Author's note. Just a random plot bunny that I caught. The-writing-mew is kindly helping me write this story, thanks a lot. :D

The beautiful art cover for this story was done by M-hourglass on Deviantart and used with permission as my story cover. Check out their work, their commission rates are very reasonable.

Suggestions are welcome.

Enjoy and please review.

Megatron grunted as he collided with the Mech in front of him. Both of them grasped the other and they strained, feet digging into the soft dirt beneath them. There was a lot of dirt in Kaon, unlike the sparkling cities of Iacon and Pruxus. Cybertron's natural crust grew like a scab all over Kaon meaning it's residents were very used to being filthy.

Megatron himself was coated by a dusty film that was caused both by the bursts of clouds from the dirt and the smog that regularly rained down sooty particles. Proper baths were unheard of, the best they could hope for was that their faces were cleaned and sometimes their wounds. They were oiled, waxed and sometimes polished but they could never truly escape the ever constant grime.

Gripping his opponent's arms tightly, claws screeching as they were dragged along the amour as they struggled, he attempted to throw him to the ground. The other Mech however was hanging on just as grimly and was refusing to be thrown. Megatron gritted his denta, he was not going to lose this.

Allowing his opponent to start pushing him back, he kept going until he was almost falling backwards and then suddenly twisted at the last moment.

"Ugh," the Mech groaned as he hit the ground hard before trying to roll Megatron off while the grey Mech was pinning him.

Quickly, Megatron shoved his knee between the other's legs and held his arms down. The dirty blue Mech growled and tried to grip Megatron's leg between his own. Megatron simply dug his knee further into the other's groin while using his free foot to dug in hard to the torn up ground. He dug his claws into the wrists he was holding, trying to find any weak points he could exploit.

"Give up," Megatron commanded with a small smirk, he had the advantage and he knew it.

"No," his opponent grunted, straining to free himself.

"Very well," Megatron said, bringing his knee back before ramming it between the Mech's legs as sharply as possible.

"Alright," the Mech snarled suddenly. "I give."

"Sure?" Megatron asked, digging in a bit more as his opponent spat. "Yes, yes, now get the slag off."

Megatron smirked before getting up and stretching. Burnout growled as he hauled himself to his feet, stamping away moodily. With a shrug, Megatron turned to the other bots in the training arena but none of them indicated they were interested in sparring. With a frown, Megatron set off towards the closet exit and finding that it was blocked by a certain red Mech.

"Not bad," Redscar commented, leaning against the exit, arms folded casually. "You almost made that look easy."

His single optics blazed with humour as Megatron shoved him aside, stomping into the dark corridor. Redscar laughed before following after him.

"What crawled up your tailpipe, Megatron?"

His friend merely growled causing the scarred Mech to say. "Getting restless? Been a while since we all had a proper fight."

"Hmm," Megatron grumbled, kicking aside a rickety clean up drone that squeaked shrilly.

"You know," Redscar said conversationally as debris crunched underfoot. "You win this tournament; you'll have won a hundred fights."

"So what?" Megatron scoffed, glancing down at an arm that was beginning to acquire rust.

"So I heard once you reach that number, you increase in value," Redscar stated. "And once that happens, you get a few perks."

"What kind of perks?" Megatron questioned, flicking at the offending rust and grumbling when he realised he'd need to have it taken care of. If he was lucky, he wouldn't need to spend the precious credits he earned from his fighting bouts.

"A slightly higher percentage of pay," Redscar replied. "First choice if there's some High Grade or anything else like that going about. You also get more tokens for heating, cleanant, polishing wax, the list goes on mate."

"And I suppose you'll want a cut," Megatron said dryly as Redscar grinned.

"Hey, I'm on seventy six fights myself, once I hit that big number, I'd owe you."

He suddenly lowered his voice and said.

"I also heard if you make your hundredth fight that extra bit...exciting, the bosses will give you a special reward...and no, I don't know what it is. But it'd be worth your while to put some serious effort in just so they don't think your just coasting."

Megatron smiled slightly, his body was beginning to require more and more attention, and these perks Redscar was talking about would more certainly be a boost. He had been planning to put a little more effort into his centurion fight but with this news, it seemed he'd need to put in even more.

Redscar glanced at his arm and said.

