DAHLIA :
I definitely didn’t want to think about how hard I had to bite my own lip to keep quiet. Or how obvious it was that I wanted to kill him, but I never killed anyone with my own hands. As I heard the door unlock and the man turned his head checking the sound, I swiftly grabbed his head from his chin throwing him on the ground. When he tried to grab his weapon that I kicked away, the knife I got from a guard was on his throat, faster than his words.
“Surprised?” I asked sweetly. “A move and your head might be away.”
I placed my foot on his chest, pressing down a little to remind him that he was at my mercy. “I am done with being polite. Now, move there,” I pointed at the office with my chin, his face pale.
“C’mon. I can’t move with your leg over me. Am I really to believe you’d harm me?”
“You once told me I could only lower my head… I am doing it right now, to look at your disgusting face. Remember karma always plays fair.” My voice was absolutely charming.
He attempted to get up but I pressed down harder. In the end, I let him move to the office. I picked the rope he tied me with earlier and did the same he did for me. “What are you going to do? I am afraid I don’t being tied.”
“I didn’t like it either, earlier. But you didn’t listen even when I begged you,” I let my body slump on the chair. “Tell me, where is the thing you used to lock these collars with?”
“Don’t expect me to answer!”
“Are you planning to earn time? Too bad! I am more experienced in these tactics, I am immune against them. So don’t even dream about it!” I examined the room; it took me some time to spot it on the shelf. It was hidden behind a big egg that caught my interest. I picked the remote and accidentally cut my finger letting drops of blood fall on the egg, I didn’t care since I aimed to get this thing over my neck. “Now, you gotta choose between cutting your tongue or your dick. I hate both of them so I won’t be choosy.”
“You gotta be kidding me, I can’t choose; one is my life and the other is my business. Choose another punishment for me.”
“You have quite a loose tongue, I will choose myself,” I crouched next to him and grabbed his dick squeezing it hard. He screamed asking for mercy and I liked it, he deserved everything that happened to him. One moment it was there, the other it was cut and blood welcomed itself outside. “Be kinder the next time.”
What I did next was something I wasn’t proud of. But I had to do it… I had to do it. He deserved it. His face, while I shoved his dick in his mouth, was satisfying. Yet, it pained me. I was becoming more of a villain than a hero.
I thought of the dark-haired man as I hurried outside. I wasn’t mad at him for shooting an arrow at me or poisoning me. It might have come for the better, I survived and it was the best outcome possible. If freeing the others would have hindered my plans, I wouldn’t do so. However, it was a great disturbance. I picked a lit torch from the office and started burning anything I found disposable. When I walked by a girl I found crouching in a corner, I stopped. Did the Lingering get to her mind?
“You are free now. What are you doing here? You need to be with the others.” She clanged to my knees and said. “I don’t know where to go. Please, take me with you.”
“I don’t want to. Be responsible for yourself,” I raised an eyebrow.
“You should be the one to do it since you freed us. I was always a slave, I don’t know anything else.”
“Why should I? I gave you a golden opportunity; one many wished for and couldn’t get,” I stared at her, disgusted. Was it normal for slaves to be this submissive? I didn’t even care for my injuries. Why should I do it for another one? I swallowed my pain, left her behind and moved on.
AURELIA:
I didn’t expect things to go down this path. I didn’t want to meet him again: the one who raised me to be this way. He had a revolver and no one liked it. When I disabled the mechanism, I saw my collar fall, I intended to sneak outside but the man I expected the least was waiting for me outside. I didn’t expect them to predict every last one of our movements! It was sickening and bad. Why did he work for them? Didn’t he hate humans as well as slavery? Wasn’t he an assassin to kill the ones who made his whole family slaves and massacred them? It was frustrating.
Bellek wasn’t alone; he had five guards with him. If he didn’t bring them with him, I would be disappointed. Wasn’t it weird to feel good about the attention he gave to me? I always aspired to impress him. When he abandoned me, I thought I wasn’t good for his plans, but he didn’t have any; he was the dog of a slave dealer now.
Seeing him made me remember I was a guy all in all. The only one who saw through my disguise was Dahlia. I didn’t know how she did it but it wasn’t bad to be found out. She told me her eyes didn’t see the world in layers, that she saw things as they were. She described Lingering and why some people died when they still had time ahead of them. Lingering existed after sucking life. It wasn’t important. I wasn’t possessed by one.
