Chapter 114: Enslaved

Chapter 13 - Enslaved

“Why'd you bring it here?”

“What else was I supposed to do?”

“You could have just left it.”

“But—”

“Or even killed it.”

“Hear me out for a—”

“I'm telling everyone else. We'll just burn it to ashes. Can't take risks with them. Where did you find it? The barrier was supposed to hold them back. I can still see the barrier.”

Jack stirred, head aching. He was cold and his lips were cracked. The voices of people rung loud in his ears.

“I found it a few feet from the barrier.”

“Outside the barrier? We have to inform The Lord Sun! He promised that none would escape the barrier and—”

“Hold on! Hold on! I said hear me out for a moment. This one's Sarah's whelp isn't it? The half-breed? Maybe that's why it got through, don't you think?”

Stop talking , Jack thought. It hurts . He opened his mouth but no sound came out. The men spoke of his mother. Where was she? Why wasn't she here to help him?

“What are you saying?” one of them asked.

“Why not sell it?” the second replied. “I'd bet the menagerie that comes up from time to time would pay a decent price. Or we could give it to the recruiters from Luxiom. They're always wanting extra hands to be mining the Crater.”

There was silence for a moment, as if the men were pondering the decision.

“Sell it…You have a point. What of its dagger?”

It. Jack knew then that these people were no friends. He was an it . Not a person. Not a child. A thing .

“It's an item belonging to darkspawn. The thing looks cursed. Just leave the weapon with it. It can't do anything while caged anyway. Those recruiters are supposed to be coming around some time this cycle. We'll just hand it over. I don't want that accursed dagger near me any longer than necessary.”

“Keep it out of the sun or it might burn to death 'fore we get our payment.”

Jack's eyes opened to thick iron bars. His first thought was that he was back at Karine's dungeons. A bittersweet thought. He looked around, squinting, hoping to catch a glimpse of his mother. There was nothing but iron bars on all four sides. He was stuck in a caged box of sorts. The kind made for pet dogs when they misbehaved. It was covered with a black cloth. He couldn't see outside where his captors stood.

They were calling him darkspawn as human children so often used to do. That meant they were humans. Human captors. They spoke of selling him off. Jack's heart sank. All that effort to escape one half of his blood only to be captured by the other. He was free no longer.

He tried crying, the noise escaping his lips sounding like a dry throated laugh. No tears came out. His body was malnourished and dehydrated. The scent of fresh blood filled his nostrils. Feral instinct came over him. If he could just get a drink, there would still be hope of escape.

Escape and go where?

He reached up with his frail arms that had been bound together and grabbed hold of the iron bars. He pulled, expecting them to bend as they had done in Karine's dungeons. Escape and survive. Survive until he was strong enough to return to Karine and complete his revenge.

The iron bars didn't bend. Jack was too weak. He touched his face, feeling the outlines of his protruding cheekbones. The cracks on his lips widened, stinging.

“Don't go near it. You might turn into one of them if it bites you.”

“I know, I know. I was going to gag its mouth but I was afraid it would wake up.”

Jack saw the twisted dagger laying by his feet. He wrapped trembling and bony fingers around the hilt. He struck the bars with a clink . The dagger rebounded off. He was hardly strong enough to wave the weapon let alone swing it with might.

He curled into a ball, idly scratching the cage floor with overgrown nails. It was daytime. Faint light made its way through the cloth covering the cage. Sparrows chirped endlessly as if mocking him. The smell of wet soil and hay mixed in the air. Everything brought about pain in Jackrin's chest. Everything brought memories of a more peaceful time. Memories of when he thought he was still loved. Even his own mother had rejected him in her dying moments.

Jack laughed. Small soft laughs to drown out the sounds of birds. He tapped at the iron bars with his dagger, creating a clinking beat to accompany his voice.

He was alone. Forever.

The monster that was. The monster that is. And the monster that always would be. None would ever love him. None would dare adopt him. Not a single person would ever be his friend. That is what Jack had learned within the last day. The truth of being born a half-breed.

Night came. Jack's enhanced senses and strength did little good for him. They barely improved in his already frail state. He heard heavy footsteps walk along every once in a while, early into the night. They eventually stopped. The humans had most likely gone to sleep, too bothered to guard a child already caged. His only company was the shrill whistling of cold winds and the sound of crickets. And his own voice, whenever it was he chose to laugh. The black cloth around the cage blocked most of the wind, but night temperatures were too harsh for a malnourished child in rags.

