Paradise Forgotten Trilogy

by Mackenzie Morris

  Troy takes the knife and helps the boy to his feet. "You know me?"

  "You're . . . you're the knight who buys apples from my owner's store. You're Troy. You're the hero. You saved my dog one day." He wraps his tiny arms around Troy's waist and cries more.

  They're cheering and calling for blood. The Nymphs watching have begun chanting for Troy to kill the boy. How can they still want that? That's not going to happen. Troy holds up the dagger in the air and cries out to his bloodthirsty audience. "Hear me now, Nymphs of Olympus. Is this the legacy you want to leave for your children? To kill or be killed at such a young age? Is this your perverted idea of justice? What could this boy have done to deserve this? Someone answer me! I know you can hear me. How dare you? I'm glad I'm a Forgotten. Today, I am ashamed to have ever been a Nymph!" He stops talking when he feels a warm liquid dripping down his leg. His spearhead falls from the boy's hand to the dust below his feet. He catches the boy who is now covered in crimson as the dark blood gushes from his throat. "No! Why?"

  Again, the crowds are silent as Troy lays the bleeding boy down on the ground. How can he help him? Troy places his hands on the boy's throat in an attempt to stop the bleeding, but it's not working. He pushes the boy's sweaty black bangs out of his face. "Hold on. I won't let you die. I won't! Why did you hurt yourself? Why? I was going to let you win."

  The guards in power armor fill the arena and surround them. "Come with us, slave."

  "No!" Troy yells at them as he holds the dying boy in his arms. "Let me pray for him first. Please. Just let me pray!" He closes the boy's eyes and leans over him, placing his lips on his forehead as he whispers to him. "Divine Hermes, guide this boy's soul into the Elysian fields so he may rest with the honored and the blessed."

  Where there had been silence in the coliseum, now echoes a faint singing. It grows louder until Troy can make out what it is. A funeral dirge.

  * * *

  "Huh." Orion grins and jumps down from the window. "Well, that was unexpected. Blice, you ready to do this? We better get moving before they hand him over to Mr. Creepy."

  Blice turns to Nova and Zodiac. "Zodiac, take your sister home and stay there until I come for you."

  "But-" Zodiac begins to speak, but Blice interrupts him harshly.

  "You don't get to talk back. You're mine now and you will do as I say. You will show me the same respect you showed Troy. Is that clear?"

  He bows his head. "Yes, sir."

  "Good. Orion, let's go get your slave."

  "Aye, aye, Captain." Orion says as he salutes him.

  "Don't make me slap you."

  * * *

  The guards bind Troy's wrists with leather straps and lead him down the back hallways of the underground caverns. He can still hear the lamenting song being sung by the Nymphs who mourn the death of an innocent life cut short by the senseless violence of a corrupt justice system. What happens now? There's no sign of Orion or any sneaky people around. He's more nervous now than he has been before any fight. He can't go with that evil man. He just can't. He didn't fight this hard and go through all of this trauma just to be abused more. He would rather they kill him now.

  When they pass through a doorway, there is a whistle and a hissing sound as the hallway fills with thick black smoke. The guards are shouting and coughing. Troy's eyes burn with the smoke. He trips when someone pulls him along quickly, making him run to keep up. When the smoke thins out enough for him to see his abductor, his heart leaps in his chest. "Blice! Thank the gods."

  "Don't thank them yet, buddy."

  "Why not? You're getting me out of here, right? You're saving me. Thank you so much."

  "I'm not saving you." Blice says.

  "What? Why not?"

  "You're branded. You can't hide that. Your fate has been decided. I'm just here to ensure you have the best outcome possible."

  "And what's that?" Troy asks.

  "I'm taking you to your owner."

  "No! I can't be a slave, Blice."

  "You can and you are. The sooner you accept that fact, the easier this entire process is going to be on you." Blice pushes open a door and leads him up a rickety wooden staircase out into the fields outside the city walls. "Get up here."

  Troy is not going to willingly be led to a slaver. "No."

  "Damn it, Troy. Get your ass up here or I'll let those guards kill you. Trust me for once. You spoke with Orion, right? He's here to take you with him."

