AGAINST THE MACHINE
CHAPTER FIVE by Riley Jericho rileyjericho@yahoo.com
He remembered the lad vividly from the preliminary procedures; the young black kid with the cuts and scars across his belly from God knows what, disfiguring him. Marks on his arms pointed to substance abuse and his mouth was a mess; poor hygiene and with several teeth missing or badly smashed.
What life does a 16 year old kid live to end up in such a state?
Like always, early on the first day, this batch was transferred into individual holding cells, arriving in an unconscious state straight from the courthouse where the sentence had been pronounced. They would remain unconscious until the appointment in the Treatment Room.
On that first day, before anything else could be done, they were carefully undressed and, if they were still wearing any personal items, they would be removed and bagged; to be reclaimed afterwards if appropriate.
Next they were washed; a task he, and the team that assisted him, completed painstakingly and thoroughly for every individually. Each was laid, unconscious and blissfully unaware, on a washing slab where every crack and orifice was meticulously cleaned.
The standard approach was also to take all of the lower the body hair. It was better that way -- not just more hygienic, but really the only sensible and permanent solution, in both males and females, that dealt with the tendency for strands of bushy pubic hair to get trapped in the rings during the daily mating ritual.
But it was also a delicate balance -- especially for males. On the one hand they didn't want to make men look like girls or children, but on the other hand, the pubic hair had to go.
Permanently.
The general consensus was that it looked overly strange for a man to end up with a bald groin and a hairy backside and legs, so the compromise was to permanently exfoliate them from the lower chest all the way to the toes, and every orifice in between and be done with it!
It wasn't rocket science - in fact they used the same kind of exfoliating astringents that many women still purchased over the counter to rid themselves of body hair; the modern day solutions being a damn sight more pleasant than ripping hair follicles out with wax, or using caustic chemicals that could burn the skin.
Using sprays of the exfoliating solutions, they were scrubbed mercilessly. The products they used were well developed and easily dissolved the current growth leaving the individual smooth as a proverbial baby's bottom!
Finally they were meticulously groomed with laser brushes that targeted and killed the roots and hair follicles themselves. As a result, from the chest down all, like himself, would remain completely smooth for the rest of their lives. It didn't look too bad.
Following the initial good scrub up (and many of them reeked bad), they were given over to the medical admissions team who assessed them for physical adaptations. A treatment plan was formulated and then, for the rest of that day, medical technology improved them.
In the time they had, they couldn't do everything, but they could do a lot.
If there were scars, they were excised and the skin seamlessly reformed. If there was any form of tattooing, it would be lifted and the skin regenerated. Bad teeth were extracted and replaced by implants that could bind into the jawbone quickly; even if a tooth were only filled, it was pulled and replaced. Disease and dysfunction were treated. Muscles were toned with bio-electrical stimulus. Melanin producing cells were activated to give a rapid-tanned, healthy looking complexion.
All in all, they got a pretty good high-end makeover, which continued apace through the day and throughout the following night.
People could -- and did -- pay an awful lot of money for that kind of attention, and the PR department constantly informed the world that those undergoing this `helpful' treatment would be so much better off than they were before. On the surface it was literally true, as most came out stronger, healthier and younger looking; made ready to enter their new lives.
On the second day, they were brought into the surgical theatres to receive the penile implants that had been prepared for them.
A simple circumferential penile incision allowed the whole of the shaft skin literally to be peeled back; it wasn't a place for the squeamish! Then the fibrous sheath was fitted around the full circumference and length from the root of the shaft to the head, where it culminated in the mating ring. The ring was embedded just beneath the coronal ridge and into the sulcus, and was the point of union through which the Machine would mate with them the following day.
When it came to sheer volume of nerve endings, the genital in both male and female were well endowed! It made the location extremely suitable for placing the implants and despite what the gutter humour declared, the physicians didn't just end up hooking the implants into the genitals because they liked the idea of seeing people well and truly fucked! In fact, the penis and clitoris ticked all the boxes, including massive networks of sensory nerve branches as well as degree of privacy.
The fibrous sheath was a masterpiece of bio-technology and was as alive as theology would allow, teeming with intelligent swarming nano-bots that would quickly begin growing tendrils that invaded the tissues; spreading like wild grass around the sensitive sex organs and splicing into the plethira of nerve bundles in the region.
