The Order of Zarathustra, Ch. 05

Zarathustra Chapter 5

Independence Day

Rachel paced on the porch of the cabin next to all of her gear. She had drove Khan's old truck to the back of the field and parked it just inside the treeline. She left the keys in the holder under the bumper. He planned on coming down here with some heavy equipment and a friend, and wanted a way to come back on his own. Her instructions said her ride would be here by 9am on Friday, July 3^rd. So she was impatiently waiting for her ride back to the city.

Kayden's diablo red Mustang 5.0 roared down into the valley in a cloud of dust. She skidded to a stop in front of the cabin, throwing gravel. She got out made the hand signal to Atlanta to jump out. The well trained poodle leaped out of the convertible, eagerly running over to Rachel and jumping up on her affectionately. "Sup Hooker! Need a ride?" Kayden lowered her smoked Ray-bans to get a good look at Rachel. "Damn girl. You looking good!"

Rachel batted the eager dog down and wiped her sweaty brown hair out of her eyes. She looked down at her torn, soiled and sweat stained T shirt, then at Kayden. She had her long blonde hair pulled through a pink Bass Pro ball cap for driving with the top down. She wore a baby blue T shirt at least one size too small for her chest with SWEET BABY JESUS printed on it. A pair of Daisy Dukes slung low on her hips and cowboy boots completed the look. "Yeah, thank you so much. I'm gross, I know. Haven't had a shower or an indoor shit in two weeks. See how you'd look."

"I'd still look like this. Show me around real quick, then we gotta jet." Rachel led her around to the back of the cabin, heading towards her field. Kayden stopped dead in her tracks. "Whoa. That wasn't there before. You made that?" She pointed towards Rachel's firepit. It was a broad, low circular thing made out of field stones from the creek bed and some spare rebar.

"Yeah, I finished the field day before yesterday, so I figured, Khan can bring some extra concrete down. I just piled some rocks in the truck and brough them up here. The fire grill is just rebar set into the concrete that holds the stones together. I hope that's okay."

Kayden snapped a couple pictures with her digital camera. "More than okay. That's really impressive. Really adds some pop. And you got the whole main field cleared?"

"Well, yeah. I got the other side of the creek, but I didn't know how far to go back into the tree line, so it might not be as done over there as you want."

Kayden frowned and looked at her. "Other side of the creek?" She waved her arm at the long grassy expanse before them. "Wait you did all this AND the narrow field on the other side?"

Rachel put her hands on her hips. "That's what you guys told me to do!"

Kayden laughed and hugged her dirty Apprentice. "No, babygirl! We just meant this field! I didn't think you'd even get all this done! Holy shit, come on, show me!"

The two women set off at a fast jog through the property, Atlanta running full tilt in laps around the field. Kayden took pictures of the fields, the stacks of cedar fenceposts and building timbers, the pile of cut firewood. There were enough new fence posts that Khan could finish the field's perimeter basically for free, enhancing the property's value considerably. Rachel was so happy and proud that her Master was impressed. "The big guy's gonna lose his shit when he sees this. You did good girl, really. OK, reward time. Let's get back to town, we got a date at noon."

They stowed Rachel's gear in the trunk and beat feet back to St. Louis. Rachel told her Master all about the Ordeal. Not just the heat and the work, but also about Alan.

"I'm surprised he let you talk to him like that. I've hardly even said two words to him. I'm not sure what Khan's got on him, but he's got like some kind of hero worship going or something."

"He was vague, he said something about Khan doing him a couple favors. Some home renovations, loaned him some money I think. Wait, Khan didn't tell you about him?"

"Not really. We don't keep secrets, but we don't share everything either. He said he gave his word to keep it private, even from me. You know him, so that's that. Won't let me meet him. He told me Alan would just turn to water if he was with me for five minutes, even at my nicest."

"I believe it. So, is it OK if I keep calling him?"

Kayden grinned at her student as they passed everything on the interstate. "Got a taste for it, did ya? It's OK by me, but really that's Khan's call. Just watch it with Alan. Newbie lovers should be treated like that campsite back there. Leave them in better shape than you found them. And I think that guy's as fragile as they come."

