Chapter 10
That slave, I spent so long breaking her, subjecting her to weeks of agonising punishment to get her to the total obey stage only for her to defy me. The anger coursing through my veins would only be satisfied by punishing her severely. The small boy has gone, run. I want to question him, in all the years I have been coming here I have never seen humans maybe they know the creatures secret.
"Jaffa kree" I order as they pick up the slaves dead body a huge gaping hole in her chest from my hand device. We walk back to the gate, arriving on the grassy knoll we hear the tell tale sound of the creatures wings. We abandon the slave to pursue it. Missing narrowly it with the staff blast my Jaffa would also be punished, they should be able to hit it. The creature flees, I growl at them in anger, this trip has been one of the worst ever and it's all that slaves fault. I turn back to dial only to see that the slave has gone. Where I don't know, but I will find her and punish her nobody makes a fool out of me and lives. Nobody!
"Jaffa kree find her"
I woke up but not with the blinding light of the sarcophagus but daylight streaming through the wall of a wood shack. Instantly I am on my guard, where is Aphosis what kind of punishment is this? Slowly I get out of bed, my neck and arm restraints have gone but I am still wearing the same clothes. The door opens and I'm on my guard expecting Aphosis or some other horrible creature. Instead was a woman dressed in purple with twigs in her hair. She didn't look like a torture device; I sat on the edge of the bed. Seeing me awake she came over smiling. I tensed waiting for the pain for the torture to begin.
She must have seen something change in my posture because she stopped then slowly came over to me. I knelt on the floor, maybe this was Aphosis in some kind of disguise. She took my hand pulling me to my feet, I followed just waiting for the torture this was almost worse than any of the other forms, the waiting the anticipation. We went outside where more people were sitting and eating, 2 men and the boy I had rescued. Had Aphosis got him too? I sat on a log as the woman gave me some fruit, maybe this was it. It must be poisoned giving me a long agonising death. She indicated for me to take a bite. I did so; it tasted normal like the food Aphosis had gifted me with before. It was sweet and soft like a peach. I finished it watching them; they seemed to be a family.
The boy got up coming over to me placing his hand on his heart,
"Nefrayu" he said, and then placed his hand on mine. I flinched at the touch only Aphosis had touched me since before I was... He obviously expected me to speak, maybe if I did it would begin my punishment. I opened my mouth to speak but stopped, what was it? Slave? Sam? Carter? Which would bring the least punishment, slave but could any punishment be greater than what I was already going to receive. I knew Aphosis was really pissed and this punishment would be worse than the others.
He did it again obviously thinking I didn't understand,
"Nefrayu" he repeated. Then went to the woman placing his hand on her heart
"Lya" then to the younger man, who I thought could be her husband.
"Anteaus" next the oldest one perhaps a dad
"Opher" then came back to me, placing his hand on my chest.
"Sam" I went with, whispering my voice sounding foreign I hadn't heard it in so long. He grinned,
"Sam" he repeated. I nodded tensing waiting for Aphosis to strike me. Nothing happened. Nefreyu sat on my lap I held him close feeling a bit safer. They carried on eating, with no conversation. I knew the punishment must be coming, it always did eventually.
After they had finished Nefreyu took my hand dragging me into the woods with a basket. There was a blackberry bush and he indicated for me to copy him picking them. We did this for most of the afternoon, by the end my arms were scratched, bleeding and stained purple, but we had several full baskets. Nefrayu's mouth was also stained purple indicating he had been eating them as well. Aphosis obviously hadn't taught him eating without permission meant punishment.
We returned to the village where I sat watching them eat as I had with Aphosis many times. Lya handed me the basket of blackberries, I held it wishing I was free to eat. She gave me a puzzled look. Signalling I should eat. I didn't it hadn't been given to me. Aphosis had tried that before the resulting punishment had been whipping then drowning before being revived. She shrugged taking the food off me. They finished eating. Lya took me into the hut I had woken in giving me a bowl filled with water, some moss in a towel shape and a night gown.
"To wash and to sleep in" she said in broken English I nodded as she left. I had orders wash and sleep. I undressed cleaning myself then changing into the pale green gown before curling onto the bed and going to sleep despite daylight still shining outside.