Bon appe’tit Ch. 6
Introduction:
The darkness continues
The apron guy had strapped me down in the milking rack. I had become so used to this that I think if they stopped doing it I would miss it. The pumps were turned on and the suction tubes were attached to my breasts. My milk started to flow and I felt better. I had a purpose. I had something people wanted and desired. I would have given it freely, they didn’t have to go to this trouble. Even though I was tightly restrained I went into a relaxed state. After some time I heard Mr Yee come in the room and he wasn’t alone.
I sensed a presence next to him but I couldn’t see who it was. I imagined it was the eleventh guy to have sex with me. My pussy was totally open and exposed. The big rings in my labia pulled them down. The last guy had been huge and so I was getting nervous if a bigger cock was about to try to go inside me. Mr Yee came up to me and asked the same question of me he always does. I didn’t even acknowledge him. He moved back behind me and I prepared myself. I then felt something strange. I felt something wet and cold press against my pussy. Then I felt a long tongue lick me once and then twice. It actually felt really nice. I heard Mr Yee say one word in Japanese. I felt a movement then a heavy bulk of a body climbed on my back. It was very hairy in fact it was covered in fur. I then knew what was about to happen.
There was a large animal on top of me. It had to be a dog of some kind. I felt him panting and his drool hit between my shoulder blades. Were they really serious about having this dog fuck me, or was this an attempt to just scare me into giving them information? The dog was a large one but I wasn’t sure what kind. I didn’t know anything about dogs or sex with one. I didn’t even know that was possible between a human female and a male dog. The dog was holding still panting and drooling on top of me. Mr Yee gave another one word command and the dog moved it’s lower body closer to me. I felt a large hot mass push against my pussy. I guessed it was the dog’s penis. It was trying to get inside me. This was actually going to happen.
I cried out saying please no over and over. I didn’t want to have sex with an animal. They paid no attention to my pleas and being restrained as I was I could not get away from it. The dog must have been trained to do this because he wasn’t wasting any time. The large cock was pressing firmly into my opening. I had been progressively stretched by the other cocks, but this one was bigger then any of them. I cried out in pain as it gained entry and pushed inside me. When the dog felt the heat and tightness of my pussy it started to rapidly stroke. It was like being fucked by a jackhammer. With each push he gained a little more depth. He was pounding me and even though my huge breasts were restrained, they were swinging back and forth. The pumps were still attached to them and my milk was still flowing.
The dog cock was almost at the bottom of my pussy when I felt something else. Something large and hard at the base of his cock was pressing into my entrance. At first I thought he was trying to get his balls in me but the was too big and hard. It was banging into me trying to get in. I was already stretched by the big cock. Mr Yee gave another command and the dog doubled it’s effort trying to get farther in me. I was beside myself. I was talking gibberish and crying. I felt a burning sensation and sharp pain and then a pop. The dog immediately stopped thrusting and held still. I blinked the tears from my eyes and was quiet. Something very large had just managed to go up inside my pussy. I felt more full then ever before. The lining of my pussy was stretched to the max and molded around the massive dog cock. It wasn’t stroking but I did feel it start to throb. An intense warmth was spreading from the tip of it. He was cumming inside me. The dog was pumping his sperm into me.
The mass at the base of his cock that had managed to get inside me was changing. Somehow it was getting harder and bigger. It was pressing into my bladder and other internal organs. He was sealing himself inside me so none of his seed would leak out and be wasted. It was going somewhere deep. He was making sure I was his bitch. This was going to change me forever. I would never be able to have sex again without thinking about this. He had been cumming awhile in me and the mass had stopped growing. Mr Yee gave another command and I felt the big dogs body start to slide off of me to one side. We were still very firmly attached though. The grip of my pussy on his cock was very tight and his cock was trying to rotate inside me. I cried out as my pussy felt like it was being twisted around. Somehow his cock turned 180 degrees in my pussy and we were now in a butt to butt position.
