Two days later, Daneel once again stood in front of the central cavern that let to the home of the Slavequeen.It hadn"t been hard to get there. Originally, the area where the crystal structure that led to the surface was present was supposed to be out of bounds to slaves, but the enforcers always smiled and let in anyone who said that they were going to meet the succubus. Daneel had only heard of those smiles until today, and after seeing them just now, he couldn"t decide whether they were those of pity, or sick satisfaction.
The past two days had been spent rigorously going over each and every step of his plan. It was quite a simple one, and that meant that no mistakes had to happen, at all, or he was doomed. In the process, he had had to endure many altercations that almost led to blows, but Reese was always present to cool down tensions after reminding those involved about the food that he had promised them.
It seemed that food and s.e.x were two things that always worked to suppress the slaves" emotions. He saw many of those whose frustration and hate reached levels that they could hardly control being sent away to a certain few caves that always had a queue of people waiting with all sorts of offerings, and when they returned, they had content smiles that lingered for quite a long time.
Each time this happened, his own memories would fight to rise to the surface, like embers rising when burning firewood was prodded with a poker. At one point, he almost convinced himself that he should make a trip, too, so that he could prepare for what was going to come now, but he had immediately dropped the idea after finding out from Reese that the women had a tendency of biting things they really shouldn"t bite if the one they were with displeased them in any manner. It was bad for business…but apparently, it still happened, now and then.
Feeling the eyes of the enforcers behind him on his back, he stumbled forward, stopping the flood of thoughts that his mind had conjured to distract him from what lay in front of him.
"Alright… No use in delaying this any further. Whether I leave without changing, or after ageing 10 years… I"ll have some answers."
He tried to joke with himself… but the words felt hollow, and they also fed the fear that had surrounded his mind, making him repeatedly fret about what could go wrong.
With each step he took, he went over the plan again and again and again. He even recalled the faces of all those he had worked with, trying to spot whether there had been any signs that they would betray him… but he had seen nothing, and even Reese had been satisfied at the end, saying that it was remarkable that his task was going to be carried out.
Of course, one of the main driving forces of the slaves was his promise. A few of the slaves he had worked with had even come up to him and discussed terms that they could use to get out of the debts that would be thrown on them when he died, and hearing them, he had only been able to shake his head and grumble due to how sure they seemed that this task would end with his demise.
He had had no option but to recite the locations of a few fake treasures, and the slaves only left after being satisfied that they could have them dug out by the enforcers who would take a cut, but still give the rest to clear the debt.
In all these plans of theirs, he had seen the desperation that all slaves lived with. They always expected the worst, no matter what they were doing, and frankly… he couldn"t blame them.
The exit of the tunnel came upon him all of a sudden, making his mind go blank while he stood, frozen, knowing that taking a step forward would mean that there would be no coming back.
Same as before, a halo of light had pooled near the entrance of the Slavequeen"s home. Apparently, all those who came to her were made to stand there while she studied them, and as soon as he reached it… their dance would start.
"Alright… this is it! With no risk, there"s no reward. Let"s do this!"
All this time, he had been counting in his mind. The plan hinged on keeping perfect time, and he had already compensated for his skittishness.
Taking a deep breath, he forced one leg in front of the other, and in barely a second… he s.h.i.+elded his eyes, and stood in the light.
Instantly, a fragrant smell reached his nostrils. Almost unconsciously, he breathed in deep and felt his mind calm down, until he could barely form a thought.
"No! I"ve already researched this! Snap out of it!"
With great difficulty, he scolded himself and moved his teeth. Biting down on his tongue hard enough to draw blood, he blinked, and began to sweat as he realized how close he had come to going under her control already.
"Uh…have I underestimated her? Was this thing foolhardy, to begin with?"
A voice, sensuous and sweet, interrupted his grim musings.
"Welcome, dear Daniel…what a pleasant surprise! I didn"t expect to find you here, so soon…"
From somewhere deep within him, a rebellious thought sprung out that made him dart forward, determined to get out of that spot where he could see nothing.
"Why should I let myself be put on display, like an animal, or some object? No way!"
He emerged in her cavern…and stopped in his tracks, as his eyes fell upon the sight waiting for him.
A woman was bending over a dried-out husk of a man, with skin as thin as parchment almost falling off his bones. His mouth was far more open than was possible for anyone unless their jaw was unhinged, and his eyes were two dark holes, empty and soulless.
She was swaying to the left and right over his mouth, her body stark naked. Daneel tried to stop himself…but his eyes hungrily ran all over her glistening skin, devouring the sight, while being devoured by it, in turn.
Her legs straddled the man. Her thick thighs were such that he wouldn"t have been able to move even if he wanted to, and her b.u.t.t was planted firmly on his crotch, two perfect crescents of flesh jiggling slightly as her upper body moved. Somehow, the sides of her waist curved inwards despite the buxom nature of the rest of her body. Her flat waist rose and fell rapidly, while her b.r.e.a.s.t.s heaved, two perfectly round globes with small, dark nipples right at the center, each large enough to spill out of his hand easily if he tried catching them in his palms.
Her neck was that of a swan"s, perfect and angular. Even though all these details made him breathe faster and forget everything…her face was actually the one that had made him freeze.
Her eyelids quivered as she moaned, while something that looked like silvery mist entered her mouth from that of the man. It was so completely filled with l.u.s.t that Daneel felt jealous of the man beneath her, until his eyes finally fell over him again and made him see that he wasn"t moving, at all.
This finally made him come back to his senses. He widened his eyes and gasped as he remembered how spellbound he had been, and right away, he looked to his right, determined to not see her again.
But how could it be that simple? He heard a wet squelch that made him turn even though he tried to stop himself. She arose from the husk, a white substance glittering between her thighs, and as soon as he met her gaze…he realized what was going to happen.
He didn"t know how, but he retained a modic.u.m of consciousness for long enough to understand…that this was a mistake.
He turned around, and ran.
He felt a certain part of his body scream with anger, but the rest was absorbed in self-preservation. He even reached the exit, but as soon as he tried to step into it…a mirror appeared where it was, and he b.u.mped into himself.
Her voice reached his ears, and at once…Daneel wished he could find his former self who had been so confident in the plan, and beat him to a pulp.
"Not a chance, my dear. You can only choose to come here. I decide when you leave. Now…let"s get started, shall we?"