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THE FUTURE
By C
PART I
CHAPTER 11
John leaves the processing room viewing area and finds himself in another corridor. Like the previous one, it has large windows on the right overlooking the immaculate grounds. The wall on the left, however, is different with a row of half windows running at shoulder height. Beyond, is a brightly-lit room bustling with activity. It contains various types of gleaming equipment that women are using to cut, slice, grind, and package items of meat. They go about their duties in an efficient manner with a look of professionals. If it wasn’t for ominous objects hanging from large hooks and laying on tables, the operation would appear to be nothing out of the ordinary. The corridor has no facilities for spectators, and it is apparent that the activity is only intended to be viewed while passing by.
After hesitating briefly, John proceeds down the corridor. It is longer than the other and curves around toward the rear of the building. He finally comes to a large set of highly polished wooden double doors. Over the doors, in gold letters, is the word "ARENA". He is unsure what this designation might indicate and tries to prepare himself for whatever might be on the other side. Several women come by, open one of the doors and pass through. He takes a deep breath and follows them inside.
The term "arena" is well suited for the huge room in which John finds himself. It contains numerous rows of plush, padded, seats that slope downward to a circular floor. A large number of the seats are occupied, and the size of the audience far exceeds any he had seen in any other part of the building. It is obvious that it is here that the main attraction is taking place.
John only briefly takes in the size of the audience before his eyes are drawn toward the floor of the arena itself. It consists of white ceramic tile, like that in the processing room, but this hardly registers in his mind. It is the activity taking place that immediately gets his undivided attention. He sees the naked body of a young man, bleeding from a hole in his left breast, being drug by the feet toward an overhead conveyor. The conveyor is obviously the same that he had seen in other parts of the building, and the bleeding bodies of several men, hanging upside down, can be seen before passing beneath the stands. It is moving slowly with the same jerking motion that causes frantic, humiliating, antics to take place between the spread legs.
Two women, walking side by side and each holding a foot, are dragging the body across the floor. The man’s open eyes appear to gaze upward at the bright lights high overhead, and his out flung arms trail behind. The body is leaving a smeared streak of blood that leads to a depressed circle with a drain in the center. The large amount of blood inside of the circle makes it obvious that this is where the death had occurred.
A woman, her face beaming with excitement, stands to one side. She is holding a large bow, and there is little doubt that it had been the instrument of death. There is also little doubt that she was the one responsible. A narrow table stands behind her that has a row of arrows lying upon it. The overhead lights reflect from the bright, razor sharp, points. Other women are standing or moving at various locations. All are wearing identical outfits which consist of short, pink, athletic style skirts and matching, tight fitting, pink tops made from an extremely soft looking material. The freedom with which their breasts jiggle from the slightest movement makes it obvious that none are wearing anything underneath.
This is the startling scene that had greets John upon entering, and, once again, he can only stand and gape in disbelief. He had tried to prepare himself for the possibility that slayings might actually be conducted in public, but, he had not been expecting to find anything coming remotely close to this. The young man had clearly been slain, only moments before, in front of this massive female audience. Nothing that John had seen all day, not even in the processing room, had prepared him to suddenly discover that the women of this society have actually turned the activity of slaughtering men for food into a spectator sport.
John sees movement, out of the corner of his eye, on the opposite side of the arena floor and looks to see what it is. For the first time since his arrival in this future era he finds himself looking at a living human male. There is no difference between this individual and the countless others that he had seen except for being alive. Like the others, he is naked, young, large and muscular, and generously endowed. He is standing between two women and each has a hand on an arm. The women lead him across the floor and stop a short distance from the circular depression. The realization that, after all of this time, he is actually observing a man that is alive makes John look with great interest. The first thing he notices is that the young man appears to be totally unconcerned at being naked in front of a large number of women. The next observation, even more startling, is that the he shows no reaction at seeing a dead body being drug across the floor or those hanging from the conveyor.
The conveyor comes to a stop that causes the hanging bodies to swing back and forth. The two women dragging the man across the floor reach the end, and several others come up and assist in lifting him until he also is hanging upside down. The conveyor starts again, and the jerking action causes the man's vanquished sex to appear to spring to life with the same frantic activity as all the others. Like the rest, they give the impression of being alive and eager to humiliate themselves in front of women's eyes. The young man that was still alive had watched this activity idly, and his only reaction had been one of indifference.
While all of this had been taking place, several women had taken hoses and washed the blood from the floor - leaving the wet tile sparkling white. The women escorting the man lead him into the center of the circular depression, release him, and leave. He stands obediently, making no attempt to move. A woman walks up to the table, selects an arrow, and picks up the bow. John is somewhat surprised to see that she is not the one that had committed the previous deed.
