A Kiss
I wasn't sure how it had happened, but it seemed like Gilda's lost arm was back. She looked like she was in perfect condition overall, but I didn't think that military uniform suited her.
"While you remained unconscious, I was able to reach safety. When we arrived, I found out that the war is over. The Demon Lord Empire has won. It took some time, but now I see how wrong the Alliance was to resist."
That sounded like some bullshit story to me.
"Those are some pretty big changes... but setting that aside, why am I tied up?"
"You attacked the core of a Demon Lord vessel! That could have had catastrophic repercussions... how foolish can you be?"
"I was just trying to see if I could communicate with it. I'm not even sure what happened afterward."
"It retaliated. You have been in a coma ever since. My spaceship was picked up by a Demon Lord destroyer class vessel and delivered to my home system. We woke you up to give you a chance to join the newly unified Demon Lord Empire. I suggest you take this offer."
"Wait, what? Why should I have to join? If there's no war, then just take me home."
That seemed to be the wrong answer. Gilda's face showed a rage I had never seen from her before. She quickly walked up to where I was sitting and punched me in the face several times. I could feel the blood coming from my nose and my eye swelling, but since I was somewhat used to taking beatings by now, I was more confused than angry.
"Hey! Stop! Ow, what the hell!"
"You will submit to the Demon Lords. Perhaps you need some time to think about it. I have other duties to attend to. However, this one will watch you until I return. I expect a positive response when I return."
Gilda suddenly vanished. Maybe it was some type of teleporter I had never seen before. The clipboard woman stayed behind. She came over and used a handkerchief she pulled from her pocket to wipe the blood from my face.
"Oh, you poor dear. I simply don't understand why she feels the need for such rough treatment. She seems to have a real grudge against you. I'm sure there must be some better way of handling this. I'll try to talk to her... Maybe I can get her to calm down. Please wait here while I see what I can do."
I hadn't even said anything. The dark-haired woman just vanished, the same way Gilda had. I was alone, and there was nothing to do stuck here. My legs were tied to the chair's front legs, with my hands tied behind the back of the seat. I could probably have used magic to break out of this situation. But I decided to hold back until I knew more about what was going on here. If I broke out now, I could get attacked, possibly even killed, without figuring out what was going on.
I tried to take a look at my stats and see if I could access a computer to find out more about what was going on here. However, I couldn't access my onboard AI, and the nanites didn't seem to be repairing my injuries. Something was clearly wrong. Maybe they had removed my technological enhancements while I was in the coma.
Eventually, the dark-haired clipboard lady came back. She placed a chair for herself in front of me and sat down.
"Hello again. I'm sorry for all of this... I got her to leave you to me for now. However, before we talk, do you want some food or something to drink?"
"Actually, yeah. I'm dying of thirst."
"Okay, great! I'll be right back with something to make you feel better."
After a little while, she came back with a drink, a grilled steak, and what turned out to be a medical kit.
"Sorry I took so long. It looks like your face hurts, so I also wanted to treat your injuries before we talked. Is that okay?"
"Uh... Sure, I guess. Hey, I'm pretty confused about this situation. None of this makes sense to me. Why am I even tied up? Why is Gilda so pissed off?"
She started treating my face as she answered my question.
"To be honest, I went through a similar thing myself. Anybody captured by the Demon Lords has. But the reality is, there is no point in resisting. The Demon Lords have all the control, and we just have to do what they say, whether we like it or not."
She seemed really sympathetic. I found myself wondering what she had been through. Her touch was gentle as she cleaned my face and applied some bandages. She really seemed motherly. Honestly, it was soothing to be around.
"Thank-you..."
She smiled and gave me a little wink.
"My pleasure, you look much better now."
"So, can you untie me?"
"No, I'm sorry, sweetie. I'm equally constrained in this situation... try to bear with it for a little while. I'll feed you, though."
My brain was still fuzzy. I wasn't operating at full mental capacity, and I didn't really know what was going on. This lady seemed really nice, but part of me remembered how Gilda initially manipulated me by being nice too. I wouldn't fall for that same trick so easily. Still, there's no reason to be rude to a person as long as they were being friendly to me.
She put a straw in the drink and brought it up to my mouth. The liquid tasted like lemonade crossed with soda. Pleasantly tangy and refreshing, with a bit of fizziness. It was actually pretty damn good... much better than you would've expected a prisoner to get.
