Fic: Maestra (Part 2)
Title: Maestra
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Author: cakeandqpm1138
Rating/s | Content: R
Word Count: 1345
Summary: Set immediately after 'Tears.' By performing the Spells of Undoing, Zedd grievously altered the course of history. Now, Richard, Kahlan, Cara and Zedd must team up with Nicci and Rahl to find a way to appease the Maestra, the Goddess of Time, before she decides to correct the problem by destroying the entire universe, past, present and future. This, however, will be no easy task; Zedd's spells split the course of history into three paths. Which one, if any, will be saved?
Warnings: Spoilers through 'Tears,' sex, ~torture
Author's Notes: Written for the Legend of the Seeker Big Bang Challenge. Feedback is craved!
Nicci regained consciousness to find herself suspended from the ceiling above a circular grate in the floor. The pain in her wrists where the shackles were cutting into them was excruciating, more so even than the pain in the rest of her body, which felt like it was on fire. She willed her eyes to focus and realized that every inch of her naked body was covered in raw, angry burns. The shackles had torn into the blistered flesh on her wrists and blood ran slowly down her arms to the Rada’Han around her neck. ‘Darken Rahl kept his word’ she thought to herself, wondering vaguely if he planned to kill her himself or if he intended to leave her chained up until hunger and infection raced to do the job for him.
As if on cue, the door to the cell was unbolted with a resounding thud and two Mord’Sith entered, one carrying something in a bowl, the other a bundle of some sort of cloth. Nicci refused to meet their eyes as the two women circled her slowly, inspecting every inch of her.
“At least she’s awake this time,” the dark-eyed one remarked conversationally, as if Nicci wasn’t even there. “This dull chore should be more fun this way.”
Her companion, a slightly taller woman bearing the remnants of what was recently a stunning black eye, laughed softly in agreement, setting the bundle of cloth strips on a nearby table. Nicci watched her out of the corner of her eye as she picked a rag off the top of the pile and dipped it into the bowl. The other Mord’Sith did the same and in one synchronous motion they turned and approached Nicci, one on either side. She steeled herself, determined not to react audibly or visibly to whatever torment her captors had in store.
To her surprise and confusion, what followed was more like discomfort than the agony she’d been expecting. The Mord’Sith’s touches were not gentle, nor were the rags soft against her raw flesh, but the ointment they administered quickly soothed the burns, overtaking the pain. Nicci gritted her teeth, trying to keep the mixture of confusion and relief off her face while the two Mord’Sith quickly and efficiently applied the ointment to her entire body.
Unfortunately, her struggle did not escape notice. “Look, Cathryn, she’s pretending it doesn’t hurt,” the smaller of the two smirked, her dark eyes flashing with amusement.
“Bitch. After all the trouble we’ve gone to, keeping those burns clean, you’d think she’d at least humor us with a whimper. Maybe a few tears?” The other woman applied more pressure with her rag, hoping for a response. Nicci’s throat stung with the effort of holding back a gasp.
Seconds later a sharp, impossibly loud crack broke the stillness of the cell, followed immediately by Nicci’s gasp and keening wail of pain. Stars popped in front of her eyes and she struggled not to vomit. After many agonizing seconds, the pain began to subside and she felt the heat of blood trickling down the back of her thigh from a fresh wound on the curve of her ass.
“Mariel, Lord Rahl specifically ordered us not to harm her.” Cathryn scolded, poorly masking the delight in her voice. “Yet.”
“Lord Rahl hasn’t come to see her since we hauled her out of that bath. He’ll never know. I would think you’d want to rough her up a little after she gave you that black eye…”
Cathryn didn’t need much persuading; she already had her rag in both hands and was winding it taut. Nicci let out an involuntary gasp as the rag whistled through the air with all of Cathryn’s ire behind it. The corner lashed into Nicci’s flesh, opening another wound slightly below her navel. Nicci bit into her lip against the pain until it split and she was forced to let her howl fill every corner of the room. Mariel shot Cathryn an impressed smirk before raising her own rag again.
“That’s enough for now,” Darken Rahl’s voice rang out over the sick choking noises coming from deep in Nicci’s throat. “You may go.”
“Lord Rahl.” The Mord’Sith stood down obiediently, if somewhat reluctantly, retrieved the bloody rags and the remaining ointment and slid silently out the door.
In an effort to regain some of her dignity, Nicci sneered at Rahl, staring him down as he approached her. “You honor me with your presence, Rahl,” she mocked. “I was beginning to think you’d changed your mind about having plans for me, seeing as you’d leave my care and keeping to the likes of those two.”
“Unfortunately, Sister Nicci, you will indeed prove useful to me.” Rahl’s voice was all velvet and derision as he brought his hands up and grated them down her arms to her breasts.
Nicci stared viciously ahead, ignoring the pain and humiliation of his touch. “I am not ‘Sister’ Nicci. I no longer serve the Keeper.”
