Why am I still alive? Of everything that transpired, that was the only thing that Femi could contemplate. She was marked as a thief, betrayed by her beloved, and now missing and eye. The once famed courtesan now stood naked and on display for all to see.

As one could surmise, Akar was not happy. He was even more furious when he discovered that his star courtesan was now damaged goods. Who would pay good coin for a one-eyed whore? Disgusted at the sight of Femi, and seeking to recoup his losses, the black asp took Femi to the slave market. As slaves were a privilege that the elite could afford, he had hoped that at least one of her past clients would pay a good some for her. This was his hope at least.

Indeed, Femi was still a sight to behold. Her lovely curves captivated all potential buyers. That was until they saw her poorly bandaged eye. The bandage was colored red from her wound. A strange colored substance also began to ooze from her wound, an obvious sign of infection. This staved off potential buyers, much to Akar’s frustration. The asp crossed his arms as he slithered about Femi. His obvious contained rage didn’t help the situation either.

“You were my number one,” Akar hissed as he glared at Femi. “As long as you spread open your legs, you were treated like a queen! And this is how you repay me?”

“…” Femi was too saddened to even reply to Akar. Realizing that there were few buyers, someone would no doubt come along and buy her for dirt cheap. If that was the case, she would be nothing more than a kitchen slave, subjected to the vile whims of her master and endure any slave with strong arms and a horny disposition. She realized now why Ata didn’t just want Massui to simply kill her. That sharp-tongued cat wanted Femi to suffer!

“What stands before you is the famed Femi!” Akar exclaimed. “Once the jewel of Memphis, now she can be yours!” Akar did his best to keep a straight, pleasant-looking face as he made his sales pitch.

The crowd was undecided. Akar made a good point. Femi’s reputation preceded her. She could be used as a status symbol; that is if they were willing to clean her up and do something about the hole in her head. That all amounted to coin, more coin than they thought she was worth. As of yet, there was not one single bid for Femi, making her situation even graver.

“Two topaz jewels!” an old crocodile offered with a lecherous grin.

“Four silver coins!” a hippo brandishing a whip shouted.

Akar sighed when he realized he wasn’t going to get that much for Femi. If anything, however, this would be a fitting punishment for her. He could tell she wouldn’t be happy with either of the two bidders. Femi languishing in some hobble was enough to make the asp smile.

“N-nine s-silver coins,” a black jackal bid. The jackal sounded somewhat hesitant, nervous even when he made his bid. As he raised his right paw, he quivered slightly.

“Oh who needs the whore?” Unable to bid further, the crocodile left the auction, followed by the hippo, and soon everyone else. This left Akar with only the jackal who bid nine silver.

“You have yourself a deal. What’s your name?” Akar asked.

“M-my name is Lateef,” the timid jackal answered.

“Alright, Master Lateef, here is your property.” With a fanged grin, Akar pushed Femi towards her new master. He then snatched the nine silver coins the moment Lateef presented them. Paid in full, Akar slithered away. His laugh could be heard as he vanished amongst the crowd.

“S-so what’s your name?” Lateef asked Femi.

“That’s for you to decide, Master,” she answered weakly.

“We’ll see,” he said with a sigh. Lateef gently took Femi’s right paw and proceeded to lead her. He maneuvered her around the many people of the bustling city. Memphis was so full of life that it made Lateef smile. When he glanced back at Femi, he saw her looking at the ground, too depressed to do otherwise.

After walking around Memphis for about forty minutes, Lateef and Femi eventually came across a large stone structure, obviously a temple. Hieroglyphs on the temple revealed a thin, frail, graceful figure of an ibis.

The temple of Thoth? Femi thought. Why are we here? Femi would have asked, but she felt it not proper to question her new master. She didn’t want to make him angry on the first day. She submissively followed him as he entered the temple.

The moment they walked in, Lateef was greeted by the high priest, obvious from his elaborate attire. The high priest, a baboon, greeted the black jackal with a friendly hug. He then noticed Femi, who did her best to hide behind Lateef.

“My friend, you come for prayers but you bring a beauty?” the High Priest joked.

“She needs medical attention,” Lateef stressed. “Do you have any of the salve I require to numb and stop infection?”

“Of course, of course!” The High Priest dug within his robes and pulled out a small jar of creamy green salve. “You’re a brilliant physician, Lateef. Knowing about the medical herbs that grow around here and leaving me the recipe to make it myself. The temple is indebted to you!” With a smile, he gave the jar of salve to Lateef.

“Thank you.” Lateef bowed to the High Priest to show his gratitude. “Could I perhaps bother you for--”

“Consider it done!” the High Priest responded before Lateef could finish. “You can treat her here!”

