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Author's Note:

So, I'm super excited by the positive feedback from chapter 1, and I can't wait to see what you all have to say about chapter 2. It took a little longer than I expected to write, but I am very pleased with the finished product. I love hearing what you think about it, and I welcome comments and constructive criticism. Remember that I'm new to this, so please be kind to the nervous author.

-CrystalineScar

*****

After leaving her apartment, Kyal took Ehlena through the frosty city streets to the nearby subway station. They took the red line all the way to its end in the north of town. Ehlena had passed the time trying to cement her life in her memory. Kyal had refused to answer any of her questions while in public, and she was burning with curiosity. Ehlena tried to focus on her curiosity as to why Aluria was invading her homeland of Sevasally. She tried to focus on remembering the little details of her life at home. The way the air smelled in all the different seasons. The way the carpet felt under her bare feet. To her dismay, she realized that her life was already fading. She had never taken the time to memorize each detail before, and now it was too late. She fought back tears as she realized that her past life, in the real world, was over and out of her reach forever. She, like the rest of her countrymen, had believed that Aluria would never invade Sevasally. They had been allies for the past two decades, and Ehlena had believed that that truce would last beyond her lifetime. Ehlena knew little about Aluria, as Alurians tended to keep to themselves and didn't share much of their culture or personalities with the outside world. But here she was, handcuffed to an Alurian soldier, being stolen away from her home to become a slave in a foreign empire.

Ehlena had been jerked from her thoughts when Kyal had tightened his grip on her hand and whispered in her ear. "It's time to get going kitten. We only have a short car ride left and we'll be done traveling for today."

With that, he stood up, pulling her with him, and made his way out of the train. Ehlena was careful to keep up. She knew that Kyal could make her abduction much worse than it already was, and she wanted to keep him happy. Ehlena knew that her comfort and safety were in Kyal's hands.

"Where are we going after this?" she asked, her curiosity finally bubbling over. He shot her an exasperated look.

"Does this look like something we can talk about in public?" Kyal's voice was much colder than it had been earlier in the day, and Ehlena's grip on his hand slackened. She didn't like harsh tones or yelling because they had always made her want to cry, and now she wanted to distance herself as much as possible from Kyal's icy tone. He looked at her with surprise and sighed.

"Look sweetheart, this is going to be hard and unpleasant for both of us. I'm going to pull some strings, and I'm not looking forward to explaining that to anyone. Just hold tight and keep quiet until I say it's okay. That'll make my job a whole lot easier." His tone softened and he squeezed her hand reassuringly. Despite the fear that had been building during the subway ride, she felt a little better.

"I can be quiet if you promise to answer all my questions later." She said, trying to hide her fear and keep it out of her voice. The corner of Kyal's mouth twitched into a half smile.

"I'll answer anything you want. Just keep your mouth shut and your head down. And for God's sake, do exactly as I say." Ehlena was startled to hear a touch of fear in his voice, and she nodded her assent to him.

One hundred yards later, they reached a black sedan that was idling in the darkest corner of the parking lot. Kyal nodded to the driver who got out and opened the door to the back seat.

"Did everything go alright? No hitches or anything we need to report?" The driver's voice was rough and tense, devoid of the warmth Ehlena had heard when Kyal talked.

"Everything went according to plan. I even got to have a bit of fun with her." Kyal said as he groped her ass for the driver's benefit and pushed her into the truck. The driver laughed as both he and Kyal slammed their doors and they drove off.

Once they were moving, Kyal unlocked the handcuff that had been linking them together. Ehlena rubbed where a red ring now encircled her tiny wrist. Kyal gently took her hand in his and rubbed slow circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. Ehlena was grateful for the reassuring gesture as she was struggling to remain both calm and silent. She felt a little disconcerted by his kindness. He was both kidnapping her and being kind to her, and the paradox was too much to process fully at the moment. To keep her head from spinning, she leaned back against the seat and closed her eyes. In order to stay calm, Ehlena focused on her breathing. In. Out. In. Out.

"Kitten, we're here," Kyal's voice reached into her sleep and started to bring her back to reality. She had tipped over while she had been sleeping and her head rested on Kyal's thigh. He was playing with her hair. Ehlena took a deep breath and opened her eyes. There was no trace of the sun left in the sky, and a tiny sliver of a moon shone feebly, barely illuminating what looked like a warehouse.

