Temptation Protocol

Chapter 8: Introductions

The Upper City - New Chicago - hadn't changed much since the last time Sarea had been cloudside. Sarea sat, hands bound in front of her, in the back of a luxurious hovercar. Out the window, the view was breathtaking. Soaring skyscrapers pierced the light cloud cover of the summer day. Flocks of birds flew in unison between the buildings. When the climate degraded past the point of no return, the architects of New Chicago had striven to correct all the perceived problems of the Old City. In many ways, they had. Trees lined every street, and greenspaces checkered every block. If you were wealthy in Chicago, you lived well.

Sarea had never been wealthy, but her freelancing had given her comfort. Now, she wondered when she'd ever get to go back to her apartment. Her mind still grappled with what she had experienced. The whole encounter had lasted minutes, maybe a half hour, and she was changed forever. She wasn't alone in her head anymore,

he

was there. Lucas, the brawny gang member who had forced her to bind to him.

Temptation Protocol

, she thought,

pathetic. What a stupid name.

The gang members had been jovial since the ceremony, if it could be called that. Each in their turn swapped seats to talk to Lucas and welcome him to the organization. He hated every minute of it, Sarea felt. Sure, he put on airs, let them know he appreciated it, was ready to serve, but deep down, he was revolted.

What kind of gang member hates his initiation,

she wondered

She felt him looking at her occasionally as well, but she wouldn't return his gaze. Instead, she ran through a checklist of what she'd need to escape. Her deck, for one, but they'd taken that. It sat next to Sten, who had remained oddly silent for the trip. The inhibitor on her arm had to go too. It was fastened by a digital lock of some kind. She could make short work of that, but she'd need her deck. Time was ticking. If she disappeared into the halls of some brothel somewhere, it'd be near impossible to escape.

Sarea subtly sized up the men. She learned only three names down in the brothel: Sten, Log, and Lucas. Sten was the most dangerous, clearly. He was short but stout with a buzzed fade and mods all over his body. He'd be deadly in a fight, full of surprises. Log had no such mods, but he made up for it in size. Almost as big as Lucas, the man had a neck as thick as his head. He'd be scary if his jaw wasn't always slack - the dumbest of the group, easily manipulated. Lucas, well, best not to think of Lucas now. He'd know if she did. The bond between them grew brighter and stronger the closer they were to each other. She felt it flare with every jostle of the car.

It can't be like this forever,

she thought

Sarea pushed that thought aside and tried to overhear the other three names, but the hovercar began its descent before she caught any of them. The car flew in a spiral around a palatial building at the lakefront. Not for the last time, Sarea wondered who the hell she'd gotten mixed up with. The building had bright letters across the top: Covenant.

Covenant?

Covenant was Chicago's biggest, most powerful megacorp. Sarea knew it had its hands in everything, but in low-level drug dealing? None of this made sense. Covenant being involved complicated everything even more. These were sharks. She had to be careful.

The hovercar descended into the garage beneath the hotel, passing all the steel girders and concrete that kept this part of the city above the smog layer. The car landed at a private pad where a slew of guards in suits waited for them. In the center of the waiting party stoodan imperious woman. She was taller than most of the men around her and wore a skin-tight, tan dress. If she'd had any modifications done, they were hard to see. The door opened and Sten leapt out.

"Alexia! I didn't expect such a reception!" he said to the woman, who stood a full head taller than him.

Alexia gave him a tight smile, "Sten, always a pleasure."

"What couldn't wait until we'd come up?" Sten asked.

Alexia looked past Sten at the crew exiting the car. Her eyes came to rest on Sarea, then they glanced at Lucas. "I heard we have a new bond. I wanted to congratulate him myself."

Sten stepped in front of her and said, "Jeeze, Alexia, we knew you had the hots for our boy, but - "

Before Sten could finish his sentence, Alexia's hand shot up and gripped Sten by the neck. She lifted him with ease off the ground. Her muscles - and actuators, Sarea noted - flared with strength. Alexia's smile turned into a snarl.

"Watch yourself, Sten. I can find another captain easily."

Sten choked out, "Okay! Okay!"

Alex brought his face close to hers, "What do you say?"

"Sorry!" Sten gasped, "I'm sorry!"

Alexia dropped him. Sten fell to his knees. Alexia stepped right in front of him, grabbed his hair in a fist, and turned his face up to her.

"This is where you belong," she said, releasing him.

