Thanks for making it this far! Warning: This chapter has some drug use and non-consensual corporal punishment.
Enjoy and don't forget to vote :)
*
After two weeks in space, Nora and I landed on Emaris Station, a small space station orbiting Emaris Prime. Even though going to port was dangerous in our situation, we didn't have much of a choice - we had run out of food days ago and desperately needed supplies. With mercenaries on our trail and not a single credit to our names, a lot depended on us making some quick cash.
Being on the run was expensive, especially when you were running from someone like Big George. Well-known and feared far beyond his base of operations, he was one of the quadrant's most notorious gangsters and under the highly unfortunate impression that I had kidnapped his wife.
With help from my local contacts, I hoped we could quickly offload the drugs we had stolen and be on our way before arousing suspicion.
"And you're sure you can make that sale?" asked Nora, George's wife.
"Yes, but I need some clothes. And these," I said, pointing at my leg irons, "have to come off."
Although I wasn't exactly a voluntary member of this two-person crew, I had been really well-behaved the entire trip. The whole kidnapping thing had never been my idea, but I could tell that Nora was still not completely over it.
"I think we'll leave them on. You'll wear a collar and a leash and be my obedient little slave girl. A perfect disguise if you ask me."
I rolled my eyes. "Nora, come on, we have only one shot at this. We're completely broke and as long as we owe the landing fee, the station won't let us launch. If we spook my contact with this nonsense, there's a good chance that he might not buy."
She sighed. "Alright, alright. The keys are in my cabin on the desk."
I shuffled to her room to release myself. The shackles were Nora's revenge for keeping her locked in a cell for three weeks - something I still felt bad about - but on the other hand, she had stabbed me and made me fly this stolen transport. There was enough blame to go around.
*
The transport had very recently belonged to a team of mercs - all of them male - so it was hard to find something that I could wear. I settled on a T-shirt with a Mercs Weekly logo, some cargo pants, and a pair of combat boots, all of which were at least three sizes too large. Instead of a belt that wouldn't fit, I had to use a piece of rope to make sure the pants stayed in place.
"Why do you get a weapon?" Nora complained when I strapped a lightweight Smitherson Mark II blaster to my leg. "Prisoners don't get weapons."
"In this line of business, you carry a gun when you go to port," I said, checking the blaster's energy coil. "If you want one, there's plenty in the closet."
"I'm not touching these things. Forget it."
I scoffed. "Might be better that way. Last time you had a weapon, you stabbed me."
"Oh come on, how many times do you want me to apologize? It was only in your thigh and I thought you were going to kill me!"
"It's fine," I said, handing her a sample of the various pills we had on offer, wrapped in a medical glove. "Put that in your purse."
"I don't have a ... oh, alright."
She turned around and unzipped her coverall. With my best poker face, I watched as she awkwardly worked the pills into her snatch. Realistically, there was no need for that level of secrecy; the quantity was below the threshold for serious jail time and I simply carried my half in an envelope in my back pocket. This being Emaris, the risk of getting caught was fairly low. Worst case, the cops would fuck us, beat us up, and keep the drugs for themselves. But it was a good opportunity to see how committed she was and whether she could handle the stress.
*
Dressed and ready for action, we made our way to the lower ring to meet Ray, my old business partner. We had worked together in the past, but I hadn't seen him in a while - not since I started running guns to Ildaria. He worked out of a dry cleaner's business, which served as a front for an all-purpose trafficking operation and was located in one of the less-frequented parts of the station.
I remembered that there was a quiet place at the backside of the shop, away from prying eyes, so I decided to take Nora there to retrieve the pills she was carrying. For a first-timer, she had done reasonably well and hadn't aroused suspicion when we passed cops and local militia.
On our way, though, I heard the unmistakable sound of clinking chains and took a quick peek around the corner.
A male and a female slave in janitorial uniforms were sitting on a bench, taking a break from duty. They had tossed their cleaning supplies aside, kissing passionately, and if it hadn't been for the leg irons and collars, I would have thought they were a normal couple. The guy had his fingers inside the girl's pants, which she seemed to enjoy a lot - she was panting, pushing her hips towards him, all while trying hard to keep quiet.
"Let's give them a minute," Nora whispered. "I think she's really close."
It was an unusual sight - normally, males and females slaves were kept separate to prevent this exact kind of fraternizing. Single-sex groups were easier to control and caused much less drama, so when I served my time, there had never been the opportunity to get any male body part in proximity to my snatch. In fact, I had been extremely lucky if my restraints allowed for a little playtime alone.
As I watched the couple, I realized that weeks without any action had more of an effect than I cared to admit. I was about to make a drug deal and here I was, getting wet over two people having a bit of harmless fun.
Nora must have read my thoughts. "That's one handsome fella," she whispered and gave me a playful wink. "If you ask nicely, maybe he'll do you next."
Unfortunately, it never came to that. When they heard us, they jumped up and collected their cleaning supply, shuffling away as fast as their leg irons permitted. Slightly disappointed - at least for my part - we took a seat on the bench.
"Ray doesn't know you," I said, after Nora had pulled the pills from their hiding place. "It's best if you stay out of sight and don't talk to anyone, alright?"
Nora nodded. "Alright. I'll wait for you here."
*