Pinned to the floor, Ka struggled to find a more comfortable position to lay. He couldn’t reach anything useful, he could barely touch the bedpost. With his hands still shackled he didn’t quite have his full reach, but he doubted it would have done him any good. How had he gotten to this point? What new cruelty did fate have in store for him?

Pet.

Ka heard himself growl, hearing the prince’s voice utter the word in his memory. But what had he expected? Servitude, or more accurately slavery . . . to be the man’s concubine or even his lowly toy. ‘Pet’ wasn’t really any worse than those things, but it somehow stung more deeply. Ka knew he had no choice in this, and he had no intention of fighting his punishment.

But he was no man’s pet.

Slowly the outrage faded. Even if he did fight, it would accomplish nothing. He sighed, raising his hands to cushion his head. Trapped as he was, he was left with only the company of ghosts and memories. He sighed again as he thought of better times.

Until very recently, Ka’s life had been completely ordinary, the son of farmers. As a child, Ka studied with his mother and helped in the fields. As he grew older he was educated to be a scribe and he began bringing money to the home he shared with his family. His mother was a wise woman, able to do fairly quick calculations despite being unable to read. She spoke two languages and so too did the children she raised. Her oldest child was a girl named Tia, who had married and left by the time Ka was old enough to properly know her. Ka’s father raised them with compassion and taught them all he knew. He was a strong man, dedicated and willing to do anything for his family.

What he would think of you now, Ka thought wearily.

And then there was Mei.

Mei was only a few years younger than he was and they had been together their whole lives. Even when they were young, she had loved him in a way she didn’t love the rest of their family. It took longer for Ka’s love to change to romantic, but it did happen and by the time Mei was old enough to marry, they decided to leave to live together. It was when she started going by that name and they told anyone who asked that they were cousins. That coupling was still frowned upon, but it was at least legal.

The two of them lived happily together for several years. Mei was talented with crafts and cleaning and she was able to trade these skills for favors and goods from the neighbors. Ka’s own skills were more officially in demand and he was contracted by nobles and clerics. He brought in enough coin to keep them warm and well fed, even able to afford meat once or twice a week. This was the life they both wanted to live.

However, Mei was very pretty and although pleasant for Ka, it brought them trouble. Ka was quick to defend his love’s honor and she was tender as she cared for his battle wounds. Whenever Ka had to travel for his work, he worried the entire trip. Their neighbors helped the woman out, but he wasn’t sure if they would fight for her.

His last job, several months ago now, had taken Ka away for nearly a week. He returned to find Mei in the kitchen of their home, waiting for him with a frown on her face. She was scared and told Ka about a group of men that had taken interest in her. She had brushed them off, but she’d seen them again the next day. And just today, when she spotted the gang for a third time, they had followed her when she left. The neighbors had chased them off, but the two knew they weren’t out of danger. The group knew where she lived now.

Ka assured her it would be all right and they embraced each other for the night. The next morning he sent Mei to the market. Ka went to find the men. From the description she gave, Ka knew who these men were, they were well known in the area. Most citizens were afraid of this group; it was said if you met them at night, the best option was to throw your purse to the ground and run, hoping it was only your coin they were after. Ka would never let men like that get a hold of his wife.

It wasn’t hard to track down the group of thugs. They were gathered in a small patio, lazing about as they laughed and drank strong-smelling beer. The smell mingled with sick and piss and the general stink of human dirt. Ka wrinkled his nose as he approached, hands raised in peace. There were eight of them and all turned to regard the scribe with varying levels of disdain. Slowly Ka licked his lips and told them simply, “I want you to leave Mei alone.”

“Oh, pretty Mei!” one of them had said and Ka’s lips twisted into a dark sneer.

Another man gave a lewd smile of his own. “Yes, we know Mei. We’re gonna get to know her real good.”

“And no scrawny kid is going to be able to stop us,” one of the largest said and stood from his stool.

Ka’s frown darkened even further, but he didn’t flinch. “I do not want to make trouble with you. Just leave my wife alone.”

For a moment the group looked among themselves and the background chuckling took on a more mocking, disdainful tone. Then the large man turned back to him. “Wife? I thought she was your cousin?”

