Fate - First Reply Dead Men Tell No Tales

[Taima]

Cerak At'Thul

Irons chaffed against the warm skin of her wrists. She shuffled forward within the lines of the other prisoners. The other slaves. Her head was ducked low. Dark hair was greasy and unwashed, clung to the curves of her jaw. Ragged clothing hung to her form. It was a long journey across the Cortosi Coast. And then the treacherous waters of the Black Bay.

Umber eyes looked upward into the sea of beaten and downtrodden faces. A quick glance into the pirates and slavers that she passed. Those with sharp eyes and greed glinting in their gazes. And for a moment, her chest ached because she saw a flash of bright blue. Those eyes. They reminded her of his eyes. And for a moment she felt his touch upon her shoulder. A familiar, low voice in her ear.

"KEEP MOVIN'!!!" The slaver's voice bellowed just in front of her as the line of chains she was bound to tugged, sharply forward. Her chained ankles fumbled to adjust as her feet kept shuffling across the decking of the ship and toward the docks where they were being offloaded.

 

[Musah]

"You touch me with that hand again and I'm going to bite it off!" A shout came over the crowd as a young man was quickly beaten down by several of the slavers.

Eventually, the beat down stopped and the man was forced to his feet to continue walking. He was covered in scars and bruising, his eyes were swollen to the point that it would be difficult for him to see. Even in such a decrepit state, the boy walked with his shoulders high and his eyes still lit with a burning ferocity. He was not broken yet and he was telling them that he never would be.

This was not the first time he was a slave, he had been bound in chains in the Empire, the Savannah, and even as far as Alliria for a time. Musah's legs buckled as they stepped off the ship, finally giving in from a combination of beatings and sea legs.

He growled as he pushed himself up and spat out a mixture of blood and mud that had found its way into his mouth. The girl behind him had been yelled at for his mistake.

"Sorry bout that. Bastards are going to ruin their own supply at this rate."

Taima

 

[Taima]

Warm chestnut eyes flickered to the young man who had just mouthed words between globs of spit and blood. Jaw clenched as her feet hit the wet, slippery docks. Something ancient and deep tugged at her senses. Whispers.

use me

usemeusemeusemeuseme

Taima dug a shallow grave for that voice. "I've never found slavers to be very smart."

"CHAIM 'EM UP IN THE SQUARE! AUCTION STARTS IN A FEW HOURS!" The same slaver yelled and shoved her shoulder with the blunt of of his sword. She jostled against Musah. She winced, her own apology written across her brow as their line was tugged forward. Wet, wooden planks transitioned to slick-jagged rock and dirt. Torches flickered in the night, more lights aglow the further into Cerak they went. They were coming up to a few whorehouses.

"How did you end up here?" A whispered question at his back.

 

[Musah]

Musah nearly tipped over as Taima leaned into him, if only so he could turn and spit at the guard. Thankfully, they were hurried away before the guard could swing on him.

As they were led deeper into the city, the change to the jagged rocky ground served to keep Musah aware as he had to bite back the pain as the rocks dug into his foot.

"Started fights that I probably shouldn't have in the Empire, before I was even awake they had me on a slave barge heading to this place. Big mistake, because when I get out of here, I'm going to fuck all of them up." He responded with a ferocious smirk

They were sending them to the square, at night to wait for their auction. No matter how good their security was, there would be a chance. He just needed to capitalize on it.

"What about you? No offense, but you don't really look like the rebel type."

Taima

 

[Taima]

That smile reminded her of him. The dull ache in her chest grew to a sudden, sharp pain. A quick inhale through her nose as her eyes squeezed closed before re-opening. A mouth that rarely held a smile these days lightened at his words.

"I'm right where I want to be," she murmured. Fingers flexed around the rusted-metal cuffs along her wrists.

She was still weak from the journey. From being separated from the earth so long. But now? As her feet connected with the rocks even as their sad group was chained to the posts in the square. She felt some of her strength returning. That roaring between her ears was growing louder. More insistent.

A whip cracked in the night as another slave in the line further up tried to make a run for it. He was quickly overpowered and dragged back. Taima's lips pressed thin.

"I can tell you have a lot to fight for. Just...be ready to run. There's no shame in picking your battles." Her warm, brown fingers flexed in the air.

"I SAID NO TALKING!" One of the slavers extended his dirty palm and went to slap Taima hard across one cheek.

 

[Musah]

Run? Why would he do that? Ok, maybe he should run, but that first slaver was going to die before he left. That was the only guarantee he was willing to make about all of this.

He had enough cities to topple without adding all of Cirak to it and several slaver crews. However, that knock from earlier was still sore, and he needed to make sure he gave as good as he got.

