Disclaimer: With the exception of original characters created by the authors, all characters belong to Universal Studios, MCA, or Pacific Renaissance Productions. Yes, we're using them without permission, but we're writing this for love, not for money, so I trust no one will get uptight about it.
Note from Euphonius on FOR LOVE OF STEEL and JUSTICE
If anyone has read the other Euphonius stories, please note that these two stories do not take place in the same universe as the ones written by Euphonius alone.
It was JJ's idea to include my character in FOR LOVE OF STEEL, and I liked it so much that we decided to collaborate on the sequel, JUSTICE. However, the events of these stories didn't fit with the rest of what I had written about Euphonius, so the only way for it to make sense was to look at it as an entirely different version of his life.
My thanks to JJ, for showing me new ways of looking at my character. And at myself.
JUSTICE
by JJ and Euphonius
As Herc and Iolaus got into Corinth, they were amazed at the activity in the streets. It was supposed to be a big festival but they weren't expecting anything of this magnitude.
"Do you think Iphicles wants us here for security?" the hunter asked, as he slung his sword over his shoulder.
"No, I don't think so," Hercules responded. "He said something about needing us for a problem. Sounded pretty present tense, and that was a week and a half ago."
"Well, since our last visit --" Iolaus let the sentence die away.
"It isn't every day that I borrow fifteen pieces of gold to buy you back, lover," Hercules murmured in the blond's ear.
"I really didn't appreciate Iph's comment about owning part of my ass, you know," came the smart response.
Hercules smiled. "Well, who wouldn't want to own at least part of it, after all?"
"Get in the castle," Iolaus ordered good-naturedly, shoving the demigod through the gate.
Later, in the king's private chambers, Iphicles looked very unkingly slouched with his shirt open and a leg kicked over the arm of the chair. In fact, he reminded Iolaus remarkably of Ares.
As the king described the nature of his problem, the hunter felt a small shiver of distaste creep up his spine.
"Slavers!" Hercules exclaimed. "You want us to go after slavers?"
"Uh-huh. They're brazen as the day is long, too," Iphicles said, leaning his head against the back of the chair. "The people are screaming for me to do something before the festival."
"What have you done so far?" Iolaus asked from the side of the room. He kept his voice calm and business-like. He had no problems dealing with this. No, of course not.
"Sat here and watched 25 of my citizens be hauled off at night," the King replied irritably.
"Iphicles," Hercules warned, knowing his brother was half-toasted.
"Well, it was a stupid question," he responded. "What do you think I've done? I've sent out guards and posted a reward. The usual stuff." He shrugged. "No results."
"Okay, here's what we're going to do. Iolaus, you stay here. Iph and I will go out and see what we can find."
"Why do you want me to stay behind?!" the blond cried. He didn't like the way Hercules excluded him so matter-of-factly.
"Do you really want to get around slavers?"
"I have no problem with it!" The hunter had risen to his feet and now faced the demigod. Iphicles snorted, but one look from Hercules silenced him.
"I want you to stay here," he repeated carefully, seeing the look of rebellion on Iolaus' face. "Keep an eye out around Corinth. You know the kinds of things to look for."
"He sure does!" the King put in.
"Shut up, Iphicles!" Iolaus gritted out. His control over his temper was fraying rapidly.
"Iph, cut it out. I don't need you causing problems. Get a small contingent of men together to head out tomorrow morning."
Hercules wrapped an arm around Iolaus' waist, drawing him out of the king's chambers before he could argue the matter further. "Come on, buddy. Let's get settled in and find something to eat. We can talk about this later. Right now, I'm hungry."
The next morning, Iolaus watched with a dark frown on his face as the other two men rode out of the gates of the castle. His anger had not abated and the private discussion he and Hercules had had last night hadn't helped matters at all. Iolaus knew full well that his lover was only being protective of him, but he wasn't a child and he hated it when Herc did that. So what if he'd had a bad experience with slavery just a couple of months ago? Okay, so it had been a very bad experience, and he still had the occasional nightmare about it. But that didn't mean he couldn't deal with this present problem. Herc had no business treating him like this.
As he stood there watching the others ride away, Iolaus thought back to what his lover had said last night, when they had finally been alone and Iolaus had challenged his decision.
"After what happened with Aquilla," Hercules had explained, sounding overbearingly reasonable, "I just don't want to take the chance of you having a hard time with this."
Iolaus stopped pacing and faced the other man. "Aquilla kept slaves, but he wasn't a slaver. I can handle this. And I have no intention of hanging around here while you go out to face danger."
"Iolaus, I will not take that chance. Period. This discussion is over."
But it wasn't. In fact they had argued most of the night about it, until Hercules had finally reasserted his position, tossed the hunter onto the bed and tortured him unmercifully until he agreed to stop griping about it.
Iolaus smiled at that part of the memory. Talk about your sweet torture!
Then he shook his head. Well, he had agreed to stay behind, so here he was. At least the festival started tonight, so he would be able to keep himself occupied. Who knows, maybe he'd even have a bit of fun while he was at it. Yeah, that would be good. Serve Herc right, the big spoilsport! And meanwhile, there was plenty of ale and good food to be had here at Iph's court. He determined to take full advantage of the opportunity. And if a little voice in the back of his mind insisted on telling him he was actually happier not to be out chasing slavers, because it really wasn't something that he wanted to face just yet -- Well, that little voice could easily be dissolved in a sufficient amount of alcohol.
So it was that the sun set on a rather drunk, but happy, hunter. He headed for the streets of the city, which were already filling with revelers, reflecting cheerfully that this was actually much better than scouring the countryside with Iphicles all day, and then sleeping on the cold hard ground. Screw Hercules, let him go chase slavers! Iolaus was going to have some fun.
"Watch out, Corinth. Here I come!" the hunter announced with an evil smile.
In a small temple on the outskirts of the city, Euphonius stood before the statue of the mostly-naked young man with a pair of wings sprouting from his back and bowed before his altar.
"Cupid, God of Love and Passion, hear my prayer," the mortal whispered earnestly. "Ever since that unsettling encounter I had with Aquilla several months ago, terrible thoughts have been running through my head. I don't understand myself anymore. I'm not sure what I want." He raised his eyes, looking up at the handsome statue. Then he shook his head. "I'm not even sure what I want from you, but you seemed like the right god to ask, since this certainly does deal with love, or at least desire." He sighed, then looked around, making sure no one else was around. "I want to know why the memory of the blond slave chained to the bed keeps haunting me. I want to know why I enjoyed having sex with his master so much, even though Aquilla scared me half to death and I'm lucky I got out of there when I did. I don't want to be someone's slave. What's the matter with me? Why can't I just forget all this?"
The gem merchant reached into the pouch at his belt and took out an emerald pendant. The sea-green jewel had been cut in the shape of a teardrop and hung from a heavy gold chain. He placed the pendant on the altar.
"Please, Cupid. Grant me understanding," he whispered softly. His lips curled into an apologetic smile as he added, "Oh, and while you're at it, how about a few good sales at the festival?" He nodded meaningfully at the very expensive pendant he had laid on the altar. "I'm a little short of dinars just now, you know."
The merchant looked around, bowed somewhat self-consciously to the altar, and then left to continue on his way to Corinth.
"Well, at least he has good taste in jewelry," came a voice. "Oh, if Mom or Uncle Hercules finds out about this -- I am going to be in a world of trouble." Cupid materialized and picked up the necklace. "But it was a petition, and it was made to me. Therefore, it's all mine." He started to laugh. "And if Sweetcheeks gets involved, so much the better." His laugh echoed around the empty temple as the young god, too long treated as a mere godling, disappeared.
Much to Euphonius' delight, the second half of his prayer seemed to have been answered quickly. He sat in the crowded tavern, cheerfully counting the money before him. Business had been only average, until that last customer had come by his table and purchased a nice little pair of diamond earrings. The woman hadn't seemed exactly the type for such expensive jewelry, but she had had the cash and had even agreed to his price after very little bargaining. She had been fairly drunk, but that wasn't his affair. After all, everyone at the festival was pretty soused by now. Euphonius had had a few himself and he was feeling the effects of the alcohol as he gazed around the tavern.
As he brushed the last dinar off the table and into his pouch, he decided this was going to be the night when he got lucky. Somewhere in Corinth, there had to be another man as horny as he was. Probably lots of them, in fact. He intended to find one, and lose himself in sex and lust. Enough of this wondering, remembering, and trying to figure out his motivations! Screw Aquilla, and screw the slave who kept haunting his memory! Tonight he would forget about both of them. Tonight he would enjoy himself.
He glanced around the tavern, hoping for some likely prospects. The most gorgeous man there was a rather drunk blond, but he was flirting outrageously with one of the barmaids, who sat on his knee, her dress pulled almost down off her shoulder, exposing her more than ample bosom. The man, who was trying to drink over her shoulder, 'accidentally' spilled mead into her cleavage and then tried to retrieve it with his tongue, apologizing profusely for being so clumsy. The barmaid didn't seem to have a problem with his clumsiness. It was pretty obvious to the gem merchant that they'd be heading for one of the private rooms, sooner or later.
He sighed. Pity. The man was a real looker, even if he didn't appear to be any taller than Euphonius himself. Not precisely his type, but still, not bad. Come to think of it, that barmaid was fairly attractive also. He wouldn't mind having her, as long as the blond were part of the deal.
He was still smiling vaguely at his thoughts of what he could do with both of them when he was abruptly jerked to his feet by a large hand clutching the front of his tunic.
"Are you the son-of-a-bitch who sold my wife these earrings?" demanded the truly huge person whose face was now only inches from Euphonius' own. Then the offending pieces of jewelry were thrust in front of his eyes.
"Uh - yeah," the merchant said, trying to gather his wits together. "Is something wrong?"
The tavern had gotten very quiet as everyone watched the drama unfolding before them.
"You bet something's wrong! She had no business spending my money on such frippery."
"Look, she bought them fair and square. If you have a problem with this --"
"I have a problem, all right. I want my money back."
"It wasn't your money --"
The hand holding the tunic twisted tighter. "Yeah, it was. And you're going to give it back to me, little man. With interest."
"Now, wait a minute-"
A large fist landed in Euphonius' gut, and he doubled over on the floor, trying desperately to breathe.
"The money, merchant."
Then another voice broke in on the scene. "Leave him alone," it said calmly.
"Who's gonna make me?"
"I am."
Euphonius looked up to see the man he had been admiring standing over him, smiling a challenge and making a 'come-on' gesture at the furious lout who had punched him. He really didn't want to see the guy get the shit beaten out of him.
"No," he gasped. "Don't. I'll give back the money --"
But they both ignored him, the big man charging with an angry shout at the smaller man who had dared to interfere in his business. Euphonius watched in amazement as the blond wiped up the floor with the other man, ending up standing over him with the big man's arm pulled up and twisted at a painful-looking angle behind his back.
"Still want to make trouble?" the little warrior asked, seeming as if he were enjoying himself hugely. There was a small cut on his cheek trickling blood, but other than that, he was unmarked.
The man on the floor shook his head.
"Then get out of here," the blond ordered, releasing his grip.
"No, wait," Euphonius said, pulling himself to his feet. The two men turned to him curiously. "I did get rather a high price for the earrings," he admitted, with an unhappy shrug. "Fair's fair. If you still want your money back, I'll give it to you."
The big man also got to his feet, straightening his clothing and looking around uncertainly. His eye was bruised and swollen almost closed, and blood ran from his nose. "Well, I'd be much obliged," he began, carefully polite as he kept one eye on the blond. "The wife was pretty drunk. And we really don't have that much spare cash."
Euphonius took the dinars from his belt pouch and began counting out the purchase price. "Here," he said.
"Thanks," the other man replied, holding out the glittering earrings.
Euphonius sighed and dropped them into his pouch, tucking it away under his tunic. Then he looked up at the man who had saved him from a beating.
His benefactor had his head cocked to one side and was regarding him quizzically. "You didn't have to do that, you know."
The gem merchant smiled. "And you didn't have to interfere, did you?"
"No, I guess not." He smiled in turn, and his smile brought sunlight into the dark corners of Euphonius' heart.
"Can I buy you a drink?" the merchant offered hopefully.
"Depends."
"On what?"
"Whether you've got any money left?"
Euphonius laughed. "I always have money to buy an unknown benefactor a drink," he replied with heavy inflection, hoping this pretty young man would understand that he was ready to offer far more than alcohol. The more he saw of him, the more he liked him. And the more he wanted him.
