What Is a Slave Without a Master?

Alex sat on her bed, leaning back against the wall with a bemused expression on her face. Eta lay curled up next to her, the woman's head resting on her Mistress's lap as Alex played absentmindedly with her hair. Beside them sat the open take-out boxes, all the food inside long since eaten.

"So if I'm understanding right..." Alex began, letting everything she had just heard sink in. "You had an entire conversation in the shower. With an imaginary person. Who through a combination of browbeating and encouragement got you to more carefully consider what you wanted from life."

Eta nodded shakily. "I know it sounds... mad. I'm still trying to figure out how to properly explain it."

"And you said this imaginary person looked like me?"

"She was you... or... I don't know. Yes she absolutely looked like you, and for parts of it she spoke as if she was you," Eta answered, knowing it did not make her sound sane. Alex reached took one of the woman's hands, squeezing it gently as she let out of a soft laugh.

"Brains are.... weird. And you've spent a very long time with yours trussed up pretty tight. It can only stay like that for so long before it finally tells you to knock it off," Alex pointed out.

"Maybe," Eta conceded, "But... you don't think I'm crazy?"

"I do not," said Alex simply, a smile on her lips.

"But the most important question," she continued, something in her voice shifting.

"Was imaginary me naked?"

Eta blushed, casting her mind back and trying to remember.

"No you weren't. You were wearing... your standard space clothes. Flight suit and this," she answered, reaching up and gently tugging on the sleave of Alex's leather jacket. Alex laughed again.

"Imaginary me has good taste. This is my favorite jacket. Anyway, I think both you and I owe imaginary Alex some thanks. She's a hell of a wing-woman. I was... not looking forward to dropping you off at S&R."

"I'm... grateful you didn't have to," Eta whispered as she carefully rolled over so she was facing Alex, and nuzzled her cheek against her Mistress's thigh. Alex let out a low whistle, painfully away of how close her companion's face now rested to her crotch. But Eta either didn't register it, or just didn't comment.

"May... I ask you something?" she asked after a moment.

"Of course," Alex replied gently, reaching down and brushing a strand of hair away from the woman's face.

"Did... you have any desire to keep me prior to my letter?" she asked tentatively. Alex laughed before scratching her jaw.

"I.... no. I didn't really consider it was a possibility. Like you certainly triggered a protective instinct. And I mean... I thought you were cute as soon as I saw you. And I definitely didn't want you to keep being a slave. But I don't exactly go around and every time I see a pretty face think, 'god I'd like to keep her on a leash.' Like I can certainly be a horn-ball, but that's a bit much even for me."

"I'd be more than happy for you to keep me on a leash if you'd like to," Eta replied in her infuriatingly innocent way. Alex's eyes shot open, and she let out a startled cough as a red flash passed across her face. But when she looked down, she caught just the faintest hint of a knowing smile leaving her companion's lips.

"Are you fucking doing this on purpose?!" she exclaimed indignantly, fixing Eta with a piercing stare. The woman looking back up, wide eyed.

"I'm sorry, doing what exactly?" Eta replied tentatively, but there was colour passing over her own cheeks as well.

"Saying stuff like that! There's been a few times you've said things that gave me absolute horny whiplash. I assume it was just because... you know... slave and not used to socializing. But... is that you trying to flirt??" Alex asked pointedly. Eta blushed deeper, and dropped her gaze, fidgeting.

"If memory serves... are you referring to me offering to let you leave marks on my neck, then saying.... being submissive suits me?" she asked awkwardly. Alex simply nodded.

"I... the first one... I owed you for saving my life, and in the moment it appeared to be something I could offer that you had expressed interest in. I promise it had no ulterior motive beyond that. The second... I admit was an attempt to gage your reaction. And this one just now... was a poorly executed flirt yes. I apologize," she murmured. Alex glared at her for a long moment before eventually her expression softened, and she shook her head gently as she began to laugh.

"Eta, we're going to have to work on your flirting skills. Because zero to one-hundred in an instant is not the way. Your goal should be to turn me on, not make me choke to death on my own spit," she chuckled.

"But are you flirting because you want something?" Alex teased. Eta blushed deeper, and she looked as if trying to contain a smile.

"You... said you had... built up arousal due to me. I... apologize, but would be... delighted to... help?" she answered tentatively.

