Choose Me

by Hart, Delmire

  “But I can. Slaves have no past, no future; they have only the here and now. As such, they do not have family names. You will be called by a name of my choosing. You should count yourself fortunate that I do not gift you a new name for your station as my slave. There are many masters who would choose to do that as a way of breaking you from your old identity.”

  Toru’s protests were overridden by a hard look. Golden eyes bored into him and forced him into silence with their sheer intensity. The aura of command suddenly overwhelmed the room. It was like he had finally stopped humouring Toru and flipped the switch. The feeling was almost oppressive and Toru found himself staring back, unable to break his gaze away or form words. Who the hell was this man?

  “As I said earlier, I will have you willingly. As such, I will not force you into the intimate aspects of your station as my personal pleasure slave. You will be required to fulfil the rest of the role, however. No one in my house gets to laze around without working. Litton said you were brought to him half dead and I’m inclined to believe him if your current state is anything to go by. You will be given time to rest and then light duties until you are deemed fit enough to be on your feet properly.

  “As my pleasure slave, you will bed with me and help my attendant look after my personal rooms and the housework. You will also help out around the manor doing chores when there is nothing to be done in the rooms. You will learn how to serve me and my guests and wait on us when I entertain or have meetings. Any activity you are doing can be interrupted by my orders and in such circumstances, you will come at once. In the morning, you will be fed and measured for clothing and be allowed to rest until some of your wardrobe is completed. After that you will follow the instructions from my healer and certain members of my staff. Do you understand?”

  The omega nodded and Kessler seemed satisfied with that response. The alpha picked up his glass and drained the last of the liquid. He set the glass down and motioned Toru towards him. The omega approached cautiously and the man seemed to study him. Finally done with his observation he turned and led the way deeper into what must be his personal chambers. It seemed they had been in some kind of study before and they passed through two different rooms that seemed to be for entertaining before entering a bedroom.

  The carpet was lush under Toru’s toes, he almost seemed to sink into it, and a large four-poster bed dominated the centre of the room. It was done up in rich red silks that draped over the frame and matched the puffy pillows and blankets. He could also see a table, drawers, and a large mirror decorating the room and even what appeared to be a weapon rack with two ornate looking swords in their scabbards resting there in the dim candlelight.

  The omega hastened after the other man, who had kept walking to enter a door on the other side of the room. It turned out to be a bathroom with a massive pool inset in the floor. The bath must be the same size as the bed in the other room.

  Toru felt like his eyes would pop out of his head and his jaw hung open. The wealth required to live in such opulence must be immense. And how many people were required to upkeep such ridiculous things? No wonder Rokere had slaves, paying for people to work in this manor must be stupidly expensive and this was only one example. There must be more in this land that lived like this. A deep chuckle brought him back to the present as Kessler watched him in amusement.

  “Take your time to wash yourself, I’ll come join you shortly.” With that the man walked back past Toru and exited the room, shutting the door behind himself.

  Sweet smelling candles lined the rim of the bath and cast a soft flicking glow about the room. Overall it felt very serene and relaxing. Toru stepped forward, carefully putting his foot out and tested the water. It was warm, not too hot, just a nice pleasant temperature. He was used to bathing with cold water, usually in streams or rivers. This kind of luxury was unheard of back home.

  He put his foot down onto the step and let the water swirl around his ankle before he moved down until the water sat a little above his knees. Spotting a basket filled with what appeared to be bathing items, he waded over. He sat on the step beside it and looked through it. He wasn’t sure if he was allowed to touch it. They all seemed so luxurious and expensive. A slave would not be allowed such costly items. But he would be spending the night in the man’s bed, he realised with a start, surely he would rather have a nice smelling bed companion?

  “You can help yourself.”

  Toru jumped in fright and slipped on the step, splashing as he sat down in the deeper section with a thud. The water came up to just under his chin. Kessler chuckled at him as he continued to disrobe. Toru watched as a rippling muscled torso was revealed and his eyes widened. He quickly averted his gaze with a blush and sunk further down into the water, blowing bubbles childishly as he tried to ignore the very attractive and very naked alpha sloshing towards him. The man bypassed him and rummaged around in the basket for a moment.

  A large rough cloth landed on Toru’s head and something splashed into the water in front of his face. He sat up and pulled the cloth into the water before he picked up the object to inspect. It was soap he realised; a soft pink colour and carved into the shape of a rose. He brought it up to his nose and sniffed. It even smelled like the flower it was shaped as.

  “It’s pretty.” Toru flushed as he realised he had spoken aloud. He glanced over to the alpha who watched him in turn and he once again looked away. Those eyes always seemed to weigh him up, evaluating him. The omega scooted over to the other side of the pool and pulled himself up onto the step so the water lapped around his waist.

  He could almost feel that gaze burning into his skin and he quickly set to scrubbing his skin raw, feeling far too exposed. Technically he had the water obscuring his nether regions now, which was more coverage than before, but he didn’t have the burning anger to force the knowledge of that fact away from his thoughts this time. After a few minutes the alpha finally turned his attention to cleaning himself and Toru let out a small breath of relief at no longer being the sole focus of his attention.