The other man stared at him for a moment, laughed in his turn, and then placed a hand casually on the merchant's shoulder. "You can buy me a drink, my friend," he said softly.
Euphonius decided to continue the joking turn their conversation had taken. "That's good, because I think I owe you for keeping me from being seriously hurt." He gestured towards the door. "You're a handy person to have around."
"I have my talents," the blond replied, lighting the room up with that smile again. "Sell anything else today? If you did, I could hang around to make sure no one else tries to make you part of the woodwork?"
"And what will that cost me?" the gem merchant asked, still hoping the conversation was taking place on more than merely a surface level.
"Just keep my glass full."
"You've got a deal. I'm glad you aren't too expensive, because I seriously doubt I've got enough money to buy someone like you," Euphonius added jokingly.
A strange look crossed the the other man's face, then he recovered quickly, sitting down at the table and waving to the barmaid.
The merchant slid into place next to him, very pleased with the way things were going. "By the way," he said, "my name's Euphonius."
"Iolaus," the warrior replied easily. "Pleased to meet you."
Not nearly as pleased as I am to meet you, Euphonius thought. And I'm hoping to get to know you a lot better, real soon. But all he did was smile, and pick up the cup of ale that was placed in front of him.
They sat there for several hours, drinking, laughing, and telling stories. Euphonius didn't know whether or not to believe the other man's stories, but he had to admit that he sure made them sound real. But Hercules? Nah. The merchant had heard a few tales of the demigod's exploits, but none of them included a sidekick.
"Let's go out and join the party," Iolaus slurred, after downing a number of tankards of ale.
The gem merchant hadn't had quite as much to drink as the man before him, intentionally. And he decided to turn the conversation in a different direction. "I have a better idea. Let's find you a room."
"Nah, I'm staying at the castle and I don't want to go back there. Not right now, at least. I want to have fun." The blond stood up, albeit unsteadily, and started towards the door.
Euphonius followed him, cheerfully determined not to lose track of his fascinating companion, while at the same time wondering if he was really staying at the king's castle, or if that was just one more of his tall tales.
As they left the tavern, Iolaus slung an arm over his shoulder, and together they staggered into the crowd of people. Soon, with revellers pressing flasks into both of their hands and women running around flirting outrageously with both of them, and the blond's amazing ability to talk people out of free food and drink, they were both intoxicated and staggering merrily around the streets of Corinth.
At one point in time, Iolaus was standing in front of Euphonius, shaking a finger at him, weaving back and forth in time with his finger. Or maybe it was the gem merchant who was weaving. Oh, who really cared? Euphonius simply enjoyed looking at the man in front of him.
He was also trying to comprehend what Iolaus was saying. He figured he was absorbing about every third word, but it seemed to have something to do with why the world would be better off without gods.
Two men, who had been amicably trying to kill each other, ran around a corner and smack into the blond, knocking him squarely into the merchant. Euphonius caught hold of his companion, more out of sheer instinct and self-defense than anything else, but he lost his footing and went over backwards.
His head bounced off the hard-packed street, and he saw stars. But when the stars faded away, he felt the warm body of the man he had been unsuccessfully trying to seduce all night long lying full-length on top of him.
Iolaus looked a bit puzzled as he raised his head and stared down at the merchant, but he didn't jump up immediately. Instead, he smiled again.
That was simply too much for Euphonius. Putting one hand behind the other man's head, he drew him down until their lips touched and kissed him soundly, hoping he wouldn't end up with a fist in his face for his efforts.
Far more drunk than he wanted to be, Iolaus wasn't quite sure what was going on at first. Then he broke off the kiss abruptly and looked down at Euphonius.
"Are you okay?" came a questioning inquiry from the gem merchant. And, when he failed to answer right away, "Iolaus?"
"Uh, yeah." Iolaus rolled off the other man and sat up. "What in Hades just happened?"
"Uh, I kissed you." Euphonius caught the less-than-pleased look from the hunter and went on brightly, "Oh, before that, two guys came around the corner and you were in the way. I sort of caught you."
Euphonius sat up also, somewhat ashamed of the fact that he had probably just made a colossal fool of himself in the other man's eyes, and also none too happy over the wet muck that he felt clinging to the back of his clothing.
"Oh," came the dazed answer.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. By the way, I don't really mind the kiss, but there's someone else in my life."
Euphonius' heart sank as he forced himself to come up with a somewhat shame-faced smile. He was dying to ask whether that someone else was male or female, but didn't dare push the subject just then. "Sorry. I couldn't resist."
"Uh, that's okay. I guess." Iolaus waved one hand in a vague gesture, as if he were trying to wipe the alcohol-induced cobwebs from his brain.
"Hey, are you sure you're all right?" the gem merchant asked, studying the other man.
"Yeah, never better." This time his words held an edge of annoyance. "Stop babying me. You know I hate it when you do that."
That didn't make a whole lot of sense to Euphonius. He looked closely into the hunter's eyes. "Did you hit your head when they knocked you down?"
"When who knocked me down? And why are we sitting in the middle of the street?" The hunter tried to focus his gaze, then frowned blearily.
"Okay, I think you've had about enough to drink. Time for you to go to bed," Euphonius said, hauling the other man to his feet. "I'm staying at an inn not far from here. You need to rest." Iolaus pulled away slightly, so the merchant added, "Unless you want to go back to the palace?"
"Palace? Uh-uh."
"Then come on." Euphonius dragged one arm over his shoulder and wrapped his other arm around Iolaus' waist, guiding him through the crowded streets until they came to a rundown tavern in a less-than-desirable part of town. He'd wanted to stay someplace nicer, but by the time he'd arrived, this was all he could find. As he crossed the common room and climbed the stairs, a couple of very disreputable men stared rather sharply at the two of them. Euphonius scowled in their direction, trying his best to look fierce and intimidating.
By the time he reached his room, he was panting from the exertion of half-carrying the other man around.
"You're heavier than you look, my friend," he remarked, dropping Iolaus on the bed. The blond curled up on his side, grabbed a pillow, hugged it and rapidly began to snore softly. Euphonius pulled off the sleeping man's boots and vest, and considered removing his pants as well, then decided against it.
He sat down on the bed, reaching out to touch the golden hair gently. Gods, but Iolaus was beautiful! Just looking at him made him hard.
"Euphonius, you asshole, get a grip," he chided himself under his breath, shifting uncomfortably. "You don't know anything about this guy, not really. Why do you want him so much?"
He had no answer to give himself. Iolaus just lay there, sound asleep and oblivious to everything. Euphonius ran his hand through the curly hair again, and then he pulled it back, before it could even begin to stray further down the other man's body. He sighed. It would be so easy -- no, damnit! Iolaus had essentially refused his invitation, because he already had a lover, so it would be a betrayal of the other man's trust to take advantage of him while he was asleep.
He wondered again about that lover. Maybe it was a man, since he hadn't exactly said wife. And all those stories he had told about him and Hercules. Could it be --?
Euphonius shook his head. Nah, not likely.
But still --
"Aw, shit," Euphonius whispered softly. Brushing a lock of hair back from the sleeping man's face, he leaned over and kissed him gently on the forehead. Standing up, he pulled the dingy quilt at the foot of the bed over the blond, then changed out of his own muddy tunic, stuffing the pouch that held his stock of jewelry into the middle of the dirty clothes. Not the best hiding place in the world, but it was out of plain sight. After that, he lowered himself disgustedly into a battered old chair near the window.
"Euphonius, you gods-forsaken idiot," he addressed himself again, "not only do you manage to hook up with a man who's currently on sabbatical from his lover, but you also manage to give him your bed." He shook his head. "Beat up, lost a sale, sleeping in a chair, and no sex. That will teach you to pray to gods. Ha! You were right, Iolaus; we're better off without them." He saluted the man asleep in his bed and tried to arrange himself comfortably in the lumpy chair.
Sleep was awhile in coming, but with it came a strange dream.
A beautiful young man stood before him, white wings spread wide. His body was bronzed, and he leaned against a large bow in relaxed fashion, fluttering his wings slightly.
"So you'd be better off without us?" the god asked, an ironic smile on his handsome face. "We shall see, little man. And here I thought I was doing you a favor." Laughter filled the room as the beautiful young man disappeared.
Euphonius slowly opened his gritty eyes against the stabbing pain of a hangover the approximate size of Mount Olympus. The memory of that weird dream still clung to his mind. He groaned and covered his face with one hand, shielding himself from the bright sunlight coming in the window. It took a moment or two for the events of the previous evening to fight their way through his aching head, but when they did, he sat up and looked over at the man in his bed.
Iolaus was lying on his stomach, legs spread, his face turned away at an angle so that all Euphonius could see was his mop of unruly hair.
"By the gods!" the merchant exclaimed softly. Iolaus almost appeared to be glowing as the morning sun played over his half-naked body. A wave of nausea washed over Euphonius, along with another really terrible feeling, the sort of feeling you'd get if you suddenly realized that you had just fucked up bigtime.
Euphonius shook his head slightly. He had done nothing to justify such a feeling, and certainly nothing that should have made his heart pound and his breath catch in his throat. Nothing except look at Iolaus. That was easily enough to take his breath away, but not quite like this.
The merchant shifted his head slightly. It was something about the way the other man was lying there, and the angle --
The memory flashed into his mind in one fell swoop. The golden-haired slave facedown on the bed, asleep, his arms chained behind him, while his owner stood next to the merchant in the doorway, gloating. Aquilla had only allowed Euphonius that one quick glimpse before taking the merchant back to his own bed and screwing him thoroughly and roughly. He had never even seen the slave's face.
"Aw, shit, no," he gasped softly.
A few moments later, Iolaus lifted his head, groaned and looked around.
"Euphonius?" he asked with one eye still closed. The gem merchant just stared as the hunter slowly sat up, cradling his head. "Euphonius!" he said again a little louder, followed by another groan. "What happened last night?"
"You had far too much to drink, then got your bell rung by two guys having a fight," Euphonius said dully.
"Is that when you kissed me?"
"Yeah."
Iolaus glanced down at himself and then at the gem merchant, taking in the fact that they both had their clothes on. "We didn't do anything, did we?" He shifted slightly and decided that, no, they hadn't. That was a relief. Then he really noticed the other man, and the freaked-out expression on his face. "What's wrong? You look as if you've seen a ghost."
"I -- may have," the merchant said, forcing the words past dry lips.
Iolaus said nothing, merely tilted his head quizzically.
Okay, Euphonius asked himself, should he try to find out, or just let it be? The slave could've been someone who just happened to look like Iolaus. No, he had to know.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"Does the name Aquilla mean anything to you?"
Iolaus' eyes, which had been half-closed, shot open, and he winced almost as if he were in physical pain. Euphonius didn't need anything but the panic showing in the blond's eyes to know that he had been right.
"You were his slave, weren't you?" the merchant persisted.
Iolaus felt himself go pale and then flush. "How did you know that?" he demanded.
"Do you remember being chained up in the room off his bedroom, and hearing him having sex with another man?"
Iolaus nodded. Oh, he remembered that incident very well. That had been the day he had finally given himself over to Aquilla. "Yeah," he whispered, memories filtering back into his mind all too vividly now. His own shame and frustration, the voices -- Oh, gods!
"You were that other man?" Iolaus asked in a shocked whisper.
Euphonius nodded, biting his lip.
"Oh, shit!" Iolaus stood up and started backing away. He had to get out of here.
"No, wait, please," Euphonius begged. "It's all right. I'm no friend of Aquilla's."
"You expect me to believe that? Where is he? If he's here, I've got to get out of Corinth." He grabbed his boots and started to pull them on. "Oh, great! And Hercules is off scouring the countryside with Iphicles!"
"Honestly, I have nothing to do with Aquilla! You've got to believe me! I swear, I just sold him a blue sapphire, that's all. It was a business deal."
The hunter looked up, then asked, "A sapphire a little bigger than my thumb, oval, almost the color of my eyes?"
"Yes, that's it," Euphonius replied, glad that the other man was finally listening to him.
"Yeah, one of the pieces of jewelry he made me wear. Nice try!" Iolaus snagged up his vest and headed for the door.
"No, please. I tried to get you out of there."
"Why should I believe you?" the hunter asked scornfully.
