by Lance Wilson
Just as Elana predicted it is only about ten minutes before Attonnan wakes up again. Still strapped to the table he trembles cause of the pain that ripples though his back. He is sure that most if not all of his back is probably covered in blisters now, he wonders what kind of scars this will leave, how many others have gone through this and how much is left. His whole world comes to a stop as he hears the door open again; it is Elana smiling at her project now finally awake.
“Shall we continue the training?” she says knowing the next few questions that will cross his lips.
“What, what kind of training is this, all you do is cause me pain” Attonnan beckons to her, his voice high and trembling like the terrified child he is.
“You will know in the end” she says and then walks back over to the pot.
Having thought this for the last few minutes, how to make his screams last, how to show him pain like he has not felt before, not too much, this is training and he must learn to adapt to all pain, so it must go slowly. That was her first mistakes, the lashes, although fun, were too fast. Yes it was too fast, but this time, this time she will make sure he suffers just right. Taking the chain out of the pot she can see Attonnan’s skin tremble. He knows what is about to happen, or at least he thinks he does. With a twisted smile she walks over to the table, then with a tremble of anticipation of her own she raises the chain above her head. And instead of bringing it down, as a whip should, instead she lowers it gently onto his flesh. She can hear the sizzle of flesh, even over his own high pitched trembling screams. Taking a deep breath and inhaling the scent of burning flesh she lets the chain stay for only a minute or two then slowly raises it again. She then puts it back into the pot and walks over still listening to the whimpering cries of Attonnan. Barely suppressing a chuckle she walks over and picks up a bucket, normally it would be filled with drinking water, but she has personally had it filled with salt water. Gently she lifts the ladle and raises it over the fresh welts and cuts of us back. Then slowly she pours it down the middle of his back and watches as it moves all over his back, spreading, pouring into each wound. Attonnan only screams louder. She then places the bucket back on the ground and listens to his screams. It only takes a few minutes for his screams to stop and for him to turn back to the sobbing child. She smiles at this and then with a bit of a sigh she walks over and then picks up the chain again. Like the last time, she only lays it on his back. The sizzling sound and smell of burning flesh intoxicates her and his child like screams only adds a kind of topping to it all yes, it makes it all the sweeter. She lets the chain dangle there a bit longer then the last time, then slowly withdraws it and smiles to see that this one has blistered almost immediately. Attonnan can hear her make her way across the room, he knows what is happening, she is going to reheat the chain, and bring the water. He knows the pain that will come; he has to find a way around it. Find a way to block it, to think of something else. Don’t feel the pain. Don’t feel the pain. He continues to tell himself this as his listens to each step she takes. She’s moving closer now; he can hear her put the chain back into the pot. Now she’s moving back to him, the water is right next to him. Don’t feel the pain, don’t feel the pain. He can hear the ladle dip into the bucket. Here it comes, don’t feel the pain, and don’t feel the pain. Like a flash he feels the searing pain as she pours the water on his back. But he does not scream, his eyes shut tight and he can feel tears streaming down his face. Elana is a bit shocked. She watches the water pour into his wounds, and yet, no screams. He can hear him grunt and cringe, his breath comes quickly and there is a bit of a squeal but no screams. Already he is starting to master his pain, master how to look past it. Again she dips the ladle and again she pours more water on him. This time the pain is too much, no matter what he thinks, not matter how tight he closes his eyes, this time, a scream cries out, he didn’t want it to, but this time there was no choice. She smiles, he’s strong, but he’s not there yet. She will have him past at least this much by the end of the day.
The rest of the day moves on just like that, she lies the chain on him, lets it stay longer and longer each time, and then once the chain is removed she pours water down his back to cause even more pain. But he is strong just like she though and each time he controls his screams a little longer, a little bit more each time until soon she pours the last of the water on the back and he does not scream, he grunts cries and whimpers, but does not scream. The lesson is over. Slowly she walks over and then calmly un-straps his arms and legs.
“You did well today, it is not often that someone of your age can master this much of pain so quickly. Mind you this is only a small step there is far more to discover. But you still did vary well. I shall be happy to inform our lord Fuma of this,” she says taking a deep breath.
She waits to see if he can talk but he does not answer, she only chuckles to herself but is not surprised in the slightest. The exercise she just put him though would wear anyone out. It would break most men. She only nods and walks out of the room. Attonnan only lies there, the pain still burning though his back, it’s like his whole back is ablaze. He can only hope that the pain fades, all he wants to do is lie there, fall asleep, forget this day ever happened. Slowly he hears the door open again and this time there are two sets of footsteps. Too tired to turn his head. He knows right now his fate is not his own, he is at their mercy. Elana smiles and nods to the elf at her side, it is a Hojo clansman, one of the personal guards that lord Fuma brought with him. She nods to him and the men gently stoops down and picks young Attonnan up in both arms. Elana smiles and then reaches over and picks up his vest, and drapes it over the clansman’s shoulders.