"You'd better get that taken care of; the oil bath isn't for another two cycles."

"Where you a Crèche carer in another life?" Megatron said sarcastically, Redscar enjoyed pointing out the slagging obvious.

His friend only laughed and said. "Maybe I was for all you know, Primus works in mysterious ways."

"Sure," Megatron grumbled, he never fully understood Redscar's belief in the planet's deity. If there really was a giant invisible transformer watching over Cybertron, then he was apparently as bloodthirsty as the spectators that came to the fights.

He didn't care, the physical spectators where what mattered when you fought. If they enjoyed your fighting style, if they cheered you on, if they loved you, then your position in the gladiator arena was considerably better. Sometimes, the richer ones would bestow little gifts on their favourite in the form of High Grade or special polishing wax so they could enjoy you gleam on the battlefield.

Of course, most of these came with a catch.

"Have you heard who might be there?" Megatron questioned, it always helped to know who was going to be watching...once you learned what they liked to see.

"Probably most of them," Redscar reasoned. "It's not every fight you get to see a centurion made; you know Limeshot will be advertising as heavily as possible."

"Hmm," Megatron agreed as he reached the supply desk and offered a credit chip to the bot on duty. Said bot was a thin, spindly looking Mech who inserted it into a slot and examined the amount on it, including Megatron's rations of supplies.

"What you want?" the Mech grunted.

"Cleaning oil," Megatron stated, he needed to give his whole body a good oiling but he'd settle for his joints for now.

The Mech glanced back at Megatron's list before looking back at his customer.

"You can have one cup," he said flatly.

"I'll take it," Megatron said instantly, there was no point in haggling. They rarely gave you a break and it always ended up being more hassle than it was worth. "And give me my Energon ration chip for today."

The Mech grunted before complying with Megatron's request. Redscar leaned against the wall beside the dispenser and said.

"It'll be a rough fight."

"Really?" Megatron said dryly, making his friend chuckle.

"Yes really Megatron," Redscar chided sternly. "They might even expect you to kill your opponent."

Megatron accepted his Energon ration chip as the Mech behind the counter moved to deal with his other requests. Gladiators were not expected to kill their opponents every single fight, that would get boring after a while and one thing both bosses and gladiators knew was that they needed to keep things inconsistent. It added far more excitement to keep the punters guessing.

"I know that," he stated. "I'll think of something, don't you worry."

"It's not you I'm worried about," Redscar said lightly as Megatron finally received his cup of oil and they departed from the dispenser.

Three cycles later

"You did magnificently Megatron," Limeshot complemented as Megatron stood before him, still stained and dented from the fight. "Our sponsors were exceedingly pleased with your performance; they even applaud your mercy."

He smirked at this last bit before continuing.

"Shots of High Grade will be dispensed late this cycle, we must celebrate."

"Hmm," Megatron agreed, High Grade was nice but he was hoping that Limeshot would get onto the subject of that bonus Redscar had been teasing him with.

"But as for you Megatron," Limeshot suddenly said, pulling forth a whole cube from sub space. "You have earned something a bit more special. Tell me, what can I get you?"

Now they were getting onto the subject Megatron wanted to discuss.

"I want a slave," Megatron stated but Limeshot barely reacted as he lifted his cube.

"Of course, that can easily be arranged..."

"A Femme slave," Megatron corrected and Limeshot almost choked on his High Grade and spent a couple of breems staring in outright disbelief at Megatron. Before he could say anything, Megatron elaborated.

"I don't mean some High Council daughter. I just want A femme that belongs to me and me alone. That's all I ask for sir, you can bring me what you deem appropriate but that is what I want."

Again Limeshot stared at him before saying quietly.

"Megatron, no one has ever asked for such a thing."

"I know," the gladiator replied. "But is it really an impossible thing to ask for?"

"Perhaps," Limeshot said slowly. "Megatron, I'm sure you're aware that any slaves are the sole reasonability of their owner. If they are unruly, cause trouble or any kind of mischief, then it is the owner who gets the blame. And if you cannot keep others from trying to take your slave, it is not our problem."

"I'm aware of that," Megatron assured him, he knew that well. "I will accept full responsibility and I can handle any of try to take what is mine."

