Bread and Honey

"There is nothing to fear. You are safe from temptation. I told you once, long ago, that you are cured of your addiction, and that cure is permanent. Have no fear; let your Queen guide you. You serve the queen alone. Say it, my drone..."

"I serve the Queen alone."

"You are safe in The Hive. The Hive keeps you."

"I am safe in the Hive. The Hive keeps me."

He felt better. The Queen let him lie silently for many minutes, while her words seeped into his mind.

After a while, she spoke again, more conversationally now:

"Good, D3. Now, I have a task for you. There will be a new Worker arriving next week. But she is actually not a Worker; she's a princess in training. She is here to learn, from everyone, but particularly from the senior drones, and most of all, from you. You don't need to keep any secrets from her; quite the opposite, tell her everything she wishes to know. But you must watch her, and if she shows signs of acting in a way that might be detrimental to the Hive, you should come to a prayer cell and talk to me. Do you understand?"

"Yes, My Queen."

"Is there anything else?"

"No, My Queen. Thank you. Is she --" He hesitated.

"Yes, she is. She is beautiful, and she is dangerous. But she won't be a temptation for you. She is only a child. I know your weaknesses, and she cannot exploit them."

Rich left the prayer cell, feeling new strength and resolve.

A few days later, as Rich sat focussing intently on an Excel spreadsheet, D6 knocked and entered, accompanied by a young girl.

Rich looked up from his laptop. The girl didn't have a Hive number yet, but he knew who she was. D6 spoke to her." This is D3. He's the money man here. Brother, this is Catherine - Cat. She'll be number W292. I'll leave her with you."

D6 and Rich exchanged glances.

"Welcome. Call me Rich."

"Hi, D3." Cat sat down close to him. He smelled her perfume. She peered inquisitively at the spreadsheet.

"So, what's this? Accounts?"

Rich wasn't used to such forthrightness in The Hive.

"No, it's a forecast. We're planning on expanding, to music festivals, trekking vacations. Getting in a younger demographic. I just realised, that's why you're here."

"Sort of."

"'Sort of'? Then why exactly are you here, 'Princess Catherine?'"

"I'm here to ask you questions. So don't speak to me like that, Drone. Remember who I am. Address me as your Mistress."

Rich checked if she was joking. He couldn't tell.

"You're not a princess yet. The Queen told me you're still in training. So none of that, please."

"Okay. Okay. You're right, I'm new. So how should you address me?"

"How about, 'Your Royal Bratness?'"

"Fine. And I'll call you 'My Loyal Money Man'. Except you don't have any money, any more. Do you."

"I've invested it in The Hive. I can tell you've not had your orientation, otherwise you'd understand."

"I don't need 'orientation'. And I understand what the appeal is to you. This is a place for addicts, losers, middle-aged hippies who don't fit in, or never did. But it won't work for young people. Young people are natural followers, not rebels like your generation. We don't need your rules, we don't need your abstinence. But we need to break away from you lot. Not you lot in here, you don't count. I mean you lot out there, running things. We don't want to take over. We need our own society, with our own leader. I get what Lee's trying to do."

Rich hadn't expected such a speech." Hmm. I'm sorry."

"About what?"

"I shouldn't have doubted The Queen's judgement. She chose you, so you must be smart."

"Yuh, I am. She needs me. She needs someone young."

"And you need her."

"Yes, and I need you to explain this spreadsheet."

As Rich prepared to explain, Joe wandered in, holding a giant clay beaker. He took a slow sip, eying Cat all the while.

Cat turned to look at him." Beer? In the morning?"

Joe wiped his beard." Iced tea. You must be Catherine. How old are you?"

"None of your business."

"'None of your business' -- means about eighteen or nineteen."

"Twenty, actually."

"Ever met a sex addict before?"

Cat, creeped out by this weirdo, turned to Rich with "Help me out here" in her eyes, but Rich returned her look with "deal with it" in his.

"Okay, er, 'five'. Hey, are you the guy who took my phone off me? The tekky?"

"Yep, one and the same. So be nice to the nice sex addict, if you want it back when you leave."

Rich cut in." Okay, brother. Enough."

Joe laughed." Hey, don't worry about it, man. Hey, don't take me serious, Catherine. And besides, there's worse than Rich and me here."

Joe left them alone.

"Sorry about him, he's a bit of an evil genius."

"He's an asshole."

"Undoubtedly. Aren't we all?"

"Wow, you're so bitter and cynical."

"You misunderstand me. Yannow, you're just too --"

"What? What am I 'too'?"

"--Too fucking young. You know shit about life. Sorry. I'm Sorry. It's me, I'm too old. So old I can't even remember being young."

