The pounding of footsteps resounded through the stillness of the night, growing louder with each second. Shadows raced toward the village.
At a silent signal from a man on horseback, the chaos began.
Tents were slashed open in an instant. The invaders stormed in with brutality, yanking the women's hair and dragging them out. Harsh gags choked off their screams.
The men fared no better—dragged out with fists pounded into their sides. Their ribs cracked under blows as they were forced to their knees.
Rough ropes bit into their wrists, tying them up like animals.
Naisha's eyes shot open. Her fingers immediately found the familiar hilt of her two daggers. Instinct kicking in, she moved swiftly, shaking her aunt to wake up.
"Auntie, Get up," she whispered, her voice sharp and low.
When the Auntie woke up, they gave each other a knowing glance and nodded as if they already knew what to do.
The Auntie immediately stood up and woke the two children.
The children stirred, rubbing their eyes in confusion. One of them, barely awake, mumbled, "What's going on?"
Naisha crouched down. "We need to be quiet, alright? Stay close to Auntie."
The younger boy clung to her, his small voice trembling. "I'm scared..."
Her aunt's hands reached for the children and they stood behind Naisha as she slowly approached the tent's curtain door.
The sound of chaos was getting louder.
As Naisha crept closer, a barbaric-looking face suddenly poked into their tent. The intruder's wild eyes scanned the dim interior, and a sneer crept across his lips.
"Look what we—"
Slash!
Before he could finish, Naisha's dagger sliced through the air, and the man's head rolled away, landing with a soft thud on the ground.
Naisha didn't even flinch. "Come on. Don't look back," she said, already moving forward without waiting for an answer.
They immediately left the tent, crouching low. Outside, chaos reigned as people fled and the attackers hunted them down.
Naisha moved quickly along the edges of the tents, trying to avoid detection and escape.
As they ran, Naisha's eyes scanned the chaos around them—smoke, screams, bodies.
"Stay safe, Mother Venice. I'll come back for you," she muttered under her breath. Her grip tightened on the children as she steered them to safety.
Naisha stopped each time they ran into someone. The moment an enemy turned their back, her dagger flashed, and their throat opened in a deadly line.
Then came another—sword raised high, crashing down toward her.
She sidestepped to his right, and in one fluid motion, her blade sliced through his neck. His head hit the ground before his body even realized it was dead.
"Hurry, we're almost out," Naisha said, her tone sharp as they kept running.
But the big boss of the slave hunters spotted her. His lips curled into a smirk, intrigued by how effortlessly she moved and how deadly she was.
Five mounted barbarians watched the chaos unfold in the center of the village. The leader, a hulking figure, stood out among them.
They noticed Naisha, carving her way through their men.
"Boss, our guys are struggling with that woman. Should I take her out?" one of the horsemen asked, gripping his weapon.
The boss smirked. His eyes gleamed with greed. "No. She's worth more alive. She'll be the star of the auction. The highest bidder will pay a fortune for her."
He shifted in his saddle and lifted his palm. A magical circle appeared in front of it. His gaze locked onto Naisha's back, target locked, and ready to strike.
[CHAIN BIND!]
A chain shot out from the magical circle, wrapping around the foot of one of the children Naisha was protecting, pulling the child back toward him.
"Sister Naisha, help me!" The child's scream cut through the air, as Gorvex's chain snapped tight around his foot.
In a blink, he was yanked off the ground, swinging wildly as the chain dragged him up toward him.
Naisha froze mid-step, her jaw tightening as her teeth clenched. "You bastard!"
Gorvex's face twisted into a sneer. "Come and get him," he taunted.
His plan unfolds perfectly. He hadn't tried to grab Naisha directly—she was too fast for that. And she'd slip through his fingers if he wasn't careful.
"Auntie, take Ran and get out of here. Ken and I will catch up," Naisha commanded.
"Please, be careful," her aunt nodded before she turned and fled the village.
As soon as they fled, Naisha spun around. Her eyes blazed as she faced the leader.
"Bring Ken back to me!" she shouted, her voice shaking with desperation.
She sprinted toward the boss, faster than she'd ever run. But steel chains lashed out and snapped like whips.
Naisha weaved through each attack. The chains slammed into the ground with terrifying force, cratering the earth where they landed.
One hit, and she knew she'd be done for. Crippled or worse. But she didn't care.
Her mind was locked on a single goal—get Ken back. No matter what.
Naisha reached the perfect distance and crouched, ready to spring into the air.
But then she saw it—the victorious smirk stretching across the boss's face.
"Gotcha," he sneered.
A thin, snake-like chain shot up from the ground, wrapping around her left foot.
As she was about to leap, the chain yanked her back down. She slammed into the ground, hard, and the wind knocked from her lungs.
"You were too distracted by my attack," Gorvex said, his grin widening. With his other hand, he secretly released a chain into the ground. "That thin chain of mine? It was already slithering through the dirt, waiting right under your feet."
"Sis Naisha!" young Ken cried out.
Naisha tried to shake the chain off her foot, but it was already coiled tight, snaking around her ankle. She kicked and twisted, but it only made the chain bite deeper into her skin.
In seconds, she was yanked off her feet, her body dragged across the ground, her head smacking against the dirt, just like her brother.
"Let me go!" she snarled, thrashing.
Gorvex sneered, winding the chain around her whole body, pinning her arms to her sides. Her two blades slipped from her grasp, falling uselessly to the ground.
"Ahh!" Naisha cried out, her voice sharp with pain.
From the bushes, Ran's heart raced as he saw his sister go down. His small fists clenched, and before he could stop himself, he opened his mouth to scream and charge in.
But their aunt was quicker. She grabbed him tightly, covered his mouth with her hand, and pulled him back into the shadows of the giant trees.
"Shh," she whispered, "stay hidden."
Gorvex's men swarmed her, forcing her down as they bound her tightly with ropes. She struggled, but the ropes only tightened with each movement.
She wasn't alone—her other companions had also been captured, tied up and struggling against their restraints.
"Ken, are you okay?" Naisha asked, her voice soft despite the tight ropes binding them both.
"I'm scared," Ken whispered, his voice trembling.
"Don't worry. I'll get us out of here," Naisha promised, forcing calm into her voice as she tried to comfort him. Her gaze flickered toward the leader of the slave hunters, her mind racing.