In the Dark Ch. 01

"Words are only painted fire; a look is the fire itself."

(Mark Twain)

Twelve hours. That's how much time I was going to spend alone with a man who was a complete stranger to me. That's how much time we were being given to make some kind of erotic connection with one another. I silently wondered (yet again), if my performance would be judged adequate by those who would be observing...

THE FIFTY

From my perspective, the year was 2005. Things were pretty strange for most everyone on Earth, to say the least. A few months earlier, a small group of people publically announced that they had traveled backwards through time from about a century ahead in our future.

This unlikely sounding proclamation was initially met with a great deal of skepticism. But, our descendants had anticipated this reaction, and arrived armed with plenty of information that would enable them to convince most people on the planet that their story must be true. There were a total of 50 people who had arrived from the future, and the group was quickly given the designation "The Fifty."

Their methods of proof were simple. Every other day, one of them would write about an event that would occur the next day. The text would then be sealed in an envelope, and locked up in a safe that was heavily guarded at all times. Two days later, this envelope would be removed, opened, read out loud to the media, and the accuracy of the contents of the letter would be quickly verified.

At the same time that the safe was opened to remove the letter with information about the previous day, a newer envelope containing future knowledge about the *next* day would be placed into the safe. So, every other day, yet another prediction was verified.

The predictions were never wrong. Over time, the sheer volume and incredible variety of these predictions led most people to accept the claim that the individuals belonging to The Fifty clearly had knowledge of our future, and therefor must have actually traveled back from the future to this time frame.

The Fifty claimed that they had returned to 2005 to perform some unusual research. They never explained fully why certain aspects of our history were not adequately documented in the books available 100 years hence. However, they made it quite clear that they considered the information they were gathering very important to them.

Once their research was complete, they explained, they intended to return to their correct place in time. There was no intention of providing us with specific future knowledge or any new technologies – this was merely an information gathering mission.

Not every single person on the planet was expected to participate in one of the various research projects that were being organized. However, about 0.1% of the population would be asked to become a research subject. No one outside of The Fifty knew exactly how many different research projects were planned, but the public was told that around 1000 different types of studies were expected.

Most of the studies involved tasks and behaviors that were quite routine to regular life in 2005. However, it was quickly revealed that a few of the studies would be about sex and sexual behavior.

When I received the letter in the mail that indicated that I had been chosen as a potential subject for study protocol RS204, I had no idea what that meant. Individuals chosen as study subjects were instructed to report to a specific study location on a certain date, and it was not until that time that the subjects would be told the nature of the study, and what was expected of the participants. The letter told me that I should plan for a 2-3 day absence from my normal routine, and to pack clothing and essentials for 3 days. Food would be provided.

The Fifty had explained to the public at large that the people who were randomly chosen to participate in a study would be expected to participate, period. However, to reduce public apprehensions about the studies, we were all reassured that every participant would be able to choose an alternate study protocol if they strongly objected to participating in the first protocol.

Of course, everyone realized that it was possible that some people would be forced to choose between two options that were both objectionable, but it was hoped that these situations would be rare.

STUDY PROTOCOL RS204

The morning I arrived at the research center, I was somewhat nervous. After a friendly greeting, I was escorted to a small office where two researchers waited. They introduced themselves as Rick and Sue.

"Good morning," Sue began. "You've been chosen to participate in study protocol RS204. Our role today is to explain this study to you, help you understand your role in the study, and prepare you for your day tomorrow." Both researchers smiled and asked me to please sit down.

Rick began speaking. "When we planned protocol RS204, we anticipated that some study subjects would object to participating. To be direct, this is a sexual behavior study." He paused, making eye contact with me, then continued by saying, "We want you to know that the information we are trying to gather is considered to be of critical importance. Therefore, we really do hope that you will agree to participate."

Sue continued, "As we have promised, you can refuse this particular study and be assigned to a different protocol, but I'd like to take a few minutes to try and persuade you to agree to RS204."

By this point, my palms were starting to sweat a bit, and I rubbed them on my pants to dry my hands. "I'm listening," I said in a neutral voice.