Carefully guided, these same tendrils would be trained from the nerve bundles to track back up into the spine, penetrating the central nervous system and the brainstem.
Finally, as the medical operators drew the skin back over the penile shaft, the male was radically circumcised or substantially retightened if already previously cut. All the surgery was computer guided and quickly and easily achieved with laser scalpels. The circumcisions were done as tight as possible for maximum effect and sexual pleasure, as well as to permanently remove any skin that could interfere with the mating ring.
Finally, the existing bio-technologies meant that the wounds could be closed in minutes, without scarring and, other than the ring, there would be no outward sign of the network of technology that now invaded them.
All in all, it was pretty amazing and they were left to sleep it off as the complete bio-fiber invasion and integration into the central nervous system took about 8 hours. Once he had processed this twelve the previous day, the Attendant had gone home to sleep, leaving them in stasis whilst the physical adaptations matured.
The following morning would be the third day for any that were brought to this place for the treatment they had been prescribed; the day by which all the internal and external transformations would be complete and they would be fully ready for their encounter with the Machine.
-~-~-~-~-~-~-
For the twelve - and not counting Jack - the law had decided their fate and there were surely those here that deserved that and some that possibly didn't. Either way, they had been judged and found wanting; and now around they were facing a wanting of a different nature as the last moments were fast approaching.
Immobilised and probed, most were staring wildly, searching for a reprieve that would never come and fearfully observing each other as they all stumbled on the brink. Cries of dismay multiplied alongside increasing sounds of severe discomfort and unwelcome pleasure as the compelling purpose of the Machine mounted.
With the lighting focusing their attention, every eye was on the Attendant as he slowly filled his hands with gel and began to gently masturbate the black boy. The young man looked down at it, surprised and then horrified, frantically jerking his groin to try to shake off the assailant, but doing nothing more than to accentuate the rhythm.
"Fuck.....Noooooooo...!" he groaned. Mesmerised and in a foggy haze of confusion, it reminded him of the many times he had jerked himself to climax when any of the girls that usually provided his ride were not available.
Unexpectedly, from the end of the room came a long high pitched moan as little Noah was broken and climaxed, and the Machine finally crossed his barriers of resistance and consummated the sexual encounter. For him, the struggle ended as he slipped into unconsciousness and his young body relaxed. The pleasure took over as the Machine now kept him in a low level orgasmic state whilst. The mental resistance ended, it continued to fully map him out in preparation for the final step.
The Attendant looked over, relieved for him. The dampers were still in place, so it wasn't quite over yet, but, right now he would be in heaven!
For the others, the sound of completion was a death knell.
"Shit...." someone else muttered, sliding dangerously close to the edge too now. Caleb Montgomery gasped the expletive, profoundly shocked by the increasing compulsive power the Machine was wielding over him. The last couple of minutes had felt like a lifetime; fighting the idea of one singular condition that had suddenly consumed his world.
'Homosexual!', the condemnation cried.
Ashamed, confused, conflicted.
Wasn't he a failure enough, without confirming this worst of crimes? Other than the embarrassingly small dick, which he had tried -- but failed - to ignore (although, had he cared about such things at that moment, he would have been fairly satisfied with the respectable and rock-hard tube that, as if by magic, had been forced out from between his legs), he had always perceived himself as much better than most other people.
But, to be gay? It wasn't possible and he couldn't face it and had fought all the harder to deny and dispel the accusation.
To no avail.
His interest - even infatuation - with the boy, Ben, shouted the truth of it. Then the sound of another boy, climaxing, shot across the room and reverberated with his deep desire; and all his denial collapsed as he watched the black kid being jerked -- unable to take his eyes off the enormous flanged head his ethnic heritage had endowed him with. The majestic milky-pink shape stood atop of his thick black shaft like a kingly crown; the metal of the connecting collar flashing like royal jewelry.
Deep down, he could hear it sing to him with a melody that he recognised and with a voice that called him out of his confusion.
He knew he was already falling and that his grip had been broken; there would be precious little to hold on to when it came back for him - probably for the final time!
