The door opened and I whirled, only to see a very tall, thin man enter the room, followed by another person. It was hard to determine the gender of the second person. They appeared relatively young and were wearing jeans and a dark t-shirt. Their dark hair was cut short, their eyes a deep brown, but there was a certain softness to their face and body that made me uncertain if they were male or female. As they turned to shut the door behind them, I found my answer as I saw a tattoo on their wrist: A circle with an X through it. They were a eunuch.
The thin older man ignored me and looked to Gallius.
“Yes? What do you want?” the man demanded with the air of someone extremely busy.
“I was instructed to deliver this Hoplite to you for a three-day Calling, Master Hestus,” Gallius said.
“This is very irregular,” Hestus muttered, pulling a book from a drawer in the desk. He pulled out a pair of spectacles and peered at the writing. “Ah! We were scheduled for a new one tomorrow,” he said, looking at Gallius accusingly.
Gallius shrugged. “I was told to bring him now because he has his Machi Thanatos coming up.”
Hestus harrumphed.
“Most irregular,” He muttered as he used a pen to scrawl a note in the book.
“Eli?” He called to the eunuch when he was done.
“Yes, Master?” the eunuch responded.
“Take him to the baths. Have him prepared. Once you are done, take him to the Indigo room. I will reach out to the client who made the request and see if they are able to attend this evening instead,” he ordered.
“Yes, Master,” Eli said.
Eli looked at me. “Follow me,” they demanded.
Knowing I didn’t really have much choice, I followed them.
The eunuch led me down several flights of stairs to a hallway, stopping in front of one of the doors.
“I don’t think you’ve been here before, so I will tell you what is going to happen this time only. You will be bathed. We will shave everything except your head. You will then be prepared for our client. Serving the Client to the best of your ability should be your only priority. Obey every order you are given. Serve well, and you may be rewarded. Serve poorly…” their voice trailed off, and I suddenly felt the crushing pain of being Suppressed. Before I could begin to claw at my throat the sensation disappeared.
“Understood?” Eli asked.
I nodded, the fury I felt for all Elusians flooding my veins. Eunuch or no, this Eli was as much a bastard as the rest.
Eunuchs in Alexandria were considered the lowest of the low. Lower, even, than Mageia, if you could believe it. Being made a eunuch was punishment typically reserved for the worst of traitors or as punishment for someone who had an especially valuable skill.
Eli must have seen the spark of fury because they shook their head in disgust.
“The young ones are so stupid,” they muttered, opening the door, and gesturing me in.
Except for the wall behind us, the room was made entirely of stone. A large pool of steaming water lay in the middle. Two soldiers stood in opposite corners of the room along with two eunuchs wearing only loose white robes. Unlike Eli, these two had shaved heads, but with the same tattoo on their wrists. They had their hands clasped in front of them with their eyes downcast.
“Jozel, Kyris, he is to be bathed and shaved. If I find so much as a single hair on him anywhere other than his head, I will whip you both until you are bloody,” Eli ordered.
The two eunuchs nodded quickly and whispered, “Yes, Master.”
Eli left the room, and I heard the lock behind them.
“Remove your clothes,” the eunuch on the right ordered.
“But you didn’t even buy me dinner,” I grumbled before pulling my shirt over my head. The eunuch on the left stifled a chuckle. The one on right just glared at me, clenching their hands into fists.
Life in the Legion had left me with little in the way of body consciousness. Hoplites sparred naked at times, as well as bathed together. There was nothing much to hide.
Shoes and socks went next, then pants and underwear.
They looked me over a moment before the eunuch on the right ordered me into the water. I sighed as I entered the water. It was actually hot, not tepid like the water in the Legion. The warmth of it soothed muscles sore from practice and I couldn’t suppress a moan. Gods, if this were all there was to it, I could get used to life in a House.