  Troy climbs up the few remaining stairs and blinks in the sunlight. He drops to his knees at Blice's feet. "Please don't make me go, Blice. Please. I want to go home. I want Xanthe and Nova and Zodiac. You can't do this! You can have the throne to yourself. I will give you anything you want. Please!"

  "Stand up and stop crying. Be a man, Troy. Your owner is right there. Don't make him regret this decision. Don't embarrass him by acting like a spoiled, selfish child." Blice slaps Troy across his face. "I told you to get up."

  Orion takes a small whip out of a pocket on his brown cargo pants. "Follow me, Troy. I don't think you want more welts, do you?"

  Troy shakily stands and goes to Orion's side. This is hell, pure and condensed hell. They can't treat him like some kind of animal. The sting of the whip on his left shoulder drives him forward towards a nearby car.

  "Get in." Orion orders. He bows to Blice and takes the keys from him. "I said to get in, Troy. What the hell is your problem? This is only going to be as bad as you make it on yourself."

  Troy manages to open the door with his wrists still bound in front of him and he sits in the passenger seat. Do slaves usually ride in Ferraris? Blice McSage has too much money. Even the kings before Evans haven't been able to get one of these cars from Earth. None have been made since before the first apocalypse down there. Troy rests his head on the window and tries to not think about what his new life will be like.

  "Troy." Orion says as he drives through the green fields. "You're going to be okay, but you can't freak out on me. If the other agents see you behaving badly, I will be forced to break you. I honestly don't want to have to do that. I am being beyond lenient with you. Don't abuse that." He presses the golden square on his arm. "Silver, I got him."

  "Is he injured?"

  "Not too bad. Scrapes and bruises, that sort of thing. He is a bit dehydrated, though. Possibly mild heat exhaustion."

  "We have our medics on board the ship just in case." Silver says.

  "Okay, thanks. He's being bitchy."

  He doesn't sound pleased. "Really? Oh, that's not good."

  "I might need your help with him."

  "How far out are you?" Silver asks.

  "I'll be at the pickup coordinates in two minutes. I don't think I've been followed."

  "Your slave got a name?"

  "Troy."

  Silver coughs a couple of times.

  "You okay?" Orion asks.

  "Tell me. Is he a pure Nymph?"

  "How did you know? Yeah, he is. How lucky am I? I never thought I'd get my hands on a pure one."

  "Oh my God. What's his last name?" Silver asks.

  "Adonis. Why? What's wrong with you?"

  "I'll talk to you when you get here."

  Orion ends the call. "Don't worry about Silver. He's harmless."

  When Orion stops the car, Troy get out as ordered and watches the large silver ship land on the rocky outcropping. A door slides open on the side and Orion motions for Troy to follow him up the ramp and into the ship. Impure Nymphs dressed in cargo pants and leather vests like Orion wears line the hallway and bow as they pass. A couple give Orion a high five or a thumbs up. One of the Nymphs doesn't look like a Nymph at all. His hazel eyes are obviously human and his messy blonde hair can't belong to an impure Nymph. He watches Troy closely and shakes his head as he follows him and Orion into a back room.

  Orion turns the lights on and motions to a metal chair in the middle of the bare room. "Sit."

  Troy obeys and feels the cold metal on his back. The blonde man opens a bo
ttle of water and helps him drink from it. He then watches Orion open a wooden box and pull out a gold ring about an inch in diameter and a few millimeters thick. What is that? His heart begins to race as the blonde man stands behind him and presses Troy's shoulders back against the chair. With his wrists still bound by the leather, he can't put up much of a fight against whatever they're about to do to him.

  Orion opens a white envelope and takes out a cloth that smells like rubbing alcohol. He wipes it inside Troy's nostrils. He then holds up the gold ring which he opens. "This is solid gold. It's your slave ring. It is engraved with my name on the back and it permanently marks you as mine. It also gives me a point of control over you with that leash over there. I will now pierce your septum with this needle and fix your ring into place. Once it locks, it cannot be removed except by very painful means, kind of like the studs in your ears." He holds up a large needle and places the tip against Troy's septum. "Breathe."

