The Cost of My Dreams Ch. 05

I continued to pet her as she struggled until Michael announced "Your three-minute timer has expired."

I rolled her on her side and cut the rope holding her chest harness to her ankles. Then I had her roll on her belly and started to massage her, getting her relaxed for the next tie.

Time had been running out when 2791 was kenneled with our group. In another two weeks, we'd be boosting to low earth orbit for the last of our training and then join Ares Rising at the lunar gateway station for the final inspection and selection of the fourth crew member. We were in unstructured study Mistress Springfield showed up and put a new name card for "2791" in what had been Angela's kennel. Mistress Springfield was a stickler for not rewarding curiosity in slaves, but she would have been disappointed if we didn't ask, so we did and got the predictable put-down in response.

During free play, Mistress Springfield led 2791 in on a leash. 2791 was a thirtyish white woman of medium height with brown hair. She was slave naked, of course, and wearing a high-tech collar similar to ours. Notwithstanding her changed circumstances, I recognized Ms Brown, who had reported to former Deputy Project Chief Master Booth and helped cover for him. So did the others. Erin, Denise, and I all gave her unfriendly looks.

"Storm," said Mistress Springfield, addressing Denise and giving her a riding crop, "take charge of Two Seven Nine One. Help her become the slave she needs to be for the remaining two months of her indenture. Pass on your experience and restrict yourself to ordinary slave on slave discipline."

"Yes mistress," said Denise. She pointed at a slave pad and ordered: "Slave spread." Two Seven Nine One knelt, her knees spread wide and her fingers laced behind her neck.

Denise controlled her anger while walking around behind Two Seven Nine One. I said "Thunder was worth three of you. Maybe we can make you as happy as she is now. Would you like that?"

"No mistress," said Two Seven Nine One. "Two Seven Nine One seeks to preserve her mind for the pleasure and convenience of her owners, mistress."

Denise circled Two Seven Nine One a couple of times and then said "Master Marshall has given you the opportunity to learn from your misjudgment. Are you being scheduled for slave service full-time or only after hours?"

It was Mistress Springfield who answered. "Full time until you lift for low earth orbit, then she'll return to her normal duties during working hours and be available for slave services to janitorial staff, maintenance contractors, and others who she would not, in the ordinary course of things, direct or answer to, after hours."

"This girl thanks mistress for allowing her to instruct this new slave," said Denise. "This girl will ensure that Two Seven Nine One receives such wisdom as this girl has gained in her indenture, mistress."

"Very good," said Mistress Forrester. "She is a high-value slave and should be managed as such. That doesn't mean you shouldn't be strict with her; quite the opposite."

She walked over and stroked Amy's face. "Be a good slave and learn from this experience."

2791 was required to address all of us as mistress and provide slave services for us and we took great delight in making her grovel and lick us. There were strict limits, however, as Master Michael never slept and never stopped monitoring us. Besides, she had a future at this company. We might end up answering to her at some point.

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I was exchanging email with Susan and Cheryl. Ares Rising was being fully fueled at the lunar gateway station and Susan and Cheryl spent much of their time providing slave services for the astronauts on the station. Cheryl was about to be dispatched to Eagle Base on the lunar surface. Until Ares Rising departed or their indentures expired, they would remain slaves, and there had been no slave astronauts until now.

Both Susan and Cheryl provided details about how to have sex in zero gravity. Basically, you needed external elastic measures to keep the partners together while allowing movement, unless you were doing oral, and even then it was far better to be bungeed to your partner. One favored position was to restrain the slave bent over an object and use bungees to hold the master's waist near the slave's rear and have him take her from behind. There was also a two-part suit for face-to-face intercourse. Because of the limitations of the zero-gee toilet, however, anal was off the table.

Slave services were not, of course, limited to sex. Simply getting a meal or drinks served by a suitably submissive slave is one of the pleasures of a master. While zero gravity makes ordinary slave yoga commands impossible, having the slave serve the other astronauts and restrain itself in a kneeling position near their feet while they ate and drank, was satisfactory for the station staff.

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I measured the distance with a laser and used the reaction wheels to adjust the attitude of the Scorpio 7 mod 2 maintenance vehicle. I was about to use the navigation jets to move to my next objective marker around the construction station, but I thought better of the matter. It was easy enough to do this thru the regular navigation system, but I was here to train, not prove I could do the easy.

"Master Black, Star would like to try reaching the next waypoint using the MM Manual," I asked over the radio.

"Wait one," said Master Black. Then, thirty seconds later he said "Proceed, but if you manage to run out of fuel so we have to send someone out to get you, be prepared for a caning. Watch your fuel and don't overcorrect."

I powered down the main guidance system and energized a set of emergency controls with its own power system, entirely separate from the main power systems of the vehicle. Direct, unmoderated control of the navigation jets. I could control the jets individually or use a six-way joystick to control yaw, pitch, and roll.

I was mostly going sideways with respect to our orbit, and I had already completed my course calculations and pointed the vehicle accordingly, so I gave a burst of the jets and started moving toward the objective but the burst had been centered slightly below the center of mass, so I started to pitch slowly upward. Carefully I stopped that pitch with the joystick and, after a few tries, managed to correct the attitude. Nothing I hadn't done in simulation, but the first time I'd tried it using the actual vehicle.

