I hung back as I watched Solanine and the other Souls make sure the women were safe in thier rooms.
There was another smaller singular level Base beneath this one, hidden behind a door identical to the others lining the bottom floor.
I thought the door had come to a wall until I saw the floor spiraling downwards into a staircase. At the bottom of that was a ramp took us to an aisle between sets of doors running on both sides to a larger area at the end.
I stayed near the ramp, doubting everything about Solanine checking over the Wombs.
They were carrying gold; prophecies and near-extinct species Eagle wanted to harvest for his own. Solanine was only here to make sure Eagle got his gold and he got paid for keeping it safe.
These women were nothing but breeders. It made me wonder if I would have met the same fate if I had been a woman at the hands of Solanine when he had his way with me.
They seemed happy here though. They had more of those Quezedorins in muzzles here, chattering and laughing with the women at the large area down the end. I saw tables set up where rows ate, while others lounged in a corner together, or nestled in little nooks with a book and drink.
They would never see a Mission in thier life as long as they sustained the Base from below.
Maybe I did want to be one of them? Is that what I had an option for when I was out the other side of town after being kidnapped? A life spent fucking and frolicking without a care?
I really wanted that.
Solanine grinned at my dejected face when he wandered back to me and leant on the wall to watch everyone.
"You seem miserable" he nudged me gently.
"I could of had this" I gestured to it all and let my hand fall "not a single worry in the world."
"Oh, no, no" Solanine laughed when he realised what I meant "you would have been the one getting fucked. Passed around and torn open by hungry lizards looking for something to sink thier claws into."
You've got to be shitting me.
I stared at Solanine blankly who smirked.
"Either that or you'd be someone's plaything up there. Everyone had a side-gig; some just happen to be of the sexual kind."
"Like you."
Solanine shook his head.
"Mine is more of a need rather than a want. I am more than just this, you know."
He gestured to himself to make me snort.
What kind of hobby did Solanine have? He didn't seem like someone who would invest into anything profitable like what Poison did by selling his shed skin.
He had me interested, the son of a bitch.
"You" he began with a poke of my arm "collect figurines of game characters. See? I know what you like."
I had a little smile at that. Solanine looked proud that he had paid attention to my private life enough to notice around every other chance spent keeping me under him.
"And you like... collecting.... knives" I replied, only to have him shake his head with a sharp laugh.
"You haven't been paying attention" he smiled at me and jabbed my ribs before straightening up "shame."
I stepped forward when he started to dawdle back down the aisle.
"Have I seen it?" I frowned as I tried to think of anything unusual in his room "it's not body parts, is it?"
Gross. That was totally it.
He shook his head with a knowing smile and turned to walk backwards so he was facing me.
"I've already given you some insight into what it is" he hinted "you just haven't paid attention."
Now he really was enjoying watching me struggle. His smile widened before he turned back around and saw Talow come walking from the larger area.
"Just the person I need to see" he smiled to Solanine and started to steer him with an arm around his shoulder "it's happening. She's actually gone in into labour."
"From the fall earlier?" Solanine replied with concern in his voice "it can't be. We were going to just take it from her."
"Now we don't need to!" Talow whooped and slapped Solanine's back "we've got the tanks all set up and ready to go! Scalpel is even on call if anything happens."
I followed behind, staying close as Talow led Solanine to the right of the ramp and to a wall he pushed aside to reveal a set of stairs leading upwards. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlTFopUdgTU
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Talow didn't move as he turned to us, folding his arms.
"This is important to me" he spoke to Solanine and gestured to me "he's not coming. I can't risk anything, even with your favourites."
Solanine glanced over and I cringed under his genuine confusion.
I felt so singled out. I'd have to hang around the ramp for who knows how long waiting for them to return, or be roped into Eagle's office to be shoved into another Mission I never wanted.
I was lower than them. The heirachy power-play was being thrown around again and I was never going to be good enough for it. I was no different in here than what I was out there.
"Sol" Talow warned when he didn't move. His cheerful demenour turned serious now and his eyes grew cold.
"I'm coming" he sighed back and only turned back to me when he was closing the wall behind him "why don't you go have a shower and play your games? I'll do this and go report to Eagle after."
