801 Enjoying His Work
From the general drift of Amalaric's stories, you might expect that those who have the misfortune to become enslaved are inevitably destined to end up in the hands of men with an insatiable passion for inflicting punishment. But even in fiction, such passions are likely to run their course fairly quickly. Thus, although Bobby lusts after Ryan for many weeks before he finally snares him and humiliates him (in 'Bobby,' reviewed in Part 3), he lets him go again as soon as he has had his fun and doesn't bother him again after that.
In contrast to this, Ric in 'Hunting Jarheads' (Part 5) decides he likes Rob Corlis enough to want to 'keep' him. But it's not so he can constantly punish him, but to enjoy having him all to himself and to control him. Paradoxically, this means he must allow him sufficient freedom that his masculine qualities can show. So he keeps the young Marine occupied with manual tasks (which are designed so he can earn himself punishments from time to time). In the meantime, of course, he must be housed, fed and watered and other essential needs catered for - and he must also constantly be prevented from escaping. All this provides plenty of opportunities for Ric to assert his control over him in a creative manner, but it's apparent, my friends, that Personal Slaves are heavy maintenance.
Image from 'Eighty Sixth of 1001 Nights' at Aquadude Bunker
(image used here for illustrative purposes only. The '86th night' is about the interrogation of a drug runner, by 'Jay', another memorable Amalaric character, summed up by the tag 'Jay loves his work')
Amalaric comes up with an imaginative solution to the maintenance and control problem in 'The Cube'. The narrator of this tale (seated in the image above) makes a remarkable discovery while out hiking in a remote forest. This chance find enables him to select any man he desires and turn him into an idealised, punishment 'buddy' without him even knowing.
The narrator picks out the man he wants, an off-duty soldier relaxing on a local beach, and re-names him 'Jeff'. His choice (seen above) is a chunky beast and manly in every sense, ideal for his designated role. We see him in this picture looking around, slightly lost, as though he's suddenly found himself magically transported to this office, somewhat in the fashion of Oz (in 'Dungeons of The Emerald City', reviewed in Part 6), but his presence here is not simply a matter of transportation.
As soon as he arrives the narrator orders him strip in accordance with the usual protocols (see Part 4). His undressing is recorded in a series of pictures which include Image 421 and his underwear credentials are revealed to be impeccable, as you can see.
In this picture, the narrator bears an uncanny resemblance to Ric from 'Hunting Jarheads', but he's not the same character. However he is cast in a similar mould, a stern and ruthless master, but one with a conscience and, some might say, a heart of gold.
803 Jeff Enters The Chamber
Jeff obeys the strip command without hesitation. Despite being freshly snatched off the beach, he somehow knows what he's facing and is resigned to it. He does not resist when directed into the comprehensively equipped 'chamber' that has been created especially for him. In this image he makes his way suspiciously past equipment of obscure (and not so obscure) purpose towards it's ominous, shimmering glow.
Inside the chamber Jeff is restrained and subjected to a protracted S&M orgy of punishments and milking. Naturally he complains bitterly but despite being a novice he responds erotically and seems to have a limitless ability to endure everything which is done to him, which includes torments not yet devised in the real world. In the end it's only the narrator's own fatigue and a growing concern for his captive's well-being that persuade him to end the trial. Jeff is freed and disappears leaving the narrator with a warm afterglow.
Jeff's session has been a perfect S&M initiation. He has not yet been totally conquered but can be recalled at any time for another examination and, importantly, he needs no looking after in the meantime. Having found the perfect partner for his tastes, the narrator's only regret is that the thrill of giving him his very first taste of heavy punishment can never be repeated........
But Amalaric's invention solves this problem too, read about it in 'The Cube' at Aquadude Bunker
Amalaric's enslavement stories are really a form of Science Fiction. Most belong to that genre where our world is imagined to have a slightly altered history and the social and political consequences of that change are visualised. 'Brave New World' and '1984' are classic examples of the genre. He also explores the more fanciful, fantasy genre in 'The Dungeons of The Emerald City' (reviewed in Part 6). But in 'The Cube' he has produced a traditional Sci-Fi story with science-based innovations at the core of the plot. HG Wells' 'Time Machine' is the classic example of this type, but that's not what has happened to Jeff....!
804 A Midnight Snack
If punishment is one side
of the fantasy enslavement coin, providing sexual pleasure is usually
the other. Amalaric is generally evasive about such matters apart
from a fondness for milking scenes - and even that is usually
presented as a device for humiliating the victim, making him
collaborate in his own punishment and setting the seal on it, rather than
providing sexual gratification for the captor.
