The Skin Game - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Enslaved

Kaessi was lost in the experience of a long walk through the countryside. It was a beautiful day with high white fluffy clouds. Birds sang, breezes blew, it was a symphony to her senses.

As they walked up to the Romarian border, the sight of the small fortress and the guards, brought to mind a realization. She turned to Jesera and said, "I can't go there!"

"Why not?"

"I'm wanted in the Dominion."

"For what?"

"As an escaped slave."

"What!? How did you make it to twenty-first level without going into the Dominion?"

"I didn't. In the game it was easy to sneak across the border."

Jesera got a distant look on her face. "In the game maybe. But I don't think it would be so easy now that we are really here." She raised her voice and said, "Guys! We need to stop for a minute and think something out."

Everyone gathered around, then Jasera turned to Kaessi and said, "Explain."

Kaessi felt embarrassed again. They were going to realize that she had made up this background on purpose. She cleared her throat and said, "I'm considered an escaped slave in the Dominion. When my master died, I fled the Dominion. If I touch a Watch Orb they will know it."

Jesera said, "Everyone who crosses the border has to touch a Watch Orb."

Kaessi said, "That's why I would sneak across the border. I could separate from you and head back out of sight of the fortress. I can cross over and meet up with you on the other side."

Odan said, "Where would we meet?"

Kaessi stopped, blinked and said, "I almost always adventured alone. That's how I went up in levels so fast. I'd sneak everywhere. She looked up at Odan, I don't know. A mile or two inside the border?"

Hern said, "That sounds chancy. We might end up waiting for you indefinitely. You could get caught, or lost. I don't like it."

Kaessi said, "Well what other choice do I have?"

There was a long pause, then Jesera said, "Turn yourself in."

Kaessi and William both said, "What!?"

"I am a Princess of the Greenwood Clan. If we bind you and I take to the fortress as my prisoner I will be turning in a runaway slave. Under Dominion law if your master is dead who so ever turns you in may buy you from the state at the going rate. I think a girl slave is what, about a hundred marks?"

Odan held up a pouch, "That is half of what we have from the Magus."

Jesera continued, "Once I own you, you're collared and we can go anywhere in the Empire."

Kaessi said, "You own me?"

Jesera said, "I am a noble of the Dominion. I'm the best choice. But if you really want to belong to someone else here just speak up."

Kaessi looked down at the ground. "Ok Jesera, I'll be your slave."

Jesera said, "Anyone else have a better plan."

William said, "Is this really necessary."

Jesera said, "I think it's the best plan. Once we get to Jandar City at the North South crossroad, I can find a magistrate and have her manumitted."

Kaessi looked at her, "Then I'd be free and not wanted. I could go anywhere."

Jesera nodded. "Yes. Though we're going to burn a lot of money to pull this off."

Kaessi reached into her bag and pulled out her purse. "If I remember right there are coins totaling about eighty gold marks in here." She passed that the Jesera. If I'm carrying it when we cross the border they'll probably confiscate it anyway."

Jesera nodded, "Good point. Put your staff inside your bag and give it to Hern."

Kaessi did as she was bid. Then Jesera caused her magic coffer to appear. From inside she took out a length of rope. She used this to bind Kaessi's hands in front of her, then she took the remainder and held it like a leash. She looked into Kaessi's eyes and said, "Are you ready for this."

Kaessi said, "Ready as I'll ever be."

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Once again their party set off for the border fortress entrance to the Romarian Dominion. As the got closer it could be seen that the road itself passed through a sort of outer bailey or extension of the fort. A wall with its own gate formed a fortress within a fortress. A narrow gate opened in the horizontal divider line allowing access from the inner fortress to the outer. The road ran through the inner fortress with wide gates on either side to close it off. Inside this area were a number of tents, some picketed horses and a sort of small gazebo.