"Fine" I played it off like it didn't bother me but couldnt keep the bitterness from my voice "whatever. I'll go do something like all the other unimportant Souls around here do. Might take another Mission; contribute to the greater good and all that."
Solanine looked sympathetic but said nothing. All he did was close the wall in my face so he could leave me standing there.
I did grab that shower like Solanine had said, but I didn't hit the couch to pick up the controller. Instead, I marched my way to Eagle's office myself so I could knock on his door and wait to be called in.
Fuck both of those pricks. Always pushing me aside like I'm nothing. I'll fucking show him. I was going to do something that would have to make him stop and realise who he was messing with. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJaLMoGnGL5
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Usually I wouldn't have given a shit about this pettiness or what he had to do with it, but I was so caught up in anger that I frankly didn't give a damn.
I just wanted to do something. Not for him but for me. I wasn't going to wait around like some bitch on a sidewalk.
OK, maybe a little bit of this was for him, but fuck him.
"Come in."
About damn time.
Another Soul was there but I didn't care who it was. I stormed through and made them give way to me as I stood opposite that empty table and stared Eagle straight in his eyes. The other Soul left, closing the door behind them.
"I'm back. Give me another Mission."
Eagle's eyebrows lifted and he laughed at me.
"So eager" he taunted "something happen on the last one?"
His eyes were prying. I knew he was either digging through my mind or waiting for me to spill it all out to him.
That mother fucker.
"God, not you" I spoke when I saw Eagle's expression change "I've just got a lot of things to clear off my mind. I think a Mission would be good for that... Sir."
Couldn't slip up on the formalities now. This man was my life or death in here. As pissed as I was, I couldn't have him think I was taking it out on him.
I watched Eagle's hand pull out a drawer and flip through the coloured files inside. His fingers danced across each one before he paused on a red folder, thinking, until they dragged up the yellow one behind it.
"This should clear things."
I didn't even open it. I dragged the folder towards me and went for the door before coming back to stand before Eagle again.
"Thank you, Sir. Good night, Sir" I blurted to him so I could march to the door again and start my way down towards the tunnel.
Missions always needed transport of some sort. I'd hit the cars first, pick a real good one, and just let the dark road and fresh air calm me.
You know what? I'd take his favourite car. Fuck him. He could wait on me for a change.
This felt good. Like I was doing something I shouldn't have been. I was jittery as I ripped the tarp off and threw open the driver's door to sit in it and caress the wheel whose bumps fit perfectly under my fingers.
This felt great!
The keys were kept under the visor, no surprise there. I found a sandwich bag of money in the centre console, along with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter.
Mr Important knew that no-one else would dare take his ride from under him. The way he was so sure of himself was so obvious in how he just left everything right in the reach of others.
He liked the thrill; the power he held. Well, he was going to get a wake up call.
I opened the folder to see a little portrait paperclipped inside. Lifting it up, I saw that my Mission was to capture the person detailed inside.
A spider. Huh. That was a wierd one, I had to admit.
He looked normal enough; short black hair, scar through the eyebrow and lip, soft brown skin and dark brown eyes that almost looked black. Did a good job of hiding himself, just like everyone else did in the Base.
His name was Darvin. Looked to be about thirty, maybe mid-thirties. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamOBxhq3oT
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He was good to look at too. A rebel who lived off the land and liked to stay in one specific area around here.
Would he be hard to catch? I didn't have an issue with spiders, but this was one I didn't know what it looked like under that Skin. And with him taking the usual shape of a human, that thing had to be huge. Knowing this place, it was probably one of those redback or trapdoor types; the scary, venomous ones.
The anger within me was starting to shrink back at the image of what I was expected to drag back to Base.
Well, I did ask for this. Now I knew why Eagle had found the whole thing amusing. He was expecting me to fail.
I finally started the car with a sigh and weaved it around the others between the trees. Rolling the car down the gravel at my own slow pace was nice compared to the skidding, sliding ways I had been thrown over it before.
This was nice. Maybe it's what I needed. All I had to do was find some homeless guy out in the woods, chuck him in the car, and do a job well done. I'd show not only Solanine but also Eagle too. They'd have to take me seriously doing something like this by myself.
