Zaria was a princess-not by blood but by capture. She was abducted in her teens from the western Slavic tribes and kept as a virgin by the powerful warring king, Sharvur. Cruel and strategically gifted, his Scythian armies controlled all the territo...
As late night fell over the Pazyryk tent city, a small group made their way to the stables of the military horses in the moonlight. There Moshtok found, as promised, five fresh horses—left waiting and ready for their bold journey. Zaria had made sure that the two sets of lovers and the Amazon girl were not followed as they took to the animals and loaded onto them their packs and bundles of supplies for the long trek ahead. The air was fresh and cool as they left the corral, but it had a promise of warmer days ahead. In the distance the smell of grasses brought on by the spring awaited them. Soon the early morning light would lead their way across the sweeping Steppe of Eurasia toward the West.
It was a daring plan to escape the Scythian nomad nation and return the two young prisoners, now young women of nineteen years, to their Slavic tribe. It was the homeland of Zaria and Branka, but it would now also be a new home to Tsudros and Moshtok who had pledged their energies and love to the two former slaves. Through their affection, the young men had made the greatest sacrifice to accompany them. And all knew there was no turning back for any of them now.
The fifth traveler, the young Amazon girl Tomyris, was indebted to the group for her own survival and a clear escape from the brutality which had been certain to plague her in the hands and bedroom of the former and mad king. Her escape, and now affectionate camaraderie, would accompany the two couples in the direction of her own clan out on the plains, who called themselves Daughters of the Moon. The land before them was dangerous and fraught with uncertainties. Yet the youthful exuberance of the group was ready at all costs to leave the land of the Scythian people for a different world.
Zaria, formally a princess in the court of the Pazyryk, proudly carried her majestic tattoos, emblematic of her life and persona there after almost two years of captivity. And like Branka, her spiritual sister, she also carried the mental scars of abuse and a life plagued by sexual exploitation. Now, safely in the arms of the men who loved them, they were willing to take on any adversities that came their way to find fulfillment and a better life, eventually in the society they had been raised in.
None of the travelers expected the long journey to be easy. Yet as they rode out into the fresh night with the smell of the Scythian fires in the distance, they welcomed the new day and all adventures which awaited them in their new found freedom.
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Follow the further exploits of Zaria, Branka and their lovers in "The Tattooed Princess: Book Two—Escape to the West." The adventure of survival and fulfillment continues . . .
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For those of you Kindle Readers who enjoyed this 1st in the The Tattooed Princess series and would like to have your very own e-book copy---(beautifully formatted and around long after it is taken off Wattpad), you can purchase it through Amazon's Kindle Books.
To find both parts of this this saga, or any of my other novels and stories for permanent purchase (each for less than a Starbuck's coffee), access my Amazon.com profile page here:
https//www.amazon.com/author/califia.montalvo
I would also love to hear from any of you at my author's email: califia.montalvo (at) gmail.com
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