"Praise the spirits of creation." The old dir said, preaching on top of a wooden podium. "Honor the spirits of sustenance."
Flo was squatting flat on the floor along with a few other children on an open plot of white stones and rocks, listening to the teachings of the dir upfront. The sun was shining harshly, seemingly playing with Flo's white hair.
"Worship them, for they will give you strength."
Flo was very keen on listening to the teachings of the old dir. He was listening, even as though many people threw hard pieces of rocks against him every second or so.
Thud. A piece of stone struck his forehead, leaving a bleeding mark over it.
Thud. Another one struck his back, scratching his cloth behind.
Thud. And yet another thumped against his nose.
And yet, he endured it.
"Stop." One of them said. It was Rhu, grasping the wrist of another as the others were about to throw another rock at Flo.
The boy then dropped the rock he held as he yanked his wrist from Rhu's grasp. The other boy seemingly wasn't very used to getting ordered around, but seeing Rhu's strength first hand, he wasn't about to start something here.
"Thanks." Flo gestured to Rhu, then turning back as he listened to the rest of the teachings.
.
.
.
"I'd better head back." Flo said to himself as the children around him started to head home to their respective houses, with Flo following suit.
It was around late afternoon, as Flo started walking back to the mountains. The sky was dyed red with a crimson palette, with the stained white roads leading him the way back to his home. Many shops closed in for the night, while bars and taverns had just opened their doors to greet the tired costumers just waiting to drink their night away.
Flo had always wondered what taste alcohol would feel like.
As he walked the road, he hears the clanks of metal echoing over the distance. As he went in closer, out of sheer curiosity, he saw people of different races lined up in a line, with chains shackled on their necks and hands, wearing worn-out rugs, all of them bound together by one strand of chain.
There were many of them. Flo eyed the line of people walking in tempo, following behind a few bands of unhorned people on horsebacks.
Behind the riders, the long line of ragged and chained people started. On the front was a short, muscular boy with long white hair locked in braids. Behind him was a blonde old man with very long ears, like daggers spouting out from his temples. And then behind him, there was a blue and yellow-skinned girl with legs replaced by a majestic swishing tail. And so and so forth.
Flo gaped in awe at the many different people he saw. Many of the passersby stopped to take turns looking at the chained people, while others took to gossips and murmurs. As for Flo, well, he went in and talked to the fish girl. "What are you?"
The girl then raised her downcast head and stared at Flo, eyeing his features. As the line of chained people continued to march forward, Flo matched their pacing as he talked to the girl, with curiosity brimming within himself.
"I am a proud merm." The girl said, wiping off her depressed face as she replaced it with seeming pride, hiding her shackled hands. "The heir to the Shyga dynasty, so you know."
"Dynasty?" Flo asked.
"You dirs wouldn't know." She said. "All you care for is brute strength."
"Well, I don't really care about all that," Flo said, raising his hand innocently for a handshake. "My name's Flo."
"Rye." The fish girl said. "Better remember it."
"Ey you, at the back!" One of the unhorned ones at the front interjected -a ponytail marking his features, shouting his lungs out. "What are you-"
"Hold it, Chen." The other said, stopping the line of chained people as he stroked his thick goatee.
He eyed Flo straight in the eye.
He got off his horse, then rummaged inside his pouch, taking out a weird, very small contraption embedded with a needle -holding it in his grasp.
He then swiped the contraption against Flo's arm, the needle stinging as it then left with a pint of Flo's blood on the tip of the needle. "What was that for-"
The contraption then spewed weird metal noise, something Flo's ears disagreed with. The device then lit up a red color, whirring with a weird buzzing noise.
"Kid." The person crouched to level his head with Flo's, forcing a smile that looked offputting for a man with his features. "Do you know what slaves are?"
"No."
"Figured so." He said as he grabbed onto Flo's wrist, dragging him back to the front of the line. Flo tried to yank his arm, but to no avail. "What are you-"
"Don't resist, hybrid."
This was bad. Really bad. Flo didn't have a clue on the situation, but strangers dragging you off somewhere is never a good turn of event. He cried for help to the top of his lungs, kicking and struggling against the person dragging him.
No one replied.
The people chained up on the line had a look like they knew it was going to happen, staring bitterly at the event and keeping their mouth shut. It seemed like they were conditioned to turn a blind eye.
"Help!" He asked the people by the crowd, but the only thing he got was murmurs and whispers. They shunned their heads the other way, as if to say "I'm not here."
Flo then got the message, feeling so angry at the dirs turning a blind eye. He felt his head brimming with hatred, with the many people just passing by. But most of all, he felt hatred against himself, for being born this way.
A monster no one ever asked for.
"Hey!" A voice echoed along the roads and buildings, leaving everyone silent. "Let him go."
It was the fish girl.
"Still think you're a princess, ey?" The one at the front, Chen his name, got off his horse as he then slowly walked towards the girl. He brought out a whip by his side, tugging on it as if to intimidate Rye.
"How many, Aster?" He asked, turning to Flo's direction, asking the one who was pulling on Flo.
"Five."
"Why are you doing this?!" Flo asked, succumbing to his knees as he seemingly pleaded. The man then clenched his fists, turning back to Chen on the other side of the line of chains and people.
"Make it ten."
One. A swish of a whip lashed against Rye, pressing her hard against the ground.
Two. Another lash grazed her side, cutting her rug clothing.
Three. And yet another lash made Rye moan in pain, taking to the ground.
Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine.
And finally, ten. Rye was lying on the ground, bruised and bleeding, her rag clothing tattered almost to the point that it almost slid off her body, showing off her shame.
Faint sobs resounded all over the still silent place, coming from Rye's broken figure propped on the ice-cold ground. She wept on the road, covering her head with her palms as tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Why?" Flo asked dispondently, staring at Rye's figure. "She didn't deserve-"
"This is the real taste of life, hybrid." Aster said, bringing out a pair of shackles as he slipped them on Flo's wrists, severing his freedom from him.
"It's hard and bitter to eat."