Holding

Posted on Thu Nov 8, 2018 @ 4:47am by Civilian 'Key Holder' Yolanthe Ibalin

1,326 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Doors of Perception
Location: Somewhere on DS5
Timeline: Back Post: Victory Conditions MD 36

[ON]

Ahjess flickered his eyes. They felt crusty and glued up. Hew knew he was naked, but the room was warm. the girl probably turned the heating up after they had made love. It must have been some session. He was groggy and his mouth felt like it was stuffed with fur. Drier than a vulcan's-

A noise caught his ear, soft repeated clicks, steady and he felt the bed he was lying on was moving, parts of it rising and falling against him, alternating with each click. What the hell?

He struggled to sit up. His limbs felt heavy, and stiff, like they'd gone dead. And that's when he felt the sharp discomfort. There were tubes running into his arm, and he followed them up with his eyes, and saw them split into a half a dozen biobags of drugs. His eyes would have widen if they weren't gummed shut.

He raised his other hand to brush the cobwebs away but was startled by he weighty clunk of shackles. He was chained to he bio-bed he was lying on.

This was not. good. Not good at all. His mind way foggy. What happened? Where was that girl? what was her name. hot body, black hair? He swivelled round to look at the chains. The thick padded cuff gave him a shock, but the sight of his own wrist shocked him more. His arms were thinner than ever, looking wasted.

Panic closed on him, his stomach twisted in cramps and his whole body seemed sore. He looked around. The room he was in was dimly lit. And small. Windowless. The light was coming from an emergency strip light hanging of a hook in the ceiling of the corner

"Hello!" he meant to shout, but it came out as a hoarse whisper. His throat growled at him, his tongue felt swollen and it grated like wire against his lips, which felt thick and cracked.. He tried to sit up, struggled a little and then collapsed back, exhausted. He could barely move. The chains were hardly needed. How long had he been asleep?

The air in the small room was thick and hot and still, like it hadn't been scrubbed properly. Every breath of it he took was like trying to breath in fibreglass and he was beginning to wheeze as the dry air rasped over his parched mouth.

What had happened? Where was he? Who had done this to him. He rolled over, wanting to puke, but could barely manage that, and not just because the manacles didn't give him much slack, he barely had the strength to move. And there was nothing to puke. He dry retched violently sending lances of pain up the needle jarring against his arm, and through the weak muscles in his abdomen.

There was a scraping sound, and the end of the room opened, the door taking up the entire side of the room. Like a shipping crate. Was he in a shipping crate.

Another trill, a blonde with hair in a thick plait that dropped over one shoulder put her head down the floor. Seeing him, she smiled. "You're awake."

Did she know him? He had no idea who she was. "Help," he wheezed.

She came all the way into the room, holding her right hand behind her as she perched on the edge of the biobed. "Hey, hush now," she said gently, brushing a strand of hair back from his forehead. Her fingers were soft, but he saw in the centre of her left palm a pad of thick scar tissue and the puckered rdge around the end was rough against his face. "Its all okay. No need to worry about anything." He tried to shy away from her, but was too weak to move. "Don't be like that. You're nearly ready. Only a couple of things to do and you'll get to live forever."

That was entirely too creepy. "Who are you lady? What do you want?"

She brought her hand around. She was holding a lit cigar, and she took a drag, before moving the lit end back away from him. "I'm Hex."

Ahjess looked at the woman, and a sinking feeling gripped him. "Hex what?"

"Just Hex," she breathed out, pointing the smoke up where it made blue curls on the ceiling.

"That's a symbiont name." He croaked. "Who are you really?"

She tilted her head on one side, looking up at him. "Still Hex. The body is called Remelia. But she's not in charge. Do you like it?"

"That's not possible." Ahjess was shaking his head. Symbiont's were never in charge.

"Oh, its entirely possible, sweetling. I've done this a lot." SHe took another drag on her cigar. "You're going to have lots of company."

"You're going to Join me?" Ahjess couldn't believe it. that was the only thing he could think she might want. "You can't. I'm not suitable. Hardly anyone."

"Oh hush," This time Hex blew smoke directly in his face. "That's bullshit. About half of your people can take one of mine. So I just need to give you some muscle mass back, and then I'm going to crawl inside and make myself at home." She got off her perch and pulled a panel out from under the biobed, entering new commands into the bed. A shimmering field came to live around his body, and after a moment he felt small twitches start to pass through his torso and limbs.

"What are you doing?" he gasped.

"Building up your strength." Hex explained. "You've been asleep along time. All your friends have forgotton about you. You've withered a bit. I want you nice and strong when I move into your body. I'll be needing to hold this one down after. Can't do that if you're a weakling."

"You can't. I won't let you." Ahjess was babbling now, but Hex didn't seem to notice.

"Don't worry your pretty little head." Her hand moved through the field. He could see the muscle twitches in her arm as she stroked his naked stomach. "One little cut, you'll never have to worry about anything again. Once I'm inside you, you'll just be along for the ride. You won't be alone. I've got lots of other hosts coming too. So just relax. I'll take of everything."

Ahjess shook his head again, forcing the words out through his murderously dry throat. "Please, odn't. I can't do anything for you. I'm just a dabo boy. I flirt with old ladies and take eveyrones money."

"You seem to think I want you for your brain." Hex drew another long breath through her cigar. "Not this time. I just need a new look. Its getting a bit...busy... around here, and I can't leave town in this body. Too well known." She trailed her finger down his body from his collarbone to his hip. "I haven't worn anything so fresh in a while. I'm going to enjoy it." She stood, dusted some stray ash off her black trousers. "So just lie there and get better. Its not long now,"

"Please," he begged. He didn't have enough moisture for tears. "Don't do this."

Hex looked down at him, impassive. "Its not personal." She looked at the end of her cigars. "All things can be endured. I'll show you." She bent over him, her plait falling onto his chest, tickling the bare skin. She picked up his left hand, and ground out the cigar in his palm.

He didn't have enough strength or breath or spit to scream, and she watched him twitching and gasping, the skin on his left hand now blackend with ash and tinged red from the heat. It was already beginning to blister. "You'll get used to it. After the first couple of times, you'll barely feel it." Hex patted him on the shoulder. "See you tomorrow, meat suit."

[OFF]

Ahjess Denn
Dabo Boy

Hex
Pharmacist

[NPCs by Maritza Soran]

 

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