The smile reappeared on her face as Alexia turned to Lucas, "Congratulations are in order, Lucas," Alexia's eyes inspected Sarea up and down, "What a lovely first bonding. May I?"

Lucas looked around for guidance, but he found none. He nodded in deference. Alexia strolled past Lucas and walked a tight circle around Sarea. This close, Sarea smelled her perfume - like morning dew - and saw how beautiful the woman was up close. At this range, Alexia's dress was see-through, and Sarea, still feeling the effects of Disiac, noticed how perky Alexia's small breasts were. Her nipples were hard and visible through the fabric, and her body was like a narrow hourglass. She wore her authority like a cloak, something that intimidated and thrilled Sarea.

As Alexia walked around her, Sarea tried to keep her in sight. Occasionally, Alexia would say, "Hmm," or tsk. Sarea jumped when Alexia gripped her breasts in both hands.

Sarea cried out, "Hey! St -"

Before she could finish, Alexia slapped her hard in the face. Lucas tensed, ready to pounce, then caught hold of himself. Alexia's right eyebrow raised, and a malicious smile crept onto her lips.

She said to Sarea, "Do not speak unless spoken to. You are a new initiate, whether you like it or not. Learn the lesson well or you will not be here long."

Sarea rubbed her check where she was hit. Hard enough to hurt, but not to leave a mark Alexia said to Lucas next, "I can see you're still drugged, so I'll let that slide. She's not

yours

, Luke, she's

ours

. Remember that."

Lucas gave a terse nod, but Sarea felt his rage in her mind. What the hell was going on?

Alexia spoke to Sten next, "Good work today, management is quite pleased with your work. Your crew is rotating off for the foreseeable future," Alexia eyed Sarea, "to allow Lucas to train his new bond. I suggest you check in with your bonds as well, much has happened and we need their information. We'll discuss it in detail later."

Sten said with a bow, "Of course, Alexia."

"Good," Alexia said. She turned and left without another word, her guards following silently behind.

Sarea had so many questions. What was a bond? What was her purpose? What did

training

mean? She had to get out of here. Sten turned back to the group.

"Right, like Alexia said, it's time to train," he said, "So first things first, no mention of bonds until we are safe upstairs. Once we're there, I'll explain more."

Dread gripped Sarea's heart. She shouted, "Fuck that!" and tried to make a run for the edge. Lucas chased her, but one of the crew whose name she hadn't caught grabbed her and carried her kicking back to Lucas.

When the man set her down, he raised his hand to slap Sarea, but Lucas was there in an instant. His massive hands grappled the man by the wrist and leveled a punch across the man's face, sending him tumbling across the landing pad like he weighed nothing. Blood splattered onto the concrete. The rest of the crew tried to restrain Lucas, but they were like children climbing on a parent, Lucas was so massive.

Sten got between Lucas and the man that had hit Sarea, "Enough! Holy shit! Lucas, chill. Damon did what he thought was right, he's sorry," Sten turned to the man on the ground, "Right, Damon?"

Damon rose slowly and wiped the blood from his mouth, "Right, sorry." His eyes betrayed the sincerity of his apology.

Sten continued, "Second, if she disobeys, she

must

be punished. Some people might like to get physical, but I find it just hurts the bond," Sten eyed Sarea pointedly, "We'll discuss punishment later,"

Lucas turned to Sarea, "Are you all right?"

Lucas gently touched Sarea's chin and turned her face to see the mark. For someone so physically large, he was terribly gentle. His genuine care seeped through the bond in her mind. After a second, she pulled away from him and said, "Yeah, I'm fine."

The gentleness disappeared from his face when Lucas turned around to Damon and the crew, "Don't touch her again."

Sten patted his shoulder, "Ok big guy, Jesus. Collar her and let's go before you toss all of us off the landing pad."

Sten produced a steel collar. It had electronics embedded within it. To what purpose, Sarea could only guess.

Lucas took it and turned to Sarea gingerly, "Lift your hair," he said.

Sarea, tears in her eyes, lifted her hair. Lucas cuffed the thin, elegant collar around her neck. Its metal chill sent shivers down her spine. The collar seemed to fuse together with a metal whirring sound and a click. It was seamless once it was on her neck.

"Let's walk," he said, gesturing after the crew. Sarea followed. Luke's trepidation and worry filtered through their bond and into Sarea. He was unsure like she was. She didn't know if she should feel comforted or worried by that. They took a staircase nearby, away from the sounds of hovercar traffic and up into a world of luxury.

