This really isn't my best work. It was written this afternoon just because I was kind of bored. I hope you all like it. This is my interpretation from Susan Kay's novel, "Phantom" when the little harem girl is brought to serve Erik. (I think she should have slept with him! I mean, how bad could it be?)
My name is Randina. When I was fifteen years old, both of my parents were killed by the Persian government for what they called "treason", but my life was spared. I was exceedingly beautiful for my young age with dark hair and beautiful skin. I had been chosen to marry a friend of my father's by the next spring, but that was all changed now. He had been a very wealthy man and I was looking forward to spending the rest of my life in luxury with a beautiful home and many servants to wait upon my every need, but that life was gone now. When I had tried to explain that I was a promised wife to a very well-known older man, they immediately took me to him and demanded to know if this was true. When he learned of the circumstances of my parent's death, he backed away saying, "No. I do not know this girl. Take her away." I have never been able to forgive him for that moment, but I came to realize that if he would have confessed to knowing me and admitted that he had been a friend of my father's, then he could have been executed as well. I was beaten for lying to the Persian government.
I began my life as a harem girl the next morning. The khanum was very strict and I began my training as a concubine and dreaded the day when I would be asked to provide my services in the bed of the shah. But if I would have known what lay in store for me, I would have gladly died with the rest of my family.
Late one evening, the khanum came to me and sat beside of me in an almost sisterly fashion. She had a sneer on her face and I instantly saw the rest of the girls around me shrink away from her sight. But I was now trapped within her eyes. I knew whatever she had in store for me was going to entail something of immense horror. I never would have guessed just how much horror was going to be bestowed upon me.
"I have chosen a husband for you."
I nodded, not sure if I should answer her.
"He is a favorite of the shah and of myself. He has wealth beyond your small imagination. He also has a face beyond your strangest nightmares." She said this all in a monotone voice without much emotion. Her sneering smile had vanished into pursed lips and eyes of stone. "You will become his wife very soon, but for tonight, you are required to serve him."
Two eunuchs came forward and took me, one on either side, and as we made ready to leave the harem, I took one last look at the girls I had come to know as friends as I heard the khanum say, "Let me know how heā¦receives her."
With that, the eunuchs nodded and we made our way to the residence of my future husband. When we arrived, there was a man standing outside of the residence whom I presumed to be my husband, but he only led the way into the apartment and into the living room where an incredibly thin man was seated on the settee drinking sherbet. When the man approached, the other quickly rose to greet him. His greeting died on his lips when he saw me.
"What is this?" he demanded.
I could immediately tell that he was a man of immense power and strength by the way he held himself erect and by the powerful sound of his voice. A white mask also covered his face and I had a foreboding feeling about what lay under it.
"This is a gift from the khanum, Erik. She is to be your bride. A virgin bride. There is no gift that you could possibly receive from the khanum and the shah that is of higher standard as this."
The man looked up at me once again and then commanded, "Bring her forward!"
The eunuchs did as they were told as I struggled and tried to break free. I knew they would kill me as I ran, but that is what I wanted. But they were both too strong for me and I was thrown to the ground in front of this man.
"How old are you?" he demanded as I bit my lip trying not to cry.
"Fifteen, sir," I answered weakly.
"Do you know why you're here?"
"Yes, sir."
He then reached down and stripped away the gaze that separated my face from the outside world. It was then that I realized that his fingers were incredibly thin and almost skeletal.
"I have seen what lies under your veil. Now, you may do the same."
I hesitated and tears streamed down my face as I slowly reached up and stripped the mask away with one hurried sweep of my hand. Not even daring to look, I lowered my head.
"Look at me, damn you!" he exclaimed and roughly grabbed me by the hair and forced my eyes to his.
My face must have shown him my true feelings, for I felt him flinch and his look of immense power was gone. His face was that of a corpse with red eyes glowing in the deep sockets of his eyes. His nose was missing altogether and his lips were malformed and puckered. I tried to hold back a scream but failed in the attempt.
"You sniveling little bitch!" he exclaimed as he regained his somewhat lost powerful stance and threw me to the floor. "Leave us!"
I turned to the man who had showed us in and he bowed and left. The eunuchs were already backing slowly away from us with a look of terror and I heard one exclaim, "Allah save us!"
When they had left, I began to weep hysterically and I heard the man leave the room. I felt sure that if he returned he would kill me, but I made no move to escape. It was as if my body was one with the floor and even if I had tried to move, I seriously doubt if I could have.
Finally, I heard a door swing open and as I looked up I saw him come out into the main room, staring down at me with his mask covering the revulsion of his face.
"If I wear the mask," he said in a calm tone, "can you stand to be with me?"