“Make sure he rests well tonight, and tell lord Fuma I shall give my report later” she says calmly and smiles down at Attonnan.
He is strong, and this one will be quite a task to train. Pain will come quickly to him but so will the erg to control it. He has already shown more will and control then most. Once in his arms the clansman nods and follows the orders given to him by lord Fuma himself. When Elana is finished he is to lay Attonnan in the lords bed where lord Fuma shall continue his lessons. The clansman walks up the stairs tell he comes to a bright red door with a black hand on it. With his knuckles still holding Attonnan he taps on the door, but there is no response. Carefully he tries to open the door. The handle gives with ease and the door opens wide. The room is simple, no real decoration, slowly the clansmen lies him down in the bed and then gently lays the covers over him. His job done he leaves the room and tends to his other duties.
Attonnan slowly wakes up and cringes at the feeling coming over him right away. It is not the sharp stabbing pain that happened in the dungeon, no this is more of a dull grinding ache all up and down his back. As he slowly begins to move he starts to feel that the sheet that is now laying over him is not plastered on his back. Tears begin to stream down his face. He can bare this. He can tolerate this pain. As he begins to take a deep breathes. In, out, in out, deep long breaths slowly bit by bit he can feel the pain start to fade, it is just mind over matter, he can do it, he can make it go away, maybe not permanently, but for a bit. It is only a matter minutes before he hears the door open again. Most of him wants to take a look and see whom it is, but he must concentrate, in, out, in, out, long deep breaths. Besides he knows that turning around will only peel the blankets off his back perhaps making the wounds even worse.
“Young Attonnan, I have just finished talking to lady Elana. She tells me that you have already finished with your first lesson and in only the first day, she was vary impressed” it is lord Fuma’s voice
Slowly lord Fuma walks up to the bed. Attonnan is lying on his back and the sheet that is laying over him has turned a sickly yellow/green color. He already knows that this is from the blisters but he already has a salve waiting. He knows that Attonnan’s first day would be painful, but that is the only half the training. Now comes the fun part, to draw him even closer into
his grip. Slowly Fuma makes his way and sits on the side of the bed.
“Attonnan, I need to see your back, this will hurt but I promise, it will not last” he says and tenderly strokes Attonnan’s hair.
The gentle stroking of the hair sooths Attonnan but as Fuma gently slides his hand over to grip the sheet he can feel Attonnan’s whole body tremble. He can understand what he is about to do will hurt, but that is also why he has a salve.
“I will do this quickly” Fuma says and gets a good grip on the sheet.
Attonnan trembles even more and tightly closes his eyes. Fuma slowly taking a deep breathe then with one quick movement rips the sheet off. The sound is even disturbing. It is a ripping and crackling sound. The liquid has apparently dried and made a bit of an adhesive to the skin. When it rips off Attonnan lets out a high-pitched scream, the scream of a child. Fuma slowly looks over the back and sees the skin on the blisters has peeled away with the sheet. Taking the lid off the slave he takes some of it on the tips of his fingers and gently begins to smear it into the wounds. Attonnan’s eyes open, the pain quickly begins to fade and is replaced with a cooling sensation. Fuma smiles to hear the breathing begin to slow. He knows that the salve is working, it was meant to kill the pain and with the herbs he added himself something this simple will be healed by mourning.
“Shh, easy my apprentice” Fuma says and with one hand he is rubbing the salve and with the other he is gently running his fingers through Attonnan’s hair.
Attonnan’s breathing slows down as he enjoys the gentle touch of his lord. He is so kind, so gentle. The last person to care for him like this, it was Rin. When he was hurt from his father’s wrath it was Ran that would put the salve on his back. Once lord Fuma is done he smiles at his work, yes the slave is perfectly in place. He then walks over to a table where he has hand things already prepared on it is a piece of cotton that should cover all the wounds, then some bandages that will keep it in place, and a bottle of witch hazel to cover the piece of cotton before putting it on. Smiling he pours the witch hazel over the cloth tell it is saturated. Then carefully walking back over to Attonnan he lays the cloth on him. He only chuckles to himself when he hears a slight sigh come from Attonnan. The cooling sensation is wonderful to him.