`FUCK, WHO CARES!' he screamed to himself and, in the last 13 seconds of his life as he knew it, he sang and joined in the familiar melody.
With Noah gone, the Attendant gave his attention back to the dark one.
He was writhing now as the Machine was fully exerting its unstoppable compulsion on him. Every muscle seemed in spasm and he flapped his head from side to side, trying to dislodge the unseen assailant. His whole body glistened with perspiration. The Attendant checked the monitor and could see green lights. This one didn't even need to wait for the final step; in his case everything was already mapped and ready to go forward to the Remodeling stage.
In seconds he would go the same way as Noah anyway, and the Attendant decided to push him through to the final ejaculation immediately, guessing the impact would probably break most of the rest of them. He reached to the console at the post and removed the dampers then added the command to culminate the process as soon as primary access was attained.
The Machine responded immediately and the boy's legs vibrated in the stirrups with his final efforts to keep control.
With another dollop of gel, the Attendant coated his swollen member until it glistened and slid under his firm grip.
The Machine struck into the core of his being and the locks broke; simultaneously, it sent strong pulsating electrical and mechanical shocks through the sheath around the shaft of his penis and the boy couldn't help himself and started pushing through the hand grip, pumping uncontrollably.
The Attendant was aware of what would be happening. "It's time, and you want to," he suggested simply.
The eyes of every person in the group stared aghast at the scene, each facing their own personal agony.
"No! No! -- No...," the boy squealed frantically, eyes popping and the veins bulging in his neck!
And then it happened. He looked shocked and took a sharp intake of breath and then capitulated with a guttural shout.
"OH GOD! FUCK...YEEEESSSSSS.......!!!" he cried. An animalistic scream of pure sex ripped from his body and, unable to hold out any more, he willingly gave in to the desperate need to complete the coupling.
It was cataclysmic for almost the whole group.
Even before he ejaculated, it became `YES!" for at least 3 of the others, including young Caleb Montgomery who had reveled in 13 seconds of glorious truth, fully accepting his identity before it was snatched away. Even the Hispanic boy, who had been first to be tethered by the mating collar, was pushed into oblivion. They all gave in and cries of pleasure were ripped out of them as they were dominated and willingly brought to climax.
Widely around the room, now, there were moans of desperation from those still teetering.
Then the Machine set off an explosion deep in the core of the young black boy's being. Pain and pleasure mixed, such that the boy could no longer tell the difference between the two. At that moment of climactic overload there was a momentary hiatus and then he began ejaculate. Huge spurts of white semen arched onto his chest and stomach; the splashes contrasting sharply with his dark flesh. In his brain, white fire now raced as the Machine seared its ownership on every pathway, beginning the process of burning out the old rights of access to key parts of his mind and sexual response and hard wiring new ones into place. It was creating a new superhighway, paved and guarded; and from the mating ring through to every part of the brain it chose to access, rights of way would be established that the young black boy would never again be able to deny.
The pleasure and pain of this stage were overwhelming for the individual. It was never very clear to the researches whether the Machine actually put them to sleep at this point, or whether they just passed out from the burning fire, but all quickly went comatose as it continued its quest to create a new order; a new brain hierarchy; a dissolving of old synapses and the developing of new ones.
Regime change.
It was not quick however, often taking several hours before the phase was completed. Only then, with control assured, could the Attendant disconnect them from the mating ring prior to moving them to the sleep storage areas where, easily mated again, the Machine began the complex task of re-engineering their personalities.
The black boy passed out and slumped back against the couch as though dead. The Attendant took a few moments to quickly check the monitor readouts to assess that he was OK and that the neuro-synaptic realignment processes were evolving normally. All was within normal parameters.
Realising it had gone quiet, he looked up to see how the others were doing and was not at all surprised to find that, by then, they had all succumbed and were now in the same relaxed low level orgasmic state as the young boy, Noah.
All, that is, apart from the older man Jack, and the two young gay teens. These three had been mated to the Machine somewhat later than the others and still had several minutes left before the Machine would take them.
He came over to Jack who was straining and still holding on for some reason. He glanced at little Noah who was resting back on the couch, fully relaxed now, his small body convulsing slightly every three or four seconds, as each orgasmic release discharged into his central cortical pleasure zone to stimulate him.