“Oh, I think you’ll find it is to your benefit to rejoin your sisters. But this time, you won’t be serving the Keeper. You’ll be serving me.” He raked his fingers down her belly then snaked his arms around her waist, cupping her ass and smirking slightly at the feel of her blood running between his fingers.
“Not for all the naked, writhing souls in the Underworld!” Nicci spat, her vision swimming.
“Mariel and Cathryn will be pleased to hear that. It’s been too long since they’ve had anyone to play with. Don’t worry, their skills are as sharp as ever. They’ll do a fine job with your training.”
“To what end?”
“You’re capable of confessing Kahlan Amnell. That power is quite valuable to me.” Rahl leaned in close enough to bite Nicci’s collarbone under the Rada’Han before continuing, growling into her ear. “When my Mord’Sith are through with you, you will seek out the Mother Confessor and use her own magic to confess her once again. You will order her to confess my dear baby brother, and then the two of them will use their influence and glowing reputations to gain control over the three territories. It should be an easy enough task for the people’s beloved Seeker and Confessor. Between you and Kahlan you should even be able to confess enough of the right people to ensure their authority is not questioned. Once their hold on the throne is secured… they will instate me as High Lord and Master, as I should have been long before now.” He shuddered with barely-contained rage. “And then I will send them both to the Keeper.”
“What’s in it for me?” Nicci asked, unimpressed.
“Once you’ve held up your end of the bargain, I’ll remove the Rada’Han, once and for all.”
“And my head along with it.”
“That’s the idea.”
“I have a better idea. I confess Kahlan. She confesses Richard. They unite the Midlands, Westland and D’Hara and hand the reigns to the both of us. You get rid of this Rada’Han and we rule as equals.” She cocked an eyebrow at him and smirked.
Rahl tsked his disapproval. “And why on earth would I want to do that?”
“Because if you refuse, I’ll refuse to tell you what I learned during my brief foray into the Underworld.” she taunted. “Believe me, what I know will throw more than a wrench into your scheme.”
“A charming ploy, Nicci, but I won’t be fooled so easily.”
Nicci’s voice hardened. “The choice is yours, Rahl. We can do this my way and live to enjoy our success or we can do this your way and there won’t be a single soul left in the world to rule over. There won’t even be a single soul left in the Underworld, nor will there be a Keeper to torment them. The Maestra will make sure of that.”
Darken Rahl blanched and took a few halting paces backward, searching Nicci’s eyes for some small sign that she was bluffing. He found none. “The Maestra? The Goddess of Time?”
“The same.”
“I’m listening…”
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Author: cakeandqpm1138
Rating/s | Content: R
Word Count: 1345
Summary: Set immediately after 'Tears.' By performing the Spells of Undoing, Zedd grievously altered the course of history. Now, Richard, Kahlan, Cara and Zedd must team up with Nicci and Rahl to find a way to appease the Maestra, the Goddess of Time, before she decides to correct the problem by destroying the entire universe, past, present and future. This, however, will be no easy task; Zedd's spells split the course of history into three paths. Which one, if any, will be saved?
Warnings: Spoilers through 'Tears,' sex, ~torture
Author's Notes: Written for the Legend of the Seeker Big Bang Challenge. Feedback is craved!
Nicci regained consciousness to find herself suspended from the ceiling above a circular grate in the floor. The pain in her wrists where the shackles were cutting into them was excruciating, more so even than the pain in the rest of her body, which felt like it was on fire. She willed her eyes to focus and realized that every inch of her naked body was covered in raw, angry burns. The shackles had torn into the blistered flesh on her wrists and blood ran slowly down her arms to the Rada’Han around her neck. ‘Darken Rahl kept his word’ she thought to herself, wondering vaguely if he planned to kill her himself or if he intended to leave her chained up until hunger and infection raced to do the job for him.
As if on cue, the door to the cell was unbolted with a resounding thud and two Mord’Sith entered, one carrying something in a bowl, the other a bundle of some sort of cloth. Nicci refused to meet their eyes as the two women circled her slowly, inspecting every inch of her.
“At least she’s awake this time,” the dark-eyed one remarked conversationally, as if Nicci wasn’t even there. “This dull chore should be more fun this way.”
Her companion, a slightly taller woman bearing the remnants of what was recently a stunning black eye, laughed softly in agreement, setting the bundle of cloth strips on a nearby table. Nicci watched her out of the corner of her eye as she picked a rag off the top of the pile and dipped it into the bowl. The other Mord’Sith did the same and in one synchronous motion they turned and approached Nicci, one on either side. She steeled herself, determined not to react audibly or visibly to whatever torment her captors had in store.
To her surprise and confusion, what followed was more like discomfort than the agony she’d been expecting. The Mord’Sith’s touches were not gentle, nor were the rags soft against her raw flesh, but the ointment they administered quickly soothed the burns, overtaking the pain. Nicci gritted her teeth, trying to keep the mixture of confusion and relief off her face while the two Mord’Sith quickly and efficiently applied the ointment to her entire body.
