Intober 2024: Day 12 - Collaring

The moments between Eddie Hollman losing control of his plane and it, eventually, slamming down into the water passed like hours. Then everything was senses. The coldness around him, the push and flow of waves. Conscious but not cogent. What must have been hours passed like a temporary distraction. His brain reeling, injured. Somewhere far away as he drifted. All was a dark gray wash when his eyes would flick open. Somehow, he floated. Through the chop of the surf, rolling under and above, breathing when he could. A particularly sharp wave yanked him to one side and he felt his belts tug at his chest. Not only had the ejector seat never ejected, the clasps had never unlocked. Considering how buoyant his seat seemed to be, he could probably forgive the manufacturers for their oversight. If he survived.

Gradually, things got better. The sea calmer, the sky clearer. He was drifting... drifting... Stars changing overhead between blinks. Hours in seconds, days in minutes.

Footsteps in sand. That was the sound that brought him up out of it and seemed to allow permission for the gentle crash of waves to come in. Somewhere above a bird cried, the ugly squeaking of gulls. The sea had heaved him up on some distant, sunny shore in a pile of his own craft. Bits of it jutted from the sand, others dug into his skin. He was cut in several places, things broken in just as many others. Half-man, half-pulp. The question in his mind wasn't if he'd recover, but how long it would go on before his eyes finally drifted closed one final time.

Then the footsteps quickened, the sand crunching more firmly underneath as their owner picked up the pace. A head bobbed into his field of view. Olive skin, long black hair. A face round and womanly, beautiful as a statue. She leaned over him with a look at first of amazement, amusement, then finally of concern.

She spoke in gibberish, he raised a hand up toward her. As his own arm came into view, he could see parts of it missing. Eddie passed out.

***

He might have drifted away entirely, if not for the pain finally catching up.

Eddie tried to part his lips and cry out, but it was like trying to scream while in a nightmare. His eyes eventually dragged open, sandy and tired. He was laid out in a dark room on a bed of cold and uncomfortable white stone. Above him was a device beyond any explanation, metal bulging like unnatural veins around its long body. Tapering down from a stand which seemed like it shouldn't have been able to support the thing's weight. From the end of it, a purple ray of light pointed down at his body.

The woman was still there. His lips managed to open to speak. Her dark eyes immediately rolled toward him and she shook her head in concern.

"No." She shook her head more firmly, like she wasn't sure of her words having the right effect. "No talk. Rest. No talk."

She reached up toward the device and turned something. The lens from which the purple light came extended out as the machine telescoped down toward him, the beam seeming to get more intense and narrow. It panned to one of his arms, and when Eddie looked down he managed a wet groan deep in his throat. Bone was peeking from his arm. Even being in the military, even considering himself a hardened man, nothing prepared you for seeing the inside bits of you on the outside.

But as the ray focused on the protruding bit of bone, he swore he could see it move. Shifting and shrinking into his skin. He blinked a few times, each time it felt like less of a blink and more like he dozed off, losing an hour. Eventually, he realized the bone was no longer visible. He could feel something like a deep, aching shift where it had protruded, then suddenly below it he could feel his fingers again. He hadn't even realized that he couldn't feel anything below the fracture until a new set of painful sensations picked up in his fingers.

A single strand of skin reached out from one end of the wound toward the other like a piece of spider's web. It connected and started to widen, little offshoot strands coming out from around it and grabbing at either side of the wound. With a tremendous, itching discomfort, the wound began to pull itself closed. Eddie croaked again and the woman gave him another pleading look.

"Sleep," She begged him. "No talk."

A sliver of light appeared as somebody else stepped through a curtain on the far wall. He caught a brief, hazy glimpse of moonlight on the water, marble and greens. Then the silhouette moved toward him until he could make out the shape of her. Her skin was dark and smooth. A long mane of curly black hair flowed from her head, held in place by a golden circlet. It seemed to run into the shadows, like there was no definite point where she ended and his surroundings began. She was powerfully built as an athlete, though her cheeks were round and her long white robe suggested curves. As the woman operating the machine stood up, Eddie could see that she was the same.

