Tabula Rasa - Part 2

Part 2: Purchase

"Stand."

The dead-sounding voice seemed to come out of the air, and I looked up from where I was sat against the wall, hunting for any hint as to where it had come from. I didn't see anything but the blank white I'd started to get used to, but the thinking I'd been doing gave me enough of an answer as to what I should do next. Rising, I did as I was told, and within moments one of the walls turned clear. It was still there, I could see that, but I was far more interested in what I could now see on the other side.

Across three or four meters of carpeted corridor, a panel on the opposite wall turned clear to reveal another female figure, just as naked as I was. I frowned at the sight of her, wracking my brain to figure out why she looked familiar... For some reason, I thought she looked younger than she should, but I definitely recognised her. Dark skin, black hair, unlike every other being I'd seen so far, this woman looked just like me in every way but colouring and facial features.

I tried a little wave to get her attention, but her eyes were set on the floor. Now I was looking a bit closer, her whole body was slumped in a kind of resigned defeat, and she looked like she simply didn't care about anything going on around her. Like me, the only thing she wore was a collar, not even a hint of hair anywhere on her but eyebrows and the short, tight curls on her head. I tried waving again, but there was still no hint at all of any reaction - until the voice from the air spoke again.

"You will remain still." There was still no kind of emotion or anything in the flat tone, and it sent a shiver through me that was totally at odds with the warmth of the air. "You will move only when instructed. Is this understood?"

I nodded, more by reflex than anything else, but the way my collar started slowly tightening of it's own accord told me this was probably not the desired response. Quickly, before it got too hard to do so, I spoke up. "Yes, Kaishaasi."

Instantly, the collar slackened. Apparently however it did it's little trick, it could be controlled from elsewhere. Information to be filed away, but not anything I wanted to actually think about. Across the way, I saw the dark-skinned woman's lips move, but that was about it. Nothing else changed about her posture, and the slump of her shoulders just didn't look right to me.

Thinking about it wasn't going to help me find my own way out of this, however, and the fact she looked familiar didn't strike me as good enough reason for me to risk getting choked again. Instead, I shifted myself slightly, letting my gaze go unfocussed as I put myself into a pose that I hoped would look suitably appealing.

As soon as the first creature walked past the clear wall in front of me, I rapidly rethought that idea. Whatever the fuck it was, it wasn't even close to humanoid, and I had to suppress a shudder at the way it seemed to ooze along. Fortunately, it didn't pause and just kept right on going.

Thank fuck for that...

A minute or so later, another being put in an appearance, this time a catlike creature like the one I'd seen in the showers. This one was dressed, however, and was far more male-shaped. It paused in front of me, looking through the clear wall at me in silence. After a few moments, it lifted a paw and made a circling gesture. Hoping I'd read that right, I turned slowly on the spot, making a bit of a show of it, and that seemed to be what it wanted. A few seconds more study, and it turned it's back on me, looking at the woman opposite. She didn't get as much attention as I did, and the feline moved on again without any more fuss.

So... what now? Is this what I'm going to be doing all day? Standing here whilst freaks look me over?

Not an amusing thought, but the idea of being on display actually sent a thrill through me. I started to fight the feeling off, but then decided there was little point. It felt kind of good, and since there was little else I could do, I might as well get what enjoyment I could. That idea got easier, sort of, when more eyes laid themselves on me. This time, there were two pairs of them, and I blinked in surprise at the fact that the owners both looked pretty much normal - or at least what my mind processed as 'normal'.

They also looked kind of similar to each other. Dark hair falling to their shoulders, brown eyes, and faces close enough to suggest a definite connection. Brothers, maybe? Either way, they were looking me over with definite interest.

Trying not to be obvious about it, I returned the inspection. They both topped me by a hand's breadth or so, well built bodies showing their fitness even though encased in rugged clothing that seemed designed for standing up to some abuse. Not bad to look at, at all... One of them spoke to the other, though I couldn't hear what was said. Not that I really cared at that instant, either, because what I saw when his mouth opened sent a shiver through me that had nothing in common with the creepy feeling the skeleton's voice had given me. No, the sight of those sharp canine teeth had me wondering for a second what they'd feel like dragging over my skin.

