The ring, part 5

This part is a bit different compared to what you're used to in my stories. I hope you guys appreciate the shift in narrative

[part 5]

[Southern Europe, a couple of thousand years ago]

The girls were horrified. They knew that they were all eligible to be chosen after coming of age, but but they had all hoped that they wouldn't be chosen. Calista had known an older  girl from the house next to hers who had been selected eleven years earlier, and she'd never came back home. She remembered that day so vividly. The poor girl was trying not to show her fear, but it was apparent that the honor of being one of the chosen wouldn't surpass the terror of the unknown.  Her family was apparently glad that the girl had served her purpose for the greater scale of events, but Calista was terrified by the fact that her friend had never returned to the village. True, it was an honor to be among the few ones, but she couldn't help but wonder what would happen to the girls that disappeared every year from the biggest provinces in her country. Too bad she was about to find out. As the coach kept marching, she gave a good look at the girl who directed the horses. First of all, she was beautiful, like every other girl in the back of the carriage. But the weird aspect of it all was that she didn't look much older than herself. From her perspective, she couldn't see much, but it was enough to conclude that she was the same woman that had collected her friend from the village more than ten years ago. So how could she look like she hadn't aged a single day? Calista kept looking at her, but she realized that she would probably never know. They had stopped in a couple more villages, where the most beautiful young girls had been exposed for the coach driver to select. After carefully inspecting them, she had gently guided them to the back of her carriage, where there were now 5 afraid young girls, marching towards the unknown.

The chariot had finally stopped inside a large valley, which was surrounded by nothing but rocks. At the exact center, a temple emerged, not too different from the one in Calista's village which was dedicated to the Goddess of Wisdom. This wasn't a stop like the others. This looked like their final destination. Her suspitions were confirmed when the driver halted the carriage, and walked to the locked door. "You may come down now" she said to the girls. Calista was the first to comply. She sensed that nothing good would come by disobeying.

When the girls were all down on the ground, the beautiful girl who had taken them there escorted them to the temple where a feminine figure was waiting for them. They could all tell that there was something different about this woman. It wasn't just about her beautiful, long and colorful dress, or the fact that her body was adorned in gold and gems. No, this wasn't the usual noblewoman they were so used to. Somehow, she had a godly look about her. And the only one who realized why that feeling was so correct was Calista. The light was dimmer now that the night was closing in, but she couldn't be mistaken. It had taken her a few seconds to put two and two together, but once it hit her, she knew she was right. The woman was the exact copy of the gigantic statue that towered in the main hall of the temple in her village. She was absolutely sure about it because she had spent so much time of her young life, fascinated by the sheer size of the statue. While her friends played around, she would spend hours down its sculpted feet, fantasizing what would it feel to be in front of an actual person who was that big. And even now that the very subject depicted on the statue was in front of her, not much taller than her own figure, she experienced a throwback to her childhood, and felt like a speck in front of the woman's sandaled feet. "Welcome to your new life" the older woman said in a ceremonious tone.

[Present day]

What she thought would be the end of her predicament turned out to be much longer than she had hoped. She spent at least ten minutes with her whole body compressed under the woman's bare foot, licking every wrinkle of her skin, and despite the fact that she was getting used to the horrid taste (not that she was enjoying it in any way), she could not say that the feeling of humiliation had decreased in any way. The only new emotion that was taking place inside of her was a dreaded sense of hopelessness. Would she ever go out of that house alive? Relief eventually came. She felt the immense mass that oppressed her chest getting away from her, and could finally breathe in fully. While the taste of sweat wasn't going anywhere, at least she was free to catch her breath for a few seconds. It didn't last long. She heard the massive foot that had crushed her body up to that moment land on the ground close to her, and as soon as the woman had shifted her weight, she saw her lifting her other appendage. "Please no" she muttered, but the foot was literally unstoppable. It landed on her delicately enough not to cause any harm, but she was firmly pinned on the ground. She knew what her gigantic neighbor wanted, so she wasted no time, which would only drag this further. She stuck her tongue out, and resumed the activity that she was supposed to enjoy so much. 

Was ms G really that blind to her torment? How could she actually believe that she liked being treated like that? While her tongue collected yet another droplet of sweat, she prayed to herself that she would let her free eventually.

Minutes passed. The only thing that changed was the spot that ms G allowed her to reach with her mouth. She was making sure that she wouldn't lick the same place for more than 20 seconds. It was almost like she was making her clean the bottom of her feet using nothing but her tongue. Actually doing so would have required her at least a whole day, but it seemed like she was letting her try her best. The only reason why her tongue hadn't run dry yet was that the sweat was lubricating her mouth. The thought was disgusting beyond belief, but she was glad that she didn't have to add a bleeding tongue to her list of worries.

Without any warning, ms G suddently relieved the pressure on the poor girl's body. "I think that's enough for today" She said, as she looked at the battered teen laying at her feet straight in her eyes. "I hope you're satisfied" she added as she gently nudged her head with her big toe. It was terrifying. Yet, for some strange reason, Kate felt like she was in the right place. She could not explain why she felt like that, but it all felt just so right. 

"I know what you're feeling right now" Ms G said, still caressing her head affectionately with the tip of her big toe. Soon all your fear will be gone. She moved her foot away, and Kate felt her body change again. To her joy, she was growing. She eventually found herself at her full size, but still naked and laying at the feet of the older woman. She knew that it was the right moment to stand up and hit her for what she had done to her, yet as soon as she rose to her full height, she had troubles at even meeting the woman's gaze. And it wasn't just because of the shame deriving from her nakedness, or worse, what she had just done. She felt like she was in front of something more than a person. She had always felt intimidated by ms G, but this time, there was something eerie about her presence that made her feel insignificant even now that she was at her full size.

"You're starting to understand, aren't you" The woman said to her, using her cupped fingers to lift her face from under her chin, so she was able to look at her straight in her eyes. "Here, let me show you" As soon as she said this, Kate felt her mind leave her body, and found herself looking at the world from somebody else's eyes. She couldn't move a muscle, she was only allowed to observe from the girl's point of view, yet she knew everything about the person whose memory she was inhabitating.

Her name was Calista, she had just been collected from her village along with four other young girls, and was now travelling to an unknown location awaiting for her fate. When the beautiful charioteer allowed all of them to disembark, she guided them to the inside of a temple, where somebody was waiting for them. Despite the fact that Kate knew that this was way back in time, many and many years before anyone she knew was even born, the person waiting for them was no one but ms G. For some reason, she wasn't surprised when she saw her there. She was dressed in a silk robe-like dress, and her body was adorned in gold. For lack of a better word, she would have called her a goddess, and at the same time, she perceived the exact same thoughts from the girl whose mind she was haunting. 

Ms G (or her ancient copy) guided the girls towards a table, where five identical cups were filled by the girl who had driven the carriage. "Go on, drink" she had said in a language that Kate had never heard, yet was able to understand. The girls were less than enthusiasthic about drinking something given them by a stranger, but they eventually did, although at different times. Ms G and the one that seemed to work for her simply stood there, waiting for something. And something did happen in fact. The girl who had first drank the liquid started moving in a way that didn't seem natural, and took the others some time to understand what had happened. Her robe seemed loose, and her head was much lower than it had been a few seconds earlier. When there was no doubt that she was diminishing in size, it was too late. All the others had started the same process.

[Continue]