As I looked in the mirror, Master flexed His fingers against my skin, as naturally as a handler would lovingly caress their pet puppy.
August 2, 2021
Editor’s Note: The following is part of a notebook Queer Time, co-edited by Ta-wei Chi and Ariel Chu, which gathers contemporary queer Taiwanese literature in translation. To read the full Queer Time collection, visit its home here.
Content warning: The following excerpt contains some potentially disturbing images of violence and BDSM
The original edition of《軍犬》| Military Dog was published in 2010 by 基本書坊, with an expanded edition published in 2013
軍犬
主人家的鐵門深鎖,有種不可預知的未來惶恐。顫抖的按下電鈴,話筒傳出主人的聲音後,急忙的吠叫;按照主人的規定,以吠叫作為回應方式。當主人開啟了鐵門,一踏入後急忙的脫光自己身上的衣褲,只留下了主人為軍犬選定的三角褲。「伏地挺身預備。」主人發號著命令,於是雙手撐著地板,就準備姿勢。「一下、二上。一。」雙手將身體壓下,直到襠部快接近地面。主人翻著軍犬的背包,做安全檢查。用塑膠袋包著的精液內褲,主人抽了其中一條,攤在手上。「量還滿大的嘛⋯⋯二。」於是雙手撐起。平日營區內的體能訓練還足夠應付主人的要求。當主人將精液痕跡的內褲擺在軍犬狗鼻前時,軍犬突然羞愧了起來。主人捏著軍犬的耳朵、臉頰。「聞聞自己的味道。」閉上眼睛的軍犬,喜不喜歡這味道。「一。」雙臂將身體壓低。來回一二一二,撐著身體、壓低身體,直到身上的遮羞褲溼透,溼得無法遮掩、溼得貼上臀部陷入股溝。汗水滴答的溼滿地,主人才喊停。「脫光。」
「是。主人。」跪在地上,脫掉了溼答答的內褲,正準備將它折好。
「把內褲戴在頭上。」主人說著。軍犬疑惑的看著主人,隨即一巴掌賞下。「懷疑我的命令啊。」軍犬分不清是汗水還是淚水,將溼透內褲蓋上頭,狗屌的窩正貼在狗鼻上,兩顆眼睛透過兩隻大腿的縫露出。「進來吧。」主人將行李放上軍犬背上,軍犬小心翼翼的跟著主人。
客廳玄關處多了面鏡子,主人的打狗棒佇立在旁,軍犬見了狗棒顫抖的無法前進。主人卸下了軍犬身上的重物,一手握起狗棒,一手撫摸著軍犬的軀幹。「乖。很好,看到狗棒會怕。」主人在軍犬眼前晃了晃狗棒,嚇得軍犬全身顫慄。那日狗棒在屁股留下的痛楚,只要看見狗棒便有如再打在身上。鏡子裡,一個赤裸、臉上掛著溼透內褲、雙腿間半勃起陰莖和半短陰毛的男人,他到底還是不是個男人?主人拍著軍犬身體,鏡子裡的主人動作像是撫摸著愛狗毛髮般自然。「手。」軍犬伸了前肢。「另外一肢。」像是新兵身體檢查般,每個角落都被注意。頭上內褲被主人拉起,主人手抓著下巴,硬撐起狗嘴,彷彿檢查著狗牙,「吐舌頭。」軍犬伸長舌頭。發出嘿嘿聲音。「舌頭盡量拉長。」於是嘿嘿吠吠聲外加著口水。軍犬想伸手擦時,手立刻被狗棒打了下。主人蹲了下來,扯扯半短狗毛。「狗屌還滿大的嘛。」主人弄過狗懶蛋的手,往後庭一伸,扯著外露衛生棉條棉線。「肛門最好縮緊點,要是被我拉出來,就死定了。」於是軍犬努力的緊閉、死命的抵抗主人的拉扯。
打狗棒輕輕打在狗屁股上,軍犬疑惑的看著主人。「Good boy。咬著。」主人手抓著那團汗水味的內褲。軍犬撐大嘴巴咬起。主人摸著軍犬的頭毛。「來。主人幫清洗身體。洗掉那一身男人味。」
軍犬害怕的跟著主人進了浴室。浴室裡一面大鏡子,旁邊擺著一籃盥洗用具。「趴下。」軍犬整個身體趴下。「轉身。」於是軍犬轉了身,正面朝上。打狗棒敲著四肢。「狗四肢要彎曲。」被提醒的軍犬趕緊照主人命令。主人拉了小凳子坐在軍犬後腿間。「看著鏡子,剛出生的人型犬不應該有體毛。沒資格擁有狗毛,該剃。」
