Chapter 21 – The Invitation

Eveline’s interview with Giselle would change the direction of her life, but in a way no one could have imagined.

The Information Ministry of the West African Confederation recorded her interview, of course, and an intelligence officer studied the recording to make sure she had not said anything that embassy would have to “clarify”. There was nothing derogatory. In fact, this particular girl was very impressive. The recording moved up the chain of command until it reached the Presidential Palace. Comandante Foxtrot watched the auction presenter and enjoyed the interview. He liked the young American, as much as he was capable of liking anyone.

Comandante Foxtrot was a vicious megalomaniac with grandiose imperial ambitions, but he was also a smart megalomaniac who often made calculated long-term investments that wouldn’t benefit him until several years later. Eveline Rogers was destined to become one of those long-term investments. The Supreme Leader decided to select her for a “mutually beneficial career path”.

———-

Eveline’s boss Nancy Lombardi and her guardian Jamie Strickland received a visit from a messenger of the West African Confederation. The messenger was a naked collared servant traveling in a limo with an armed escort. The messenger first went to Nancy’s penthouse. Then, with Nancy accompanying her, she went to Coach Strickland’s house. She placed an envelope on a silver platter and knelt before offering it to the coach. (The platter really was made from solid silver. In the West African Confederation, having something important handed to you on a silver platter was not just a figure of speech.)

Nancy and Coach Strickland were cordially invited to accompany the servant and her guard to the local airport. They would board a luxury high-speed corporate jet for a direct transatlantic flight to Comandante Foxtrot’s main presidential palace. The teacher and the auctioneer both knew better than to turn down the “cordial invitation”. There would be a second invitation that would be considerably less cordial if they were foolish enough to refuse the first one.

Besides being naked and collared, there was an additional detail about the servant that was very unsettling. She was black, but not African. She was obviously originally from the US, judging by her North American accent and mannerisms. Not only was she from the US, but she spoke with a college-level vocabulary.

As they sped across the Atlantic, the two women were terrified. They barely knew each other and had no idea why they were being transported to Africa together. Their trip was obviously secret. No one knew where they were. They fully understood that they had completely lost control over their fates. However, at least they were traveling under nice conditions and had a selection of fine food offered to them during the flight. They weren’t being treated as prisoners, at least not yet.

When their jet landed at the miliary base just outside the Confederation’s capitol, the servant escorting the two Americans told them they’d have to get undressed and leave their clothes on the plane. That meant everything, including jewelry. Coach Strickland hesitated, but Nancy admonished her:

“We have to do it. We gotta strip down. Women aren’t allowed to wear clothes on any of Comandante Foxtrot’s estates. He says it’s a nationalist thing, a rejection of Western values, and the guards take it seriously.”

“It’s like this everywhere in the WAC?”

“Not yet, but that’s coming, most likely. Probably after their next “election”. Right now it’s just on presidential grounds, military bases, and government compounds. But he’s very strict about it. Women can’t have anything on their bodies if they’re anywhere on presidential or government property.”

After the guests reluctantly parted with their clothes and exited the plane, they were met by a four-member escort of Comandante Foxtrot’s naked elite female presidential guards. Their bodies were completely shaved and they all wore the same short hair-style. Their flawless oiled dark skin shined in the blazing African sun.

In spite of the fact they weren’t wearing a stitch of clothing, the guards’ appearance did nothing to reassure the visitors from the US. They were four of the largest women either of the Americans had ever seen. They were not just tall, they were big and strong; real-life Amazons. Both Nancy and Strickland worked out and were physically fit, but their strength was nothing in comparison with the four guards. Coach Strickland estimated they could easily bench 300 pounds.

The strange futuristic weapons the guards were carrying were just as intimidating as the women themselves. Coach Strickland had never seen such weapons and didn’t understand their significance. Nancy, who as a high-end auctioneer had some knowledge about the international arms market, knew what they were, but had not yet seen one in real-life. She had thought they were still only prototypes that Mega-Town Associates had in development. Apparently not. Here were four of those weapons, fully operational, right in front of her.

The weapons were the latest generation of advanced multi-shot laser launchers which had just recently been developed by Mega-Town, supposedly for the US military. The launchers were the stuff of science fiction, a hand-held multipurpose blaster that could shoot down an airplane, demolish a tank, blast a hole through the hull of a warship, or emit a shock wave that would shatter the arteries of an entire company of enemy soldiers. Or… the laser launchers could be adjusted for more delicate tasks, such as paralyzing captives or torturing prisoners. Amazing what wonderful things humans can invent, now isn’t it?

