A Slave to the Servants Ch. 21

"You protected the family well, Sister. Your form when you attacked my cousin was flawless. However we need to work on your timing of the strike," he said kissing my neck. "You missed him by far too large a margin."

I looked at him feeling stunned. "The General said not to attack his Warriors."

Damien grinned and shrugged. He couldn't care less what anyone else wanted. It was honorable I had tried to protect the family.

"The other Warriors wanted me dead," I hissed at him.

"They could have tried," he said in a conversational tone. "We would have stopped them. It would have been our decision, whether they liked it or not."

"You and your Brothers," I argued as he took my hand and walked out, "against the whole compound?"

We walked to the wall and Damien opened it and stepped out. I followed him trying desperately to look like a demure slave and not an indignant one.

"My Brother," Damien said as he walked into the forest, "could have easily removed his bonds. We are always prepared."

Shaking my head I followed him to his favorite spot. Once we were there, Damien stopped and considered me for a moment.

"Your strike was well executed, only poorly timed. We thought it best to stop you before you got hurt. That was not a shopkeeper you attacked, but a trained Warrior. At some point the man would have gotten over his surprise and that would have been a problem. Evan had to be in control of you so the other men would not dare to touch you."

The rest of the lunch went like that. Damien wasn't fazed by his lack of sleep or his pain. He entertained himself talking about me taking a swipe at his cousin.

"The General," I explained patiently, "said he would kill a slave that raised a hand to his Warrior. You didn't tell me they would try to kill me for that."

Damien sighed theatrically the way Hannah had done, "No one in this compound would dare the wrath of my family. The decision of your punishment was ultimately left to us," he explained patiently. "As you will note, you are not dead. The General knows not to anger me."

We sat and stared at one another for a moment. I wasn't going to argue about this so I hugged him tight and kissed his jaw. The General didn't kill me because it would anger the women. Damien didn't need to know that.

As he fed me Damien talked. I had made their punishment so much more interesting.

Everything about that experience had been fun.

When Bane had pulled down from the punishment bar, the other Warriors had been shocked. Everyone knew they were strong. The other men had forgotten how strong.

Finally he got back to my "death wish" as he called it. Explaining that was not an actual desire and just a frustrated statement was difficult. Damien would never say something like that unless he meant it. He struggled to understand how I could have said it.

I tried to explain how painful the birth had been. He didn't think it was that bad.

"Sometimes," I pleaded, "the babies don't come out the lower tunnel. Sometimes women have to be cut here," I gestured to my stomach, "to make a place for the baby to come out."

Damien looked at me with stern eyes. He informed me that no one would be cutting on me. I didn't need to worry about that.

He didn't understand that I might need it. Eventually I gave up trying to make him understand. I'd talk to Christof, he was sometimes more approachable about things.

So, I was free for the afternoon. No more tethered to the pole or chained to the wall. I took my freedom as an opportunity and went for a swim.

I loved the water and the fish. That was one thing I'd hated in the mountains, no swimming. Sure we'd gone to the lake that one time, but it wasn't the same. I adored the warm, briny water at the Keepers'.

Eventually I got out of the ocean and lay in the sun on the shore. Rose came and sat quietly next to me.

"I'm going to look like a floppy cow after that many births," I said watching her tiny figure next to me.

I was jealous. Even starved, I'd never had the delicate look she carried so well.

"The cream will fix your skin," she said looking out across the water. "They have other things, more powerful things, to heal you if you are damaged badly."

She was right. My stomach had popped almost magically back into shape after several applications of the cream. I poked at the soft, rounded contour and missed the tight, flat stomach I'd had when Nu-reeh kept me.

Rose seemed quieter than usual, more subdued. I asked her about it, but she just said the day before had been stressful. I had to agree, it had been a lot to take in.

My men came and I was very happy to see them. Since the transport driver was present, I didn't want to make a scene. Despite attempting to be reserved, I still kissed and inspected everyone.