The big dog pulled once like he was trying to remove his cock. The huge lump was way to big to come out of me. I had seen two dogs in this position as a young girl. I now new the reason was because the males cock was stuck in the female. He continued to give little tugs testing my grip on his cock. He was still cumming inside me. I tried to relax my body. Make myself looser. The pressure on my bladder and my g-spot was getting to me. I needed release and soon. This was going to hurt coming out and I knew it. Mr Yee said another word and the dog started to pull harder. His cock had stopped spurting by now. I started yelling for him to stop that it hurt too much, but I was ignored. I had no idea how big his cock still was but this had to feel like giving birth. I was about to pass out when I felt some movement and so did the dog. He pulled the hardest yet and out he came. The knot first then the thick shaft followed. When he had cleared my pussy I lost control of my body. I shook in a massive orgasm and I urinated, emptying my bladder. A massive amount of his semen poured out of me too.
Mr Yee came over to me and once again started a tattoo on my back. It was a symbol like the others and I assumed it was the first initial of the dogs name. I was marked as his bitch now. When he finished he left with the dog and I was unhooked from the pumps and the rack. Back in my cell I tried to lie down but I was very sore. The dog’s cum was drying on my inner thighs. I tried to think of why the switched from human lovers to a canine one. Maybe it was just to humiliate me more, I wasn’t sure. I went through some sleep cycles and they fed me but didn’t take me to the milking room. I wasn’t sure why other then they must be preparing something or waiting for something. My breasts were very full and ached. They needed to be emptied and if I wasn’t milked soon they would start emptying themselves.
Finally the door to my cell opened and I was led to the room. My breasts were going to get some relief. I was hooked up like normal and the strong suction on them release my milk and it flowed out of me. I was enjoying this feeling when the Apron guy wheeled a large apparatus into the room. It was made of metal and wood like my rack. He wheeled it into position and locked it in place. It was like two big ramps that went up on either side of me. It looked very heavy and strong. Even though I was feeling good from the pressure in my breasts being relieved this thing scared me. They had something planned. Was it another dog?
I heard something behind me. I heard a voice and knew it was Mr Yee. There were some other voices and I knew he wasn’t alone. There was also something else there. Someone came up behind me and place a hand on my naked ass. He spread my cheeks and inserted something cold and long into my ass. It wasn’t very thick but it caught me by surprise. He left it there for a moment and then removed it. Mr Yee came forward and talked to me. He said that the time had passed for me to answer the question. It was too late now for that. They had figured out what they needed to know. They were going to try something now that should have been done already. They had just taken my temperature. The timing was right, I was ovulating. One of my eggs was ready to be fertilized. They knew it had altered genes just like my genes had been altered. The french cows genes had bonded with mine. They were going to use sperm that was used to impregnate the french cows. He said that they could have used artificial insemination methods on me, but doing it the old fashion was was much more natural. I was trying to process all this and all I could think was, bull sperm. They were going to put bull sperm up inside me.
I started to panic. The natural way was what he said. The ramps on either side of me made sense now. They were going to breed me to a bull. Was that even possible? I felt a huge mass behind me place it’s weight on the ramps. I looked down and saw a massive leg and hoof. I felt someone pull on my labia rings. They were attaching something to them. I felt a pull on every ring as my lips were pulled apart. They were stretching my pussy open as far as it would go. I heard a slap on the bulls ass and it moved forward up the ramp. I was crying uncontrollably. The bulls cock was guided to my entrance. The massive hard shaft was lined up. Another slap and the weight of the bull moved forward and the cock went in me.
I screamed as loud as I could from the shock and the pain. There was a foot of bull cock in me and he was trying to get more in. His massive hips were moving now and the cock was stroking in and out. Each time it smashed into my cervix trying to get past it. I was getting raped by a bull and this was supposed to get me pregnant. Pregnant with what, a calf? Luckily bulls are made like dogs. Their cocks are big but there is no knot. They also don’t cum like a dog. They cum more like a human except there is a massive amount of sperm. I was a little delirious by now so I don’t know how long the bull had been fucking me but I knew he was cumming now. He was producing a massive amount of bull semen and it was shooting forcefully up inside me. The end of his cock was sealed to my stretched cervix and from the feeling in my belly it was all going way up there into my uterus.
