Slavery

A common practice among Man and Monster alike in Gaea, slavery has a long history throughout the world and carries slightly different connotations and expectations from its Earth counterpart. At its most basic, however, it remains fundamentally similar, being the ownership of a sentient being as property by another person, group of people, or other entity.

## Among Men

### Types of Slaves

##### Penal Slaves

The most common type of Slave in human society, penal slaves find themselves in chains as punishment for a crime. This is usually a temporary state in all but the most dangerous or violent of crimes; the slave earns their freedom upon working off their debt to society. Most crimes are punished with fines and are ordered to return or financially compensate the victims or their survivors for any damages or losses. The ownership of such slaves is frequently issued to the victims or their survivors, who are authorized to charge the slave for any expenses required to house or support them.

Penal slaves are often subject to harsher treatment than other forms of slaves, though the conditions of their slavery are largely determined by the nature of their crimes, with minor infractions earning easily payable sums that often see them emancipated in weeks or months and with relatively few restrictions on their movements and activities. Those who have committed more costly or heinous crimes often find themselves subjected to harsher conditions and long sentences, with the most egregious enslaved permanently simply due to the costs associated with both their restitution *and* the upkeep and security needed to handle them. It is common practice to give penal slaves difficult, strenuous, or unpleasant labor, but is generally illegal to force them to perform work that is a serious threat to life and limb. However, penal slaves convicted of violent crimes are an exception to this rule, and have been used historically for small-scale Beast hunting, gladiatorial sport, mercenary work, military conscription, and even contractual Adventuring.

As this form of slavery is a punishment, it is uncommon for these individuals to be used for sex by their owners or required to prostitute themselves to pay their restitutions. The former has a strong taboo against it, as such criminals are normally given to those they've wronged or their surviving kin and such acts are seen as betraying the spirit of those victims and being lenient to the offender. It is considered bad luck and poor taste, and likely to bring divine disfavor, especially if it is treated as a method of repayment or results in less harsh living and working conditions for severe infractions. The latter is also considered inappropriate, for similar reasons, though it lacks the sense of having betrayed the criminal's victims.

##### Debt Slaves

The most common form of penal slave, and the type most likely to find themselves being used sexually, but who are otherwise likely to have the best living and working conditions among penal slaves, debt slaves have committed no crime other than being too delinquent on repaying loans. Debt slaves are essentially expected to find some way to pay back their debts, which forces many into jobs they would not otherwise pursue normally, such as prostitution, Adventuring, or the like. Debt slaves are fairly common and enjoy relatively normal social status.

##### War Slaves

Slaves captured during war are generally held either by a government or noble family. They are commonly forced to make repairs to perform reconstruction of damaged infrastructure, assist in farming, and other activities that may be needed following a military conflict. War slaves are assigned a "debt" to the nation based largely on their status, reputation, and the choices of the nation's rulers which they must pay off in order to earn their freedom and return to their homeland. It is common for a nation with such slaves to offer to sell them back to their home country as a means to recoup money spent during a conflict and as a show of good faith to the commoners of both nations. Their home states may buy them back or arrange so that their families may do so. Otherwise, they must earn their freedom. It is considered inappropriate to make such individuals sex slaves or treat them poorly in large part because it's common for both sides of a conflict to have such captives and neither wishes for their work force to be mistreated.

There are a number of laws pertaining to the uses of war slaves, most of them involving prohibitions on using them against their home countries in various ways or protecting them from abuse by vengeful citizenry.

##### Child Slaves

Unwanted or unaffordable children are sometimes sold into slavery during hard times. Likewise, orphans often find themselves enslaved should they prove incapable of supporting themselves and too unruly for facilities like orphanages. Such children may be used for child labor but are often bought for companionship to existing children or by households incapable of having children of their own as form of adoption, with the explicit understanding that the child is expected to eventually compensate their owners for the cost of raising them. It is common to emancipate such children upon reaching adulthood.

Unfortunately, child slaves are also commonly acquired for more disturbing purposes, be it with the intention of eventually raising an ideal marriage partner over time, for more immediate sexual use, for human experimentation by practitioners of various magical traditions, and a range of other uses. Unlike penal slaves, child slaves commonly enjoy significant legal protections. However, it is often difficult for them to prove abuses.

## Among Monsters

### Types of Slaves

Monsters generally only have one type of slave; marital. In essence, when Monsters take slaves, they intend for them to be a spouse, either for themselves or another Monster in their community. This may be a specific Monster or a vague "some other Monster in need of a mate." Those slaves who aren't immediately paired with a partner tend to find themselves used by the community sexually and as general labor.