Attitude Adjustment 101

Posted on Fri Aug 1st, 2025 @ 5:58am by Commander Samantha Howard & Commander Jonathan Grayson

2,703 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Wounds From the Mirror
Location: USS Saber
Timeline: After Welcome to MY Parlor

Mirror Jon and San arrived in the USS Saber's transporter room. Stepping off the pad, he jerked harshly on the leash that was connected to Sam's slaver collar. "Come along Sam, time's awasting and we have lots to do." He taunted her as they exited the transporter room.

Jon walked her slowly down the Saber's corridors, so all could see her dilemma. Sam was bound hand and foot. A slave collar was tight around her neck and a gag cruelly filled her mouth. She could only take small steps due to the shackles locked around her ankles. Jon savored every moment of her humiliation and grinned in anticipation of what was to come. for the Washington's CMO.

Sam's body acted from the beqting she had received previously, and the manacles rubbed harshly against her skin. Still, her head was high and her eyes flashed defiantly, refusing to give in to this madman. When the time came, he would pay the price for his own attitude.

Mirror Jon continued his slow walk , wanting to maximize Sam's humiliation. He gave her leash another tug and saw her eyes flash with anger above her gag. "Come along Sam, we're almost to our destination and you're going to really get a charge out of it, In fact I'm betting it's going to be the death of you." He chuckled maniacally.

There were a hundred smart arsed replies, all of them measured perfectly for weight and impact but the gag made it impossible to let any of them fly. She wished desperately to have some means of escape, even to trip him up, but the shackles made it impossible. She continued to hold her head high in defiance and would start down any attempt to break her further.

After a long slow trek through the ship Jon and Sam reached Sickbay which was deserted. "Hmm odd." Jon mused but did give it much thought. He jerked the leash savagely to get Sam to come to his side. "Computer activate EMH" An instant later the holographic appeared. "Please state the nature of the medical emergency." Jon grinned. "I have here Dr. Samantha Howard, chief medical officer of the USS Washington or I should say former chief medical officer as you can see she had been removed.

"Yes. I see that." The EMH replied.

"Recreate a rack and restrain the good doctor to it securely. She needs an attitude adjustment." Jon instructed.

"As you wish." The EMH replied coolly as a medieval torture rack was now in the middle of Sickbay. he grabbed Sam by the elbow and led her to the rack. "The rack awaits you Doctor." As he pushed Sam down on it and began exchanging the binds that held her for the binds on the rack. In a matter of mere moments Sam was stretched taunt on the rack.

"Now we can have some fun." Jon chuckled as he looked down on her.

Sam's spine popped as the pressure was applied, her body protesting as it was stretched beyond its comfortable norm. She winced but otherwise displayed no emotion.

Jon. smiled down at her. "Oh such delicious anger in your eyes Sam. You look like you have something to say." He chuckled ad he reached for her gag and loosened it enough to pull it out of her mouth and he let it fall around her neck. "There, now before we get started what's on your mind Sam?:

"How I'm going to wring your neck like a chicken when i get out of here" Sam grimaced as her shoulders protested against the strain. Her glare was intense but warranted. Inwardly she wished for a way out of this mess.

Jon chuckled at her comment, "Ah! The witty banter of Samantha Howard. Let's see how witty you feel after we're done here." As he turned the wheel to stretch Sam a little more. He looked at the EMH, "Monitor her, I don't want her passing out or dying. I want her to experience all of what is coming."

It was as odd feeling, running a clinical mental catalogue of what part of her body would fail first. It kept her mind busy, running through all the different joints, naming the components and marking them with a relative probability of dislocation. The pain was intense but she retreated into her mind, something that had served her in the past. Deep breaths while she could still expand her ribcage, then back to naming every muscle, tendon, bone and ligament. Analysing, rationalising, anything to keep her mind from what was going on.

Jon reached down and slapped her face...hard. "Pay attention Sam." He ordered, "No, cheating trying to divert mind from what is going on. You stay here in the here and now." As he finished, he turned the wheel, stretching her another inch, lengthening her spine and pulling her arms further from her sockets. He then began whistling the tune Whistle while you work."