Typically for the image above Amalaric offers up only the title with the qualification that it's ordered by the 'unsated' client, but the sexual context seems fairly clear. This picture neatly sums up the unpredictable requirements of sexual service for a worker who clearly does not choose his clients for himself, though it would be naive to make assumptions about the matching (or otherwise) of sexual tastes here.
We don't know if the one man's slumped demeanour and the other's somewhat forced smile is a reflection of what has already happened or whether it shows their individual anticipations of what is about to happen. Is 'the snack' is the captive himself? Or is it simply food the 'unsated' client craves? Or even another man? Has this captive given his all, only to find it's not quite enough?
Illustration from 'The 47th of 1001 Nights' at Aquadude Bunker
Abductors in Amalaric's stories often promise themselves the reward of enjoying sexual pleasures with their captives 'later on' (e.g. Ric in 'Jarheads'), but they nearly always seem to get distracted by the punishment opportunities on offer. Thus the captured Crusader featured in Part 2 (Image 205) seems to have been nominated for a harem-style, bed chamber role, but part and parcel of his job description is to face the Sheikh's, dreaded 'terrors of the night'. These are not explained but we imagine they probably won't take a fleshy form.
In 'Party Animals' a discreet, brothel-like operation is described with the services provided under coercion by a group of randomly abducted men (see narrative for image 427 in Part 4, also image 417). This house of ill-repute is furnished in typically lavish style but the seemingly obvious sexual purpose of the 'Lobster Tank' is clouded by dark hints about the expendability of the captives and what they face from those who rent or purchase them.
Men don't fit comfortably into purely sexual, brothel and harem scenarios because idleness and passive beauty are not usually considered to be particularly attractive, manly attributes. Etienne's vintage story 'Sailor Beware', featured here recently, is a classic sexual enslavement fantasy (with S&M trimmings), but when not pleasing their (unsought) new master, those two abducted sailors are not left to amuse and groom themselves in the harem, nor called upon to beautify and flatter their master. Instead are sent out to do hard, manual work in the fields under the lash of the whip.
This accords with Ric's rather enlightened view (in Jarheads) that his captive man is best kept occupied and is extremely attractive to look at when he's exerting himself. He puts Rob to work on his unfinished DIY projects (we all have them!) but they soon evolve into pointless, military style fatigues. Their only purpose is to exercise and tame the buck, reshaping him physically and psychologically, while simultaneously providing a pleasingly-erotic sight and an excuse for periodic discipline that drives home to him his subordinate status and indulges Ric's lust to punish.
805 What Money Can't Buy
Image: 'What Money Can't Buy' from 'No Limitation On Use' series at Gay Bondage Fiction
It's no coincidence that the 'intake' for Amalaric's stories are often chosen from the labouring professions and forcing men into manual work is the whole basis of Amalaric's invention of Modern Institutional Enslavement, which forms the backdrop to Part 7 of this series. For some reason, the arbitrary and indiscriminate nature of mass enslavement makes it strangely erotic but it's posed as a solution to pressing economic issues of unemployment, welfare and to some extent a criminal justice measure. This is not so very different from was how it was in ancient times. Enslavement then was a handy way of intimidating conquered peoples and depriving them of their leaders and warriors, but the underlying purpose was to provide cheap labour for those whose wealth stemmed from the ownership of productive land.
Thus Amalaric's 'Hairy Buck' illustrated in Part 5 (Image 502) might be dripping with sexual allure, but he was purchased to do proper farm work. Understandably there are scantily veiled suggestions of 'night-time harvesting' but the more profitable notion of using the enslaved man as 'breeding stock' seems to interest the farmer more (see also the narrative for Image 407, Part 4a). It's not clear exactly what being 'breeding stock' involves and Amalaric doesn't enlarge upon it, leaving it (somewhat surprisingly) as a vaguely threatening, occasional unpleasantness that fit men can expect to come their way.
Of course Ric's employment of Rob in 'Jarheads' is purely artificial and when Dave McGuinness is stripped and put to work in the Bankers garden in '24 hours' (ostensibly to stave off his parent's debts) that's also just a device really, a preliminary to his planned, sexual subjugation. However, true working slaves surface in all their glory in the Chocolate Factory scenes of 'Dungeons of the Emerald City' (reviewed in Part 6)
806 Spanish Field Slave
This image is a favourite of mine. It reflects the ancient tradition of slaves working the land, but in doing so gets closer to showing us the real ordeal of slavery: the toiling day after day driven by the remorseless demands of the ever-changing seasons and the continuously repeating, annual cycles of cultivation. It's a life sentence which contrasts starkly with the relatively fleeting unpleasantness of corporal punishment and sexual service.
