The Queen and Her Anchor in the Glass Tower

Arken Palace, planet Nereid.

Only a few days had passed since Vera had stopped being a brilliant executive in some ordinary city and become the most watched woman on an entire world. The crown weighed on her head, the mantle dragged her shoulders down, and every formal greeting reminded her that she was holding on to a power that did not feel like hers. Before the councilors, she kept her back straight. Alone, she breathed as though there were never enough air.

The worst part was not the protocol or the political threat. The worst part had a name: Kaia.

The true heir had returned from the dead because of a desperate ritual, and she had come back changed. Stronger. More unstable. More distant. Sometimes Kaia’s empty looks frightened Vera more than her outbursts of rage, because in them there was no trace left of the woman Vera had loved until she broke.

The door to the private salon opened without warning. Mara entered at a quick pace, her dark uniform rumpled and a tired smile failing to conceal the disaster of her night.

—Don’t ask how I got the information —she said, dropping into the seat opposite Vera—. I’ll only say that I had to fuck a mercenary captain with an overly talented tongue and zero sense of when to rest.

Vera let out a brief, dry laugh, almost disbelieving.

—And was it at least worth it?

—If by “worth it” you mean she left me trembling, empty, and weak-kneed before she started talking, yes. If you mean whether I like what she told me, not so much.

Mara rested her elbows on her knees and lowered her voice. She spoke of an ancient order, cycles of balance, an energy that could not resurrect without demanding something in return. Vera listened to every word, feeling a knot grow tighter and tighter in her stomach. When Mara finished, the silence became thick.

—So we didn’t simply bring her back —Vera murmured—. We tore her away from a place she already belonged to.

—Maybe. But we also know something else —Mara replied—. Memories never disappear completely. Sometimes they remain bound to a body by specific stimuli. Touch. Voice. Scent. Pain. Pleasure.

Vera slowly raised her head.

—Pleasure?

—Don’t look at me like that. I’m not talking about carnival magic. I’m talking about real anchors. The body remembers before the mind does. If anyone can bring her back, it’s you.

Vera immediately shook her head, too quickly, as though the idea burned.

—No.

—Yes.

—She’s out of control, Mara. Last night she nearly broke a guard’s arm for touching her door. If I try to get close and it goes wrong...

—If you do nothing, you’re already losing her.

The sentence landed exactly where it hurt most. Vera closed her eyes for a moment. She had spent the last few nights pretending to be authoritative before an entire planet, but all she really wanted was to see Kaia look at her again as she had before. Not with rage. Not with emptiness. With hunger. With tenderness. With that brutal mixture that left her breathless.

—There’s something else —Mara said more softly—. Before she died, Kaia chose you. Not out of duty. Not because of the crown. Because of what you make her feel. If there’s a way back, her body will recognize it with you.

Vera swallowed. She knew she was entering dangerous territory. Because Mara was not referring merely to an intimate conversation or a caress on the face. They both knew what kind of memories she shared with Kaia. What kind of things awakened in her even on her worst days.

—I don’t know if I could bear touching her and discovering there’s nothing left —she admitted.

—It’s worse to keep waiting for her to disappear completely.

***

The glass tower where they kept Kaia was not a cell, but it had the same taste. High translucent walls, cold light filtering down from above, and two guards stationed at the door, tension visible in their jaws. Vera ordered them to withdraw. Neither wanted to do so until they heard it a second time.

—If I shout, come in —one of them clarified.

—If I shout, don’t come in —Vera corrected.

The two exchanged an uneasy glance and obeyed.

When the door closed, the silence belonged entirely to the two of them.

Kaia stood beside the curved window, wearing a dark robe open at the neck, her hair loose over her back. She wore no emblems, no cloak, nothing that recalled the woman who had ruled before. Only her impossible body and that cutting presence that seemed to fill the entire room.

—You came alone —she said without turning.

—Yes.

—That means you’re either brave or desperate.

—Probably both.

Kaia finally turned. Her eyes moved slowly over Vera, with no respect for the crown or the rank. Vera felt that examination like a physical hand sliding over her neck, her breasts, her waist tightened by the dress. The air between them changed at once.

—You smell the same —Kaia murmured, taking a step closer—. It irritates me.

—Because you remember it, or because you like it?

A half smile appeared on Kaia’s mouth. Barely a curve. Enough to make Vera’s chest ache.

—Don’t play with me.

—I didn’t come to play.

Kaia stopped a short distance away. The difference in height was minimal, but the sense of threat was not. Vera could hear her own breathing. She could see Kaia’s throat move as she swallowed. She could sense the restrained trembling in her hands, as though her whole body were fighting a violent impulse.

—Then tell me why you came.

Vera had rehearsed entire speeches. None survived that look.