"Because I'm telling the truth." Euphonius stood and took a step towards Iolaus, but saw the man tense. He froze where he was, protesting his innocence, the words tumbling over one another in his haste to reassure the hunter. "If I worked for Aquilla, wouldn't you have seen me at some other point in time? I swear, I ran into him on the road. He wanted the sapphire, but asked that I come to his house to collect the money for it. So I did." He paused, too ashamed to admit the full extent of the truth, how he had been willing to use his own body to clinch the sale. "Aquilla -- showed you to me. He was a maniac. I -- I knew that. But I had sex with him, and yes, I knew you could hear us, but when he tried to take it further, I refused. He wanted me to hide, and watch him with you --" Tears of shame came to his eyes, but he fought to contain them. "Later on, I even tried to buy you with the money he had paid me for the sapphire."
"You were going to buy me for yourself?" The blue eyes turned hard and cold.
"No, no! I only wanted to set you free. Really. But Aquilla figured that out and laughed at me."
Iolaus considered for a moment, clearly still suspicious. "Is that why you brought me here last night?"
"No! You don't understand. Please listen. I never even saw your face at Aquilla's. I didn't recognize you until this morning, just a few minutes before you woke up, when you were lying on the bed in the same position I had seen you at his house." Euphonius took a few steps closer, heartened by the fact that Iolaus didn't back away this time. "Your image has haunted my dreams since that night. I can only imagine what you suffered at that man's hands. You'll never know how many times I wished I had done something other than run away."
"You really tried to buy me?"
"To the tune of one hundred and fifty dinars," Euphonius affirmed. "It was all I had with me." He shrugged. "Not that that means much, but I couldn't think of anything else to do. He threatened to keep me there, and I -- Aw shit, I'm not a hero. I tried, but when that didn't work and things got dangerous, I left. I got on my horse and rode away, and I have regretted it ever since, even though I don't know what else I could have done."
"At least you tried," Iolaus commented, relaxing a little more. "And you're right; there was no way you could have gotten me away from Aquilla. He was -- dangerous." He smiled tentatively. "Thank you for trying, anyway."
They both stood there awkwardly for a minute, until Iolaus said, "Look, I gotta go to the castle and let them know I'm okay and see if Hercules is back. Are you going to be here for a while?"
"Once my head stops pounding and I get cleaned up, I'll probably be at the festival trying to make some more sales." He smiled hopefully.
"Okay. Um, maybe I'll run into you later."
"Iolaus, I'm sorry, really I am."
"You tried. That's more than a lot of other people did." Iolaus stood by the door preparing to leave, his hand on the latch. When someone knocked loudly, he almost jumped out of his skin.
He and the merchant locked eyes, suspicion showing on the hunter's face. Iolaus stepped back and let Euphonius answer the knock, since it was supposed to be his room.
The innkeeper stood in the hall, shifting uncomfortably. "You're the gem merchant, right?"
Euphonius nodded, wondering what this was all about. He had paid in advance for a week, so he certainly didn't owe any more money.
The innkeeper held out a small leather pouch. "Here. This is for you."
"What is it? Why are you --?"
"Don't ask. Just take it." The other man glanced sideways, clearly scared half to death.
"All right." Frowning in puzzlement, Euphonius gathered the pouch into his hand. The innkeeper scuttled rapidly away.
"What on earth is going on?" Euphonius remarked.
Iolaus shrugged and shook his head. "Got me. Open it."
The merchant loosened the tie and dumped the contents of the pouch into his hand. They both stared in horror at the cornflower blue, gem-cut sapphire lying on his palm.
Euphonius swallowed against the nausea that threatened to overwhelm him. "Aquilla," he whispered faintly.
The blood drained from Iolaus' face and his eyes went wide. "I've gotta get out of here!" he exclaimed, reaching for the door.
"No, wait!" Euphonius made a grab for his shoulder, but the hunter was already running down the hall. Hastily stuffing the sapphire into the same dubious hiding place that concealed the rest of his jewelry, the merchant ran out after the other man.
Euphonius saw Iolaus swing around the corner at the bottom of the stairs and figured he was heading for the back door. He clambered down the stairs as fast as he could. Once he reached the main floor, he started to run. The back door was closed, but he hit it with all the momentum he could, heedless of any possible danger on the other side.
Iolaus had taken off in a sheer panic. All he really knew was he had to get out of there and he had to find Hercules. If Aquilla was here, he, Iolaus, was in danger. He raced out the back door, hoping Aquilla didn't have both entrances covered, because he hadn't brought any weapons with him to the festival.
As he opened the door and ran out, he noticed the rope a moment too late and went sprawling to the ground. He rolled quickly as someone tried to land on top of him, then came to his feet. The hunter was facing a very large, very ugly man with a scar running from his temple to his jaw, making his face frightening to look at.
The warrior dropped into a fighting stance. There were three of them. He could do this, he assured himself. Then, as the scarred man smiled, the door behind him opened with some force, knocking Iolaus forward into the advancing thug. The man reacted quickly, and swung his meaty fist upwards. Iolaus' world exploded to black.
Euphonius looked aghast at the crumpled man lying on the ground. Then a hand closed over his arm and he turned. All he saw was a hand swinging up toward his jaw.
Iolaus came to suddenly. He looked around for a moment and then leaped to his feet, sizing up his surroundings. Stone walls on three sides, with a small barred window, high up. The other wall was made of solid iron bars, with a locked door. Not good.
An anemic shaft of daylight slanted in from the narrow window, supplemented by flickering light from torches in the corridor beyond the barred door.
Euphonius lay against the other wall. The hunter checked quickly to be sure the gem merchant was all right. Except for a livid bruise on his face, he appeared unhurt.
Up until that moment, he had not put one and one together, but then Iolaus realized what had happened: Aquilla had found him and captured him.
He searched the cell again. This was his life, his freedom, and Hercules had no idea where he was. There had to be some way out.
The hunter tried to see as much of the corridor as he could through the bars. He tested the metal, pulling sideways, but there were cross bars and even if the metal were fatigued, it wasn't going to give much. He looked at himself and Euphonius, then shook his head. Even if he could force a small opening, they wouldn't be able to fit through. In anger, he turned from the door, once again trying to find a weak spot somewhere in the cell.
He was still looking when he heard a voice from behind him.
"Hello, pet. Been a while, hasn't it?"
He spun around to face the door, and the man lounging against the bars. "Cassius!"
"In the flesh." A mocking laugh. "Oh, the boss is going to be so happy when he gets here. He missed you."
"No, not again," Iolaus hissed, backing up despite himself.
"And the gem dealer too. He's pretty mad at that one also."
"So, Aquilla is a slaver now?" Iolaus asked scornfully.
"No, not him. But I've been doing some -- part time work on my own. You see, I know what the boss likes. When I find him a new toy, he pays me well."
"I won't do it, Cassius."
Cassius started laughing and said as he walked away, "You got no choice, pet."
Iolaus fought down his rising panic. This couldn't be happening, not again. He cursed himself for a fool. He hadn't checked back in at the castle; the people there only knew he went to the festival last night. Hercules was off with Iphicles, and he was in a cell somewhere, about to be given back to Aquilla.
"Iolaus, how do you do this to yourself?" he said softly, as he leaned his back against the cold stone wall and slid down in despair.
Euphonius chose that moment to groan and reach for his aching jaw.
Iolaus scooted over next to him. "Easy," he admonished, helping the older man to sit up.
Euphonius stared around the dimly-lighted cell. "Iolaus?" he said, voice wavering.
"Right here."
"Where are we?"
"I think we're being held in a slaver's house. Looks like a dungeon. Well, a cell, at least," he replied, helping the merchant to lean against the wall. "You okay?"
Euphonius touched the bruise on his chin and winced. "Just wonderful. Last time I felt this good was right before you beat up that huge lout in the tavern."
"Oh, it gets better. Cassius is here."
"Aquilla's man?"
Iolaus nodded. He watched Euphonius pale and stare blankly at the bars.
"It's times like this that I wonder why I ever decided to live on the road," he remarked.
"Same here, Euph."
"Please don't call me that," he protested, a shiver running down his spine. "I really hate it. Besides, the last person who tried to make my name into that particular abbreviation was Aquilla."
Iolaus nodded his understanding. "Sorry. Look, I checked and this cell is solid. We're going to have to think of something pretty clever if we expect to get out of here."
Euphonius shook his head. "Great. Got any bright ideas?"
"Well, create a diversion, blind side one of the guards, something like that. Get our hands on some weapons. Then at least we'd have a chance to fight our way out."
At the mention of weapons, Euphonius reached unobtrusively down inside the low suede boot on his right foot. Nope, no luck. His knife was gone, as he'd pretty much expected it to be.
"Iolaus, remember the big guy in the tavern?" The blond nodded. "Did I strike you as being an expert in unarmed combat?"
"Good point," the hunter conceded. "Okay, we'll work on it. But these are slavers, so the standard tricks probably won't work anyway. These guys know what they're doing, more than likely.
"Standard tricks?"
"Pretending like you're hurt, or something like that so they open the door, then surprise them when they come in. See, men in armies fall for things like that, because usually it's farmers protecting their king, or men who sell their swords. The smart ones, however, don't end up watching the prisoners. Slavers on the other hand, have a vested interest in their captives, so they don't tend to be quite as easy to beat." He patted Euphonius' leg and stood up. "I'll think about it."
"You do that. Meanwhile, I'll try not to make too much noise while I lie here and feel miserable."
Euphonius noticed the disgusted look on the hunter's face. Suddenly, that look hurt much more than his own bruised chin and aching body. Up until now, the whole situation had seemed somehow unreal, like a dream or a play or some adventure he'd read about in a scroll. As he watched Iolaus prowl around the cell, searching for any weakness, it became all too real. If Cassius was here, Aquilla would follow. If they didn't escape --
"Iolaus?" the merchant said softly, struggling to his feet.
"Yeah?" the other man replied distractedly, as he inspected the hinges on the door.
"What I said about not being able to fight? I'm not very big, I haven't got much in the way of muscle, I'm probably ten years older than you and have never been trained as a warrior, but I'm pretty good with a throwing knife and I can handle a rapier, although not a broadsword. That's not much, but if I can do anything --" He drew himself up a little straighter, then winced at the stiffness and assorted aches and pains in various places in his body. He simply wasn't as young as he used to be, and the previous night's activities had taken their toll. "Well, I'll do whatever I can. I'd rather be dead than be a slave to anyone, much less a man like Aquilla."
Iolaus came over and put one hand gently on the merchant's shoulder. He really wished the other man weren't there, since he had the distinct feeling that Aquilla would know how to use Euphonius against him. "I'll keep that in mind," he said gently. "Why don't you just sit down and rest? Save your strength for later."
Euphonius nodded and lowered himself gingerly back down to the floor. As he watched Iolaus prowling the cell, he tried desperately to come up with a good idea to get them out of there. Eventually, as time went by, he sank into a sort of dull haze of hopelessness and despair, mixed with a liberal dash of terror.
Iolaus, meanwhile, studied their situation carefully, and what he saw made him even more concerned. At one point, a plate of food was slid through a small opening, along with a jug of water. There was a bucket in the corner, which would have to be emptied sooner or later, but the guards seemed to work in pairs, thus reducing their chances of a surprise attack. However, no one opened the door, or even came up close to the bars.
At about the time when the small amount of daylight showing through the outside window began to fade, Cassius again came to the door.
"Good news, my pets. Aquilla will be here tomorrow, and he's told Flavius you two are to be held for him. He told me he would pay any price for you."
"How did you find us, Cassius?" Iolaus asked, hoping to keep the other man talking and perhaps learn something he could use.
"Two of Flavius' men saw you last night in the tavern and they gave me a brief description. I recognized you right away, pet, and I assumed the sight of the blue sapphire would be enough to get you to try to leave Corinth. The rest was simple." Cassius chuckled. "When he first gave me this," Cassius said, tossing the gem up and down in his hand, staring pointedly at Euphonius, "I was pretty upset, didn't figure I could get too much for it, but I was wrong."
"Why did you bother with me?" Euphonius asked, realizing unhappily that they had at least found his stash of jewels and had probably gone through his room.
