by Sadie Marks
Still, after three weeks of spending almost all of her time in one small set of rooms, she was starting to climb the walls. Her behavior got worse, snipping at him when he said no to her going out alone, and earning herself punishments for it had become a daily thing. He had a look sometimes, when he answered, that almost seemed like he was waiting for her to do something, but she didn't know what it was.
It was frustrating, and she'd almost reached her breaking point. The only thing that held her back was fear of the unknown. Not of what was outside the room but of what he'd do to her for breaking this rule. She didn't think he'd be mad; it wasn't on the list of 'unbreakable' rules, but she'd only been punished for small things so far, and some of those had been cruelly creative. This, after being told no so many times, was bound to be harsher than anything she'd felt before.
Eventually, she cracked. She'd opened the door to the outside corridor and stood there looking out many times before, but this time, she didn't just look. She stepped out and let the door close behind her. After a deep, calming breath and then a few more, she set off down the hall to explore the ship.
6
She hadn't gone ten steps from the door before she saw a Sadec crewmember hurrying by. She hugged her arms around herself nervously and wondered if she was going to be caught already, but he only paused long enough to give her a look that she couldn't decipher. It seemed to be a combination of interest and amusement, but before she could figure it out, he'd moved off at a quick pace without a word, and she relaxed.
It was a busy ship. She saw a dozen more aliens, all of whom seemed to be very busy and had no time to pay her any attention, before she ran into her first humans. There was a pair of them dressed in clothes very similar to what she'd been given, and they were talking animatedly as they strolled down the corridor. When they saw her, they stopped short, and the female whispered something to the man before they both laughed.
Kenzi flushed, frowning and wondering what was so amusing about her. She'd run into cliques before, and she wondered if she was going to be shunned as the new girl, but before she could turn and walk away, they approached her.
"Hi, you're Kenzi, right?" It was the man with the short cap of dark hair who asked, and he smiled with the question, but his blonde companion seemed more reserved.
"That's me," Kenzi replied carefully. She held out a hand in greeting, remembering her manners belatedly.
"We were wondering how long it would take you to bust out," the woman said, adding, "I'm Silla, and he's Cyp." Her pale blue eyes looked like ice chips and seemed to be studying Kenzi for flaws.
"Break out?" Kenzi asked, carefully. One eyebrow went up as she tried to pretend she had no idea what they were talking about.
"Yeah, we usually have bets going on how long it's going to be before a new slave breaks that rule. Silla's just mad because she thought you'd be out within a week, but I'm closer, so I win," he explained. He shot Silla an amused look, and she stuck out her tongue in return.
"I-I don't know what you mean. I have permission," Kenzi insisted, lying. She couldn't have known, of course, that they would know it for a lie immediately, but then they both started to laugh. She frowned, getting annoyed as her embarrassment grew. "What's so funny?" she demanded finally.
That seemed to set them off again, and they might have continued laughing forever, except a passing Sadec paused to give them a stern look. "You're blocking the corridor," he said. All the amusement ceased immediately.
"Sorry, Sir. We'll move," Cyp said quickly. He grabbed both women and hustled them away as fast as he could. Only when they turned a corner, heading toward the green section, did he slow down. "Whew! That was close," he said, pausing to make sure they weren't being followed. "He must have had duties."
"What's the big deal, aren't we allowed to talk?" Kenzi asked curiously.
Cyp and Silla exchanged looks, and then Silla explained," Sure, we are, but if they can find a reason to punish us, they will. Weren't you told?" She looked bored, as if she'd had to explain this too many times already.
"Blocking the flow of traffic isn't a big deal, unless there's an emergency or a drill, but it's enough reason for a quick punishment. Probably just a spanking or something, but he obviously didn't have the time to enforce it. Lucky for us!" Cyp grinned, sounding pleased, and before they could get in trouble with someone who did have enough time to take care of it, he got them started heading off toward the recreational areas.
"Have you seen hydroponics yet?" Silla asked politely.
