"Karellan" by Jessica M. Jordan

Kare dropped from the straps when they were untied from her wrists. Ten.. She had endured it. Ten slashes with her master's whip, for spilling a glass of wine. She wondered absently what the marks on her back looked like as she attempted to push herself up from the ground.

It had been public, in view of all of the slaves. The courtyard had almost been filled to see today's punishments. The wives stood off to the left of the main entrance to a towering colored spiral that seemed rather out of place at the edge of the desert. Tanye, the master's mother, stood in the doorway, watching with an emotionless face as one of her favorites got whipped. There was nothing she could do without being punished herself. To the right of the main door stood the master's attendants. They stood in a line, their eyes carefully averted from the scene they were forced to be witnesses to.

Kare's arms were grabbed roughly by two male slaves and she was dragged off to the side while another girl was carried to the straps. She couldn't watch. It's not right! Her heart screamed at her, but her mind wouldn't listen. They were being punished for something they did wrong. Isn't that the way it works? The whipped cracked and the girl cried out, then said the word "One." Kare grimaced. Female slaves were forced to count the lashes administered to them..

Kare felt a light touch on her left shoulder and she turned around and looked up into the eyes of a colored man. He was the oddest shade of gray that she had ever seen. Most grays weren't that dark. It was almost as if a coat of cold ashes had been carefully applied to the man's skin.

"You're Karellan?" She nodded and then gave him a questioning look, knowing better than to speak. That was another thing she could be punished for: Speaking before told to.

"I'm Tanien. I'm to escort you. You may speak if you wish. Which arm hurts the least?" She was taken back by his outspokenness with a mere slave such as herself. "I'm Lady Tanye's servant. You needn't be afraid. Which arm?" She lifted her left arm slightly, for the right was bloody from the whip. His strong grip pulled her to her feet and a small gasp escaped her lips, the wounds on her back still giving her pain. "I'm sorry." He quickly said. This surprised Karellan very much, for it was not customary to apologize to those lower than yourself. She had never been apologized to.

"It's okay." She said weakly. Then, just as she thought her balance was regained, the knees beneath her gave way, and she fell.. Strong arms caught her, carefully avoiding the open wounds on her back. Her vision was blurring, becoming black. Drifting..

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"Is Kare asleep?" Tanye asked Tenien as she walked into her quarters, glancing in the direction of the extra bedroom.

"Yes, my lady. She swooned in the crowd, I think it was the pain." Tenien answered to his lady's knowing nod. Tanye had been a slave herself in her early years, and had worked her way up. "She didn't cry out. It was quite valiant." She nodded again.

"A strong girl, that." The elderly woman stated, and sat down in her worn out wooden chair.

"Very." Added the gray.

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A well decorated room was what she awoke too. Defiantly not her own room. A wry grin appeared on the dry red lips. Am I dead? Am I in paradise? She pinched herself and frowned. No such luck.. Just temporarily relocated. The problem now. Where am I? She asked herself as she surveyed the room. The bed she lay in was huge. It had the softest linens she had ever slept in. Heaps of pillows, and a canopy over her head. The walls..were wood! Wood was scarce here on the edge of the desert, and it was used sparingly. This led Kare to believe that she was somewhere important. Her master's quarters, maybe? No. She had just been punished, there was a customary waiting period of three days.

She got up and winced as she stretched the sensitive not-yet-scars on her back.. Pulling back the canopy and stepping out to the hard wood floor, she found a pair of soft slippers and put them on her feet, then walked to the open door. When Kare peered outside, she was surprised with the lack of people. Stepping through the door she sat down carefully on a heap of pillows that rested on the floor, careful to avoid touching her back.

"Morning." A deep bass voice said behind her. She whirled around and looked again into the eyes of the gray who had brought her here.

"Where am I?" She demanded. This brought a chuckle from Tenien.

"Lady Tanye's quarters, my girl. My lady has bought you from the master. Wasn't that superbly nice of her?" He nodded at her and Karellan found herself nodding back. "Now, if you'll just slip this on your right ring finger, you'll be seen as her property. No one will ever whip you again." There was venom in Tenien's voice as he spoke. "Never."

She slipped the ring on her finger without hesitation and won a smile from the gray.