The Moon Is Down

(Seeking a new writer for this thread or for beginning a new thread. If interested, send me a PM. Updated 12 July 2014)

Don’t set the world on fire. From quotes to song it remained a strong line of advice, a warning. But so many had assumed the match would be struck by human fingers rather than the tight grip of the sky.

An asteroid sunk into South Africa off the Cape of Good Hope, instantly obliterating the world of infrastructure and culture the Europeans had introduced to the mangy territory. Railroads were warped, melted, and electricity had flashed off one final time. Waves washed deep inland, sweeping away threatened species, the poachers who hunted them and yet-to-be-discovered tribes.

The tidal forces that followed swarmed, gaining speed until waves consumed Madagascar, on their way to destroy the population centers along coastal India. Only the rocky terrain, a gift from the Himalayas, spared the protected eastern and northern sides. With only an hour of separation, Australia followed suit, lacking the kind of geographical protection offered by their Asian neighbors. And in the same instant, much of the Dutch East Indies were swept away.

Few coasts were safe. But what was worse wasn’t the fireball screaming from the sky or the waves spreading in violent concentric circles; it was the debris thrown into the air, stuck in the sky like white-speckled stars. Over time, even though stars would be virtually impossible to find.

Over the few years that stumbled after the event, the only thing that failed faster than established governments were harvests. Starvation ran rampant, crime exploded and national borders dissolved. The Communists initially proclaimed victory but Anarchy won the day. When it came down to the wire, only the band, tribe, or if you were lucky enough to be penned in, the city you were a part of was all that mattered.

Allen Sparks had earned his Hollywood Public Service badge the year before in 1934, four years after The Collision, two after the US Government began treating the West like a territory and one year after the state government became non-existent. The Wild West had reclaimed its name but people like Allen Sparks were hired to reclaim the street.

It wasn’t that Allen had the credentials. He was available. And he was a resident of the city.

Before the fateful impact, Allen was an actor. He’d found his face more than a few times on the silver screen but he had yet to be labeled a leading man. Jet black hair, looks comparable only to Valentino and a voice ripe for the “talkies”, he was one of many happy to put actors like Chaplin out of work.

But things had changed. Now he was tasked with rooting out undesireables from their homes in Hollywood and to throw them outside the city’s freshly built walls. It took some time to acclimate himself to his new position but he came to accept, and then adore it. The power he held over others combined with the fact that he was one of a few who had the freedom to do almost anything he desired was overwhelming. He’d finally made it in Hollywood.

After arriving to work in the morning, one of the few buildings left that were permitted electricity, Allen was given a card at his desk. It had the apartment complex, a room number and a name. Since she was single and female, he was left alone. Not that he’d need backup to decide whether a single woman would be a threat to the future of the city, Allen stood up and took care his weapon remained at his side. It was a carefully cared for weapon, considering the lack of resources to replace it.

He wasn’t high enough on the caste yet to demand a car, few of which were permitted to run on the street due to fuel shortages. The last transports had come earlier in the year and demand had all but sucked the tanks dry. Horses were needed but they cost food for the people and couldn’t be housed thus virtually all went by foot.

Once at the prescribed place, Allen climbed the stairs three floors until he reached the specific number on the card handed to him. Upon approaching the door he loosened his weapon from its holster should she be housing convicts or squatters. No chances were taken.

Putting away the card, he slipped his hand into his jacket, reaching for his identification. Three hard knocks on the door came one after the other, repetitive in their declaration as he called, “Hollywood Public Service. Open the door or we’ll be forced to make a lawful entry.” Then his hand relaxed, letting his wallet unfold to show his identification card for the peephole in the door. Not only did this prevent her from seeing how many of them were outside her door, it also prevented delay.

“Hollywood Public Service. Open the door or we’ll be forced to make a lawful entry.”

Ava Green got off her daybed and fixed her hair, before she tied her dressing gown securely in place, making sure that the emerald green silk highlighted her figure to its best advantage.

"Goddamnit! Wait, I'm coming!"

She hurried to the door, cursing that she no longer had a staff to take care of her. Almost all the money she had made had been used up, and it was worth little now, in this changed world. The order of life as she knew it had come screaming to a halt with the virtual apocalypse, that the meteor had caused.

