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I wake up alone in her massive bed, sweating and naked, covered in furs. My body hurts, and my back burns like hell. I straighten up, slowly checking myself for damages. Scratches everywhere, deeper traces on my back, but nothing to worry about, no broken ribs either. Her marks, I remember smiling, touching them once more.

Last night was wild.

My memories are still quite vivid, making my blood rush to various places. Despite my low fever, I feel strangely refreshed and full of energy. I step down, looking around for my clothes, legs cramping. It hurts, no question about it, but it also feels fantastic. There's no way to describe it, it was beyond anything I've ever experienced before.

I manage to dress up, squirming through the pain until everything fits properly, still amazed that I'm in one piece after a night like that. I check the bracelet before heading out and down the corridor aiming for the kitchen. Everything seems in order, a few more Ae'l bars filled up, no wonder, that was quite a workout, it almost knocked me flat.

Well, I conclude, rushing down the uneven stone stairs, one thing is sure. No matter how much I check myself, there's no question about it. I'm in one piece, alive and all that. That means only one thing, at least for now...

I survived the beast!

Despite my wobbling legs, I manage to end up inside the kitchen, guided mostly by smell and hunger alone. The girls look at me with shameless curiosity, smiling, quickly filling the table in front of me with overgenerous plates of meats and the mandatory sag jugs. My face betrays me. I smile back, slightly ashamed, reaching for the food.

"It hurts?" a soft whisper asks right into my ear, almost making me drop the juice-filled meat out of my mouth.

"Aaahhh..." I squirm as the healer woman runs her fingers under my shirt, touching the marks on my back. A wave of laughter and lewd comments spreads across the kitchen as the girls whisper about my last night with the beast in their own language.

Lhina'an turns her head toward me, eyes bright, still waiting for an answer.

"No.... I mean, a little." I shake my head, then nod, then shake my head again.

She smiles as she continues her examination, moving from side to side and sending waves of stinging pain through my body. And yet her soft touch feels good, comforting as always. She lifts my shirt and looks at my reddish-colored chest just for a moment before finishing the inspection and resting her hand on my leg.

"I'll oil u later, good she didn't bite," her voice reassures me a bit.

I smile stupidly at her, nodding, unable to imagine what kind of damage the beast's fangs could have done to me. Probably not the type that can be treated with ointments alone.

"She sent word, waits for u, go down to the hall."

Rai'Ze is waiting for me? I wonder why, and yet I don't actually care that much for an answer.

I rush through the rest of the food, grabbing at least one piece from each plate, washing everything down with plenty of sag. A waste, I would have said some time ago, but not right now. Right now, I feel hungry, hungry in a different way. A hunger that seems to want to devour everything in front of me, and I give in to it, to the amusement of everyone present.

"Finished, thank you." I smile to the girls, rising to my feet and heading toward the inner corridor, my mind euphoric still.

It takes me a while until I realize that I've already passed the inner den, descended half the floor, reaching deep inside, then suddenly, the thought strikes me. I'm all alone, running carelessly around savage warriors, slaves, and servants, almost completely unaware of my not-so-great surroundings. My heart starts beating faster, and sweat is dripping down my burning back as I slow down, keeping my head down and sticking to the side of the large stone corridor.

Massive and dreadful warriors stare at me confused, fat slave masters push me aside, servants fear me, and slaves try their best not to cross my path. The cave is alive, a hive of savagery, and I'm just a tiny ant, an unknown scent, walking on eggshells, making my way deeper and deeper toward the Queen's throne room.

"M....mas..." Someone grabs my hand, sending a jolt through my body.

I turn around, ready to face the inevitable confrontation. I am a Wizard, how dare you touch me, you, you savage brute! A theatrical wave of my hand followed by more insults and maybe a reference to their inferiority and possible demise by Rai'Ze's ruthless sharp axe. The scenario calls for a smartphone flashlight as a last resource, just in case the brute doesn't listen to reason or my little understanding of the common tribal tongue misses the mark entirely.