"Now that I can believe," Limeshot chuckled, his manner becoming jovial again. "Ah Megatron, you truly are a bold one. Very well, you shall have your Femme slave, I take it you don't want a child?"

His lecherous smirk conveyed his meaning clearly enough as Megatron said. "No sir, I'd prefer a Femme of age."

"Of course, of course," Limeshot nodded. "It may take a few cycles to organise but you will have your slave soon enough."

"May I request slave equipment?" Megatron asked quietly, he'd seen enough of the others with their own (mech) slaves to know he needed certain items.

"Yes yes," the arena boss said with a wave of his hand. "That sort of thing is no problem. We will procure you your Femme slave and you shall continue to entertain our customer."

Limeshot smiled widely as he saluted one of his best gladiators.

"I see great things ahead for you Megatron, keep up the good work and you could become the greatest gladiator Kaon has ever known."

Two cycles later

"Anything?" Rotor questioned over his comm. to his partner Meteoric as he prowled the streets of Tyger Pax.

"Nothing suitable," the grounder replied. "So far, I've only seen kids or Bonded couples, useless."

"Hnn, same here," Rotor grumbled, Femmes not of age would be missed if taken and as for Bonded couples, their mate would kick up a fuss and track them down. No, it had to be a Femme of age who was not Bonded yet. But even though there was a fairly decent population of Femmes in this city, so far, none had been suitable. They couldn't take ones that had high positions; they needed one of a low class that would be less likely to be missed.

"There must be one," Meteoric said angrily. "Damn it, we can't go back empty handed."

"Just keep searching," Rotor said sharply, this was not the time to become distracted.

"Alright, alright," Meteoric grumbled as he slouched down a new street with contained numerous bots but all useless.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," he muttered to himself, this was supposed to be an easy assignment but it was quickly turning into a bore.

However as he stepped out of a crowd and slouched past some shops, his optics suddenly spied something across the street. He paused, optics narrowing as he focused on what he'd seen. A few moments later, he was smiling widely at the sight of a young couple at a cafe.

"Perfect," he smirked to himself.

A short while later

"What if their Bonded?" Rotor asked quietly as they watched the couple.

"Nah, they're not," Meteoric said confidently, his red optics narrowed in concentration. "He's courting her, you can tell. And they're both too young to have fully committed yet."

"But not too young?" Rotor questioned.

"But not too young for us," Meteoric confirmed with a small smirk. "Little thing like that, no one will miss her."

"Mm," the jet agreed, knowing that they'd need to snatch her as quickly and discreetly as possible.

They watched the couple carefully as they laughed, held hands and sipped their drinks. Eventually, the two got up and paid for drinks and set off down the road. Casually, Meteoric and Rotor did the same, simply from the other side of said road. The couple continued to chat animatedly and the thugs dimly wondered if they'd need to take care of the Mech.

However at the end of the street, the two kissed and suddenly separated, taking completely different directions.

"Now that's more like it," Rotor said with grim satisfaction. "I'll grab her and we'll take her in your cab."

"Fine by me," Meroric replied, he transformed into a much larger vehicle than his cohort.

They followed the Femme until she was a good distance away from her lover and in a much less busy area. Now was their moment as she entered a street that was thankfully deserted.

"Now," Rotor hissed and he surged forward, running on surprisingly light feet right at the Femme, drawing a syringe from sub space.

The Femme barely knew what was happening before he was upon her and injecting the syringes contents into her neck.

"What?" she exclaimed before groaning as the drug took effect.

"Transform already," Rotor spat as he grabbed her and lifted her up.

"I'm doing it," Meteoric snapped, he'd been watching for any that might stumble across their little job.

"Get off me," the Femme cried as she was taken over to the large newly transformed vehicle.

"Get in," Rotor ordered, shoving the weakly struggling Femme inside Meteoric cab.

"No...let me go," she gasped, unable to raise his voice sufficiently enough to attract attention.

"Sorry sweet thing but you've got an appointment with our boss," Meteoric voice laughed cruelly as she was finally forced in and Rotor soon joined her.

"Get going before anyone notices," he ordered and the massive, almost tank like vehicle obeyed, allowing his windows to darken as his wheels squealed on the roadway. Soon, they had left Iacon behind with no pursuit of any sort.