Still, she was getting used to it, a little. But she was a survivor. She had done her turn on the casting couch, she was capable of doing whatever she needed to survive. One thing she still had was her drop dead good looks, and killer body. Long, dark hair curled around her shoulders, framing her features, and her 38 - 26 - 36 figure made men drool with desire.

Cigarette smoking in its holder, finished off her appearance, as she flung open the door, and struck a pose.

"Yeah? What do you want?"

She took pleasure in looking the man on the other side of the door up and down, leaving him in no doubt to her disdain. Her silk negligee was covered with its matching dressing gown, but she knew it still showed her curves to perfection, and she was pleased when she noted he was not unaffected.

Allen looked her up and down when she opened the door. The woman was better dressed than other vagrants illegally living within the city’s limits but she was the same nonetheless unless she could prove otherwise.

“Ava Green,” he spoke easily from memory. He knew her well, or rather, her name since they both began rising on the scene at about the same time. There was a connection there even if it were in name only. “May I come in?”

He ignored her answer if she had one. It was clear he didn’t respect her anymore, much less the space she now inhabited. There was a job he had to do and he wasn’t going to give it up. Allen moved across the room until he found her daybed and he dropped his briefcase on top of it. Opening it up he took out a few papers, almost blindly, before closing the case shut once more.

“I have a few questions for you. To find out if you’re legal here, if you’re able to pull your own weight in this new society. So you understand the seriousness of the matter, if you fail, you’ll have to be cast out.”

“Ava Green,”

The fact that he recognised her pleased her greatly, for some stupid reason. there was something vaguely familiar about him, although she could not for the life of her recall who he was.

“May I come in?”

"Stupid question really, we both know I'm not going to try to keep you out, c'mon in, and make yourself at home."

She was glad she had hidden the alcohol she had been drinking, that, and cigarettes were tough to come by, but she refused to do with out.... well, insofar as she had any control.

She frowned as he set his case down on her day bed, and it was an effort to not demand he move it.

“I have a few questions for you. To find out if you’re legal here, if you’re able to pull your own weight in this new society. So you understand the seriousness of the matter, if you fail, you’ll have to be cast out.”

"Do I know you? Were you a fan of mine? Or maybe you worked in Valantino's?"

That was one of her favourite restaurants before the disaster hit. She eyed the papers warily. Reading and writing weren't her strong points. She had made a good living on her looks, not her smarts.

"Shoot. I'm legal here, don't you know who I am?"

He wasn't the first inspector to call, and she had gotten rid of the others, but making sure they were in awe of her, impressed by her former celebrity status, dazzled by her beauty. None had questioned her lies, and each had doffed their hats as they wished her good day, and gone on their way. She was hoping that would continued to work for her. Behave like a pampered princess, and people would treat you accordingly. That was her motto.

"Sure I can pull my weight, now more than ever, we need entertainment, we need to lift spirits, and have something frivilous to enjoy. I'm as essential as doctors and scientists... and lets face it, I look a whole lot better too, right!"

“You may have been legal before but there’s a new rule in town. And you may have slipped by the introductions of a few others but this one is different. I ultimately decide whether you’re legal or not, not some government that no longer has hold here.” Allen looked her up and down after speaking, only now finally getting that good look he’d only remembered from a time that no longer seemed to exist.

“And I’m Allen Sparks,” he added offhandedly, “Do you mind if I sit?” And as much consideration as he gave to her when he asked if he could enter, he sat on her daybed without waiting her answer.

“Look, Miss Green,” he spoke as he glanced away from her to his papers momentarily, “Entertainers in this town are littering the streets. Some are so desperate to perform, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, they’re doing it for nothing out in the streets. Some may be better than others but in this world we have to settle on practical matters, not something like acting. Something like that doesn’t matter so much in this society anymore.”

Allen sighed before looking at his papers, setting them aside as he continued, “I can see you’re not a doctor, scientist or even a laborer. Your talents seem rather limited and match many of those already here so even if you were to search for work, I think it would be hard for you to find. There just isn’t that much out there right now and there won’t be for some time. And by the time that happens you’ll long be declared an outcast and have been thrown out of the city’s limits. But there is something I can do for you.”

