The Curse of Thir

“Stupid girl.” He pushed her slump body further back so that the ropes were no longer capable of choking her. As her head flopped backwards Bonifacio stormed in.

“What in the name of Dreagnance happened here. One of my men missing! One dead. Most o’ them won’t answer straight an’ tha’ stupid veggie gardens ash. What happened Aaraos?” Boni stood tall and fearsome before Aaraos, his blood boiled with rage. “I was gone fo’ half a night, and I come back to this. Can you do nothin’ right?”

Aaraos stooped his head and gazed intently at the floor. “Both men are dead.”

He took a quick glance at Bonifacios’ face, it had grown darker.

“They said Emul was gone. If he’s dead where’d his body go?” His voice was slow and clear with intent.

“It’s....” he swallowed, “ash, like the garden.”

“Right, ash, burnt dust. Care to explain how this happened Aaraos?”

His eyes narrowed and shifted to his right noticing Xylees’ unconscious body for the first time.

“Magic?” He questioned

Aaraos nodded.

“Ok, magic then.” He pointed a finger towards Xylee. “Her?”

“Yes.”

“Your slave girl creature, killed, my men?”

Aaraos took a step back, Boni matched it with a forward.

“Tha’ thing, you decided to keep, killed my men.... with magic?”

He moved forward again, close enough for Aaraos to feel how cold Bonifacios cloak was.

“Get my horse out in the front.”

He looked up in confusion.

“Your horse?”

“Yes my horse, are you deaf too now?”

“No, I’m not deaf. But... why?”

Boni straightened up.

“Because! Because I say so and because she,” he flung his hand out at Xylee, “needs to die, painfully. Because you let her do this, because we can’t afford stupidity, Aaraos. Because I! ” He leaned in again, “Need not explain myself to an idiot!”

Aaraos stood his ground as best he could but the shear pressure from Boni made him stumble back onto his bed.

“.... she’s mine....” he whispered with his head to the floor.

“WHAT?”

“....she’s mine, you gave her to me.”

“I GAVE HER TO YOU!! Are you delusional? I didn’t give her to you, you took her outta your own damned Dreag self!”

He twisted and marched towards Xylee. His sword flashed out in a haze of steel and sliced the ropes connecting her to the pillar.

“Get the leather ropes out Aaraos, and get my horse.” He leaned down and scooped her up. “I’ll be waitin’ at the front for you, and you best hurry.” Bonifacio was out the door before Aaraos even had time to exhale.

He’d lost his only chance to become a great Dreag. Boni would probably send him to work at Mt Iron-Crown now. To live in the dark and fed stupid tiny idiot boys that weren’t his. He was furious, and terrified.

He got up and proceeded to retrieve what Boni had demanded. Some leather rope and his horse, a traditional death for slaves’ amongst the Dreag.

Walking in the mud towards the stables he thought of the many times he’d seen it. Bound by the leather by their feet and attached to the horses’ saddle, they were dragged, sometimes fast sometimes slow, across the cobbles and stones till they died. Every now and then the slave would survive the first day of dragging, but it would continue the next day and the next, till either they died by horse or infection from the wounds.

He held the thick platted leather rope in his hand and led Bonis’ horse out the stable. Now he would see all his years of patience dragged behind a horse. Everything he had hopped and dreamed for would become a red stain on the road he walked on. Boni stood on the steps with a now semi conscious Xylee dangling from his looped arm. He saw Aaraos and grimaced. Two Dreag stood by his side and took Xylee from him. He approached Aaraos.

“Get her attached to the horse Aaraos, be quick abou’ it.” He watched with fierce eyes as Aaraos bond the rope to Xylees’ legs and then to the horses saddle. The horse whinnied in anticipation; it knew what was to come.

“Now get on.”

Aaraos stared vacantly at his words.

“I said get on.”

“But this is your horse...”

“Tha’s your slave isn’t it?”

“...But...”

“Do you really think me dumb enough no’ to know what you were planning? You think I would’a allowed it regardless of this incident?”

“She has magic Bonifacio, we could be powerful again. Just like the old days.”

“Humans own magic now Aaraos. If the humans or they found her, our... their plans would fail. Besides you know we cannot breath withou’ their consent.”

“Then ask them Boni, ask them. Please. I wish to be strong again. I wished to be feared.”

“If I ask, they’ll believe we wanna move against them and leave them in Null, and you know we can’t let them think badly of us. They are the reason we survived. She needs to die before that happens.” He backed away,

“You remember last time you took a breeder and what happened, that’s not gonna happen again. She dies, and you’re gonna do the honours.”

Aaraos looked pleadingly at Boni,

“Please... Boni at least let us keep her. We could use her an-”

“Enough! Get on that horse and ride.”

“But-”

“DO NOT make me repeat myself again.”

Aaraos moved slowly towards the horse and made a sluggish attempt to mount, when he noticed a pained expression on Bonifacios’ face and a clear sharp crisp feeling coming from the glass shard he hid under his vest. They already knew.

Bonifacios’ mouth moved in answer to the cold, his face scrunched in agony and he replied again. The men standing on the stairs, placing their bets for how long she would last, luckily, did not notice this.

The icy feeling left the air as quick as it had arrived.

“Untie her.”

Aaraos stood there.

“Get those ropes off her Aaraos.”

“What happened? What they say?”

“Get those damned ropes off her Aaraos.” The spit flew from between his clenched teeth. Pain from the brief communication he had had, throbbed through his head like butter in a churner and left him tired beyond belief. Aaraos did as he was told and untied Xylee who was still not fully awake. Bonifacio motioned for him to come closer.

“This girl has far more luck on her side than ought ta be allowed. Get her cleaned and dressed. Then bring her to the dining hall an’ feed her. But you are not ta bed her Aaraos. Do ya hear me.” He slumped down on the steps, the Dreag behind him realised the slave run was no longer happening and left grumbling.

“Get two o’ those louts here ta help me inside.”

“What did they say?”

“It’s the strangest thing but, ya don’ need ta know!” Aaraos called two of the men to help Boni up.

“Get done Aaraos.” He turned with the help of the two men. “Get me ta my room and fetch Rocca.” His big body was heavy even for those two large Dreag as they struggled up the stairs.

Aaraos felt defiant as he watched them disappear in the door way, but it was quickly quelled by a chill running through the air.