Gladius

What security is there in the loyalty of slaves?
Gladius has served his Betelgeusean owners faithfully since he was first abducted from Taurus, but he's about to find out that loyalty isn't always a two-way street, and not all slaves are willing to settle for their lot. Don’t you settle for this teaser – read “Gladius.”
"Gladius" is a short, speculative fiction, and is also available in the collection “More, And Yet Still Even More Things I Could Get OUT OF MY MIND."