Nalcara's Shackles Ch. 11

"Mmrr..." put in Sarah.

"Right, right." said the atomie with a grin. "Pretty sure that was 'Shut up and get to it, Jix.' "

"Mnm." The Mage shrugged her agreement.

"And this is how the two of you 'play'?" Narani put in. Her hand had stayed on Sarah's face, caressing her jaw. The mage didn't seem to mind. "I can certainly see the utility, and the empathy is a useful addition."

"Yep." agreed Jix. "I can tell what she likes, doesn't like, and when she's had enough. For example, she likes your hand on her chin. She's a little embarrassed, probably because she's naked. She's also excited, maybe because she's naked, maybe because she knows I'm gonna do this." Jix looked around. "Four posts. Big bed like this, if you stretch out you're not going to be able to move." The fey grinned. "Just how I like it."

Sarah rolled her eyes, but leaned back on the large bed, stretching her arms over her head. Her legs pointed toward the foot posts. In moments, she lay spread in the center of the mattress, struggling with invisible bonds and seemingly unable to move.

"Go ahead and tease her all you want." said Jix. "She's stuck until I let her move again." The atomie somersaulted in the air and dropped down between the Mage's knees. Spreading her arms, she walked forward until her fingers began to drag on the inside of Sarah's thighs.

Narani took her cue and began to drag her own fingers on Sarah's side. She kept a close eye on the Mage's face as she did. She slid a hand up to Sarah's closest breast and gripped the nipple between her knuckles, causing her to exhale sharply. Their eyes met and with a smirk, Sarah's gaze flicked in Jix's direction.

"Mn." The mage grunted. "Mm hmn!"

"Aw come on!" Jix replied immediately. "Can't I play a little first?"

"Nm mm." Sarah replied shaking her head.

"Ugh, fine." said Jix lifting off from between her companions thighs.

"What is it?" Narani asked. keeping her grip on Sarah's nipple.

"She want's me chained up." sighed Jix looking around. "She says I'm a 'flight risk' which is funny because I could always fly." She spotted Sarah's clothes and started toward them. "Thing is, I can't go- uph!" The fey stopped short mid-air. She blinked once before her wings picked up speed, to no effect. "I can't go too far because this spell also ties us together. Which is why she left her clothes so far away." She stuck her tongue out at the immobilized Mage.

"Oh my." said Narani with a grin. "This *is an interesting game. So you can bind Sarah, but you're bound to Sarah as well. Do you need some help." Though she asked, the cleric made no move to do so. She did not even release her grip on the Mage.

"No." replied Jix. "If she wants me chained up, she can get me my chains. She's stuck, but not helpless."

"Oh?" The cleric looked to Sarah, who was looking slightly flushed. The Mage rolled her eye's a little but nodded. Then, lifting her head so her chin rested on her chest, she looked around the room. The pile of her clothes which she'd left on a cabinet twitched and shifted slightly until something shiny slid from the mass and hovered toward the bed. "Oh! Not helpless indeed."

"Right?" replied Jix. "You didn't think I did all the work, did you?" She flew to meet her hovering shackles, but they avoided her, floating past to hang over Sarah's chest. "Oh, I see." Jix rolled her own eyes. "She's going to put them on me. Behind the back again, right." Jix sighed when Sarah did her best to nod. "Fine. It's hard to fly like that. My arms get in the way of my wings."

"Probably the point." said Narani.

"It is." agreed Jix, drifting down to her shackles. The tiny links moved to her and began applying themselves to the fey. "This is our first time using the spell since I've been back. We have a full house now and privacy is something we have to work on."

"I bet." said Narani.

"And..." Jix began, "sometimes it... feels easier to talk to her when she's like this. Because she won't argue. I know it's not but it feels that way."

"I see." said Narani. "And what do you want to say?"

Jix took a breath. "When I was coming home with my family, I was... really..." She paused. "I was... scared. What if she did't like them? What if they didn't like her? What if she didn't want seven more atomie living in her house?"

"Mn hmn." added Sarah.

"Our house." corrected Jix. "We didn't think of that before I left. I thought it would be ok. But I didn't know. I was scared. I didn't want to... make her mad..."

"Understandable." said Narani. "It was a new situation. But how did it go?"

Jix now knelt on Sarah chest, fully locked in her restraints, arms pulled behind her back. "The first thing she said, before she even knew they were there, was I can't wait to meet them. And when they heard that... when I heard that, we all knew we were fine. Thank you Sarah and I'm sorry for doubting you."

