Casey Connelly, 22, was in a state of shock.
It didn't last long, as he felt his hand pinned to the small of his back. He had been tipped over this woman's knee, bare rear end on display, and he was about to be spanked. Spanked! Her hard right hand crashed down on his left cheek, the sharp sting eliciting a healthy yelp. His legs jumped involuntarily, and the deceptively powerful woman responded by slipping her right leg over them, locking them down between.
"We'll have none of that, young man." she scolded. "Take your punishment and reflect properly on the circumstances that brought you here."
***
Casey stared up the slate gray and glass exterior of the building. He shifted from one foot to the other, nervous energy all over. A severe sinking feeling developed in his stomach as he read the words etched in steel atop the doors: FEDERAL MINDERS BUREAU. He knew what this meant, had known since the fateful day early last week, when the damned letter had arrived in his mailbox. Its contents, all stark and bold, had demanded he report to this building today, 10 AM sharp. Behind him, the autocar he'd ordered via his smart device scooted off silently without asking if he wanted to go elsewhere.
He tried to put its contents out of his mind in the days that followed, as was his usual style for inconvenient information. What business did the Minders have with him? He was an upstanding adult, not some ne'er-do-well who needed their disciplinary intervention. Undies, the slang name for "Underdeveloped adults" the rest of the world used, were pathetic people who were punished in childish ways. That wasn't Casey, he was sure! He rationalized and rationalized, sure this was likely some mistake. Or okay, maybe he'd gone a bit wild lately. Maybe this was just a courtesy, right?
But this wouldn't be something he could just ignore. His boss had called him into her office the day before, informing him she'd already gotten the notice of his appointment, that he had the day off tomorrow to go. The undertone of her voice implied she'd know if he didn't go, and his employment felt suddenly precarious. Casey resigned himself to going.
Here he was standing outside the door, and that resolve was already shaken. Someone at the door, clearly a security guard used to this sort of thing, spotted him. Casey almost bolted, but the tall man walked briskly in his direction and he knew a sprint at this point would only make things worse. He smiled nervously and waved.
"Casey Connelly? We've got you on the docket today, right this way." the officer said brusquely, then repeated the same information into a comms receiver on his shoulder. Guess there was no turning back now. Casey followed him reluctantly, entering the solid glass doors into the lobby.
Inside, the lobby was separated into 2 sections. The first, labeled MINDERS/PERSONNEL, was a small and simple set of 3 keycard gates. Casey watched a stately woman in her 50's pass through with a simple swipe of her smart device. The only other, however, was rather intimidating. UNDERDEVELOPED ADULTS ENTER HERE, was the severe lettering in the same typeface as the front entrance. There was 1 additional human guard here, standing to the left of a weapons detector. The other guard was a remote operated droid, it's screen showing a pleasant fake face. The gangly machine stood behind a waist high conveyor belt that led into a scanner. The gruff guard from the door walked him up to the latter.
"You're sure I go through this door? Isn't there some guest entrance?" Casey asked, but there was no response.
"Please place your shoes, belt, and any bags into this bin on the left. Please place wallet and smart device in this separate basket on the right." Said the synthetic voice, pleasant and sterile at the same time. Slowly, after it was clear his question would not be answered, Casey complied. His pants were fashionably tight as it was, so he didn't worry too much about them falling. Absentmindedly, he complied, trotting through the detector barefoot while nervously eyeing the other guard. He stopped as he passed through with no beeping, and turned to get his shoes and belt back. The android pleasantly informed him to take the elevator to the 5th floor. Casey waited for a moment, squinting his eyes. He looked back at the guard who'd brought him, then the other, they all just waiting for him to leave.
"Uh, don't I get my stuff back?" He asked. His attitude was less than stellar, and in return the gate guard only chuckled. "You get them on the way out, new kid. They'll be here waiting for you. 5th floor! I wouldn't make your Minder wait." The second guard barked, and moved to hurry Casey on towards the elevator lobby. Confused and more afraid for what would happen if he stayed, he walked barefoot across the carpeted floor to the elevator. He pressed the button for 5, nervously looking back towards the front where the human guards were sharing a laugh. He was embarrassed, annoyed, and indignant. In a huff he followed the gong to his assigned unit and stepped in.