—I came to find you.

Kaia laughed without joy.

—You’re late. That woman died.

—I don’t believe that.

—Because you’re stubborn.

—Because I know you.

—You don’t know me.

—I know what you sound like before you come. I know how you clench your jaw when you’re jealous. I know you like me to bite your lip when you’re on top of me. I know you looked at me as if you were going to devour me every time I lied in public, and then came to collect in private. Don’t tell me I don’t know you.

The blow was visible. Not in any grand gesture, but in a small blink, in the way Kaia’s fingers clenched hard.

—Shut up.

—No.

—I told you to shut up.

—Make me shut up, then.

Kaia grabbed her by the arm and slammed her against the translucent wall with brutal speed. Vera exhaled sharply, not from pain but from the shock of feeling that firm body pressed against hers. Kaia’s hand encircled her wrist with obscene strength. One clumsy movement would be enough to break it. And yet the pressure eased at the last second, as though some buried part of her still knew how to measure the damage.

Vera lifted her chin.

—There you are.

—Don’t provoke me —Kaia growled, so close that her breath brushed Vera’s mouth.

—I’ve been provoking you since you saw me come in.

Kaia squeezed harder. Then less. Her eyes dropped to Vera’s lips with a furious, almost savage hunger.

—I don’t know what you want from me.

—I want your memory. I want your rage. I want you to stop looking at me like a stranger. And if I have to spread your legs and make your body remember what it feels like with me to achieve it, I will.

The silence after that sentence was so dense it almost seemed solid.

Kaia stared at her, as if weighing whether it was a trap or a prayer. Then she kissed her.

It was a brutal kiss. Open mouths, teeth colliding, tongue thrusting in without permission. Nothing gentle, nothing measured. Vera moaned into that assault of a mouth and returned the kiss with the same old need, swallowing the bitter taste Kaia carried. Kaia’s hands dropped to her waist and pulled her in violently. Vera felt the other woman’s thigh slide between her legs and rubbed against it without thinking, wrenching a moan from herself that they both heard far too clearly.

—You remember that much —Vera whispered breathlessly.

—I remember that you drive me desperate.

—And yet you kiss me like an addict.

Kaia bit her lower lip until she moaned. Then she let her go just enough to look at her, pupils wide.

—If you keep talking, I’m going to fuck you against this wall until you can’t hold up the crown.

Heat shot straight to Vera’s cunt. She smiled defiantly.

—Do it.

Kaia yanked a hand beneath the ceremonial skirt. The contrast between the roughness of the gesture and the slight tremor in her fingers made Vera spread her legs instantly. She wore thin underwear, absurd for a crisis meeting and perfect for this madness. Kaia felt her through it for a second, registering the wetness that had already soaked her.

—Look at you —she murmured—. You came to rescue me and you’re dripping.

—Because it’s you.

—Or because danger turns you on.

—Both.

Kaia moved the fabric aside and ran two fingers along her wet slit, slowly at first, then with firm pressure on her clitoris. Vera arched her back and let out a hoarse moan. It had been far too long since anyone had touched her like that. Far too long spent burying desire beneath fear.

—Tell me what you remember —Vera asked, her voice breaking.

—I remember this —Kaia replied, thrusting one finger into her.

Vera clung to her shoulders. She was wet, hot, far too receptive. Kaia slid in and out with a short rhythm, exploring her reaction. Then she added a second finger and opened her from within without tenderness. Vera moaned louder, making no attempt to silence herself, moving her hips to seek more friction.

—That. That’s how you used to get with me —Kaia said, looking closely at her—. Hungry. Impatient.

—Because you know how to touch me, fuck.

Kaia sucked at her neck while continuing to fuck her with her fingers. The wet tongue, the teeth, the pressure of the hand working inside her. Everything fit with an almost cruel familiarity. Vera noticed that Kaia’s body was reacting too: faster breathing, hips seeking friction, nipples showing beneath the fabric of her robe.

—Take it off —Vera ordered, tugging at the garment’s neckline.

—Did the crown make you bossy?

—No. You always made me this way.

Kaia smiled sideways and obeyed. She pulled the robe over her head and let it fall. Beneath it she wore nothing but a tight band across her breasts and black panties clinging to her hips. It was enough. More than enough. Vera stared at her for a moment, swallowing her desire.

—I know you —she repeated.

Kaia answered by thrusting her fingers inside her again, harder, ripping a sharp moan from her.

—Then prove it.

Vera dropped to her knees before her.

The change in height made Kaia’s expression harden, surprised for an instant. Vera took advantage of the crack. She seized Kaia’s hips and kissed the damp fabric between her legs. Kaia let out a dry snort, almost a swallowed insult. Vera repeated the kiss, then ran her tongue over the dampness through the panties.

