"Ah…" he moaned, lifting his hand to rub his head. There was a sudden jerking of his room and a stunned young silver haired child was sent flying until he slammed his head into the ceiling. He lifted his gaze to the wooden ceiling then to the windows shielded behind a thick red curtain.
Then a screen appeared before him, it was transparent and it shimmered in a gold hue.
⦗Hello, Sheepherder.⦘
"Sheepherder?" he was confused with that term. If his memories were rector then he should be — wait — his eyes shook. He ran to the window, phasing through the screen and dragged the curtain away from view. Peering into the darkness of the night.
As far as his eyes could see, there were only dead trees. No sign of civilisation, human or alien. It would be strange to make any rash movement, he could be existing at anytime or place, "This 'room' is either moving or I am in sort sort of wooden box being transported away.
⦗Blessing Gained (1)⦘ ⦗Curse Gained (1)⦘
'Blessings? Curses? How did this screen zoom to appear before my face like this?' he was not the smartest but he was not stupid either. He could not remember anything and so with a light gleaming in his eyes, he reached out to the screen and —
His hands phased right through.
Frustrated, he clenched his fist and hissed. Requiem wore a bigger frown as the violent ups and downs of the vehicle he was in slowed to a halt. He waited patiently, covering the windows and then curling into a ball, shutting his eyes and opening his ears.
The first thing he heard was the sound of locks unlocking, and chains dragged across a metallic surface. The was a commotion, but after one or two screams it would subside into silence. After the seconds counted into minutes, he heard his own 'cage' getting unlocked, and the ceiling raised.
He opened his eyes, feigning fear and confusion. The woman that had opened his box, one who was very beautiful, reached into the box and grabbed him by the neck, pulling him out with one hand and throwing him to the ground. It happened so fast that he was stunned.
Requiem looked up, and a starless night sky welcomed him. His gaze shifted from the void night to the woman, her bubblegum hair brought a lot of colour to the dark night, but her heart seemed a lot darker than the night itself, her face as plain as a rock and her eyes as cold as steel.
He looked around himself. He was surrounded by men and women in chains, crawling upon the ground like animals. He did not know why, but he burned with rage seeing all this happen! How dare they do this! Wasn't this— argh —he could barely remember what wore was used for this act.
"Subhuman scum." The woman threw some chains to the ground and approached him calmly. He sighted a dagger strapped to her slender waist and it was sheathed. Requiem quickly looked around, the others who were not in chains were armed with swords or daggers.
He did not know why, but he sneered within himself. Like he was watching a primate make a fire in the rain. The slaves here, at a rough estimate, surpassed the armed men and women by a dozen to one. To subdue such a number, it means a bigger backing or greater strength.
"I am weak then…" he said this within himself then lifted his gaze to the woman, who had bowed to pin the chains to his body. Veins popped all over his forehead as he scurried back, glaring at those chains, like they were some inherent enemy, "Get those things away from me!"
⦗Blessing Active!⦘
"Of course, I apologise for my transgression." She nodded to herself, throwing the chains aside as she stood to her feet. The others did not notice this and she moved on to the next human. Requiem's pupils dilated as he shivered, quickly crawling into the shadows.
"Subhuman?" he was called that name moments ago yet the fierce gleam in eyes had not cooled, it only grew. He watched as the woman dragged a young girl out of her box amidst screams. He was still, watching the woman beat the young girl over and over, forcing her to crawl with chains.
⦗Quest: Free the Slaves⦘
⦗Reward: System Manual⦘
"What is this…" he turned to the screens that had appeared. They were on a road that led deeper into the forest to some unknown location, how was he supposed to free the slaves if he did not know what he was getting into? There was no sin as unforgivable as foolishness.
If he interfered, he would risk his life but could also chance upon more information. He needed a lot of that to understand what he needed to do. To persevere, he needed a will, a will to achieve what he cannot in death. That was a strength he wanted to have.
"Are there any penalties?" he asked himself, but there was no reply. He was a child and had not a single idea where his strengths lay. His small frame would allow him sneak up on one or two of those slavers and take their weapons — killing them would come next.
Requiem darted through the forest, planning to circle around them. His movements were nimble and quick and he found himself at the back of the massive envoy before anyone could notice it. They had stationed a man there, armed with a sabre that gleamed in the moonlight.
He stepped to the man's side and tapped him on the shoulder. The man spun around, swinging his blade in a vicious circling spin only to meet with Requiem's cold gaze and freeze. He staggered back, the sword in his hands shaking and his pupils narrowed to needle points.
⦗Blessing Active!⦘
"Um, good sir. I have a request to make of you." He lowered his gaze to the sword that gleamed in an alluring light, one that would soon be consumed, "I need you to kill all the other slavers. Take the slavers by surprise and be victorious."
The man's legs buckled and he collapsed to his knees, bowing his head before Requiem. After he was down, he stood to his feet, turned around and began to walk away. Requiem did not notice it but as the man walked, a grin slowly crept to his face.