I didn't get a good look at their injuries until we went to the bathhouse. The men were bruised and battered, but they seemed to be healing. I cleaned Damien quickly and gently. He almost fell asleep sitting in the warm water.

"Come on," Christof said shaking his shoulder, "let's get upstairs."

We met the men delivering food at our door. They had just placed the tray on the table and wished Damien's family a good meal.

We all dressed in our linen outfits for the evening. The sixth chair was pulled up for me and we sat and had a quiet dinner. The men ate voraciously, which was strange for them. When I asked Christof told me they had not eaten well today. Except for Damien the other four had worked through lunch, it was part of the punishment.

In between bites Bane explained the General was looking for new ways to punish them. They seemed quite immune to his whip. He had thought letting the other Warriors have a go at them would be a good idea. It had been, until I came along.

Kein took a break from eating to tell me that I had really interrupted the proceedings. The young Warriors in the compound had not realized how strong the family was. After seeing how easily Bane could escape the punishment bar, it made them wary. Being on the bad side of men like Damien's family was foolish.

"They stopped really hitting us after you left," Evan told me. "They were afraid of angering us."

I didn't have to be part of the internal dialogue to know the topic. The other men were wimps and it was good to be the best. They were all certain of it.

My men were obviously tired. I pushed and cajoled them toward the bed, but they said they had to stay up. Guests were coming.

My curiosity was peaked. Evan found it a game and refused to tell me who was visiting at this late hour. Instead the men made me guess. My ideas went from impossible to improbable. I had no idea who was coming over.

The Healers showed up and greeted Damien politely much to my surprise. They asked that my linen cover be removed so they could check me. The family relented and I was sat on one of the floating tables the Healers brought into the room.

If this was Earth and not Pateria, I would have called what the men did a physical. My body was measured and prodded thoroughly. Swabs were taken from my mouth and vaginal area. The men took samples of urine. The Healers recorded everything about me.

Before the men left they asked about the health drink. Damien explained an extra one had been ordered when I vomited the first. The Healers recorded that information and praised Damien for good thinking. I started when they told him Nu-reeh would be pleased, she had been confused why they ordered an extra dose. I absolutely could not miss the drink.

The Healers left and the family was ready for bed. The men didn't even bother to tell me what was going on. I had to ask.

"You must stay healthy," Christof explained stretching out on the bed. "Nu-reeh wants you cared for a certain way, so the child will have every advantage."

"When you become pregnant," Damien said yawning, "we will go back to the mountains immediately."

That was it for the men and the explanations were done. Before I could formulate my rampaging thoughts into more questions, they were snoring lightly around me. The men were exhausted.

I wasn't tired and stared out the window at the stars. Finally safe and at home, I could think about what was happening. This was slavery again.

Whether I wanted to give them to her or not, Nu-reeh would take my children from me. The girls I could handle. Hannah was powerful and we could still talk. The idea of sons that I would never know broke my heart. I wondered how many would leave me before I stopped caring.

It was a long time before sleep finally took my teary eyes.

At the Keepers I talked to Rose and Fuji. Rose lamented the loss of my children with me. Fuji didn't understand that, but she would miss me when I had to leave to give birth. It was a depressing conversation for all of us.

The next days passed without incident. I was given my health drink twice a day. The Healers came and checked me over. Damien explained that would become a pattern.

Nothing was very exciting until one morning Damien told me Basin wanted to share a meal. He had some special form of entertainment in mind, so I would not be dancing. Basin and his Brothers would be joining us for dinner in our rooms that night.

It was to be quite a meal, Fuji's owners would also be coming. The three families were good friends. Damien and his Brothers were looking forward to visiting with their friends outside of work.

The morning of the famed meal I went to the Keepers and Rose wasn't there. Perhaps her owners had the day off and had kept her home. Fuji and I spent the day talking and laughing. We both hoped Rose had a good day with her owners.

In the evening the transport dropped us at the bathhouse. The men cleaned themselves quickly and we went upstairs. They dressed and I was wrapped in several pieces of clingy fabric. It was a new style from Fredrick and the men couldn't decide if they liked it. Even with the fussing, we were ready quickly.