———-

Before the auctioneer and high school coach could meet with Comandante Foxtrot, they had to be cleaned up and shaved. For Nancy that wasn’t a problem: she had removed her hair by laser surgery earlier in the year. All she had to do was bathe. One of the guards held onto her shoulders to prevent her from moving while she waited for her companion.

Coach Strickland did have a mat of offensive hair that had to be shaved off before she was taken before the Supreme Ruler. The guards produced a large straight-edge razor and ordered her to lie down on a stone bench in the bathing chamber. She spread her legs while one of the guards immobilized her hands.

The most voluptuous of the guards shaved her. The woman was stunning, with large breasts, wide hips, and a nice big bottom. Strickland was attracted to her immediately. And here this incredible beauty was touching her guest’s most secret areas with shaving cream and gentle touches of her fingertips.

The guard could see that the American was turned on and she took full advantage. She gently touched Coach Strickland’s vulva and teased her clit. With her hands held tight, the American was totally helpless. The guard finished shaving. Now that her view of Strickland’s vulva was clear, she could see that her subject was totally wet. She couldn’t resist. In full view of Nancy and several of her co-workers, the guard brought Strickland to orgasm.

Nancy was frightened by what she was seeing. She was not surprised at being forced to go before Comandante Foxtrot in the nude, but the bath chamber situation was not expected. She had not anticipated the guards to take liberties with her and her companion. And… it was very unsettling to see Coach Strickland so helpless and so out-of-control, having one of the best orgasms of her life against her will.

Part of the purpose of bathing guests before taking them before the Supreme Commander was to assess what sexual vulnerabilities they might have. From the beginning it was obvious Nancy did not have any. She was completely straight and was dating one of the executives from her company. Actually, Nancy was largely indifferent about sex. Like everything else in her life, sex was more a business transaction than anything else.

Coach Strickland was totally different. She was a sensuous woman who throughout her life always enjoyed sexual encounters, with both men and women. Unfortunately for her, life was changing. She was about to go through menopause, which reminded her that her time in the realm of the living was rushing by, and that her youth was now past her. Her self-confidence was shaken and she was particularly vulnerable to sexual advances and flattery.

The guards had been under orders to observe any vulnerabilities the two American females might have. The one assigned to Strickland certainly fulfilled that command. The American was as aroused as she possibly could be.

Coach Strickland had a very strange psychological experience in the bath chamber. As much as she thought about it afterwards, she was never able to make sense out of what happened. As strong a person as she might have been in the US, among those big female guards she felt very submissive, especially towards the woman who shaved her and gave her that awesome orgasm. She had developed a romantic crush towards the guard that was just as strong and irrational as the crushes she had in middle school. The woman was half Coach Strickland’s age, but she wanted that young African to take control of her, to seduce her, to totally dominate her.

The guard played along. She invited her guest to sit on her lap. She had noticed the coach staring at her large breasts and quietly encouraged her to touch them. Strickland was enthralled. The guard responded by caressing the inside of Strickland’s thigh and massaging her bottom. Coach Strickland dug herself deeper when the guard let her kiss and caress her ass. The guard was baffled by her guest’s strange behavior, finding it weird that a professional woman in her 40’s would act in such a manner. She didn’t mind the kisses and caresses on her bottom, however. It felt nice. The guard was no longer thinking so much about the orders. She was genuinely curious to see what more the American wanted to do.

The guards’ supervisor abruptly entered the bath and ordered her subordinates to escort the Americans to the Chamber of the Sacred Fire, where the President was waiting for his visitors. Strickland had to jump out and was immediately led away from the guard who was with her in the pool. The abrupt separation left her frustrated and disoriented. Later she would realize the manner in which she was pulled away from her love interest was done on purpose.

She didn’t see that particular guard again.

Strickland was then reunited with Nancy, who had a sour expression on her face.

“Nice going, Coach. That was really smooth.”

“I… why? What’s…”

“You do realize that bath area is full of cameras, right? That whatever you did in there was recorded? From multiple angles, most likely?”

Coach Strickland’s face went white and she felt sick. Nancy continued:

“Just sayin’, I’m guessing you wouldn’t want the school board to know what went on in there?”

Strickland shook her head.

“Yeah. So he’s already got you. You made that too easy.”

The trek through the presidential palace seemed pretty typical for a trek through any ostentatious colonial-era governor’s palace, until they exited the back end of the building, walked along a long dark corridor, and entered a recently-built annex. It was in this annex where the Supreme President had his throne and conducted his rituals. And it was from this annex where he was making his plans for the future of West Africa. Actually. plans for the entire continent, as soon as his military took it over. Comandante Foxtrot certainly thought big. He was a total megalomaniac, but was he insane? Was Julius Caesar? Was Genghis Khan?

