Temptation Protocol Pt. 02

A cacophony of pain and pleasure greeted them.

Chapter 10: Trial and Error

Fear ate Sarea from the inside out. She had read the red lettering across the building: Covenant. This was Covenant headquarters. None of this made any sense. Her client would have been thrilled to learn of this connection, but none of that mattered now. Now she was a prisoner, worse, a sex slave. Sarea followed the man in the black coat closely, her eyes never leaving the chain that encircled his neck. She'd never wear one of those, if she could help it.

The man never looked at her, nor did he ask her any questions. He just walked down hallway after hallway, assuming Sarea would follow. He was right, of course. Sarea had to understand her surroundings before plotting a way out. By any measure, The Citadel was a fortress. Opulent, to be sure, but a fortress nonetheless. As she followed the man, she tried to spy exits or landmarks of some kind, but the place was labyrinthine. An unwelcome thought flitted through her mind: there was no way out, this was it.

Sarea almost lost control then. The last few hours had been the worst of her life. Her mind tumbled through a future where she was kept in a windowless room and used as a set of holes by these scumbags. In that moment of weakness, Sarea sensed Lucas again. Having another person in your mind was its own nightmare. It was bizarre - his thoughts and emotions were there just like her own, except their texture and taste was different. Sarea imagined that, under better circumstances, it'd be pleasant - a palate cleanser for your own mind. But now all she wished for was escape from the intruder in her mind and this damned building.

The man stopped suddenly. Sarea had been so lost in her thoughts she had not tracked their path. The room was essentially a doctor's office - a treatment room. There was a bed with sterile paper on it, medical instruments - was this to be a physical?

Another man waited for them. Tall and lanky and dressed like a doctor, he didn't greet her. He lowered his glasses - blue readouts scrolled across his them - then he said, "No identification?"

Sarea smiled internally. She wasn't in any database. Except for the complete lapse of judgment earlier when she told that brute her name, her real name, she was completely anonymous.

Sarea shook her head at the man.

"Hm," the doctor said. He looked behind Sarea and two strong hands gripped her arms.

Sarea struggled, but it was for naught. Without her mods, she was nothing compared to these men. They dragged her to the bed and strapped her down. Unlike last night's bondage, there was nothing sexual here. The doctor needed to work, and to do that, he needed his patient to be still.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Sarea asked.

"Watch your mouth, young lady," the doctor said. His tongue darted in and out of his mouth like a snake as he worked.

"Keep your hands off of me, fuckwad," Sarea snarled.

With a sigh, the doctor put down his instruments and looked to the man who had escorted her there. Sarea followed his look and saw the man retrieve a ball gag.

"No! No!" she said.

"Will you be quiet, then?" the doctor asked?

Sarea looked between the men, hate in her eyes, then nodded. The doctor picked up his stethoscope and scanner and resumed his work. A monitor whirred on the counter behind him, readouts flying across the screen. Sarea gleaned what she could. He was scanning her implants - he wouldn't find all of them, she knew - as well as a general health check up.

When that finished, he said, "I'm going to give you some local anesthetic on your neck for a more permanent inhibitor, ok? Little pinch here,"

Before Sarea could react, the needle was in, numbing her neck and shoulder completely. The doctor worked quickly. Sarea felt pressure, then a pinch, then he was done.

"All done. Now vaccinations, birth control, and we're all done here," the doctor said as he removed the inhibiting band from her arm.

Sarea tried to activate her mods, but they were inert. A few shots followed, then the doctor looked her in the eyes and said, "I'm going to undo these restraints now. You aren't going to struggle right, my man here can take care of you if he needs to."

Fury boiled inside Sarea, but she was helpless. She nodded.

"Good girl," the doctor said. After a few injections, Sarea tried to read what they were but it was useless, the doctor finished. Sarea felt like human cattle, injected with so many drugs and kept as livestock.

This doctor was the first on Sarea's list. The list of people who'd die when she was free. Once the restraints were off, the Kept who had stayed in the room with her escorted back through the maze-like Citadel. They walked through lounges and what seemed to be a cafe before ending up in the residential section. The man keyed into a doorway that led to a large, well-furnished apartment.

The man said, "You'll stay here with your bonded partner."

