What We Do to Survive

I levitated the lavender skinned girl out of her cage, enjoying the way my rough handling made certain parts of her anatomy move. She wasn’t nearly as curvy as Mistletoe, not even as much as Miranda really, but there was something to be said for a more lithe, toned figure. She was lightly muscled in all the right ways, with a well toned backside and perky breasts that fit her body perfectly. It certainly helped that her skin and features lent her an exotic air, something very different from my two pale skinned pets.

“Now, I’m going to remove the rope, and I suggest you don’t try anything you might regret.”

“Yes, master mage.” I raised an eyebrow at the response, considering it for a moment. Master mage… well, I wasn’t technically a master mage, but it felt good to be called one. Still, I wanted to prove a point. I flicked my wrist, sending a whip-like tendril of translucent force to lash the girl’s thrust out chest. It left a bright red welt across the base of her bare breast, and the girl recoiled from the hit with stifled shriek of pain

“I like the initiative, but I don’t remember saying that you could speak. Let’s call that rules three and four, don’t move or speak unless I specifically tell you too. Understood?”

“Yes mast–” she cut herself off as I flicked another whip of force, leaving a matching mark on her other breast. Her response was much quieter this time, a pained whimper between clenched teeth, even as she nodded her head rapidly.

“Very good. In the future, you can just call me sir, or master if you so prefer. Now then…” I spun her body around and stepped forward, quickly undoing the simple knot that held her arms and legs up behind her back. Taking a firm mental grip on the shackles around her wrists and ankles, I stepped back and opened my hand, pulling her arms and legs into a wide spread-eagle position.

She looked even better like this, the wide extension of her limbs showing off toned muscles in her arms and legs and giving me an excellent view of her firm backside. Only a single mark marred the view, the welt I’d given her when she’d missed my first command. That was certainly one downside of this particular form of punishment, I much prefered smooth, clear skin to scars and bruises.

I would need to brush up on pain spells, I decided. Manual punishment was well and good, but something a little less direct would be a nice addition to my arsenal. For now however, this would do the trick. I still remembered the horrible pain from the ten lashes I’d once received and my force whip seemed to be an effective copy of the real thing. If nothing else, it was just a flesh wound. Magic was very good at dealing with that sort of simple injury.

I rotated her body slowly in the air in much the same way Liam had done. After a moment, I wrinkled my nose as I got a good look at how dirty she was, with bits of mud and debris caked around where her clothing had let it collect. I clicked my tongue in annoyance, no that wouldn’t do at all.

“Well, for starters I think you need a wash. I’ll not have any of my pets stinking up the place. After that, we can get you fitted with the rest of your new outfit.”

I floated her slowly into the bathroom, then released my hold a few inches above the tiled floor of the shower. She hit the ground with a gasp, barely catching herself against one of the walls at the unexpected drop. Though I tried to look nonchalant, I kept my magic at the ready as I watched carefully for what she would do. I’d told her not to move without being told to, but there was no magic enforcing that command. Would the promise of pain be enough or would she try to attack me?

She looked around slowly, carefully stretching her arms and legs but trying to avoid moving too much. For a moment, she met my eyes squarely with her own, then quickly lowered them to the floor and reflexively shied away. Well, that wasn’t too bad. She wasn’t obeying my orders to the letter, but it was enough for now. I imagined she must be very stiff after several hours bound up in such an uncomfortable position. It would take some time to train this sort of small disobedience out of her, if I bothered to at all.

I gave her another few seconds to stretch, then firmly ordered, “Stand up, hands against the wall and legs spread to shoulder width.” She hurried to obey, scrambling to her feet and moving into the requested position. A weak smack on the inside of her thigh was enough to have her spread her legs wider as I considered my options.

I could probably just use the shower, that would certainly be much more pleasant for her after what she’d been through during the dragon’s attack. It would even be easier for me, not requiring any magic of my own to do. On the other hand, I had planned to be tougher with her, and I might as well start our relationship off that way. Yes, I decided after a moment. That was probably the right move. I didn’t want her to get any ideas about trying to murder me in my sleep or something.

