Picture: More him Grrrrr
I heard Rockwood walk around me like I was an exhibit at a museum. Light streamed in from the picture window to the side.
"Like the view?" Rockwood said walking slowly then started point out of the window, which I couldn't really see. "Never gets old. That huge dome in the distance is the CPU's blood palace. That tower shaped like a thousand story high trembler that's Zola's new data centre. Just over there they are building Bitsmark's new mind augmentation. It's just like him, dull, dangerous and wants to be closer to Zola. I guess Urban design and architecture isn't your kind of thing. I'm guessing you want to know what I have in store for you."
'my guess is your trying to bore me to death with a crappy urban tour' I thought.
"I was in the shower this morning, I turned around and said to the girl cleaning me 'I had something of an epiphany'," Rockwood said into the clean, bleak silence. There was an awkward pause.
My collar told me to say yes master.
"Yes Master," I said. It seemed a smart move.
He stood up and came and stroked my body while I was conveniently fixed to the ground.
"Since our last encounter, I've been wondering what to do you with you. I should have sent you back to the Factory for remedial education, but something, possibly your little stunt, told me not to, but what to do with you? I was thinking of breaking your will. That could be fun. I'm very good at reducing the hardest nut to the most obsequious Uriah Heep. I once broke a werewolf marine for a bet, 72 hours 4 minutes 5 seconds. So don't fool your self. I could do what your Factory could not. I could tame you, force you to present your self to me, make you do what I ever I want. Believe me, it is not an idle boast that I could make you submit to me at the deepest level. Willingly submit to any carnal desire I care to name and believe me I have very extensive carnal desires. I could hack your very soul if it amused me." he said.
I felt his entire charisma oozing over me, it flowed like black like oil but felt like silk. Most people can't do self-confident maniac but he could pull it off. Somehow I was willing to take what he said on trust. I put it down to the long riding crop he was carefully stroking over my skin.
"From your collar's bio signs I can tell you're afraid, but I can promise you not nearly afraid enough. I won't tell you I can be yey worst nightmare because it's both banal and a gross understatement. "
Give his animal aura I willing to take this on trust.
"Braking you like a dry twig is an option but nay today. What has been done lacks challenge if done again. Now tell me you don't want me. Tell me you don't want to make love to me now? Honestly. Remember your collar tells me a lot about you. Your pulse rate, tension, temperature I even get a sense of your neural activity. So never lie to me I can sense your mind, your emotions" he said getting down to my ear.
"No master," I said. Sleep with Voldemort's more-evil brother yeah right, Snape may be at a pinch but Voldemort's smarter more evil brother no.
He moved in front of me. I saw him again. The same confident scowl that could melt steel.
"What? have you ever made love to a cyborg? It's like the difference in speed between Usain Bolt and a sports car. Machine love, it makes all your previous fumbling backroom encounters with boys feel like you had been showering in disappointment. I can offer you a carnal encounter the like of which you will never have felt before and the like of which you will not feel again. Flash after flash of ecstasy, Are you suggesting you don't want to experience that?" he said.
"No thank you, master," I said. This guy clearly was taking something which was like viagra for his ego and had overdosed. Did he really want me ? Why pick Joe for the harem? Clearly, he was taunting me. I knew I wasn't his type I had mammary glands.
"If I wanted you, what do you think I couldn't just have you? I have a very large and extensive playroom attached to my hareem so believe me I could keep you busy there for about 6.3 months until would have to reuse one piece of equipment" He walked around and stroked my ass. I was completely vulnerable to him.
He put his firm, large masculine hand between my legs. "I'm getting warm aren't I?" he said. I had lost my control for a while wondering if he played both sides? Then why not sent Kayla or me to the harem? No, it was all show. I calmed myself down. I thought about cabbages, cottage cheese and the taste of rat.
"Funny story. So I am talking to the grand central processing unit. It tells me that I should stop moping around all the time. It tells me, that what I need to cheer myself up is a pet. A pet I say? A pet it says - it's a companion species, something to look after. It warms your bed. Hangs around you, something for you to talk to but unlike a hareem slave, you don't have sex with it. No sex doesn't sound much fun says I. You should try it says the CPU. So here I am. I tried it a few times before with the odd house slave but it wasn't much fun. They spoiled it, kept playing along you see." he said.
