The Tournament Read Online Free

 
    Ruby stood quietly while the girl rubbed a dense, perfumed lotion into her skin and then reached for a small, faceted crystal jar.  
    "Blessed ointment for your wounds," the girl explained, massaging a thick, clear grease into the folds of Ruby's cunt and past the loosened muscles of her ass. She had a light, gentle touch, and Ruby noticed her bracelet for the first time. Four beads. "You'll heal quickly."
    The serving girl guided Ruby to a small tent. It was empty but for a short stack of mattresses heaped with silken sheets and feather pillows.
    "This tent is yours," said the serving girl, easing Ruby onto the soft bed. She tucked the sheets around Ruby's chin and kissed her gently on the forehead. "Rest now, and sleep deep."  
    Ruby woke to warmth and light. The hidden sun set the tent's yellow silk walls aglow, bathing Ruby in a shower of gold. She snuggled into the mattress and stretched, surprised to find that she felt…good. Sore, yes. Especially her thighs, where they'd been stretched, and her back. Her cunt and ass ached, but she'd felt deeper pains after a long night with a single lover. The blessed ointment had done its work.
    Ruby donned the white robe that had appeared on a loop next to the tent flaps and stepped outside. Ruby's sleeping tent fit into a tight grid of identical tents, rows of them. Hundreds of them, one for every aspirant. Beyond the sleeping tents the Pavilion opened up, tents and gardens and walkways bordered with flowers. Beautiful women swam in marble-bottomed pools or sunbathed naked beneath massive silken umbrellas. Others sat, pen in hand, in the cool shade of a pillared gazebo.  
    A passing servant pointed Ruby toward an open-air buffet. She filled a porcelain plate from tables decked with fresh fruit and honey, iced milk and buttered pastry, and took a thick, soft blanket from a pile to unfold on the grass.  
    "Food fit for a queen," said one girl, licking thick yogurt from a spoon.  
    Ruby certainly couldn't imagine anything more lavish or tempting.  
    The serving girl who'd tended Ruby after the First Trial glided into view. "It's good to see you awake," she said, kneeling at Ruby's side. "My name is Lily. For so long as you remain in the Pavilion, I'm here to satisfy any of your wants."  
    She trailed cool fingers along Ruby's thigh. "I can paint your nails and dye your hair. I can provide you with skin treatments so rare that ladies of the Court must scheme to obtain the smallest quantities. What I can't anticipate, you may request. If you seek amusement or advice, I am here to help you, and you alone."  
    Ruby caressed the girl's silken hair and slender neck. "Can you tell me about the next Trial?"  
    Lily leaned into Ruby's touch like a cat, but she shook her head no.
    "I didn't think so." Ruby pet her again, scratching her scalp a little. "You can call me Ruby."
    The girl pulled away, blushing. "How do you feel?"
    "Good," Ruby answered. "Well used."
    "The King's doctor will examine you today. He'll want to see you after every Trial, whether you pass or fail. Trust him to treat your hurts, and never hide a wound from him. The Trials can be painful, but you will not win beads by suffering."
    "Thank you, Lily."  
    She lounged beneath an umbrella all morning, too tired for anything more taxing, until a shadow blocked the warm sun. She opened her eyes to see a lean, dark-haired man standing by her feet. He looked young, though stern, and wore loose robes in the King's colors.  
    "Aspirant," he said. "Come with me."  
    Ruby followed the man to a spacious tent that smelled of camphor. A temporary examination room in the heart of the Pavilion.
    "Take off your robe and lie on that table," instructed the doctor, pointing with his chin while he drew a pair of thin, membranous gloves over his hands. "With your hips flush to the edge."  
    Ruby hung her robe on a wooden stand that seemed designed for the purpose and climbed onto a long, narrow table. As instructed, she scooted