The woman now holding the bow walks forward and stops a short distance in front of the young man. She inserts the notch into the string and pulls it part way back with the arrow pointing toward the floor. She gazes at her victim, and her face starts to register a look of increasing excitement. The man stands calmly and returns her gaze. The fact that he is only moments from death apparently does not bother him in the least. "My God." thinks John, "That poor bastard doesn’t even know what’s going to happen.” The woman turns sideways and takes an archer’s stance as she raises the bow while, at the same time, drawing the arrow back to its full length. She tilts her head, sights down the shaft, and aims the gleaming point.
John finds himself unable to turn away. He realizes that the death of this young man is imminent and that he is actually going to witness it. A strange feeling comes over him that he is unable to control. In spite of his shock and revulsion, he begins to experience a strange sensation of fascination in knowing that the young, healthy body of the man below is within moments of being dead.
The woman hesitates only briefly before releasing the bow. There is a swishing sound, followed by a thud, and a slicing sound as the arrow buries itself in the left breast. The woman's aim was true. The arrow pierced the heart and penetrated the chest completely. It protrudes from the left shoulder blade, and the point, that had sparkled so brightly moments before, is dark red. The man utters a brief, startled cry that is cut short by a gurgling sound. All of the sounds had been so clear that it is obvious that sensitive microphones had been nearby. For a brief moment he stands as though nothing had happened. The only change in his appearance is a stunned, open mouthed, expression on his face. Suddenly, his knees buckle, and he falls backward. His body makes a loud thud and slapping sound as it hits the wet tile.
John is startled when, moments later, the body suddenly heaves upward in a violent spasm. Numerous others quickly follow, and the lifeless body begins to jerk rapidly. The movement causes the limp penis to flop in all directions with jouncing testicles doing the same. John is totally unaware that his eyes had been instinctively drawn to the humiliating antics of the male organs. The jerking begins to subside and gradually decrease until, after several final twitches, they stop completely. The body ends up lying on its side with the genitals draped over one thigh.
The woman walks up and, with an air of triumphant pride, looks at her vanquished victim. She puts a right foot on his shoulder and, in a manner showing utter disdain, gives a shove causing his body to roll heavily on its back and fling a limp arm outward. Still using her feet, she forces the legs apart, and then, with the tow of her shoe, lifts the penis until it is pointing up at her. She utters a short laugh as she flips it away.
She then turns and walks to the same spot where the previous woman had been standing when John had first entered. The two women that had led the man to the spot where he died step forward, pull the arrow from his chest, pick up his feet, and start dragging him across the floor - leaving a trail of smeared blood. It is not long before he also is hanging upside-down with his sex flopping frantically in every direction.
Another young man had been led into the arena during this process. The scene that John had previously witnessed is obviously about to be repeated. A different woman steps forward and picks up an arrow and the bow. It is not long before the body of this next victim is lying on the floor and jerking in the same humiliating manner.
John can only stand and gape as the activity is repeated again and again with endless regularity. All of the women are obviously skilled in the use of a bow and arrow. Each time, the arrows strike the center of the hearts. Each time, they completely penetrate the chests so that bloodstained points are visible protruding from naked backs. Each time, death is instantaneous. John is unable to control a tingling sensation of mesmerizing fascination that grips him moments before witnessing yet another a human male suffer a sudden and violent death.
All of the victims actions are the same. None show either embarrassment or fear and appear unaware that death is imminent. Upon being shot, they utter a brief, startled cry that ends in a gurgling sound - their faces register an expression of stunned surprise - they die instantly but continue to stand for several moments, as though nothing had happened, before collapsing to the floor - their bodies begin to jerk in humiliating fashion from spasms caused by the suddenness of death. It is almost as though a performance had been rehearsed, and is being repeated over and over. The only noticeable change is in the individuals on the floor. Each slaying is performed by a different woman who leaves the arena as soon as the body is hanging from the conveyor. Another woman then enters and begins to take part in various activities until she has participated in every one of the functions - her final act being that of killing a man before she also departs.
The age of the participants ranged from young women in their teens to some that were well along in years. This fact, combined with the constant rotation, reminds John that it was the same in the processing room. The comparison makes him suddenly wonder if the men are being slaughtered by members of the general public - everyday, ordinary, women. If this is the case, it leads to an ominous but obvious conclusion. The women leaving the arena would make their way to the processing room and personally butcher the body of the very man they had killed. The more that he thinks about it the more he is convinced he that this is indeed the case.