Sue spoke again. "One of our big concerns is that allowing too many people to opt out of any particular study will make our study sample much less random. As a result, the data gathered from that subset of the population may be less representative of the full population than a truly random sample would be. If the behaviors we are studying in RS204 vary greatly between people who want to refuse the study versus people who readily agree to the study, our data will be a lot less meaningful."

I knew a bit about statistics, so I understood what she was saying. "Right, you might end up with selection bias."

"Exactly. So, unless you are really adamant that you cannot participate in a study on sexual behavior, we need you."

I bit my lower lip, trying to digest what I had heard so far. "You haven't given me very many details about the study yet," I pointed out.

"No, that was intentional. We'd like you to agree to participate based only on what you have heard thus far," Rick explained. "We're going to let you sit here and think about it for a few minutes, then we'll be back to talk some more." The couple left the room, and handed me a bottle of cold water to drink as they left.

I unscrewed the cap and took a long drink. Whoa. RS204 was one of the sex studies? I hadn't really expected that, although of course I knew that there were a few sex studies being performed. I started to pace back and forth across the room.

This was more than a little bit outside my comfort zone. When I considered what the study might entail, I could feel my palms start to sweat again. Yes, this idea made me nervous, but I was also pretty curious. What did The Fifty need to know about sexual behaviors of the people living in 2005? What, specifically, would I be expected to do? And, last but not least, what if I really enjoyed it?

THE VIDEOS

When the couple returned to the room, they asked for my verbal commitment to participate in RS204. I took a deep breath, then quickly said, "Yes, OK, I'll do it."

Rick stood up and brought me a two page questionnaire to complete. I skimmed it quickly, and could see that all of the questions pertained to my previous sexual experiences or my sexual preferences. "We're going to ask you to complete this right now, so that we can use the information to choose a partner for you for tomorrow. Please answer as completely and truthfully as you can."

I started to fill in the blanks. Age: 23. Gender: female. How old was I the first time I had sexual intercourse? 19. How many sexual partners had I been with in my lifetime? 3.

After that, I read "Please view video RS204-A before completing the next section." Sue was already loading a video into the VCR when I looked up.

Video RS204-A was footage of two women kissing. This was no peck on the cheek – the kiss was quite passionate, and the blonde woman was moaning softly. Encouraged by the sound, the brunette brought her hand down to lightly skim her fingertips across the blonde's left breast. The blonde apparently was not wearing a bra, and her now hard nipple pressed against the fabric of her tee shirt. The blonde's sharp intake of breath coincided with my own quick gasp. Yes, they did look like they were enjoying each other.

The video faded, and I blinked a few times. "Now you complete that section of the questionnaire," Rick reminded me.

Oh. Right. OK, have I ever participated in a sexual encounter similar to the one just seen? No. If no, then on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest rating, how interested would I be in participating in a sexual encounter similar to the one just seen?

I hesitated for a moment, then circled a 7.

"Please view video RS204-B before completing the next section."

This one was footage of a man joining the same two women. The new character entered the room quietly, and approached the blonde from behind, stopping just inches from her body. As the brunette continued to stimulate the blonde's left breast, the man reached around and began to touch her right breast, too. Now both of her nipples were clearly hardened and straining against her shirt.

The man began kissing the back of the blonde's neck, as the brunette continued to claim her mouth. His left hand slowly traveled from her shoulder, down her back, and then his fingers spread across her hip and gently cupped one side of her ass. As he squeezed, the blonde moaned more loudly.

"You have a beautiful ass," he whispered in the blonde's ear. "I'd like to take a closer look at it."

With this, the brunette finally broke the kiss, and she kneeled in front of the blonde. She quickly began unbuttoning and unzipping the blonde's jeans, and the man's hands both reached around to assist her in peeling the jeans off. As they removed them together, the man and the brunette briefly kissed one another.

The video faded out, and I turned back to the questionnaire, feeling a bit annoyed and more than a bit aroused. Have I ever participated in a sexual encounter similar to the one just seen? No. If no, then on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest rating, how interested would I be in participating in a sexual encounter similar to the one just seen? I quickly circled an 8.

I was happy to see the words "Please view video RS204-C before completing the next section."

The blonde's jeans were off, and she was wearing light pink panties. The man was running his hands across the back of the silky panties, giving a sort of erotic massage. At the same time, the brunette was removing the blonde's top. As the tee shirt dropped to the floor, the women began kissing again.