He continued to unload in me until his cock started to go soft. He stopped thrusting and they backed him off the ramp. The bull cock was pulled out of me like a big snake. When it was pulled free some of the bull’s semen leaked out but most of it stayed up inside me. To ensure it did Mr Yee inserted something into my pussy. A tube was attached to it and it was inflated. Once it was of a size where it wasn’t going to come out and the seal was tight the tube was removed. Mr came close to me and said that the plug was going to remain in my pussy for a few days. I was not to try to remove it even though that would be impossible without the deflation tube. He said the bull was one of the ones that breed the french dairy cows. The ones who had the prized milk and who’s genes had been used on me. He said they had done some alteration of the bulls DNA to make it more compatible to mine. They were very confident that this breeding was going to be successful. He marked me with another tattoo This one to represent the bull. The he started on another one. This one was just above my butt crack in the last remaining space. It was much more elaborate the the others. It stretched across my lower back and was a series of letters. I guessed maybe 6 but I wasn’t sure. It took him over two hours to complete it. When finished he said that’s for what is yet to come.
I was led back to my cell. I was weak from the ordeal I had been put through. My lower belly felt distended from the inflated plug and fluid inside me. After I guessed was a couple of days Mr Yee came into my cell. He forced me on my back and spread my legs. Using one hand to spread my pussy me inserted a tube into the plug in my pussy. Twisting a valve the air inside it was released. When deflated he roughly pulled it out of me and checked my pussy for any leakage. There was nu so I guess my body had absorbed all the bull sperm. He left me alone then.
I was in denial about getting pregnant by the bull. That could not be possible. They were just messing with my head. They continued to bring me food and water but other then that I was left alone. My breasts were very full again, but somehow I think I had seen the last of that dungeon like room where the milked me. Suddenly the door to my cell opened. Standing there was a very tall woman. I recognized her as being Tanaka’s assistant. I had seen her my first day here. Her name was Heike. She looked at me and then said for me to follow her. I hesitated and she said it again more forcefully. I got up on shaky legs and followed her out of my cell. We walked down the dimly lit hallway. She was dressed in a smart business suit that fit her body well. Her high heels clicked on the stone floor. I was still completely naked and barefoot. For some reason I placed one arm across my huge breasts and the other handover my pussy in an attempt to conceal both. I had been naked for a long time but walking with her made me notice it and I was embarrassed. At the end of the hall was an elevator and we got in it. The doors closed and we started to rise. I glanced at her and saw her wrinkly her nose and frown. I guess I didn’t smell too good. I had been fucked by 10 men, a dog and a bull. I probably did smell.
The elevator stopped and we went down another hallway. There were doors lining it and we stopped at the last one. Heike opened it and I followed her in it. I blinked my eyes when I saw that it was as nice a suite as you would find in any five star hotel. I followed her into the bedroom and she showed me the master bath. She said I needed to get clean and then she would be back. As I walked into the large bathroom I heard the door to the room close as she left. I looked around and saw a full compliment of french cosmetics. In the shower were french milled soaps and shampoos. I turned the water on which was instantly steaming. I stepped in and let the water flow over me. I just stood there for a long time finally I picked out some soap and began to get myself clean. I scrubbed and scrubbed. My skin was clean but some very dirty things had been done to me that no soap could wash away. I washed my pussy and felt the rings there. I guess I had been held for a long time because my normally smoothly shaved pussy was now quite hairy. So were my underarms but I used a razor on the making them smooth again. For the time being I left my pussy hairy.
After washing and rinsing my hair I got out and dried off. Standing there I noticed that the bathroom had mirrors on every wall. I was able to easily see my body from all angles. I was very pale and there we a few fading bruises on me. My breasts were huge and heavy with blue veins crisscrossing under the skin. My nipples looked twice the size they used to be and they were big back then. I then saw the state of my back for the first time. I had assumed that he had used black or blue ink on the tattoos. Oh was I ever wrong about that. Each symbol was in a different color. Colors so vibrant and vivid they were like no colors I had ever seen before. It was like they glowed. It was obvious these had been done by an expert. There were twelve single symbols trailing down my back along my spine. At the bottom across my lower back was a larger tattoo It was in Japanese and seemed to be a word or a name.
I went out into the bedroom and on the bed was a dress. It was made of silk and was very pretty. I guess this was for me to put on. I looked around for some underwear but found none. I slipped the dress on and it was like it was made just for me. It fit my body perfectly even my overly large breasts. It had a deep V cut in the bodice and I was showing a lot of cleavage. My large nipples poked against the thin silk and were on display too. I went back into the bathroom and applied some minimal makeup. Just a little mascara and lipstick. My hair was almost dry and I combed it out. It had grown very long. As soon as I had walked back into the main suite the door opened and Heike entered. She said to follow her again.
