Lucian's Tale...
The life of a slave was not really a hard thing, not even something really terrible; it was just more tedious when one really thought about it.
The master wanted him bathed and out in twenty minutes and there wasn't going to be any room for any excuses. Walking through the hallway and into the majestic looking blue tiled bathroom the young Dalmatian boy sighed as he closed the door behind him and then rested his head onto the wood frame.
His name was Lucian, no last name since he and his parents had to give up that right once they had become slaves of the state. Eighteen years old, one hundred and thirty pounds of sinewy muscles while standing at six feet tall, the spotted canine looked both underfed and almost too delicate as he stood there underneath the lights of the small bathroom. Pulling his head back and taking off the clothing he had been dressed in for the slave auction today, Lucian stripped down to his bare fur before kicking his garments over into a pile next to him. He wouldn't miss what he had been given since he technically didn't even own them to begin with.
When you're a slave nothing you have was your own, not even the clothing on your back. Knowing this it was easy not to get attached to anything but that didn't mean that it made the coolness around Lucian any less pervasive.
Standing and shivering slightly the Dalmatian hugged his arms around his spotted self as he knelt down and thought over how quickly his life had changed from what it had been just a week earlier.
***
Just seven days earlier he had been washing the floors of his and his parent's master's home, not quite as happily and cheerful as his mother, but Lucian had been content enough with his station in life. The Dalmatian had been born a slave so that was all he had ever known in life. It didn't mean that he liked his place but it didn't mean that he hated it either. He had been born and bred to be perfectly attuned to serving others and in his mind he thought that he had been adequate enough at his job.
However later that day he would apparently be proven wrong when his father and the master of the house came downstairs to give him and his mother some devastating news.
It seemed that the master of the house - a large but old tabby that looked to be entering his twilight years - decided that he was no longer suited to taking care of the many slaves he had owned, Lucian and his parents were but a few that the feline kept. This being the case the tabby had come to the decision that he would sell some of the younger others slaves in an auction to try and 'find them a better place to become adjusted to in case of his early demise'. Lucian's mother immediately grabbed her son and huddled him close while offering herself up but her husband, a slightly taller and more muscular Dalmatian, calmed her down enough to explain to her why that wouldn't be possible.
Lucian's mother, a pure bred Dalmatian in her own right, wasn't as young as she used to be and after having had a pup earlier in life no slave owner would want her. Usually the females were kept as harem-stock while the men got the heavy labor duties assigned to them. The only reason she had been allowed outside of the master's bedroom with Lucian and the others was because the tabby was far too old to have a harem anymore, plus was the fact that he preferred males in his bed like Lucian's father. Knowing that between her and her son Lucian would have a much better chance to be sold the Dalmatian female had coddled her son close to her for the better part of the day before she was forced to relinquish him unto his father and their master.
Lucian, at the time, hadn't known what to feel as he had never thought that he would ever be sold. In his youthful mind he imagined himself living with his parents for the rest of his days, even after his parents were put down as what happened regularly to some slaves that got too old to perform their duties. How foolish that illusion was and how easily dispelled it became when Lucian was carried off with his father to the slave quarters and told him what would happen to him in the coming week. The Dalmatian boy had broken down into heaping sobs, making even his father have to wipe his eyes a few times, but in the end the decision was made and there was no turning back.
Three days of preparation went by as Lucian was fitted with new clothing, scrubbed down with gels and lotions while having his fur styled to perfection. Thankfully, in a twisted sort of sense, Lucian wasn't alone in his sufferance as he and a several other younger slaves were bundled together and given a stern lecture about what was expected of them by Lucian's old man. Apparently, the slave auction was something of a big how-to-do for the wealthy and slaves were expected to show a certain level of dignity when they were marketed off to the highest bidder.
It was a deplorable thing to have to be told how they were all supposed to behave while being inspected by unfamiliar eyes and hands only to be punishment for disobedience if they failed to do so. The worse thing a slave feared was being put down for disobedience which basically entailed being stuffed into a large tank and gassed like a common mongrel as one of the forms of punishment that kept many slaves in line. Few had to see the ghastly details of watching another person being choked to death in a green and gray fog of airborne chemicals before they relented what little resistance they had to their circumstances over to self-preservation.
Many would agree that a heavy hand was better than being killed in such a brutal manner, only to then have your body 'donated' to science.
