Hunter

"Pick out one." Said Arex. "Or two. However many we may need. You know my tastes.... And yours. Someone who would fit well in my household and not have to be beaten too often. A strong back and a willing heart." Then he leaned forward and whispered "One who you wouldn't mind having around for a long time to come. Choose wisely."

Garl made a small grimace of distaste as Deril began perusing the line of offered captives. A slave? Arex sends a mere slave to sample his wares? It was a mark of dishonor on his entire house! Garl practically quivered with indignation. Until, that is, he noticed the icy blue gaze of Arex above his mask. Those eyes held such calm cool malevolence, as if daring the factor to make a remark. Garl felt his anger melt away into fear under the unflinching gaze of the hunter and his bowels turned to ice water. Sweating profusely, the corpulent factor excused himself and fled the room. One of his younger brothers, his face masked in obsequious bland smiles, took his place.

While Deril looked up and down the line of males, Arex stood and looked up and down at the females he had chosen from the groups of newly taken slaves. They huddled together on their knees and a few of them sobbed openly, cowering away from the giant of a man that approached them. He slipped off one glove and snapped his fingers loudly to get their attention. When the females looked up, he raised his hand and they all stood, hands across their naked breasts and clad in only filthy loincloths. They were all dirty and unkempt and a couple of them showed fresh whip marks on their shoulders and backs. Tears made tracks in the filth and grime on their cheeks.

Tugging down his mask, Arex made a grimace of distaste. Not at the women, but at the way they were kept. Even animals deserved better than this. But in Dunis, as indeed in all of Kahedron, animals were usually treated better than most slaves. Arex knew that there was very little he could do about the situation.

Pointing a finger, he beckoned one of the females closer. She was small, as all of the chosen ones were. A dark haired girl who looked to be from the isle of Nikkon. Pale skin and small breasts with large dark nipples and black hair all the way down to her waist.

Trembling, she stepped forward and stood in front of the large man, her dark eyes large with fear and apprehension.

"You can speak?"

"Y... y... yes, my lord. I can speak." She had the typical Nikkonese accent, but Arex had no trouble understanding her.

"Your name."

"M... m.... Miko, my lord."

"Have any of these men or the raiders lain with you since you were taken, Miko?" She shook her head, still trembling. His strong hand reached out and captured her chin and turned her face up to meet his gaze. She tried to flinch away but his grip was as strong as steel. She felt as if he could have crushed her head in his one massive hand. But though his grasp was firm, it was not rough or painful as she expected.

"Are you now with child, Miko?" She tried to shake her head, but couldn't move in his grip so she stuttered "N... n.... no, my lord."

Arex gazed deep into the trembling woman's eyes, as if he could see all the way into her soul. He looked at her for a long moment, then asked softly "Will you serve me, Miko?"

The frightened girl hesitated, then looked up into those ice blue eyes and saw a man that was strong and forceful, one who got what he wanted when he wanted it. But she saw no hint of cruelty there, like in the eyes of the raiders or the slave factors. The huge man frightened her, for there was death in those cold eyes. Death, yes. But not for her. The eyes also promised protection. For she knew that such a man would protect what was his fiercely. She stood a little straighter and nodded her head the little bit that his grip allowed. She whispered "Yes, master. I will serve you."

Arex released her and pointed off to the side. The young girl stood off by herself, her hands once again covering her small breasts while she pondered what exactly her fate might be.

The big man repeated the examination of the other four girls in the same manner. Three were sent away but one, another small woman with short reddish hair and green eyes and a Cairnish accent stood by the Nikkonese girl. Almost unconsciously, their hands twined together as they stood and trembled and wondered as they looked at their would be new master.

Meanwhile, Deril had finished his examination of the males. He had chosen one who looked to be in his late teens or early twenties, compact and fairly fit for a slave. He was about as tall as Deril, but not as heavily muscled even though he looked like he would be a good farm hand or laborer. The boy's eyes were bright blue, like Arex's, and a startling contrast to his dark brown hair. Deril directed him to stand over by the two chosen girls and rejoined his masters side as they contemplated their choices.

Arex looked at the young man his servant had selected. "Only one, Deril? You could have as many of them as you wanted, you know. Why did you choose him?"