Moving from the bed and onto his feet he straightened his jacket as he went on, “I’m important enough where I can bring someone along with me if I want. Hire them. I could do this for you out of respect of who you used to be but you would have to understand the job. It wouldn’t be only taking messages, retrieving things or aiding me in other ways with my occupation. I’d want your body, too. Whenever its asked for with no questions asked by you. If you can’t do that then I have the papers I can finish filling out at my office and I can have you removed from the city by the end of today’s light. If you accept my offer then there are a different set of papers I could fill out. The choice is yours.”

His manners were but a thin veneer of civilisation covering someone who was anything but a gentleman. She should have known better - the better things in life, manners, respect, deference to stars.... that was gone, almost completely. He sat, without waiting to be asked, and it irked her, and she had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from demanding he leave. Of course, she knew that would be a waste of breath, and she chose not to have that particular argument.

“ I ultimately decide whether you’re legal or not, not some government that no longer has hold here.”

She absorbed that bit of information. Of course, she had heard similar from others. He wanted something, they all did. Might as well let him get to it. He introduced himself off handedly, and then sat, without waiting to be invited to do so. She ground her teeth, furious at the discourtesy.


“Look, Miss Green, Entertainers in this town are littering the streets. Some are so desperate to perform, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, they’re doing it for nothing out in the streets. Some may be better than others but in this world we have to settle on practical matters, not something like acting. Something like that doesn’t matter so much in this society anymore.”

"That may be so, Mr Sparks, but I'm far from an entertainer, as you so disparagingly put it, I am an artiste!"

She began to rattle off the accolades she had gotten in the papers years before, citations for her unparalleled beauty, her screen presence, the way she carried the movie. He seemed unimpressed, and that infuriated her. but it was worse, he went on to insinuate that she was not essential to life in this new order, this post apocalyptic world.

"Life without art, with out entertainment is poor indeed. It is the very measure of civilisation, something that has been an intragal part of every society from the most primitive times, growing in more advanced civilisations - the Greek and Roman empires, the ancient Egyptians. Was not the Renaissance a rebirth of art, literature and culture? Surely we are not now about to cast ourselves back into the dark ages??? Can you not see how essential artists such as I am to the new order??"

Her tone had turned haughty, and the fact that he sat allowed her to look down her nose at him. Perhaps he felt it, because he stood, and approached her.

“I’m important enough where I can bring someone along with me if I want. Hire them. I could do this for you out of respect of who you used to be but you would have to understand the job. It wouldn’t be only taking messages, retrieving things or aiding me in other ways with my occupation. I’d want your body, too. Whenever its asked for with no questions asked by you. If you can’t do that then I have the papers I can finish filling out at my office and I can have you removed from the city by the end of today’s light. If you accept my offer then there are a different set of papers I could fill out. The choice is yours.”

Her mouth fell open in utter disbelief. This was NOT happening!!! She strode rapidly away from him, intending to send him dismissively on his way, but then realisation hit. The world no longer worshipped her. She no longer had the influence she once had, and logically, she might hate it, but she knew he was right. If Sparks decided to throw her out, make her an outcast, her life would be intolerable. Most of the masses would have flocked in and earlier time, to the cinema, to see her perform. They would rape her, pure and simple. One after another they would fall on her, and as much as she hated his suggestion, she knew it was most likely the best offer she would get. Still, now that he had said his name, she found that she did recall him. He had been on the up and up when disaster hit. They had even been in the same movie once, not that they had met, or anything. She was the star, and he had a bit part. It would offend her on every level to agree to what he offered. But what option did she have.

"What do you have in mind?"

“Life without art is productivity,” he returned. “The Arts only become important, they only apply to great civilizations. Have you taken a step outside this apartment since the day the disaster reached the city limits? If you had you wouldn’t claim that acting is such a great thing. Not in this world, not anymore. We have to adapt to our new surroundings and The Arts, acting, isn’t a part of it.”

As Ava strode away, seemingly to get away from him, Allen held his ground. Setting his eyes on her he watched her as she paused and he wondered how deep her thoughts ran. How deep the girl actually thought. There was little doubt that there had to be some substance to her but he knew there were many rising or risen starlets who thought little and did much to get where they were. He surmised that she had to be thinking about what he was going to offer.

