The proliferation of literacy is one of the central missions of Arlin after the end of a campaign. During its founding, the first emperor believed that a literate nation meant a nation of more highly trained workers, and therefore a more cohesive society. The ability to read and write Morathin is heavily pushed onto parents in newly annexed lands and is often incentivized through donations of reading material to households.

***

There was the same satisfying crack that always occurred whenever the pick finally broke off a piece of stone. I wiped my forehead with my sleeves before leaning down and picking up the piece, breaking it apart a few times to make it easier to refine. Even though I was going to destroy this place in what was now 20 days, I was still going to put the work in to keep my position with the guards and Galen consistent. The daily toil was a lot easier now that I had a clearer mental image and a date that was fast approaching.

Is it me, or am I having less issues being around the raw magore?

While there were many benefits to my apprenticeship, one of them that I hadn’t considered was a higher tolerance for magore. The refined and raw forms of the material functioned on two very different bases, but it appeared that training my mana and handling it was giving me a better tolerance.

Working with Elm was also allowing me to collect smaller bits of refined magore to use in the plan. There were a few other ideas which had been proposed on how to use the magore, which meant that keeping extra was valuable. The simple process was that I was going to need to bring pieces of the bunks in my canteen the night before the revolt, and then give them to Elric so he could meet up with Elina to make his way to the mine. I’d put a lot of trust in Elina to lead the stealth mission, and although Elric was still somewhat reluctant, he appeared to have gotten more comfortable with her as of late. Elina had also mentioned the day before that she had apparently caught the attention of another slave who might be able to help us out and who she was going to introduce us to tonight.

Now that I had a full plan together, Alex was also getting more people for our cause and who were willing to work with us when the time came. Outside of the main group, there were now at least 25 people who were aware of and supportive of the revolt. The plan was going well enough to the point where it was starting to worry me that something major was going to go awry. There was one thing that had caused some problems recently, and that was the decision I had come upon in order to get the key from Captain Galen’s office.

I was going to set the building on fire.

***

The responses I had gotten to the plan were mixed. Elm was apathetic and thought the idea, while crazy, had some merit due to my newly found resistance to fire. I wasn’t completely flame proof, but it was likely that if the building burned in the correct way it was possible for me to get in and out fairly unharmed. From my perspective it was built off of simple logic. I mean, who would run into a burning building? There was an open window in the back which, with the usage of a bit of brute force, could easily allow me inside and grab the key from the desk. Elm had noted in the past that he’d never seen Galen put a lock on the drawer which contained it, presumably out of confidence that nobody would really be able to sneak in there and grab it. However, due to the fact that the armory was right next to it, I’d have a lot easier access.

Elm’s plan was to lure Galen out of his office by inviting him into the armory where they could have a discussion, while I would set off a fire with materials we would place there the night before. While the guards were focused on putting it out, I’d escape where I’d already come from and meet up with Elm, who’d focus on taking out the guards and dealing with Galen. According to Elm, he was better than Galen and could win in a fight as long as he had access to his aptitude or a burner. After working with him for a while, I trusted him on that statement. He’d not revealed too much more about himself but I’d figured that whatever he’d done in Arlin, he was probably really good at it.

Elric’s response was predictable. He thought it was idiotic, and while he definitely had some points, it appeared to be a solution that everyone else was on board with. Thus, he relented. He did seem a bit more open to it since it wasn’t putting his life on the line, but he definitely worried for me. Sera was also a bit worried, but after hearing that I had protection, seemed a bit more confident. However, she emphasized that I douse myself in water to increase the amount of time I can have there. Sera also mentioned that she had her own plan, but was saving it for when we met the person who Elina thought could help us out. Alex and Elina both seemed ok with it, and Twig appeared to think it was going to be satisfying to watch the office of a man she despised burn, so she was entirely on board.

It was all going well, except for one specific thing. Since Elm and I were closer to the guards, we got a lot more info than most. While it was only somewhat proven, there was a message that had passed around the lips of the guards on a few occasions.

There was going to be a new slave arriving today.

***

It hadn’t initially worried me since we could always deal with more people, and having extra hands and heads made our lives easier. However, there was a clear reason behind the new addition coming to the camp; It was Sera’s replacement. Since she only had a limited amount of time, it made sense to fill in her bunk to keep the mines working at their previous capacity. It was infuriating, but I understood the basic reasoning behind it and had seen it happen in the past. Whenever a miner died, a replacement would arrive a short period later to keep it at full capacity. Inactivity or lack of production was something the empire couldn’t tolerate, so there was a consistent flow of people to keep the system running. It did make planning harder, but I believed I could deal with the change.

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As I took another swig of my canteen, I heard the familiar sound of the whistle and picked up my basket to head outside.

***

As we placed down the baskets onto the platform, a guard repeatedly shouted a simple order.