When Nancy and Coach Strickland entered the Fire-Chamber, they had to put their hands behind their backs. They were women and Comandante Foxtrot had mandated that any women speaking to any man had to put her hands behind her back before she opened her mouth. The guards shut the doors, leaving the two Americans alone with the nation’s Supreme Leader.

They reluctantly approached Comandante Foxtrot. Coach Strickland followed Nancy’s lead, assuming she’d know how close they needed to get to the leader before stopping. They approached until the dictator rose his hand, indicating not to come any closer. They knew, from having been instructed previously, to keep their hands behind their backs at all times unless instructed otherwise.

Coach Strickland was very stressed about the humiliating posture. Nancy hid her emotions and tried to think of her exposure as a sacrifice necessary to keep Comandante Foxtrot as her biggest customer. She had made a lot of money because of him. If she treated him the way he wanted, she would be earning a lot more from future sales.

Comandante Foxtrot certainly liked to put his treasury’s gold reserves to practical use, instead of just having the metal sit as ingots in the vault of the National Bank. Hmmm… let’s see here. A throne made of the most expensive mahogany and lined with solid gold. A solid gold broach for his cape, a thick gold necklace with lions’ claws, and even a gold belt-buckle for his military trousers. And the piles of gold-plated skulls of executed political opponents added a nice touch.

The fire throughout the room reflected the new religion Comandante Foxtrot intended to introduce to the masses when he felt the time was right. The new faith he had in mind was a revival of the ancient Sun-worship cult of his distant ancestors. There would be plenty of ceremonies and sacrifices to tie the West African Confederation to the remote past, but the Sun-worship cult would also have modifications in doctrine to make it better fit the modern world.

As the new religion spread, the foreign-introduced religions based on “magic men” who put their faith into paper books would be banished. No man can be magic, therefore no man can be worshiped, nor can a book written by mere humans be considered sacred. The only magic in the Cosmos is the energy coming from the Sun. The churches and mosques throughout the Confederation would be closed and torn down, to be replaced by Sun Temples. The religious battles between the various “magic man” sects would end, and the Sun would unify the faithful. After-all, there is only one Sun.

The women stood in uncomfortable silence while the Supreme President studied their faces and bodies. Finally he smiled slightly.

“I desire that we be friends, in this room, so I will grant you a privilege. You may place your arms at your sides. I will not require you to hold your hands behind your backs. It is a concession I rarely grant women, but I will grant it to you. I expect you not to abuse my faith in you.”

The two women put their hands to their sides and struggled to keep them from moving any further. They did not dare cover themselves.

“Now. I have you here together for a single reason, to fulfill a single purpose. You two are so different, and yet what is most important to me is the one detail you have in common. Perhaps you would care to guess what that might be?”

There was an uncomfortable silence. Finally Coach Strickland decided to take the risk:

“Supreme President… I… would it be my student Eveline Rogers?”

“Yes, you are correct, Coach. Your student Eveline Rogers. I brought you here to discuss the future of Eveline Rogers, and more importantly, my plans and wishes for Eveline Rogers. So, let us not waste any more time. I have determined, from what I have seen of her, that Eveline Rogers is a promising young woman. Would you agree with my observation?”

“Yes Supreme President.”

“Excellent, so we are in agreement. Now here is what I expect you to do with our agreement. It would benefit my nation to see Eveline Rogers launch a successful political career. This is how we will accomplish it. You will persuade her to run for city council in the upcoming special election that your town is having next month. My intelligence officers have collected some knowledge about your city, enough to know that the incumbent will be easy to defeat. It will be an easy win. An easy win. Do you understand me?”

Nancy managed to respond with the proper enthusiasm:

“To hear is to obey, Supreme President.”

“What about you, Coach? Why didn’t you answer?”

“Uh… Yes, Supreme President.”

“Yes, what? There is doubt in your voice, Coach, which makes me question your sincerity.”

“I… I will do what I can, Supreme President. I will… I will… try to help Eveline.”

Comandante Foxtrot looked extremely irritated. “Your doubt makes me suspicious of you. You don’t want that. Neither would anyone in your family. I only work with people I can trust. So, you must understand that you’ve been warned. When I speak to you and ask something of you, don’t ever again hesitate when you respond.”

“Yes, Comandante Foxtrot.”

For the first time in her life, Strickland was truly afraid. She went pale and her knees trembled. She hoped the Comandante didn’t notice, but of course, he did.

