Intergalactic Courtesan Ch. 10

The final notes of Pratallix's 12th Concerto for Kalushtra hung in the air, like fine crystal, before the audience broke into thunderous applause. Farrah Farruhz, the celebrated virtuoso, stood up from her instrument and fluttered her white-feathered wings, acknowledging the 15,000 aliens who had gathered into the Galos City Centennial Concert Hall to hear her play. The audience began standing, or hovering, each giving Farruhz their equivalent of a standing ovation. The slender Swantahl fluttered her wings again before striding off, leaving her instrument standing alone in the middle of the stage.

"I understand she used to be a Guild courtesan," Tal Jin leaned over to whisper in Desirée Tanner's ear, one of his twelve tentacles brushing her bare arm. "With the Fenar III House, I recall."

Desirée grinned. "You must have read the program notes, too." Veronica Franco's borrowed earrings dangled against Desirée's slender neck, brushing the wisps of her sandy blonde hair, now carefully plaited into a formal style against her subdued, elegant makeup. Even though she was on paid vacation, she wore a long, low-cut gown in the Guild colours of red and gold. "Professor Ssurhuk-T'at once told me that her manual dexterity had always been . . . most impressive."

"His pause, or yours?" he teased gently.

Her lips brushed his hearing slit. "His, actually." He shivered appreciatively.

The audience was still enthusiastically applauding according. Desirée knew there would be no encore; Farruhz never gave one.

"Intriguing. Ah, I see they're bringing the house lights up," the young Tekkamaru diplomat said. "Would you like to accompany me somewhere for a light refreshment?"

"I would love to," she said, turning towards the end of her row. She could feel the speculative eyes upon her as she did so. Despite Guild courtesans being a common sight on Galos IV, it was still cause for comment to see a junior courtesan in the stalls of the Concert Hall, especially accompanying a non-Guild member.

Desirée ignored the covert scrutiny; Tal Jin was not in his yearly heat so he wasn't calling on her professional skills. He simply had a pair of tickets for the concert and asked her to join him for the evening. Desirée, who considered the Tekkamaru a good friend, was more than happy to do so.

"Do you have a place in mind, or would you like me to make some suggestions?" she asked. "I know a number of good restaurants here in town."

"I'm certain you do," Jin said dryly. Not all guests wanted to be entertained in the Guild House. He followed her towards the exits, wearing the black and gold uniform of the Diplomatic Corps. "Nevertheless, I know a place we can go. It would be my treat."

* **

"You never told me why you came all the way to Galos IV just for a single concert." Desirée stirred her tarliss. It was the closest equivalent she could find to a latte, although it had more of a chocolate almond taste. The restaurant was quiet and intimate with soft lighting; although Desirée had never been there before, it was high on her list of recommended nightspots on Galos IV. "I'm flattered of course, but it's quite a long way from the Kahlis System, even to hear Farrah Farruhz play."

Jin's expression didn't change: he casually activated the privacy screen before taking another sip of his firdrakh tea. "Ambassador Sukohl paid for both my flight and the concert. I'm being kept out of the way," he replied once the screen was up. The disruptor field, regularly found on tables in more upscale restaurants, disrupted any electronic devices and made it impossible for outside observers to read lips or other speaking appendages.

Desirée blinked. "Why?"

He grimaced, red flashes appearing on his pink skin. "The ambassador handed me these tickets, just as we were about to begin another round of negotiations. Very generous of him, but it's clear he doesn't want my input on the discussions. The situation is deteriorating rapidly on Kahlis IX, and the good Ambassador," Jin's face was carefully neutral again, "feels my views are far too aggressive for his taste."

She cocked her head. "What's been happening?"

"General Xerkis is becoming more and more erratic, and his demands of the Verlit Oligarchy to hand over the dissident Xital, and his claims against the Confederation itself, are becoming more aggressive," the Tekkamaru diplomat said. "My sources also tell me he's regularly using Fikhylthan."

Desirée sucked in a breath. Fikhylthan was a highly addictive derivative of the Fikhyl plant, found only in the Kahlis System. Much like cocaine on Earth, it gave the user a short, powerful burst of euphoria but addicts displayed erratic, aggressive behaviour and paranoia. If Kalhis IX's dictator was a Fikhylthan addict, that meant an already volatile region of space was becoming even more dangerous.

