A Clockwork Green Ch. 07

We land at the bottom of the little hill her house is built on. Everything is quiet. Usually there are little machines darting about and the sounds of her wind generators humming along, but not now. My heart drops into a pit in my stomach.

"This doesn't feel right." Mackenzie drops her hands to her sides, flame igniting around them. "It's too quiet."

I unlatch Bessie from my belt and hold the shotgun up in front of me. "I'll take point."

Cautiously we make our way inside her house. I see bullet holes and scorch marks in the walls, with the occasional spot of blood on the floor. Annette fought whoever it was that came for her, that much is for sure. The question is who...

"Fuck," I hear Mackenzie hiss. "See those slashes on the walls? A air mage was here."

I nod silently as I continue to sweep the hallway, checking every door as I go. This wasn't the work of some raiding party. Everything would be in disarray; smashed and destroyed as they looked to take whatever they could find of value. Whoever came here had a very specific purpose. That thought unnerves me even more. Annette's tough and can hold her own, but against a well-trained team?

Time seems to slow to a crawl as we continue to move through the house, clearing one room after another. We pause outside her parlor, where we first discussed the details of the auction. A lot of happy memories in there. Slowly and carefully, I edge the door to her parlor open with Bessie held up in front of me. I quickly scan to my right and then left as I take a step inside. The parlor is a large room, and there is a lot that can be hiding in wait for us here. Undaunted, I start a more detailed search of the room...

...when I see the mangled remains of her clockwork left arm, still clutching her pistol, sticking out from behind an ornate leather armchair trimmed with brass.

"ANNETTE!!!" I tear across the room to where the arm lay, hoping against hope that it isn't still attached to the person I adore. I leap over the armchair in my haste, and then almost immediately wish I hadn't when I see her body laying behind it on the floor.

She's...

Despite the evidence of magic and gunfire in the previous rooms, her body bears vicious wounds from a bladed weapon. Mackenzie lumbers across the room to me as I kneel down and reach out with a trembling hand to touch Annette's face. She looks so pale, and a small moan escapes my lips as I finally make contact, flinching at the coldness of her skin. "No... " Her face starts to blur as tears well up in my eyes.

"Why is this happening? Why is this happening?" I hear Mackenzie's throat catch as she staggers, backing into a coffee table and knocking a few nicknacks onto the floor. "What did she ever do to anyone?!"

I have no answers for her. All I can do is stare disbelievingly at the corpse as tears run down my cheeks.

***

We buried her in her backyard. It's lovely there. She used to spend hours with us sipping tea and talking into the wee hours of the morning. It seemed only right that we made sure that she was in a beautiful place, surrounded by beautiful things.

It's dusk by the time we finish, and we slowly make our way out of her house and down to the skiff to head home. "What are we gonna do now, Char? She knew a lot, and without her how are we gonna figure things out?" Mackenzie bites her lip in frustration as we walk out the doorway. I have no answers, and keep walking...

I'm vaguely aware of the fact that Mackenzie isn't beside me, which sets me on edge for some reason. I turn around and am horrified to find her crouched with her hands tucked in towards her her right side, conjuring up one of those "kites" of hers.

"What in the name of the gods are you doing, Mackenzie?!"

"I'm gonna burn the place down. I don't want fuckin' looters goin' through her shit. She deserved better'n that." She doesn't look back at me, her kite growing larger and hotter all the while. I rush her just as she is about to release it, throwing my shoulder into her back and causing the incantation to wink out. She falls forward onto her hands, and shakes her head before turning back to look at me like I'm the monster. "What the fuck, Charlotte? Have you lost your mind?"

I don't know if it's the tone of her voice, or that the comment comes off as affirmation of Mackenzie's narcissism, but something snaps inside me. "Our dear friend is dead, and all you can think of is setting something else on fire? You selfish, miserable person!"

There is a spark in her eyes as she balls her fists in anger. "I don't know where this attitude of yours is coming from, but it's gonna stop. Right the fuck now!" I've known her long enough to realize that she's reached her limit, and that she's not going to take any more. She means to set me straight, once and for all. The problem with that is that I have reached my limit, too. I am hurt, and I am angry, and I no longer care to keep the peace between us.

