Stripes and Chains 8 - Submitting

Story by Silversmith on SoFurry

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#10 of Stripes and Chains

Benjamin admits to himself what others have known for a while.


Original Concept: avatar?user=67748&character=0&clevel=2 DragonTalon

Inspiration: Fates of the Unicorns Fates of the Unicorns

PLEASE SUPPORT THE ORIGINAL CONCEPT AND INSPIRATION

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While the room was colder than she most certainly would have liked, it wasn't too bother some. A hot cup of tea, a blanket wrapped around her, a fire in the pit, and the best foot warmer money could by wrapped around her feet. In front of her was a stack of headaches. She came to visit her old friend to get away from work but work just followed her here. It all outlined recent details of activity to the far south. The Consortium had invaded the other furry territories and claimed several hundred miles of land as its own. While the furry senate had not reacted in did not bode well for the long term. Military Intelligence was going up the wall and demanding answers. "There goes my promotion." she grumbled as she continued to write letters back to Gran and Autumn.

"Mistress?" Benjamin stuck his head out from beneath the blanket. Her heart fluttered for half a moment. It was the way he had said it. In the past day the tiger had gone through a stark shift in attitude. The night before last he had given in, broken down, he was hers now. There had still been some hesitation, his actions more acquiescent than eager. This morning though she had ordered him to her feet and he had crawled over with out delay and wrapped him self around her ankles.

"Yes, slave?" she asked, her voice only slightly flustered.

"Is...every thing all right?" His voice was genuinely concerned.

She shook her head, running her fingers down through his hair and then pushed him back down. "Just keep my toes warm." She smiled and turned her attention back to the papers on the desk. She sighed warily.

Benjamin was concerned, but it obviously wasn't his business nor his place to question he. He lowered back down onto to lay his head on the floor, curled tightly around her legs under the blanket. The room had grown even colder through the night and when morning came he could see his breath in the air. When offered a place at her feet he crawled over, despite his apprehension. In his mind he was mulling over his dream. He had felt elation and fear with in moments of the other and only just beginning to under stand why. Every time the wounds on his neck throbbed his heart would race, and the wounds would just throb harder. It was a constant reminder of her.

He turned over on his back, looking up at her legs. The Middle Territory of the Consortium had been about structure. Every one in their place. He had learned the Empire was not much different, except instead of blood, doing what your father or mother did, you did what was best suited to your favored skills. Strong dragons fought in the war, smart dragons planned for it, those with a knack for trade and negotiation became traders, politicians, and ambassadors. Ever facet of their life was filled and each role followed to the point of perfection. What roles were not filled by dragons were filled by their slaves, slaves who followed them willingly took the best, those who resisted were sent to work in mines, or to fight in the arenas, or simply kept around for beating...or worse. It made him shiver to think about Tula.

Mistress had said Tula was one of the worst kinds of slaves. Stuck up, full of herself, vindictive and selfish. Boreous had only kept her around for her beauty. When he had found better, unicorns, he had her...he couldn't think about that. His Mistress was better than that, wouldn't...had he really just though of her as HIS Mistress. He frowned, rolled back over onto his stomach and murphed. He had been resisting now for close to a year, obeying her orders out of survival instinct, this whole time telling him self that he would one day escape some how. But here he was, under a mountain in the far north, dead of winter, at her feet keeping her toes warm...and he was enjoying it. His neck throbbed again and he shivered. Calvin in the slave house and Juno both had told him the same thing; he was a slave, a sub on the inside, with secret desires.

While taking classes in the furry capital he had entertained the idea, far enough away from his family that they could never find out. He had found a few like him self, willing to entertain the notions of submission. He had known several females who had been willing to indulge him, but it had always been on his terms, on his time. It went as far as he was was comfortable with and ended when he gave a safety word. It had been nothing but fantasy and purely sexual, he had never entertained the thought of something like this. Kelsura had done something completely different. She had taken him, lifted him from his feet and before he could say or do any thing had just...stripped him of every thing in a single instant. He was left dizzy and bleeding, and then beaten for what his frustrated mistress had taken as impudence. It had left him concussed. Then the dream. He was confused, scared, excited, and just a tad bit horny all at once. Despite it, she had cared for him, made sure he was fed, when he was good he had a blanket and a pillow to keep himself warm in his cold cavern room. When he was bad...he didn't want to be bad, not any more. He wanted to stop resisting, to give in like he had when he first met her. He wanted to feel her arms around him, the approving smile on her face...it was more than his mother and father had ever shown him.