  Troy groans as the needle punctures him and tears fill his eyes. There's a loud click and Orion steps back. The pain is only exacerbated by the weight of the solid gold ring that nearly touches his lip.

  "How's it look, Silver?" Orion asks.

  The blonde man comes around and examines it, making Troy wince again. "Looks good."

  Orion draws a combat knife from his belt and saws through the leather bindings around Troy's wrists. "There. That's better. Look at me, Troy. You belong to me now. I am your master now. Why are you crying? Are you this scared?"

  "It hurts, Master."

  "Your piercing? Get used to it. Slaves get pierced. It's just part of it. And that will hurt for a while and be extremely sensitive which makes it easier to train you."

  "Can I talk to Troy alone for a minute?" Silver asks.

  "I guess. Don't hurt him. You have five minutes." Orion leaves the room and closes the door.

  Silver kneels down in front of Troy and retrieves a tissue from his pocket that he uses to wipe away the blood from around the piercing. "There. You'll get used to it. Tell me, Troy. How did you fall this far? You can speak. Don't be afraid."

  "You're not a real Nymph."

  "I'm a human that was exposed to nanobots and turned into a Nymph. Do you not recognize me?" He rubs his scraggly beard. "Oh. It must be my beard. It's me. I'm Jarred, Jarred Cunningham. I go by Silver now."

  "Jarred? How?" Troy loses it. He is crying uncontrollably as Jarred embraces him.

  "Troy, it's okay. You've gone through the worst part. Orion is a good guy. He'll take care of you."

  The door opens and Orion enters. "Forgot my knife. Uh . . . do you two know each other?"

  Silver stands and pats Troy on the back. "Troy was my son's owner."

  "Oh gods. It's a small galaxy, isn't it? He won't get any special treatment for it. He's the one with an owner now."

  "That's fine." Silver says. "I've known Troy since he was a baby. My kids grew up with him."

  "Then you'll help me train him?"

  "Absolutely. Let's get started."

  Orion takes the thin black leather leash from the wall and clips the end around Troy's nose ring. He locks it and gently pulls for Troy to stand. "Stay close to me and it won't pull too bad. We've just landed so you'll get to meet the other slaves soon. Be good."

  12

  Feeling completely humiliated, Troy follows as close to Orion's heels as physically possible to avoid any tension on his new septum piercing. It hurts like hell and the weight of the leash isn't helping. The gold ring itself is thin and he can probably get used to that amount of weight. But the leash? He already hates it more than almost anything else in life. Is his future to be led around by the nose like some animal? This is his worst nightmare come true.

  Orion leads him outside into the blistering heat and knee-deep sand dunes of the Eremos Desert. He has never been here except when he was with Zodiac on a shipment run and they only flew over it. There is nothing here but light brown coarse sand and tiny white scorpions skittering across the ground. As they make their way around to the other side of the ship, Troy spots a concrete bunker covered in sand. If he wasn't heading directly towards it, he would have mistaken it for just another large sand dune.

  Upon reaching the steel door, Orion holds his hand up as a glowing green hologram passes over it. There is a mechanical click and the thick door opens, revealing a brightly lit descending metal staircase. Apparently Troy stopped for a little too long to examine his surroundings.

  "Holy shit!" Troy cries out as Orion yanks the leash, making him grab onto the railing as tears swell in his eyes.

  "You'll learn in time." Silver says as he pushes Troy along. "It's all part of your training. The slaves have to learn to stay vigilant and always alert to where their masters are."

  "And that was your one free pass for unnecessary outbursts." Orion says. "Scream again like that and I'll secure your leash to the wall and whip you to give you something to really scream about. How does that sound?"

  "Terrible, Master. Forgive me."

  "You are forgiven."

  When they reach the bottom of the stairs, metal tunnels stretch out as far as he can see from this large main room. Tables, chairs, and weapon lockers line the walls. Televisions and bright fluorescent light fixtures hang from the ceiling. More agents in cargo pants and leather vests mill around. Some sit at tables eating and talking while some are gathered around a television playing videogames on a console. Troy then spots the few men in white pants, white vests, and knee-length black see-through tunics with flowing sleeves. The ones in the black tunics all have steel nose rings and follow closely behind the agents without leashes. They must be slaves like him. Then he notices one more thing. There are no women here, neither as slaves nor agents.

