Chapter 56

Night Bath

Egad's Castle

Bath House

8:00 PM...

Galen lounged in the bathing pool with Egad and the rest of the Elite Gallery, as well as Mick, Xen, Symon, and the rescued couple of Anthony and Alak. Galen watched as Anthony and Alak sat next to Egad, Amon, Symon, and Jet. Egad and Anthony were talking, getting to know each other better. That, and Egad was having to clear up a lot of misconceptions and lies that Cailus had said about him.

"...So, when you condition your slaves, you make it a point not to use painful methods, and instead focus on conditioning them with intense, sexual pleasure while in bondage?" Anthony asked. "...And even when you take slaves off to auction, you make it a point to go through a specific auctioneer branch that has the bidders go through a background check and polygraph scan, as well as sign a contract to make sure they will not be abusive to their subjects that they are buying?"

Egad nodded. "Yes. Me and the coven put too much work, blood, sweat, tears, and love into conditioning just to let them go to a cruel and sadistic owner in the end. Another way in which I am a total opposite of your father. I hope that last sentence didn't offend..."

"Not at all." Anthony said. "To be honest, you and I agree on a lot of things about my father. You would be surprised how similar we are, even in his view. I've overheard him multiple times bitching to his so-called friends about me and how my attitude and philosophy is a mirror of yours. Now that I am getting to know the whole story, I'm taking dad saying that as a compliment now, rather than a put-down."

"Agreed." Alak smiled, rubbing Athony's head gently as he scratched behind his ears with loving care, causing the dober-fox to close his eyes and let out a murr. "I must also say, this castle setup is very extravagant. Here, it is like you and the coven are in your own righteous, loving kingdom. I find it very romantic."

"Thank you, Alak." Egad said. "To be honest, though, the castle wasn't always this nice. I first purchased it after Jet offered himself in my service. That was about six months after Chaos and Hatred were under the Coven's wing, and I knew we would need a large residence. Jet was actually the one who helped me plan out the castle's renovations."

Galen raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. If I may ask, master... What was the castle like before?"

Egad sighed, smiling. "Two words: Dusty and Barren. Shortly after I bought the castle and land, I took a trip here with Zarch, Chaos, Hatred, Amon, and Jet. After doing a quick walk through, Jet asked if he could help me with some renovation ideas. After we got back to the inn we were staying at, he helped me draw out additions to the floor plan. I hired a crew of workers, and as they say, the rest is history."

"Cool." Alak nodded, then grimaced as he gripped one of his shoulders.

"You okay?" Uniko asked.

"Yeah... My shoulder's just a little sore after the incident that led to me and Anthony being bagged in Mick's car."

Tommy carefully walked over. "May I take a look? I was studying universal massage techniques before Cailus captured me and my family, and after being rescued and brought into Master Egad's coven, I've been looking up more information on computers."

Alak turned to Anthony, who nodded. "Sure, go ahead, Tommy." Alak nodded as he scooted up slightly on the bath bench.

Tommy then carefully got behind Alak, sitting at the shark's back while running his fingers across his shoulders and back with slight pressure, feeling him out for tense areas. "Hmm... You're holding a lot of tension in both your scapular muscles, specifically your trapezioids and rhombroids. The tension feels worse on the left side than on the right."

Symon, who was sitting next to Anthony and Alak, nodded as he watched. "Impressive, Tommy. From what I can see from here, I concur with that diagnosis."

Anthony turned to Symon. "So, you know about medical stuff, too?"

"Yep." Symon nodded. "I was a renowned doctor in the Lylat Wars, though right now I don't want to go into detail. Just relax, and let Tommy do his thing."

Tommy then proceeded to massage Alak's sore shoulders and upper back, using a combination of long and smooth strokes, gentle kneading, and rolling his hands and fingers into Alak's muscles, working the tension away. Alak moaned softly as Tommy did this. Combined with the relaxing heat and steam from the water, Alak felt the tension in his back and shoulders melt.

"Mmmmm... Your technique is very good, Tommy." Alak complimented. "Your fingers feel magical."

"Thank you, Alak." Tommy smiled. "It's good to hear I haven't lost my touch for this. The patrons I gave my treatments to under the studies of my teachers gave me similar praise. Even my parents, Bishop and Gareth said I did good."

"That you did, Tommy." Bishop agreed. "Though I do remember you saying that I was one of your more challenging patients, due to how solid my skin and muscle mass is. You viewed it as a personal challenge, as well as a learning experience."

Anthony looked at Bishop for a few moments. "If I may ask, Bishop... How solid is your skin and muscle?"

"Let me put it this way: When my nipples are hard and standing on end, they can rip through wooden boards." Bishop said.

Anthony blushed at that answer, the image embedding itself into his brain. "...I see." Anthony turned back to Jet. "So, you helped uncle with the castle's renovations?"

"Yep." Jet said. "Even though master was a very experienced, well...Master by the point I was brought in, he admitted he wasn't a very good building planner. That, and he wanted to make sure the castle was comfortable and nice for future members, as well as accommodating. So, I gladly offered my help and knowledge."