Ehlena almost asked where they were, but she remembered Kyal's request to be silent and obedient. Kyal climbed out of the truck and helped her down. Then, they followed the driver into the building. Ehlena hung close to Kyal's side. She was wary of the leering faces of the armed guards. Although Kyal had seen her naked, he had never looked at her with that kind of expression.

Kyal gently grabbed her upper arm and led her through another set of doors. They walked into a bright room with a filing cabinet and a table. Kyal pointed towards a chair in the corner of the room.

"Sit there." Kyal told her.

It was only as Ehlena sat on the chair that she realized that there were restraints on the chair. Her eyes widened and she looked at Kyal.

"I'm not sitting there." She said.

"You have to kitten. I've got things to do, and I can't just leave you here. So sit down. I'll be back for you later." Kyal's calm tone made Ehlena relax enough to sit down in the chair. He fastened the velcro straps around her wrists, ankles, and neck. He tightened them just enough to immobilize her, but loose enough as to preserve circulation in her limbs. Ehlena managed to stay calm until Kyal started to fasten a gag over her mouth. Panic took over her self-control.

"No. Don't you dare. No. Get away from me, you creep!" Kyal fit the gag into her mouth between her frantic words. He gave her a rueful smile.

"It's just protocol sweetheart. I'll be back for you later." Ehlena could do nothing as he walked away and left through the door.

At first, she struggled against her restraints. She fought against them until her wrists and ankles were rubbed raw. She screamed until her throat burned and her voice went hoarse. She finally ran out of energy and gave up. She grew bored waiting. The room was too bright, the chair too hard, and the restraints, which had once been comfortably loose, too tight. Ehlena eventually fell asleep, plagued by nightmares of helplessness and terror.

She woke with a start to the sound of a door slamming. Her eyes jerked open to see Kyal and another man, similar in build but with blonde hair, arguing. She was too exhausted to concentrate on what they were saying, but she noticed that they were pointing at her a lot. She closed her eyes and tried to escape by falling asleep again.

Something hard and cold slid from her waist to her neck. Her eyes snapped open as cold air rushed to meet her stomach and chest. The man with the blonde hair was standing over her, holding a pair of scissors. She shivered and cringed as he continued cutting off her clothes. She had no energy left to even try to protest, and he ignored her whimpers with a malicious grin. Ehlena's eyes widened and she shook her head, trying to ask Kyal to make him stop, but Kyal wasn't looking at her. He was busy at the desk, writing something, his shoulders slumped.

"Now let's see what we have here." The blonde man said with a leer in his voice. "You certainly are a pretty little thing. Maybe I could keep you tonight." Ehlena's skin crawled as he ran his hands over her body. She tried to shy away from his invading hands, but he only laughed at her pitiful efforts.

"We won't be having any of that my pet. I want to see what you have to offer me." Tears leaked down Ehlena's face as his hands cupped her breasts, his thumbs playing with her nipples. All kinds of horrors flashed though Ehlena's mind, and, from the look in the stranger's eyes, she knew they were all possibilities.

"I think I'll do your physical in my own chamber tonight" he said, winking at her with a malicious grin. "What do you think brother, would that be okay with you?" He turned towards Kyal, cocking his head to the side, his chin thrust out, issuing a challenge. Kyal's voice sounded defeated when he spoke.

"I suppose so, Ahntanas. She doesn't belong to me, after all."

"And she never will, if she's as good as I think she will be." Ahntanas turned back towards Ehlena, "you'll behave now, won't you? Though it'll be more fun for me if you don't."

Ehlena trembled all over as Ahntanas unfastened the straps holding her to the chair. The remains of her clothes fell to the floor as he pulled her to her feet. Ehlena backed away from him, still unable to speak. She cowered in the corner. He reached for her, and she lashed out. Before she could make contact with him, he grabbed both her wrists in a vice like grip. He pinned her wrists to the wall above her head, and leaned on them.