He touched the wall and a door slid up and open to reveal a closet with clothes that would fit in well in the Upper City, as well as a few pieces of lingerie. Sarea noted with distaste that all of the outfits were skirts or dresses. There was also a selection of underwear and what Sarea assumed were pajamas.

"You're to shower now and groom yourself - clean shaven everywhere, then dress for him to return," the man said matter-of-factly.

Sarea responded, "And what if I don't?"

The Kept sighed, "Look, I understand. I didn't want to be here at first, either. The only people you will hurt by not doing what I say is me and you. It's your choice, I won't force you."

Sarea heard the truth in what he was saying. "I never thought I'd die in a sex cult," she said.

The man laughed, "We aren't a sex cult, but I can see why you'd think that. Shower and dress. When you come out, I will teach you the rest of the basics."

"You aren't to wear the chain in the closet until you are told to. When one of the more senior Kept greet you, you are to return the greeting in kind or you will be punished. Do you understand?"

Sarea nodded, "Yes, I do."

"You are also not to make eye contact with any unchained until you have attained a higher rank. Our chains indicate our rank," the man fingered his silver chain, "I am an Accepted, so you will listen to me. The thickness of the chain, as well as its material indicate rank. Gold is the highest. Unchained are above them. Do you understand?"

Sarea nodded.

"Good. If you do get punished," the man eyed her up and down, "And I think you will, they will tell you to assume the position. Do as I do," he said. The man knelt onto the ground, spread his legs as far as he could, and laid his hands palms up on his thighs. He opened his mouth wide and looked directly at Sarea.

After a moment, he rose and said, "Do you understand?"

"There's no way I'm doing that," she said.

The man sighed, "Yes, you will, and it would be better for us if you learned just a smidgen of humility and self preservation. Show me you understand."

Sarea considered his words. Of course they'd make her do this. Perhaps it was better to play along until she knew what she was in for? She knelt like the man had before, placed her hands on her thighs. The man corrected her gently with his hands, spreading her legs until they could go no further, telling her to open her mouth.

When he was satisfied, he said, "Not all bonds are about dominance and submission, but until you have been fully initiated, you need to know how to behave. Good luck in your deepening tonight, you'll need it."

"My what now?" Sarea asked, but the man ignored the question. He turned and left without another word, the door whirring open and closed behind him.

Sarea tried to follow, but, of course, the door wouldn't open for her. She surveyed the apartment: three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a nice view of the city below. In her mind, she sensed Lucas somewhere across the building. He was agitated and scared, too. Sarea slumped onto the couch, put her head in her hands, and cried.

Chapter 11: Bonds Made of Pain and Pleasure

Mattie had led them into a world of sex that Lucas could never have imagined. The room was another vast lounge with divans, pillows, and rugs all about. A chandelier hung from the ceiling and twinkled with soft, yellow light. Somewhere, built-in speakers played soft electronic music. Tinted windows let in the late afternoon sun, but Lucas paid almost no mind to his surroundings. His eyes were affixed on the people. Women, men, and enbies of all shapes and sizes were in various states of distress or ecstasy. The collared and chained all wore nothing or next to nothing. If they did wear something, it was sheer lingerie that hugged their bodies and left nothing to the imagination. r Their unchained partners were similarly undressed.

Mattie stepped carefully over a man writhing on the ground, restrained at the wrists and feet. A woman in a leather corset and heels had fingers in his ass and was jerking him off at an agonizingly slow pace. Mattie said softly, "This is where our bound couples come to relax and explore."

Lucas ogled the scene. A blindfolded woman screamed in pain as her trainer ripped a cord of clothespins off her breasts. Another man gently jerked a woman's cock as he pushed slowly into her ass. It was pure hedonism, dionysian delight that made Lucas incredibly uneasy and incredibly hard.

Mattie navigated through the throng of deviants and led Lucas through a doorway in the back. The pair entered into a long, dark hallway that led to another spacious room, though it had very little furniture to speak of. The large room had only a single light in the center and no external windows, which left most of the room in a saturnine glow. On each side of the room were four small cells, each with a one-way window and an air-tight door. It was eerily silent.

"This is the bonding area. We have two - a private and a public - and each serves a different purpose," Mattie leveled a look at Lucas, "They're also the only places in the citadel that don't have mics or cameras."

