(No "action" in this one, FYI)
There are very few people that know about the Rauders. They're all but impossible to see, unless they want you to see them. And by the time you'd notice, it would be too late. They're quick, and sneaky, and good at many things. People don't believe in them, because they're so rarely spotted.
What they like to do is hard for almost anyone to believe. And most of the time, people who they catch don't even try to tell others, so they move freely and do whatever they want. You wouldn't want to be... noticed by the Rauders.
They like to have fun. And their idea of fun, well, it's really not fun at all for the people they raud. And because they're so experienced, they know how to raud somebody for a long, long time... days and days. Weeks, even - oh yes, many weeks! - for those unfortunate people who are especially fun to raud.
One fine summer evening, they spent a whole hour preparing one of their favorite chambers. They like to find a house or a room that's far away from other houses, even from a road or sidewalk or trail. And they liked this particular chamber because it was such a snug, secret place for them to do their rauding.
They checked all the bolts and rings and locks carefully, and oiled the big thick cuffs, and made the bed with a brand new sheet. Then, they spent another hour gathering up the last of the things their "guest" might need.
When all was said and done, they had boxes filled with food and water and creams and gels and ointments and other things, and had arranged everything so they knew right where it was. They'd also brought medicines and lots of batteries. They have a lot of toys, but not like you'd find in the toy store... for these were Rauders' toys, and they buzzed or whirred or got warm or gave a little shock. They have lots of things that dust and stretch and pinch and polish and scrub and snuggle up tight, and these don't need any batteries.
They also have a lot of different things made of rubber and cloth and leather. They've collected all their favorite things to raud a guest for a long, long time.
They checked to make sure they had everything they wanted. Some things were for using, and others were just for teasing. That's part of rauding, too... They like to play with their guests like a cat plays with a mouse, only there's many more ways to tease a man. And the Rauders know them all, because they like teasing so much.
Why a man? Well, the Rauders have captured some ladies and taken them to their raud-chamber, and had a good time... but mostly they like to raud men. Many parts of rauding are so different from the strong, tough things men usually do that they're a great deal more fun to capture. And most men - the kind of guest the Rauders look for - have a lot of energy, so they can be rauded day after day. Most of the special toys they use will only work on a grown-up man, and some of the things to drink, too.
All was prepared for a strong, healthy man they could raud and raud. So they set out to find one.
They tested man after man, and while some would be enjoyable, they just felt there was a guest out there, waiting to be found, who would be the right choice for a good, full raud.
How do they test people? Well, even though there are many parts to rauding, they've learned that there are places they can touch that will tell them right away if somebody is an excellent choice for rauding. There is much, much more to what they do than just touching, but they were so practiced that a few seconds of tickling in the right places would give their victim's secret away.
Now everybody's ticklish in certain places, but a guest the Rauders like will respond very fiercely if rubbed just so in the right spots, all at the same time. Men, especially, don't usually let on that they're ticklish. They keep that news to themselves. So the Rauders had gotten very good at discovering if a man would be the kind of guest they'd be very happy to raud.
And make no mistake... there's much, much more to rauding than a mere tickle. It's a million times more serious than that.
Late that night, when the moon was almost directly overhead, they saw their thirty-seventh possible guest. He was out running in the cool night breeze, wearing shorts and shoes and socks but no shirt. The Rauders surrounded him without making a sound, and they tested him...
And, right away, they knew he was the guest they'd been hoping for. Oh, the Rauders were excited, and very happy!
They picked him up, and held his mouth closed, and carried him straight to their well-stocked chamber.
And they were happier still, as they closed a door and bolted it, then closed another door and locked it tight. They picked up a big, shiny lock and clicked it tight through an iron bar that blocked the inside door from opening. This made sure no one would be able to open the door from the outside, but it was mainly to tease him later, whenever he looked at the door. They knew he'd want to leave more than anything... but he wouldn't be able to go until they were all done rauding.
Since he reacted very strongly to their test, when they stopped him in the middle of his run, they saw no reason to finish their raud before the month was long gone.