Fuji and her owners showed up first. Rose's family arrived last just as the food came. I wanted to say hi to her, but she wouldn't look at me.

The men sat to eat while Fuji, Rose, and I knelt. It was a lively, raucous conversation as the men discussed new techniques and old battles. They had been friends it seemed for a long time. From the sound of it Basin and his Brothers had grown up with Damien. Fuji's owners were newer to the compound, but still long time friends.

Eventually the men retired to the crowded sitting area. I knelt on the floor somewhat leaning on Evan. The conversation paused and Damien asked Basin what the entertainment was.

Basin laughed and told Damien he had the very same entertainment in his house. Perhaps we would like a sample of what was most lately amusing to his family?

Basin stood and pulled Rose up. He stood her in front of the fire. She looked at the floor until he lifted her chin with his finger.

"Our slave," he said suddenly serious, "has been here many moons. We have listened to many stories the slave made up to amuse us...The truth has been far more entertaining."

Rose spoke then at Basin's prodding. The big man stood looking calmly down at her. She talked about the women and the mountains. She said Nu-reeh's name and described her in detail to the gathering. With tears falling down her face, she explained how the men were owned. I felt Evan stiffen as she talked.

The story wasn't long, thankfully. I didn't breathe the entire time she spoke. I sat on the floor trying to sink into it.

I never would have thought Rose would repeat the things I told her. It had never occurred to me the men might ask her. She could not lie to them, none of us could. Obviously this was the only outcome that was probable.

Basin pulled her to kneel beside him when she was done. He stared at Damien.

"We asked it to tell us about the extra health drink as a joke," Basin said sounding hard. "We anticipated a wild and funny story as our slave often concocts for our amusement. Instead we heard the harsh sound of lies filling our ears...The truth soon followed and that was no less harsh."

Damien chose his words carefully. I got the feeling he didn't want to fight with Basin, but the other family looked furious. He asked them what they wanted to know.

"Everything," Basin seethed, "we want to know everything."

Damien turned to Fuji's owners and asked if they wanted to know or if they wanted to leave. After a mere moment of consideration, Fuji's owners stayed. They seemed neither upset nor anxious about the events.

Rose was weeping and shivering beside her owner. Despite his anger he pulled her to sit in his lap and soothed her. He told her she was a good and loyal slave.

I chanced a glance up at Evan and did not see the same forgiveness in his eyes. My family was really upset with me. An involuntary shudder coursed down my spine when I thought about what they would do to me.

Damien spoke slowly and thoughtfully. He explained what he knew and what had happened to them, mostly. Things the men in the mountain had explained about the world were openly discussed. The experiences they had personally with Nu-reeh clarified some of the more confusing points. Damien tried to be as clear as he could.

Basin wanted more information. There were things Rose had said Damien had no way of knowing. Most of the things centered around what Hannah had shared with us. Damien was forced to explain Hannah and her relationship with the family.

Hannah had been a rich source of new information. Damien explained a great deal of what he knew about the world came through her. The strange box that had been delivered was pointed out and the letter discussed.

The other family didn't believe, not entirely. Damien had held too much back for too long. Rose couldn't lie to them. Basin demanded she read the letter and tell them what was in it.

Rose was forced to read the English in my letter from Hannah, which she did slowly. It had been a long time for her. The words she read matched what Damien had told them. The men were slaves, the women owned them, and my daughter believed it was a flawed system. She finished and handed the letter to Basin.

I watched with horror as he looked at the letter and then at the fire.

"Don't," Damien said with authority.

Basin handed him the paper and sat brooding for a moment. His family looked angry and upset. I saw the stress wearing at them. They didn't try to mask it as they had been the rest of the evening.

"Your family," Damien said, "has acted oddly for many days. We have seen others broken by this knowledge. We ourselves have experienced the total breaking of our bond. It is not easy to come back from, you mustn't let it happen."