I made it to the next waypoint and used backing jets to stop, relative to the marker. I developed a downward pitch and corrected that, then used the vehicle's claws to attach to the marker. Master Black said, "Do the next waypoint the same way." For most of the remainder of the exercise, I used the MM Manual, though I needed guidance computation from the station for some of the maneuvers. I did turn the guidance system back on for docking. No point in risking damage to the vehicle or the station.

I unplugged my life support pack from the power, oxygen, and coolant systems of the vehicle, exited the vehicle and climbed carefully into the airlock, entering the station.

Per my standing orders, once I was thru the airlock I stripped quickly. When I was slave naked, wearing only my collar and a body harness, I secured my harness to a fixture and started to clean my EVA suit. Denise put on her suit and went out to service the vehicle and do her training. Erin was still working on her life support pack from her own training. She said, "Do you remember when my brother got tossed out by the Sharks?"

I nodded and she continued, "He's been unemployed and underemployed since then. No one wants to be associated with him. The bank just foreclosed on his student loan."

I wasn't sure how to respond for a moment, but then I realized that, if she wanted a nuanced or sympathetic take, she'd be emailing Susan. Since she was talking to me, I said "He's handsome if a little rough looking, muscular and he has anger issues. I think he'll sell as rough trade."

"He might make a pony boy instead."

"He could, but everyone's seen his little temper tantrum on the news. It's the one thing that's special about him. After what he did to you, it's what he deserves."

"God help us all from getting what we truly deserve. I deserved this indenture because of my foolishness."

"If you don't get the fourth mission slot, will you be sorry to have experienced slavery?"

"I'm not sure. We've been sheltered from the worst of it, but it hasn't been nearly as bad as I feared. I have new skills. I'm out of debt. It has changed me in ways it will take me years to understand. What about you?"

"It would be completely unworkable, of course, but if we're to have a system that allows slavery, everyone should have to experience a few months in the collar. If this is what our economy is built on, everyone should have to know about it firsthand."

"Even if you could make that work, it would just make a lot of them that much crueler. You're my friend, but you would be a very difficult mistress to please and unstinting in your corrections. Slavery hasn't made you sympathetic to slaves."

"It's not about being sympathetic; it's about being informed. As easy as we've had it in so many ways, we now know something of the life of a slave. The rest of society should too."

"All hail Star, high priestess of the Temple of Persephone," she said, smiling. "Let her show you the true path of enlightenment via the collar and the whip."

I smiled too; it was a hopelessly impractical suggestion. While we worked, we joked about which politicians and celebrities we'd like to enlighten and with what implements.

Our days included two hours of exercise to maintain strength and fitness in zero gravity. When we weren't training or studying, we provided non-sexual slave services to the station crew, serving them food and drink while proclaiming our slavery to them. Sometimes we performed sex acts on each other while they watched. They could look, but they weren't allowed to touch.

Erin, Denise, and I were assigned in rotation each night to a different member of the primary crew. Sometimes, they were not in the mood for sex and instead only talked with us and possibly accepted oral. As Khan's Handbook notes, talking with a slave who knows herself such is an underrated but very real pleasure of the master or mistress. It was not just our bodies, but our minds that were to be used for their pleasure and convenience.

Master Black was interested in my upbringing and I told him stories of my dad, my first love, and my slave grading at the Baltimore Slave Market. Master Jefferson was interested in why I accepted my indenture and what I planned to do after I was free. He also shared my sadness for the old commonplace slaves at the Sharks. Mistress Gonzales was interested in my slave training and what had been done to me at the Sharks. She had, in fact, quite an interest in the whole process. She professed to be horrified but I could tell it aroused her. She even had me demonstrate some of the ties from Alfred's Traditional Slave Ropework on her, restraining her as I went down on her and drove her to orgasm while she attempted to resist.

When we completed training, we were moved from the construction station to the lunar gateway station. Then we started the final inspection of Ares Rising and its associated vehicles. Master Black called me to a conference room on the station to interview me.

"Why should I pick you?" he asked.

"Master should choose Star because Star has a passion for this mission and her slave skills are better than those of Flame or Strom and Flame, Storm, and Star are all technically qualified. Star will serve her masters with all her heart, master.

"Why should I pick Storm?" he asked.

"Master should pick Storm because of her willpower, focus, and her determination to anticipate the needs of her masters. She is qualified both technically and as a slave, master. She would serve you well, master."

"Why shouldn't I pick Flame?" he asked.

I took a moment to think. I did not want to undercut Erin, but I had to answer my master's question truthfully. I said "Flame is smarter than Star is, but she was tricked into her indenture, master. She did not love this mission so much that she would volunteer for slavery, master."

"Do not discuss this with the others until I've interviewed all three of you. Get Flame and send her to me."

When all three of us had been interviewed, we reviewed our questions and answers. Erin told me "I think you've finished me, but I forgive you. You didn't betray me; your answer was correct. I didn't love this mission enough to volunteer for slavery and I'll be happy to be free again. If you win, that's nineteen more months of slavery."

Denice was less than forthcoming about what she had said, which I forgave. Running us down wasn't necessarily a winning strategy. If she won, I would shortly be free, wiser and stronger for my experience as a slave. As booby prizes went, that was not such a bad one.

Master Black called the rest of the primary crew and the three of us to a conference room the next main day morning after breakfast. He said "Star, your interview proved that you would serve me with your mind, even if it went against your own interests and values. You are my choice for the fourth crew slot."

Erin hugged me. The choice was made. I would be going to Mars.

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