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Bound

Chapter 4 – Training

It was difficult to know how the time passed, especially while trapped in the tiny cells all bond-slaves were kept in. All Casey knew was that they gave them food and drink twice a day while the rest of the time was filled with orders and pain. Their first session had ripped apart every person, in an emotional sense. The soldiers had placed collars on every slave and when activated the pain was debilitating. They said it was similar to the pain a slave would feel if they let anything happen to their master. The pain would travel through the bond and then all would know of the bond’s existence. The soldiers in charge of training barked orders constantly and reminded the slaves that there would be no disobeying their master. The bond magic was nearly impossible to break so they had to bend to their master’s will. They also repeated that a slave could not survive without a master.

It was known in the stories that a master would live if the slave died but once the bond formed the slave was dependent on the master. A slave could only survive if another bond was formed within a day of their master’s death. The rarity of bonding now almost made it a certainty that someone else would form a bond with the dying slave. The process was a gruesome one and it was said that it was immensely painful as well.

Casey clenched her jaw, trying not to scream as the soldiers once again started beating her with their fists and short staffs. It had persisted that way for what seemed like days and it had not taken her long to learn that they only hit harder if she screamed. Her wrists were chaffed from the shackles and her body ached from the nearly constant beatings. She closed her eyes and tried to take her mind away from her body. They were not going to break her. It reminded her of the training her father had put her through when she was younger, though this was more brutal. The soldiers underestimated her because she seemed weak; when this was over she would prove them wrong.

Still screams filled the air in the large dimly lit room used for training. Casey felt their pain and wished she could do something to help relieve it. Feeling so much had made it so she was almost numb; she did not have the strength to scream, even if she wanted to. In some ways that helped her survive this. A few girls who had not stopped screaming the first few days had died from all of it. Casey saw two young men who looked near to death as well.

Another sharp hit to her ribs jolted her back to the beatings she was enduring. Then it all stopped as the soldiers dropped their weapons and snapped to attention.

“As you were,” a man said.

Casey turned her head slightly, trying to see who had entered the room. She only caught a glimpse of short red-blonde hair before the soldiers continued their beatings. The soldier standing in front of her raised his staff to eye level as if threatening her with it. “Scream,” he told her. “You know you cannot hold it in.”

She looked at him and shook her head. “I am sorry, sir,” she whispered. “I cannot scream for you.”

He drew his staff back, poised to strike. As he started to swing the short staff around a gloved hand reached up and stopped him. “Now, now Geoffrey. You know better than to strike at their heads. We do not want them so injured that they will not fetch a high price at auction.”

The soldier, Geoffrey, looked over and froze when he saw who was standing beside him. “I apologize, my lord. She refused to follow my orders.”

“What did you tell her to do?” Lord Gould questioned.

The soldier said nothing and Gould turned his attention to Casey. “Perhaps you will answer the question he would not.”

“He wanted me to scream, my lord. I would not,” she answered softly, turning her gaze to the ground. She feared what treatment she would receive if she angered Lord Gould.

Much to her surprise he started to chuckle. “She is a smart one,” he commented. “She knows that a scream is only met with harsher treatment.” He paused and looked over at the soldiers. “Return her to her cell. I would like to begin questioning with her.”

“But, sir…” Geoffrey began. “Yes, sir. As you wish.” He released her from the chain trapping her in place and led her back towards her cell. The only thing that kept her from falling was sheer force of will. They turned down the hall that led to the cell block and Geoffrey opened the door to Casey’s cell before shoving her inside. She stumbled and fell to the ground, landing on her side with no way to catch herself. Slowly she moved into a sitting position before scooting over to the corner, trying to make herself as small as possible.

Lord Gould stepped into the cell and pulled the door closed behind him. Then he simply stood there and watched the girl as she sat in the corner, her eyes turned towards the ground. There was no room for anything other than what they were currently doing. A slave was not granted much in the way of living arrangements. For a few minutes he said nothing, not wanting anyone to be anywhere near the cell. The soldiers knew that he preferred to handle the questioning in private. “They seem to be rushing through training this time. Last time they gave all of you slaves time to recuperate between sessions.” He stood there, waiting to see if she would say anything in response but she said nothing. “I suppose it is to be expected as the situation is a little more serious this time.”

