Angelo, I'm Catholic, and I have a book that tells about Black Peter so: When Nicholas was imprisoned, in an attempt to get him to forsake his religion, the prisoners were forced to do hard labour (I think it was mining). Nicholas was also tortured by his captors, and one of his tortures was that spikes were driven through his thighs, making it difficult for him to walk at times. 'Peter' was a fellow prisoner, likely Ethiopian, who carried the future saint around when he couldn't walk. He converted to Christianity, continued as Nicholas' helper once they were out of prison, and was even with him at the council of Nicea (where the church leaders developed the Nicene Creed). Peter was certainly NOT a slave.