And then it came. Those words. “Before we make an agreement, I’m going to have to see your body. Nude.”

She was angered by his dismissal of her skillset. And his accusation stung... most especially, because she knew it to be accurate. She had remained coccooned inside her apartment, avoiding the great unwashed masses, who scrabbled desperately for every little thing. She had plenty, and she had managed to keep that. But she wasn't a fool, and she knew that her supplies were dwindling, and her loyal fans, who had initially ensured that she had things when no one else did, had abandoned her too. Her back was to the wall, metaphorically, and she knew it.

She had walked away from him, keeping her back to him, both out of annoyance with him, and a desire to show her disrespect, but also, because she needed to think, and he struck her as astute, and she had no desire for him to have any awareness of her thought process. His voice disrupted her train of thought.


“Before we make an agreement, I’m going to have to see your body. Nude.”


What??? She wanted to laugh at him, to dismiss him, and years of being a diva urged her to do just that. But she was nothing if not a survivor, and she knew that in the current circumstances, she needed friends in high places, she needed to attach herself to someone who could keep her alive, and in relative comfort. That person, she knew, was Allen Sparks.... much as she hated to admit it.

Nor did she want him to know that his demand offended her. Instead, she spun on her heel, and struck a pose, giving him her most winning smile.

"Of course Darling!"

And with that, she unknotted the robe, and allowed it to slide off her shoulders, before she slowly slide the shoulder straps of her negligee off her shoulder, one at a time, and then she wriggled, allowed it to slither down her body, baring her from the neck down, until she stood in a puddle of silk, wearing nothing save her fluffy mules. She left them on, knowing that the heel elongated her legs, and showed her body to its best.

Not once did her smile falter, and she lifted her hands, linking her fingers behind her head, knowing that it lifted her full breasts, showing them to best advantage.

"Well, Darling, I know you like what you see! Am I as stunning, or more so than you imagined??"

Allen’s eyes stayed on the woman as she put on her personal little show. She’d suffer a fall before it was all over. It was only a matter of time. She’d set her pedestal way too high and the base holding up her for so many years was shrinking more and more with everyday. While she undressed Allen decided to take her down at least one more notch. Stars who thought they were the greatest thing for doing nothing but smiling grated on him, moreso now that he had a job with real importance.

Patiently Allen watched as each piece of silk slid from her body, streaming and strewn on the floor around her. As her arms rose behind her head to lift her breasts and she spoke Allen moved across the room to inspect her closer.

“You look fine,” he admitted as he approached her. Without permission he placed his hands upon her breasts, his palms covering her nipples as he felt the weight of her tits. “But you’ve got the same parts as a two bit hooker. Truthfully, you’ll be cheaper.” His hands moved from her breasts, touching upon her skin as they trespassed toward her hips. Moving around behind her he stared at her from behind. Then a quick crack hit their ears as he slapped her ass hard.

“Go to the bed,” he spoke at last, “and we’ll see if you’re worth my time.”

“You look fine,”

Fine?? FINE???? She was exquisite, divine, georgous. She was the stuff of fantasies. Films were carried on her looks alone!!! Furious at the insult she had to grind her teeth, to hold the insults back. It would do her no good, it would be counter productive.

She didn't flinch when he mauled her breasts, weighing them, making her feel like an animal being examined.

“But you’ve got the same parts as a two bit hooker. Truthfully, you’ll be cheaper.”

She was livid! Her face reddened, not just because she was embarrassed, but also because she was angry, and it became increasingly difficult to remain quiet.

He walked around her, reinforcing her impression that she was an animal at a fair being examined before she was purchased, but then he slapped her ass, stinging her, making her jump. It took everything she had to prevent herself from rubbing the sore.

“Go to the bed, and we’ll see if you’re worth my time.”

Bastard!!! She managed to mutter it beneath her breath, and hoped he didn't hear it. She walked to the bed, and climbed on, laying on her back, knees together, and her legs rolled to one side, in a move that was both revealing, yet concealing. She propped her hand under her head, determined to get through this, and to keep her dignity. He would learn to appreciate her, she would make him.

