Slave Girl Ch. 20-32

"You've charmed them. You're an enchanter."

"Ha! No. They have seen the truth...as Quin has. Tell her Quintus. Stand up to her."

Rosa strokes my hair and continues to shield me. One small slave girl standing against ten armed soldiers and Ignatius. I continue holding her leg so that I would not swoon. The longer I was out of Ignatius' gaze the more I was feeling like myself again though...what he said made so much sense. If only he didn't ask me to hurt Rosa. I wanted so bad to listen to him. I wanted all of the same things that he wanted for me. I wanted to see my Dad again. I wanted to feel God's love. I wanted...Rosa. Ignatius could give me everything!

"Why go to Rome?" Rosa continues. "Why let them take you? The Emporer will have wards to protect him, he won't fall for your charms."

"In killing me the Emperor will create thousands more just like me. I will be a martyr for my Lord. My name etched in history. The church of Christ cannot be stopped." He says. "Like these soldiers the Emperor will play his part just as God intends."

"You're mad!"

"Your time is short demon. You and your kind will be erased from memory. Demons, wizards, monsters and pagan gods, all of Satan's servants, burned from history by God's truth."

"There's an old Alexandrian expression I think fits just this moment perfectly." Rosa says back. "Fuck you asshole!" She points to the road. "Take your fucking brain dead soldiers and your fucking batshit crazy beliefs and get the fuck out of here!" She then lets out a feral snarl and bares her tiny fangs. "LEAVE MY BOY ALONE!"

At Rosa's wild snarl the soldiers go for their swords until Ignatius raises his hands to stop them.

"I've wasted enough words on you evil one. Quintus! Rise!" He commands in a booming voice. "Stand and face your demon."

Chapter 31

From around Rosa I peek out at Ignatius. Behind him the soldiers had formed two banks of five. They were armed and armored, each of them larger than their manacled prisoner, yet the man in saffron robes stood out from among them like a giant. The light in his eyes was gone but the fervent fires still burned hot. Seeing me looking his face softens into one of grandfatherly concern and the light flickers once again. Rosa quickly turns my head with her hand so that I wasn't looking directly at him.

In a gentle voice he says to me. "Look son. See her true face. See the hate in her heart. Look at your demon."

"Rrrrr." The low growl of a wildcat comes from her as she holds me to her thigh. "Stop talking to him! Stop poisoning him with your words. Leave him alone!"

Despite myself I obey Ignatius' suggestion to look up at my slave. Her intense magenta eyes were narrowed in anger, her brow furrowed, and her teeth bared to show her small fangs. Her head was dipped slightly almost as if she were about to charge Ignatius with her pointy horns. I'd never seen her look more fierce.

"Get up son." Ignatius says. "There is only one reason a man should be on his knees and that is to pray to the good Lord above. Stand up!"

My body readies itself to rise...before relaxing again. Rosa glances down at me as her hand tightens along the side of my neck. "Don't listen to him Quin. Don't look in his eyes." She says. "He has enchanted you. If you obey him once it only gets harder to resist him."

"You seem to know a lot about magic for a slave." He says as his own eyes narrow. "But I am no wizard, I am a messenger of truth." With impatience starting to grow in his voice he says again. "Get up Quintus. Get to your feet and face your demon! Save her and save yourself!"

Behind him the soldiers begin to chime in. "You can do it Quintus." "Stand up." "Be a man." "Don't kneel like that for a mere girl." "Get to your feet man, you look pathetic down there." "You are the master, she is the slave. Show her!" "Ignatius speaks the truth." "He can save you like he did me." The fact they wore the same uniform as my father makes the words hit harder. I could almost see him standing there among them. I could almost hear his voice in theirs. "A real man doesn't kneel to a woman."

As if he could read my heart Ignatius urges. "Stand up! Your father waits for you Quin. Your father waits for you to be the good man he knows you can be. Reject Satan. Give yourself to Jesus."

"Rosa." I whisper as I clutch her bare leg tighter. I wanted so bad to explain to her but the words were all a jumble in my head. "He wants...to help us. To save us. We should listen to him."

"I've heard about how Christians want to save people like me."

"Tell her Ignatius." I plead with him. "Tell her about...how everything is connected and...how Jesus died for our sins. Tell her those things you told me."

"Until she is exorcised she cannot hear God's truth. I will not waste my breath on her."

"She's not pure demon. Tell him Rosa. Tell him you can be saved the normal way. Tell him that we don't have to hurt you to save you."

"I am a demon." She says firmly with a noble look about her. "Proudly so."