After a flowery dance dodging all the bullets and sliding through furniture, I ended in the kitchen hiding behind a counter. I heard someone keeping a gun somewhere here and it was going to be a handful. If it wasn’t for this wretched land, I would have dominated them simply by glamour. My eyes undressed the whole place and it was right under the sink. Having no weapon in a gunfight was equivalent to death. I pulled my tail closer to me when I heard him coming closer. I was worried; his existence here would make it impossible to escape. He was trained in a war field.
“Isn’t it the cowardice act of all time? Didn’t I show you what happened to a cornered rat? Come out, you filthy succubus. No matter which way you try to run, you’ll get blasted, by me or by my minions.”
“I never expected you to be a lowly dog. Such a shame I dreamt of reaching your height!”
“Umm… I was bored and found something to do. It’s that simple! My life was empty so I raised you. However, you couldn’t fill my requirements so I tossed you. It wasn’t my hobby to entertain cute girls like you. I am disappointed to see you as a sissy.”
“Hobbies? So is blowing our heads and gazing at our brains a hobby of yours?”
I checked the reflection in a bottle of wine. He stood up with two revolvers in his hands. His clothes had leather. Furthermore, I had one shot in the gun. If this continued, I would lose everything. My employer said to save Savascus and bring her to him unscathed. My gold bars! I bleed for you! Better remember that!
“Yeah! My life fulfilment remains in creating troubles. I don’t like following the rules or caring for pathetic slaves. I gave them salvation. Death was better than suffering at the hands of nobles. You used a still breathing slave dying to shield yourself… You are no different from me… You kill when it benefited you.”
“Yeah, I do,” I pivoted the gun on the counter blasting him back.
I darted from my place and jumped on a guard twisting his neck then used his body to push the others. In the end, I smashed a window then jumped down. My feet hurt but it wasn’t time for that. I had to meet with the other two. I found Savascus waiting but no Dahlia.
“Are you alright? It wasn’t hard getting rid of the guards. Dahlia did a great job planning,” she beamed seeing me.
I was confident she wouldn’t come after all the slaves ran and guards started chasing us. I waited. We waited and it was enough. Belled wasn’t someone to miss a hit.
“I don’t think so. I met someone I never expected to meet here. I don’t know what he is planning but it’s better to get out of here. If I wasn’t witty, I would have been a corpse by now.”
“Wouldn’t we wait for more for her?”
I put my hands on her shoulders. “Listen to me Savascus! I truly care about you and I was relieved to see you here. Don’t expect me to do the same for her!” I lifted her bridal style and ran as far as I could from that place.
I wasn’t going to fight Bellek again. I knew him better than I knew myself; he was a dangerous man. His existence here meant he was with someone or keeping an eye on someone and I doubt he was here for Savascus… or me. Who then? I replayed all my memories of the slaves and Dahlia was the only one with oddities. Was I looking too much on this?
DAHLIA: I always dreamt of a charming prince who would fight for me. When I was in the village, it didn’t have a name; I thought I would be like a princess waiting for a prince to save her. However, the reality was much more than it seemed. In the end, I was caught again and I heard all the escapees got caught too, except for Aurelia and Savascus. A certain robust guy I never saw before ruined my plans. My plan had two flaws; the existence of the strong guy and the consciousness of the slave dealer. I expected him to be sleeping in his quarters after inhaling the powder. In my solitude, I pondered about a lot of things like the reason that kept Aurelia or more like Aureoles and Savascus here. I concluded; despite being strong, the collars had us in check. Lately, mine was reinforced; I felt like my energy drained quickly. I slept all the time and the only way to know how much time had passed was the regularity of the piece of bread and glass of
NELDRISDYD: “I am afraid my Lady that I wouldn’t be able to grace your banquet with my presence. While I appreciate your sincere invitation, I must ask you to accept my regrets. I have a matter of utmost importance to attend to,” I said. My response elicited the slyest smile from Lady Markbill. She examined the last batch of goods that were supplied for the banquet. A servant that she found suspicious darted next to her. The Lady stopped him and grabbed the box from his hands. Her eyes checked him suspiciously then inspected the box of candles. It was completely normal, yet it wasn’t enough to let her believe nothing would ruin her banquet. She decided to revise everything from the beginning again. “Do you know how many would love to have an invitation from me? No, you do not. Since you are declining my truthful sincerity. I see that you are all grown up now, talking to your caretaker this way. You have grown by age but your wisdom stay