Jack could feel his breath slow with every passing moment. He faded in and out of consciousness. Something suddenly crashed into his cage. His heart skipped a beat. He would have jumped in fear, but he hadn't the strength. An owl hooted just outside of his cage. A small mouse crawled in and stood still. The creature had escaped the predatory bird. The owl hooted multiple times before flying away.

Jack stared at the mouse, not making a single sound or movement. He didn't see a mouse. He saw something else. Food. Blood. The four legged animal had escaped the clutches of one predator only to jump into the jaws of another. Slowly, Jack raised the arm that held the dagger, a splitting grin spreading on his face. His lips cracked further. Moving sent blades of pain through his entire body. But he couldn't miss the chance. His body screamed at him to give up. To silently waste away. But deep within the thralls of his broken mind, his desire for survival and vengeance still burned.

Jack clenched his teeth to bear the pain, his grin growing even wider as he slammed the dagger down as hard and fast as he could, imagining plunging the dagger into his sister's chest.

A cowardly squeal followed. A fitting sound.

He had successfully managed to hunt. The blade of the dagger turned red. It was beginning to drain away the mouse's blood. Jack's eyes widened in horror. His grin faded, a rasped moan escaping parted lips. He fell upon the mouse and pulled the dagger way. Such a small creature hardly had any blood in it. Jack trembled as he put the thing in his mouth. It was disgusting. And nauseating. But he was already used to eating insects and the like. His fangs tore into the creatures flesh. Hardly a few drops of blood came out. It added a tang of sweetness to the congealed disgust ingrained in his throat. He choked as he tried swallowing and coughed up a ball of fur.

There was something in his belly now to keep him alive a little longer. But it wasn't enough. He needed more food. Needed more vitality —human vitality. Only the blood of a human could provide the necessary nutrients. They were capable of living off of animal blood, but too long without human blood left them in a severely weakened and dying state.

The passage of time seemed so slow. Jack felt as if the night had lasted for an eternity. Roosters crowed to announce the arrival of dawn. His enhanced senses left him. There was a slight rise in temperature with the arrival of daylight. It wasn't much, but it was a welcoming change. A hollowness gnawed at Jack's stomach. Footsteps and voices of people returned, and with it came the aroma of sweet nectar. It made his head spin. Made him dream of dancing and laughing under red rain. To have what he desperately needed be so close to him and yet also be unattainable at the same time. If that wasn't a joke, then what was?

Two heavy pairs of boots stopped before the cage. “Is this it?” a deep voice asked. It had a slight Tarmian accent.

“Yes. How much —no he has to be worth at least ten— no thirty silver crowns right?” a familiar voice asked. It was the same one from the previous day. One of Jack's captors.

“Hold now. There'll be a heavy price to pay if you're trying to pull one on us. We've heard of the recent barrier around the mountains put up by the Astral Union or some such. Now you tell us you've caught a fanged child?” The cloth around the cage was lifted from one side and a thick armed tan skinned man peeked inside. His eyes met Jack's. “Looks like an ordinary urchin to me. Hardly worth a full silver crown. All skin and bone this, like he had his own blood sucked out. This one won't last an evening at the crater mines, what with how the miners are treated and all.”

“A single crown? Look at that dagger. That weapon is unholy. He's certainly from within the Kal'kar. I'm sure he has fangs. You can check for yourself if you have the balls!”

“Hold your tongue, scum!” the deep voice said. “We keep you here as fodder for the fanged . Now that a supposed barrier is up, we can take all of you down to Luxiom. You should start counting your days. I'm certain the order will come soon. This village serves no one. Produces nothing noteworthy. Your existence does not have meaning in the Empire.”

Closer , Jack thought, mouth stretching and curling again. If the man just but only poked his hand through the bars…

The Tarmian looked back at Jack. “But that weapon… Of course, I will follow the Emperor's will so long as this village is allowed to remain here. The boy might be an urchin but that weapon could be worth a few dozen silvers.” The man took out a hunting knife from his belt. He pricked his own finger. A drop of blood formed. He stuck his finger inside the cage.

Jack's mind went blank. A blissful scent filled his nostrils. Instinct triumphed over ration. He lunged for the finger, snapping his teeth. The Tarmian soldier jerked his hand away. “It seems you didn't lie. He is one of the Kal'Kar. A half gold for him and the dagger. No more, no less.”