I nodded slowly, afraid that if I replied in the negative, he would become angry again. If I was to marry him, I wanted to make him as happy as it was possible in these circumstances.
"Get off the floor," he whispered. "That is not where a young woman belongs."
His voice had an almost musical tonality to it now and I was beginning to be entranced by the sound of his voice. I sat on the settee as he made a graceful gesture for me to do so.
"Would you like some tea?"
This man was supposed to be raping me and he was asking me if I wanted tea? Afraid to refuse, I accepted.
He left and was gone for a long while. As I sat there bewildered, I could hear him in the kitchen readying the tea. When he emerged, he had two cups in his hand and very gracefully, he handed one to me. As I accepted the cup, I was startled to realize that I was almost aroused by the way he moved, but the feeling quickly vanished when I thought of what lay beneath his mask.
I took a sip of the tea and was astounded by how good it was.
"Do you like it?"
"Yes, sir. It is very well made."
"You do not have to call me 'sir'. If we are to be married, you should call me by my proper name. My name is Erik."
"Erik," I repeated and looked at him.
"And yours?"
"Randina."
He nodded and went back to sipping his tea.
"Where is your family?" he suddenly demanded, still with a beautiful musicality to his voice.
"My parents are dead," I replied, choosing my words carefully.
"I am sorry. How did it happen?"
"They were saying rebellious lies about the shah. I suppose they deserved their death in a way."
"Why were you spared?"
"For my beauty. For my potential as a harem girl."
"Your parents did not deserve death for voicing their own opinion. The shah or the 'Shadow of God' is not perfect." His voice softened almost to sadness as he said, "Nobody is." He said the words, 'Shadow of God' in a very mocking tone, throwing his arm into the air, and I was immediately shocked by this.
"Aren't you a friend of the shah?" I asked, my courage slowly surfacing.
"So he thinks."
"You could be arrested for this," I exclaimed. "He could kill you!"
"No one can kill me," he replied and glared at me. My fear automatically returned and I became uncomfortable once again.
There was a silence that seemed to last an eternity as we sat there opposite each other drinking tea. Suddenly, he said, "Do you have no other family?"
"I have family in England," I replied sadly. "They used to live in Persia but then left when the new shah came into power. They did not agree with his politics either and left before his control dominated Persia. I would very much like to see them again." I immediately regretted saying this, but he made no sign to strike or punish me. He only looked at me with sadness in his eyes.
"If you stay this one night with me and satisfy my desire, I will help you to go to England and you may live out your days in happiness."
"But I am supposed to be a gift from the shah himself! You cannot discard me and flare his anger. It will mean that I have failed you and you do not want me. If he cannot kill me, he will kill you!" I exclaimed and then lowered my head muttering apologies. I had always been very outspoken even as a child, a quality not very attractive in a woman. I expected him to beat me for my remark, but he only laughed.
"And what have I just said? He will not kill me. I am much too powerful for him to make a mistake like that. You will have to trust me."
I did not trust him. He had given me no reason for trusting him, but as we both drained our tea, he rose and took my cup away from me, beckoning me to follow him. He carefully laid the cups on the small table sitting beside the settee and led me down the hall and into a bedroom.
As we entered, I could see the moon coming through the opened window and casting shadows on the bed. He began running his incredibly long fingers through my hair and I shuttered at his touch. It was very cold and death-like, but before I could pull away he said, "When we make love, I will have to remove my mask. It will become dislodged in the process, so you may keep your eyes closed. I understand."
I kept my eyes closed as I could hear him remove the mask from his face. After he had done this, he gently picked me up and carried me over to the bed. After laying me down, he began to gently kiss my exposed arms and neck with such passion and gentleness that I wondered if tonight would really be as bad as I had thought and if he really was such a horrible person at heart.
Slowly, he removed the top portion of my outfit and threw it carelessly to the floor. I heard him sigh heavily as he began to roam my breasts with his fingertips. I moaned involuntarily and I think we were both surprised at this, for his hesitated for a moment and then continued. When he brought his malformed lips to my chest, I let out a passionate cry and actually brought my hand to rest on the back of his head. I felt him tense, but then relax as I made no move to scream or run away. He took his time exploring this area of my body and my arousal began to climb as he slowly and painstakingly moved down to my stomach. With one quick movement of his hands, I was completely undressed and his lips where slowly kissing one of my legs, all the way to my toes. Leisurely, he spread my legs and began to explore the region with his long skeletal fingers and his moist velvet tongue. I cried out in pleasure as he continued his task and silently wondered how I had ever done without this feeling coursing through my body.
When he had finished this, he gently came to stand beside of me and said, "You may open your eyes now. I have replaced my mask."
