, telling her that had left the road and were riding through some forest. The two men obviously didn`t want to be seen with a naked bound and gagged girl.

Again, the trip seemed to last some hour and then, she heard Ettore call »Halt!«. Shortly after, her feet were released and she was pulled from the horse`s back.

»Our home for the night!«, Ettore said in an almost friendly tone and slapped her butt. Tabea mmphed and then just stood there and listened as the two men obviously were preparing their camp. She felt some rocky ground under her feet and she carefully took a few steps. She felt some twigs and leaves and since the men seemed busy elsewhere, she quickly crouched and relieved herself. Then, she stumbled back to where she had started.

After some time, she heard steps and the mercenary asked her:

»Will you be a good girl?«

Reluctantly, Tabea nodded. She wanted to make the men believe she would behave, so they would perhaps release her. But on the other hand, she didn`t want to seem too ostentatiously in doing so, since they were no complete idiots.

»Are you sure, Ettore?«, she heard Angelo ask in a worried tone. The mercenary just grunted and began to work on Tabea`s blindfold, cutting the leather band and unwrapping the bandage. When the pads fell from her eyes, she blinked and squeezed her eyes after having been blindfolded for more than a day now. Then, she looked at the grey-bearded muscular man and his younger comrade who were also watching her. Ettore now held an amulet in front of her eyes.

»You see, Angelo? She doesn`t even shy back. If she were a demon, it would burn her skin!«

Without a warning, he held the amulet to her forehead and then made Angelo have a look at Tabea`s unharmed skin. She meanwhile observed where she was and saw they were resting beside a small lake in the middle of a forest. It seemed that they were the only people around.

»Now, do you know how to say ›Thank you‹?«, Ettore asked her. Tabea straightened and then, forcing herself to look at him, curtseyed as graciously as she could. Ettore chuckled and padded Angelo`s shoulder.

»She obviously thinks this is the Pope`s court! Nah, I was thinking about another way of thanking me!«

The look in his eyes left no doubt what he meant and Tabea knew she would have to endure a little more to get more freedom. So, she knelt right in front of him and gently rubbed her chin against his manhood. Ettore put a hand on her head and increased the pressure, but he seemed to try to be gentle. Then, he said:

»Well, that`s a start! Now, Angelo! How about you? Get behind her and show her you are a man whilst I replace her gag with something bigger!«

Tabea could feel that he had grown hard and in the corner of her eye, she could see Angelo come closer. She knew that she had to react quickly and that she only had one chance. So, she quickly arched back and then slammed her forehead against Ettore`s crotch.

»Uff!«

The man cringed, more from surprise than from pain. Tabea jumped up and rammed her knee between his legs. With satisfaction, she noticed that this time, he was cringing from pain.

Angelo seemed to be fully perplexed of what had happened and so, she could attack him with a kick that hit his face, sending him to the ground. A rustling told her that Ettore was trying to grab her ankle and she stomped on his fingers. When he yelled, Tabea ran. She had no idea where to go, but the trees and bushes seemed more invitingly than these two men.

»Get her!«, Ettore breathed, trying to get back on his feet. Tabea looked around and saw that Angelo was standing again and just drawing his knife. He tried to cut her way to the trees and so, Tabea changed her direction and ran for the lake. She already felt her lungs burn and knew that, exhausted and gagged, she would not stand a long chase. She dodged the approaching Ettore and ran into the water. The men followed her, but they both stopped when the water reached their hips; obviously, they both couldn`t swim.

Tabea turned onto her back and, using her legs, swam until there were some ten yards between her and her abductors. She wildly looked for an escape. The lake was rather small and she could not stay in the water forever.

There, some 20 yards away, was a large rock at the shore. Tabea could see that it protruded over the water and if she managed to get below it, the men would not be able to see her from the shore.

