Fable - Ask Freedom Through Blood

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Erendriel Lutris

Slave of Dragut
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Argul Atoll
Just after Sundown...
It was a hard day of labor for Erendrial, sweat dripping down his back like it always did after days like this. Even when there was no planting or harvesting to do, the Master continued their efforts - dreams of being a Pirate Lord ever constant on the greed filled man that he was. When the sun went down, most slaves were allowed some time about the island. They knew that there was no exit from this place, as isolated as it was, without the use of the dock and its boats.​
Sure, they could make small rafts - but to go where? Cerak At'Thul was a town slaves were known, and each of Dragut's slaves had been branded, scarred to show who's property they were. Erendrial had thought of each of these things in great detail, and surrendered himself to the answer that there was no escape from this place. No escape that meant anything less than the death of every slaver on this damnable island.​
He sat on the rock overlooking one of the smaller bays on the island, anxiously picking the dirt from his nails as he gazed into the fleeting sunlight on the horizon. His brother would be here soon, other slave's who knew their plight - and there he would sell them his plan. They would be free, or they would be dead - both would be better than this existence.​
 
A film of sea salt formed on Maelis' face, eyes pinched to keep out the ocean spray. Seagulls squawked and circled overhead, hungry for crumbs. Maelis raised his weathered face, beaten by the years of his thraldom. Dull grey eyes affixed on the flock, searching their patterns, brow wrinkled in concentration. His breathing fastened, heart pounding in his chest.​

The gulls oft flew erratically, even fighting among themselves at times, but today they flew in harmony. As his eyes followed, their synchronized flight painted patterns in his mind. Their tapestry of swoops and dives defying their avian behaviour, orchestrating a symphony of. . . what? Maelis wondered.​

Carefully the barefoot slave navigated the rockpools and sharp oyster shells, upwards towards an outcropping overlooking the bay. A blackened clubbed foot dragged through the sand, marking his route towards his brother as he limped into view. "An omen," Maelis offered in gretting, raising a finger to the flock that was quickly shedding its formation, gulls dispersing in every and all directions. "But an omen of what?" he pondered, limping closer and resting beside Erendriel, his chin lowered to his chest, eyes shut in thought, "I do not know."​
 
"Unity.", Erendrial answered quickly.​
"And freedom."​
He squeezed a rock he had been toying with before tossing it into the bay below. Wiping the dirt from his palm he moved to Maelis, offering him a weak, but honest smile. Despite Maelis never enduring the treatment of a field hand - Erendrial never held it against him. He was born more and less, different in many ways. Bonds ran deep, and he could never hold it against him - for he knew he suffered in many different ways.​
"It is good to see you. Others are coming - hopefully enough. Are you doing well, brother?", the slave asked with earnest.​
"Will you be well enough for what is to come?"​
 
Maelis looked up to meet his brothers gaze. Freedom, yes, that is what it was, freedom. He watched the rock thrown into the bay, then chin dropping once more to his chest as he listened to Erendriel speak. "My days fair well, for what little time I spend in the sun," Maelis replied, and winced at the next question.

The weakest of his clan, frail and sickly throughout his childhood, and not much changed in adolescence. His life in slavery spared only for his aptitude with language and numbers. Maelis rolled his clubbed foot, staring at his disfigurement, "I am slow, but I am not incapable."
 