"Because, little gem merchant, you made Aquilla mad when you wouldn't play his games, so I figured he might like to have you back again." He gave a snort of disdain. "You made it so easy for us to capture your friend here, barging through the door and all. Oh, and by the way, I checked things out. No one at the inn knows you, or where you live, or anything. Not even the innkeeper," Cassius went on, referring to the bluff Euphonius had used to scare Aquilla into releasing him the last time they had met. "As far as he knows, you checked out early and he isn't at all anxious to refund your money, after the mess you made of his room." Cassius smiled again. "So you two are just going to disappear off the face of the earth. Not even Hercules will be able to find you." The man laughed in a demented fashion. "Prepare yourselves for a night of pleasure after Aquilla arrives, boys. I'm rather hoping the boss will let me get in on the fun too. In fact, I'm looking forward to it."
He laughed again, as he walked away.
"Oh gods, we have got to get out of here," Iolaus said softly. "If Aquilla takes us out of Corinth, Herc will never be able to find me."
"What can we do?"
"I don't know, but I know what Aquilla will do to me, and I am not going back there!" Iolaus paced. "I was his slave, and if it hadn't been for Hercules, I would be --" He stopped. "NO! I will not let it happen again."
"Tell me what he did," Euphonius said. Iolaus was a brave man, and if he was scared nearly out of his wits -- The merchant didn't even want to complete that thought. "I want to understand exactly what we're up against, if you think you can talk about it."
Iolaus shook his head.
"Come on," Euphonius urged. "From what Cassius said, we're going to be just sitting here until tomorrow. Isn't knowing about your enemy the first step in preparing for battle?" At Iolaus' terse nod, he went on, "Well, I want to know about Aquilla. Maybe it will help us think of a way out."
Iolaus clenched his lips together and got a pained expression on his face. Then he nodded again and sat down next to his fellow prisoner. Staring at the far wall, he recited the story of his time with Aquilla, leaving out nothing and emphasizing how, in the end, it had only been his love for Hercules that had kept him from giving in fully to Aquilla.
When he had finished, they sat in silence for a few moments, Iolaus lost in his thoughts and Euphonius trying to mentally digest everything he had heard. He had known Aquilla was cruel, but he hadn't realized the full extent of the man's depravity and cunning.
"If Aquilla gets ahold of me again," Iolaus began again, looking fixedly down at the stone floor as if he saw his future displayed on its dank, cold surface, "I know what's going to happen." He shook his head. "I won't live like that."
Euphonius was surprised to discover how much it hurt to see his companion so totally despondent. "Is there anything I can do?" he asked.
"Yeah." The hunter turned to him and said only, "Hold me."
Euphonius was taken aback at the request. He knew now that Iolaus and Hercules were indeed partners and lovers, making him particularly grateful he hadn't taken advantage of the blond while he was drunk. But for a brave man like Iolaus to ask him to hold and comfort him, what they were facing had to be even worse than he had yet been able to imagine.
"Sure." He moved closer and held out his arms. The feel of the other man cuddling against him, willingly, was beyond compare. He inhaled the fragrance of his hair, nuzzling it slightly. He gently stroked the muscular arms and then felt Iolaus take one of his arms and hold it close. He felt the man shiver and gently reminded him, "Aquilla has only your body, not your soul. If Hercules found you once, he can find you again."
And if he finds you, maybe he'll find me also, Euphonius added to himself. At least it was a chance.
"Euphonius, if you get away, go to the castle and tell the king. Iphicles is Herc's brother and he'll help you."
The merchant shook his head. "This time, I'm not leaving without you."
"Don't be a fool," Iolaus protested.
"Shut up."
For quite some time, they sat there in the gathering darkness holding each other. Eventually, they dozed off. When Euphonius awoke, the hunter was up pacing again, pulling on the bars, running his fingers along the grouting between the stones of the walls that caged them in. He was still searching for a way out.
"Iolaus," Euphonius said gently, getting up and moving towards the other man, who was little more than a shadow in the dimness of the cell. There was even less light than before, since one of the torches in the corridor had burned out. "We're going to have to bide our time, like you said. Come up with a plan. Too bad they have my jewels. We might have been able to buy our way out with those."
"Buy our way out?"
"You would be surprised what a man would do for the right price."
"No, I wouldn't," came the short response. "Remember, I'm the one who gave himself to a maniac, turned his back on his lover, sold himself into slavery because --"
Euphonius grabbed his arm. "Stop it! I almost did the same thing. By the gods, I wanted his hands on me! I liked what he did to me too," the merchant admitted unhappily. Somehow, it was easier to speak the truth, when he couldn't see the other man's face clearly.
"I gave myself to him and he treated me like a whore!" Iolaus almost screamed. "And I just let him do it," was the whisper that followed.
"Iolaus," Euphonius said quietly, "last night at the festival, I wanted you very badly. If I thought you would have agreed, I would have offered you money. However, after three minutes in your company, I knew I would be missing several teeth if I so much as suggested such a thing."
Euphonius pulled the other man into his arms and held him tightly. "You aren't a whore. If there's anyone around here who might qualify for that epithet, it's me, not you. There's something I didn't tell you and it's not something I am particularly proud of. I was even willing to let Aquilla fuck me in order to clinch the sale of the sapphire. So don't tell me what an asshole you are, okay?"
"Really?" the hunter asked, drawing back a little.
"Yeah, really." Euphonius gave a short laugh. "I sold myself for money, helped Aquilla break your spirit, and then ran away like the coward I am, while he laughed at me." He took a deep breath before going on. "And you know what? I've spent a lot of time since then wondering what would have happened if I'd stayed. I know it's stupid, but I can't help it. Now tell me, does that make any sense at all?"
It took several long moments for Iolaus to reply, and when he did, his words were nothing like what Euphonius had expected to hear.
"Yeah, it does," the hunter said slowly. "But, trust me, Aquilla isn't the one you want. You'll get into something a whole lot deeper than you'll like, if you get involved with him." Then the moment of calm was gone, and the panic showed again in his voice. "I can't face all that again. I barely survived the last time. Euphonius, what can I do?"
"Hang onto this." The gem merchant leaned forward. With all the love and strength he could muster, he kissed the hunter tenderly. When he lifted his head, he whispered, "I know I can't compare to Hercules, but, Iolaus, I could love you too."
The next thing Euphonius knew, the blond was kissing him with everything he had. When they drew apart, he heard Iolaus' terror-impassioned plea.
"Do it then. Give me something to hold onto, because if I don't have something, Aquilla will truly own me again."
Iolaus pulled Euphonius' head back down and kissed him again. At first the gem merchant took what the blond hunter offered, amazed at the vitality and strength with which he gave himself, the sheer eroticism of the kiss, but he also remembered the situation they were in.
"Iolaus," the older man soothed, pulling his head gently away. "Not here and not now." He met the blue eyes. "You don't want to do this. Think about it; a guard could walk by at any moment."
"The guard just made his rounds. He won't be back for at least an hour," Iolaus said, trying to pull Euphonius' lips back to his. "You asked if you could help, and this is how you can. I need this."
"You're not making sense," Euphonius pointed out, reluctantly pulling away, sure the blond wasn't thinking straight. "How can us making love help you?"
"Do you remember how you said you felt about Aquilla, the way you wanted him to take you? It was almost like something was pulling you to him, to let him dominate you?" The gem merchant nodded slowly. "It's the same for me, but if I have something else to hold onto, something physical, then it's like an anchor in the storm. Without that anchor, I'm lost."
Euphonius felt the other man's hands on his chest and neck.
"Please, Euphonius. You said you wanted me."
"Oh, gods, I do," he replied. "But not like this. Not here --"
The small fingers wrapped around the back of his neck and again pulled him into a deep kiss, the younger man's tongue invading and exploring Euphonius' mouth. His reluctance dissolved in the fevered urgency of Iolaus' need, and he pulled the compact man closer and felt his hot flesh, his hard shaft, the seams on his vest, as their bodies pressed against each other.
Iolaus' hand took his and rubbed it over the front of his pants, stroking the cock hidden within the leather. All the while, the blond's lips and tongue were driving him to an aching erection.
"More!" Iolaus groaned, pushing at the gem merchant's hands. "Please, more!"
"Shh, unless you want an audience," Euphonius cautioned, still uncomfortable with the entire front of their cell so open to view. With his free hand, he began to push the vest off the hunter's shoulders.
Suddenly, Iolaus broke away. Even in the faint light of the cell, Euphonius could see he was disrobing, and for a moment he just stared at his companion. The man was absolutely beautiful; the muscular legs, the tight-ridged stomach, the hard length of flesh now standing proud from a nest of blond curls.
"Natural blond," Euphonius said, completely breaking with reality for a moment.
"Yeah." Iolaus grabbed a strand of his disheveled hair and pulled it down in front of his face, staring at it cross-eyed and grinning. "What did you think, I dyed it?" he said, adding a giggle that served to ease the tension somewhat "Now get your clothes off, and I'll find out if you really are a brunette."
Euphonius started to do as he was bade, although a little more self-consciously, the open side to the cell once more making him paranoid.
"I wish we had a door. The guards --"
"Screw the guards," Iolaus replied, as he pulled Euphonius' tunic off his shoulders.
"No, thank you. You screw them," the merchant quipped.
Again a giggle. He could get to like that infectious laugh.
When his pants had been removed, Euphonius once more felt Iolaus' hands on his body, rubbing at him, and all else fled from his mind. When that talented mouth closed over his again, it dimly registered in the merchant's mind that, at that point in time, the guards could be in the cell and it wouldn't have mattered. In fact, he really wouldn't have cared if the two of them were on the stage of the Theater of Dionysus in Athens.
He sank his hand deeply into the blond curls and did what he had hoped to do the night before. The two men were equally matched in height, and as they rubbed against each other, their cocks came together. Iolaus, unable to control himself, jerked at the contact.
"Want you, Euphonius, need you," he said.
"Shh, my love," the merchant soothed, taking the hard cock in his hand and stroking it, eliciting a sharp gasp from the blond.
Iolaus dropped his head back as his partner excited and teased his cock, and found lips and teeth nibbling and exploring the sensitive area at the base of his neck.
"Yesss," came out as a long moan.
Euphonius got the distinct feeling that Iolaus wasn't in the mood for the touchy-feely, make-it-last-all-night type of love, but needed something fiercer, stronger. Okay, he could do that. Almost experimentally, he began to bite and draw on the muscular neck and shoulders. A deep shudder ran through the man in his arms. He increased the pressure and strength with which he stroked Iolaus' manhood, and was rewarded with another moan.
Iolaus allowed him to continue for several moments, but soon wanted more. Dropping to his knees, he took the merchant's aching cock in his hands, stroking it. When that hot mouth followed the hands, the older man jerked and hissed in pleasure.
"Lean on my shoulders," the blond instructed, and Euphonius, not sure if he could keep his knees from giving way, did so. He began to push and thrust gently as his partner sucked and licked at his cock. Despite the fact that he was normally very quiet during sex, he found himself making small noises as the hunter continued to excite him.
Euphonius knew he was getting close and he didn't want it to end this way. He was about to pull free when the hunter took him deep and swallowed his shaft. The moan that was wrenched from him was anything but quiet. Then Iolaus suddenly released him.
"Iolaus!" came the harsh whisper.
"And you told me to be quiet," the other man teased.
"Shut up, and lean against the wall," Euphonius ordered, his voice almost as hard as his cock. The merchant's eyebrows lifted in surprise when Iolaus promptly obeyed, turning his back and standing spread-eagled, palms pressed flat against the wall. Then he moved behind the other man, reaching around to take his cock in his hand.
Euphonius felt strangely strong in this position, and enjoyed wringing further hisses and gasps from the hunter, as he slowly caressed and teased the straining member.
"Euphonius!" came the quietly desperate plea.
"Want more?"
"Please!"
Taking his own cock in his hand, Euphonius stroked it between the cheeks of the other man's ass, enjoying the feel of the warm flesh caressing his aching shaft.
Then he spit into his free hand and reached around, intending to prepare his lover.
"No," Iolaus said softly. "That's not necessary. Later on, I want to be able to feel what you did to me."
"I don't want to hurt you."
"You won't. Nothing personal, but Herc's a lot bigger than you."
"You just had to tell me that, huh?" came the almost-amused response.
"Euphonius, this is not the time for a discussion regarding who's got the biggest dick!"
"Oh, very true, my friend," the merchant said. He grabbed a handful of the golden hair, pulling Iolaus' head back toward him so he could speak almost into his ear. "Hasn't anyone ever told you that it isn't what you've got, it's how you use it?" he said, allowing a hint of mockery to enter his voice.
No sooner had the words left his mouth, than he saw, just for a moment, a vision of him driving his cock full length into the vulnerable body in front of him, watching the hunter writhe and groan as he buried himself.