“Do not change out of your mining gear! Head to the middle of the camp past the cafeteria and form ranks for an announcement!” His voice repeated the line over and over again, and the tired miners followed each other in herds towards the center where I could see Captain Galen standing on what looked like a makeshift platform. I knew what was about to happen, but I still felt a slight sense of dread. Something about it felt wrong.

As the ranks slowly formed, the guards gathered around us. A large portion of them appeared to be frustrated about not being able to remove their armor. I looked around, taking in the number of slaves that 83 actually meant. It was a sizable number of people, all of which held an aptitude. If the cuffs were removed, it could easily act as a strong fighting force.

“Good Evening! I’m sorry if everyone’s a bit tired, but I’m here to make an announcement.” Galen said, his classic smile still permeating on his cheeks. “I know that it’s been a long day of work for everyone, but I’m glad to announce we have a new arrival.”

There was a soft murmur from the crowd as he spoke from both the guards and the slaves. Galen turned behind him and beckoned someone up to the platform. As the new arrival came onto the stage, there was another round of murmurs, with a much heavier tone behind them. As I looked at them, I immediately felt a deep sense of dread.

It was a child.

A young girl, standing on the stage in rags that barely fit her emaciated body. Her hair was a deep black, and the right side of her face had burn marks across it. The skin had been malformed after healing, and I could see that a chunk of her right ear had been cut off. The wound looked fresh. She couldn’t have been a day older than I was when I was first put into the mines. Looking at her felt like a stab at the soul.

“This is Karla, and she’s from Corith.” As Elm spoke those words, I could see him turn to look directly at me. “I hope you will be able to help her get used to the camp, so please be nice. You can take off your gear and go eat.”

The ranks began to fall apart as we headed towards the place where all of our mining gear was kept. There was still a wave of murmurs among the entire group about the newest slave. Normally the guards would punish this type of mass discussion but even they were talking about the announcement. However, the only sensation I could feel was dread.

***

While we had dinner, the discussion about Karla continued. Elric was silent, while Elina and Alex were talking in hushed tones. When I looked over to the other side of the tent, I could see a huddle of women around the child softly talking with her. Something about seeing a young child in such a bad state had kicked in several people’s maternal instincts. It was heartbreaking to everyone, and I could spot many around the cafeteria also looking away from their trays to try to spot her. As I continued to watch, I could see Sera hobble out of the crowd with her makeshift crutch before sitting down next to me.

“She’s 14… apparently she’s from the capital and was found during one of the raids.” she said, slowly sitting down and putting her head in her hands. Karla was the same age as Sera and I when we were enslaved.

Elina turned away from Alex and asked the quiet part loud. “So, does this change the plan at all?” She wasn’t the best at subtlety, and her mind was very clearly stuck on the thought of living the Irebor dream.

“I’m not going to let her get in danger. We’re going to need to keep her someplace safe.” My voice was slightly strained as I spoke. Seeing Karla like that brought back a lot of bad memories that I’d let fade. “I don’t love the idea of keeping her in the bunks during it, but I don’t know where else. We just have to hope the guards are overwhelmed enough not to go after her.”

The entire group was silent for a bit as we pondered the new challenge we had facing us. The only upside of Karla being here was that it was a greater motivator for people to participate in the revolt. Keeping a child like that in bondage was an inherently disgusting thought. After a moment something inside Elina seemed to click, causing her to speak up.

“Oh yeah, I had the person I was going to introduce to you! One sec.” Elina’s loud voice shocked the entire table, but it seemed none of the guards cared enough to look at her. Seeing Karla was a very clear hit to their morale.

Elina got up and moved across the cafeteria, dodging in between the huddle. After a moment, she popped out with her grip firmly on the arm of a woman with dark blue hair. It was a fairly uncommon color, but there was a distinct region that it was attached to; Pluma.

When I’d been at previous camps for short periods, I would occasionally meet people who had the same hue, and all of them were from Pluma. I’d seen this woman at the camp before, but she never seemed interested enough in me to interact. Her skin looked as light as Alex’s, which made her contrast with Elina. As she pulled up a seat and sat down, I could see her scan my body.

“My, what a diverse bunch you’ve got. Truly representing every shade of the empire’s atrocities.” She spoke in a proper, noble voice. Everything about her from her mannerisms, tone and general atmosphere screamed that she had come from a place of wealth before ending up here.

I looked towards Elina and silently urged her to give us a name.

“Oh, right. This is Nicole. She’s here to help.” Elina’s introduction was, at the least, in character. She definitely wasn’t the same orator as Alex.

“Thank you. I’m here to help out with the plan and put you in the right direction.” Her formal tone was unchanging, but I could feel the slightest bit of condescension.

I put on a fake smile to keep my irritation from showing.

“You think you know ways to improve the plan?”

In response, Nicole put her hands on her hips, puffing out her chest slightly in what I assumed was supposed to be a show of pride.

“Yes, I do. After all, I’ve been planning my own escape for years.”