"The Maid of Silver."

"The Iron King names the Maid of Silver," 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 Silver," 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 Silver," 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. Her hair shines in the sun, a laughing maid full of life and fair to behold. I feel a bond between you, one which goes back years, a bond that has been pulled and stretched but never broken. Your past is distant but cherished, a memory of love and loss."

There is little doubt of who Talaitha speaks... it could only be Pia. Her father is the silversmith, and the description of her is exact. You begin to wonder whether there might not be something to Talaitha's power after all - though, of course, everyone has their first kiss from someone. You find that her face drifts into your mind, but oddly, it is not her face as you last saw her; it is Pia's face as a woman rather than a girl, as if the last time you had seen her was only yesterday rather than over ten years ago.

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, I see her surrounded in stone, draped in a darkened gown, but her heart soars with new discovery, she understands now, the wondrous ecstasy! But there is more... another understanding which comes too late, despair and sacrifice..."

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.

"Love and loss, I feel it again... the love is stronger, but the loss is that of shattered dreams. Silver wings have been traded for golden chains, but with the chains also comes a new joy, a joy which comes again thrice more, and then... there comes contentment."

Her eyes open, and for a moment they seem glazed, but then they find you again. She withdraws from the embrace, perhaps a bit reluctantly, it seems to you - it may only be your ego, but you can't help but wonder if she might have enjoyed the feeling of you more than she expected, and did not wish to end it prematurely.

"The spirits are silent, King Xavier. They have spoken and I have given you their words. Heed them as you will."

It takes a moment for you to gather your composure, so that you can speak without the hoarseness of lust in your voice. Her actions have left you aching for release, but that is something you must put aside. A few deep breaths help to clear your head, and this time you can tell that Talaitha is impressed with your strength of will; you have no doubt that if this is a performace she has done for others, she likely finds that not every man is able to steady himself so quickly, or hold back from trying to relieve his needs with her.

"I would ask another question, if I may," you say at last.

"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."

"You spoke of 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 again. 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."