  It wasn’t long before he had cleaned every inch of himself and sat in the deeper water playing with the soap, desperately trying to ignore the man on the other side of the bath. Thankfully Kessler also seemed to be finished as he climbed out, bathing utensils set to the side of the pool. Toru turned to watch him only to immediately look away. His cheeks heated up again. This was something he would struggle to deal with. He honestly didn’t know where to look. Did the man have no sense of modesty?

  “I had forgotten that Tysealeans were such prudes.”

  “Prudes?! We’re not—” he cut off as he turned to face the man only to receive a full-frontal view of his dripping body. Toru squeaked and focused his gaze back on the swirling water. His face was completely on fire. But still, he wasn’t a prude. He could almost hear the amusement from the man although he made no sound. Looks like he had just proven that he was, in fact, a prude. He listened to the rustling movements while idly wondering if it was safe enough to chance a look yet.

  “Come here.”

  He turned to see a large fluffy white towel being held up in front of the alpha. He gulped and slowly got to his feet, making his way forward. Thankfully the towel obstructed his view of the other man but that didn’t stop him from being conscious of his burning eyes when he stood naked and dripping in front of him. No one had ever seen him so intimately.

  Yet he had spent roughly an hour in this man’s presence completely naked and under constant observation. The towel was pushed into his grip and he accepted it automatically. It was so soft and puffy. He ran his hands over the material in awe.

  “Just leave it on the floor when you are done.”

  With that the man exited the room and left Toru standing motionless in the flickering light. He slowly towelled himself off and luxuriated in the feel of the fabric against his skin. Everything was starting to feel surreal and the candles’ soft movements cast odd shadows on the walls that only heightened the otherworldly
feeling. He was a slave. But he had just been allowed to use the most luxurious bath and expensive soap. Now he was using a towel that was fit for a lord.

  Shouldn’t he be in dirty rags and sleeping on the cold stone floor in the kitchen or something? Wasn’t that how slaves worked? He tried to remember what Dai had said two weeks ago, when he had initially asked about what he was now.

  “Pleasure slaves are shown off. That’s part of your role as a pleasure slave. Only the rich and powerful can afford such a luxury and as such they are normally exceedingly well looked after.”

  So this was normal? And sleeping in the alpha’s ridiculous bed must be normal then as well.

  Pleasure slave.

  He knew that’s what he had been sold as, well, given away, so sharing the bed made sense except for the fact that the man had said he wasn’t going to touch him unless he chose him willingly. So until then, shouldn’t he be more wary of him? Kessler knew he was an elemental, so why was he not more suspicious of him? He had no idea what he was capable of. For all he knew, Toru could shank him in his sleep.

  Toru reached out for his power and felt a pang of disappointment when he still felt nothing. He took a deep bracing breath in and slowly let it out. It was there, he reminded himself, he still had the markings of an elemental. He needed time to heal, that was all. He set the towel down on the floor and padded out of the room. Kessler sat on the edge of the bed, still in all his unclothed glory, and looked up once Toru entered the room.

  He beckoned the omega forward after he hovered in the doorway, unsure. As Toru approached, he noticed he held the white collar from earlier in his hands. He stopped short of the man and stood awkwardly, staring a hole into the carpet, desperately needing something else to keep his gaze on.

  “Come here.”

  Toru gulped and stepped forward until he stood between the alpha’s knees. Unfortunately, being so close lost him the option of looking at the carpet and instead he focused on the man’s shoulder.

  “This…” Toru let his gaze be unwillingly dragged to the collar. “Is your new slave collar. This shows that you are my property and as such, no one else is to touch you. It shows what you are so that if you try to escape, the local authorities will know to stop you and where to bring you. It bears my personal crest.”

  Kessler ran a thumb over the polished metal plate stuck to the front of the leather. It bore a small but intricate picture. “And marks you as mine personally. You will wear this, no hand but my own is ever to remove it and there will be hell to pay if I find out you or anyone else has. If you try to remove it or make escape attempts, then my mark will be permanently etched into your pretty skin.

  “Such a crude marking would be a shame to inflict upon your skin when set against such a wondrous marking as the one on your chest, but make no mistake, I will not hesitate to enforce my words on you. You are my slave and as such my words are law. I can choose to remove this collar should you agree to become mine and prove yourself trustworthy. A slave tattoo cannot be removed short of losing that limb. I would suggest that you keep that in mind.”

  Kessler stood then and Toru tensed. The man towered a full head above himself and he stood eyelevel with his impressive chest. He stayed still while he waged an internal battle against his omegan instincts. They screamed at him to lean closer to the man, that the alpha was strong, that he could provide for him and protect him. Gentle fingers brushed at his neck as the collar was fastened in place but Toru was barely aware of it.

  He had never had such a strong reaction from his omega side before. Normally he hardly reacted to alphas at all. It usually got him in trouble because alphas had this woeful tendency to be expecting him to grovel at their feet. Instead he would spit fiery defiance from his mouth. Yharis, what was taking the man so long to do up a buckle? His eyes widened in surprise as he felt the fingers sneaking under the collar and he realised that Kessler was testing the fit to make sure it wasn’t too tight. He suddenly heard Dai’s soft voice in his head.

