“The five men sitting there tried to escape the brig, where they were rightfully detained. They injured one of our crew in the process. For that, they must be punished.”
There’s a roar of approval from the crowd, and the corner of Captain Aelon’s lip quirks in approval.
He continues:
“The captain of their vessel has selflessly agreed to accept their punishment in lieu – as is her right under the Spacefaring Code. However, her men have been sentenced to twenty lashes each…”
There’s a hush across the room, as the Aurelians – some of whom have presumably suffered lashes themselves – consider the impact of receiving such punishment on my small, human frame.
Raising his hand, as if to reassure his men’s unspoken concerns, Aelon clarifies:
“I determined that killing this captain by subjecting her to a hundred lashes would be a terrible waste.” His eyes flash as he says that. “After a brief negotiation, the captain has wisely elected to accept a different form of punishment – one more suited to her more… delicate nature.”
I bristle when I hear that word. Even in comparison to those towering, seven-feet-tall Aurelians, I object to being described as delicate.
But that’s part of the game, isn’t it? That’s part of Aelon’s punishment.
Confirming that, he continues: “She’s been naughty, and now she’s earned a spanking.”
There’s a chorus of wolf whistles and jeers from the crowd of Aurelians. My cheeks burn in humiliation. Tears spring to my eyes. I’m a defiant, badass, brilliant starship captain…
…and he’s describing me like a naughty little girl.
But I keep my head held up, proud and defiant against the legion of leering, laughing eyes.
I am a captain.
I’m doing this for my crew – even if they don’t deserve it.
I am doing this for Theme – because he surely does.
I glance over at Sawoot, and the sight of her worried expression gives me strength. With my best friend in the same room as me, I feel like I can endure anything – even this.
“Now then, Captain Tasha,” Aelon growls. “You can remove your pants – or I can do it for you.”
There’s a hushed gasp across the room as a hundred horny Aurelian warriors imagine me stripping my overall pants off – or Aelon tearing them off for me.
He grins as he continues:
“The hundred lashes owed to your men will be commuted to a hundred spanks on your gorgeous ass. I think we can all agree that’s a fair exchange – and a better result for all of us.”
My cheeks flush red. A hundred spanks? Gods – how humiliating! Why so many?
I mean, I suppose it makes sense – a hundred lashes, exchanged for a hundred spanks – but right at that second I think I’d almost prefer the agonizing taste of the lash.
Yet, that’s no longer an option.
So, I force myself to my feet – unbuttoning my work pants off, yanking them down around my ankles, and finally kicking them aside with an angry snarl. I stand there in my t-shirt…
…and nothing else.
My skin crawls as a hundred or more Aurelians stare at my bare ass and exposed pussy. The glare of my crew is even more humiliating. After sharing a tiny spaceship for months, Chris and the others have seen flashes of me naked countless times – but those had always felt… different.
There’s something intrinsically sexual about this current situation, and I can sense Chris and the others staring at me in a way they never have before – with lust.
It disgusts me.
But maybe I should be grateful. There was a time not too long ago during which I thought I was facing certain death – when we were being pursued by those Toad missiles. I’m not sure which would have killed me – the immense explosion, or asphyxiation in the dead of space – but neither option was an improvement on my current situation.
Now, instead of the coldness of space, I’m going to face the searing heat of a rough Aurelian spanking – but I’ll survive it, even if my dignity and self-respect doesn’t.
I move to sit back down – but I don’t get that chance.
Suddenly, Vinicus steps forward – scooping me up as if I’m weightless. I gasp as I’m swept up into his huge, strong arms – and then he sets me down over his lap like I’m nothing but a naughty child.
Vinicus a fucking beast of a man – with legs the width and firmness of tree trunks. I’m pressed down across them, stretched out over the rough material of his armored combat pants. They’re designed out of armored microfilaments and Kevlar mesh – built to deflect the power and sharpness of Scorp claws – and the material is harsh against my bare skin.
I shiver. Making this situation even more humiliating is how it’s not playing out as I’d anticipated. I’d been expecting Captain Aelon to do the honors – he looked like the kind of proud, preening bastard who’d delight in it.
It would have been particularly embarrassing to be spanked by that smug captain – but this is so unexpected that I’m not even sure how to react to it.
Vinicus is intimidating in a baser way. I barely know this huge, looming Aurelian, and I have no idea what to expect from him. I test him, shifting in his lap…
…and then gasp as he effortlessly pins me down, with one hand placed on the small of my back.
It’s barely an effort for him. The huge alien is so strong and powerful that he can do whatever he likes to me, and there’d be nothing I could do to stop him. I’m so powerless.
As I lie across Vinicus’s lap, Captain Aelon steps in front of me, blocking my view of the crowd for a moment.
I look up, fire in my eyes, but he remains unperturbed – studying me with those imperious, slate-grey eyes.
Vinicus holds me in his lap, and I have to turn my head to the right to meet