This attractive, muscular man (I love his neck and ears!) has been manacled and forced to work in the fields, hoeing weeds by the look of it, another never-ending task. The nudity and wrist shackles don't make his job any easier and they suggest his rebellious spirit is yet to be tamed. Of course, he might well have been well-paid accountant not so long ago or a humble garage mechanic perhaps. But he's been taken from that life and now his wealth and the possessions he owned have all been disposed of. His independence is no more, but as he pauses in his toil he still has his beauty and a semblance of dignity.
The 'Modern Slavery' scenario is hedged around with safeguards for the slaves which echo modern labour laws, but that same law also forces them to remain with their allocated 'Master' and serve him to the end. As in the military, they will be subject to punishment if they don't. Unlike the military, severe corporal punishment is not off-limits.
807 In From The Fields
'In From The Fields' (at Telemachus), illustrated above, describes a day in an agricultural slave's life with details you might never have thought of - the early rising every single day, having to walk to the distant area under cultivation, 14 hour days of manual labour having to work entirely naked (or nearly so) and unassisted by mechanical devices. Not least being subject to the random 'encouragements' of the overseers.
In this misty morning image, the men seem to be on a break, at least there's only one of them working, but the overseer on his horse seems unconcerned, instead thoughtfully eyeing the man in the foreground.
Amalaric's predilection for 'adopting' fashion models for his images frequently results in forward-facing, formal poses like this and it seems like one of the slaves has come to greet us, like the lonely inmate of a rescue centre, wordlessly appealing to us “Pick me, pick me and take me home with you”. This one's stylishly groomed hair suggests that he might be a recent arrival in the fields, not yet fully inducted into the austere life of relentless, physical toil where self-grooming has neither place nor purpose. It's so different from the showmanship and easy plaudits of the catwalk! Here the only appreciation he can expect is an occasional grunt of approval - and respite from the whip if he keeps his head down.
Naturally, the overseer is accustomed to the confusion and restlessness of new boys, who still imagine that someone will realise it's a mistake and come to rescue them. Perhaps he's considering a round of punishment to refocus him on his work, or perhaps he's considering the other possibilities offered by an exceptionally attractive novice, fresh and as yet unspoiled by the grinding work regime. Probably both.
As the title suggests, a long evening lies ahead.
More at 'In From The Fields' (at Telemachus)
808 Tanner Arrested
Amalaric adds more flesh to the bones of this scenario in the '1001 Nights' series and in particular he shows us the broader sweep of a new slave's life in the story of 'John Tanner' whose servitude spans several years and 13 episodes (so far) of the '1001 Nights', re-appearing from time to time like a TV soap opera.
I posted a pre-series feature on the model chosen to play the part of John Tanner in 'Tanner's Credentials for Service'.
'Tanner' isn't everyone's cup of tea but I think his appearance fits him well for the role of rowdy, local stud who (in the 86th Night) mistakenly thinks the police Commissioner's daughter is coming on to him and ends up taking out her regular boyfriend in a drunken scrap. Being remanded for 'remedial therapy' in the community sounds like one of those easy options until he learns it equates to forced servitude for an indefinite period. The review arrangements for that period are unclear but, given the Police Commissioner's involvement, it's likely Tanner's punishment will be lengthy.
From 86th of 1001 Nights at Aquadude Bunker
809 Put To Work
Tanner is sent to work on a local farm and quickly earns his first (relatively mild) strapping from his new boss by grumbling about the 'accommodation' - a straw-filled, lockable stall in a barn. The same surprise was sprung on the unsuspecting Marine, Rob, in 'Hunting Jarheads', although for him it was the first inking of his impending enslavement. Tanner, like Rob is set to work on the simplest of labours, shifting rubble. Unlike Rob he is allowed, nay required, to wear jeans, but no top, except on the coldest of Winter days. It's a sign of the respectability and responsibility of his new mentor.