"How old are you?"

"Forty-five."

"Jesus, that's not old! My last boyfriend was thirty-nine. Until I dumped him, because he was going to be forty. Which is waaay old."

Rich quickly saw she was teasing, and laughed. She was okay. It felt good to joke with someone besides Joe. He was happy and surprised to find a fellow wit in this young beauty.

After an hour or so, Cat left Rich to continue his work, while she went to look around the grounds of the Hive. Joe came in, holding a giant bowl of brown rice and vegetable curry in one hand, and a giant spoon in the other. He shovelled a spoonful into his mouth, and spoke:

"Did you feel it? Did you fuckin' feel it, man?"

"Feel what?"

"She was so fuckin' coming on to me. She was fuckin' begging me for it, man."

"No, brother, I can't say I felt any sexual vibe."

Joe wandered out again, talking, Rich supposed, to himself: "Fucking still got it. Whoah..."

Rich chuckled to himself. Poor deluded schmuck. Anyone could tell it was me she'd been interested in.

Some days later, Rich wandered out by the riverbank at the edge of the grounds.

It was a beautiful warm day. On days like these the Hive was almost unreal in its Eden-like beauty. And everybody he saw was truly, deeply joyful, truly at peace. Here, he felt, The Queen reigned, cloaking the world in her silken gown, imparting harmony and serenity to the world. He lay down on his back in the damp long grass cradling his head in his hands, and looked up at the royal blue sky. He closed his eyes and let the swirling red glow of the sunlight through his eyelids take him into a pleasant trance. Then the glow darkened as a shadow passed over him.

"Hi!"

It was Cat, standing right by him blocking the sunlight. How had he not heard her approach?

He sat up.

"Can I join you, or do you want to hang out here alone?"

"No, it's okay. I was just meditating."

"Because I need to talk to you. In private. I've been waiting for you to go somewhere quiet. I followed you here." Cat sat down next to Rich, and plucked at blades of grass.

"You could have just asked me, you know, I'm always happy to talk to you."

"This is better. I prefer it when people aren't prepared."

"Okay, well you took me by surprise. So before I get a chance to 'prepare', what did you want to talk about? The birds and the bees?"

"Sort of."

"You're a bit old for that."

"Tell me, were you really a sex addict?"

"Yes. I am. I use the present tense as a warning to myself to always be on my guard."

"So, what, sex is like a drug for you?"

"Yes. It is a drug. Or rather it produces chemicals in me that act like a drug. You know, the chemicals that you release when you've had an orgasm."

"I wouldn't know."

"Really? You've never had an orgasm? But you have had sex, right, with your ex? You know, the thirty-nine year old geezer?"

"Nope. It was more like a father daughter thing. He was married. We just used to kiss and cuddle, and he took me out to the theatre and stuff. I was more like an escort."

"I'm sorry, I really didn't have you pegged for a virgin. But to be honest, kudos. I wish I'd had that attitude. But, how, I mean, The Queen said you're training as a princess. You know what they do, right."

"Yes. She didn't seem to think that would be a problem."

"No, I guess not. In fact that will be a turn-on for some guys."

"But not you."

"No. Look, darling, in the first place, I'm done with that. I've had a lifetime of sex, and I've had it up to here with it. Yannow, some people give up smoking, they give up meat, some give up coffee; they just up and say one day, 'That's it.'"

"Don't patronise me, calling me 'darling', just because I'm - never mind. And in the second place, you don't go for younger girls. Right?"

"No, I don't. Not that you're not beautiful, because you are. And anyway in the third place, I belong to My Queen."

"Okay. Shame. Because I always fancied older men."

Rich laughed." You picked just about the worst guy, in the worst place, to lose your virginity to."

"Yes." She sighed, and lay her head on Rich's chest." I did pick you, though." Damn you, balls.

She snuggled and clutched his shirt." Mmm, this feels nice. Hold me."

"I don't think we should."

"Don't worry, I'm not your type. I'm too young for you." Her hand felt his hard-on." Or maybe not."

He rolled her over until he was on top of her. She lay back on the grass, her hair framing her beautiful sunlit face like a dazzling solar corona. It was so smooth and perfect, except for a few delicious freckles on her cheeks. Her parted lips were full and moist. Like a doctor, he examined her face, her wet tongue just visible behind her perfect white teeth, her s-shaped nostrils, her lips... her beckoning lips, whispering silently, 'take me', 'take me'...

He clamped his lips on hers. His long, rasping tongue pushed deep inside her helpless opened mouth, subdued and raped her own little frightened tongue, pushed deeper, rummaging like an intruding ferret in a mouse hole. She rolled her body, tried to beg him to stop, but his weight was fully on her, his lips gagged her." Mm, mm!"

