"The Maid of Wine."

"The Iron King names the Maid of Wine," Talaitha intones. "May the spirits reveal the destiny which awaits him!"

Talaitha steps close to you, her eyes locked on yours, and her hands begin to touch your body. It is a strange sensation... her touches are pleasurable by their very nature, but it is obvious that they are not truly intended as such. Rather than seek out sensitive and intimate places, her fingertips brush over your temples, then press gently into your neck to feel your pulse through the strong blood vessels there... then her breasts press into your chest, but it seems that she does this only to breathe in the same time as you do; so that she inhales as you breathe out, and then again in the opposite manner. It may be your imagination, but it seems to you that she even somehow manages to match the rhythm of her heartbeat with your own. It is a strange intimacy, unlike that of a lover, more as if she seeks to become one with you than to share her body.

Her eyes close, and beneath the lids you can see them dart rapidly back and forth, as if she were suddenly asleep and dreaming. Her hands find your own, palm to palm, not lacing the fingers but aligning them with yours. Her lips are so close now that it is all you can do not to lean in just a hair's breadth further and kiss them... but you remember that Talaitha warned you to take no action without her instruction. Even if she has no true power or connection with the spirits, it feels unwise to disturb her trance again.

"The Maid of Wine," she breathes, almost too quietly to be heard even so close. "Speak the name with me." With those words, Talaitha moves that tiniest bit closer so that your lips just barely touch, like a fresh dewdrop upon a blade of grass.

"The Maid of Wine," you whisper, and her lips move in perfect unison with yours. Then she pulls away, and her brow furrows just slightly, concentrating hard, listening to whatever voices she alone can hear. Then she shivers, just slightly... and it may be your imagination, but it almost seems as thought the slight breeze which wafts around you forms the subtlest of sounds, which if you could only hear them a tiny bit more clearly, might be strange words in a tongue you have never heard before...

"Yes," Talaitha says, in a soft, melodious tone that drowns out the mysterious almost-sound. "Yes, I see her before me now. The Wine Maid is lovely to the eye, and more beautiful still within her heart. It is a heart which has already known love and loss, but like wine has become finer with the passing of time. Comfort and counsel she offers you now, and so she shall when she wears the crown of the Queen."

If you were to name a maid who is described by these words, it would have to be Melisande. She was wed to a nobleman, after all, though he died some years ago. And certainly, she has offered you much in the way of comfort through the hospitality of the inn and tavern under her ownership, and she has given you the benefit of her wisdom as well. Although she has seen at least twelve more summers than you have, Talaitha's words would hold true; she has really only become more beautiful with each year. Her face glows before you, almost visible in truth, so vivid is the image in your mind's eye.

Talaitha's hands begin to roam over your body, up your arms and down your back, pressing both firmly and lightly as she goes. A memory comes into your head, a time when you spoke to Elyssia's most learned healer of his arts; one Master Sanjay Bhandari... he showed you his charts of what he called the Energy Streams, and described a **** called the Chi which moved through all people. His charts indicated the places at which this energy could be redirected and controlled. It is hard to recall exactly, especially under the circumstances, but it seems to you that Talaitha's fingertips press those same points as her hands come to them.

"Show me the future," she sings, "what will come to pass..."

Suddenly, you feel moist lips against your fully-hardened manhood, and you realize that Talaitha is spreading her legs around you to take you inside her. It is all you can do not to respond and thrust forward, take her in your arms, kiss the lips which remain so close - but through an iron effort of will, you remain still and allow her to continue. Ever so slowly, she slides down upon you, her warm and wet passage opening and allowing you to penetrate. An involuntary shiver runs through you, but otherwise you are able to remain still. Talaitha rolls her head back, her eyes closed and still flickering with the signs of dreaming.

"Yes, a long and happy union for you both, but a lonely one as well, for the Wine Queen cannot bring forth life anew. There will be no heirs of her own issue, no child for the Queen of Wine. It falls to another to bear the son of the Iron King..."