When the time came the young slaves were gathered together and then bundled into the back of a nondescript black van and driven to the auction house. Each of them had on the traditional kilts that all slaves were mandated, by law, to wear outside of their master's home; the women were given wraps to tie around their breasts to keep them modest. Each one was silent on the way as they were driven to their destination, though a few did hiccup and sob some only to have someone else wipe their tears away as they tried to put on a brave face in front of the others. Lucian himself was breathing hard and heavy as his young mind raced over the possibilities of who would purchase him and what his new master would expect of him.
Getting to the auction house, which consisted of a towering building of glass and steel that was as famous as it was infamous to those who owned slaves, downtown the troupe of young boys and girls were made to get out of the van and then herded into the auction house by larger slave handlers that carried nightsticks and whips on their sides. A few people on the street gawked as they watched the slaves walk into the building, some even pointed and shook their heads, but that was of little concern to Lucian and the others.
The path inside of the building led them to a room where the lot were forced inside and then locked in together with a resounding click behind them.
Minutes ticked by becoming an hour before the door to their room was reopened, but once it was a hush fell over the room as a man came in and began to look over the 'products' up for sale. The person in question was a tall jackal dressed in a business suit with golden hoops in his ears and stern scowl wrapped tightly across his face. The black canine said nothing as he looked the young slaves over for about ten minutes, his only motion was to nod after some time and pull out a large tablet before scrolling over it with a pen. Once he was done the jackal nodded to himself, turned and walked back out of the room. The door was locked behind him from the outside which left Lucian and the others wondering in confusion as to what they had just seen.
Lucian was still stunned, some ten minutes later, at the oddity of the man and in wondering about the jackal he, and the others, didn't notice when they all suddenly became fatigued and dizzy. It wouldn't have mattered much if they could grasp what they had just seen because soon each one of them began to slump down onto the floor, asleep. Not one of them could understand that a light haze of chemicals was being leaked into the room from unseen ventilation shafts, forcing them all to fall unconscious. When the last slave fell onto the plush carpeting the door was reopened again and the jackal from before reappeared with several men and women by his side.
The auction as it was was actually one of the black auctions where slaves were sold under the table without the slave seller knowing about it, or at least the full details. Though it was technically illegal under the guise of the law it still happened without to any of those involved.
For the young slaves though, it was a blow against them as they were bided on right under their noses without a chance to find out who they were being sold to or given time to adjust to their new masters before they were brought. Tags were placed on their kilts, as if they were merchandise, and by the time they would wake up many would be in the hands of their new owners without anyone being the wiser.
Lucian's former master would be told that they had all been brought and given payment days later, however he would never know the truth of what had happened to his young slaves. Not in his lifetime atleast as the tabby would have a massive stroke during the middle of the night some weeks later that would ultimately claim his life.
Lucian blinked himself awake some time afterwards and found himself resting on the floor of another well carpeted room with a large figure standing over him. The young Dalmatian gasped and tried to move away out of sheer primitive instinct but a hand whipped and grabbed him by the shoulder making his retreat impossible. The figure in his blurry eyes looked over the boy and felt him up across every inch of his almost nude body before snorting and telling the Dalmatian that he was his new master and that they would be leaving soon.
Lucian rubbed his eyes to clear the built up film covering them and once he could see he nodded and gazed up at the stranger, doing his best to take stock of his new master so that he might get the opportunity to know the other better.
The impressive figure in front of Lucian, was oddly enough another Dalmatian, only this man was much larger and broader that Lucian could have ever hoped to become. The man hovered over Lucian as the hand on his shoulder clenched somewhat tightly making Lucian whimper some before realization hit the unnamed Dal.
Seeing that he was paining his new slave the other Dalmatian let go of the boy and then allowed Lucian to scramble up onto his feet to get a better look at him. The two males stared into the each other's eyes for several moments, Lucian knowing his place, lowered his quickly while the unknown Dal grunted and huffed in annoyance.
The two stood for several minutes, not saying anything as the tension began to mount between them, before a tap on his rump made Lucian yip a jump suddenly. The other Dal growled low at him to not be so noisy and Lucian immediately clenched his trap shut. Lowering his floppy ears as best he could Lucian nodded and then watched as his new master took him by the shoulder again and led him out of the room. Lucian barely realized that he was actually alone with the man, not knowing that the other slaves had been taken beforehand, as he was marched down the hallway of the auction house.
Lucian was led out of the slave house and then forced to walk over to a small convertible and told to get into the open passenger side, which he did, right before having the door shut on him, just missing his tail. The other Dalmatian walked around to the driver's side door, got in, and started up the car before shutting his door behind him and driving the two of them off to his home.