"No, um, I haven't seen much of anything yet, except the park, once," Kenzi replied. Her tone was equally polite; she was being careful of Silla because she couldn't tell if the woman had an issue with her or if she was just naturally reserved.
She was interested to see that section, so they ended up there and spent some time wandering through. Kenzi was impressed. She'd seen things like this on Earth; as the climate had gradually changed, hydroponics gardens had become more popular and now most people had a small one in their house or yard, but this was beyond what they could accomplish. When she looked up, she couldn't even see the ceiling of the room; there was too much greenery everywhere.
Row after row of vegetation provided food and oxygen for the ship. Some sections looked very meticulously kept, but as they made their way deeper into the section, it changed and became more like a vast jungle. She was speechless, reaching out and stroking a furry leaf. It immediately rolled itself up, and she snatched her hand back in surprise.
Cyp laughed. "Relax, it's fine. The leaves roll up for protection; it will uncurl in a second. Things you're not allowed to touch are clearly marked." He turned, pointing to the section with posted signs warning them off.
"Let me guess, touching one of those will get me punished, right?" she asked, rolling her eyes. She reached out, playfully pretending like she was going to touch one of the forbidden plants, and he grabbed her arm and pulled it down.
"Don't!" he said firmly. "Some of them die when touched, but some are poisonous to humans, so if you touch the wrong one, you're going to get worse than punishment," Cyp warned her.
"Oops!" She quickly stepped back, and Silla, who'd been watching quietly, laughed.
"Come on; there's a nice place to sit and talk back here," the other woman said, turning and moving off quickly.
Kenzi and Cyp followed at a more sedate pace, and when she got far enough ahead, he leaned in to whisper, "Don't mind her; she's a little jealous that you belong to the general. She's had a crush on him ever since he caught her poking around an off-limits area and whipped her ass."
Kenzi turned her head to stare at him. "She broke one of the big rules? Why?" she asked.
He shrugged. "She's a rebel. She's a hardcore pain slut, and I think she wanted to see how harsh they could be—she found out the hard way. You'd think she'd be afraid to ever cross his path after that. I mean, she couldn't sit for a week until they finally sent her to med for healing, but that's Silla for you," he said, laughing.
"Wow, I'm just starting to realize how much I like a little pain, but I can't see myself ever trying to get punishment like that," she said. Just the thought of it had her insides doing flips, and she shivered.
"That's why everyone's been talking about you. You're a virgin, yeah?" Cyp asked, curiously.
"Virgin?! I'm not a virgin!" She burst out laughing at the thought, and Silla yelled back for them to hurry up from somewhere up ahead. She was hidden by the drooping tree fronds that canopied the path, but they picked up the pace anyway.
"Not that kind, the punishment kind. Never been touched before the Sadecs," he clarified.
"Oh, that, yeah, that's me," she admitted. A slight flush of embarrassment crept up her neck. It felt so silly to her now, refusing to explore all those years on Earth and then jumping into something like this.
"Most figure that's why he claimed you. Not many volunteers sign up with no experience at all," he said. "It's, um, an extreme step to go from nothing
to—this," he added. He waited then, and she could tell he was hoping she'd explain, but her story was put on hold for a few minutes when they stepped out into a grass-covered clearing.
Silla had already made herself comfortable, sprawling lazily on the soft bed of green. "About time," she said, shaking her head and rolling her eyes as if they'd kept her waiting an hour instead of three minutes.
"Oh, stuff it, Silla. You're so bitchy today," Cyp complained, and then he dropped to the ground next to her and kicked his legs out straight in front of him. "C'mon, Kenzi, have a seat. You should be safe back here out of sight—for now anyway," he said.
Kenzi looked confused, forehead wrinkling as her brows drew together, "Safe? Why wouldn't I be safe?" she asked as she carefully eased herself down to complete their little circle.
"It's your first day out of your room, of course. Everyone is going to want a piece of you," Silla said. She sounded bored, and the dramatic yawn just reinforced it.