"And with your spell, you can tell how she feels about that?" asked Narani.

"She loves me." replied Jix. "She's happy. And she probably thinks I'm being silly."

"Mmm hee." mumbled Sarah with a half grin and shrug.

"I completely agree with... what ever she said." added Narani with a grin. She had noticeably not released her light grip on Sarah's nipple. "So now that that's settled..."

"Yeah, on to the fun stuff." confirmed Jix. "Normally I'd jump down to her naughty bits about now but my hands are tied. So you're gonna have to take care of her."

"I see." Said the Cleric. "I had thought as much. And you?"

"Oh, she'll take care of us." replied Jix. "You probably want to climb all the way on the bed. "Terra's knees went watery the one time and she slipped to the floor."

'That's sounds-- wait, us?"Narani's brow furrowed just before the hem of her shift fluttered as if in a breeze and she felt a gentle brush against the inside of her thigh. "Oh!" she put everything together as she made a controlled scramble fully on to the bed next to the spread Mage. "I w-wasn't expecting..."

"Stuck, not helpless." Jix repeated. "She's getting pretty good. I mean, you're new and everything, but I think you'll be glad you didn't share."

- - -

The irony of Katerna's position was not lost on her. Here she was, a singer and a dancer with her arms, legs, and voice currently... missing. And yet Lady Silver seemed endlessly entertained by the silenced torso she'd become. She had to admit that she was comfortable; the harnesses that obscured her limbs were adjusted properly and she could still feel her extremities. There were handles in the arms to give her otherwise useless hands something to do, with pads that served a similar purpose at her feet. The collar was the worst. Sure, it was more physically comfortable than having one's mouth stuffed, but at least then she could still... moan, squeak... something! Her silence was deafening.

"I do apologize." said Larenia. She was sliding the diminished Bard to a small cart from the cradle she'd been sitting in. "Jean was suppose to come and assist me in transferring you, but i suppose it is Moonday. It is very likely she's gotten herself into something she could not readily get out of."

Katerna, of course, did not reply. She could not, she found, even audibly sigh. And while she literally could not complain, she had little to complain about figuratively either. She did want her voice (and to a slightly lesser extent her limbs) returned, but she was comfortable, and the Lady had kept her occupied. With her substantially reduced weight, the switch to the stroller like cart had not been harrowing. She had definitely had it worse at Shimmering Ponds. Regardless, she would certainly have a few things to say when she could speak again.

They had not left the dungeon, which made sense in retrospect. The small cradle she'd been placed in and this cart were specific equipment. The average, unaltered human would not easily fit in either, and the wheeled transport would not do well with differing elevations. So Larenia had taken her to a side room near the back for her dismemberment. And now, since they were on the same floor, she could be wheeled back to the main area and paraded in front of the rest of the society.

The Bard had to concede, however, that this collar was amazing. Her voice and even breath were entirely silenced, yet she could still hear just fine. The magical silence was extremely localized. Which is why she noticed a difference in the sounds of the dungeon before she had even been wheeled in. The noises and vocal registers were... off somehow. And when they entered, she could see an immediate variance from the norm. A standard Moonday was generally pairs and trios; the room before her contained two groups. Well, one could better be described as a knot, a bunch of mostly unclothed women tangled together, well the rest of the rooms occupants, most fully dressed, merely sat some distance away. Like and audience, just watching. She had so many questions, which, of course she could not ask. Most fortunately, The Lady of the house was also curious.

"So.... what's going on here?" Larenia steered the Bard closer to the more relaxed group. Katerna immediately took note of Kasuri, who seemed to be at the center of the makeshift bleachers. And it was she who answered.

"It seems Sarah gifted Jossi some kind of magical glue." The Hostess replied. "And apparently there was a... mishap. It started as just Ms Wentren, Jean, and Jekki, but everyone who goes over there gets drawn in as well. You'd be wise to keep your distance."

"Magic glue?" Larenia looked an odd combination of concerned and amused. "How long have they been like that?"

"Less than two hours, I guess." It was Terra who spoke. She was sitting at the edge of the group on the lap of Captain Tarnhoff. "Jossi tells everyone who gets stuck that Sarah said it only lasts two hours. This is a new one on me, but the Boss is pretty good about testing stuff. Jossi says she can also remove it, but I haven't seen her or Jix in a while."