Deril made a small smile. "He has intelligence, my lord. And can read and write. None of the others could. He's young and strong and... reasonably attractive. I explained to him our... relationship, and what would presumably be expected of him. Outside of his household duties, that is."

Arex raised an eyebrow "And how did he respond to that?"

"He said that he would be willing to share my bed with me anytime. But..."

"But?"

"But the thought of being taken by you scares him half to death."

"Hmpf!" Arex snorted. "Well, I had intended him more for you than for me, anyway. Although now that you mention it..."

Deril snorted back and pointed towards the two females.

"Women, my lord?" Deril said. "Two of them?"

Arex raised an eyebrow. "I remember a time when they were your dish of choice, Deril."

He shrugged. "I knew no better then, my lord. I was young and ignorant."

Arex gave out a short bark of a laugh that Deril knew was his masters equivalent to a rolling guffaw. "And now, Deril? Now that you are so wise in the ways of the world, are they no longer to your liking?"

Deril shrugged again and made a small grimace of distaste. "Women..... bleed, my lord."

A hand shot out and Arex ran a finger through the ring attached to the front of Deril's leather collar and pulled him somewhat roughly towards him until he stared up into his masters icy blue gaze.

"The first time I took you, Deril." he said quietly. "If you recall, you bled as well."

Once again he felt his body responding to his masters touch and words. He wanted nothing more than to tear off his own clothes and offer his body to him right then and there. Even if the whole world were watching!

"Y.. yes, master. I did." he whispered, his cheeks coloring a deep red once again. "I would gladly shed my blood for you any time you wish it. I... I am yours, master Arex."

The bigger man released him and pushed him gently back with a soft smile. "Yes. You are." he said. He pointed to the waiting slaver and said "Don't let him rob me. Give him a fair price. And slip in a small personal commission just because we didn't have to trifle with that fat swine of a brother of his."

The younger slaver had no qualms about making a deal with a slave. As long as his masters gold was good and plentiful, he had no problems at all. When the deal was concluded, he clapped his hands and a couple of his personal retainers scurried into the room with short chunks of rope. As was their custom, the new slaves hands were bound behind their backs and their ankles were hobbled so they could not take a full stride. Then their collars were strung together with short sections of rope with the smallest of the girls in front and the taller male in the rear. That made any sort of escape attempt that much more difficult. The two girls, unable now to cover their bare breasts, hung their heads in shame. All three looked frightened and apprehensive.

Arex directed the slaver to have a cart and driver brought around for delivery. "No cage." he said. "A plain cart will do. And make it quick. I wish to be away from this place."

Deril took the lead rope and led his new charges out of the chamber and into the courtyard. A small cart rattled to a stop, driven by a sallow and sour faced young man. As he wore no collar, Arex guess he was one of the youngest of the fat slavers siblings. He apparently resented having to act as a delivery boy. Deril lifted and chivvied the three into the back of the cart then started to climb up to the bench next to the driver.

Immediately, a sneer twisted the sullen driver's mouth and he started to bark some sort of order at Deril when a sudden excruciating pain on the side of his head made him stop and cry out. Arex pinched the young mans ear between two strong fingers, twisting it and almost unseating him from the drivers bench. He pulled the young man sideways until they were face to face. The only thing keeping him from falling in the dust was the formidable grip that threatened to tear the flesh from his head.

"My man, there..." said Arex, in a voice full of cold calculating menace "Will direct you to my home. Heed his voice as if it were my very own. Make sure all of my possessions make it safely and securely to my mansion...." the fingers gripping his ear pulled and twisted just a fraction more. "Or your head will be the next one to adorn my dining hall."

The young driver managed to squeak out "Yes! Yes! Yes, my lord! Anything you say, my lord!" before he was thrust roughly back up into the seat with his head ringing and his ear burning. He wanted nothing more to do with the huge man whose voice sounded like liquid murder.

As his servant scrambled up into the seat of the wagon trying to hide the smirk on his face, Arex said "Get them washed up and fed and bedded down. Make sure nobody goes a-wandering. I'll be home late."

Deril placed a hand over his heart and replied "It will be as you wish, master."

