The Freedom of Slavery

Nancy Everett woke up from a deep sleep, wondering if she was having one of those messed-up dreams she often gets last night. Then she wakes up a little more and takes a good look around. Nope, definitely not her apartment. She looks down to see what she was sleeping in, and it is definitely not her comfy flannel pajamas. She never sleeps nude, and would never wear a collar and her scars were gone, so she decided that she must not have been dreaming, and that fate had one hell of a sick sense of humor. She must as well, as she finds the irony of her situation to be the only thing funny about it.

She is a clinical psychologist, who often helps victims of domestic and sexual crimes as she trained as an advocate when she learned of the high level of such crimes in her area. The irony, she was helping a victim of rape and human trafficking as a pro-bono at the local women's crisis service. She had a deep passion for helping others, and as she had been a victim of domestic violence and sexual assault herself, wished to give back to her community by helping others who had suffered similarly.

"Irony slaps me in the face big time. I had just been telling my last client that slavers would never take her again, when later that evening, they get me instead. Only, I don't think we are on Earth. Great way to introduce other life forms, up close and way too personal for my taste."

She thinks for a few moments, trying her best to process everything while she is still alone and before she is set on the auction block. All the other beings around her are so diverse, some are in tanks of what looks like water, some are more like a hybrid of humans and the big cats from Earth. Most look humanoid, but there are a few that looked like jelly with sense organs, or other things she can't fathom. Her collar looks like solid metal, but as she scratches at it, she realizes that it was padded with fur or a fabric she had never felt before. She was in a cage surrounded by mostly the cat hybrids, and doesn't see any other Earthlings.

"Earthlings, this is the first and last time I will probably ever use that word. I wish there was someone I could talk to about what is expected of me. I hate not knowing what to do."

All she could do was look around and wait. She didn't have to wait long before she was being taken out of her cage and put in restraints. She only struggled long enough to make sure that her feet and legs had stopped tingling, then she got up and followed the slaver to her fate.

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She was waiting in a long line of slaves to be put in the auction. She saw a few humans now, coming off the stage, and they were fighting as if they were going to their deaths

"And in a way they are," she thought idly. "They are being man-handled quite viciously. I wonder if these slavers have a sense of honor. Maybe I can bargain information for my cooperation. Fighting isn't getting them anywhere, and from the stories I remember from sessions, it won't do any good. I have to try. They seem to have a wide variety of species, maybe they will understand me if I ask."

While she waited in line to be put up, she took her chance to ask a question.

"I only want to ask one question then I will not struggle till I am bought."

The being, a massive reptilian hybrid that looked like he would bench 400 lbs, looked at her like it understood, and nodded at her.

"One question for 2 hours of peace is a small price to pay, ask your question."

"What type of slave am I being auctioned as?"

"A sex slave, that is all you are capable of being because of your gender and because you are human. Be warned though, you have as good a chance of being bought by a master that beats you as one that only wants you for your body."

"Thank you for the warning; it may be the last bit of kindness I ever see, so you have my gratitude."

"You're welcome, now be quiet and keep your promise and don't make me regret this."

. She realized right then, that she had to say good bye to parts of her personality that would be deemed disrespectful. If she wanted to live, and avoid getting beatings she earned, she had to remember how Max had trained her to behave. That would help her survive longer. She hoped that her new master/s were not the bastard/s that Max was though, because she knew she could never live through that again.

When it was her turn to be put up on the auction block, she said one last good bye to freedom, and stepped into the world of slavery.

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She was then put up in a vacuum tube, for lack of a better term, that kept her floating in mid-air and spun her around the large stage so that everyone in the large building could get a good look. Her restraints were linked to four brackets that kept her well spread and allowed the manipulation of her arms and legs into various posses. And the auction did take 2 hours at least, and she was thankful that she had humanoid prospective buyers. All the while she thought of the various questions she would ask when she was sold and found out which of the various species bought her. She soon had her answer, and was more than a little relieved that it was a small pride of those cat hybrids. From the looks of it, her owners were a tiger, a leopard, a panther, a jaguar, a cheetah and a lion hybrid. This was to prove interesting.