“Ha-half? Yes, of course. A half gold crown. He's yours. Just take that accursed thing far from our village.”

Jack gripped the bars, continuing to hiss behind a wide grin. The soldier smirked at him and let the black cloth fall again. With the aroma growing farther away, Jack's rationale returned. It wasn't long before the cage was picked up and moved to a different location. He heard different voices and felt other objects being moved and placed near his cage. The light coming through the dark cloth around his cage lessened. Likely a cloud covering the sun. The same soldier lifted the cloth and looked at Jack again. “I paid a half gold crown for you, brat. That's several months of an officer's pay. Well, not that it matters. The higher-ups will pay more than a full crown for just the Artifact alone. Hand over the dagger.”

Jack pulled back to the far side of his cage, holding the dagger, the last memento of his mother, against his breast. “…No,” he managed to croak. He needed the man to get angry. To open the cage and attempt to steal the dagger. Only then would there be a chance to escape.

“No? Well Flames. Of course you won't give it. It's yours after all. Scorching Flames. With that frail body and all, you wouldn't last a single whip lash would you? I'll wager you last a half cycle at the mine. But by then, the officials will already have taken the dagger. Flames. Guess I have no choice.” The man took out his knife again. He made a shallow cut along his middle finger. A thin line of blood appeared.

Jack lost his mind again and jumped towards the edge of the cage, face pressed up against the bars and trembling hands trying to pry them open. He dropped the dagger.

“That's right. Just like that. Keep staring at my finger.” The soldier slowly reached into the cage with his free hand while he kept Jack's attention on his wounded finger. He reached for the dagger and slowly pulled it out. “Such simple creatures. You look malnourished. It wouldn't be well if you died before we reach Luxiom.” The man wiped the blood on his finger on the iron bars of the cage. Jack bit into the bar and tried wrapping his tongue around the single drop of nectar. The soldier laughed at the animal behaviour.

Jack was dimly aware of what he was doing. But he couldn't stop himself.

“Don't worry now. I know you need it to survive. I'll come give you a drop every once in a while,” the soldier said. The dark cloth was once again let down. “Oi, keep that box out of the sun!”

Jack curled into a ball once he regained control of his mind. His chest hurt with more pain than his body and injured feet. A single tear slipped out from one eye. He had lost his only weapon in his moment of insanity. His father's weapon. His mother's gift. He had managed to retrieve it only to lose it so easily. His cage had been placed inside a wagon of sorts. He was being taken to the Tarmian city of Luxiom.

As promised, the deep voiced soldier came by a few times a day to feed him a drop of blood. It was just enough to keep Jack alive. But not being capable of completely satiating his thirst drove him insane. He grew used to the soldier's visits and waited like a shameless puppy for his meal. The man laughed at him every time he struggled to lick a drop of blood smeared against the iron bars of his cage.

***

Jack huddled in a corner, wrapping his arms around his knees. Someone had taken the cloth off of his cage to wrap themselves with as the caravan entered Luxiom during a cold night. Luxiom was known as the City of Lights. A glowing city that shone like a bright star. A pillar of light could be seen from afar after the sun had gone down. It served as a beacon for passing travellers that were near.

Everyone described the city as majestic. All Jack saw was a blur of three different bright colors as the wagon moved beyond the city walls. Luxiom existed because of the Vega Crater. The city was built with the purpose of mining the moonstone. It was a natural reservoir of luminite. While the city had a rich and beautiful exterior, it housed dark secrets within. The labor for luminite mines was comprised solely of slaves. People that were forbidden from seeing the light of day. They were forced to live in tunnels deep beneath the city, and made to march to the mines before dawn. Many died in the tunnels on a regular basis. As such, there was always a shortage in the labor force.

Jack recalled his father having a distaste for such injustice so close to his home. He buried his head in his arms, softly laughing at his own situation. This is where I die. Deep beneath the ground, hidden from the world .

He counted a dozen or so soldiers guarding the wagons as they moved through the city streets. Rooftops of every structure, be it small shops and houses, or manors and establishments, were lined with luminite. They all glowed a pale blue or white in color. The people walking up and down the street all wore lovely colorful dresses and coats. The women amongst them wore luminite earrings and necklaces as if they were pearls.

