The World Below Me: Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The cage was cramped, but not the smallest one he had been in. He was hunched over, his head resting on his knees. Hours passed since he had been let out to use the restroom. His muscles were cramped, but he couldn’t stretch. There was no relief.

The trading stall was on the outskirts of town and there were very few who walked by. He might be here for a long time.

He tried shifting his legs a little when a woman walked into view. She was small and moved cautiously in a long white dress. He noted immediately that she was barefoot and she looked completely lost. There was a tall man with her, he wore a wide-brimmed hat and was a stoic opposite to the gentle young woman.

The woman noticed him. She peered at him with the curiosity of a child. It was as if she had never seen a bakdan before. There was something gentle in her inquiring gaze. He felt drawn to her, even if it wasn’t his place. He did something he knew was wildly taboo and he looked back into her eyes. She held his gaze. She seemed just as fixated on him. He looked down when the key master came out to speak with the couple. He listened as the man bargained and finally agreed on a price. It was low. He knew he wasn’t worth much anymore.

The key master’s demeanor shifted when coins clanked into his palm, and he unlocked the cage.

“Out!” He grumbled.

The caged man’s muscles groaned, but he didn’t have time to stretch them. The order was given and he scrambled out of the cage, his feet hitting the ground and his legs nearly giving out on him. Still, he stood perfectly still with practiced composure.

The woman looked to him, then back to her companion, then back at him again. Her long hair swished back and forth. The tall man with the hat nodded at the key master and began walking down the path. The woman followed, taking two steps for each of his long strides. The released man took up the last position, following behind them both. He kept his head down, but he noticed the woman look back several times at him. Each time she seemed preoccupied with his ears. It was as if she never had a servant before. His ears were pretty normal for his people, the servant class. They were just a fluffy, tall and pointy. His tail too was not very different than any other tail.

They kept walking until they were completely outside of town. He had never been out this far. His previous masters had large villas within the heart of town. He snuck peeks at the cavern around him. There were a few building in the distance, and he knew of people who lived inside the outer caves.

After half an hour they arrived at the base of a staircase. The man started up, followed by the woman, and lastly the man with the fluffy, tall ears and tail. Up they went until the cavern ceiling disappears beneath them. He wondered how far up these stairs went? Was there another cave up this high? How far up was it until-. He shook his head discreetly, careful not to let the other two see. It wasn’t possible. No one went all the way up to the surface.

They continued on until he felt a breeze. It wasn’t the warm, comforting airflow of the caverns. It wasn’t cold exactly, but it smelled strange and it sent a shiver through him. There was a light as well, cold and silvery. He emerged from the stairs onto the floor of another level. The moss here was tall and prickly, not the soft pads that grew further below. The air smelled crisp and fragrant. He ventured a peek at the light shining down at him.

When he looked up, he was horrified. There was no ceiling. The light was so high above, and it was one great orb, not the millions of tiny lava flies that usually populated the ceilings of caverns. The glowing eye hung there in an overwhelming nothingness, detached from any rocky surface. It was so bright that it made his eyes water. He felt himself falling backwards, landing on the spiky moss. The bright orb pressed down on him. He cried out and squeezed his eyes shut. It must be the watchful eye of the Father! It would see that he has violated the law of punishment and come to the surface.

The tall man pulled him to his feet and into a nearby building. When they were out of earshot of the woman, the man with the hat turned to him.

“She is your mistress now. Take care of her.”

Then he left, walking back out into the stark night and nodding to the woman. He disappeared back down the stairs and the woman in her white dress staggered inside. She looked exhausted. He followed her into a room with a bed.

She was his mistress. He understood his role here. He tucked her into bed and she fell asleep almost instantly. He walked over to the window and peer outside. There really was no ceiling above. This truly was hell. They had walked him up a staircase to the Father’s realm.

He fought back a wave of panic, longing for the enclosing comfort of Mother Earth. He curled up on the floor near the end of the bed. The floor carpet here filled the whole room and was soft. He fell asleep.