Musah whipped his head around at the slaver, seeing the hand raised. He quickly slipped in between them blocking Taima.

"Don't want to go and damage the product now, do you sir? Then you wouldn't be able to remove that dick from your face...Oh wait, I'm sorry, that's your nose." He responded with a shit-eating grin.

The good news about being beaten so many times in his life, there were plenty of ways to prepare oneself for a beating. Tensing your jaw at just the right moment or relaxing your body before you hit the ground. Thankfully, Musah barely felt it when the fist connected with his stomach as he toppled over.

Taima

 

[Taima]

The rocky ground beneath their very feet began to shake. Then buck and rumble as a crack began opening between the slaver's feet who had pummeled Musah. Taima was going to wait a little longer until she got her strength back.

But enough was enough.

The slavers and others crowded into the square yelled and screamed. The crack at the guard's earth widened until he fell in. Taima's hand shot forward as she took up the scraps of a shirt still hanging around Musah's back and yanked him back toward her. More guards and slaves alike toppled and fell as that ground beneath them continued to buck like a wild horse.

But Taima's legs were steady. Taima took a breath and in a moment the iron that kept herself and the other slaves in their line bound together - cracked apart.

 

[Musah]

Musah felt his feet slip if only for a moment and thought his legs were giving out on him again. Thankfully, someone had grabbed him and kept him upright. Before he knew what was going on, all hell broke loose as the ground erupted around them.

Slaves and slavers ran for cover. Wait, slaves? Some were free. The chain had been broken. They were free.

Musah turned a confused expression on Taima before a big grin erupted on his face.

"You're one of those magic types? Perfect."

He wasted no time in rushing towards the nearest slaver and landing an excellent drop kick right on their chest sending them toppling to the ground. Musah quickly scrambled on top of the man to land an elbow to the man's forehead and then yanked the knife from his belt.

The young slave pushed himself to his feet, "Alright, let's get out of here."

Taima

 

[Taima]

Taima felt with each pull from the rock. Each channel of earth magic, her energy began to wane. Normally, this amount of magic wouldn't have touched her reserves but because she was already acting nearly on empty she felt that raw drain. She didn't know if that was more alarming on the grin on Musah's face.

A large chunk of rock lifted from the ground. Followed by another and another and they slammed themselves in opposite directions across the courtyard, knocking other slavers down. She was covering the retreat of two children. A young woman. And an older man.

"I don't think it's perfect," she muttered to Musah and stumbled after him. "We'll need to get to the portal stone or take a ship."

He needed to get there.

Taima didn't know if...

She turned back toward the square and shifted the toe of her boot firmly in the ground as it began shaking again, the earth cracking and breaking apart. She was going to bring the slaver square of Cerak down even if it killed her.

 

[Musah]

"We'll take the portal stone, but you are coming with."

Musah wasted no time in running forward and slamming his body into one of the slavers. What followed was a mad scramble between the two that ended with Musah's newfound dagger firmly embedded in the slaver's ribs.

He kicked the limp body off of him before standing up and raising his blade high in the air.

"Rise up! Defend yourselves! We will not be broken by cowards and liars! To the portal!"

He did not know how many his words would reach, but they needed to start somewhere and they would save as many as possible. Musah did not wait to see the effect of his words on the slaves, instead moving to grab Taima and guide her towards one of the side streets.

"C'mon, you've done good damage."

Taima

 

[Taima]

She felt the earth gnawing at her stone. Its energy wanting to twist and tug her life-force down to its core. How beautiful it would be to sleep beneath the earth. To be reunited with the one she'd lost those years ago. Cerak At'Thul's slavers square crumbled further - swallowing any slavers who had been stupid eough to stick around.

It wouldn't be so bad to end this way...

Then there was a tug on her arm and her feet shifted. The magic's hold and price faltered as did she. She stumbled against Musah. "What are you doing?" For the first time, annoyance laced her tone. Other freed slaves ran past them, some making a holy symbol gesture along their forehead and bowing slightly as they passed Taima.

Boulders, when did he get so strong?

Or was she just that weak now?

The warm-skinned girl tried to keep her brown eyes from drooping further. Dark hair splashed across her proud face. "I was handling things and fine. You should've left me," she insisted as she stumbled.

 

[Musah]

"Uh, no." He answered back slightly questioningly when someone was confused about what the other just said. Why would he leave her when she was the one helping them escape?

"C'mon, if we don't hurry then we will miss any opening before they get guards out there."

Musah was not letting go as he continued to pull her. Even now, the slavers may be panicking, but eventually, someone with enough authority will show up and put them back under control. In his experience, the chaos that came after such breakouts only lasted half an hour at best, and there was no way of knowing how organized the slavers were.

"You were doing great, but save a little bit for later. We will need it."

Taima