Then he shook his head. Get a grip, Euphonius, he told himself sternly. You're losing it.
Spitting again into his hand, he rubbed the moisture onto his cock and slowly began to enter the man standing unprotesting before him. He was breathing hard as he slid past the ring of muscles. It had been too long for him.
"I don't break!" came the blond's whisper. "Fuck me!"
"Iolaus, unless you want me to come right now, let me do this my way!"
Then another picture flashed into his mind and he had a strange sensation of somewhat separating from the situation. He saw himself finishing what had happened at Aquilla's, but without Aquilla being there.
He entered the room, releasing the chains binding the gorgeous slave. The man turned to face him, sitting up on the bed and offering him his body. He could almost feel himself pushing the slave down onto the small bed, his hands stroking the satin flesh, kissing the lips, their bodies coming together in an ancient rhythm. And then watching Iolaus look up at him, the sun reflecting off his gold hair and gently asking, "Take me, master."
Suddenly, Euphonius was back in the cell, driving hard into the man against the wall. He heard their harsh breathing. He was surprised to note the force with which he was using the other man, until he heard the low groan.
"Touch me."
"Do it yourself!" he ordered, unable and unwilling to release his hold on the hunter. He heard the whimper and felt a tightening and knew Iolaus was close. He strove to pleasure them both, driving at the spot that made a man come. Harder, faster, deeper, until he felt the always-incredible sensation of total meltdown that comes only when you're about to fall over the edge.
The merchant's world exploded to bright white light and he heard the hunter cry out in his own ecstasy.
In the semi-darkness of the cell, unseen by mortal eyes, white wings shifted and resettled.
"Oh yeah," the God of Love congratulated himself smugly. "I do have my moments, don't I? Eat your heart out, Mom."
He regarded the two intertwined men, a sardonic expression on his handsome features. "I doubt this is exactly what you had in mind, Euphonius, but you wanted to know about the slave, didn't you? Just wait until I grant the rest of your petition." A strange smile spread across his face. He shook his head. "And you, Iolaus. What are you doing in the arms of someone other than Uncle Hercules? You know what? I think it's time for you to face the nightmare that pursues you, my friend."
Gathering his wings around his nearly-naked body, Cupid took his leave. "Mortals," he said softly. "They never learn."
Reality washed over Euphonius like a bucketful of cold water when he heard the mocking laughter from behind his back and heard the voice.
"Oh, nice show, boys. But what are you going to do for an encore?"
They separated abruptly, turning around to find Cassius leaning sideways against the bars of the door and grinning at them maliciously. "If I were you," he went on, "I'd save my energy for after Aquilla gets here. You're gonna need it."
Euphonius felt his face flush, and it wasn't just from embarrassment either. "Why, you --" he began. Iolaus' hand on his arm stopped his words.
Cassius laughed again. "What's the matter, merchant? You want the little pet for yourself? I don't think the boss is gonna go for that, do you? Judging by what I've just seen, you're a poor excuse for a master. But if you're real nice, Aquilla may let you fuck our pretty slave now and again, like he used to let me do."
Something snapped inside the usually rather timid and unassuming gem merchant. Jerking himself out of Iolaus' grip, he threw himself across the cell and into the door, reaching through the bars in a vain attempt to get ahold of his tormenter. "You mother-fucking son-of-a-whore!" he screamed. "I'll --"
Cassius backed up so that he was just beyond the other man's reach and interrupted sardonically, "You'll what, little man? Do you even begin to imagine you're a match for me?"
Meanwhile, Iolaus had come up behind his furious companion and was pulling him away from the bars. "Euphonius, stop it," he hissed in the other man's ear. "He's only baiting you. He enjoys this."
"I'll kill him!"
"No, you won't. You can't. Stop now. Come on. He's not worth it."
With one last black glare of hatred, Euphonius allowed Iolaus to draw him back and turn him around. Then the hunter wrapped his arms around his waist and hugged him tightly.
Euphonius fought off the tears that threatened to overwhelm him as his rage cooled. Realizing what he'd just done, he gave a short gasp of surprise, then drew his head back to stare into Iolaus' eyes.
Cassius, meanwhile, had come back to lean against the bars, leering at the two naked men. "You boys gonna go at it again?" he remarked.
"Go screw yourself, Cassius," Iolaus replied calmly. Then, to Euphonius, "Let's get dressed."
The merchant nodded numbly. They broke apart, each man retrieving his trousers.
"Aw, too bad," Cassius said. "Looks like the show's over. Better get some sleep, you two. Tomorrow's another day." He sauntered away.
Pulling his tunic over his head, Euphonius said softly, "I can't believe I just did that."
Iolaus smiled. "Did what? Went after Cassius, or fucked me?"
"Cassius," the merchant replied, shaking his head. Then he forced a smile across stiff lips and said with painful honesty, "You I'd have anytime you wanted me."
Iolaus acknowledged the remark with a short nod and his brilliant smile. "Thanks. I'll take that as a compliment." Then he sat down and pulled on his boots.
Euphonius sat next to him, doing the same. "What do we do now?" he asked.
"We get some rest," the hunter said, putting an arm around the other man's shoulders and pulling him down. "I'm fresh out of ideas, and I'm exhausted."
The hard cold stones of the floor made themselves felt under Euphonius' back. "I don't think I can sleep."
"Yeah, you can." Iolaus snuggled up alongside him. "Here. Rest your head on my shoulder, and pretend we're back at your room in that tavern."
"I wish!"
"So do I."
The two prisoners slept fitfully, drawing as much comfort and warmth from each other's presence as they could.
Next morning, Iolaus and Euphonius were jerked roughly awake by the sound of a too-familiar voice. Still in each other's arms, they stared horrified at the two men standing at the bars of their cell.
"Pretty sight, huh, boss?"
"I want the pet first," Aquilla decided.
Euphonius felt Iolaus tense. Taking the firmest grip he could manage to get on his courage, he said sneeringly, "Why? Afraid I'll fight you, Aquilla?"
He knew he'd only be laughed at if he begged, but a little defiance might work, especially if Cassius had told his master about his angry outburst last night.
"Shut up, merchant," Aquilla snapped.
Euphonius got up and did his best to swagger over to the door of the cell. "Just as I thought," he taunted. "I never should have ridden away from you last time."
He glanced back to Iolaus and caught the strange look in his eyes. He knew the other man must be wondering if he'd gone insane, at this point. He tried to reassure his friend with his eyes that he knew what he was doing. In fact, Euphonius hadn't slept much last night; he had been trying to think of ways to get Aquilla to take him, instead of Iolaus. This was the best he could come up with. He felt stupidly brave and proud as he turned back to Aquilla and taunted, "I gave you what you wanted. Just enough to clinch the sale."
"Oh, really?" Aquilla asked.
"Yeah. I do that a lot. You powerful landowners," he said with disdain heavy in his voice, "you like to think you're so strong. To tell you the truth, I've had better."
Iolaus saw the look of rage cross Aquilla's face and he suddenly understood. The crazy fool!
"No! You don't know what you're doing," he started to protest.
"Oh, yes, I do," the merchant said over his shoulder, not even turning to look at the hunter. "Now shut up, pet."
The callous remark took Iolaus so much by surprise that he actually kept quiet.
"All right, Aquilla, let me out of here," Euphonius went on smoothly. "You won't win with me."
"Cassius! Bring the merchant to my quarters!" Aquilla ordered low and deep, before striding off angrily.
"Guards!" Cassius called.
They had to hold Iolaus back as Euphonius was taken from the cell.
The merchant was very proud of himself right up until the door to Aquilla's chambers closed behind him. The landowner stood in the middle of the room with a calm that merely emphasized the extent of his rage. Euphonius found himself forced up against a wall, where he received his first lessons in real domination and pain.
Some hours later, Iolaus was once more herded to the back of the cell as the guards shoved Euphonius through the door. He didn't appear too badly hurt, but he stumbled and fell forward onto his face. All he wore was a linen waistcloth, something that Iolaus remembered all too well.
"Euphonius," the hunter whispered as he turned him over and lifted the man's head into his lap. Glazed brown eyes looked up at him.
"Never knew pain could hurt that good," came the slurred and raspy whisper.
"Are you okay?"
"Alive, yes. Okay? No, not really." Then his eyes focussed and he saw the concern etched into Iolaus' face. His stomach lurched, and not only because of the wine Aquilla had forced on him. He tried to think straight, but it was difficult. "Sitting down's not gonna be an option for a while," he said, half-humorously.
"Are you hurt?"
"Nah. I enjoyed it."
"Euphonius!" Iolaus snapped, and then realized the merchant was drunk. He stroked the brown hair back. "Yeah, he did that to me too. Got me drunk." The hunter stripped off his vest and draped it over the other man's body.
"Thanks. Tha's much better. Kinda cold in here."
"Try to sleep, buddy," Iolaus advised, resting the merchant's head on his knee.
Euphonius nodded and closed his eyes.
Iolaus sat there waiting, trying to clear his mind and wondering how long it would be before his turn came. He had to be ready to face this.
Then he heard the steps, and saw Cassius come up to the bars.
"You gonna fight, pet?"
"And if I do?"
"The merchant pays." Cassius grinned, certain of his prey. "He screams real good. The boss liked it. But he wants you again."
Iolaus flexed his jaw and inhaled deeply. "And if he doesn't behave, do I pay?"
"Oh, I don't think you have to worry about that," Cassius said. "It took a little while, but the boss had him begging very nicely before he was done." Cassius looked into the light blue eyes, and threw a pile of stuff into the cell. "Get dressed for your master, pet. Or I wake up your friend and he takes your place. I'll be back in a few minutes."
Iolaus looked distastefully at the pile of items on the floor. Then he slid his legs carefully out from under Euphonius' head, trying not to disturb the sleeping man. His jaw flexed in anger but he stripped off his own clothes and put on the waistcloth, the golden earring, and the armbands, locking the manacles on his own wrists.
"Very good, pet," Cassius said when he returned. "Now, back up to the bars and put your arms behind you." Iolaus did as he was told and felt the manacles locked together. As he left the cell, Cassius reached back and stroked Iolaus' ass. "Please fight, pretty boy. I want another shot at you."
"I won't give you the pleasure."
He was taken to Aquilla's room. He met the steel grey eyes that had haunted his dreams, even in Hercules' arms. Iolaus didn't bother with false bravado; he knew he was playing not only with his own life, but with Euphonius' life too.
"Pet, you are more beautiful than I remember."
"Get it over with."
"Have you forgotten our games so quickly?"
"I'm not going to play this time, Aquilla."
The landowner crossed the room and backhanded his slave.
"One more time, pet, and I give your precious lover to Cassius."
Iolaus looked at Aquilla with blood on his lip. He deliberately licked it away, meeting Aquilla's eyes and then lowering his own.
"As you wish, master," the hunter answered, his stomach twisting. Iolaus knew he had no choice, but he was desperately trying to remember Hercules, Euphonius, anything to help him keep his mind away from what Aquilla was about to do to him.
Aquilla wasted no time with pleasantries, as he had done when he had first broken the blond. Iolaus was immediately tied over the end of the bed and shoved face first into the mattress.
"Sorry, pet. It's been too long for us, and you make me so hot," Aquilla responded as he strode over behind Iolaus and stroked his exposed rear end. He kicked the hunter's feet apart, and without much ado pushed his hard cock into his ass.
Iolaus had to bite his lip to keep from crying out, but as Aquilla drove into him over and over, tears filled his eyes.
"Remember how you used to suck me off, pet? You'll do it again. I'll beat you until you cringe whenever I enter the room," Aquilla said as he tortured Iolaus. "Remember the stud, slave, and what I did to that damn horse? You've thrown me once now. Do it again and you'll die." Harder, driving Iolaus' pelvis into the hard wood of the bed frame. "Or maybe I'll just torture your lover. He showed quite a bit of promise. He learns quickly, and he begged so prettily."
When Iolaus felt Aquilla come deep inside him, he had to fight the urge to throw up. Then his head was dragged up by his hair, so he had no choice but to look into the other man's face.
"You won't win, master," he said quietly. "You may have my body, but I'm not yours, and I won't give myself to you again."
"You barely made it out last time," Aquilla hissed. "You won't this time."
Aquilla moved to a door, and called for a slave. Iolaus cringed as a female slave walked in. Aquilla held up a cockring, then slid the device onto the hunter and told the woman to suck him. When he was hard, Iolaus was again pushed over the bed.