They exchanged tense conversation in the same gibberish language as before, though he started to catch loanwords and inflections. Beach, plane, man. Then they said his name with curious disdain. His eyes closed again.

***

For the first time in a long time, Eddie woke up nicely.

He heard birds chirping, felt the gentle orange push of indirect sunlight against his eyelids, and started to feel his body. For the most part, it all seemed to be there and in one piece. Some parts of it ached, some parts of it itched, but there weren't any... gaps. His brain also felt entirely there. Like he could focus, string together thoughts, internalize. His first thought, at least first tangible and meaningful thought, was that he still felt like shit in spite of everything.

Eddie opened his eyes slowly. His head was pounding, his guts felt... almost rearranged. Despite having just slept for god-knew how long, he was as tired as he could remember ever being.

He was in a low, marble room with a vaulted white ceiling. The floor was clean tile that turned into packed dirt as it approached the doorways, each was open and guarded only by a thin curtain that waved, semi-transparent, in the soft breeze. Nothing was decorated for comfort. A couple of round brass braziers, some awful-looking seats, a table where the device had one stood. His bed was still flat stone with only a small pillow. A cream-colored sheet was draped around him, he could feel that he was naked underneath. That, at least, made sense. If everything after the crash hadn't been a dream, they would have had to fix and replace enough of him that he was probably, literally, only half the man he used to be.

There was a bowl of water sitting on the table by his bed, and looking at it made Eddie's throat tighten with thirst. As he pushed the sheet aside and leaned forward to grab it, one of the curtains parted and another woman entered carrying a bowl of both food and water. She jumped a bit when she saw him moving, then called loudly to somebody outside in their language. Eddie heard footsteps pounding toward the room, and he had enough time to wrap the sheet back around his waist before the olive-skinned woman walked in.

She saw him moving and gave him a confusing smile. Her face was both alien and human. She seemed playful, friendly, but also condescending. She took the bowls from the other girl, and as Eddie reached toward the bowl of water, she cleared her throat loudly. Setting the bowls down on the other side of the table, she slapped his hand away.

"Not drink," Her voice was a little bit more confident with her English than she had been before, but the words still didn't flow. "Soapy. Clean you. This water drink. Slowly."

The woman handed him the bowl she had brought in, and her hand guided it as Eddie tipped it up and sipped at it. She watched him the whole time with that same semi-chiding smile. He wanted to gulp it down, but after only a few sips, he nearly gagged. Coughing and sputtering, his body cramped up badly and he laid back down uneasily.

"Careful," She picked up a bit of cheese from the other bowl and crumbled a small piece of it, then pressed it against his lips. "Purple light heal. Use body, regenerate itself. Never heal man. Assume body... stronger..."

"Where..." Eddie's voice creaked, and she took the opportunity to stuff the cheese into his mouth, then set her hand over his lips.

"Throat hurt. Metal in." She reached under the table and pulled up a small tray. Bits of broken aluminum, other bits from the jet. "Places where remove... heal slow... Throat slowest."

Swallowing took a lot of effort, and when he finally managed to do it, Eddie could feel his eyes watering. She gave him another bit of water.

"Where..." Eddie managed again, coughed, then kept trying. "Where are..."

"Themyscira," The woman responded casually. "Not mans world. Safe."

He wasn't sure exactly how reassured he was by somebody trying to convince him he was safe. But, obviously, if she had meant him any harm there would have been a hundred chances to get rid of him easily and cleanly. Even just leaving him on the beach...

"Confused." She pointed at him as he said it, either meaning it as a question or asserting it. "Not explain yet. Can't. Eddie brain sleep talk. Priestess learn. More to learn. Eddie sleep more. Explain better. Talk more. Explain more better."

When he opened his mouth to speak again, she pushed a grape between his lips and covered his mouth again. She must have realized how hard it was for him to swallow, because her smile faded just a hair and she set the bowl of food down. Giving him one more sip of water, she grabbed the other bowl of water from the table and a rag. Scooting toward his face, she dipped the rag in the water and started to dab at his forehead and cheeks with it. She was almost inhumanly beautiful up close. Her lips naturally plump and colorful, her hair wavy and neat. Cheeks sharp and high, eyes piercing blue. The more she smiled, the more his impression of her expression shifted from condescending to doting. Maybe they were the same, or close to it.

