Twilight Embrace
Diane stepped into the lab and marveled as the light of the Portal filled her vision. It dominated the room, two feet above the floor in the center of the room and showing the bright light of an outdoors afternoon, though there was something wrong about the view to her eyes. Even knowing that the Portal was a window to another world, the actual sight of it caught her breath.
She stepped towards it, the alien sunlight falling on her face. In the corner of her vision, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the gleaming side panel of one of the cooling units. Her dark hair falling in rich cascades around her shoulders, framing her well-tanned face. Even from this distance, she could see the electric blue of her eyes and smiled slightly, knowing that those eyes had captured more than a few men's attention, and a few women's as well, over the years. She let her glance trail down over the reflection of her smooth curves, even covered by the lab coat. She turned back to the portal, eyes drawn to the red glow that traced the edge of it, the region where the two universes overlapped...the region that could only be seen from at the edges...looking into the portal, she could only see the glade that was the other end of the Portal.
"Ah, there you are, Hobson." Doctor Hennesy walked over, smiling widely, his hand extended. "I'm glad you decided to accept this assignment, your paper on the dimensional flux energy curves was very well received." He chuckled. "Except for the older heads in the council. But they hate anything that changes their status quo, and your theory will cut the electric bill here by a third if your theory proves out." He smiled warmly.
"Do you usually hire theorists for field work?"
"Not usually, but anyone hired for field work here has to understand what we're about...it may be very photogenic over there, but it isn't a resort community. Fafnir is not a gentle environment." They both turned and looked at the afternoon sun on the clearing in Fafnir. "Now you do understand, it's a lot like working as a fireman, you're on for forty eight hours straight, and off for twenty four to forty eight. Your option."
"I understand, all that was in the briefing and the contracts."
"You'll be able to take personal effects on your second shift, but the first one, you'll just have to make do with what's issued you and what the others there will share with you." He smiled and walked over to the control bank, began shifting a few positions on the indicators. "Are you about ready?"
"No time like the present, Doctor."
"Great." He hit two final switches and the Portal hummed, and she turned to it...the glow was a little brighter. "Now you do understand, even if you are one of the ones with an allergic reaction to the differences there, you won't be able to come back for forty eight hours? You'll be miserable the whole time, but the medical unit there is very good and you'll come back no worse for the wear."
"Yes, sir."
"Fine. Good luck, Ms. Hobson." He indicated the Portal, and stepped back. She stepped forward, swallowed nervously as she felt the slight tension as her fingertips touched the surface of the Portal. The give was like pushing her fingers in cold jelly and the electrical sparks ran up her arms. She swallowed and stepped forward, feeling the sparks and tension wash over her, and then she was on Fafnir.
The air was warm and humid. She heard the wailing call of a dragon on the air, and trembled, glancing back as the Portal flared again behind her, then winked out. She drew in a sharp breath, and smelled the sharp citrus tang of alien flowers and glanced up at the green sky, only dimly visible through the heavy branches of the intertwined trees. She heard steps approaching, and turned to one of the paths that opened on the clearing. Two humans, one woman, one man entered the clearing, followed by three jikra.
She glanced at the humans, and then focused on the jikra, staring, enthralled. Two of them were about three feet across at the body, and their tentacles held them up easily, moving with a smooth grace. She tried to remember what the college classes had told her about them, but the vision of their elegance kept all but a few details away.
Moderate sized bodies, with the only bones in their body forming a skull of sorts around the central body, four eyes spaced equidistantly around the body, giving them a full three hundred sixty degrees of vision. Usually a golden brown in color, the larger of these had a black hue that glistened like polished or wet obsidian. Ten tentacles, capable of shifting thickness or firmness, their unique circulatory system capable of making a tentacle shift from almost gelatin soft to as hard as untempered iron. They had no gender as such, mated in pairs, but both were structurally the same, sharing genetic information to produce offspring. The larger jikra, the black one, was almost four feet across and the tentacles looked to be phenomenally long. It raised itself until the eye facing her was level with hers.