It was well after the bells had tolled the midnight hour when Arex slipped the lock of his front door and stepped into the hall. As he turned to secure the door against the night, he suddenly stopped and raised his head and said softly "It's good to know that you are always alert, Deril. No thief will enter my home unbidden, it seems."

"Not unbidden nor unchallenged, my lord." Came the reply. Deril carefully slipped the safety back on the large blast rifle held down by his leg and out of view. He trotted down the stairs and headed towards the kitchens, anticipating his masters voice saying "Tea please, Deril. Something hot and spiced to chase away the chill of the night." There was a pause as Arex halted halfway up the stone stairway and said "And your ears, Deril. Bring them as well. They will be needed."

Deril calmly poured out the steaming hot tea as his master slipped out of his clothing and accessories. Arex carefully and methodically checked each of his weapons as he removed them and hung them on the rack. While the hunter was occupied, the young servant tipped a small envelope of powder into his masters drink and stirred it until it dissolved. The process had made an almost imperceptible whisper of sound behind his back, but Arex said "I hope it doesn't make me sleep too soon. I have things I need to say to you, Deril."

Never surprised at the big mans keen senses, Deril shrugged and said "I only wish you ease from your pain, my lord. To sleep easy."

"Pain is no matter. It teaches us a lesson and it fades with time."

Arex slipped the last of his clothing to the floor and stepped to the basin and filled it with hot water. Dipping a cloth in the steaming water, he began wiping his body down. Deril came to his side and got another cloth and dipped it in the water and began wiping down his masters broad back and shoulders. What he could reach of them, anyway. He knew from his ways that Arex would not submit to a proper bath this late in the evening, so Deril did his best to wipe away what he could of the dust of Dunis and hoped that in the morning he could coax his master into the tub... Deril stopped and shivered a little at the thought. He always did so enjoy spending time in the tub with his master....

The big man reclined against the pile of pillows and sipped his tea while the smaller one leaned against one side of his broad chest and did the same. Arex seemed uncommonly pensive and thoughtful and Deril was a little concerned. They sat in silence for a few moments, each lost in their own thoughts until Arex set his empty cup down on the bedside table and spoke.

"What was that you put in my tea?"

"Merely a powder to ease your pain, master. And to help you sleep easier. Something I got from old Jubeth in the square."

"Our new charges. You made them comfortable, I assume?" said Arex, changing the subject.

"Yes, my lord. Though it was quite a trial. Jeni, the Cairnish girl, thought I was trying to either rape or drown her in the tub, she couldn't decide which. It very nearly came to blows, but I had but to show her the back of my hand and she calmed down and submitted to the bath. I think once she decided that I was harmless she enjoyed getting clean again. The little Nikkonese, Miko, was aghast that a man would attend to her. I think she would have been more comfortable washing me than the other way around. Jaren, the boy, was a bit over excited. I think it was the sight of more naked flesh than he had ever really seen before. He nearly squirted in my hands when I washed him."

Arex gave a small rumbling chuckle deep in his chest and muttered "I'm sure you would have thought that a needless waste."

Deril grinned a little and hid his face in his teacup. "I guess it's a good thing" he said "that we kept the servants quarters cleaned and ready. I never understood why before, but now I do. The boy is by himself in one room and the girls in the other. They each have a pitcher of water and a chamber pot handy. Their collars are chained securely to the beds and the doors are locked for extra measure. I took the liberty of throwing out those nasty breechclouts they arrived in and have given them each a soft robe for the moment. Their bellies are full. They are clean and warm and safe and are, the last time I checked, all blissfully asleep." Deril stopped and glanced up at his master and lover. He added "I gave them each a bit of the same concoction from Jubeth so sleep would claim them sooner. I hope you won't be needing the services of any of them tonight?"

Arex shot him a look out of the corner of his eye and said "And now you are thinking 'For the love of god, Arex. Won't you tell me what the hell this is all about?'" Deril sputtered into his cup and shook his head. "I would never be so presumptuous, my lord." He paused and continued "At least, not in those exact words." He reached across the broad body next to him in the bed and set his empty cup down on the table. A strong arm settled across his back and he curled into his masters body and laid his head on his chest and put his arm around the strong slim waist.

