Slaves of Elysium (25 page)

The cages filled steadily, until Jeni estimated there must have been over a hundred girls on display. She became aware of an intimate aroma of feminine excitement and anticipation filling the air, which she thought was more arousing than any manufactured perfume.

Kara made her own rounds of the rest of the cages in the room, examining the other goods on sale and chatting with fellow traders. When she returned she looked pleased with herself.

‘There are no other golden-haired girls in today's sale,' she told Jeni and Rebecca. ‘Just remember to behave as I taught you, and you should fetch a good price.'

They nodded, and Jeni said quickly, ‘Thank you for everything, mistress.'

Just then the outer doors were opened and the first members of the public began to file in to the auction hall.

‘Positions!' Kara said urgently to her merchandise, and then retreated to the seller's gallery.

Jeni and Rebecca knelt side-by-side, knees spread wide, backs straight and hands resting palm down on their thighs. Jeni felt a little frisson of nervous pride run through her as her nipples stood up even harder. She knew they looked both striking and attractive, and stood out even amongst the attractive array of female forms displayed about them.

Their hair, stimulated by whatever subtle means Kara had employed, now fell in golden cascades to the top of their buttocks, and was only loosely tied back so it would not conceal their bodies. Their spread thighs revealed thick mats of golden curls that seemed to sparkle in the lights, framing their naked pink clefts.

Soon a shifting crowd of potential buyers was circling about their cage, and as instructed, Jeni and Rebecca kept their eyes focused somewhere above the heads of the crowd. At the moment it was purely their physical characteristics that were being assessed. They would obey commands to stand, clasp their hands behind their necks to lift their breasts, bend over to better display their rears or something similar, but they were not to make eye contact with the buyers unless in response to a specific question.

But they watched the crowd all the same from the corner of their eyes. One of these people might end up owning them, and it was impossible not to be curious. Jeni saw many buyers held small computer pads in their hands, which displayed an electronic version of a sale catalogue. Jeni shivered as she saw her own image flash across those screens, reproduced from photographs taken just a few days before, complete with her personal details.

The browsers began to question them, and they replied readily, finishing always with, ‘I hope you will buy me, master.' Most of their questioners, seeing they were listed in the catalogue as being foreign, simply wanted to establish they spoke good Elysian.

Thanks to further instruction Kara had ordered, by now even Rebecca was acceptably fluent. But Kara had also judged their accents might add an additional air of glamour and mystery, and warned the girls not to polish them too smooth.

Jeni soon realised they were not merely selling their pretty bodies, but their entire beings. Of course a slave girl would be expected to conform to whatever rules of behaviour her master imposed, but no doubt each owner had their preferences, and wanted to select girls whose natural temperament was as close as possible to their personal ideal. It was a far more complex process than Jeni had imagined, and was evidently being taken very seriously by the buyers, who moved between the cages making notes on their pads and looking deeply thoughtful. This was not merely because buying a trained quality slave was significant investment. A slave was more than a servant, sex toy or even status symbol; she was an intimate companion and a public declaration of personal taste.

After a while it became obvious that Jeni and Rebecca were attracting the close attention of a distinctive couple. Both were tall and perfectly groomed. The woman wore a finely embroidered white silk gown, and jewels sparkled about her throat and on her fingers. Her partner's tunic was equally richly trimmed, and tied with a white sash edged with gold lace.

A pair of leashed slave girls, who crouched low each time their owners stopped, trailed the couple, and it took Jeni a moment to realise the girls were identical twins.

‘Interesting,' the woman commented, looking Jeni and Rebecca up and down and consulting her catalogue.

‘It says they're barbarians,' the man pointed out.

‘I'm sure they can be trained to behave. And look at that hair. Think how we'd look taking them to the Prince's reception.'

‘Is it real? You hear stories about that sort of thing.'

‘They're from the House of Remnos. It's small but it has a good reputation.'

‘Which means they'll expect more for them because they want everyone to know they only deal in quality merchandise, not quantity,' said the man. ‘Look at the reserve price on them.'

The woman had been walking round the cage scrutinising Jeni and Rebecca even more closely, a smile playing about her lips. ‘In this instance, they may be justified,' she said. ‘These two are exceptional.'

‘Well, I'll put them down as possibles,' the man said. ‘Let's see what else is on offer before we commit ourselves.'

They moved off, and from the corner of her mouth Rebecca said, ‘They look the right sort. Those twin girls couldn't have been cheap. And did you hear what she said about the Prince's reception?'

Jeni sighed inwardly; Rebecca had apparently already chosen her future owners. Whether the couple would agree with her remained to be seen.

 

By midday the crowds had thinned slightly as people went to lunch. The sale itself would not start until later in the afternoon. The doors were closed for a brief interval to allow the slaves to be fed and take a toilet break. Jeni and Rebecca gladly flexed their muscles, aching from holding their formal pose. Kara appeared to check on her charges and ensure they were comfortable, then retired for her own meal.

 

Early in the afternoon Jeni realised a man in uniform was standing before their cage whose face was tantalisingly familiar.

‘Whoever would have thought you two would have cleaned up so well,' he said. ‘Makes me wish I could afford you, but not on my pay, I fear.'

It was the commander of the flying disk who had found them on the beach.

‘Master,' Jeni said, with a bow. ‘I did not recognise you at first. I am sorry I do not know your name.'

‘Syndor Gren, lieutenant. I see my castaways have learned to speak a civilised tongue, as well.'

‘Thank you, Lieutenant Syndor, we have tried our best.'