"How's the boy?" Jack gasped, still fighting the onslaught, but wanting to be sure his charge was in safe hands before it ended.
"He's fine Jack. Enjoying this very much now, by the looks of it," he replied, though a little concerned for the man. "Why don't you join him? It's what you wanted isn't it?" He looked at the monitor. Jack still had choices.
"You know, we can always stop this, if you don't want to continue?" Jack was here by his own volition, not a convict, and he was not one of those doctors who turned a deaf ear.
Jack shook his head. There would be no going back. He couldn't keep living like he had been the last 4 years; he had move on. His life depended on it!
"I guess I haven't had sex for so long, it takes a while to get there," he offered lamely. The Attendant nodded, though knew in reality it made no difference to the Machine. It would take you just as quickly whatever your experience previously.
There was something else here, and it was about the boy.
The thought came out of left field for him, but he had learned to heed himself! He studied the man for a few moments as he considered what he was thinking. There would be issues, but not insurmountable ones, so why not? Both could do a lot worse...
"You know he's an orphan, don't you?"
Jack grimaced and then nodded. What a crap hand the kid had been dealt! "Do you think he'll be alright - I mean how will they treat him after this?"
The Attendant shrugged and shook his head. "It worries you?"
"Of course it worries me! Damn -- he's just a kid!"
"So, would you consider adopting him?" he suggested quietly; years of learning about people helping him sense the truth. "I get the feeling that you could both do with a friend from now on."
The man grimaced again, and his face twisted in an effort to concentrate. "You're kidding!"
"You mean you don't care?"
"I didn't say that...but..."
"But what?"
"Look at me! Would that be even possible?" he demanded hoarsely.
The Attendant shrugged. "You're not a criminal Jack -- you're just getting some help. Anyway, I don't see why not...especially if I requested it as part of both your recovery plans. Would you like to explore it, at the very least?"
The man nodded, hopeful for once - the distraction of a new future allowing the Machine to slide into him fully.
Maybe....yes, I think so -- just to ask a few questions, that's all. Ask the boy first...only if he wants it."
The Attendant nodded and Jack stiffened and then sighed. "I think I'm about to leave you," he groaned, relaxing at last. He was finished and the Machine knew it. As the pleasure increased, his new lover triggered the orgasm it had been preparing for him, bringing him to a climax for the first time in their relationship.
He slipped away.
Satisfied, the Attendant moved over to the two young gay boys; the last ones left for the Machine to gather to itself. On the way, he stopped by each of the others to check they were comfortable. It took him a little longer than it should have and, by the time he reached the boys and looked at the monitors, he berated himself; they had been at this a full eighteen minutes since the Machine had mated to them.
That was a lifetime.
They were still both resisting grimly, both knowing that every minute counted and that they had much more to lose than all the others. Not just losing themselves, but each other too. The strain was intense on both their flushed, hot faces as the Machine attacked, again and again, trying to command their bodies to respond to its intense desire to trigger the primeval response to copulate.
The two were fighting the inclination by will power alone, but the struggle was emotionally painful - it could be even physically painful when it got to this stage.
The Attendant wanted to end this quickly for them. There was no point in enduring real suffering when the conclusion would be the same, however hard they tried to avoid it. Soon the Machine would start resorting to the equivalent of blunt force trauma to get its way, and that could be indescribably unpleasant!
He wondered what it was that kept the two of them going and, almost instinctively, having made this journey more than 7 years ago just as they were now, he knew.
Love.
Love would go to endless lengths to stay true - however much pain it caused. But the needless suffering should end and break them he must before the Machine did that in ways that even he didn't care to see!
LOVE......and its cousin, LUST.
So closely bound together were those two that, at times, it was hard to tell the difference. Whilst love was strong in them, lust would still conquer. He instructed the Machine to add this as part of the arsenal it was wielding against the two and it began to suggest and remind from extracted memory fragments.
Sex, love, mutual masturbation - and that last time in the school medical room, when Nathan had entered Ben with such passion. The Machine took these fragments and briefly interpreted what it understood them to be. The Attendant nodded in satisfaction at the review results. It would be Nathan who was the key after all.