「汪嗚~」軍犬負面情緒的聲音。嗚音是主人約定的負面情緒聲音。主人撫摸著狗屌、狗懶蛋。
「沒有好談的。」狗毛再次被剪刀修短,狗腿已經被打上刮鬍泡沫,軍犬身上毛髮處都被打上泡沫。刮鬍刀第一刀下去,刮掉大腿內側,陰毛連接腿毛處時,軍犬已經知道被主人剃毛是無法避免的,狗嘴裡的內褲沾染了一大片的口水。主人熟練的技巧,快速將原本兩條毛茸茸男人雙腿刮得乾淨;原本男人腋下的毛髮亦被刮得乾乾淨淨,軍犬身上僅剩雙腿間的狗毛。軍犬看著鏡子裡自己腋下已經無毛,眼淚已經在打轉。
「乖。」主人拾起了狗屌,刮鬍刀已經刮掉了狗屌上方的短毛。一刀一刀刮得乾淨。軍犬窸窣的抽咽。「狗是這樣哭的嗎?」主人冷淡的眼神瞪著。
「汪嗚~汪嗚~」軍犬雙腿間的棉條,毫無預警的被主人抽出,疼痛得扭著身體。
「我現在手上拿著刮鬍刀,最好安分點。」主人手拾著之前塞在軍犬體內的衛生棉條晃在軍犬臉上方。「上完廁所,沒洗屁股啊!翻過來。」應著主人翻身,翹著屁股。主人扳開兩片臀肉,刮著全身僅剩的肛毛,刮掉肛毛後,軍犬已經被剃光了狗毛,是隻無毛犬。「狗被剃毛是不會哭的!再哭,嘴裡的內褲就換成剛剛塞在體內的衛生棉條。」軍犬企圖止住哭泣,全身打了沐浴乳泡沫,全身上下被主人刷得乾淨。「差點忘了的屁股裡面還有當人類時產生的糞便。」灌了腸的軍犬被恩賜蹲在馬桶上。「狗其實是不會蹲馬桶的,而且也不該在這裡排便。」軍犬蹲在馬桶上,剛被剃毛的陰部清楚可見,現在主人站在面前,排便丟臉的模樣毫無遺露的展現於主人眼底。肛門噴出的液體混雜著黃色的水,糞便隨即噴出。軍犬顫抖著身體,排便這麼隱私的事情都在主人面前了,到底還要做到什麼程度,軍犬只能服從。
後面的洞跟身體被完完全全洗乾淨後,主人手抓著軍犬下巴,撐起狗嘴。「來,狗嘴。」主人手抓著狗,另隻手拾著牙刷侵入口腔刷洗著狗牙,嗆著了軍犬。主人拍拍軀幹安撫。「漱口。」指指臉盆的水,半人半狗的喝水漱口後,該清潔的地方都清洗完。「乾淨的狗,主人才愛。」
爬回了客廳,在鏡子裡的面貌連自己都認不出來。主人兩聲的李軍忠,讓我趕緊站起立正,膝蓋麻得快站不穩。「是。主人。」主人雙手按著我的肩膀、捏捏胸部、在乳頭處打轉、腹肌一塊塊被抓過;當主人的手再往下時,身體下意識的扭捏抗拒。鏡子裡主人的臉色大變。
「很好。實在不能對你好。」主人丟了張紙,惹火主人的我顫抖的彎下腰撿落在地上的紙。「誰叫你動作的。」主人一說,立刻收回了手。「跪下。」砰的聲,兩膝撞擊地板。沒有轉圜空間。惹火了主人,只能聽話。「彎下腰,把紙咬住。」於是,雙手撐住上半身,伸長脖子、張開嘴。「屁股翹高。」當打狗棒敲著我身體時,便知道主人下一刻要做什麼,鏡子裡的主人狠狠揮著狗棒打著翹高屁股的軍犬,狗咬緊牙根,不敢發出不悅,讓主人打上幾棍,打紅了狗屁股,整個身體都變熱了。「起來。面對鏡子立正站好。」聽到命令,即使屁股很麻,很痛,但還是趕緊在鏡子前立正站好。腳掌微開,兩膝併攏,雙手貼緊,這平日在營區熟悉得不能再熟悉的動作,卻在此時此刻變得極為陌生。鏡子裡的自己、鏡子裡的男人赤裸身體,下半身毛茸茸遍布的陰毛刮除得乾乾淨淨,和小男孩般,而身體卻是發育完成的,不禁微微充血。 「在軍營裡宣誓過吧。嘴裡的紙是誓詞,也就是一般所謂的主奴契約。」於是赤裸的站在主人跟鏡子面前,舉手大聲朗誦。
「吾誓以至誠—我—李軍忠—從今爾後奉dt為畢生之主、為主人飼養之軍犬。第一條——」宣誓後,向後轉,向主人行軍禮。在主人回禮後,遞上誓詞。
「軍犬,跪下。」於是雙膝再度跪在主人面前,以往的軍禮成為了主人跟軍犬之間的禮節,這一刻沒有任何嬉戲,如此的莊嚴。在dt宣誓完主人的誓詞後,主人拿出當日在寵物店購買的項圈,替軍犬戴上,拍拍軍犬腋下方腰際。正想舉手回禮時,主人疑問的聲音,立刻收了回去。「這時候該用的叫聲回應。」
「汪!」從腹部用力發聲。
「很好。手伸出來。」軍犬伸了手,兩肢被紗布纏繞。「這樣才可以讓喪失人類手掌的功能。屁股翹高,額頭貼到地面。」軍犬挪著身體,按照主人命令。當視覺只在地板上時,聽覺就變得極為敏銳,主人離開了身邊又回到了身邊,接著狗屁股便被主人扳開。好奇的抬頭,鏡子裡的主人眼神敏銳得殺死人。「既然抬頭,就仔細看著。」此時軍犬第一次看見主人赤裸的男體。主人身體的震撼後,屁股一股涼勁上身。主人的手指頭戳進了狗屁股。「汪嗚~」