In that peculiar way that she had of remembering things that only someone from this world could know, Kaessi knew that the Watch Orb was kept under shelter in the gazebo like structure. There would be four guards at each gate, two inside, two outside. There would be four more at the gazebo with their commander. He would have a horn that could summon aid from the troops quartered in the tents around him, and from the hundred or so troops permanently stationed inside the inner keep.

The guards wore armor made of leather and metal plates, each also had a large oval shield, short sword and spear. Their helmets came down over their cheeks and nose leaving only the eyes and mouth exposed. The trademark red leather boots and scarlet cloak marked them as regulars in the Romarian Infantry.

As they reached the outer gate one of the guards stepped forward and in an accent very much like Kaessi's said, "What do we have here?"

Jesera stepped forward and said, "I am Jesera Feldan's Daughter of Clan Greenwood. I have captured a fugitive slave while outside our borders. She claims her rightful master is dead. If that is true, I claim purchase right."

The guard stepped forward and stood before them. He looked Jesera up and down. She gave him her haughty aloof look. He looked over at Kaessi, then around at the others. He said, "And these others?"

"They are my retinue. You of course realize that woman of my station rarely travels alone."

"Yes...My Lady?" He said the last with a questioning tone. Then, "Well, we'll sort this out soon enough. Please come with me to the Watch House." He turned and walked toward the gazebo like structure without so much as a look over his shoulder. Everyone glanced at everyone else, then they stepped through the gate and followed the soldier.

The soldier preceded them up the steps and spoke to the young man sitting at the table under the shelter. On the table in front of him was an ink well, a ledger book, a helmet similar to the soldiers but with a red feather crest and of course the Watch Orb. The orb was a ball of glassy material about six inches in diameter that sat in an bronze tripod. It gave off a soft glow of red light visible even in daylight.

The solder leaned over the table and spoke quietly to the officer. Then he stepped aside. The officer wave them forward and said, "My lady, would you be so kind as to place your hand on the Orb?"

Jesera stepped forward and placed two fingers on one side of the Orb. The officer did likewise. Then he said, "Please state your name, reason for entering the Dominion and any affiliations."

Jesera said, "I am Princess Jesera Feldan's Daughter of Clan Greenwood. I am entering the Dominion for various purposes, the first being to see this fugitive slave properly disposed of."

The officer seemed to be listening to something for a moment, then his manner became much more respectful. He removed his fingers from the orb and Jesera did the same. He said, "Of course your ladyship. May I ask how you came to possess this slave?"

Jesera said, "I'd rather not go into details. But I assure you there will be no reports of any sort of incidents. In the end she turned herself over to me. You understand that if her master is dead as she claims, I intend to purchase her as is my right?"

"Of course your ladyship. Hengran, Novans, bring the slave forward."

Jesera stepped aside as two soldiers stepped forward and grabbed Kaessi by her arms. They brought her before the officer who motioned toward the orb. One guard simply yanked her hands forward and pressed her them against the orb with his own. At the same time the officer placed two fingers against the Orb and said, "Name?"

Kaessi said, "Kaessi."

Before anyone could react the second guard backhanded her sharply across her cheek. It felt like her eye was going to explode out of her socket. If the two soldiers had not been holding her she would have fallen. William took half a step forward as the guard who had struck her hissed, "You will address the officer properly."

Kaessi blinked as tears formed in her eyes from the pain and humiliation. Then she said, "Master, this slave's registered name is Kaessi."

The officer blinked and appeared to be listening. After a moment he said, "Yes. That is your name of record. You are indeed listed as a fugitive slave. Your master was executed for thievery."

He looked up at Jesera and said, "You can of course purchase her, but you will also be responsible for all fines, fees and taxes."

Jesera said, "I do not have the family coffers with me. How much are we talking about?"

The officer said, "First, a girl slave of child bearing years is currently valued at one hundred-twelve gold marks. In addition as an escaped slave suspected of being an accessory to criminal activities she must be branded, collared and given an obedience ring. The branding fee is two gold marks. We can provide you with a collar, if you do not have one, for eight silver marks. The obedience ring is a hundred gold marks. There is normally a piercing fee of four silver marks, but as she is pierced in the customary place we can wave that fee. Add in taxes on the purchase and importation of a slave and it comes to two-hundred-seventeen gold and four silver marks."

