[Flashback] Bad Business [Solo]

[Levi Athan]

43rd of Summer, AV 501

"What do you mean she's only worth fifty? Fifty? Do you even realize the shyke you are feeding me right now? Fifty! I ought to run you through with a blade right now you son of a whore!" Levi prodded the thick man's chest violently with his index finger. His hairless baby face was red as molten lava and as hot as Syna's merciless gaze. The man he was doing business with was cutting him short, very very short. It was a slave trade, conducted between just the two men on the docks, far from earshot of any would-be eavesdroppers. So, they assumed. "You watch your petching mouth boy. There's plenty a people who don't take to this business too well, if you know what I mean. I'll give you fifty golds, you give me the child, and I'll be off. Trust me, she isn't worth any more than she weighs. She's small, scrawny, and for the love of the gods. Have you even bathed her? Her hair is so bad it'll need to be cut. A child-whore isn't worth much when she's bald. It'll take time to grow it out, to fatten her up... Oh, did I mention that if they don't speak or understand Common, then it's pretty petching hard to sell them to people who only speak Common! You know, the places I sell them? I'm heading straight to Ravok after my stop here in Zeltiva, I don't have the time to get all this done. Forty-five golds, or you are stuck with her." Levi shook his head violently. This would not do. The man thought simply because Levi was merely sixteen, barely a man, and green as summer grass, that he could hustle him into taking only a faction of what he deserved. Well, it would not stand. He would barter, that's how you did business. You had to play the game, you have to observe the subtle changes of voice, the faint hints of their motives. You had to sniff out the very knowledge they knew, but didn't share. "I've spent all I had keeping her alive. Forty-five won't get me to winter with food in my gut. Give me eighty, and she's yours." Levi and the Slaver stared at each other for a long moment, a heavy silence blanketed over them as they both pondered, trying to predict the next words the other would say. It was like a game of chess, except with words rather than wooden figurines. "Fifty golds. She won't get me but seventy in her state. The Ravok-men prefer prime meat." "You aren't selling her in Ravok." The slaver coughed for just a split-second, he was caught off guard. Was that him revealing that Levi was right? Regardless, it was time to work his words. "Everyone and their dog knows that Ravok deals in slaves, but how many actually know they are racist, no, Human-Supremacists? I think that makes at least two of us. You try to sell her there, you won't even get fifty. You're shooting for a long-term deal. Maybe Ahnatep, maybe Sunberth, but I'd gamble on Riverfall." Levi watched the man's face closely, observing every little twitch of the eye, the minuscule quiver of his confident grin. Even the man's hands moved from the open, frivolously dealing in gestures and motions, to inside his pockets. Levi caught him, somewhere. "You spoke with one of my men, didn't you?" "No, didn't have to. I had a hunch, because that's what I would do if I had the vessel, like you do, to get her to Riverfall. The trip is relatively short, and she's the perfect age to learn and adapt to Akalak culture. Am I right? Cutting her hair, bathing her, and teaching her a few tricks, that can be done between journeys from here to Ravok, and then across the sea to Riverfall. That, and you just confirmed it." Levi couldn't help but break his straight face. A sudden smirk, just that brief moment he allowed himself to feel powerful when, in reality, he only showed he was intelligent and observing. "Boy, you've got this business in your blood. What would you say to joining me? There's plenty of money to be made, and food will never be scarce." "Put those eighty golds in my hand, then we'll talk partnership."

[Levi Athan]

