First Bloom - Chained Storms

As the white glare of sudden light gave way she noticed she stood in the leading pathway of a country manor. The garden was huge and it’s edge was easily lost behind the farthest of trees. All bushes and trees where neatly trimmed and the grass seemed to be equally maintained. At the end of the wooden pathway a large house made of pure stone and adorned with intricate carvings and dark wood rested in its own magnificence. All this beauty was of course hindered by the fact that she had been brought here as a slave and nothing more. As she was led up to the house she felt a cold empty sensation nestle at the bottom of her stomach, the realization of just how uncertain and uncontrollable her fate was dawning on her. She felt a cold shiver run down her spine.


Inside the house the air was cool and smelled of old wood and incense. Spaces were vast and designed to show the power and opulence of its inhabitants. As she looked around trying to distract herself from the idea of the future by focusing on the moment her view was suddenly interrupted by the man she had seen in the slave house. He informed her his name was Arryn, steward of house Perelandro, and as of now the only voice she would obey short of that of the masters. He rang a little bell and two armed men dressed in matching leathers entered the room. Arryn let Andrea know she would be taken to the servants quarters by the men where she was expected to clean herself and change into the servants dresses. Her duties for the day would be to shadow matron Delila and have her teach her the generalities of how to behave and move about the house.Without waiting for a reply he turned and moved into the inner rooms of the house.


The men led her to the servants quarters with a firm hand but were actually careful not to be unnecessarily rough. She tried to plea or ask for help but she was met with silence and what seemed like complete disdain. It was almost as if she was nothing more than livestock clucking in an incomprehensible set of sounds, a nuisance and not a person pleading for her freedom. After several attempts she felt the tears fill her eyes and she broke into sobs understanding just how helpless she was.


They arrived at the servants quarters a couple of minutes later. It was a large squat structure with a simple wooden door and matching windows. They stepped inside and she noticed all beds shared the single large room and a set of doors at the far end divided small fractions of the building. The guards informed her which was her bed, which had a brown and creme dress over it, and which door was the lavatory so she could clean herself up before Delila came to pick her up and began showing her the ropes of attending the masters.


She went about the task of cleaning herself up amidst sobs and feelings of emptiness. The chance to remove the grime collected over the days was welcomed but the truth was that the overall weight of the situation removed all joy that could be forthcoming. Once she was clean she put the dress on and sat on her bed silently waiting for Matron Delila, whoever she was, to come get her. As she waited, she allowed herself to recover from the sudden wave of sadness. She knew well the sensation would not fully go away but she was damned if she would show her captors any more of her sadness. As she sat there the creaking of the door broke the silence and a thin woman with severe features entered the room and let her eyes ran from end to end of the quarters before settling on her.


The woman walked up to her and Andrea noticed she was wearing no chains. Before she could speak the woman held her cheeks together and told her to speak only when asked to speak. Slowly she released her jaw and as Andrea was about to protest the woman landed a slap on her that left a stinging sensation on her cheek. As Andrea rubbed the sensation away and scowled at the woman, the woman introduced herself as Matron Delila, she would teach her how to behave and break her in if needed to ensure she was the perfect house attendant for the masters. With firm voice she asked Andrea to follow and turned on her heels striding out of the quarters.


The rest of the afternoon was spent walking around the house so Andrea could locate any room with ease and as they did Delila told her what she could and could not do. The rules were of course restrictive and made her feel like an unwanted dog that was tolerated but not liked. Delile made special emphasis on how once she was seen to behave and become an obedient servant she would have her chains removed and perhaps allowed to enter rooms where the masters were. Once done they returned to the quarters this time to find several other servants there, some with their chains still on and others without them. They were led to the servants mess, a large room with two large tables and simple benches where they would be expected to seat and eat their meals, perhaps the only room for socialization they were allowed as servants.


Andrea sat before a plate that was quickly filled with some kind of slop that seemed to lack almost all taste. Delile saw her face contort in disgust and informed her how that disgusting sludge would be her meal for most days and what it lacked in flavor it made up for in sustenance. Andrea grudgingly proceeded to eat her meal with the rattling of chains accompanying every move she made to remind her that even this freedom was a borrowed illusion. She talked with some of the people next to her but as soon as she mentioned anything slightly rebellious they looked around with nervous eyes and moved away from her. Her sadness began to slowly turn into anger and a hot sensation burning in her heart where a cold sensation had emptied her stomach previously.


After dinner they were guided back to the sleeping quarters and there Delila removed her chains and hung them next to her bed. Before leaving she informed her she could either put them on voluntarily or have the guards strap them on, with a warning that the guards didn’t have a knack for tenderness when a servant acted rebellious.


That night Andrea lay awake thinking of how to escape, her first thoughts had been violent but as they turned more and more aggressive she realized she would be heavily outnumbered by the guards and unarmed as she was she would sooner be cut down than be set free.Despite her disdain for the current situation she was in, she most definitely did not wish for death. Daylight found her awake and frowning, she had not managed to establish a plan of escape and her mind would now be occupied on the tasks Delila would set out for her, she would return to her escape plan during the night, hopefully she would be able to find some allies in the other servants once they realized anything was better than this.


Andrea was assigned at cleaning task with a pair of the unchained servants. Sometimes she would try to make a sloppy job as a minor act of rebellion and the other servants would force her to redo the job fearing reprisal if the job was left half-assed. They were boring and menial tasks but at least they were inside, where others were forced to work on the garden under the scalding sun. Andrea went about them with a frown and always alert to see if there was any chance to add resources to her escape plan. It was almost impossible under the scrutinizing look of the other servants and the guards that always walked with them to ensure they took nothing or tried nothing.


At the end of the day, during dinner, she once more attempted to talk to the other servants, this time about more mundane subjects and they seemed more amiable, but again as soon as she asked anything that might be considered rebellious they turned away and shut down completely. Andrea grew to resent them and slowly distanced herself from them as the days went by. She would immerse herself in her task during the day to pass them as quickly as possible and during the night she would plan her escape or look for new ways to ensure her freedom once more.