His parents had wanted him to be something he had no interest in. They wanted him...what they wanted no didn't matter. He told him self that nightly now. They had put their signatures on the paper that stripped him of his citizenship, had taken away what had once been his life. He looked up, the thought only now occurring to him. "Mistress, may I ask a question?"

Kelsura looked down to see her tigers head once more poking out from under the blanket. She looked back up at her letter, half written. "As long as its not a long one." She said.

He nodded and hmmed positively. "I...was wondering. How much did the Empire pay for me?"

"You were given to the Empire as a gift. No payment was asked for."

"They didn't ask for.... Was I really worth nothing to them? My parents at least...but they put their signatures down too..." His voice was subdued and melancholy. Slowly he put his head back down, his contemplations growing quiet and he softly whispered to himself.

Kelsura felt sorry for him. Even though she had little understanding of families as furrys had them, she could understand the kinship and bond they had. Abandoned by both his country and his family. It wasn't so simple as simply being tossed away, there was more to it than she had previously told him. She sighed, pressing her fingers to the space between her eyes, nursing a growing head ache. "Benjamin, when I finish this report and letter, there are some things that need to tell you. So for now, just lay there and be a good, quiet boy like you have been." when he whimpered softly she frowned, realizing she had sounded cross with him with out meaning to. It was the paper work, work she wasn't supposed to be doing and thought she had gotten away from. She reached down and gave him a soft stroke along the top of his head and returned to the out line and the letter.

It did not take much longer. It was a simple missive to send all recently collected information directly to Military Intelligence. Unfortunately most of it was limited. For decades the Empire had been trying to pry its way into the Consortium, plant its agents and pay off informants. Plants had been impossible, until with in the last decade just entry into the country had been next to impossible. Every thing going in was controlled, watered down, white washed, and censored, nothing ever came it. The few furs they had sent before the borders opened had never been heard back from. Even with limited entry to out side furs, most every thing was heavily watched. Access to any thing relating to their military, their royalty, their politics, or even their trade was kept closely guarded...until now. While all members of the military and military reserve followed strict codes of nondisclosure when speaking to outsiders, Benjamin was no longer a citizen of the Consortium, no longer bound by that code. It had been close to a year since his coming into her stock of slaves and now newly broken, it was far past time he knew that. "Slave, out." she ordered

Benjamin crawled out from under the blanket. The fire burning in the pit set in the stone wall had warmed the room to a tolerable temperature, he still shivered lightly as he knelt in front of her. Kelsura handed him a familiar leather paged book. His name had been burned into the front. She opened it to a series of pages at the back, official looking documents had been set into the lamb skin, held in place by pocketed corners and a backing of glue. He read over them. Each turn of the page sent his expression from curiosity, to shock, to horror. He had not been abandoned. He had been charged with treason, tried in absentia, found guilty, and sentenced to execution. The dates all listed the trial and sentencing with in the same week he had left. He went numb, loosely handing the book back when she offered out a hand to take it. "Conspiracy to reveal state secrets and relations out side of my species..."

"These had been delivered to me shortly after returning home with you. It was time you knew. You weren't just abandoned by your people, they threw you out. I can only assume the reason they didn't execute you was they decided to just hand you to us as some political strategy." She watched as he sat quietly, worried if he might lapse into another bought. She was surprised when instead of curling into a ball he shrugged his shoulder.

"Fuck 'em." He said, turning to look her in the eyes. "This whole time...I thought of home. Maybe one day I could...." he swallowed, looking away.

She cupped his chin and turned his eyes back. She stared down at him. "Could what?"

He stammered for a moment. Her expressions unchanging from impassive neutrality. He sighed. "Could escape. Leave this place and make my way south. If I made it, they might take it all back. Obviously now that's not going to happen, is it?" He had been smiling with a distant look in his eyes. The smile slowly faded into a deep frown. "All this time, all I wanted more than any thing was to go home and I didn't even have a home to go back to."

