(OOC: This post includes an image of a nude woman from behind.  Since we see such images on normal television all the time and since it is not part of interactive sexual role play, it is my understanding that it is not considered inappropriate, per my PM conversations with a Co-Admin and 2 Moderators.  If I am wrong about this, I would appreciate a heads up from one of these people and I will IMMEDIATELY delete it.  If you don't want to see a woman's naked butt, don't open the link.)


They'd only covered about 6 miles by the time they stopped at the river.  Tanna had spent most of her time in the front with her Bodyguard; some of the handpicked men rode out to and back from scouts checking the road and forest ahead while the others rode immediately ahead of and behind her.

Tanna had brought with her about half of a Company, as well as a portion of the supply wagons and civilians who serviced the Army, mostly when they struck camp.  The rest of her Army and [i]tag-alongs[/i] had gone north toward Westmoreland.

"Are we catching up with them?" she asked Trollo, her Bodyguard Commander, when he returned from scouting ahead.  

"Tomorrow, m'lady," Trollo told her.  "We left too late to join them today."

"I want you to send 20 men ahead on horse to reinforce the Company," she ordered.  "They are escorting [i]cargo[/i] we can't afford to lose."

The Commander did as order, and Tanna turned her horse toward the rear of the train.  She came upon Kyrinn sitting on the edge of the road. 
One glance to a member of her Bodyguard had him off his horse and beating the slave with a horse whip as he chastised, "[i]Stand when in the presence or your Lady![/i]"

As she watched Tyrinn rise to his feet, Tanna drank from a skin of spring water.  She eyed the man, now dressed in a more substantial [url=https://i.pinimg.com/originals/cd/29/ca/cd29caff232ffd0a5f6a302481dcd54b.jpg][i]braies[/i][/url].  She smiled, thinking [i]What a shame that you are covered up[/i].

"Drink," she said, tossing the skin to him. The eyes of the Bodyguard Officer opened wide at the thought of his Lady sharing her water with a lowly slave, but he said nothing when Tanna gave him a knowing glare.  After Kyrinn had drunk his share, the Officer snatched the skin and returned it to her, asking quietly if she wanted him to have it [i]purified[/i] first.  She only gestured for it, then drank the last bit of water remaining.  She nodded the Officer to give her some space, then looked to Kyrinn.  "You did well last night.  You were very ... [i]entertaining[/i].  You are not the first slave to have been tested so, but you are [i]are[/i] the first to have remained hard throughout the night.  I'm impressed."

She gave the man a moment to respond, not sure whether or not he would since any response she didn't like might result in the Bodyguard punishing him.  Then she said, "And I [i]did[/i] hear you this morning when you asked why you and I had not played nice together."

She smiled again, and once again she turned her horse and rode away without answering the question.  She found her Bodyguard Commander and ordered, "[i]Get'em moving again![/i]"

The train continued onward, following the river often, sometimes loosing sight of it only to again find it a bit later.  They eventually came to a large open space of tall native grass and began to set up camp.  There would be at least a hundred paces between the camp's perimeter and the forest, which provided them a sense of security they lacked without a wall or ditch.

Kyrinn's cage had been filled put in the back of a wagon and filled with camp goods, and now it was emptied and unloaded to once again make room for him.  The Senior Lieutenant and Bodyguard Commander worked together to establish watches and security, and the civilians and soldiers assigned such tasks set about building fire pits, slaughtering goats, chickens, and rabbits, and getting the evening meal started.

Tanna' tent was set up again, though, this time not to its full size nor with all of her lavish features.  There would be no celebration tonight, only a bath, a meal, and sleep.

The camp was barely complete and the security established when the rain that had been threatening for the last few hours began.  Within minutes it was pouring hard and steady, with no signs of letting up.  Tanna came to the entrance of her tent and looked out upon the cage sitting apart from the fires, tents, and canopies.  

She couldn't help but feel for poor old Kyrinn, despite his status as the lowliest of members of the camp. She gestured a Watch Stander over, gave him orders, and then returned to her tent's interior.  A minute later, a pair of guards tossed an oxen hide canopy over the cage and tied it down.  Oh, it wouldn't keep Kyrinn entirely dry, particularly since the cage was sitting in a low spot that might likely fill with water.  But it had to be better than nothing.

[center]********************[/center]

The next morning, the camp broke at dawn and was moving an hour later.  Tanna had looked out upon the cage from near her tent as it was broken down, then ordered Krina to take food and water to her newest toy.  "Express my hope that he got some sleep last night."

Again, the train was paralleling the river southward.  They stopped a bit earlier this day to again water the animals; they also distributed some of the leftover food from the previous night, and even Kyrinn was giving the remains of a rabbit carcass by Madley, per Tanna's instructions.

An hour or so before dark, they caught up with the slave train that had preceded them by half a day.  They were already gathered at a cleared piece of land where a village had once stood.  Once upon a time, hundreds of acres of wheat, rye, and other grains had been grown here, feeding hundreds of head of livestock and the men, women, and children who cared for them.  Today, there was nothing but charred ruins and wild grasses.

Tanna's partial tent was again set up, and Kyrinn once again was stuffed into his cage, just a couple of dozen paces beyond his Lady's door.  And just like the night before, rain came with the darkness, only harder and colder.  As the winds rose and a storm presented itself, a pair of Guards unlocked Kyrinn's cage and ordered him out.  For no apparent reason, one of them slammed him in the face with great force before leaning in and saying, "I was told to remind you what would happen if you don't play nice.  I don't know what that means, but..."

And then he slammed his hand into Kyrinn's face again before the pair of them almost dragged him through the dark to and through the opening of Tanna's tent.  He was manhandled over into familiar corner, shoved to the ground, and shackled by the ankle chains to an already deeply placed stake.  And yes, once again, the [i]mean[/i] Guard punched Kyrinn in the face, reminding him with a growl, "Play nice."

Tanna had her back to Kyrinn as she lay in a wooden bathtub, being washed by Krina and Madley.  She said to the latter, "Get our guest food and drink.  Hot root tea, to ward off the chills of the night."

Madley did as told, and as she did, [url=https://i.imgur.com/UeaqdYT.jpg?1]Tanna stood naked from the tub[/url], her backside fully displayed to the man chained to the ground just a couple of yards away.  Tanna directed Krina to rinse her, and after the second slave had dumped several pitchers of warm, clear water over her, the beautiful redhead stepped out of the tub to be wrapped in a silk gown.  She only then turned to face Kyrinn; the remnants of moisture on her body caused her bosom, pert nipples, hips, and thighs to cling to the cloth, showing them off as well as if she wasn't dressed at all.

"Krina, would you get our guest some bedding and pillows, please," she asked as casually as if she was asking the slave to do so for herself.  "Madley, when you are done there, please find a towel and dry ... Kyrinn, correct?"

She giggled a bit, pointing out, "You look like a drowned rat.  Remove your [i]braies[/i], and I will have a clean one brought to you in the morning."

As the two female slaves hurried about completing their Lady's orders, Tanna turned toward her own bed.  She drank from the bottle of wine -- stronger stuff, this time -- and ate a few morsels from a platter on a small three legged table.  Then, shedding her gown and again revealing her naked body -- this time in profile -- she lowered into her bed, looked to Kyrinn, and explained, "Please forgive my rudeness, but I need to sleep.  We'll speak more in the morning."

If nothing more was said to her, Tanna had every intention of simply closing her eyes and going to sleep.