The brunette moved to the side a bit so that the man could access the blonde's bare breasts. As he began flicking his wet tongue across one nipple, the brunette quickly kneeled next to him so she could give the other side the same attention. The blonde's hands were each placed on the back of one neck, encouraging the man and the brunette to continue. The man had one hand on each woman's ass. The brunette had one hand on the blonde's ass, and the other hand was reaching down so she could touch herself.

The video faded, and the questionnaire instructed me to choose which video to watch next. "Please request video RS204-D if you would like to see the women perform oral sex on the man."

"Please request video RS204-E if you would like to see the man perform oral sex on the blonde."

"Please request video RS204-F if you would like to see the brunette perform oral sex on the blonde."

My own panties were getting rather damp, and truthfully, I wanted to see parts D, E, *and* F. Out loud, I said "Part E, please."

The video tape was switched and re-started.

The man hooked his thumb over the top of the blonde's pink panties, and began to drag them down her thighs. As the panties were pulled off, the brunette released the blonde's breast and whispered to the man, "One of us needs to be kissing that sexy pussy you just uncovered."

"Mmm-hmm" he agreed, beginning a trail of kisses headed down the blonde's stomach. The brunette watched him, occasionally pinching the blonde's nipples.

The blonde had been standing up to this point, but her partners now guided her over to the nearby sofa so she could sit. The man was on the floor in front of the blonde, and he began running his hands up the inside of her legs, moving slowly from her ankles to her knees, then continuing up. His fingers stroked her legs as the hands inched further upwards.

The brunette was now sitting beside the blonde on the couch. She kissed the blonde's neck, her shoulder, and then used her tongue to trace a path down to one nipple. She began sucking earnestly, while using her fingertip to stimulate the other nipple. Occasionally she would pause briefly to watch the man.

"Please don't stop," the blonde whispered, as she reached one hand towards each partner.

The man now leaned towards her, moving slowly and maintaining eye contact. "You want more?" he teased, pausing with his mouth just a few centimeters from her clit. "Do you like to be kissed here?" he continued, turning his head straight to the right, and placing a kiss at the juncture between thigh and outer labia. He began sucking lightly on this sensitive area, knowing she was probably wishing he would move his mouth a bit closer to her center.

"Fuck, yes." she breathed.

"And this?" he teased, now running his tongue just outside her swollen outer lips, along one side, then lifting his head and mouth to trace the same path on the other side.

"Yes! God, yes. Please. More. More...yes...please..." the blonde's breathing was so ragged that she was struggling to speak at all.

The man now used his hands to separate the outer lips, and began running his tongue along the space between the outer lips and inner lips. He tilted his head to the left, and sucked one of the lips rhythmically.

He still had yet to do more than breathe on her clit. The way she was squirming encouraged him to quickly brush his lips across it, not lingering, but assuring her that he had not forgotten about it.

The brunette now began praising and instructing the man. "Umm, that looks nice. I'll bet she tastes delicious. Maybe she'd like to be finger fucked."

The man obviously agreed, because he eased his middle finger into the blonde's dripping opening, his palm facing towards the front of her body. As he began stroking his finger in and out, his tongue began licking upwards, from right in front of his finger straight up and across her clit.

Patiently and methodically, he licked her over and over, with long wet strokes. Each time his tongue touched her clit, her hips lifted slightly, straining for longer contact.

"There? You like it there?" he teased. He then stopped talking as he closed his lips around her clit and began sucking her.

"That's good," the brunette purred, still giving the blonde's breasts all of her attention. "That's what she really likes. Suck on her."

The blonde's breathing was ragged, punctuated by sharp gasps and moans. "Yes. Suck. Yes! Yes! Yessssss!" and her whole body began to shake as the orgasm peaked. The screen then faded to black.

There were 6 more videos before lunch. The remaining videos mostly involved one man with one woman per video, but some of the couples were engaging in sex acts that I considered quite kinky. I dutifully answered the questions after each video, trying to make sure my answers reflected an accurate picture of my rather conservative likes and dislikes. After all, this questionnaire would be used to choose a partner for me for tomorrow.

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to be continued...