"My attitude? My attitude?!" I glare at her with barely concealed rage. Her glare falters as the ice in my voice overwhelms her fire, and she takes a step back. "All I am to you is a plaything! Something to keep you occupied!"

She looks at me as if I had just slapped her. "That's... that's not true. I-"

"You are done talking." Her jaw drops in shock, working wordlessly at my interruption. " I am not an equal to you. Hell, I am not even a person to you! I am just something comfortable, something you can come home to and use as you see fit!" My voice catches for a moment, forcing me to clear my throat before continuing. "All I ever wanted was an 'I love you!' I didn't even want to be an equal... I just wanted you to love me! To tell me that I was important to you, as you are to me! Just a little show of affection..."

She watches me wordlessly, and I can see her heart starting to break. A part of me pleads to pull back, but I am too far gone now for that voice to matter.

"But that wasn't what I got, was it!? I stood by as you used Selt! I watched as you brought Sera into our bedroom! You used her just like you used me, and then mocked me just for looking at someone else! For just looking!! Everything has always been about your desires, your wants! And then, the moment I even so much as look at someone else, I get punished and tossed into a corner!?"

I can feel the muscles in my jaw tighten, the soldier starting to rebel against the state of things. "What fucking irony. To be punished for looking at a woman by someone who fucks others right in gods-damned front of me!"

Her eyes are fallen, and the fire in them is gone. She begins to break down in front of me.

"Well no more. Leave me to grieve my friend, and when that is done you and I will go our separate ways. I'm done, Mackenzie. Go back to the shop and to the life you obviously want. Just know that you're going to do it without me."

Mackenzie drops to her knees, tears streaming down her face. "Charlotte... no, it isn't like that. Not at all, I..."

"I couldn't have said it better myself." A voice catches us both off guard. Soldiers and clockwork guardians seem to materialize out of thin air. So many well-armed soldiers, and the machines behind them are top of the line battlefield mechs. There is no way we are going to be able to fight our way out of this. Mackenzie quickly recovers her bearings, bouncing to her feet and conjuring flames around her fists, but even she seems to realize how hopelessly outnumbered we are.

"I don't think that will be necessary." It's her. Duchess Amaranth. She's wearing such ornate robes, coupled with a shining silver breastplate and silvered pauldrons. The desert wind blows her auburn hair about, though she seems unperturbed by the environment around her. Her piercing blue eyes seem to look straight into my soul, and I tremble at the thought of her looking at me. She smiles at me, and my heart thrills at a simple gesture. I can feel myself go weak at the knees, and wonder how she has this kind of power over me. "Hello, my little pets. I've been looking for you for quite a while now. It's almost as if you don't want to be found."

"Not by you! I can smell her blood on you!" Mackenzie falls back a step, flames flaring brightly around her hands.

"Don't be dense, girl. Of course we didn't kill Professor Tournesol. We only just arrived here, though it does pain me to hear of her death. She is... was... a renowned researcher, and a guiding light on the nature of earth magic." She turns away from us for a moment, facing the house and bowing her head in sadness. "But, she did manage to bring us one last gift. Her work brought to light you, Charlotte. I've been looking for you for so long, now."

"I-I... I don't u-understand, my lady..."

"Oh, you dear precious thing, you! So naive of your value. You don't yet realize what a treasure you are." She takes a step towards me with outstretched arms, smiling brightly at me.

Mackenzie growls in anger, the flames around her hands getting larger, hotter. "Save your breath! She's not gonna fall for your shit."

Amaranth's expression changes to one of sadness. "And yet she was taken in by your lies, Mackenzie. Does she know about the others?"

Hy heart skips a beat at the words, and I turn to face Mackenzie. "Others? M-Mackenzie, what is she talking about?"

"You poor, loyal creature. You yourself mentioned two people she had the temerity to take in front of you... do you really think her selfishness could be contained to just what you could see?"

"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!!"

