Teris watched listlessly as the slave-ships pulled into the cove by the Pit. It was here for a reason, after all. Its proximity to the hellhole he now resided in made it simple to load up cargo from the shore and sail off quickly. That was what he was now. Cargo.

How did I fall so far? Teris wondered. The simple answer was Abel, but even that still didn't make sense. Abel had never been the introspective type. Teris had had him pegged to reach his limit at his Second Awakening, probably not until his middle age. Somehow, he had surpassed Teris in a matter of days and now their roles were utterly reversed. Helpless, alone, there was nothing for him to do but accept his hellish fate.

Dolomon still hadn't woken up, despite the sun's rays scorching their faces. The old man slept next to Teris, as he had done since Teris' unnaming the week before. Teris placed his hand on Dolomon's shoulder.

"Wake up, old man. It's time." The old man didn't move.

Teris tried again, before the truth became all too clear. Dolomon had died in his sleep.

It said something of Teris' position that jealousy was the first feeling that washed over him.

The next feeling was an almost indescribable sense of loss.

Now I'm really alone.

Teris laid his hand on his friend's chest for a few more moments, feeling the stark cold of Dolomon's skin before taking a deep breath and standing up. He still had to be sold, after all.

As if he was someone else, Teris watched, dissociated, as Cissic soldiers led him and a few dozen others out of the Pit and towards the slave-ships. They marched in line, a near-endless procession of meat for their new owners. Teris limped listlessly in the line.

Why did this have to be me? Where did I go wrong?

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His bare feet burned in the hot sand, the sharp grains digging into his soles. Soldiers flanked him on either side, but the thought of escape never entered his mind.

Where would I go?

Teris had seen the slavers before, from a distance, but he had never dreamed he would be this close to them, and especially not in this manner. The flesh-dealers had come in two rowboats, clearly not enough for the number of people they were buying.

They were dirty, unshaven men. They stank of salt, and wore brown leathers and furs, even in the heat of the Cissic Isles. Their three ships were about fifty yards from the shore, and Teris could see rope ladders trailing down the sides. The water leading out to the ships was fairly shallow, and Teris saw what he would have to do. They would make him swim out to the ships that would carry him away to slavery, before climbing up the ladder himself.

Teris couldn't help himself. He screamed.

The guttural howl doubled him over as if he had been punched in the stomach, and he suddenly found he couldn't stop. It took a kick in the head by another soon-to-be slave to make him remember himself. He saw several guards walking over to him and Teris forced himself to his feet to avoid another beating.

Seeing they didn't have to intervene, the slavers disinterestedly left him.

Over the next few minutes, Teris watched as money changed hands between the clan Elders and the slavers' representative. Orders were barked, and Teris found himself wading through the waves out to the ship, walking at first, then swimming. He felt the cold water wash away the dirt and grime that had built up on his skin and in his hair, relishing the feeling of cleanliness. Dread built in his heart as he saw the ship looming closer and closer, the slavers rowing alongside them to keep them in procession. Teris heard splashing behind him and saw a clansmen beneath the shallow water, seemingly struggling to swim.

No, Teris realised, he's not trying to swim at all. The man was drowning himself beneath the waves. One of the slavers quickly dove in to recover his merchandise while the rest shouted at the other Cissic to keep moving. Slowly, inexorably, Teris reached the frayed rope ladders leading up to the slaver's swaying ship. Without thinking his hands grasped the rungs and hauled his body further up. He climbed higher and higher, his knee screaming all the way. Eventually, he reached the ship's deck, where he was roughly hauled off the ladder and crashed roughly against the slick wood planks. Just as quickly, Teris was pulled to his feet, where a grizzled man missing an ear put chains on his wrists and ankles, never once meeting his gaze. The man shoved Teris towards a trapdoor leading to the bowels of the ship.

"Go on fish, enjoy the sun. It's the last time you'll see it for a while".

Teris had time to look back at his home, his family, his friends. The home that had sold him, his family that had abandoned him, and his friends who had laughed at him. He was still looking with anguish etched upon his face when he was dragged below the deck by rough, stinking hands.

Why didn't you kill me Abel?

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Kohar watched from the other side of the beach as Teris was led away. The grizzled veteran stood hidden behind the jungle foliage, his Thrice-Awakened eyes catching every detail. He watched as his student- no. He watched as his son was led away to the ships. He watched as Teris screamed in anguish. He watched as his protégé was forced to swim to his own slavery, where he would face a life of servitude and beatings until his sense of self was ground away to nothing. He watched, because that was all he could do. The voice gnawed at the base of his skull again.

Keep telling yourself that, you fucking coward. Maybe one day you'll even believe it.

Hidden from sight, Kohar collapsed to his knees and wept.

End of Part One