GODDESS'S SHAME

CHAPTER 2

   Marriane sat ramrod straight as her cousin the Queen, Werwyn  spoke to her.
   Werwyn was a beautiful queen with long dark hair and gleaming dark skin. Her hair was coiffed and held up in a tight bun that stretched her face.
   Werwyn crossed her legs and leaned against her chair in a majestic gesture. Her dark eyes bore into Marriane.
" I hope you know why I have called you here. Tomorrow Prince Erys of Atlantia will arrive here in the capital and I plan to discuss marriage plans with him. Your marriage."
Marriane felt her mouth go dry. "Cousin, surely we can wait a while before speaking of marriage."
"You know nothing Marriane, you have spent your life in pampered shoes. You do not know what it is to be Queen and have the Fate of a kingdom on your shoulders." Werwyn's eyes flashed with anger.
"Forgive me your majesty. I just fear I will not be happy in a marriage with a partner I do not know."
"You will get to know him in his time here. Prince Erys is said to be a nice man and it does not matter if you like him or not. Our country needs the supply of guns and men his country will pour into ours for our war with the Asterians in the west when the alliance is finalized. Your marriage will only secure it."
  Marriane nodded. She looked down at her folded hands and felt tears brimming in her eyes but she didn't let them fall. She didn't want to be weak in her cousin's presence.
  Werwyn clicked her tongue. "Marriane I am sure you will do as I say and bring glory to our country as The Goddess instructs us. Be submissive and modest at all times. The prince must like you."
"Yes, your majesty."
"Good, now leave. Call Matson into my chamber on your way out." Werwyn wiggled her fingers in a dismissive gesture.
  Marriane gathered her dress and curtsied before Werwyn who didn't even look at her. When she walked out the door she met Matson standing at the Queen's door. His face was emotionless and he stood stiffly.
  Behind him were two other guards and two serving girls waiting for their Queen's command.
  Matson bowed stiffly and the other guards followed suit when they saw her.
  "My lady." He greeted.
  "The Queen demands your presence in her Chambers." She said with what she hoped was a regal nod.
He nodded at the two serving girls who scurried in after him.
The two guards took their place at the door post with their guns gleaming at their holsters and sharp looking knives peeking out that showed there were heavily armed.
   Even with all their arms the manpower was surprisingly small. Marriane mused as she walked to her own rooms.
   The truth was Werwyn was already a well loved Queen. She was a far cry from her father who was not only weak but immoral and a sodomite.
  He flaunted his male and female lovers without any shame. King Arien CarSon was loved by some who gained his favor but hated by those who were religious.
  It was Werwyn, with the help of the Chaste Ones and some of the King's own generals that brought him down and forced him to abdicate.
   He was whipped through the streets and then banished from Saxos as it was wrong to execute a Goddess anointed King.
   All the prostitutes that had taken up residence in the capital city were thrown out and some of them were murdered.
   There were revolts from people who liked their ways but they were defeated by the new Queen's army of zealots.
   It had been almost two centuries since the Chaste Ones held much power in Saxos but Werwyn armed them and they helped her keep her thrown.
  The Chaste Ones followed the teachings of The Great Goddess,The mother of all life.
The Goddess was the one Saxosite men prayed to in war. She was the one women were supposed to be like. Her teachings spoke of purity in all things especially sexually.
   It was also during Werwyn's reign that the laws against illicit relationships were passed after nearly two centuries of being ignored by most rulers of Saxos.
  Marriane's mother was the former King's sister. But her father was a mere knight her mother had fallen in love with. The King's court was a lot less rigid than Werwyn's and Marriane's mother,Arrissa was allowed to be with the man she loved.
  Despair filled Marriane as she realized she wouldn't have a choice like princess Arrissa. Instead she would have to marry a prince she didn't know while she pined for Eason the man she loved.