Cass’s head was still fuzzy when she woke up, she didn’t feel like she had been out long. Actually, she felt wonderful. Tired, absolutely exhausted, but wonderful. Her head was on her Master’s lap, who had dressed- even if he looked a little disheveled- and he was stroking her hair. An uncommonly gentle gesture from her Master, as was using the remains of her dress as an impromptu blanket to cover her. She stirred and tried to sit up, but Hall gently, yet firmly, used the hand that had been stroking her hair to keep her down.

Well, Cass was happy enough to oblige him, but she wasn’t happy about what he said next.

“I should not have done that,” her Master sighed, and Cass was not being entirely truthful. She was happy about parts of that statement. The idea that she had been so tempting that he had thrown reason to the winds and taken her was wonderful, but the fact that he said he should not have done it was painful.

“Was… Did I do something wrong?” This was Cass’s greatest worry, though the startled surprised reaction Hall had to the question did much to alleviate that, and his next words soothed her completely.

“You were perfect,” Hall answered unequivocally and then chuckled. “I would even say that the way you tried to tempt me- while still submitting totally- probably would have driven a lesser man mad. It even had me throwing reason to the winds, but unfortunately the situation is… Complicated.”

“Indeed it is,” a new voice called out as the door opened, revealing a tall, dark haired beauty, perhaps only a few years younger than Cass’s Master. “To think I would find you in this situation Sarius.”

“How long have you been waiting behind that door?” The scowl on Sarius Hall’s face was terrifying, had it been directed at Cass she would have tried to run and hide. Yet the new woman merely smirked.

“Long enough,” her eyes flicked to Cass, who Hall had finally allowed to sit up before adding two more words dripping with sarcasm. “Dear husband.”

Cass had felt lightning flow through her body before, but this was a different kind of shock. She was not even sure how to react. Rationally, she knew as a slave the most she could ever hope for would be to be Hall’s concubine… But that didn’t stop her from wishing for more, and being hurt when reality put her back in her place.

“I thought you were at the manor.” A statement, not a question, from Hall- and laced with enough antipathy that Cass noticed it through her stunned mind.

“There was something to deliver to you, and I told the messenger I would like to deliver it personally.” The woman tossed a golden collar, Cass’s new collar, to Hall, who caught it deftly. “It is my duty to be… ‘Supportive,’ after all.”

“Then you have done so,” Hall’s scowl deepened. “Now leave Clare, I have work to attend to.”

“Explaining to do, you mean.” Clare Hall responded, her own flash of distaste appearing on her face as she looked at Sarius, that disappeared as she looked at Cass and smiled. “And I look forward to getting to know you, girl. I will be seeing you later.”

And with that, she stalked out.

After she left, Hall sighed and unhooked the collar. Cass, without needing to be told, gathered her hair back and stretched out her neck and her Master snapped it into place. Despite the chaos of the last few hours, the joy and the shock, she was glad to have the collar back. She was Hall’s slave, and she would do her best to stop wishing for more- the pain that wish caused was not the kind she had been conditioned to enjoy.

That kind of pain just hurt.

“I owe you an explanation, Cass.” Hall said quietly.

“No Master, you don-”

Her Master put a finger to Cass’s lips, silencing her.

“I may own you Cass, but I have my own responsibilities to you. You are mine, and that also means you are mine to look after.” Hall spoke and Cass quieted. As difficult as this situation was, those words felt good.

“First, I would hope you are observant enough to notice Clare and I’s… Distaste, for each other.” Cass watched Hall’s lips turn into a sneer, apparently just at the thought of his wife. “The second thing you have to understand is that for as much as I hate her, I hate my father a thousand times more.”

Cass blinked, not expecting that turn in the conversation, but she kept silent. At the same time she tried to recall all she knew of her Master’s father. Maruice hated the whole family because of that man’s actions, she knew. Cass also vaguely remembered that Hall and his father were estranged, and Hall had done everything he could to separate himself from his father’s influence. So why was it even an issue?

As if he could read her thoughts, though perhaps it was more that her Master simply knew her mind, Hall answered the unasked question.