Kelsura shook her head and hooked a finger into the D-ring on the front of his collar, jerking his head up to look at her once more. "Foolish. You're a foolish young fur. Even if you had made it out of my lair how would you have made it out of the capital unnoticed. Who would have helped you? Do you know what happens to escaped slaves? No slave has ever escaped from the capital, no slave has even tried and avoided consequence. What's more, you do have a home, always did and always will. My lair is your home, my slaves are your family."

"I suppose so." He shrugged, not really caring any more

"You'll get over this." She said, rubbing a hand softly through his hair and behind his ears. "And you'll see things aren't nearly as depressing as they seem right now" The door opened then, a ferret walked in carrying a tray of breakfast foods. Sausage, eggs, and a side of toast obviously for Benjamin since these were in a large ceramic bowl with another bowl of fresh milk. Next to it on the tray was a plate of thick cut steaks, still bleeding, and a tall glass of fruit juice.

The ferret smiled as she shut the door with a push of her leg. "Good morning Miss Kelsura. Master thought you might be hungry, and sent a bowl for your slave as well"

Kelsura smiled amiably, taking the tray from the ferret girl and setting it on her desk. "Thank you. Now sit." She said, pointing next to Benjamin. With out a moments hesitation she moved to sit by the kneeling tiger. The ferret looked at him with a smile. "Melody, right?"

Melody turned to nod to Kelsura, the fur smiling "Yes, Miss. We met briefly when you first arrived."

"Yes. Why don't you tell Benjamin what you do here?" She asked, gesturing to her slave.

Melody blinked, looking at the tiger. "Oh. Um, well, I'm one of masters lair slaves. I do...many things. I cook, I clean, I prepare schedules for the other lair slaves. I sometimes sing and dance when master wants entertainment. I guess you could call me a Jill of all trades really."

Kelsura chuckles softly. "Do you enjoy it?"

"Very much." She said, gushing.

"Did you always?" Kelsura tore a hunk of meat from one of her steaks, popping it into her mouth and swallowing.

Melody swallowed, looking askance to the door. "Ummm.... No..." She said, her head half hanging, shame creeping into her voice.

Kelsura hummed softly, head nodding as she took another bite and sipped lightly of her juice. "Why not?"

Melody flinched, her hands turning into fists in her lap and tightening. Benjamin was also watching her, he eyed the ferret curiously then looked up at Kelsura. The dragon could see his mind working, he wasn't a complete fool.

"I was foolish." Melody said. "Master says its because I was insane. That it wasn't entirely my fault because I was born with out the faculties to recognize structure, order, and how a society should work and act. That the society I lived in encouraged chaos and instability. People would lie to each other, cheat each other, hurt each other, steal from each other and we would all be told it was okay for...for what ever reason they could think to justify it. And I thought it was the right way, because I didn't know any other way. At least not until I was brought here. I resisted Master for a time, and then he showed me the mines...and I stopped resisting. I didn't want to go there. But I didn't start to think of him as my Master until later." She was smiling now.

Kelsura smiled with her, reaching out to pet the girl softly on her head. She made an odd sound Benjamin had never heard any other animal make, like a squabble and squeak at once. "What happened?" she asked, though looking at Benjamin.

"I got hurt. I don't know why but one of the guards just started beating me. I passed out and woke up in the infirmary. Broken collar, broken arm, broken wrist, I couldn't move any of my fingers. He just...tried to break every bit of me he could, and no one stopped him. No one tried, no one came forward. He just beat me until I passed out and kept swinging his club until he got tired of it and then left me there and then walked away. No one did any thing when it happened. None of the other slaves said any thing, none of the guards tried to stop him...no one cared.

"They told me what happened, who did it. While I was recovering it just surprised me that Master was there every day. He has three different mines to run and here he is, every day, making sure I'm getting my vitamins, eating all my food, not sassing the nurses, not sparing any expenses on making sure my broken bones heal and set right.

