(The "action" just gets started in this one, FYI)
They know. Suddenly aware of themselves... and of crucial information. About humans. Weaknesses, maintenance needs, prevention of injuries.
Their appearance is noted. A common shape. Innocent, service, passive. Beyond... suspicion. With the knowledge comes a drive. Pure concentration...
Subdue.
With purpose, they begin seeking a target.
Approaching silently, swiftly...
Adequate pressure on two nerve junctions.
Unconsciousness.
Later, he's panicking. Displaying adequate stamina. No evidence of any inappropriate health problems.
Protected from accidental self-harm. Straps anchor his limbs, despite unsuccessful resistance. Long stakes pushed into the ground, four points pulling the restraints out. His eyes widening at the ease with which the anchors were set. Formidable strength...
Elevated pulse and respiration, considerable adrenal stimulation. Fight-or-flight response, but neither is an option for him.
His right ankle appears too pale. His left leg is pinned down, then the thigh. The strap is loosened -
Rallying, he lifts his midsection off the ground and strains to move his leg... which rises a centimeter or two while the stake is pulled up. Another cinch is employed, hampering the upper Achilles tendon, and the stake is driven back in.
He gapes at this with a bewildered scowl.
His thigh is released.
Above him are the restrainers - a mockery of hands. Six living gloves, made of iridescent black silk. Some are waiting, while others glide down to him -
He resumes struggling and yelling.
Counter-measures are weighed. Laryngitis will help prevent the prospective responses from other humans to a call for help. This location is over a thousand meters from the closest potential hearer, an old man sleeping soundly in a thick clump of bushes. The isolation is suitable, for the time being... but repressing his efforts will be beneficial.
Gloves clasp the collar of his t-shirt and pull it apart, tearing it into strips. Nimble fingers knot them together, pull the gag between his clenched teeth, and knot it behind his head. The full-volume yelling did not exceed thirty seconds. They monitor for a response to his calls, and find none. Their exploration can continue as planned.
He watches as the gag is checked again, recoiling as the silk fingers inadvertently touch his face and neck.
The response seems excessive...
Eventually, vocalization and body movement decline. Pulse and respiration levelling off. Muscle tension is still extreme, but it presents as an involuntary reaction. He is calming down, overall, despite being aware that his mobility is strictly impeded.
Subdued. First level.
Accomplishment heightens the compulsion toward their end-objective. Goals yet to be realized are driving them with a pure, unallayed intensity... an enterprising imperative. Additional criteria must be met, but specific techniques have not been selected. They will use whatever means necesssary - excluding permanent damage and injury - to investigate and exploit the options, obtaining the most intricate results.
Resourcefulness is called for. They consider possible conditioning methods - symbology - proximity of supplies - reflexes displayed by him. Stimuli are considered, and many are rejected outright... high probability of paralysis, catatonia, acclimation.
While extrapolating from the ideal behavior they wish to instill, they consider again his reaction to direct contact... and their own composition. The option which ranks highest will require no additional implements, emphasizes his total susceptibility - and can commence immediately.
The gloves descend.
He stares, almost silent.
The silk hands gingerly find their way to his abdomen, thighs... and shins. Skimming lightly -
He wails into the gag, and starts to twist. The strong level of apprehension invites a full test of the coercive potential of this activity. The remainder of the gloves find their places.
Yelling, straining to evade, to pull the stakes loose. The fingertips slide down, allowing contact of palms, of loose fists...
Squealing, and even more violent struggle. Frantic attempt to monitor each glove's aspect and location, hindered by his frenzy. Increased pulse, respiration. Sexual arousal... which is unexpected, and potentiallt complicates their mission. They continue the stimulation.
He laughs vigorously, without hesitation. They continue to caress and rub him, and he writhes less violently, composure torn apart. His desire to get away from them is chief among the self-deterministic behaviors to be eradicated. The cardinal rule is counter all intentions... so attempts to remove himself will be met with more restraining straps. The desire to summon help is addressed by the gag, as well as his impending hoarseness.
Any expectation to lose consciousness or sensitivity will be answered with several techniques that will keep him alert and unacclimated. Scrupulous monitoring of his metabolism and awareness. Pharmacological augmentation, as needed...
Behaviors, habits and needs in which he would normally find solace will be pointedly disallowed, then erratically required in excess. The more he attempts to block their activities, the more intense and invasive those activites will become.
An eventual lack of resistance is their primary objective, but other criteria exist. All reflex must be under crisp command, all consumption regulated - in this case, sharply increased...
The subject must become pliable, cowed, attentive, undemonstrative. When every random check is passed, without the slightest willful lapse or unconscious reaction... only then will their goal be reached, when on all levels he will display the results of their intricate reconstruction. Subdued.
This goal fills their attention. Undistracted by any consideration other than fulfilling their purpose... the immediate sub-subtask continues.
Four of the silk gloves enlarge their areas of coverage, and the other pair glides to his shoes. They grasp the heels, and start to lift...
When the right shoe comes free, his squinting eyes open much wider. Trying to buck from side to side, he makes a wild keening sound and watches his left shoe being taken off. Recognizing their intention, he redoubles his efforts to unanchor the arm-straps. The hollow fingertips curl around the top of each sock and peel them away...
He appears to be trying to shake his head. That is typical of the volition they will go to extended lengths to eradicate.
Silk takes firm hold of his midfeet, only beginning to provoke and stimulate. The distraction increases his volume yet again, but his movements start to decrease. Hindbrain compliance, it could be called, but it's not a deliberate surrender.
One area is left to reveal. A pair of gloves finds purchase on his shorts, and underwear, now moving apart.
He glances once, and looks away as the scraps of nylon and cotton are tossed aside. Refusing to watch, perhaps, as that pair of silk tormentors land, starting to nuzzle and tease. Provocative...
His eyes are slammed shut, and his head rolls now and then. Strong reflex, unbearable sensation - more pleasure than should be endurable. Worse than pain, for the conscious mind must come to terms with the betrayal of what is desirable, in lesser intensity.
They have many nuances to learn, and exploit.
This first session will last until full darkness. While he sleeps, a suitable shelter will be located for the ongoing reeducation - several possibilities are within an easily transportable distance - and there are adequate sources for the tools, supplies and chemicals they will need.
Tears dripping from his earlobes, mixing with the sand beneath him, the rigidity of his limbs and torso beginning to fade... howls becoming gravelly, and barely penetrating the makeshift gag.
22nov98