DISCLAIMER: The following is a fictional story and all characters depicted within are the intellectual property of Silversune. The story contains themes of slavery, punishment, sex between men and men, men and women and possibly men and other 'things'. If you are under 18, it is illegal to read this sort of content in your region, or if you do not enjoy these types of stories please read no further.

'When a man or woman is caught in violation of the laws which govern this land, then their freedom becomes forfeit. They are no better than the beasts of the field and will be treated as such. They may be bought or sold as property, put to any type of work save those that would cause them to commit further crimes. Should they be ordered to do such then their own owners will face the same fate as they.'

 Chapter 1

A simple and straight forward law, all crimes are equal in this place, all will be met with the same 'justice'. And yet despite this strict enforcement, crime still occurs. There seems no end to the greedy or violent predators who push the bounds of the law. Likewise there is no end to the needy who steal in order to survive. Consequentially there is no end to those put into servitude for their crimes. The violent sent to the blood sports, the attractive to the bordellos or to the merchants or nobility with the wherewithal to be able to afford the costly upkeep which is often required and the multitude of skilled sent to work in factories, mines and other manual fields requiring large numbers of hands.

Veles had spent years pressing his luck. The young man had ended up on the streets as a boy and had quickly learned how to be self-sufficient. In the early days he had dodged the gangs which ruled the streets in the poor districts he didn't want to undergo their tests or be at the beck and call of the leaders. Instead he had become quite good at pocketing the belongings of others and sneaking food from the vendors in the Merchant Quarters during the eight years that he had lived on the streets. The good luck he had enjoyed couldn't last though.

Sitting behind one of the impressive houses that the aristocrats dwelt in Veles watched the comings and goings of the staff from within the concealment of a bit of brush. The houses, he determined, were little more than their way of showing off their wealth to their neighbors; wealth that he would take no qualms in relieving them of.

Previously he had 'collected' a set of servant clothes that had been left out on the line to dry and he had tried it out, testing to see if he could move among the residents of this district without raising brows. Not only had it worked, but the fact that he was treated as a non-person by the residents of the district spoke volumes. Nobles, after all, do not notice their servants unless the servant draws that attention by accident or purpose. The problem was, he determined, that servants noticed each other and particularly well paid or treated servants would be more likely to protect their master's possessions as well as a guard dog. So Veles took his time and was rewarded shortly after lunch when one of the maids stepped out to start taking the linens down from the line that they had been drying on and he stepped forward to lend a hand.

“Cookie said you could be usin' a hand missus, leastways til they find where to be puttin me," Veles offered up as soon as she gave him a look of askance when he began to help her with the laundry. He forced the country accent he'd heard from farmers and their children when they came to market and kept a silly smile on his handsome face. This seemed to still her curiosity. It was all too often that a new servant would be added to the roster without anyone finding out until dinner later that night and farmers were always said to be trustworthy. That the boy was easy on the eyes did nothing more than help matters.

With a giggle and a blush the girl ducked her head and set to work once again with her new helper. They stacked the basket high, high enough that she would've been struggling under the weight of it, and he lifted it up before following her into the kitchens and then down the hall into the linen closet. No one bothered the boy as he slipped in, seeing nothing more than another servant at work and expecting they'd meet the stranger later that evening. When the closet was reached the boy set down the basket and then picked up a smaller one while ducking his head to the girl he'd helped, “I'll take this on up then missus. Thank y'kindly."

Veles didn't wait around as he headed up the back stairs then and stepped out onto the second floor. Looking down at the small linen filled basket he flashed a smile before beginning to slip down the hall. He'd pause and listen at the door to a room before slipping in if he heard nothing. Once inside he began to go through the drawers, grabbing little things stored inside that looked as if they would bring a pretty penny. Those things were slid into his pockets and when those became full he started to slip them into a pillowcase that had been in the basket.

He made it through four rooms before his wary nature alerted him to danger. The wood just outside the door had creaked a little and as he sent a look towards it he noticed the door handle turning. A quick look was cast around before he slid over to the bed and started unmaking just as the door opened and a tall figure made his way within.

From the corner of his eye Veles took in the man's dress and carriage quickly determining that the man was the lord of this house. Without skipping a beat the thief looked up as if surprised and then he bobbed his head. “Beggin your pardon sir, was getting ready t'change yer linens. I'll be getting out of your way though. Sorry sir." Veles bend to pick up the basket with his ill-gotten treasures before freezing as the fellow spoke.

“Who are you?"

“Me sir? Jimmy sir... Cookie hired me t'help 'round the place." Veles answered without looking up. This was bad, very bad and he could feel a cold sweat breaking out over his temple.

“Let's try this again," Count Ravensdale began while eyeing the thief coldly. “Who. Are. You? The cook does not hire servants without my prior knowledge." While waiting for the boy to decide on what new lie to tell him the man began to look him over. Veles was a scrap of a thing, his body wiry from years of living hand to mouth and avoiding the law. His features were attractive though, even if they showed the lack of nourishment around the cheeks. With a proper diet, clothes and scrubbing he could find his way easily into the beds of women or men.

