Disclaimer: I do not know the BSB. The following is a work of fiction. Those under 18 are advised not to continue reading.
After three days of exhausting travel and endless business meetings, they finally arrived at the merchant's castle. The carriage slowed down to a halt as Nick stared outside of the carriage at the castle gates. He was mesmerized. It was sheer beauty and grandeur. Nick looked over at the merchant excitedly. The merchant only smirked at Nick's innocence.
Nick was happy to not be on the road anymore. The past three days had been tiring, especially when he got no sleep during the night. He had exhausted himself just to quench the merchant's hunger. During the day, he was bored out of his wits.
He was a little nervous about meeting the family, though. It was no secret that the master had a male slave to please him at night since he got no more pleasure from his wife. Nevertheless, he respected his wife and children and did not disown her. But he had not shared a bed with her in twenty years.
Nick gulped. Twenty years was a long time, long enough to nurture a hatred so dangerous that she could kill. But Nick couldn't do anything about it now. It was not his fault that the master preferred him to warm the bed over the wife. Still, Nick felt a cold shudder as he once again looked into his master's eyes. All he could see was a transient lust, soon to be replaced by boredome. Nick sensed it. He could sense the lack concern for his well-being. He didn't expect his master to love him, but the coldness in the man's eyes frightened Nick. If his master did not protect him from the rest of the family . . . Nick closed his eyes. He was scared. He was alone and outnumbered.
The carriage stopped. The merchant looked at Nick and placed a hand on his thigh near his groin suggestively. "You will have a slave's room of your own, but at midnight, you are to meet at the guest quarters. That goes for every night. You are to remain there every night from now on and even if you don't see me, you are to stay until the break of dawn when you are supposed to do your menial work." With that, the merchant put on a smile and stepped off the carriage, not failing to squeeze Nick once before greeting his wife and children, who had come out to welcome him home. For one minute, Nick wanted to stay in the carriage and wait until they were gone, but knowing that that wouldn't happen, Nick slowly stepped off the carriage.
He was met by five icy blue gazes along with distasteful stares from the many servants that lined up to greet the master. No one wanted to acknowledge his existence and the merchant's wife looked stone cold at his figure. Nick gulped and looked at the ground. His arms started to shake uncontrollably. The four sons didn't so much as to look at Nick. They hovered around their father and followed him back to the castle gates.
"How was your trip, father?" one of the sons asked, stepping in front of Nick pushing Nick further away from the father.
"It was a profitable trip, son. And I've acquired quite a few assets along the way." The merchant answered boldly. All the children and the wife understood all the underlying meanings behind that statement. Nick felt even lower than low as he continued to trail behind the bunch.
"You must be careful, father. Some 'assets' can be less genuine once you've acquired them," another son replied.
Nick bit his tongue to hold back the humiliation.
"As always, son, you are right. I do find that new is much better than used. Once used, objects tend to lose their value dramatically," the merchant replied agreeably.
Nick blushed hard, but lowered his head to hide his discomfort.
"But sometimes, a little fun can relieve some stress, father," the third son answered.
It was then that Nick noticed that one of the sons was silent. Nick snuck a peak at him, only to be startled when he was met with the son's crisp blue eyes. It was as if this son had an expression of half hatred half pity. His blue eyes were remarkably honest and impressive. He heard the merchant calling that son Brian.
Nick smiled to himself. Brian was a nice name. Sweet, innocent. But angry nevertheless. Nick could feel this son, Brian's, repressed dislike for him and he wanted to cry out in shame. For some reason, he wanted Brian to like him. He didn't know why nor could he think of one good reason why Brian should like him. It was just a sudden hope. Perhaps it was because Brian, unlike the others, had suppressed the desire to humiliate Nick. However, he was upset that his father had humiliated his mother and brought home one of his petty little fantasies.
The walk to his slave quarters was long and difficult. However, he was finally dismissed to his quarters to prepare for that night. As expected, he had the darkest room that was farthest from the master's quarters. As he stepped into the darkness, he felt the damp floor and the walls covered with dirt and webs. This slave's quarters had been empty for a while. A sudden thought brought goosebumps to Nick's skin. Was this the room that the last boy that the merchant fancied lived in? Nick shuddered.
