His awakening was a long, blurred struggle, and when he finally came to, John didn't feel like he was truly awake after all.
He felt a slight nausea, and then he remembered that this was how he usually felt when he was in space. But somehow his concrete memories of being in space before, wasn't really available to him. There was no images or instances of being in space he could recollect. He just remembered the concept of space, and of how he thought he would feel while in space himself. Something wasn't right.
He sat up in bed and looked around. The room was a small cubicle. He recognized a door that probably ought to lead to an outside area and an another door that he assumed was to a wash room.
He felt a pressing need to go to the wash room. When he got up he noticed, he was entirely naked, but also that there was no clothes by the bed and apparently no closet or storage room of any kind in the cubicle.The room was bare of anything except for the bed and a monitor or screen, that he now noticed was embedded in the wall at the end of the bed.
The wash room had a mirror and he recognized his face, but this familiarity did not really spark any more memories.
He still believed his name was John. He looked at himself and felt a certain contentment in what he saw. Somehow he knew that he usually would have felt desperate or rather alert in a situation with this much uncertainty, but all he felt now at this moment was safety and docility.
"What is it that I want to do?", he asked himself, looking at the mirror. He felt he needed a purpose, but there was no urgency attached to the idea.He took a shower and shaved his face. 20 minutes later he was back in the small cubicle.
He looked around and wondered whether the door to what he assumed must be the outside area was locked or not. But a thought that was more spontaneous than reasoned came to him: "I believe I am supposed to wait here, until I am summoned", he said to himself.
He sat down on the bed, with his legs crossed, facing the monitor, - and waited.As he sat there, the screen came to life and a text appeared:
"Message for unit 5678." There was a pause and then a repeat of the message. Then another message, a longer text: "
"Purpose for next two hours: Serve breakfast for Mistress Nikki in private quarters 54, located at map. Use maps placed on your way if you get lost. Go to clothes department on this floor before your mission and state your unit number and purpose. Then proceed to kitchen nearest private quarters 54 and follow instructions there. Remember: always obey your mistress"
He read the instructions a couple of times, but somehow he found no reason for hesitation or doubt. The word "mistress", and the unit number 5678 somehow gave him a feeling of emotional recall.
Unit 5678 was who he really was, the John name must have been something he had made up, maybe while waking up. It could be from a dream. And the word "mistress" somehow made him feel slightly aroused, not knowing why. He stood up, and left the cubicle without feeling much more than the slight excitement of his body being put into to action, and an equally slight and dull sense of being useful.
The corridor was bare. It was carpeted with a nice thickness, that had a grassy feel to it. The wall were creamy white, and there was a higher degree of brightness than in the cubicle. He looked at a map on the wall and found directions for the clothing department.
He went in the door and stood in a small cupboard like room. There was a monitor and a camera which had a red light telling it was active. He pressed the monitor and a face of a young woman looked at him. "State your unit number and mission purpose", she said, in a kind but routine-like manner. He gave the purpose.
"Step on to the markings a few feet behind you she said. I need to take measures."
He obeyed. A light scanned him from below and upwards, and numbers flickered past on the monitor. Within 30 seconds a compartment in the wall came out, and at the same time the monitor with the woman went blank.
Unit 5678 looked at the contents at the compartment, and found a sparse assortment of clothing: A pair of shorts-like trousers, tight fitting that followed his features and revealed the bulge that showed his gender and likewise revealed the curves of his behind.
Also there was a bow-tie and a pair of braces. He remembered that he in a foggy distant past had seen male strippers being dressed like this; but still he only felt this eager rush of slight excitement of being put to use, and a feeling of having to be attentive and act with purpose to the satisfaction of his superiors.
Another compartment came out and provided him with a white pair of shoes. Dressed in this way he went out of the small room and followed the map that showed directions for the kitchen. He took an elevator to another floor: A2, and moved towards the kitchen there.
There were several people busy in the kitchen, and none seemed to take much notice of him, even though he was dressed so scantily
The staffing was all-male. Some had a collar around their neck, with a red light pulsing ominously, and none looked particularly unhappy or happy. Neither did they seem content but just focused without any particular emotions.
He noticed other men dressed like him, and for some reason he felt a greater sense of comradeship, with this part of the staff.
He stated his purpose, and was swiftly given a tray of food, juice and coffee, and he moved away and on-wards to his destination "private quarters 54".
He began to feel somewhat apprehensive and hesitating as he approached. His memory had not become much clearer. During his waking hours he had simply become more aware of having a purpose -- like a tool. But whenever he focused on his tasks and purposes, to be useful he felt more and more at ease, just as he did now -- and he then moved on with a greater sense of confidence.
The door in front of him said "54". A green light blinked in a display with a monitor. He pressed the button that he knew would make a signal inside the room. Some seconds later the door slid open.
A young girl lay enveloped in thin satin-like sheets. She seemed to be half sleeping struggling to get up, which told him the order for breakfast had been made at least yesterday.
He stood there and waited, just looking at her. She had bright whitish hair that was cut in a short way. She was slim and well proportioned, and entirely nude. He could not help looking at her breasts that were rather large for such a slim frame, and he felt slightly aroused.
She was coming to, and raised her self on her elbows. What time is it? Oh. She looked at the clock. Unit 5678 made a noise, and added "mistress"... to remind her she was not alone.
"Oh. Hi. Breakfast... hey. Just excuse me, for a little while. Put it on the table while I go in here"