Casey looked up at him, her hazel eyes meeting the fixed gaze of his emerald eyes. There was an intensity in them that seemed to distort the rest of his features. As it was said in the stories, his appearance also made him seem like a cold and ruthless man. This was the man who had enslaved a great number of people, as well as causing the deaths of numerous others including her brother, father, and Aurelia. Her heart ached as if telling her that she should hate him but she also wanted to find some semblance of good in him, something that would contradict all the stories.

“You can speak freely here. There are no guards around to punish you for talking.”

She shook her head. He said that now but she knew he could also call the soldiers and they would be there in mere seconds. To survive all of this she needed to follow orders and as of yet he had not given her one so she was merely protecting herself.

“I can save you from the hells of the slave auction,” Lord Gould said. “However the only way I can do that is if you give me a reason to. Only a select few will be relegated to a higher task than being bonded to the highest bidder.” He watched as a glimmer of hope appeared in her eyes only to be buried a moment later.

“What would I have to do in order for that to happen, sir?” she asked softly.

“You could talk to me, tell me from where you were taken, anything you wish to say.”

“And if I wish to say nothing at all?”

He smirked slightly as he gazed down at her. “Say nothing and I will call for the guards so you may continue your training. After all, to refuse my requests means that nothing you have been taught the past several days has actually been learned.” He paused, seeing that she was different from the other bond-slaves. There was something about her that pulled him in. The other slaves were withdrawn, having been forced to feel what a bond was like, what pain they would experience. This girl looked as if she had been through much worse and the training was next to nothing compared to what she already knew and felt. Lord Gould let out a deep breath. “Where are you from?”

Casey blinked and looked up at him again. Something had changed in his voice now; it was soft and caring, not at all like the unfeeling tone he had used before. “I am from Nebia, sir.”

He nodded, now understanding far more about her than he had before. This was the young woman Lieutenant Davoli spoke of in his report. She would do very well then. Lord Gould felt as if his insides had twisted around; it was uncommon but lately it had done that every time he thought of Lieutenant Davoli. Most would ignore it but Lord Gould understood what it had to mean. He turned away from the slave and closed his eyes, thinking of what he needed to do now. Already he knew that he could not let this young woman…this slave go. She would be useful later. Lord Gould turned back to her but said nothing.

Casey looked up at him, her eyes scanning his features as if she was reading him. There it was, something that seemed contradictory to the stories. She could feel it, much in the same way she felt the ache of her own muscles. To her that meant only one thing: she had made a connection with him. It was not a full fledged bond but it still gave her a heightened awareness of him. “Not this, not him,” she thought. All her life she had noticed the closeness she felt towards a lot of people, mainly her family and friends though it had occurred with acquaintances as well. The strength of the connection varied and Casey knew she had no control over when it happened or who she would connect with.

It was a weakness, she knew that. Her father had taught her to be a warrior and that meant overcoming those ties that could cause a fighter to falter. Casey had never mastered it; she cared too much for others to push thoughts of them and their well-being aside. Now though this closeness, this connection with others had let her bond slightly to Lord Gould, the man who had ordered dozens of people into slavery. This connection repulsed her and she attempted to keep her face blank so he would not guess what she was thinking.

However there was also something about him that seemed soft, almost kind. It was buried beneath a mountain, allowing him to remain detached from others: unemotional, in charge. There was a slight glimmer of it in his eyes, even if it was only for a fraction of a second. Casey found that she looked up at him freely now, without trying to be proper in the presence of nobility. As was typical of anyone she connected with, Casey found that she wanted to comfort him. It was strange to feel this way, for her to want to help him but at the same time being disgusted by it. She should hate him for everything he had done. There were so many people she would never see again because of Lord Gould. Yet Casey could not bring herself to do anything to him, not now. She let out a deep breath, knowing that she would not be ready just yet. The only thing to do was to wait. Another opportunity would arise at some point.

“Something is troubling you, sir,” she commented softly. “What is it?”

He raised an eyebrow at her comment, knowing she could not know that by looking at him. All his life he had kept his feelings buried so no one would see weakness in him. Now that skill served him well as Lord of Lierra. Yet this young woman, this common slave, saw through it all. She was unique and that was only becoming obvious as he spent more time here. Unlike most bond-slaves she connected to people easily, though Lord Gould knew that not all connections were strong or lasting. This one showed promise and he could use a female bond-slave to his advantage, placing her out among people rather than standing near him, unmoving and rather obvious.