Kaon

Gladiator Arena Complex

"Here you are boss," Meteoric said with satisfaction as he unslung the struggling pink Femme from his shoulder and placed her on the ground in Limeshot's office. All the Mechs in the room smiled at the sight of her, she was a young, pretty delicate thing with bright blue optics which were currently darting wildly about.

"She'll do nicely for our new Centurion," Limeshot said with satisfaction after he'd finished surveying her. "A perfect little slave to warm his berth."

"No," protested the Femme, pulling at her captor's arm. "I already have a boyfriend, I won't do it."

"That puny bot?" Rotor scoffed. "He's practically a Minibot, at least you'll be getting a real Mech here."

The others in the room murmured in agreement as the petite Femme looked deeply offended.

"I don't want a 'real Mech'," she said shrilly. "I want to go home, I'm not a pleasurebot."

"Who said you would be?" sneered one of them. "All you'll be doing is giving pleasure to one of our guys."

"Revo, that's the definition of a pleasurebot," one Mech said mock seriously and they all roared with laughter.

"Oh yeah," Revo said as though he'd only just realised. "Silly me."

"You're all brutes," Ariel declared but this simply made them laugh even more.

"Alright," Limeshot barked out as the others leered at the upset and angry Femme. "Enough of this, put her in the holding room, he can get her later."

"You got it boss," Meteoric said as he dragged her away out of the office and along a short corridor, arriving at a rusty looking door.

"Here you go, you relax here," Meteoric laughed cruelly, opening the door and shoving her in.

She landed on her hands and knees, hearing the door being slammed closed behind her and locked. Struggling to her feet, she looked wildly around; she was in a small mostly bare room which was very dimly lit.

"No," she muttered to herself, stumbling to the door and finding that despite its rust, it was indeed locked tight.

"Please let me out," she begged, banging and shaking at the door but if anyone heard, they completely ignored her.

"Please," she sobbed, sliding to her knees and crying helplessly.

But as she was bent over, a thread of light caught her attention and with a hiccup, she managed to control her tears. With watery optics, she turned around, following the beam until she came to a patch of wall which was darker than the surrounding area. Reaching forward, she lightly touched it and instantly flakes fell to the ground.

For a few moments, she stared as her aching processor started to work out a solution to her predicament. Looking around, she spied a piece of piping lying abandoned on the ground; she moved and snatched it up. With a desperate expression, she swung it straight at the dark patch and it left a clear dent. Again and again she swung it until whole chunks of the damaged wall were sent across the floor.

At last she had made a hole that she could now hack at hole with the pipe, making it bigger and bigger until it was big enough for her to squeeze through. Condensation ran down her body and the pipe she'd been using was all dented but she didn't care. Tossing it aside, she bent down and pulled herself through the hole although not with some difficulty. Her armour was scored and coated with rust; however she was past caring right now.

She found herself in a completely different corridor as she pushed herself up. Cautiously walking along, the manic energy she'd felt in her cell began to desert her. A lone Femme in the whole of Kaon city, how was she going to get out of her? If she could sneak out, she would then have to make her way all across the empty plain that bordered the rust sea before she reached Iacon.

But she had to try it, she couldn't stay here and allow these horrible brutes to use and abuse her.

"Hey, who are you?" a voice demanded behind her just as she entered a new corridor.

With a squeak, she glanced behind her to see a Mech standing some distance away staring at her in shock.

"Hey, you're a Femme," he said in astonishment as she started to back away.

"I...I...I've got to go," she yelped before turning and running down the corridor as she heard the Mech call after her.

This place was old, she saw cracks and exposed wires everywhere, not to mention all the nasty puddles she kept stepping in. The young Femme did not want to know what had made those puddles and as her shins were splashed once again, a shower of dust suddenly collapsed onto her, completely blinding her.

"Ahh," she yelled, frantically scrubbing at her optics while still trying to ran but only managing to stumble forward at a dangerous speed.

She finally tripped and went sprawling, yelping as a burst of light seemed to assault her sensors as she went head over heels down some sort of slope. Finally wiping the offending dust away, she blinked a couple of times before freezing. She had landed in the shallow end of a massive pit which contained the largest, most brutish Mechs she'd ever clapped optics on.

By the looks of it, they'd all been fighting with each other but to a Mech they had all paused and were staring right at her. For a moment, there was complete silence and then one of them spoke.