“That’s what I heard,” another said and laughed loudly. “Guess he’s one of those that can’t make his equipment work. Had to be married off to family.”

“Well then,” yet another man said. “It’s only right we deliver the young lady from such a burdensome pairing.” Ka’s hands curled into fists at the idea. He imagined what they would say if they knew the truth, but he would stop that from happening. He would fight for Mei without regret. The man who had spoken last seemed to be the leader and he looked to another. “Teach this wimp how bad a mistake he’s made.”

The man stood, joining the larger man as he advanced on Ka. The scribe fell back a few paces, drawing them further from the others. The lead man smirked. “Mei’s a pretty little thing. Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of her before we sell her off.”

The man was trying to bait a reaction and it worked. Ka growled loudly and leapt at him, landing a solid punch to the man’s gut. The larger man returned, but Ka was able to dodge the blow. He was small, but he knew how to fight efficiently. His blows had real power and a second one doubled the man over his fist. Ka delivered another punch, just as powerful, to the man’s skull and then danced back before the other man could reach him.

Ka continued to fall back, drawing the man away from his support. He couldn’t fight all of these men together, but one at a time he could take them all down if he had to. Without warning he darted back in, pummeling his opponent with blows from fists and knees. He’d gotten the man down on the ground before the first recovered. Ka wound up for one last punch and the man was unconscious, then the other was on his again forcing him into a grapple.

The large man landed a couple of painful hits, but soon enough Ka was able to break his hold. He knocked the man’s arms wide, leaving him open to attack. Ka drove his knee up into the man’s gut as hard as he could. Then he clasped both hands together and, rather than drive them straight down, he hit the man’s temple. The large man stumbled and his head connected with the wall of the building they were beside. Ka followed with another attack, slamming his fist into the wall an inch in front of the man’s unfocused eyes. The man went ashen faced and slowly sank to the ground, no fight left in him. Ka was out of breath, but he stood triumphant over the two, and the dagger he left buried in the wall was proof he was willing to do worse.

The rest of the men were moving as if to continue the battle, but the leader stopped them with a word. He was meeting Ka’s gaze steadily across the courtyard. Ka raised his chin, standing tall and still ready for a fight. “I do not want to make trouble with you,” he said again. “Just leave us alone.” He left his knife, backing away to the end of the building. He didn’t look away until he was safely around the corner.

He didn’t tell Mei about it, he didn’t want to worry her. Instead he bought them a special dinner to celebrate being home.

For a few days, it seemed the threat had worked. Ka began to relax again, finally considering accepting another work assignment. None of the thugs had been seen nearby, though talk continued of them causing trouble elsewhere. It was selfish, but Ka didn’t care as long as Mei was safe. And he thought they really were.

Then one night when the moon was hidden behind clouds, the men came to their home. Mei and Ka were asleep comfortably when the scribe had been awoken by a noise. Still half asleep, he sat up and looked around for what had woken him. He squinted towards the window . . . was something scratching? Then with no warning the night was filled with the sound of breaking wood. The shutters and frame splintered inward and Ka let out a startled cry. He leapt out of bed in a panic as men from the gang forced their way in.

The first man to come through the ruined window was focused on Ka. He threw his arm out towards the scribe before he had a chance to put up any defense. Something wet hit Ka’s face and he screamed and fell to his knees. Whatever it was, it burned and he only screamed more frantically trying to wipe it from his eyes. Then something broke through the pain: behind him he could hear Mei’s high scream and the leader of this gang as he yelled to grab her.

“Don’t touch her!” Ka roared, spinning to glower at the attackers. He tried to ignore the painful lingering burn, tried to make sense of the vague, fuzzy world that was all he could see. Shapes of light and dark moved around him and he growled angrily, leaping at the nearest man. Ka didn’t need to see to fight, the two exchanged solid blows until Ka found the man’s throat. He dug his fingers in and held tight, trying to squeeze the life out of his opponent.

“Stop or she dies!” the leader proclaimed loudly. Mei was still screaming and Ka froze and spun to the voice.