The idea was a decent one and now that it had formed he knew that he would have to follow through with it. Lord Gould fixed his emerald gaze on her. “Nothing troubles me, slave, and you would do well to remember that,” he said coldly.

As he said it Casey felt a wall slam down around him. “I am sorry, sir. I was mistaken.” He was troubled, even if he wanted to deny it. She could not resist what she felt from the connection to him. Somehow she saw past his exterior and through the wall he put up. It was strange to experience as she had never had anyone who could put up a block against her. As strange as that was, she also believed it to be unusual that she could still get through his defenses. It all had to mean something.

Lord Gould turned and walked to the door. “I am finished with this one for now.” Within moments a guard let him out. “Return her to training. I hope you manage to break them all soon. I tire of all this waiting.”

The guard nodded. “Yes, my lord.” Then he stepped into the cell and grabbed Casey, jerking her up to her feet. “Move slave,” he said as he shoved her forward.

Casey managed to keep her balance and she stepped out her cell to return to what they thought of as training. She escaped into her mind once again as the soldiers barked orders at her. A single thought ran through her mind over and over again, “It is almost over.” Though it was mostly untrue the thought kept her hopeful and kept them from fully breaking her.

* * *

Lieutenant Davoli moved through the halls of the training center, heading to the Room of Bonding. He had been told by Sergeant Morgan that Lord Gould wished to see him. Davoli had heard that Lord Gould was looking over the slaves and most likely he had chosen which was to be his.

It was the moment Davoli was waiting for. His plans depended on which of the slaves the young lord chose. If he chose the girl from Nebia then it would be simple to get past her in order to complete his mission. However if Lord Gould chose someone else then all the plans would have to change though it did not make things too different. Each of the slaves had at least one major weakness that he could use to destroy them.

He kept his face calm as he walked into the Room of Bonding. Lord Gould was standing on the other side of the room, looking very much like a powerful leader. It was remarkable how perceptions shifted with their surroundings. Here in the training center where everything was dark and shadows danced on the walls near lit torches Lord Gould stood like a statue and the shadows made him appear taller and more mature than he was. Davoli closed the door and bowed his head. “My lord, you wished to see me?”

“Yes,” Lord Gould said simply. “As you are aware I have been examining the slaves as well as your progress with their training. I am impressed with the slaves. They seem to be strong and more have survived thus far than any other group in the past. It is my belief that most of them will fetch a large sum of money at auction.”

Davoli nodded. “Thank you, my lord.”

“I am not finished, Lieutenant. Their training is progressing nicely but it is still not fast enough. I need at least one of them ready immediately. The people are bound to wonder why I have been so secluded and heavily guarded these past several weeks. We do not want the other territories to suspect that we are weak and put us on the defensive. To remedy that I would like the young slave woman from Nebia to be placed into a more strenuous training regiment. I want her ready in another three days.”

“As you wish.”

“See that this room is cleaned and ready for the bonding ceremony. That is all.”

Davoli bowed his head again and watched as Lord Gould left the room. It was all too perfect. When he had found her, the pure one, in Nebia he had known that his lord would not be able to refuse her. It was just a way for Lord Gould to assert his dominance by taking one who was still pure. Davoli noted that his hands were clenched into fists at that thought. He still desired to take all of her innocence away, even if it meant the end of his career in the military. No matter how great his desire was, he had to be patient. If he wanted to get rid of his weak lord then he needed to maintain his position and continue his charade.

A few moments later Lieutenant Davoli stepped out of the Room of Bonding and headed down the hall to where the slaves were undergoing more training. “Sergeant Morgan, take that one to a different room. Lord Gould wants her broken and ready for bonding in three days time.”

Sergeant Morgan nodded curtly and pulled Casey away from the other slaves. It was not wise to disobey a direct order, though it seemed questionable. Why would Lord Gould need another bond-slave? Sergeant Morgan looked at Lieutenant Davoli, trying to determine if what he was thinking was true. How could Lord Gould be without a bond-slave? It was strange that his lord had been secluded for the past weeks and now the pieces seemed to fall together. There had been a banquet, one Sergeant Morgan had been unable to attend. No one spoke of what happened and now he understood why. Lord Gould’s bond-slave was dead, whether by a physical attack or by a more subtle approach on Gould’s life.

Lierra’s ruler was weak now, less protected and Sergeant Morgan knew if he figured it out then it was possible the rulers of the other territories had as well. These were dangerous times and that meant they all had to be ready for anything.