Chapter 14
The Sapphic Concubine
Royal Precinct, Tianjing
Yasuko lunged at Yung. The idea was to stagger him with a punch to the chest so she could go in for the takedown, but he easily evaded the blow, took hold of her arm and flipped her over his shoulder. She quickly sprang back to her feet, but he didn't follow up on his throw and exploit her vulnerability while she was on the floor. This was how he fought, at least during this stage of the training. She would attack, he would break her attack, and then he would tell her what she did wrong.
"You do not have the strength to overpower me, Miss Yasuko," he said. "Even with your muscle suit's strength enhancements, it only puts you at about the same level as an average adult male at best. You must use your opponent's strength against him. If you must strike, however, you have to be quicker about it."
He demonstrated by punching her in the chest faster than she could react. She barely even saw him shift his weight, but for a quick jab like that, he really didn't have to.
"It is said by some '40% forward and 60% back', but I say you must be even faster, at least 20/80."
"How am I supposed to get that fast?" Yasuko asked.
"With training of course, Miss Yasuko."
He punched her again.
"Now hit me," he said. "Do not let me turn your strength against you."
Yasuko tried a jab, as fast as she could, but Yung just batted her fist away and kicked her legs out from under her.
"Too slow," he said. "And you are putting too much weight on your leading foot. Keep the lead foot light or you will be taken off balance."
Yasuko got up to try again. As physically challenging as hand-to-hand training was under Yung, Yasuko preferred it vastly to her studies under Mithridates and particularly Hongxia. It may have meant she was little more than a thug at heart, but killing made a lot more sense without all the subterfuge. Surely Prince Sturla didn't see it that way.
Speak of the devil...
"Enough," Prince Sturla said as he entered the dojo.
Yung bowed to him and then asked, "What would you have of me, Your Highness?"
"Nothing at the moment, Yung," Prince Sturla replied. "Right now my business is with this one."
He gave Yasuko a displeased look and she didn't hide the fact that she wasn't too happy with him either.
"I was willing to overlook how you handled Lady Limei because you at least showed some creativity tying up loose ends, but what precisely were you thinking when you killed Lord Yuan?"
"He's dead, isn't he?" Yasuko said.
Demonstrating the sort of speed Yung was talking about, Prince Sturla grabbed her by the throat, squeezing just enough that she could feel it but quaking from the pent-up energy he was holding back. It honestly felt like he could pop her head right off if he wanted to.
"It was supposed to look like a heart attack," he said, "from a poison that breaks down so quickly that it's virtually undetectable with an injection site where no one would have looked. Subtle, professional. Not from a goddamned broken neck. How exactly do you expect me to cover that one up?"
"Say he slipped in the shower."
Prince Sturla gave her a bit of a stifled chuckle, but whatever humor he found in her answer didn't have much mileage. He swung her like a ragdoll and slammed her onto the floor.
Holding his face uncomfortably close to hers, he told her, "We're going to try this again. This time your target is Lady Kuai, the late Emperor's Brilliant Companion, the woman second only to Empress Song, even if she was falling out of favor. Now, she would fuck any man or beast to improve her station, but when she's looking for fun, she prefers girls about your age.
"You're going to show up on her menu tonight and you're going to use the same trick you were supposed to use on Lord Yuan. I don't care what she decides to stick in you. You just make sure that needle sticks her. Then you put on a little show as the horrified bystander like you did for Lady Limei. None of this escaping through the tunnels again. Are we clear?"
"It's not like I can say no."
"Of course you can say no, Yasuko," the Prince replied. "It's just that I'll have to break every bone in your body and once Dr. Hadad's put you back together again, you can still say no and we'll keep repeating until understand exactly where you stand. Call it a father's tough love."
Really? He was going to play the father card now? There really was no bottom to this man's depravity. It made her skin crawl, but there was something else. Having him this close to her just reminded her. Dammit. Much as she hated herself for it and hated him even more, on some crocodile brain level, she was attracted to him. If he wasn't threatening her and doing terrible things to her, that attraction would be a lot stronger.
She could feel her cheeks flushing. Double dammit.
Prince Sturla gave her a sly grin and said, "We could go far together if you'd learn to do what you're told. Well, that rebellious streak of yours is part of your charm, but it can annoy."