“My father is not, it seems, the kind of man you can run from.” Hall’s anger had an exhausted edge to it, almost as if to add with his tone that even trying to run was an exercise in futility. “His influence in the Tower was for more than I had ever dreamed. Even months ago, in that carriage when I refused you, I had hoped to avoid this situation. But my father wanted a marriage between our house and the house of Amall- Clare’s family- who lack an heir and border our lands, and nothing as small as my refusal would stop him.”

“But how would someone like me, someone who controls and is in control, be pushed around like this?” Hall continued bitterly, as if every word was bile on his tongue. “Once, long ago, I asked you if you knew where my kind of personality came from- and I am sure you understand what I mean. I am not a good man Cass, I am so close to evil that I cannot see the line anymore. But my father cannot see the line because he passed it so long, and so far ago, that it is further than any man could see behind him.”

“I punish your mistakes, and reward your success- to push you to grow. I mix pleasure into pain so that my control is not solely based on pain, but also desire. I want you to want what I do to you. And I am aware how twisted, how close to evil, that is. Perhaps I am, it wouldn’t surprise me at all- and don’t you say that I am not. I broke you myself, you cannot be objective about me.”

Cass had indeed opened her mouth to deny that Hall was evil, but shut it at that mild rebuke. Cass didn’t think he was a good person, but she wasn’t a good person either. He was a good Master though, and she felt that was enough for her. Something she both needed, and wanted. Still, she stayed quiet as her Master continued his mix of a story and explanation.

“My father is me, without even the tiny shred of good that I posses. With him, there is no pleasure, no reward, no growth. Only pain, pain, and more pain, and occasionally, terror.” Hall looked away from Cass, examining the floor with an seemingly intense interest- with a start, Cass realized he did not want to meet her eyes! Her Master was… Scared…

But then he took a deep breath and collected himself, once more the strong and controlling Master that Cass… Loved? Is that what this was? She would have to think on it later, after her mind had some time to sort out the chaos of today- or even the chaos of the past few hours!

“To make a long story short,” Hall spoke firmly, clearly skipping over a few things, but Cass was content to let her Master tell her in his own time. That he had been this open at all was more than anyone in her position could ever have expected, that her Master had bothered was one of the reasons she believed he was not evil. “This ‘marriage’ has been arranged since I was ten years old, and I had desperately hoped to escape it. For that matter, Clare did everything she could to avoid this too. We hate each other to the point I won’t be surprised if one of us has the other assassinated some day, and I almost wouldn’t mind dying if I never saw her again as a result, so whoever kills whom, it is a win.”

Cass frowned at that, her Master’s death was unacceptable. She would never let it happen so long as she drew breath, but she didn’t interrupt him. That she would do that went without saying.

“Two months ago, all hope I had to avoid this fled.” Hall sighed, “Somehow, my father got the Imperial family on his side and I was ‘asked’ to fulfil the contract my father had made. Obviously, the illusion of choice was just that, and she had no more choice than I did- and so it happened.”

“Now this all relates to you in several ways. Admittedly, unfortunately, our respective statuses are too different for us to ever marry- and honestly, that is not quite the relationship we have. You desire to be owned, and I desire to own you, but how that would work out is not something that bears thought. There is no use dreaming about a fantasy that cannot happen.”

Again, something Cass would have to think about later. That statement was too big for Cass to unpack immediately. It implied… That he cared for her more than he even let on now, even if they were both aware that the imbalance of power was something they both wanted… But if that imbalance was lessened, maybe that fantasy would not be so impossible… No, she could not fall into this trap. If she started thinking about it, she would never escape from that cycle.

“Though I could check your heredity,” Hall continued his explanation. “There are many and various reasons that I have not, but it is highly likely you had a noble father as opposed to a grandparent or great grandparent. If you and I had a child, that child would have more noble blood than common- they would have a chance to inherit, in theory anyway. You cannot imagine the danger that would put you, and that child, in from both my father and Clare’s parents. Even today, you will have to drink an herbal mixture to prevent pregnancy, or risk ending up in my father’s hands somehow. I would put nothing past that bastard.”