Jin nodded. "I have reason to believe the Kahlisians are becoming increasingly angry with his administration, but Xerkis still has control of the army. As long as that situation continues, then there is little anyone can do to dislodge him from power. Unfortunately, he still has ambitions outside of the Kahlis System. The Confederation has repeatedly censured him in Parliament but there's still a deadlock as to how to proceed against him. So, we do nothing, except condemn his actions in Parliament and send him warnings."

She winced at the acid tone in his voice. Jin's belief was that several fleets of Confederation warships running exercises in the Kahlis system would swiftly show Xerkis the error of his ways, but the diplomat's immediate superior didn't share that view. But, if Jin's information was correct, any prior predictions about Xerkis' behaviour just went straight out the airlock.

A single tone emitted from their table, a request for them to drop their disruptor screen. After a quick glance at Desirée, Jin killed the field.

"Excuse me, sir and madam," the robotic voice of the table said. "I have a Priority One message for Guild Courtesan Desirée Tanner from Guild Administrator Veronica Franco. Will you accept the message?"

"Yes," Desirée said. "I accept." An image of Franco appeared in Desirée's eyeballs, through her UTD. The message was barely 30 standard seconds old. The Guild administrator wore her gray suit, and she appeared the worse for wear. It clearly had been a long and difficult day for the slender, curly-haired brunette.

"I'm sorry to disturb you on your week off, darling," the recorded message began, "but I have an urgent request and I'm finding myself short on available courtesans. There's no need to return immediately, but can you help? Please call me as soon as you get this. Franco out."

Desirée checked her chronometer. It was already well into night; Veronica should have been in bed long ago. She turned off the message and turned back to her date for the evening.

"Duty calls?" he smiled to take any possible sting from his words.

She grimaced. "Not quite, but I have to make a quick call. Do you mind?"

"Not at all."

Smiling at him, Desirée activated the disruptor screen so it only shielded herself. That done, she placed a call to her boss.

Veronica accepted it immediately. "Thank you for getting back to me so quickly, dear. How was the concert?"

"Wonderful," Desirée smiled back. "How can I help?"

"There's no need for you to return immediately," Veronica said quickly, "but I just received an urgent communiqué. There's a group of guests arriving tomorrow, and they've requested our services on an important matter. I can't give you any further details but discretion is of the highest priority."

Desirée blinked. Veronica never used those words lightly. "I understand, Ma'am. When do you need me?"

"Their ship arrives at 0700 hours," the administrator replied. "You will have no other appointments for the day, and you are to take as long as it takes. Is that understood?"

An open-ended appointment like that implied that, whoever this guest was, he, she or it had a lot of money. Securing a Guild Courtesan's services in such a manner, even one as junior as Desirée, wasn't cheap.

"Understood, Ma'am. Should I meet the ship at 0700 then?"

"No. I'll need you in Room 7419 at 0830 instead."

Desirée blinked again. This was really getting strange: no one knew what Room 7419 was used for, but there had been no shortage of rumours among the courtesans. Now Desirée would be the first to uncover the mystery.

"Is there anything I'll need to bring?"

Veronica shook her head. Desirée could see the lines of exhaustion on her face. "Just yourself. And don't discuss this with anyone else. That's an order."

"I understand. Anything else you think I should know?"

"No. That should cover it. Enjoy the rest of your evening, dear, but don't make it too late. Franco out."

"Sleep well, Ma'am. Tanner out." They both killed the line, then Desirée turned off the disruptor. Tal Jin was looking at her with a wry expression on his face.

"I take it you must return to the Guild House now?"

She checked her chronometer. It was already 2449; Galos IV ran on a 26-hour clock. "Unfortunately yes," she said. "I'm so sorry about this, Jin."

"Nonsense," the Tekkamaru said, punching in a request for the bill. "May I ask what that was about? It looked important."

"I'm afraid I can't discuss the details." Desirée tried to put the bill on her card, but Jin beat her to it.

The octopus-like alien smiled triumphantly, punching in his credit number. "Highest discretion, hmm?" He drummed a tentacle against his lips, giving her a look of playful malice. "Off-hand, I can think of a few delicate political situations that might require Guild assistance."