Chapter 9: The Citadel

The encounter on the landing pad had been as shocking for Lucas as it had been for Sarea. What had he stumbled into? What had

she

stumbled into? Lucas didn't sign up for this, he didn't want any of this. Before he had time to contemplate it further, the group had entered the palatial main foyer of the Covenant building. Sunlight filled the space, entering through vast floor-to-ceiling windows, and bounced off the marble floors to create an ethereal light show on the walls. It was colder in the upper city - higher in the atmosphere - so buildings took what heat they could.

The party walked briskly through the foyer. No one spared them a glance. They knew better than to pry into Covenant business. Lucas's jaw almost dropped when they entered. Sarea's amazement touched the borders of his mind as well. Covenant was a major player in Chicago politics, business, everything, you name it.

Why the hell were they at Covenant headquarters?

As though he read his mind, Sten turned to Lucas and said, "We keep this connection quiet, as I'm sure you two will," Sten winked.

Lucas asked quietly, "Where are we going?"

Sten faced forward again and answered, "The Citadel."

Lucas chanced a glance at Sarea. Confusion was plain on her face as well. They passed two elevator banks and stopped at the guard station at the third, and final, bank. He checked Sten's credentials - a mod in his eyes - and waved them past. Sten keyed into the elevator and the group entered the small, steel cube. It was a tight fit. Sarea was pushed up against Lucas. Though the drugs were barely registering anymore, his groin rubbed against her thigh and bottom,, causing blood to rush to his loins. The back of Sarea's neck turned a bright red. Was she blushing? Did she feel what he felt?

The elevator chimed and released them into an austere room. It was at least as large as the foyer, but where the foyer's architecture was ostentatious, the Citadel was elegant. Black marble pillars surrounded the room, at the center of which was a lounge area with a small pool, reclining seats, and small cabana-like rooms for privacy. Lucas heard the sounds of sex emerging from them. A few porcine white men bobbed in the water of the pool and looked like they wanted to devour Lucas and Sarea.

Some dozen people were milling about or walking through the foyer as they entered. There was a clear power dynamic at play. Half or more wore either a collar similar to Sarea's. A select few had some kind of thin, silver chain that wrapped around their neck and wound beneath their clothes. Other than that, they looked normal, even if their outfits were more on the risque side of normal.

Sarea gave voice to Lucas's thoughts, "Are all these people bonded?"

Sten placed a tense hand on the back of Sarea's neck, fingers aligned with the collar, "Yes, most of them. Collars are new initiates, like yourself, chains are fully bonded and trusted."

Through the bond, Sarea's fear almost overcame Lucas's senses. Before she could say anything else, the crew parted ways. Here, the crew parted ways. They had clearly been here before. Luther and Piper headed down a hall to the right, Log and Damon down the opposite. Sten remained with Lucas and Sarea.

Beautiful people, all collared like Sarea, walked to and fro, some carrying trays of food and wine, others leashed and being led by someone. Most of the collared were wearing normal clothes. Only a thin, silver, chain harness They all wore similar outfits, which is to say, very little at all. Thin, transparent frocks and dresses covered them, leaving nothing to the imagination. Some wore thin chain harnesses around their torsos, which caused the see-through fabric to cling to them in all the right places. Some wore small skirts, revealing the curve of their cheeks, but the people with penises wore skin-tight pants that outlined their cocks perfectly. Sarea's fear was mounting again, surging through the bond.

Sten released his grip on Sarea, raised his arms in a grand gesture, and said with his full chest, "This is where we train and relax, my friend."

"Train for what?" Lucas asked.

"Oh, all sorts of little things. First, we teach the Kept how to behave," as he said this, Sten stopped a small woman with thick hips and swinging breasts by grabbing her around the waist. His hands fondled all over her body, lifting up her short skirt to expose her ass, then slapping it. She had one of the new collars on.

The woman kept her eyes on Sten's chest and answered without hesitation, "Thank you, sir, do you have any other needs I can service?"

"Show me." Sten said. Sten kept his eyes on Sarea as he said this.

Again, with no hesitation, the woman bent over, lifted her skirt, and displayed her pussy and ass. A diamond plug was in her butt.

"Good girl. On your way," Sten said. The woman curtsied and continued on with her task.

Lucas was stunned, "What the hell was that?"

