Sariel: May 2nd: Kargos Capital, Slum District
I feel Amazing, better than ive ever felt, really.
I didn't want to admit it, because it didn't feel real, but im actually good at something.
I have a family who I actually care about, and who cares about me back. And we were about to make one of the best deals anyone could dream of when moving to the capital.
It was a very hard road here.
But I can say goodbye to the Rotten Fox Buffet and move towards getting everyone the quality food now.
I won't have to wear rags anymore.
And I get to be there for my siblings in a way my father never was for me.
Speaking of that Bastard, I truly hope I never see him again. In fact, if I do, I would rather cast aside my eyes and hand them to a large rat, so that it may get more use out of seeing its own kind than I.
Maybe they'll have kids, and the fat rat will leave the pregnant one with a child to be hated by…. Okay, maybe getting a little off point there, and also it's quite debatable as to who is actually the pregnant rat in that equation.
But yes, the only things I have to worry about now are expanding operations once were done, paying Regnald a sizeable donation to leave us the fuck alone, and then beginning what ive always planned on doing here, taking over the slum one piece at a time.
Its about mid afternoon and I will most likely have to set off soon. Theres always the possibility of this being a trap, so I'm going to do this one solo. No complications, no offence to my little brother Selwyn, but he does tend to dart around the place and it can make it quite hard to actually get anything done sometimes when hes having one of those.
I picked myself up from my seat in the tanning room and moved towards the pile of 30 top-quality rags. Rat fur, no doubt, the Elf Merchant will sell them to some uptight pure elf lord in his grand castle.
Elves can be so fickle.
I pulled the hides into a large, worn bag we used for carrying gear on rat hunting trips.
And after observing, Selwyn and the girls playing dolls on the steps, selwyn of course using a dead rat as his doll, as they were playing some sort of beastly prince version. Where they made the rat's snout touch the place where the wooden doll's lips would be if it had any.
I gave them all a quick hug.
Then I approached the door. Stepping out from our home and hovel, to see Dom and Lev, arm wrestling on the front of the destitute street, with little else to do.
They, too, could not evade my warm embrace, as I chased them for all of five minutes before they gave up, too.
I set off at a timely pace, walking through these slum streets, and I had grown accustomed to the snarl of strangers, although it still bothered me a bit. I was looking up at the fading sun as it left the place. Residing behind the great white building that blocked out the sun everywhere, The High Temple.
-" Blegh" I sneered, and walked away slightly faster than usual; that building always unnerved me.
As I approached the meeting point (Lepron the Elf Merchants' House)
I gave a short knock on the door before being brutally shocked from tiredness, to see the man opening the door staring back at me with wide eyes.
-" The rats, the rats, it's the rats, they know everything Sariel, it's the rats, the rats, the rats, the rats, the rats, the rats…."
This man had lost it, I mean, I dont mind rats and all, Ironic since I love killing them so much, but I dont see how they could know everything.
-" Are you okay, Lepron? Do you have the money?"
He repeated my sentence back to me until one of his well-dressed associates put a bag of 225 gold, not a copper less, firmly into my carrier, right after lifting the fabric out and placing it as though it were a comically large rug inside the dark house of this clearly insane Elf.
I was about to turn around when I was yanked back, my head stretching around to meet Lepron's deranged gaze.
-" Go, go, go, go, go, go, go! They're going to be c..consumed if you dont, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go….."
I felt a burrowing pit in my stomach. I froze for a second, then stared out into the distance. By the time my eyes had come back into focus, I was already running right back in the direction of home. I was desperately trying to pick up speed. I was no longer the malnourished, pathetic girl I was coming into the city.
I kept going faster and faster, past run-down buildings, leaping over rats, rats and more rats. I almost fell into a burly, cloaked man who was coming from the opposite direction. Before I stabilised myself and course corrected back to the house. Taking only one spare breath.
It was only a short while now.
It was all fine.
I'd get there, and everything would be fine.
Everything is fine.
Why would it not be?
I sliced my leg slightly on the broken wooden fence pole as I approached the front of what used to be our home.
-" Oh"
I said to myself
Why was there so much blood…
It was all over the windows,
the broken glass windows,
and the front of the house,
well there was more than just blood,
It was entrails,
human entrails.
Oh my god, where are they?
I looked down, and a familiar face looked up at me,
-" Selwyn", my breathing felt heavier
I was going to try to hug him when I realised that his body was on the other side of the porch.
-" Why is it over there?" I giggled to myself
The puddles made my feet wet as I made my way over.
Ill go get it for you, I thought. I'll put you back together again, little brother.
Katarina: May 2nd : Kargos Capital, Slum
Big sis had already left, and it was already dark out.
