Ethereum Gladiator (Chapter 1)

The deafening roar of battle seemed eerily muted to Kyla as she knelt on the front lines, taking careful aim. She was a human soldier, one of countless Azerothians come to invade Draenor. She was not an adventurer. She had no magic or spectacular skills, but she fought all the same alongside countless others who, like her, would probably be killed in battle and not even mentioned in the history scrolls.

Her burgundy hair was cut short so it wouldn’t get in the way, and her lean body was armored in lightweight grey and dark grey plate with a curved short-sword on each hip. Several months in the field away from the ready supply of hot water and soap had marred her otherwise attractive features. Her hair was knotted and greasy, and her pale skin was covered with splotches, pimples, and sweat rashes. She probably smelled horrendous but she’d stopped noticing that after the second week.

“Open fire!”

Kyla pulled the trigger of her Draenic pulse rifle. It kicked forcefully against her shoulder and there was a flash of gold as her shot blew the head off a charging wrathguard. Blood sprayed into the sky as rifles, wands, and crossbows went off all around her.

Demons fell by the hundreds but hundreds more advanced over the corpses of their brethren. Kyla aimed again and fired, reducing another wrathguard to a pair of arms and nothing else. Demonic casters returned fire with spells but most of those were deflected by friendly casters, leaving the ground troops to just deal with each other.

Despite the superior fire-power of the Azerothians, the mass of demonic warriors were closing the distance. Kyla and her fellow soldiers cut down demon after demon, aiming and fireing calmly even when the fel army got uncomfortably close.

“Prepair to engage!” the general shouted.

Kyla shouldered her rifle and drew her short swords, holding them reverse-grip and lifting herself into a crouch. Her blades were reinforced and sharpened with magic, but other than that Kyla depended solely on her own body’s strength and speed to keep her alive.

The wave of demons reached her line and Kyla leapt forward, slashing upward through a Wrathguard’s chest with her right blade and spinning away to stab a lunging felguard in the face with her left.

Kyla’s strongest advantage was her speed, so she slipped through the battle, striking and retreating at once if her target didn’t fall. Her awareness was focused completely on the enemies before her so it took her several moments to notice that something was going on behind the demonic front lines.

Glancing over her shoulder, Kyla saw the mages above the battle pointing and shouting to each other, but Kyla pushed it out of her mind. It wasn’t her concern. Killing what was right in front of her was the only thing she need to think about.

Another wrathguard charged her. Kyla leaped over its first swing and cut through its arm, severing the demon’s hand. It screamed at her and dove in an attempt to tackle the small human but Kyla twisted aside and slashed up–

Pain. A blinding ache in her head and searing fire all over her body. Kyla opened her eyes with a gasp but before she could get a full breath she was overcome by a fit of coughing. She twisted, trying to get off her back and realized she was adrift in the air, nothing but white nothingness in all directions.

The blood she coughed up floated away from her, weightless.

Still gasping for breath, Kyla fought through the pain to take stock of herself. Her armor looked like she’d left it in a bonfire overnight, with large pieces missing. As bad as her armor was, though, Kyla herself was even worse. Blood trailed in the air from hundreds of wounds. Her left leg from the knee down was just gone; it was leaving the largest trail of blood floating in the air.

She wasn’t sure but Kyla thought that at least a couple of her ribs were broken along with her left arm which was so shattered she couldn’t even feel it or move it, despite it still being attached.

“Can anyone hear me?!?” Kyla shouted. Her voice felt raw but she would not survive long in this condition anyway.

Kyla shouted again but silence was her only reply and her effort had started another coughing fit.

She drifted in the white void, slowly bleeding to death. It could have been just minutes or several hours, Kyla couldn’t tell. Time had ceased to mean anything as she drifted in and out of consiousness.

At some point, Kyla noticed a sound. A low hum accented by something reminicent of the crackle of electricity. It got louder and louder, and in a dizzying moment Kyla suddenly realized there was something behind her. She slowly turned, drifting around until she could see.

Kyla gaped in awe.

It was roughly oval shaped and massive, larger than most towns. Burnished metal floors and girders were floating unattached to each other, but wreathed in purple lightning. It looked like a random collection of geometric shapes of metal held together by nothing but bolts of violet energy.