"Watch, pet," Aquilla ordered as he reached into his bedside drawer and pulled out a wooden phallus and a jar. Iolaus watched with dread as Aquilla coated the device heavily with a thick oil and then moved behind him and began to work it into his ass, rotating it, driving the hunter insane. Iolaus fought to hold his silence, but he couldn't stop the jerks and hisses.
"There it is," Aquilla laughed darkly, as he worked it over and over that spot.
By the time he'd finished, Iolaus was gasping for breath. He was yanked up again, but this time spun to the side, and a collar snapped around his neck. Aquilla shoved the pin home before Iolaus could recover from the added stimulation of moving.
"I'll be back, pet," Aquilla said, stroking Iolaus' cock, and then leaving the room.
Wings rustled again, as Cupid watched, unseen. The god shook his head.
"Oh, wow! This dude is seriously twisted," he whispered to himself. "Time to put Plan B into action. If something happens to Sweetcheeks, Hercules will bend my wings into a pretzel. And I don't even want to think about what Mom'll do!"
He disappeared.
Far outside Corinth, Hercules thought he heard a voice next to his ear. When he turned, no one was there, but he couldn't forget the words that had come to him so clearly and distinctly:
"Better get back to the city. Iolaus is in deep shit. Check out the house that belongs to a certain Flavius, the so-called grain merchant."
Euphonius woke up, still feeling somewhat drunk. He looked around groggily. When he realized he was in the cell, he sat up, eyes searching desperately for his friend.
"Iolaus?" he called quietly, but there was no answer. Then he saw the hunter's pants and boots, and picked up the vest that had been covering him. "Be strong, my love," he whispered, clutching the battered vest against his chest and remembering.
He had been taken into another room and put on a rack, an interesting device, to say the least. It seemed that Aquilla enjoyed using that piece of equipment. Despite his best efforts to ignore what was happening, the man had gotten to him much quicker than he had expected or hoped, considering that he had been trying to buy time for Iolaus to figure out how to get them out of there.
The merchant grimaced at the memory. Oh yes, he'd had fairly rough sex before, but not like this. Aquilla knew how to rape the mind as well as the body.
He could still feel the man's oiled hand sliding over his cock and balls, a finger slowly pushing into his ass and then back again, over and over. Then the feel of the man's dick penetrating him and the way he had been relentlessly fucked, without release. The glasses of wine held to his lips, until he had been just drunk enough to weaken his resolve. Calling the man master, begging for him, and each time he obeyed, Aquilla would caress his aching cock. Then the next step. Euphonius hung his head, remembering how he had come at last, thrusting himself enthusiastically into the other man's hand as Aquilla called him a slut, taunted him with his own desire, and told him how his body belonged to his master now. Strangely enough, it had been the words that had gotten to him, more than anything else.
The dejected merchant slowly got to his feet, then made his way to the slop bucket in the corner and threw up. He looked around for some water, wanting to wash out his mouth and clean himself. He tried not to think of what Iolaus was going through.
Then he remembered his prayer to Cupid, and laughed sickly.
"Not exactly how I wanted this to go," he muttered, addressing the empty air in front of his face. "You know, a simple insight into the nature of domination would have been enough to satisfy me."
When he thought he heard an ironic voice whisper softly inside his head, "Oh, really?" Euphonius decided he was still drunk and began to laugh hysterically. That is, until he started to throw up again.
Far too soon, Cassius came to the bars, and ordered him out.
Euphonius looked at him sharply, his eyes narrowed.
"Don't even think it, merchant. You're beaten. Fight me, and your lover pays."
Although Euphonius tried to soothe his ego by telling himself it was for Iolaus, he knew he would have obeyed anyway. He was afraid of this man, and even more afraid of his master.
As he went with Cassius, he reflected on the way the man had called Iolaus his lover. He only wished it were true, but by now he knew well enough who truly held the hunter's heart, and it wasn't a wimpy little gem merchant by the name of Euphonius. And yet, he did care deeply about the other man, above and beyond just the sex. He admired Iolaus' courage and strength, especially now that he'd had a taste of what Aquilla could do to a person.
Somehow, they had to find a way to escape, before Aquilla took them out of Corinth. But if Iolaus had no ideas, how could he hope to come up with anything? He bowed his head in defeat and went where Cassius led him.
The merchant was taken to the baths. Whereas Iolaus had been adorned to emphasis his strength, the older man was adorned to emphasis his body. His hair was pulled back into a short braid, and his loins were wrapped with a low-riding piece of silk that caressed his manhood, making it extremely visible. He had steel on both his wrists and ankles.
He was led to the room again. Aquilla stood before the far wall, blocking the man behind him from sight. With a cruel smile, Aquilla stepped away and Euphonius saw Iolaus. His first impulse was to look away, but he found he couldn't. Revulsion warring with fascination, he just stared.
The hunter was neckchained to the wall, nipple rings with gold chains hanging on his chest. He wore armlets of gold, and the metal bands around his wrists were also fastened to the wall at either side of his naked body. His cock jutted out hard, weeping heavily.
Iolaus tried to look away, not meet Euphonius' eyes, but he wasn't successful. As their eyes locked, he lifted his chin slightly, managing to convey a sense of determined courage rather than merely shame. The merchant felt his own spine stiffen imperceptibly as they each drew strength from the other.
Be my anchor, my love. And let me be yours. And we will survive this.
Then the moment passed. Cassius grabbed Euphonius' hands and pulled them behind his back.
"Ah, slut, I see you're ready for your adornment," Aquilla said, approaching them. "I am so glad." He picked up a gold headband and placed it over the merchant's hair. Then he took a sewing awl and smiled evilly. "Just so there's no mistaking your status."
He pushed the point of the awl through Euphonius' ear and put a large gold ring through the hole, even as Euphonius bit his lip and tried to keep quiet. Then he locked a steel collar around his slave's neck, a collar that held his head up high. "Ever seen a display collar, slut?"
Euphonius shook his head as he tried to adjust to the strange feeling.
Aquilla backhanded him for his improper response to the question.
The merchant licked the blood from his lip and tried to think. "No, master," he responded dutifully.
"Better," Aquilla replied with a satisfied nod. "Release him, Cassius. Now, raise your arms."
When Euphonius obeyed, he found that the collar lifted his head to an uncomfortable degree.
"Do you like it?" Aquilla laughed. "Along with the earring, that marks you as a man's slave. Cassius, take him to the general room and throw him out for use."
"As you wish."
"No!" Iolaus screamed.
"You object, pet?" Aquilla asked, his voice deceptively quiet. He turned his attention to Euphonius. "Okay, slut, you have a choice: you can either be thrown to the men downstairs or you can suck the pet off in front of us."
Euphonius was caught; he didn't want to do either. He knew to force Iolaus to come would hurt him, but he really didn't want to be thrown to a roomful of men either.
"Damn you, Aquilla!" Iolaus screamed. "We're men, not your playthings!"
Aquilla raised one eyebrow at this outburst. "I thought you knew better, pet. I told you the rules." He turned to Cassius and said casually, "Take the slut. Now."
Euphonius was shoved over the nearest table, and tried to stifle a scream of pain as Cassius drove his cock up his ass.
"One more word like that to me, and I'll arrange for your friend to spend a lot of time with Cassius. Do you understand, pet?"
"Yes, master, I understand. Forgive me," Iolaus replied, defeated. He tried to turn his head away, but Aquilla grasped his chin and forced him to watch what was going on.
Finally, Cassius finished and pulled out, drawing another gasp from Euphonius. He yanked the merchant back onto his feet and held him by the collar. "Now what, boss?"
Euphonius tried to ignore the searing pain in his ass, and concentrated on hating the man who had abused him, rather than his shame over being abused. He was only partially successful.
"Now he doesn't get a choice anymore. Bring him here."
Euphonius found himself marched over in front of Iolaus and forced down onto his knees. From this vantage point, he could clearly see the metal ring around the hunter's cock, keeping him hard whether he liked it or not. Even though he hated himself for it, the merchant found his own member reacting to the situation.
"Suck him off," Aquilla commanded.
Under other circumstances, Euphonius would have been all too happy to comply. But not now. He shook his head.
"What's the matter, slut? Sudden attack of shyness? Go on. You know you want to," Aquilla said mockingly.
When Euphonius still did nothing, Aquilla took hold of the chain across Iolaus' chest, twisting it just enough to pull against his pierced nipples. Euphonius saw Iolaus grimace.
"I can hurt him much worse than this, slut. Would you like me to demonstrate?"
"No." At the look in Aquilla's eyes, he hastily amended, "No, master." Taking hold of the other man's hips in order to steady himself, Euphonius started working on his hard shaft, licking it carefully, taking it into his mouth then pulling back and using his tongue again. He knew Iolaus had to be painfully engorged by now, so he tried to be careful, while at the same time hoping to be able to bring him to orgasm quickly. And even as he did it, he felt himself erect and aching, something that had to be plainly visible through the silk that was still wrapped around his loins.
All the while, Aquilla stood close alongside Iolaus, holding his head so that he had to watch and talking to him softly. "Come on, pet. Come for me. I want to see it. You know you have to, sooner or later. Show me what a good little pet you are. Show me how much you like playing with your little friend there, and maybe I'll keep the two of you together for a while. You'd like that, wouldn't you? Look at him. You can see he enjoys what he's doing. I'll bet you liked watching Cassius screw him, didn't you? I could arrange for you to do it next time, if you behave yourself."
Iolaus moaned something unintelligible and tried to pull himself away from Euphonius' mouth, but Aquilla grabbed the merchant's head and forced him hard against the other man's groin.
Euphonius fought not to gag at the sudden sensation. It was difficult to breathe, but when he tried to pull back, Cassius held him from behind.
"Come on, pet. Stop fighting it. You're only hurting your friend."
Unable to do anything else, Euphonius pressed his fingertips against Iolaus' hips gently, then slid his hands a little further behind him, caressing him almost imperceptibly, trying to communicate with touch the love and reassurance that he was unable to say in words. He pressed his hands against the hunter's backside, even though that only pushed the straining cock further down his throat. Drawing in what air he could, the merchant held his breath and tried to swallow, willing Iolaus to come and come fast.
The last thing Iolaus wanted to do was to obey Aquilla, but the feeling of Euphonius sucking on his cock, and the way he slid his fingers-- Iolaus told himself that they were both being used, and although he hated it, there was nothing he could do to stop himself. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine that the two of them were alone, blocking out the situation they were actually in. The hunter concentrated on the hot wet mouth surrounding him, the tongue sliding along the length of his hard shaft, the fingers deceptively stroking and squeezing his cheeks, almost as if the merchant were encouraging him. Unable to resist any longer, he spilled his seed with a choked moan that combined pleasure and pain, hoping Euphonius would forgive him even as he did it.
"Nice, pet. Very nice. I like it when you do what you're told."
Euphonius pulled his head back, releasing the hunter's softening penis. Before anyone thought to stop him, he slid the cockring off.
Aquilla's hand caught his wrist, twisting it sharply and taking the metal band from his fingers. "Not a good idea, slut. You don't play with my toys without my permission."
Aquilla jerked his head at Cassius, who pulled Euphonius to his feet and held him against the front of his body, one arm locked over and around the collar so that it pressed uncomfortably against the merchant's throat. "Can I have him again, boss?"
"No. Just jerk him off. And don't be too gentle about it, either."
With a nasty chuckle, Cassius reached around and took Euphonius' cock in his hand, working on him roughly until the merchant came.
Aquilla laughed. "Good little slut. You're learning." Then, to Iolaus, "Get used to watching this kind of thing, pet. I'll teach you to enjoy it, just as I do."
Iolaus' mouth thinned into a tight line as he shook his head in denial.
"Oh yes, you will," Aquilla answered. "But we've run out of time for games. I want to get you two safely out of Corinth and on the way to my estate. Everything should be ready by now, so let's hit the road, shall we? Cassius, release this one from the wall, but keep an eye on him. I'll take the other one."
As Cassius unlocked Iolaus' chains, Aquilla came over to Euphonius, taking a tight grip on his upper arm and leading him towards the door. The merchant tried to hang back and see how Iolaus was doing, but the fingers dug into his arm cruelly and jerked him forward into the hallway.