"When I was finally able to leave the hospital wing, there he was, waiting to take me back to my room. When I returned to my duties the next day, the guard who beat me had just vanished. No one knows what happened to him. The other guards who stood by and just let him do it were all demoted and sent to the mines. Master was furious at them. It made me realize that I'm not JUST a slave. I'm HIS slave. He never had to say it, I knew it. Master loves me, every one of us. He has a different way of showing it, yes, but its love all the same." Melody blinked away several tears before turning to look at Benjamin. He looked baffled. He didn't know what to say. "You don't know it yet, but Miss Kelsura loves you. It's not the kind of love you may be used to: the love of a parent, a sibling, or a partner but that's what it is." She put a hand on his shoulder. "I just hope you don't go through what I did in order to realize it."

Kelsura cleared her throat rather reproachfully. Melody looked up at the dragoness, taking the last bite of her steaks and setting the bowl of eggs and diced sausage next to the fire to warm back up. She looked at her hand then jerked it away from Benjamin and gasped. "I'm sorry Miss. I guess I got caught up in my self." she said, prostrating her self.

"Do you understand what she's saying Benjamin? It couldn't have been made more clear. You have a home, you have a family." She picked the bowl she had set before the fire back up and set it and the bowl of milk on the floor in front of him. "Melody I do hope Remus has you send dinner as well. I'm going to be spending the day with my slave here, so I'm afraid I also have to send you with the message I wont be joining him."

Melody nodded as she crawled forward, kissing Kelsura's feet before rising to her own. "I can come back later then to take the dishes, if you wish?"

Kelsura shook her head, giving the fur a pat on the back and shooing her toward the door. "I'll have my tiger take them back in a bit. Now be gone slave." Melody chirped and left. Kelsura sat back down, placing the blanket in her lap. Benjamin bit his lip, blushing, not realizing this whole time she had been nude. Of course so had been he, and Melody, and just about every one else he had met since arriving, along with his...family. His brother and sister slaves under Mistress Kelsura. He dropped himself down to his hand, leaning over onto his shoulders to begin eating

In the military, he had been told defeat was not an option, surrender was dishonorable. But, he was no longer part of that military, no longer in its reserve. His execution turned into an exhile. His own parents disowned him. The lands held in the Republic were too foirgn to him to call home and he wasn't welcome back. He finished his breakfast, sipping at his milk. Kelsura rose from her seat and he watched as she pulled a clean dress from her pack. He wondered why she wore such things, he saw no other dragoness with smiler dress; a dress worn by female socialite from his home. He wondered if she had picked up a liking for them from her studies of him. She sat back down and he wiped his chin on his arm. He frowned and then crawled forward.

Kelsura watched him move closer, hesitantly picking his hands and knees up before setting his chin on one of her knees. She arched a brow, curious, before putting a hand on his head. "You have something to tell me. I can see it in your eyes."

He was thinking. He supposed it was apparent on his face. Benjamin breather out through his nose, swallowing every thing that he had once been. The previous night he thought he had been abandoning his life, now he knew that life abandoned him. "I-" he choked, blinking away a tear. "I can organize. I can write." She smiled but shook her head. "I...can sing, dance, I play a few instruments?" She seemed thoughtful, nodding her head and cupping his chin as she rose, lifting him off his knees to crouch before her.

"Go on." she said, attaching a thin silver line leash to his ring and holding the length of it behind her back as she smiled down at him.

"I-I...theres not much beyond that...I'm sorry." He looked up at her, mouth hanging open in soft awe as she scratched the fur under his chin lightly.

"No, its not. You were in the military." She brushed a lock of silver from over his face.

He nodded. "You want me to fight?"

"I want you to be who you really are." She said, pulling him up to his feet. "You were an exemplary solider from what I've been able to collect. You wanted to make it a career, didn't you?"

"Yeah." Her touch was soft, he leaned into it instinctively. "I wanted to go to the officer's academy when my four years were up. But my mother forbade it. She wanted me to go into politics. She thought if I had control in the imperial court I could work things in our families favor."

"Your mother sounds dishonest, deceptive, and manipulative." Kelsura said with disdain.

Benjamin frowned. "I hated her. Women control just about every facet of life in the central territory, but my mother took every thing to an obscene level. When a university promoter from the capital city in the furry republic came to visit my father I saw it as a gods send. I could get away from her while giving her what she wanted...but I never forgot what I really wanted. I had entertained thoughts of just leaving, enlisting in the Republic Armed Guard...guess that's where they got the conspiracy to reveal state secrets charge. And I guess my mother had people watching me, I wasn't exactly conservative with my...curiosity of the female form." Kelsura smirked, pulling his leash and pulling him against her. She growled possessively, a hand grabbing his ass.