The Mission did suggest I needed three others, but the folder itself had been a luck of the draw and one I wasn't going to be wasting time looking for strangers to fill.
All I had to do was chuck one guy into the car. I could do it how it had been done to me....
Wow. Was I really about to do this? I wasn't sure if I could.
I peered to the folder in the passengers seat and leant over to switch on the radio when I contemplated it.
What would happen if I failed?
I focused on the road, rolling down the window to flood the car with fresh air.
I didn't want to think about that. I had seen what happened to people who laughed out loud in that place. People got killed for the stupidest shit there.
I turned up the radio, drumming my hands on the wheel to the tune.
That wasn't going to be me.
The area the spider was meant to be in was an easy find, even without a digital map to lead me. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsUAXlocgkn
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I saw the smoke spiralling above the trees before I spotted the sign posted out the front of a side road leading me into the forestry.
The road here had been so compacted it was like driving on clay. It was wide too, more than enough for this car and another to pass through before even getting close to the edge. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKI90MZe0RE
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And when it did end at a wooden barrier, I could see the bright flickering of flames to my right before the sound of snapping twigs and crackling leaves caught my attention.
The guy would have heard me for sure. There was only a small bush blocking my view to the area past it, but I knew he had heard the blaring radio and the sound of my door slamming as I got out to check the boot for anything I could use.
Maybe he had run?
I didn't leave the boot anyway. In it was a length of red rope, a plastic bag with duct tape, zip ties, and scissors, a case of water that had been torn at the top, and a blanket bundled into the corner. There was a box of sandwich bags and a roll of baking paper too.
Solanine sure was prepared for anything. I picked up the rope and hung onto the duct tape. The rest I left behind when I dropped the boot shut and crunched my way around the bush.
Darvin was still there. His eyes watched me when I paused in amazement that he hadn't run, never leaving me when he ate a chunk of speared meat from the roasting station set up over the fire. It had vegetables crisping on it too, dripping juices into the flames that licked the side of a boiling billy.
He had a whole setup here. There was even a massive hole dug into the earth that looked like a cave only a few meters from the rock-ringed fire. A huge hollowing log was what Darvin sat on when he turned his head from me to pick up a stick and prod the blazing fire casually.
I wasn't a threat to him. The ignorance only made me feel stupid standing here with a length of rope wound around my arm while I clutched a roll of duct tape.
I walked towards the fire while keeping my eyes firmly in him for any sign he was going to run. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3D77zkzOKC
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He continued to ignore me when I crept closer in open grounds. He shook a packet and poured it into a cup so he could fill it with water from the fire he casually put his hand into.
I paused, noticing how he didn't react to what should have been burning him when he made his drink and placed the kettle back in. Taking a long sip, he wrapped his hands around the steaming cup and savoured the heat.
Our eyes met once more when I was at the edge of the warm halo the fire projected. It burned my skin even from this far away, but wasn't intolerable. Darvin was practically at the rocks edges that contained the fire dancing below him.
He only got to his feet when I was a few meters from the log he sat on. He held his drink with both hands and glanced at the blinking bulb of my Banded hand gripping the rope.
How on earth was I supposed to do this? Lasso him like I was in an old western? Just go over there and wrap it around him and hope for the best?
He must have known I was stumped by the way I was stalling. He hesitated too, just remaining where he was as I crept even closer.
I was at the end of the log and out of arms reach when he finally acted. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqg5Xe8fV60
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Darvin threw his hot drink at me that I launched myself back from, catching most of it on my shirt and down my pants where it burned to my soaking skin. He darted for the other side of the fire so he could snatch up the billy and hold it back as he readied another attack.
I dropped the rope and tape, circling towards him around the fire as he circled away. If I was going to do this, I was going to catch him the best way I could think of. Hopefully snagging him with my virus would stun him enough to give me a chance to tie him up.
Hopefully.
I made a move when his feet touched the rope. He threw the water that I anticipated and backed up from, coming in hot to force him from the fireside.
With no weapons, Darvin danced around my grabbing hands without taking his eyes from me or turning his back. He ran around while facing me, jumping and weaving around before rounding back to the fire to scoop up the rope.
What did he think he was going to do with that? It was just dead weight.
I pushed him further from the fire once more and finally latched onto his arm in triumph. I gripped the bare skin under mine before Darvin leapt into action.
