After I started this story I wasn't able t put it down…I had to force myself to update the other stories using this one as a reward for doing so..lol. I'm so bad…anyway hope you enjoy chapter two.
A Slave Girl's Past; Daine and Numair
I'm wrapped in warmth as I begin to wake up. A bed…a blanket? Wow, so this is how soft a bed feels; it's nice. Something fuzzy moves under the covers ruining my plans of falling back to sleep. Tao's head pops out from under the covers as he peers up at me. Something else catches my eye; someone gave me a rather very big shirt to wear for the time being. It doesn't seem to worn out; it's fitting to be worn as night clothes. The walls of the room are made of stones and to help keep the warmth in; there's a fire crackling on the other side of the room in the fireplace.
"Tao where are we?"
"I asked that lady; she said we're I a place called Pirate Swoop."
"Pirate Swoop…?" I breathe in deeply and let it out. I rub my eyes taking care of what ever sleep is left. There's a mirror near by I get up and use. The shirt reaches my knees; I'm only 11 so that's understandable. Big greyish blue eyes stare back into mine as I continue to look at myself. My curly hair messy and matted from lack of care retains its blackness as it reaches my lower back. As I continue to admire my reflection of the child I am I, I also admire the mirror itself. I've never seen one before; so this is what it's like to look at your self in the mirror. Tao watches me curiously from the bed as I continue to have fun with the mirror, at least until a sound emanating from my stomach interrupts me. Come to think of it, I haven't really eaten anything for the past couple of days. I wonder if I can find something to eat.
"Let's go find something to eat Tao."
"I already ate; the man was nice enough to give me something really tasty." A man…? "I'm sure he'd ok with giving you something Solaris." The little fox jumps down from the bed and waits for me to pick him up; which I do before placing him on my shoulder; which he seems to like. The door is pretty heavy but opens slowly as I pull on the handle. He jumps down from my shoulder and shows me the way stopping every so often to make sure I'm still behind him. We head down another hallway and reach outside. The morning air is colder than the afternoon but at least I'm covered now. Someone else is here, a very tall man. Although his hair is starting to fade to a few grays, the rest remains a nice shiny black. I wonder what he's looking at or for. Was he the one who gave me this shirt? He seems tall enough and the simple clothes he has on makes it seem like it is. Tao yips to try and get his attention but with the wind blowing so hard he has to move closer. Just as he prances over a crow swoops out of nowhere and starts clawing me.
"Ah! EEK!" my arms fling in every direction to make him stop. "Go away! Leave me alone!"
"My turf, my turf!" I'm not here to take your turf! There's a bright flash of light followed by the bird squawks of terror. Frantically it flies back to its perch and stares with beady eyes.
"No one was taking anything from you, you stupid bird!"
I scream. He hisses at me,
"My turf." Crazy bird… Tao paws at my feet asking me to pick him up again. I'm ok Tao."
"Is that your little friends name? He wouldn't tell me nor my wife." His brown eyes stare down at me kindly. I nod.
"I found him the day those spidrens attacked us; he was stuck in a hole." Tao kisses me with his wet tongue remembering how I came to his rescue. The tall man laughs at the sight
"He seems to be very fond of you." As I continue to inspect I notice a bundle of clothes in his hand. "Oh these; they belong to my wife. She'll be back shortly. I'm sure you're hungry but do you mind waiting with me for a moment?" I shake my head no and follow him back to his look out point. I have to stand on my tiptoes in order to see over the edge; even then I can't see that much better. I try to break the silence carried in the wind,
"Mister how come we're waiting for her? I mean where did she go?"
"To be honest, she went to look for your family." I blush at the thought, guilty to have to tell him,
"I'm sorry but it's going to be a waste of time; I…I don't have any family."
"No family? Well then where did you come from?" my teeth bite into the skin of my lower lip. I turn to the fox kit sitting in front of me and stroke him softly. "No matter, it's not urgent." Another bird calls grabbing our attention; scared that this one will attack me too I run behind my new tall friend with Tao following me. He chuckles, "It's alright this one isn't ill mannered." The hawk lands on the stone; still unsure I stay back as he walks forward and lays the clothes beside it. "Our guest has finally woken up; although she says your search would have ended with the same out come." The hawk looks back at me making me imagine its talons trying to claw my eyes,
"Don't even think about it." I warn. The man laughs again.
"Calm down she won't attack you." He turns back to the hawk, "Sweet perhaps you should ease her fears." The bird suddenly starts growing as its wings are replaced with arms and talons with toes. Soon a human woman, bare skinned at the moment, shows herself to be the bird. She's so pretty! Her curly brown locks frame her face perfectly and her slender eyes are brighter a brighter blue grey than mine. Mostly, because I haven't gotten as much sunlight as her. With her soft features I can tell why he married her. There's a noticeable age difference between them but still they're good together. She reaches down and starts dressing herself. After she turns to me.
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to scare you."
"I'm sorry you went looking for something you would never find…" she gives me a questionable look, " You went to look for my mama and papa…I have no family."
"I see…then how is it-"
"Magelet, why don't we let her eat something first then we can talk other matters." Silently she agrees and ushers me inside, "Now, my small friend, what is your name? We've yet to learn that." I clench the claw around my neck,
"It's Solaris." I beam.
"A very unusual yet pretty name; you can call me Numair." He turns to his wife, "and this is Daine."
…
The eggs and bread are gone in an instant but I take my time with the ham, savoring every bite of it. Honestly, this is my second plate of food and Miss Daine had to tell me to slow down before I choked more than once. I can't help it though; I've never eaten anything as good as this. My glass of milk goes as quickly as I finished the eggs and bread. If I eat any more I may burst. I let Tao lick the left overs on my plate enjoying what's left; after he finishes that he goes to licking my fingers for the taste of the ham.