Egad nodded. "Indeed. To be honest, I couldn't draw out a proper floor plan to save my life, I'm afraid. In fact, Jet was helping me do some new designs for the Tarion III Villa when Mick called and informed us of your situation."

Anthony smiled. "In that case, I am glad the coven is offering it's talents in your service. I assume everyone here serves a special role for your needs, as well as each other?"

Egad nodded. "Amon is the head of the dungeons, and conditioning. Chaos is the leader of the castle's guard and security. Hatred and a small team maintains the guard's weapons and armor, as well as personal ones. Zarch and Uniko are talented chefs, and lead the cooks in the kitchen with meals. Galen, Bishop, and Gareth are very talented and effective bodyguards. Also, when your father captured me, Galen, Uniko, and Zhal proved themselves to be very effective infiltrators. As for Silva and Eli, I haven't got to know them well enough to point out any specific talents they have, but I am looking forward to finding out."

Silva scratched the back of his head. "...Well, after Galen went into your service five years ago, I became a talented private investigator. I actually helped crack a couple tough cases with corrupt applicants for Mel'Andrea's new guard captain."

"As for me... Even though I have no solid memory of it, I recall how to mix fancy drinks and beverages, for both pure alcohol and sythenol." Eli said.

Egad nodded with a smile. "Thank you for sharing that with us. Silva, I believe your talents will prove extremely helpful in these times, especially with my brother's future plots. As for you Eli, I now look forward to trying one of you synthehol cocktails this evening."

"It would be my pleasure, Master." Eli said with a happy grin.

"Likewise." Silva agreed. "Perhaps I could even tell you and the coven some of my old cases. I can recall a few that were quite exciting."

# # # # #

Slave Quarters

9:00 PM

Egad walked with the gallery into the slave quarters, ready to reveal Bishop, Gareth, Tommy, Silva, Codec, and Eli's new beds. Jet then revealed his bed, uncloaking it from a stealth field.

"Well, that explains why I never saw it before..." Galen said as Jet's bed materialized. Jet's bed screamed "Hacker-Cyberpunk." His bed frame, nightstand, and dresser were adored with computer chip boards, covered in transparent cases. His nightstand and a drawer in his dresser also housed a terminal that connected to both the castle's data center and the supercomputers in the Citadel room, setup with bio-metrics for the fennec. Some of the pathways on the chip boards even lit up with a soft glow that could be switched off at the press of a button.

As for Codec's bed, dresser, and nightstand, it was adorned in the same manner as the Cyberntetic being's ancient Egyptian outfit. However, there were hints of his link to technology as well: The bedframe, nightstand, and dresser were adorned in a sandstone paint, with gold hieroglyphics and mana symbols carved in. Codec also had an enclosed candle on his nightstand, as well as a terminal on the nightstand that also connected to the castle's data center and supercomputers. The hieroglyphs even glowed, similar to the circuit boards on Jet's bed, also controlled by a switch.

Bishop and Gareth, who were informed would share a bed due to their status as a bonded couple, smiled as they looked upon their bed, double-dresser, and nightstand. The bed frame had the appearance of being made of smooth stone, reminding Bishop of the Aryndo temples on Sepharth. The double-dresser and nightstand were made of gray-stained oak, and next to the lamp on the nightstand was a complete set of books on the Aryndo faith. The bed looked big enough to fit three people of their size as well.

Tommy expressed great joy when he saw his bed: The frame, dresser, and nightstand were made of strong pinewood, with an outdoors-man look for the sheets and bedding. Tommy's bed, nightstand, and dresser also had built-in planters that were self-sustaining for the flora they bore: Vines with fancy blossoms ran from the planter on his dresser, and the planter at the base of his bed held a variety of scented flowers from his home planet. The Nightstand also had a base planter attached to it, bearing a Japanese sakura tree with limbs that extended slightly over his bed.

Silva's bed was similar to Galen's, made of fine oak. But his had a difference in theme. Silva's nightstand was adorned with an adjustable desk lamp, as well as some basic detective items: A magnifying glass, a notepad with pencil and pen, a digital camera, and a roll of scotch tape for taking fingerprints, as well as a basic detective scanner.

Eli was also happy when he saw his bed: It was adorned in a style of "High-End Las Vegas Bartender/Gambler" theme. The bed frame, dresser, and nightstand were made of dark-stained mahogany wood. The bed, adorned with light-gray bedding, also had black leather cushions built into the headboard. Also, the nightstand housed a fold-out mini bar, complete with the necessary utensils and mixing cup, and a few bottles of sythehol, and glasses for everyone in the room. To complete the look, Eli's lamp was a mini-replica of the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign.

After expressing their happiness of the beds to Master Egad and Eli making a cocktail for everyone, fatigue started to set in. Egad then bid everyone good night, and left the room with Anthony and Alak as the Elite Gallery tucked themselves in for the night, drifting off into sleep.