"A Femme."

"Yeah," another agreed. "Look at that."

She opened and closed her mouth, pushing herself up and backing away as some of them began to advance on her.

"Looks fresh," a new Mech now spoke up, his optics examining her with interest, with a spark of lust forming. "Hmm, wonder how tight she is..."

"Wanna find out?" a bot with a black visor asked, his grin wicked as he leered at her.

"Oh yeah," his friend agreed and they both along with others made a beeline for her.

"Who gets first pick?" the Mech with the most lust in his optics asked when he was only a few feet away from her.

"No...please," she begged, covering her face as the Mech reached for her. "Don't..."

"Get away from her," a cold voice suddenly cut through the babble of voices and there was sudden silence.

Ariel couldn't believe it, was it an Enforcer come to save her. But this hope was soon dashed when the brutish Mechs parted just enough for her to behold a massive grey and battle scarred Mech with glowing red optics.

"That's mine," he stated with cold authority which actually did cause a few of the Mechs to back away.

"Sez who?" one dirty blue Mech demanded.

"Says me," the large grey Mech growled. "That Femme was brought here for my use."

Ariel let out a gasp of horror; this was the Mech she was supposed to sleep with? Primus, he was massive, she could not imagine being with such a Mech. She barely reached his waist, this was just crazy. Even if she wanted to sleep with him, he'd need to be incredibly gentle and arousing before they could even begin, this monstrous Mech would probably tear her in half with one thrust.

"Oh yeah?" the dirty blue Mech growled, his fist cracking as he tightened it.

The grey Mech smiled tightly before suddenly lunging with a roar. Mechs scattered in all directions but others weren't so lucky and were forcefully thrown out of the way. The one who'd been about to attack her first, swore and lunged at him as well, they meant with a crash that almost hurt her audios. They strained against one another, snarling viscously as others stood watching but the grey Mech soon gained the upper hand and knocked his opponent off his feet. He then followed through with a hard punch that left the Mech groaning on the ground before turning in a neat half circle and punching the visored Mech who'd been about to jump him.

This went on for a few more breems, the grey Mech beating anyone who tried to defeat him or approach her. Eventually, the others were forced to admit defeat and those able to stand backed away, hands held up in surrender. The grey Mech watched them go, ignoring those groaning on the ground before turning and stepped right over to her, towering over the fallen Femme.

Ariel stared up at the Mech who stood victoriously over her. She swallowed and tried to back away but he merely bent and seized her arm. First he pulled her to her feet and then into the air, making her squeak before settling her over his shoulder. She almost looked like a child being carried by its creator as he turned and strode from the training ground.

She squirmed, his armour felt rough and dirty and she almost couldn't see over his shoulder. The brutish Mechs were still watching her, although they'd given up on having her, that didn't prevent them shooting longing looks at her form.

"So," a dark red coloured Mech began, falling into step beside her captor. "This is the Femme?"

"Yes," her captor stated as his friend chuckled.

"And here I thought they'd just grab a Minibot and paint him pink," he teased. "That took some bolts to ask for that."

"Not really," her captor scoffed. "I asked for just a Femme, not some precious high class jewel with a Port attached."

"True," the red Mech admitted as Ariel felt herself tense with outrage. Is that what these Mechs thought Femmes were mere pretty dolls to be used for pleasure? "Well, you'd better keep a close optic on her; they're not going to let up."

"I had no idea," her captor said, making his friend laugh again. "Don't worry Redscar, I was provided with equipment to keep her under control."

His prisoner shivered, she really didn't like the sound of that. She didn't know much about Kaon but she was aware of the rumours about conditions there. If even half the rumours were true, this was a very bad place to be. She had heard that no Femmes lived in Kaon, it was just too dangerous for them. Any Femmes born to Mech couples were apparently taken to crèches where they could grow up safely. Kaon was a city of thugs, rogues, scoundrels, fighters and all other sorts that couldn't exist in a more civilised society. Kaon was ancient but at one time had been a lot more respectable although it had always been known as a city of warriors.

Attempts had been made to take the city apart but they'd always failed miserably. The best the authorities could do was contain the city and its occupants, ensuring that the rest of the planet was kept safe. But of course, there was only so much they could do; her current situation was proof of that.