He pulled back, but she thrust her lips back onto his and shut her eyes tight. Her legs gripped his. His pelvis rocked involuntary, slowly, pushing his heard-on against her groin.

He stood suddenly." Get up. Strip. Now."

She obeyed, brushing off leaves. She pulled her tee-shirt over her head. Watching him, she undid her bra and let it drop to the floor. Her tits were full and round, womanly. The desire in his look gave her a chill, and a thrill in her pussy.

"Good. Now your jeans. Go on."

"What about you?"

"Take - off - your -clothes. Brat." She liked that.

She stood naked before him. Her pubes were thick and golden curls, like her hair. She was an angel. She was truly a princess. A virgin princess. But not for long.

Piercing her with his hungry gaze, he pushed the top of his jeans down. He grabbed his fat, hard cock in his fist and ran his hand slowly up and down it.

"Now. You want to be fucked? Answer me, brat."

"Yes."

"Ok. Come here. Right here. Closer."

She advanced until she stood a few inches from him, her eyes level with his chest. She smelled his sweat. Her hands went to his shoulders but he thrust them back against to her sides.

"No touchee. Now, on your knees. Suck my balls. Not my dick. My balls. And keep your hands on your knees. No touchee."

She knelt and sucked. With a finger, he pushed his balls right into her mouth.

"Lick and suck, brat."

She licked and flicked her tongue on his balls, while her lips made little sucking noises. She was kind of expert at it, part of Rich thought dimly. His ardour rose quickly, too quickly. He felt he was about to cum. He pushed her head away suddenly.

"Okay. On your back. Time to lose your virginity, brat."

He came, too quickly, inside her. He felt her shuddering rippling orgasm on his shaft even as his own orgasm faded.

"Wow.... Sorry. Shit. Sorry. It's been a while."

"It's okay." She kissed him on the ear." It's okay."

"Too damn quick though."

"Quick is sometimes good."

"What do you know about it? Virgin."

"I'm not a virgin, Rich."

"What??"

"I just said that because that's what you wanted to hear. I just wanted you. I really wanted you to want me back. Please don't be angry with me, it's just how I am, I say what I think people want to hear."

Rich was too post-coitally stoned to care what this brat was saying right now.

He replied dozily, "I'm not angry. You're just a fucking lying little princess brat, I get it."

She rested her head on his chest once more. It felt good. Why the hell wasn't he angry? She was so deceitful and manipulative. Oh well, probably them goddamn pheromones, again.

"Rich?"

"Mm?"

"I have another question about the birds and the bees."

"Shoot. But I doubt if I can tell you anything you don't already know."

"It's about the princesses, and all those sad blokes. The addicts, the slaves."

"Oh. The honey-bees, right?"

"Yes. Are they, well, are they a means to an end? Or are they the end in itself?"

"You're asking me if The Queen is just about money? I can't help you there. You have to make your own mind up."

"Listen, Rich. Can you please not call her The Queen? This whole thing is just brainwashing. She's not a queen, she's just Lee. She's brainwashing you. And for fuck's sake you're just going along with it. I don't get it."

"It's my choice. And to me, she is a queen."

"Yes, but you're sick."

"I was sick once, but not any more. I'm through explaining. You either buy it, or you don't."

"But Rich, it's just -- crap! It's all a fucked up game in your heads. And she's using you. Simple as."

"I need this. Please don't try to deprogram me. Was that what this is all about? Was that why you, "

"- Seduced you? Yes. Yes, I suppose so. Because I care about you. Go on, just call her 'Lee'. Go on. For me."

"All right, if it makes you happy, 'Lee'. But she's still my Queen."

"What if I told you your 'queen' is going to abdicate?"

Rich sat up." What do you mean?"

"I mean, she's being investigated by the Inland Revenue here. And the IRS in America. And they're going after all the online operation. They're going to shut the whole thing down."

"What are you talking about? I would know about it. They would have frozen the assets."

"They will. Look, if you don't believe me, let's ring her, you can hear it from her." She reached over to her jeans, which were still laying besides her, and pulled a mobile phone from a pocket.

"How, where did you get that?"

"Joe gave it back to me."

"Joe? But he never lets anyone... Oh, I get it. You worked on him too. Fuck, what an idiot I am."

Cat ignored him, as she called Lee's private number.

"She's not answering. Anyway, you've got to believe me. They're going to arrest her. Lee's going to end up in jail unless we do something."

"You're lying. I don't know what your motive is here, but you're lying."