Well, I knew just the right spell for this. A concentrated jet of icy cold water crashed against the center of her back, sending droplets flying in all directions. I was thankful for the ward around the shower that kept water from escaping the confines of the tiled rectangle, otherwise it would have been a pain to clean up the spray.

Despite what must have been a rather unpleasant surprise, I was pleased when the girl barely moved, only wincing slightly as the water poured down her back and between her legs. I moved the jet back and forth slowly, making sure to spray down every inch of exposed skin with the powerful stream of water. I got another pathetic wince when I directed the torrent to strike squarely against her rear opening and when I passed across the welt my first strike had left.

Once I had cleaned every inch of her back and legs, I had her turn around and hold her arms out as I did the same to her front. As I’d expected, I got several more winces this time, particularly when the icy water hit other particularly sensitive spots.

Eventually, I had to decide what to do about her hair. It was rather dirty, bits of broken wood and other garbage caught in the multi-colored cascade. I didn’t really know any hair care spells either, only that they existed, and I doubted my crude jet would be enough to clean it up properly. That left either cutting it all off or making her do it herself.

I was half way through casting a shaving spell when I remembered Igor’s elf farm, the limbless, hairless torso’s hanging in their metal frames, and stopped. I’d never had anything against bald women, in fact I thought Professor Yao was an absolutely stunning woman, though I was certain she would break me in half if I ever tried to come onto her. I was even pretty sure my little lavender pet would look good bald, but it felt almost wrong to just cut it off like this. I would do it later, frame it as some sort of punishment, but for now she could deal with it herself.

I twisted the knob that controlled the water temperature and she flinched at the sudden spray of water from over her head. I considered leaving it as cold as it would go, but I wanted her to do a good job cleaning up and icy water would be counterproductive towards that goal. “Finish getting yourself cleaned up.” I gestured to the two tall ceramic jugs standing in the corner of the shower. “The blue one is for your skin, the green one for your hair. You have ten minutes.”

I made a show of walking out of the bathroom and shutting the door behind me, then quickly cast one of the scrying spells I was most familiar with. The small mirror on my desk rippled, then cleared as it showed what the mirror in the bathroom was reflecting. I was very curious how she would act without me visibly in the room. It would inform a lot of my future treatment of the girl.

On that note, I couldn’t really keep calling her ‘girl’, and something generic like ‘pet’ would get confusing once I gained additional ‘subordinates’. Still, I’d been honest when I’d said I didn’t much care what her name was. I wanted to make a clean break between her life then and now, and a new name would help in that regard. How about… Rea. I planned to use her as a research subject, and I liked the sound of it. Yes, Rea was a good name for my new pet.

I was not particularly surprised when the newly christened Rea did not immediately get to the task I assigned her. Ten minutes was longer than she really needed, but I wanted to give her a few extra minutes and see how she handled it.

The girl sank slowly to the floor, letting the lukewarm water pour down on her hair as she rocked back and forth with her arms wrapped around her knees. She was crying, the tears washed away by the falling water but I could make out the slight shaking of her shoulders and reddening of her eyes. She was mumbling something, lips moving slowly under the curtain of water.

She sat that way for several minutes, then shakily rose to her feet and got to work. I set the parts I was fiddling with down on the table and watched with interest as she stared silently at the blue jug she was holding, weighing in her hand and miming several swings.

It wouldn’t work if she tried, but it wasn’t a terrible plan. I would have to punish her severely if she went through with it, though I would likely punish her anyway for even considering the idea. It would be good to project a facade of omniscience in front of the girl, that would hopefully stem any future plotting until the conditioning I had planned had time to set in.

