Chapter 3 - From Worthless To Priceless

It felt like an eternity, the scene repeating again and again within her head, the blood pooling, the sharp blades protruding through his flesh; she felt trapped in an endless nightmare. 

Smack.

The sound echoed throughout the basement, leading to rustles of hay and loud cries as children were awakened. She was close enough to the entrance to hear what was going on.

"The Temple has no place here-"An accent of noble privilege yelled.

Wack.

"Just unlock the door, then maybe the Temple will see its way out of here." A crass voice one would expect from her district.

Scratching at the lock could be heard as the nobleman whimpering directly behind the thick wooden door leading into the room of cages. The key finally scraped towards the keyhole, and an audible click opened the door, filling the basement with a torch light.

"Th-They are going to be for sale at auction tomorrow…" The Noble said, as though that would make a difference. 

"Let the old man search, if they are for auction, then you parasitical asswipes won't be much needing them." A single torch made its way down towards the cages as the two by the door continued bickering.

"The Empire is on-"

"So blinded, it is like your city forgot what scouts and intelligence was. A large Imperial force will be outside your walls in….15 minutes. How incompetent is your fucking city?" This finally left the Noble speechless.

A bearded man of pale complexion and poor posture ignored the two men bickering; he was focused on an odd orb that he placed close to each cage. Torchlight blinded her as he drew closer to her cage; she didn't have the energy to scurry away like the other children, letting the torchlight light up her emotionless expression. The old bearded man's hand stopped as a crackle, and then a light exploded from the orb, and just as quickly as he tried to move it away, it turned to ash in his hands. 

"This one will do." His voice was one of wisdom. 

A balding middle-aged man whose gut fell far from his waist brought another torch towards her cage, mercilessly dragging behind a colorful and ornamented-dressed old noble. 

"One with red eyes?" This fat man was the crass one who was verbally abusing the noble. 

"Yes."

The fat man threw the Noble into the bars of her cage, causing the noble's nose to gush blood all over the hay inside. 

"Open it." 

"W-w-why are you like this?!?" The noble again began scratching for the lock as he held his nose from bleeding more. This time, he found the lock quickly as the cage door opened. She watched this without a single care, not even leaving the cage, just watching the unknown man bully who looked to be a noble of the City. 

"Raz. She looks petrified." The academic elder quickly placed a hand on his nose. "That stench."

"W-we-we were going to-"

"Get her cleaned up and dressed. We will expect her outside and ready in thirty minutes. Do not keep us waiting, scum." The fat man glared until the Noble began making an effort to drag the girl out. "Lightly, you barbarian. If there is a single thing broken, a single wound that isn't mended, I will shove my hand into your ass and make you a human meat puppet." 

"Why the colorful language?" The Academic stroked his beard. "Elder Ipek of the Kul Family, please ensure our new ward is taken with the utmost care. The Temple would sincerely remember your loyalty to the Tianz." The old bearded man chuckled to himself, straightening his back. "Your difficulty communicating baffles me, Raz." 

"Yes, yes, let's treat the traitor city with respect. Woe is me. My stupidity has gotten the better of me." The two watched Elder Ipek weakly pull her from the cage and try to get her to a standing position. "Why is she covered in blood? Questions for a different time. Get her cleaned up." The Fat Man said a tad more gently, less in respect to the noble and more in regard to the traumatized ten-year-old girl that stood before him. 

The two men from the Temple quietly left; their whispers did not hide that they were talking about the girl. As they were far enough away, the servitude that had encompassed Ipek's personality returned to its more natural privileged state. The look of superiority dripping from those eyes, the nose turning up, made the state of affairs about to unfold obvious.

"Sula! SULA!" A guard in colors similar to Ipeks, with gleaming golden armor and a facemask, rushed into the prison with four others. Ipek snapped his fingers in her direction. "Bring her. Get the other family Guards to meet us at Trade Gate." 

"Manor could be raided if-"

"The Manor is lost as it is; we can't let this opportunity go. PICK HER UP." Ipek's voice sounded like somebody who had found wealth under the floorboards. 

The golden armored man swiftly placed her over his shoulder like a grain sack. Her head limply accepted this fate—no struggle, no reason to fight. She was still in a haze; her mind felt like it hadn't slept on ounce, yet when she went into the basement, there was sun, and now, leaving the basement, there was darkness. 

As her dead eyes peered up, she could make out the grave and worried expressions of each of the noble guards etched through the torchlight. Their vigilance was oddly disconcerting, taking a dirt path along the green and gold fields away from the Sky Gate. Each guard blew out their torches as they exited the main marble road. She couldn't help but realize that they were leaving through a hidden entrance in the wall that Elder Ipek probably could only use once. 

"Your daughter married into the Gro Family; certainly they could—" A smack. It was weaker than the one she remembered from the basement, but it served its purpose. 