"Eddie," She said, pointing at him with the rag tucked in her surprisingly large, surprisingly rough hand. Then she pointed at herself. "Diana."

"Di-ana," He managed to croak.

She chuckled softly and dabbed at his lips and cheek, little tapping motions almost like pecking kisses. He could hear something shifting near one of the entrances to the room, but it took some serious cajoling for his mind to convince him to look away from her. Just outside the entrance, some of them peeking in, were a group of women. All dressed as she was in loose, colorful robes. Faces ever shade from pale to ink-black. Their eyes were all amused as they watched her care for him, some of them whispering among themselves. They seemed bright and giggly as schoolgirls.

Diana pinched his chin and turned him back to look at her. She smiled again, then wiped his lips with the cloth.

"They watch." She said softly. "Very curious. First man they see."

"What-" Eddie started, then coughed again. Diana dabbed the spittle that came from his mouth, then re-wetted the cloth.

"Themyscira," She repeated. "Not mans world. Safe."

The cloth finished washing his face and then moved down to his neck and shoulders. Diana really did intend to wash him, it seemed. The water, the more he smelled it, had a slight tinge to it. Salt and berries, a hint of lavender. She scrubbed his arms, taking special care to dab at the scars that criss-crossed his body. Then she dabbed the cloth playfully at his nipples as she washed his chest, rubbing them until they were hard, then rubbing them just a bit more. One of the girls watching gave a little giggle. Diana started to wash his stomach, but she teased his chest a bit with her hand.

Eddie shifted uncomfortably. Her touch was gentle but her hands were calloused and strong. He could feel a slight churn and tension between his legs. She definitely wasn't causing it by accident. In a few seconds, his sheet wasn't going to be enough cover if she kept at it. Her expression remained playful, but she seemed just as curious and just as amused as their audience.

"First man I see," Diana admitted after a moment. Her hand moved from his nipples up to his lips, tracing their shape. Her other hand moved the cloth to his waist where he had pinched the sheet around him, then hesitated. "Also... curious."

She slowly opened the sheet and let it fall to either side of his hip. He could hear a little collective intake of breath from the girls outside. His cock was starting to respond to her touch, but only just. Diana turned to look at it with an expression not even really of lust, more the playfulness of having found a new toy. She wrapped her hand around it gently, seemingly fully aware of how strong she was and how coarse her grip was. As she pulled the skin back from his head, Eddie swallowed with considerable effort. She dabbed the cloth around the underside of his head, then rubbed it up from his balls to the tip. Lifting his balls and rolling them in her hand, she dabbed the cloth on his inner thighs and between his legs. He felt her hand move just within teasing reach of his ass before pulling back.

It seemed to please her how he felt in her hand as he got harder. How he filled her grip, how warm he would feel, the firmness that increased with his rising pulse. The giggles had stopped beyond the curtain, replaced with an excited whispering. Diana turned his dick this way and that in her hand, wrapping her palm around and squeezing firmly until the head bulged pink and swollen. She squeezed and tickled his balls. It was all exploratory, all play. Eddie's balls were churning. He could see scars on his groin that had been healed too, and the growing need was enough to overpower the dull itch. Diana stroked one of the scars with her free hand, then moved her forefinger against the underside of his head like she was tickling him. She pushed her hair over one shoulder and bent down toward her toy.

"Ah..." She hesitated for a moment above, "Is... you are okay?"

Eddie tried to nod without moving his head too much, tried to make a noise in the affirmative without hurting his throat. Having an audience wasn't exactly something he was used to or that he looked forward to, but he felt pent-up like his recovery had taken exactly as long as he might have feared. If this was all some elaborate, over-long dream, this would have been the moment he woke up.

Diana seemed to get his message and pressed her lips against the tip of his head in a soft kiss. Then her tongue flicked out and lapped at his head until a bead of pre-cum was wicked away by her tongue. She looked almost startled by it, but went back to licking. Finally, after a few moments, she wrapped her lips around it and let the head slide into her mouth.