They got back to the house, and Rachel pounded up the main stairs, then started going down the hall that led to the spiral staircase up to the attic level, where her modest shower awaited.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, where do think you're going?" Kayden asked at the head of the stairs, opening up the door to the master bedroom. She beckoned Rachel back. "Boss bitches deserve a real shower. In here, kid." Rachel stepped hesitantly into the master bedroom suite. She had never been allowed in here before. "Hoe. Lee. Shit." It was spectacular.

The huge bedroom was dominated by a California King four poster centered on the far wall. The posts were gnarled driftwood tree trunks, polished and stained a golden honey. They went all the way up to the ceiling, where they joined an intricate weave of similar stained branches and vines attached to the ceiling as a canopy for the bed. A white marble fireplace stood on the other wall, with several doors leading off from the main room. The whole room was done in that rich golden wood, except for the thick burgundy carpet and similar colored chair rail. It was immaculate. Large antique gilt mirrors hung over each of the two immense, wide dressers.

Kayden led her through a door into the master bath. The shower stall was a huge custom job done in grey and black slate tile. It was so big Rachel couldn't quite touch the walls if she stood in the middle. She gleefully stripped in front of her Master as Kayden explained the controls. She took twenty blissful minutes soaking in multidirectional power blasts of pulsating decadence. Afterwards, Kayden hurried her along into a change of clothes, then they skipped out to the mall. They got to Sharon's Spa for their noon appointment. Rachel received an hour long head to toe massage from a thick fingered lesbian named Kelly. She wasn't used to the air conditioning and it had her in goosebumps. Then they both got mani pedis. Finally, Kayden talked her into seriously changing her hair style. She had a foot chopped off, from the middle of her back to just at the base of her neck. Then she had it dyed jet black. Rachel swore she felt ten pounds lighter just from that. She barely recognized herself.

Kayden kept pushing her along, since they were getting pressed for time. They went into an upscale dress shop and tried on some outfits. Kayden got a pink silk number that crossed over her chest in an X with a fine show of cleavage, connecting to a calf length flowing skirt with a slit up to the thigh. It showed off her toned arms and belly nicely. Rachel came out of the dressing room, stunned.

"I'm a 10? I'm a size TEN!" Before she had moved in with Khan and Kayden, she was a 16, pushing it to 18 if she wasn't careful. She knew she had been losing weight, over 30 pounds up to this point, but two weeks of broiling and toiling in the summer heat had finished baking the baby fat off her. She couldn't get over how good she looked in her new dress.

It was a sleeveless summer dress, knee length, cut with just a hint of cleavage without being slutty about it. It was an intense blue with blazes of white swirling diagonally around her like an ice cream sundae. It stretched slightly over her curves without seeming constricting. A pair of strappy sandals completed the summer look and showed off her new pedicure. Both women couldn't stop smiling. "No more sweats for you. Now you know why you wore shitty clothes the first few months. You were losing weight so fast new ones would just be a waste of cash. Now that you're hitting the sweet spot, we can tailor your diet so you can hold steady. I'm really impressed, kid, I really am. I am your Fairy Fucking Godmother."

They jumped in the Mustang, putting up the top so their new hairstyles wouldn't get killed in the wind. "And now, Cinderella... To the Ball!" They popped back to the house first, picking up Khan. He was dressed in tooled black cowboy boots, black slacks and a white dress shirt, open at the neck. When Rachel got out to slip back into the cramped rear seat, he let out a whistle.

"My dear, you look radiant. Just smashing." He crushed her in a warm, tender bear hug in greeting. She felt smashed in the back seat, Khan still looking cramped in the shotgun seat. Kayden complained -- again -- that they really needed to get a bigger vehicle, perhaps a Tahoe. They shared stories about their two weeks apart as they went back out to the edge of the city to the party.

Their friends owned a sprawling five bedroom ranch on the shore of a private lake down in Jefferson county. Cars lined the street for a block in either direction as they pulled up. There were at least a hundred people here already, and it was only five; when the fireworks started at nine there would easily be double that. The house didn't just have a porch overlooking the lake. It had a multilevel complex of decks leading down to an expansive backyard. A tent pavilion to the side sheltered a catered buffet and a full wet bar. Red white and blue bunting decorated everything. Children ran around playing as old people threw horseshoes. The backyard ended at the lakeshore, with a bump of an island about fifty feet out from shore. You could just barely see the other houses and parties ringing the lake.