Unfortunately, her struggle did not escape notice. “Look, Cathryn, she’s pretending it doesn’t hurt,” the smaller of the two smirked, her dark eyes flashing with amusement.
“Bitch. After all the trouble we’ve gone to, keeping those burns clean, you’d think she’d at least humor us with a whimper. Maybe a few tears?” The other woman applied more pressure with her rag, hoping for a response. Nicci’s throat stung with the effort of holding back a gasp.
Seconds later a sharp, impossibly loud crack broke the stillness of the cell, followed immediately by Nicci’s gasp and keening wail of pain. Stars popped in front of her eyes and she struggled not to vomit. After many agonizing seconds, the pain began to subside and she felt the heat of blood trickling down the back of her thigh from a fresh wound on the curve of her ass.
“Mariel, Lord Rahl specifically ordered us not to harm her.” Cathryn scolded, poorly masking the delight in her voice. “Yet.”
“Lord Rahl hasn’t come to see her since we hauled her out of that bath. He’ll never know. I would think you’d want to rough her up a little after she gave you that black eye…”
Cathryn didn’t need much persuading; she already had her rag in both hands and was winding it taut. Nicci let out an involuntary gasp as the rag whistled through the air with all of Cathryn’s ire behind it. The corner lashed into Nicci’s flesh, opening another wound slightly below her navel. Nicci bit into her lip against the pain until it split and she was forced to let her howl fill every corner of the room. Mariel shot Cathryn an impressed smirk before raising her own rag again.
“That’s enough for now,” Darken Rahl’s voice rang out over the sick choking noises coming from deep in Nicci’s throat. “You may go.”
“Lord Rahl.” The Mord’Sith stood down obiediently, if somewhat reluctantly, retrieved the bloody rags and the remaining ointment and slid silently out the door.
In an effort to regain some of her dignity, Nicci sneered at Rahl, staring him down as he approached her. “You honor me with your presence, Rahl,” she mocked. “I was beginning to think you’d changed your mind about having plans for me, seeing as you’d leave my care and keeping to the likes of those two.”
“Unfortunately, Sister Nicci, you will indeed prove useful to me.” Rahl’s voice was all velvet and derision as he brought his hands up and grated them down her arms to her breasts.
Nicci stared viciously ahead, ignoring the pain and humiliation of his touch. “I am not ‘Sister’ Nicci. I no longer serve the Keeper.”
“Oh, I think you’ll find it is to your benefit to rejoin your sisters. But this time, you won’t be serving the Keeper. You’ll be serving me.” He raked his fingers down her belly then snaked his arms around her waist, cupping her ass and smirking slightly at the feel of her blood running between his fingers.
“Not for all the naked, writhing souls in the Underworld!” Nicci spat, her vision swimming.
“Mariel and Cathryn will be pleased to hear that. It’s been too long since they’ve had anyone to play with. Don’t worry, their skills are as sharp as ever. They’ll do a fine job with your training.”
“To what end?”
“You’re capable of confessing Kahlan Amnell. That power is quite valuable to me.” Rahl leaned in close enough to bite Nicci’s collarbone under the Rada’Han before continuing, growling into her ear. “When my Mord’Sith are through with you, you will seek out the Mother Confessor and use her own magic to confess her once again. You will order her to confess my dear baby brother, and then the two of them will use their influence and glowing reputations to gain control over the three territories. It should be an easy enough task for the people’s beloved Seeker and Confessor. Between you and Kahlan you should even be able to confess enough of the right people to ensure their authority is not questioned. Once their hold on the throne is secured… they will instate me as High Lord and Master, as I should have been long before now.” He shuddered with barely-contained rage. “And then I will send them both to the Keeper.”
“What’s in it for me?” Nicci asked, unimpressed.
“Once you’ve held up your end of the bargain, I’ll remove the Rada’Han, once and for all.”
“And my head along with it.”
“That’s the idea.”
“I have a better idea. I confess Kahlan. She confesses Richard. They unite the Midlands, Westland and D’Hara and hand the reigns to the both of us. You get rid of this Rada’Han and we rule as equals.” She cocked an eyebrow at him and smirked.
Rahl tsked his disapproval. “And why on earth would I want to do that?”
“Because if you refuse, I’ll refuse to tell you what I learned during my brief foray into the Underworld.” she taunted. “Believe me, what I know will throw more than a wrench into your scheme.”
“A charming ploy, Nicci, but I won’t be fooled so easily.”
Nicci’s voice hardened. “The choice is yours, Rahl. We can do this my way and live to enjoy our success or we can do this your way and there won’t be a single soul left in the world to rule over. There won’t even be a single soul left in the Underworld, nor will there be a Keeper to torment them. The Maestra will make sure of that.”
Darken Rahl blanched and took a few halting paces backward, searching Nicci’s eyes for some small sign that she was bluffing. He found none. “The Maestra? The Goddess of Time?”
“The same.”
“I’m listening…”