The Byzantine Slave

[Closed for HottieKatie]

Nicephorus Macroducas sat in his office reviewing the parchments which detailed the yields, resource usage and other details from the most recent harvest of his fields. At 40, he emulate his peers and have his business affairs managed by some acolyte. But Nicephorus was not a man of leisure. He took his affairs seriously. Whether it was his crops, his livestock, his imported and exported goods trading or any of his dealings, he managed it personally. That is how a modest inheritance grew into one of the largest landholdings in all of the Byzantine Empire.

For years, Nicephorus focused on the growth of his wealth. He bought more lands, acquired more gold, produced more, bought more, sold more than any of his fellow noblemen. But now he focused on perfection. He pushed his vintner to make not just the highest quantity of wine or the most profitable wine. He wanted the best wine. He made his smiths focus on producing the best metalwork in the Empire.

Nicephorus applied his mission of perfection to himself as well. Most wealthy men his age grew fat and lazy, basking in a life of luxury and opulence. Nicephorus would not allow this of himself. He took care of himself. He stayed active. He walked his lands regularly. He would swim for hours in the Bosphorus. To the surprise of many of his station, he would often take his turn at the forge or in the fields. He liked to use the muscles God gave him and keep them strong. In his mind, a man weak of body was no man at all. This made for an imposing presence. He was much taller and broader of shoulder than the average citizen of the Empire. His hair was thick and dark and his complexion was a light olive, tanned by his frequent time out in the sun. And his muscular build turned the head of even the most chaste courtly woman.

At the scheduled hour, Nicephorus's chief assistant, Phocas, entered his office. He was briefed on a wide variety of his business dealings, including the purchase of a large shipment of silk from a Chinese trader, the possibility of trading in incense in the Arab lands, a new order of shields and spears from Emperor's private guard, and the poaching of two oxen.

When he heard this last bit, Nicephorus said, "Do we know who poached them?"

"Yes, Sire. It was two men from Alicei. We are holding them," Phocas responded.

"That is a very poor village. Were they of meager means?"

"Yes, I believe so, Sire. They say their families were very hungry. I believe there is good reason to think they are telling the truth."

"I see. Have them killed in six days. The next day, prepare a feast for the village. Make sure it is made known that I am responsible both for the killings and the feast. Also, make sure the two families are taken care of, but do not let it be traced back to me. Make a donation to the church from me and have them give most of that money to the families. Understood?"

"Yes, Sire. I think that is very wise, Sire."

"Anything else?" Nicephorus asked.

"Just one more thing. I have acquired a number of slaves, as we discussed last week."

"Any of interest?"

"Just the usual group of laborers, house servants and even a couple with experience in artisanal trades. But there is one that I think might be of particular interest to you."

Nicephorus arched an eyebrow.

"There is a girl taken from Tyrol. There was a small group there that attacked one of our outposts. We killed all of their men and she was one of the surviving women. We believe she is about 18 years of age, decendant from Goths, perhaps even Huns. She is quite beautiful."

"Is she?"

"Yes, Sire. If I may, I believe you might find her particularly appealing."

"Hmm, what else do you know of her?"

"Little. She is spirited but not wild. Her band was not wealthy, but neither were they savages. She is civilized, if uncouth. She might have potential, Sire."

"I will be the judge of that. Have her bathed, dressed simply and brought to me this afternoon.

"As you wish, Sire." Phocas knew by Nicephorus's tone that this was the end of their meeting. So he bowed and left the office, hurrying off to enact his lord's wishes.

Oh, sorry didn't see the thing that said "closed"

Finally they had taken her. She and some others had decided to attack. They were tired of being sacked and robbed by the empire, so they decided something had to be done. In the middle of the night a group assaulted one of the outposts, in the hope that defeating them would buy them some time to strengthen themselves, get some weapons and send a message to the empire: "we will not surrender". Who did they think they were to come to their lands and tell them what to do? They didn't have the right and Flavia wanted them out of their lands, so she joined the attack.