"Look, I'm talking to you because I want you to help. Help her. You love her, don't you? I mean you really love her."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, Rich, please just snap out of it. Wake up, you fucking brain-dead idiot. She needs you."

"Yes I do love her. If she needed me, she'd ask me herself. I'd do anything for her. She knows that. I don't trust you. I need to hear it from her."

"She can't ask for help. She's not like that. Don't you see, she's as trapped as you, by this. She's in denial. She can't show weakness. Oh Rich, wake up, please, wake up."

In the bough of a nearby oak tree, a blackbird sang sweetly. He was standing on a bough. If you could speak blackbird, you'd know what he was saying: "I'm the meanest motherfucking blackbird around. So don't fuck with me. This is my tree. And this hole here, this nice hole in this here oak, this is my fucking nest hole. So stay the fuck away."

Peeping out of the blackbird's fucking nest hole was a webcam. And it was pointing at Rich and Cat, naked in the grass.

Your Memory Plays Tricks

Rich emerged from the prayer cell, feeling new strength and resolve.

He returned to his office and began working on an Excel spreadsheet.

D6 knocked and entered, accompanied by a young girl.

Rich looked up from his laptop. Pretty girl. He hadn't seen her before. She already had a Hive number: W292. D6 spoke to her." This is D3. Brother, this is Catherine - Cat, a new volunteer. She's just been through orientation. I know you're heading that way in a minute. Can you show her to the South West dorm, there's nobody around at the moment."

"Sure. Hello there, Catherine. Welcome."

"Hello, sir. Thank you."

D5 poked his head round the door.

"292, this is D5. He's a bit of an evil genius. Runs all the computers."

D5 nodded at her." Hey. Welcome to the Hive. Rich, I'm just making a pot of tea. Want a brewski?"

As they walked through the dairy courtyard on the way to the Hive kitchens, Rich chatted to the new recruit.

"I know what orientation is like. It's a bit disorientating."

"Yes, it is a bit."

"Yes. We have people from all over the world here. Excuse me, but, you look familiar. Have we met before?"

W292 turned her head away." No. We haven't."

"Oh well, the memory plays tricks. Here you are. This is where you're staying."

"Thank you, sir."

"You're welcome. Well, see you around."

"Sir, I'd like to ask you something, if I may."

"Shoot."

She lowered her voice to a whisper: "When you get back to your office I'd like to ask you to open the bottom-right hand drawer of your desk."

"Excuse me?"

"Thank you for showing me the way here, sir."

Your Memory Plays Tricks

Rich emerged from the prayer cell, feeling new strength and resolve.

He returned to his office and began working on an Excel spreadsheet. The mouse stopped working." Fuck". He hated having to use the trackpad. Maybe it's just the batteries. He called out." HEY, Brother five! Do you have any batteries?"

But Brother Five was not there. He was at that moment lying, deep, deep in a trance, in a prayer cell, listening to the words of His Queen.

Rich opened and closed the drawers of his desk, hoping to find spare batteries. In the bottom drawer was an unfamiliar notebook. And scrawled in pencil on the front were the words "I'll be back for you."

He took out the notebook and began to read it.

Thirty minutes later, he banged open the door of the South West dorm. It was empty, except for a Worker making beds. Rich stalked along the line of beds, looking at the little brass number on them. He called to the worker." Have you seen 292? Number 292? She's new."

"Sorry sir. The newest person here is 280. A man, sir. 292 isn't due to arrive until next week. I can show you the list."

"No, it's okay." He returned to his office. He heard Joe next door.

"Hey, Brother five, I was looking for you earlier."

"Hey, Brother Richard. Sorry I was out getting my Hive mind buzzed."

"Cool. Cool. Hey, Brother, do you remember that cute new recruit yesterday? Six introduced her to us."

Joe stepped into the room.

"Can't say I do, buddy. I guess she wasn't cute enough."

"I guess. I gotta go."

"Where?"

"I gotta go take a fucking dump, what's it to you." Rich slammed the door and ran out.

Joe muttered to himself, "Hell, don't know why he can't just use the John right here. Maybe he don't like the smell of my shit."

On the far side of the river, Cat crawled onto the bank, her clothes soaked. She took out her phone. Dead, of course. All she could do is wait for her ride away from there. She knew nobody would be looking for her. Except for D6. And she was safely out of his reach.

Bumblebee

W406 had been called away from the medical centre to deal with an unconscious person in one of the prayer cells. She was used to that; epileptics, hypotensive people, or simply people suffering from overwork would frequently faint in the warm, somewhat stifling atmosphere there. So she was shocked when she arrived to see a blindfolded man with blood pouring from his head, who appeared to have been knocked unconscious by a heavy blow. It was D3.