2401 Dalfa 16, Briss

It was the stray glint of light poking Reeca's lids that woke her. A groan tore off her lips when she wrenched her eyes open. What greeted her was a wall of musty cloth. She blinked. What's going on?

Reeca wrinkled her nose, getting a full dose of the cloth's earthy smell into her nose. A gag rose through her throat. It took a while, but her senses returned to reveal she was hanging upside down from what appeared to be a sack. Her wings and arms were secured close to her body with thick ropes biting against her skin. What in Umazure happened in the forest?

Recent memories flashed in her mind in a stupid succession, starting first from the trial the other day, to her hearing the voice in the tower, to her and Rhys tearing to the scary forest and avoiding being captured by their father's soldiers. If they managed to evade capture, what was she doing in a sack?

Her breath hitched. She turned her neck despite the small room. Where's Rhys? Was he taken with her? If so, where were they headed? Dear Lazoli, what's going to happen to them? To her?

She ignored the heartbeat slamming against her skin and assessed her situation. A sack. She was in a sack. From the feel of it, she was hanging from some height, the ground not that far from her head. She grunted, forcing her body to start swaying. She got as far as a few inches before slamming against a thick but lumpy wall. Was it even a wall?

"Aye, the lass is awake," a voice gurgled. Reeca's world turned and swung. Her head knocked against the soft soil, jarring some of her brain awake. Light from the outside flooded the sack and a ghastly face greeted her. "I hope ya had a good sleepy time inside."

Was he kidding? Reeca had the most restful sleep she had for a decade. Not.

"Crawl outta there so we could look at ya," the man stepped aside and let the sack flop backwards. He turned to his left and yelled to someone, "Oi! Help me with this lassy!"

Reeca slid out of the sack and stood on shaky knees. Then, she began to run.

Something heavy knocked her flat to the ground, driving the air out of her lungs with a painful gasp. The weight settled on her back. She squirmed against it to no avail. Behind her, muffled cries rang in a voice which sounded like Rhys. Someone cursed and two thuds later, the cries stopped, replaced by a fit of gargling coughing.

A grumbled laugh echoed from the person sitting atop Reeca. Her arms were drawn behind her and she felt a strip of cloth being tied around her wrists. It rendered her wings and hands useless at the same time. "That what you get for tryna fight your way out," the man said from behind her. "The lad with ya tried several times. Look where it got 'im."

Reeca's world blurred as she was yanked upright. Her gaze landed on Rhys hunched on the ground. His chest heaved as if he was having trouble breathing. Then, the details registered. Her stomach twisted at the sight of swelling bruises peppering her brother's arms, face, and chest. Dried blood ran in a jagged cut by his scalp, painting the side of his face with a sickening shade of brown. A gag made from cloth was strung tight around Rhys's head, forcing his mouth open. The cloth was wet with saliva and blood dripping from his lips.

"What did you do to him?" Reeca hissed. All around her, she took stock of the men closing in on her. There was no Narfalk symbol glinting in their chests and weapons. They didn't seem to be from the same race either.

"What we'll be doing to ya if ya don't keep shut," a man who she recognized as the one who sat on her said, running his hand over his knuckles. It was rimmed red, like he had just punched something hard. Muscles curled from his arms. "Ya don't want tha', right?"

She gritted her teeth. "What do you want with us?"

"Just a few versallis ta go around," another man said. This one was leaner with longer arms and darker skin than the other. Ink swirled in his skin, marking the surface with swirls of flowers and random lines. "Ya two aren't worth much. Ya just happened ta be in the wong place at the wrong time."

Reeca didn't understand a thing the men were implying. A third man, this one on the stouter side and bald, stepped into the clearing and clapped his hands. "Now that both o' ya'r alive and good, we're ready ta go through with the handing o'er," he said. He seemed to be the leader despite his stature. He jerked his chin in some vague direction. "Let's go. Keep tight on ya's hold on these two. They're fighters, the lot of 'em. We might be able ta demand more just ta pay for the trouble."

Long Arms grabbed Reeca's collar and hauled her forward. Muscles did the same thing for Rhys. Her heart wrenched when he saw his brother's eyes burning with hate. Where were they being taken?