It's very serious to be locked in a raud-chamber. No matter what, a guest is unable to get out... their chambers always have thick doors and sturdy locks, far away from where anyone could hear. To look at the outside of the buildings they choose, you'd never guess there's rauding going on inside.
Oh, they had a hidden trap door so they could slip out of the chamber to get something they wanted, without having to open the doors. With plenty of food and water there, even some medicine if he should need it, they thought they already had everything he could possibly need - and plenty of other things to really make him want to escape!
But the Rauders have never had a guest escape. Not once... until they let him go.
He squirmed and twisted, but their running guest was made to sit down on the carpeted floor, leaning against the foot of the bed. It was dark in there... there was a window, but he couldn't see the moon from where he sat. There were a few stars, and that was all. And in front of the window glass, there were bars just like in a jail cell.
The Rauders kept his hands behind his back and his feet straight out in front of him. Then they let go of his mouth. He yelled and yelled, still fighting hard.
There was no response. He stared at the window, but no one heard him. Their plan was working perfectly... but then again they had had a lot of practice.
After a while, he started to get tired. When he'd all but quit struggling and hollering, the Rauders kept holding him tight. He was still breathing heavily from the effort of trying to get loose.
Soon, he would understand they were the kings of the raud-chamber, and he would obey them. No matter how free and independent he'd been an hour ago, he was in their hands now. They knew how to make absolutely sure they got their way.
After a while, he was quite thirsty. The Rauders knew this, of course; they had some water all ready. He drank it all... not knowing that they had put a drug in the water that would make him sleepy. But only for an hour or two - that was all the time they wanted. They were eager to get some serious rauding underway.
In a few minutes his head rolled back, and he began to snore.
They were delighted.
Peeling off his shorts and shoes and socks, the Rauders brought over some jars and towels. They cleaned him up and rubbed a special cream all over his skin, but he didn't even stir. Extra attention was paid to the bottoms of his feet, because all that running had made the skin thick and tough. A stiff brush and some white cream made both soles pink and sensitive.
There was one spot that they kept free from grease, right in the middle of his chest. One of them brought a bottle of india ink, and another carried a little brush. These two started painting a picture for him to see.
While they were busy, a pile of black leather was dropped alongside him. They dressed him in pants, vest, jacket, gloves and boots. And they brought wide, thick strips to fasten around his wrists and ankles. These were the cuffs, buckled snugly into place, and they were so strong that ten men couldn't break them.
When the artists were finished, they laid him on the bed and stretched him out tight. They lit some candles...
...and waited for him to wake up!
He stared at the window for a minute. Then he blinked, looked again, and scanned the whole chamber, and at the unfamiliar clothes he was wearing. He was worried. When he saw the bar blocking the door, he swallowed hard.
You might think he had good reason to be frightened, and you would be right. He didn't even know yet why he was there... so he was in for an amazing surprise.
There were a lot of little surprises, too. The Rauders had buckled a thick strap around and through the cuffs on his wrists. His hands were pinned high over his head!
Even worse, his feet were caught too. He tried to turn, and arch his back, and slide over - but he just couldn't. He didn't even move over a little. He could make fists, and bend his toes... but that was all.
He looked very uncomfortable... but not like the straps were hurting him. From the expression on his face, they knew that being helpless like this was unfamiliar to him and very strange. And if you try to imagine being in that position, maybe you would agree.
He heard very quiet noises when he tried to move around. Looking at the bed, he saw the new sheet. It was black and very shiny, made of satin. Satin is very slippery, and if he hadn't been stretched tight he might have been able to slide off the bed. But of course the Rauders knew this.
He stared at it for a few seconds, and began to struggle again. While he did, he looked all up and down himself at his clothes. Everything he was wearing was made of black leather, and it was a little too large for him. The jacket and pants had dark laces that ran all the way down the outside of each arm and leg. Even though he had been running, the Rauders had zipped up the jacket nearly all the way. He kept trying to get loose, and started yelling again. Sweat began to drip off his face.