"Oh Eta," Alex laughed, trying to keep her raging hormones locked down for as long as she could. "You are adorable. But we still have to hash out exactly how this sexual relationship is going to work."

"Isn't it simply that I am yours to use however you want?" asked Eta in surprise. "We've... confirmed I'd enjoy whatever you'd want to do with me."

"Like... that's fucking hot," admitted Alex, trying to ignore the tingling in her lower body.

"And if you're a slave it might be that simple. But here you're not. And sex between consenting adults needs a few more ground rules than that."

"Then please tell me your rules and I will do my very best to obey them," Eta said eagerly, with that same knowing smile darting across her lips. Alex's eyes flashed as she grabbed Eta and flipped herself on top of the woman. She landed straddling Eta's waist and grabbed hold of her companion's wrists. And in a single quick motion pinned them against the mattress above the woman's head as she loomed over her.

Eta stared up at her Mistress, her heart pounding in her chest with excitement as her eyes widened.

"Do you want to simply be mine to use however I want?" Alex asked, her voice full of barely contained desire. Eta nodded frantically.

"Then here are the rules," Alex began.

"First... you are not my slave. You are always allowed to say 'no'. This is supposed to be fun for you as well, so if you're ever in pain, or not wanting to do something for whatever reason. You. Have. To. Tell. Me. And you're not allowed to hide any more bruises. Deal?"

"Yes Mistre- I'm sorry. Yes Alex," Eta replied breathlessly.

"I've changed my mind, when having sex call me Mistress," Alex grinned seductively. "Just when we're hanging out normally call me Alex."

Eta nodded before speaking again.

"Are there more rules Mistress?" she asked excitedly.

"Yes, but before that," Alex began as she let out a long sigh. She shook her head, trying to ignore her body's demands. "You've had... a rough few days. We don't have to do this now. We can just cuddle and go to bed. We can continue this in the morning."

Eta shook her head with a determined expression, before taking a deep breath to steady herself

"I... want to make my Mistress happy. I want... to give myself to her. And selfishly... as you know I wasn't... allowed... intimacy with a single woman alone while with the Empire."

"Right," Alex remembered. "Your Supervisor always inviting multiple chicks together."

"Precisely. So being here with you... just you... having your way with me... I... want that. Desperately," she added embarrassedly. Alex could see the woman's body trembling, and beneath the tower she was pressing her legs together tightly.

"I know you worry that I'll agree to things because I think I have to," Eta continued after a moment. "And thank you... for how careful you are with me. But I do genuinely want this. Would... it help you believe me if I asked you to release my hands until we're done talking? Just to show you that I'm willing to say 'no' like you said I could?"

Alex raised an eyebrow in surprise before loosening her grip on Eta's wrists and sitting upright, still straddling her waist as she surveyed her companion. Eta kept her wrists exactly where Alex had left them. Her face bright red from excitement and her chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Okay... yeah actually that does give me more confidence," Alex admitted. "It's not that I don't believe you... it's just....." she said, her voice trailing off awkwardly.

"You have very strong principles regarding not wanting to make me do things against my will," Eta replied. "Thank you. And you have good reason to worry I wouldn't stop you, but I give you my word that I will say 'no' if I have to."

Alex nodded appreciatively

"Thanks, Eta," she said with a grateful smile on her lips before she took a deep breath and continued.

"Here's the second rule," she said after a deep breath. "You have to tell me what you like. I'm happy to dominate the fuck out of you. But I need to know what you like having done to you. And more importantly, I need to know what you absolutely don't want done to you."

Eta nodded slowly, mind racing.

"I... am not used to describing what I like, but I will do my best Mistress. Which... would you like first?"

"Bad stuff first. Tell me what you hate. If you start with what you love I may get so excited to try them I won't wait to hear the rest," Alex ordered. Eta nodded again before composing herself: an extremely difficult task given their relative positions. She cast her mind around, trying to put together a list.

"May I please ask that you not... cause me excessive pain for the sake of it. I want to feel the effects of this tomorrow, not a week from now."

Alex nodded. "You will be pleased to hear I do not get off by beating the shit out of my lovers." Eta smiled gratefully.

"Please don't... be mean to me. Please don't call me... insulting names. I want... I want to be beneath you, but beneath like kneeling at side, not being ground into the mud under your heel."

