"Oh Gollus, please be careful with this fool. He is liable to die if you do much to him."

His face softened as he smiled at her with real love. "Yes Melaidin, he is quite soft and pathetic. Shaeg chose well when he chose Klaeb as his plaything. Hmm, I want to punish him myself, but...I have no wish to expeience Shaeg's discipline. What can we do?" He began pacing, tapping his forehead in frustration as he racked his brain to figure out the best means of doing Shaeg's bidding.

Melaidin merely smiled to herself as she fingered the device that had already inflicted pain on Klaeb. She was hoping that Gollus would figure it out without her pointing out the obvious. He was more than just a big oxe, all he needed was small encouargements to think things through.

Klaeb saw this, and shuddered inwardly, he almost preferred the physical beating that Gollus would put him through than to feel the pain of that unholy device. A thopught occured to him, and despite the chances of success, he acted with but a hint of hesitation.

So confident in his broken spirit, they had not bothered to restrain him, and merely left him in plain view. After all, they knew Melaidin alone could take him. But he had surprise on his side and he tackled Melaidin hard as she tried in vain to suggest, without actually suggesting, just how thy could punish Klaeb, while enjoying themselves.

He drove her forward then brought his weight down and she took the brunt of their awkward tumble. She groaned and lay still. He stood up slowly and watched as Gollus came down on him with a hard elbow to the shoulder, cracking it loudly.

"I so want to do more damage to you Klaeb, but I am no fool. Shaeg wants you alive, so you will stay alive, you just won't be so recognizeable. And I can do it without killing you, despite Melaidin's fears. I thought of breaking your nose, but you are so puny, I may well have killed you instead. So be thankful that I am not the idiot you take me for."

"I don't know you Gollus, and have not decided just what you are, except that I don't like you. But can you blame me? You're beating on me for no reason. I have done nothing to you, let me go."

"You are the master's plaything Klaeb and I do not let the master's playthings just wander off. You are staying, and I will punish you as Shaeg wishes."

He did not feel like it, but he laughed anyway, adn grimaced as he felt hisshoulder.

"Do not laugh at me Klaeb, I am your better, respect me fool."

"Better to laugh then cry Gollus."

"No. far better for you to die Klaeb, only Shaeg wants you alive, so you will merely suffer." And he was true to his word as he somersaulted over Klaeb's head and landed behind him, twisting around to deliver two sharp blows to the kidneys. He followed that up with a couple hard kick to both knees and laughed as Klaeb crashed to the floor. "Like this Klaeb, but this is only the beginning. This will be fun, for me that is, but not for you."