Kyla blinked, trying to focus her eyes through the haze of blood-loss. Shapes moved around inside the massive thing, vaguely humanoid shaped and glowing.

Ethereals. It was an Ethereal Nethership!

Kyla reached out weakly, trying to shout for help. She was too far gone to notice that the emblem displayed on the Nethership wasn’t the emblem of the Consortium.

“We’ve reconstructed and repaired her flesh, but it remains to be seen if the specimen has the strength to heal herself into a cohesive whole,” a young voice said in a monotone.

“What my associate means to say,” a second voice cut in, “is that the specimen requires continuing treatment, but given that treatment, will recover.”

A third, deeper voice grumbled something then continued to say, “Six-thousand.”

“Ameer’s ass,” replied the second voice. “She’s worth at least fifteen. Once she’s cleaned up, the crowds will discharge just watching her.”

Kyla stirred. A part of her realized that she should probably be listening to this conversation, but she just couldn’t make herself focus. She wasn’t in pain anymore, that was odd, but she couldn’t quite remember why she thought she was supposed to hurt so she let that go and began to drift off again.

“I’ll go as high as nine,” the deep voice replied.

“Not happening,” the second voice snapped. “Tell you what, she’s yours for eleven-thousand and I’ll throw in Lonji here to make sure she survives to be of use to you.”

“What?” the first voice protested.

“Its a good deal,” the second voice pressed, overriding Lonji.

“Alright. Eleven-thousand plus the services of the handler.”

Kyla stirred once more then retreated into blissful sleep.

Kyla had the sense that she’d been asleep for a very long time. How long exactly, she couldn’t say, but a long time. She yawned, stretching her cramped body, and blearily blinking her eyes open to look around.

Bronze-colored metal walled her in on three sides, and everything swam with violet lightning. Pushing herself up, Kyla noticed that she was laying on a blanket. She also noticed that she was naked, except for golden manacles on her wrists and ankles. That was a little disconcerting, but the cuffs weren’t connected to anything.

Faint scar lines covered her skin, less prominent than the other imperfections in her skin that she was used to, but still noticeable. A perfect ring ran all the way around her left calf. Kyla ran her finger along it, wide-eyed.

Kyla stood up, pulling the blanket around her to cover herself and went to the missing wall. There was a haze of energy completing her cube-shaped room. She pushed against it but it wouldn’t yield. Minature lightning bolts spiraled out through the air from the point where her hand was pressed against the invisible energy wall.

“Hello?” Kyla called. “Is anyone there?”

An ethereal poked its head into view from outside Kyla’s cell. “How are you feeling?”

Kyla recoiled, not expecting such an immediate response. The ethereal seemed to study her with concern, but lacking a real face its expressions were hard to understand. It stepped forward, passing through the energy wall with with a shimmer.

“I, uh, feel kind of… sore,” Kyla finally answered. “My head hurts.”

“That should pass. You’ve been asleep for several weeks,” the ethereal told her. “You were very badly injured, but I managed to repair your flesh.”

“I was in a battle on Draenor. I’m a soldier for the Azerothian Offensive,” Kyla said. “Where am I? What ship is this?”

“This is the Jagged Etherblade,” it told her. “I’m Lonji, by the way.”

“I’ve never heard of a Consortium Nethership by that name,” Kyla said.

“Um, well that’s probably because this isn’t a Consortium ship.”

Kyla stared at him for a moment. “It’s not?”

The ethereal nodded apoligetically. “Uh yeah, you’re kind of a prisoner. Did I not mention that?”

“No. No you didn’t,” Kyla mumbled as her legs gave out and she plopped down on the spot.

Lonji studied her for a moment, then sat himself down across from her. “What’s your name?”

“Kyla. Kyla Valstar,” Kyla replied without looking up. “What’s going to happen to me?”

Lonji straightened up. “Well, you’ve been sold to Lord Falavax as an arena slave.”

“Great,” Kyla grumbled.

“I am indentured to him for as long as it takes to prepair you, physically and mentally, for the pits,” Lonji told her. “And I am sorry but Falavax wishes me to begin immediately.”