"You must be Diane, welcome. I'm Amy and this is Henry." Diane blinked and turned to the two people. She noticed that one of the other jikra was using a few tentacles to weave together some reeds in a braided circle. It handed the circle to Henry, who took it, blushing. Amy was shorter than Diane, with red hair pulled back in a long ponytail. She was wearing what looked for all the world to be a one piece bathing suit, a bright red. Given the temperature, Diane had to admit it didn't seem like a bad idea. Amy's breasts were straining against the material of the top. Diane glanced down Amy's legs, and saw that she was wearing hiking boots, and the discrepancy of the two types of clothes made her giggle.
Henry was tall, and lean, muscular, wearing shorts and a tank top, both khaki. He had black hair, and a thin beard. She noticed that he seemed very tired, and kept glancing over at the jikra that had handed him the woven reeds, obviously nervous.
[You are the new one?] She blinked, and turned to the black skinned jikra. She'd heard about their telepathy, but had no idea that it would feel like this. She could hear the words form in her mind, feel a deep rich voice. It tickled slightly, but there was nothing physical about it. Her mind kept wanting to make it a male voice, but it wasn't quite that. The glistening emerald eye stared into her face. She felt a ripple of amusement from the jikra, puzzled at feeling the emotion, not like she was feeling it herself, but feeling an awareness of it.
"Yes, I am." She smiled at Amy and turned to face the jikra again, intrigued. She'd heard that the jikra were intelligent, in the early iron age as far as most of their technology was concerned, but their medicine and biochemistry was years beyond human technology.
"The camp is down this path, and the lake is over down this one." Amy smiled, and nudged Henry, who coughed and headed down the path towards the lake. "We're going that way, we'll be back in a little bit. I know it's kind of strange to leave you like this, but..." She looked embarassed, and turned to Henry. He shook his head and glared at her.
"No, I won't. I won't back you on this, you want to say anything now, that's your decision, but I won't help you."
"Henry!"
[I think you should be quiet, Henry.] This voice should have been identical to the one from the black jikra, but she knew it was the golden one that had handed Henry the reeds. [Let's go to the lake.] The jikra began to edge towards the path and gestured with one of the tentacles for him to follow. He did, stopping at the edge of the clearing, and looked back, and Diane could swear he looked scared, but she also thought she saw pity in his eyes. Then he entered the path and stalked off.
"Anyway, Diane, we find it easiest if the jikra themselves help you acclimate to being here. Than'ar here has volunteered to be your guide."
"Than'ar?"
"It's as close as the human tongue can come to his name."
She turned to follow Henry. "I'll catch up to you in a little bit, okay?"
"Sure." She turned to the jikra Than'ar, and it headed off to another path leading off from the clearing.
[Follow me, human Diane.] The jikra moved smoothly into the patch, reaching up with it's tentacles and pulling itself off of the ground, leading her through the pathway without returning to the ground until they reached the far point, almost a mile away, a small clear patch at the edge of a cliff. [This is my favorite place to spend time alone. The view appeals. One can watch the dragons from here many times.] It edged over to the edge of the cliff and settled down, gesturing with it's tentacles and pointing out several physical features, the lake where she could dimly make out human figures playing, and the cluster of small buildings that marked the human camp.
"It's quite lovely. Thank you, Than'ar."
[I hope you will find it enjoyable here. Almost every human who has come here considers Fafnir to be a new home.]
"That sounds rehearsed, if you don't mind my saying so." She felt the jikra chuckle.
[Very perceptive, human Diane.] The jikra edged over closer to the edge of the cliff, and pointed out a pair of dragons as they leapt into the air. [I don't understand how you humans think, so I learned a few phrases that I heard others use...I thought it might help put you at ease.]
"I know you're alien, and I know that your kind and mind don't think alike..." she shrugged. "Part of my being here is wanting to learn how your kind think."