Reeca's surroundings only made sense to her now. They were still in a forest but the different trees, grass, ferns, bushes, and even the unfamiliar feel of the air told Reeca they weren't in Narfalk. Which only meant one thing...

A lot of time passed by between the time she was in the Forests of Beasts until today. How much? She wasn't sure. It might be a lot. Might not be for only a few days. The real question was...

"Where are we?" Reeca blurted.

Long Arms sucked an annoyed breath through his teeth. "Talk again and I'll bandage ya like yar brotha o'er ther," he said. "Ya don't need ta know where we're."

Reeca shut her mouth. Clues. She'd have to search for them to answer her own question. There wasn't anything to go for. Everything looked the same and this forest could be anywhere on the island. Sweat dripped from the side of her face and drenched her back. It's hot. There were only a few places in Umazure where it was this hot. Then again, it could reach this temperature in Narfalk too if it hadn't rained for a week or so. Just like that, she was back to the first rung.

She blew a breath. First the trial and now this. What even was this? A kidnapping? Were they going to return her to Arcole and demand ransom? Knowing her father's disposition towards her, he'd let her die without spending a single versal.

So, she swallowed the growing lump in her throat and pushed forward. She didn't have that much choice anyway.

After a few more hours of slogging through the thinning undergrowth, the forest gave way to a clearing. There wasn't much except for a few fallen logs, a well-trodden path characteristic of a trade route, and an abundance of carts, animals, and throngs of people like her. The sunlight streamed past the thin canopies, making the compact earth a little drier. Dust blew into the air in thick burts of clouds with every step they took.

Then, the noise hit her. As their captors made them dive into the fray of sweaty bodies, stomping feet, and cursing mouths, Reeca sucked in a breath. This was like that one town in Oaksham but the foreboding stench of misery and blood clinging in the air told her otherwise. This wasn't in Narfalk. It was somewhere far, far away. Somewhere far more horrible.

Long Arms clicked his tongue and shoved her forward. She almost clashed into a group of men and women taller than her. They gave her empty gazes but cleared out of the way, letting her and Long Arms pass through. Cutting lines? Was that allowed?

Reeca felt eyes on her back. Of course. She's a varichria, with bright blue wings and straight, blond locks. People were always going to look. Murmurs followed her before being snuffed by cracks of whips or shouts of terror. She fought off a whimper and focused on her feet. One foot in front of the other. There.

That's when it dawned on her that she was still barefoot from being imprisoned for days in the Arcole dungeon. Her poor soles must be scratched raw now.

Dagrine neighed and flapped their tails as they waited by carts where at least a dozen people loitered around. Long Arms had Reeca follow Baldy into a thicker and more populated crowd by the edge of the clearing. If she could make a run for the forest, she could still lose them if she got to a thicker part. She looked at Rhys. A haunted look passed across her brother's face. It's not worth it, it seemed to say.

Reeca deflated. That's true. These men have to be excellent trackers to know their way around vast forests. Whatever's happening here couldn't be legal in any territory. They would need to be held in places nobody had to think twice to find them. The unsearchable edges. The gray areas. That's where they were now.

"Hear ye! Slaves for sale! Drop a few versal in the box and claim your slave!" a hearty voice screamed through the crowd. Reeca was huddled close to Rhys, enough to bump shoulders with him. It also brought Reeca closer to another man to her left. Like her and her brother, the man was haggard and rugged, like he spent too many days on the road. The same haunted look masked his features.

A slave. That's what the announcer called them. Called Reeca. Was this their fate now? She didn't even agree to become one. She just got captured. What did Rhys think of all this?

She looked at her brother to find him staring at his boots. Well, at least he still had his. The mixture of blood and dirt in his face made his expression murky but there was enough guilt slipping through the cracks. She nudged him with her shoulder and was about to smile at him when a heavy hand rested on her shoulder.

She was turned around until she came face-to-face with a tall man with darker skin than Long Arms and with way more facial hair. Flat, tawny eyes stared Reeca down. "How much for this?" he said to Long Arms.

