Between the Light and the Darkness - Chapter 8

"So, how do you spend your day?" Tim was hoping to find out more about this place, and Ileeya, as well.

"Just the same menial tasks I perform everyday. The female slaves have to clean and mend the guards' uniforms. We are also responsible for preparing meals for the king and his court and after that, the slaves' lunch."

The entire time she talked, she looked distracted. There was something odd about this woman. Certainly a lot more depth than he'd ever encountered before.

She got up abruptly and reclined on her bed. Tim didn't want to intrude on her thoughts, despite all the questions in his head, so he just sat and watched her. She was so preoccupied she didn't even notice. He couldn't help but notice how the light accentuated the curves of her delicate face. Her hair gleamed in the dim light of the room. Such beauty. Such mystery.

"Ileeya...I,"

He was interrupted by keys jangling in the cell door lock. The door abruptly swung open, and Aark grunted at him unintelligibly.

"He wants you to go with him," Ileeya said softly.

Tim sighed in frustration and walked over to the scowling guard.

Aark grunted again and grabbed Tim's arm in his usual manner and pushed him down several corridors to the throne room.

The room was empty, but this was not their destination. There was a door in the back of the room, the door the king had entered yesterday when Tim had arrived here. Had that been just yesterday? It seemed like ages ago.

He was pushed into a smaller room with a few chairs lined up against one of the walls. A throne sat in the center of the room, empty. By the looks of it, Tim guessed it was some sort of private conference room.

Inside were two of the other strange people/creatures he saw from the day before. To his right, behind the throne, was another door, with another guard standing in front of it. It was the same guard who had grabbed Tim out of the lavatory and pinned his arms behind his back so Aark could pummel him. He glared at Tim maliciously.

Aark shoved Tim into the room, then stepped in front of the door, blocking any potential exit.

Tim's heart leapt into his throat and his adrenaline kicked in one hundred percent. This had to be some sort of revenge for the tiff between Aark and himself the other night.

The greenish guy, who reminded Tim of a reptile, spoke to him. Actually spoke Tim's language, although very crudely. If snakes could talk, this is what Tim would imagine them sounding like. The greenish guy seemed to hiss his words, dragging out the syllables.

"Remoooove your clothhhhinnnggg."

"What!?" Visions of bizarre torture and alien probing suddenly flooded his brain as he fought the wave of terror threatening to wash over him. He accidentally bit his lip, causing it to start bleeding again.

"Remoooove your clothhhhinnnggg," the creature hissed.

"I will not!"

The reptile man motioned to the guard that was waiting in the room when Tim arrived. The guard approached, while Tim choked down the bile that was creeping into his throat. When the guard touched his arm, Tim swung, hitting the guard square in the jaw. The guard whirled from the force of the hit and fell to the floor on his face.

Immediately, Aark had Tim's arms pinned behind his back again. The guard picked himself up off the floor and approached Tim, hand raised as if to strike.

The reptile man gave a sharp command and the guard reluctantly lowered his hand, growling angrily.

Reptile man looked into Tim's eyes.

"It is ussselesss to ssstruggle. Do assss I ssssay."

His eyes glittered, and Tim felt an odd feeling sweep through him. All of a sudden, he had an uncontrollable urge to comply. The tiny part of his brain that was still rational screamed at him to resist, but it was outnumbered.

After he undressed, reptile man visually inspected him from head to toe. He made a slow circle around Tim, taking in everything. Tim stood there, helplessly, his mind battling itself for sanity. A couple of seconds later, his thoughts began to become his own once again, and his mind returned to its normal state. His brain felt fuzzy. He hated the feeling of being controlled. It was a humiliating experience standing on display for these creatures, unable to defend himself.

Reptile stopped at Tim's left side and stared at the watch on Tim's wrist. The creature slipped it off and examined it, turning it over in his clawed hands.

"What isss thisss?"

"It's a watch."

The creature's eyes glittered in suspicion.

"A, um, timepiece," Tim clarified.Reptile said nothing. He looked at it a moment longer and then pocketed it. Tim didn't protest, he had expected that to happen as soon as the creature took an interest in it.

Then reptile picked up a bundle off of one of the chairs and handed it to Tim.

"Put thissss on," he hissed.

Tim thought it was moronic to take his clothes away and then give him different ones, but he had to wear something. He shrugged mentally and dressed, under the scrutiny of the guards.

He realized immediately that it was a typical slave's uniform, the same as what all the other males were wearing. It was actually quite comfortable, despite it's woolen appearance. The pants were snug and form fitting, the tunic was loose and comfortable, and not quite as warm as his sweater had been.

He suddenly realized that every last trace of his home had just been taken away from him. As long as he wore his native clothes, he still felt like he was somehow connected. But now that his clothes and watch were gone, Tim felt hopelessly alone.

Tim decided he had a choice. He could either get bogged down and mourn for his lost home and friends, which in turn would cause panic, depression and inability to cope with his situation, or, he could try to make the best of what was here and now. The choice was quite obvious. The only way he was going to make it was to try to push his past aside a little bit and try to cope.

When he returned to his cell, he saw that dinner had been 'served'. Ileeya was busy gnawing on a piece of the dry meat. When she smiled up at him, he couldn't help but throw his arms out to the side and ask, "How do I look?"

She giggled at his foolishness. "You look very handsome."

"So, what made you decide to tell me so much about your ring?"

"I'm an excellent judge of character and I knew you could be trusted. My first impressions are always right."

"Are you sure," Tim asked mischeivously.

"Yes," she answered matter-of-factly, not getting Tim's teasing.

He longed to plunge his hands into her hair. To smell its light fragrance. To curl it around his fingers. To bury his face in it. To...

"Is something wrong?"

He was so wrapped up in his musing that he jumped at the sound of her voice. "Hmmm?"

"I asked if something was wrong - you were staring."

"Oh, was I? Sorry." He turned quickly away to hide his embarrassment.

After a moment, Ileeya sat down on the floor, and Tim did the same. She seemed to be receptive to conversation, though hesitant to start it.

"So, what do you do for fun around here?" He was joking, of course, but once again Ileeya took him seriously.

"Well, most everything is drab and boring. Practice is the only thing that holds any interest."

"Practice?"

"Yes. For the games."

"What games?"

"Once a month we have a fighting tournament between the slaves, and once a year the Grand Tournament is held. Contestants come from all the lands and compete against each other. It's actually quite interesting and lasts for several days. Last year I was second in my division."

"Really? I'm impressed." And he was. Ileeya seemed so delicate, like a flower. The idea that this seemingly frail woman could not only hold her own in a fight, but excel at it was fascinating...and exciting.

"Practice is in four days, by the way, and the next slave tournament is in three weeks. The Grand Tournament is a little over five months away."

"Well," she said after a pause, in which Tim tried to digest this new information, "we should get some rest. It's been a long day."

She got up and stretched, then got into her bed. He had to agree with her, it had definitely been a long day. Getting comfortable wasn't as difficult tonight, as his muscles had loosened somewhat. Actually, he discovered he was quite tired, and fell almost immediately into a deep sleep.