‘I'm sure whoever buys you will not regret it.' He frowned. ‘I understand your companions were never found. I'm sorry for that. We searched the coast as far as the Kladrian border.'

‘Thank you, lieutenant,' Jeni said. ‘We know everything was done for them.'

‘Well, at least you are safely in a civilised land. And if you behave yourselves then maybe you will become full citizens one day. In the meanwhile, good luck to you.'

‘Thank you, master,' Jeni said. ‘Goodbye.'

Rebecca absentmindedly joined her in a parting bow. She was not interested in impecunious lieutenants.

The rich couple looked them over once again a little later. This time they instructed Jeni and Rebecca to display themselves, and questioned them closely about their training. Rebecca responded with a show of alert obedience and a humbly expressed wish that they would buy them. The pair walked off once more, clearly impressed, and Rebecca had to struggle to keep a triumphant grin under control.

 

Jeni was delighted to see Narvok Tem leading Cath towards them.

‘You look beautiful!' Cath exclaimed, pulling on her leash so she could press her face to the bars and look them over.

Jeni glanced mutely at Narvok Tem, who smiled and nodded. ‘You may speak with Catharine,' he said. ‘Others will think I am examining you with a view to making a bid, though you are priced beyond my means.'

‘Thank you, Master Narvok,' Jeni said, beaming at Cath. ‘Thanks for coming.'

‘I said I would if I could, and my master kindly let me.'

‘You were right about slave training,' Jeni said. ‘It was impossible to describe.'

‘But you got through it, and now you're the prize lot on the catalogue.'

‘We are?'

‘Yes, you're one of the last on the list, and they always save the most valuable for last. Besides, there's nobody else here like the pair of you.'

Jeni felt dizzy. The prize lot?

‘Who are those two over there, leading the twin girls?' Rebecca interrupted. ‘They were looking at us earlier.'

Cath glanced at the richly dressed couple, who were inspecting a girl in a cage a little way from them. ‘I'm not sure... master, do you know who those people are?'

‘Why, that's Adamasees Lorthon and Vandra,' Narvok said. ‘Adamasees Lorthon is a high councillor. They own a large estate on the coast, and I believe they also have contacts in court circles. If they are interested in purchasing you, then money will certainly be no problem.'

Rebecca's eyes grew brighter.

 

An expectant hush had fallen over the auction room. The audience were in their seats in the bidding pit, the central dais was brightly lit while the lights in the rest of the dome had dimmed.

The auctioneer, dressed for reasons of tradition in archaically cut grey robes, emerged from a curtained doorway at the back of the dais. He carried a short stick tipped with a rubber knob and an old brass hand bell, which he chimed solemnly as he walked round the edge of the dais.

‘My lords, honoured gentlefolk, free citizens, I bid you welcome,' he called out. ‘We have on sale today one hundred and thirty-two lots, comprising the finest selection of female slaves in the fair city of Ceroth. The bidding for each lot shall begin and end with the bell. Bids are to be made by clear show of your personal cards. The minimum increment is five crowns, to be indicated by a spread hand raised with your card. Now we shall start with lot number one...'

A disk of floor next to him opened like a camera iris and a girl rose smoothly up into view. She was suspended with her arms taut above her head with her legs spread wide. She was held in place by a control ring in the base of the moving platform, and a smaller one held above her head, which was supported by a curving arm that ran up from the back of the platform.

The big screens around the room showed the girl in close-up; her pretty face, her eyes saucer-wide with nervous excitement, her tremulously heaving breasts, her hips straining against the invisible fields that held her so brazenly open before so many strange eyes.

The auctioneer walked around her. ‘Now here we have a fresh bond slave by the name of Emree. Just twenty years of age and no previous owners. Needs breaking in and training, but will reward the effort.' The controlling fields turned the girl around so that the bidders could see her from all sides. The auctioneer slapped Emree's pert rump as she rotated. ‘Firm flesh, fit for all work and no doubt all manner of pleasures. I shall start the bidding at thirty crowns...'

And he rang his bell.

From her cage Jeni watched in helpless fascination as the bids slowly mounted, teased out of the audience by the auctioneer, who praised Emree's qualities as he called out the bids round the room, somehow not missing a single raised card. Had she witnessed anything like this back in her world, despite her own secret desires, she would have called it inhumane and degrading.

Real live girls being sold into total slavery? Outrageous!

Yet though it was happening before her very eyes she could find no anger within herself, or sense of any impropriety about the proceedings. It was just part of everyday life. And soon it would be her turn.

The bidding reached forty-five crowns. Jeni had learned that a raw slave should make at least fifty crowns, while a trained slave could fetch a hundred and fifty or more. How much was a pair expected to sell for?

‘Are you all done?' the auctioneer asked. ‘So little for one so full of potential.' He deftly slid the rubber tip of his stick up into Emree's pouting cleft and twisted it just so. Emree's hips jerked, her eyes rolled up blissfully and she gasped aloud. ‘And so responsive to the right touch.'

Cards were raised afresh about the hall. Emree sold for seventy-five crowns.

 

As the auction proceeded, the girls were steadily removed from their display cages and taken to the preparation room at the back of the dais. Their companions were on the list earlier. They saw Reena go for a hundred and sixty crowns, Cynim for one eighty and little Zarri for one ninety-five.

Then the door of Jeni and Rebecca's cage was opened.

Kara and her helpers were waiting for them in the preparation room, where Jeni and Rebecca were quickly made to squat over a toilet pan. It would not do to disgrace themselves on the dais by letting nervous excitement overcome their bladder control. Then their make-up was given a final check, and a little glitter was brushed into their hair and pubic bushes.