Memories

Weary from the last battle, alone after witnessing the deaths of my comrades by sword and spell, I trudged onward, picking my way carefully through the moonlit forest, attempting to remain as silent as possible and avoid detection by anyone on the nearby roads. My own reserves of power were faltering after the day-long battle, and the visions of the near-massacre in my mind kept draining more and more of my own energy. I doubtless needed to renew myself, but that required food, drink, and rest; the best I could do was to snatch berries from the bushes as I fought my way along the crowded forest floor.

Those were luxuries I could not afford while still within King Harmend's territory.

By instinct, I suddenly froze, nearly holding my breath. My ears strained, my eyes attempted to focus clearly, my nose silently sniffed the air for signs of others. For several minutes, I held my position, a hand on my dagger, a spell of self-protection on the tip of my tongue.

Just as I was about to relax from my nerve-straining posture, I heard it clearly. Off to the left, I heard a strained whimper. Whispering a spell of night-sight, I slowly picked my way through the brush and around the huge trees in the direction of the whimper. As I approached, I realized that it was a Human whimper, probably female.

Most likely a captive.

Instantly, memories flooded my head. Repeatedly violated. Flogged for hours. Open cuts and other wounds all over me. Cut open for blood for dark rituals. Nibbled on by rats and other small rodents. Ropes tightly bound around me. Shackled to the never-washed stone wall of the dungeon cell. The spits, the leers, the evil smiles, the pawing, the smacks, the fists...

Two months of hell which gave me the inner strength necessary to become a notable mage, notable even despite the birthright which my body would no longer allow me to claim.

Clearly, I could see her: a beautiful young woman, fairly clean (either held for a while to be readied for the slave trade, or just captured hours before), nude, hair flowing over her shoulders to her lower ribs, gagged, ropes wound intricately around her body in strangely-beautiful patterns, arms chained above her head to a sturdy tree branch.

Clearly, I could see him: a handsome young man, sitting upon a log or a rock, his back to me, most of him hidden by a thick bush, simply watching her struggle. When she whimpered again, he gave a low chuckle of amusement.

I whispered a spell of silence about me, drew my dagger, and mentally prepared a halting spell. Waiting, I watched as the slaver stood, nude, and slowly walked over to the helpless young woman. He reached out slowly, caressed her cheek, then turned back to the thick bush. Moments later, he approached her with a small whip in his hand, and her eyes grew large.

Taking this as my cue, I rushed toward the helpless young woman and her captor. Yet when her eyes glared at me, I stopped. Following her line of sight, the young man - still nude - turned to face me, eyes narrowed.

"Why do you disturb us?" he challenged, his desire to be left alone very clear in his strong voice.

My presence now known, the spell of silence had terminated. I could hear myself step upon a twig as I took a step backward. I looked at the young woman and again fell victim to her angered glare. My mind was racing, trying to figure out what was truly happening here.

"Leave us." Not a command, but a definite threat.

"Do you intend to sell her?" I demanded as best as I could through my confusion. The spells I had just cast had further lowered my energy levels, and I could hear the difference in my voice.

"I sell no one." Said with strong authority and deep conviction. "Leave us."

"Let her speak," I counterchallenged. "If you have nothing to fear from me, allow your captive to speak freely."

Without hesitation, the young man returned to the young woman and loosened the gag so that it hung about her neck.

"Leave us," the captive ordered, eyes narrowed, anger in her voice. "We are here of our own free will. Go."

I again thought of my own experience, those two months of hell, so long ago. Feeling myself on the final dregs of personal power, I cast a spell to determine if what the young woman said was the truth.

She was not lying.

"Please excuse my intrusion," I said as graciously as possible, adding a small bow for a minor flourish. With that, I continued hacking my way through the forest, grabbing berries from the bushes as I progressed back toward my father's kingdom, an important lesson learned.