Comandante Foxtrot seemed to have no further interest in Coach Strickland. He turned to Nancy:

“I have another tasking for you, Nancy Lombardi, which will be of mutual benefit, and perhaps of benefit to an American family; a happy reunion, so to speak.”

The Supreme President clapped his hands and one of the Amazon guards brought in a terrified collared young woman. She immediately assumed the “Nadu” position and the dictator placed his hand on her head in a condescending manner. Like the servant who escorted the women to the Lear Jet, the servant was black, but not African. The guard briefly knelt until the Supreme Leader dismissed her.

“You know I like beautiful women. I like to collect them, enjoy them, and allow those most loyal to me to enjoy them as well. The Cosmos created women for man’s enjoyment, especially for a man of action like myself. That is a divine truth, regardless of what the lies coming from the books of the false ‘magic men’ from Palestine and their paper gods might say. Every week I purchase and bring hundreds of the finest women from the Western Hemisphere to enhance my realm. You know that. And yet, sometimes a woman can be worth so much more than simple enjoyment. This one, for example.”

Comandante Foxtrot explained the girl’s significance. The servant’s name was Denise Jackson, and she was the estranged daughter of the mayor of one of the largest cities in the US. Mayor Jackson was newly-elected to lead a city that just happened to have a museum that had several very famous ancient African and Egyptian artifacts. The girl got caught up in a dispute between her father and some land developers who he had cheated after winning the election. One of the developers had Denise kidnaped and collared for a delinquent college loan. She was sold at a private auction to a broker who purchased young women for several wealthy political or corporate despots, including the Supreme Leader of the West African Confederation.

Along with hundreds of other newly collared women, Denise boarded a jumbo jet to make the journey to West Africa. Upon getting off the plane, each woman’s fate would be determined by the dictator’s servant-handlers, who were responsible for deciding which estate to send her to. The handlers also examined each woman’s biography and identified special skills or circumstances to separate any who had any personal circumstances that made them stand out.

The handlers knew they had a very high-value captive when they discovered there was a US mayor’s daughter among the newest plane-load of servants. Not just any mayor’s daughter, but the mayor of a city with a famous museum full of ancient goodies the Supreme Leader coveted…

“So now you know the story of Denise Jackson. You will escort her to her father’s house and you will see to it that she safely enters the residence. Then you will explain that just because his daughter Denise has returned to his house, she is not released from her obligation to me. Even though she has returned home, she remains my servant and will act as my servant, even in her father’s house. She is not to get dressed or do anything else that one of my servants is not allowed to do. There is a camera and a recorder in the girl’s collar to make sure she complies with her obligations.”

Comandante Foxtrot continued massaging the kneeling servant’s head.

“I will not release ownership of Denise until her father agrees to work with me and ensure the success of a project that is of great interest to me. If he performs to my satisfaction, I will deliver the controller and ownership certificate to Mayor Jackson, and he can do with his daughter as he sees fit. If he fails me, then I will simply reclaim what is mine, return Denise Jackson to the WAC, and he will never see her again. I will ensure he has other regrets as well. Do you understand me, Nancy Lombardi?”

“Yes, Comandante Foxtrot. I understand.”

“Excellent. You have a good way of explaining things. I’m sure Mayor Jackson will be reasonable.”

“Yes, Comandante Foxtrot.”

“And when those items go up for auction, make sure Eveline Rogers is the presenter. I’d like to see her perform again.”

“To hear is to obey, Comandante Foxtrot.”

A few minutes later, Nancy, Coach Strickland, and Denise boarded the Lear Jet. The servant who had accompanied them earlier was waiting to escort them back to the US. To their huge relief, Nancy and Strickland were allowed to get dressed as soon as they boarded the plane. Denise had to remain naked.

Upon returning to the US, Nancy wanted to deliver Denise as quickly as possible and get rid of her. The Lear Jet first stopped in the women’s home town so Coach Strickland could get out. Then Nancy instructed the pilot to fly to the airport closest to Mayor Jackson’s residence. An unmarked SUV was waiting to take them to the mayor’s residence.

The Jacksons’ youngest daughter let them into the living room. Denise immediately went to her knees, while the little brat beamed with sadistic pleasure and fingered her older sister’s collar.

The Mayor came downstairs. His first reaction was to be infuriated at Nancy. How dare she…

“Mayor Jackson, I’m just a messenger. I’m tasked to safely deliver your daughter. I am also delivering a letter. Your family is in a lot of trouble, a lot more than you can possibly imagine. This letter will tell you how you can get out of it. Right now, you are in a very bad situation.”