I felt myself flushing at what popped into my head, and the one who'd not spoken noticed - or at least that's what I figured his sudden grin meant. He said something back to the other, then turned to look at the woman across the way from me.

Within a minute or so, the guys had their attention back on me. Again, I was silently instructed to turn, and I did, giving them a good look at me. A low-voiced conference seemed to happen right in front of me, the pair arguing something back and forth until one, the slightly older-looking of the pair, sighed and raised his hands in apparent surrender. The other looked at me again, more than simple academic interest in his eyes, and I had to restrain myself from either trying to cover up as best I could under his scrutiny, or putting on more of a show - it was hard to figure which was most likely.

Abruptly, he turned away, joining the other in looking at something on a bit of hand-held technological hardware. A few thoughtful looks and a couple of nods later, and something was entered on the device. Within moments, one of the tall skeleton guys appeared, touching the wall beside the clear panel which promptly slid downwards. The other side was quiet as the barrier disappeared, but I could still make out soft conversations in what sounded like several different languages. Understanding tickled at the edge of my awareness, but an imperious gesture from the skeleton was something far more worthy of my attention at that point.

I stepped forward, suddenly nervous as my feet sank a little in to the soft carpeting of the hallway. The idea of being sold like a bit of meat hadn't sat well with me at all, even with my decision to try and make it happen so I could get the hell out of this place. Now, it seemed like it actually had happened... and I realised that I had precisely no idea of what was going to happen next. For all I knew, I'd just traded the fear and discomfort I'd known so far for something far worse.

My hands were swiftly taken, wrists held together as the skeleton wrapped another band of leather around them and pulled tightly enough to dig slightly into my flesh. When I looked up at the creature's face, the look on it had me dropping my eyes to the ground and keeping them there. Apparently looking up at him had not been appreciated.

Besides, that part of my brain that told me what I should say and do seemed to think that keeping my eyes down was the right course anyway, and given the choice between doing what it suggested and finding out what happened if I didn't...? The view of my own feet was far more appealing.

A cord was attached to the bindings at my wrists, the other end handed to one of the males that is seemed had just bought me. Something was said, a quick conversation that passed between the three of them, but I had no idea what the flow of sound had actually meant. All I could tell was that it sounded different to how the skeletons talked, somehow smoother, more musical.

There was no need for translation when the cord was tugged, pulling me slightly toward the man holding the other end. When I started moving, he turned and walked away, his companion by his side and me apparently expected to follow along. As I started moving, I risked a quick glance toward the dark-skinned woman who'd been opposite me, and blinked in surprise. She'd actually looked up, and was now staring at me with an expression that seemed equal parts shock and horror.

I was led away from her too quickly to try and make anything of it, though, and had to quickly get my eyes back on where I was going - or at least enough of the ground ahead of me to avoid walking into anything.

---

With my eyes downcast, I didn't get to see much of my surroundings as I got led down the hallway and into a more populated area. A few sidelong glances around me showed a fair number of other people, but only their legs. Since a few of those were as bare as mine, I figures that there were others here that were being taken away by whoever had just bought them.

I suddenly realised that with all these people around, I was being paraded about wearing nothing at all but my collar and the bindings around my wrists. I felt myself flush scarlet and my shoulders hunched as I tried to draw myself in as much as I could. There was a brief pause in the movement of one of the men that were taking me away, and a voice that sounded like it was aimed at me, the inflection suggesting it was a question. Since I wasn't sure, and didn't understand it anyway, I kept silent. He said something again, and the other male replied quietly. The course they were leading me on changed, and within a few moments I was led through a door into a quieter place. Out of the corner of my eye, I made out enough to decide it was probably a bathroom of some kind.

With male plumbing, of course. Big shock.