He looked at the gloves, and saw the cuffs around his wrists. And he yelled louder. The sleeves of the jacket were loose near the cuffs, but they didn't get in the way. His pant-legs were loosened at the ends, too. The boots were heavy and had zippers on their outsides, and these were also pulled down halfway to give the cuffs plenty of room. It was as though he had gotten dressed and then had decided to wrap the cuffs around each of his arms and legs.
He yelled and kept trying to move, or even just shift a little. But he couldn't.
The candles flickered and swayed, and he could see their glow reflected a little in the dull leather and the gleaming sheet.
Though they love to use many things, the Rauders are specially fond of leather. The cuffs and straps were impossible for him to break... but there was another reason too. It's worn by people who need or want the thickness of animal skins to protect them from sharp edges or rough surfaces. The clothes they put on their guest were made to be used by motorcycle riders - rough and tough guys. Rauding is very hard on a person, but that wasn't why they dressed him in leather. It was another way of teasing him. A tough guy might feel safer while he wore motorcycle clothes, but he would soon find they were not going to be protecting him at all.
The Rauders were even more fond of satin. It's worn more often by women, because it's just about the softest, most slippery material there is. The guys who like to wear motorcycle leathers are just about the opposite of the fine ladies who dress in satin. It wasn't very often that a tough guy would feel smooth new satin, unless it was some clothing that belonged to his wife or girlfriend. Most people who wear leather do not have much experience with satin at all.
But oh, was that about to change for their guest!
They left him alone. He hollered and pulled... until he just gave up. Then they did nothing for another fifteen minutes, so he could look around some more - and think.
The Rauders have so much experience that they can make a pretty good guess about what a guest is thinking about, just by watching his face. They knew he'd quit being really scared if they gave him a chance to calm down... and that would happen when he was very sure he couldn't get up from the bed. Even if he could somehow, he was still locked in the chamber. When he stared again at the door, then at the window, they were sure that's what he was thinking about.
He studied everything, and this pleased the Rauders very much. For they also wanted him to be sure this was really happening, that it wasn't a bad dream... no matter how strange it all was. The leather clothes, the sheet - and especially the cuffs stretching him out - these things all held his attention. The expression on his face was sometimes angry, and sometimes like he'd tasted something bitter, and sometimes very worried.
They liked all of these emotions, but they waited until they saw what they were looking for - the kind of face you might make if you had a very important test or had to go to the dentist, and didn't know just what to expect but were pretty sure it would be a complete disaster. This was yet another way to tease him, because the strange things that had happened to him that night didn't really tell him what was yet to come.
But the Rauders knew just what was going to happen to him. And since he would soon know himself, this was the only time he would have no idea what was coming next.
But at last they saw the worried face they were looking for. So they came out of hiding. Rauders floated out of the dark corners of the room and out from under the bed -
And he watched them with very wide eyes!
They gathered in the air over him. There were almost too many to count. When they stopped moving, even though they were closer to the ceiling than they were to him, he started to yell and tug again.
It was dark when they caught him, and even when they brought him into the chamber he hadn't gotten a good look at a Rauder. But now, they wanted him to see them, and study them. He'd be their guest for a long time.
His expression started changing again, and no wonder - for what he saw was so odd, so unusual, anyone would say it was impossible.
The Rauders are shaped like hands. Try to imagine a glove floating in the air, fat and smooth as if there was a hand in it. Except when you look in the opening, there's nothing there! That's what their poor guest saw. Each of them moved as gracefully as a bird, with no wires or anything he could see that moved them around. And even though they obviously didn't have hands in them, they looked every bit as solid and strong as if somebody was wearing them!
As if that weren't enough... all the Rauders were made of shiny black satin. And there seemed to be about fifty of them.
He looked at them with his mouth wide open. He knew as well as you do that pieces of clothing don't just rise up and do whatever they want - such as carry someone off to a chamber they prepared...
Or dress him up like a tough guy and strap him down to a bed... covered with black satin.
