[Flashback] Chained from first love (solo)

[Rashidi]

30th of Winter, 505 AV

As Rashidi forced the dagger in the neck of the bear, he felt the tough opponent losing it’s balance and going lifeless. As he yanked the dagger out and jumped off, the bear fell on the ground with a loud crash. No one messes with my dinner, he mumbled as he started to skin the bear. He went back to his fire with parts of the bear, placing it on the skin of the bear near the fire. That should feed me until I reach Zeltiva, he mumbled again, swiping his hair back and staring at the fire. He grabbed a piece of the meat, placed it on a stick and started to roast the meat. Though he relaxed a bit, he could never totally relax. He was either on the lookout for threats like animals, or looking for possibilities to scam or steal from people. A single crack of a twig behind him instantly changed Rashidi from the trickster to the assassin. He dropped his meat, grabbed his dagger and turned around within half a second. As his eyes grew accustomed to the absence of light in the forestnight, he saw no one sneaking up behind him. Still weary, he turned back around to grab his meat and continued roasting it. After finishing his meal, he relaxed again. He turned towards his backpack and took a sip of his water. He heard a second crack, but before he could react he got a force blow to the back of his head and got knocked out cold.

A splash of water got thrown in his face and he instantly woke up. A man with a scar running over his left eye looked at Rashidi with a menacing smile. Rashidi wanted to reach out and strangle him, but a chain to his neck prevented him from actually reaching him. The man laughed and threw the bucket away. Now, what is an Eypharian doing in the woods, so far from home? Rashidi didn’t answer, merely giving the man a hateful look. A silent type, are we? Doesn’t matter. I’ve heard you talk, and I’ve seen you fight. You’ll sell for a lot of Mizas on the slavemarket in Sunberth. Who doesn’t want his very own Eypharian guard? Of course, if you had six arms you would have sold for a lot more. DIE! Rashidi yelled, lashing out again. The chain yanked him back again, far out of reach of the slavetrader. The man started to laugh again, as he walked away. There were four other men, each sitting around Rashidi’s campfire, eating his meat and going through his stuff. I'll kill you! All of you! You're nothing but puny weak humans! The man turned back around, grabbing a club and walked up to Rashidi. You're an insult to the other races! I SPIT on your existence! He swing the club once, but the blow to his head was more than enough to shut Rashidi up. He toppled over, tasting the blood filling up his mouth. That's what slaves get when they don't listen. Next time you open your hole, slave, I'll break that jaw. The man spat on Rashidi, before going back to the fire and sitting down with his friends. Rashidi spat out the blood and stared at it. His mind riotted; he wanted to maul the men apart, but at the same time he could cry his heart out. He sat up and leaned against the tree he was chained to. He checked if all his teeth were in place while checking out the environment. There were eight other slaves, six of which were locked in a trailer with thick bars. The other one, who also tied to a tree, was a young girl. Her short brown hair was almost combed back, granting the world a look on her face. Her bright blue eyes were fixated on the five men, looking for what he could guess were weak spots. Despite her hated look, she appeared as beautiful and fragile as the clearest glass. Her skin was smooth, except for the red marks on her neck where her collar was locked. Rashidi was stunned; never before had he seen such a beautiful girl. The girl looked at Rashidi, and her look changed from hatred to sorrow. Are you okay? she whispered. Yeah, he said, as he spat out some blood. It's nothing. The bear did more damage. Rashidi smiled, which made the girl chuckle. My name is Rashidi. What's yours? Ylva, she said with a smile.
Shut up or I'll make you shut up! one of the men yelled. Both looked at the men for a second. Try to get some sleep. Tomorrow, we'll continue to travel, Ylva whispered, as she curled up. Rashidi continued to look at her, but quickly gave in to his tired body.

The following morning, Rashidi woke up with a sore back. Sleeping against a tree wasn't a good idea, but he couldn't do much else. One of the men was still outside, looking at the slaves. Ylva hadn't woken up yet, but she was about to. One of the men appeared out of nowhere with a pan in one hand and a stick in the other. Wake up! Time to get moving! Get up, you lazy bastards! he yelled, as he banged the pan numerous times. Ylva streched and yawn. The guard moved up to the slaves, grabbing his sword. I'll make them sit still, you connect their chains to the trailer, he said, as he put the point of the sword against my neck. The man removed the chain from the tree and quickly moved towards the back of the trailer, dragging Rashidi along. The sword didn't move, giving Rashidi no chance but to cooperate. They did the same to Ylva, tieing both to the back of the trailer. Are the other guys awake? the guard asked, which was answered with a small nod. As if summoned, the other slavetraders appeared, carrying packages with food and water. Once the stuff was put on the horses, the trailer started to move, dragging Ylva and Rashidi along.