He threw the end of the rope around me with his free hand and caught it with the one I held that he tore free when he backed up and yanked me forward with him.
I couldn't even react when he swapped hands and crossed the rope over my body to tie it together; rushing past to throw the coiled end over my shoulder, scoop it up from the ground, twist it around my legs, throw it over my other shoulder then thread it around my throat where he held onto the end with a smirk. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnmQpjoLiX
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He yanked the rope downwards to force me to my hands and knees as the air was briefly cut from me.
"I still got you" I rubbed my neck and boasted through a hacking cough "you're infected."
He walked around behind me, tugging the rope back sharply so I was dragged onto my back in another choking fit.
Darvin walked around to stand over me, crouching down to lean over my face.
"I can't catch your diseases" he spoke as he loosened and allowed me to breathe. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI3Gofb5biO
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One yank and it'd cut me clean again.
His voice was bubbling with mischief. It was rough around the edges but with a light charm to it.
It made me pay attention to the position I had been put in so easily by the monster in disguise.
This was a game to him. One he relished in as his hand grabbed my face to turn it left and right and grin at.
His shoe bounced on my middle, testing the resistance. After that, it did the same on my legs.
I grew nervous when it left the bone. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6AE3BzKsaR
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The way he was testing me made it look like he was seeing how easily my body could be broken under a forceful blow.
I couldn't wriggle free either. Any movement for the rope at my throat only made him tighten it so I was throttled out of my exit. I felt it cutting into my shoulder blades and gouging under my armpits as it started to slowly saw through my ankles.
"Come on" he demanded with a tug of the rope when he turned from me.
I fell into the grass and was dragged before finding my feet again and pulling against him. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMnWNnjZw7
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I was on my hands and knees in an instant.
He was leading me towards the hole in the ground. I saw webs lining it that danced under the light of the fire steadily burning the food still spiting over it. More formed cottony walls that held the dirt in place and cushioned the area itself.
FUCK! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!
What was he going to do? String me up and eat me??
I resisted and tried to grab at the grass when the sticky webs clung to me and broke when I was dragged through them. The thicker ones smothered my grabbing arms and kicking legs to stick them down like heavy marshmallow fluff. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwuO7dgvFJ3
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I felt like I was on the verge of drowning as my head struggled to stay above the depths.
The whole hole was just a mess of the stuff. More webs strung from the roof to try and tidy up the rounded corners.
Darvin unlooped the rope from me since I couldn't move out of the webs. He placed it down near the enterance of the cave so he could lift me to my knees and then push me back to stick me to the wall instead.
I sat there, struggling, with every part of me stuck in the webs. They kept my legs glued under the messes and coccooned my chest. I could move my arms but barely.
Darvin studied me then carefully lowered himself down to really gaze at me trying to escape.
"I really need you to stay here" he breathed as he sat on my lap and ran a hand down the side of my face that I couldn't move away "I'll take care of you and you'll do the same for me."
I struggled, feeling Darvin's legs squeeze the sides of mine.
"You'll be hungry, right?" he almost purred "and thirsty?"
"I just want to go back" I begged back "i'll forget all about this and just leave like nothing happened."
"Well, we can't have that" he tutted "you didn't leave when you had the chance, so now you are mine. I need you here."
Maybe this is why I needed three people for the Mission? Two others who could save me if shit like this happened?
"Let's make sure you are healthy and fed before you are put to use. Can't have you dying on me before then."
"Dying?!" I blurted out before he slathered my mouth over with some of the webbing to silence me.
I tried screaming but it was muffled. I couldn't talk to try and bargain my way out either. Darvin lifted himself from me and gazed at his catch until he pulled himself away to tend to his food on the fire.
True to his word, he did return to feed me the charred meat and vegetables. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeX2Ejhs8Ck
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I was too hungry to refuse them either, snapping down the foods that spilled juices all over the webs smothering me. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkTDb4iqj73
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I was given boiled water that had been cooled by the night sky and then had to sit there as Darvin gaged and straddled me again. He only rested his head on my chest this time, making sure to watch the enterance of the cave for any signs that someone might be coming to save me.