"Now, what's going to happen will happen will happen no matter what you do. I will enjoy it either way, though I'd rather if you put up a fight. It'd be more fun for me if you resist, then I get an excuse to treat you how I'd like to. Lover boy over there'd throw a fit if I used 'unnecessary force,' as he puts it. Personally, I'd prefer to save that for when I've got you alone at home, but if you want to try it out here, I'd me more than happy to." He leered into Ehlena's face, and she cringed away from him.

"Please no. Just leave me alone." Ehlena managed to rasp out of her sore throat. Ahntanas smiled widely at her.

"I have no intention of leaving you alone, pet. Now, let's go play a game in my room for the night." Despite Ehlena's resistance, he flipped her around and fastened her hands behind her back with handcuffs. He then proceeded to lead her out of the room with a handful of her long blonde hair.

Ehlena could do nothing but try to keep up with Ahntanas' long strides. She was terrified of what she knew was about to happen, and she missed the relative safety of Kyal's presence. She could manage to follow Kyal's orders because she could tell that he was, albeit in a rather twisted way, trying to protect her. Ehlena was nearly paralyzed with fear of what Ahntanas was going to do to her. Ehlena could barely keep up with the pace Ahntanas set. She was physically and emotionally exhausted, and she stumbled, nearly falling, often.

After a long corridor, they suddenly made a left turn, and Ehlenalost her footing and fell to the ground, unable to catch her fall because of her bound hands. Ahntanas angrily jerked her back to her feet by grabbing her left forearm. Ehlena screamed in pain as his jerk wrenched her arm from its socket. Ahntanas flinched slightly at the sudden noise from her, and he slapped her angrily across her face for startling him. Ehlena fell to the ground for the second time, this time harder than the first. Her head smashed against the hard floor with a crack, and everything went black for a moment. Through a heavy fog, she could hear Ahntanas yelling at her.

"If you want to make me angry, this is a good way to do it. You're a healthy human being, and you're in good physical condition. If you want to stay that way, you'd better shape up and shut up. Now get to your fucking feet and walk faster before your antics make me horny enough to take you here in this hallway"

In response, Ehlena did nothing but moan. His loud words hurt her head. Ahntanas let out a loud curse and swept her up onto his broad shoulders, jerking her aching shoulder, and he carried her like a sack of potatoes. Ehlena had to concentrate carefully to avoid being sick as his rocking stride nauseated her.

After several long corridors and a few locked doors, Ahntanas came to a sudden stop. Ehlena's shoulders sagged in relief at the cessation of movement even though she knew that reaching their destination wasn't a good thing.

"Here we are pet, home sweet home, for now at least." Ahntanas said as he opened his door. He slung her off her shoulders and onto the floor of a medium-sized room that was sparsely furnished. The most outstanding feature of the room was the bed, which had chains hanging to all four posts. That, however, wasn't the most worrying piece of furniture. After noticing the bed, Ehlena had only a moment to take in a metal rack before Ahntanas drug her by her hair towards it.

"This, my pet, is where you'll be spending the night if you don't behave." He said, untying her wrists only to begin fastening her spread eagle to the frame of the rack. Ehlena was too dizzy and her head hurt too much to even think of trying to resist him. There was no back to the contraption, leaving her accessible from all angles. The lengths of each of the four sides were adjustable which made it possible for Ahntanas to manipulate her position however he wanted, on a two-dimensional basis. Ehlena also noticed that it could rotate, which worried her because any movement made her head swim and her eyes ache. Her hand being fastened above her head made her shoulder ache even worse.

Ahntanas began circling his bulky contraption. Ehlena could feel his eyes taking in every aspect of her naked body. She watched him as best she could as he walked around her, and she pleaded with him though her gag, though not much of what she said was understandable.

"Now that just won't do. I can't have you watching me while I have my fun. Let's see what I can do about that. What kind of blindfold do you want, pet?" He started rummaging through a duffel bag, looking for a suitable blindfold. "Ahh, this'll do nicely." He walked towards her with a malicious grin and fastened the blindfold over her eyes. Ehlena felt completely helpless, though the blindfold did help with her headache and with her nausea She could hear Ahntanas circling her again, but she had no way of seeing what he was going to do to her.