The drive was quick, at least in Lucian's mind, as he was made to sit still while watching the world outside of the windows flow past. Unfamiliar buildings transformed into large expanse of grassland and fields as Lucian's entire world transmogrified around him. It would have been magical had it not been part of the harsh reality of his life in servitude but Lucian bore it resolutely as he sat back and tried not to think of what was to come.
The Dal beside him spared a glance at his young slave, particularly eyeing Lucian's cute chest and legs, but didn't say a word to the boy as he kept his mind preoccupied on just what he was going to do with the smaller Dalmatian.
Not more than thirty minutes later Lucian was being forced to step out of the car and ordered by his master to follow him inside of his home, a plush two story house surrounded by woods, before being led to the bathroom.
The walk inside had been as silent as a funeral with the other Dal saying little more to Lucian than for him to keep up step as they got to where he was now inside of the bathroom.
***
The young Dalmatian wiped his eyes and stood up to gather his resolve before he turned to step over the threshold into the bathtub. Lucian then pushed aside the shower curtain to reveal the handles for the hot and cold water and braced himself for impact as he reached out to turn one of the handles. A hiss later, with steam billowing around him like a cloak, Lucian stepped into the scalding shower and grabbed the shampoo to wash what was left of his doubts away so that he could now focus himself on his new life at the hands of this new master of his.
Ten minutes later a clean and pristine looking Dalmatian boy came out of the bathroom with only his clothing bundled in front of him to hide his modesty.
"You're quick," A voice said making him jump and turn to see the only other person in the house standing behind him with his shoulders crossed while leaning on side of the door to an empty bedroom.
"I-I'm sorry sir," Lucian kept his voice low and meek while bowing his head in submission.
"I didn't say it was a bad thing." The other male quipped. "Now follow me so I can show you where to put those clothes and where the towels are."
Lucian watched as the Dal made a path down the hall where an innocent looking door was waiting on him before following. His master reached forward and turned the knob to open the gateway to a large bin filled with dirty clothing.
"I use to wash clothes every weekend, preferably on Sunday, but since you're going to be living here that's your job now. Toss those," The older Dal tipped his head to the bundle held out in front of the wet Dalmatian. "in there and grab whichever towel you want." Lucian's master said after pointed upwards to the shelves filled with his linens and things.
Lucian did as he was told, trying not to mind the musky smell of unwashed clothing assaulting his nose, before taking out a large blue towel and wrapping it around his thin frame. Stepping back from the closet and letting his master close the door behind him, Lucian began to dry himself off while robotically following in step behind the older male as he began to walk away.
"I live alone so you won't have anyone else here to serve but me." The older Dal began. "I don't cook, so that will be one of your new tasks. I don't clean up that well, but thankfully I'm usually in something simple unless I have to go to work or it's cold." The two walked out into the front room where Lucian could both see and smell that a steaming lunch had been prepared for them.
An open patio door revealed the backyard of the house giving Lucian a good view of the forest of trees that were lying just beyond the simple green grass of the world outside. A cool breeze made him shudder and hug the now damp towel around his waist before his ears caught more words coming out from his master.
"My property is about ten aces wide so there's nowhere for you to go if you decide to run. A warning, both first and last, if you try and I catch you, which I will; I'll put a permanent collar around your neck and keep you tethered to a rope inside. Am I understood?" The larger Dal had stopped walking and turned to look at Lucian who shuddered and bobbed his head in acknowledgment.
"Good. Your other duties here will be to keep the place straighten up, keep me entertained when I'm bored, which I'll go over later on, and to warm my bed. Any questions?"
"Y-yes,"
The Dal cocked his head to the side while lifting an eyebrow.
"What am I supposed to wear and what do I call you?" Lucian asked hesitantly.
The older Dal blinked at this, as though it had never occurred to him or perhaps amazed at Lucian's audacity, before turning his lips upwards to put a smile on his face.
"For the first question, you wear what I give you, which won't be much since I'm going to be keeping you naked for your duration as my slave here. As for the second," The older Dal came up to Lucian so that the two of them were snout to snout before breathing at the younger Dalmatian. "You call me master or sir. Slaves don't have the right to call their masters by name unless given permission and you have a long way to go before calling me my name, slave."
Lucian wasn't sure why he felt some indignation at being called a slave, yet his hackles rose for a second before thinning out nonetheless. Maybe he had gotten so used to having everyone around him call him by his name that he never thought of himself as anything lesser than what he had been named. Somehow, the word slave coming out from his new master made him feel...dirty...but at the same time Lucian nodded his head at the other before lowering his eyes and curling his tail between his legs.