I felt a little better walking with her this time after getting cleaned up and dressed. As we rode in another elevator she said I looked and smelled much better. That was all she said to me as the door opened and we walked up to a pair of huge wooden doors. She opened one and we walked into a huge room. It was a dining hall of some kind. There was a very long table around which were seated about 30 people. As we entered they all turned and looked at us. There was a man at the end of the table. He was the host of course and he stood up. It was Hiro Tanaka himself.. In a loud voice he introduced the guest of honor for tonight. That was apparently me. Heike led me to the head of the table and an empty chair to Tanaka’s left was pulled out and I was to sit down. I cooperated and sat. I looked around and saw that the first course of the meal had been served. A plate of which was now place in front of me by the wait staff. It was of course a french dish. Everyone was enjoying theirs and I took a couple of bites of mine not wanting to overdo it. I hadn’t eaten any real food in a long time. The second of many courses was then served and people were raving about the quality and taste. Tanaka stood up and told the story of the french cows and their sought after milk. He said even though he had one the meal tonight had been prepared with something else. A secret ingredient that only he possessed. When he said this he looked at me and smiled. I knew he meant my milk had been used and that I was now his. I just looked straight ahead and didn’t say anything. As the courses were consumed I looked around at the diners. It was a very diverse group. There were a lot of different nationalities and languages being used. The men closest to me couldn’t help themselves from staring at my breasts. They were covered but just barely and they were very full and swollen.
Knowing french food like I do we were at the point in the meal where dessert and coffee was to be served. As it was brought in Tanaka instructed everyone not to eat any just yet. After everyone had a plate of the crepes and a cup of coffee Tanaka stood up and everyone got quiet. He talked about how proud he was of the skill of his chefs and of course being able to provide the best to his guests. He spoke again of the special ingredient in tonight’s meal. How it had been used in all the sauces and creams and cheeses. He wanted to take the opportunity to introduce the them the source of the secret ingredient. He held his hand out for me. I looked at it for a moment the took it as he helped me stand up. There was a little confusion on some peoples faces. Tanaka let the reality of the situation set in before continuing. He confirmed that human breast milk was indeed the secret ingredient and that it had come from me. There were a few gasps from the guests. He wanted to make sure there was no doubt about this fact. He said the reason I was here was to prove it and continue to be the source. With that Tanaka turned toward me and he grasped the front of my dress. He forcefully pulled on the front ripping it down to my waist. My huge breasts spilled forth totally exposed to all the dinner guests.
There were more gasps, but these guests knew who was the big boss in the room. They were invited guests of Tanaka and they certainly didn’t want to upset him so the all just sat there waiting. Tanaka took me by the upper arm and led me to the first guest. He picked up the guests dessert plate and held it close to one of my nipples. He pulled on it like an expert and a strong steam of my thick creamy milk came out of my nipple and covered the crepes. He then took the coffee cup and did the same thing filling it up with my milk. He asked that guest to try it. I knew the man must be nervous but he picked up his fork and he tried the dessert now covered in my milk. He savored it then proclaimed it the best he had ever had. All the guests clapped and Tanaka moved me down the line expressing my milk as we went onto the dessert and into the coffee.
After making it all the way around the table Tanaka had me stand at the head of the table as the guest finished. My breasts were still fully exposed to everyone. When everyone was finished Tanaka went into another speech. He was standing behind me as he spoke. He asked everyone if there was any doubt that this was the best meal made from the most perfect ingredient they had ever had. They all agreed and cheered him. He said that he was going to make sure that this would continue and that this would be his legacy. He referred to me as his little cow. He dais he was going to teach me that I was his and nobody else’s. He said that my training had already been going on but now it was time for him to personally train me. With that being said he ripped the remaining dress from my body and I stood there naked.
He called for some security and they grabbed my arms and bent me over the table placing my hand on it. Tanaka was standing behind me and I heard him unzip his pants. Tanaka was going to rape me in front of his diner guests. I guess his cock was already hard and he stepped forward. I then figured out why he had been using progressively bigger cocks. His had to be the biggest of them all. He huge bulbous head pressed into my hairy snatch. I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth as he forced it in. He had to press harder as I was being held in place. Finally my poor abused pussy gave way and the head went in me. I figured his doctors had to have given him some kind of drugs to make his cock this size or to make it this hard, I mean the man was over 70. The veiny shaft pushed in more. He started stroking in me gaining more and more depth. My pussy was gripping his monster cock like a vise. The only sounds in the room was our breathing and the sounds coming from my pussy.