She felt his fingers gently caress her chest, and she gasped with surprise. His touch became firmer as he explored more of her body. Her constant stream of pleas for him to stop grew louder as his hands migrated lower on her body. One of his hands found her clit and started flicking it while the other played with her nipple. His ministrations became rougher as Ehlena's tears soaked through her blindfold.

"Stop, just please stop." She sobbed loudly though her gag. Ahntanas pinched her nipples hard enough that she yelped.

"I'll stop when I feel like it. I'm just getting started, and things will get a lot worse for you if you don't shut up." He punctuated his last three words with savage pinches to her nipples. Ehlena's stream of begging stopped, though she continued to sob quietly.

"I'm going to have you however I want. If I want to do this-" He shoved two fingers into her vagina, "-then I will however much I want. And the more noise you make, the more pain I'll cause you." To illustrate his point, he removed his fingers from inside her and pinched her clit hard. Ehlena flinched and moaned loudly with the pain. Ahntanas' grip on her delicate nerve cluster got tighter the louder she sobbed. She tried in vain to quiet her tears, but her self-control was shot. She started to panic and hyperventilate as Ahntanas abused her body. He alternated between massaging her clit, and digging his nails into it savagely. At the same time, his tongue played with one of her nipples while the other was mauled by his fingers.

The combination of sensations running through her body, electricity where he touched her sensitive bits, pain where his hands were hurting her, nausea from her likely concussion, the throbbing pain in her head and shoulder, and the heaving motion and lack of oxygen from her hyperventilating, became too much for her to handle. Ehlena's head spun and she couldn't help herself; her stomach heaved and she threw up.

Ahntanas' reaction was immediate. His nails dug into her clit and nipple, making her half-scream in pain, and he took a large step back.

"You puked on me, bitch. You seriously just puked on me. You're going to regret this more than you can imagine." Ahntanas sounded furious, but Ehlena didn't care. She had finally gotten control of her hyperventilating and was now concentrating on keeping the world from turning black. Ahntanas, seeming to realize that his anger wasn't even registered by Ehlena, turned tail and she heard him head towards what Ehlena assumed was a bathroom.

Ehlena hung suspended from the frame for some time. Her shoulder, head, wrists, and ankles hurt bad enough that she wanted to pass out, but she fought for consciousness. She didn't trust Ahntanas to leave her alone even if she was passed out. Ehlena tried to think happy thoughts to keep herself from panicking. She forged a vision from her memories, stepped through the door, and entered the past.

Rochester was laying out a blanket for them. They had finally managed to go on a picnic, and the day was perfect. The ground was dry for the first time in a month, so the blanket wouldn't get soggy. They were picnicking on grilled cheese sandwiches because Ehlena didn't like normal sandwiches and they were out of peanut butter. She had been dating Rochester since her sophomore year in high school, and they had graduated last May. They would both be going off to college in a month's time, and Ehlena couldn't stand the thought of being away from him.

Rochester had been her world. He wasn't perfect, but she had looked past that, just as he had done for her. Ehlena's heart ached when she thought of the end of their story. Rochester wouldn't even notice that she'd gone missing. He only just tolerated talking to her now, but her heart still broke at the sound of his name. The three years they'd spent together were the best three years of her life. And they'd fallen apart over nothing and everything.

Ehlena forced her mind back to the distant past. The day of the picnic. That was the day he had given her a promise ring. He had told her he couldn't imagine life without her. That was also the first time they made love. The word sex left a bad taste in her mouth when she thought of that day. When it was with Rochester, it had been so much more. But now she was facing rape and what would be considered a fuck. Ehlena shuddered and combed her memories for something that wouldn't eventually bring her to tears.

Try as she did, Ehlena couldn't think of a single truly happy memory or thought line. Beloved pets had all passed away, her parents had divorced and were feuding, her brother had disappeared into the military to avoid their parents, and she had no long-standing friends. The closest friend she had was Rochester, and that was a pathetic thought.

Ehlena gave up trying to hold back her despair. She was in pain all over, exhausted, and emotionally drained. Silent tears trickled down her face and she listened for Ahntanas' return. She was straining so hard for the sound of approaching footsteps that the sound of the door opening startled her. She jumped and yelped, jerking her shoulder and making her head spin.