"The Class of 2012"

26. Not As It Appears

The Phisto Hub

The opportunity was just too good to ignore. The slave barracks were made so that the doors would require one person, either slave or master, would be needed in order to enter. This system had been introduced many rotations past, after a potential client had wandered in and made to take away two of the slaves. Now here they were, their little group seeking to be reunited with the two they'd been robbed of, and they had someone who could open the door for them, without raising any alarms at all.

Once they had figured out which of the barracks Dex and Jenny were being held in, and in what area, they had gone up to the building, and Constance had held her wrist to a reader. It beeped, and she pushed the door open.

"Quickly, inside," she whispered, having taken a quick peek to ensure no one was on the other side. The group hurried in, so they wouldn't have any problem from casual observers outside the barracks either.

It wasn't what they'd expected. Maybe for the way they had heard this place described, and what concept of slavery they understood, they had imagined dirtiness, or squalor… They got the impression of a dormitory, more than anything, maybe not the most upscale, but in good condition nonetheless.

"Our masters have ensured not to give the impression of mistreatment, here in the Phisto Hub at least," Constance explained, sensing their confusion.

"Have they ever… hit you, or…" Finn asked, hoping not to offend her in any way.

"A few have tried," she admitted, but it was the semblance of a smirk that troubled them. "One sprained a finger when he hit metal and he cried," she whispered as they started down the hall, causing her to have to shush them when a few gave stifled laughs. "They know they can do plenty to us without ever laying a finger on us," she countered, and it sobered them instantly.

The further they went, the stranger it all felt. At no time did they encounter resistance, and as much as they could tell themselves it was the middle of the day and they were working, it felt as though this should have been harder. They had to force themselves to remember not to walk so casually, to actually take precautions, check around corners. If they let their guard down, they might…

When the trio came from up the hall, both sides froze, not knowing what to do. They looked to their friends, then to each other, but no one seemed any closer to deciding if they should run or fight. It wasn't until one of the slaves spotted the violet eye that the tension broke.

"Constance?" She stepped forward.

"It's alright, Remy, they're friends," she promised.

"I don't think so," one of the other two shook his head. "We saw you with them outside, but you couldn't possibly have been with them, could you?"

"She is," Finn declared. "And she's here for the same reason we are."

"Give us back our people," Artie requested. Constance stared at the trio, to Remy, who had been here nearly as long as she had. Even without her eye, she could have seen right through him.

"You're hiding them, aren't you?" she spoke, and the trio flinched. "Why would you…"

"You know as well as we do, Constance. You know what they're looking for," Remy explained, and now she did understand. She turned to the others.

"They think it's him. Dex. The cure."

"We heard them talking, they said they would go after him. We only meant to protect him, and we thought you had captured him," Remy added, and by his tone it would have seemed as though he had accepted that these people were not who they'd thought they were, and he was afraid of being punished.

"Capture Dex? Do you have any idea how strong he is?" Quinn asked. "He only looks like a child, but he's hundreds of years old," she revealed.

"He let himself be taken, to find out what your masters are up to," Sam told the three slaves.

"We thought he and Jenny were taken prisoners, we're here to rescue them," Artie followed. Remy looked to the other two, then nodded and motioned for them to come.

"We haven't harmed them, we swear," Remy told them as he opened the door.

"You all look terrible," were the first words out of Dex's mouth. He and Jenny were sat at a table, with full plates and cups.

"Glad you're alright," Quinn gave him a raised eyebrow. Remy had shut the door behind them, and now the reunited group and the slaves were able to try and talk, in honesty, with no one trying to hurt anyone else.

"Will you see to his leg?" Constance asked Remy, indicating Sam. "He was trained as a medic," she explained to the others, pointing to a patch on his sleeve. He retrieved a small box, and as they spoke, he cleaned, closed, and bandaged the cut.

"You took a big risk, bringing them here," Rada remarked, and the slaves looked to one another, deciding amongst themselves whether they could say what they wanted to say. But then Constance was with them, and if they could trust anything, it was that she wouldn't have brought them here unless she thought she could.

"We brought them here… We brought them here because we're done," Remy was the one to speak up. "We are tired, and we made up our minds… many of us," he passed a look to Constance, who clearly had no idea until then, "Things are about to change. We're taking our choices back. We're going to fight for them if we have to. We will not be owned, not anymore, not here, not on all the worlds controlled by the Phisto Hub."

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)