But it was a complete disaster. They took the soldiers by surprise, but they were not well equipped and before they knew, most of them were killed or taken as slaves. She tried to escape biting and scratching, as she had no more weapons, but it was a futile effort. She just tired herself and made the walk to the lord of the lands' house even more frustrating.

They bathing her was disgusting. They kept her tied so that she wouldn't escape and rubbed her skin with hard sponges. Didn't they know her skin was that dark? It wouldn't get whiter with water and rubbing.

Then they covered her with one of those white pieces of clothe tied with a golden rope around the waist. Her hands were also tied in her front with another golden string, although the two guards that accompanied her would have been enough to prevent her from running away.

When they entered the room, it seemed the man was waiting for her.

"Sire, this is the woman"

As Nicephorus sat working in his office, he had completely forgotten about summoning his new slave. He was busy and he considered sending her away, but he decided to take just a moment, at least to satisfy his curiosity.

"Yes, bring her in, Phocas," he said.

Phocas dutifully led Flavia into Nicephorus's office. Nicephorus glanced up at the woman before returning his attention to his work, but then did a quick double-take. He expected her to be attractive. Phocas would not have mislead him. But he was completely unprepared for her beauty. She was indeed young, but physically mature. She wore simple opaque white robes which were draped over her body and bound by a simple cord around her waist. The fabric only hinted at luscious curves. Her face was uncovered and it was a thing of pure beauty. Her olive skin was creamy and smooth. Her eyes were bright and a brilliant blue. Her features were without flaw. And she had long, wavy dark hair which cascaded past her shoulders and down her back.

"Phocas, you are dismissed," he said and the assistant quickly withdrew.

Nicephorus got up from behind his desk and walked around to where she was standing. He looked her up and down, surveying her in a cursory manner. He did his best to not show how striking he found her.

"I will do you the courtesy of being straightforward with you. You are now a slave. You are property. I own you. I don't know what or who you were back in your little village, nor do I care. For all I know, you were a princess, beloved by all of her subjects. That is irrelevant now. That is in the past. You are just a slave." Nicephorus paused to allow this to sink in. He was certain that she knew this already, but hearing it directly was different.

He continued, "But you are fortunate that your Master is one of the wealthiest men in the Byzantine Empire. You are even more fortunate that you have been selected for consideration as one of my personal slaves. This means that you have the opportunity to life a very comfortable life. Of course if you disobey or fail me, your life will very uncomfortable."

"Now, tell me your name and remove your clothing. Even with your hands bound, if you undo the cord around your waist, you'll be able to pull those robes off. Hurry up. I don't have all day."

Flavia knew what being a slave meant. That was why she had been fighting for, so that people wouldn't have to become slaves. Funny it had just worked out the other way round.

"My name is Flavia", she said impassive. "And you might as well send me back with the other slaves. I don't want to be your personal slave, I won't remove my clothes."

One thing was doing other people's duties, that she would endure. But she wouldn't be a sexual toy for anybody. The Gods had given her that body and she had worked hard to keep it healthy. And she would offer it to whoever she would like, not the first despicable swine who thought he owned her.

She knew that disobedience would probably cost her some bruises, some days in a cell or being told to do the filthiest duties in the house. But she was strong and she thought she could endure it.

She stood there with her head high, waiting for the master to decide.

Nicephorus chuckled. This one had spirit. He liked a spirited slave for his personal use. Pliant slaves who easily submitted made for lackluster companions. But of course she would have to be broken.

Without a word Nicephorus slapped Flavia hard with the back of his hand. The blow knocked her backwards and onto the floor. Nicephorus went to a cabinet on the far wall and took out a leather collar with an iron ring attached to it. He went to her and pulled her to her feet. Standing behind her, the put the collar around her neck, cinching it tightly. He pulled her bound wrists up over her head and behind her neck. He wrapped the golden twine around the ring, tying it tightly. In this way, her wrists were bound behind her neck, arms uplifted and unable to be put down.