[And learning how your kind thinks is part of why I spend time in your camp.] She felt it chuckle. There was a tingle on her cheek and she pulled back, realizing that Than'ar had just trailed the tip of one tentacle across it. The tingle spread, and she remembered what she'd heard about the chemicals of their skin and how they interacted with human skin. The effect was supposed to clarify human though, but slow physical reaction. She could feel the cheek growing numb as the tingle spread, then the numbness was replaced with a warmth that she found intoxicating. The jikra touched her hand lightly, and she felt her right hand get lost in the tingle quickly.
"What...what are..." She stepped back, and heard the jikra chuckle again. A tentacle grazed her calf and began to trail up her leg. She pulled back and stared at the creature, suddenly afraid. She turned and started to run down the path, heading for the clearing. Her leg, tingling, gave her a little trouble, but she found her stride soon, and was running as fast as she ever had at a track meet. She heard a rustle behind her and risked a glance behind her without slowing her pace.
The jikra was pulling itself along through the branches, swinging with a smoothly practiced ease, moving faster than she was without ever nearing the ground. She moaned softly and began running harder. She felt something snare her ankle and she fell, then felt the grip on her ankle tighten and she knew that the jikra had her leg in one of its tentacles' grip. She landed face down, hard, the wind knocked out of her for a moment, and felt the creature settle over her, several tentacles grabbing her now, one on each leg, one on each arm, holding her firmly down. The tingle spreading from each touch was overwhelming now, her nerves afire and her mind racing. She felt her lab coat torn away and began to struggle, feeling a pair of tentacles sliding up the insides of her thighs. She moaned and twisted in the grip of the creature, feeling the tentacles pull her pants away and shred her panties with a few sharp jerks.
She screamed, and a tentacle pushed itself into her mouth, swelling once behind her teeth. She bit down hard, and felt the skin of the creature harden against her bite. The swelling inside her mouth continued until her jaw was forced wide open, mouth full. A small tendril at the end of the tentacle pushed into her throat, leaving her room to breath, but just.
The tentacles holding her arms pulled harder to the side, as did the ones holding her legs until she was spreadeagled, taut, face turned to one side and mouth full. She felt one of the tentacles pressing against her ass and tried to scream again, but only a muffled whimper escaped her lips. Another tentacle probed against her pussy, and she jerked again, barely able to move, but determined to fight. Both tentacles pushed in at the same moment, waves of sensation so intense she almost lost consciousness in that intrusion.
The member in her ass pushed slowly, steadily in, thickening and swirling as it followed the curves of her colon. The member in her pussy pushed in until she felt the pressure of being fully filled, then began to thicken, wider and wider until she tried to scream again. The tendril in her throat began to slide back and forth and the tentacles inside her began to do the same, with a slow steady rhythm.
Her fingers clawed at the air and she felt tears pouring down her cheeks, overwhelmed at the sensations, the pain of the intrusions being met with a pleasure that baffled her. She felt like her own body was betraying her by finding any pleasure in the invasion. The slow pace was agonizing in the pleasure it gave as well, building the pleasure slowly. The pain was fading quickly and she wondered if the narcotic effect of the jikra's secretions was keeping her from feeling the pain. Then another fleeting thought of the narcotic making her feel pleasure and she sobbed to herself as the intrusion continued.
The tentacle in her ass picked up pace, suddenly, hard and fast thrusting forcing her hips against the forest floor. The jikra shuddered, and she felt pressure increase in her ass for a moment. The tentacle withdrew, and slid down to grip her leg, while the one holding her leg let go and crawled up to push into her ass. Gradually, the creature twisted her around so that she was lying one her back, and the pace of the tentacle in her pussy began to pick up.
