Master, Teacher, Foe

Winski Perorate was a bad man. Rieltar gave him to him as his 'student'. 'Young Master Anchev', Winski nodded as Rieltar told him, "The boy needs discipline. Teach him everything you know."

Those words chilled him, but Winski's eyes made his blood run cold. He knew Rieltar was really speaking to him and not to the red robed man. As soon as Rieltar was gone, Winski produced a stick. As he spoke, he hit him. "Look at me, boy."

Winski was to give him lessons.

The night before, Rieltar had called him into his bedroom. Mother was on her knees, her hands holding the string Rieltar had around her throat. Mother started screaming when she saw him, pleading for Rieltar not to hurt him.

"Look well, boy," Rieltar said as if Mother hadn't spoken, "she slept with another man."

He didn't understand, and Rieltar knew it. Mother started crying. "You think I would let you choose his life or yours?"

He hated Rieltar and his hands closed, but Mother screamed at him to stand still. Rieltar pulled the string tight, and Mother struggled. Finally, she stopped.

He didn't see Mother after that.

Master hit him. Even when he remembered, Master still hit him. Master hit him more when he didn't remember. Crying didn't help; Master hit him for crying. Screaming only made Master hit him harder. When he didn't scream, or cry, or close his hands, the hitting was less. He had to remember everything Master said, and say it back. Every day, he would repeat everything Master taught. Master would ask him what he learned. He had to think. If he didn't think fast enough, Master would hit him until he cried, and hit him for crying.

He no longer had a room. He had a rug on the floor. Master would sit in the same room, with candles around him in a circle. The room they stayed in had books in, a bed for Master, a chest and the stool. The only time he was allowed outside of the room was to use the bucket, and to wash. Master didn't pour water over him like Mother had, and the water was always cold. A servant brought food, but he never saw the servant; no clean clothes were left out for him. Sometimes Master wouldn't let him eat. Sometimes Master wouldn't let him sleep. Sometimes, Master talked and sometimes he wouldn't say a word.

He missed Mother.

Master taught him to kill. At first it was rats. Master would show him how to hold the knife, and where to put it. He would put a cage of light around them that hurt if he touched it. Then the light would touch the rat, and the rat would scream. The rat tried to bite him; if he didn't kill the rat quickly enough, the rat would keep biting him. Master didn't make the pain stop. The rat bites hurt. Master made him drink nasty wine from bottles but it only stopped 'infection' Master said. "Pain is a lesson."

He knew Rieltar had killed Mother, and quietly promised to kill Rieltar one day. Mother had taught him what a promise was, and he had understood a promise must never be made without meaning it.

After the rats, Master made him kill a cat. The cat was a young one, and Master had given it to him. The cat rubbed its head against his hand and chest, and licked him. He was so happy Master had given her to him that he didn't mind being hit. He shared his food with her, and she slept with him. Every morning, she would lick his face, and every night she would wash him. She was soft and orange and warm.

One day, Master told him he had to kill her. He didn't understand and Master beat him so hard for asking "why?" that he cried for days. He knew he had broken the rules for asking, but he had to. Master told him she had to die, and when he refused, Master broke his arms. After his arms were fixed, Master picked up the knife and handed it to him. He tried to stab Master. Master hit him like he had never hit him before. Master hit him until he saw black, woke him, made him drink a nasty bottle, and then hit him all over. Master did this again and again and again.

Finally, Master stopped and told him to kill the cat. Master wasn't angry, but always calm. When he told Master "no", Master put the knife against his neck. "Your life or its." He pressed his skin against the knife edge, and Master pulled the knife back and hit him with the back of his closed hand. Master never used his hand. Master called him names. He understood some like "fool", and "wretch", but not the others. Master didn't understand cat was his, like the Band was his. But then Master showed he did understand, and put the knife in his hand, and forced his arm forwards. He screamed for cat to run away, but cat didn't understand, and Master used light to stop cat from moving. Master was stronger than him and he couldn't stop Master making his hand move.

He hated Master.

He would kill Master one day, he promised.

After that, Rieltar visited.