As soon as Richard laid his feet upon the golden floor he started to shrink. For a moment he was afraid that he would disappear but the shrinking ended when he had reached his normal size.

The temple of the Sun Emperor was truly a splendid sight. Everything was made from gold or marble and there was no equal in any European courts to this splendor. Walking on this golden floor felt wrong since it was way too precious to be stepped on but Richard had no other choice than to walk on it.

He walked for a minute or two in a golden tunnel when he reached a golden curtain. What was behind of that curtain? Richard held his breath and listened if he would hear sounds or voices.

Then he heard a soft female voice saying:

- Richard.

He stepped away from the curtain that voice was somehow familiar to him, where he had heard it?

- Richard, come to me, the voice asked with honeyed tone.

Richard approached the curtain and with a single movement he pulled it away.

He had ended up to a large chamber which was lushly decorated with fine Persian carpets, velvet pillows and beautiful tapestries. The chamber was crowded with women who all had the seductive appearance of Jane Shore. When Richard had pulled the curtain away all of the women looked at him and plain lust was shining from their eyes. They were all dressed in simple white underskirt which didn't cover much of their womanly charms.

Richard had never liked about Jane Shore and he had always wondered why all the men did fall for her but now he knew the reason. How he would get pass by them?

Then on the other side of this harem like chamber was a staircase of marble which seemed to lead to the throne room of the Emperor. He needed to get to those stairs.

- Let me pass, he said bluntly and started to walk through the chamber.

The women did let him go through but the way across the chamber was long.

It was awful torture to him to walk pass all those women of golden hair and big blue eyes.

Seductive scent of musk floated heavily in the air and it made him dizzy.

He felt how he was softly touched by all those gentle alabaster arms, the chamber started to spin around him and he wasn't sure anymore where he was going.

Was he going strait to the stairs or to a bed of Jane Shore?

Richard wasn't sure any more about his direction, his eyes were blurred by this intensive seduction which was tormenting his heart. To be so openly desired was completely new experience to him, of course he had had his fair chare of adoration but it had always been easy to him to turn his gaze away but now it was impossible. No matter where he laid his eyes upon there was the beautiful face of Jane Shore's.

Now he was surrounded and his legs refused to move. He was captured by tender touches and soft voices which all told him to lie down and enjoy.

Even pure pain would have been more endurable comparing to this tenderness which was so hard to resist.

Through his mind's eye he was able to see what he or those women really wanted.

He wasn't sure if those visions were his own but they were far too close to the desires of his captors.

He saw himself making love with all those women who yearned for his attention.

He was being separated from his clothing although he begged them to stop.

They poured wine onto his skin and then they all liked it away. They made him moan in ecstasy when they flirted at him, arousing him. The desire burned his skin like Hellfire and for moment he was sure that he had lowered himself into Hell.

Richard had thought that he could have had the power to resist but his heart had betrayed him. It was as easily to be bribed as any the officials of his who were ready to turn their coats as soon as they got the opportunity.

He cursed his manly weakness of lust which was now destroying him. He needed to get out but he was being held tightly by those loving arms.

He was not like Ned who had never missed a chance to get himself new bedmate whenever he had wanted.

Jane had been Ned's personal favorite and when he had died Richard had made her to pay for her crimes.

Remembering this made the women to pull back from him.

They also seemed to have remembered the public humiliation which Richard had laid upon of them.

The agonizing memory twisted their pretty faces and they released Richard from their grip.

Burning tears were running down on their cheeks and their soft voices turned harsh with sorrow.

- Why didn't you love us, they kept on asking.

Richard was about to reply but then all the women vanished into thin air.

Had he killed them, no this was just an illusion, a trick of his sick mind.

He had never harmed a woman, not even the killer of his father and brother Edmund although he had wished a bad ending to Margaret of Anjou.

Shore had needed to have a lesson from her sins but seeing her tears had made him to be disadvantaged. Richard hated to see a crying woman, it always made him to grow soft when he needed to be strong. He had no desire to harm any woman, he had seen the suffering on his mother's face when the Lancastrian soldiers had raped her when his father had abandoned them.

Where his strong father had been when he had needed him most?

Richard made a deep sigh and got onto his feet once again.

There was no time for lose, he was late already.

The way to the stairs was now clear and there was no one to stop him anymore.

Richard climbed the stairs one at the time and soon he reached the top.

He was now in a great throne room of the Sun Emperor which was the largest room he had ever seen.

Dark space and bright stars lingered on the other side of this Greek styled temple and at the very end of the room sat the Emperor himself.

- Who goes there, asked the Emperor and Richard recognized his voice.

That was Ned who was sitting on the Emperor's seat.

He was dressed in golden toga and a golden corona lay upon his dark hair.

- It's me Ned, Dickon, Richard said and stepped closer to his brother.

He felt himself awfully tiny comparing to his gigantic brother. He had always been under him in every sense which had sometimes bothered him greatly.

- Oh, my brother what are you doing in here?

- I came to ask help from you.

- What do you need?

- They said that you could help me out from this place.

- Who said so?

- Edmund.

- Why do you want to leave from here? This place is wondrous and you could be or do anything you want.

- No Ned, this is not my place to be I want to get back to the reality.

- Very well then if you insist. It's your funeral.

- Thank you my good lord.