I was addressed again, and still didn't understand. I kept my eyes down, hoping that my silence was the best course. Fingers gripped my chin firmly, but not painfully, and tilted my head up until I was looking straight into the eyes of the younger of the men. There was no way to mistake that he was talking to me now, and there was a definite hint of annoyance in his gaze when I still didn't answer. I bit my lip as I blinked back the feeling of frustration at myself that was building as he looked at me, clearly expecting an answer I simply couldn't give him.

The other man spoke, and the one holding my face glanced his way. After a moment, he nodded, shifting his grip until he was holding me by the back of my head. With easy strength, he pulled my head forward, my hair falling down over my face as he ran what felt like a finger behind my ears. He paused when he touched a slight lump on the right side, something I certainly hadn't known was there. Saying something to the other, a few second later he was pressing something to the skin behind my ear and suddenly an sharp tingling burst through my skull. I bit back a whimper, and found my head being tuned upward again.

"Understand me now?"

Through the tingling still echoing around my head, I found I could. I started to nod, then quickly changed it to a whispered "Yes, Kaishaasi" that felt like it might be the right response.

The other man snorted, but the one in front of me just nodded.

"Good. Now, why were you trying to hide yourself?"

Okay, so apparently he'd noticed. Great. About all I could think of to say, apart from nothing, was the truth.

"I am... uncomfortable, Kaishaasi. So many eyes..."

He raised an eyebrow, looking a little surprised at what I'd said. Whether it was good surprise or not, I couldn't tell. The other spoke up then, his deep voice carrying amusement. "She may look mostly Aelfen, brother mine," he said, "but she's not. Different rules." Brother. That definitely explained the resemblance. I wasn't sure what to make of 'Aelfen', though. Or what rules I was supposed to be following. The one holding my chin grunted in acceptance and loosened his grip. Instead of taking his hand away, though, he traced a finger over my cheek. The feather-light touch made me twitch and he flashed a sudden grin.

"Not all different, Tarik." he chuckled, and I felt angry with myself for liking the sound. "So, little one, you'd rather be clothed?"

"Please, Kaishaasi." I answered quietly, instead of the sharper reply I'd been tempted by for a moment, and the one he'd addressed as Tarik straightened from where he's been leaning against the wall.

"I'll get something, Lynk, stay here." His voice carried a definite expectation his instructions would be followed, and I know I certainly didn't plan on disobeying. Well, until I could find a way to get loose, anyway. "And for the love of all that is holy, please try to stay out of trouble until I get back?"

With a chuckle, the one stroking my face, Lynk, waved him off with his other hand. I found myself unable to take my eyes off of the tips of his fangs as he smiled, and was only dimly aware of the sound of Tarik's departure. When we were alone, he looked back at me and his faint grin turned into something else, something with far more heat behind it.

"So, little one. How shall we stay out of trouble?"

There was something playful in his tone, something that teased me to play along. I tensed when his other hand came to rest on my hip, but when I tried to pull away the fingers brushing over my cheek darted into my hair - what was it with people grabbing my damned hair, anyway? - and held me fast. He wasn't hurting me, but it didn't take any real brainpower to know that he could if he wanted to. Probably badly. There was just too much strength in him for me to even think about escaping successfully.

Knowing there was no point even trying to resist him gave me the oddest feeling. Since there was little other option, it was a curiously freeing sensation to consider simply surrendering myself to whatever it was he was going to do with me, even if a large part of me wanted to do anything but that.

When the hand on my hip stared sliding upward, fingers spreading over my belly, I put my hands against his chest and tried to push him away. He glanced down at my bound wrists, not moving an inch when I shoved against him, and laughed, low and hot. Even as I shoved again, my body went loose at the sound - and the hard muscle I could feel under his shirt - and I cursed myself for the way I wanted to hear that laugh some more.

"I knew there was a spark in you, pretty," he murmured, "and I find I want to taste it."