For a second, Jack had forgotten where he was. What he was. He had never seen such a blend of brilliant colors in his life. His mind spun. The air was thick with strong perfumes. So much so, that Jack had difficulty smelling blood even amidst so many humans. Humans that looked at him in disgust as the wagons passed them by. He was brought back to reality. He was just a dirty half-breed urchin.

The caravan reached the center of Luxiom. There was a spiraling passage that led to the tunnels below. Once at the entrance of the tunnels, the cargo upon the wagons were unloaded. Jack saw the deep voiced man speaking to the heavily armed soldiers of the tunnels. He was pointing towards the cage. The others nodded and approached Jack. He backed himself up to the opposite end of the box and hugged himself.

The newcomers opened his cage and dragged him out. He was forced to stand on gravel filled ground, crusted blood beneath his feet acting as carapace armor against the edges of sharp stones. He looked up at everyone around him. The desire to lunge at one and sink his teeth into their throats gnawed at his mind. He bent, meaning to do just that. His weak knees trembled. He fell upon them, an ache spreading out in each knee like a ripple from a droplet of water.

Even though it was night, he wasn't strong enough to attack anyone. Just one chance was all he needed. He just needed to sink his fangs into one of them. But the new soldiers closest to him were all armored from head to toe. There was nothing Jack could bite. The men removed the itchy jute bindings around his wrists and forced him on his back. They shackled his hands and ankles with chained iron cuffs.

The deep voiced soldier gave the boy a wicked smile. He approached Jack and cut his finger again, letting a drop of blood fall to the ground. Jack fell down and began licking dirt just for a taste. “See?” the soldier said. “I told you he was a Vampire. Be real useful he will. Don't start whipping him too soon. Might just die off. Keep feeding him a few drops of blood every day and he'll obey every command.”

The armored soldiers nodded. Someone grabbed a fistful of Jack's dirty hair and dragged him up. He laughed the pain off, his raspy voice coming out like an old man wheezing. He was pushed through the bright tunnels of Luxiom. There were luminite stones attached to the walls at every few dozen feet. The walls also had many doors placed close to each other, each one with a small grate near the top for seeing through. It was where the other miners resided, Jack assumed. He thought he'd be put into a similar room. But he was forced to walk through the tunnels with his bare feet for what felt like an eternity. They arrived at a mining spot right below the Vega Crater. The walls made for a blinding sight. Most of it was made of luminite.

Jack was pushed forward until they arrived at an isolated corner of the wall. The soldiers attached a thick long chain that was nailed to a wall to his iron shackles. They pushed a heavy pickaxe into his arms. He fell on his rear due to the weight. One of the soldiers grabbed him by the hair again and stared into his eyes.

“You work here. You sleep here. Got it? Filthy bloodsucker. For every two-hundred pounds you mine, you get a bit of blood. And don't even think of breaking the chains. We've got guards watching every slave here at all moments.”

Jack glared, and yet nodded at the same time. Even speaking of blood set his mind spinning. He needed it. Wanted it. And they would give it if he obeyed. If he laboured and slaved, he would be given blood.

Jack knew he was miserable. It felt like a lifetime ago that he would go trekking in the woods with a sister whom he thought loved him. A lifetime ago that he would come back home with boots full of mud to his mother's baked treats. Now, he behaved like a dog before others. His own nature forced compulsion upon him. He fell back on his rear again and opened his mouth to cry. Hoarse laughter came out instead. Another soldier kicked him in the gut, causing him to reel and gasp instead. He laughed even harder after recovering his breath.

The soldier took a half step back, frowning. “What's the hold up?” he asked, voice ever slightly shaky. “Get to working!”

Jack slowly got back on his feet, grinning. The long walk through the tunnels had damaged his soles, causing them to leak and sting as he took steps. Bits of gravel dug into his flesh. He tried lifting the pickaxe above his head. He barely raised it to his waist before the iron top struck the ground with a clink.

It was too heavy. He was too weak. The soldiers laughed at him. He laughed with them. They slowly stopped, frowning instead. They gave him a smaller pickaxe. It looked flimsy and damaged. But it was light enough to use.

“Good luck getting even thirty pounds with this one,” a soldier said. They left him alone before the bright walls of the Vega Crater. There was a guard at the far walls of the tunnels constantly watching him.

Jack could do nothing but swing. He needed blood to survive and he had to mine to obtain it. Dawn arrived and his enhanced sense and strength left him. No longer capable of carrying on, he collapsed to the ground and fell asleep.