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"You know I did not mean it as such.", Erendrial said with a deep frown.​
"I only worry about your safety - you know this."​
Before he could continue to speak, however, others began to filter into the clearing. First a dozen, then two dozen - the gathered masses representing families, themselves, and the ideals of freedom. Erendrial allowed them to speak among themselves for a time, gripping his brother's shoulder before moving to an elevated position.​
"Too long have we suffered the injustices of chains, whips, and torture. Too long have we had no dreams, no liberty, and happiness. I've asked you all here today for a simple reason - to give purpose to your life, to not serve the injustice of another, to be a person once more."​
A few of them nodded, a few murmurs of agreement, but a nervous energy in the crowd remained. One younger, more brash elf - a distant cousin captured in the raid on Clan Lutris - spoke up;​
"How? I like the dreams, but how are we goin' to get free?"​
Erendrial nodded to him, recognizing his place in the discussion, carefully thought and free. He gripped a fist and spoke with a much deeper fire burning in his stomach;​
"Violence."​
The others seemed to quiet at this. Some protested after a moment that if violence was all it took, they'd of been free years ago. Erendrial simply shook his head.​
"No - unified, coordinated. I have a plan.", he said, grabbing a stick he had procured a while before, just perfect for drawing in the sand. Carefully, he drew out a rough estimate of the plantation, the slave quarters, the fields, the guard outposts, and the manor.​
"At midnight, we will light a signal. A torch in the upper towers of the manor - via magic, in person, I will leave that up to my brother.", he said, making a quick glance over to Maelis.​
"When we see that light, we strike with rocks, farming tools, and anything we can get. First the guard posts nearest the slave quarters - if we send the strongest, we can take them without raising any alarms. The swords and breastplates will be essential when we rush the armory, manor, and eventually kill Dragut."​
"All we need is the beginning. One the guard posts are taken, we light fires - here, and here. That will raise the alarms, they'll rush out of their barracks to stop its spread. We kill those who come to wake us, and then we surround the rest in flames. The manor I will go to personally - to help free the House Slaves."​
"After, we all push towards the docks. The ship in port is loaded with goods and supplies, meant to go to Alliria in two days time. We steal it, we can make it far from here - together."​
"Does that makes sense to everyone?", he said, glancing once more to his brother.​
 
A rising tide of bodies came for the meeting, far more than Maelis had envisioned. His life in slavery had been one of solitude. He did not tend the fields, nor fish from the rocks or mend sails like others of his clan. He had been secreted away into the manor, into the heart of Draguts power. Years spent studying scrolls, scratching quill on parchment, counting numerical stones.

The other slaves had been kept fed so their bodies could meet their demand, but Maelis had withered away under candlelight, his body wiry and feeble. Yet his mind could not have been sharper, honed in his quiet service.

His thoughts were torn away by his brothers envigored speech. Hope swelled in the pits of his stomach, and doubt creeped into his mind. If the revolt failed Maelis would be alone in the manor to face Draguts wrath and there was little he could do to stop him.

Erendriel looked to Maelis, their eyes meeting, but it was much more than that, a quiet moment of connection only brothers could share. "I understand," Maelis said, raising his thumb and forefinger as if to pinch the air. Smoke rose from his fingertips and flame ignited between his pinch, nothing more than the faintest flicker of a dying candle.
 
Many nodded in agreement, while some brought up other minute details. Others wanted smaller plans, specific efforts they could dedicate themselves to - and many were accepted. All was agreed, and slowly the slaves began to trail back into the camp - Maelis and Erendrial last among them. Erendrial took special care to slow himself for his brother, but more specifically so he could stay behind and speak with him.​
"Your magic will be important for this, Maelis. Some of the slaves are ready to set the fields alight - but you alone could twist the magicks exactly where we need them, exactly when we need them.", he said looking to his brother as the rest of the slaves slowly fell out of sight.​
"I worry about you being alone inside though. Are there other House Slaves within that might hold sympathies? Some capable of creating a distraction?"​
 
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Maelis sat quietly, one hand tucked under his armpit, the other gently stroked his chin in thought. The crowd grew quiet with every passing minute, the sun fading over the horizon, and in twos and threes they left. Maelis waited a moment longer, watching his clan and hope trickle down the hill.

Then it was just he and Erendriel, "Best to not be late for supper," he said to his brother. With a noticeable effort Maelis stood onto his feet, his right foot curled at an excruciating angle. He walked with a limp and made no comment of its pain, a familiar presence in his life.
The two wound their way back down, and Erendriel began to speak, "Your magic will be important for this, Maelis. Some of the slaves are ready to set the fields alight - but you alone could twist the magicks exactly where we need them, exactly when we need them."