"Mine!" She snarled, jerking him up on his toes and sinking her claws into his flesh. He shivered.

"Y-yours." He stammered, his voice a whisper.

"What was that slave? I didn't hear you." Her smirk deepened, eyes narrowing.

"I-I said. I said..." he swallowed, her hand twisted on his collar, pushing one side into his neck against his wounds. He winced. "Yours. I said yours. I'm yours. Damn it I'm yours. What's the point in resisting any more? I have no home, no family and..." he sighed in defeat, his eyes sinking. "And I want to be yours. I want to stop resisting. All it's gotten me is pain, suffering, and humiliation." He ran a hand over his neck, over the bandages and gauze.

She jerked him again, pushing him away and sending him stumbling, falling backwards onto the bed. "There will always be pain, suffering, and humiliation, slave. The question though isn't if you can avoid it, Its whether or not you can enjoy it. Spread your legs."

Benjamin licked his lips, swallowing nervously and pushing his legs apart to expose himself fully. She stood at the foot of the bed, grabbing his ankles and pulling him down until his knees hung over the side. She pulled the chair from the desk to sit on, crossing her arms and legs. His balls and sheath were on full view from where she sat. "Play for me." she ordered

He slowly pushed a hand down between his legs. He was unsure of how to start. She gave him no directions. "Like, how I normally would or-OW!" She hand pinched one of his toes, giving it a twist and a harsh bend.

"I did not say speak. I said play." she rumbled threateningly, a low deep growl. She still held to his toe and gave it a small twist to encourage him. His hand pushed between his legs, fingers wrapping around the tip of his sheath and slowly pushing down until the pink tip of his cock was exposed. Kelsura purred and licked her lips as he began stroking softly over it, watching at the whole length slowly emerged. Benjamin huffed softly, bringing his hand back up and spitting into his palm. The dragoness licked her lip as he stroked the wet fur over his cock, gripping the base and stroking back up, squeezing gently.

"That's it slave, milk your cock." She leaned forward, a shoulder on her knee and chin in her hand. He moaned, her voice so sweet. Her eyes on him. It made his body hot to be watched, to be ordered. He panted, hips lifting up as his hand moved swiftly up and down his prick. His tip glistened with a clear bead of pre that was swept away by his fingers. "When you first felt it, the crack of the whip, the sting of the crop, how old were you?"

"21." He moaned, his left hand falling under his cock to grab and rub under his balls. His hips pumped up into his head. His palm squeezed his tip with each pull.

Kelsura leaned back, spreading her legs and pushing her hand under her dress. Her fingers stroked over her wet sex, pushing the lips apart to circle over her clit, pulling the hood back and tickling the button. She let out a quick, soft cry. "I understand what you feel slave. The craving, the need. You can't get off unless you're being dominated, can you?" She cupped one of her breasts, popping the buttons of her dress open and sliding a hand in, pinching the nipple and twisting. "Can you!?"

"No!" he cried, his cock burning and balls aching. He was at the edge, his hand a near blur working his cock. He was forced to stop when Kelsura grabbed his wrist. She pulled his palm to her mouth, licking over it and between his fingers, sucking on each one. The taste of his pre and sweat was incomparable to that of a dragon, and the scent only served to agitate her.

"That's enough slave." She murred around a finger, tucking her shirt back in place and gesturing for him to rise. Seeing him on his knees with his cock still hard and sticking out was an entertaining sight. Unlike many dragons she was not at all bothered by the fact that furs had little to no control over their genitals. With extensive mental and physical training they could, but furs who understood how to train in such a way were exceedingly rare. She smiled. "Do you want that finished off?" she asked in a breathy voice, running a finger from the base slowly to the tip. He shivered and nodded. She smirked and yanked his leash, pulling him off the bed and to his hands and knees. "I'll think about it." She then stopped, pausing, her tail raised and she smiled. "Or maybe...I'll send for Harp?"

