Worldofbaalos

I had noted several bond slaves working on the plantation. Knowing such slaves were meant for the house not the fields, I remarked to my friend, the lashmaster. "A bout of sweating sickness meant we were short at harvest so those house wenches are to work in the fields and kitchens. You like the look of her? Her bond is due in a matter of weeks but the old father cannot pay so she'll be stripped and branded" I looked over the wench. A peasants daughter who might find enslavement preferable to starvation. Our Sultan was wise in letting the poorest of his citizens make money for unwanted second or third daughters. It was commonly known that no peasant could ever pay back the bond and losing another mouth to feed was a bonus The bond slave works the field alongside the stripped and branded stock

That year I travelled widely across the plantations of the Great Delta where owners grow crops for the cities. It was the end of the long day measuring the lands of one owner that I came upon a gang of field slaves picking stones from the fields so the iron of the plough didn't shatter. A slave picks stones from the fields in the falling light of the daylight suns I watched how the slaves worked the fields doing the back breaking work under the watchful eye of the field lashmaster.  I had grown to know this man who seeing me spying the work of his slaves, beckoned me over.  I cam towards him as he bellowed for one of the slaves to come forward. She was a fine piece of flesh, hardened and tanned from long days toiling in the fields.  The field slave worked towards me, her skin catching the evening rays "Down slut", he barked and she fell to her knees, her hands behind her head.  "You may relax with her first, sir. She has the stren...

My family fortune lost I had gone into trade My profession was a surveyor, travelling Baalos on behalf of my clients and to assess their purchases of land and assets. These ranged from mines to plantations to mills and the slaves employed there. It was my task to count and judge the value of the assets in the flesh so to speak. Few wealthy owners enjoyed travelling from the great cities into the interiors where their investments were. Travel was unpleasant in the heat of Baalos and there was little comfort at your journey's end. So that is how I found myself at the plantation of the Sagro family, watching the gangs of field slaves toil at the harvest. The slaves seemed healthy and little marked from the lash. The overseer told me many were bred on the plantation though new stock had had to be acquired when the sweating sickness struck a season ago. I took it upon myself to assess one or more of slaves and had the overseer bring several wenches to me. Raising my pomade to ...