He let go of her neck and stood up.
"Wrap things up here and get ready," he said. "I'll have Hongxia come deliver you to the Brilliant Companion's palace. Don't screw this up or there will be consequences. And try to have fun. You might just learn something about yourself."
He laughed as he walked out of the dojo. Yasuko desperately wanted to kill him, but she knew she didn't stand a chance, not right now at least. One day she'd be strong enough, fast enough, or just lucky enough to gain an edge on him and then she'd pay him back in full. In the meantime, though, she needed to direct her murderous thoughts to the task at hand.
* * *
Yasuko couldn't believe what she was wearing this time. She had never seen so many frills before in her life. The petticoat alone had to have at least twenty layers to it. The dress was nothing like the usual fashions of the Capital and far too elaborate to bear more than a passing resemblance to anything you could find on the surface either. She thought they made her look like a doll before, but this time you really could just put her on a shelf.
Even though she really didn't want to talk to Hongxia, Yasuko couldn't help but ask her, "Why am I wearing this?"
"Lady Kuai is a woman of particular tastes," Hongxia replied. "For your sake, you had better hope she has a taste for you."
Yasuko didn't know which gave her the creeps more. Male or female, a whoremonger was a whoremonger. Lady Kuai was probably just as bad as the late Lord Yuan. Maybe she wouldn't treat people like horses at least.
The reached the Palace of the Fertile Valley, a decidedly creepy name for the place that was supposed to produce the backup heirs to the throne should anything happen to the Empress' offspring. Hongxia led Yasuko around to the side entrance, where a manservant was waiting for them.
"Ms. Hongxia, it is not like you to make deliveries," he said.
"Only for special occasions, Luo Geng," Hongxia replied. "I have heard Her Ladyship has been disappointed with her offerings as of late. Perhaps this one will provide a more satisfactory experience."
"She is not too well-trained, I hope," the manservant said. "Her Ladyship dislikes that nearly as much as her pets having no training at all."
"No one can accuse this one of being too well-trained," Hongxia sneered, "but I am quite confident she will be able to give Her Ladyship the experience of a lifetime."
"That is quite promising coming from a woman of your storied talents, Ms. Hongxia. I certainly hope you are right."
"Well, try to have fun," Hongxia told Yasuko. She then got very close and said in a low voice, "And do not think I have forgotten."
Yasuko didn't expect her to let go of her grudge that easily, so the threat came as no surprise.
The manservant bobbed his head and motioned inside, saying, "Come in, come in."
Yasuko curtseyed and walked in, playing up the meek and mild act. The manservant beckoned for her to follow him.
"So I understand you have some training in these matters," he said as they were walking. "What you must do is simple. Please Her Ladyship by doing exactly what she tells you to do. If you are responsive to her desires, you should satisfy her. If you do a good enough job, she may hire you as a regular companion, but I warn you, none of her favorites stay in her favor for long, but should you be so honored, you will live like nobility while it lasts."
Yasuko thought better of asking what happened to the companions that fell out of favor. At best, they were sent back where they came from. At worst... Frankly, Yasuko didn't want to think about it too much.
The manservant led Yasuko into what looked like a broom closet. The back wall panel opened up to reveal an equally small room, just barely big enough for the two of them (especially given the poofiness of Yasuko's dress). The little room rumbled and shook before starting to move, like it was on some sort of track. When it came to a stop, the wall opened to reveal a slightly larger antechamber.
"I cannot go beyond here," the manservant said. "Remember what I told you. Good luck."
Yasuko stepped into the antechamber and the wall closed behind her. You could barely make out the contours of the door before it slid open.
Yasuko didn't know what to call the main chamber. 'Sex dungeon' was probably inappropriate and 'playroom' didn't sound much better. It was a large and circular room. The wall to Yasuko's right was comprised of not just a holoprojection but an actual aquarium that extended from floor to ceiling. To the right was a bed and what looked like a throne on a raised dais and racks with all sorts of implements Yasuko really didn't want to spend much time thinking about. The simulated mountain retreat from the brothel seemed charming in comparison.
