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A Month in the Highlands -
Chapter 6
I awoke to darkness and pain. My
surroundings had dramatically changed, but my scrambled brain had no idea
precisely where I was. According to the vibration and smell of exhaust fumes, I
was in an automobile, probably in the trunk. Although not bound in any way,
there was no freedom of movement. It took me some time to realize that I was
inside of a kind of sack. Moving my hands over the smooth leathery surface of
this container led to contact with a metal strip of some sort, but further
investigation using only my sense of touch yielded no way out from this tiny
prison. It was then that the foul taste in my mouth became my focus, the
residue of the humiliating things that were done to me. I now recalled my final
moments before passing out, and shuddered.
Who had rescued me and where were we going
at present? Was one of those harpies dedicated to my destruction and utter
degradation still in control of me? I prayed to whatever god would hear my
pleading and promised anything if I could be returned to the safety of Mistress
Maggie, a cruel but just mistress. That led to other questions. What was in
store for me if indeed we were returning to my current mistress's home? What
kind of penalty would I be made to pay for my less than perfect behavior at
that horrible place?
The
ride over the rutted roads of this god forsaken land jostled me sufficiently
that I vomited a number of times, making my accommodations even more inimical
to my health and well-being. To take my mind away from its surroundings I began
to contemplate my near term future based on two scenarios, either we were
headed for the home of Mistress Maggie, or someone who had plans for me that
were likely to challenge my continued existence.
The more I thought of it, the more it
seemed apparent that they were returning me to the realm ruled by Mistress
Maggie. Then I began to muse over what lay in store for me there. If indeed she
had reclaimed me from the monsters that had been tormenting me, she would
likely exact something in exchange for her generosity in rescuing me from what
appeared to be my demise. That prospect instilled a high degree of anxiety as
the car bounced over potholes and ruts on the way to its destination.
At last the car slowed down and after a few
minutes came to a halt. There were muffled sounds of someone exiting the
vehicle and the door closing. I waited for my fate, but was disappointed
initially. Many long minutes passed before the trunk popped open and voices
foreign to me began to converse in loud voices. Then the bag containing me was
being dragged across the floor of the trunk, but not lifted or opened. I
remained silent and unmoving although the stench of my previous vomiting was
thick within my leathery prison.
Abruptly my container was lifted and then
dropped to the ground by these strangers. Now came the sound of someone
fumbling with the lock that held the bag fast, and briefly the zipper opened
slightly, only to be quickly closed as whoever it was got a whiff of my
container. I could clearly hear the sounds of footsteps receding into the
distance, and began to fear that they were going to leave me out here in the
elements overnight. Already I could feel the icy grip of the damp night air
through the leather, and my body began to shiver in a vain attempt to generate
sufficient heat to shield me from the cold.
Considering what happened shortly
thereafter, I might have been far better off being left to shiver in the
darkness. The zipper on my leather prison once more opened, and something
slithered inside to join me. At first my imagination took it for a snake of
some sorts and nearly lost control of my bladder. Then it began to hiss, but
before I could react to even more evidence that my companion was a reptile,
water began to spray over me.
Whoever they were had inserted a hose into
my bag and were now filling it with water. Panic seized me by the throat,
fearing that their intention was to drown me. Despite my struggles to increase
the opening in the bag, I was thwarted. Over the rush of water my ears picked
up voices and laughter as the amount of water increased steadily within the
leather bag in which I was contained. Soon my face was pressed against the
opening since the water level had reached my neck.
Rather than giving in to panic, it would
have been much wiser to realize that drowning was out of the question unless I
gave up all hope of survival. My salvation lay in keeping my face in its
present position and allowing the water to rush around me and exit, bringing
the container and myself, into a tenuous state of equilibium. As my body
shivered and shook, its heat being sucked off into the chilly water that was
now spurting from the bag, reason began to once again take control.
They had no present intentions of drowning
me, what was happening was simply a matter of making me minimally presentable,
free of the vomit and other rank odors that had been emanating from my naked
body. This made the rest of my ordeal much more bearable, and as I had
surmised, the water finally stopped and the hose was withdrawn. Moments later a
harsh male voice ordered me from the bag.