There was a pause in the talk, Maelis raised a questioning brow and looked to his brother. Erendriel said, "I worry about you being alone inside though. Are there other House Slaves within that might hold sympathies? Some capable of creating a distraction?"

Maelis reached out a hand and gripped Erendriel shoulders, steadying his balance. An act he had performed many times, "Perhaps," he hesitated, "But we are so close to Dragut that many have given in to this way of life. I could talk to the pigeon keeper, he has been nothing but kind to me."

He pinched his brothers shoulder, "Maybe I can talk to the scullery boys, cleaning out a mans chamber pot every day is sure to breed resentment," Maelis said and offered a mirthful smile.​
 
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"Aye, there's some logic to that.", Elendrial said with a bit of a laugh.​
The travel back to the plantation was rough - they'd gone out of their way for some privacy, but as they neared back a few more torches than usual were lit on the road. Erendrial gave Maelis a bit of a nervous glance, noticing guards stationed in a place they usually weren't - but he kept himself calm as they both approached.​
"Long night?", one of the pirates turned guards said, lifting himself off the fence.​
"Only as long as it needs to be.", Erendrial said, "Just heading home now - long day ahead of us tomorrow."​
"Aye, I bet you are. Sleep. Work...", the Guard seemed to mock, the others smiling as they too stood up.​
"... See, a little birdy told me you weren't plannin' much of either."​
Erendrial involuntarily clenched his fist and glanced back to Maelis, fear shrouding his brow. It was clear to them both that someone at the gathering had sold them out - perhaps at the promise of freedom, perhaps that they might get an extra ration. Before anyone could move Erendrial pushed his brother away from him, reached down for a rock to stone the closest man and -​
Was cut short as two of the men knocked his sense from him. First with a shot to the jaw that made his vision blurred and fade, then a second that sent him tumbling to the ground. They rained kicks down upon him until his tanned skin was muddied by bruises, purple and blood covered. He groaned on the ground while the others moved to grab Maelis.​
"Time's you both were made a lesson of."​
---​
They'd both had been beaten, though Erendrial took the worse of it, forcing them into the basement of the Manor. Hanging by wrist locks from the ceiling, they'd been tortured, used as beating tools for hours, and more than a few ribs were broken at best. Erendrial's breath was raw and ragged as the man sitting near the door scraped his nails with a small knife.​
"Thought 'tis was bad before - only gets worse from here. Come morn, you'll both be put to the flame. Good lesson for the rest of the knife eared rabble.", he chortled out.​
 
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By the time the estate came into view Maelis' was trembling, his ankle ached from the journey and he walked with a considerably deeper limp. The grounds were dark, the manor looming over them from a distant crest of hill. Dim lights could be seen from windows, shadows of servants danced across curtains as they moved to their next chore.

"Long night?", someone had barked, snapping Maelis' attention away from the manor. His heart felt near to burst from his chest as the guards flanked them, exchanging venomous words with Elendriel. In an instant chaos erupted, he felt a hand shove him against his chest and he stumbled and fell, landing on his behind.

"Brother!" Maelis yelled but there came no response, Elendriels eyes had rolled into the back of his head and boot and fist came down with thunderous rage. Maelis moved to scramble to his feet and felt someone grab him by his hair, "Time's you both were made a lesson of." Maelis yelped as his head was pulled back and he saw the mailed fist sailing towards him. Then all went black.