Utter submission was the best response any slave could give when being told something, unless made to answer directly.
"Good, now chuck the towel into the hamper and join me for dinner." Lucian scampered backwards to do as he had been told and then joined his master at the table to eat.
The food was a simple takeout meal, something the older Dal must have picked up beforehand because Lucian didn't remember him stopping on their drive, of fried fish, rice and noodles. Lucian didn't hear a verbal command for him to go ahead and eat so to show his respect for the older Dal he waited until his master began to eat before picking up his fork and starting to dig in.
It took about twenty minutes to consume everything but once the food had been polished off Lucian and his master both sat back and sighed from their meal with hearty smiles on their muzzles. Nothing was as pleasurable as a warm assortment of various foods for a canine and to top everything off the older Dalmatian reached out for a box that had been ignored between them. The larger man then fished out a wrapped fortune cookie before he offered said box to his slave a second later when Lucian didn't try to reach for it. Lucian blinked at the open container but raised a hand to take one of the treats without being told to once he could see the inside of the container.
"Tell me what yours say," The older Dal ordered as he tore open the plastic covering his cookie before breaking open his sweet treat to pull out the tiny slip of paper.
Lucian followed the command and pulled out his fortune only to stare at it in confusion.
"Well, you do know how to read, right?" The older Dal asked getting a tight lipped frown from Lucian before the other Dalmatian nodded at him.
"It says; Situations are never what they appear to be but yet are often what they don't ever appear to be?" Lucian had to scratch his head at that as he let one of his ears flop in confusion. Either this was bad wording or the fortune system had an internal error in it somewhere.
"Hmmm, mine says; What you want is right in front of you, yet will be out of reach if you try to grab it." The older Dal raised his eyes to look at Lucian who gazed at him with befuddlement on his face. "Oh well, clean up this mess and come and join me on the sofa." With that Lucian's master stood up and walked away, but not before pocketing the small slip of paper and patting at it.
Lucian tossed his own fortune down onto his empty plate and then began to clear the table as he had been ordered. Walking with his hands full into the nearby kitchen the eighteen year old Dalmatian tossed the garbage away and then put the plates into sink before opening the fridge to stuff the box of fortune cookies inside. A quick eye revealed that there was a mountain of food inside of the ice box and yet Lucian was confused at this since his master had said that he didn't cook often.
Shrugging and closing the refrigerator Lucian was just as he was about to turn and walk out of the kitchen area when something tugged at him and forced him to whip his head around to look at the prone dishes. Though he hadn't been ordered to it might seemed like a good thing for him to actually wash said plates before going to his master: he had been told that it was his job to keep the house clean after all. Going back over and turning on the tap Lucian looked for a rag and some dishwashing liquid to begin his chore, meanwhile, in the front room, the other Dalmatian idly flicked the channel while at the same time he listened intently to the water being ran in his sink.
A smile crept onto the older Dalmatian's muzzle as he let his thin tail wag behind him while sitting further back into his couch.
"Definitely going to keep this one," He muttered before throwing his arms wide onto the back of the sofa just as he found a perfect channel for him and his slave to watch.
'Nothing like college football to get one's blood flowing', the Dal thought as he listened to the young pup finish up his task and then come over into the room with him.
Lucian stood inside of the den and surveyed everything from the large plasma TV to the bookshelves filled with tomes lining side to side of the shelf before his eyes finally moved down to his master sitting idly with his arms and legs spread open. Hesitantly coming over to the older Dal and sitting down next to him, but making sure to give the other three feet of space, Lucian turned his attention to the television in front of him and let his focus be absorbed into the game of large muscular men trying to catch a pigskin ball.
Ten minutes later a broad arm lowered itself around Lucian's shoulder making the younger Dalmatian jump before fingers wrapped around his shoulder to bring him bodily closer into his master's embrace. The other Dal didn't even blink as he continued watching the game without as much so much as a twitch of his muzzle to signify that he noted Lucian's presence.
Lucian found himself being pulled into the warmth of the older male's body, his own naked form somewhat chilled breeze flowing in from the still open patio door. Not knowing what to do or think, since he hadn't been ordered to do anything else, Lucian quietly curled himself up next to his master and listened to the sounds of quiet breathing coming from the other while the game played on the television.
The older Dal didn't let it show but as he let his arm slip further down to bring his slave even closer to him, but his eyes began to shine with a warm light as he felt the heat of life seep through his side from Lucian's warm body. He was going to enjoy this new boy much more than the last and maybe this time...this time he wouldn't have to do what he did before to make another slave obey him.
Time would tell though...