The souvenir pelt of pubic hair suddenly takes on a much greater significance than merely representing the act of butchering a male’s body. If John is correct, and he feels sure that he is, the souvenir would represent the body of a man that a woman had personally killed with her own hand. Each pelt would be vivid reminder of a personal triumph over the stronger body of a member of the opposite sex. The harsh reality of what this means can not be avoided. As hard as it is for John to comprehend, he has to accept it being possible that every single woman in this female society routinely slays men that are in the prime of life. Such acts, by everyday women, would be the most convincing evidence yet that the word "compassion", as far as the human male is concerned, has absolutely no meaning whatsoever to the members of this female society.
One of these members makes a vivid impression. She is an older woman that appears to be in her late sixties. She has a kindly face and looks to be epitome of a warm, loving, caring grandmother. He would not have thought it possible that such a gentle looking woman could be capable of harming any living creature - to say nothing of willingly taking a human life. Yet, without hesitation, she sends an arrow on its deadly journey and, afterward, beams with pride while looking at her now lifeless victim.
The most difficult of all for John to accept, however, are the actions of the young women in their late teens and early twenties. Even under the extraordinary circumstances, he can not help but admire their beauty. Their lovely, young, faces seem to radiate a look of youthful innocence, and, like the gentle looking elderly woman, appear to be totally incapable of harming a living creature. Not only is this appearance proven to be false, time after time in dramatic and devastating fashion, but the unrestrained enthusiasm and excitement being displayed far exceeds that of any of the other women. The exuberance makes it clear that they are enjoying themselves to the fullest and having the time of their young lives.
John has no idea how long he stands staring at the floor of the arena, totally engrossed by the activity on its white surface. He also has lost all track of the number of men that he had seen die. He had been aware of applause, laughter, and other crowd noises coming from the audience, but, except for a brief glance upon first entering, he had given them little thought. His undivided attention had been riveted at what was taking place below. His confused mind continuously reeled from experiencing a variety of changing emotions that ranged from profound shock and outrage to that of an eerie fascination flooding over him moments before witnessing yet another death. It is only gradually that he is finally able to calm down enough to begin wondering about the reactions of the audience.
The emotions that John sees the women spectators displaying shock him beyond belief. They appear to radiate with defiant looks of feminine pride that are far more intense than he had seen earlier. But, as intense as they were, they were overshadowed by unmistakable expressions that can only be seen on the faces of women who are in an extreme state of sexual arousal. Everywhere he looks he sees women with hands under their skirts who are openly masturbating. Time after time, he sees bodies jerk and quiver in the mist of violent organisms. Quite often, after only a short pause, many begin again. All around him, he hears the groans and outcries that only a woman can make when experiencing extreme sexual excitement. He had heard these sounds earlier, intermingled with other crowd noises, but had been too engrossed in the activity taking place below to recognize them for what they were.
It does not take him long to notice that most of the organisms occur moments after a man has been slain and while his body is still jerking. It appears obvious that seeing naked men being killed is the part that arouses the greatest excitement. During the climaxes, instead of closing their eyes, most of the women keep them riveted on the frantic, humiliating, antics taking place between lifeless legs. The intensity of repeated climaxes noticeably increase until, finally, the female bodies appear to almost explode in achieving the ultimate organism. Afterward, the women sit back for a while, completely drained, with a dreamy, satisfied, look of contentment that is so distinct on a woman's face after she has received total, sexual, fulfillment.
It does not take long, however, for them to again get caught up in the excitement of watching the continuing activity. This time, the enthusiasm appears to be more amusement and pride than sexual. They grow quite just before the moment of death, and they appear to hold their breaths while eyes sparkle with a looks of excited anticipation. They cheer and applaud the loudest when the arrows strike home, and the laughter is always the greatest when the suddenly lifeless bodies are humiliating themselves in ultimate defeat. Quite often, laughter becomes so intense that tears roll down cheeks.
John is completely bewildered as to why women would become sexually aroused, to an extreme degree, from watching such bloody atrocities taking place. And afterward, to make it even worse, to sit back and laugh with uncontrollable merriment while watching men die.
The thought suddenly comes to him that he also is a man. If he had had the misfortune to be born in this future era his fate would be sealed - condemned to be killed by a woman at a young age and his body humiliated and butchered for food in front of women spectators – and, all of this to happen for no other reason than being born a male. The combined sounds of feminine laughter and moans of sexual excitement begin to echo through his head. He starts to feel dizzy and murky images of hundreds of women's faces, every one of them laughing, enters his mind. Each one of them is looking directly at him – laughing directly at him - mocking his sex as well as him personally. He feels that he must get out of this place as soon as possible or surely loose his sanity. He looks around wildly for a way out and gratefully sees an exit close by. He rushes toward it and is soon outside with the sounds of mocking laughter still ringing in his head.
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