The man he was fighting roughly knocked Ka aside as he climbed to his feet again. The scribe ignored him, focused only on Mei. “Let her go!” he demanded angrily.

“No,” the leader said mockingly. “And if you follow us, I’ll slit her throat.”

“No!” Ka screamed and stumbled forward several steps. “Let her go, you animals!”

The leader laughed again, dragging Mei to the window and leaving through the ruined portal. “Stay put, boy,” he growled, but Ka was moving after them without pause.

He made it out the window and one of the thugs slammed a fist into his gut. Ka crumpled over the blow and fell to his knees. He still glared, snarling at the fuzzy shapes he could barely tell were humans. Not that he would qualify these monsters as human.

“Stay down,” the leader snapped at him and for a moment Ka obeyed. He lifted a hand to his eyes, which were still burning. He wasn’t sure how long he could keep fighting with the painful distraction.

Then he heard Mei give another protest, this one muffled. Ka’s blood boiled, imagining this beast of a man pressing his mouth to hers. He was on his feet again without realizing it, hearing the wet noise of the kiss ending. Mei’s voice sobbed, then called to him, “Ka, please-“

“Let go of her!” Ka screamed in rage, teeth clenched, hands curled tight into fists.

The leader of the gang let out a derisive snort. “You shoulda left us alone, punk.” The man shifted and Ka’s blood went cold. It was getting harder and harder to see, but his eye was caught by something glinting in the thug’s hand. He’d screamed for the man to stop, begged him . . . then Mei let out a high, piercing shriek . . .

The silence that followed was deeper than anything Ka had ever experienced. He was certain his heart had stopped and he was startled when he next drew breath. Then the night cracked, torn apart by his own cry, and he was moving. He went straight for the leader – for the beast that had just butchered the woman he loved. He didn’t need to see, he didn’t want to see the violence that he unleashed on the man. He broke the monster’s jaw before crying out as something sharp was driven into his gut.

Ka felt a profound sadness, realizing it had to be the same knife, still covered in Mei’s blood. His knife now. He wrenched the weapon away, shuddering as he pulled it into his hand. “I will kill you!” he promised and then with another scream of rage, he darted forward again to do just that.

Ka couldn’t remember much after that and he considered it a small blessing. His battle fury had given him berserker strength and his damaged and dim vision meant he barely knew who he was attacking. He took down most of the gang before anyone else intervened. He’d blindly brought down the neighbors that rushed in, only trying to do right and stop the massacre. He’d killed the last of the men as the city guards arrived. He killed the first two of them as well and injured several more. But when they stopped him, when they were finally able to force him to the ground, everything had gone black. Ka let all the fight drain away and surrendered to the darkness, hoping for the release of death.

He had been truly disappointed to wake in a dungeon cell a few days later. He knew though, only death awaited him for what he’d done. If it had only been the thugs, he may have been put to work in the farms or possibly even shown the leniency of freedom. But Ka had killed innocent people as well, he would not be shown kindness, only the finality of death. He had to wait though, two long months before some official decided his fate.

He spent the time becoming accustomed to the rough linen of his hard bed and the rough bread of his sparse meals. He was confined, unable to even stand with the deep wound in his stomach. Medics saw to his injuries, but they gave him no special treatment. The wound took time to heal and when it did it left an ugly badge of shiny skin, a permanent reminder of a night he would never fully forget. His vision too, improved. The world remained fuzzy and dim beyond his reach, but it gave the scribe some comfort to know he was still able to read. He had to bring things close to do so, but then the script and illustrations came into focus as sharp and full-colored as before the attack.

He knew this because they’d had him read a record of his crimes. That was why he knew how many he’d killed. He knew their names, he’d read how they’d died. The guards were bad enough, but the civilians . . . he knew these men, they’d been his neighbors. One of the names had been a friend. And how many more had he injured? That hadn’t been listed, but he was sure he’d done more damage with that stolen knife. He wondered if anyone was hurt badly enough they couldn’t work. Would any of them fall to infection? Which neighbors would lose their homes? Was it just men that had tried in vain to stop him . . . or had he hurt boys barely old enough to support and protect their families?

