//------------------------------// // 191. Orchid Bloom // Story: Short Shorts // by Coranth //------------------------------// Orchid Bloom was, to put it delicately, a broken mare. Hailing from a bizzare town where ponies lived the horrifying concept of "Total Power Exchange" - that is, the complete giving of control of one's life to another - after I'd healed her many, many bruises and broken bones, she'd promptly declared herself mine. I was her new Master. For a High Templar such as myself, completely free and in control of my own life (aside from serving Aiur as her Ambassador to Earth) I found this a horrifying concept. Why would ponies do this?! Thus, I tried - very, very gently - to break Orchid Bloom of her conditioning, and tried to teach the little pegasus mare of the concept of freedom. Though she greatly appreciated that I was a kind Master - far kinder than any she'd ever had before - when she discovered that I was working to eventually set her free... she was devastated! "[No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no...!"] she whinnied in ponytongue, then burst into heart-wrenching tears, bawling foal-like as I held her close, rocking her like a babe, always stroking my hands through her silver-blue fur and blood-red mane. ["Orchid Bloom has been a bad pony, a bad, bad, pony; Orchid Bloom has failed her Master...!"] I held her until she fell silent, then - after washing her face and ensuring her teeth were properly brushed I placed her in the basket beside my bed then went to bed myself, and dreamed troubling dreams. In the days that followed, as I secluded myself to meditate and reflect, poor Orchid lapsed into a deep depression. She would not eat. She would not drink. She would not sleep. Not unless I forced her to, and when I did she ate mechanically, her eyes dull, her normally wagging tail listless. I... could not understand what I had done wrong! Did she not want freedom? Cursing myself, damning myself - feeling Adun frowning upon me - I snapped my fingers to get her attention, then when she raised her head to look at me glumly I barked at her softly in Khalani, "Orchid Bloom, I... accept you - probationally - as my Companion Mare. I am your Master, you are my Mare, and you will obey me! Issah,tzu!" The effect on poor Orchid Bloom was amazing; her eyes seemed to fill with life, her tail began to wag with a mind of its own, and she leaped to her hooves, wings half-furl, jaw dropped in a smile! Then, as I had commanded, she stood at attention, waiting. "Come," I snapped in Equestrian and with a near-euphoric whinny she did, leaping into my lap to lick my face and nuzzle, nuzzle, nuzzle, nickering with soft delight, eyes shining with unshed happy tears. "[Orchid knows of the concept of 'freedom'"] she explained to me later as I brushed her mane, ["but she does not want it! Orchid adores belonging to Master David! Orchid adores being his pet, and wishes..."] here she blushed, deeply embarrassed, ["and wishes he would let her be more … but what Orchid has is amazing! Orchid loves being fed by you, loves playing with you, loves being washed and bathed and dried and petted, and, and..."] she sniffled, pressing close to me, resting her head against my chest as I held her, feeling her little heart beat beneath her fur. Then, a moment later, her voice breaking with a softened sob, Orchid softly chanted, ["Master David is my Master! There are no Masters like Him, and He is Mine! My Life is His, my Body is His, my Spirit is His. I enrich my own life only as a way to better serve Him. I become strong such that my strength will become His strength. I learn only such that my knowledge become His knowledge. I become wise such that my wisdom will become His wisdom. Without this one, Master David is lonely. Without Master David, I am lost. I will serve him; I will... Freedom is abhorrent. Freedom is loneliness. Freedom is choice. Freedom is Death! Thus I will serve my Master, even if He should spurn me, for I am His Pony. I will serve Him; I will... I will learn His strengths, and His weaknesses, His joys and His sorrows, His likes and dislikes that they become mine. I will keep His house clean even as he bathes me and keeps me clean. I will keep His secrets even as I share with Him mine. I will soothe and comfort Him even as He strokes my coat, and runs His hands through my unworthy mane. My body is His if He should desire it. I will become part of Him; I will... Before my Master David I swear this creed. My Life is His, my Body is His, my Spirit is His. He is my Master; I am His Pony; He is the Saviour of my Life; I am the Companion in His. I say it is so until the Princesses die."] Then, as I nodded, and softly told her "I... accept," she wrapped her legs and wings around me and squeezed gently, resting her head against my chest. Though she had utterly spurned my attempts to set her free - and was determined to be my servant, companion, and pet in all but name - I still offered her as much kindness and, well, "freedom" as I could, through