On command, the Machine adapted itself and he observed Nathan close his eyes and shake his head, trying to clear it. He then rotated the couch on which Ben, the younger one was secured, so the two boys were facing each other. Nathan opened his eyes and found himself staring at the familiar body of his younger lover: and quailed.
Upping the pressure, the Attendant twisted round to Ben again. Taking some some gel he traced his finger down around under the sensitive perineum and then, without warning, slid his finger into the boy's anal cavity.
"OH FUCK!" Ben cried out - quite accurately - at the unexpected intrusion.
"When Nathan entered you...did it feel like this?" the Attendant murmured. Adjacent, Nathan watched, horrified and feverish, vividly recalling the last time he had pushed deep into his lover.
-~-~-~-~-~-~-
The memory-flashback seared through Ben's consciousness.
It had been in the medical room at school and they'd spotted some medical lubricant and had used most of it, which was a good job because it had been animalistic!
Having closed and locked the door securely, kissing and feeling had rapidly escalated! He'd initially intended just to snog the socks off Nate as a teasing birthday gift - something to keep him occupied until they could get alone together at his house later that day. Then they'd spotted the tube on the side and started playing.
Because his boyfriend was circumcised, Ben had learned over time that Nate found it better and a lot more enjoyable with some kind of slippery lube rather than dry and always had a tube handy in his top drawer. What astounded him was that Nate's Mom seemed to be OK with the idea that her son must masturbate, would need lubrication, AND was willing to keep him topped up! Good God - he would never dare ask his folks about ANYTHING like that! EVER!
But Nate had what he needed and, between the two of them, they used quite a bit of it!
With the doors of the medical room safely locked, he'd started teasing Nate. Tantalisingly slowly he'd unzipped him and reached in to feel for what he was looking for. Nate was already fully erect and excited and didn't stop him as he drew him out of his underwear - and he certainly didn't resist as Ben coated him with some of the gel and swirled his fingers over him; almost exactly as the man was doing to Nate right in front of him now!
He loved doing that to Nate.
It had been unusual at first, learning the right way to masturbate a circumcised boy; one whose skin hardly moved compared to his own uncut dick. But Nate had been patient and gladly helped him learn!
For himself, he'd avoided that the question of that particular surgery for years but was also aware that, after the most recent annual medical, it had come up again.
Shit, it was always coming up around Nate! But in terms of being trimmed, and knowing how much Nate enjoyed being that way, he was warming to the idea. And that lunchtime, in the medical room, he was up again! Nate could tell and, without hesitation, took his zip down too and released him from his over-tight boxers!
Giggling like to little boys but getting increasingly aroused, they kept going to the next level. Playing with zips moved quickly to undoing buttons and opening up trousers fully as they fought to increase the physical contact. He'd pushed Nate back onto the examination couch that had been helpfully left for them, and had gone to work in earnest on him; pulling his trousers and boxers right down to his knees prior to delivering his birthday gift.
But before Nate blew, he had come off him and reached for the tube of lube again. Nate had watched him quizzically as he'd sat up and coated his backside lube and then grinned as he'd watched Ben provocatively squeeze most of the rest of the tube inside.
It was a risk, but the door was locked and both boys were up for it.
Fully aroused, Nate had kicked off his pants and underwear and made room for him on the medical couch -- one that looked not unlike the ones they were bound to now. Pushing his own briefs down to his ankles, he'd had stepped of them, pulled off his shirt and climbed onto the medical bed too.
Perhaps the surroundings were a turn on because it got pretty steamy!
They moved against each other and kissed and humped for a few moments. Ben knew that he could, at times, wrap his boyfriend around his little finger. Other times, Nate could be sensually powerful and would take control.
Today was one of those times and, wasting no time, he'd flipped him onto his back, growled possessively and fully mounted him, burying himself hard and fast in his lover. Like animals, they gave themselves to the moment, unaware of the camera watching every thrust as Nate had driven deep inside him. And when Nate had ejaculated, he'd had to smother the ecstatic screams that burst out, but then pressed down on Ben's dripping erection and continued pumping him until he also erupted between them!
It had been some of the most intense sex they had ever shared - and proved to be more or less the last as, two days later, the police picked them up.