Neither were cooperating nor giving an inch. I had to choose one or the other.

"Pride goeth before the fall." Ignatius warns. "If you will not rebuke Satan then you will perish demon."

"You will commit murder?" Rosa asks.

"We will break no laws." He says. "That is not my way. With the blessing of your master we put down an uppity slave girl. Perfectly legal."

"Why are you doing this to him?" Rosa asks. "He's a good boy, he's never harmed a soul."

"It is his soul I worry about." Ignatius replies. "Think Quin. Remember the things I told you. She lies, she tempts, she fornicates, she uses you. She wishes to rule you."

"I...I..." I mutter. Shaking my head I try hard to clear it but the haze still clung stubbornly to the corners of my mind. "I don't understand...I'm so confused."

"Come son, stand. Let us end this."

"Yes, let's end this." Rosa agrees.

Turning to face me Rosa stands between Ignatius and I. All of the fierceness melts away as she looks down at me with adoring care. She brushes a stray hair from my forehead with the tip of a slender middle finger.

"My boy."

"Help me." I moan.

"She cannot help you Quintus." Ignatius says. "She will lead you to ruin."

Neither she nor I pay him much notice. Rosa had shielded me long enough that his magic was starting to wane and seeing the care in her face brings me along a little bit further. His arguments still held some purchase in me but not like before, they weren't nearly as clear as they once were. I gaze up into my Lady's beautiful eyes where I see not the flames of fanaticism or the glow of magic but a soothing gentle devotion.

"This is such a nice place we've found. Isn't it? The old trees, the dancing nymphs..." She takes in a deep breath through her nose. "...the smell of green and sweet flowers. And I just love the moss under my feet. I've not felt a finer carpet."

"Yes." I say. "And the sound of the river."

"Mmm, that is lovely." One of her pointed ears pricks up to listen the water. "I'm so happy you brought me here."

The more I took in the world around me the further away the idea of a heavenly realm seemed to get. I watch a fat bumblebee laden with yellow pollen lazily drift by. Did heaven have bumblebees?

"I was scared at first." She continues. "But I knew you were here with me. You held my hand and lent me your courage. You let me see this wonderful glade. If not for you I would have never seen a pegasus. Thank you Quin. Thank you for bringing me here."

The dappled sunlight coming through the canopy bathed Rosa in a verdant glow. How could a woman be so beautiful? Halos and white wings might be nice, but what was wrong with horns and long tongues? I preferred them. How could someone so beautiful not belong in heaven? Seeing me gaze she scrunches her nose and blinks her big eyes, a little signal just between us that everything was going to be okay.

"I warned you son, she is trying to anchor you to this fallen world. Don't let her sway you. God's rewards are so much greater."

Ignoring him Rosa continues. "Those lemons were delicious, weren't they. Mmm, I can't wait to taste them with the salmon you caught for us."

"They're...burning." I say. The three fish on the fire were charred black and sizzling as I had stopped tending them once Ignatius had started talking. Thankfully the smoke was drifting away from us and toward the others. "They are ruined. I'm sorry, I let them burn."

"We still have plenty." Rosa says as she looks to the ones laid out with the sliced fruit, already cooked and coated with oil and herbs. "Enough for you and me. We have all we need, right here. Just like always."

"All we need?"

"Just you and me and that heavy old pack. We get by okay, don't we?"

"Yes...yes." I say. "We get by."

"At least until we get to our land. Then we'll start for real. We'll have a place all our own."

"Our place. Our land."

"I am sure Ceres is curious to see what you will plant." Unlike Ignatius' grim tenor, Rosa's voice is casual and friendly. "I am too. I'm so excited, I have so much to learn about being a farmer. It's going to be hard work, but I'm ready."

"Ceres?" I whisper. "My goddess."

"She is just a part of a greater God." Ignatius reminds me. "The one true God. Remember Quintus, remember? Ceres isn't real."

"Yes...one of the whole." I say. "All is one. I remember."

"Well I am no wise man but I think Ceres is real." Rosa says. "As real as the harvest. As real as those lemon trees at the old orchard. I think Silvanus is real too and I believe he heard my flute. He blessed us with yummy fish like she blessed us with juicy fruit. I'm pretty darn hungry, I certainly won't turn my nose up at their gifts. I don't know about all being one, I just want to become one with breakfast."

"Blasphemy!" The Christian exclaims. "You are an idiot."

"Probably." She shrugs in an exaggeratedly cute way. "I'm just a dumb little slave girl after all."