Alex raised three fingers. "Sexy, beautiful, wonderful, got it." Eta's face flushed an even darker red.

"And I don't know if this one really counts-"

"Whatever it is, yes it counts," interrupted Alex. Eta smiled back happily.

"Please don't share me. I want to be yours and yours alone."

"Oh Eta, I am so keeping you all to myself," purred Alex possessively. "I'm not sharing you with anyone."

"Thank you, Mistress," Eta replying excitedly.

"Any others?" asked Alex.

"Not that I can think of right now, but would I be allowed to add more later if I think of them?"

"Yes. That is how this works. Now the fun stuff! Tell me what you love. How do I make you turn into a happy puddle in my arms?" Ales asked, staring down at Eta hungrily. The woman's heart skipped a beat in her chest. From where her hands sat in imagined restraints above her head, she raised a single shaking finger.

"You already learned about this... and I promise you with everything that I am, that I'm not simply saying this because of your book. But genuinely, please bind me, any way you like. It can be simple: just taping my wrists together will suffice. Or it can be complicated; If you want to take an hour painstakingly binding me up with dozens of meters of rope I'd love every second of it. I never want to escape you, but I beg you, please make sure I never can."

Alex's smile twisted into something that one would expect from a demon.

"Careful what you wish for," she purred lustfully. Beneath her Eta trembled with excitement as she nodded frantically. She managed to raise a second finger.

"Please own me. Please don't ask me what I want to do next. Please don't ask for suggestions. I belong to you, and I want you to make me serve you. Even... outside of sex... if you want me to be somewhere, please just grab me and put me there. Grab my hand and take me where you'd like. I... love you exercising power. You give the word, and I will happily obey. I genuinely want to be beneath you."

"As long as it's above the mud," Alex said simply.

"As long as it's above the mud please," Eta confirmed before continuing. Her eyes were wild now, her breathing coming faster. She raised a third finger, and with this one Eta closed her eyes momentarily with embarrassment.

"And the simplest tool I can give you.... is to call me a good girl. I've never understood why, but those two words... Call me that and I'm yours. Well I'm already yours, but even more so."

"And even if I didn't list something you want from me, if you're happy I'm happy. There... I... am done talking. Thank you," she added hastily, opening her hands wide in a surrendering motion.

And with that, a silence fell over the room. Eta wasn't sure how long she'd been talking for, but the entire time she had watched Alex's expression grow more and more ravenous. It looked as if they were fractions of a second from Alex pouncing and claiming every fiber of Eta's being for herself. Eta quivered in anticipation of it. She started whimpering under Alex's gaze as the woman seemed to look her up and down, meticulously planning exactly how Eta was to serve her body and soul.

At last Alex reached down, fingers deftly undoing the knot that held Eta's towel in place, before flicking the material to the side. Eta shivered as she now lay exposed, but she kept her hands perfectly still. Alex's eyes hungrily swept over her naked chest, taking in every detail as Eta quivered excitedly.

Alex let out a low teasing whistle as she looked down at her prey. Watching Eta's chest rise and fall tantalizingly with each breath. She reached down, laying her hand on the woman's collarbone, and gently traced her fingertips down the breastbone, between her breasts themselves then down the toned stomach. She marveled at just how smooth Eta's skin was, and knew she wanted to kiss every last bit of it.

Alex leaned down, propping herself up on her elbows as she brought her lips right up to her companion's ear.

"I'm going to have sooo much fun with you," she whispered softly, her voice insatiable. Eta nodded frantically, not trusting herself to speak. She felt Alex's teeth gently brush over her ear as a tremble shot through her. She clamped her eyes shut as she squirmed with longing. And then she felt Alex grab her wrists as the woman pounced.

She brought her lips to Eta's, kissing the pinned woman passionately and pushing her deep into the mattress as Eta returned the motion. The two stayed liplocked as Alex tried to get her tongue as deep into Eta's mouth as she possibly could. Their bodies riding against each other unconsciously. Tiny moans and gasps escaping Eta as the material of Alex's jacket gently rode over her exposed chest, and as she surrendered completely to the woman riding her. The surrender was confirmed when Alex pulled her tongue back and managed to catch Eta's lower lip between her teeth before gently biting down. Just enough to make Eta let out a small whimper of defeat. Alex pulled back, enjoying her victory as she looked at her companion with a wicked grin.