He was in as far as he could go now. The big head smashed against my cervix. Both his hands were on my hips pulling me toward him to help get him in and out of me. My head was down and my eyes were closed. I opened my eyes and noticed something. The two guys had let go of my arms and had moved away. I wasn’t being retrained and I wasn’t trying to get away either. Tanaka was fucking me in front of all these people and I was letting him. I felt myself actually pushing back into his thrusts trying to get more of his cock in me. I guess the drugs were giving him some stamina too. Through hooded eyes I looked around the room and saw the guests staring. Along the walls of the room were the wait staff and some men in black suits. They were probably the security of the guests. I saw one man that looked familiar. He had short black hair and was wearing sunglasses. It was obvious he was carrying some kind of weapon under his coat. He was looking straight ahead when I saw his head turn and it was as if he was looking at me. I couldn’t see his eyes but I saw a slight nod of his head. I then knew who he was. It was the head of security from the hotel we checked into in Paris. Marcel said this man was an ex-commando officer from the french military. Why was he here and why did he just nod at me?
I sensed Tanaka getting close. He was going to cum in me to make sure I knew I was his. His monster cock was getting to me and I felt an orgasm coming. I felt like such a slut right then. Here I was naked in front of all these people and I was being raped by this man and I wasn’t trying to get away. I was also on the verge of an orgasm which meant I was enjoying it. Just as I felt Tanaka’s cock start to jerk and explode in me I saw the security guy talk into his sleeve. Right then the doors to the room burst open and a group of masked men dressed in black burst into the room. They all had automatic weapons and started yelling for everyone to get on the floor and not to move. Tanaka’s cock was going off inside me and this excitement made me go off. My pussy started to spasm and clench. I was cumming hard. So hard that Tanaka couldn’t stroke any more because I was gripping him too tightly. I turned and looked and saw the hotel guy standing next to Tanaka with a gun pointed at his head. In french he told Tanaka to pull out of me. I felt Tanaka try to withdraw his still rock hard cock from me. I guess the drugs were not letting it deflate. My pussy was still in spasm and he was stuck in me. He told them there was something inside my pussy that was gripping his cock head and he could pull out.
Someone came over to me and threw a blanket over me to help conceal my nakedness. Two of the commandos took Tanaka by the arms and tried to pull him out of me. Tanaka and I both cried out as this was done. Finally something inside me loosened up and released him. They pulled him slowly out of me breaking the connection. I collapsed forward on the table. A commando wrapped me up in the blanket and picked me up. He was very strong and he carried me out of the room. They were handcuffing all the guests and they led Tanaka away in handcuffs. I was carried out of the room and down a hallway. We went out some large doors and into the outside. It was nighttime and dark. We went down some steps and there was a waiting limousine with the doors open. I was placed carefully in the backseat. There waiting for me was Marcel. He wrapped his arms around me and held me close. The door close and the limo pulled away.
We didn’t say a word for some time. I spoke first and just said what took you so long? He explained that they had been searching for me for months. They knew Tanaka had abducted me. They had caught my assistant and she confessed in being involved in the kidnapping. Tanaka had bribed her and she had helped set it up. She didn’t know where I was taken though. The searched everywhere and even thought he might have taken me back to Japan. They finally got tip about an exclusive dinner party. If Tanaka’s ego hadn’t had got the best of him we might not have ever found me. Tanaka wanted to show off for his followers. The hotel security chief posed as security for one of the guests. We he found out where the chateau was he alerted the strike team. They got there as quickly as they could. I told him that it wasn’t quick enough. Tanaka had raped me in front of everyone. They had forced me to have sex with multiple men and even animals. I told Marcel I might even be pregnant, but I didn’t say by who. He kissed my forehead and told me I was safe now. We drove on in the night and I fell asleep.
When I woke up I was in a bed. I looked around and noticed it was the bed in the back of our private jet. We were heading home. Marcel came in the cabin and asked me how I was feeling. I was pretty weak but I felt better. He said that french doctors had checked me out and cleared me for travel. When we get back he said the doctors at the clinic will run some tests and I would be back to normal in no time. He have me a pill to take which I did. It must have been a sedative because I went right back to sleep.
