Lonely souls, abandoned and miserable, wandered from one crystal to another, struggling to swing old, unwanted pickaxes with long corroded metal, forcing slaves to strike with blunt tips, wiping their palms in blood.
Cold chains and bulky shackles on their feet were their only partners in this arduous journey, simultaneously restricting their freedom. Struggling to stay on their feet, the slaves hardly put the crystals, costing them blood and sweat into the minecarts, only to be sent to the warehouse under the gaze of the guards and then back again.
Unfortunately for them, the guards were not their friends just as much as their whips lashing on the backs of disobedient or lazy slaves in their opinion - whether the slaves were tired, hungry, and exhausted or not, it didn't matter to them, in fact, some guards enjoyed their power.
"Hahaha! Work you filthy pigs! Otherwise, you'll go hungry again!" Guard exclaimed with a mad grin, relentlessly swinging his whip, with every movement, droplets of blood fell from its tip like morning dew in hell.
Evan was no exception, bringing his pickaxe down on the sturdy purple crystals, breaking which was a serious task even for a strong and large man.
No one could help the slaves, for their status was even lower than that of the commoners, and nobody would mess with the mages for that. Unlike Evan's world, there was no clear set of rules for everyone to follow, it was all about power and nothing else.
'Mages... I definitely need to find a way to become one of them... Good thing I at least have a hope of that. Kellan, this body isn't completely useless.' Evan pondered.
Kellan's grandfather had died when Kellan was 9 years old, from an illness, but he had taught Kellan a lot during that time.
Becoming a mage gave a person the Warp, a core that commoners did not have. The Warp allowed mages to collect mana from the world, and use it to cast incantations. Any incantation was useless without mana because it was the fuel that made miracles become reality, not just fantasy.
Something else was in Kellan's memories, but Evan couldn't reveal it, every time his head started to hurt more when he thought about it.
"I suggest hitting the smaller ones first, breaking them by getting to the root, and only then going for the main crystal." A man with shoulder-length brown hair and blue eyes said, pointing to a bright purple crystal surrounded by small, dull ones.
A first acquaintance, perhaps a first ally? Could there even be friends in such a perishing place?
"Sounds like someone has a lot of experience? I don't know if that's commendable or sad." Evan smirked, leaning on his pickaxe.
The man shrugged, holding out his hand, unlike the other slaves his palms were not yet covered in large calluses.
"Klaus, a slave from the second level, though that is a relic of the past since as of today I have been transferred here, to the lowest level. I haven't even been taken to my cell yet, just put to work right away. So I'm back where I started." Klaus said serenely as he returned to his work.
Evan nodded, gripping the pickaxe tightly and doing the same. They had to keep mining the crystals, or the guards' wrath would soon reach them as well.
The prison was divided into four levels, three underground and one upper level with the main building. On the third level, slaves mined the crystals, sending them to the second level where they were smelted in huge furnaces, separating the useless slag from the essence with high mana value. Then, on the first level, they were distributed into containers and sent for sale to the nearest cities.
Slaves were used as simple labor that didn't need to be paid, however, slaves were motivated to reach the upper levels. There were better conditions, and easier work, though more responsible, but the most important thing was food and rest.
No slave could get money and freedom, but it was much better to sort crystals in peace and eat well than to work in the mine under the whips.
"By the way, my name is Evan, and if I'm not mistaken you are now my neighbor." Evan said calmly, shattering another crystal into splinters.
Klaus smiled slightly, "One piece of good news already, not a bad start."
Clap. Clap. Clap.
A series of powerful claps coming from one of the guards standing in the center of the cave for the slaves was akin to a heavenly blessing under the echoing siren song, bringing with it relief and slight smiles on their faces exhausted from hours of work.
"The work is done for today. You useless bastards have barely managed to complete the task as usual. Go eat and return to your cells." The man said sternly with obvious contempt in his gaze.
Step. Step. Step.
Soon, the hundred slaves found themselves in a wide room with long tables and old wooden chairs that creaked with every movement and miraculously held on by rusty nails that were almost out of their holes.
In the old metal bowls was a single portion of unappetizing mess, viscous and sticky, without any flavor. However, given the circumstances, the slaves pounced on the cereal like hungry dogs, practically with drool on their lips.
Guards walked between the tables, keeping a close eye on each slave, after all, maintaining order was their main goal - the slaves were both hostages and the main cogs in this complex mechanism of turning the lives and suffering of some into money for others.