The hand cupping my head pulled me closer, tipping my face up to present my mouth to him. Leaning in slowly, watching for my reaction, he lowered his lips to mine. I didn't want to admit I wanted to watch him as he neared, and shut my eyes to block the view. It didn't stop him. His mouth pressed against mine, and my lips parted of their own volition as his tongue flicked across them, his scent washing over me with a heady mix of faint sweat and something purely male.

He let out a low growl of approval that I felt shiver through me, and I grabbed a double handful of his shirt so I had a good grip to shove against him again. It had about the same level of effect as last time, but that was probably safe to say the fact I was trying to suck his tongue into my mouth at the same time limited the amount of effort I put into the attempt.

A shift in the hand on my belly had me expecting it to move upwards toward my breasts, squeezed together by the way my arms were tied together. Instead, it moved downwards. When I tried to pull back, he nipped at my mouth, the tips of his sharp canines digging into my lip with enough force to make me glad I wasn't tasting blood. I got the message clearly enough, and froze.

When his hand moved over my hairless mound, I nearly forgot why I would have wanted to stop him. Slowly, far more tenderly than I might have expected, he started teasing his fingers over my labia, sending shivers of pleasure through me as I felt myself responding to his touch. I struggled to keep my balance as my legs parted to give him easier access, and he released my hair to wrap an arm around my back, taking my weight without any apparent effort. He didn't need to hold my head in place to keep me from going anywhere, damn him. Just the feel of his mouth on mine, his tongue twining with my own as he kissed me kept me right where he wanted me.

To make things worse, every brush of his fingertips across my sensitive cleft drove me further and further toward wanting him inside me. Given some of the weirdness I'd seen so far, I didn't even know if that was possible, but that didn't change the way I was responding to his caressing touch. I felt a sudden urge to strangle him for making me want his attention this way, but when my hands got up to his neck, all they did was take hold of his collar and pull him closer.

Getting out of my little cell was not going the way I'd aimed for.

I cursed myself for moaning softly when he lifted his lips away from me, and did it again when I opened my eyes to see the smug grin on his face.

"Let's see just how like an Aelfen girl you are, shall we?"

Like I even knew what that meant. My mouth opened to say something, but whatever it was going to be was lost when, never dropping that infuriating smile, he pressed a finger made slick by the wetness he'd drawn out of me against the hard bundle of nerves at the top of my sex. What came out of my mouth instead was an odd little squeak as my eyes went wide and pure sensation shot through me.

"Hmm... I'd say that was pretty close. What do you think?"

He honestly seemed to want me to answer, and I tried to pull something out of my scrambled brain, saying the first thing that popped into my head.

"I-I don't know Kaishaasi."

"Really? And why would that be?"

"I've no idea what ahhhh...."

He'd touched that sensitive little nub again, and my words got lost in a groan of pleasure. He lifted an eyebrow in a pretty clear invitation to try again, and since I was basically at the mercy of whatever he wanted to do to me, I figured I may as well not piss him off. Besides, if he was in the mood to chat, I might just learn something.

"I've no idea what an Aelfen is."

His expression turned thoughtful for a moment, his hand stilling as he seemed to consider my response. Finally, his attention turned back to me from whatever thoughts had been in his head, and he gave a little shrug.

"Well, I'm not totally certain what brand of Lantay you are. Apart from one that feels very nice right where she is."

He did, too, though I'd be damned if was going to tell him that. A fleeting thought about what he'd called me tried to make itself known, but didn't have much success. Instead, all my attention locked onto the way he brushed my swollen clit again on the way to slipping a finger inside me. As he pushed past my outer lips, I closed my eyes and tried to wish I was back in the cell he'd taken me from - but my body was far too welcoming of his invasion for that to work. The slippery heat between my legs took him in without any protest at all, and as he started to slide his digit in and out of me it was only the strength of his arm around me that kept me from landing straight on my ass when my back arched with pleasure.

Without any conscious thought on my part, my hips started moving, grinding against his hand as I tried to get him deeper inside me. My head had fallen back, leaving my hair to cascade down my back and my throat bare to him - something he took advantage of, running those sharp teeth of his down the side of my neck. The feeling dragged another groan out of me, and his low laugh vibrated against my skin as the finger slipping into me was joined by another.