Lexi, Selwyn, and I were all playing dolls together inside the house. I know that at this age, maybe you shouldn't play with dolls. But it was the only way me and lexi could understand each other. We let Selwyn play too because he was depressed that he couldn't go with big sis El to the business meeting.
-"No, Selwyn, you can't make the rat man kiss her!"
Salwyn was being gross again, I couldnt let lexi be corrupted by salwyns weirdness. So I smushed the rat into his face instead.
Hahahahaha
His face was the funniest part.
I got up and let both of them play, when I realised that as long as big sis El was gone im basically the oldest.
So I started to try on some of the old dresses i found stuffed in an old mattress.
It was quite cute, It was knee length, and had black and white checkered-plaid pattern all over it. This one must have been expensive, I thought to myself.
"Well its mine no…" BANG!
The front door shot open.
- "That was way too loud to be big sis"
I heard coming from my brother's direction.
That man's laughter, so distinct it broke through the chatter of my siblings, and even my own thoughts.
It was a split-second decision. I grabbed both of my siblings and threw them under the floorboards into the secret tannery.
The man was fast; I was faster.
Cook raced after me as I neared the open window.
I leapt out, and he just stared at me, grinning. I suppose that meant he wasn't coming out for me.
It was that same mismatched plastered grin that he always wore, but different somehow?
It was only then that a cloud moved and moonlight illuminated the upper half of it.
The blood and flesh decorating his foul, invasive face. He was laughing. He wouldn't stop laughing.
It was a nightmare; he just wouldn't stop laughing. I turned away from him to see the remnants of my once whole, torn open siblings littering the pavement where they were once playing. I looked back and saw him smashing through the floorboards, and taking Lexis arm, and Selwyns Leg in each one of his arms and He….
I dont know, I was already gone. Running into the slums again, back to hopelessness, back to nothingness.
Sariel: May 3rd: Kargos Capital, Slums
It was almost dawn now, and my brother was looking far better. I stitched him back, and now I could finally hug him again…
Everything worked out in the end didnt it?
Were all fine, fine, fine, fine, fine, fine, fine.
Sometimes when I keep saying a word, It doesnt feel like one anymore.
Regnald: May 3rd: Kargos Capital, Slums
When the brute informed me of what happened, I never thought he would go this far. It's barbaric.
Im currently on my way to clean up the litter he's left implicating us in one of the worst political scandals in history.
If the church finds out about this Im done. If the public suspects the church Im dead.
And so now me and that oaf and a few of our other workmen, are steadily approaching his mess.
I can already smell it, were almost half a mile away from the house, and It reeks of blood and bile. Whatever I was expecting earlier, it certainly wasn't this.
-" Cook, what have you done, you beast. I told you to simply teach them a lesson, and now youve served me up a platter of more issues to deal with."
Cook looked at me as though I had just spat on his face.
-" I can never tell what you want."
I struck him hard; he looked as though he was about to cry.
-" Pathetic"
The ruins of the half elfs house came into view.
Everyone, apart from cook, stopped and felt sick to their core. This was worse than demonic. At least the demons found purpose in their slaughter.
I took the final steps up the short blood stained stairs. And was greeted with decay, despair, and bloody rot.
The half-elf girl who had once challenged me, holding another half-elf boy's mutilated corpse in her arms.
I didnt feel accomplishment as I usually would, this was just abysmal.
I wiped my hands with the business, because in truth I thought I might cough up on the pitiful lamb.
-"Cook, get her out of my sight, make me something useful, you disgusting createnous creature"
The mongrel Sariel didn't even seem to be listening. She had this glazed-over look in her eye, and an expression similar to someone humming their favourite tune.
Cook carried her away, and the men got to bagging the corpses for the High Temple.
Im wiping my hands of this business soon. This Asset has become a liability.
???: May 3rd: Kargos Capital
I awoke to the lock being opened and the smell of blood drifting towards me, oh great, another day of bloodletting, I thought.
When the door opened, though I was surprised, A very pretty half-elf girl was being carried into the room by that disgusting man, who had taken so much away from me.
He spoke to my dismay.
-" You have company, sweetheart, bosses ordered another side of elven blood, this time I think I might switch it up a bit. Magical blood, how about magical pleasure slave? Ha ha haaa ha haaa ha haaaa." he snorted. Spitting phlegm on the floor near the Elf girls feet.
Cook is truly a disgusting man. I hate to think what he's done to her.
I thought at first that the girl was unconscious, but she was just looking at the walls with a look that seemed to beg for help.
He chained her up and then left the room.
We waited in silence, in the cold, damp, empty room.
I wanted her to look at me first. I could tell she had been through something dreadful.
Finally, her gaze landed in my direction.
-" Hello, miss, I know that we dont know Eachother but my name is Lexita."