"PAH!"

I tug at Rosa and beg her one last time to understand. "But...but...Ignatius can help me find my Dad. He can help me see my Dad again."

"That's right son. Your father is watching. He is waiting for you. Don't let him down Quintus."

"And what about my Dad?" Rosa asks me with a tinge of sadness. "What about Papa? Is my Papa waiting for me too?"

"I...don't...know." As an unconverted demon there would be no hope of salvation for Rosa's father. He loved his daughter as my father loved his son. Why would God reunite my family but not hers? As I reflect on the injustice of it Ignatius' arguments begin to unravel. I say again more confidently. "I don't know."

"Me neither. I wish I did. Heaven is a nice dream though." Rosa sighs and strokes the back her fingers along my cheeks. "But this is pretty nice too. You know, as amazing as this forest is, the very best part of this place is that I get to share it with you."

Closing my eyes I push my cheek into her caress. "I feel the same." I open my eyes again. "I wish we could stay forever."

"I know why you're saying that you bad boy." Her eyes flit to the tree that she teased me about tying me up to and she giggles as I blush and chuckle too. "But we need to go home."

"Yes, home." I say. "I want to go home."

"Her home is hell son. Do not follow her. Do not let her tempt you."

She laughs, her bright laughter completely eroding the dire tone of Ignatius' warning. "Do I tempt you Master?" She winks flirtatiously. "Am I tempting?"

"You know you are." A smile starts to play at my lips.

"Good!" Leaning down close she asks she stares into my eyes. "Are you still my boy?" I hesitate a moment, my eyes dart to look behind her. "Don't look at them. This is between you and me. Just you and me. Now answer me. Are you still my boy?"

"Yes!" The answer bursts out of me, coming not from my ensorcelled mind but straight from my heart. "Of course I am, my Lady."

She rustles up my hair with a merry laugh. "Give me a kiss." She commands, so I kiss her cheek. "Good boy."

"Son..."

"Quit calling me that!" I say back. "You are not my father old man."

"Quintus!" His voice booms for an instant...before it is swallowed up by natural sounds of the old forest. He didn't nearly seem so imposing anymore.

Rosa scoffs and waves him away like an pesky gadfly. "On your way now criminal. Leave us in peace. My boy and I are hungry."

"Watch your tongue, slave!" The guard captain barks.

I could feel Ignatius' eyes on me, though I dared not look up to meet them. I hear the pitying and contemptuous mutters of the soldiers. I feel shame at their mocking insults yet I also feel a strange new pride at being able to demonstrate my commitment to Rosa. I stay kneeling beside my Lady as their hurtful words bounce off of me. In fact I bow lower and kiss the top of her bare foot. They jeer with disgust but thankfully they keep it to just that and make no aggressive move.

"You weak foolish boy. The lust of youth has enslaved you." Ignatius says in a hard tone. I could hear now he never truly cared for me, I was just another soul for the ledger. "Remember my words Quintus. It is never too late to repent."

I look up at my Lady and then back down to the ground. "As the Alexandrians would say...fuck you asshole!"

"Pfft!" Rosa titters.

"Bah! We've lost this one. Come my lambs, let us find a soul worthy of salvation." With that the soldiers take their original formation around him, as if guarding a prisoner, and the lot of them make their way back toward the road.

"Bye-bye!" Rosa waves. "Have fun playing with the kitties in the Colosseum."

Chapter 32

We don't completely relax until the soldiers are well out of sight. When at last we felt safe Rosa kneels down in front of me and brings my head to her bosom. She holds me tight and strokes my hair. "Hold onto me baby, this isn't going to be fun."

Leaning into her with my eyes shut I let out a shuddering breath and hold to her. I could feel the sticky remnants of Ignatius' magic seep from my mind and it was not pleasant, not one bit. It felt like a rusty blade being very slowly withdrawn from a fresh wound. The more my senses cleared the more I realized what had just happened to me. The feeling of holding thoughts that were not my own and bending to the invasive will of another was horrifying. I felt so small. I felt so weak. I felt soiled. I felt violated in a way I didn't know was possible.

"Nnngh." I moan as the withdrawal of the magic from my mind leaves me for good.

"I've got you." Rosa cradles me close. "I'm right here."

"Why?" I whisper. "Why?"

"I don't know baby." Rosa coos. "The man was mad."

"I...wanted...to obey him." I rub my suddenly throbbing temple. "I almost did."

"But you didn't. You resisted. You were strong."

"I...I wouldn't have hurt you." I say. "I wouldn't have let them hurt you."