"When Master wants you undressed, you will be undressed." With those words, Nicephorus began ripping and tearing at white robes draping Flavia's body. It was high quality cloth, so it took a great deal of violent ripping to tear it all from her body. Each yank on the cloth jerked Flavia's body around violently.

Finally Nicephorus stopped. The robes lay in shreds at Flavia's feet. All that was left was the golden cord around her waist. Nicephorus inspect his new slave's body closely. He looked her up and down, inspecting every inch of her, as he very slowly walked around her. If possible, her body was even more gorgeous than her face. She had very large, high set breasts which were tipped by prominent, dark nipples. She had a narrow, tapered waist and a flat stomach. Her waist then widened out into broad, feminine hips and she had a round, fulsome ass. Her legs were long, shapely and elegant. Her body was the perfect hourglass that he'd long sought. She was neither skinny nor chubby. Her curves were generous, but there wasn't an ounce of extra fat anywhere on her. She had a generous patch of pubic hair, which Nicephorus took note of. That would have to be taken care of soon.

He came to a stop in front of her, looking into her proud, strong eyes. He stared into them unblinkingly. He kept his eyes locked on hers until she finally blinked. Each such moment was important, he thought to himself. He had to always prevail. That was the only way she'd learn.

He took her large, round breasts into his hands. He caressed them and massaged them. He squeezed them gently and made large circles on her chest while groping them. He took possession of her breasts, showing that they were his to touch, to use, as he saw fit. He did this for several minutes, his desire growing and becoming visible under his own robes.

"You do not yet fully comprehend this, but your body is mine. You will be available to me at all times for me to do with as I please." His fingers slid to her nipples. He stroked them and rolled them between his fingers and felt them harden to his touch. "If you obey and succeed in pleasing me, you will be rewarded." He started lightly pinching her nipples. And then the pinches grew more intense. And more intense. Eventually his fingers clamped down on her nipples, pinching them nearly as hard as he could. "And if you disobey me or displease me, you will be punished very harshly."

Nicephorus suddenly yanked on Flavia's now very large and swollen nipples. He pulled straight up on them, stretching them out as far as possible. The pain that he was giving Flavia was intense. He gave one last hard yank upwards and his fingers slipped from her nipples. He stood there silently for a minute, watching Flavia catch her breath and recover from the intense pain to which she was clearly unaccustomed.

Finally Nicephorus cut the silence by saying, "Flavia, I am going to make you the perfect slave. You will be perfect of spirit, technique, desire and obedience. You will be perfect or you will be completely broken, physically, mentionally and emotionally. In the end, that will be your choice."

After another pause, Nicephorus yelled, "Guard!" Two guards instantly entered the room. "Take her away. Do not allow her to be clothed. For the rest of today and all day tomorrow, she will tend to the swine. Make sure she feeds them their slop personally. And make sure she's in the pen with them where she belongs while she does her work. That is all." And Niceporus returned to his desk and to his work, without giving Flavia another glance.

He had hurt her. Of course he had. But he wouldn't see her cry or complain. For when she showed him her weakness he would have won. And she was determined to stand up to him for as long as she could. The embarrasment and pain he was going to put her under wouldn't ashame or hurt her. She would show him she was stronger than anyone he had met before. She would also show the other slaves. Maybe, if she was lucky, any of them would join her in her crusade, and they would win eventually.

As she walked out the room, head up, she wouldn't look at him. She didn't care what he did to her. Feed the swine? It was perfectly ok. They were not so different from him.

Her nipples still hurt her for a while, but she wouldn't show. A brute bastard, he was. She knew it would be just the beginning. It would get harder and more painful. Only could she imagine what he would be capable of. But she didn't care. She'd endure it. Her mother would be proud of her. She had died for freedom, and she would follow her path if necessary. Surrender was unacceptable.