Why would she tell me that, Lucas wondered. Mattie led them to one of the windows. The room inside was spare as well, with a massage table, some seating, sound dampening wall hangs, and a wall full of sex toys: plugs, gags, whips, chains. A naked woman, small and thick, had been bound to the table, her wrists at her head. A leather-clad woman stood above her.

Mattie flicked a switch next to the window. It was a speaker, and Lucas could hear the couple inside.

"Are you ready, darling?" the leather-clad woman asked.

"Yes, master."

The tall woman picked a syringe up off of the workbench and tested the plunger. A blue liquid squirted out. She then rubbed a spot on the bound woman's arm in alcohol and stuck her with the needle, plunging the liquid into her arm. The woman on the table seemed to melt. Disiac, had to be. Her skin flushed across her body, her nipples grew hard. The domme took another needle of blue liquid and stuck it in her own hip. The effects were immediate on her as well. A low moan came from the woman on the table as her domme mounted her. The domme kissed down her body, stopping from time to time to leave the lightest of hickies. The domme's hands cupped the bound woman's small breasts, then continued kissing down to her hips. After a moment of hesitation, the domme latched her mouth on the Kept woman's clit. The bound woman's hips undulated, and her moans crackled out of the speaker.

"Injection? I didn't know it was injectable," Lucas said.

Mattie nodded and switched the speaker off, "Yes. Injections induce permanent bonds, permanent changes. Sprays are temporary. Their effects resolve within a few days. Was your bonding a spray?"

Lucas nodded, "So that means she'll be out of my mind soon? The drug won't be fucking with my body anymore?"

Mattie nodded, "Yes, but I expect you already have a deepening session planned for later today."

Lucas's chest tightened. "I didn't plan one," he said.

"I'm sure Sten did," Mattie replied.

"Deepening makes it permanent?" Sten asked.

Mattied nodded.

We have to get out of here before then, Lucas thought. His anxiety went unnoticed by Mattie, or she ignored it. She continued speaking, "Each strain of Disiac has a specific purpose. I'm sure there are scientific names for them, but we just call them by their color or their purpose. Here, Callie is modifying the bond she has with Shela with blue, or Imprinting."

"What's that do?" Lucas asked.

Mattie explained, "Imprinting enables communication - words - between the Kept and their owner. In exchange, it limits emotions. Callie won't feel Shela as much anymore, but they will be able to communicate."

Lucas turned to her, aghast, and said, "You're telling me this isn't slavery?"

Mattie smiled and replied, "No, this is not slavery. Imagine if Shela were unwilling. Callie would then be opening her mind to Shela's constant protests, constant rage. It would be unbearable. No, Shela has chosen to be here."

Lucas thought that over, then mumbled, "Probably what I'm looking forward to. My bond was...not willing."

Mattie raised an eyebrow, "Most aren't, at first, but when they feel what the bond can do, how it changes you, most change their minds. Even if she doesn't, you don't need to Imprint. There are other types of bonds."

"Like what?" Lucas asked.

Mattie answered as she resumed walking around the room, "There are many, and I'm sure I don't know all of them. Black: Submission. It reinforces a person's submissive traits until they become puddy in their owner's hands."

Mattie stopped in front of a window where a woman in a ball gag sat on a sybian saddle, her arms restrained above her. As the woman orgasmed, she tried to pull herself off the vibrating saddle, but it was to no avail. A man crouched next to her, speaking into her ear. The woman nodded fervently in response.

Mattie continued, "Gold: Dominance. It is almost always paired with black. It heightens the dominant traits in a person, sometimes to cruelty," Mattie reflexively touched a scar Lucas had not noticed before on her neck.

Mattie walked to the next room and stopped, "Ah, Red: Masochist. This blurs the line in the pleasure and pain center of the brain. All pain is pleasure, regardless of what you personally feel on this drug."

Lucas stepped up to the window next to her to see a swarthy man with a fade and piercings spray red mist into a smaller man's face. Metal cuffs and a leather harness restrained the smaller man, keeping him bent over a padded sawhorse. Within seconds of the spray, the unrestrained man slapped the smaller man's cock hard, causing Lucas to wince. However, the man shook in ecstasy.

Lucas looked at Mattie through the side of his eyes, "What's the point of that spray?"