“I need you to sit up please, I must wrap this to hold it in place” he says calmly and watches as Attonnan starts to stir,
Slowly he only moves his back a little testing to make sure that the wound will not flare up and cause him pain. It is safe there is nothing? Fuma uses one hand to keep the piece of saturated cotton in place as Attonnan moves around until he is sitting on the edge of the bed. Then with gentle care he takes the bandages and begins to wrap the piece of the cloth around him. First around the waist and back, then over the shoulders, continuing until it is completely covered and the witch hazel stops to soak through the bandages and they stay dry. Then he gently ties the end off so that they do not move around.
“There you are finished my young apprentice.” Fuma says and gently gets off the bed.
Attonnan only nods his head and then lies back down in the bed. He slowly lies on his side. It is then that a spark hits Fuma, he is close to drawing Attonnan, but exactly how close and dare he press the border. Well no risk no gain. Slowly Fuma undresses himself tell he too is only wearing a pair of pants. His light blue skin covered in odd tribal like markings in red. He then pulls off the sheet that has been tainted and replaces it quickly with fresh covers that were left in the cupboard. Once the bed is made he slowly pulls back the covers and lies on his side, Attonnan in front of him. Carefully he drapes his arm over Attonnan, the response is more then he could have ever hoped for. Attonnan stirs a bit, but then moves himself closer to Fuma, like a child cuddling to his parent. A wide smile comes across Fuma, this is more then he would have expected this early, but it seems Attonnan must have been neglected, he is so eager for any attention that he doesn’t think of who it is coming from or why. Fuma only hold him then drifts off to sleep himself, his mind a blur of how quickly this boy has moved alone and how soon he will be ready for the tasks he has for him.
Sometime during the night a clansmen brought in a meal for both Fuma and Attonnan, but neither were awake so he simply set it on the table and left them. This is not the first time they have found him in a bed with a younger man, sometimes much younger then Attonnan. He begins to smile, Attonnan will make a fine clansman and if Fuma has chosen him to be in his bed then there is some specific reason that he wants this one, probably his skills. The clansman begins to walk away when he sees Attonnan begin to stir in the bed. Silently he stops and watches to see if the young elf begins to wake. But there is nothing so he only takes a sigh of relive and goes about his way. It is near midnight when Attonnan finally wakes at the smell of food. Smiling snuggles a bit deeper into Fuma, who does not even stir, then calmly he gets out of bed and walks to the table finding the bowl of rice with some meat and vegetables in it. He looks over and smiles at Fuma, he should wake him for this late night dinner, but he looks so peaceful, no, he will let his lord sleep. Taking up the chopsticks he begins to eat. His mind goes blank except for the thought that he must finish; he is so famished, the training and the healing have taken almost everything out of him. Sometime near the middle of the middle out of the corner of his eye he sees something. At first he pays no attention to it. But then without turning his head or stopping what he’s doing he gets a tiny bit better look, it is white, white and blue. Quickly he turns his head to get a better look but when he does, there is only darkness. There is nothing there, there never was. Just his eyes playing tricks on him he thinks to himself and then goes back to his bowl of rice. Once he is finished he lies back into the bed, snuggles back up to his lord, he is so kind so giving of himself. Fuma has indeed become what he always wanted his father to be to him. As he lies there waiting for sleep to come he thinks about Fuma and all he has done for him. He is an apprentice and is in lessons to become one of the Hojo elite, he is shown tenderness and care rather then distain. Where is father hated him and never wanted to look at him, it seems Fuma wants nothing more then to make him great and strong, to harness the gifts he already has. Is this what being a sun is really like, is this why Mellyrunna was always so happy? Surely this is how father must have treated him. Slowly he closes his eyes and lets these thoughts of peace and calmness wash over him and then, then sleep comes and there is nothing left but darkness, darkness and dreams.
It is later in the mourning when Attonnan is awakened again, this time it is by Fuma’s gentle hand. As Attonnan opens his eyes he sees his master standing over him, awake, with a large grin on his face. Without saying a word Fuma moves closer to him and helps him sit up, then slowly begins to undo the bandages. Attonnan is amazed that this does not hurt. The bandages come of quickly and easily Fuma slowly rolls them back up and sets the roll back on the table, is not sure if he will need them again today, but he is certain that he will need them again. Gently and vary carefully he removes the large piece of cotton that was covering the wounds. Even Fuma is a bit surprised at how the wounds themselves seem to have just vanished, slowly as he takes a cloth and begins to wipe the salve off of the back he can see that there is no blisters, no red marks, no scars, nothing, his porcelain body, his snow white skin, it’s once again flawless. For a moment he lets his fingers drift down the back only to feel Attonnan tremble at the touch.
“Is it, is it horrible” Attonnan asks, his voice shaking as much as his skin now.
“No, your flawless, the salve has done it job and your perfect white flesh is unblemished” he says and continues to wipe off the salve.