810 Hard At Work
Amalaric illustrates Tanner's new work life with a number of nicely constructed, beefcake images which appear to be drawn from the same source he used to develop Ryan's work routine in 'Bobby' (Part 3). At this point Boss Hickson must be feeling pleased with his new charge. In this system he is responsible for reforming Tanner. He gets paid for it too and from the outset proves to be sensitive to his slave's welfare, aware of his 'duty of care' in current parlance. It's quite a long way removed from from the 'chain em and chastise them' school of thought, although neither of these measures are totally neglected in Tanner's re-education syllabus.
811 Relatively Light Work
Tanner accepts his fate and gradually gets used to the routine of non-stop, hard labour. He's strong enough to enjoy the exercise and pleased how it tones his physique. Me too! However, he never gets used to the crude quarters where he has to sleep naked every night, locked in with no amusements or distractions. There's no contact allowed either with those he used to know and associate with back home.
812 Bath Time
Once Tanner has learned what is expected of him, Boss Hickson is sparing with the whip. He also allows him the dignity and pleasure of a daily tub wash and hose down, taking a personal interest in supervising and viewing the routine. It seems to indicate an sort of parental affection and responsibility for his charge that echoes Ric's attachment to Rob in Hunting Jarheads (and compare this image with Rob's bath time in, Part 5). The hint of an affinity between master and slave adds a human dimension to Tanner's enslavement.
Images 809 to 812 are all from 136th of 1001 Nights at Aquadude Bunker
813 Ready For Milking
Tanner's burgeoning physique attracts plenty of admiration down on the farm, but the rules of his enslavement are respected and he is not called upon to perform sexual duties for Hickson or anyone else (although that does not exclude 'examinations for welfare purposes' naturally). There also is a strict prohibition on Tanner playing with himself, denial of sexual pleasure is part of his 'therapy' (a lesson he learns the painful way during his 'induction' period). However, this does not mean everlasting abstinence and frustration, he is allowed relief once a month, but he's not allowed to do it for himself (Rob in 'Jarheads' is more fortunate). Instead the discharge is formally conducted by the boss himself. It's not clear whether he see this as a supervisory responsibility which it would be inappropriate to delegate or whether it's a sign that his interest in Tanner is deeper than he lets on.
The picture shows John tied down astride a beguilingly-cushioned stand ready to experience the humiliation of being dispassionately 'milked'. Like most men put in a position like this, his flesh is reluctant at first, but visualising the alternative of electro-milking in one of Amalaric's famous X-Frames eventually does the trick, leaving him grateful no doubt that he doesn't have to do it again for another month.
From 138th of 1001 Nights at Aquadude Bunker
814 Trying The Testicle Toggle
As time passes, Tanner's hard work, good behaviour and developing physique continues to please and Hickson, at the suggestion of his nephew (worryingly named Bobby) gives him a 'present'. It's a special testicle toggle which clips around his ball sack. With this device he can put Tanner on a lead and take him for walks round the farm to show him off.
This gesture adds a new suggestion of personal ownership to their relationship, but being exhibited naked and treated like a pet in front of the other employees (who he works with) is degrading for Tanner. Their catcalls imprint on his mind in this demonstration of his favoured but still inferior status.
from 141st of 1001 Nights' at Aquadude Bunker
815 Taken For A Walk
The demoralising impact of this development is compounded when nephew Bobby also gets permission to take him for walks, leaving him in no doubt that he's at the bottom of the pile. Worse than that, Bobby takes him off the farm property and Tanner discovers that being away from the sheltered environment and routine he's got used to causes him anxiety.
His nakedness and obviously captive state attract the stares and ridicule of neighbours and strangers passing by. Naturally some of the girls are attracted to his fine physique and he is shamelessly exploited by the repulsive and self-serving Bobby, who basks in the interest which he can't attract himself. Already nervous, Tanner experiences depths of humiliation we can hardly imagine as his suppressed sexuality is subjected to explicit teasing. It all serves to stir up his dormant delinquency. Back at the farm, he gets hold of a bottle of whiskey, drinks the lot and causes mayhem.
From the '143rd of 1001 Nights' at Aquadude Bunker
816 Tanner's Punishment
Hickson is outraged and personally affronted by this lapse, believing that Tanner has deliberately deceived him with his apparent reform and made a fool of him in front of the ranch hands. He orders that he be strung up X-fashion from the rafters of the barn with an array of punishment implements laid out before him, which any of the farm employees are free to use on him during the next 24 hours
It's not documented whether Bobby partakes in this torment but he turns out for the sequel, the 'proper' punishment which is to be 70 strokes with a bull-whip out in the yard (above). In a clear sign that he has washed his hands of his protégé Hickson leaves the punishment to his Foreman who relishes the task of taking down the former favourite in front of the other hands (and a delicious bottom!). Tanner only lasts to 41 strokes before passing out, a sudden dose of reality for readers.