Lonji gestured and bolts of energy suddenly arced from the walls to Kyla’s wrist cuffs, which were yanked in opposite directions. Kyla was torn up off the floor and spun around. She yelped in shock, sure that her arms were going to be pulled off, but the force on her manacles lessened enough that she was held in place without any significant pain. She was on her knees, facing away from Lonji with her arms stretched out to the sides. The blanket had slipped from her shoulders, baring her naked ass to the ethereal.

“What are you doing?!?” Kyla yelled, trying to scrunch her body up so her toned butt wouldn’t stick out at her captor.

Lonji knelt behind her. “Don’t struggle. I won’t hurt you if you don’t force me to.”

“What are you doing? Stop this!” Kyla screamed, thrashing against her restraints.

Suddenly the ankle cuffs connected with the floor, snapping her shins down flat and forcing her thighs vertical. Kyla felt Lonji grab her hips and hold her steady. His hands felt like electrified wind against her skin, and he was strong.

A similar sensation brushed up and down Kyla’s long-neglected sex, and despite herself, she felt a flush of arousal. Oh. That’s what he’s doing, Kyla thought, trying to ignore the inappropriate lurch of anticipation that crawled down her gut and flooded her pussy. She hadn’t been with a man in almost five years, and wasn’t at all used to being touched.

“Just relax. I’m not going to hurt you,” Lonji repeated as he slowly shoved his incoporeal cock into Kyla’s needy hole.

Kyla whimpered in both protest and pleasure, letting her head hang. Lonji’s shaft tingled against the inside of her stretched tunnel, filling up her hot flesh and tickling it with microdischarges. The otherwordly sensation made Kyla squirm against him.

“How does it feel inside you?” Lonji asked.

Kyla ignored him, afraid to reveal just how much her body wanted to give in completely. She couldn’t help her whimpering though, as she squirmed around on his cock, held in place by his powerful hands and the cuffs.

Still, the ethereal didn’t move. After several moments Lonji pulled his cock out of her and Kyla had to bite her lip to keep from moaning in disappointment.

“Don’t fight it, Kyla,” he murmured. “Let your baser nature run free. There is no shame in feeling pleasure.”

Kyla felt tears pooling in her eyes and shut them, trying to force the tears away without letting them fall.

“I’ve seen dozens of humanoids broken, but many more never needed to be,” Lonji said. “You’re among the latter, Kyla. I can tell. Stop fighting and accept yourself.”

“No,” Kyla whispered, but it was just a word. A reflex.

Kyla felt Lonji smile at her. “You’re already there, Kyla. You resist because you feel like you’re supposed to, not because you truly want to. I’ve seen it before.”

The energy binding her cuffs suddenly dissapeared and Kyla collapsed to the warm metal floor, her ass still up in the air. She flopped down on her side, slipping a hand between her legs. Her fingers slid over her soaked, slippery flesh, caressing her sensitive folds. It was automatic and Kyla closed her eyes, not paying attention to what her hand was doing.

“You just need some time to come to terms with yourself. I’ll be back in a little while,” Lonji said, slipping out and dissapearing.

Kyla curled up on the blanket, continuing to idly finger herself, and said nothing. She cried for a long time, but when the tears finally stopped, Kyla felt strangly at peace. Lonji had been right about her. She wept not for what was happening to her, but because she knew he was right.

With that thought, a thrill of heat clawed its way up her gut. Kyla heard herself moan as she rolled onto her back and slammed her fingers into her dripping hole. Her hand flew, almost violently massaging her loins. The fingers of her other hand dug into one of her breasts, her hips gyrating as she masturbated.

Kyla wasn’t pacing herself. She just wanted an orgasm. Right. Now.

Back arching, Kyla gasped as she came. Her pussy burst, pulsating under her fingers and lobbing spurts of her fluids into the air as ripples of pleasure flowed through her body.

Once her orgasm subsided, Kyla sank down on the blanket again, her limbs sprawled spread-eagle. She stared at the celling at let out a long, tired sigh.

“Report.”