Feeling indebted to the High Priest, Lateef bowed his head to show respect, and then hugged the man. After thanking him, Lateef escorted Femi around the shrine until he came across a small bedroom. Though it was adequate, it was vastly different from what Femi was familiar with.

Lateef ordered Femi to sit down, which she did without perfect obedience. Upon seeing the bed, she automatically thought that her master was now going to take advantage of his position. Why wouldn’t he? However, the salve was surprising. Was she to earn the right to heal her eye through being an obedient little sex slave?

Instead of making Femi earn the salve, he began to remove the bandage over her injured eye. He took great care not to cause any further irritation as he removed the bloody wrap. When at last he saw her right eye, he simply shrugged. The gashed eye just hung in its socket, festering.

“I have to get that out of there,” Lateef stressed. “Now this will sting a little, but the salve will immediately numb the pain,” he explained.

“Yes, Master,” Femi responded.

Lateef retrieved a small kit hidden on his person. The small kit was full of surgical knives of varying sizes. With the smallest knife at hand, he began to grisly process of removing Femi’s right eye. He expected her to squirm, flinch, or otherwise respond to the cold blade, but she simply stood there as he removed her eye. With the source of the infection removed, Lateef open the jar he had received from the High Priest and began to apply the salve.

“T-thank you, Master,” Femi stammered, unsure how to return her master’s kind treatment.

“Don’t call me that,” he sighed. “I’m no better than you. Address me as Lateef,” he stressed with a smile.

“Thank you, Ma--” Femi paused for a moment. Finally managing to put a smile on her face, she said “Thank you, Lateef.”

“Now I’m going to be in Memphis for a couple of days, more so to offer prayers to Thoth as well as pick up some medical supplies,” he explained as he proceeded to wrap some clean bandages around Femi’s right eye. “Now I want you to remain in this bed for the duration. Doctor’s orders.”

After dressing Femi’s wound, Lateef left her the lie in bed. Femi was left with much to think about after he left. Since he merely purchased her to help her, does this mean that Femi is a free woman? If so, what would she do now? Being a prostitute was the last thing on her mind, but she had no other work experience.

For the next few days, Femi remained in the room, but she was far from lonely. Aside from Lateef frequently visiting his patient, the High Priest and several other priests would pop in on Femi and bring her food. One priest even went as far as to bring her a hookah as to help alleviate pain and stress; this was against Lateef’s wishes, however. Femi was unaccustomed to such treatment without at least opening her legs first.

Femi’s physical wound began to heal more with each passing day. After two weeks had gone by, Femi had made a complete recovery! In place of the bandages, she now wore an eye patch. Lateef and the priests of Thoth treated her so well. It gave the former courtesan the will to go on. Though the scars of Massui’s betrayal ran deep, her new hookah helped to put the golden-furred backstabber and his feline floozy out of her mind.

“So how is my patient, today?” Lateef asked as he walked into her room.

“Glad to see you!” Femi replied. She jumped out of bed and tackled Lateef. Thinner than most jackals, Lateef fell to the ground. Femi looked at Lateef, embarrassed from her own excitement. The two of them then burst into laughter.

“With your recovery, you’re free to go,” Lateef informed her.

“And if I want to thank my doctor by remaining at his side?” Femi was grinning from ear to ear.

“I could use a nurse,” he pondered.

“I’m not a medic!” Femi nearly screamed. “I’m an artist! I can sing and dance. Imagine it, dear Lateef. After a looong day tending to your patients, you return home.” Femi spoke in a seductive whisper, flustering her poor doctor. “I greet you with a plate of food. As you eat, I sing and dance for you.”

“T-that…” Lateef gulped, “Sounds good…” Desperate to compose himself, Lateef cough and shook his head. “I-I have a gift for you.” Mustering all of his courage, Lateef pulled out a small, blue gemstone.

“A lapis lazuli?” she muttered.

“It was a gift to me from another patient of mine,” he explained. “He collects rare gems, and he decided to give this to me.”

Femi examined the gemstone. She was absolutely in love with it. The lapis lazuli she held was small, but not too small. It was large enough to fashion a pendant out of it. Already smoothed out, it would make a lovely pendant. After examining it further, she got an idea. Tossing aside her eye patch, Femi placed the gemstone in her empty eye socket.

“How do I look?” she asked with a sexy smirk.

“L-l-l-lovely,” Lateef stammered.

“Now I never told you my name, did I?” she whispered into his ear. “Well, that’s because it reminds me of someone I don’t want to think about,” she explained with a frown. “Now I’ve taken a new name.”

“A new name?” Lateef was somewhat perplexed.

“You can call me Lapis, my dear doctor.” Upon renaming herself, Lapis kissed Lateef and then held him tightly.

“Nice to finally meet you, Lapis.” Feeling her tremble from past pain, Lateef embraced Lapis. He knew a thing or two about heartache. No matter what happened now, he would remain at her side.