"I don't understand," Kenzi replied. She looked from one to the other, waiting for an explanation.
Cyp finally took pity on her. "Well, it's kind of an initiation of sorts. One of the Sadecs claims you, and then they keep you isolated for a while. You know, so you can get used to things and only have to deal with one of them. They want you to know who your true Master is so that there's no question in your mind…uh, later. Once you get brave enough to break the rule and leave the room on your own—" He stopped there and gave her a sympathetic look.
"That's when the fun starts," Silla chimed in sweetly. She had a malicious grin on her face.
Kenzi was really starting to dislike the other girl, and she gave her a dirty look. "Can you just explain, please?" she asked impatiently.
Cyp shifted uncomfortably. "So, now that you're out in public, that's when the sharing starts. Up until now, it's just been you and him, but now it will be more," he said. He hesitated. "It's not terrible, to be honest. My owner, Lara, shares me with five or six others, and I like almost all of them," he said. It was meant to be a comfort to her, but her frown deepened, and she seemed to draw into herself.
"But, I thought the higher the rank, the less you were shared. With the general, I assumed—it would be just him," she said in a weak tone of voice.
"That's kinda true," Cyp said. He took a second to organize his words before trying to explain. "For ship serenity, they all have to share, and the lower the rank, the more their superiors can make them share, but even if there were enough to go around, they'd still do it. They're territorial, but it's different; for them, sharing their property makes them proud. They like knowing other people are enjoying something that's theirs."
"I don't understand," Kenzi said.
Silla sat up. "It's like this," she said. "When a human gets something special that they are proud of, they put it up on a shelf and don't let anyone touch it. It sits there unused, but the Sadecs think that's wasteful. When they acquire something they're proud of, they share it with others. Sometimes, it's so that other people can envy them for the lovely thing they have, and sometimes, it's just to make sure the special thing is being admired and well-used as it deserves. So, congrats, you're the general's special toy, and he'll want to share you," she explained.
There was an acidic tone to her words, but Kenzi had a feeling it wasn't as much for her as it was for the situation. She didn't think Silla enjoyed being shared much. Kenzi, however, well, she didn't know yet. It was kind of exciting to think about, but maybe she wouldn't like it much when it happened.
"Oh," Kenzi said, quietly.
Cyp had a thoughtful expression on his face, as if he was considering the various options, but finally he shook his head. "I mean, he might not, but the general doesn't really take privileges that others can't have, so it wouldn't be like him to keep you to himself when no one else can," he said.
One eyebrow went up, and she snorted, "Well, I don't know about that. The center seemed pretty shocked when he stormed in and insisted on testing me, himself. He broke all the protocol on that one," she pointed out.
He shrugged. "They have power, and they aren't afraid to use it with humans. The Sadecs thought slaves would be coming faster than they have, and the crew has been getting restless. See, they used to just take the ones they wanted, but the council said they had to stop now that there was a treaty in place for volunteers. There's something like four hundred Sadecs on board and maybe a dozen slaves, at the most. And a few of those came up after you and are just starting to leave their quarters. I've only been here two weeks longer than you, but I broke out a lot faster, so I was actually out of my quarters before you even got on the ship." He paused and then grinned. "I have a low threshold for boredom," he admitted.
Kenzi got the idea that he didn't mind being punished for breaking rules, either, and was starting to feel silly for holding out so long, but she wasn't used to being punished and was still nervous about doing anything to earn it deliberately. That was probably where having some experience as a submissive would have come in handy. She gave him a rueful smile and shrugged.
He laughed and then continued. "I heard he wanted to make us all ship slaves, open to use by everyone, but our contracts require one owner—it doesn't say anything about sharing, though, so…" he trailed off and went quiet for a second before changing the subject. "So far, he's followed the standard routine of keeping you locked up, and I don't think he would have done that if he didn't mean for things to go to the next step," Cyp said.
Something about the way he said next step made her insides flip, and she sat up straighter. "So, what's the next step?" she asked.
The other two exchanged looks, and Silla shook her head warningly. "Don't," she said to him.