還來不及反應,狗屁股便被根東西給插了進去,遠比衛生棉條來得粗大,狗屁股快裂成兩半。難道狗屁股被主人幹了,流下眼淚之際,主人在鏡子前撫摸著軍犬。「看鏡子。看著翹高的屁股多了什麼。」當眼睛看著,雙臀間竟多出了根黑色的小尾巴。主人撫摸著軍犬:「乖。」主人要軍犬以坐姿在鏡子前,仔細瞧瞧自己模樣。鏡子裡頭,真的是赤裸的主人和主人心愛的軍犬。李軍忠這個男人徹底在主人面前變成了一條狗。
AN EXCERPT OF MILITARY DOG
By Petit 夏慕聰
trans. Yahia Zhengtang Ma
INTRODUCING MILITARY DOG (TRANSLATOR’S NOTE)
This excerpt is taken from the Taiwanese author Petit (Xia Mu-Cong)’s novel Military Dog (軍犬). The book doesn’t just show an intense erotic encounter between a “human puppy” called Li Jun-Zhong and his Master DT, but also offers a peek into the unique BDSM and human-puppy play scene in Taiwan. The latter is influenced by—but distinct from—the Japanese shibari (繩縛) and the leather/kink/fetish culture of the US.
Rare in the history of Taiwanese queer/tongzhi literature, Military Dog—which took years to write and get published as a full-length novel in 2010—focuses on sexual fluidity and humans’ metamorphosis into “dogs” in the context of contemporary Taiwan. Fascinatingly written, Military Dog unsettles cultural norms by bringing the underground BDSM scene out of the closet and imagining the military as a distinct site of queer performance, fashioning a layered act of queering what is normal or “vanilla.” Furthermore, this important and timely work queers the universalizing pretensions of queer desire and the fundamental notions of the erotic, the individual, and the body. The project of translating Military Dog from a unique context into English seeks to document the existence of the Taiwanese BDSM scene and new sexual identities. It also offers an opportunity to imagine a new politics of sex, one that projects a vision of our queer past and future.