"Come on, slut. Your friend will be along, don't worry. In fact, you're going to share some rather uncomfortable accommodations below the floorboards in one of Flavius' grain wagons until we're in my section of the country. If you're real good, I might even tie you both up together, rather than separately. Of course, you won't be able to move around much, once I've got you trussed up, but at least you could stare longingly into one another's eyes."
While Aquilla laughed at his own joke, Euphonius glanced back over his shoulder. Iolaus was following close behind him, with Cassius holding the length of chain that was still attached to his collar. Other than that, the hunter's hands and feet were free.
Maybe Iolaus could get loose, fight Cassius off --
Yeah, right. He remembered Iolaus telling about how he'd had the shit beaten out of him by the bigger man once already, when he had first been enslaved. What were the odds of him being able to do better now? Even if he did, Aquilla still had ahold of Euphonius. And Aquilla had a dagger at his belt. On top of all that, they were somewhere in a slaver's house, with who knew how many guards between the two of them and freedom? Any attempt at resistance might just make things worse.
But could it really get worse? Once they were out of Corinth, and permanently in Aquilla's clutches, this was what they could look forward to for the rest of their lives.
Euphonius couldn't speak for Iolaus, but for himself, the merchant decided he would rather take his chances on the Other Side. He stumbled a little and leaned into Aquilla, who simply pushed him upright again and continued to pull him down the hall.
"What's the matter, slut? Not feeling so well?"
"I'm sick, master," Euphonius replied, clutching his stomach with his free hand and grimacing.
"You just need some fresh air. A nice long wagon ride will fix you right up."
A man turned into the corridor up ahead of them, clearly in a hurry and searching for something. When he caught sight of them, he ran to meet them, gasping out his message as he got there.
"Cassius! Aquilla! Flavius sent me to find you! Something's wrong!"
"What is it, slave? Spit it out," Cassius demanded.
"King Iphicles' men are at our front gate, along with a big guy who claims his name is Hercules. They're demanding to be let in." He looked fearfully back the way he had come. "By now, they may even be inside."
"Very well," Aquilla acknowledged, then waved his hand. "You may return to your station."
The messenger ran back down the hall and disappeared into a side passage.
Cassius looked over at Aquilla. "What do we do, boss?"
"We head for the secret entrance." He drew his dagger and held it against Euphonius' back, making sure Iolaus could see what he'd done. "And we take them with us."
Iolaus' heart had filled with hope at the mention of Hercules' name, but if Aquilla was still unwilling to let them go, that had to mean the man was fairly confident of his escape route. Not a good sign. By himself, the hunter might have taken his chances and made a break for it, but with Aquilla holding Euphonius like that --
Then the merchant caught his eye, and a silent understanding passed between them.
Even as Aquilla pressed the knife into his back and urged him to move, Euphonius doubled over, gagging and coughing as if he were about to throw up. As Aquilla cursed and jerked him upright, the merchant spun sideways, simultaneously evading the blade that had been pressed against his back and ramming the metal cuff on his wrist into Aquilla's nose.
When Cassius started forward automatically to defend his master, Iolaus exploded into action, slamming his own metal cuffs into the big man's head and jerking the neck chain out of his surprised opponent's grip as Cassius stumbled back against the wall. Iolaus threw himself at the other man with a strength born of hatred and desperation.
The hunter knew he had one shot at this. He had to take Cassius out quick and hard, and had to do it without getting close. The man was just too strong. While Cassius was stunned, Iolaus drove his head into the other man's gut and then jerked it up, catching Cassius under the jaw and slamming his mouth shut in a bone-jarring blow. He continued back with the momentum, being sure to keep the chain attached to the steel collar on his neck close.
Cassius came away from the wall like the ape he was. "You're gonna regret that."
Iolaus kept a good amount of distance between them, swinging to the side. With a deft circle of the chain, he wrapped up one of Cassius' ankles and pulled hard. Cassius went down, but when he grabbed the chain, Iolaus knew he was in trouble.
Cassius took a turn around his hand with the chain; his smile was one of pure delight.
"Come here, pet," the henchman growled, as he dragged the slave closer. His grin widened as he watched Iolaus being drawn inexorably into his clutches.
When the blond was at the right distance, he stepped up, giving himself room to maneuver. Throwing Cassius off balance, he let loose with a leg kick. It was hard enough so that when he landed he was able to yank the chain back, but he wasn't prepared for Cassius' fist as it connected with his jaw. The hunter hit the wall hard, fighting to maintain his footing. He felt Cassius' hand close over his neck and he was slammed face first into the wall. The thought occurred to him that Cassius would kill him. He tried to lighten the force of the blows by bracing his hands against the wall, hoping desperately that Euphonius was faring better than he was.
All thought of the merchant fled his mind as the big man threw him across the corridor into the other wall. Iolaus tried to turn and fight, but he saw bright lights as Cassius once more connected with the side of his face with a meaty fist. The hunter was conscious of the other man drawing him up against his chest, his hands playing with the hated nipple rings that had been placed once more in his body.
"I'm going to make your lover beg, pet, just like I made you," Cassius taunted. "When I'm done with him, he'll go to Aquilla so willingly that it won't even be funny."
Iolaus froze for a moment, remembering his nights with Cassius and thinking of Euphonius being subjected to that. Then something inside the hunter went click and all the fear, anger, hatred and shame rose up in him. He threw his head backwards and ripped his body out of Cassius' grip, not even registering the pain as he did so, nor the odds he was facing. For the first time in a long while, Iolaus lost all control of his temper and didn't even try to get it back.
Meanwhile, Euphonius found himself facing an enraged Aquilla, with no idea what to do next. His only real intention had been to give Iolaus a chance to do something, while it was still possible for him to get away. He hadn't thought much beyond that, as he knew his own likelihood of surviving the resulting melee wasn't very good. But he would not let himself be used as a hostage for Iolaus' obedience, no matter what.
And that meant he had to keep out of Aquilla's grasp for as long as it took for Iolaus to defeat Cassius, if he could. As Aquilla wiped the blood from his face and started towards the merchant, Euphonius backed away, his hands in front of him forming a meager defense. As his back foot hit the wall, he saw Aquilla smile.
"Since you don't seem to want to come with me, slut, I'm going to send you to Hades before I leave. Perhaps you'll enjoy his company more."
Euphonius managed to step away from the first swipe of the knife, but just barely. The point caught his arm close above the elbow, slicing through flesh. Then he was solidly against the wall -- and saw from the corner of his eye a torch burning in a sconce not far from his head. Grabbing the flaming bit of wood, he held it out in front of him, just in time to connect with Aquilla's next thrust of the blade.
The torch had burned down low and thus wasn't very long, but it worked to fend off his opponent's next two thrusts, before Aquilla managed to knock it out of the smaller man's hands with the sheer strength of his attack.
Euphonius shrank back against the wall, expecting to feel the knife plunge into his chest at any moment.
Then Aquilla went down, in a tangle of arms, legs, and Iolaus' bruised and bleeding body.
Euphonius dared to breathe again, but his relief was short-lived. Not far away, Cassius had pulled himself to his feet. The big man leaned heavily against the wall, but was clearly getting ready to attack Iolaus once again. For his part, the hunter seemed to be having serious trouble dealing with Aquilla, since he was already in bad shape after putting Cassius out of action. When Iolaus succeeded in knocking the knife out of his opponent's hand, it skittered down the hall a ways, then came to a stop against the wall. Euphonius followed it.
For one shameful moment, he was tempted to just keep running, get away, hide somewhere, and hope Iphicles' men arrived soon. But that would have meant leaving Iolaus to his fate. Euphonius knew he was no hero, but he couldn't have lived with himself if he'd done that. Instead, he picked up the knife, balancing it in his hand as he turned back to the melee.
Iolaus was crouched over his opponent. He had gotten his fingers around Aquilla's neck and was inexorably strangling him, even as the man's hands tore at his face and body. Cassius, although swaying slightly, was almost at the hunter's back. If he once got ahold of Iolaus, the unequal fight would be all over.
Euphonius drew back his arm. The dagger wasn't balanced properly for throwing and the stupid collar interfered with his natural movement, but he was well within his usual range, so there was at least an even chance --
Cassius screamed and sprawled forward as the knife buried itself to the hilt in his thigh. Euphonius had been aiming higher, but he wasn't complaining.
By now, Iolaus was choking an unconscious man, but he didn't stop. Cursing fiercely under his breath, he continued to dig his fingers into his enemy's neck, his face a mask of pure hatred, with a terrible parody of his usual smile twisting his lips.
Euphonius knelt next to him, one eye on Cassius. "Iolaus? Iolaus, come on. We've got to get out of here. Let go of him."
"I'll kill him!"
"And throw away your life in the process? Come on. We've got to run, before Cassius recovers."
There was still no glimmer of reason in the hunter's expression.
"Iolaus, love, stop it now," Euphonius begged. "If you ever want to see Hercules again --"
At the mention of the demigod's name, Iolaus closed his eyes. The feral look fled from his face and he released his hold on Aquilla. He stood up slowly. As if in a daze, he looked over at Cassius, who had managed to pull the knife out of his leg but still looked very pale and dazed. Iolaus walked over to the big man and neatly cold-cocked him with the heavy metal cuff on his wrist.
When Iolaus straightened up, he swayed dizzily. Euphonius got his first real look at the full extent of his injuries. His chest was smeared with blood, which was still oozing from the places where the nipple rings had been ripped out, one eye was swollen almost shut, blood flowed freely from his nose, and there was blood on his arms, although Euphonius couldn't tell if it belonged to Cassius or the hunter. There were already angry red marks emanating from underneath the collar on his neck, plus a discolored and swollen spot at the base of his ribs.
"Oh, gods!" the merchant exclaimed softly, going over to his battered friend and wrapping one arm around his waist to steady him. He completely forgot the bleeding gash on his own arm as he eased the exhausted man down into a sitting position against the wall. "Stay there. I'm going to get us out of all this hardware."
Iolaus nodded, fighting to catch his breath and at last starting to feel the effects of the damage that had been done to his body.
Euphonius went through Cassius' clothing quickly and cautiously. When his searching fingers found his own leather pouch of jewelry, he grinned briefly and tossed it over on the floor beside Iolaus. But what he really wanted were the keys he knew Cassius carried. Once he located them, he knelt beside his friend, trying every key on the ring until he had unfastened the collar around Iolaus' neck. Then he went on to remove the metal cuffs and shackles.
"Now get me out of this stuff too," he said, giving the keyring to the other man. "This damnable collar is driving me crazy."
Iolaus nodded, still breathing hard. By the time he had finished, his brain was starting to work again. He knew he was pretty badly beaten up, but he also knew he didn't have time to worry about that until they were safe.
"What do we do now?" Euphonius asked.
"Dunno. Help me up."
Once he was on his feet, Iolaus coughed a few times and spat blood, wiping his nose with the back of his hand. Then he surveyed the two unconscious men lying on the floor. Aquilla twitched and moaned softly. "We could chain these bastards up, and turn them over to Iphicles, once he gets here," the hunter suggested coldly.
"I have a better idea," a strange voice said from behind them.
The two men spun around, and found themselves confronted by an extremely beautiful Olympian, who was wearing little more than two white wings, a very brief loincloth, a band of leather across his chest, and a large emerald pendant.
Iolaus just gaped at the gorgeous sight confronting him, while the merchant said uncertainly, "Cupid?"
The god preened, nodding. "Who else?"
"The statues don't do you justice," Euphonius said inanely.
Cupid turned his head to the side and looked at his own bicep. "They don't, do they?" He looked back at the merchant. "Thanks for the compliment. Now do you want my help, or don't you?" he asked, touching the pendant he wore. "After all, you're the one who got me involved in all this in the first place."
Iolaus looked at Euphonius. "What is he talking about?"
"Long story." The merchant shrugged apologetically. "I petitioned him for something --"
"And I answered his petition, without Mom or anyone else," the god said, becoming impatient. "Now let's get on with it."
Euphonius' eyes went wide. He gestured at their surroundings. "This is your idea of an answer?"
"Yep," Cupid smiled with a smug twitch of his wings. "You now know much more about the slave whose memory was haunting you. And you've got a much better idea of what to expect if you play games with someone like Aquilla."
Euphonius closed his eyes, realizing the truth of what the young god had said. Reluctantly, he nodded.
Iolaus turned to the merchant, shocked. "You petitioned Cupid? About me? And Aquilla? Are you crazy?"
Euphonius nodded again, wincing at his friend's wrath and not really sure which of the questions he was answering with that nod. Possibly the last one.