He was going to blow. Eddie was having dream sex with a woman too hot to be real and he wasn't going to last even a full minute into his blowjob. Clutching his hands against the discarded sheet and tugging it, he tried to groan without hurting his throat, bobbing his head less than an inch into the air and then back down into his pillow repeatedly. Diana seemed completely invested in what she was doing, swirling her tongue around the head of his cock as she gripped his shaft with her hand. If she noticed his warnings, this time she didn't show it.

Then he closed his eyes and burst. Hips pumping despite their soreness up toward her, balls clenching, cock throbbing in his hand. Eddie felt her tongue freeze as his cum started to spill into her mouth, eyes shooting from where they had been heavily-lidded down toward his groin over to him. Look of amused doting suddenly tainted with a hard smear of something like betrayal, something else like disgust. Seeing his face, she seemed to grasp what was happening. Diana relaxed, started moving her tongue again and squeezing his cock as he emptied into her mouth. Eddie's groan turned into a whimper. It was such a feeling of not just relief, but outright bliss. Even if Diana suddenly turned, angry at his lack of performance, she wasn't doing it in the moment, she was letting him have at least this.

When he was finally done, and Diana was sure he was done, she pressed her lips toward each other and slowly moved her head from his cock. She held his load in her mouth for a second, seeming to consider it. Whether or not she found it acceptable or desirable, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and swallowed heavily. When she looked back toward him, her eyes were playful again, though some harder edge had come over them which he suspected might never leave again.

"You are..." She seemed to be trying to pick her words carefully, but she was still ultimately playing a nearly-blind raffle. "This is... interesting. Next time you say. Make it... not interesting?"

"Sorry," Eddie exhaled weakly, his head falling back to the pillow. Diana gave his cock a final, massaging squeeze and the whispers started up among the observers again. Then, she grabbed the rag again and started to wipe her saliva from his member.

***

"I must put this in no uncertain terms," Nubia, the dark-skinned amazon from before, sat on her throne looking down on him. Her robes were light blue with gold flourishes, both which made for bright contrasts against her earthy skin. In some ways, she was even more beautiful than Diana. She seemed stronger, more composed. But there was also something colder about her, more considered. Nubia thought three times before she said anything that Diana uttered casually.

"Yes, Queen," Eddie knelt before her.

He had been on Themyscira roughly a week since waking, and he knew enough to treat the Amazons with respect. In most cases, they deserved it. The weakest of them could have snapped the thickest bone in his body like a chicken wing, but the meanest of him was still kind enough to be horrified by the idea. They were also terrifyingly smart. Their magic women had studied his speech and his mind and deciphered English before he'd even taken his first steps since the crash. Now, some of them could compose verse in it that would make a poet weep. Nubia, in particular, spoke like a career politician after two days learning a language she had never heard before.

"You have already been here a week, along with however long you drifted before landing." Nubia spoke carefully. Her voice never carried the doting condescension that Diana's often could lapse into. Diana saw him as a plaything. A funny, person-shaped object that she had found on the beach and now she got to have first dibs on playing with. Nubia looked at the whole picture. In that, while she probably didn't fear him any more than she feared a house cat, she at least understood the existential threat that he could imply.

"Yes, Queen," Eddie repeated.

"You said that you crashed while testing a new... plane... from your military," There were still loan words that meant nothing to an Amazon. Nubia especially understood the military, understood a soldier's mentality, but 'gun' and 'fighter jet' might as well have been an alien language. "Eventually, if you do not leave Themyscira, they will come looking for you?"

Even with her grasp of the language, there were times the Amazons said questions as statements and asked definitives. Nubia's eyes were cast down at him, analyzing to what extent she thought Themyscira had to fear these seeking forces. She didn't question that a military would look for its own, she didn't question that he was going to be searched for. If there was a question, it was in how much she needed to think about it.

"They will, but if what you say is true, queen, they will not find me." Eddie straightened up. "The jet I was experimenting with was explicitly stated to have concerns about survivability. I have no spouse, no kids. My next of kin would be my parents, who I haven't spoken to since enlisting."