Have her Master’s child? Cass had not even thought of that, and had no idea what to think of it. She would think about that later as well.

“The issue is, that mixture is not perfect. If I were to take you as I wanted...” Cass shivered at the sudden hunger in her Master’s eyes, and the sudden growl in Hall’s voice. She found herself leaning into him despite her better judgement, wanting him to do just that despite everything he was saying.

Hall slid an arm around her back, drawing her in. “Well, the amount you would have to drink would make you sick. And the way math works you would have my child anyway.”

For him, Cass wouldn’t mind. She knew it was a consequence of her own breaking, that she would do anything for Hall so readily, but another consequence of being broken was not fully being able to care about that fact. And her Master wasn’t helping either, the hand that had slid around her back had slid down to her butt, and he was idly squeezing it. Despite the seriousness of the discussion, Cass wanted to giggle- apparently boys will be boys, and she certainly was not complaining. In fact, she was close to pouting when he managed to regain control of himself and pulled his hand up to rest on her back.

“The end result of all of this is that we cannot risk this until I have an heir, and even then it would be dangerous.”

The world was not a fair place, perhaps not even a good one. And Cass was a broken individual, perhaps had always been broken, and only barely held together by her Master. Cass knew these things, understood the painful nature of that reality- or she thought she did. To have had a taste- a wonderful, overwhelmingly powerful taste- of what could be, and then to have it pulled back was an excruciating lesson in just how little she had really understood.

It was made even worse because her Master did not want this. Cass was aware, and mostly accepting at this point, of how warped her mind had become. If her Master had wanted Clare, Cass knew her mind would have bent to accommodate him. She also knew that most people would react to that kind of thought with horror and shock- a slave might be required to obey, but to rationalize so willingly goes even beyond that. Perhaps it was for the best though, if her mind kept bending, warping, and breaking, what of Cass would even remain? Even at this point she realized she should figure out who she was before that changed forever, if it was not too late already.

For now though, Cass would just keep solace in the fact that Hall liked her and not Clare. While she worked through this issue, she would always have that over- Cass shuddered slightly at the next thought- over Lady Hall. She gave the only response she could give her Master, much as she wished for so much more.

“I’m yours, Master. I am always happy to serve and obey you…” Cass swallowed all her other thoughts and desires, burying it within her chest for now. “Danger does not mean much to me if it is for you. After… After there is an heir, I will be still be here to serve you.”

A statement that said nothing, and one- if Hall’s expression was anything to go by- that was seen through instantly. Both of them understood, and both of them knew they could do nothing about it- now. But Cass could see the look in her Master’s eye, a mix of desire and aggression that made her shiver, and knew he wasn’t simply going to accept it. For all his power, intelligence, and cunning Cass almost smiled as the image of Hall as a child came to her, a child mad that he couldn’t play with his toy that would steal it back when their guardian was not looking.

For her own part, she would do what she could. Cass did not know what she could do, but she would find out. Her time away had changed her, she would still obey her Master without question, but she knew that there was a more assertive part of her- one that could, and would rip down any obstruction between her and what she wanted, slave or not.

Hall smiled at the look in Cass’s eye, and changed the subject. They both silently agreed that all that needed to be said had been for now. Cass tried to get up and go to her bags, which were still in the room, to change into something that her Master hadn’t torn to shreds but the arm around her wouldn’t loosen to let her up.

“Master…” She chided softly, smiling slightly.

“Just because I can’t touch, doesn’t mean I don’t like to look.” Hall grinned back at her, and Cass could not help herself from giggling this time.

“You are just tormenting yourself,” Cass noted, mischievously moving under her covering to exspose a little more skin. The glint in his eyes telling her she would be punished for her teasing later.

“I have taught you well enough to know that sometimes torment can be fun.”

True enough, though she did have to admit she was cold… Well, she could wait a bit longer.

“So where have you been the past few months?” Her Master asked, casually putting his cloak- which had been lying over the couch back- over her shoulders. Of course, he took her shredded dress. So she was still basically naked, and Cass had a sneaking suspicion that the action had been equal parts generosity and desire for better ‘view.’ He examined the remains of her dress, “Beergmutar, I would guess. If this is anything to go by.”