Khan and Kayden led their Apprentice through the crowd to meet the hosts. She saw that maybe half the guests wore upscale attire like they did. The rest didn't get the memo and wore jeans and T shirts. Michael and Julia, the masters of the house, reminded her of Southern Hobbits. Both were petite people, just over and under five foot. They were eccentric life long Kentucky Derby enthusiasts, and they were trying to give their yearly celebration of America a classier feel. All smiles and Southern charm. After a little small talk, the Stones excused her with a nudge to go mingle. She nipped a champagne glass off a table unnoticed, and eventually found herself up on the topmost deck, taking it all in. She was really just minding her own business, leaning on the railing. She heard chuckling behind her. A knot of teenage boys were up there, cutting up with each other. They started pushing and nudging one of them over to her, cracking up as they did.

"Uh, hi. I'm Brandon." She smiled at him, then scowled at his jerk friends as they snickered. They obviously put him up to this just to watch him crash and burn. He looked like a nice enough guy. He was kind of small, just a little taller than her, and thin. He wore a dress shirt and a power tie. He pushed his glasses up and cleared his throat. "I was wondering if, uh, you'd want to dance?"

She side eyed his friends. "Sure. I like a man with confidence." She killed the champagne glass, grabbed his hand and led him down the stairs as his friends fell out in disbelief. The speakers were playing Sheryl Crow's new summer ballad, Soak up the Sun. Not the best for dancing.

He leaned in close. "I don't really know how to dance." She put her arms around his neck and whispered back. "Me neither. I was hoping you did. Let's just shuffle around in a circle then."

That got them giggling. He looked up at the deck, where the guys were watching. "Thanks for doing this. They, uh, they bet me five bucks you'd walk off. Said nobody could get laid in a tie like this. Shit!" he grimaced as he finished, realizing what he just said.

"Hey it's cool," she said, trying not to step on his toes. "It's just an expression. Shows what they know. You look good."

"Really? Thanks! I wasn't going to wear it, but my Mom works with Julia there, and she said no way I could show up without it." He nodded over at a distinguished looking black couple talking with the hosts. His mom, she assumed, beamed at him when she recognized him, before going into a full Mom who-is-that-girl glare at Rachel. Hope she's okay with me being white, she thought. She wrapped herself a little tighter around Brandon and ran a hand across his close cut fade. "Be sure to thank her for making you dress up. You look really good."

They spent the rest of the evening together, eating barbecue and even snagging a couple of mimosas from the bar when they realized they wouldn't get carded. She wasn't surprised when he said he was 18 and had just graduated high school; he was surprised she wasn't over 21. After dinner, more and more people started dancing as the sun lowered. Kayden grabbed her when AC/DC came on, and for a while she danced with a mob of women to Shook me All night Long, then then obligatory Macarena. When Lenny Kravitz' American Woman came on, Kayden did her PG version of her stripper routine to howls of delight. Quite the attention whore on the dance floor, that one. After two weeks in isolation, Rachel was in social overstimulation.

As the sun set, white lawn chairs were set out and a dozen men, Khan among them, used a pontoon boat to ferry four full sized sheets of plywood studded with fireworks over to the island. Brandon leaned over and touched Rachel's hand to get her attention. "Mom says they do this every year. Michael wires all of them together in series with cannon fuse. Builds them in his garage. The fuse is even cut so the explosions are timed to the music. Said he spends like three or four grand just on fireworks for this." She noticed his hand lingered with hers. She held it as the show started. Michael the Hobbit didn't disappoint. One blowtorch lit the first fuse, and for a full half hour commercial grade rockets, mortars and fountains blasted off to choreographed patriotic songs, lighting up the night and raising cheers from around the entire lake.

After the show, with many cheers and congratulations to the hosts, the party started breaking up. Most of the people headed out to their cars, but at least a few dozen strayed out to the dance floor for what was shaping up to be an after party. Brandon saw his parents packing up their things. "I guess that's it, then", he said wistfully.

"Wait, didn't you say you drove here yourself?"

"Yeah, I changed at work and drove out from there. Why?"

Rachel looked at him like he was slow. "If you have your own car here, why leave when they do?" You could tell the question stunned him. He'd never even considered such a thing.

"Brandon, dear, come on now, we're leaving". The two of them went over to his family.

"Um, Mom, I was going to stay longer, if that's okay.." Mom dismissed him outright.

"No, no, the drunks are all gonna be out as it is. You need to get home."

