"I came from what you'd call an upper middle class family that eventually became rich in my teens. So I was pretty spoiled growing up as a young man, but in a good way. I always brought the party to the people, an entertainer of some sort. My father called me 'too gregarious for my own good', but that never really stopped me. If they weren't around it was a party, if there were around, I would find the party, so I was a party animal as a young guy. I mostly did it to escape the drama at home. As my father expanded his business, his dedication to work strained his relationship with my mother. I knew he would end up doing the usual bullshit associated with powerful men; cheating on my mom with his employees who look like Instagram models. Other things like the corporate bureaucratic stuff also played their part, but I wasn't too concerned with his shit. In college, I fooled around…" he said, before being interrupted.
"What is this college you speak of? Is it a place for foolishness?" she asked, as she caressed his shoulder with her left hand.
"To most people who are uninitiated, they would think otherwise, but mostly college is the platform to let loose and go crazy. Anyways, so after a while, my parents had' had enough of me doing my crazy shit and stopped financing my poor decisions. So, I became kinda broke, well broke in this case would…" he said, moving his hands around to explain.
"The term broke is something familiar with Quendalions. So you were cut off from the milk of your home. In our culture, the child would face their parents in combat to change their rules." she said, looking at him with a bit of mockery.
"Do your people resolve everything with violence?" he asked, bewildered that she would suggest him beating his parents.
"Actions speaker louder than words. Besides, we can argue about the technicalities of things and how they seem, but power is something concrete unlike the abstract nature of reasoning with each other to come up with an agreement." she said, with a resolute face.
"So you believe in supremacy over others. That's why you are so forceful." he said, stunned by her logic.
"Continue with your tale, your foolishness of old interests me."
"So, I didn't exactly have a stable source of income so I ended up dealing with some bad people to make ends meet. I would organise parties as a front for drug dealers and other shady shit. I knew it was pretty messed up, but I wasn't exactly a saint. To each his own and god help us all, was what I believed. So the problem is, I always dragged people into my shit. Where I come from, people call people like me the 'bad influence'. I was that guy who you didn't want your kids around, especially daughters, because I would unleash their inner freak. I think I secretly enjoyed converting people into party freaks. It made me feel less alone because everyone was getting fucked up with me, but unlike them, I knew how to bounce back from it. I would never OD, I would drink just enough to have fun, but never get alcohol poisoning. When I slept around, I was smart. I never had any baby mammas and even when bitches would claim that I was the father of their child, they were just lies. You know, women on my planet, especially the ones that get knocked up, they will try by all means to snag any guy who they think can afford to take care of their kid. I mean, nothing was sacred at these events. Someone was always trying to get lucky; others were trying to run away from their problems. As an event organiser, you get familiar with your audience, but it was hard for me when I got my friends involved or family members. My cousin sister got busted for drugs and went to prison because of me, a friend of mine got hooked into drugs, later on offed himself." he said, getting a tad bit emotional.
"These sound like faults of your own fellowship. Is it common for men from your world, to place the blame on their selves for the lack of judgment of others? I see no reason for you to be distressed by them. You were in the field of foolish sensationalism, so your kind must know what they are getting themselves involved with. I apologise, I have digressed again, please continue with your tale." she said, bowing her head slightly to show her act of contrition. This caught Tichaona off guard, but he figured that the dark figure was more than some over powered sadist, but could at times behave normal.
"Well what was I saying, hmm, yeah, okay, you'd think that it's their fault, but I did facilitate their misbehaviour. I was too drunk to think about it most of the time. I once slept with my best friend's girlfriend. She was a nice piece of ass, a fucken high class skank that I warned him about since she was already sleeping around with other men, but I fell weak and just did her anyway. He hated me after that, but it's not like she was his in the first place." he said, revealing a bit of a smug on his face.
"I see, so you were also the lecherous and philanderer type. Men like that usually have bounties on their head in Quendalion. I hope that now that you're in Goshem, those days are gone. It would be painful for you and your mistresses if you were to be unfaithful. I have digressed once again. My manners, I have forgotten the courtesy of listening without inhibiting. Do continue." she said, as she placed her hand on his thigh for emphasis. Tichaona knew she meant she was going to do something to his dick if he ever tried to cheat on her. A beating from her was already a nightmare, but get his sexual organs destroyed was scary.
"Yeah, so one of my financiers got arrested but I managed to not get cooped up with him as an accomplice to drug and human trafficking. So, once things got real, I decided to use my saved up money to buy a loft and distanced myself from anything related to organizing parties at that level. I quickly ran out of money because I had too much fun and my family began to see me as just some party animal. I was labelled the 'fuck boy' of the family." he said, getting a bit sulky in the way he delivered his sentences.
"What is a 'fuck boy'?" asked the dark figure.