“Yes Master, the people who ambushed us came from there as well.” Cass nodded, and began to narrate her experiences in the kingdom to Hall. For his part, Hall sat back and listened- nodding with approval at several points, and breaking into a wide smile at her revelation regarding Beergmutar’s magic- but frowned at her description of magesbane and the magesbane orb.

“A magic tool based off of a plant poisonous to mages…” Hall seemed to think for a while, “it is odd that we have never heard of it before. You would think that it would have been used at some point in one of the conflicts between our countries- perhaps it is a recent discovery…”

“I am not sure Master,” Cass shivered, and not from cold this time. “But it is powerful, even with preparations against it I was incapacitated.”

“Still, your… Well, let us call them allies, brought you to safety.” Hall raised a hand to his chin as he thought, causing Cass to lose her train of thought for a moment as she considered its definition. She had always found him attractive, though it was more his attitude and force of personality than his looks, but having been separate from him and then reunited with such… Fervor… Cass was having a harder time focusing than usual. For once, she was going to blame Hall for this- it was completely his fault!

A slight shock of pain brought her back to reality, with Hall looking at her with amusement.

“I’m not even the one who is undressed, I will have to add another punishment to the list to remind you to pay attention.”

“My apologies, Master.” Cass bowed slightly, realizing that this new tension would take some getting used to. Another thing she would have to work on.

“As I was saying,” he seemed more amused than anything, but Cass resolved to focus- at the current rate she would end up being punished for an entire day if she didn’t get her act together. She would admit to liking some punishment, but it was still punishment, and if she pushed too far her Master would have her in chains begging for mercy.

“Your initiative in taking those two warriors was good,” Hall spoke seriously now, even releasing Cass so that she could dress- though he watched her every move as she did. “As I am sure you figured out, the original group was merely a test group with the eventual plan to perform this on trained soldiers- and to a degree, that plan is proceeding. But as an irregular force, the martial arts combined with the glyphs might make that unit into something more.”

“Moreover, acquiring a large portion of that countries magic research… It is worth its weight in gold, several times in fact. If you had wanted freedom, these accomplishments alone are worth it- so I suppose I am overwhelmingly lucky that you want to be mine.”

Cass had never really thought of it that way, but she supposed he was right. At least, if you left out how she had increasingly grown wild and aggressive as time went on. And if you left out the fact that she had gained much of her worth from his training and work to begin with. Her glyphs and magic, along with her education, were all from her Master. And she had avoided spiraling into an out of control disaster by returning to him, really, luck had little to nothing to do with it.

“Added to the fact you discovered that the southern rebels were being supported from outside the country, your revelation of magesbane, the discovery of a way past the border wall of the country, and coming back with a decent amount of gold… The reward you will be getting for this, well, I know precisely what it will be, but you will have to wait.”

“For now,” Hall patted Cass on the head as he smiled. “I want you to know that I am proud of you. You are brilliant, and I will see you shine brighter still.”

“Thank you.” Cass barely could whisper that, overjoyed by what she had heard. She actually had to struggle not to cry, such an odd thing to resist- crying from happiness!

“I will make sure that Natalie receives maid training,” Hall continued. “But as for glyphs, she is a free woman- I cannot force her, she would have to ask. Not that a girl her age would understand what she is asking for, but the law is flawed like that.”

“I will talk to her,” Cass did not think anyone would refuse the glyphs if they were properly explained. “To have all of this- the pain is more than worth it, but on that note…”

“The new glyphs.”

Cass nodded, spreading out her rough sketches, made even less intelligible by their many folds and the wear from travel, but still serviceable to an expert like her Master. In a fit of rage, Cass had used her unparalleled magical power to make systems that intercepted light and bent it around her to a degree. She had used this to kill the Matron in a crowd of the woman’s followers.

Later, as she considered it more and more, she realized just how inelegant the systems she had used were and discovered a myriad of problems with the systems in general. From accidentally having a limb move out of the area of effect, or other things entering that area and making it obvious, or the biggest problem of all- the more effective and refined the magic was, the less she could be seen and the less she could see out of it! She was unable to perfect the system, but Cass theorized that if she made herself perfectly invisible she would also lose the ability to see.

