The cot felt softer than it should, which woke Gregory from his slumber. A smile came to him as he turned over in the plush bed. “It’s good to see you again, my heart.”
“I love hearing those words from you, dear one,” Darkness said happily.
“How are the others?”
“Good. They face their own trials, as you do. Roshana, Clover, and Ling have found their resonances. I am speaking with them; they are so happy to know that they truly belong with you.”
Mention of his friends and eventual wives brought a smile to his face. Roshana would be happy that her heart was true, and her small bunny tail would no doubt be twitching in joy. Ling’s stoic nature would be broken by the sparkle in her cat eyes giving away her happiness. It was knowing that Clover would be leaping out of bed to do a silly dance that really made him smile brightly, though. The part-squirrel eurtik was a joy to be near.
“I’m glad to hear they finally broke their bottleneck. They’re rank ten apprentices, right?”
“Five ranks behind you, while Roshana is eight back, dear one. Just as your lovely healer is on the last rank of initiate. She was slow in her growth until she accepted her place with you. Now, she will keep pace with the rest of you. Yuki and Jenn have matched you again, your rank was delayed so they could catch you again. Your other friends have been given their rings and murmur their hopes to them when they go to bed.”
Gregory thought of Daciana, Nessa, and Victoria. They were a year behind him in obligation to the empire, which made it unlikely he would see them again until they were all done with their magus postings. That made his heart ache— he cared deeply for them, but life never gave anyone everything they wanted.
“They were happy with the rings?”
“You have no idea, my heart, but you will when you see them again. The knowledge that you wait for them, have promised them with the rings, has them even more focused than before. They have pledged their own promise to each other, one I will not tell you of.”
Gregory chuckled as he stared at the faint outline of a woman in the shadowed corner. “You love your secrets.”
“I do. I will give you a dream with those who have found their resonances as you climb the ranks again. Your wives give you their love. They all look forward to seeing you in a few weeks.”
“No seeing them this time?”
“Hmm… maybe for a moment.” The words were thoughtful.
A moment later, a trio of naked, beautiful women were sprawled in bed. The sight of his wives made Gregory’s breath catch as his eyes roved over them.
“Darkness says we don’t have long, not nearly long enough for that,” Yukiko giggled. “She mentioned a wrinkle in your training. What’s gone wrong?”
Gregory licked his dry lips, forced to clamp down on his hormones so he could speak, “I cracked down on a man who was breaking the slave laws. He had more than is allowed for his station. I… took them… They’re at my camp.”
“Are they okay?” Mindie asked, her starburst eyes bright as she stared at him with concern.
“Yes and no. Most of them were barmaids who were used in… other ways,” Gregory said with distaste. “I’m going to see if I can fold them in as camp helpers, but if not, I’ll need help finding people who will treat them well.”
“I’ll start looking, just in case,” Mindie said.
“All women?” Jenn asked.
“Six maids, one older woman cook, and her son, who is also a cook.”
“You wanted dedicated cooks. That’s what led you to this, isn’t it?” Yukiko asked.
“Yes. You know me so well.”
“I also sought out a dedicated cook and assistant for our men,” Yukiko said.
“I was going to,” Jenn said. “I would take one of your two, if they’re okay with that.”
“I’ll address it with them. I’ve made it clear to my men what won’t be allowed. Tomorrow, I’ll be speaking with the slaves to see what they want.”
Yukiko reached over, taking his hand. “You’re a good man, dear one. We’ll support you as much as we can. Jenn and I both have a squad of women, so if need be, we could ease one or two of them into our structures, as our men are used to behaving themselves around women.”
“Okay. More options are good.”
“It is time,” Darkness said suddenly. “I cannot hold for much longer.”
The four lovers leaned in, kissing each other quickly before his wives vanished, leaving just Gregory in bed. He turned back to the corner of shadows, looking at the vague shape there.
“Sorry, dearest, but distance does matter,” Darkness sighed. “It is why your time with the others will be spaced out one at a time.”
“I understand. Did you strain yourself?”
“Not too much. A little strain helps one grow, as you know.”