She shuddered when it poured some fluid inside her, feeling for all the world like a man's cock cumming. Her fists clenched, and she struggled again as the tentacle withdrew, another one replacing it. This time there was no gradual motion, the tentacle began thrusting with a fast and frenzied pace. The two in her pussy and ass matched pace, thrusts rocking her body. The tentacle in her throat maintained a slow steady pace. She tried to bite again, feeling no give at all in the surface.
Again, she felt the quivering thrusts and pouring that seemed to indicate an orgasm of some kind, and the two inside her lower body were replaced by two more tentacles. The pleasure she struggled against continued to build, and she whimpered in a growing passion, hating her body for enjoying the rape.
She felt an orgasm building, and squirmed, trying to fight the sensation, but unable to keep from cumming, hard, screaming against the intrusion of her throat. Her vision blurred and she collapsed, feeling the thrusting continue, no longer having the strength to fight.
She lost count, but knew that the jikra planned to continue until every tentacle had been inside her, one way or the other. Eventually, there was only the one in her mouth and one in her pussy, and she realized that her arms and legs were no longer being held. With dismay at her own body, she realized she was raising her hips into the thrusts from the tentacle in her pussy and embracing the creature, her hands clutching at it's body as it held itself just above her. She was raising up off of the ground and braced her feet against the ground to hold herself higher.
The tentacle in her throat began to quiver, moving quickly with a steady pace, and she felt it pulling back as it began to pour a fluid into her throat, the creature making sure that some of it poured onto her tongue. There was a citrus taste to the fluid, a thick gelatinous texture. The jikra pulled out of her mouth and then just as suddenly withdrew from her pussy. The creature crawled away from her, stopping at the bole of a tree and she stared at the creature as she slowly pulled herself to a sitting position. She could feel the creature's chuckle again, and felt a moment of nausea, the fluid sitting heavily in her stomach, and she could feel more of the same fluid sliding from her pussy and ass.
She rolled over onto hands and knees, trying to force herself to stand, but having trouble, fighting the physical disorientation, her mind racing. She stood and glanced over at the creature, noting that it had taken several reeds and seemed to be braiding them. She shuddered and staggered back down the path towards the clearing.
Amy was standing in the clearing, and she stepped forward. Diane noticed that Amy didn't seem surprised, and in fact was holding forward a swimming suit like the one she'd worn.
"Here, this should fit you." Amy frowned. "I'm sorry I couldn't warn you, but J'haka wouldn't let me."
"Who?"
Amy glanced over to one side, where one of the golden jikra was swinging idly from a tree's branch that extended into the clearing.
"You know about the chemical contributions the jikra are making, right?"
Diane nodded, feeling a cold horror build in her chest.
"The government has a treaty with the jikra. They've found they like having sex with humans, so the government keeps them supplied. They take care of us, but we're still sacrifices to the jikra."
"Oh, my god." Diane felt the nausea building again for a few seconds, then fought it down with effort. "I can't wait until I'm out of here."
"Well..." Amy flinched, obviously uncomfortable with what she was about to say. "There's a problem with that, too. The jikra don't use sex to procreate...it's purely recreational for them. But you noticed that there was a secretion that was a little different than their usual?"
Diane nodded, feeling her heart freeze for a moment.
"The jikra do cum, but the fluid they generate is addictive. And specific."
"Addictive? Specific?"
"It's so addictive that you'll die if you don't get some of it at least once every three days." She coughed. "And it has to come from the specific jikra you first had it from, or it won't do you any good."
Henry walked into the clearing then, he glanced over at the two women, then looked away, obviously embarrassed.
ALIGN="JUSTIFY""They like men, too, and Henry hates it here."
The black skinned jikra entered the clearing and handed her a woven circle of reeds. She felt the chuckle and it left the clearing without saying anything, heading down towards the human camp. Diane held up the circle.
"What's this about?"
"They don't think like us at all, but they do have a sense of humor. A sick sense of humor."
Diane looked down at the circle and recognized it with a feeling of cold horror that topped the rest of her pain. It was a collar.
"They think of us as slaves, don't they?"
"Pets. We're pets."