Jesera said, "She is an escaped slave, I am not importing her."

"I'm sorry my lady but regulations say the tax has to be paid on any slave brought into the Dominion."

Jesera said, "Very well. Odan, pay the man."

Odan stepped forward and put both pouches on the table. The officer counted out the money and handed two gold and six silver marks back to Odan. He then motioned to the guard that had struck Kaessi and said, "Novans take her into the keep and have her seen to."

Jesera said, "I would like to accompany her. Just to safeguard my property."

The officer said, "Im sorry my lady, but only members of the army or a government official on state business are permitted inside the inner keep."

"You are taking my slave inside the inner keep."

"As you know my lady under Romarian law slaves are livestock, not people. As such they may be taken inside the keep like any other type of livestock."

"Very well. But I expect her returned to me prompty and in good shape"

"Of course my lady." He looked at Novans and said, "You heard her."

Novans looked resentfully at the officer for a moment then said, "Yes sir. Promptly."

Jesera said, "And I'll keep my rope if you please."

Novans roughly untied Kaessi, and handed the rope to another soldier who began to wind it. Novans said to Kaessi, "I'll have no trouble out of you or you'll be sorry."

Kaessi said, "Yes master."

Novans grabbed a handful of her hair and bent her forward then briskly walked off giving her no choice but to follow.

She heard the officer asking the others to step forward and touch the watch orb.

Novans trotted her through the inner gate and down across a cobbled courtyard to a stable. A pair of posts with iron manacles stood near the forge. He efficiently fastened her into the smaller set, then turned to the smith who had stepped forward whipping his hands on his leather apron.

"This slave is to receive the thieves brand."

The smith said, "Right you are. You going to hold her for it?"

Novans said, "I'd love to."

The smith turned to go back to his forge and said over his shoulder, "The skirt is in the way."

Novans smiled at Kaessi and said, "I guess it is, we'll just have to get rid of it. Probably stolen contraband anyway." The look in his eye just dared Kaessi to say anything. She turned her head away from him and closed her eyes.

She had though she'd be a little humiliated. Collared, but nothing really bad. But she hadn't counted on this. Again the memories swam sluggishly to the surface. The knowledge was distant, almost like it wasn't hers. She knew that a slave who was confiscated from a criminal was branded with a mark indicating what their master's crime had been. Such slaves were often considered tainted goods. She was to bear the thieves mark. She knew it was going to hurt, and hurt bad.

The obedience ring was typically put through the septum of the nose. They were expensive and rarely used on well behaved slaves. Typically, only slaves who were considered risks for violence or flight were given them. It was a ring that once put in place could not be removed with impunity. Rumor had it that if it was removed by anyone other than a specially trained Dominion officer it would kill the slave from which is was removed.

While the ring was worn the slave was under a simple but insidious compulsion. The ring bore an enchantment that compelled the slave to be the best slave they could be. Good slaves did not try to run away. They worked diligently to please their master. By simply stating that such and such pleased them, or displeased them, a master could tweak the slave's compulsions to their specific desires.

She was lost in thought so she did not notice what Novans was doing until she felt the blade of his knife slide under the shoulder of her vest. With a quick flick of the wrist he severed her left should strap. Then the right. Her vest dropped away from her. Then he slid the blade inside the waist of her skirt. He waited. Finally Kaessi turned her head back to look at him. He looked her in the eye, smiled and sliced the skirt away from her body.

He stepped back and said, "Pitty your owner is such a high and mighty personage. I'd like to spend some quality time with you. I bet you scream real pretty."

Kaessi watched him like a rabbit watches a snake, as his eyes roved up and down her. He stepped forward and ran his hands down her back. His palm was rough from hard work and sword practice. He cupped her right ass cheek and asked her, "Would you like me to warm you up for the brand? Some say it hurts less after a good strapping. We've got a few minutes while the iron heats.