Rockwood got up and walked back to his chair. There was something of the panther in his movements.
"So I am standing this morning in the shower being washed by a slave and I'm thinking about this. Where am I going to find a slave that doesn't want to have sex with me? Then you popped into my mind. No reason but there you are. You don't want me, do you?"
"No Master," I said honestly. His ability to monologue definitely brought out the bond villain in him.
As he spoke touched me and stoked me like an enthusiast around a vintage car. I guess I was shiny enough. My skin tightened at his touch.
"Perfect. I quite liked the idea of a feral human as a pet. Chained up lurking, plotting, malevolently waiting, waiting for the moment to pounce. The element of danger graced the idea with some style. The problem is by law your not allowed to buy feral untrained humans directly, with all honesty, I tried. Then I find you. Problem solved. There is a slight blemish in you. Your tests show that you should make an excellent slave. Once you throw off the shackles of wanting to control your life you would become quite happy and contented in extreme obedience" he said.
I looked at his imposing shadow on the floor. I didn't dare look at him in case I turned to stone or something. He continued. "Unfortunately I hate happy and contented. I want miserable and resentful. It suits my mood."
'I can do that' I thought to my self.
"As soon as you find your self not wanting to escape, the whole thing becomes a sham. I hate pretence and artifice. If I am not convinced of your dislike of me at any point, I'll just hand break you for good measure and once you're fully docile, I'll replace you." he threatened.
'If I don't replace you first' I thought.
"There is a bed at the bottom of my bed it's got a charging station you can sleep there. I should get you a leash and I can take you on walks and things. I could teach you tricks. That could be fun. I felt the mute being lifted.
"What gives you the right to treat me like this?" I told him.
I got an electric shock.
"Good question and I liked the absence of Master at the end good touch, but I will punish you for it later. Nothing personal... except it is. I do like respect, it's next to cleanliness and just after obedience, and three doors down from 'I want to live'.. If you like questions. Machine law is Machine law. Your still subject to it. And what right do I have? What right? Quick recap here. You lost. We won. I'm a cyborg your a subjected flesh creature. I thought the whole rights things should have clarified itself by now. If you have problems remembering hold out your left hand with your thumb and forefinger spread out at 90 degrees and you see the L shape? That's L for loser. " he said playing with my hand in his.
"but your human too, master" I said.
"In appearance. My mind is 99% machine. You have more in common with a stoat then I have with you. If you think I have any empathy for you then I must tell you that I switched it off ages ago. It kept making this weird rattling sound. To topic. I regard this as a win-win. You don't have any useful skills and a pet doesn't need any. "
"With respect. I don't want to be your pet master" I said. I did have a few minor problems. He was borderline evil, a machine, we had different star signs, and I didn't think I could pull off running around like Gollum in Lord of the rings.
"No - how about this you can be an intern," he said.
"An intern Master?"
"Sure an intern. You work for free. I tell you what to do. You do it. I provide you with food, clothing, a box to sleep in, handle medical bills. It's zero-hours contract. I run great internships. They run for about 20 years then you can retire. If you don't believe me ask any of the other 5000 odd interns working in this place." said Master.
"Do these interns walk around with collars on their necks?" I asked.
"Good observational skills. We do pride our selves on our employee motivational methods," said Rockwood.
"And do you spy on what the interns do all the time Master?" I said.
"Sure as any employer we need to make sure the interns aren't misusing company property, including themselves," said Rockwood.
"How many proper employees does this company have? Master" I said. The fact he was letting me ask questions without asking permission was strictly breaking the master/slave rules but he seemed up for it.
"One, me, I'm CEO, CTO, CAO if it begins with C and ends with O I do it. I do everything. Anything except the work. So it's interning or it's back to the Thrift Shop" said Rockwood. I think he managed to end that with a compelling argument.
"Do I get a paying job at the end of this?" I asked just to be sure.
