The Tattooed Princess

Hazards of the Undaunted Heart

        Following the routing of Sharvur's warriors by the Arimaspi horsemen, and the promise of a massive retaliation upon his kingdom by the Slavs in the West, Zaria was under pressure to keep her movements only within the palace. Her attending woman, Mila, herself a Slavic capture and laborer within in the fortress for many years, had become closer to Zaria over the tme she had been a young slave and now heralded as vestal virgin and ''princess." to Sharvur. Mila now bestowed greater respect upon Zaria  for the way she had craftily manipulated her situation within the kingdom and turned it  into a position of power. Zaria had in turn come to trust Mila more, as the matronly woman told her on many occasions that she was a young once too, and understood the thoughts and feelings of a girl coming into womanhood. This trust had been recently strengthened when Mila warned her that she had overheard Sharvur tell Krido to be wary of any of Zaria's movements while he was away.

           Over the next weeks Sharvur had decreed to strengthen his forces for his kingdom's defense, spending much of his own time training with the warriors in the field. This allowed Zaria some freedom, though she was aware that Krido was now keeping a close watch over her whereabouts. It was not below Sharvur, Zaria knew, to employ such spies in his absence. The knowledge of this, however, did not dampen Zaria's desire to see Tsudros again, and it was expected he would make a visit to check on her latest series of tattoos and their stage of healing.

            From their last meeting, it was understood subtly by both Tsudros and Zaria that there was an unfulfilled passion between their natures. The two of them had been thrown together by a strange turn of events. Yet both felt in an unspoken way that they had never encountered anyone more suited to be a lover—and possibly a life mate, which only in an otherwise more egalitarian world could ever occur.

            Zaria, being the stubborn girl she always had been, now at eighteen, had greater resolve for her wants and needs. She began to contemplate how she would use all her wits and manipulations of power within the framework put upon her to secure this desire for a love affair with Tsudros. This, of course, had many risks, as hers and the young artist's lives were surely at stake should anyone close to Sharvur even suspect her designs had moved in a romantic and erotic direction. And though this entire quest was now antithetical to her own wellbeing, it remained nonetheless intense, alive and ever urgent within her.

            When Tsudros had arrived and entered Sharvur's dressing room, as twice before, Zaria this time had planted Mila just outside the anteroom, as she had seen all morning that the slow-moving Krido was frequenting the halls more than usual. It was obvious he was carrying out a requested vigilance of Zaria's daily and nightly activities for his king. To everyone involved, the knowledge of Tsudros' visit was previously approved  by Sharvur and he trusted that the artist had the responsibility of seeing no infections or complications resulted from the new passion Zaria had taken on. Tsudros made his awaited visit that mid-morning while the king was in the field taking his men through their archery practice at full gallop on horseback.  

            To Zaria, as she nodded at Mila outside the little room, Krido's attempted recognizance of her only compelled the young woman to want Tsudros more, as her fantasies about him had become parallel to her desire to be free. And while Tsudros' phantasmagorical work as an artist upon her flesh gave her added resiliency against oppression, the artist himself had become a symbol of flight and liberation from the closed society she had been locked into—a freedom which all artists enjoy, regardless of their culture.

            But it was the condition of her perpetual virginity which most greatly compelled Zaria toward rebellion. It only enticed her more to seek the loss of it with someone she was so willing to surrender it to. For to her, this was the ultimate slavery, and a burden both Svetlana and Branka had not been cursed with. She had arranged with Sharvur to visit Svetlana in the home of Murka on  the following day, while the commander would be assisting Sharvur and the other warriors with tactical training. Zaria had been anxious to speak with her, but at the same time shamefully jealous of this dear friend and fellow slave who had been allowed to experience the sensual world of the bedroom in the most desirable and gradual way.