"It's just what you'd call a man looking for thrills who you can't take seriously. Basically are guy who just thinks about partying and sleeping around. We are exciting after all, but we aren't the marrying type nor the long term relationship kind. Nobody got time for that. And it was true; I was the fun guy who wasn't there when serious decisions needed to be made. If you wanted to get laid, drunk or feel good, I had the charisma, that fire you couldn't put out. I was the shit, but after a while, people just type casted me as just the fuck boy, the mindless party animal. Like fuck you assholes, I have feelings to. I was an accomplice to drug dealers and never got caught; only a smart ass can pull that off. So, now let me get into the meat of it. An old buddy of mine needed to rebound like really badly, he was like emotionally distraught about being separated and having difficulties with university. Like super young and the type that over thinks shit. So we went out for a wild night, got soaked real hard, got him a hooker and just let loose. The following morning, my buddy didn't wake up. He died from inebriation and I had to explain to his parents what we were doing that night. His parents were also somehow connected with mine and my parents shared my exploits. I was painted the villain, but I knew it was an accident. He could have taken just enough to make him happy, but he took too much and his body failed him. My family members started distancing themselves from me; my sister's kids were told to avoid me like the plague and family reunions became so awkward that I just decided to not show up to them anymore. This would be what you call karma, but I honestly started to think that I was the problem. People only flock to me because I am fun guy who knows how to party. If you want the best weed, cocaine, lean, Taiwanese pussy, best spots to do illegal shit and not get spotted, I was the guy. Only problem was that they would be that guy too, for that one night, and poof, back to the boring reality of everyday life. Many of my close friends died due to being around me. I am a bad influence; I was the fuck boy that encouraged their alcoholism, the pimp that got them laid with some chick with HIV. I lived fast but they couldn't keep up. So the breaking point that then led to me going for suicide was when I realised that I can't help myself from being the party guy. I got high and fucked a 17 year old girl without knowing. She later went to a mental institution after mixing what should never be mixed. I ruined people's lives for the sake of thrills. If I didn't have a conscience when I was young, then as my older 26 year old self I had a really regretful moral compass that conflicted with me. So, I just went fucken crazy. Maybe the drugs played a part in me finally breaking down and then I tried to kill myself in a humane way. If I couldn't stop people from being around me then I had to just end it. The bad influence had to end. I will say though that the Euthanasia facility looked creepy as fuck, but I still went through with it. But the universe wanted to keep a cancer like me alive and I ended up here in Goshem, with a Quendalion woman who wants me to be her mate. This may be circumstantial or coincidental, but if I believed in fate then if I am here with you, it must be for a reason. Why would a problem child like me be needed?"
"I see. If someone with a sound mind were around you, they would have smacked some sense into you." she said, slapping his face with her right hand. The smack was so loud it sounded like a popping sound that peaked on the volume levels. Tichaona was caught off guard by her assault and wondered what was coming next.
"What was that for?" he asked, in pain as his face began to swell. The skin on his face left the imprint of a large hand. His brown skin was now disfigured with red and black on the swelling.
"You tell me, that this man before me, blessed with fine features, stubbornness, which can be either a handicap or an advantage depending on the circumstances, ended his life because of his influence on others? Are you a fool Tichaona? Are earthly men this sentimental? If you were not my mate, I would have killed you to save you from your shame. Whether you inspire good or evil in others, what's more important is that you have this power to attract others to you. I, a goddess of war, was attracted to you without prior knowledge of your past. Maybe men on your planet have been emasculated to believe that you should feel bad about everything that others do because of you. No, relish this power, it is yours and as my mate, our children will be influencers as well. Individuals should be aware of the consequences of their foolishness. The fools, who died in your company, could not be responsible for themselves. Do not mount guilt on yourself." she with a fiery voice.
It was as if she was on the battlefield, giving her troops a moral boosting speech. The dark figure sounded amazing and the conviction in her words sounded convincing despite how Tichaona still believed she was a sadistic mad woman. He watched closely as she rabbled and then finally said, "Well I have told you my story, so now what?"
"I believe you should eat first before I brief you on your training. It's necessary that I give you the right meal before you get started. I hope you won't anger me this time by throwing away my food. We have shared as friends do, so let us be respectful and don't anger me." she said, giving him the eye.
"I have a question. You just said 'shared as friends do', so if I have preferences and boundaries that I don't want you to cross, seeing that being respectful to a friend is important in your culture, would I be able to set my own rules that you shouldn't break?" he asked, curious to hear her response.
"I suppose, as we become more familiar with each other, I could allow you your freedoms, but only if you impress me. I am the superior one between the two of us, so I will only allow you certain privileges. For now, do not think of me as your mate. See me more as your superior officer in the military. The training you will undergo will be cruel and you will grow to hate me. Such is the price to make you get stronger, faster than your earthling contemporaries. You powers will grow and I will reward you the honour of making you my mate."
"That sounds all good and all, but what I want to know is, if I go through the hell you have prepared for me and we get to kill your brother, am I allowed to go free?" he asked, gazing at her eyes, seriously.
"You wish to distance yourself from me once our goal has been reached? Hmm, Well, by the time I have made you strong enough to face my brother with me, I do not think you will leave me. My customs are strange to you right now and your circumstances are also foreign to me, but soon, you will come around. To make things fair, I will also learn female human qualities so that we can relate more to each other. So, I have spoken enough, I will come back with your food. Please, for the sake of your wellbeing, accept my food. Only criticise it after eating it. I will not harm a critic who has tasted my food. So sleep tight and don't try to escape. See you in a few minutes, warrior in the making Tichaona." she said, as she left the room.
Tichaona felt strange and wondered how things were progressing between him and this alien woman who was holding him captive. He admitted that she had some dynamic traits to her, despite being a domineering dominatrix. The last time Tichaona ever experienced bullying was when he was in junior high, but now he was comparing himself to a woman being restricted by a possessive husband. Things had really gotten strange here in Goshem and he was hoping he could get a hold of some mana to active Barrier to Entry. He wasn't giving up just yet and needed to know if he could tip the scales in his favour if her were to use his trump card, against her.