Just after the ten minute mark, I pushed the bathroom door open and stepped into the room. The girl was standing by the door, holding the heavy ceramic jug of body-cleaning potion over her head with trembling arms. I turned to look at her and raised an eyebrow. Had she really chosen the worst possible time to lose her nerves? I’d erected a clear force shield around myself before opening the door, but she hadn’t even tried to test it. Had the extra few seconds it had taken me to deactivate the scrying spell and conjure the shield really been enough for her to psyche herself out of going through with it?

She swallowed heavily and slowly set the jug down on the counter beside her, eyes glued resolutely to the ground and a look of abject terror on her face. “Kneel.” I ordered, and she all but collapsed to the floor, knees crashing painfully against hard tile. I’d only told her to get on her knees, but she went further than that, prostrating herself with her face pressed against the cold, damp tile.

“What did you think you were going to accomplish?” I asked rhetorically, pushing onward without waiting for her to respond, “Do you think someone like me would be even inconvenienced by an attack as mundane as that? And even if it had worked, what then? How did you think you would get out of the room? Much less escape back to your homeland. Do you enjoy pain, girl? Because that is all this could have brought you. Either a painful death via starvation or even more pain from me.”

I let my words hang in the silence, staring down at her with an emotionless mask on my face. Except for the first part, everything else had been nothing but the truth. Even if she’d managed to kill me, and that was still a possibility with the current level of circulation I maintained, there would have been no way she could get through the wards on my door. Not that I could let her think she had a way to hurt me, that would only invite further retribution.

After another minute, I clicked my tongue loudly. “Pathetic. Now get up and dry yourself off. You’re dripping all over the floor.” I dropped a rough towel on the floor beside her, then turned and slowly walked back into the main room.

I was sitting in my chair, lazily flipping through a notebook with my feet propped up on a stool when she finally stepped out of the bathroom. The moment she saw me, she dropped back onto the floor and assumed the same kneeling bow position she’d used before. Seeing her do it a second time, it made me think it might be another cultural difference. I’d never seen anyone do that sort of thing outside of temples before, but maybe it was a more general sign of subservience among her people?

Without looking up from my book, I gestured to the wall where I’d mounted several hooks while she’d been unconscious. “Get up and get yourself hung up over there. I’m sure even a worthless animal like you can figure it out.”

Despite doing my best to look casual, I was not nearly as relaxed as I portrayed myself to be. My eyes stared unseeingly at the page in front of me while my attention watched her through an invisible eye floating silently over my head. It was a useful spell, though easily detectable by even the most rudimentary mana sense. Fortunately, even if she was normally capable of such a thing, the collar around her neck ensured she had no chance of seeing the construct. I was also still maintaining the shield I’d summoned earlier. I was taking no chances.

She crawled over to where I’d indicated and stood up, studying the half dozen metal hooks and then looking at the loops in her shackles. Raising one foot in the air, she carefully maneuvered one ankle cuff through the small opening in the hook. Using the wall to support herself, she spread her legs wide open until she could just barely do the same with the other cuff.

Now, she had to awkwardly balance on her toes, back pressed up against the cold stone as she felt her way up until she could just barely squeeze the loop on her cuff into the upper hook. The last arm was the hardest. She had no real leverage and could only barely see the loop on her shackle. After several attempts, she finally managed it, leaving her hanging by her wrists from the cold wall.

It wasn’t really an inescapable restraint, if she had the necessary core strength she could probably manuver one arm or leg free, but it was good enough. If I wanted, I could easily close up the small openings in the hooks, leaving her with no way to escape. In fact, I did just that, two metal pegs shooting off the table and screwing themselves into the small holes I’d left for them. That way, her arms were properly restrained, but I still needed to move her legs somewhat.

I let her hang for several minutes before I dismissed the eye and set my book aside. I would probably be leaving her up there for some time, but I still had a few parts of her final ‘outfit’ to fit her with. I could have done it while she was unconscious, but they weren’t really a part of her restraints and I’d felt it would be more humiliating for her if I did them while she was able to experience it in full.