I wish someone would. Even Solanine of all people. But, I had accepted the Mission blindly and skimmed over the details in a hurry to get back; no-one would know I was out here and Solanine couldn't risk chasing after me.
Maybe I should have spent a little time looking for people to take with me. Maybe then someone would know I was here.
The webs around my mouth were tacky from the tears that had rolled onto them the night before. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡokfUvJ0RuH
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Darvin made sure I was cared for, feeding me fresh fruits and vegetables he had gone to get just for me. Bottled water washed them down this time that he carefully tipped into my waiting mouth. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFS7Cuq7JJ1
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Afterwards, he peeled me from the webs and hoisted me over his shoulder so he could carry me from the cave and to the left. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT5MoQoM3DT
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I kept quiet when I saw we were surrounded by nothing but trees that he passed between, following a path snaking through them.
I needed every bit of energy to make a run for it back to the car. Once I was back at Base, I could round up some extras and tackle this Mission again.
The path came to a stop at a gleaming waterhole ringed with dry foliage and rocks. Darvin lowered me down at the edge of it and waited for my next movement.
"Clean up and have a pee" he nudged me with his foot gently "do what you need to."
"I need to go back" I tried to hold back my panic "I want to go home."
"Hmm, no" Darvin shook his head "you help me before I help you. That's how this works. Not the other way; never the other way."
I looked around, dumbfounded at how bleek everything looked. My only exit was that dirt pathway that Darvin kept closely guarded.
What did he want with me?
"You can sit here and soak with me" he offered "or I can take you back and stick you back to the wall."
I could feel my skin slathered in the gum I had been pulled from. I didn't even feel like a person anymore.
"I'll sit here" I sighed out as I started to strip off and get in.
The hole was deeper than I thought. My feet rested on the pebbles in the bottom while my toes started to burn from the coldness of the water.
Darvin folded his clothes and put them aside, climbing in at the other side. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4txUHnVJHN
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I felt the water's freezing temperature change instantly. It grew warmer in the area around him and was much more comfortable.
I scooched towards him but left a gap between us.
"You never told me your name" he began as he enjoyed the scenary of the trees around us "or your favourite food."
"You're shitting me, right?" I snorted back in disbelief "that doesn't usually come up when I'm trying to drag you to the Base."
"The Base" he smiled "nice place?"
I hesitated, not sure if I should take the opportunity in his distraction to run for it or not.
I really needed my clothes though. I wasn't returning to Eagle naked.
"It's OK. Everything wants to either fuck you or kill you."
"Sounds good!" Darvin laughed sharply "a bit of competition never hurt anybody!"
He really was a character. I just wished I had read more of his bio rather than skimming for a name and location. Maybe it would of had something in there I could have used to not land me in this predicament.
"Aren't you happy?" Darvin frowned when I dropped my eyes to the water "didn't you like the food or water? Are you cold?"
"I just want to go back" I pleeded "please. I don't get why you need me here."
"I'm not mistreating you, so I don't see why you are upset" Darvin leant over to try and look me in the eyes "I just need you to help me out. Look, if you do this, I'll go back with you to the Base; deal?"
I lifted my eyes to see his hand extended to me. He was fully serious on this childish exchange between us.
All I had to do was tough it out then I'd be set free. And it was true what he had said; I hadnt been mistreated or abused in any way. If anything, he was treating me like a prized possession compared to the first time I met Solanine.
"Uh, Ok" I shook his hand but didn't pull from it "so, what do you need me to do?"
"I'm trying to lure in a female. Then you can help me hatch the eggs and watch my children go out on thier own. That's it."
A booty call?
"I'm here to help you get laid?"
I couldn't hide the amusement. This was the most absurd request I had ever been given, and I had worked retail.
He thought for a moment, dragging out a hum as he did.
"I guess that's it then, yeah."
"You're a good-looking guy" I snorted as I gestured to his muscular body adorned with another scar along one of his pecs that ran down under the water "don't you spiders find that shit attractive? You should have chicks all over you."
He smiled and lowered his head to hide his giggles.
"It's more about dancing than looking good" he explained "she needs to like the way I move or she could eat me, and I really don't want that."
The guy wasn't anything to be worried about at all. He was just someone desperately needing a little push to achieve his goals.