"E...El... n'ne...," the scared girl manages to stutter, just as frightened as me.

I look at her confused, mind still dealing with the sudden rush of fear-inducing adrenaline.

"M... ma...," the young woman stutters even more, but she forces herself to finish the word, "master".

My heart sinks as I look at the pitiful naked creature clinging to my arm, eyes wide in terror. I can feel her trembling as she tries to hide her bright blue eyes from me and, at the same time, her entire body from...

"Ahtr'an enk'h!" The thundering voice makes me turn around.

A massive warrior... no, no weapons, a servant? He points at Eln'neen, enraged, completely ignoring me.

"How dare u! Get in line!" he yells at her, grabbing her arm, pulling her away from me.

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"Hey! What the hell are you doing to her?" I instantly raise my voice, completely forgetting my insignificant position in the pack.

The massive guy looks at me, annoyed, grinning menacingly, showing his teeth like a wild animal, squeezing the young woman's arm even harder.

"Boss said all, u come," he whispers at her agitatedly, eyes wide open, pointing his head to the small crowd behind.

I look over his massive shoulders. A line of slaves, all tied together, slowly walking one next to each other, dragged by their chains, servants running away, warriors grabbing, pushing everyone in their path toward the long chain.

What the fuck is going on?!

"Th'anrin's leaving, boss chief now," he whispers, unwilling to let the girl go.

Th'anrin, the mighty one, a fitting name for Rai'Ze. But what's all this nonsense about her leaving, and why the hell is he pulling Eln'een away from me? She's mine! I mean, no! Damn words.... brain... fuck!

I grab the desperate girl by the other arm and pull her close to me as I position myself in front of her body.

"She's busy! Got stuff to do!" I shout to him, asserting my dominance, and for a short moment, almost manage to have the brute let go of the girl. Just for a moment, though. Apparently, my fake posturing was not impressive enough, barely denting his resolve.

"Boss bad! Grabs all, u want grab too?" he informs me with lamenting whispers, pointing again toward the poor souls dragged behind him.

His words roll fast, and I barely make sense of half of them.

A chieftain, one of the top ones, gets the command of the cave for as long as Rai'Ze is gone. The asshole acted quickly and ordered his men and warriors to spread around and snatch the servants and slaves of other chiefs, all this apparently quite a common practice among the chieftains. Of course, his actions won't remain unanswered for long.

As soon the news of the Queen leaving spreads through the cave, other chiefs will send their own warriors on guard, escorting servants and slaves around, leaving no one up for grabs. Under threat of bloodshed, the clandestine roundup will end just as quickly as it started. Fighting among chiefs is taboo in the cave, at least while Rai'Ze rules over them.

His words do little to ease Eln'neen's despair or change my stance. If anything, they push me to take action before she gets dragged and chained down to the rest! I'll figure out later what Rai'Ze's doing and where she's going.

"Let her go!" I stare at him as menacing as I can.

The massive guy looks back at me, somewhat surprised by my reaction. He cannot understand how I dare defy him and his master. He was told that as long as other warriors were not involved, no one would dare oppose them. And yet, here I am, grabbing, pushing, and not letting the girl go!

"Boss say take all," he whispers once more, snatching the girl harder, almost succeeding in yanking her out of my grip.

"M....as....ter!" Eln'neen screams, struggling to break free from her captor, causing an even bigger commotion.

"Fuck you and your boss!" I yell at the idiot and pull the girl back to me again.

All around us, the slaves slow down, staring.

None of them seem to fight back, they all just look at us, confused. They have seen it all, hunger, thirst, beatings, whippings, and they know better than to get involved in whatever happens around them. They are broken, and they'll accept their fate without any resistance or thought given. It doesn't matter what master takes them as long as they get food and a place to sleep. Loyalty is just for the servants. For them, a whip is just as bad as another.