-~-~-~-~-~-~-
The Attendant withdrew the single finger and then slowly slid in two, beginning to masturbate Ben's shaft as Nathan watched. Whilst he regretted the violation, he knew the boy would remember little of it after the white fire of the Synaptic Remodeling. And bringing the end was the priority now.
For Nathan, he no longer had any reserves left. For however minutes they had been attached, he had desperately tried to save himself for Ben alone, but this new lover, The Machine, was now wanting to couple with him. Deep inside himself he was being enticed, lured, tempted; he was being seduced.
"Ben.....I'm sorry," he moaned desperately as he shook, helpless now.
"Nate! Please....no...don't..."
"I can't anymore...I need to.....I...." Nate got no further, as the enormous compulsion to make love became unbearable and he was finally being persuaded.
Muscles that had, moments before, squirmed in resistance now contracted and he arched his back and backside off the couch; like the black boy, he began thrusting demandingly into hand that held him. Gone now was any thought for Ben, and even the Attendant was not really there with him anymore and he was even unaware that, in those last moments, the hand had been masturbating him withdrew as something else approached him.
It certainly wasn't a he', but it wasn't really a she' either. Perhaps it was both - or even neither?
Though there was no physical body, the being was fully present in his mind, controlling his every thought and feeling. His resistance crumbled, it came to him like an Angel without gender and mounted him as he had mounted Ben, lowering itself fully onto him. At last the coupling was made and it began to ride him to the orgasm it said he needed and deserved.
The Angel was skilled, knowing what he wanted, but giving so much more. Connecting the now pure physical mating as it held him inside and milked his erection, to the emotional union that was taking place at the very core of his being, the love-making progressed effortlessly. Completely unaware of his surroundings now - of Ben, the Attendant, the Treatment Room, the process of reorientation, everything - he squealed and begged for the full unhindered intimacy that would be sealed by his release. The Angel seemed to smile and, covering him protectively, completed the mating.
Time stood still.
The light entered and infused him and the orgasms began.
The Attendant turned to Ben. Loss had conquered him.
As he had watched Nathan being manipulated and, seeing him clearly about to climax and be taken away, it had broken him. If Nate was gone, he didn't want to be alone anymore and, with a quiet sigh, gave up to the compulsion. He now lay relaxed and unaware. Like all the others, convulsing lightly every few seconds as, deep in his cortex, the Machine caressed and pleasured him.
The Attendant looked round with the satisfaction of a professional, having completed his task well. Other than the black boy who had already passed into the synaptic realignment phase, he would leave the others for a while in this relaxed subconscious state until he was ready to bring them to the surface again. They were happy enough and were totally unaware of what was going on around them.
As the Machine kept them in this semi-conscious bliss, it was mapping out their neural pathways. The mapping never usually took too long, and, as in the case of the young black boy, was sometimes even completed before they capitulated. Then, as each was ready, he would have to put them through the final white-hot moments.
For now, he cleaned his hands and began making notes into the computer files of each patient. He was a little drained and there was still the Synaptic Remodeling to complete. Even though he had overseen this hundreds of times, it still took its toll.
After he had written up all the relevant notes, he studied the feed from of each individual on his master display. All were now ready to be brought to the final synaptic remodeling, including the young one, Noah.
Best get it over with, he thought. And he also wanted to talk to the young lad.
He came over to where the boy was quietly resting and, with a few commands at the console, gradually raised him out of his stupor. The cortical stimulus gently dissipated and Noah awoke, stretched and smiled; peaceful once more.
"That was nice," he sighed. "I think I must have fallen asleep." Then he blushed as he remembered something of the things he'd been dreaming about. Good job the man didn't know about that! He looked quickly down and noticed he was beginning to go soft again, though he still had the funny ring thing attached.
"You were snoring," the Attendant teased.
"I was not!"
"Was I...?" the boy added.
"No -- just kidding. Just sleeping peacefully. How do you feel?"
Noah considered the question. "OK I guess. I didn't like it at the beginning and really I don't feel any different. Did it work? Am I better now?" he asked hopefully.
"Nearly now, Noah...nearly," replied the Attendant. "Actually there was something I wanted to ask you," he added, changing the subject. "About Jack here."