This could count as my Mission. He'd come with me in the end anyway, so this would work out perfectly for me.
All I needed to do was get him to find a female and get laid. Easy.
Then all the gross egg shit would come after, but I wouldn't be anywhere near them for that.
"The smoke from the fire helps" he added optimistically "but finding a female anywhere is tough. They aren't just laying around anywhere."
"Tell me about it" I shook my head back "the Base i'm at is mostly guys. Women are as rare as anything; that's if they aren't some gross demon in disguise."
Darvin grinned and leant over towards me.
"Don't worry, I'm not one of them."
He... wasn't?
"Not everything with a skin is a Dead Walker" he replied "there creatures out there that have Skins to help us blend in with the predators. Humans are brutal creatures to anything different to them, so if you look like one, you have a higher chance of surviving."
I had never thought of it that way. That made a lot of sense why every single monster in the Base chose to hide thier true selves under such confusing masks.
"So, you still have to tell my your name and favourite food" Darvin prodded "I want you to be comfortable while you are with me."
"Oh, right, it's Xylosma" I chuckled back, then paused to think about my favourite food.
I would have said noodles, but the main reward with them was what I did with the empty cups afterwards and how easy clean up usually was.
Just thinking about noodle cups made my cock flex. I quickly pressed my hands over it and tried to think of something else.
Oh! My mum's slow cooked meals she rarely made! The one I had when I had to leave had been heavenly, in what small amount I had been left after Solanine had scoffed most of it.
"Beef. With big bits of carrot and potato in it. Sometimes my mum would even add wine in it to 'spice it up'."
I laughed at the memory but felt it sting at my heart. My laugher faltered when the sadness bubbled up and tugged inside me.
"I, uh, she was a good cook.... sometimes" I tried to bite back the way she liked to turn her music up and try to dance with me around the tiny room. We'd bump into the cupboards with her enthusiasm. That's how she set the end tie of her fancy op-shopped apron on fire when it flipped up into the burner underneath.
I missed her so, so much. She could have been a bit hard to take most of the time but those little moments were what I cherished most.
I wiped my eyes and felt a soft hand on my back to rub little circles into it.
"Hey, I miss mine too" he said softly and pulled his hand away to hold them out in front of him "every night my mum would have us in this little leafy canopy up off the ground and she would hang these shiny things from the roof of it. They were so dark in the night that she said that they were little eyes watching out to keep us safe. And in the morning, they'd reflect rainbows into the leaves. It was beautiful. Made me feel safe when I was with her."
"What happened to her?"
Darvin shrugged, trying not to dampen the already sombre mood between us.
"People don't like spiders" he said "burnt it all down. Dad tried to stop them and Mum got most of us out with the others who lived around us. You have to learn to adapt quickly out here if you are going to make it."
"Ah, jeez" I recoiled at the grim outcome "I'm sorry."
"What about yours?" he asked.
"Nothing like that. I had to leave otherwise she would have been killed. I got a Band and she couldn't handle it. I've never seen her freak out like that before. Didn't help Solanine had a gun."
The hand came again when I dropped my head to try and control the sobs breaking through.
"I just miss her."
"Its OK if you want to cry" Darvin soothed "I think they don't let your people do that in there."
I shook my head, feeling like I was still going to be in trouble just for letting myself have this moment.
But I did. I cried for my mum and how I had been torn from the easy job with my own routine that never threw anything like this at me. I cried at how I had been forced to strip off and have everything I owned burnt before me to make sure no-one came looking. I cried how no-one had come for me, not even the police; and how my disappearance hadn't even been questioned by my own mother. I had no real name, no friends, no life, and nothing left of worth. I was just Xylosma; a name in a crowd of false lives. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRHTqGGlkRM
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The only person who had cared for me was hung, the one who wanted to own me was my rapist, and the one I thought I had some sort of friendship with was too blinded by grief.
I was fucked. Well and truly fucking fucked.
And now I was here, naked and bawling my eyes out to a creature in a skin suit who showed more compassion for me than anyone else.
And he wanted to go to that place.
"We should get out" Darvin suggested as he rubbed my back while I wiped my eyes "I don't want to interrupt you, but we are starting to really prune up."