"Then this is all your fault," Iolaus said, still trying to comprehend what was going on.
Cupid heaved an exasperated sigh. "Enough, Curly. This isn't your petition." He waved one hand gracefully towards Aquilla, who by now was struggling to his feet. "Besides, I gave you the opportunity to face your worst nightmare, and you did. Was it worth it?" There was a calculating gleam in the god's eyes.
The hunter cut Cupid a less than pleasant look, but he thought about that for a moment, then he too nodded. "Yeah, I guess it was," he admitted grimly, even though he didn't sound particularly happy.
"All right then," Cupid responded enthusiastically. If Curly was satisfied, he knew he was out of the woods. Not even Mom would let him have it if her Sweetcheeks was happy about the outcome. Geez, talk about walking a tight line! No more messing with other gods' favorites.
Behind Iolaus and Euphonius, Aquilla woke up. He rubbed his bruised throat and looked around, trying to sort out what was happening. The landowner stood up and walked towards Cupid and the two mortals. He grabbed Euphonius' arm and pulled him out of the way, getting his first clear look at the young god. Although he was speaking to the hunter, his eyes were glued on the bronzed body of the strange and beautiful man. "What is going on here?" His face registered shock as he took in the wings and the clothing. "Cupid?"
Cupid looked at the insolent mortal, and he shot an eyebrow up at the lack of respect in his voice. "Of course. Who else would I be?"
"Yeah, right. Just as long as you aren't the Corinthian guard," Aquilla said. He pulled Euphonius alongside him and away from Iolaus and Cupid. "Merchant, you're coming with me. And you, pet, will come along quietly if you don't want your friend hurt." Glaring at Cupid, he added scornfully, "As for you, little godling, go play with your arrows. This has nothing to do with love."
Iolaus started towards Aquilla, but Cupid's hand on his arm stopped him. The blond took one look at the fury on the god's face and stepped back. From his past experience with Olympians, he had enough sense to get out of the field of fire.
Seeing Iolaus' reaction to the god's mood, Euphonius tried unsuccessfully to twist loose from the fingers digging painfully into his arm.
Iolaus noticed a glow emanating from Cupid. For some reason, the hunter found himself taking Aphrodites' son a little more seriously today. Perhaps it was because Cupid wasn't just playing messenger boy for his mother. The young god had earned a new respect in Iolaus' eyes, and the hunter watched to see what he would do next.
"Desire, like love, can be a cruel and dangerous master," Cupid said softly, addressing Aquilla. "Both can take you to places that you never imagined, if you serve them properly."
The glow became brighter and Cupid's wings spread wide to either side of his head. His entire aspect turned far more menacing and sinister than usual as he continued, "But if you don't --"
He extended one hand towards Aquilla, and touched his forehead. The man jerked as if he'd been struck a blow, then froze motionless in place.
Euphonius, finding himself suddenly free, beat a hasty retreat for the wall next to Iolaus. He looked back to find Aquilla now surrounded by the blood-red glow.
"Love is not just for innocent maidens and naïve young men," Cupid said, his tone suddenly deeper and more mature. "Desire is not just a feeling. Both can be a force to contend with, foolish mortal."
A small whimper escaped Aquilla, as Cupid continued implacably, "From this day forward, that which you desire most will fill you with terror, while that which you despise shall become all your desire."
Cupid withdrew his hand.
Aquilla stared around with bewildered eyes. "What --?" he began. Then he fell silent, a puzzled expression on his face. He shook his head as if to clear it.
"That should take care of him," Cupid declared, sounding rather satisfied with himself.
"I don't get it," Iolaus put in, having expected the more usual energy bolts and bodies flying across the room that one usually got when dealing with angry gods. "What did you do? He looks fine."
Cupid just smiled.
Euphonius, who had been considering the god's words very carefully, touched the hunter's arm gently and said, "Watch."
Then he went over to Aquilla and knelt on one knee in front of him. Eyes downcast, he said humbly, "Master, your slut begs to be allowed to serve you."
"No!" Iolaus exclaimed, starting towards them. But Cupid once again caught his arm and shook his head.
Aquilla, meanwhile, regarded Euphonius strangely. He drew back one hand, wanting nothing more than to backhand the kneeling man in the face for the impudence he had shown in attempting to escape.
Euphonius didn't move a muscle, hoping he had figured this right and he wasn't about to get bashed. He already hurt badly enough from the rest of the day's activities.
And in that one moment, Aquilla felt something he hadn't felt since he was a child: absolute terror. His heart pounded against his ribs and he couldn't seem to draw in a full breath of air. A wave of nausea washed over him.
But there was nothing to be afraid of, his mind insisted. There was only a slave, groveling at his feet; in no way an unusual or frightening situation. In fact, his usual reaction to such a thing would have been lust and an urge to use the other man brutally, certainly not this all-consuming terror. His body was reacting as if he were confronted with some unspeakable horror.
Iolaus watched as a shocking change come over Aquilla. The man who had previously delighted in inflicting pain now shrank back from Euphonius in what appeared to be terror-stricken panic.
"Get away from me!" Aquilla cried, backing up until he was against the opposite wall, his eyes wide, his entire body trembling. And once against the wall, he curled up and drew his arms tightly around himself. "Leave me alone!"
Euphonius stood up. "'That which you desire most --'" he said pointedly, quoting Cupid but leaving the rest of the sentence unfinished.
"Oh," the hunter said softly, as a smile spread across his bruised face. "I get it." He glanced at the young god, seeing far more than the callow youth he had always seemed to be. "I like your style."
"I do have my moments," Cupid said. "Wait till Mom hears about this one. Let's see who calls me a godling now." He preened, resettling his wings with a satisfied smile.
Then he looked at Cassius. "Oh, and let's not forget about you."
Aquilla's right hand man had by now regained his feet and wrapped a makeshift bandage around the wound in his thigh. He looked up nervously, his hopes of a quiet escape vaporizing as the three men turned on him. Apparently, he wasn't going to be that lucky.
He shrank back as the god approached. "No, please, I was just doing what he told me to do. I didn't --"
"Relax," Cupid said in a voice that falsely bespoke friendship. Then his lips twisted into a malicious smile that would have done Ares justice. "I'm not going to hurt you, you pathetic little mortal."
Surprised, Iolaus and Euphonius just watched to see what Cupid would do next.
Cassius eyed him warily. "You're not?"
"No. In fact, I'm going to give you something you've always wanted."
"You are?"
"Yep." Draping one arm casually around the frightened man's shoulder, he led him over in front of Aquilla. "I'm going to give you your own personal slave."
Cassius just stood there, looking like a trapped animal.
Cupid reached out and grabbed Aquilla by the neck, forcing him to meet his eyes. Then the Olympian looked at Cassius and Aquilla's eyes followed his in dread. "Take him. He's yours. Or rather, he will be, in just a moment."
Aquilla's eyes widened with fear, while Cassius couldn't believe what he had just heard.
Cupid leaned close to Aquilla. "You want him, don't you?"
Aquilla's eyes went wider still, as his previous terror turned into something else, something entirely different. "No," he moaned. "No, please --"
The god touched Aquilla's hard cock with one hand. Turning the unwilling man's face to Cassius with his other hand, he whispered, "Him."
Aquilla groaned and closed his eyes. Maybe if he didn't look at Cassius, this would end. This couldn't be happening, not to him, he tried to reason. He was the one who controlled others; pleasure and pain were his to deliver as he pleased. But his body said differently, his cock standing hard and aching for the brutal touch of Cassius' hand. He wanted the other man inside him, taking him, using him for his own pleasure, making him beg -- No, never! screamed his besieged soul. But Oh, yes! whispered the traitorous lust that held his body in its thrall.
His entire being at war with itself, Aquilla opened his eyes and took his first look at the inescapable slavery that was to be his life. Passion fired in his body. "No," he moaned. "No no no no no."
Cupid stepped back, gestured with one hand, and suddenly held a shining bow and arrow. "On your mark," he whispered, nocking the arrow to the bowstring.
"Uh - boss?" Cassius said uncertainly. He knew something was going on and he wasn't sure what to do. He knew from long experience that Aquilla would inflict severe bodily harm on him if he touched him.
"Get set," the god said, as he took carful aim.
Aquilla couldn't stop himself. He reached out and touched the other man.
"Go." Cupid released the arrow. Both Aquilla and Cassius were covered in a shower of deep red sparks as the arrow exploded into nothingness. All eyes were glued to the two men.
Aquilla threw himself at Cassius, kneeling before him and hugging his lower body. "Take me, fuck me, Cassius, please," he begged, the words torn unwilling from his lips.
Cassius' face changed as the reality of what was happening soaked into his not-terribly-bright mind. Years of obedience to the man in front of him, years of resentment he had never allowed himself to feel, years of his own desire thrust aside and yoked to Aquilla's needs -- All tumbled together into an inchoate mass of cold hatred as a slow smile spread over his face. He grabbed Aquilla roughly and drew him to his feet, pulling him close, his hand closing less than gently over the man's erection. His laugh was one of twisted pleasure, as Aquilla groaned and thrust into the cruel grip.
"He's mine?" Cassius asked the god, who was still standing near him.
"Oh yeah, to do with as you please," Cupid assured him.
Cassius wrapped his hand in Aquilla's hair and twisted it cruelly, kissing the man who had only thrown him scraps. Aquilla's hands came to the henchman's chest, and the landowner rubbed his hard cock on Cassius' leg. Cassius gave a cruel laugh.
"Oh, boss, are we gonna have some fun," he promised. Then he looked around at the three men, recalling his present precarious position. "What are you going to do with us?"
Iolaus and Euphonius looked at each other and then at the god. Iolaus giggled and smiled, then said, "If you take him with you and stop dealing in slaves, absolutely nothing. But if I ever see you again or hear of you slaving, I'll tell the king exactly where to find you."
Cassius sighed in relief. "Sounds good to me. I think I got all I need right here. Ain't that right, boss?" Taking hold of the rich fabric in two huge hands, he ripped the tunic off Aquilla's shoulders, running his eyes over his former master's half-naked body and smiling even broader. Lifting a set of manacles from the floor, he secured his new slave, and then picked up the display collar that Aquilla had put on Euphonius and locked it around the other man's neck.
Iolaus couldn't quite suppress his own joy as he watched Aquilla's tortured enjoyment at being handled this way by his former henchman.
"Fuck me, Cassius," Aquilla begged, clearly hating himself for each further humiliation that he tolerated, but unable to stop wanting it desperately.
"It's Master," Cassius corrected, backhanding him. "And not yet. Not unless you want to end up in a Corinthian jail cell like this. Now, let's go."
Beaten and totally defeated, Aquilla obeyed. He followed Cassius, wearing only a pair of pants and with his arms manacled behind his back, his head held high by the collar. He never even looked around at the two men he had been torturing earlier.
Once the pathetic pair were out of sight, Cupid turned to the merchant and the hunter. "Satisfied?" he asked them both.
Iolaus and Euphonius looked into each other's eyes, then back at the god. They nodded.
"All right," Cupid said. "I'm outta here. Hercules and Iphicles are doing pretty well at cleaning things up. If you go back down that corridor, turn left, and climb the stairs, you'll run into them pretty quickly." He started to wave one hand in disappearance, then stopped short. "Oh, and Euphonius? If you ever have another petition for me, think about it carefully, eh?"
"Don't worry, I will," the merchant promised fervently.
"Cupid?" Iolaus said. "Thanks."
The young god favored him with a mischievous look. "Think nothing of it, Sweetcheeks," he replied. "However, you could always tell Mom how well I orchestrated all this. Maybe then she'll quit treating me like such a kid."
In a blaze of featherlike light, Cupid took his leave of the mortal plane.
Euphonius turned to Iolaus. "Sweetcheeks?"
"Believe me," Iolaus replied. "You don't want to know." He grimaced and gingerly prodded the spreading bruise across the bottom of his ribcage. Now that Cupid was gone, he seemed to notice the pain more than he had while in the god's presence. In fact, he was noticing it a whole lot more. "Come on. Let's go find the others."
"Just one second," the merchant replied. He retrieved the pouch of jewelry he had taken from Cassius, then picked up the gold band that had fallen from his head during the fight. "Okay, I'm ready now."
He looked up, smiling, but the hunter was leaning heavily against the wall, his swollen face deathly pale. Euphonius hurried over, fitting himself against the side of his friend's body and