"Now…Solaris why don't you start with where you came from and how you came to be here at Pirate Swoop."
"I'm…mgh…" my mouth clamps shut in defense for myself. If I tell them will they send me back to the Badlands, back to Tarshim? I'd be killed if they did. "Mm-mm." I shake my head.
"Can you at least tell us where you came from?" Numair asks a simpler question
"No…" again I shake my head.
"What can you tell us?" Daine asks trying to go about this in a different way.
"I'm not going back." it remains silent; Numair takes a deep breath and lets it out. My head kind of feels like someone is peaking into my memories. His hand enshrouded in black sparks gives away he's a mage. No! No! Don't look! I try to push him away.
"It's all right I'm only looking at recent memories from a few days ago. " huh? I let him back into my head and let him experience my escape and reason for escaping.
A woman old and gangly looking appears in my thoughts,
"You stupid child! How dare you speak up in such a tone?" a cane smacks against my back in the image. I try to cover my head and curl into a ball as she continues to beat me senselessly
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" I keep repeating "I didn't know; I'm sorry!"
The image fades back into darkness. My eyes fill with tears at the memory. "All I did was ask why I couldn't get a drink of water." He gets up and walks over.
"May I? I only want to inspect the damage." I stand shaking at the thought of what's there; I lift the shirt to show where the first blow was dealt. Even though I can't see it, the look on his face says it all: it's not good.
"Ow!" I cringe away from his slight touch on the bruise.
"My apologies." Despite the dull pain pulsing I don't cry, "You can put your shirt back down Solaris." Quickly I do so as he stands. He pats my head warmly, comforting my fast pacing heart, "You're safe here you don't have to worry alright?" I nod "I'm going to go and get a friend; she might be able to help heal those up."
"Ok…"
"Daine I'd like you to come with me please." She stands "We'll be back; please stay here." Obediently I stay put. By now Tao is just watching with all sorts of interest; I stroke the white fox kit making him put his little tail high in the air.
"What happened to you Solaris?" I can tell him…I'm sure.
"Before I came here, I was a slave Tao; I was treated very badly. I tried to be good; I tried really hard to be obedient but even then they would find something to use against me. You're doing it wrong; that doesn't go there…ever since I can remember I've been slapped, kicked, punched, and even caned by someone who was considered my master. Even the guards on patrol would find some silly reason to bash me with the flat of their sword. But I found out I was different from other slaves. Like Miss Daine, I can change into animals but I can do other things too. I knew though that I could use my abilities to escape. The best that I could do though was make a small fire and little by little without anyone knowing I learned how to change into other animals. Since we lived near the sea I had to learn some ocean based animals."
"How did you escape?" the open door reveals Daine, Numair and another woman. They must have been listening for a while now…
"I set some gun powder on fire and used the uproar to get out. I jumped off a cliff and changed into a seagull to get way. Whales carried me to shore the rest of the way. That's how I ended up here. She was nice…Mother Blue, that was the name of the whale who carried me."
"And because you shape shifted you lost your clothes." Daine comes over.
"Yes ma'am…" she combs my matted hair with her fingers.
"All that to escape…" tears well up in my eyes,
"No ma'am…I did it to be free." I correct, "If I had stayed I would have been nothing more than someone's property a pet at best. No one would have ever taught me anything let alone about magic. No one would have ever told me how to us my abilities and still barely scratching the surface on my own…"
"Tell me, little miss, where did you come from?" the new woman asks. Dressed in the garb and protection of a knight her violet eyes dance with a kind yet fierce fire to them. Her red hair, short yet neat, bounces as she comes forth. She seems to be about the same age maybe a little younger than Numair.
"To us slaves, we call it the Badlands; but you probably know it better as Tarshim."
"No one has ever been to those lands; but you escaped?" I nod; her eyes widen causing me to seek refuge behind Daine.
"Try not to scare her too much Lioness." Numair jests. The fierce look calms in her eyes,
"I'm sorry…Solaris was it?"
"This is Alanna she's in charge of Pirate Swoop. If it's alright do you mind if she looks at your wounds?" I nod. She holds her hand out,
"Come with me; we'll go to a different room so you don't feel so… exposed." She's acting so motherly; I can't help but take her hand. She takes me to a bedroom leaving Daine and Numair in the other room. Daine told Tao to stay put until we come back. Alanna asks me to remove the big shirt and I obey. She hands me a towel to cover myself as she looks at the bruises left on my back.
"This may sting a little." Just as she said the sting of her touch causes me to whimper. She moves on to the next one and then the next before moving to the ones on my upper thighs. She's nearly finished when she spots a mark on my shoulder, "Is this a burn scar?"
"It's a brand mark; it's the mark of the royal family. A dragon head." Is there a way she can heal it too?
"I won't be able to completely heal it but I should be able to make it less noticeable." She once again uses her magic to heal some of the scar. When she finishes she allows me to put the shirt back on; with the bruises gone I feel more comfortable. Daine and Numair join us after Alanna retrieves them. Tao jumps from Daine's hands and joins me on the bed resting his head on my leg.
"Thank you." I say to Alanna as she moves closer.
"That mark on your shoulder dear, you said it was from the royal family?" Daine and Numair look at me, their faces covered with worry.
"I was…when I turned 14 I was supposed to become the Emperors' son's new concubine. They only put a brand on slaves if they have something planned for them." There's silence in the room,
"Alanna, if it's alright, I'd like to take some time to think things through." Numair says. Think things through…what are they going to do with me? She leaves for somewhere else. She was nice…
"Solaris."
"Yes ma'am?"
"Let's go get you some clothes ok? You can do what you want afterwards."