Something I had said made her shoot up at me right away, we werent to far apart from eachother and she jumped over to me.
and squeezed into my arm as though I was going to disappear if she let go.
And she started mumbling about family, and called me Lexi a few times, which was a cute nickname.
None of it really made sense, but I tried to understand.
I wish I'd had someone here for me when I was thinking of ending it after Cook…. Bled me like cattle.
But I can't… think about that. This girl needs someone, and Im going to be that someone, Its my duty to our lord, the fallen angel.
Priestess Lexita: May 6th: Kargos Capital
After a day of the girl rambling about this and that, I finally got her name from one of them, she has such a pretty name, Sariel, reminds me of the stars.
-"I wish we could be friends, Sariel"
She looked up at me briefly before giving me another glazed-over look and collapsing back into a wriggling ball on the floor.
She looked so sad to me.
Cook came back in and wordlessly extracted my and Sariel's blood. My shackles were basically finished at this point. I was planning on leaving last night.. But I couldn't do that to this girl, he said he was going to turn her into some sort of perverted slave. And give her to his master. Why would I ever leave her to that sort of fate, knowing it could've been me without my magic?
After he had left again, I fed the girl the food that Cook had left for us. Cook left the shackles on only our left arms when we needed to eat, so I had some time to work my magic.
Im a good holy priestess, but even I was questioning how far gone this girl was.
I bit a chunk out of my arm; it was excruciating and hurt more than getting my blood extracted. The pain lasted for several more minutes before I lifted up the girl's shirt and placed the flesh on her body. Chanting and weaving the holy sigils with one arm.
It was incredibly difficult, but I managed to get through to the end before I heard Cook coming through again. He was glaring at her.
I held onto her tightly, wishing that I could protect at least one person in my life.
He entered and relocked our braces.
Then stared at her and left.
Im the same age as this girl, but I can already tell from her hands that she's had it far harder than me, with like a tragic backstory and everything. I wonder if that's why Cook is so interested in her?
I prayed for the rest of the night, although the girl never gained her mind back.
-" Oh, Sariel "
I munched down on an apple.
Staring at a wall, waiting for something that most likely would never happen if im honest with myself.
That apple was so good, they genuinely have to be one of the best fruits the fallen angel ever made, because ive never tasted anything as sweet as cake before that also grows on trees.
Like what?
-" hello"
-" yeah exactly"
-" WHAT!"
I actually bounced off the ground, although the chains still stopped me from being fully excited.
-" YOU'RE NORMAL?"
-" Yes… who are you?"
The girl was practically whispering, and I could tell she was on the edge of tears, so I just gave her one last cozy hug.
Sariel: May 7th: Kargos Capital
I couldnt anymore, Its real, theyre all gone.
I was stifling back tears, but I managed to keep myself together.
I stared up at the elven girl in front of me. I still have no Idea who she is, but we seem to be locked in this place together.
She was staring at me. She seemed nice. But how could I ever trust that?
-"youre Sariel, right?"
I pushed the girl to the ground and wrapped my hands around her throat.
-" How the fuck do you know that?"
-"y..y..ou ttt..old me."
She struggled out those words before I let her breathe.
I moved my body away from her…
After sitting in silence for a while, I felt a bit bad and piped up with.
-"What's your name?"
-"lexita" she responded happily.
I think that was my last straw; I collapsed into an emotional mess on the floor before Lexita moved as far as she possibly could and reached her arms over me.
I hugged her back, and she took care of me whilst the dread seemed like it would never stop coming. I couldn't…
I can't…
Not anymore…
The sobs continued through her platting my hair.
When I had finally stopped, the girl asked me what had happened. And so I told her, I told her about everything Cooke had done.
And she listened calmly, and consoled me.
She told me the same about her circumstances within this cell.
-" so youve been locked in here all that time, it's a wonder youre not insane"
-"with what happened to you Its a miracle youre sane now. Im so sorry."
I had nothing left to give. Her pity fell on deaf ears.
-"how did I come back?"
-"My magic cured you."
I looked at her as if to say are you sure you havent went insane. And then she replied.
-"Do you not know of the high temple of the elves?
Since you are half elven it is a surprise you arent aware of the magical properties of our blood, seeing as almost everyone in this city knows the simple verson. Simplified, we use our blood to make magic. It's what we call mana… when you're as skilled as I am, you only need a small amount for most spells. But the one I did before was not a pretty one."
-"Half Elves are magical?"
-" Of course, though not to the extent that a normal elf is. Or angel forbid a demon, those are beings of immense magical power at the cost of their humanity. Our ancestors tried to fight against the demons, and that is how the massacre of Armond Forrest happened over 100 years ago. That is why so many humans are allowed into this very city. Its why you exist, Sariel."
