Chapter 8

"No! Please, don't!" Maru yelled and started to run away from the ugly looking man. He got only a few feet before he was stopped by the unwelcome intruder. His neck got held so tightly that he could barely get air to come into his lungs. He was slowly suffocating. Maru cried from fear and tears went flowing freely down his cheeks.

"You better cooperate, kid. Or else, it might get bad for you real quick. Hehehe. You will have to serve me well.

You can do it with pain or no pain. Either way, your ass is mine. Hahaha! Choose wisely, kid." The ugly looking man said to Maru after he released his tight grip from the boy's scrawny neck.

"Hah.. hahh… hahhh…." Maru was gasping for breath. His neck hurt a lot. Deep imprints of the ugly man's fingers were decorating his neck like an unnerving collar. A mark of doom and a symbol of possession.

"Please. I will do anything. Just don't kill me. My family won't survive without me!" Maru begged loudly. He almost passed out from the lack of oxygen earlier and he was afraid that if that had happened, he wouldn't get to open his eyes again. Like the mutilated corpse that he had stumbled into. Those glassy eyes would bring nightmares in the coming nights.

"I will not die. I will survive this. Wait for me, mother. Sister." Maru was determined to see them again. His tears were still unabated because of the prior shock and pain. He was as weak as a kitten before the tall ugly looking man.

"You see this, kid? You know what to do, don't you?" the ugly looking man indicated a part, south of his body.

"...….." Maru looked at the ugly looking man, not understanding what the man wanted him to do.

"Do you want me to help you pee, sir?" Maru said after thinking about it for five seconds.

"Hahaha! The innocence of youth! What a gem! So precious yet extremely fragile at the same time. I will take my time breaking you in, kid. Hehehe! Don't call me sir. Call me daddy, understood?!" the ugly looking man instructed Maru.

"Yes, daddy!" Maru answered quickly. He knew that resistance was futile. It would only bring him more bad than good. Maru feared for his life if he did not cooperate with this ugly looking man. His immediate future was bleak.

"Good. Very good! Hahaha! Seems like you adapt fast, kid. Smart. Now, suck it!" the ugly looking man admired smart people. He was one and that's why he was still living to this very day. Dumb people died young in these lands. At least, he could think of only dumb women to be an exception to that rule. No matter what age, they were a commodity that has an ever appreciating price in the black market. No one was created equal. Women had it easy, the ugly looking man thought.

They just had to open their legs wide and they could get free meals. They only had to stay docile within their caged thrones as consequence. Men like him had to lie, steal, kill and bleed to have a chance at life in these wastelands. Equality was a dream of fools. It does not exist. At least, not in this world.

"It's an ugly world. Maybe even uglier than I am. Hahaha!" the ugly looking man thought as he waited for the wide eyed boy before him to get over his stunned state. He believed that the boy was a smart one. The boy will eventually make the right decision.

"Suck that thing?! Why would he let me do that?! Does he want to pee inside my mouth?!" Maru thought. He was shaken when he heard what the ugly looking man wanted him to do. Maru wanted to open his mouth but couldn't find the words to say to his ugly oppressor.

"Hey! Don't freeze on me, kid. Come here and do what I said." The ugly looking man warned Maru.

"But…" Maru started but he wasn't able to finish what he was about to say because the ugly looking man didn't let him. He felt himself fly in the air and then rolled on the ground a couple of times before stopping when he hit one of the tall tree trunks that surrounded them. His face hurt and he could taste blood in his mouth.

"My patience is running thin, kid. If you want to die instead, I will grant you a fast death. Maybe I'll search for your family later. Hahaha! I'm sure they'll be more cooperative than you are right now. Your mother or brother will perhaps suck this in your stead. I will see to it that they will both enjoy our time together. Hehehe!" the ugly looking man said to Maru.

"NOOOOOOOO! Leave them alone. I will do it!" Maru shouted towards the ugly looking man. Maru was caked in dust. When he opened his eyes, he saw the world turned unceasingly. Maru was still dizzied from the attack. He tried to stand up but failed in his attempt.

"I don't have all day, kid. Crawl if you have to. But if within ten breaths you are still not here cleaning my son well, I wouldn't mind tracking your family. Trust me. It would be very easy to do. With these rainless days and this hot sun above us, I can find where you came from even with my eyes closed." The ugly looking man said to Maru. He was a hunter of a group called Sakar's Salvation. It was a mere bandit group but his chief, Sakar, wanted them to sound righteous. A blatant irony of what they truly are.

"Please. Please. Don't hurt my family. I'll stand up now." Maru begged the ugly looking man. He tried to open his eyes again and this time, the world was still. The green roof of leaves made from the trees around him was the first thing he saw. He was lying on his back and struggled to get up from that position.

"One, two, three…" the ugly looking man started counting. He was pleased at his unexpected harvest. His task was to stay awhile and wait for those people who had been hiding when the attack on the village happened. The ugly looking man was surprised when he saw the kid walking towards the village. He will be greatly rewarded for his work this time. Boys can do manual labor and will continue to get stronger fast.

In this life, they had to or they'd be left behind to die. Those who struggle can swim for it. And those who do not, can only sink. It's the natural selection of all those who wish to live.