—Shit... —Kaia murmured.

Vera looked up at her while pulling the garment down. Kaia barely raised her hips, as though her body had chosen before her mind. Once she was naked from the waist down, Vera found herself faced with that already swollen, shining cunt, barely open with arousal. She needed no further sign.

Her first lick was long, from bottom to top, her tongue spread flat. Kaia braced one hand against the wall and put the other in Vera’s hair. She did not force her or guide her; she simply gripped her with obvious tension. Vera spread her open wider with her fingers and slid her tongue between the folds, savoring her slowly, recognizing her taste like someone recovering a lost language.

—Fuck, Vera...

There it was. Her name spoken that way. Not as a queen or an intruder. As a woman kneeling between her legs.

Vera sucked on her clitoris and circled it with the tip of her tongue. Kaia gave her hair a small tug, involuntary or not. Vera persisted, alternating short sucks with deep licks. Then she inserted two fingers and began fucking her with her hand while continuing to eat her. Kaia no longer pretended to be in control; her thighs trembled, her hips moved to seek Vera’s mouth, and her breathing broke into low moans.

—That... yes... don’t stop.

Vera obeyed. She increased the rhythm of her fingers, curling them inside her, and pressed her clitoris with her tongue exactly as she knew Kaia liked. Kaia let her head fall back and released a louder moan, a sound filled with rage and pleasure. When the orgasm reached her, she gripped Vera’s hair hard and came trembling, contracting around Vera’s fingers.

Vera did not pull away until she had wrung every spasm from her. Then she stood slowly, her mouth wet and her heart racing. Kaia looked at her as though she had just awakened inside a nightmare that was also desire.

—Remember something else —Vera whispered—. Remember who I am when I make you come.

Kaia seized her by the nape and kissed her with renewed fury. The taste of her own body on Vera’s mouth seemed to push her closer to something recognizable. She moaned differently. Touched differently. Even the way she breathed against Vera’s cheek now had that familiar pattern from when she was about to lose control completely.

—I remember you in my bed —Kaia said between kisses—. Naked. Complaining. Demanding more.

Vera almost cried when she heard it, but instead she smiled.

—Then follow it.

Kaia took her to a low platform beside the window and dropped her onto it. She hiked the skirt to Vera’s waist, pushed aside the soaked underwear, and knelt between her legs. The sight of that powerful woman on her knees for her, staring at her open, wet cunt, shook Vera’s whole body.

—Don’t look at me like that —Kaia said, her voice deep.

—Like what?

—Like you’re going to worship me.

—Maybe I am.

Kaia silenced her by thrusting her tongue in all at once. Vera fell backward with a muffled moan. Kaia ate cunt with genuine hunger, without delicate technique, her face buried between Vera’s legs and her mouth working hard. Her tongue struck the clitoris, dipped down, came back up, while one hand spread Vera wider and the other held her thigh so she could not escape the pleasure.

—Shit... Kaia... yes...

Kaia growled against her sex when she heard her name, and the vibration went straight to Vera’s center, forcing her to writhe. Then she inserted two fingers and penetrated her with a firm, wet, obscene rhythm. Vera spread her legs wider without shame, letting herself be used by Kaia’s mouth and hand until she was trembling.

—Tell me who I am —Kaia ordered without completely pulling away.

—You’re you.

—That’s not enough.

She sucked hard on Vera’s clitoris, and Vera let out a broken cry.

—You’re Kaia. My Kaia. The woman who fucks my mouth when I argue with her. The one who makes me come and then starts again. The one who looks at me as if she wants to split me in two and keep everything for herself.

Kaia made a low, almost animal sound and buried herself between Vera’s legs again. Vera was already on the edge. She felt it in the shudders of her belly, in the uncontrolled wetness, in the way her entire body begged to surrender. When Kaia curled her fingers and lightly bit her clitoris, the orgasm swept through her completely. She came moaning Kaia’s name, her hips trembling and one hand clutching Kaia’s dark hair.

Kaia continued licking slowly while Vera came down from the climax, until she left her limp, open, and sensitive. Then she rose. Her mouth shone and her eyes burned.

—It still isn’t enough —she said.

Vera drew a deep breath, only half recovering.

—Then fuck me.

Kaia did not hesitate. She reached into a compartment in the belt left on the platform and took out a narrow strap with a simple, functional dark dildo. Vera’s eyes widened.

—So you do remember your habits.

—I remember that you like feeling me this way —Kaia replied, fastening it around her hips—. I remember how crazy you get when I put it in slowly and make you beg.