I opened my eyes and saw that he had done so. I let out a sigh as he studied my body and then said, "I will not remove my clothes. I know you have no desire to see me, so I will only remove what is necessary."
I nodded as I he unbuttoned his pants and gently laid down beside of me. Slowly and hesitantly, I turned to face him and wrapped my leg around him. He hesitated a bit and then carefully slid himself inside of me. I could tell that he was inexperienced at this, but he was altogether very gentle and calm. It hurt a little as he forcefully pushed inside of me, but it was nothing I couldn't handle. He held onto me as if his life depended on it and I found that I liked being close to him in this way and that I could control my revulsion with his mask.
Suddenly, I felt him burst inside of me and a uncontrollable amount of pleasure swept over me as well. We both cried out and then he held me gently as we both fought to control our breathing. It wasn't for several minutes until I realized that he was crying.
"Thank you," he exclaimed. "Thank you for this. Tomorrow, I shall try and contact your family in England and keep my promise."
He left me then after he had made sure I was comfortable and returned to his own bedroom. The next morning, I awoke to the smell of his cooking. He brought me breakfast a few minutes later and asked for the names of my family in England. I gave him the names and addresses and he said that a letter would be written that afternoon.
"I have bought you clothes to last a few days," he exclaimed as he turned to leave. "I hope they are to your liking."
I was surprised at this and even more surprised to see that they were not clothes fashionable in Persia, but in England. When I questioned him about this, he shrugged his graceful shoulders and said, "I thought it would be a shame to buy you clothes that are in Persian fashion when you will so soon be leaving for England. Oh yes, and that sack is for you as well."
I then noticed the sack laying next to the clothes and opened it to find enough money to last a lifetime and maybe even longer. I gave him a shocked look, but he only shrugged again and left for the kitchen without another word.
Within a week, he came to me as I sat on the veranda outside with a letter in his hand. It was from my family in England.
"I have arranged everything," he said as he handed me the letter. "You are to leave tomorrow evening on a ship that will take you to Italy. From there, you will travel to England by carriage that I have already arranged. I shall accompany you out of Persia and to the dock to ensure your safety. We will leave tomorrow morning."
"How did you do this?" I asked, utterly amazed.
"I have my ways."
He left me then to my thoughts. I knew I had to repay him for his kindness, but I could not think of how until evening fell.
As he made ready for bed, I came to him.
"What is it, Randina?"
"I want to show you my appreciation," I replied and removed my robe. Before he could reply, I tore his mask away and kissed his malformed lips.
Gently, I laid him down on his own bed and began stripping away his clothes. I carefully touched his deformed body with all the love and tenderness I could muster. His face was still very horrific to my eyes, but I could control my horror by only thinking of his immense kindness. When I reached his most sensitive area, I stroked him gently as I heard him cry out in surprise at my boldness. When my lips covered his manhood, I felt him tense and then relax as I continued.
When I felt him nearing his end, I abruptly stopped and straddled his torso, gently sliding myself over him. Tilting my head back and giving him a full view of my body, I seductively ran my hands down my body, giving him even more pleasure. When we both reached our end, I gently laid down on top of him and kissed his face repeatedly. Again, I could hear him crying and felt tears stream down his face. I smiled down at him and it was my turn to say thank you.
"Thank you for arranging my trip to see what is left of my family. I really appreciate everything you have done for me during this past week. One day, you will find a woman who will love you for who you are and will experience the joy of having you for her husband."
He looked up at me in surprise and then answered, "No, I doubt that."
He looked sad for a while but then I asked, "May I stay here with you tonight?"
"If you wish."
I curled up in his arms and we slept peacefully.
The next morning, we made ready to leave. As we left the country of Persia, I looked back with contempt. I hated that country and everything it stood for, but now I knew I would start a better life in England. Erik walked beside of the horse he had placed me on earlier that morning, and I noticed that the horse was not being led, but was following him like a faithful dog.
When we finally reached the port, Erik stopped a long distance from the first crowd of people, helped me dismount and then said, "There is your ship. It will be leaving in two hours. You still have a half an hour walk to the dock. You must understand I cannot be seen. Go now and live a happy life. You have made me happier than I ever hoped to be in my life. Here is enough water in case you get thirsty during your walk."
As he handed me a skin filled with water, I said, "Thank you again for everything you have done for me. You have given me hope of a new life far away from Persia. I hope whatever happens the shah will not persecute you."
"Have no worries about that. Now go and live peacefully in England." Before he turned to leave he said, "Whoever you take as a husband one day will be a very lucky man."
I smiled at this and then watched him as he mounted his horse and rode out of sight eventually back into the Persian desert.
I almost wished that he was coming with me.
Almost.
Well, what did you think? Good? Bad? Don't really care?
