So, uh, that last chapter ended up being a lot longer than I had originally planned.
Just like all my other chapters!
I try to have at least a minimum of 600 words, or to shoot for around 600 to 1,100. I'll try to shorten the chapters from here on in, but I make no guarantees; some things just need to be in certain chapters.
Anyways, thanks for reading and reviewing.
Fire Emblem - Midnight
Chapter 2: The New Stock
Lucina remembered being brought out of her house, and after that, things were hazy. There were a few things that she recalled quite well, however. She remembered being sat down in front of the carriage and having her arms pulled behind her back as one of the slavers tied her hands together with rope, much to the dismay of her injured shoulder. Her eyes remained shut tight throughout the whole experience; she was in too much pain to open them. She started when one of the men touched her wound. "Well, Cicero?" said one of the slavers. "Can you heal it? We've got a lot riding on this sale. We can't afford for our prices to go down because of this."
"It shouldn't be too hard," said Cicero, "Although I'll need a little bit of time. I'll sit back in the carriage on the way."
Lucina grimaced as she was picked up again, and after a few moments, laid back down on her left side. Once more she felt ropes begin to bind her, this time around her ankles. At this point, Lucina didn't even want to struggle; with how much pain she was in, they could very well be her saviors just as much as they were her captors. However, that strange (albeit calming) thought left her mind quickly, as what felt like a strange, cold liquid was poured over her shoulder. The feeling was far from foreign; Cicero was using a staff on her wound.
The captured villagers rode in bumpy silence as Cicero continued to heal Lucina's wound. Half an hour past, and the pain in Lucina's shoulder was gone. The feeling of cold liquid on her shoulder stopped, as she felt a hand brush her hair out of her face. Lucina tensed, bracing herself for anything.
"You haven't opened your eyes at all since we've left the village," he said, calmly. The man irradiated calmness; his voice was gentle, as were the gloved hands that had brushed her hair out of her face. Lucina was perplexed by him. "Would you mind so terribly to open them?"
Her eyes still burned from the ink, but not nearly as much as they had earlier. Still, she was reluctant to open them; there was the possibly that she had damaged her eye in vain, and that the Brand of the Exalt was still very visible. She was also afraid of confronting the distinct possibility that she was completely blind in her left eye, now. But while all of these things were possible, if she did open her eyes, she could start to assess her captors, and maybe begin work on an escape plan. Plus, it wasn't as if she could just keep her eyes closed forever; she would undoubtedly have to open them sometime.
Slowly, she opened her eyes. The wagon was larger than it had looked; there were at least twelve people in there with her. Two were slavers; Cicero, kneeling beside her, his face as gentle as his voice, and another, standing in the corner. Lucina recognized him as the man who had grabbed her. He sneered at her when she looked at him, as he began to remove the large, bloodied rag over where his left hand should be. The other ten were the villagers. Lucina noticed something that made her heart sink even more than it already had; the majority of the captured villagers were women. There were seven women, not including herself, and only three men had been captured. Lucina feared the worst.
"There we are," said Cicero tenderly. "Do you have a name?"
If Lucina had been reluctant to open her eyes, she was appalled at the thought of giving them her name. It didn't much matter; there were only a select few people that it could have an impact on, and all of them were miles away in Ylisstol. But she was loath to the idea of giving them that sort of information.
"Cicero, quit messing with that harlot and heal my hand," said the slaver in the corner. "I'm not exactly gaining blood over here."
"Alright, Ramsey," Cicero said, turning to face the one in the corner. He stood up and grabbed Ramsey's arm, as the orb of Cicero's staff lit up. Once more Cicero knelt down.
The burning in Lucina's eye returned, and she once again closed them. She knew little more than what she had when she had originally opened them, except that some of her fears might have been confirmed.
After hours of lying on her side in silence in the bumpy wagon, the wagon finally stopped. Lucina opened her eyes again. The sun had set, and the moon was reasonably high in the night sky.
Slavers appeared outside the wagon. One of them, a tall burly man in the back, gave out orders. "Take the men to the shack," he ordered. "Then bring the women out here." As the slavers followed their orders, Lucina's heart raced. The men were taken out of the shack first, dragged out of her field of view, as the eager slavers now began to drag out the women. Lucina was the last to be brought out of the wagon, and she was sat down on her knees in the grass. To her right, a small wooden shack sat alone on a small hill. Beyond the shack stood a prominent, imposing fortress. For a slaver's domain, it was surprisingly in good condition from what little she could see in the night.
Suddenly, a large rag was placed in her mouth. She, and all the other women, had been gagged. The slavers pulled her up, to stand, cutting off the bindings around her ankles.
"The Chief is going to want to get a good look at the new stock for this week," said the slaver leader, smirking just a little, "So...I hope you feel comfortable in your small-clothes." The slavers began to hoot and holler, as Lucina felt a pit in her stomach. One of the slavers began to cut open her dress from behind her, tearing it off of her now-exposed body. One of the women next to her tried to kick the man who stripped her, but she was immediately back-handed by another. Lucina, now robbed of her pride, clothes, and her will to fight, did her best to stand still in the cold, night air, even when the man behind her groped her rear.
It didn't take long before the slavers began to march them toward the fort. The slavers had at least let her keep her boots on, at least for the time being. The slavers pushed them into the fort quickly, and they entered what looked like what had once been a throne room for a ruler, many ages ago. Now, a large wooden chair was occupied by a large man. Lucina couldn't tell if he was overweight or if his body weight was composed muscle.
"Chief Omar," said the leader, "We have brought eight fine, young maidens tonight."
"Good work, Carson," said the Chief, as he stood up. "Now we shall begin the inspection."