The boy looked over to the other bed. "Oh, he's asleep too...let's not wake him, he looks happy!" he whispered, though elephants would not raise him until the Machine decided.
Indeed Jack did look happy. Calm, relaxed and a definite smile as the Machine pleasured him. Noah giggled as he noted the older guy was still stiff, wondering if he was having sexy dreams too!
The Attendant smiled too and, after glancing at Jack, turned back to Noah with his proposal. "What would you think about maybe staying with him for a while after this -- rather than go back to the care home? Maybe he could even become your Dad, if it worked out? I know he would like that."
Noah looked surprised and thought about it for a few moments. He'd been put in many places, and had never liked any of the adults. They were mean and angry and made his life hell. But, instinctively, he did like Jack - he was honest and funny and kind.
"How do you know he wants me to stay with him?" he asked, suspiciously.
"We talked about it -- and you -- earlier; just before he went to sleep."
"Really...?"
"Yes, really! So...what do you want to do? Shall I tell him you might like to...and don't forget you've got a basketball match to go to as well!"
Noah slowly smiled at the memory of that promise. "OK -- yes - I think I might like it, " he decided. "Should we wake him and tell him?"
"Maybe later -- and I'm sorry about this Noah," he said, as he lifted the dampers and instructed the Machine to make the final step.
"Sorry? About what?" the boy replied, confused. "Oh, it's that nice feeling again! Don't be sorry, I like it!"
He blushed again and then sighed in anticipation as something remarkably familiar and exciting came back to him and the Machine began to stimulate the pleasure tracts as a precursor to orgasm. He quickly grew erect and began gasping with the intense feelings. The Attendant lowered the backrest and returned the legs to the normal horizontal position.
And then the boy cried as, responding to commands, the Machine overloaded him and triggered the ejaculatory climax. The burning pain overwhelmed him and, as he screamed, the Attendant held him close until he finally blacked out.
One by one, the group known as M-9985201.12 all felt the white fire that burned their minds, and they helplessly endured it until they lost consciousness.
Last of all, he came to the older man, Jack, and raised him to a wakeful state again.
"Killjoy!" Jack muttered. "I was enjoying that!" He stretched, and looked around, seeing everyone else now lying flat and comatose.
"I guess I'm the last?" he surmised with a rueful smile. "And Noah...is he OK?" he added. "I've heard that Synaptic Remodeling isn't exactly pleasant."
The Attendant nodded. "He's fine Jack. It's done now, and he won't remember any of it," he replied as he slowly rotated the man back down on the couch to the same position as everyone else; the same position that they had begun in less than two hours ago, when they were first brought to the Treatment Room.
He removed the damper overrides, and instructed the Machine to progress this last one to the final stage.
Like all the others, Jack came back to a full erection as the Machine, still tethering him via the umbilical and the collar, called to him again. Like every one of them who had willingly coupled not many minutes earlier, he responded. However wrong or strange or unseemly it felt for a non-living machine to be having sex with him, his body just accepted it, because now there was nothing there that he could latch on to that could stop it. He didn't even care to try as it seemed to know what he liked and did things to him that he had never even considered before!
"Oh, by the way," the Attendant dropped in, conversationally, "I asked Noah about adoption and about maybe coming to live with you."
Jack opened his eyes, though conversation was becoming quite difficult as his new lover raised him higher and higher.
"And....??"
"I go the idea that he would like that very much!"
Jack smiled. He knew now he really would like it too. Hopefully all this would be over soon and they both might have some chance of building a new life. Perhaps together?
"It's going to hurt isn't it" he grunted as his whole body shuddered and he realised the command to ejaculate was close.
"I'm afraid so, Jack," the Attendant replied frankly. "But, like Noah, you're not going to remember any of it either," he added as he set off the final command.
"But will I remember him...Noah...will I still know who he is? Will he know me?" he demanded frantically. But it was too late to hear an answer as the explosive charge fired and the white fire burned through his brain and he finally spewed huge spurts of thick white fluid over his torso.
Certain things were in his power the Attendant knew. I'll make sure you do, he promised himself and, if they'd been conscious, they would have seen a look of smug satisfaction cross his face.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- AGAINST THE MACHINE A story by Riley Jericho rileyjericho@yahoo.com