Chapter Ten Past and Present
Chapter Ten
Past and Present
Selena
She laid curled up on the moss, so warm and welcoming beneath her. She needed that comfort at that moment, her mind whirling, trying to process what had just happened.
And why her body had reacted the way it had.
It was as if she was a prisoner to her body’s urges, her desires and secret needs taking precedence over any conscious thoughts of what she should be doing, the correct thing, the very concept of right and wrong.
No, what had just happened was pure, animal lust.
At an elemental, primitive level.
The power of that emotion, the visceral strength of it, shocked her more than anything.
She thought she’d let all that go when she’d finally broken off her last relationship, so many years ago. Langley was wrong for her, an asshole. Taking advantage of her was the least of his offenses.
Yet, with him, that raw need had first appeared—and she’d taken leave of her senses.
Or at the very least, any semblance of good judgment.
This wasn’t Chief Instructor Langley though. This was an alien. And he’d just fucked her brains out. Debased her. Used her in every sense of that word. But worst of all? She’d loved it.
Just like with Langley.
Not daring to move an inch, her eyes closed, she took stock of the situation. He was here, close. She could feel it, despite the silence of the cave. It was both frightening, and a strange comfort she didn’t understand.
There is a whole cruiser load of shit about this situation that you don’t understand.
Was it possible this was a dream? All of it? He understood her language perfectly. And she understood him. How was this possible?
In all the UTCS surveys undertaken—hundreds of them—humans had never encountered a single lifeform that was able to communicate with humans.
The ‘pixies’ were one of the few higher order species they had encountered—and all of those were remarkably like humans (which seemed to increasingly bear out the probabilistic basis for Convergence theory). Still, their rudimentary language was even less complex than ancient human tongues.
How was Malcolm able to do something that should have been impossible? How could he have known her language?
His facility with your language is way down the list of shit he shouldn’t be able to do, idiot.
“Sit up, little human.”
The voice flowed through her again, and it was only at that moment that it seemed as if she was both hearing it, and feeling it.
That made no sense at all.
You need to regain control here. Defy him!
She just didn’t have the energy though. Fighting would have been simpler, so much less complex than dealing with the fallout from what he’d just done to her.
What she’d let him do to her.
You didn’t let him do anything, Selena.
Which was the truth. And which was why her reaction was so much more confusing.
How could her body have liked such treatment?
You asked the same thing with Langley—and you didn’t have an answer then either.
So, she’d run from him.
But trapped here, on this planet—stranded—and at the complete mercy of a towering, stern alien intent on making her into some sort of sex toy for his enjoyment was infinitely worse than contending with the lusts and depredations of one Rick Langley.
Forcing herself to open her eyes, she rose up, her pussy throbbing, slightly stinging down there as she moved. Had he torn her?
Her buttocks were even worse, a heavy, aching weight. She yelped, twisting over onto her hip as she put weight on her ass. No, sitting was out of the question.
“I said, sit.” Great hands took hold of her and pulled her into position.
“What—stop that! I… that hurts!”
“Maybe you’ll remember that next time.” He stood in the water next to the mossy rock, and he bent close. “Actions have consequences. Disobedience brings pain. Or is that not truly a deterrent to you?”
“A deterrent to what?” she snapped, the ache in her buttocks twice as bad now that she was sitting up again.
“To not doing as you’re told.”
“I’ll do… just about anything to stop sitting on my ass right now.”
“No. This is the point of making you sit—to show you what you’ve done.”
“What I’ve done? I don’t think I spanked myself here.”
His eyes narrowed. “Perhaps a reminder then…”
“No! No.” She held up her hands. “I-I’m sorry. It’s just… this really hurts. I’ll… I’ll cooperate. Just let me stand up or something.”
He stared her down for a moment longer, making it clear he was doing so simply because he could, then gave her a little nod.
She shot up so quickly, her head swam for a moment. Then she caught him looking at the way it made her boobs bounce, and she clapped an arm across them. She covered her still slightly burning pussy with her other hand, suddenly acutely aware of her nudity.
And his—my God.
His penis wasn’t hard anymore, but it was still… huge. She couldn’t help but continually glance at it, in a mix of awe and terror. He’d used that same penis to defile her, and here she was unable to keep her eyes off of it.
Malcolm smiled. “You’ll have more of it, soon enough. Patience, greedy girl.”