Allen watched her as she strutted toward the bed. The girl seemed to think that she still belonged in movies they were no longer making. If she wanted to stick around, especially at his side, she was going to have to learn a new way to behave. The high society shit was going to get old fast in the new town. Even if he labeled her as something as innocent as his secretary, a term he was sure she’d despise, she was going to be looked at.

After settling into her position he moved toward the bed, his hands grabbing each of her ankles. Without explanation he yanked them apart, pulling her toward the edge of the bed until her ass rested on the edge of it, her legs on either side of him.

His hands rose up along her legs, under her thighs as he spoke, “If you’re going to do this, I need you to drop the airs. Still have some class when you’re in public but don’t overdo it. And understand that when that door is locked, whichever door it is, that you turn into my obedient sex goddess.” Allen slid his hands under her ass, scraping his fingernails hard against her skin as he pulled them away from her body.

With her legs still positioned on either side of him, his fingers worked the button on his pants until he was able to free his hardened cock. He gave her little time to respond before laying its length over her pussy.

“If you’re going to do this, I need you to drop the airs. Still have some class when you’re in public but don’t overdo it. And understand that when that door is locked, whichever door it is, that you turn into my obedient sex goddess.”

She was annoyed at his matter of fact approach to this. She was a star, an icon, and used to men falling at her feet, dancing attendance on her, eager to please her, to do her bidding. This was NOT what she was used to.

Her temper flared, but she tamped it down, knowing that she would not survive if she was cast out. She needed protection, and this man could offer her security, if only she pleased him. But damn him, he was making it hard. If he simply fawned over her a little, she would find it so much easier. She could be magnanimous, and pretend to herself that she was the one with the power. But no, he was determined that she know her place.

He had freed his cock, and had her pulled to the side of the bed, her legs obscenely spread. She reached up, taking him in her hand, then she lifted her hips, positioning him at her entrance, and pulled him toward her, his cock entering her, stretching her, filling her.

She cried out, shocked at his size, suddenly panicked at her ability to take him.

Allen watched her, surprised that she’d take him in herself. He was sure she’d lie there like a dead fish. Then again, she wasn’t getting paid for this act. She was performing for a job, a position only he could give her. He realized maybe he underestimated his fuck girl as his dick disappeared inside her.

Once inside there was no more guidance, no more coercion needed on her end. Allen continued to push against her, sliding deeper and deeper inside. Hearing her cry out did nothing to halt his advance. Gripping her thighs he pulled her closer toward the edge, driving his cock deeper inside her. Only when he was fully lodged inside her, unable to go any farther did he stop.

His hands moved from her thighs, up along her body until they reached her breasts. He held them, pulled them mangled them, sparing no less for her nipples.

Then he looked her in the eye, “Considering how far you were able to get in the business, I expected you to be an easier fit.” A snide smirk rose on his face as his hips withdrew only to slam back inside of her, pummeling for pleasure.

She gasped, as he held her legs and thrust deeper, stopping only when his cockhead was pressing hard against her cervix. She was breathing hard, struggling to accommodate him.

“Considering how far you were able to get in the business, I expected you to be an easier fit.”

She lifted her hand, intent on slapping his face, but realisation of what would happen to her if she did so, stopped her from seeing the slap through and her hand suddenly lost momentum, and fell back on the bed. She was red with humiliation and anger at his insult.

"I was no whore. I am no whore. I am an......."

Her words died off as she realised that she was indeed trading sex for something, right this minute, and that made her a whore, whether she liked it or not. She was no longer an actress either. That frivolity long since ceased. She would be whatever the role demanded. She was a survivor, and she would make herself indispensible to him. Starting now.

She began to moan and writhe, telling him what a big cock he had, and how it pleasured her. She stopped abruptly when silence greeted her, and she thought that perhaps it wasn't what he wanted. She looked at him.

"What??"

Allen ignored her as he thrust in and out of her, taking her, abusing her for what little worth was left in her body. The longer it took the more intensity he gathered and the rougher he treated her. There was little care given to the once prized star. And like so many who had once considered themselves so important, he was fucking her over just like the rest.

Thrusting inside of her he held himself a moment as he came inside her, filling her with his seed. Allen pulled away from her, letting his dick slip out of her pussy. He used one hand to wipe off his cock on her inner thigh until he had given her everything that remained inside him.