Cyp sighed, "Sorry, she's right. We're not supposed to tell you."
Kenzi tried to stifle the irritation she felt about being kept out of the loop. She didn't blame Cyp for wanting to avoid trouble, though Silla… "You like getting punished, so why worry about the rules?" she asked the blonde.
"Maybe I just don't want to get in trouble for you," Silla suggested, smirking.
At that moment, Kenzi decided that she just didn't like the other slave and that in the future, she was going to avoid her at all costs. Cyp, however, seemed like a decent guy, and he was busy trying not to look at either of them while they were glaring at each other.
Several minutes of strained silence went by while he shifted uncomfortably and tried to make small talk.
Finally, Kenzi took pity on him. "So, how long have you been here, and what made you guys decide to volunteer?" she asked.
Silla seemed uninterested in the conversation, so Cyp started, "Silla's been here a while. She's—I know this may be a shock, but some of the humans didn't exactly volunteer, and—"
Kenzi interrupted, "I know. Dez told me."
He nodded. "Well, Dez would know. He's been here longer than most. Totally crazy for his Master." He paused, looking at Silla, who ignored him. After a few seconds, he shrugged and continued. "Silla wasn't so lucky. She was grabbed from a club a few years ago, and she's a masochist but not much of a submissive, so it hasn't been easy for her, but that is no excuse for being a brat all the time." He directed the last comment at the blonde, but she continued to pretend like they weren't there.
For a second, Kenzi felt a strong surge of sympathy for the woman. She couldn't imagine being stuck in a situation like this against her will. Reminding herself that she had chosen this was how she'd gotten through some of the rougher parts so far. She started to say something to Silla, but the closed and bitter look on the other woman's face made her bite back the words. They wouldn't be appreciated; instead, she changed the subject.
"What about you, then? Did you volunteer?" she asked. So far, she'd met three humans, and two hadn't even gone through the process; she was beginning to wonder if she was the only one here legitimately.
"Sure did! I was the very first one to get through, just a couple months back," he said proudly. "There was a
whole celebration and everything back home, and I got here thinking I'd be first slave on board, and oops. Found out they'd snuck some in early, like Silla. Kind of a shock to the system, but I'm happy enough," he said. There was a look of contentment on his face that seemed to confirm it.
"What made you decide to do it?" she asked, stretching her legs out in front and leaning back on her elbows to get comfortable. It was beautiful in that spot; it resonated with a peaceful aura that relaxed her, and she was finally getting to talk to someone besides Tal. The general was surprisingly interesting to talk to when he wasn't hurting her or sending her body into convulsions from pleasure overload, but it was nice to spend time with other people like herself.
"They offered me what no one else could—a fully-functioning male body," Cyp said. Kenzi opened her mouth to ask the obvious question, but he grinned and continued without waiting for her to figure out the polite way to phrase it. "I was born Brooke, but I always knew I wasn't a girl, and they can do a lot with surgery these days, but since they outlawed gene tinkering, they can't give you the whole package inside. I guess I stubbornly thought if I couldn't have it all, then I wouldn't bother—and then the Sadecs showed up and dangled a perfect genetically male body. No pain, no fuss, fertile, and the whole deal, so I went for it."
Kenzi caught herself looking Cyp over for some sign of the gender change, but of course, there wouldn't be. This was a whole new body, just like her own. Legally, it was quick and painless to change your gender designation, and the medical procedures had advanced enough that it was usually impossible to tell physically, so it was likely she'd known people who had done it before, but if so, they'd never mentioned it. "Getting everything you wanted in a newly grown body is better than surgery, for sure, but I thought you had to be a masochist?" she asked.
"I can't be both?" He laughed, giving her an amused look. "Always loved pain and the Sadecs are experts. They know how to hurt you in all the best ways." His face took on a more serious expression, adding, "The hardest part about changing who you are is that the people around you don't want to let go of who you were. The Sadecs don't care anything about your past or who you used to be, as long as you take the pain."