'Left shoulder' she mused idley as an unbearable level of tension was applied to her restraints. She had several torn muscles and ligaments from several years ago, repaired yes, but some things never went back as good as the original. It was a weakness that she hadn't felt would be exploited like this. She felt it let go, the ball pulling from the socket and taking a good chunk of ligament with it. She couldn't bite back the cry and hated herself for it.

Jon smiled maniacally down at her. "Oh, that's it Sam. Let it out, don't hold back. We have so much more to do." He taunted her but didn't turn the wheel. Instead he spoke to the computer. "Computer, replicate one Klingon painstick."
An instant later, a painstick was in his hand. "Look Sam, a Klingon painstick. Let's see how well you dance." As he turned the stick on a low power setting on and jabbed it into her side and watched her reaction.

With thr restraints pulling her body taunt, she couldn't even move to avoid it, her body shuddered as the pain stick found its mark against the taunt flesh of her midsection. The movement caused her shoulder to scream and she bit back a whimper. The pain was too much, and she didn't know when it would end. "You sick bastard" she swore through gritted teeth as she tried to catch her breath.

Jon continued to whistle absently while applying the painstick to Sam's abdomen and watching her jerk in her restraints, only stopping when Sam swore at him. "You weren't listening before Sam. I told you I would crush your spirit." With that he turned the painstick settling up another notch. "Let's see what this setting does." As with great relish, he jabbed the stick back back on her stomach. Watching with maniacal glee as Sam twitched and jerked in vain to avoid the stick.


She tried in vein to avoid the pain, trapped within the confines of the rack and her already weakening body. There was a mad gleam in Jon's eyes and Sam.knew that he wasn't going to quit anytime soon. She bit back another scream, biting the inside of her cheek until it drew blood. There was much that the human body could endure, but this was not far from the upper limits.

Jon removed the painstick from Sam's stomach, allowing her a momentary reprieve but only a moment as the stick was placed under her arm and pressed into the soft skin there. He saw her trying to repress a scream. "No, no Sam. none of that, let it out." He taunted her as he pressed the painstick harder against the soft, vulnerable skin. "Dance Sam." He ordered.

She couldn't bite back the scream, he seemed to know exactly where to exploit the most pain and suffering. Her vision began to cloud and she welcomed the peace that unconsciousness would bring.

The EMH was at Sam's side placing the hypo against her neck and injecting something into her. "A stimulant to keep you awake." He announced emotionlessly. He looked at Jon. "You may continue."

Jon nodded, "I want her fully awake to experience everything that is happening to her." He told the EMH while looking down at Sam.

Sam's eyes snapped open as the stimulant fought with her aching body. Heck even her eyelashes hurt at this point. "You won't get away with this, they'll find you, and they'll kill you" there was a brightness of defiance that she knew would cause her more pain. Then again, the sooner this was over the sooner she wouldn’t be alive to feel it.

"Now Sam, you may be right but let's not think about what might happen, let's concentrate on what will happen when I place the painstick behind your knee. I bet you can really do some twistin and turnin. Let's see if I'm right." As Jon placed the painstick behind her knee and turned the setting another click higher.

Dignity had left rhe room, followed by decorum and by rapidly succession her voice. "Why...?" Thebworse were hoarse through a throat from from screams. The rack kept her body painfully taunt, her shoulder screamed and the other threatened to pop whenever her body jerked from the painstick.

Jon stopped his torture at hearing Sam's hoarse question. "Why?" He repeated. "Hoe about why not? Your smart, attractive and hold a high position. Which makes you perfect to be taken down a few pegs. We've been watching all of you, we know your habits, your likes and dislikes. Like you Sam, you hate the EMH so what better way to bring you down than have him work on you. Plus leading you with a slave collar and leash, gagged keeping your smart mouth shut and bound was just too good to pass by. Would you like to see the images?" He taunted her.

She closed her eyes against the torment. There will little else to do, breathe and wait for it to be over. Logic could not win over ego, and here the ego most definitely reigned supreme. Would she give up? No, but would he break her, mentally and physically? Maybe. Her breath shuddered as her body struggled with the insanely brutal treatment, adrenaline and cortisol maxing out as the ancient instinct of fight or flight were both cruely taken away.

He slapped her cheeks. "No drifting off Sam. Want you in the here and now so you can get the full experience and not miss anything." He told her is a conversationalist tone of voice as the painstick glided over her taunt body before settling at her thigh. he called the EMH. Set her up for the water torture test. One drop on her forehead. It will drive her mad." He observed.

