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 Posted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:10 pm
A sunset-patterned feline sat scowling in the back of his small iron cage. Merikh wasn't in a particularly good mood today - but then, he was never really in a particularly good mood. When hounds approached his cage, he did his best to look unkempt, unruly, or generally unstable. He'd pace in his cage, mumbling under his breath; he'd move close to the hound, gnawing voraciously at the bars separating them. Sometimes he'd ram or charge into the cold, hard walls of his cage, or drag his claws along the sticky metal floor to make an irritating noise, or sit in a corner forcing spittle out of his mouth and let it dribble down his chin. Anything to avoid being purchased; in his mind, being stuck in a cage for the rest of his life was better than whatever he'd be subjected to under the cruel, watchful eye of a hound.
Generally, his ploys worked to encourage a hound to move along and pass him by. Sometimes the potential buyers would complain, and he'd be punished for his antics - he'd occasionally be whipped, but more often than not he'd instead be spat upon, or starved for a long period of time. Most hounds preferred their slaves unmarred by scars, so the whip was generally saved for when a particularly distraught customer complained and expected to watch Merikh's punishment.
Today, Merikh was feeling weak. He'd only just regained the privilege of eating, and he did not want to lose it so soon, so he was trying to "behave". He still wanted to avoid being purchased, but at the moment, he didn't have the physical strength or the willpower to act particularly nasty should anyone approach him.
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Posted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:43 pm
Anpu seriously hated being in Zanzibar for all it was worth. A hound with a paw in the upperclass just didn't like being around the common filth of the land. But he needed his slaves. This time back for a second and third slave because his parents had gratefully gifted the hounds with enough stones to build a bigger home. But these slaves by far would be different from the first. He had his personal helpers. But now he wanted a few cats to make back his purse that he had spent on them; a couple of fighters maybe?
Anpu walked past the cages one by one looking at each of the cats. He's assumed the best fighting cats would be covered in welts and sours. Then again they could be the most broken as well- but he hoped his luck was with him and it would be the other way around.
He finally stopped his browsing and stood outside the cage of a sunset patterned female. Hyde had said this one was feisty. He cocked his head watching it sulk about the cage. It didn't look tough or feisty at all to him. Just kind of pathetic.
"Hey you there...yea you there in the cage. Your reputation is that your a fighter...or is that a lie?"
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Posted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:54 pm
Merikh looked up at the hound who'd approached his cage, eying the canine with contempt. A fighter? The way the dog worded his question set off alarm bells in the feline's head. This mutt was looking for a new slave, a fighter in particular. He attempted to force some saliva out of his mouth but didn't succeed in doing much other than wetting his lips.
"Maybe, maybe not." He quirked a brow at the dog who was examining him. "What's it to you?"
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Posted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 10:05 pm
"Well-" He gave him another once over as the drool came out. "-Possibly Rabid?" He was wondering what kind of freak show Hyde was running to sell a rabid cat. That was all he needed to contaminate all the other money he just wasted on his other slaves. "You..." He pointed. "Better not be rabid." He kept his paws far from the cage as not to get bitten. "I don't need a RABID cat. Crazy maybe but NOT Rabid."
He again pulled his body back from the cage a few more inches. 'Was this cat seriously worth the undertaking?' It obviously would need to be put in it's place. But not too much or it would loose in the ring, and Anpu really needed that extra cash with his spending habits. He was perhaps way to used to being a rich spoiled son back in Cairo.
"So are you rabid or not?"
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Posted: Thu Aug 05, 2010 7:28 am
Merikh began to grin at the canine as Anpu backed away from his cage. He approached the bars, getting as close as he could to the hound, then plopped down. He lifted a paw and began to nonchalantly clean his face of the saliva, watching the dog from the corner of his eye. "Rabid? I'm not sure. Sometimes it's hard to tell, you know? I used to get into fights a lot on the farm. I've been bitten more than once. It's always a possibility." The corners of his lips curled into a smirk as he continued to groom himself.
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Posted: Thu Aug 05, 2010 11:10 am
He gave the cat an odd look. "You'd been dead by now if you had gotten bit that long ago. I studied to be a doctor. I know how rabies works." He took another step back as the cat moved forward trying to get an idea if he really was rabid. But after he started to clean himself he dismissed the idea.
"I need a fighter...and you need to get out of that cage. If you work with me I'll make your life easy- if you don't well I could leave you to rot in here with stinky drooling on every hound that passes by you." He looked at Mr. Hyde again. "And you know kitty- if he doesn't make any money off you there is no reason for him to keep you about...if you know what I mean." He took a claw and ran it past his neck.
"Though I could tell him your rabid if you want to speed up the process." He turned as slowly as he could towards Mr. Hyde to give the cat a chance to speak up for himself.
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Posted: Thu Aug 12, 2010 5:23 pm
Merikh frowned at the large hound, mulling over the beast's words in his mind. He had never considered any of the possibilities the dog was presenting to him. In retrospect, it made sense that a hound and a cat could work together as more of a business partner relationship than a brutal master-slave relationship. But he had never heard of such a thing actually happening, so he'd never really considered it. He certainly wouldn't mind something like that. It would be much nicer than being stuck in this hell-hole, that was for sure.