"Did you like it?"
"Yeah, that was really good."
I noticed again how pretty she was when she showed a relieved smile.
"I'm so glad. That's one of my favorites, so I hoped you would like it too... Okey dokey, open up for a bite of this."
She held up a fork with a bite-sized piece of steak, and she happily smiled as I ate it. I was having a hard time keeping up my guard around her. She was alluring in a different way than Gilda. Gilda was always so formal, whereas this woman was so casual you'd think we were just having a friendly chat rather than me being a prisoner.
"That's really good too. It's been a long time since I had any steak."
"One of the few benefits to this place is you can have whatever you want. I think a growing young man like yourself needs to eat lots of protein to get even more big and strong."
She kept feeding me. After I sated my hunger, I gradually started feeling better. The relaxed mood this woman projected, along with having something delicious to eat, almost made me forget about the situation I was in. Once I was done eating, she used a moist napkin to wipe my face.
"You messy boy... Let's get that cute face of yours all cleaned up."
At first, it felt like innocent wiping, but when she got to my lips, she seemed to go into a trance. She was slowly wiping when she brought her other hand up to my lips and started caressing them with her bare fingers. I should have felt uncomfortable, but actually, I was really turned on. There was an attractive older woman seductively doting on me while I was tied up. I was barely holding onto my self-control when she brought her face closer to mine.
As the distance between us closed, I could feel her breath on my lips, and then our lips gently touched. She opened her mouth slightly, and her tongue licked my lips. She let out a soft groan and moved her body closer, straddling my lap. She wrapped her arms around the back of my head as we kissed more deeply. As her lips parted, I followed her lead, and eventually, her tongue gently invaded my mouth. My tongue met hers, and they gently played together. I had lost all reason. All I could think about was how much I wanted this woman.
We were both so focused on kissing that we didn't even notice when Gilda reappeared. We both jerked in surprise when she yelled.
"What do you think you are doing?!"
At first, I thought she was asking me, but it seemed she was actually angry at the black-haired woman. It was odd that I only just realized I didn't even know her name. Why was I kissing somebody whose name I didn't even know? For that matter, why was she kissing me?
The woman still had a slightly glazed lustful look in her eyes, but it was clear she was also rattled by Gilda's sudden appearance.
"Uh... I was just feeding the prisoner."
Clearly, she was afraid of Gilda. Gilda was enraged, and it looked like this woman might get smacked around too. I felt sorry for this woman who had been so kind to me, so I impulsively lied to defend her.
"It was my fault. I forced her to kiss me!"
I realized how stupid the words were as soon as they left my mouth. Gilda didn't seem to be amused in the least, but I could tell there was no jealousy behind her accusatory glare. She didn't give a damn about me at all. She was solely focused on the woman.
"I should have known better than to leave this foolish harlot in charge of dealing with you."
Gilda approached the woman and smacked her across the face. As she collapsed to the ground, I shouted.
"Hey, leave her alone, you bitch!"
Gilda turned her ice-cold gaze towards me and said.
"You will serve the Demon Lord Empire, just as this harlot does. Let this be an example to you. If you get out of line, you will be punished even more harshly."
She slowly walked over to me, leaving the other woman in tears while lying on the ground.
"You will submit! Now! More pain will follow if you do not submit."
"Fuck you, you psycho!"
Gilda grabbed my shoulder, and I felt intense pain. When I looked at her hand, I was horrified to see her fingers had become glowing red tentacles that were piercing my flesh. I could feel them wriggling inside, tearing my muscles to inflict as much pain as she could. I could hear the woman on the ground screaming at Gilda to stop, but it looked like she was enjoying this too much to stop.
However, even through the pain and the haziness in my brain, I had realized something important: This thing definitely wasn't Gilda. I had a better idea of what was happening here now, and I didn't feel the need to hold back anymore.
I sent a massive pulse of my raw mana through my shoulder and into her. Her face contorted in panic as she tried to pull her finger-tentacles out, but it was too late. Her body distorted, rippling in waves before developing cracks while she screamed in fear and pain. It was only a few seconds before she exploded, showering the area with fleshy, red glowing chunks.
Well that escalated quickly...