Nick took out a candle and lit the room. There was some damp hay on the floor for him to sleep on. There was an old rusty kettle in the room. The walls were covered with slime and molds. Nick sighed. At least he had a room to himself. He had barely placed his scant amount of clothes on the damp hay when his thoughts once again drifted to the son, Brian. Nick couldn't get that face out of his mind. No! He couldn't think like that. Brian was his master's son. He had no chance. It was all wishful thinking. He quickly shoved the thoughts out of his mind and was ready to take a little nap. He cringed as he laid down on the damp hay. He had a feeling that if he had asked for anything, the other servants would merely laugh.
Dinner didn't go well either. Other slaves simply glared at him as he walked to the dining hall for the slaves and servants. He was fed a cold week-old bread and assigned to wash the dishes for that day. Everyone acted as if he were a vermin and refused to talk to him. Once done with the dishes, he was assigned to get water from the well and later to clean up the furnaces. Midnight had not arrived yet and he was later assigned to scrubbing the floors of the kitchen. Nick felt his entire body cramp up. Worse, he had also been assigned to clean up the guest room.
When he stepped into the guest room, he was awed by its grandness. The bed that lay in the middle was big and spacious. At least he would get a good night's sleep, hopefully. His muscles ached for rest. He was almost done cleaning the floor when he realized another presence in the room. It was the lady of the castle, the merchant's wife. He subconsciously realized that she was there to see him. She circled him like a hawk, staring down into his inferior body. Nick gulped.
His face was dark and dirty from his day's work. She snorted. "Don't even know what the lord thinks of you. You're nothing but a dirty snout. Muscles that are flail and flimsy. What could you possibly offer? Oh, I forgot, he must be desperate. He spent all his money buying me that gold chain so how could he possibly afford anything other than you."
Nick held his head in shame. The lady walked out of the room and laughed. Nick hurriedly cleaned up. Not that he expected anyone else to even address him. He had this feeling that the sons didn't really care much for his presence. For that, he was grateful.
It was nearly midnight. He had to at least take a bath before the merchant arrived. He quickly rushed to the bathing area inside the guest quarters. It was exquisite with a pair of sleeping attire draped over the edge of the sink. He quickly lathered himself with the rich soaps that the master had obviously supplied him with. He did the best he could and put on the silk clothing the master had bought for him. He waited patiently until it was well past midnight. He couldn't sleep. He just sat on the side of the bed, waiting for the master. He was afraid to sleep on such a beautiful bed alone. He waited a little longer until he soon fell asleep on the edge of the bed.
Finally, he was awoken by a soft jab on his cheeks. Nick opened his eyes to see the merchant in front of him. The merchant wasted no time and removing Nick's clothing and quickly, they got on the bed. By now, everything Nick did was reflexive. He was quick to arouse his master and the two spent the rest of the night making love. At least, this part of his life was not too distasteful. Even though the merchant was old enough to be his father, Nick didn't mind. He knew that things could be much worse.
The night ended quickly. The merchant was completely satisfied with Nick's work that night and allowed him to go and start his daily chores. Nick gratefully stepped out of the guest quarters slightly wobbly from the intensity of the night and quickly changed into his working clothes to start another day's work. That morning, they sent him to get more water and to start setting the table. And it seemed that he wasn't allowed any food in the morning because everything was rationed. And since he was the newest slave to be acquired, they did not have enough food to feed him that morning. Nick could hear his stomach growling loudly, but he kept quiet. He quickly did his chores.
Around lunch time, he was allowed another week-old loaf of bread. He gobbled it down hungrily. He had barely finished half when one of the servants told him to go down and fetch some supplies for the master's sons as they needed it for their afternoon writing lessons. Nick quickly set foot out of the castle to the nearest trader to gather the supplies. By the time he arrived to receive the goods, his feet had developed lots of callus, but he tried to push the pain away. He made it to the trader's shop in time and loaded himself with the utensils. With that, he ran as fast as he could back to the castle. He barely returned in time, his face red from the exhaustion. As he feared, he was to bring the utensils himself to the master's sons' writing room.
Nick quickly washed himself to look more presentable and headed to the writing room. Once he got there, he entered the room quietly, but to his dismay, all four sons turned to gaze at him. He kept his head low and placed the paper and writing utensils on the teacher's desk when he heard a voice.