Well, he didn't like this, not at all. But he couldn't get out from under the magic hands.
Before you read what happened next, it might help to know that no one who knows about the Rauders can say for sure how they do the things they do. Because some people have seen them move things without using gloves - such as a bottle of water or a cigarette lighter, opening "all by themselves" - they think the Rauders are wearing the gloves, and are something like invisible hands.
It does seem to be true that they can move into new satin gloves, or rubber gloves or leather gloves... and always so smoothly and easily that it's clear they have a lot of practice doing it. But even though they can move things invisibly, or show up as new gloves when the old ones get worn, most of the people who have been rauded talk about them as if there's really no difference between a glove and a Rauder. So maybe the gloves are Rauders themselves, with the ability to move things - even other gloves.
The most important thing, to the helpless guest, was that his kidnappers were made of satin. With all the care and planning he'd seen so far, this could hardly be an accident. And indeed it wasn't.
Four of the gloves began to come down to him.
He made a loud noise, much like a squeal, and snapped at the leather holding him. They were not in any hurry, and they didn't shake or stutter at all...
And they ended up near the cuffs.
While he watched, still trying hard to get loose, the black fingers began loosening the laces on his jacket and pants.
Within a minute or two, they were done. The laces were all undone, and they were dropped off the side of the bed. The sleeves and pantlegs were open...
Then six more Rauders came down and started pulling his jacket off. One of them took hold of the zipper tab and opened it up, and they started sliding the jacket out from under him. Because he was pulled so snugly against the bed, they really had to pull hard.
And because the sleeves were open all the way to the collar, the jacket could be taken right away. He looked at the open zipper as it was passing his face, and then the whole jacket was up past his head. His back muscles flexed on the cool satin sheet.
The pillow was stuffed back under his head. The gloves took his pants away, and dropped all the loose flapping leather off the side of the bed. He saw he was wearing a black vest, but no shirt. The vest was snapped up tight, but it had laces on the sides.
He noticed unhappily that he wasn't wearing any underwear.
The "hands" started to unzip his boots - and another pair dropped down. Their fingers picked at the vest laces...
He squealed again as they took off his boots. Not because they hurt him - they were careful to be gentle, though he grimaced as though they were made of iron - but because he didn't want to be there without any clothes on. It wasn't cold in the chamber... but he didn't look pleased.
Jet-black fingers peeled off his socks. And others took away the vest, or rather the pieces of it -
And he stared at his chest.
The dark ink had dried. India ink is very hard to wash off, and actually you have to wait for it to fade away.
He saw what they had drawn on him, right in the middle of his chest. There was a large black glove, which seemed to be shiny. Next to it there was a thick black cuff. Below the cuff, there was a black feather. All together, they looked like a capital "R", with the glove as the stem going up and down, the cuff as the loop and the feather curving to look like the diagonal stroke. It was quite well-drawn, and a very effective tease.
They had drawn a big "R" on him - in permanent ink!
He stared at it for a few long seconds. Maybe it was the image of the glove on his chest, or maybe the cuff. He had already gloves and cuffs here, so it could perhaps have been the sight of the feather... but he yelled very loud and tried his best to flop around.
While he did, the vest was dropped too... and one of them brought over a new, white towel and started drying him off, because he was so sweaty. And he was certainly not happy to see that. But the towel was run all over him fairly quickly, and he was much drier when it was taken away.
All he was wearing was the cuffs, and his leather gloves.
The Rauders began to come down... nearer and nearer!
He couldn't get away from them. Satin pressing against his back side - gloves made of satin...
...And they had drawn a feather on him!
Satin, like a feather, is soft...
...and tickly.
Of all the things that the magic gloves do during a good raud, tickling is their very, very favorite.
They already knew he was very ticklish, of course, and shiny hand-shapes were ready to start teasing him. Only a few inches away, now...
His eyes looked back and forth at all the gloves coming down, especially those right over his chest -
And right before they started to land, on his feet and stomach and sides and legs and arms and neck, the Rauders were the happiest they'd been all night.
16may98