-

Maelis awoke with crusted eyes, blinking away the dried blood. He hardly recognized the voice in the room when he came to the realisation he was hanging by his wrists, shoulder joints aflame with agony. He took in a shuddering breath and saw Elendriel, relieved and panicked all the same. He struggled for a moment, swaying his body this way and that, and cried out when he felt his shoulders brunt the weight of his movement.​
 
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"Ya' know, you'd probably walk better if we cut off that lame leg of yours.", the man said through half his teeth.​
"Most times, we just put down the horse with a lame leg - but Dragut likes you. Says you read real well.", then he motioned to Erendrial with his knife.​
"But this one? Nothin' but trouble. Ah've said we should kill the lot of you when you rile up - but Dragut always says 'Nah, they'll wisen up, whip 'em again'. Seems like I'm finally gettin' my way. Burnin' you both in the mornin', showin' what comes from revolt."​
He finally stood from his chair, the wood screaming against the cobble as it slid away from him. The man beamed with the joy of a butcher with new product, scraping the blade against his finger so it sung in the darkness of the room. The light seemed to silouhette him, a shadow hunting in his den.​
"But the mornin's a long ways away. Got plenty of time between us, dontchathink?"​
He gripped Maelis's hair, pulling his head up as he slowly dug the knife just below his eyes, slicing downwards towards his cheek in a thin, cruel, surgical movement. Only letting it fall away when it hit the bone of his jaw - then threw him back and laughed, shaking him in his shackles.​
 
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"But the mornin's a long ways away. Got plenty of time between us, dontchathink?" the knife bit deep, Maelis grit his teeth and winced. His legs kicked feebly, and when his knee collided with the guard he grunted and sliced Maelis to the bone.

Maelis breathed in deep, attempting to recollect his mind through the agony as his shackles were shaken, arms and shoulders burning with strain. Another fire light in the bit of his stomach, and up through his arms and fingertips.

Slow, deep breaths. Blood trickled down his chin and dripped to the cobble below. Candlelight illuminated the guards face and Maelis opened his eyes, looking up at his wrists. Sparks flew from his fingers, fire cracked to life and shone an intense blue flame that did not burn him.

The guard stumbled back, eyes searching Maelis, "What in the-" he said just as the cuffs had grown white hot and snapped from the slaves wrists. Maelis fell in a heap on the floor, eyes darting to the guard and he whispered, "Yusheil."

The fire leapt from his hands and took to the guard, spreading as rapidly as oil drenched cloth. The shriek that left the guards lips could only be described as inhumane, mouth agape as he sought air that only fuelled the fires intensity. Then he fell forward and cried out no longer.

Maelis' fingers dug into the cobble, weak and cold, the warmth had all but left his body and he shivered. He crawled to the burning corpse. Trembling fingers found the keys amongst the mans burnt gambeson and he dragged himself back to Elendriel.

He pulled his one good foot under him and rose painfully, steadying his hands to unlock Elendriel from his cuffs. There was a quiet click and his brother was free.​
 
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Erendrial had stirred at the scream of his brother, came to only to see the split gash across his face - so deep he could nigh see his teeth beyond. He struggled against the bindings, shook as he cried out in earnest, only to silence as the sound of the guard overtook his own - burning, bright and blue until he was nothing but a roast on the ground.​
He stared at the dead body, breathing heavy for a few moments - so this was what his plan had entailed. The death of a person - perhaps not the first he had seen die, but the first of the guards to fall by their hand. It took him a few moments to even notice Maelis unlock his cuffs, and support him as he almost went limp. Only as his feet fully touched the ground did he come to his sense, and embrace his brother.​
"I'm sorry.", he said quietly, holding him for a moment before letting them free.​
He reached down to the body, searching his pockets and remaining clothes for anything they could use. The key to the room was on his hip, alongside a number of others, and Erendrial made sure to grab the knife he carried for good measure - still slick with the blood of his kin.​
"There's still time - if we can get upstairs, to the tower, we can set the signal fire.", he said, before glancing up and remembering the wound he had regretted his brother had to take.​
"... We should burn it shut. Do you think your magic could do it fast enough?", he said with a heavy frown, before glancing to the distance brazier - a variety of pokers in its depths. One with a thick bar could suffice.​
"Or - we could burn it ourselves. I will do as you require of me, Maelis."​
 
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