Vera’s cunt responded immediately, clenching around nothing. She removed her underwear completely and let it fall to the floor. Then she reclined on the platform, propping herself on her elbows to look at Kaia. There was no shame, only hunger and a desperate hope beating beneath it.

Kaia ran the wet tip of the toy over her entrance. Vera moaned before feeling the full penetration.

—Look at you —Kaia said—. You’re already asking for it with your face.

—Because you talk too much.

Kaia entered with one thrust. Vera screamed. She filled her to the hilt, pushing with the mixture of roughness and precision that had made Vera addicted to her long before the throne. Kaia waited barely a second and then began to move. Slowly at first. Each partial withdrawal followed by a deep thrust. Letting the toy brush exactly where it unraveled her most.

—That... fuck... yes... —Vera stammered.

—No. Say it properly.

—Fuck me.

Kaia immediately sped up. The platform creaked with every thrust. Vera spread her legs wider, offering herself completely, feeling pleasure rise again with brutal force, mixed with the dull pounding of the toy inside her soaked cunt. Kaia watched her from above, hair stuck to her neck, chest rising and falling quickly, control escaping through her tense jaw.

—Do you remember now? —Vera panted.

—I remember your cunt squeezing like this when you’re about to come.

She slipped two fingers into Vera’s mouth without warning. Vera sucked them on instinct alone, keeping her gaze fixed on Kaia. Kaia swore and began thrusting harder. She pulled almost all the way out and drove back in to the hilt, wetting her with noise, impact, breath, and need.

—Yes, like that, swallow them —she growled—. You always liked obeying when you were properly turned on.

Vera sucked harder, then released the fingers to answer between breaths.

—I only obey you.

The words struck her full force. Kaia closed her eyes for an instant, and when she opened them there was something different there, something warmer amid the fury. She leaned over Vera, lifted one leg onto her shoulder, and fucked her at an even deeper angle. Vera felt the orgasm building again, fierce and close.

—Kaia... I’m going to come...

—Do it.

—Touch me.

Kaia brought her hand to Vera’s clitoris and rubbed it in firm circles synchronized with her thrusts. The effect was immediate. Vera lost her breath, her voice, and any attempt at dignity. She came with an open cry, squeezing around the toy as her body shook uncontrollably. Kaia kept fucking her through the orgasm, slowing at the end as though she needed to feel every contraction.

Then she stopped. Kaia’s forehead fell against Vera’s. They were both panting.

—I remember you —Kaia whispered, barely audible.

Vera went still.

—What did you say?

Kaia squeezed her eyes shut. A tear escaped at her temple.

—I remember you on the balcony the night of the storm. I remember your fear when you saw me die. I remember being an idiot for leaving you alone with all of this. I remember... that I love you.

Vera let out a broken sound, half laughter and half sob. She caressed Kaia’s face with trembling hands.

—Fuck... finally.

Kaia kissed her then in a different way. No longer like a predator testing territory, but like the woman finding her way home again through Vera’s mouth. Vera wrapped her arms around her back and pulled her closer, her body still sensitive, still feeling the echo of the thrusts inside her.

—I’m not whole —Kaia admitted against her lips—. There are broken things. Dark places. Voids.

—I don’t care. We’ll fill them together.

Kaia smiled sadly.

—You still sound like a queen.

—And you still sound like the woman who fucks me so we’ll argue less.

That drew a real laugh from her. The first one.

Kaia slowly slipped out of the harness, set it aside, and settled between Vera’s legs again, this time without haste. She stroked her thigh, her belly, her breasts over the disheveled dress, as if rediscovering a familiar map. Vera let her, enjoying that filthy tenderness after sex, that calm laden with heat and fluids and mingled breaths.

—Stay with me tonight —Vera asked.

Kaia rested her forehead on Vera’s shoulder.

—If I stay, I’m not going to sleep.

—Even better.

—You’re going to walk funny tomorrow.

—I’ve been walking funny ever since I lost you.

Kaia lifted her head and looked at her with naked intensity, without barriers. Then she kissed Vera’s neck and smiled against her skin.

—Then I’ll have to make it up to you. Slowly. Several times. Until your body remembers nothing but my hands.

Vera felt another lash of desire despite her exhaustion.

—That sounds less like a threat and more like a promise.

—It’s both.

When the guards finally heard the order to open, much later, they found the queen with her hair disheveled, her crown absent, and her mouth swollen from kisses. Beside her, Kaia no longer looked like a shadow locked away, but like a living, dangerous, conscious woman. Not completely safe, not completely healed, but back.

And Vera knew, as she rose with her legs still trembling and her sensitive cunt throbbing beneath her skirt, that she had recovered something more than an ally or a lover. She had recovered her anchor. Even if the price had been entering a tower alone and letting the whole world depend, for an hour, on a woman capable of remembering love through sex.