After a long day of walking, the caravan stopped near a creek. Rashidi sat down, out of breath. As he looked up, Ylva was standing against the trailer, panting. One of the men walked up to them, holding a waterskin. Awww, are the Eypharian and the Kelvic tired? He threw the waterskin at their feet, grinning. That's too bad, because we're not at our next camp site yet! Ylva grabbed the waterskin, taking two large gulps from the water. She handed Rashidi the skin, while she sat down. As he took three gulps, he handed the waterskin back. Kelvic? he asked, able to breath normally again. Wolf. Got caught near Lisnar. She stared at the ground, looking ashamed. The trailer moved again, surprising Rashidi and Ylva. While Ylva could get up in time, Rashidi got dragged for a few feet. He got on his feet and limped a couple of steps. Are you okay? she asked. As Rashidi got back into pace, he showed Ylva a piece of bone he grabbed from the ground. I'm fine. He started to fiddle in the lock with the bone he grabbed, making sure that the traders didn't see it.

The light was fading when the caravan stopped again. Rashidi had tried to unlock the lock for at least three hours, resulting in nothing but frustration. Ylva made sure that none of the traders saw it. As Rashidi and Ylva were locked against two different trees again, he continued to pick the lock. The traders came to bring some water and food, but left again. Ylva looked at Rashidi with a strange look in her eyes and a smile on her lips. While his trickster did all the work, Rashidi's true soul looked at Ylva from time to time and caught her look. Once she fell asleep, he stopped for a moment to closely look at her. Her body was human, but her face and her stance showed hints of her Kelvic side. Her ears twitched from time to time, and she tried to run after or away from something. The marks on her neck were more red than the day before, which enraged Rashidi. He got back to picking the lock, but even after an entire night of trying it didn't open.

The following morning, the guards woke the slaves up again and started to prepare everything again. Rashidi, covering a yawn, stood up and streched his sore back. As they go hooked to the trailer again, Ylva looked at Rashidi. Did you have any sleep last night? she whispered. He gave a weak smile, yawned again and sighed. I want to be free. I've spend all night trying to pick the lock, but everytime I almost have it, it slips and I have to start over again, he whispered. Ylva looked around and gave him a quick, but warm hug. It gave Rashidi new energy, and as the trailer moved again, he started to pick the lock again.

The trailer stopped again, near yet again another creek. Rashidi stopped picking the lock and looked at Ylva. She growled as one of the traders came close. Rashidi decided that he should try it one last time. As the guard was almost within arms reach, Ylva snarled at the trader. Shut it! the guard yelled as he punched Ylva. The assassin took over, and as he moved his hand the lock jumped open. The chain linking them to the trailer fell on the ground, and Rashidi jumped on the trader. Don't you touch her! he yelled, bashing the head of the trader against the ground. The other traders heard the yell, and reached for their weapons. Run, Ylva! Rashidi yelled, as he grabbed the sword of the trader. Ylva hesitated, but ran off. Rashidi followed her, trying to keep up. He looked back, and saw one of the traders aiming a bow at them. Look out! Rashidi yelled at Ylva, but it was too late. The arrow flew past him and burried itself in Ylva's back. A rush of horror filled Rashidi, as time slowed down. Ylva tried to run, but she fell to the ground. A yell from the traders was streched to incomprehensibility. Rashidi kneeled at Ylva's side, looking at the arrow burried in her back. As he yanked it out, a wolflike yelp escaped her mouth. He turned her around and looked in her eyes. The light in her eyes slowly grew dim, until it faded. Another arrow flew by, bringing Rashidi back to the real world. He got back on his feet, swiped his hair to the side and tightened his grip on the sword. The normal grin of the assassin was replaced with a hateful snarl, as Rashidi ran towards the traders. At first, they didn't knew what was happening, but when Rashidi burried the sword in one of them, they all went insane. As one of them tried to run away, Rashidi grabbed him by the neck and snapped it, before halfway tearing it off. The other two were far gone, but the archer was still in sight. Rashidi grabbed the sword of the trader and threw it at the archer, hitting him just below the knee. Rashidi quickly searched for a dagger, and found his own dagger on one of the horses. Walking up to the fallen archer, Rashidi pushed the sword through the leg and into the soft ground, locking the archer. He grabbed him by his hair, make him look into his eyes, while showing his dagger. I used this dagger on the first unfortunate soul to anger me, he calmly said, as the archer began to cry. You deserve a special treatment for killing her. And I'm going to make it last for as long as I can.

After a long afternoon near the creek, Rashidi freed all the other slaves, scaring them away with his blood stained clothes. He then started to dig a grave near a tree where Ylva had died, making sure that it was big enough. He gently placed her in the grave, shedding his tears on her body, before climbing back out and covering the grave. Making a simple tombstone, he kneeled down at the grave, surrendering to his sadness. By nightfall, he wiped his tears, walked to the creek and washed away the dirt and the blood on his hands. Walking back to the trailer and horses, he searched for a set of clean clothes that fitted, his own gear, some food and some water. After standing at her grave one last time, Rashidi wiped away the single tear on his cheek and walked away.