Page 1 of Designation: Null

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The most important thing to do when being forced to watch sexual harassment training with one’s coworkers is tonotreact. At all.

There are more than a few dickhead Dominants looking around the room hoping to see an affected submissive they can taunt or come on to later. Fortunately, Logan is not one of them.

He’s a null, that very rare designation that isn’t Dominant or submissive, but he still has markers and toxins in his blood that come with genetic manipulation. He’s been tinkered with by the military and is stronger, faster, smarter, and so on. But he doesn’t have to deal with release cycles or any of the other bizarre things he hears about. He doesn’t fuck or get fucked and he’s very happy to keep it that way.

All Logan wants is to be ignored by Dominants—especially in a heightened situation like this. Which means pretending as best he can to bejust like them. For example, he’s carefully relaxed in his seat (just like the Dominants are). And he’s holding his pen loosely between his fingers (clenched would imply he is affected, and he is definitely not affected). And he’s looking at the screen and paying attention, though no one can tell his gaze is actually off to the right and fixated on the slowly ticking clock.

He smirks when the Dominants do, and occasionally adjusts himself, as if the very prospect of a submissive going into their cycle on a mission is enough to make his dick hard. He’s had a few missions where a submissive has gone into a cycle, and the memories alone are harrowing; he can’t even imagine how upset those poor submissive men must have been! How do they go back to work the next week knowing everyone saw them behaving in such a way? Arousal is the last thing he feels. Logan’s primary emotion is fear—fear that it could be him.

Because Dominants are animals. It’s enraging that defective submissives are the ones who get frozen while so many Dominant monsters are allowed to roam free.

Seriously, the amount of aggression and violence it takes for a Dominant to be put down is a joke. Logan lets himself think about how unfair it all is, how many submissives get hurt and don’t get justice. He thinks about how selfish the Dominants are, how the whole fucking world is built around them, and it makes the video easier to watch.

Alas, despite all the genetic tinkering done to him, and what his parents might expect, or even what he wants, he still fluctuates between null and submissive. Never Dominant. Most of the time Logan is (unfortunately) clinging on to his null designation by his fingernails.

His attention wanders back to the screen despite himself.

This video details common submissive reactions to a Dominant in civilian and combat situations. Unsurprisingly, most of the scenarios explain what counts as a sexual invitation and when a submissive means no although their body language indicates arousal. Glances, touches, licking of lips, posturing—none of these things are to be considered an invitation.

Presenting, overt offers, heavy wetness through the front of a submissive’s pants, combined with touch, can count as consentifa Dominant believes a submissive is too far into their cycle to verbalize consent.

Basing consent upon what a Dominant believes says it all, actually.

The pencil in his hand snaps in two and the Dominant sitting beside him chuckles. “Yeah, I’m gonna need to come after this, too. The whole thing is designed to rile us up.”

Logan glares at the Dominant but doesn’t trust himself to say anything for fear he’ll just start yelling.

The next topic is what a submissive should do when he is with an aroused Dominant close to entering his cycle. How can a submissive make it clear they welcome sexual intercourse? Logan tries not to roll his eyes.

The conversation should be “How can a submissive protect himself from a Dominant going into their cycle?” Not how to drop to their knees and present. Unbelievable.

Then the narrator reminds them that a Dominant’s first responsibility is to ensure their submissive’s safety. Which is great in theory but doesn’t always happen in reality.

The narrator helpfully adds that a submissive who has gone into their cycle unexpectedly should not be copulated with on mission but should instead be given whatever suppressants are in their pack. Suppressants should allow enough time for mission completion and return to base. That way a submissive can go through their cycle in a safe, protected environment with a Dominant of their choosing.

“A submissive is legally allowed to protect themselves in any way they see fit. A submissive is legally allowed to verbally or physically assault a Dominant attempting to initiate unwanted intercourse. All complaints of unwilling copulation will be thoroughly investigated by Designation Resources. Punishment can include demotion, transfer, docking of pay, and mandatory suppression of a Dominant’s cycle. The military takes any sexual interference toward its submissive soldiers seriously.”

Sure, Logan thinks. But not seriously enough to call “unwanted intercourse” rape.

The Dominant in front of him snorts in amusement. Shane, a submissive Logan had met a few days ago who’s sitting in the front of the class, shakes his head in disappointment or disgust.

Probably both.

Everyone knows that submissives are meant to be protected. They are a special class of men who are important to the military, but it’s also true that Designation Resources is always run by Dominants. And Dominants don’t like punishing one of their own.

Their empathy lies with their own kind.

It’s hard to prove sexual coercion. A submissive who brings a charge against a Dominant is just as likely to be punished with a transfer as the Dominant who perpetrated the act.

Five minutes later, and the class is mercifully over. Logan is new to this base and doesn’t know anyone, so he heads up to Shane and walks out of the class with him.

“What a bunch of bullshit,” Shane says. “Sometimes I think it must be great being null.”

This is the sort of comment that Logan always finds confusing. “Sometimes” Shane thinks being null would be great? Why the hell would heeverbe happy being submissive?

“Yeah, but you get hot sex,” Logan says, because that’s the answer submissives give each other.

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