So, she began to flail her legs and screamed through her gag. Then, she let herself sink and dived over to where the rock was. Her lungs burned, but she persisted and only broke the surface when she thought that she was now under the rock. And indeed, when her head broke through, she nearly hit it at the stone above her, since the gap between the rock and the water was just some two feet.

Breathing heavily through her nose, Tabea forced herself to wait. At least, she could stand and so, she would not have to stir the water. She could hear some shouting and once or twice saw the men searching the shore on the other side, but it seemed that they believed she had drowned.

»All right, I am still bound and gagged and sooner or later, I will freeze, but at least, I am save for the moment now!«

Tabea fought down any thoughts about the fact she also was stark naked, separated from her friends and stranded in the 16th century. Instead, she examined her hideout. Since it was just a gap under a rock, it offered absolutely nothing helpful for her to get rid of the armbinder or at least her gag.

»It will not get dark before another five hours! I can`t stay here that long!«

So, carefully, she slid forward until she could see the men`s camp. They seemed to have given up the search, as Angelo was preparing a camp fire whilst Ettore was just staring at the lake.

Tabea slowly withdrew under the rock again and then, she followed the shoreline, sometimes walking, sometimes swimming, until she found a place where she could leave the water. From there, she could see that now, the two men were sitting by the fire.

»At least, it`s quite warm!«, Tabea thought as she slowly sneaked deeper into the forest.

***

The riders let their horses do a steady trot of some eight miles an hour and so, by the late afternoon, they had reached the small chapel where a well-known figure was waving at them: Pater Michele. He quickly told them how the mercenary and the cart driver had locked him inside the chapel and left, together with the cart and the horses – and with the supposed demon. Only when he had finished, he noticed the two large sacks on the packing horses that were moving slightly.

»What is this, Sergeant?«

He forced himself to remain calm. Pater Michele had lost so much he at least wanted to keep his dignity. The soldiers were not under his command, as a monastery had no own troops, but they were paid by the Abbot and therefore, he considered himself their superior. At least, these men seemed to be far more loyal than Ettore and Angelo, for they frankly reported what had happened since he had left for Rome. Then, the Sergeant added:

»According to what you have said, these bastards have a head start of some four hours. So, we might catch them if we ride fast. This Ettore is a capable soldier, but we will be four against one, since this Angelo doesn`t count!«

He was about to mount his horse when Pater Michele stopped him.

»Aren`t you five against one?«, he asked. The Sergeant smiled and answered:

»One of my men will stay behind with you and our – package!«

Pater Michele nodded and thanked God for sending him some help so fast. The soldiers left and the remaining man dismounted and knelt in front of the monk, allowing him to bless the man. Then, he asked:

»Pater, do you believe it`s true? I mean, are all these women witches or demons?«

Pater Michele looked at the man and now, he could see he was almost a boy. No wonder they had decided to leave him behind, he thought grimly before he said:

»Well, according to what we can read at-«

He was interrupted by some loud rustling in the woods. The soldier drew his sword and the priest also tried to figure out what or who it had been.

»In the name of God, show yourself!«, he shouted at the spot from where the sound had come. From the bushes, something flew over their heads and when it landed, there was a glaring flash, causing the horses to neigh and shy.

»Wha-what was that?«, the soldier asked with a cracking voice. From where the flash had appeared, now some thick greenish clouds were building, getting closer to them. Then, they could smell a stench.

»Sulphur!«, Pater Michele whispered and crossed himself. Again, something flew through the air and this time, the flash was much closer to them. The clouds were pink this time and now, a loud growling could be heard.

»What`s this?«, the soldier screamed, but Pater Michele had turned pale himself and his lips were trembling. Then, as he could also see a glowing figure between the trees, he made a decision.

»Get the horse!«

The boy managed to grab the reins of his horse and when he had soothed it, he and Pater Michele mounted it, leaving this place of horror and quickly following their comrades. A hollow laughter was the last thing they could hear from behind.

As soon as they were gone, a lone figure approached the two packing horses that had been left behind.

***