He counted them off on his tentacles. "There's War Master Turok of the Leonorilla: there have been nasty rumours about his proclivities for years now. The Pathor Royal Family urgently requires an heir, but I'm not really sure how the Guild could help with that situation.

"Then there's Prelate Asvarghan of the Brokkas United Church. Despite Church law requiring their priests be celibate, it's believed he has fathered at least one illegitimate child and keeps about 4 mistresses. Of course, it's also believed he's a mole for the Ogami Secret Service but that rumour's more questionable. Am I getting close?" he grinned at her.

"To be honest, you know more than I," she told him. "Signora Franco didn't give me any details."

"Fair enough," he conceded, standing up. "I thank you for a most charming evening, Desirée, and I hope we can do this again sometime."

She stood up as well, smoothing her gown and wrapping her shawl around her shoulders. "Likewise," she told her friend. "And I hope you get the chance to visit me should you require it."

"Not for another 5 months, alas," Jin admitted. The Tekkamaru went into heat once a year; at that time, Jin's visit to the Guild was covered under the Diplomatic Corps' health plan. "But to enjoy the pleasure of your company on the Corps' credit?" He gently took her hand in a tentacle and kissed it. "How could I refuse?"

She dimpled at him. "I look forward to it."

***

Morning found Desirée in front of Room 7419. Despite being 15 minutes early, she was already dressed and made up. Because of the early hour, she hadn't attended the morning calisthenics routine that would also begin in 15 minutes. She stared at the blank door, wondering what was behind it. There had been plenty of rumours since the room had been security sealed eight Standard months ago, but no real information. All anyone knew was that Guild Administrator Franco had personally overseen several deliveries to the room, and only a few select people had seen them. No one who knew was talking.

A noise made her turn her head. She saw Veronica Franco walking towards her, wearing a close-fitting uniform similar to Desirée's outfit. That in itself wasn't so surprising since Desirée had patterned her one-piece dress after Veronica's original Guild uniform, but the administrator hadn't worn that outfit in years, preferring a more austere suit for her administrative duties.

"Good morning, dear," Veronica said. She stood five inches shorter than Desirée's 5'9". "Did you sleep well?"

"Not bad," the younger woman admitted. "Yourself?"

Veronica grimaced. "Too much going on, unfortunately." She placed her right palm at a specific point next to the door. The section of wall glowed a dull blue, then a number pad slid out. Hiding what she was doing from the young courtesan, Veronica quickly keyed a number combination on the pad. The pad slid out of sight, then the door irised open.

Veronica grinned. "So, what's the latest rumour about what's in this room?"

"I can't say, Ma'am." Desirée tried to see past her boss. "I don't listen to rumour."

"You're a terrible liar, darling." Veronica removed her red pumps and stepped through the open door. "Take off your shoes and come on in."

Her own shoes in her hand, Desirée walked in to find a sterile white room. The floor was soft and springy underneath her feet, almost as if she was walking on a firm mattress. The door irised closed behind her.

In the middle was a padded examination table, able to accommodate a human shape. Desirée's violet eyes narrowed as the noticed the wrist and ankle restraints on each end of the table. At the foot of the table stood a large black box, placed on a wheeled cart.

Veronica pressed a sequence on a numbered keypad on the wall. Desirée heard the whine of a disruptor field being engaged.

"Now we can speak privately," the Guild administrator said. Placing her shoes by the door, she walked towards the examination table. "For now, what's in this room is Top Secret. You are not to discuss anything you see, hear or do with anyone else, on pain of having your Guild membership -- and possibly your Confederation citizenship -- immediately and permanently revoked. Is that understood?"

Desirée's eyes widened. "Yes, Ma'am."

"Good." Veronica's stance softened. "I told our guest that you could be trusted, and for all our sakes, I need you to keep quiet about what you will be involved in." She took a deep breath. "Today, you will be entertaining Crown Prince Viloss of the Pathor Royal Family and his consort, for as long as they require."

"All right. But how, Ma'am? From all I've heard, the Pathor are completely uninterested in relations with other races."

"You are correct. But I'll get to that," Veronica patted the black box, "later. As you may or may not know, there have been concerns that Prince Viloss has not produced an heir despite being married for 5 standard years."

Desirée nodded. Despite rarely reading the gossip forums, she was aware that Viloss' inability in that regard was the subject of much debate.