Veles' fingers tightened for a moment on the handle of the basket as the noble repeated the question. Exhaling deeply then he seemed to take his time while his mind was racing. “You got me, you got me," he began while dropping the fake accent. “Here's all your things.. I'll just get out of your hair." Slowly the boy set the basket down on the man's bed and then he quickly dodged around and made for the door at a sprint and then the world exploded in pain.

When he came to he was curled up on the floor, his hands on between his legs cradling the recently struck area while the count calmly lowered the cane he was carrying back to his side. “I don't think you're going anywhere, boy." Dimly Veles watched the man pull out a bit of rope with a pair of loops and slip that around his wrists and a second around his ankles. He didn't even wonder why the man would carry around such things as the man rang a bell and once his butler arrived ordered that the constables be called.

The next few weeks were something of a blur to Veles. After he had been arrested the youth had been taken to jail to await his trial. His things were stripped off of him, since everything he wore had been stolen from House Ravensdale to begin with, and he was left naked in a private cell. That last bit surprised him, but he merely assumed he was being given special consideration due to whose property he'd tried to lift and of course this led to the conclusion that his punishment would be worse.

Two weeks after he'd been arrested Veles was shoved into a long sackcloth tunic, his hands were bound behind his back and his ankles chained to each other before he was led into the courtroom. The room was dark and mostly devoid of an audience. He had no public defender to attempt to get him off the charges, but given the nature of the crime and how red handed he had been caught Veles couldn't argue that he was obviously guilty. And guilt meant a lifetime of slavery here.

The lack of audience though was more perturbing. Criminals were typically auctioned off the moment that they'd been judged and the only public auctions were for those who had garnered no interest in the courtroom. Life was hard for those that ended up there, most times it was deadly. Aside from the judge and guardsmen the only people in the courtroom were the prosecutor and Count Ravensdale. Neither acknowledged Veles as he was brought in and led to the stand. Nor did he attempt to make a plea for mercy. He wasn't sure he actually wanted it from the man who's idea of capture involved striking someone in the family jewels, a memory that still made his balls ache when he recalled it.

A gavel's bang drew Veles out of his thoughts and he looked towards the wigged judge as he began to speak, though the words were directed at the nobleman and his lawyer. “Count Ravensdale, while I thank you for taking time from you busy schedule to sit in on these proceedings I must say that the manner is quite unusual. Would you mind explaining, my Lord, why it is you didn't wish for a public display to be made of the thief?"

The thief in question couldn't help but slide his glaze over towards the man he'd robbed and for the first time he actually got a good look at his capturer. Though he was seated Ravensdale was obviously tall, over six feet, and fit. His dark hair had a few streaks of grey and there was a maturity about his features to place him past middle age, but not yet close enough to old age for any sign of physical deterioration to show. Veles seriously doubted that he ever had to go hungry in his life and though the dark haired man was handsome, there was a certain coldness about his pale blue eyes that could send a chill through a warm summer day.

It wasn't the noble who spoke, however, but his representative. A sniveling little rat of a man. “His Lordship has determined this crime to have been little more than an inconvenience. His possessions were recovered before the thief could leave the premises. Since he has lost nothing he does not feel that there is need to auction off the boy as there is no debt to be paid beyond what your time has incurred and thusly prefers to keep the offender in his possession."

This last bit caught Veles' attention and he turned his eyes to the lawyer then the judge. It was unheard of for a victim to take possession of the person they were victimized by. Unheard of but there were no laws against it. He opened his mouth to speak, sure that a life spent in this man's care would be rough indeed, but before he could say anything the gavel was banged once more.

“Very well," The judge began while making a show of ruffling some papers, “I've taken the time to review all the evidence against the thief and there is no question that he did, indeed, disguise himself as a servant and sneak into the Count's home with intent to steal from him. While I would question the watchfulness of my servants there is no proof that they were involved in this crime. As for the boy from this day forward he will be marked as a slave and then he will be remanded into the Count's care upon the court receiving payment, since we won't be taking that from his sale price, for these proceedings."

The gavel was banged once again and the guards took control of Veles. Numb from how swift everything had happened the teen walked between his guards without fighting and was led into a room off of the courtroom. In here he was pressed into an armed chair and quickly had a strap placed across his chest and while another locked his legs in place before a stand was placed behind him and his head strapped into that. During this Veles began to struggle, trying to free himself while his bottom lip was grabbed, and a tattoo was placed on the inside with the mark of slavery.

Once tattooed the boy was in short order leashed and then led out to his new master. The man waited alone, his lawyer having already departed to see about settling the debt and then take his leave, with an unreadable expression. The leash passed hands and Ravensdale looked at him before reaching out and checking the tattoo by pulling down on his sensitive lip. Veles took the opportunity to try to snap at the man only to receive a backhanding.

“I will say this once. Attack me again and I will assure that you that you will regret every day of the rest of your life." Veles looked up as the count gave that threat before sighing and looking to the side as he muttered, “do what you like," below his breath. Summarily the boy found himself led outside of the courthouse and then surprisingly placed in the nobleman's carriage rather than run behind it as some crueler masters were wont to do.