  "Welcome to the Eremos Excavation Guild. This is your one and only home now." Orion claps his hands together and everyone looks up from their activities. "I'm back, guys. This is my slave. His name is Troy."

  All the agents hold out their right hand, their palms facing him as a salute to him. The slaves holdup their left hand in the same manner.

  A woman's voice comes over an intercom system. "Good to see you in one piece, Orion. Leave your new toy with Silver and get to my room immediately."

  Orion growls and hands the leash to Silver. "Take Troy to my room and bathe him. Then dress him in his uniform. If I'm still gone in an hour, feed him then take him into the warrens."

  "Will do. Don't keep Mistress waiting. You know how impatient she gets when she goes too long without being satisfied."

  "Tell me about it. That's what I get for being of seven elite agents, I guess. I know she hates your nights."

  "Once a week for each of us. Don't worry. I'll take care of Troy for you."

  * * *

  Zodiac pulls the teapot from the stove and pours the steaming chamomile tea into a white porcelain teacup. He carries it into the bedroom at the end of the hallway. "Nova?"

  She is curled up under the quilt that Xanthe made her from scraps of the dresses she used to wear as a child. Nova's curly hair is a frizzy mess of tangles resting like bird's nests on her bare shoulders. "Leave me alone."

  "I can't let you suffer alone like this." Zodiac joins her on the bed and sets the teacup on the bedside table. He lifts up the quilt, but puts it back down. "Why are you naked? Where are your clothes?"

  "I don't need clothes." Nova murmurs as she holds onto her brother's waist and cries. "I need Troy!"

  He sighs and smoothes her hair the best he can. What can he say to make her feel better? He hates seeing her cry. "Nova, please listen to me. Troy is going to be okay. He's getting away from Evans and Apollo who want to kill him. Blice seems to trust that Orion guy. Troy will have a new life . . . without us." Zodiac bites his lip as he begins to cry as well. He comes to the realization that his life will never be the same without Troy. They had so many plans for the future. They were going to fly out to Verloren to camp in the red sand of the canyons and watch the stars. They were going to hunt giant ins
ects in the swamps of Vergessen and climb the icy mountains of Friedhof. They were planning to live their entire lives side by side as best friends. He had naively believed that nothing could ever separate them.

  Now his house is quiet without Troy cooking something new in the kitchen or singing along to Nova's harp playing. There are no Earth war films playing on the television or ancient Johnny Cash LP albums on the antique record player. There are no intoxicating scents of crème brûlée or Troy's favorite Long Island Iced Tea being concocted at the bar in the living room. The remaining jars of hair gel are now left untouched on the bathroom counter and hidden in the sofa cushions where Troy used to stash them. Even though he didn't technically live here, Troy was around this house more than his family's home. Everything smells like Troy's musky honey scent.

  Zodiac looks up and dries his eyes on the back of his purple sleeve as soft footsteps come down the hallway. The little girl in her pink lace sundress stops in the doorway with a pout on her tiny lips. He slides off of the bed and goes to her. "Io? What are you doing here?"

  "Where's Troy?"

  He picks her up and carries her on his hip out into the street. "Where are Sparta and Atlas? They're supposed to be watching you."

  "At home. I ran away."

  "Why did you run away? Your brothers are probably worried sick about you."

  "I don't want to go back." Io says as she holds onto Zodiac's ponytail. "They're angry and fighting. Daddy hurt Midas."

  "Apollo hurt your brother?"

  "Midas fell. He's asleep and won't wake up."

  "Where is he?" Zodiac asks. "At your house?"

  "Yeah. Sparta was kissing him and pushing on his chest."

  She must be talking about CPR. This sounds bad. "Is anyone else hurt?"

  "Vexius and Eos are missing."

  It's a short walk to Apollo's house where Zodiac is met by Xanthe who steps outside and closes the door. She gives a vague smile and takes Io's hand when Zodiac sets her down on the ground. What's going on? Everything seems fine.

  "Thank you for bringing her home." Xanthe says.

  "Is everyone okay?" Zodiac asks, trying to look inside the windows, but they're covered.