Veronica sighed. "The truth is that Prince Viloss suffers from severe erectile dysfunction. The Royal doctors determined that he has sufficient sperm count to produce an heir, but have been unable to cure his difficulties, even with injections of Asmodii venom." Asmodii venom was the only known aphrodisiac in the Intergalactic Confederation; Desirée knew its effects intimately.

"The Royal Family has kept any information about Prince Viloss' condition quiet, but ugly rumours have already spread. King Ghiloss is old and if Prince Viloss cannot produce an heir soon in the traditional manner, he will likely find himself declared unfit to rule and removed from the succession."

"So what's my part in all this?"

"The doctors discovered that Prince Viloss can achieve climax if he is exposed to the thoughts of another creature in high sexual arousal. He is not only an empath but he's partly telepathic as well. However, delving into a non-telepathic creature's mind while they're unguarded like that is against Pathor law, and he could be subject to severe prosecution.

"Which is why they are coming here, in secret, to see if you can help inspire the Prince to impregnate his wife."

"So I'm to lie on the table and masturbate while Prince Viloss has sex with his wife?"

The Guild administrator grinned. "Close, but not quite."

"Why do I need to be restrained?" Desirée asked, eyeing the table with its leather cuffs.

"The Royal Family has been the target of several assassination attempts," Veronica replied. "Once you've been strapped in, Prince Viloss' bodyguard will examine you to determine whether or not you pose a threat. Even afterwards, you will still be restrained just in case, and Pandora's Box here will do the rest."

"What is it?"

Veronica grinned, flipping open a keypad on the side of the box. "This is the second secret you must keep, but only until the patent applications have been approved."

She punched in a numbered sequence. The side facing the table opened up and a number of blunt objects slid out, moving in a random pattern. "This is the ultimate in biomechanical sexual stimulation. An engineer friend of mine developed this: he's quite the voyeur and he was interested in the myriad ways one could sexually stimulate a creature. After he showed me his initial design, I backed him financially until he could put together a working model. This," she patted it again, "is the final prototype.

"Using the keypad, you can set it to adjust to whichever creature or gender you wish to pleasure, and set the duration and intensity of the program. It even adjusts settings, depending on whether you wish to climax quickly or delay it for a prolonged period. It's also voice-activated, and quickly shuts off should you say the programmed safe word. It self cleans automatically, is easily maintainable, can be updated with new programs, and runs on very little power."

Desirée nodded, mesmerized by the writhing armatures protruding from the box. "So what do you get out of the deal?"

"Other than a sizable share of the profits?" Veronica shrugged. "As part of our agreement, he exclusively sells it to the Guild for the first fifteen years. After that, he can make it commercially available to anyone he wishes."

"This thing could put us out of business."

"Hardly," the Guild administrator said dryly. "Too many of our guests wish more than raw stimulation from Guild courtesans. I wouldn't be surprised if we see far more courtesans than guests strapped to Pandora's Box in the coming years."

"Is it safe?"

"Darling," Veronica grinned wickedly, "it's *perfectly* safe."

"Oh."

"Well, someone had to be the Beta Tester," she shrugged sensuously, "and who better than someone who is intimately versed in all forms of pleasure?" She checked her chronometer. "Either way, it's time to get you ready. Hop up here, and we'll get you started."

Veronica turned her back and started working with the controls. Desirée slid out of her dress. Despite the warm air in the room, her nipples stood out in stiff peaks from her perky breasts. She narrowed her eyes: had she seen a quick glance from her boss?

She folded her dress and placed it on the floor by the examining table. That done, she slid her red thong down her legs and kicked it onto her dress. Stepping towards the apparatus, she noticed another glance from Veronica. Lifting herself onto the table, she placed her legs in the padded stirrups.

"All right, you'll need to lie back and let," Veronica stopped when she saw Desirée lying naked on the padded table, her legs spread. She coughed. "The Box needs to scan you first, so lie back and close your eyes."

Desirée lay back, her arms fitting naturally into the padded restraints above her head. The loose ends of the cuffs brushed her wrists. She closed her eyes and tried to relax. The natural curve of the examination table caused her breasts and hips to thrust forward and her pussy and anus exposed to whatever the box would thrust into her. Veronica gently placed an eyemask over Desirée's face to protect her from the scanning ray; the young courtesan thought she felt Veronica's fingers brush her cheek.