“Get dressed, whore,” he spoke simply as he moved away from her. Picking up his clothes he began to dress himself, “I have to show you where you’re going to be working and what you’ll be doing. Other than servicing me and those I send your way.”

His whole manner offended her on every level. The way he fucked her.... almost as though he was.... disinterested. As though she was nothing more than an available cunt in which to sate himself. She bridled at his treatment, but was worldly enough to know that now was not the time for a tantrum.

“Get dressed, whore, I have to show you where you’re going to be working and what you’ll be doing. Other than servicing me and those I send your way.”

The word offended her greatly, but she chose not to make an issue of it now, at least he was taking her with him, he would protect her. Then the rest of his statement sunk in. Servicing me and those I send your way.

She froze.

"What do you mean.... those you send my way? Is it your intention to .... to whore me out???? I thought I was to be your.... um, shall we say, personal assistant??? Surely you wouldn't want others to use me??"

“My personal secretary,” Allen responded simply. When he finally managed to redress himself he looked at himself in one of her full length mirrors. Everything had to be just right before he returned his limited attention to her, “If my sending you out to others is going to increase my chances for promotion or favors, then that’s what I’ll plan to do. You can reject it. Its still a free -” Allen stopped himself. “At least it used to be a free country. But you are free to leave and brave the wild on your own.”

Done with the mirror he returned to her placing himself between those legs of hers. He blatantly looked her over from her bare pussy, exposed tits before his eyes locked onto hers. “It isn’t like you haven’t done this before. And for weaker reasons.”

Then he slapped her thigh before taking a step back, just enough to give her room to stand. “Now get up and get dressed.”

Ava hesitated only a moment. She shrugged. What he said wasn't a hundred million miles off the truth. She had done stuff - before - the casting couch thing to get her roles, and to get better ones. She'd fucked the directors, and the producers, her agent, anyone who could improve her chances. Was this really all that different??

Of course, that had been before she "made it". But times were far more unsettled now than they had been then. If she fucked other guys for him, and it upped his worth, she would be going up that ladder too, so maybe it wasn't all that bad.

She smiled, and gathered her few luxuries, throwing them quickly into a bag. She could have hung on here for another few months, but then what?? This was probably her best offer, and she needed to be practical. No point in clinging to her recently acquired morality.

"You're the boss! I'm ready when you are!"

She hoped that she would be as upbeat as she had managed to sound. She was scared of the unknown, but she knew she needed to exude confidence, to look as though she owned half the world and was on her way to acquire the other half. this was no different to show biz, it was all a sham, and her worth was determined by what others thought of her.

Allen watched her as she prepared to leave. Her upbeat demeanor caught him briefly off guard but it was something he should’ve expected from someone like her. A woman willing to do anything. He’d surely put her to that test.

When she was ready to go he left, letting her follow behind him. Rather than return her to the offices he took her to his apartment home in the once disregarded, but now nicer areas of New Hollywood. Merely a few stories tall he brought her up to the second floor passing a number of doors before reaching his room number. Reaching into his pocket he pulled a out a key, freeing the lock and opening the room to them.

It wasn’t as big as the place she was living in but it was sure as hell safer. A living room, small kitchen, a bedroom, a bathroom and working indoor plumbing meant the place had anyone could ever ask of it. It was good enough in the new world.

“As far as anyone knows, you belong to me. You’re under my care. If anyone comes to you, tries to fuck with you, let me know. I’ll take care of them. But if you try to screw me I’ll throw you to the wolves. You can stay here for now. I’ll finish up my day, come back here when I’m through and bring you to work tomorrow. Make sure you’re ready for action tonight.”

Without another word added, Allen walked away from her. Leaving her there with the door wide open.

She hurried behind him, certain to keep up. She gave one last look at her apartment, her little oasis in the dessert that was the post apocalyptic world, where a new order reigned, something foreign to her. Still, she would miss it, it had been both her home and her prison, as she had been unable to venture outside - it just wasn't safe. They were hardly to his transport when her apartment was set upon by the vultures, creatures who were already scavenging what the could, ransacking her few items, and she felt violated in a way that he had been unable to make her feel.