the form of a set of Rights. "You have the Right of Speech" I stated with commanding tone, "that is: you are always permitted to speak your mind. If you like or do not like something, if you are happy or unhappy, if you want or need anything, if you have an opinion about something... if you have anything you wish to say at all, then you may speak your mind; even if what you have to say might be something I don't want to hear. I will never be angry with you at all for anything you have to say, Orchid." When Orchid gasped softly, eyes wide, I continued, "You have the Right of Protection; that is: since you are determined to be... to be mine, I will protect you with all that I am--from all that would cause you harm if possible, from other so-called Masters, and even from the Princesses if necessary." With commanding tone, I continued, "You have the Right of Exploration, that is: you may leave the Weyr at any time, to go off and explore on your own; the Weyr and all lands around are yours to explore as you wish, though - since we are in the Everfree - you will not venture too far from the Nexus, and you will never explore deep into the Everfree without either myself or an Observer at your side." Though she would, of course, never leave my side, little Orchid Bloom gave an appreciative nod, as I continued, "You have the Right of Necessity, that is: you will always have access to food, drink, and shelter. This matters not whether you have been "good" or "bad"; as your Master, I will never deny you these." Trembling in my lap, eyes misting with unshed tears, little Orchid whimpered, barely holding herself together. "You have the Right of Hygiene" I stated. "That is: I will ensure that you are bathed regularly, that your mane and tail are brushed, and that your teeth are clean. If I am ever not there to do so, then you are, of course, permitted to use the Weyrhome Facilities to clean yourself." As the tiniest of sobs escaped the pegasus mare, I issued her the final Right. "Lastly," I stated, "you have the Right of Medicine, that is: you will always have access to premium medical care, should you ever become sick, or hurt. Not only will you have access to my skills of Battlefield Medicine and Surgery, Orchid, but you will also always have access to the Sickbay of Weyrhome." Orchid was overwhelmed. Never had she been offered so much from a Master without a 'catch'! Never had she been treated so well! Never had she been so well-cleaned and groomed. And these Rights... Never, ever, ever had a Master offered her these. When David intoned to her those final, utterly commanding Words, "These Rights I have stated to you are unalienable. This means they can never be taken away from you. Not by me. Not by other Masters. Not even by the Princesses. Though... I know they wouldn't!" He chuckled and she half-laughed, half-sobbed along with him, before he looked into her eyes and asked, "Do you accept these Rights I have given you?" ["Ye-he-heeesss!"] Orchid cried, then burst into happy tears. Her life was complete. She had found the ultimate, the Final Master. One whom she would live for, of course... and yet, one whom she would happily, easily die for, if it came to that. Deep in her heart, she knew it would never come to that. Orchid knew the human, David, would give his life to protect her own; thus, she vowed to uphold her own Servingmare's Creed to the very best of her abilities. During the following month - as Orchid Bloom, now under my care, 'found' and stabilized herself - she effectively became my Butler as she followed her Servingmare's Creed to the letter! Once I'd taught her how to properly use the Dragon Weyr's Replicators - instead of dressing herself in the outfit of a maid, or worse, a slave as I'd expected her to - she fashioned for herself the Uniform that a male Butler might wear, complete with pristine polished hoof-shoes! After seeing the replicator in the small kitchenette - and learning what it was for - as I watched on, bemused, she blew up at the Weyrmind, all but demanding that a proper kitchen be built where she might cook healthy meals for me herself! Amusement/Humor filled my thoughts as the Weyrmind acceded to the requests of the bold little pegasus mare dressed with consummate elegance in her suit. By day, she was truly the Majordomo of the Weyr - supervising the probes as they maintained the place, cooking my meals, keeping my schedule as I went about my days and acting as first point of contact to any pony visitors. By night, however - after completing her ablutions, ensuring her uniform was neatly pressed and folded, and that her boots were properly polished for the next day - as was her custom she shared my bed, spooning with me, pressing her back against me and ensuring that one of my arms was always wrapped over her body, molding herself to me so perfectly that we might well have been one entity. This way, abed with me, she slept deeply and easily, a smile on her face, eyes closed as she nickered gently, shifting subtly, lost within happy dreams.