"Speaking of which... If you ended up here, then you must have done something on the second level, right?" Evan asked with an emotionless face eating cereal while keeping his hand at the corner of the chair. The taste was awful, but the food was necessary.
Klaus smiled bitterly, "Well... One poor guy thought he could order me around, so I plunged his face into the boiling metal. Hah, he managed to survive, but now his face looks more like a reanimated mummy, it was funny as hell."
Evan's mouth corners went up, forming a sly smirk.
"You're no ordinary slave, are you? Unlike the others who have lost hope, you look not just calm but as if you stand above the rest."
Klaus's eyes went wide with surprise for a moment, then he chuckled, "Suppose. I'm a slave, but I got here recently, and on purpose, I need to get someone out of here. Unfortunately, I can't do it alone, but with a partner... that's another matter."
"I'm listening." Evan said nonchalantly, digging into his gruel with a spoon.
"We have to get to level two, but stealthily. Before coming here, I was lucky enough to find myself and survive in Arcanum. Now I have something that will help us wreak chaos here." Klaus explained crossing his fingers.
'Arcanum...?' Evan internally muttered in a confusion. The word was unfamiliar to him, however, as soon as he thought of it, his head began to explode with pain.
A new piece of memories filled his mind, revealing another important part of his new world.
The emergence of the Arcanum was an event that had happened almost as long ago as this world had existed. From that very moment, the power of mages began to grow reaching infinity. The world changed at the beginning of the apocalypse and the development of magic.
Arcanum consisted of portals leading to spaces from other dimensions, filled with mana and treasure. Each space was different from the other since it wasn't another world or anything like that, it was places as if they came from stories of dragons and knights, an underwater abandoned kingdom, or a simple forest filled with ghosts.
Each Arcanum was different, like the treasures in them, and there were various types of the Arcanum, but that knowledge was still hidden deep in Evan's mind. He couldn't get to it.
"Is everything alright?" Klaus asked worriedly.
Evan nodded, "Fine. I'll think about it."
Klaus smiled, casting Evan a hard stare. It seemed like he hadn't just started talking to him for no reason, and he had a hidden motive.
"Hmm... I don't see many women here, just a few. Isn't that too little for a hundred people?"
Klaus shrugged.
"Most of the girls cook, clean the hallways and rooms in the main building upstairs. Many of the guards and wardens live right here, so... sometimes, or rather most of the time they don't spend the night alone."
Evan nodded, continuing to eat as if this was the answer he had expected and this was how it was supposed to be.
One of the slaves rose, heading straight for Evan with a menacing stare and narrowed eyes like a hunter seeing his prey. He was muscular, clearly stronger than most slaves, and with certain privileges.
"Wait." The obese guard swung his club, touching the tip to the man's chest.
"Is there a problem?" Jacob raised an eyebrow puzzled, "Come on. You know he's my favorite punching bag."
The obese guard sighed, shaking his head.
"Not now and not today, tomorrow morning, please. Today's Warden is sacred to the rules, he won't spare me or you. Just wait a while."
After thinking for a moment, Jacob shrugged and turned around. Finally, he cast a glance at Evan, "I'll see you soon."
Evan didn't react in any way, continuing to eat.
Klaus noticed this, being confused by Evan's expression being so calm, as it was illogical.
'There's something wrong with this guy... He acts like he's been here for a very long time, but that's obviously not the case considering his questions. Furthermore, why isn't he afraid of that menacing mountain of muscle that might just tear him apart?' Klaus pondered, with a nod deciding to follow Evan's actions closely.
...
Crackle.
The bars of the prison cell closed, leaving three prisoners inside.
"This side is mine, don't you dare approach." Jacob said arrogantly, heading towards the two beds.
Evan and Klaus took the beds on the right side.
However, even after several hours, only Jacob slept among them, clearly frustrated that he had to wait for the moment when he could beat Kellan with impunity, again. However, he didn't realize that Kellan wasn't in the cell.
"What do you plan to do next?" Klaus, lying on the top bed with his arms crossed over his chest asked without opening his eyes.
Evan didn't answer right away, first a wicked grin appeared on his face, then the light from the blue moon illuminated half of his face, sending a faint, barely noticeable glint on the two long nails clamped between his fingers.
Rising from the ground, Evan approached the sleeping Jacob with clear intent.
"A revolution. No revolution has ever been without blood, so let's not delay this pleasant moment." Evan whispered like a death ghost as the light passed on, allowing his silhouette to become one with the shadows.