"What like some sort of collar?" Redscar asked and her captor made a noise of confirmation.

"And chain, she's not going anywhere," he stated as she tensed even more. How could she possibly get away now?

She squeaked as she was lifted up and turned so she was facing the inside of a room. Before she could take any of it in, a heavy hand was placed against her back and she was shoved forcefully into the room. Yelping as she almost fell over; she turned to see her captor blocking any possible getaway. His back was to her and he was talking to his friend, completely ignoring her.

"So, wanna spar tomorrow?" Redscar voice drifted over the grey Mech. "Your left could do with some work."

"So could yours," her captor retorted. "And your right."

"Is that so?" Redscar laughed. "Alright then, I'll see you tomorrow; try not to wear yourself out tonight."

Ariel shuddered as her captor chuckled. They were wrapped up their conversation; soon it would be just her and a large dangerous Mech who was probably horny as pit and would likely attack her. The cruel words of those other thugs came back to her and she started to back away, panic welling up in her. She had to get out of here, she had to hide away and stay there until they all left her alone.

Her optics frantically scanned the room; surely there was a place she could hide? But nothing seemed any use and she was rapidly running out of time, she had to act now. Of course, in her panic stricken processor, she could only think of one place and that was under the berth. If she could have had a moment to calm herself, she would have known it was the very first place anyone would look but right now, she could not have cared less.

"Later," Redscar called as her captor stepped into his room and closed the door.

"Hmm?" she heard him murmur in slight surprise as he discovered that she wasn't in sight. She flattened herself against the grimy floor, trying to stifle her whimpers as his feet stamped into view. There was a pause and then light flooded her hiding place as the berth was bodily lifted up.

"Ahh," she yelped as this happened, staring up into the cold red optics that gazed down at her. He didn't look happy at having to look for her and she automatically scooted back at away from him.

"Get out now," he commanded coldly, still holding the berth up.

"I...please," she tried but he simply snapped. "Now!"

The young Femme let out a fearful noise as she scrambled to obey. If she hadn't, then he would have dragged her out and she'd probably have been in huge trouble then. As soon as she'd crawled free, he lowered his berth which groaned in protest. She slowly got to her feet, twisting her hands together as she waited for him to make a move.

He took a step towards her, his large mass looming over her.

"Don't do that again," he growled at her, and she ducked her head, unable to keep looking up at him.

There was a pause and then he said.

"That was an incredibly stupid thing you did earlier."

This made her look up at him with wide optics and for a moment wasn't sure what he meant. But he soon clarified.

"Do you know what they would have done to you if I hadn't claimed you first?" he questioned sternly, berating her as though she were a child.

"Yes," she mumbled softly, she had a pretty good idea of what would have happened.

"Then I don't need to tell you what will happen if you attempt to escape again," he said pointedly as she flinched and nodded slowly.

"Good," he said with satisfaction. "Now, from this moment onwards, you belong to me and I expect total obedience in all matters."

A bubble of indignation and anger rose up inside her but the overwhelming fear she was experiencing was enough to quell it. Apparently pleased with her lack of protest, he continued.

"No one else will be allowed to touch you," he said softly. "You are not to obey any of their orders unless I say so. Understand?"

"Yes," she murmured very softly. So only one would be allowed to rape and molest her...until the ones in charge decided they wanted her. If there really were no Femmes in Kaon, she knew there was a good chance this might happen.

He grunted at her answer and reached into sub space, bringing forth a seemingly delicate collar and chain. She stared in horror at them as he said.

"You will wear these tomorrow, only I will be able to take them off. If you please me, I won't use the chain while you're in my quarters, I might even take the collar off."

"Do I have to wear it at all?" she couldn't help but ask, the thought of wearing such a thing repulsed her. Not only would it be humiliating, it would rend her very vulnerable.

"Yes," he said shortly, not interested in discussing it. He placed the chain and collar back into sub space; thankfully he wasn't putting it on her tonight.

He suddenly lowered himself onto his berth; he was so huge that this wasn't as rapid a movement as it would be for her. But even sitting down, he was still bigger than she was.

"Come," he commanded, gesturing for her to come closer.

She gasped and backed away from him, feeling her feet crunch on unidentified matter on the floor. As his brow became furrowed, she said pleadingly.

"Please don't."