But then Alex stood up. She swung herself off Eta and stepped from the bed. She turned, taking hold of the towel that was still wrapped around the woman's waist and pulled it free effortlessly. Eta now lay completely naked and exposed, but she didn't move a muscle. Simply letting Alex study her with a calculating eye. Her body trembling slightly as she waited.

Alex calmly folded the towel over a couple of times while maintaining the paralyzing eye contact. Then she dropped the bundle on the floor in front of the bed. A single hand resting on her hip, the other pointing casually at the ground.

"Be a good girl and kneel. Facing me, your back to the bed."

Something within Eta's stomach exploded. Those first six words from Alex lit a fire between her hips that burned hotter than she ever thought possible. Her body was already scrambling upright before her brain even managed to recover. She paid no attention to being graceful, no moving slow and sensually, this was a mad dash to execute Alex's will as fast as she was able. She hit the floor and darted into position, her knees resting on the towel and her back perfectly straight. She didn't know where Alex would want her hands, so she neatly crossed them on her lap. Alex stepped forward, placing a single finger under her companion's chin and gently tilting her head up until their gazes met. Alex wore an expression of absolute ownership and insatiable desire. Eta managed to smile weakly up at her Mistress, already struggling to think coherently. She felt a gentle bump against the inside of one of her knees, and realized it was Alex's boot silently instructing her to spread her legs. An instruction she obeyed with zero hesitation.

"I'm so glad I get to keep you. The Empire never deserved such a good slave," Alex purred before releasing Eta's jaw. Her hands came to her waist and unbuckled her belt. She tugged it free of her suit's beltloops and let the long strip of leather hang in the air.

"Hand," she ordered simply. Eta quickly extended both, letting her Mistress pick. Alex took one and calmly brought it out to the side and back. Eventually pressing Eta's wrist against the bar that ran along the side of the bed to help navigation in zero gravity. She wrapped her belt around both several times before tightening the buckle, being very careful that the restraint was far enough away from any bruises. Eta tugged gently on her bonds and to her delight found them inescapable.

Alex crossed the room to one of her lockers and produced another belt, quickly binding Eta's other wrist in a similar manner to the first. Her companion's hands were now forced far enough apart there was no option of covering herself even if she wanted to. Eta was ecstatic.

Alex returned to before her and crouched down, looking over her bound companion with satisfaction.

"You asked earlier if I thought you were pretty," she whispered. Eta's face burned.

"Yes Mistress," she murmured in a trembling voice.

"I think you're gorgeous," was the simple response. And before Eta could even react Alex leaned forward to kiss her again, causing Eta's eyes to slump closed in bliss.

Alex slowly pushed the kiss forward, driving Eta back until she was pressed up against the bed. And with nowhere left to run Alex relished the feeling of the woman's lips yielding under her own. She placed her hands gently on Eta's hips, causing the woman to twitch in surprise. But as her hands slowly began to slide upwards Alex could feel the woman's surprise quickly turn to anticipation. Eta's body trembling as Alex's hands crept closer and closer to her breasts. And without a moment's hesitation she cupped them in her palms, gently kneading the soft flesh and brushing back and forth across the woman's nipples with every motion.

Eta's mouth against hers contorted with pleasure, a series of shaky squeaks and gasps trickling out of her throat. And in a cruel, swift motion Alex took both Eta's nipples between her thumb and forefingers, giving them a sharp squeeze before letting go of the woman entirely and rising from her crouched position. Eta let out a sharp squeal at the pinch before finding herself alone. Alex watched her hang there for a moment, chest heaving. But soon enough she walked away, sitting down casually on the edge of the bed. She crossed one leg over her knee and began untying her boot. Loosening it then slipping it off her foot and placing it on the floor with zero sense of urgency. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Eta's nearest hand straining against its bonds to touch her Mistress. The woman's fingertips stretching out as far as they could manage. But she was a few centimeters short. Alex removed her other boot and placed it on the floor next to the other. Then she tucked her socks inside them. She could tell Eta was staring at her but she didn't bother looking over. She reached behind herself, grabbing the liquor she had bought, as of yet unopened. She cracked the seal, and raised the bottle to her lips, taking a large shot that sent a bolt of fire into her gut. She let out a low satisfied whistle before finally turning back to Eta. She offered over the bottle, extending her hand towards the woman.