I eagerly complied despite the damp chill.
"Spread those legs and be quick about
it! Now put your hands behind your back so I can properly cuff you. Make any
false moves and my partner will use his baton to calm you down straight
away."
Not being in a position to disobey my
captors made it easyt to immediately comply. The cold metal circled my wrists
and the click that followed immobilized them. My teeth began to chatter as the
cold wrapped itself around my soaking wet body like a cloak. My ears pricked up
when next my jailer spoke.
"Stand up straight and try to look
more like a man than the slave you obviously are. The mistress will be down
shortly to personally speak to you before we transport your miserable carcass
inside to temporary quarters, such as they are. Say nothing, but nod your head
when it is appropriate. Now buck up and try your best not to shiver and shake,
it shows weakness and you shall need every ounce of your strength to handle
what is to follow."
It seemed as if I'd been standing in the
chill for an eternity when the mistress of the manor loomed from the icy fog
that develops this time of the year up here in the highlands. She was cloaked
and her face hidden by the cowl that protected her from the elements. I did not
recognize the voice that came from this indistinct figure, but it was a woman,
of that there could be no doubt.
"So there you are, in your native
state I see. Your present mistress has been so kind as to lend me your services
while my sister and her two nieces are visiting my home. She informs me that
you are on loan from your mistress for some transgression that she didn't wish
to discuss. Mistress Maggie assures me that although you are a slave, and thus
ignorant and untrustworthy, you are very capable of providing the type of
service that will be required while these visitors remain under my roof."
"Obey them as you would me or any
other mistress, and you may escape with a relatively whole skin. Be warned that
they are most demanding, the young are in many ways more of a challenge than we
who have matured and know the limitations of our slaves, even those merely
visiting or passing through on their way
to some other assignment. The three of them are to be addressed only as
mistress. To you they shall be nameless, quite fitting considering the gulf
between their state and yours. Woe to you if ever I hear of any unhappiness
originating from your behavior, no matter how small the offense."
My new mistress turned and disappeared
from whence she came, leaving me trembling from the cold as well as what lay in
wait for me. My handler, which in truth he was, prodded me in the direction of
the brick covered manor that looked to these eyes to be almost as large as one
of those ancient castles which now and then pop up on the terrain, their towers
in disrepair, their walls failed and open to whatever animal now chooses to
occupy its innards.
Once inside the building we descended to a
level well below the ground. If anything it was even colder in this area than
outside. He walked me into a cell like room that was at least heated by a
brazier of glowing coals. He uncuffed me
and waved his hand as he described the chamberpot, blankets and a small ewer of
water that had been prepared for my arrival. He pointed to my shriveled
genitals and made a crude joke about needing them to be in good working order
if what he had heard about the guests of
the mistress was accurate.
"I've been told that the three ladies
are a humorless lot with rather healthy appetites in certain areas.That reminds
me, are you gay or straight?"
To a slave like myself the idea of having
any say or control of one's sex partners had no meaning. What did my sexual
preferences have to do with such things? So without even thinking, I merely
shrugged my shoulders and told the other that gay and straight meant nothing to
me. I probably would describe myself, if allowed, as omnisexual. The quizzical
look on his face told me that my choice of words was a poor one. So I used
blunter terms, stating that a hole was a hole as far as I was concerned and
that went for mine as well. He roared with laughter at this, then stopped
abruptly and his face hardened.
"Does this omni whatever include
animals? The reason I ask is that I've already seen the dogs that the young
ones have brought with them, and they could only be for three reasons,
protection, hunting and....."
His pause spoke volumes, but once more I
shrugged, and he nodded his understanding without a word more. Then he finished
our discussion by first telling me that the mistress wanted me to fast for the
next two days, but I'd be allowed all the water I wished. Then he gave me a
small, nasty smile and added that the morning would start with me taking a
large ice water enema. I was too tired
and cold to care much about what the morrow would bring. All I wanted to do now
was to fall into the embrace of dreamless sleep.
( To be continued - lex
ludite )