"I love you Arex, my lord and master." He whispered.

One hand came up and ran thick strong fingers gently through the younger mans short but thick black hair.

"And your lord and master loves you, Deril. My faithful servant and ever present right hand..." there was a slight pause and he added "My lover and friend."

Deril's eyes went wide for a moment, but he tried to not betray his surprise at his masters words. While they had often bespoke of their love for each other, Arex had always guarded his emotions in his words and had never used them so tenderly before.

There was a moment of silence, then Arex spoke.

"I am going to die, Deril. Probably quite sooner than either of us suspect. That thought annoys me, even though I know it is inevitable."

Deril shook his head and started to say "You will live a long.." but a huge hand slipped across his mouth and stifled his words.

"Hush your prattling and listen, Deril. This is important. I am a hunter. That is what I am and what I do. It is my life. If there is a vicious beast in this world that other men cannot kill, then I will hunt it and stalk it and find a way to kill it. I will kill it and it's head will find it's way here to my collection. Or.." he waved a hand vaguely "Out there somewhere. In the emperors halls or the home of some fat burgher or rich merchant. Whatever. No matter where the trophy rests, the kill is still mine and mine alone."

He paused and ran one hand gently down his own hip and felt the line of the puckered scar that was the newest of his vast collection of such things.

"I am getting old, Deril. Not old in the years of men, but old in the years of a hunter. Every hunt, every battle, every new injury I get slower and slower. Very soon the day will come when I will not be fast enough and the beast will get the best of me."

He paused again then said "I won't mind that so much, I suppose."

Deril, with his lips pressed into his masters fingers, whispered "I would mind that very much, my lord."

The fingers lifted and ran through Deril's hair gently once again.

"And if I do survive, what then? To spend the rest of my days sitting around the fire telling tales of past glory?" He shook his head. His voice roughened and said "I think not. I am a hunter. That is how I lived and that is how I will die."

Deril said "When that day comes I will go find your body and bring it home, my lord. And when we build your funeral pyre I will lay down beside you..." he suddenly squeaked in pain and rose up as those thick fingers closed on his ear. Arex turned the smaller mans face until it faced his. Deril saw the lines of anger between his masters eyes.

"You will do no such foolish thing, Deril. If you ever speak such nonsense again you will find yourself back on the pole, dancing to the tune of the strap!" He shook him lightly then released his hold. Deril clapped a hand to the side of his head to ease the stinging.

Arex continued speaking as if nothing had happened. "Something must go on after I am passed, Deril. One of those things is you. I have made provisions in case of just such an event. The law-keepers in the palace have a document signed by me. A large portion of my estate will be yours when I die."

His head swimming with pain and confusion, Deril said "A slave cannot inherit! The law clearly states 'Property cannot own property.' It is one of the oldest laws in Kahedron!"

"That is why you are no longer a slave, Deril."

There was a prolonged silence.

"What?"

"As of this evening."

Another long silence.

"I... I don't understand, my lord."

"The papers are there in my pouch. Signed and sealed. They are yours, of course."

Arex reached down to the younger mans neck, quickly unbuckled the collar and tossed it across the room.

"You are a free man, Deril. You may come and go as you please and never again call any man 'Master'."

"No!!" Deril sprang from the bed and rushed across the room to the corner where his collar had been thrown. He buckled it back around his neck again and stood looking at the hunter who, for once in the long years of their acquaintance, looked merely puzzled.

"It may be as you say and I am a free man." He said. "And no man may ever call me slave or look down on me as mere property. And for that I thank you with all of my heart." He stepped closer and took Arex's hand in his and held it to his chest. "But even if I am no longer your slave, you will always and forever be, in my heart, my lord and master...."

"And my lover and my friend...."

Arex pulled the smaller man up onto the bed and onto his chest, his arms wrapped around him tightly and kissed him long and deep. His large rough hands roamed up and down the smooth back and spine then settled on the firm cheeks of his ass as his tongue chased around in Deril's mouth. He heard his young lover moan at his touch and could feel Deril's prick getting hard and poking him in the belly, a little of the slippery fluid leaking from the tip and smearing on his skin.