“I—what the fuck are you talking about? I…” She looked away, confused as to why she felt so sheepish about being caught looking at the alien’s genitals.
Best to steer things to a different subject.
“What… who are you? We—nothing about a lifeform like you showed up on any of the scans. And we’ve had a survey sat here for months.”
“I know.”
“You know? How?”
“Before I answer that, I want you to tell me what it is you think you’re doing right now.”
She grunted bitterly. “What it is you think I’m doing? I’m standing here in front of some big dumb alien who practically… raped me five minutes ago.”
“Practically…” Malcolm’s lips quirked ever so slightly.
“Where I come from, having intercourse with a woman against her will is—”
“Was it though? Against your will?” His hand eased down her ribcage, leaving gooseflesh in its wake, caressing the breadth of her hip. “Your cunt was as wet as this pool, human. Part of you was more than willing. The part that is the true heart of you.”
“You know nothing about my heart—and you never will.”
“We’ll see about that.” He crossed his arms over his massive chest, the flexing sinews in his forearms like steel cabling. “But I want an answer to my question.”
“What question?”
“You’re covering up those sweet breasts of yours—and hiding that sore, wet cunt. You don’t have my permission to do so.” He tilted his head slightly. “So, I want to know what it is you think you’re doing right now.”
“Your… I… this is my body.”
“Not anymore, it isn’t. I’ve claimed it.” He touched her cheek, the claws just grazing her skin gently. “You ceased to be in control of it the moment I took you.”
“Against my will.”
“We both know it’s not that simple for you.”
She blew out a breath, frustration growing within her, both at her inability to get through to him… and at the truth hinted at by his words.
What did it say about her that if forced to be brutally honest, she couldn’t say with one hundred percent certainty that what he’d done to her had been against her will?
That you’re a dirty whore?
The words came back to her then, the things Langley used to call her as he used her. Filthy words. Degrading words. They turned her on even as they hurt.
But that hurt was what she’d needed, at least then. It was the catharsis found in submission—and objectification—that she still didn’t understand. That she didn’t want to understand.
The words, the images, the meaning—all of it served to amplify her dark, twisted lust higher. It was so confusing, which was the main reason she’d fled from it, from what it all said about her.
Langley was an asshole, a user. But what about her? The one who let him hurt her? The cadet pilot who’d allowed him to abuse her.
You did a lot more than allow it. You reveled in it. Stop lying to yourself.
It was wrong.
But it was so very right precisely because it was wrong.
There was no way she was going to let Malcolm know the turmoil inside her mind though. At least there she could hide from him, if nowhere else.
Get through this. Survive.
If only surviving was still the number one consideration here.
Letting her arms drop to her sides, she looked down at the moss, unable to meet his gaze, knowing he’d be taking in her nakedness once more. She didn’t think she could take seeing the lust in his dark eyes, the possessiveness.
The truth they both knew. That she’d cooperated in her own conquering.
Malcolm touched her hair, then his hand closed about her throat. He didn’t grip her tighter, rather it was just firm enough to make her tense, to snap her gaze back to his.
“You’ll learn that you can’t hide anything from me, little human. I’ll lay you bare, in every way. It’s what I want—and it’s what you need.”
She swallowed, her throat working against his hard palm. “I-I’ve done what you asked. Now… please tell me. What’s… what are you? Who are you, really?”
“I don’t think the what is the question. It’s the why, isn’t it?”
She tried not to meet his eyes as she said it. “I’m not sure about anything anymore.”
He lifted her chin, his thumb stroking it. “Your life just became much simpler. The only things you need to worry about are being pleasing to me and obeying me.”
“Just… please. I need to know.” She shivered, looking at her feet, then back at him. “These… plants, I guess. Do you control them? Are those vines really… alive?”
She wasn’t sure she was ready to know the truth. It still didn’t invalidate the possibility that she was losing her marbles. What if she’d had a head injury upon reentry and impact? What if all of this was an illusion, or the fevered phantasms of a sick—and possibly dying—mind?
There was one other possibility, and if anything, it was even more chilling.
“Where I’m from, there are beliefs, religions.” Though she was never much of a believer, faith and religion were still powerful forces on Terra. “And they believe that there is a figure, a personification of evil. Are… are you the Devil? I… am I in hell?”
Not sure even the Devil could make you feel like he just did.