This was Incredible to me, so much knowledge was possessed by this one girl about elven history, meanwhile I couldnt even get the average elf to look in my direction.
Thinking about it.
-" Lexita…. why are you so accepting of me?"
-" At the temple we are taught that all of those with elven blood, no matter how little, are magically reverent beings, who should never be treated with disdain, as they are part of the fallen angels' teachings, and personally I dont like people on how elven they are, I just like people to be friends with them" she giggled.
A rude outburst cut our conversation short. Cook had come slamming through the door.
His muscular but fat frame was doing most of the heavy lifting as I saw his thick gloves carrying a whole lit oven with one hand. In the other, he had a very sinister-looking metal rod.
-" You…you have taken everything from me. I abhor you with every part of my soul, I dont care if it breaks every part of my self that remained…. I WILL KILL YOU!" A guttural scream escaped my lungs. He needs to die for what he did.
Cook looked over at me-
"Girly, do you want to know the best part about how they died?, They all died crying for YOU!, their big, strong sister… and where were you? Over in the middle of fuckoff nowhere, talking to an elf about rats."
I dissociated again.
I could feel myself being picked up and moved onto the marble table centrepiece in the middle of the room.
But I couldnt focus, I couldnt focus on Lexitas screams. All I could think about was… how did Cook know about what Lepron said to me? There was nobody there to witness it?
I was there again. I had been strapped to the marble table, and Cook's fire was blazing. I looked down and saw he was moving the glowing iron rod closer towards my thighs.
He leaned close and whispered something into my ear.
-" Boss says the people at The High Temple are onto us, were going to have to get rid of the last "witness" to my "crime" because some sappy high priest is looking for his bitch of a daughter who is safe and sound here. sorry lovely. Actually, you know what fuck it im not sorry, even if I have to speed it up a bit im going to enjoy driving this hot iron through your chest."
Cooks sweat was dripping down onto my face from his stench-filled hair, his teeth were the only thing I could see, crooked and yellow from years of eating only meat and ale.
He moved his arm towards me and had pulled my shirt up towards my chest, buttons popped, bouncing off his nose like mouldy fruit on a cutting board.
His arm extended, and he thrust the blazing hot Iron towards my chest.
Then …. He paused
centimetres away, glaring at the ink shaped stars that were now shifting all across my body.
He looked at me, gobstruck. Mouth wide open.
-" Youre a…?"
The elven girl hit him over the head with her shackles, now detached from the wall.
She then ran for the window as the smoke was beginning to fill up the room to the point that nobody could see.
I could hear uniformed voices coming into the building.
When Cook had been hit over the head, he had accidentally half burned my hand and the restraint tying me down with it.
Cook swung for the marble table, and it went down with a crack.
His eyes watering, he turned for the exit, after finally getting his kill, but it was all too soon.
Sariel had been waiting for this moment, with his back turned, she kicked the fire over, pouring coals on the back of Cook's legs,
The smell of his sizzling was delectable to Sariel. She put her whole weight forward and forced Cook to the ground; his lower body was sizzling from the hot coals.
Smoke filled Sariel's lungs as she coughed up whatever past emotions she felt and submitted to her primal urges.
Cook's grip was loosening from the iron, and Sariel was the one causing it; her flesh was smelting to the metal, and she felt no pain, only relief, as she let out a final wail, and put her full body weight into the pointed iron that slid through Cook's skull.
…
She dropped the iron.
…
The fire could take her now...…
Sariel: May 15th: Kargos Capital, High Temple
She awoke to Lexita in full, clean white priestess attire, standing over her bed. Next to her was a old elf, who emanated light, and a slightly different scent that Sariel couldn't put her finger on.
-" Good morrow, you must be the one who saved my daughter's life."
The man said
-" I hope you will forgive me for intruding upon you so soon, seeing how you just woke up… My name is High Priest Felton. And I have a proposition for you."
Pontiff Svaland: May 13th: Kargos Capital: High Temple
The pontiff spoke from a high podium overlooking the top clergyman, king, and various noble houses of the kingdom.
-"It is time", he chimed ", for a new age of religion"
-" The attack last night in the slum had many questioning. If a high priests daughter can be reached by demon presence, how will an unnanointed one survive their dark plague… The answer is my children, that you alone cannot."
He gestured out and pointed towards the Holy Knights who were now parading through the middle of the temple. "The demons only understand strength, and so we will show them the price of this rat infestation they have wrought upon us."
"In only a month, my children, we will have a holy tournament to decide which elves should be chosen for the next generation of holy knights.
A slight deviation from the past…
Anyone of magical blood may partake.
May The Fallen Angel bless you"
The crowd erupted.
And the Pontiff ended his sermon.