"Masters, I wish to thank you for buying me and wish to know what my duties are."

Of course they didn't understand her, but her kneeling in submission seemed to get the message through. They asked the assistant to translate, from what she could tell. They all looked at her with various expressions of amazement, distrust, satisfaction, and curiosity.

"They will tell you what you need to do once all the necessities have been handled. You will be tattooed with their mark, you will have a translation device put in, and you will be prepared for them to use you any way they please. I will answer three questions for your cooperation in these."

"I will do so if you will also inform my masters of a few things. I never got a chance to inform you of some health conditions I have."

"I agree to tell your masters what you think they need to know and answer three questions. The only reason I am doing so is because I heard of the deal you made with Malic, and that you honored it. Your cooperation will make things easier, so talking to you seems to be a fair trade."

"Let's get started then."

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As she was getting her owners marks on her upper arms ad across her back, which were the various cats' paws of her masters and what looked like a form of hieroglyphs, Arabic, Cyrillic, and Norse runes combined to make a writing system; she told the assistant about her contacts and about her birth control device called an IUD. The assistant was glad that she told her, but said that those had been found in the physical exam, and had been taken care of. She was also aware of the human female reproductive cycle, and would inform her masters of what was needed to take care of it. She then said to tell her masters if they were lacking any additional information.

"Now the last thing I need to tell you about is something that is not as easy to find or fix.

On Earth, people are capable of having more than physical problems. They have mental problems that can make them not able to function. I have three of these types of problems, and if things are not handled right, they can be made worse."

"We know of these types of problems, so thank you for alerting us of them, which ones do you have?"

"Post-traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks, and major depression. I was in an abusive relationship, and was tortured in that relationship for almost 10 years. I was sexually assaulted and it was my breaking point a few years ago, the last day I was in that relationship and I ended up having a fear of males and sex. I can handle being around males for the most part, except if they are being aggressive toward me or sexually aroused around me. I don't want to get myself in trouble for having a panic attack like I was throughout the auction."

"Definitely a good thing you told us, but Malic suspected that you were having problems. He said you were too calm, and that you reeked of fear and panic when he answered your question. I can't guarantee your masters will listen to me when I tell them of this, but take it as a good sign if they ask you about it."

"Thank you, now my first question is what is the proper behavior for addressing my masters?"

"You are never to look them in the eye unless they tell you, you are to address them as Master, and you are to bow to them and show the back of your neck. This can be done when standing, sitting or kneeling, but you must always show them your neck. We are going to put in the translator, you can get used to your new language by asking me the other two afterward."

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When she woke up for the second time that day, she was a little woozy, but felt better as she came to the realization that Nancy Everett had died, and she had yet to be renamed, but she knew from her experience as a battered woman and from her resulting rape, that once she had a new identity, things would get much easier for her to handle.

The assistant walked into the room and lead her to a room that was a combination of a public bath and a spa. She also spied some things that freaked her out a little, though when the assistant told her she was going to be prepared, she figured that these would be part of it. Anal plugs, cleaning supplies, and what looked like hair-removal lasers.

"Ask your second and third questions while we prepare you. Make sure to tell us if you feel any tearing as we apply the plugs. You shouldn't, but you looked to have had trauma occur in that area, so we are going to be extra careful."

"Thank you, I did when I was assaulted. My next question is: what do you know of the culture and attitudes towards slaves of my masters?"