DAHLIA: After selling the children, they sold the women. At the end of the auction, I was displayed with other beauties with a mask on our faces, seductively. When my cage was pushed to the stage, the lights blinded me; they were brighter than my future and past combined. After my vision adjusted to the light, I saw the advanced threads of magic used to brighten the walls. Everything was set to make us dazzling and attractive. I couldn’t help but feel so low. I never wish for anyone to experience what I lived at the moment; an inferiority complex engulfed me and my mind put many questions in front of my eyes. The many eyes gazing at us made me feel sick. I wanted to cry like when my sister Dina tapped gently on my back, but my tears were useless. They were proof of weakness and any one of them might be used against me. I tried to be tough and strong, to endure everything like I endured the training I experienced, and show I didn’t care for anything but
NELDRISDYD: It was time to return to the banquet and meet the people I was supposed to; we were in the carriage. Furthermore, I had to care for my new interesting acquired slave I didn’t intend to buy. I was in awe of her survival; I shot the arrow to release her from her suffering. My eyes witnessed a real wonder: the act of a sacrifice. Did she know my poison slipped faster to the heart once the blood ran faster in the veins? The most important matter now was Erasmus words; she was unruly, untamed, defiance ran inside her veins. She was someone who didn’t care about rules and threw her life everywhere. The kind of person I wanted. Erasmus insisted she was human and my slave contract on her chest worked perfectly. Weren’t humans supposed to be less hurt by any tentative made by other races in Dotoria? It was already so suspicious. “Tell me. Aren’t you a human?” Her shoulder was leaning against the door her gaze lost in the thick canvas
DAHLIA: “I shall wait for you… After you take a bath getting rid of all that oil on your body and make yourself presentable, I will take you where the master would want you. You don’t have to put in your head any high position. You are a slave and shall stay so until your last breath. Even if you had children, Don’t think they would gain title or position. They would stay bastards and that… If you managed to stay alive more than a month.” I nodded as a sign I understood perfectly her words. The woman who led me through dark corridors to the servant’s quarters was an adult in her fifties. She had brown hair with hints of white and pale blue eyes that couldn’t attract even the smallest attention. Everything was all tidy and intact, even the small bathroom I was pushed into wasn’t that bad. A small bathtub in the corner with cold water and a mirror, which wasn’t even big. My toe touched the water and it was cold, I shivered but still jumpe
NELDRISDYD: As I expected, it was a lie. And that lie almost cost her life. I was eager to kill her, now she was mine. Nonetheless, she was the exact copy of Veronica but she wasn’t her. Because if Veronica was here, she would have already used her hands to seduce me, like she always did. Except for her different eyes, she had a bigger chest. Soft. Plump. My hands enjoyed massaging them and they couldn’t even hold all of her flesh in palms. In the end, I retracted my hands since she slept quickly. Was I this relaxing? I intended to ask more questions. I waved my hand and a shadow guard appeared behind me. “Quickly look for information about my slave. More importantly, Dig the royal family history and look for a missing twin child.” “Yes, my Lord.” She jumped when I moved to let her sleep comfortably; she was beautiful as a wild rose with a lot of thorns. I found a gold mine; she could be the future Veronica and mi
DAHLIA: “Mimi! Mimi! Look she is awake!” “You’re right! Can you see us? Please, tell us, you see us.” Two voices rushed to my ears the moment I woke up, exhausted. It has been days or two weeks maybe three since I lost my virginity and we have been doing it everyday, several times. He had great stamina. The Duke didn’t joke about his energy and the servant who warned me didn’t joke either. He did sex with his slaves until they couldn’t open their eyes. I had two spectres over my head but my experience with the Lingering still present made me immune to fear over ghosts. One was cold and mysterious with dull eyes. The other one was bright and energetic. However, the voices unmistakably belonged to teen girls. Were they dead? My senses gradually returned to me as my body fought against numbness. The best course of actions was to sleep again until the ghosts went away; I didn’t want to be stuck with another weirdo, the Duke was enou
DAHLIA: I swallowed watching the Duke turning into a monstrous being growing in strength. What happened? What did I do? I was just protecting myself. Should I escape? They would probably think I tried to murder the Duke and kill me. I didn’t want to die. Oh! Please God! I didn’t want to waste my life on something trivial. But what happened to him? My body froze in its place and my eyes watched the Duke letting his sword fall to the ground and clasping his head between his arm twisting and screaming. It was as if he was trying to control something in him. My legs trembled under me as I tried to flee. I wanted to get out of here. I didn’t know what happened but I wasn’t ready to give up my life. “What are you doing?” Mimi asked. “My sister is suffering there. Grab her first then let’s flee away together.” “But she… She… She is next to him. I-I-I can’t get close. I don’t want to die. I struggled hard to stay alive. You were the one who tol