Granted, this dog could just be trying to sweet-talk him into leaving with him, offering a good life but beating him like all of the other slave cats who had masters were once he got him home. And the hound brought up another good point - if he did not get sold soon, what good was he to Mr. Hyde? The cackling salesman would have no qualms about disposing a troublesome, useless cat, he knew.
Certainly, leaving the relative "comfort" of his cage was frightening, considering what could happen if he ever did go home with a dog. Still, the very real threat of death loomed over him, and hopefully before the dog could say something to Mr. Hyde, Merikh replied, "Fine. I'll go with you and be a fighter. But I'll hold you to your word - make my life easy, and I'll fight as hard as I can for you. If you don't treat me well, you'll have to find a new fighter." He strolled over to the edge of the cage, poking his nose haughtily through the bars and puffing up his chest.
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Posted: Sat Aug 14, 2010 11:50 pm
Anpu raised an eyebrow at the cocky kitten before him. Every bone in his body wanted to turn him into a catskin hat. Then wear it around proudly just to piss the beast in the cage off more. But he knew better that he couldn't discipline a fighting cat as much as he could a house servant. There ego's needed to be stroked and raised as high as possible so they went into battle with more confidence then the normal cat needed.
"Well it's not like you have much of a choice if I were to take you home and beat you..." Referring to the cats comments that he would have to find another had Anpu been abusive. "But I have no intentions of doing that as I need you to win purses for me. What worth would you be to me if you were already bloody BEFORE I entered you into a big match?" He made his point perfectly clear that he really did have no intentions of lifting a finger or a paw upon the cat before him.
"So then we have a deal Mr. Cat?"
He took his paw an wiggled at Mr. Hyde who eagerly raced over to him at the prospect of money. Paying the smelly Hyena he took the chain around the cat and began in the distance towards Caspia.
"I hope you don't mind a long walk."
He grinned at the cat.
"Better to know if your words of strength are true..."
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Posted: Tue Aug 24, 2010 2:25 pm
Merikh watched Anpu's brow quirk. The dog was agitated because of him, and the cat was having a ball. If he went with this mutt he might end up with other, more similarly amusing situations. He'd really enjoy taunting a dog who wanted to punish him for his insolence but could not do so for fear of financial loss. That prospect alone was incredibly tantalizing.
"We have a deal, Dog," he half-spat with a grin, purring lightly as he was led from his dingy cage and out into the bright sunlight. He did not cringe as the hot pavement seared his paw-pads or whimper as his short, tight chain was jerked around. He held his head proudly as he walked beside the tall dog, knowing that he had found what was possibly the best opportunity available to a slave cat.
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Posted: Tue Aug 24, 2010 2:37 pm
Anpu watched the new slave tried to stifle the pains of his paws out of his mind. It seamed the cat hadn't grown up in the desert; Unlike Anpu's paws which were hard and compacted over the many years of wear in the heat. But just the fact that he was trying to hide the pain made the hound smirk inwardly. He'd be a prefect battle cat as nobody aside from maybe Anpu and Chione would really know when he was close to losing.
Though he knew in his heart Chione would never attend a battle. His mate was too soft to the kittens, taking them as pets and refusing to beat them. If it was only Anpu he was sure his slaves would have a few more welts then they did now. But he loved her so he wasn't going to do something to upset her- even if it might bring some kind of satisfaction to himself.
"Mind you I might not beat you- but don't expect me to take it easy on you...not at all."
He had some interesting ideas already planned.
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Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 3:51 pm
"Whatever you say," Merikh remarked wistfully, padding alongside the dog with a wide grin. He let his long tail drag along the ground behind him as he walked. His bright eyes flickered around the area, moving quickly from one thing, moving or not, to another. "Sooo then," he added after a moment, as they continued to walk side-by-side, "where is it we live again? Not here in Zanzibar, I do hope? You don't seem the type to live in a place like this." He flicked one of his ears jauntily as he waited for a response from his new 'business partner'.
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Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 8:12 pm
"No I would never live in Zanzibar. This place smells like the back end of Mr. Hyde. I'm sure you can agree with that." Anpu didn't mind any slave speaking out of place as long as it was to put down Hyde or the city he lived in. For all Anpu cared the slave could have gone on for hours about his hatred and Anpu wouldn't honestly care one bit. It might have almost been enjoyable to the hound to hear somebody complain about his deep hatred for Zanzibar.
"No, we are going to the beautiful hills of Caspia." His eyes floated up at the thought of being back at home. The birds, the fresh air, the lack of sand. Man did he love the feeling of grass under his toes. The sand burned and was rough. His delicate paws didn't like it at all. He grumbled as he walked by the boarders of Zanzibar as the course sand cut at his pads. "Never will I return to this place unless somebody threatens my life..." He was scowling out loud.
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