"The Gro Family is the one that got us into this mess! IT WAS THEIR SCOUTS!" Elder Ipek whined as he spit on the ground. "Their Ancestors will haunt them for all time. But this girl, this girl is our ticket." The other guards, though loyal, looked suspiciously at the Elder with disbelief. "She has a source!" 

Sula almost was about to mouth something else, but feeling his cheek, he just continued following. The others seemed less at ease with the knowledge than without it. The girl still was unable to piece any of it together, not that she cared; the world she knew had collapsed.

"Shouldn't we at least clean our ticket? She…." Sula prepared for another smack, but Ipek simply grinned at the statement. 

"Stop thinking. Thinking is what got us into this mess. Do you think the Gro Family will remember my daughter as the Empire offers them a throne? NO. I think not." Half of the Guards stopped as they were about to get to a section of the wall with symbols on it. 

"Don't stop you nitwits; we are al-SULA!" There was an unshakeable fear in Ipek's voice. 

She was thrown hastily into a bed of golden grass. It stung ever so slightly against her skin, but she tried to make out what was happening. Six forms circled each other, and swords could be heard exiting their metallic sheaths. 

"Traitors!" Elder Ipek cried out as if stating the obvious would change the disposition. 

"The dead have no traitors, if the Empire is here, the Gro already have a throne Elder." One of the guards spoke. Mina couldn't quite make out who was who. If this was how she died, she was somewhat oblivious to it.

"Wait. Wait. Wait. Do you all honestly think the Empire will grant the people of Tianz anything?! The moment they enter the city, they are slaughtering everybody!"

This logic momentarily stopped the Guards from moving. 

"That red-eyed girl has a Source. I can trade her for protection. Maybe even trade her for the City's safety. THINK!" The Guards pondered, but slashes and the sounds of three thumps fell with great precision within those seconds of indecision. 

"By Alsa and Thue, I thank everyday I raised you from the mud, Sula." There was glee mixed with some surprise in Ipek's voice. 

The same hands searched and then found her again, where she was hastily lifted and placed over Sula's uncomfortable armored shoulder. "May I speak, Master Ipek?" the man said as he pushed open the stone etchings, opening the secret passage into the Trade District. 

"I think you quite earned that." The still-frightened Elder chuckled. 

"Use this moment to evacuate your family as we negotiate." Those words weren't lost on the Elder as he paused his movement momentarily. The silence and the stop lasted for what seemed forever as that old man pondered that well-made point. 

"I am Ipek of the Five. My family was the one that found that heretical green stone and molded it, and the others merely benefited from being in proximity to it at the right time. Run from my birthright? My family would sooner perish into the fires or fall into the tip of a spear." Sula was silent but followed Ipek as they continued moving. The ornamental light posts shined many colors, and passing through the district was beautiful. Would her father have enjoyed it? 

As they made their way through well-lit alleys, storefronts showing inventions she couldn't hope to describe, and all manner of goods, a dread was obviously taking a grip on the citizens. Windows that might have had riches were getting eerily emptied, and eyes watched them cautiously as if worried that the Elder and his Guard would break in and arrest them. 

"Sula. Stay quiet amongst the other Guards; it…is ill-advised to discuss private matters with them lest we repeat the same mistake." Sula nodded at this, laying his hand on the hilt of his blade as they maneuvered down the last alley onto the main stretch of cleaned cobble. 

Many other guards dawned in Kul colors congregated at the front of the Trade Gate—approximately twelve. This number sent a rather disdainful expression across Ipek's wrinkled face. 

"TWELVE!?" The Elder grabbed the attention of all of the Guards as they ran to be at attention. 

"Yes, twelve were summoned. The rest were ordered-" 

"Ordered to protect your assets at home." Sula cut off the guard, which enraged Ipek more and calmed him. The thought of losing wealth frightened the Kul Patriarch even more than the Empire outside the front gates.

"Let's get this over with. Sula, lead the way. You ten, circle pattern. You two, protect that parasite that Sula has flung over his shoulder. In no way is she to see harm." The Guards were quick to respond to the orders. Mina attempted anything to momentarily block the melancholy she felt, knowing that before her was an Elder of the Five. 

The Five. It took Mina's mind much too long to piece together who and what was in front of her.

The gate was opening, noisy, unpolished, and out on the horizon was an array of lights like the sun was just coming up. It was the Imperial Army.

This all would've alarmed anybody, but not her, not now. She was focused. Observing. Jewels and silk, but beneath that silver-encrusted silk was something that she was familiar with when dealing with the wealthy. 

She had found her new objective. From among the fog of melancholy, Mina of the Mud knew a new emotion.

Revenge. 

"Stop here." The Elder observed the wall and the lights that blinded the entire horizon. "Torches center." The squad threw their torches in the center of their circle as they got into a pseudo-defensive position. "Do not place your hands on your hilts, do not allow any….miscommunication."