"Nara took them to one of the spare rooms." Larenia smirked. "Said she didn't want to share. But we'd better bother them to see about sorting this out." She looked around, spotting Jean near the center of the mass. "Hm, where's Sini? I'll send her to--"

"No can do, Boss!" A voice interrupted. Larenia looked around to see a small arm waving from behind the writhing group. "I'm not going anywhere without my finger, and my finger won't go anywhere without Jos's nip!"

"Ah." Larenia sighed. "Well. I suppose that nominates me then." She wheeled Katerna to a good view of the action. "Captain, will you and Terra keep an eye on my 'package'? She won't be any trouble."

"Of course, Ma'am." replied Korina with a grin.

Katerna (silently) watched her captor walk away, before turning her attention to the pile of trapped women. She could see the apparent original three at the center though not much of Jossi, with Jean blocking most of the Engineer. One of the Engineer's arms stretched out, palm pressed to the wall near by, but most of her was obscured, twisting in and out of sight.

Of Jean, she had a much clearer view, though there were a few obstructions. To a casual observer, the tall maid appeared to be the center of the issue and had more than one person seemingly stuck to her. Jean herself certainly appeared immobilized. For starters, her chin was tilted upward. Her shoulder length hair looked to have attached to her shoulders and back, not quite pinning her head in place but definitely limiting her motion. Her right arm was twisted above her head, her fingertips just touching Jossi's shoulder while the left was resting on the engineer's hip. The two looked to be bonded back to back, in addition to having their feet rooted to the floor.

Jekki's position was remarkably similar to Jean's with her back pressed to the Maid's leg. The main difference was that both her arms were above her head, with her hands stuck to Jean's, and perhaps Jossi's hip. Her own hips were somewhat twisted, likely due to her feet having stuck at odd angles to the floor, leaving her legs tangled together.

They had it bad, perhaps being the stickiest, but there were a few that had gotten themselves into arguably worse positions. Annise, for example, was in a sort of forced crouch. If Katerna had to guess, she'd tried to help and gotten her breasts stuck to Jean's ribs. Then in the process of trying to get free, thoroughly sandwiched both of her hands between her own breasts and Jean. Due to the location of the bond, her lack of hands, and her one foot that she couldn't seem to move, she did not look comfortable.

Reeva's straits were slightly less poor. She knelt in front of Jekki, her knees fixed in place, arms out-stretched, hands on the halfling's hips. Not a terrible predicament, but not a great one.

The others in the mass were doing their best to not make their situations worse. Malun stood at arms length because that was as far as she could get. Judging by the angle, her hand was gripping one of Jossi's breasts. Vicki had gotten one of her arms between Annise and Jean somehow, probable trying to tease Annise, and it looked to have fixed itself to Jean' torso. Tanji just had her feet stuck to the floor and was desperately trying not to touch anything else. And Sini, who was completely hidden behind Jossi, was apparently held by one ill-placed finger.

The Bard did have many questions, which, of course, she could not ask, so she lay in her stroller listening to the banter of those behind her, and the gripes and bickering of those in front, until the latter went silent, followed shortly by the former. Katerna perked up and turned to find the cause: Sarah had returned to the dungeon floor.

Katerna had only been back a short time, so the Mage being entirely naked, while new and interesting, did not strike her as unusual on a Moonday. She discovered later that this was not just a first for her, but perhaps everyone else aside from Terra. Sarah, herself, did have a touch of color in her cheeks, but seemed not to be noticing all the eyes on her in favor of the living sculpture. She stood with her arms folded behind her back and rather than embarrassment, her face was an odd mixture of amusement and confusion. Finally it was Jean who broke the atmosphere.

"Hey! Sarah!" The Maid called. "We could, um, use some help. There was... an accident."

The shout alerted Jossi, who because of her placement, had not seen the Mage enter. Her face twisted into view around Jean's body. "Oh! Sarah! Your back! Um, yes, I know you said to be careful, but things got away from me and..."

"I helped!" Jekki shouted, sounding almost proud of her contribution.

"Yes. Yes she did." Jossi confirmed. "So we're all... stuck like we are, with, you know, magic glue, and you said a spell could maybe get us... out so..."

"Mmm." replied Sarah, glancing to her left. "Hmm?"

"A spell, huh? I don't know, maybe... I mean she can't cast any right now and this looks really interesting."

Looking upwards, Katerna realized she'd been so focused on Sarah below her shoulders, she failed to notice the green figure on her left one, where Jix somewhat awkwardly sat, apparently also unclothed. Having unlocked her gaze from the Mage's body, the Bard similarly spotted Narani and Larenia had also arrived, though both were still wearing their shifts. 'Small wonder I didn't notice.' thought Katerna.