Kaessi realized she had to answer or she'd suffer. She also knew she would suffer if she said yes or no. She said, "As master wishes."

Novans smiled, "See you remember how to be good little slave."

He stood slightly behind and to one side of her and began to give her an open handed spanking low on her right ass cheek.

Kaessi yelped, flinching with each impact. She tried to wrap her arms and legs around the smooth wooden pole. Her hands grabbed the chains above her manacles and tears ran down her face.

Novans kept spanking her till from within the smithy came the yell, "Hold her tight, here I come." Novans stepped up behind her and pressed her body to the pole with his weight. He reached around her and grabbed her right leg with his left arm. Then he squatted slightly and put his right arm under her and clasped her leg with that as well. The effect was to lift and push out the right side of her butt where her thigh joined her hip.

She heard the smith approaching, there was sudden sensation of heat on the right side of her body, then the brand seared into her flesh. She screamed a full throated cry of pain and despair. She tried to tell herself this is all a game. This isn't really happening. But the pain was real. The hard wood against which she was pressed felt real. The soldier pressed against her back felt and smelled real. The sickening stench of burning meat, meat that was her very own flesh, it too smelled real.

Then the smith pulled the brand away. He said, "Nice clean mark. He patted her leg and said, "Now that wasn't so bad."

Kaessi looked up at him through tear filled eyes wondering what he considered bad, and hoping she never ever found out.

Novans stepped way from her and said, "I thought you might scream pretty. She needs a collar too."

The smith said, "Unchain her, and bring her in."

Novans pulled the pins and freed her from the manacles. Again he took a great fist of hair and used it like a leash to force her to follow him into the close heat of the smith's workshop. Once inside he used her hair to pull her upright, then he released her hair and stood behind her. The smith turned to her and put his hands around her neck as though to choke her, but then turned away. He delved into a large wooden box full of clanky metal bits and emerged with two crescents of black iron. Each piece ended it what looked like half a hinge. And riveted to the middle of each curve was a metal ring about an inch around. He handed them to her and said, "Here, hold these in place."

The smith expected her to help with her own collaring. She cast a quick glance at Novans, who simply raised an eye brown. She took the two pieces and held them to her neck. The smith meanwhile got out two pieces of wire and pair of large metal pincers. He threaded the metal pin through the two halves of the hinge on the right side, then he used the pincers to crimp them together. He repeated on the other side. Kaessi ran her hands around the collar and found that once attached it had four rings of the same size spaced ninety degrees apart.

Novans grunted his thanks to the smith, reaching down and putting a finger through the front ring, he pulled her along behind him. He took her across the courtyard and down a cool stone hallway. At the end he knocked on a heavy wooden door and the voice of an elderly man called out for them to enter.

Novans opened the door and pulled Kaessi inside behind him. Kaessi glanced around and realized she was in a magical laboratory. An old man in wizards garb turned away from a reading stand as they entered. He just raised both eye brows and gave them a questioning look.

"Slave that needs an obedience ring, sir."

"Oh. Very well, get the ring in her nose out." The old man walked over to a set of shelves and began opening and peering into various boxes. Novans peered at her nose questioningly. Kaessi fearing still more pain said, "Master, this slave begs to remove the nose ring."

Novans nodded consent. Kaessi quickly popped out the captive bead then rotated the ring out and handed it to Novans. He looked at it and began to pop the bead in and out as if amused by the cleverness of the design.

About then the wizard said, "Here we go." He turned and walked to her holding a small silver ring between his two fingers. He took her jaw and tilted her head back somewhat uncomfortably then deftly slipped the ring through her piercing. He held one end of the opening and he said to Novans, "You'll do for starters." Novans reached out and touched the other end of the ring at the same time that the wizard did. The old man quickly chanted a few words that seemed to defy memorization. As he completed his chant Kaessi was stunned by a sudden burst of something from her nose. It was almost as if she had been punched, but there was no physical blow.