"You're not supposed to leave it there, slave boy. You're supposed to place them on the tables!" The teacher barked. The other sons did not laugh. All seemed to look at Nick intently to see what he would do in response. All except Brian that was. Still, he could see Brian's unhappiness. He didn't blame them. He was their father's sex toy. He would have hated himself, too. Shaking slightly, he started to distribute all the things he brought. Once over, he stepped out quietly, his face never leaving the ground.
None of the sons made a comment, nor changed their expression throughout the painful ordeal. None bothered to thank him either, although his rank was high enough that they needed to express any gratitude towards him. How he longed to be like them, to sit in a room and be able to read and write for hours and hours. But he had to remind himself to not be so greedy.
At least the day was half over. He quickly went to his own slave's quarters. Again, he had barely sat down on the haystack when he heard a knock on the door. He opened it and as expected, more work. By now, the lack of sleep was taking a toll on him. He felt weak all over and his arms were numb from the lack of food. But still, at least he had a place to sleep at night. He obediently went to clean up the dishes and laundry. It was hot outside. His once fair skin had tanned and his body could not take the heat too much. He felt slightly dizzy, but he knew that he could tough it up if he tried.
Dinner time was just as bad as the day before. Again, no food. He had to find leftovers after all the other slaves had ate--a chicken wing with some meat left. He grabbed it greedily and ate whatever meat was left. It tasted so good! He also saw a piece of bread on the floor in the corner. He immediately jumped and grabbed it. That didn't taste as good as the chicken, but he felt fuller after eating it. He dug through the trash can for some more food, and soon, he was full. He began to wash the dishes and repeat the chores he did last night until midnight once again came. He quickly bathed and changed and went to the guest chambers and like the day before, awaited his master's presence.
He hoped to get some sleep before his master arrived, but to his dismay, his master appeared at the stroke of midnight. Again, Nick wasted no time in pleasing his master. He urged his master onto the bed and together, they spent another restless night in bed. That night, Nick had even less sleep as his master was very energetic and had no desire to stop the sexual play. Nick couldn't even count by the time they were done and dawn once again approached. Like the day before, Nick slipped out of bed at the stroke of dawn and rushed to change. He decided to take a bath first as his body was dripping with sweat and his master's seed.
The days went by slowly. By the end of the week, Nick felt like he had lived in the castle all his life. The other servants did not show him any mercy, but they began to see his resourcefulness in the kitchen. They handed him all the dirty work and continued to starve him, amused as his body began to show signs of wear and tear.
Still, his master did not make any comment about his weight loss. All his master cared about was whether Nick was pleasing in bed or not. And the past few days, the master seemed even more discontent. The charm was wearing down. Nick sensed it. The images of the previous slave boy kept on playing in Nick's mind, haunting him every night. He desperately tried to hide his fear, but he was not successful. He felt like he would soon follow that previous boy's past.
But he wasn't dead yet, he tried to convince himself.
Surprisingly, the trips to bring supplies to the master's sons would be the most rewarding time of the day. The sons, to Nick's surprise, never once scorned or mocked him. They would simply remain silent whenever he was around, but then go back to their business without much hostility towards him. Sometimes, Nick would sneak a peak at Brian for a few minutes before going back to the kitchen to do his work. At times, the sons would have friends over and Nick would look at the gentile interactions between the merchant's sons and their friends. All were so noble and elegant. He wished he could be like them. He would dream every night that he would have friends who would care about whether he was healthy or sick, friends that cared about his emotions, that within one week, he would turn 17.
And he longed so much for Brian to notice him or to show any recognition of his presence. But never had Brian once lifted his gaze to look upon Nick. The only interpretation that Nick had was that Brian was still upset with him for stealing his father away from the family. Though none of the sons had verbalized it, Nick felt their suppressed animosity towards him. That was why he never dared say anything in their presence.
But time was working against Nick. The master became very unsatisfied with him. He wasn't as exciting as he was the first night. So many times, the master would slap him hard in the face to make him be more conscious of his poor effort. As Nick suspected, the master was bored. Only a few more days and he would be discarded, fodder for the servants' amusements, that is, if his master didn't get to him first. Finally, the day Nick dreaded approached. His 17th birthday.
The master was extremely bored that day and decided to practice his archery. The worst part was that he decided to bring the entire family out for amusement as well. Nick followed the procession down to the grounds in the back of the castle, quietly wishing that nothing too exciting would happen on his 17th birthday. To his dismay, he heard his master call out his name.
