It appeared to be a young girl hiding beneath the heavy armour, and yet she never flinched, nor did she cry out in pain, as an average child would have. I couldn't help but gaze into her vacant blue eyes, noticing that the skin of her face was pale white and flaking. 'Severe dehydration... Among other things.'
Violet punched him in the jaw. 'Mind control magic? Seriously? You cold bastard, she's just a little girl!'
It was apparent that Edmond wanted to cry but couldn't, and his face contorted as he struggled to hold back pent up emotion. Then he turned away from the cameras, his eyes ablaze, and after what could have only been ten seconds, he began to use Sign Language. I'd just taken a beginners class during my first year at Feldspar, but I knew enough to get by.
Edmond's right hand remained tightly closed, with his thumb sticking up as it rested on the palm of his left hand. 'Help.'
The word rang alarm bells in my head. However, I had no idea how we could help him when we weren't even in a position to support ourselves. He wasn't yet finished signing, though, having waited a short while in an attempt to avoid suspicion.
Edmond's right hand was tightly closed again. He was signing much slower this time, though, as one of the cameras appeared to be zoomed in on him. I was watching every tiny movement, every flick of the wrist, or curl of the fingers intently, not wanting to miss the next part of the message.
He shot out his index finger from his closed hand to form the shape of a hook. And soon after, he gently tapped his nose with it twice. 'Sister.'
My eyebrows lifted in surprise, and I had to stop myself from repeating it out loud. Edmond glowered at me; my body language had almost given it away.
Violet went for Edmond again, mistaking his communication for taunting, though this time, she tackled him to the floor. And he didn't even fight back; instead, he whispered loud enough for us all to hear. 'That's it, to have any hope of surviving this world, you'll need to stick together,' he waved the leering guards over, and even his shrivelled up sister bent down to collect her helmet before stalking off. 'I'll see you all soon.'
'What are you doing? Get your hands off me!' Violet snapped.
I looked at Asher. 'All part of the plan, let's go.'
'Right.' He added, still looking uncertain as his gaze swept over what was left of the Farhorne family. Jasper's father was still lying unconscious, with his grandfather struggling to drag him across the pitch of dead grass.
I waved Violet over; we'd need as many people as we could to move him. 'You get his feet. What's wrong?'
She took one look at the unconscious man and frowned. 'Dare we even try to shift him?'
I pointed at the exit, where Jasper still stood with his guards. 'It appears that we don't have a choice.' Reinforcements had arrived too, another six of them, and they were heading straight towards us.
When they reached us, they didn't so much as provide a backboard, nor had they offered to take Jasper's father to a hospital. Asher smiled at the grandfather. 'We'll support his legs, erm-'
'Wilfred.' The older man offered.
'Now, that's a name I haven't heard before.'
He chuckled briefly with one corner of his mouth, bending upwards while his wrinkled skin creased. It seemed smiling was something he didn't do too often.
'Are you going to help me or not?' Violet complained, having to re-clasp her hands underneath the father's shoulder. 'Because they aren't.' She pointed at the mindless guards who were still watching us struggle. They seemed to care for nothing anymore, that is, nothing but doing their masters' bidding.
We'd only moved a few feet when the Dwarf referee came waddling past with one of the player's remains in tow. 'We'll see ye during the pre-season friendlies, buddy... If you even live that long!'
The player's name had been Ned, and his metal armour bore several craters across both front and back. Nightmouth's fog hadn't stopped there, though. It'd dug deeper to gnaw away at his scaly skin and bones.
It took some effort, but eventually, I peeled my eyes away from the gory entrails. 'What are you talking about?'
The referee stopped and sighed while ignoring the cameras hovering nearby, not to mention the incoming contingent of guards. 'All prisoners are interrogated by Niren, The Wise. If they are deemed fit and healthy, they are then sent to the Runeball draft camp.'
It felt like the Dwarf was speaking in a different language, with every vowel rolling off of his filthy tongue as though he was a pirate back in the sea-faring age of old Earth.
'Why are we about to be interrogated?' Violet asked. 'What possible reason-' She stopped mid-sentence, realising that there were many reasons. And even if we hadn't brought Nightmouth here, we were still trespassing.
The referee nodded like a bull. 'Ye see, interrogations are common throughout Titan's Reach, even among the native populace. Runeball is the only form of revenue and entertainment here. And the people will pay a fortune to watch their star players in action.'
Asher narrowed his eyes. 'And what if we aren't selected in one of these so-called draft camps?'
'Then, our leadership will find other uses for you.'
I visibly gulped as he waved the guards over, unable to quell the thought that I'd rather be dead than become some mindless zombie. 'What will happen during this interrogation?'
The referee scowled. 'I've said too much already; they'll see if you're worthy and if you're not... It's been nice knowing you.'
'Oh, come on!' I yell after him. The little dwarf just kept walking away, though, carelessly trailing Ned's remains along the ground behind him.
'Please, don't fight this. I implore you; If you do as the leadership asks, you'll live,' Edmond tried his best not to look at his sister. 'Trust me.'
The last statement could have meant anything, but I chose to believe that he'd tried to save his sister already and had failed. It wasn't like we had any other choice in the matter, though. We had no idea where to go next, and so compliance was our only option.
The iron gates of our cages slammed shut with brutal finality, and the clanging of metal only seemed to emphasise to us that our stay on Titan's Reach had just become permanent. There was but one decision left to be made now; this being how we would spend the rest of our lives in this place, whether as mindless husks or as prospected Runeball players. Hell, we could even be put to death tomorrow for all we knew.