Chapter 6

The Priestess Meets Another General

Part 1 : Section 1

 

Danella was reading Paul’s book.  She regarded the reading of it as a duty as well as an enjoyment.  An inquisitive Priestess such as Danella had a duty to learn as much as she could about the new world which had overtaken them.  At the very least it was obviously necessary for some of them to learn the language and Danella, with her book, and Sreela with her relationship with Roger, were doing that.

 

There was a knock on the door. ‘Another soldier to look after,’ thought Danella.  She hoped she would not be picked just now because she did not yet feel fully woken up this morning, and she was enjoying the book.  Often she yearned for freedom, the freedom to choose to worship when she wanted it and not when some soldier or a High Priestess dictated it.  However she was on the ‘shift’ of duty Priestesses this morning and could very well be required.  She made sure her gown covered her legs as much as possible and showed as little of her chest as possible.  The less flesh she displayed the less likely she was to be chosen. She pored intently over her book. 

 

It was Gerald and someone else.  That probably meant an important officer was here to survey the Priestesses, probably to select one for himself.  To her surprise she realised it was the General Ravelleon.  She recognised his short powerful figure and his air of self control.  He had a handsome face.  She had not seen the man since that first day when he had ordered the rape to cease.  She had noted his displeasure at the excesses of his men and she had detected a calculated disapproval of the activities he was willing to tolerate for the benefit of his men.  It was this disapproval which they had all assumed kept him away from them for so long.  However it was this General’s authority which had been given to Roger, and now Gerald, to allow him to control the priestesses for the benefit of the soldiers.  Also, as she now understood, it was probably making him rich.

 

As she had wondered in the first days, why, if he was in control, did he not select a priestess for himself occasionally.  None of the priestesses in the dormitory had ever been sent to him for they had discussed him before on more than one occasion and no one had spoken up to say so.  Perhaps they had wondered, had he selected other Priestesses or women of Dalos from other parts of the city. It had been said by soldiers that he was a busy man, bearing full responsibilities and also happily married.

 

         Gerald led the General around the room describing the names of some of the Priestesses he knew well, asking others as they passed.  It seemed to Danella that the General was looking for a woman.  Why else would he be shown around.  Gerald introduced him to Sreela as Roger’s lady and he actually spoke to her, praising her for the improvement of her Prancirian.  “Is there anything you need?  Are they treating you well?” he asked, civilly.  There was little to be requested which had not previously been requested to Gerald, and Roger before him, so short of asking for their freedom and the return of Dalos to Pirion, and the cessation of violence, there was nothing which Sreela deemed sensible to ask for.

 

       He moved on quickly and soon came to Danella.  Noting that she was reading a Prancirian book he was interested to interrupt her. “You are reading one of our books?” he asked, “What is your name?” 

 

“Danella,” she replied. 

 

“You can speak our language?” he asked.

 

“A little sir, since you took over I have been trying to learn.” 

 

“You learn well if you can read our books.” he sounded impressed.  “I am a literate man myself. I like books.  ‘The Homecoming’ is one of my favourites.  I have never before met any person from Pirion who reads books. It surprises me.”

 

Taken aback by this subtle slur against her own country Danella spoke out, “I have always liked books sir, most of us can read you know.”  His snobbery rattled her more than it should have, and she wondered after whether it was sensible to respond to it.  His serious demeanour broke into a smile.  His position as a leader of men made him used to judging and understanding people she perceived.  He had diffused the slight against her people by his humour.  He was letting her know she could say what she wanted but he perhaps also still did not believe that many in Pirion were in the habit of reading.

 

“I am sure you are in the habit of reading.  You are well into the book by now,” he acceded.  He was being very polite.  His politeness reminded her of Paul and some of the other officers, but unlike them he made no comments on her appearance.  He appeared to be playing the role, as before, of the disinterested commander, merely reviewing his troops and ‘prisoners’, ensuring that they were being looked after or behaving correctly, interesting himself in what they were doing.  She believed as she and the other Priestesses had concluded recently, that the General and all his soldiers were treating them with more respect now and less like prisoners as the events of the conquest faded into a distant past.  The new reality of being worth money to the soldiers acted upon them and gave them additional respect alongside the growing appreciation of the character and individuality of the Priestesses.

 

The General moved on saying, “How pleasant it was to meet you Danella.”  He was shown and introduced to a few more Priestesses and then he was gone.  For a moment there she had imagined that he must like the look of her if such a busy man was bothered to talk to her, but it seemed that Generals of Prancir were above dallying with Priestesses of Pirion.  He might deign to visit his charges to ‘look after’ them but he would not wish to get his own ‘private parts’ dirty with the sweat and juices of foreigners.  It seemed he was most concerned with reaping the rewards of their services to his soldiers.  It was not that she had wished to be chosen by the General.  She was content to read her book and was relived not to be called into action now when she felt unready.  However, she felt, on behalf of all the Priestesses, somewhat slighted that this man should choose to have nothing more to do with the conquered women than to have them make money for him.  Nonetheless his politeness and charm as well as his undoubted commanding presence and handsomeness did increase her respect for him.  She could not help but give him her full attention when he was in the dormitory.