“Hey… I know you. You’re that auctioneer…”

“That is correct, Mayor. And there is a specific reason I am the one who is delivering your daughter, which you’ll understand when you open the letter. Just follow the instructions, don’t tell anyone why, and you’ll be fine. And another thing. Don’t expect to be able to talk to Denise. If she uses her voice, she’ll get a severe zap.”

“You… you fucking Foxtrot bitch, I’m gonna…

“I am Comandante Foxtrot’s messenger, not his bitch, Mayor Jackson. And I wouldn’t ever use that type of language or make threats again if I were you. That collar is recording everything going on in here, and it just recorded that remark. Don’t think it’ll go unnoticed.”

There was a long, uncomfortable silence. The Mayor was trying to think of a come-back that would give him the upper hand, but his mind had gone blank.

“At a loss for words, Mayor Jackson? That’s OK, because talking won’t do you any good. Your future’s detailed in the letter. What you need to do, how to get the collar off your daughter, how to avoid unpleasantness. It’s all there. So don’t worry.”

Nancy briefly glanced at Denise and her sister. Tears were rolling down the older girl’s cheeks. The brat had just whispered a disparaging remark in her ear. She couldn’t answer. The instant the collar detected sound from her vocal cords, she’d get a horrible zap. Oh yes, little sis was certainly going to be enjoying herself until that collar came off.

Nancy left the residence without saying anything more. As she entered the SUV to return to the airport, she thought: Wow, I just humiliated one of the nation’s fastest-rising political stars.

A few minutes later she was in Comandante Foxtrot’s jet, staring out the window as she rose through the clouds and flew home.

I really am turning into a cold-hearted bitch. Oh well, too bad. Seems that’s the only way you can make any money nowadays. It wasn’t what I wanted to be, but I didn’t make this world. I just have to live in it.

———-

Within a few weeks of Nancy’s visit to Mayor Jackson’s house, the directors of another large urban museum decided it was time to part with its most valuable antiquities to raise some much-needed operating money. Interesting… if the administration needed money so badly, wouldn’t have made sense to advertise the auction months in advance to get the highest possible bid? Why just a three-day public notice?

The objects included in the latest auction included the most valuable item Eveline had seen to date. It was a 4000-year old golden scarab mounted on a solid jade circle. The base was the largest single piece of carved jade in existence and had been imported from ancient China to Egypt. The scarab was made from solid gold and weighed more than 50 pounds. The artifact was worshiped as a deity for its entire existence and, like the Niger Heart-Pot, was buried by cultists in the 1800s to prevent French colonialists from capturing it.

The scarab-deity sold for $ 28 million dollars, but that was only a fraction of what it was worth. Probably $ 600 million would have been a more appropriate price given its fame, age, and the materials that went into creating it. The problem was there was only one buyer who had the capital on hand to make the purchase. And… who could that savvy buyer have been?

There were other items as well, including a jade cat statue that was the companion of the cat the African leader had purchased several months earlier. Now that Comandante Foxtrot had both jade cats in his collection, they were worth much more when put together than they had been when they were separated.

Knowing who the buyer was, Eveline was more playful and flirtatious than she normally would have been. He threw in a couple of extra million dollars to his bids to reward her for acknowledging him. In spite of the fact the purchases were a total rip-off against a famous US museum, she was going to get a nice amount of money from the auction, as was her mentor Nancy.

Commentators often speculated why Comandante Foxtrot chose auctions as the means to obtain pieces for his imperial collection. It was a complicated process, having to bribe or blackmail officials, making sure the auctions happened suddenly so he would not be out-bid, dealing with the public controversy… why? Why bother? Wouldn’t buying antiquities in secret, or even simply having them stolen by professional art thieves be quicker and cheaper?

There were several reasons Comandante Foxtrot was so patient and conducted his business the way he did. The main reason was he wanted to make sure his acquisitions were totally legal and could not be fought in international court. The WAC had a team of lawyers ready to make sure the paperwork for each acquisition was in proper order and that he could openly transport his purchases out of the US or Europe. Also, the Supreme Leader wanted to publicly display his power over the hapless curators and western art lovers. They were losing their beloved collection items to one of the world’s richest and most powerful men, and no one could do anything about it. Museum owners now realized that, if there was something in their collections Comandante Foxtrot wanted, sooner or later he’d get it.

The auction of the scarab-deity was yet another art-scandal that would have Eveline as its face. She was becoming a celebrity, even though in reality she was mere a bystander in the dictator’s schemes.