"That takes care of it. Now move along, I've got things to do."

Novans said, "Yes sir. Come along slave."

Kaessi felt a sudden compulsion to follow him. She knew she needed to please Novans. To her horror she realized that the wizard had bound her to obedience with Novans. How would he dare something like this.

He took her down the stone corridor then waved her aside into a small nook. He smiled, "We don't have much time. Don't want to worry your precious owner. But you've got me all excited watching you being branded, spanking you, hearing that lovely scream and watching you cry so pretty. Oh yes, I like it when you hurt."

Kaessi starred at him in horror, he was compelling her to desire pain. Then he said, "You know what pleases me most? I'll tell you. And yes, I know that once I tell you, you'll want to do it. You want to do it real bad. What pleases me is when a nasty little slave cunt like you kneels on the floor in front of me and begs me to fuck her face. And then she opens her mouth and I use her face hole as a fuck hole. That's what pleases me the most.

Now is there something you would like to say slave?"

"Yes master."

"Say it."

"This slave begs master to allow her to get on her knees so that master can fuck her face."

"Well since you put it so nice, of course."

Kaessi was horrified, she felt her knees give way and she was kneeling looking up at the soldier. He pulled aside his leather kilt and exposed his semi erect prick. He took a fist full of her hair and guided himself into her open mouth. Then he began to rock his hips, forcing himself back and forth over her tongue. She gagged and he commanded her not to throw up. It was over quickly as he held himself inside her mouth and his cock pulsed twice, sending his seed over the back of her tongue and into her throat.

He pulled out and tucked himself back in. He looked down at her and said, "I command you not to speak of this to any of your future masters."

She nodded and tried to speak. She coughed and managed to croak out, "Yes master." Her throat hurt terribly, but somehow the pain pleased her, because she knew it would please her master. Novans pulled her erect with a finger through a ring on her collar and quickly walked her out of the inner courtyard and back to her companions.

Everyone was watching as she was lead from the gate. Their eyes and body language spoke volumes. As she approached she realized that all of them saw her not only as someone who just undergone a terrible experience, but also as someone who was sexually attractive. Her raw vulnerability spoke to them. Novans walked her up to Jesera and said, "My lady, if you would touch her ring of obedience with me I'll transfer her to you."

Jesera did so and the soldier said, "Slave, this woman is your owner and mistress. I am no longer your master, you will follow all her orders from this day forward and strive to please her in every way." Novans stepped away from her, bowed to Jesera and returned to his post beside the steps of the gazebo.

Jesera looked into her eyes. Kaessi could see concern for her there but wasn't sure what to say. Jesera said, "Very well, you will follow me the customary two steps behind."

Kaessi managed a hoarse "Yes mistress."

Jesera said, "Where are her clothes?"

Novans responded, "They were damaged during the branding my lady."

Jesera looked at Kaessi and quirked her eyebrow questioningly. Kaessi managed to say, "This slave's clothes were destroyed mistress."

Jesera said, "Let's go."

She walked along very conscious of her nudity. Very aware that her entire right bottom was a mass of burning pain. That one point was especially painful. She was aware that her throat hurt and of the weight of her collar. She was aware that she had the taste of a mans cock and semen in her mouth. Lastly she was aware that she was aroused. She devoutly hoped that the moisture she could feel slipping between her nether lips was not noticeable to anyone else.

The entire party turned and walked across the outer bailey and through the Eastern gate. As she walked along behind Jesera she was aware of the hot gaze of the guards. Finally they were outside the fortress and moving off down the road.

They passed a small trade caravan a short time latter. One of the merchants called out asking how much for the slave girl. Jesera said, "She's not for sale."

Kaessi had never felt so grateful to anyone for anything before in her life. Things had not gone as she envisioned them. The rings insidious effects were influencing her to want to please Jesera, to be the best slave for her possible. Kaessi realized that she was in fact looking forward to proving to Jesera just how good a slave she could be.

Continued in Chapter 3

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