"I see that you are smart as well as adaptive. They did choose wisely. The planet they are from is called Felicanid, one half of the planet has one species, and the other has another. If I was to guess, I would say that your masters are of the guardian class that protects the den-site from warriors of the other species or warriors from other den-sites. If they are a guardian pride, one of them is a healer, and he will be the one who will take care of your needs. The harzan, or strong one of the group, will be the one who delivers punishments and is the one the others look to for making the final call on everything, though none of them are a true leader except their tsarzan, or planetary strong one. Be warned, your masters have two abilities that you always need to remember, predatory senses and telepathy. They will teach you to how to handle the later, but do your best to conquer your fears quickly. They will want from you only two major things, from what I can tell in what others of their kind have looked for and what they said they wanted in their purchase, submission and intelligence. They like to have a slave that knows its place, but is able to talk to them. Their culture prefers to keep slaves as healthy and happy as possible as a sign of status, so only if you are being punished will you be harmed."

At this point, all of her hair that she normally shaved, as well as all of her pubic hair, had been permanently removed, she had been washed, given a full body scrub, had her anal passage thoroughly cleansed, had her skin oiled, and they were getting ready to start putting in the anal plug.

"My last question is am I able to carry their young?"

"Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth, and bear down while we insert the plug. I don't know for certain if you could carry their young, I have heard rumors that they have the technology to make it so that you can eventually, but you can't right now. I have also heard that they have been having fewer and fewer female young survive, and so are buying slaves to make them able to carry young and help boost female numbers that way. But I would wait a very long time to ask your masters about it because their species as a whole seems to be sensitive about the topic."

"Thank you for answering my questions, I had hoped that by cooperating that this whole process would be easier on everyone. How much longer till I go home with my masters?"

"They are coming to get you now, and it will take 3 day cycles to reach your new home from here."

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Just then her new masters arrived with a gold and copper colored collar and matching anklets and bracelets that looked like they had little bells on them, but were actually gemstones that looked like rubies, emeralds, sapphires, opals, topaz, and garnets, that hung down slightly. Only the collar had a single copper bell that reminded her strongly of a cat's collar with a bell.

"Only now I'm the cat and they are the humans who care for me," she thought to herself.

She immediately bowed her head and upper body, showing the back of her neck. The lion put the collar on, the jaguar put on the bracelets and the tiger put on the anklets. The cheetah and leopard stood back and watch her reactions throughout this process. Once the jewelry had been placed, the lion, jaguar, and tiger all joined the cheetah and leopard. The panther came up to holding what looked like a leash that matched the collar.

"Alza, you are being a good ama, so you can walk yourself to the ship, but you rebel in any way, we will leash you. I am Lezar, and I am your harzan, or main master. You will obey my orders first, and I will be the one to decide your punishment. On the trip back to our home, we will give you some lenience as we teach you the rules. Once home, even if you do not know the rule you broke, you will be punished to enforce your obedience. That is part of our culture, so I am sorry now for any damage that occurs because of this. Take these three days to learn as much as you can about us, your new home, and the rules. Do you understand?"

"Yes Master."

"You will call me Master Lezar, and you will look up at us now while I introduce you to the rest of my brothers."

"Yes Master Lezar."

"Your carzan, or main care-taker, Gobin."

The cheetah stepped forward, and she bowed her head.

"Your darzan, or main watcher, Helius."

The leopard stepped forward.

"Your ezan, or second care-taker, Ilan."

The tiger stepped forward.

"Your farzan, or second watcher, Jahar."

The jaguar stepped forward.

"Your garzan, or second master, Kalba."

The lion stepped forward.

"Now, you know who is which rank, who do you go to if you have a need?"

"My carzan, Master Gobin, Master Lezar."

"And if he is busy?"

"My ezan, Master Ilan, Master Lezar."

"If both of them are busy, you ask Kalba, then me. In that order. Your watchers are only to watch out for and eliminate danger, so only when you are in extreme peril, do you ask them. Care-takers are the ones who take care of the needs of the group. The watchers are the combination of scouts and assassins on your home planet, and they take night watch when needed, and they protect the group from surprise attacks. The masters are warriors, but they must be capable of the duties of a care-taker or watcher. Kalba is the warrior arm, and is better at being a caretaker, while also being unable to defeat me in hand-to-hand combat and stealth. We all won our ranks through combat and natural skill. Remember that."