Ka had felt weak at the time, letting his hand fall to his lap. The parchment in his grip blurred to illegible squiggles. Ka simply hung his head and whispered, “That’s right, as far as I can remember.”

An official scribe and a palace guard were there, expecting some refute or denial. Given the crimes, they had expected some sort of fight, but Ka remained docile and quiet. They had accepted his confession and left Ka to wait. It was still several days before he would be officially marked for execution. Then he would have his last chance, to go before the prince and beg his forgiveness. Except that Ka had no intention of begging. He was guilty, he wasn’t going to deny it, and he wasn’t going to try and escape the punishment. At least in death he might be reunited with Mei. Ka actually looked forward to it in a twisted kind of way.

. . . Except that it hadn’t happened that way . . . Ka hadn’t even reached the prince before the royal had somehow taken interest in him. No sweet death, he was now the plaything of the redhead.

Pet.

The gods were cruel, Ka decided. Death would have been easy, this was a far more suitable punishment for his crimes. Ka had decided not to fight his death . . . he wouldn’t fight the prince either. This wasn’t what he’d been expecting – hoping for – but punishment was punishment. He deserved no better, he thought, and he wouldn’t fight.

His stomach gave a low growl and Ka curled slightly where he lay on the cool stones of the floor. His meals while imprisoned were small and he’d had nothing that day: why feed a dead man? It was starting to get late now though, the shadows had lengthened across the room and now it was growing dark as night fell. He was thirsty too, and the thought of food made him shiver for a different reason. He was sure the prince would feed him, but he worried about what he might be forced to do to earn anything he was given.

With a groan, Ka turned his head to lay facing the other way. Like this he could see the door and for some time he just watched the dance of torchlight leaking in beneath it. His stomach growled again and Ka let out a long sigh, trying to ignore it. He lay that way until the flicker of light was interrupted by the shadow of feet. Ka’s eyes widened, pulling more of his attention to the present as the door was pushed inward.

A servant boy stepped in, holding the door open for the prince. The redhead was paused, turned towards the hall as another servant filled his goblet. Prince Re took a long drink from it before turning to enter the room, both servants bowing low to him and leaving. Re took another long drink as he wandered into the room. Ka could smell wine and watched the other man closely, but he could see no wobble in the royal’s steps.

The redhead held a second silver goblet and as he reached Ka, he bent to set the cup beside the trapped man’s head. Ka’s eyes widened and he gripped the heavy lock on his chains. “Wh- Sire-“

The prince cut him off, not even looking at the scribe. “You need water or you’ll become ill.” He moved to the bed, setting his own goblet on the table beside it.

Ka glared at the goblet, then at the prince’s feet – the only thing he could see now. He couldn’t drink anything in this position and as his stomach growled again, Ka too growled in anger. “What am I supposed to do?”

“You are supposed to be quiet,” was the prince’s response.

Ka growled again, struggling to keep his temper. “But Sire-“

“I said hold your tongue!” the redhead roared. He continued more calmly, sitting on the bed as he removed his jewels for the night.  “If you keep me from sleeping, you will be punished.”

Punishment worse than this? Ka could only think of one thing and he would honestly welcome it. “Then send me to the executioner, do you think I care?”

For a moment there was silence. Then Re stood, turning and slowly coming to the foot of the bed where Ka was pinned. The scribe’s pulse was fast, dropping his eyes as there was no hope to keep the prince’s face in view. The royal stepped uncomfortably close, bare feet nearly touching the man’s brown hair. He spoke slowly, his voice a flat, emotionless drone. “A disobedient dog is not killed. It is beaten. But feel free to test me. Keep barking, I do not care either.”

Ka felt a shiver go through him. He said nothing and kept his gaze on the stone floor and the thick chain and its pretty golden loop and heavy iron lock. Anything but the prince. After another moment the royal stepped away again and moved back to the bed. He drained what was left in his goblet and then lay down. Ka let out a long breath, curling a bit more where he lay. His stomach growled again. He tried to ignore it and just shut his eyes, settling for a long and uncomfortable night.

-o-o-o-o-o-