Flying up in the elevator, he did his best to regain his cool. This was unsettling, but he could bullshit his way through. He always did. Calm down, Casey, You've got this. He adjusted his pants, screwed up his courage, and stepped out of the opening doors.
There was a desk immediately to his left, with a pretty young blonde sitting behind it. Her hair was pulled back in a slick high ponytail, the better to fit her headset. The sight of her model-esque figure immediately put the wind back in Casey's sails, and he strode confidently forward with his usual vim and vigor. She smiled serenely at him as he went to introduce himself..
"Hiya, I'm-" She held up a finger and interrupted without breaking her smile, pressed a button on her desk.
"Ms. Montblanc, Casey Connelly has arrived." she spoke quietly into the headset. Casey smiled nervously, did his best to roll with interruption.
"Oh, so my reputation precedes me. I'm Casey, what's your name?" he asked, leaning on the desk and flashing his best smile at her. Her face hadn't changed.
"You can stand against the wall to the left, she'll need you in just a moment." was her perfectly level reply. Not one to take such a dismissal as the end, Casey merely smiled back before he dipped his head in agreement, and walked over to the indicated location.
It truly was only a moment in that spot before he heard the sound of heels clicking down the tiles of the office floor. A pair came around the corner, talking briskly, and stopped to finish their conversation.
"I'll go bring her to the Medical office, then." said the male half, a tall gentleman with salt and pepper hair.
"Thank you, Ben. Let's hope this lesson sticks for her. We'll talk later, I'll be bringing mine there for his intake after we discuss a few things." said the woman. Her back was to Casey, but her silhouette was already arresting. She was on the tall end of average, perhaps 5'9" or 5'10". Her black hair was smooth and shimmering, a perfect curtain that fell only to her chin. She turned around as her companion departed, and Casey was captivated by the sight. 2 almond eyes stuck out from her perfectly framed face, bangs acting as a crown across her brow. She was likely in her late 30s, and gracefully so. Her slate gray business suit was impeccably tailored to her frame. Her brow furrowed slightly as her eyes met his, and for a moment he felt like a mouse that'd been seen by some bird of prey. His stomach flipped as she began approaching him.
"Please hold my calls, Jenna. In my office, young man. Now." Her voice was steely and crisp, it rang through his ears. She motioned him to follow her as she walked through a door immediately to her left. Casey panicked for a moment as he lost sight of her, and spared only a glance for the secretary who was suppressing a laugh before he scrambled after the intimidating woman.
Her office was modern and well lit, though there were no windows in this part of the building. There were diplomas and awards on one wall, arranged in a tasteful and humble fashion. A pleasant tea set sat on a table next to a small couch against the far wall, adjacent to the desk. The grabbing feature, however, was the starkly empty far wall. Against it was a tall, armless chair, and it exuded a menace Casey couldn't quite articulate. He eyed it warily until her strong voice broke the spell.
"Casey Connelly, Age 22. You are hereby declared an Undeveloped Adult, and placed in the care of the Federal Minders Bureau. There, that formality is done with. My name is Meredith Montblanc, and I will be your legally designated Minder." The words she spoke stunned him, and he sank into the chair.
"Stand up, I didn't say you could sit." She said incredulously. He stumbled to his feet, still in shock, and she continued. "What did you expect would happen, young man? Your behavior over the last 4 years has clearly been pushing you down this path. You know very well what this building is for. Did you think this was some sort of party?" she asked. Casey, a practiced bullshitter, could barely answer.
"I...I thought this would be like, a warning. That there'd be more-"
"You WERE warned, Casey. You received numerous letters informing you of this course. Our behavior auditors were rather generous with their timeline, but you did not improve."
"I...oh... I thought.."
"Clearly THAT's not true, young man. You didn't think much at all. Do you even realize that you skipped a previously scheduled appointment? What do you have to say about that??" The answer to her question was nothing. His mouth was agape. He did recall some previous letters he'd rifled through, maybe, but the mail hadn't seemed that important. None of it was as clearly important as that last one!