"Yes Master Lezar."

"Then walk with your head up straight, looking straight in front of you at all times. If you need to look down, do not lower your head. That bell must not ring when you walk in public, so you will get plenty of practice on the journey home. Follow us now."

"Yes Master Lezar."

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The walk was almost perfect, Alza's bell ringing only when she was about to trip and looked down in reflex. Her masters were impressed, and continued giving her lessons and building upon her knowledge.

"I will teach you about behavior in public and about the public. I have heard that your alphabet is the same as ours, it just looks different, and so I will answer your question before you ask it. Yes, the letters in names and titles are a sign of rank, with A being used for slaves, and B for servants and criminals. C is used for the lowest titles and rank, but not for names. You will follow orders according to which letter has the highest rank, if you are ever given multiple orders, and you never obey anyone with a lower title than ours. If you do not know the title of someone giving you orders, you look at one of us and we will nudge you if they are to be obeyed. So, if I tell you to stand and look me in the eye, and Kalba tells you to sit down and look at the floor, which would you do?"

"I would stand and look you in the eye till you told me to follow Master Kalba's order, Master Lezar."

"Very good Alza. The highest letter used by a living being is T, and it is the name, title, and rank letter of our royalty. We are a combination of a merchant class and a warrior class on your home world, which has titles L-P. We are currently a Malzan pride. We have the possibility of getting a Palzan title, but the ranks I gave you for each of us is the rank within our familial pride, so they will not change. So, if you know that someone has a Nalzan title, and they give you an order, what do you do?"

"I obey, Master Lezar."

"The only time you do not obey is if it is in conflict with an order from one of us. If so, you look at one of us and we will nudge you."

"Yes Master Lezar."

They had walked on board the ship, which Kalba was flying, and had left the auction house and the planet it was on behind. It was then that Gobin took over the role of tutor.

"I am to teach you about your duties to us, our duties to you, and to make sure we understand how to care for your needs. Halma told us that you wanted to make sure we understood a few things that could impact your well-being, but were wounds that would that time and patience to heal. We do not fully understand what she was telling us. Please tell us about what she called your 'mental wounds'."

"I was in a relationship with a man, on Earth we often have relationships before we permanently bind ourselves to one person for life, and he would come home and beat me if everything was not perfect when he arrived. He continued this, and would beat me so much I bled if I didn't have sex with him. He also did other horrible things, most of which I had forced myself to forget. This includes what happened the night I left him, all I can remember is that he had had a bad day at work, and was more upset then usual at any mistakes I made. To make it up to him, he wanted to have sex with me. I for some reason said no, but I don't remember why, and he proceeded to beat me and rape me for hours. The last thing I remember is blood, lots of blood, and a whole body pain as well as feeling raw and bruised from his use of all my holes. When he passed out drunk, I cleaned-up as best I could, called the nearest shelter, and left him for good. All this caused me to have nightmares, I tried to kill myself repeatedly, I could not be in the same room as a male, and I curl up into a ball, shake uncontrollably, and become unresponsive if a male is aggressive toward me or is sexually aroused."

Her masters all stared at her with shock, anger, pity, and compassion. Gobin walked up to her and cradled her in his arms as he saw that she was shaking, crying, and had an air of not being here, but trapped within a darkness he couldn't fathom. The others, except Kalba who was flying, gathered around their brother and new slave in a cocoon of comfort. They knew Gobin would need their strength to bolster him when he was flooded with her emotions. She clung to him like he was the anchor to her soul. He whispered her name, and got no response, he shook her lightly, and she pulled her head back to look him in the face, not meeting his eye. He put his paw under her chin, careful not to scratch her with his nails so he could look into her eyes. As a healer and an empath, he knew that when he looked into her eyes he would see the pain and terror that still haunted the depths of her soul. He was glad his brothers were surrounding him, because from the moment their eyes met, he was drawn into the dark swirls of her memory-provoked emotions and nearly drowned from their intensity.