“I do. Now, I have to strain myself.” Gregory launched himself into the inky corner, intent on finding her.
The shadows clamped down on him instantly, sapping his strength and aether. While he drifted off, the shadows parted so Darkness could see him with nothing between them. A sad smile touched her lips as she kept him back from herself. “Soon, my heart… soon. Just a few more years, and you will see me, touch me, and love me…” Gregory vanished as she spoke. Then, a moment later, so did the room.
~*~*~
The morning went by the way Gregory thought it would. The men were uncertain, but breakfast being a mixture of shaved meat and cheese frumenty had them quickly loving their new cooks.
Gregory did the Peaceful Fist with the men before he bowed out. Davis led naginata training while Gregory went to talk to the slaves. The cooks had finished cleaning up and had gone back to the tent, as well, so all eight would be there.
Gregory announced himself before he entered. Rafiq was sitting with the others, clearly having been speaking with them after breakfast. “Good morning to you all. We have matters to discuss about your futures.”
No one spoke as Gregory pulled a chair out of his ring, taking a seat with them.
“Let me list the options, and then you can tell me what you think. There will be no reprisals, no harsh words or punishments for speaking your mind to me, so please do so.” When no one said anything, Gregory quickly outlined what he had in mind for if they wanted to try staying with the unit or not.
When he finished, Nammi raised her hand. “Master, I do not wish to be near the men.”
Gregory winced at the title. “Sir or Gregory, please. Not… Master. I might hold your runes, but that might change in the future. Would you be willing to let my wife help you find someone else to serve?”
“Yes,” Netty said quickly. “A mistress, please.”
Gregory looked from one of the sisters to the other before he bowed his head in understanding. “I’m sorry. Mindie will do her very best for you both. It’ll be three weeks before we travel to Grakle. Will you be okay with waiting until then?”
“Yes,” the sisters said together.
“Okay. Petal, can they help you with cooking until then?” Gregory asked.
“That’d be okay,” the older pig eurtik grunted. “Heavy work can use help.”
“Gladly,” Nammi nodded.
“What about the rest of you?” Gregory asked.
“Can I serve your wife as a maid?” Flopsy asked with wide, hopeful eyes.
Gregory sat back, not expecting the question. “Uh, we can ask.”
“Thank you!” Flopsy beamed.
“We can run errands and serve the tables,” Polka said after a hushed conversation with her sister, Dot. “You mentioned being paid… does that mean we have to service the men?”
“No!” The word came out harsh, and Gregory held up a hand when everyone but Rafiq flinched. “Sorry… No,” he said gently. “You will be paid for doing what we talked about. You will not service the men at all. That would lead to problems.”
“We accept,” Dot said quickly.
“Wait… we can work without the men touching us?” Netty asked slowly.
Gregory sighed before he explained once more what their duties would be, clearly making it known that none of the men would lay a finger on them without being harshly dealt with. He even mentioned that his wives had female squads they might be more comfortable with.
“Can we try that instead, to see if it’s good?” Nammi asked— now that she understood she wouldn’t have to sleep with the men, things looked better.
“Yes. If you change your mind, just tell me.”
“I’ll stay as a maid,” Flopsy said. “I always wanted to serve a lady.”
“If Mindie isn’t willing, we’ll find you a good lady to serve,” Gregory told the rabbit eurtik.
“Which sergeants do we answer to?” May asked, her tongue flickering rapidly.
“That’s what we need to decide,” Gregory said. “There’s one more thing, though. If you stay, you should join morning training to stretch. It’ll help you physically so when we do have to march, you can easily keep up. The first few weeks, you’ll be tired afterward, but in time, you’ll be fit and ready to act as you need to.”
“You can also train them in self-defense,” Rafiq added. “I would be willing to add them to my training with the boys. They can’t be trained for weapons, however. No full slave can.”
“Ladies and Barny, that’s up to you, but I recommend it. It might help you later in life.”
Nammi and Netty were quick to agree, as were Polka and Dot. Flopsy and May agreed more slowly, and Petal and Barny were the last to accept his offer.
“Okay, why don’t we start now? The exercise is called the Peaceful Fist.”