"Mrs. Lewis? It is Mrs. Lewis, right?" Rachel began, much to Brandon's surprise. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but that's just the thing. My friends had too much to drink, and well, they're a lot wilder than I am," she waved a hand vaguely at the dance party commencing. "Your son was such a gentleman, he offered to give me a lift home. I'd really appreciate it if you'd let him, otherwise I'm going to be stuck here all night with... that. Julia and I were just talking earlier how most boys don't have Christian manners like Brandon."

Mom stared. Considered. And folded. "You take this young lady straight home, no shenanigans, and then straight back to our house. No shenanigans. Understood young man?"

"Yes Ma'am." He went to help them load the family gear in the car, sneaking her a my-God-that-worked look of disbelief as he turned away. Rachel found Khan.

"So... I found a better ride home than the kid seat in the Stang. I'm taking off with him."

Khan stroked his beard, looking out for Brandon. "I've seen you making time with that guy, and I'm sure he's a nice young man. But no. We've been apart for two weeks. You need to come back with us to the house. Anyway, we have to get ready for our own party tomorrow, and I'll need you there. Tell you what, he can stay here with you at the party though, we weren't in a hurry to leave or anything."

"Thanks, but I wasn't asking. Pass."

"PASS?" Khan raised an eyebrow. He took her by the elbow and led her off to the side. "Young lady, need I remind you that we have an agreement as Master and Apprentice? You forgot all that out in the woods for two weeks? That's exactly why you can't go with him. Absolutely not."

"I didn't forget a thing. It's not an exaggeration to say that you're the best thing to ever happen to me. You have changed, and will continue to change my life for the better. You're the best Master I could ever hope for. But as the Code says, 'Through Victory, my chains are broken."

Khan folded his arms and stared down at her. "So what? I'm your Master. Do as you're told."

She folded her arms and stared up at him. "No. I love you, I respect you, I will follow your teachings. But no. Pursuing and fulfilling your desires leads to self mastery. I will have what I desire. Which tonight is a sweet, skinny black guy in glasses. Punish me all you want at Sunday's Crucible, lecture me all you want on disobedience. I will take the consequences willingly. But I'm leaving. I'll be back by noon to help with the party."

And before he could say anything more, or she lost her nerve, Rachel marched off into the dark, to find Brandon and get that ride she wanted. Kayden circled around to her husband, handing him a drink and curling her arm up to run a hand through his long, black mane of hair.

"Everything okay?"

"Oh, more than okay, darling. She just keeps impressing the hell out of me."

Kayden's green eyes widened. "Khan Alaric Stone, did you just curse? In public no less?"

Khan looked shocked. "I suppose I did!"

It was closing in on midnight as Brandon followed her directions, driving his well used Chevelle off the interstate and on to the outer road. "Left here. Wow, fireworks are still going off!"

"Here? You live in an office park?"

"It's a shortcut. Trust me." They followed the winding main road through offices and businesses all empty and dark. Some of the parking lot lights were still on. "Turn right, into there. Right there, pull in."

Brandon pulled into the parking spot in front of a dentist's office under a streetlight. Not hidden from the road, but not obvious either. He shut off his beater car. "Not your home, right?"

Rachel grinned and stroked the back of his fade. "Nope."

"Mom said no shenanigans." She leaned over and she pulled him in for a kiss. He started off hesitant, then got eager fast as she slipped her tongue between his lips.

They rolled down the windows and turned the radio on. She enjoyed making out with him for a while. She didn't get a lot of this in high school. Her ex boyfriend, may his balls roast eternally in hell Josh, had kept it to a minimum. She always assumed it was because she was undesirable. She certainly didn't feel that way now. Over the course of a few songs, she loosened and removed his tie, and unbuttoned a few buttons of his dress shirt. She enjoyed running her hands and lips over the smooth dark skin of his neck and collarbone. She had her hand on his thigh as she leaned over to kiss him, close to his cock, so close the knuckle could just feel his hard on, yet not going for it.

He kissed her back, a little too hard, but she wasn't complaining. He did pretty good on her neck, giving her goosebumps. He was shy about putting his hands on her, so she eventually just took one and clamped it right on her breast. When Shakira's new love ballad 'Underneath your Clothes' came on the radio, Rachel disentangled herself from his embrace, got out of the car and walked around to the front. "Turn it up!" she called as she started to dance.