I lifted my fingers up to study them, catching an eyeful of Darvin's arse when he lifted himself out and shook his legs off. He turned, making me suddenly self-conscience about how much smaller I was to him.
For something that wasn't actually human, it was fucking big. And the balls alone had to be like a damn avocado hanging there.
He looked down when he caught me before I could avert my eyes and smiled.
"Nice, huh?" he beamed "look, check this out."
I returned to see him swinging his junk side to side. It slapped his legs with a wet noise each time. I snorted and laughed out with him as he stopped the charade and pulled his pants back on.
"Yours is impressive too" he commented when I tried to exit the water as quickly as possible and snatch up my clothes "go on, do the thing."
"The... thing?" I smiled nervously back as I hid my dick and balls behind my pants I held up.
Darvin nodded, wiggling his hips side to side.
"Loosen up. Have some fun" he grinned.
What the hell. It was only the two of us, right? And he had already made a fool of himself.
I checked the area anyway before holding my pants to the side and shimmying on the spot quickly. I blushed and grinned to myself as Darvin smiled at my commitment and pulled his shirt on.
"Now that was a dance" he joked, making me laugh again.
I walked back with Darvin along the path on the way back. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0HKTZQcr85
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I felt more relaxed than ever before. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDPKr7SM6PR
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There was no heirachy out here for one thing. Darvin didn't walk in front of me because he was more valued, but simply because there wasn't enough room for us to go side by side. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1B0nHWVs0V
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He genuinely cared for me, despite not knowing me. We were strangers having fun with the circumstances we had been dealt. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0nTwY7tMbo
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I wasn't a threat to him and he wasn't one to me. He wanted to make sure I was looked after and all my needs were met. It was the most I had been pampered in my life. Even my own mother hadn't been this attentive.
A fire crackled away when we both exited the trees and made for it to dry our bodies in our clothes. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnRzomIGXxY
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Darvin sat on his log and I joined him while he fished sticks stashed inside of it to keep the flames alive.
This was nice. It made me want to cry again.
The car was right behind those shrubs too. If I wanted to, I could get into it and head back to the Base. Report back and try again for real. Bring Darvin in like what I wa supposed to do.
"Do you mind?" I jerked my thumb to where the car was parked.
Darvin looked dejected. He peered up at me and said nothing, sweeping an arm for me to leave.
The guy was miserable. His eyes followed me as I shuffled out and walked away, his body hunching forward with a hand supporting his head while he prodded the fire slowly.
I made it back to the car and felt relief sweep over me. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0DVMmrFOEL
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The stale air that met me when I opened the door couldn't have been more welcoming.
I knelt on the drivers seat to flip up the middle console and fish out the packet of cigarettes and bag of money. I stuffed them into my back pocket, picked up the folder in the passengers side and popped the boot.
Darvin immediently lit up when he saw me walking back to him with the case of water that had the blanket folded on top. He darted over to take it from me, hauling it beside the log that I sat down on.
I pulled out the money to hand to him, then slid out the box of cigarettes to slip one out and hold it up.
"This will lure them in for sure" I said while looking at the word 'chocolate' printed in brown writing down the side of the slender cigarette "if someone doesn't smell a whole box of these burning, no-one will."
"You'd give up your smokes for me?" he whispered back in awe.
I laughed, turning the packet in my hands.
"These aren't mine" I only said before throwing the whole box into the fire and flicking the other on top.
Burning something so significant to him never felt more freeing. It was like I was watching whatever Solanine wanted between us, and what I thought I had needed, whittle and peel away before me.
I had a taste of what things should have been like; of actual respect and sincerity. Solanine was none of that. He was only a desperate means of survival, nothing more. 96Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrl2OqtYcQ2
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I thought I wanted that. I clung to shit like a fly and only saw how low I had stooped at a mere taste of something better.
I deserved better, and I was better. I could find someone else who made me feel safe and secure in the Base without manipulating me emotionally or physically and calling it 'love'.
I wasn't making those same mistakes again. I was stronger than that.
As I sat there and stared at the whipping flames devouring the cigarettes and spilling the chocolate-scented smoke into the sky, I felt.... powerful; like I was as important and valued as Eagle himself.
And I was. I had Darvin to make me see that as we burnt his Mission together.
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