On the ride to his apartment, she stared out the window, shocked at the world she hadn't seen in years. It was destroyed, like nothing she imagined. She knew there had been destruction, but nothing on this scale, and she found herself huddling closer to him, glad of his protection.

His apartment was............... disappointing, not as nice as hers. She wasn't sure what she had expected, but certainly something .... more. But given the new world, perhaps it was ....... But then her own apartment was gone, her belongings divvied up between those who had ransacked the place.

She looked about and, for the first time saw the security in his accommodations, and she managed a smile, knowing that her very life was dependent on pleasing him.

Allen left her to her own devices as he returned to the vehicle he used for ‘company business.’ Returning to the office he finished filing the paperwork, mentioning that the once prized Ava Green was now going to be his slut/secretary. There were new rules in this world and job placement must be direct, honest.

When he was through with the file he passed it on through the small but growing bureaucratic channels where no doubt any number of people would see what had become of the fallen, missing star. There were a few more calls Allen made throughout the day but they were hardly as exciting or as enticing as the meeting he had with Green.

After evicting two more, sending them through the devil’s gates, to the outer world, to hell, he returned home. The beat down car which was better than most were capable of having these days was parked just outside as he stepped out. Climbing up the stairs to his home he pushed the door open after jostling the keys in the hole and stepped inside. A brief look around the place was given as he shut the door behind him.

Time seemed to stretch out unbearably for Eva as she waited for him, feeling even more vulnerable as she was left alone with her own thoughts.

She wasn't naive, she knew he wanted her body, but she feared that he wanted something more, something she might not be able to give - not freely, anyway. She knew she could allow him the pleasures of her body, without giving away herself. Afterall, she had gotten plenty of exercise on the casting couch. She knew how to fuck, and turn off.

But he wanted more. He wouldn't allow her to tune out. The more she thought on it, the more convinced she was that he wanted not just her body, but her pride, her soul.

Allen returned home in time before the sun fell. Even though a strong force had enabled the majority of Hollywood to be held, the hours in the night still weren’t completely safe. There were too many abandoned buildings, too many lights that couldn’t be lit and a seemingly unlimited supply of undesirables trying to salvage whatever they could, whoever it belonged it. It was the one reason why he was sent out nearly daily to evacuate the surrounding territories.

But tonight he was coming home before sundown not only because he wanted to take another one of tomorrow’s breathes, but there was a little woman he discovered he could easily slide into. Allen failed to knock, instead twisting the key in the hole as he released the lock, shoving the door open.

Tossing his jacket on the chair near the door he dropped his briefcase next to it. Behind him he shut and locked the door as he began to illuminate the room with old lamps populated here and there throughout the room.

“Ava,” he spoke at last. “Why don’t you come in here.”

She had spent the day surreptitiously checking out Allen's apartment, seeking clues as to the man in whose power her life now lay.

Time dragged, but she was impressed by the comfort of the small apartment. Oh, it was nothing like the luxury she had previously enjoyed, but, taking in the context of the conditions within which people now lived, it was more than comfortable.

As the day began to wane, Ava's nerves drew tight. He would be home soon, and then..... what then??? She sensed something in him, it wouldn't be enough to simply supply him with the sex he sought. No, there was something in him, dark corners of his soul that terrified her, and she thought that would demand more from her than she was willing to give. But what choice did she have??? Better a slave to one, than at the mercy of the mob.

If she repeated that frequently enough, she would believe it.... perhaps.

“Ava, Why don’t you come in here.”

She jumped involuntarily, surprised to find that he was now home.

She plastered a smile on her face, and hurried in to meet him.

"Hello Dear! Have a nice day!!!"

Why she was suddenly facetious, she couldn't say, and she glanced worriedly at his face, wondering at his reaction.

Allen looked at her strangely when she came into the room. The girl he had fucked earlier and had dropped off seemed completely different than the girl he found at home. The smile, the act, it wasn’t going to fly around him.

“We’re not married,” he commented as he looked her up and down, “so don’t act like it. The deepest this relationship will go is with you as my part time secretary and full time whore. Only play pretend in public, not private.”

Giving them enough space between the crowded walls Allen spoke, “Come over here and get on your knees.”