1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Damascus

The market on Bathma station was large, which Damascus wouldn't have minded except for the slave section tucked in the very center. Thankfully it was small and mostly populated with animal stock and not sapient species.

Damascus wished he didn't have to walk through it at all, but the alternate route would've forced him to travel almost all the way to the bottom of the station. The place was designed to force foot traffic through the market, so it was one of the only direct routes from the activity section of the station to the living quarters.

Unable to avoid seeing slaves for sale, he set his gaze ahead and tried hard not to look left or right. He couldn't afford to spend any credits today. He'd only recently finished a temporary job on the station. He didn't want to have to take another. All he was going to purchase today was food and a room for the evening. The rest of his wealth should get him to Valix station. It wasn't far away, but it was one step closer to his ultimate destination.

He was almost successful until he heard a slight, soft moan. The sound drew his gaze down to his right where a pathetic creature was tethered to a pole. The thing was barely standing and looked ready to faint at any moment. The tether going from the pole to the creature's collar would probably choke him to death if he couldn't stay on his feet.

"Fool," he cursed himself under his breath as he stopped. There was only one slave at this stall while the vendors on either side had "stock" packed tight within the boundaries of their stalls.

Looking up, he saw a price display on the creature's pole. It was a pitifully low number. He looked beyond the single slave but didn't see evidence of anyone working at the booth. Not even a sales bot or an automated system. How did they expect to sell this slave if there was no way for a buyer to make a purchase?

"What are you?" he asked, stepping a little closer. The thing was covered in dirt and grime. Its clothing was nothing but rags and there were visible wounds that appeared infected.

It took effort, but the creature looked up, meeting Damascus's gaze. "Human."

Damascus blinked in surprise. He hadn't been in Talin-controlled space since the Orlok war, but he still received regular news packets whenever his Ident was within range of a universal repeater. Even skimming the packets he'd found out that humans were a new craze in the empire. Despite being rare and hard to find, human pets had quickly become the most prized possession anyone could own.

"You're a human?" he asked, eyeing the wretched creature. What did his fellow Talins see in them? Albeit this specimen was obviously in distress. Maybe when they were cleaned up they were more appealing.

"I'm an adult human male," he said, his voice hoarse and listless. "I have no skills, and I'll try and run away the moment I can."

A rumble of amusement came out of Damascus. It was obvious this male hadn't been born a slave or held in captivity long. The way he spoke invited someone to sell him by weight instead of as a working slave.

"Speaking like that tells me how you got the wounds," Damascus said, stepping into the booth. He needed to buy this human. Even if he wasn't in the best shape, this slave could potentially be resold for a lot of credits.

Besides, if all the documents he was reading were true, this slave would be treated far better among his people than here. If Damascus didn't buy him, this human might not last the rest of the rotation.

As if to prove Damascus's concern true, the human's eyes rolled back and his body went limp. It was only his quick reflexes that allowed Damascus to grab hold of the slim human before the leash was pulled taut against the harsh metal collar.

Holding the male up, Damascus gave him a little shake. "Wake up, human."

After two more shakes, the male lifted his lids but didn't seem able to focus on Damascus.

"Please, kill me quick. I want to see my wife again."

Those words softened Damascus's hold on the male. If anyone understood loss and tragedy, he did. He wouldn't grant this human his request, but maybe he could give the male a little hope.

"I can't send you to your afterlife, but I'm going to buy you. I'll get you medical attention, and then I'll make sure to sell you to a nice family. If you learn to be good, you'll probably never be abused again."

The male's response was to moan and shut his eyes. With more care than before, Damascus tucked the male under one arm. That made it easy for him to reach up and rip off the leash where it was attached to the pole. A loud alarm started blaring, and everyone turned their gazes in his direction.

Ignoring the curious and worried looks, Damascus knelt to carefully place the human on the ground. The male didn't move. He lay there limp but breathing. Hopefully he would survive long enough to get him to a medical suite.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Damascus looked up to see a Hamlershin galumphing toward him on stocky legs with all four tentacles waving in the air. Annoyed at the drama the creature was causing, Damascus stood and stepped over the human to face down the oncoming slave trader.

"That's my property! Get away from my slave!"

Letting his quills spread out as he crossed arms over his chest, Damascus sounded a nice, loud, irritated rattle. The sound brought the Hamlershin up short, and the fat crest on the top of his head turned a mottled brown. A sign of intimidation or fear.