Lonji bowed before his Lord Falavax. “The human was a worthy purchase, sire. She required very little in the way of deprogramming. I believe that she is bitter about her own appearance as well, and that she will respond with awe and gratitued after going through the cleansing process. It is my professional recommendation that she be cleansed and activated as soon as we dock at the Colluseum.”

“Good,” Falavax commented. “You may go.”

Lonji bowed and removed himself from the Lord’s quarters.

Taking his time, Lonji headed in the general direction of the cellblock. He wasn’t going to tell the girl about the cleansing, he decided. She would respond more favorably if it came as a surprise when her sweat rashes, pimples, and matted body hair simply vanished from her skin. She would be grateful, Lonji thought, and that gratitude would secure her loyalty.

When he reached Kyla’s cell, he found her sprawled spread-eagle on her back, hints of wetness still drying from her lower lips. She looked quite peaceful, so Lonji simply sat himself between her legs to watch and wait.

Kyla returned to consiousness slowly, stretching and rolling onto her side. Her leg bumped something that tingled against her skin and didn’t quite feel all the way there. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and froze when she saw that she had her legs wrapped loosely around the incoporeal form of her warden. Suddenly remembering what his cock had felt like inside her, Kyla felt her loins start to moisten again.

“How are you feeling, Kyla?” he asked, placing his palm against her pussy and massaging gently.

Kyla jumped at the sudden touch, startled by Lonji’s casual manner. “Resigned,” she finally admitted, relaxing and letting him rub her.

Lonji was right about her, she thought again. She felt an impulse to recoil from him, but it was born of her instinct of what was expected of her, nothing more than a remnant of the society she was no longer a part of. What she wanted was to feel that cock inside her again, so she pushed herself up, scooting forward until she was sitting in his lap.

How he smiled without a face, Kyla couldn’t figure out, but he was smiling all the same. “I think you’ll like your new life. We take good care of our gladiators. Imagine having all the sexual pleasure you could ever want, and never having to feel shame ever again.”

“I suppose being a sex toy is preferable to death in battle, though I’m sure I knew a few soldiers who wouldn’t think so,” Kyla sighed.

It wasn’t that terrible a fate. She felt Lonji’s energycock press against her opening and relaxed into it, letting it pierce her, gasping as it expanded within her to fill her tight passage. Little energy discharges went off every second or two, snapping sensuously at her lips, clit, and the inside of her pussy, making her tremble in the ethereal’s lap. “O-oh! That f-feels s-so good!”

The ethereal’s hands slid slowly up the curve of Kyla’s torso, slipping up under her breasts. His thumbs pushed up between her breasts then drifted out onto her nipples. Tiny flickers of energy struck out, dancing around Kyla’s aerolas and across her sensitive tips.

Kyla writhed under the careful stimulation, gripping Lonji’s shoulders and undulating in his lap. She moaned in abandon, letting inhibition fall away as she embraced her body’s need. Her pussy was litterally buzzing, filled and stretched by the ethereal’s energycock, her juicy walls tickled by energy discharges. The strangeness of having her flesh split by a nearly invisible force only added to the thrill.

She bucked in Lonji’s lap, her wetness dripping onto Lonji’s cock and outlining its shape. Gasping, Kyla threw her head back in a silent scream as her loins convulsed around that tingling, incoporeal phalus. She spasmed in the ethereal’s lap, breasts jiggling under Lonji’s hands as his voltaic stimulation wrung orgasmic convulsions from Kyla’s body.

Panting, Kyla flopped back onto her blanket, her legs remaining firmly locked around Lonji’s waist. Once she stopped twitching from the pleasureable tremors still rolling through her body, Kyla let out a long sigh and went limp.

After a moment, she felt Lonji’s hand glide over her belly. “You’re going to be magnificent,” he murmured.

“What?” Kyla mumbled absently as she basked the the afterglow.

“Rest, Kyla,” Lonji said, sliping from between her legs and standing. “You’re going to need it.”

“For what?” Kyla sighed.

“Your training.”

“Training?” Kyla blinked her eyes open and lifted her head to look at him. He was grinning warmly at her over his shoulder–how the fel did he do that without a face?

“Don’t worry,” Lonji told her. “You’ll enjoy it.”