The Sultana's Boy

The BoyNapping Part 1

Egan awoke to sensations of a hot and arid climate. He looked at the intricately textured tiles around the room, noting the bright colors of the comfortable throw pillows he had been sleeping on. 'Am I hungover?' he thought nauseated. Fuzzy from a splitting headache he noticed that he was naked except for his socks and a pair of boxer briefs.

He opened his eyes a bit wider now taking in his surroundings. As the sunlight touched his pupils, he pressed his hand to his forehead squinting and standing up a bit off balance. He used his other hand to brace himself against the wall. He wondered where his flannel shirt and down jacket were, but he certainly didn't need them in this desert-like heat. Then suddenly he remembered— a drink in her hotel room, then darkness.

What surrounded him was foreign, but he tried not to panic. He noticed he was in a small alcove that opened to a much larger room. The middle of the room contained a gathering area overlooking a pool or bath of some sort. After a quick look around the room, he counted at least 30 men, mostly nude, clean shaven, with olive complexions. Something else was strange about this situation, but it took him a moment to realize there were no girls.

"Where am I?" he asked one of the passing men who appeared to speak no English.

Panicked, he asked the question bit louder to a group of men sitting by the pool "Where am I?"

He jumped as a man behind him tapped him on his shoulder. The man had a friendly face and a round belly. He seemed a bit older than many of the men in the room. With a confident smile, he said "I'm Tup-Tup. Welcome to Sultana Adia's harem."

Suddenly Egan felt claustrophobic. He noticed the polished metal across the window was clearly meant to keep them in. He rushed to the door and pulled hard, but the door did not budge. Many of the men lazed about in the pool and laughed at the foreigner's attempts at escape.

Egan banged on the locked door with all his strength. "You can't lock me in here" he shouted, "I am a fucking American, I have rights!"

He began to panic as his mind flashed back to the muffled words of the Sultana as he blacked out "what better way to write about me and my country than to see it." His drink had been drugged. Thinking this made him angrier as he continued to pound on the door, demanding to speak to the person in charge.

Finally, he heard a key enter the lock, and the door opened. A rather tall and muscular woman smoking a cigar stepped inside "Mr. Gorman the Sultana has sent me to welcome you to her home. You are the guest of the Sultana, and while you are here, you will serve at her pleasure. For now, please make yourself comfortable."

He felt naked in front of the strange imposing woman with an impressive sword strapped to her waist and instinctively tried to cover himself. 'Guest?' He thought. He noticed the chatter from the other men had ceased, leaving the harem eerily silent. He thought it best not to speak. After all, if this woman instilled enough fear in these men to quiet the room, then nothing he said was going to matter.

"If I hear that you boys have been less than courteous to our guest, I will deal with you personally. Tup-Tup, please see that Mr. Gorman is prepared for an audience with her Highness" said the woman before exiting and locking the door behind her.

He walked to the alcove to see if any of his belongings had followed him into the harem. Tup-Tup walked over to Egan, afraid that he would not comply with the preparation. Tup-Tup knew the Harem Mistress would be displeased should he not complete his task.

"Please," said Tup-Tup, "let me help you."

"Help me with what?" Egan snapped back at him.

"Please boy. You must be properly dressed and groomed to meet the Sultana. She would never allow you an audience looking like this," Tup-Tup pleaded.

"She didn't seem to mind how I looked in New York," Egan muttered under his breath.

The Harem Mistress returned and handed Tup-Tup a piece of paper with the Sultana's instructions. Tup-Tup nodded to the woman, glanced at the paper and then escorted Egan to a stool. He looked at Egan with round puppy eyes. Egan sighed and took his place. He knew he was probably not going to leave this room unless he complied.

As Tup-Tup began his preparations, Egan asked, "why does she call you Tup-Tup?"

"My name was Alva, but her Highness gives us all new names when we come into her service. She calls me Tup-Tup because Tup is the word for 'laugh' in our language and I make the Sultana laugh."

"I see Alva," said Egan.

"No please call me Tup-Tup. It is my name now."

He felt slightly embarrassed as the powder was applied to his face in addition to eye makeup and liner. He held still as Tup-Tup requested while oil was rubbed into his skin. The silken garments he was given to wrap around his waist didn't leave much to the imagination. At last Tup-Tup looked down at him and smiled, pleased with his work. He handed Egan a mirror. "There," he said. "You look lovely. The Sultana will be pleased."

Egan blushed at the thought of the Sultana being pleased with him. He laughed to himself thinking he looked more like a prostitute than a man. He looked into the mirror and noticed his eyes appeared more vibrant. His skin glowed with glitter and oil.