The Duchess merely clucks her tongue and shakes her head. "Sadly, I have evidence. Oh Charlotte..." She steps beside me and lays a gentle hand on my shoulder. The touch sends a thrill through my heart and drains away my resistance. "She treats you so wretchedly. You were nothing more than another conquest to her, a plaything for her to come home to when she'd had her fun."

"Charlotte... Cherry. Look at me. Please," Mackenzie pleads desperately. "I wouldn't keep anything from you. You're my one. The girl I... You can't give in to-"

"Oh, you wouldn't hide anything from me? What was that about grass earlier?" The bitterness in my voice is palpable, and I shoot her a withering stare. "You didn't tell me about that. What else are you not telling me?"

Mackenzie drops to her knees, hanging her head with a choked cry. "No..." is all she says, and then just sits on her knees. She doesn't make a move nor a sound, and the flames around her hands slowly die away.

I feel Amaranth gently pull my face around to look into her eyes, and I melt. "She has always treated you like this. You were never more than a toy to her, despite her protestations otherwise. But Charlotte..." She runs her index finger down my cheek and under my chin, ever so gently pulling me closer to her. "I know what a gift you are. What a treasure! I can give you the kind of treatment you deserve."

"... what about Mackenzie? You need her too, right?" I catch myself trying to lean into her caress, fighting the urge to completely surrender to her will. Fighting and losing, it would seem.

"Charlotte, even as she wounds you, you still have her best interests at heart. It speaks volumes of your charity." She smiles widely as she cups my face in both hands and touches her forehead to mine. "Of course we shall see to Mackenze, too. She'll come with us as a guest, and when we have learned as much as we can from her, we'll let her go about her life. But as for you..."

A soldier comes over to us, holding an exquisite collar with a fine silvered chain. Duchess Amaranth takes it from him, then turns to me. "I want you to come home with me. You'll be my favored pet, little one. I shall take care of you, and see to every need you could ever have. Every need."

The veiled meaning isn't lost on me in the slightest. Part of me wants what she is offering so badly. I turn back to look at Mackenzie, my anger with her melting away. "She gets to lead her own life?"

"You have my word. You'll never have to worry about her again."

It feels like an eternity, but I finally turn to Amaranth with a nod. "I'll do as you ask, Mistress."

Duchess Amaranth sighs contentedly as she gently secures the collar around my neck, smiling as she lets the chain snake through her hand before taking hold of the leather handle at the end. "Come then, my pet. Let me show you to your new life. You are going to be the crown jewel of my Menagerie! Of that you can be sure." She turns to the soldier beside us and nods at him. "Take a few of the others and escort Mackenzie to our ship. Make the necessary arrangements, and be quick about it."

He nods races off to carry out his orders, leaving the Duchess and I to ourselves. She gently tugs on the leash, pulling me gently along behind her. "Come pet... let's take you to your new home, shall we?"

"Yes, my Mistress." I start off after her eagerly, only to be stopped by Mackenzie's voice calling softly after me.

"I fucked up, but I ain't givin' up, Cherry. Not now, not ever."

"You should have thought about that before, Mackenzie." Duchess Amaranth says sweetly. "Come, pet."

I obey without a word or a second glance.

***

Several hours later I find myself standing alone in a darkened room, the low lights making it difficult to make anything out. I've been here a while, escorted in by two soldiers armed with heavy rifles and scimitars. They had given me instructions to wait here, and that I wasn't to move. She wished it that way, they told me. That was all they had to say. I wasn't about to disobey.

The thought crosses my mind that I have surrendered everything that's important to me. I gave up my cherished weapons without so much as a word. The children back home, especially my promise to Raphe, are but a distant memory, fading away even now. Even Mackenzie... what she once meant to me, her betrayal, her treatment of me, everything. Nothing of it matters much anymore. Especially when she is around.

I stand silently, my hands folded behind my back. I will wait as long as she sees fit; such is my desire to prove myself worthy of her praise. When will I see her again? Perhaps she is displeased with me already? The thought sends a chill through my body. I can't possibly have screwed things up so soon...

I can hear the sound of a woman's heels clicking on the stone floor as they approach. The sound of a door opening almost makes me jump out of my skin. "Hello, my sweet. You've been waiting a while, haven't you?" It's her! My Mistress has come for me! I don't dare even speak. I haven't been given permission to do so.