In the following excerpt translated from Chinese, a young military officer enters the world of BDSM, which is known as 皮繩愉虐 in Taiwan. After his own experience in the military—which, in the author’s words, is a gigantic S&M venue—Li Jun-Zhong knocks on his Master DT’s door to satisfy his burning desire and show his tremendous loyalty and submissiveness. In an exclusive sphere where any activities can occur, Military Dog and Master blur the boundaries of pain and pleasure through training, controlling, gazing, touching, sniffing, and breathing. What makes the story more fascinating is the author’s mimicry of a drill instructor’s training and oath of enlistment, which climaxes in the pleasure of accumulated erotic tension.
This excerpt is full of steamy, kinky exploration along with a generous amount of love. In the story, DT is referred to as “Master” and “Him” to indicate a relationship between a handler and a puppy. Naturally, Li Jun-Zhong’s pronouns “he,” “his,” and “him” (with Military Dog as his puppy name) are presented in lowercase. The goal of this conceit is, first, to show the human puppy’s respect, love, worship towards his Master; second, to demonstrate that (at least within the timeframe in the excerpt), DT is the one and only Master of Li Jun-Zhong. At the same time, the translator, just like the author does, adopts combined first- and third-person points of view to refer to Military Dog, celebrating the fluidity and versatility of his sexual identity. In the excerpt, readers are assumed to understand that “I” am “he” (in lower case) is “the slave.”
MILITARY DOG (AN EXCERPT)
The iron gate of the house was firmly shut. I was quite terrified, uncertain about what was likely to happen next. My skin bristling, I pressed the doorbell.
The moment I heard His voice, I began to jump up and bark. Under His rules, barking was my only way of responding.
He opened the door, and I quickly stripped down to the white briefs He had given to me.
“Do push-ups.”
I got into the starting position with my hands flat on the floor.
“One, down. Two, up. One, down.”
With my weight on my hands, my upper body dropped down to the floor until my crotch touched the ground. Meanwhile, He did a security check on my backpack. He drew out one pair of briefs with semen stains encapsulated in a plastic bag, spread them on His hand, and spoke to me softly: “Yeah, a big load.”
Then He continued to issue orders: “Two, up.” I obeyed and pushed myself back up. Regular training in the military had equipped me to deal with His orders.
When He pressed the stained underwear to my nose, I couldn’t help but feel humiliated. “Sniff,” He commanded, pinching me on my ears and cheeks. Closing my eyes, I was not sure if I was attracted to the smell.
“One.”
I lowered my elbows off the ground and did push-ups again and again to the cadence of “One. Two. One. Two,” going down and pushing my body back up until the fig leaf that was my underwear got soaked thoroughly and visibly, so dripping wet that it stuck to my butt crack.
He called out stop only when drips of sweat fell onto the floor. “Strip.”
“Yes, Master,” I moaned in response. Then I knelt, taking off my wet underwear, about to fold it neatly.
“Put the underwear over your head,” Master ordered. In confusion, I turned my gaze on Master. All of a sudden, He gave me a hard slap.
“You dare disobey me, Military Dog?”
Military Dog placed the sweat-soaked briefs on his head, unable to tell whether it was teardrops or sweat beads that rolled down his cheeks. Then I slipped the pair of underwear, which had locked my cock like a cage, over my face. I could still see clearly through His legs.
“Follow me.” Master loaded the backpack on Military Dog’s back, and the dog followed obediently at Master’s feet.
There was a mirror that defined the entrance to the living room, at one side of which a cane stood stiffly; Military Dog got scared when he saw the dog-beating cane. After unloading the heavy bag, Master picked up the rod. He tenderly caressed my head at the same time.
“Good boy! Very good, you should be afraid of the cane.”
I couldn’t help shivering as Master briefly flashed it before my eyes. Looking at the stick and reminiscing about the pain Master had caused my buttocks the other day, I felt as though I had already been beaten again. I couldn’t help asking myself if the man in the mirror was still a man, a man stark-naked, only wearing a pair of sweaty briefs on his head, his cock half-hard and his pubic hair half-clipped?
As I looked in the mirror, Master flexed His fingers against my skin, as naturally as a handler would lovingly caress their pet puppy.
“Paw,” He said.
Military Dog brought one limp hand to the air and extended another hand to obey Master’s order.
