Chereads / Exilation / Chapter 19 - Mark of the past and the song of the coming future

Chapter 19 - Mark of the past and the song of the coming future

The flicking of a bushy orange tail rocked back and forth from the young slave girl known as Chu, quietly singing a tune to herself as she sat upon the old worn crate, looking down at the little flickers in the box, the humming growing and fading as she worked.

*HUMMING AN UNFAMILIAR SONG AND SHUFFLING OF GEMS.*

Chu: 'Sweet.' Ra, ra, mere ma jio... Grover... runno runno ova le feene. (Swaying her head to the song.) Ra, ra, mere ma...

A royal guard just off to the right that was closest to the jeweller's stall turned and watched the slave working through the glitter of gems, lost in song rocking her head left and right. The medium sized man watched for a brief moment before looking away and back to his duties, not fully understanding the words being sung by the little girl in a language that made his skin crawl.

Guard by the stall: Goddamn demi-rats. 'Muttering.' It's bad enough we have them as slaves; now I have to listen to this. (Shuffling in his armour.) This village is going down the drain... 'Snickering.' She might make a fine scarf or two, her master would get more value out of her that way.

Chu, gradually halting in her song not wanting to turn to notice the once prying eyes to the side hidden under the thick helm, that were now looking away, the little girl force to hear the words of spite and cruelty clear as day. 

*FADING OF A SWEET WHISTLING SONG.*

Inadvertently acknowledging the words of the guard that they hit home. Chu looked back into the sight of glittering stones with a hurtful gaze, no longer humming or singing, knowing the fate of those who would speak out, being forced to hold her tongue and the prejudice against her kind, not for being a slave or a demi-beast kin, but both all in one, wrapped up with a seal to prove it all.

Guard by the stall: Peace at last... just how I like it! 'Soothed.' The only beasts around these parts making any racket should be the birds, not demi's and certainly not slaves. 'Miffed.' That chicken squark isn't needed around here. 

A small hand hovered from the slave known as Chu, still listening to the man's words off to the side, she was aiming to her right arm, reaching for the feeling of a rough patch of skin where fur should have been, long burned away by the slave crest of intricate symbols and marks that Chu didn't understand or even try to comprehend. Small bumped up marks on her skin from a wound that faded but still leaving its calling with the scar that would never truly heal in body or mind.

*SOUNDS OF FEET GETTING CLOSER.*

A group of people were moving closer, only to draw away the little girl lost in time and painful memories, now hearing but not fully seeing the people coming from the inn's direction, returning to the market street.

Pointed fluffy ears twitched in the direction of shuffling feet through pure instinct, just as her master's did when she heard the men slowing not long ago, but these were not slow movements; this time they were in a hurry, pushing onwards and away from the inn, making up for wasted time they did not have.

Amber eyes looked up past the countertop, Chu was still sitting on the broken box, not wanting to push into the view of the guard to her right, trying to see the return of the royal guards who had ventured away from the six still standing on the market street in the blazing sun, only finding respite in the small shadows of the stalls.

The little girl watched on as the man in charge upfront kept his head looking forward, bobbing up and down above the stall's top, just tall enough for him to remind her of puppets in a box at play, coming into view and fading away under the veil of mystery, not vanishing down but to the right, heading back to where they all once came from. 

Chu smiled at the sight of the bobbing heads, her cheeks bulging and the short whiskers pointed further to the sides, thinking of her home before her indentured servitude and the thoughts of her mother lulling her to sleep with little puppets made of cloth and old sacks. 

The fluffy smile faded into the memories of her family and her promise to them all as she continued to watch as the guards and newcomers walked away. She could feel an uneasiness coming from them and something else lingered in the air from afar.

Captain: How am I going to explain this farce to the Lord, let alone him... 'Worried.' Why did I agree to that woman's ultimatum. (Reminding himself of the feeling that brought him to his knees.) Shit, shit, shit.... 'Rambling.'

The captain in front gave a sense of not wanting to converse with any of the guards standing still along the rows of stalls as he talked to himself, his head steadfast, but his frantic eyes of defeat and pain hidden under his stoic falsehood couldn't escape the amber gaze or his words now audible to the six guards watching and muttering to themselves.

Occasionally, the rambling man in front glanced back at the people behind him, making sure of something, focused more on the woman than the four in tow and the two extras at back.

Chu could see the two men in armour at the head of the people holding their arms and waists, shifting from one then to the other, sensing a pain coming from all of them, even the ones in the back but not the others in the middle, their pains was inside, not out.

Following the royal guards leading the pack, a tall blonde woman and four scantly dressed adventurers behind her huddled into a ball, freely following in the woman's shadow, none of them looking in the prying eyes direction hidden behind the wares of the jeweller's stall or the guards on either side.