"I wish to examine you," he stated, a hint of impatience in his voice. "Come here now."

She fidgeted, trying to decide if she should obey or not.

"You...can examine me from there," she tried softly.

"No, I will examine you here," he stated coldly, his annoyance growing visible on his features. "Now come or you will be punished."

"Punished?" she repeated, stalling slightly for time.

He gave her a slight glare at her continued insolence before withdrawing a new object from subspace. Her optics fixed on the long, slender collection of cables that protruded from a thick, somewhat worn handle. For a moment, she couldn't think what it was, but then he activated it using the button at the end of the handle.

"Ah," she exclaimed as the cables suddenly sparked and glowed a brilliant light purple while emitting a slight humming noise.

He lifted it up slightly and flicked his wrist, sending the cables flying through the air and violently colliding with a nearby pillar, sparks shooting and crackling. She jumped backwards in shock, if that connected with any part of her, it would hurt like Pit. He pressed the button and the whip deactivated and he placed it back into sub space but the threat hung heavy in the air like the smog she'd glimpsed while being brought here.

Knowing she had no choice, she slowly moved over to her, keeping her head down as she didn't want to look at him. Once she was within reach, he grabbed her arm and pulled her almost flush to him. She fought not to grimace too much, if she annoyed him too much, he might use that whip on her or worse.

She could feel his optics raking her body, taking in every little detail as he inspected his property. Her armour felt like it was crawling as his hand moved downwards, caressing her hip and then squeezing as it went lower. Her throat began to burn as she fought not to cry in front of this barbarian that currently held her prisoner. If her dignity was the only thing left to her then she would maintain it with everything she had. Physically she was a prisoner but mentally was only as prisoner if she allowed herself to be.

Although right now, it was very difficult not to succumb.

"Mm," he murmured the sound one of approval as he continued his examination. Considering he'd asked for just a Femme, any Femme, he'd actually been given quite a decent specimen. Pretty without being beautiful, not a firebrand but also not timid, he found himself being mildly impressed with whoever had chosen her. It was probably just luck they'd discovered her but nonetheless, he was grateful.

She was starting to sniffle a little, he'd seen her trying to keep her emotions in check but she was beginning to lose that battle. His hands had moved upwards, gently caressing her cheeks which were becoming moist. He knew most of his fellow Mech would have simply ravished her the moment they were alone, Pit, some would not even have waited. However, he did not want to simply use her up in a single night, he wanted to savour having his own Femme slave. If he attempted to interface with her now, either he'd have to be so careful he wouldn't get any satisfaction or she'd end up too badly injured to continue anyway.

It did no matter to him if he had to wait, there were other ways to enjoy a Femme that didn't involve sticking your spike into their port.

"What do you have in sub space?" he adeptly asked her, satisfied with his exanimation.

She jumped, looking up at him with wide optics.

"Well?" he asked, knowing she'd heard him.

"Just...nothing," she mumbled, squirming nervously.

"Empty it now," he commanded, gripping her arm.

She trembled before raising her hand and bringing forth several items. Each time she brought something out; he took it and placed it on the berth beside him. Once she'd finished, he examined what she'd taken out. There were a few credit chips but he didn't think there would be much on them, just every day sort of amounts. There were a couple of odd bits that she'd obviously picked up to use later; he wasn't terribly interested in them.

"Mmm," he murmured with interest as he spied a few Energon sweets, they looked exotic and delicious.

"Y-you can have them," she mumbled softly, sounding a little embarrassed.

He smirked and picked a choice one, holding it up into the light.

"What is this?"

"Copper Candy," she told him and he placed it into his mouth and gently crunched it.

A sweet yet tangy taste entered his mouth, making him smile. Shame that they rarely if ever got any sweets at all; he wouldn't mind some more like this. Ah well, perhaps with his extra income he could pay for some smuggled in sweets. He smirked; he must be in a good mood if he was planning to spend his hard earned credits on something so frivolous as sweeties.

He would save the others for another time; they would be something of a special treat.

"Oh...y-you won't be interested in that," she suddenly exclaimed as he picked up a holocube.

He gave her a look that stopped her before she could try to take it back. He pressed the button in the centre and an image of his Femme popped up but she wasn't alone. A young looking Mech only slightly taller than his companion had his arm around the pink Femme and was beaming proudly. It wasn't difficult to guess who this red and blue Mech was.