"Good. Your discipline impresses me so, even at this early stage in your training. Lights, please." It gets brighter in the room, and I see her there before me, wearing a white gown swathed in a deep crimson sash. Her hair is pulled back into a ponytail, and her lips. Oh, her lips! Such a deep red. My heart flutters as she smiles at me.

She puts her hands behind her back, walking around me as if she's inspecting me. "I have so many questions for you, little pet. As I said before, I've been looking for you for so very long. Ever Since the night of the auction when I saw you staring after me."

I say nothing, but the surprise on my face must be obvious. She laughs, a high, lilting laugh that's almost musical in quality. "You didn't think I noticed you? How you studied me from afar, watching my every move? A little gauche, to be sure, but appreciated all the same." She completes her circle around me before stopping, cupping my chin in her palm. I have to fight the urge to nuzzle her hand like some over-affectionate animal.

Control yourself, Charlotte. Don't shame her like that...

"And now here you are. My patience has been rewarded, and I have this darling, delightful creature before me now." She takes a few steps back and crosses her arms in front of her. "Tell me, would you please your Mistress?"

I drop to my knees, prostrating myself before her. "I would give anything to do so, my Mistress. Tell me what you'd have of me, and I will do it."

She giggles happily in response. "Oh, you please me so already! I may have questions for you, but those will come in time. What I want more than anything is for you to show me what you are. Stand up, my pet." I immediately obey. She smiles and nods at me. "Remove your clothing. Strip for me, Charlotte."

Heat creeps up my neck as I begin to remove my surcoat, folding it neatly and setting it down on the floor beside me. My blouse comes next, followed by my boots and pants. I can feel my face color as I remove my bra before finally turn my attention to my panties. The bulge straining in them causes me no small amount of embarrassment, but my Mistress has commanded it. I gingerly slip them down around my ankles and step out of them, leaning over to pick them up and put them neatly on the folded pile of my other things.

Her smile seems to reach from ear to ear as she looks me up and down, tapping her lips with her index finger. "A very lovely sight, indeed. Your undressing was a little... unpracticed, but I could hardly expect someone of your station to be schooled in the fine art of such things. Sensuality and proper showmanship will come in time. "

Something in the back of my mind squirms at the back-handed compliment, but I brush that thought aside. I am with her now. I have much to learn if I am to keep my place as her servant.

"All the same, a delightful sight. And we can use your lack of training to my advantage right now. What you lack in finesse, you make up for in eagerness." She licks her lips in anticipation. "Let's begin there, shall we? Turn around and bend over. Show me your ass."

I feel my face flush even more as I turn on my toes. I spread my feet apart a little wider than shoulders' length apart before leaning over. I grab my ankles with both hands and wiggle my ass about for her benefit. Her murmur of approval, the warmth of her acceptance, washes over me. Wipes away the uncertainty. "This is... yes I see. Yes! This is what you want, is it not?"

"Yes, my Mistress." I slowly roll my hips around in a small circle, letting go of an ankle to reach up and behind me to spread my ass open even further for her view. "Does that please you?"

"Dear Charlotte," she says, laughing musically, "there are so many wonderful things to learn about you." Her rapturous lilting takes a minute to slow to a stop. When she starts again, her voice is more commanding than before. "Turn around to face me. On your knees and take your cock in hand." She takes another step towards me and nods. "Put the other hand behind your head."

I obey without hesitation, turning fully around before slowly sinking to me knees. I position myself exactly as she commanded, closing my eyes as I slide a hand down my stomach before grasping my cock at the base. I give it a little shake, as if to attract her attention to it even more.

"Good, but... spread your knees further apart. I want nothing left to the imagination." I obey without hesitation. It's not my place to question her. "That will do for the moment. Tease your breast with your hand. And start to stroke yourself off for me, my dear." She snaps her fingers and motions off in a direction I can't see. A whirring, mechanical stool rolls forward, generously padded with a red velvet that compliments the golden frame and gears of the machine. She sits down delicately, crossing her legs at her ankles and folding her hands in her lap.