Concubine

Concubines

   Concubine is the polite term for a volunteer's slave, a person who was usually picked up during the extraction of the volunteer.  Concubines are the property of the volunteer and can be used, abused and traded entirely at the whim of said volunteer.  Concubines who are rejected by their owner often end up working in the Civil Service brothels.  Unfortunately, if a concubine causes enough trouble he or she can be executed.
   Concubines are subject to the AIs' strict enforcement of contract terms.  This means that, at a pickup, if a prospective comcubine asks for some request and the prospective sponsor agrees to it, both are bound by it.  This is a frequent cause of drama and plot in Swarm Cycle stories.
   Note that concubines are automatically augmented in order to implant nanites during the initial health screening.  Actual enhancement may be chosen by the volunteer/sponsor.

   Concubines are often called 'Conks' or 'Drones'.  The term 'Drone', however, is also used to refer to any number of unmanned vehicles used for a variety of purposes.

Legal Status

   How a Concubine is treated will change both over time and by location.  Legally, a Concubine is property.  As near as we can tell, the AIs view Concubines in much the same way as humans view dogs on Earth.  Some are protected as pets or highly trained workers, some are just there, and some are active nuisances.  Whether a dog is a trusted family member who is merely warning the family that there are strangers in the front yard or the dog is a nuisance which disturbs the entire neighborhood with its constant barking is often dependent upon the point of view.
   There are as many policies regarding Concubines as there are Colonial Governors, as the Governor is the final arbiter of law among the Confederacy.  On some colonies a Concubine is not allowed outside of his/her assigned home without an escorting Sponsor, while on other colonies the Concubines are formed into militia units and issued weapons.
   Even clear Confederacy policy gets murky when applied to an item of 'property' that is as intelligent and self-motivated as a Concubine.  "A Concubine is not allowed to strike a Sponsor" is just about as clear as you can get, and recently picked up volunteers are required to view training scenarios that show Concubines being recycled for attacking a Sponsor.  However, when a Sponsor tells a Concubine "Watch over the children while I'm at work" and someone else abuses the children, is the Concubine attacking a Sponsor, or is he or she merely following orders and defending the children?
   Whether the Concubine is executed, punished, or rewarded will depend upon the circumstances, including their location.  Some colonies will execute the Concubine regardless of the circumstances, while others will praise the Concubine and his/her Sponsor for doing the right thing.

Notable colonies with unusual Concubine status or treatment include:

• Both Thule and Demeter organize Concubines into an armed militia.  In Thule's case, the Concubine Militia has actually participated in military action repelling a Sa'arm landing.
• Ishtar uses Concubines to serve in every possible position, including standing watch at the System Defence Center.
• The "Womb" human colony at Beerat has compensated for their low population by qualifying trustworthy and self-starting concubines as "Crew Conks", capable of serving in their fleet of armed starships.  Crew-Conks can be found in any normal shipboard position that does not require a Sponsor (such as Captain or gunner).  Aside from helping crew the fleet, Beerat has numerous unarmed local-space craft crewed solely by Crew-Conks.  These craft can often be found millions of kilometers from the nearest Sponsor.

Concubine Dress

   The usual dress for a new concubine is "naked", as the Confederacy has learned that a period spent naked helps cement the concubine's status in his or her mind, leading to fewer issues.  After this initial period, a concubine is usually restricted to a simple grey shift which is sized to end exactly at the bottom of their crotch.  This is a step up in personal privacy, but not a large one.  Only after a training and assimilation period is the concubine allowed to wear anything else, assuming his or her sponsor permits.
   Regardless of clothing, a concubine can immediately be identified by her collar.  Yes, it's a slave collar there specifically to remind her of her status, but it also performs many of the functions of a Sponsor's implant.  It monitors the concubine's health and status, it monitors her surroundings, and it provides a two-way link to the nearest AI.  In places where a concubine might reasonably need private access to an AI, the collar includes an attachment which can be inserted and used as a wireless earbud.
   Most initial training facilities (transports and moon bases) also use color to indicate a concubine's status.  Usually, red for "property of a sponsor", or green for "available for sponsorship".  The colors can be thought of as "danger, do not touch" or "safe for use".

Concubine Training

   Many stories focus on the training that recently-selected concubines receive as sex-slaves.  Thinking Horndog's story The Academy goes into detail about some of it:

• "Attention, sitting back on my ankles with my hands on my thighs, naturally."
• "Presentation One was a...'service posture' like kneeling back on your heels with your knees spread and with your hands cupping your breasts, offering them -- very embarrassing."
• "Presentation Two was similar to One but with your hands clasped behind your back."
• "Presentation Three was worse -- you go forward onto your forearms and raise your butt -- facing away from your sponsor, naturally, and looking back at him over your shoulder."
• "In Presentation Four, you at least got to put your knees together."

Thinker's View

   In the early days, the rules for concubines were hard and fast and the AIs were rough about enforcement.  They learned over time.  Many stories reflect incidents where the rules either get fixed or somehow gotten around.

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