"How dare you make me wait?" Damascus demanded. "Shouldn't you be present in your booth for customers? Or is this how trade is done on Bathma station?"

The Hamlershin tucked his upper tentacles tightly around his squat neck and waved his lower tentacles in a sign of respect.

"I do apologize," he said, edging a little closer. "I shut down my shop several rotations ago, and he's the last of my stock. I'm moving to Vilmorg colony, you see, and it's been a stressful process. I–"

"I don't want excuses," Damascus said, cutting him off. "I want to buy this creature and be on my way. I'm busy, and if we can't do this quickly, then I'll leave without the product."

Damascus didn't have much wealth and hoped to drive the human's sales price down. Hopefully he could get it down far enough so he wouldn't need to pick up a temporary job on the station to pay for the human's medical care.

"Ah, yes, well," the Hamlershin said as he pointed to the display on the pole. "You can see the posted price. If you'll activate your Ident, I can send you the monetary request."

Damascus sounded another irritated rattle. "You think I'm willing to pay full price for a slave that's in such poor condition?"

They haggled for several submarks before the Hamlershin gave in and sold for a quarter of the original price. Pleased with his good luck, Damascus transferred the requested amount.

"Have a most wondrous rotation," the Hamlershin said after his information square pinged with the completed transaction. "I suggest you eat him soon, or he'll die and spoil."

Ignoring the Hamlershin's comment, Damascus turned and picked up his newest possession. The male didn't make a sound and felt intensely fragile in Damascus's arms.

Realizing he didn't know where to go, he paused in the walkway. Seeing a nearby directional display, he tapped it until he found what he was looking for. It took a few moments, but he was able to locate the station's medical suites. Worry made him quick to leave without resetting the display for the next person.

"Don't die," he murmured to the human. "You have value yet."

***

Damascus rubbed a hand over his head as the med tech listed all the things wrong with the unconscious human. Finally he sounded a negative rattle.

"Stop! All I need to know is if the human will live."

"I can't give you perfect assurances," the med tech said, clacking his belly flaps. For a Tomenki, that meant this individual was uncomfortable, probably because Talin's weren't common in this section of space. The Tomenki stood as tall as Damascus, but his thin, lithe body would be easy to break in half and they both knew it.

"I don't need perfect assurances," Damascus said, trying to keep the impatience out of his voice. "I need to know if the human can be treated, or if any of these issues are immediately life threatening."

"They can all be successfully treated," the Tomenki said. "But it'll be expensive. Are you positive you wish to spend that much wealth on, uh, this slave?"

The question wasn't a surprise. To most on the station, this human was probably worthless. If he had a high skill level, he wouldn't be in his current state. The Hamlershin slaver and this Tomenki med tech apparently didn't know about the growing Talin trend that Damascus was determined to take advantage of.

"I agree to the treatment's you've laid out," Damascus said, suddenly feeling fatigued beyond measure. How long had it been since he'd slept? For that matter, how long ago had he eaten?

He needed to find sustenance and shelter while the human healed enough for travel.

"You have my wealth request number," Damascus said with a last look at the unconscious human. He was so pale he almost matched the stark white of the bed under him. "Bill me as you incur expenses."

"As it pleases you," the med tech said. "I'll also keep you apprised of his condition."

"You can keep the reports brief," Damascus said with a negative rattle. "All I truly need to know is when he'll be fit for travel."

"There are also things wrong with him that we could fix but won't extend his life, only make him comfortable," the Tomenki said. "Do you want us to address those also or leave them?"

Damascus briefly debated. He could leave the non-life threatening issues for the future owner to deal with and save a little credit. But no, he couldn't let this human suffer longer than necessary. It was obvious his life had taken a harsh turn, or he wouldn't be in the state he was.

"Fix everything," he ordered. He was about to turn and leave then thought of something else. "This slave isn't obedient. Make sure he can't escape when he's feeling better."

The Tomenki jerked in surprise. "If he's violent with us or the equipment, you'll be charged."

Damascus scoffed as he headed out the suite door. "As if that puny creature could do damage to anything but himself."

With the goals of food then sleep, he made his way to the area with the cheapest sustenance that he could digest. His meal would be barely palatable, but if he found a Nimon restaurant, they wouldn't look at him twice if he fell asleep in a corner after eating. He could get both needs for the price of one.