Tutting quietly, I walked over to her restrained form. “Well, I guess it can’t be helped. A fair attempt, but I was going for something a little bit more convenient.” Taking a firm grip of her legs with my magic, I tugged them out of their current restraints and pushed them up until her shins were pressed up against her ears. Then I lifted further, forcing her to thrust her butt out away from the wall, until I finally hooked her ankle shackles through the set of hooks above her head.

I smiled and gave her a gentle pat between the legs. “Much better, don’t you think? Like this, I could do anything I wanted to you, well, more than I already could.” I was pleased when she didn’t react audibly, teeth clenched shut against the smallest sound. I wondered how long that would last.

I stepped back, taking a good look at how well I’d judged the distances for the hooks. Her limbs were pulled taut, toned muscles standing out under her skin as she hung by her wrists and ankles. It really was a very convenient position, granting easy access to most of her body and leaving her very little room to move. I would have to remember it.

Summoning a small box from my table, I let her watch as I slowly withdrew a potion vial, a large metal plug, and a thin tube with a stopper on the end. After the literal mess with Miranda where I hadn’t considered how to deal with her, well… waste products, I’d given the matter some serious thought. I’d considered several options since then, most of them rather inconvenient, before finally settling on this. I’d prepared these for the Ongallo girl, but it would be good to have a practical test before I kidnapped her. Liam’s surprise gift was already proving its worth.

I started with the plug, unstopping the vial and dipping the bulbous end into the potion. The plug was covered in tiny runes and had an opening running through the center, though that was currently filled with another stopper. Once I was sure it was well coated, I pulled the now glistening end out of the vial and pressed it up against my new pet’s rear opening.

Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth to say something, before closing it with a click. I pressed onward, slowly twisting the plug back and forth as I worked it into her virgin hole. It was a very tight fit and would have likely been impossible without the lubricating properties of the potion.

Despite her efforts, she groaned and whimpered several times before I finished lodging the intruder deep in her bowels. I channeled a small burst of mana into the plug and she squealed as the potion suddenly heated up for an instant before turning inert. When I tugged on the plug, it remained firmly seated in her ass.

Very good, it seemed I’d made the potion correctly. It was technically intended as a medical potion, something to hold wounds shut while they healed, but I’d thought it would do well here as well. Though it wasn’t designed for long term use, the book I’d found the recipe in said the substance should last for upwards of ten years, which was more than long enough. The plug was enchanted to transmute waste into air and then slowly release the air through the small tube in its center. The tube also offered easy access for cleaning or any potions that could be administered rectally. Now for the other part…

Though the tube was much smaller, it served a very similar purpose. Rea seemed to realize that as well, if her fearful whimpers when I dipped the tube in the same potion vial as the plug were anything to go off of. To her credit, she didn’t make a single sound as I slowly twisted the modified catheter into place, only letting out another squeak when I set the biological sealant with a burst of mana.

“Good girl.” I patted her again, then flicked her clit with my nail, getting another squeak in response. “It seems I don’t need to gag you quite yet. Still, we’ll have to train those noises out of you, it's unseemly. Maybe this will help.” I wrapped a thick blindfold around her eyes, plunging her world into darkness. “I think I’ll leave you to… think about your actions for a little while. Remember the rules, hmm?”

Now with her fully restrained and her eyes covered, I let my shoulders slump as I chained off several spells I’d learned from a book Professor Igor had recommended. I hadn’t really understood the point at first, but with a better grounding in biology I realized why they were absolutely essential when leaving test subjects in unusual positions.

One built an invisible frame of force under her body to protect her wrists and ankles from serious damage. Another circulated air to ensure she didn’t asphyxiate. A third kept her body from moving around too much and supported her head to prevent any struggling from causing problems. Since I was casting them and hadn’t had a chance to enchant them into the restraints themselves, they would only last twelve hours or so, but that was plenty of time.

Only then did I finally turn away and put my new captive out of my mind for the time. It was very late, and I had things to do the next day. I could deal with her punishment in the morning. I was sure a hungry, cold night like this would get her into the right headspace without any additional effort from me.