From 156th of 1001 Nights at Aquadude Bunker
After that fall from grace, nothing is quite same, It takes Tanner takes a long time to physically heal (another consequence of harsh corporal punishment which is often passed over by authors). He never does quite recover his former character, which maybe isn't entirely a bad thing. But as far as Hickson is concerned, the honeymoon is well and truly over. He starts hiring Tanner out to the neighbours who often prove to be less tolerant. He had come to see the Hickson farmstead as 'home' but from now on it will only be a temporary haven in between punishing hires. Meanwhile his open-ended sentence still stretches out ahead of him.
Tanner's epic downfall has an almost Shakespearean grandeur and pathos about it, with rather bleak morals about the perils of not sticking to the straight and narrow, of taking little kindnesses for granted and about leopards not changing their spots. Tanner is typically male. Wild by nature, he nevertheless yearns for home comforts but is completely oblivious of his keepers' interest in him, little suspecting how bad the alternatives can be. The story is lightly erotic, almost romantic and much less focussed on pain and punishment than many of Amalaric's tales, making the pivotal bull-whipping scene all the more powerful even though the description of it is brief. Amalaric does not linger on Boss Hickson's feelings at the betrayal of his trust nor the true nature of his attraction to Tanner, but his angry, wholesale rejection of his favourite after a solitary error speaks for itself - and is strikingly similar to Ric's prompt despatch of Rob after his failed escape attempt in 'Jarheads'.
817 Forced Labour
‘Break time!’ blared over the loudspeaker at precisely the first minute of every other hour. The weary slave, though young and in peak physical condition, sank gratefully to the ground as waves of pure exhaustion rolled over him. Nearly naked and smeared with mud, he buried his face in bandaged, blistered hands. Quarry work was grueling and more than once he wondered if breaking rock would break him…but he also knew that ten minutes later he would hoist himself back up and return to the sledge and wheel barrow. The promise of the whip ensured his obedience.
Image and narrative from Potpourri No 26 (at Gay Bondage Fiction)
These stories give us a fascinating glimpse of what life as a 'legal' slave might really be like:- a life-long drudge, no bed of roses but not an endless round of harshness either, certainly not of sexual exploitation. It's all the more convincing for that. Amalaric regularly returns to this fantasy to embellish it with extra detail of how men are chosen to be slaves, how and where they are sold, what they can be used for, what limits if any apply to their use and treatment. His slaves are expected to work for their keep and as you might expect, they regularly experience modest physical punishments partly to nip rebellious thoughts in the bud . Sexual abstinence is part of their contract but sexual service usually isn't - but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen (off camera)! The cumulative effect is an almost believable, near-reality which is worthy of comparison with 'respectable' literature.
But there's another side to this story with a sting in the tail …..
818 Field Work
This working slave, a plough-puller, has been recruited in a very different way. As you might guess from clues in the image, he isn't a civilian legally cast into the web of Institutional Slavery, but a soldier seized by insurgents after being separated from the rest his patrol in the Middle East. This humiliation, being harnessed to pull a plough in the crudest way imaginable comes only after he has endured a lengthy 'interrogation' process laced with generous helpings of dubiously-motivated torture. The description of this particular descent into hell is compelling (link below).
You'd think it must be a relief to him to be out in the fresh air with not a wall in sight, but he actually looks distinctly nervous about being in such an open, exposed place after months spent in dark cells (a similar reaction to Tanner's when he was taken off the farm). As we are all learning right now, a draining of the spirit is a common consequence of extended detention and isolation.
His anxious mood is probably fuelled by the chance remark that he is just 'earning his keep' by doing this task, suggesting his recent extreme sufferings are only on 'pause' and far from over yet. You'd forgive him for looking for a way to escape, though he'd probably not get far in this flat terrain.
This picture makes an interesting comparison with the other ploughing image, no 807 above (In From The Fields). It suggests that those who we imagine to be less civilised than ourselves may not necessarily be so!
From Afghan Detour at Telemachus
Finally, there is one other story by Amalaric which also gives us an interesting glimpse of a slave at work in a rather different context - 'Lord Chatterley's Forester' which I review in Part 8b
Read this series from Part 1
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