He eyed the picture for a moment, seeing how nervous and anxious the Femme was out of the corner of his optic. He turned it around slightly before sudden sub spacing. She squeaked in horror and opened her mouth to protest but he cut across her.

"Behave and you might get it back."

Her lips trembled and she looked away, he could just make out coolant forming in her optics. He didn't care; by holding onto this precious holocube he gave her another reason to be submissive and obedient. For now, he'd take care of it and perhaps when she behaved herself, he'd allow her to look at it for a few breems. Yes, that would be a good motivator.

A small tub of wax was the next item that he examined. To his surprise, it wasn't special femme wax but a normal tub of polishing wax. Obviously, it was of a much higher standard that he was used to seeing, shame it was rather small so it wouldn't last very long. It didn't matter; it was still a little bonus for him.

The last thing was a cleaning cloth, not brand new but didn't look like it had been used recently. He looked over it for just a moment before offering it to her. She might as well keep this.

"T-thanks," she mumbled, sub spacing it with relief.

"This is all you have?" he questioned and she nodded slowly.

He looked to the side of his berth where the odds and ends where, he decided they had no value to him. Like the cloth, he offered them back to her and she sub spaced them instantly. Rolling his shoulders to work out a slight stiffness he felt developing, he said softly.

"I'm going to recharge now, do not attempt to escape or there will be consequences."

"Okay," she said softly as he let go of her and moved onto the berth properly.

She stood there awkwardly, wondering where she was meant to sleep. There was no other recharge berth in this room, there was a seat and it was rather large but it wouldn't be comfortable. But maybe he expected her to just sleep in a corner on the floor. It wasn't appealing in the slightest, his room was filthy but she had no choice.

Before she could make a move, he suddenly spoke.

"Come on."

"What?" she exclaimed, seeing his gesture towards the berth.

"You're sleeping with me," he told him before adding with a slight trace of exasperation. "We're recharging, I'm busy tomorrow."

"Oh," she said in relief although it still wasn't a pleasant thought, recharging in the same berth as a large brutish Mech.

She hesitated, not really sure how to approach the berth. Orion and she enjoyed snuggling but that was easy, she could move onto a berth with him without a second thought. But her captor made her so nervous; she didn't feel safe going anywhere near him.

"What are you waiting for?" he demanded impatiently.

With a little start, she climbed onto the berth and placed herself as far away from him as possible except he took hold of her and pulled her against his side. As she squirmed, palms against him, he said.

"I told you I expected obedience. In future when I ask you to do something, you do it and don't just stand there dithering."

"I'm sorry," she gasped out, her whole body tensed up almost painfully. "I'll do better, I promise."

"Hmm," he mumbled, examining her scared face. "I suppose you require some training. Very well, I will deal with the issue tomorrow; you can rest easy about that."

She grimaced, she didn't like the sound of training but there was nothing she could do. Maybe she could learn better what to do so that he didn't hurt her. It was unbelievable that this Mech was going to be giving her 'slave training' but she had no choice in the matter.

He turned away from her, lying on his back but continuing to hold her to him. She was still trying to avoid touching him as much as was humanly possible but it wasn't easy.

"You will share my berth at night," he suddenly said and she flinched.

"During the day cycle, you will attend to my needs, whatever they are," he continued. "You will mostly remain in my room but I will take you out sometimes. You will stay by my side and not stray unless you wish one of the others you take you to their room."

"No," she whispered, that sounded horrible. The Mech didn't seem interested in taking her right now but she highly doubted others would be so careful.

"No," he agreed, his large body shifted slightly, making her jump.

"Don't be so jumpy," he snapped in mild annoyance.

"Sorry," she said quickly, even if he'd said they were just going to recharge, she still couldn't rest easy. She was now a slave to this brutish Mech, one who expected her to do whatever he said and quickly.

The hours passed and still she couldn't find a way to recharge, it was practically impossible, this mech...her enslaver was just too close and add the fact that she was just taken from her home and her beloved mate-to-be.

In the end she just lay there and cried in silence hoping her new unwanted master was not hearing and leaves her alone to her misery.

Author's note. Ariel's new life begins as a slave, how does she get on with her master? Find out next time, until then.