She was looking at the fish when a door on the opposite side opened and in walked the Brilliant Companion. With the Celestials, it was always so difficult to tell their actual age what with all their cosmetic treatments and juvenation therapy, but Lady Kuai was starting to show signs of age. Nothing close to her actual age, surely, but for a man as shallow as the late Emperor, Yasuko could see why she would have been losing ground to someone like Lady Limei.
She had apparently just come from the bath as her hair was wet and she was only wearing a single-layer cotton robe, white with a pattern of bamboo stalks. She walked over to Yasuko and rested her chin on her hand as she looked her over.
"So you are the new girl?"
Yasuko curtseyed and said, "Yes, my lady."
Lady Kuai slapped her.
"In this room, you will address me as 'my queen'."
Yasuko curtseyed again.
"Yes, my queen."
Lady Kuai smiled.
"You seem to learn quickly enough," she said. "Perhaps you can be trained."
"I am here to serve you, my, my queen."
Lady Kuai slapped her again.
"That was for stammering. I cannot abide stammerers."
"Yes, my queen."
"Do you know what the most important ingredient to a healthy relationship is?"
"No, my queen."
"Obedience."
Lady Kuai then walked over to the throne and sat down.
"Let us see how well you can obey."
Kicking off her slippers, she crossed her legs and stretched out her leading foot.
"Come pay homage to your queen."
Yasuko suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and kept her head bowed as she slowly approached the dais. She figured Lady Kuai would appreciate it if she got down on her hands and knees and bowed before climbing the first step, then bowing again for each step as she made her way to the throne.
Telling herself that Lady Kuai had just finished bathing and that she wasn't going to get some weird fungus, Yasuko kissed the Brilliant Companion's foot.
"Oh, come now," Lady Kuai said. "Is that all the devotion you have for your queen? Surely you can do better. Give me more."
Yasuko knew what she was supposed to do, how far she was supposed to play along with this farce, but something snapped inside her. She couldn't keep the act going. It wasn't like last time, where she planned on disobeying orders from the start. She knew she was pushing her luck with Prince Sturla and she wasn't ready to take him head-on yet. Naturally, she didn't want to take it all the way. She would have exploited any opening to finish the job another way the second she saw it, but if that didn't happen, she thought she had squared herself with the idea of playing out the scenario according to the script. Obviously she was wrong about that.
She sprang to her feet, seized Lady Kuai by the front of her robe and punched her in the face. Only she didn't stop there. Not even giving her a chance to cry out in pain, Yasuko proceeded to pummel her until she stopped moving. To ensure the job was done, she took the little apparatus that was supposed to be secreted away somewhere else out from under one of the layers of her dress and jammed the needle into Lady Kuai's mouth. If she wasn't already dead, she would be shortly.
With the heat of the moment having passed, Yasuko looked at her bloodied glove and started to reflect on what a terrible mistake she had made. This wasn't going to go over well with Prince Sturla at all. The target was dead, but that wasn't enough for him, although he did say he wanted the needle stuck in her and Yasuko did that. Pretending her death was an accident was another story.
Among the various implements on the wall were a variety of masks. Yasuko went down to get one and put it on Lady Kuai's head. That would at least hold her face together somewhat. If there was any way to dress up the scene to make an alibi even remotely plausible, Yasuko couldn't think of it, so instead she opted to just leave the way she came.
As she came out of the broom closet-like room, the manservant from before quickly made an appearance.
"Her Ladyship is finished for the evening," Yasuko told him.
"I see," the manservant replied. "Were you given any further instructions?"
"Her Ladyship would like to rest and does not wish to be disturbed."
"She, ahem, does not usually exert herself so," the manservant said. "I trust then Ms. Hongxia's assessment of your performance was correct?"
A very cruel part of Yasuko couldn't resist the temptation to gloat.
"The experience of a lifetime," she said with the hint of a grin.
The manservant sighed in relief.
"That is good news. Her Ladyship's mood has not been the best of late. If you have succeeded in lightening her spirits, it will be much appreciated."
"I think you'll find I've done you a service."
"We are grateful to you."
"I'm sure you will be."
"We will contact your, ahem, manager when your services are needed again?"
"Yes."
"I hope you are properly rewarded for this."
Yasuko thought about what that probably meant and replied grimly, "Oh, I can hardly wait."