Basin's eyes met Damien's and the question was in them. The other man asked Damien when the family had been broken. Damien was silent for a moment before he spoke. The break had happened in the mountains, it was very difficult, and they'd barely come back from it Damien repeated.

Damien looked at me and I met his gaze. Certain things I had not shared. Some things were too personal, other things I felt the girls would be jealous of. I'd held back very little, but the things I didn't say were important to me.

Basin stood suddenly and carried Rose with him. His family followed him out our door without a goodbye. They were gone for a moment before the room moved again.

Fuji's owners rose and stretched. The head of the family thanked Damien for an interesting evening. They didn't really seem that bothered. Christof was curious how this didn't upset them.

"Our slave told us as it happened," Fuji's owner said simply. "Slaves from Batra believe anything that may affect us is our right to know. It was an honor to inform us of the happenings. At first we did not believe the story and later it troubled us. You only confirm what we have long considered a possibility. We have had time to adjust."

Of course Fuji had done that. Her first and only real loyalty was to the men that owned her. She told me good bye politely and smiled. Fuji seemed not in the least bothered by what was going on.

My family rose and I followed their lead. The men walked Fuji's family to the door and bid them a good rest. The other men reciprocated the greeting and were gone.

I studied my feet as we stood in the anteroom. The men were quietly standing near me, but no one was talking. Christof's voice broke the silence. He demanded to know the entire story.

It made more sense if told in order, so I started at the beginning. When Christof was broken from the Brothers I talked worriedly with my friends about how to help him. Later, when I was taken to see them at the cabin the first time, I shared my happiness with my friends. The pregnancy got all the women's attention and then my strange life was no longer a secret.

Slaves were women, Damien's family knew that, and women knew what pregnancy entailed. When I had started to 'show' every slave in the compound knew what had happened. There was no way to hide it.

The rest of the story came out in bits and pieces to the other women. They saw me leave heavy with a child and come back looking abused. I'd shared with the slaves that the women of Pateria had taken me. The slaves all knew I'd birthed a daughter. Other than that the details had been sketchy.

Rose and Fuji knew more than most anyone. I'd told the truth as I knew it. Almost nothing about the secrets of this world was held back from them.

Christof wanted a complete list of the things I had not said. He was talking so calmly and asking so politely, I was scared. The serene look on his face did nothing to ease me.

"You kept secrets from them," Damien said stepping closer. "The other men did not know we had been broken. What else did you hide from your friends?"

My bond with my family and how Hannah learned the world, for one. It was too personal. The men's bond was sacred. Their lives were private. Admitting I had access for a little while had seemed crude to discuss.

Damien pushed for more and stepped closer. My desperation grew and I sought to tell them things I had not told the other girls. No one knew they had said I was family, it might make them jealous. Damien came closer and I backed into the door.

"No one knows you trained me to fight," I panted and grimaced, "except the General. His Brother asked and they demanded I answer..."

The men were deep in thought. I jumped when Damien spoke again. He told me to go relieve myself of fluid. My instincts told me to be wary and I stood and stared at him a moment too long.

"You ate and drank with us," Damien informed me. "Go relieve yourself of any excess fluid."

Damien's face was dark and he looked dangerous, but calm. The other Brothers mimicked his look with terrifying effect. They parted and gestured to the bathing room.

I ran in and didn't know what to do. Finally I did what Damien had asked. It took a moment of concentration, but I relieved my bladder.

There weren't enough words in two languages to put together enough apologies. I stood in the bathroom for a moment trying to think of the correct thing to say. Nothing came to me, so I gathered my courage and stepped out.

The men stood patiently in the sitting area talking. Damien raised an arm and pointed to the bedroom. Now, I was nervous. They only talked by themselves when something really bad happened.

I paced in the dark by the bed and didn't know what to do. This was a big problem. I jumped when I heard them walking this way.

"How many more times," Damien asked stepping into the room, "do you think we will have a repeat of tonight?"

My mouth opened and closed as I thought about how many slaves knew far too much.