The sun beat down hard upon the land like a merciless master: Unrelenting without holding back. The Scalding season had died months before; The Radiant season was just now fleeting. The Calendar season was at the tip of Gelid, however here in the Lowest land on the continent, it was a never-ending Scalding. The flowers didn’t bloom as they should in the Lush.
“Here’s the new reuitment for the show,” A deep tanned man with a leathery face retorted, breaking into guffaws at his own little joke.
The man had a cruel smile on his face that helped heighten his damned blue eyes. He had bright blonde hair that would blend into the sand if you scalped him. This was the typical visage of those in the Lower Lands. Wrapped in a white tunic, grey wrapped head wraps, and a large curved single-handed hunting sword. In his right hand he was grasping onto a young lad of around seven seasonal Rotations.
The seven Rotation old boy looked at the two new men in front of him. Unlike the man who held him in place the first mysterious man had his entire head wrapped in red. Even his eyes were covered. The rest of his attire was similarly fashioned in the blood crimson color. He had heard stories about the Red Men before and his gaze wavered as his heart tripled its rate. He couldn’t see a single weapon, but he felt the Red Man could have killed him by just revealing his eyes.
He quickly snapped his gave over to the second man as he began to speak. The man was flippantly covered in colors like he was erupting from Gelid and into Lush. He had a lavishly handled and bejeweled swash-buckling sword, it was long and swept back with an absurd curve and a flair at the end as it widened out. It was strapped on his belt, even the very sheath was a flowery as a garden during Lush. The man spoke, “Very well, let my trainer Quietus inspect him.”
He continued to observe the man who had spoken too afraid to look at the Red Man. The man seemed to have a sense of superiority, much like his handler, however his eyes sparkled with a sense that he could back up his claim. The man wore an elaborate white hat with a peacock feather imbedded on one side. Meanwhile, he was quickly man handled and groped all over, even having to open his mouth and lift his tongue up. When Quietus finished he quietly reported to the speaker, with no one else able to hear him.
The flamboyant tunicked mans face never so much as twitched during the entire showing. He had a perpetual smile lighting up his face, giving him the look of knowing he would win. He spoke again, “So how much are you asking for? I will give you one golden at most.”
The cruel eyed man looked like he had his jewels severed from him and handed upon a platter of shit. He broke out into a righteous yell, “YOU BLOODY KNOW I BUSTED MY ASS TO HUAL HIS ASS ALL THE WAY DOWN HEAR.”
Without missing a step, the Lush man responded, “My dear friend Carl, you are very new to the slave game. So, what if you hauled his shit brown haired head all the way down here. So, what he is Upper? I know it is a long trip, but the way you fed him you didn’t spend more than fifty silvereds to keep him alive. I can do much with this shit haired kid.”
Carl spewed everywhere spittle everywhere a he spit his sentence, “I god damn spent a golden to get the shit hair here.”
The flowers spoke again without pause, “Perfect! You will be breaking even then, right? For your first year starting up a business not many achieve that. That’s why so many business go for broke cause they sell their golden for a silvered. So, what do you say, my pal Carl? I mean unless you have other contacts to reach out to.”
He reached into the coin purse on his belt and tossed a gold coin over to the man who caught it. Carl shoved the Brown-haired kid forward as he left, while cursing his mothers grave the whole way. The garden broke into laughter, “Quite the steal don’t you agree Quietus? That’s what you get for getting into such a disgusting business.”
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The Red Man didn’t move a single inch or twitch a muscle. The talkative man turned to the boy. And began a long one-sided discussion, while leading the boy into the city, “Come along young lad. You see the city here? Yes, of course you do, I did pay for your sight after all. This is the city of Seven Sands. Do you know why it’s called that? Well you don’t need to worry about such whimsical things. I will soon present you to the one and only sand you will only need or want. Now don’t dawdle or fall behind. I have places to relax and I hate missing out on it. You know what I mean? Well of course you don’t. Now what is your name lad?”
The city they walked through was chaotic and organized. Like a hive it had workers marching to in fro in an organized path when viewed from above, but down in the streets it seemed like utter confusing. His ears were following all words, while his eyes tracked all the individuals. There were sounds of hundreds trying to talk over each other, while smells assaulted him from every direction. The boy let a seven beat pause remain after the question. He hadn’t forgotten his name, but he wasn’t sure if he was actually supposed to respond. He finally spoke, “It’s Aims, your Lording.”
The man seemed pleased with his reply. Well he always had a pleased look, with that never dying smile. He imagined that he would even die smiling by how things where going. All of sudden a small little blond girl of five Rotations fell onto the streets crying loudly. She had a small cute on her arm and it bled down into her raggedy grey tunic. Grey and red apparently just make red.
While everyone’s attention was drawn to the little girl, a small boy of ten Rotations casually walked by looking as innocent as ever. He even looked over his shoulder as he past the man of Lush. As he looked over his shoulder he surreptitiously and dexterously used a knife to cut the coin purse from the mans belt with one hand as he caught it with the same hand. The boy hadn’t even taken a step away before his hand fell to the floor. The girl on the ground immediately stopped crying and rushed over to the boys side, “Bro…Brotherr you…your hand..”
Now the girl really did break into tears, completely balling her eye’s out. While the colorful visage slapped her across the face. The bent down and picked up his coin purse from the severed hand on the ground. He spoke with the same smile attached that he always did, “Your brother is a thief and you are his accomplice. You are both sinful. Sins are not tolerated in the Seven Sands. Take his golden and see if the healers will reattach it or just go boy yourself something special, your choice. I was lenient this time. Next time it is both your heads. Good day little darling, it was nice to meet you.”
Leaving the girl and the boy he turned back to walking through the city as he used the Red Man’s Tunic to clean off his Swash-Buckling sword before he sheathed. The blood didn’t even stain the tunic. Aims was filled in shock from the entire event. He had never seen someone so uncaringly cutthroat and cheerfully pleasant. The feathered being of merciless spoke again, “Sorry about their interruption. I really don’t enjoy being interrupted. It is better that they helped teach that lesson then to learn it yourself. Now back to our talk. Aims… Aims, Aims, Aims. Sorry boy, I don’t think that name will work for me, but don’t you fret I will get you a new name. Let’s see how about Mortemis? You like that one? Nah it doesn’t fit right. Let’s see Pall, Umbra, Noir… Noirange? What do you think? Wait don’t tell me yet. Angelus Noir. Well better not over think it, eh? What do you say little Angelus? And we are here!”
The man stepped aside to present a walled residence. The exterior was a white brick matching the rest of the Seven Sands. It was a white fortress. The majority of the property didn’t have a roof. He supposed the man had a large garden. Was that his fate? He noticed every second on the point there was resonant thud, thud, thud. The Red Man Stepped forward and opened a gate through the wall. Through the gate was a world different from the it outside. The anarchy outside the gate couldn’t compare with the horror of order and discipline. The different smells from outside left and all that was left was a metallic sent and taste. He watched as fifty others of varying ages spent the next thirty seconds striking a post thrice. Every second in unison. They didn’t stop. Didn’t talk. They didn’t heave their breath. He wasn’t even sure if they sweated. What really caught him off guard was the crimson red sand that stained every inch of the ground inside the yard. His new master spoke, “Welcome to your one and only sand. This isn’t the first sand you have dwelt upon, but I promise you it will be your last Angelus Noir."