"Dear sir," Baldy interjected, folding his hands together. "This lass was from the Forest of Beasts. She had a fight in her. Gave us a hard time dragging her here. I'd say she's worth more than a few, measly versal."

Hairy Man raised a bushy eyebrow in Baldy's direction. "Can she work in the mines?" he said, his voice deep and gravelly. "Have you seen the hands?"

Baldy grinned, bunching his skin beneath his eyes up. It almost made his eyes into narrow slits. "Yea, yea," he nodded a little too vigorously. "She good. Good for whatever ya think she's good for. Pay up."

Hairy Man didn't think twice. He dug around his purse and deposited two fol sigra into Baldy's waiting hands with a thick clink. "Come on," he said.

Reeca yelped when Long Arms released her and Hairy Man clamped a strong grip on her arm. He began to lead her away. She looked back, dragging her feet. What about Rhys? She couldn't leave him there. What would happen to him?

Rhys appeared to have the same thought. He bucked and squirmed against Muscles' grip, kicking his legs in the air to no fruition. An arm swung in the air and Rhys's cheeks slapped the soil. A cry tore of Reeca. She clawed at Hairy's arms. Let go. She has to save her brother.

A spark of magic caught Reeca's attention again. She looked behind her to find a boot slamming into Rhys's gut before his weaving attempt even finished. Muscles and Long Arms took him by his orange hair and threw him back. Tears H at the sides of Reeca's eyes. She slammed her foot into Hairy's boot. The man barely budged. "Let me go," she wailed, digging her dirty nails into Hairy's skin. Behind her, the sound of scuffle and Rhys's groans were loud in her ears. "They're going to kill him."

Hairy didn't move. Reeca continued tugging and squirming. Her magic flared to the surface and she was about to slam it into Hairy's skin when he spoke. "You, how much for the boy?" he called to Baldy.

"Couldn't resist, do ya?" Baldy called back. "Same price for the girl."

Hairy flicked another fol sigra into Baldy's direction. Baldy giggled to himself as he bent down and picked it up. Then, he nodded at his companions. Together, they threw Rhys at Hairy's feet. He landed with a thump.

Reeca forced herself to check if he was alive. A deep groan told her he was.

"Come on. Stop making a scene," Hairy bent down and gripped Rhys's arm. Her brother's head lolled to the side. His chest rose and fell in ragged breaths. He's alive, at least. Reeca let herself be dragged to another hell Hairy had in store for her.

They came closer to a cart pulled by two dagrinis with differently-colored coats. Hairy shoved Rhys in Reeca's arms and pushed her forward. "In," he rasped, nodding to the cart's open backdoor. Several people were already inside, backs hunched and legs splayed in the spacious center. When Reeca didn't move, Hairy lashed out, gripped her hair, and shoved her into the cart. The pain tearing through her head forced Reeca to haul her brother's still frame inside and climb in herself.

Hairy reached into his belt and drew two cuffs. The light caught a deep purple sheen in their metal cast. He reached behind Reeca and clamped it alongside the cloth tied around her wrists. Immediately, a wall appeared between Reeca's magic and her reach. What happened? Did the cuff just block her magic?

She couldn't find the courage to ask as Hairy did the same to Rhys. Her brother stirred enough to register what happened to his hands. He didn't get to bolt out when the cart's door slammed into his face. A new type of darkness drowned her.

Reeca scooted closer to the cart's wooden walls like how the firstcomers had. She helped Rhys to rest his battered form against it as well. He opened his bruised eyes and clung to her. It was tight, like he was afraid she might vanish if he loosened. Reeca could understand that. Just earlier, she almost lost Rhys.

Rhys fell into a deep stupor beside her. She let him rest on her shoulder. He endured a lot of beating for her sake. It's time she let him rely on her too. Whatever was happening to them felt loads lighter when she had her brother with her. She wouldn't know what to do without him. He's all she had in this cruel world.

A whip cracked and the dagrinis neighed as one. The wheels began turning, propelling them forward. In the darkness, Reeca inhaled the musk of sweat, blood, and unwashed bodies. In the darkness, she let her tears fall.

Because the next time she's going out of this cart, she would be in a new cage. She would be working in whatever the "mines" were.