A glimmer caught the little amber eyes of the slave girl, no longer working, but entranced by something moving away, bobbing up and down past the stall.

In the hands of the brunette girl in the front, a shimmer of purple glowed in her clutched grasp; it was coming from the necklace she was now holding, the one Magio held in the bar, now bequeathed to Amanda for safekeeping or comfort.

Chu: Soooo... beautiful! 'Hushed enamoured tone.'

The purple bloom of beauty captivated the little beast girl, glistening in the sunlight, beating back the new day with its own majestic light; it was all coming from the stone the brunette beauty was holding so tightly, the cord wrapped around her fingers, making sure not to lose it. Chu wondered to herself why no one else could see its beauty, or if they did, they were already familiar with it enough that it didn't matter, desensitised to the glow.

A thought popped into the little girls head. 

Chu: Can they see it? (Thinking to herself about the glow.)

Something was watching the little watcher hiding in the stall of treasures and gems; itself was captivated not by the stones glow, but by the interest the little girl had taken in the necklace and the light that she alone could see.

A blur moved on the other side of the market stall behind the guards with spears opposite to the jewellery stand long empty, with no sign of life or even a servant going about their routine, its owner nowhere in sight. 

Chu squinted her eyes, the cat like pupils honing into the darkness trying to peer into the shadowy realm of the unknown at the far back of the stall across from her that sold fruits and mixed vegetables from faraway places, some of them not native to the village or domain Hyrnn fell under, some she knew of but never tasted and others that were the fragment of home.

At the edge of the deep black shadow, something moved back, not making a sound or disturbing the wares strewn around in bags and boxes. The small, fluffy hands tightened in an animalistic fear, and a warmth filled her palms as they sweated. She could feel something watching her now—the fear of prey being preyed upon. 

An unnatural chill ran down Chu's spine, reaching her tail and ruffling her fur out like a pine. Her fur now sticking up on all ends, Chu remained locked in place on the box, looking in the direction, ignoring the people going by.

The royal guard, clad in armour and silently standing in front of the stall of the fruits on display, caught the odd look of the little slave girl who was sitting in the back, his tall stature allowing him to see beyond the jewellery stalls counter top, only noticing a small orange and white head peering from atop the glistening stand of stones and gems, looking to her in a bewilderment of his own, seeing the little animal eyes looking past himself and to something behind where he stood.

*SHUFFLE OF ARMOUR TURNING FROM AFAR.*

The man holding the thick long spear now faced the empty stall, facing the darkness within

Watchful interest scanned around before returning to the passing people going by, the guard shrugging his shoulders in confusion of seeing nothing but everything that should be there, only the colourful mixtures of food that made his mind run wild in hunger.

As the hurrying group moved forward, four more guards followed behind, three in the same discomfort as the two in front and one looking with a blank expression that made Chu feel uneasy but not afraid, now just feeling his presence, like a ghost making itself known.

No longer hiding in the back of the stall, now seen by the man known as Gonf looked at Chu as he walked by, a smile adorn on his face, his old eyes squinting, seeing a fear in the young girl that began to fade.

The feeling of fear over Chu subsided as the group moved on and Chu rubbed her face and spoke to herself, seeing nothing come from the stall but the odd glances of the guard feeling like he had been played upon by a child's trick.

Chu: 'Soft.' I did see something... didn't I? (Slapping her cheeks.) These stones are making me see things. But... that feeling. 'Confused.'

In the darkness of the stall of fruits and food, something stood motionless, watching the small group heading to the main square. The blur turned back to the little girl, who returned to her task, no longer trying to find the thing in the darkness, only focused on sifting through the stones one at a time, just a sad, quiet movement of hands.

Black Blur: 'Inhuman, broken voice.' I wonder... 'Chuckling.' 

A shadowy, elongated hand moved from a large fabric bag near the front of the stall, watching the little girl with interest and slowly moving back to the shadows away from the light of the sun, moving deeper into the stall and disappearing.

The guard that had turned around moments before, not hearing the voice behind him, felt a chill run through his amour, reaching his very core, almost like the embrace of ice encapsulated him, only to fade as the sun brought warmth back to his body and the people who had passed by moved out of view.

The blur now followed the group, moving further away and heading to the growing voices of people from the village's main square, all of them unaware of what lurked in the shadows It spoke to itself, finishing the song of the little girl in the language of beasts and men as it faded into the shadows.

Black blur: 'Inhuman, broken voice.' "Ra, ra, mere ma jio... grover... runno runno ova le feene... Un time, un time ma finn'ey spa." (Now in the language of men, looking at the oblivious guard.) "Run, run, my little grover... keep running over and around that fence, for your time is running out, for time is running out and your end is nigh at the coming spear of ends."

The blur disappeared and the fur on Chu ruffled once more.