"As you wish," The EMH replied and manufacture a facet and positioned it directly over Sam's forehead. A strap was affixed across her neck to keep her head still. Then the facet was turned on an a single drop of water fell on her forehead which was followed by another a few seconds later.

Sam's body still screamed at her, the dislocated shoulder demanding most of her attention. With the machine strapped only a few centimetres from.her forehead she dreaded what would come next. A drip, a beat, another, a beat. The steady trickle of water down her bruised face and into her matted hair. It became hypnotic, the measure of time.betwrrn te drips precise, something she could focus on.

Jon watched as the drops fell on Sam's head in a steady, rhythmic pattern, soon it would feel like the drops were boring into her brain. eating right through her skull, driving her mad in the process. He smiled in grim satisfaction as he watched her, strapped onto the rack, helpless to stop any of this. Sam's downfall and destruction was almost complete. The drops hitting her forehead and then running off her head and into her eyes and down her cheeks.

Minutes were ok. The first time frame she focused on the drops and turned it into a pseudo meditation. As her body tired, her mind rebelled the serenity she was chasing. Still in severe pain her body craved rest but the constant drops would not allow it. Frustration built and she let out an animalistic scream that rattled the walls around them.

He bent down and whispered in her ear. "Losing control Sam? How terribly unprofessional." He cruelly teased her. "But this is only the beginning. For when I'm through you will lose yourself and Doctor Samantha Howard will be no more and like a leaf fallen from a tree will whiter and die."

Sam had lost the ability to verbalise her anger in anything beyond a scream. She had been tortured before, but not like this. This was calculated and meticulous in its ability to rob her mind of sanity and break her spirit and her body.

Jon watched as Sam screamed mindlessly as she was strapped into the rack. Water dripping on her head at a slow, defibrate intervals.

The screams abated after a time her throat hoarse and bleeding. Pained whimpered were all the remained..she was done, mentally and physically.

Jon looked dispassionately at Sam as she lay screaming on the rack. After awhile she stopped and just lay there, a broken husk of a human being. he was about to tighten the rack another notch just for the hell of it when an excited voice came through his combadge. The ship and been boarded as the humans and their allies in this dimension were taking control back. He leaned over Sam and spoke softly, gently, "Sam, I don't know if there is a part of you that can hear me but I'm going to have to leave you as the ship as been boarded and well I don't want to be here when they find you." He smiled darkly, "I do hope we get to meet again and we can finish this." He spoke into his combadge and an instant later he was gone, his escape route already planned out.

Sam watched him go with dead eyes, the drips still drilling into her forehead and then preprogrammed EMH still watching on with a sadistic expression. She was sure he would ensure her death now that the mirror Jon was gone.

"It appears that the water torture is having its desired effect on you." The EMH stated emotionlessly with cool clinical detachment. "It most likely feels like a water fall raining down on your head. I wonder if you are even capable of coherent thought now."

Silence was his only .answer, accompanied by the steady dripping mixed with the tears of a broken woman

The doors to Sickbay opened and Peck glanced inside. Things looked clear from his vantage point, and he looked to Wyatt to see how things looked for him.

Wyatt looked into the room, at first it looked clear and then he saw it. A medieval rack and strapped tightly into it was Doctor Samantha Howard! Alongside her was the Saber EMH standing emotionlessly beside her. He looked closer, there was water dripping on her head. very slowly, a drop at a time every few seconds. "Son of a Bitch!" He exclaimed. Sam looked like she had been through hell. "Peck!" He shouted as he rushed to Sam's side, "Computer deactivate EMH!" He snapped as he turned his attention to Samantha. "Easy Dr. Howard. You are safe now." He said softly as he knocked the water dripping on her head away and began to undo the straps that held her.

Sam was motionless for a few moments, wondering if this was another one of Jon's sick deceptions. The pressure was released from.her body and it instinctively curled inwardly, guarding her injuries and protecting herself from further harm. Someone was speaking to her, kindly even though it was touched with urgency.

"Rest easy Dr. Howard." Wyatt spoke softly and he hoped his voice carried the compassion and concern he felt for the CMO. "We're going to get you back to the Washington, where you can be looked after properly."

TBC

 

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