The next time I woke up I was in a bed in a nice room. I had some IV’s in me and guessed I was in the clinic back home. The doctors and nurses examined me from head to toe. They were very kind and made sure I was as comfortable as possible. I got my sense of time back and after a few days I could get out of bed and walk around by myself. One day I was sitting in a chair by a window. The sun was shining in and I thought how much I had missed seeing that. There was a knock at the door and I said come in. the director
of the clinic came in and smiled at me. He pulled up a chair and asked if I was up to a little talk. I nodded and he sat down. He said he wanted to update me on a few things. He smiled but I knew this was difficult for him to keep a pleasant face. He asked me what I though about the rings they had pierced my labia and clitoris with. I told him I had pretty much gotten used to them. He asked me if I would ever want them removed. I said possibly. He said that might be a problem. It seemed that Tanaka had used a very experimental metal. One that was designed for the Japanese space program. It had self healing properties. The meant if they tried to cut it before it could be removed it would heal itself and be solid again. The only way to remove the rings from my labia at the moment was to cut my lips and remove the ring then stitch me back up. This posed the risk of nerve damage and scaring. The ring in my clit was basically impossible to remove. I told him it was OK I was fine leaving them in place for now.
He then talked about the tattoos. He asked if I noticed the colors they used. I said yes that I had never seen anything like them. He said I was right, there wasn’t anything like them anywhere. This too was a experimental ink that was used. Normal tattoos stain the layers of skin below the surface. A laser could be used to remove a layer at a time until all the stain was gone. This ink was different. If laser was applied to it the molecular structure of the ink would cause it to go deeper in the skin. They basically could not be removed by any current method. I told him what they represented. I told him about the unprotected sex with the men. I told him they said the wanted to get me pregnant. I then took a deep breath and told him about the sex with the dog and the bull. My hands were shaking and he held them. After I finished talking he was silent for a moment. He then looked at me and simply said that I was pregnant. They had run all the tests and there was no doubt about it.
I stared out the window for a minute. I turned back to him and asked if I would ever find out who the father was. He looked at me and said that they knew who the father was, the tests were conclusive. I just said the word “who?”. He took a deep breath and said that the father was the bull. I was carrying the offspring of the bull that they had breed me. This was not what I expected to hear. I sat there dumbfounded and asked him how that was possible. He shook his head and admitted to not understanding all of it himself. Somehow the shots I was given before the trip actually caused me to ovulated immediately. The problem was since my DNA had been altered by the cows DNA the eggs I was producing could not be fertilized by human sperm. My eggs rejected those. So it didn’t matter how many men had sex with me none of them were going to get me pregnant. It appears Tanaka’s scientists stumbled on something by accident. They had a breeding bull and a junior researcher was mapping it’s DNA. The same guy had done some research on yours and he noticed some similar patterns. So it was by accident that the right guy looked at the right thing and came to the right conclusion. But to get it to work they had to tweak the bulls DNA some more so your eggs would let his sperm penetrate and fertilize one. He said that whatever they did worked because I was definitely pregnant and the bull was the father.
I said but what am I pregnant with? I saw him frown and he sighed. He said I was pregnant with a normal offspring of a cow and bull. That meant a calf. My head was spinning and I wanted to throw up. I closed my eyes for a moment and asked him what I was do do now. He said that unfortunately I would not be able to carry it to term and give birth. A human female was just not able to do that. He said I had two choices. The first of course was that they would go in and do a DNC and abort the fetus. The second though was the one he hoped I would choose. He asked if I had heard about invitro fertilization. I said I had. He explained that they believed they had the technology to go into my uterus and enclose the embryo with a special receptacle. It would then be flash frozen and removed. They could then implant the embryo into a surrogate. I asked what kind of surrogate? He said a cow that was in heat. The embryo had a good chance to implant and then develop. The cow would give birth to my offspring. The one inside me now. I was quiet for a moment and asked if I could think about it for a couple of days. He said of course but time was critical if the second option was to be used. I thanked him and said we would talk tomorrow. He left me with my thoughts. I looked out the window and my hand went to my lower belly. There was another life in there right now and It was up to me to decide it’s fate.