But these problems could be mitigated by a series of glyphs placed around her body. The systems would conform to a much smaller area around her, eliminating problems in that regard and causing it to be vastly more efficient. But more importantly, the systems could be tuned around her eyes and adjusted on the fly.

And, as an aesthetic aside, Cass thought the idea of appearing to people as a pair of floating eyes on occasion would be fun.

“This is the kind of thing that would only be useful to you,” Hall noted as he examined them. “Only someone able to finely control their glyphs, and who understood the systems involved, would ever be able to use something like this. And in all the world, that is just you.”

“For now Master,” Cass nodded. “I am certain that the way I survived can be isolated eventually, and when it does this information will be invaluable.”

“True,” Hall said, then laughed at a thought. “I get the feeling that one day you will be a walking disaster. Beautiful as an ocean, but as deadly as a tsunami.”

Cass, who had never seen an ocean, asked about the term and was blown away by her Master’s response. As a child, he had taken a trip far to the south and seen the southern coast. He had been on a large hill overlooking a bay, taking part in a feast hosted by the city’s lord, when it had struck. The hill was large, nearly as tall as ten normal buildings stacked one on the other, and the water from the wave had still ruined the lord’s garden and washed up as far as the manors steps. As for the city itself… It had been absolutely destroyed.

Cass found she liked the comparison.

“I wonder though…” Her Master mused, “perhaps you could do the same thing with sound? The magic tool you wear as an anklet- which I quite approve of, by the way- I wonder if it could similarly be made into a glyph… Though I can already see why you did not, it would lose its power, at least with our current understanding… Which then makes me wonder this, perhaps light could be bent into a destructive force by a magic tool? I think I will have to explore that later…”

Hall shook his head to clear his thoughts, “regardless, I would be happy to apply them.”

And probably take the opportunity to let his hands wander- not that my thoughts aren’t! Cass had to remind herself to stay focused once again.

However, the discussion was at an end. Cass wanted, desperately, to spend more time with Hall- but he had a meeting to attend, and she had to make certain that Natalie, Odal, and Rowig settled in. For now, they had all been assigned to rooms near her own, but Hall gave the impression that it was only temporary and would say no more on the matter.

Cass, unwillingly but obediently, left to find them and then had to find an excuse for Natalie as to why she had changed clothes- much to Odal’s discomfort and Rowig’s laughter.

“I give up!” Cass threw her hands in the air, unable to stumble through a sentence under the trio of gazes, each with their own emotion. “It will make sense when you are older!”

“Oh.” Natalie was quiet for a while, then made Cass turn red as she said, “My parents only gave that answer about one thing, but it seems odd that you would need a new dress- couldn’t you just put the old one back on?”

Rowig was on the floor now. He had only bent over from laughter, but it was Cass’s fist that sent him down. He was not seriously hurt, and in fact, only laughed harder. Cass muttered a small prayer and changed the subject with the same amount of subtlety Rowig was portraying.

“As I expected,” Cass told them and pointed at the two former Warriors. “You two will be helping to train our glyphed subjects. My Master has already guaranteed you both pay and status equivalent to a minor officer- something that generally only nobles can aspire to be.”

Odal and Rowig nodded, a rather muted response for what was actually stunningly generous. However, as immigrants from another country, they did not have a good point of comparison so were only aware that it was a good thing. They would soon find out it was more than that.

“And Nat,” Cass smiled at the small girl, who was probably just happy to have a bed to sleep in again after all the travelling. “For now, you will be training to be a maid of mine- though your future might be…”

Cass trailed off as the door opened and Clare walked in. Despite her distaste, Cass immediatly curtsied and greeted her. Clare was not her owner, but as the wife of her Master she was able to utilize Cass’s slave collar to some extent.

“Lady Ha-”

“Be silent and come with me.” Clare interrupted her and began to walk away.

Never having seen the effects of a slave collar firsthand, the other three watched in shock as Cass- who they knew as wild and overpowering- snapped her jaw shut and followed the woman out of the room without another word.