The deal should have been made right then and there. Eighty was an extraordinary price for something that could easily be sold for five times that in about two seasons. The man that Levi was dealing with, however, was not some simple slaver that kidnapped from the streets and sold them at auctions or to plantation owners. No, he was a master of this art. He did not get his hands dirty, he did not deal with the lower ranks of criminals, except on the few occasions they had a decent find as this one, and he certainly did not let some loner make a mockery of him. The longer the man took to mull over the options, the longer he took to shake Levi's hand (not that he would take a handshake from a man like this and expect to bind him to any morsel of honor) and accept the deal, meant one thing to Levi. Something was going wrong. Did he miss something? Levi continued to look the man over again. He had the casual attire of any merchant, which is what everyone except the criminals knew him to be, with a dagger poking its head out from his boot and another two at his belt. Levi was unarmed, and should this "Merchant" turn cutthroat, there would be a problem. "Boy, I like your spirit, but I don't like you refusing me. Even delaying acceptance of such a gift is rejection to my ears. And I do not like being rejected. I don't like it when my offers are turned down, be it fifty golds, or the chance to be employed by such a gracious and successful man as myself" And it was as Levi feared, the man reached down and drew from his belt one standard knife, well kept, shiny as the first day on the shelf, and probably sharp enough to carve fog from the air. Levi groaned as he took a few steps backwards, which was pointless because the man was quick to offer the same distance forward, thus keeping the gap roughly the same. "I think you have mistaken who I am. I'm not a shopkeeper. I do not barter with you. I do not offer. I tell you what happens. Not the other way around. So, because of this, there's only a single option left for you. You're going for a swim off the docks. It's a shame you won't make it back." Threat confirmed, knife brandished, Levi wasn't going to spend anymore time sizing up the scene, he turned and hauled his scrawny ass back towards the populated city of Zeltiva. It didn't take long for Levi to feel the pains of running to manifest in his chest. His lungs were burning in minutes as his legs felt like they were coursing with venom. It wasn't often he had to run for his life, and he was only half-nourished enough to sustain such flight. The man, his thick boots and strong heavy mass made powerful drumbeats against the ground. Each thump was a little closer, a little stronger. It was painfully and frightfully obvious by sounds alone that this man was gaining on Levi. Still, he ran and ran, his legs pumping as fast as they could manage, and his willpower to survive only fueling his physical limitations to grow. Tomorrow, if he was alive, he would feel like he had been walked all over by a horse. Still, that would feel better than a warm breakfast and a naked woman, given the circumstances. Luckily it wasn't too far until they were surrounded by dockhands from various ships. Shipwrights and people checking ledgers and merchandise. It was only then, after a short sprint that felt like a painful hour, that this man suddenly turned back to his casual self, though there was a frightening shimmer in his eyes. Here, he couldn't just stab Levi and walk away. There were too many people about, and even a person like him wouldn't get away. Yet, Levi couldn't ask for help. He was a criminal as well, and all his newfound enemy would have to do is explain how Levi was detaining a young girl. They stared at each other, the slaver panting lightly while Levi was wheezing and gasping for air like a fish begging for water. He shook his head slowly and pointed at the slaver, but chose not to speak and walked away from the docks, and into the city. Still, he knew he was not safe. That man wasn't going to let Levi go. He wanted the girl, and he wanted Levi dead, now more than ever. Levi tried to think, though his head was fuzzy from so much sudden exercise that nothing seemed quite so clear. He's probably got somebody trailing me. I have to find him, lose him, or take him out. If I lead him home, they'll know where she is, but I can't stay out in the open. I can't get caught in a corner or confined space, but I can't stay visible." Levi was powerwalking down the street when he looked over his shoulder, hoping to see one obvious person stalking after him, but that wasn't the scenario. There were people everywhere. In a city of twenty-thousands souls, most of which were human, half of those being men, and most of those looking like every other human man. Today was busy, and though there were half a dozen men that looked to be intentionally walking briskly and keeping pace with him, he knew it was unreasonable to assume the man would send six thugs after him. No, they were probably just sailors, perhaps all but one. This game of cat and mouse was no fun when you were the mouse.

[Levi Athan]

Levi ducked into the Kelp Bar, the place he often retreated to when he was feeling particularly nervous, anxious, or endangered. Today, all three feelings mixed a nauseating brew in his gut, and likewise drove him into this place reeking of salt-water and alcohol. Levi, as always, chose one of the tables against a wall, where he could sit against and watch everyone who came and went into the bar. It was in that small space, in the corner of the Kelp Bar, that he felt empowered, and this fearful little game became interesting once more. It wasn't that he was no longer frightened for his life, but he at least felt like he could contend with his would-be assailant(s). Silently, Levi watched, specifically for the people that walked in the next few minutes after he had. One, two, three men. Not together, well, the first two were together it seemed, chatting and jesting with each other as they made a B-line for the bartender. They seemed completely oblivious of Levi being in the room, which was natural for anyone who wasn't specifically watching for him. There was at least a dozen and a half people in here, and he was the only one silent and observing every possible detail. The third man to enter the room made himself too obvious to Levi, but trying too hard to be inconspicuous. He was wearing a cloak, not hooded, and wandered in towards a seat near the entrance. Most patrons, unlike Levi and this man, would go for a drink first thing when entering the bar. Levi felt confident he found his tail, though still waited, still watched. It wasn't hard to see that this man was looking for something, or someone. A few times he and Levi meet gazes, though he was quick to divert from Levi until a later time. And time passed like this for quite some time. Levi wasn't sure how long it had been specifically, but he began to notice that this man was more like him. Anxious, watching for something rather than looking for something. It was awkward, almost Levi was watching a mirror, except his reflection was more poorly suited for this sort of thing. Levi sighed to himself, giving up on this man and returned to scanning everyone else in the room. Nobody, he noticed, was obviously watching him, looking for him, or preparing to jump him. If they were here, they were hiding their motives very well. A scary thought, but Levi considered it an unlikely one. If anyone had been following him, perhaps he lost them, or they gave up chase. Levi then realized what was going on. The slaver he offended wasn't after Levi's life! He was after the girl! Levi cursed himself as he jumped up from his table and rushing out of the Kelp Bar. His typically logical, observing self was lost as he ran through Zeltiva towards his home. All this time he had been wasting trying to lose an imaginary assassin and they had probably been searching for his home and the girl he was hiding there. Stupid! Stupid! Why would he leave her there alone for so long when he actually let the worst kind of people know she was there? Levi knew she wouldn't put up a fight. She had no ties to Levi himself. She probably hated him, and would risk enslavement elsewhere just to find a chance at a better caretaker. Levi petched up bad.