"Nick, why don't you come here and make yourself useful," his master barked. Nick knew that this was trouble. The night before, he had displeased his master once again and his master was agitated the entire night. With a heavy heart, Nick slowly walked up towards his master. All the servants and the sons' as well as the lady's gaze fell upon him, probably with triumph and happiness that he fell out of favor with the master. Nick bowed his head towards his master. He could also feel the guests' eyes on him. His master had also invited their long time friends to go hunting that day.
"On the count of three, you run as fast as you can into the forest, okay?" the master said indifferently.
Nick's eyes shot up in shock as the realization hit him. He looked as the other servants brought out boxes with other wild animals to be hunted, ready to release them. He gazed incredulously at his master. Had not the last month meant anything to his master? His heart sunk. He hadn't expected it to be so soon. He didn't dare look at the family members. Probably smirking at him. He looked towards the hunting grounds and slowly started to feel the panic.
What Nick didn't see was the look of shock on the sons' eyes as they too looked at their father, startled by his sudden cruelty. Of course they hated the blond boy, but never once did they think of doing anything other than isolating him from the family affairs. And to have their father, the one who had bought the boy, give him the death sentence himself in front of everybody had suddenly strengthened their pity for the boy.
Brian immediately stepped out from behind his father. "Father, we already have wildlife to hunt, I don't think there is any reason to . . . "
But Brian was cut off by his father. "Son, I'm doing an experiment to see whether human reflexes are better than animals."
Brian looked desperately at his brothers, his eyes pleading for them to support him. Then he looked at Nick with more guilt. "He looks rather ill today. I think we should not . . . I mean he's not game like the other creatures."
One of Brian's brothers too stepped out. "Father, the boy looks rather pale. Maybe we can try another day, when he's less ill."
Nick felt some gratitude, but for the past month, he had come to understand his master's thoughts well, and he knew that all attempts at keeping his life were in vain.
The master turned to look at Nick with pleasure. "What do you think, Nick? Do you have enough energy in that weak body of yours? Or are you going to tough it up and be more useful than you have been around my castle grounds lately?"
The words stung Nick's soul. So his master thought he was useless. Nick didn't look at the other servants, but he could sense their guilt. They had pretty much dumped him with all the work and they had reported to the master that he was useless? Suddenly, he felt this intense desire to get his life over with. If he was that useless, then his existence did not mean anything to these people, did it? Was there any other reason to preserve his life?
He looked up boldly at his master. "No. I'm ready. A slave is not worthwhile if he cannot be useful to his master." Those words slipped out of Nick's mouth before he had the chance to change them. But he had no intention of changing his mind. He suddenly felt odd that his answer startled everyone, even the sons and the servants. Was this not what they wanted? Was this not what their actions told him that they wanted? But he didn't care anymore. He turned around and braced himself.
Brian's voice suddenly became louder, more desperate. "Father, do you not treasure his presence at all?"
"Brian?" the master's voice bordered dangerously on anger.
"Did you not fancy him?" Brian ignored his father's threatening tone.
"Brian!" the master's voice became louder.
"He is your lover for heaven's sake!" Brian finally blurted. His brothers had to hold onto his arms to prevent him from jumping his father, but the damage had been done. All stared in anticipation at the master's reaction.
The master glared angrily at Brian, his face flushed, his nostrils flaring. The family friends looked nervously at the exchange between father and son.
As if in response to Brian, the master snapped his head to glare at Nick. "You have ten seconds before I come after you with my bow and arrow." Nick knew that look, and so did the rest of the household. All the servants gazed anxiously and nervously at the master. That was the look of murder.
Without hesitation, Nick whipped around and ran for his life. He wasn't far enough not to hear the horse's furious pace as the master kicked it into action. The only thing that comforted him was the fact that the master's friends did not follow his cue. They remained with their horses at the castle, watching helplessly as the master single-handedly chased Nick down. It was now a struggle between Nick and his master--Nick's struggle to remain alive and his master's struggle to put an end to his life.
Nick's heart sunk. Never in a million years would he ever think that the person to end his life would be the one he had the most faith in to protect him, the one he depended on for warmth and understanding. And never once did he think that the one person who had never bothered to even give him a glance would so adamantly protect his life. Maybe in his next life, he would repay Brian's kindness. Maybe . . .
Hope you guys liked this chapter! ngclle@yahoo.com