"This *is why we were called out here, Jix." put in Narani. She was examining the group of her trapped associates with an ill concealed grin and her words lacked any real conviction. "Jix currently has Sarah bound up with magic, lips included. Some negotiation may be required."

"That's what you get for interrupting us." said Jix. "So what happened here, Engineer Girl? I heard Sarah tell you to be careful."

"I *was careful!" returned Jossi. "I just... underestimated... the radius of... halfling chaos..."

"It's bigger than you think!" added Jekki brightly.

"Ah. I've made that mistake myself." replied Jix. "So what do you want?"

"Can I talk to Sarah?"

"Sure, she's right here." The grin was audible in the fey's voice.

"Yes, uh, but..." Jossi's words stumbled for a second. "I might need her to... talk back."

"Ooohhh... I see." Katerna wished she was close enough to read Jix's face as she spoke. The atomie sounded like she was enjoying herself. "What's it worth to you?"

"I, uh..."Jossi stammered again. "I really don't have much to trade right now. And you really don't want to touch me..."

"I bet if she did she'd be easier to negotiate with." added Jekki.

"Right." said Jossi. "Why don't we arrange another 'test' of this stuff later? You and me and Sarah. For um, letting, uh, her talk to me?"

"Hm, I like it." said Jix. "Sound good to you, Human?" She directed the question to her prisoner and ride.

As the Mage mumbled her replied, Katerna realized the rest of the room was silent, focusing on the show playing out in front of them. The Mage and Atomie were most certainly a boon to the Society, if not just for the sheer entertainment value.

"Ok, Sarah is good with your trade too." Said Jix. "I guess she can talked to you..."

"Pluah..." Sarah suddenly spluttered. "Ahem. So, the glue is working for you then?"

"Oh, Sarah!" Jossi exclaimed. "Um, yes. Ex-exactly as intended." The engineer's visible cheek colored. "Can you get us free?"

"Yes." replied Sarah. "Let's see what we've got." The Mage intoned a spell that Katerna recognized as 'detect magic'. It was most impressive that she was able to get it cast with her arms seemingly locked behind her back, her fingers twisting precisely. But after a moment, her eyes flashed bluish, and she looked around. "Oh my, that really is a mess! What happened? Did the dispenser come off?"

"No." said Jossi. "Someone bumped the bulb and sprayed it in the air. Things got sticky really fast after that. I'm not even sure where the vial went."

"It's stuck to my hand!" announced Jekki, wiggling the affected appendage as much as she was able.

"Ah ha." said Sarah. "Well, I will need to magically clean this up. Otherwise a few of you will be sticking to things for days and this area will be a trap for at least as long. Good news is I have the spells to efficiently do it. The bad news is I will need my hands to cast and direct the magic. One of the spells is quite short range, and the other will be a little tricky to pull off like this." She wiggled her folded arms. "So, Jix? Do you mind?"

"Hmm, I don't know..." mused Jix. "It's pretty funny with them all stuck there like that..."

"Oh, pretty please, Jix?" begged Jean. squirming ineffectually. "I'll promise not to call you Lady anymore."

"I was never going to curtsey!" Sini called out from the back of the pack.

"Pfft, fine."Jix grumbled. "But maybe you can let me out of--"

"Oh, no!" countered Sarah. "It's only been two weeks since you've seen me, but it's been months since I've seen you. Now that I've got you locked up, you're staying that way."

"Pfft..." said Jix again. Without even a gesture, the Mage's arms came loose and dropped to her sides. "Make it quick, Human."

"Thank you." Sarah flexed her newly freed arms. "And they'll stay stuck for a bit longer. Clean up first, or they'll just get stuck again right away. Now I need to find a place to set you. I'll be moving around, and don't want you falling off my shoulder."

"We're still tied together." replied Jix. "I can't go too far. You might just have to carry me. Or unchain me so I can fly."

"Oh! I have just the thing!" Larenia spoke up suddenly. "I have a rolling table right here!" She moved to the reduced Bard and rolled the cart back and forth a little. "You can set Jix down and we'll follow--"

Jix let out a noise that was likely a Sylvan expletive of some sort. She had apparently not noticed Katerna's predicament until her attention was drawn to it. "What happened?! You were fine before! Your arms and legs! Are you hurt? Are you--"