"Well no, you can't expect in this super-competitive world that every intern will get a job. That's unrealistic, remember you have 5000 equally qualified interns competing with you and you can't even end every sentence with Master yet" he said smirking
"So the difference between a slave and an intern is? Master" I asked.
"Why don't you go over and stand in your cage and figure that out. I have another meeting in 5 minutes" he said.
Looked like I had aced the interview for being an intern/slave/pet . Being alive had a new charm I wanted to appreciate. It's not like I had any choice in the matter anyway. Surprisingly how fast it take you to make zero choice decisions. I looked around for the cage.
"Maybe because there is not one. owwww . master" I said being punished.
"A sarcastic pet is like a spider learning to juggle unnecessary, awkward and liable to end up in knots, lose a limb or worse still, stepped on. You see that far wall.?" he said.
"Yes Master," I said.
"Okay go over to it"
My manacles were released from the floor. I got up and I walked over to the far wall. I couldn't see any cage.
"To you left, a little bit more, more, bit more, more that's good a bit more. There stop. You in it."
I looked around as far as I could see there was nothing there. It was just another bit of floor next to the wall.
"As far as cages go this is pretty crap... master," I said.
"Really try walking out," he said looking out the window at the city beyond.
I walked back towards him. Almost immediately my collar warned me that I was exiting a safe area. Half a pace more and I got an initial threat buzz. Terrific, I was in a 'virtual' or electronic prison, all the ignominy of being in a prison without any of the reassuring 'I'm the oppressed one in this relationship' symbolism of actual iron cage.
'Warning breach of containment area imminent,' my collar told me. I stood back.
I realized if I held my hands up I could feel the vibration at the end of my fingers from the bracelet shackles. I went along feeling the edge of the 'virtual' cage with my hands it seemed round.
"It didn't say on your CV you were a mime" Rockwood said walking over to the huge bed which had emerged from the wall.
"I'll mime you if you get too close. Masterrr," I said getting a mild cage shock.
"That's the spirit. and a challenge. What shape cage would you like?" he asked walking over.
"Is there a shape which says drop dead in binary? Master" I said.
"I was thinking more long or round. Or a labyrinth! Fun idea" he said.
I was as far away from the wall as the collar allowed me.
At the word labyrinth, the collar system changed. I now realized I could not walk directly back to the wall's edge. I was in the middle of an invisible maze I had to feel my way through. Locked in an invisible pain maze. Like a huge mime rat. Just when you think you can't get any more demeaned the New Mechanical Order opens up a new sub-basement.
"You think you're so clever. Master" I said.
Rockwood laughed " Do you know what your IQ is?"
"165 Master," I said.
"That was a rhetorical question." he said. He was now standing in a good light. He did look very fit.
"How on earth can what's your IQ be a rhetorical question. ? .. Master!" I said finding another way blocked. Master walked up and stood in the way of the only invisible corridor I could find. I tried to squeeze past him but had to push up close to his chest to get through. I rubbed past his firm chest he was clearly enjoying himself.
"I know your IQ. I know everything worth knowing. So your IQ of 165 puts you in the top 1% of humanity. The average IQ is 100 so to balance you there needs to be somewhere out there someone with an IQ of 35. On your scale, my IQ is 1,024."
'They think this Mr. Smart guy' I thought. In frustration, I tried to hit him. His hand moved like lightning caught my palm. He held it a centimetre (dam those Robots) a third of an inch from his face.
"Naughty," he said. I got a level 3 high shock, it was like someone whipping your a$$ with a taser.
"Ow," I said. I'm not defending him but for something which was breaking rule 1 'Do not allow harm to come to a robot' that was pretty light in a kind of a 'do this again and you'll really regret it, not only now but for the rest of your life.' way. At slave school, I had seen people writhing on the floor like electrocuted hiphop dancers for just going slave on slave violence.
"This dangerous pet business is really working for me. I should have done this ages ago. I like the way you're really getting into the part of the resentful vixen did you take acting classes? " he said.
"I'll method act you in a moment," I said struggling my wrist by his huge hands. Suddenly I was muted.
There was a knock at the door. Rockwood waved his arm and it opened.
"The Lady Villeria Ellington to see you Lord," said #DEC curtsying.
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