  “You look after your possessions, don’t you?”

  That thought was less comforting than it should be. Honestly the whole slavery deal left a bad taste in his mouth. Finally satisfied, Kessler dropped his hands from his neck and gently tilted Toru’s head back so he stared straight into his golden eyes. He seemed to search his face for a moment, but whether he was satisfied with what he found there Toru would never know, as his blank expression betrayed nothing. He let go after a few tense moments and gestured to the bed behind him with a nod.

  “Bed.”

  Toru woodenly climbed on to the bed, limbs immediately sinking in to the puffy mattress. He crawled up to the pillows, lifted the edge of the blankets and burrowed himself in the soft warmth. He watched Kessler blowing out the few candles around the room and felt relieved that he could finally hide his form away from those assessing eyes. The last candle was extinguished and the room plunged into darkness.

  Toru held his breath as he listened to the alpha approach and felt the bed dip as he climbed in. The sheets moved as the man arranged himself and then there was stillness. For the first time since he had said the words, Toru actually believed the man when he said he wouldn’t touch him. He let his breath out slowly and shifted around a little to make himself more comfortable, conscious not to move too much lest he disturb the alpha.

  As he let himself relax and sink into the bed, he finally noted how comfortable it was. What on earth was the pillow made of? Clouds? The puffy blankets were smooth and soft against his skin, somehow warm and comforting without being stifling. He luxuriated in the feeling but stared into the darkness unable to be lulled to sleep by the blissful comfort surrounding him.

  Now that he could actually think, he found himself unable to stop. His mind spun in endless circles as he contemplated the whirlwind of events that occurred that evening.

  And the impossible choice that he had been left with.

  He knew choosing the brothel meant death. For a start, he would not allow himself to be sold and used for countless people’s cheap pleasure. He would take a knife to his throat before he let that happen. If they were able to stop him from doing that, then the sheer brutality of countless rapes and the removal of his freedom would break him completely.

  He would die one way or another. But that was the point, wasn’t it? Kessler had told him straight up that if he couldn’t have him, no one could. He saw the deadly promise in the man’s eyes; if that’s what he chose then there would be no backing out.

  Yet the other choice held no more appeal. Mate and bond him. Was the man crazy? He didn’t know him and he wanted to tie them together for an eternity? A bond between an alpha and an omega was for life. Soulbond, people called it. Other classes could mate and form bonds together but it would eventually fade with time if not maintained. But a soulbond was more binding than even a marriage. They could not be separated for any great length of time and would become almost emotionally dependant on the other.

  It affected omegas far more, to the point that their heats could be reduced if they were well looked after both mentally and physically. But conversely, if they were mistreated their heats would extend, often to deadly degrees. It was their instinctual way of trying to get that needed attention any way possible.

  And what if Toru turned out to be a bearer? His family had no omegas for generations, so there was no way to tell if he may be able to bear children until he either did or did not get pregnant. Yet it seemed like the man didn’t care if he was. In fact, it sounded like that would be good.

  What did he intend to do? Keep him fat with child as a way to keep him close and get the heirs he needed? But if he wasn’t a bearer, then what? The man would have to knock up someone else and have a mistress on the side for children? The very thought of choosing Kessler only to have to watch as he went to someone else’s bed was sickening.

  But beyond all of that there was the unspoken suggestion of the loss of freedom that was far greater than just slavery. Bonding Toru mean
t a binding far greater and more restricting than any slave mark. Toru could never willingly leave the man’s side. Even if he got the chance to escape, he couldn’t. He wouldn’t even be able to take his own life because his instincts would force him to live for his mate. Yet he would be a slave still, slave to the alpha’s needs and wants because of that unbreakable bond.

  Kessler’s property for life or death?

  What kind of impossible choice had he been given?

  Chapter 4: Cultural Differences

  Toru groggily registered muted voices but was still too deep in the clutches of sleep to understand what was being said. Sleep had taken a long time to come last night, and he was unsure how long he had lain awake with his thoughts swirling around in his head. It made whatever time it was feel extremely early, though.

  A hand gently shook his shoulder and he grumbled, curling into himself to escape the prospect of getting up. It was unfortunately persistent. The voices were more distinct now but Toru’s foggy mind still couldn’t decipher the speech. After a few more unsuccessful tries, the hands gave up on shaking him and pulled him, sheets and all, to the edge of the bed. More sets of hands joined the first, and he was manhandled out of bed and into a standing position.

  He swayed drunkenly on his feet in his sleepy state, far too out of it to be bothered about his lack of modesty as the bedding was removed. He vaguely registered hands moving across various parts of his body but they were gentle and the touches were fleeting.

  Toru careened heavily to the side, only to be propped up against someone, and felt his head dropping down further. Thankfully, whatever was happening was over soon enough and he was helped back to bed. He eagerly cuddled into the soft blankets and this time sleep overtook his mind quickly.

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