“Another one,” He said, and I obeyed. Then, just like He was conducting a military entrance medical examination, Master closely inspected every inch of my body. After stripping off the briefs over my face, Master returned His hand to my jaw and gripped my mouth, almost like He was giving His dog a tooth examination.
“Stick your tongue out,” Master further instructed, and Military Dog complied, making a panting noise. “Further.” I obeyed and hissed, and a rush of spit flowed out. Military Dog tried to wipe the spit from his chin, but Master slapped his hand. Then Master reached down to take my half-clipped pubic hair in His hand.
“Nice cock, huh,” He said, playing with my balls. Then He reached for my hole, lightly pulling the string of the tampon hanging out of my butt. “Squeeze tight so it won’t fall out,” He commanded, and Military Dog tried desperately and frantically to clench the muscles around his hole to resist Master’s hard, sharp pull.
Then Master sensually spanked His dog’s ass with the dog cane, and Military Dog looked up at Master with confusion. He met his eyes with Master’s, seeing a spark of desire in His gaze. “Good boy, bite down,” He said, grabbing the sweaty briefs. Military Dog’s mouth opened to take them.
Then Master fondled His dog’s hair, saying, “Come. I’ll clean you and wash off your man smell.”
Military Dog’s body was shaking, but he followed Master into the bathroom where there was a full-length mirror and a basket of toiletries and sanitary products.
“On all fours,” Master ordered.
Military Dog got down on all fours straight away. When Master ordered him to turn over, he instantly rolled on his back, and Master beat his arms and legs with the cane.
Feeling surprised to hear Master say, Good dog, curl up, Military Dog obeyed immediately. Master then let go of me, taking a small chair to sit beside my legs behind me.
“Look at yourself. Newborn human puppies should be smooth. You are not supposed to grow hair. I’ll shave you.”
Woof. Military Dog made a wheezing sound, disapproving. Wheezing was a signal of negative emotions, as agreed upon by Master. Master then placed His hands beneath my cock and balls, which He fondled roughly.
“Don’t talk back,” Master warned.
He returned His hand to my legs and spread a layer of shaving foam over them, then over other hairy areas of my body. Thanks to Master’s mastery of the technique, Military Dog’s hairy legs and armpits were trimmed neatly. As a result, he was left only with the hairs between his legs. When the razor started to hit the skin of his inner thighs and move to where his leg and pubic hair had once met, Military Dog realized that getting completely shaved by Master was inescapable. He couldn’t help drooling, getting his underwear soaked in his doggie mouth.
“Good boy,” Master addressed me, stroking my dick. Then, seeing the hair around his cock getting shaved off, Military Dog started to sob.
“Do dogs cry like this?” Master asked, throwing His puppy an unapologetic look.
“Woof, woof…”
Master reached between Military Dog’s legs and pulled the tampon out with one stroke, inflicting throbbing pain and causing Military Dog to wiggle on the ground.
“Watch out. The razor is still in my hand.”
Master dangled the tampon that had been shoved inside Military Dog’s hole over his face.
“You didn’t douche after shitting? Turn over then.”
Military Dog complied with the command and wriggled his ass. Then Master pulled his cheeks apart, shaving the remaining hair off. When Master was done, Military Dog had become a puppy with no single hair left on his body.
“Stop crying! Or else I’ll shove the tampon into your mouth.”
Military Dog held back his tears as Master returned His hands to His puppy, applying frothy soap all over and washing his body thoroughly.
“Fuck, there is something human left in your hole.”
At the divine mercy of Master, Military Dog douched and squatted on the toilet.
“Dogs don’t squat on the toilet,” Master warned.
Having no choice but to crouch, Military Dog could see his freshly shaved genitals. He was left to completely expose himself in front of Master, who was standing and observing him. Military Dog felt utterly humiliated.
Then Master cupped my chin in His palm before taking hold of my jaw. “Come. Open your fucking mouth.”
Holding me in place with one hand, Master grabbed a toothbrush, penetrating it deeply into my mouth and brushing my teeth on all sides, making me choke. Master then gave His puppy a reassuring and comforting pat.
“Rinse your mouth.” Master pointed at the water bowl, and at Master’s command, the human-dog hybrid obeyed: his entire body had been cleansed thoroughly.
Master said, “Only clean dogs get Master’s love.”