 

She had to admit that she was interested in him, whether it was his position and power or his manly attractiveness.  Perhaps she knew he was important and her sense of justice and injustice drew her to be interested in this person who she imagined could make a difference to the war, to the policy of his government, to the treatment of the male prisoners and to the Prancirian soldiers, or perhaps she was curious about him.  Why did he appear to remain at such a distance from the sexual desires of his men, and from the sexual availability offered by his female ‘prisoners’.  Why did he appear to judge, as she imagined, the conduct of his soldiers, as a necessary evil to be ignored but allowed, probably only because it made money for him.  General Ravelleon was, she now thought, a strange character.  He reminded her of the characters in the book, ‘The Homecoming’.  He appeared to possess the same sexual attitudes, the same self denial which the characters in the book possessed.  She was convinced that this denial was at the centre of the kind of society that the Vanmarian nations had developed and she was curious.  She wanted to learn what the self denial was, how it had developed, and how it affected their people.

 

Danella continued to read.  Few soldiers were off duty this morning, and when one did come in he selected another Priestess who had laid bored, on her bed, her gown only loosely fastened and her legs uncovered, obviously keen to worship.  Most of the Priestesses sat in groups chatting gently about the daily events, or reminiscing about the past.  Sreela and two others had asked Gerald earlier whether they could go out, to walk around the city.  Sometimes in recent weeks Danella had gone with them, to survey the conquered city and to see how it was changing, as well as to get some exercise which has always been an important part of the life of a priestess.  The freedom to leave the dormitory without guards had only been granted after some weeks of requests by Sreela.  In the early months they had been virtual prisoners and when they had gone out had to be accompanied by guards. 

 

The Priestesses got opportunities to see the city now when officers requested them to visit.  They had to wear their Prancirian costumes when they did go out.

 

Gerald returned late in the morning.  He was tall and dark haired and handsome with a tidy moustache over his top lip.  He had filled Rogers position well, behaving with authority over the guards, with deference to his superiors and with polite respect and some humour towards the Priestesses.  But he was quite capable of being angry and controlling when things did not go his way.  Danella did not like him as much as Roger whom she had found to be genuine, but he was alright.  Unlike Roger, who had chosen to attach himself to Sreela while occasionally trying other Priestesses.

 

Gerald had been quick to exploit his new post and had been keen to ‘make love’ as he called it to as many priestesses as he could cope with.  At first he had insisted on privacy screens or one of the rooms, with a daily or twice daily choice of Priestesses.  After a while seeing the activities of some soldiers in full public view, he had occasionally ‘made love’ openly for all to see.  He realised this was quite normal for the Priestesses and received pleasure from being watched.  He never seemed to take Priestesses to his own quarters as Roger had done with Sreela.  He had  become more confident of his sexual abilities.  Soon he began to prefer occasionally the service of two Priestesses, sometimes more, as well as certain other tricks.  It was evident to Danella that Gerald felt himself a very lucky man indeed as he did not have to pay for these services.  Danella had, like nearly all of the Priestesses by now, served him on a number of occasions, usually with another Priestess and he was indeed quite enjoyable.  However he was often busy and therefore hurried.  When he had spent himself he rarely wanted to pleasure the Priestesses any more.  In that he was typical of the Prancirians.  He was more concerned with his own pleasure than with that of the women.  Although he was around them a lot and liked to be humorous with them he did not enter into conversations about his earnings, or the Generals and the conduct of the war, or about books or his homeland.  Danella had long since stopped trying to question him.  Gerald had made a point of ‘making love’ to Sreela soon after Roger had departed when he learned she had been ‘Rogers woman’, but there had been no question that he would try to make her his own in the way Roger had.

 

As Gerald approached her Danella began to think that he wanted her for communion again.  She realised it was not one of his normal times but perhaps he was making an exception today.  “Hello Danella, my lovely,” he kept his voice unusually low for some reason, so no one else could hear.  Normally he was  loud and confident.  “The General would like to invite you to his rooms for dinner this evening.  He asked me not to mention it to anyone else and would appreciate it if you would tell no one else.”

 

Danella heard this with surprise.  She had thought the General disinterested in her body.  However he had bothered to talk to her, and had seemed interested in what she had to say.  She now knew that he had been looking for a woman this morning but in the ‘high brow’ Prancirian way he had done everything to disguise his true purpose.  He had chosen her, but wished no one to know about it.  Well, disguising it from the Priestesses would be impossible.  Those who observed Gerald now would probably guess that his low voice meant an ‘important’ message, perhaps a message from the General who had already appeared here this very morning and had spoken to Danella longer than to any other Priestess, was being relayed.  All who thought about it would guess where it was she went tonight, and they would talk about it as they shared so many secrets.

 

“General Ravelleon?” she asked, although that was obvious.  “Of course,” said Gerald.  “Wear your dress and do not eat much before you go.  He will provide the meal, and a good one it will be I can tell you.  You are a lucky one if you dine with the General.  He has only the very best of everything.  I am sure you will know what to do.  Whatever you do, do not tell any of the soldiers.  I do not want to lose this position.”

 

“Do you know where his rooms are?” she asked. 

 

“Near the centre,” he replied, “but don’t concern yourself a guard will escort you, 7 o’clock. Be ready, I will remind you  before the time.  And another thing Danella, he says you are not to work today, he must want you in an eager mood for tonight.”   She understood.  When he said work he meant sexual communion.  She was not to ‘make love’ today.  That was an unusual request although she had occasionally been instructed to rest her body before certain ceremonies in Shanla.  The other Priestesses would surely know where she was going tonight now.  She might have been relieved to hear that this morning but now, she had been reading for a long time.  Later she might have enjoyed some worship, but she would get it tonight with the General.  She felt excitement.  He was not just any soldier.  This was an important man and she might find out much that she wanted to know from him.  Also he was strong and attractive to her.  She began to look forward to this evening with only slight unease because of his importance.