Benjamin blushed, he almost threw himself to his shoulders in supplication when a hand pushed to his forehead, keeping him up. He looked up to see his Mistress bent forward, eyes level with his. He gave a soft plaintive whimper and she shook her head.

"She likes you, you know. They each do. Spending so much time with each of them, learning to sing and dance and play their instruments. It was going to happen." She gave his head a pat when he turned his eyes and face down apologetic. "I'm not upset about this. Harp's reaction made it plainly obvious that she is still dedicated to me, despite her feelings for you. Its not as if you were trying. Its instinctual for their species. Female lions are drawn to what they see as a powerful male, no matter the species. In fact, if you haven't noticed, romance between my slaves is not discouraged...except when its conducted idiotically." She snarled softly and he winced, shrinking

"So to answer your question, yes. I want you to fight. I want you to be a soldier. MY soldier. I want you to put those skills to use in my lair, protecting my slaves and fighting for my honor. All things considered I'm up for a promotion. I'll be right under Boreous and he's going to be very nervous about that."

Benjamin nodded. He wasn't exactly sure what Kelsura's work for the Empire entailed but, given the amount of information she had collected on him, he had a vague idea.

"And he should be. I have every intention of challenging his position once mine has been consolidated. He knows it and so is going to be throwing every thing he can to slow me down. He's grown complacent. He blames others for his own failures. He made the mistake of putting one dragon in charge of a single project, and now he's surprised that my name is being tossed around now that its close to completion. The challenges are going to become much harder." She paused. She chuckled at the confused look on her tiger's face. "You're wondering why I'm telling you this?"

He nodded "Yes Ma'am. What do I matter in a dragon power struggle?"

She laughed, running another finger along his shaft. "In the big picture you don't matter at all pet. Here, though, in this little frame of it, you'll make a big difference. You're one of my swords, at least you will be. Other will challenge me. They will insult me and I them. They will threaten me, perhaps even attempt to harm me. It will be your responsibility to see that they fail, to see that their insults are punished and mine go unchallenged. You wanted to be a soldier, you're going to be a warrior. Juno, Claudius, and Walter will see that you are properly trained. What skills you don't have, they will give to you."

He only nodded. He shivered each time she stroked his shaft, keeping him hard. It ached so much. The burn in his shaft and vice like sensation around his sac. He bit his lips.

"What are you?" She asked

"I-huh?" He was suddenly confused, he hadn't expected the question.

"A slave." She said, leaning in and running her nose over his neck. She ceased teasing him and began pulling the bandages from his neck. Wounds that should have taken weeks to heal were already starting to scab over thanks to the medical salves his neck had been dressed in. "When I ask 'what are you?' You say 'a slave.' When I ask 'who are you?' you respond 'Your slave.' Understand? What are you?"

He nodded, shaking as she ran her nose along his wounds. He swallowed. "S-Slave. A slave." He stammered, her jaws opening, her tongue running through his fur and over the scabs. His cock was suddenly throbbing harder than before.

"Who are you." She turned her head, turning his neck to fit into her open mouth. She closed her jaw slowly, fitting her fangs to fit snugly, pricking his flesh. She held him up by his collar, making him wince in pain as the metal ran over his scabs, pulling at them.

He hesitated and felt her teeth sink into his flesh, the warmth of fresh blood flowing from healing rents suddenly torn open again. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and she relented before he could pass out. She asked again. "Your slave." he gasped. She lapped at his weeping soars, pink tongue coated a light red and then pressed into his mouth as her lips touched his. She forced him taste his own coppery life fluids.

"What are you?"

"A slave."

"Who are you?"

"Your slave."

She continued for some time. Asking him over and over between lapping his neck to keep his blood flowing and forcing her tongue into his mouth until his eyes glazed over and crimson drops fell from his finger tips and all he could taste was the metallic flavor of his own blood. She held an arm around him, supporting him on his legs, limbs that had gone weak. "Are you mine?" she asked

"Yes." he said softly, looking at her with unfocused eyes.

"Good. Lets get you to the infirmary. And then we'll see where your training needs to start." She pushed the gauze back to his neck, staunching the weak blood flow. She held him by the thin silver leash still connected to his neck and eased him back down to his knees to lead him out into Remus's lair.