Talaitha's brow furrows in concentration, and she unexpectedly leans forward to kiss you upon the lips... but it is no lover's kiss, it is more as though she is forming a closer connection to you, trying to listen through your ears as well as her own. Slowly, she pulls you downward to the blanket upon the ground, for which you are most grateful; it was becoming difficult to stand! Somehow, she is able to gracefully lower both herself and you together such that you remain tightly embraced as a man to a woman, your shaft thrust deeply into her.

"The other woman, the one who bears the child, who smiles at the wind and fills her cups with joy... she shares the love of the Wine Queen even now, a passionate love, the fiery lust of - Oh!"

Quite unexpectedly, Talaitha seals her lips against yours and slides her tongue into your mouth, while at the same time rocking her hips forward onto your rock-hard shaft, allowing you to penetrate her deeper. It is impossible for you to hold back from responding in kind, especially as you feel her hot cunt spasm with her climax, and as you draw back and thrust into her again, your essence shoots into her. She shivers, and moans through the kiss, relaxing in your embrace... and then, just as suddenly, she opens her eyes and pulls away.

"King Xavier!" she says, as if surprised to see you. "I... I beg forgiveness, this has never happened to me before! I have... that is, it seems that I... lost control."

"That would make two of us," you say with a smile.

"Yes, but as I say, I have never done this while communing with the spirits. And I must confess, it was not truly your doing - which is not to say that you are not a man who would naturally inspire a woman to such pleasures, of course!" Talaitha looks wary and even a bit frighted, as if she believes she may have angered you.

"I take no offense, Talaitha," you assure her. "I have given women enough pleasure to know that I do not lack in the ability to do so. Please, do not be concerned."

"Thank you, King Xavier," she says, relaxing somewhat. "Understand that when I commune with the spirits in this way, I must concentrate upon their words, the images and feelings they send me, and so I do not truly feel the touch of the one I am with; as I said before, it is but a means to an end, a way of linking you to the spirit world through me. The spirits have sent me visions of love and pleasure before, but they have never been so... intense. I do not think I have angered the spirits, but it would be best if we made no more contact with them this day." She gently urges you to withdraw, and as you do she shivers again with the pleasure she cannot completely suppress.

"I imagine that the intensity of those images says something about the Wine Maid herself, and the kind of wife she would make," you suggest.

"Perhaps," Talaitha replies thoughtfully. "I will have to think on it further, when I am able to clear my head... I was not expecting this, you must understand. But one thing is clear, and that is that the images I saw which inspired me to... well, be that as it may, I did not see the Wine Maid with you, but with another; with a woman. It may be that this is where her true passions lie, and that is something you should know if you wish her for your Queen. I cannot ask more of the spirits now; they have spoken, and I dare not risk their anger after what has just happened."

"Very well," you acknowledge with a nod. "May I ask another question?"

"The spirits have given all the answers they will give, for now; but of course, King Xavier, you may ask of Talaitha what you will."

"The Iron King... is that the name by which the spirits know me?"

"It is," she says. "They have spoken to me of you before, when I have meditated. Of course I know of your past, it is well-known in these parts that you were a worker of iron at the forge, but the name means more than that. Iron is the strongest of metals, and yet it also yields to become what it must be. It will bend to fire, but when it is quenched it becomes stronger still. It is the metal of the common people, in the form of a hammer or plow; it is also the metal of a knight's armor and shield, and the sword of a King like the one you carry at your side. The King of Iron is a king of all the people, both noble and common, a king who wields his power in service and not in domination. The spirits know you well, King Xavier."

"I thank you for your service, Talaitha," you say to her, as you both stand up and you begin to put your clothes back on. It feels somewhat awkward; normally, after you have made love to a woman, you would offer kisses and tender caresses and hold her in your arms, but it's hard to know exactly what you should do in this case.

"There is one other thing," she says as you prepare to take your leave. "Now that you have been connected to the Spirits, you may find that they visit you at some future time. Since you do not have my power, they will appear to you in the only way they can - in your dreams. The dreams will be vivid and potent in nature, but do not fear; these dreams can no more do you harm than any other dream. If the spirits speak to you in this manner, remember that they cannot always be trusted, and it is always best to use your own judgement rather than follow them blindly." She smiles slightly. "Consider them as you would your advisors; wise and helpful, but not always right."