The servant is taken aback by my brazenness and almost lets Eln'een go, but a raging voice shouting menacingly down the line makes him change his mind. Whoever comes from behind is far more terrifying in his eyes than I can ever be.

"Why not move?! What's going on here?!" the thundering voice echoes through the stone corridor.

A huge fat savage fucker pushes the slaves aside, making his way toward us, shouting and cursing along the way. The terrified servant quickly lets go of the girl and bows his head in fear.... not quick enough.

A crack of the thick whip opens the skin all over his face, and blood rushes, dripping down his cheeks. The servant growls to the ground, silently covering his head, not even daring to cry out his pain. My stomach tightens.

"Who u? Why take her?" The giant points his massive leather whip in my direction.

I look at the brute. Painful memories come back to me, sending shivers down my spine. A slave master! I vividly remember these fucking assholes and the painful burn of their whips! One of them in particular, if we ever meet again, I'll make sure to make him pay in full! I feel my blood boiling with anger and revolt, and without thinking much, I stand up to him as I push the girl further behind me.

"She's mine! She has things to do, Th'anrin Rai'Ze's orders!" I shout, forcing myself to appear at least twice as big and important in his eyes.

The beast stops and measures me head to toe with a stupid look on his face. His massive jaw opens and closes a few times as if he wants to say something but decides against it. He just grunts, not at all impressed by my posturing, and lunges ahead, grabbing my t-shirt, pulling me toward him, staring right into my eyes, mouth open again, sending awful waves of rot and stench toward my face.

I freeze, my mind unprepared to accept such a turn of events.

Shit! I'm so fucked!

Thankfully, one of the Rai'Ze's own servants makes his way back down to check on the commotion and, seeing me grabbed, rushes forward to confront the giant.

"He's the wizard! Th'anrin's wizard! She will kill u!!" He pushes the brute away, swearing the truth of his words on his clan name.

The slave master looks down at the agitated servant, still unimpressed, but eventually lets go of me, pushing me back into the stone wall, almost knocking me out cold.

He steps back, rolling his whip in his massive hands, grinding his teeth, fire burning in his eyes. He doesn't like to be challenged, and fucking hates it when a slave escapes his grip. But this time, despite the felt humiliation, real or otherwise, he has to back down. Messing with Th'anrin's men will surely anger his boss, and whatever he may think about it, he knows better than to cause problems for his chieftain. He turns toward the chained slaves lashing his frustration on them, shouting, cursing, pushing, and whipping as he pleases.

"Move maggots! Move!!"

The poor slaves push into each other frantically, trying to shield themselves from the pain, slowly pushing the entire line ahead inside one of the large stone corridors.

I let out a deep sigh, trying my best to calm my shaking hands as I feel the girl's clinching fingers grabbing tightly on the back of my t-shirt. My sweat pours over the last night's burning scratches. I'm just as terrified as she is, but for both our sakes, I turn to her and pretend everything is under control.

Even my smile hurts.

I keep her close to me, shielding her with my body from the remaining servants and warriors that disperse, ignoring us both. Her body shivers, or is it both of us? All is fine, I wish to say, but dare not, waiting for most of the others to go away.

Strangely enough, I'm pleased with her reaction. She fought back against her fate, and that's something no one around seems to do. There's a fire burning inside that frail body of hers, there's a soul alive in there, not yet broken, not yet dead, and I'll make damn sure it will stay the same until the day I'll set her free.

But for now, I see no reason to linger around anymore, and I quickly head back for the known corridors down toward the giant throne hall. Seeing one of Rai'Ze's guards is enough to make my tension disappear. He smiles at us and touches my shoulder, letting us go through. Word has spread around, warriors took positions, and order is restored. The feeling of safety overwhelms me, but deep inside, I can still feel the fear. I'm no one. Without the beast around to have my back, I'll just end up chained like everyone else.

This fucking world still laughs in my face.

My blood still boils, but there's little I can do for now.

I have to grow stronger.

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