Sten laughed, "That, my friend, is one of The Kept in training. Some, like her, are shared, others are not, but they must learn the role that we assign them, just as we must learn the role we assume."

"What's a role, how do we assign it, what the hell is going on?" Lucas asked.

"All in due time. First, we have to take care of our new girl," Sten said.

Sten turned and clapped his hands. A minute, olive-skinned man wearing a long black coat and one of the chain harnesses appeared next to Sten. Sten spoke to the man, "Take Sarea here to intake, then to Lucas'quarters. Teach her basic manners, understood?"

The man bowed and stepped aside, gesturing at Sarea to follow him. Sarea turned to Lucas and said, "Stop this, you can stop this!"

Lucas dug his nails into the palms of his hands. His heart screamed out, partly in her agony, partly in his own. He said, "I'm sorry, but I can't."

Before Lucas had finished speaking, Sten took hold of Sarea's chin and hushed her, "This is your last warning. You do not want to start your stay here like this."

Terror passed over Sarea's face and through the bond. Lucas's heart went out to her, but his hands were tied. They'd have no chance of an overt breakout, not right now. Sarea followed the other servant, her head turning back to look at Lucas occasionally, and disappeared down the hallway to Lucas's left. When she was out of sight, Sten leaned close and spoke to Lucas conspiratorially.

"You need to cut that 'I'm sorry' shit out. We have killed for less. People disappear from here all the time. You were vouched for, so I've given you a lot of leniency, but Alexia will not. Harden the fuck up. We clear?" Sten said.

Lucas nodded solemnly, then Sten waved at a female attendant on the other side of the room.

As she walked over, Sten explained, "I'll tell you what Mattie here," he gestured at the woman walking across the room, "can't. We

are

drug dealers, just forward-thinking ones. Covenant, our parent corp, discovered the binding strain of Disiac almost twenty years ago and began to use it in corporate warfare. Turns out, under certain circumstances and with the right training, you can take control of someone completely."

"Jesus - that's slavery!" Lucas said.

Sten nodded, "Yeah, that was. We are not good people, but even we have lines we won't cross. We've refined our methods now. No one is a true slave anymore, I don't think."

Mattie arrived as Sten finished speaking. Black hair streaked with blue hung in ringlets to her shoulders. She had an ample bosom and wide hips which swayed seductively with each step she took. She wore a sheer blouse beneath an angular vest with a high, fashionable collar. There was no metal collar on her neck, rather a thin, gold chain looped around once and wrapped down beneath her close. Lucas caught glimpses of it beneath her blouse, the gold standing out against her forestwood skin. It wrapped ornately around her breasts and hips.

Sten said to the woman, "Introduce yourself."

The woman pressed her body into Lucas's. She took his hands and placed them on her curvy hips, then looked into his eyes and said, "My name is Mattison Kortha, and I am here to serve. My friends call me Mattie."

Mattie's scent filled Lucas's nose: rosewater and spring air. She was intoxicating, and before he could say anything, the residual drugs in his body responded, his cock hardening. Mattie felt it stirring and cupped his growing bulge in her hand.

"I can take care of that, if you'd like," she said with a smile.

"Ugh, not now, Mattie!" Sten said, his eyes rolling, "This is Lucas, and he needs a tour and an explanation before he begins his training. His first bond was last night."

Mattie's eyes widened in surprise and delight, "Congratulations, sir! How lucky your Kept is to have you!"

At the mention of Sarea, Lucas felt for her through the bond. She was nervous, her heart racing, but not afraid as yet. Lucas's stomach roiled with the implications of the binding.

Lucas unlatched Mattie from him and stepped back, saying, "I don't do slavery."

Mattie chuckled softly, like a small burst of song, and said, "I'm no slave. I came here once I heard about the work we'd be doing. Besides, being Kept is

fun

. If you come with me, I'll show you what I mean."

Mattie turned around and walked temptingly away from them, her hips swaying with each step. Sten clenched his hand into a fist and bit into it, giving Lucas a knowing wink, before leaving down the hallway after Luther and Piper. Left with no other options, Lucas trailed behind Mattie. Sten was right. Her ass was to die for. As Mattie walked across the foyer and past the men in the pools, Lucas wondered not for the last time what Mattie meant about the work they were doing.

At the other side of the room, Mattie stepped behind what must have been the reception counter and pressed an unseen button. The door behind the desk slid open with a whoosh of air. Mattie led them through.