Frozen in Time r3-Amothea-p3

Alex stood on stage not taking his eyes off handsome young man making his way through the throng of men blocking the stage. Everyone was turning to stare at the sight of the man who had outbid everyone. Alex hated to admit it, but he was damned curious himself. If it were anyone else but Mulder, he would have let the guy rot in the city. From what he'd seen, this place made the corruption he lived in for the past four years, a walk in the park.

In the back of his mind, Alex paid attention to the low murmuring of the room, trying to take in whatever conversations he could overhear. However, now the room had fallen silent. Whoever this man was, he had friends in really high places. Despite his humiliation, Alex was intrigued.

"I want him drugged and delivered to my apartment. No one is to touch him." The young man's voice carried a natural authority of someone that knew their place in society and knew it was at the top. Alex didn't know if he should be insulted or not when the young man turned back around and headed for the exit, not even sparing him a second glance.

Rough arms grabbed his arm and forced him off the stage. If he weren't gagged he might have protested that he could walk just fine, but he forfeited all his rights and choices when he agreed to enter the city. They entered the backstage area where the slavers were prepping more men to go on stage. Some were still too young to shave.

Disgust settled uneasily in his stomach even as he felt the pinprick of a needle. The drug hit his system turning everything to black.

******

It was night when Alex regained consciousness. He was lying on his back staring out into the night. The glass window all that stood between him and the darkness beyond. A ghost moved along the window closer to him, he started and instinctively tried to sit up, before he realized it wasn't a ghost but just the reflection of the man who bid on him. He lay back down breathing hard wondering what the hell they'd injected him with.

The lights turned on, and he squinted his eyes against the sudden glare. Once his eyes adjusted he was able to assess his environment more clearly and from an aesthetic point of view, he liked what he saw. White carpet, expensive couches and end tables, space to walk, and a fireplace framed with black marble. His buyer matched the room. White skin, pitch black hair, dark eyes, and not an ounce of fat. However, with those nicely tailored clothes he was sure if there was any fat it was hidden.

His plan to rescue Mulder was ill conceived, he realized now. Love had blinded his survival instincts. He'd be lucky if the man standing above him was only into plain vanilla sex; he doubted it. Men of power were never into plain anything.

He wished the man would stop looking at him and remove the damn gag. He groaned hoping the man would take that as a sign of his discomfort and do something about it. It seemed to work, the man jumped as if startled and blushed. "Oh I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me today."

The striking man knelt next to him and released the ties behind his head, loosening the gag. It fell out of his mouth in a string of saliva; Alex worked his jaw closed, the muscles protesting. The young man smelled nice but seemed too innocent.

"I've never bought anyone from the market before, I wouldn't have been there if my friends hadn't dragged me along. Just stay there and relax. I'll go get a bath going."

The more the young man talked the more he started dropping in years. Earlier he thought the man was at least twenty five now he was guessing seventeen or, generously, twenty.

Alex stayed silent. He thought he was going to be debauched this evening and instead the guy was getting a bath ready for him. Why open his mouth and ruin it? He must have dozed off because when he opened his eyes again the young man was there, staring at him like he was Christ reborn, or worse yet, a hero. "The bath is ready for you. I didn't know how hot to make it so I used the temperature I normally use..."

Alex tried to tune out the lecture on the invention of the modern bath tub; he couldn't believe how much this guy could talk. However, during the speech he managed to crawl to his hands and knees and stand on his own two feet. The carpet felt soft against his bare feet and he dug his toes in. It felt like no carpet he'd ever walked on before, he lifted his foot and the fibers sprang back up like he hadn't been digging his toes in.

He swayed the drugs in his system still affecting his balance. A strong arm wrapped around his waist and he allowed the young man to lead him to the bathroom.

The tiles were cold but not to cold. Alex was surprised the young man continued to help him slip into the deep warm tub. To say the bathroom was large would be an understatement. He saw bathrooms like this on the lifestyles of the rich and stupid back when large bathrooms were common. Who the hell was this guy to afford such luxury? The bathtub he lounged in was just a small portion. This half of the room was tiled but it seemed like his dressing room was combined and that had the same white carpet.

"I can't believe I'm sitting here talking with you," Alex raised his eye brow at that statement but stayed silent, "I mean you were the leader of the rebellion centuries ago. I read the reports that they'd found your body and Fox Mulder's, but I never thought my father would give me the chance to meet you. I planned on waiting until I came into my majority but what are the odds..."

"Who is your father?" Alex asked trying not to sound curious.

"Oh, I guess you wouldn't know him. He's Spender, the leader of the Consortium. I'm next in line, so I think I can protect you."

Oh that explains oh so much, Alex let his head fall back and thought 'shit' for the thousandth time that day.

~~~~~~~

Tarlan's next!