The sensation of having him stretch me open like that, not painfully but more than enough to get my attention, had my biting my lip hard to keep from letting out any other sound. I was enjoying every second of this, as much as I might not have wanted to, and there was no way he could not know that. The best I could do was not give him any more damned encouragement.

"Ohh..." he murmured against my throat, "you're very tight, aren't you? I wonder if there's enough room left in you for another."

And before I could summon up any kind of response - assuming he even wanted one - a third finger pushed inside me and he pressed it, and the others, as deep inside me as he could go. When I pushed my hips forward to meet him, the pressure of his palm against my clit was enough to send me skipping right over the edge, and my mouth dropped open, a wordless moan escaping my lips as my whole body tensed.

Tremors wracked through me as I felt the walls of my sex clamp down hard on his still-thrusting fingers, my legs almost giving way completely whilst every sense was overloaded by the climax that ripped me apart.

When I managed to come back to myself, still shaking in the wake of my kind-of-reluctant orgasm, I was sat on the floor, legs curled under me where I'd simply dropped to the ground. Vaguely, I was aware that he'd kept my descent under some sort of control, stopping me from hurting myself during my fall, and was now sat on the tiled floor beside me, holding me to his chest. I could hear his heat beating, the pulse quick, but didn't know if that was from excitement or just because it did. The hand stroking my hair, however, was something I knew wasn't just a natural biological action.

"Oh, for the love of... What's wrong?"

I managed to look up, more or less, when I heard his brother's voice again. Through the strands of hair that had fallen over my face, I saw him standing in the doorway with a look of resignation on his face and a flimsy plastic bag in his hand.

"Nothing," Lynk chuckled, and I felt as much as heard the rumbling in his chest as he laughed. "Just giving our little pet here a treat for having behaved so well so far."

"Yeah. Right." Tarik's response lacked any real enthusiasm, sounding like it carried far more suspicion than acceptance. "Get her up, will you? Let's get this on her and get out of here. We're going to be in enough shit as it is."

That puzzled me. Why would they be in any sort of trouble? The way they'd been acting, what they'd done - what Lynk had done - was something well within their rights to do... or at least that was what a nagging feeling in my head was determined to tell me. The stroking of my hair stopped, and I felt myself being lifted to my feet.

"She can just deal with it. How many times has she told us to think for ourselves every once in a while?"

"This is not, I suspect, what she had in mind."

As I wondered just who 'she' might be, I felt Lynk shrug with apparent unconcern at his brother's observation, then I was turned to face him.

"Now, did we enjoy that?"

"Yob tvoyiu mat."

That seemed to confuse him, at least a little. It also came as something of a surprise to me - despite being what felt like a perfectly natural response, given the circumstances - since it was in a language I had no idea I even knew. Lynk raised an eyebrow in a look that clearly invited me to try again. Clamping my jaw shut, I amused myself by refusing to answer until the fingertip that was stroking along my jaw dipped down to trace along the edge of my collar. Not particularly wanting to feel what it could do again, I dropped my eyes and nodded with a little sigh.

"Yes, Kaishaasi."

"Good," he replied. "which means you say...?"

Any number of things sprang to mind, though next to none of them were even remotely polite, let alone complimentary. Talking my way into trouble was not, however, going to help me get my ass out of this mess.

"Thank you, Kaishaasi."

He ran his hand through my hair again, his touch soft and possibly meant to be comforting. Unfortunately it fell a long way short, and only served to remind me that I was apparently now a possession, a pet, to be done with as they willed. And my own damned body seemed depressingly happy to go along with the idea.

Fuck. That.

Oddly enough, however, that thought gave me at least part of an idea of how to steer things the way I wanted. An idea that did not, to my irritation, feel like that bad a choice at all. If my body was going to act like a little whore, then maybe, just maybe, I could actually use that.

The End

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