Moonspawn by Bruce McLachlan Read Free Book Online Page A

hiding from more discernible detection, a delicacy even amongst subtle perfumes.
    Set against one wall was a dais, the regal stage accessed by a semi-circle of ten steps. The platform atop them held a large exquisite throne, the dark stone affair crafted to resemble flowing organic forms, twisting and cavorting upon each other as they offered velvet cushions for the comfort of its occupant.
    The woman had not changed in countenance since Kira’s schoolgirl dream, or the previous night. The queen was timeless, without age, save that now she exuded an almost tangible ambience of power; an authority that had not been apparent on the previous occasions Kira had encountered her.
    A warped crown of silver and jet curled across her hairline, holding back her hair and flicking out cruel horns and barbs. It was the imperious throne of a tyrant, a dark empress.
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    Settled on her throne she was sealed within the smooth folds of a rubber outfit. It was a mixture of sleeveless halter neck dress and leotard, the polished skin-tight shell parting at her navel into an ankle length skirt, the missing front section letting a high cut crotch cover her loins.
    Sculpted thigh boots clung to her legs, and matching opera gloves clung to her arms. The fingers were armed with a detailed armoured claw, each silver articulated digit reaching from knuckle to tip before extending forward another three inches as a curved serrated fang of metal.
    It took Kira a moment to notice that other people were present, for the queen was such a vision that Kira’s sight had locked to her immediately and had remained unbroken during her long voyage across the throne room to the foot of the steps.
    At her left crouched a monstrous form, half hidden behind the throne, dwelling in shadow, revealed more by glowing red eyes than anything else. It was a rabid juxtaposition of wolf and man, its monstrous frame equipped with titanic muscles and a pelt of dark fur. The elongated snout held rows of lethal fangs, a studded leather muzzle strapped in place to ensure safety and reveal subservience.
    The clawed hands and feet of the beast were fitted with segmented restraints, a form of manacle that was copied by his spiked collar. A leash reached forward to be slipped over a hook on the arm of the throne, keeping the terrifying pet at the heels of his mistress.
    Further back on the right, two men in attire identical to Kira’s own guards held a flowing cloak of black latex between them, holding it in readiness for their ruler.
    As Kira reached the first step her escort stopped, and 48

    she saw another set of forms to her left, these having been previously hidden by her devotion to the strange and marvellous sights offered at the top of the steps.
    The male was in the middle era of his twenties, his face light and jovial, but it was an amusement offset by eyes that were cold and consuming. A cigarette drooped from his lips, his deep blue hair swept back over his head with several loose tufts hanging over his face.
    Slender of build, he was clad in a dark and extremely expensive looking suit, the cut giving a powerful impression of wealth and the power spawned from it.
    The pinstriped outer layer was radically opposed by an interior lining of sparkling silver, the material available only through the most furtive clues. A silk shirt of equal darkness lay beneath, loose at the collar.
    He could have passed for any mundane idle millionaire save that he held a set of four leashes, each of them connecting to a submissive human hound.
    The women were kept on all fours, a belt about their waists throwing chains from the underside to grab their fetters and shackles, stopping them from rising. Plugs were crammed into their bared rears, the toys flinging up moulded tails that stood erect and waggled with their slight motions. Moulded hoods were drawn over their heads, leaving only an oval area free about their eyes.
    The hoods lifted two triangular points in mockery of ears, and the