You're Trained a Bit

You don't get the best night's sleep. You wake up three or four times throughout the night, and stay awake for a while. It doesn't help that after the second time this happens, you have to pee pretty bad. You're not sure what would happen if you tried to ask one of the guards to let you into the bathroom, but somehow you don't feel like risking it.

The noise doesn't help. No one is speaking to where you can understand them, but there are plenty of whispered conversations, both in Nothian and High Imperial. You try to cover your ears with your pillow like you would have if this was your bed, but the fluffy bulge at the head of the pad is imbedded into it, just as the blanket draped over you is sewn onto its left side. You can't bend the thing around your head to cover your ears. Eventually, you find limited success blocking out the noise by lying on your side with your arm draped over your ear.

You've already woken up for the fourth time when the lights come on and a buzzer sounds. Anyone who was asleep isn't anymore. "Wake up," the Nothian speaker says, through the loudspeaker. "Stay where you are, though. Right now, some of your fellow slaves are passing out your breakfast. When you finish with it, form a line by the entrance to the room with the showers. Anyone who isn't done with theirs inside half an hour gets a shock."

The **** who passes out breakfast isn't anyone you know. You don't see her talk to anyone, and when she reaches you, you see there's a tattoo on her forehead. The Empire tends to tattoo its slaves once they get their owners. This one must be from off-planet. She gives you a pouch full of something that tastes like all the disparate parts of a passable breakfast were put into a blender and mixed together in just such a way as to render them inedible. They're not inedible, though. You and two-hundred other slaves prove that much.

When you're done, you scan the court again, now that you have daylight. Nick isn't here, you're sure, and neither is anyone else you know. You join the line that's already forming outside the locker room. You're led into the bathroom. After using it, you're made to strip, then shower again. You had hoped it would be more pleasant with the Nothian speaker busy at the intercom, but it turns out his colleagues are happy to play his role in his absence. One particular guard, a woman this time, gets a nice long look at you. Your stare finds its way to her once you realize, and after she notices that, she laughs a bit, and nods at you, as if you had asked her an amusing question.

You're quick to put on your uniform and get back into the main area. You're given a warmer one this time. Thicker pants and a sweater. Are they planning to send you outside? Hopefully not. Maybe this one moderately warm layer is passable during winter on their homeworld, but on Noth, you may as well be in your underwear. Once dressed, you're directed to reclaim your place in the hoverball court. The nothian speaker is present now, high in the stands, making small talk with another soldier.

It's another half-hour or so before everyone is done in the locker rooms. "Now," the nothian speaker says, "we're going to begin the next part of your daily routine. Each of you has been interviewed and processed, and right now, persons throughout the empire are bidding on you. It will take at least a week for each of you to sell. For some of you, it may take longer. In the meantime, you will be kept here. While there will not be enough time to properly train you, we do not plan to put what time we do have to waste. Those who buy you will do so knowing you likely have limited comprehension of High Imperial. Likely, they will have some plan in mind to teach you. However, while I have you here, I'm going to teach you fifteen words you'll find especially useful. I will explain them now, slowly and carefully, and I expect you to learn them quick. As you are put to work in other tasks here, guards will expect you to understand them."

You try to **** Nick and the others out of your mind for a moment. You need to pay attention now.

"First word, 'domikash,' meaning master. Say it."

"Domikash," everyone says.

"Your master will want you to address them by that title. Second word, 'doz.' It means sir or ma'am. While you'll use 'domikash' to address your master, 'doz' is for the rest of your betters. Say it."

"Doz."

On the other side of the room, someone screams and falls over. "When I tell you to say a word, say a word. Now get up." You can't see through the crowd, but you presume they do. "Now, say it. Everyone."

"Doz."

"Good. Our third word is 'subrik.' It means ****. It's how others will tend to address you. Say it."

"Subrik."

It goes on like that for each word. The remaining words are "Yan," meaning 'I' or 'me,' "loyaph," which means 'what', "ritid," meaning 'come,' "guch," which means 'do,' "rubot," which means 'work,' "nulork," which means 'bad,' "kogdoth," the camerawoman's favorite word, which, it turns out, means 'good' or 'okay,' "korot," which means 'this' or 'that,' "mot," which means 'no,' "fuzhorin," which means 'please,' "sesh," which means 'yes,' and 'zhorosef,' which means 'thank you.' You go over them a few times as a group. "Repeat them in your mind as much and as long as you need to," he says. "Knowing that much, you should be able to obey the soldiers here. One more linguistic tip. We don't use the extraneous grammar words you do. We don't feel the need to attach an article to every noun, or a 'to be' verb to every sentence. We have the latter. It's 'tus,' but you don't need to worry about it for now. If you say a noun then a verb, you'll be speaking coherently. That means you can make a few sentences using just what we've covered today."

'Tus.' You add that to your mental catalogue. You keep going over the words in your mind, in order. You try to make yourself truly sick of them. Domikash, master, doz, sir, subrik, ****, yan, I, loyaph, what, ritid, come, guch, do, rubot, work, nulork, bad, kogdoth, good, korot, this, mot, no, fuzhorin, please, sesh, yes, zhorosef, thank you, tus, to be.

"Now, prepare to be led out of the room. We have some other work planned for you. Stay put, and you'll be grouped together and led to where you're needed."

Everyone does.

"What do you say when I give you an order."

"Sesh doz," most of the crowd says, though maybe a tenth of them scream in pain instead.