Mattie looked back at him with a smirk, "There are many reasons we'd want pain to feel good. And the strains of disiac we use here change your brain forever. It is important you remember that - the bond between Kept and Owner strengthens, deepens with each encounter like this. Eventually, with the right strain, an owner can inhabit a Kept's body, see through it, hear through it, even taste and feel."

Lucas's jaw dropped, "Like possession?"

Mattie nodded, "Yes, but willingly. A Kept must invite this and, even with all the Disiac in the world, can stop it at any moment. That's why it's imperative that the bonds are supported by affection, care, even love."

Lucas's mind touched the spot in his head where the bundle of Sarea's emotions lived. She was annoyed. How the hell am I going to fake this? What have I done?

The sadness and fear must have shown on Lucas's face, for Mattie put a hand on his arm and said, "Don't worry. Like I said, not all bonds go to that level, nor do they need to."

"Can't I just free her now?" Lucas said.

A sympathetic frown appeared on Mattie's face, "You could," she put a hand on Lucas's arm, "But Covenant won't let her out now. She's seen too much. Isn't it better to have a bond with someone who cares for her?"

Lucas studied Mattie's face. She was being sincere. Was there no way out of this? It all seemed so wrong. It didn't matter what the "work" was, what they were doing here was wrong, right?

Mattie saw his turmoil, "I was like your bond, at first, but once I took up the work we do here, I came to love my life. Your bond will, too, I suspect," Mattie stepped up to Lucas so that her breasts and thigh grazed his body, "You seem to care a great deal about your bond. You will both be surprised at how far that will take you."

"You keep talking about the work, what is the work?" Lucas asked.

Mattie said, "We're information brokers. We're hackers, fighters, soldiers. We're the nation's, maybe even the world's, best courtesans. We're spies, Lucas. And the ends justify the means, despite what you may think."

"Spies for who?" Lucas asked.

"Answering that is above my paygrade. Shall we resume?" Mattie said.

Lucas nodded, "I guess, but the more you say, the more confused I am,"

Mattie giggled, turned, and continued explaining each strain as they walked past the dungeons. Pink: Bonding, used to initiate bonds, used to increase the power of the bond in a general sense. Purple: Sadism. Green: Denial. No orgasms, no release, just endless building. Yellow: Sensitivity. Similar to pink but with touch heightened, often used to cancel green. There were more, but Mattie said she didn't know them.

Mattie walked past the other windows. In one, a scrawny man was struggling with all his might on a wooden cross. A woman teased his cock with a gloved hand, lube and precum dripping off of it. Mattie flicked the comms open.

He was screaming. He yelled, "Please, PLEASE let me come PLEASE!"

The woman replied, "Who owns you?"

"You! For God's sake you please! Please!"

Mattie flipped the comms off again. The woman continued to edge the man.

Lucas stopped Mattie, "Green?"

Mattie nodded, "And Purple, I suspect. Yara looks like she's ready to come, too."

Mattie led them out of the room and down a dark hallway. They turned this way and that until Luke had no concept of where they might be. The tour picked up speed, as though they were behind schedule. They stopped in the public bonding area. It was similar to the previous room, except without walls or privacy. People of all genders were in various states of pain and ecstasy, strapped to tables, being flogged or fucked. Lucas felt numb to it all, by now. Another set of hallways and they were at reception again.

Lucas felt Sarea. They were moving toward her. Mattie retrieved a room key for Lucas and escorted him through the lounge and into the private quarters area. Eventually, Mattie stopped in front of his room.

She said, "Here we are."

Mattie swiped them inside. Sarea waited for them. She stood as they entered. She had changed into some of the stylish, practical clothes that had been left in the closet: a form fitting white blouse and black miniskirt with thigh-high leggings and heels. Her collar shone on her neck. Lucas stepped inside, and, to avoid looking at Sarea, he explored the apartment. It was lavish by Lucas's standards, with the living room looking out over the soaring skyscrapers of the Upper City.Down a hall to the right were bedrooms and bathrooms, more than Lucas expected. It dawned on him then: these quarters were meant for people with multiple bonds.

Finally, with nothing else to distract himself with, he returned to the living room and said, "Hi."

Mattie said, "Done exploring? Introduce me to your bond, Lucas."

"Ahem, this is Sarea, Sarea, Mattie," Lucas mumbled.