Moving back to the living room on all fours, I could hardly recognize myself in the mirror. Upon hearing Master calling me by my name—“Li Jun-Zhong! Li Jun-Zhong!—I summoned the willpower to stand up, even though the numbness and tingling in my knees almost caused my knees to buckle.
“Yes, Sir!”
Master then placed His hands on my shoulders, squeezing my chest, circling my nipples, pinching my abs. Master snaked His hand lower, and my body was awakened, voluntarily wriggling to offer stubborn resistance. Turning my gaze on Him in the mirror, I saw Master’s face flushed with anger.
“Fuckup. I should be harder on you.”
Master threw a piece of paper in a fit of anger, and I shivered and bent down to pick it up from the floor.
“Did I say you could move?”
At the command of Master, I withdrew my hand.
“On your knees.”
With a resounding bang, I dropped to my knees at Master’s feet. I had displeased Him and when His anger flared up, there was no room for negotiation. It was my pleasure to obey.
“Bend down, bite this.”
Slowly, my upper body tensed up, and I jerked my head forward and opened my mouth to obey Master. Master shoved the paper into my mouth.
“Lift your fucking ass up.”
I knew what awaited me the instant the dog cane cracked. As I looked in the mirror, Master struck the rod and savagely whipped me with my hips high in the air. Clenching my teeth, I hardly dared to breathe or protest. Blow after blow lighted a fire in my body, my ass turning red as Master caned me.
“Stand at attention in front of the mirror,” Master instructed; my numb and aching ass burned, and I tried so hard to stand still as soon as I received the instructions.
Heels together, toes apart, feet and arms fixed at the side…
To my astonishment, the position that I had become so familiar with in the army suddenly felt unfamiliar and rusty. I saw myself in the mirror, that stark naked man whose thick bush of public hair had been shaved cleanly and thoroughly. My pelvis looked like that of a little boy who had finally become a man. I couldn’t help but feel slightly aroused.
“You took an oath when you enlisted, right? The words of the oath are on the paper in your mouth. It’s a master-slave contract.”
Upon Master’s explanation, I, standing still in front of the mirror, lifted my hand and swore the oath loudly:
I, Li Jun-Zhong, with sincere humility and wholehearted honesty, do solemnly swear that I, as Military Dog being kept and handled by DT, will serve Him as my Master all my life. Section One: …
After uttering the oath, I turned around and saluted Master like a soldier. After Master returned a military salute, I handed the oath to Him.
“Military Dog, kneel!”
I got down on my knees in front of Master, finding that the military salute had created a bond of respect between Master and Military Dog. There was no more cavorting and playing about with each other; now, everything was solemn. After swearing His oath as a Master, DT grabbed the collar he had bought from the pet shop the other day and put it on Military Dog’s neck. Then His hands moved down my underarms and waist, and He petted me tenderly.
As soon as I lifted my hand to return a salute, Master gave another command: “From now on, bark to salute.”
Woof! Woof! I gave loud barks, my stomach muscles tightening.
“Good dog. Put out your paws.”
My hands got wrapped with gauze.
“This way, your hands become dog paws. Hips up, forehead to the floor.”
The puppy followed Master’s command and wiggled. Lying face down gave Military Dog acute hearing; he could tell that Master was walking away from him, then coming back. He then spread my ass wide apart. I gave into my curiosity and looked up at Master, seeing His gaze steely and piercing in the mirror.
“Can’t help looking, huh? Come closer.”
For the very first time, Military Dog saw Master’s fully naked body. Seeing Master’s mind-blowing nudity, I felt a flare of coolness in my back entrance.
He thrust a finger into my hole, which spread fire across my body and made me bark, woof, woof, woof…
Before I could cry out, He inserted something huge in my hole, something far thicker and larger than the tampon, making my tight ass split in half. Is Master stabbing His dick into me? I wondered, and tears streamed down my face until I saw Master petting me almost caringly.
“Look into the mirror. See what I shoved inside you?”
In my watchful gaze, I saw a black tail between my butt cheeks.
“Good dog!”
Master addressed me and gently rubbed my skin as He ordered me to the mirror to look at myself in a sitting position. What I saw reflected was just a loving couple, the naked Master and His beloved Military Dog. The man named Li Jun-Zhong had now become a dog to the core in front of his Master.