"I know." She kisses my head. "I know my boy. You did so good. I'm so proud of you."

"I hate him!"

"Shhhh." She continues. "You were strong. You were so strong."

"I don't feel strong."

"Well you are. Stronger than those soldiers." She says. "You made me proud. You made your Lady very happy. My boy deserves a reward for being so brave. Your Lady is going to make her boy feel so good tonight. Would you like that Quin?"

Letting out a long breath and pushing out all of my distress with it I hug my Lady tight and nod my head. I swear Rosa could fix anything. Having somebody in my life to hold me and soothe away my anxieties was...priceless. Having someone that I could allow myself be vulnerable with was a blessing that I never even knew I needed or even wanted. It was not that long ago that I was still convinced that I would sell her on, now I wasn't sure if I could get by without her.

I let out another breath and kiss her chest. "I'm okay."

She strokes my hair one last time and loosens her embrace.

Sitting back I rub my face. "Whoo! Magic. I felt real magic. This trip has been crazy. I never had to deal with wizards back on the farm."

"Well wizards are not all like that man. A lot of them are good men and women. I've heard it said that Pompeii would have been swallowed by Vesuvius' wrath if not for a few brave wizards." She says with a scowl off in the direction Ignatius had left from. "That said, enchanters are rarely to be trusted. They are tricky. They find your weakness first before bewitching you. I've felt it myself and I know how wretched it feels. It doesn't last long though, some food and rest will do a world of good. You'll see."

Rosa pats my cheek and pulls the food closer to us. With a quick prayer of thanks to Ceres and Silvanus we begin to eat our breakfast of herbed salmon and fat juicy lemons. Sitting on the soft carpet of moss, our meal laid out between us, my slave and I feast. We tear bits of the pink flesh off with our bare fingers as we devour our fine picnic. The fish is some of the best I'd ever tasted. Rich and fatty, succulent and moist, with the oil and herbs enhancing the natural flavors. The tart yet sweet lemons an even better accompaniment than a good wine. With nobody else to share the meal with we gorge ourselves on fish and fruit. By the end of it there are two very full and very happy people lying on the moss and looking up at the green canopy above. Ignatius' wicked magic just a memory now.

"That was...delicious." Rosa sighs as she rubs her full belly. "Oh my goodness."

"I think I might burst."

"You didn't have eat all of it!" We both laugh. Reaching over she touches my shoulder. "Nice as this is..."

"...we should get going." I finish her sentence. "Home is waiting."

"Home." She echoes happily. "You're feeling good to travel?"

"Never better." I say with a smile.

We drink, wash up, fill up our waterskin, and make sure the fire is good and doused before I go to collect the pack from where I hid it and Rosa goes to collect her flute from where she dropped it. From across the clearing I hear Rosa's crestfallen voice. "Aww, they stepped on it!"

Looking over I see Rosa rise with her flute, broken into three splintered pieces, in her hands. Her sad pout touches me deeply. I turn toward the road, my fists tight and my eyes narrowed in anger. "Those sons to bitches!" Gods how I hated them.

Rosa lets out a sigh, disappointed but not upset. "It's okay Master. It feels right somehow." Taking her flute to largest tree that bordered the area she kneels down and places the fragments at its roots. "Thank you for allowing me to play for you great King. Thank you for the gift of fish. Thank you for protecting us during our stay here. And thank you for the company of your creatures. They were wonderful." She giggles as she watches the green mote of a forest nymph fly surprisingly close. "Yes, I'm talking about you too little one." Looking up at the tree she reaches out and touches the bark. "I leave my flute so that you might remember me and my music as I will remember your generosity great Silvanus." She takes a deep breath in, smelling the lush forest air, then breaths out with a nod. She rises and returns to me. "I'm going to miss this place."

"Me too." I shoulder our pack. "Sorry about your flute. Those soldier's shouldn't have done that."

"No worries Master." She winks. Reaching into a little pocket she'd recently sewn into the interior of her capelet she pulls out a handful of denarii. "Their generosity will more than pay for a replacement." She laughs. "Soldiers are an easy audience. Songs of honor and glory, a bawdy tune here and there, then a weepy one to remind them of home and hearth and the silver soon follows. As predictable as the dawn."

I shake my head. "I think there may have been two enchanters in this glade."

"I'm just a simple slave girl." She bats her eyes as she hands over her earnings to her master.

"Yeah right." I say with a roll of my eyes. I bundle up our money and tuck it into the pack. "Come on, we've still got a long way to go."