A/N Image is Unai by Ldra.net
Unai whines and nudges at the man holding his contractor. The man pats Unai's soft head reassuringly.
[He'll be fine Unai. He just passed out. I'm impressed he held on to consciousness for so long. In his current state, my arrival must have been excruciating for him.] Lenix tells Unai telepathically.
Lenix wraps a small blanket around Imogen. Lenix leans him against Unai as he takes in the dark, dingy room they are in.
A growing look of disgust paints his face as he examines the small area.
No windows. One door was open allowing some light to filter in. Outside the door, a narrow hallway leads to some stairs. Must be a basement then? The room smelled of unwashed bodies, blood, and damp earth. It was musty and stuffy.
Four cages take up most of the space in the room. One is broken while the other three are still occupied by small naked bodies. They are slumped awkwardly in their unconscious state. The only other furnishing is a fancy overstuffed chair with a high back and cushy armrests. The chair is the only clean thing in the room.
[Well this place is disturbing. It has the look of slavery. Nasty. Any idea what this is Unai?]
[No. I've never seen this place or knew of this situation. Imogen formed the contract earlier in this life than the last. If this happened to him last time, he never spoke of it.]
Lenix occupies the chair near the exit. He ponders the other three caged people. He wants to know more about what's happening here and doesn't feel good about leaving these other three captive children behind.
[Break open the other cages too, Unai.] He's decided to wake one if possible.
[Will it be safe to do so?] he asks as he moves toward the cages. He'll do as Lenix says regardless, he's just curious what Lenix has in mind.
[They won't be any threat to us. I'll ask some questions, then they can do as they wish.]
There are two young males and a small female. All are skinny, dirty and bruised. None look as undernourished as Imogen, but none of them are well taken care of.
[Does this world have excessive poverty?] So far everyone he has seen in this world is skinny ragamuffins. Granted he has only seen four people. But this is a worrying trend nonetheless.
Unai thinks there had been many reasons for the poverty issues of this region. Food shortages natural disasters, corruption of leaders. They discuss a few general situations Unai could remember as Unai moves from cage to cage breaking each one.
At the final cage, Unai growls and bites the occupant on the arm. [This boy was one of those that betrayed Imogen.]
Lenix can feel the loathing through Unai's thoughts. There was an inky darkness to them as they clawed into his mind.
Lenix only shrugs. [We will take him for Imogen to choose his fate then.]
He isn't here to help get revenge. The deal he made with Unai is to raise and protect Imogen and that is all.
It's not long before the bitten boy wakes up groaning and clutching his arm and then his head.
[What is happening here?] Lenix asks the boy, motioning around the room with his arm.
He looks at Lenix, eyes big with fear. "The s...scouts from the pleasure house p...pick-picked us up si...sir." The kid is trembling as he stutters a response.
Lenix looks to Unai. [ Do you understand the language here?]
[Yes, the boy says scouts picked them up.]
[Good. Can you translate what is said directly to me until I learn it?]
[Of course Lenix.] Unai bows his head in agreement.
A/N I won't repeat everything as Unai translates, just know that he is doing that.
[For what purpose did they pick you up?] Lenix looks down at the boy with a scowl on his face.
The boy doesn't seem fazed by Lenix's telepathy or he simply doesn't realize that Lenix is not speaking out loud. It's dark for one thing. The room is gloomy with very little light so he can't see Lenix's face well. Also, the stress of the situation probably keeps him from noticing this little detail of not actually hearing a voice.
The kid tilts his head, confused. "Sex and other things. Aren't you the boss of this place?"
Lenix is clearly disgusted at the boy's assumption. [I'm not the boss. This guy summoned that beast. The beast brought me to help.] He points to Imogen then Unai.
[Sex trade huh? It's as bad as I thought then. I'm leaving, follow if you want.]
He lifts Imogen from the floor as he stands up. Not waiting for the others to wake up, Lenix decides to leave. He tosses three robes from his storage ring at the boy.
"Uhm, can we bring my sister?" He points to the unconscious girl as he quickly dresses her then himself and finally the other boy.
Lenix raises an eyebrow questioningly. [Can you carry her?] Lenix wants to see what kind of person this boy is that betrayed Imogen in his last life. Will he abandon his so-called sister or fight for her safety?
"Y..yes, I can. I will!" He grips his hand in a fist, determined to rescue her no matter how difficult carrying her will be for him. He struggles to get a hold of her while the man is directing the beast to carry the other boy.
Lenix can't wait here while the weak teen's struggles. His arrival would have knocked anyone in the building unconscious, but that won't last long. After setting Imogen on the chair, he assists the boy to settle his sister on his back. Her arms dangling over her brother's shoulders.
Lenix pushes the door wide open listening for anyone coming. After determining it's safe to exit, he picks Imogen back up and takes the lead to the stairs.
The stairs are old, weak and should be creaky, but Lenix makes no sound. The top of the stairs is open to a large room acting as the entryway of the building. He pauses a moment, waiting for any movement in the much brighter room, listening again before stepping out of the stairway. Everyone he sees is still unconscious, fallen in various poses. Lenix motions for the others to follow once he's sure it's safe.
Outside they hit their first resistance, a couple of guards try to stop them. The boy recognized them as the two scouts that brought everyone here. Before he can say anything, Lenix is already attacking them.
Lenix pulls a dagger out of his jacket and stabs the nearest man in the throat with his free hand so fast the boy never saw him move. He was already taking his dagger back when the boy noticed the first guard drop in a spray of blood. By now Lenix had already kicked the other guy against the side of the building. The unlucky second guard slumped to the ground, leaving a long bloody smear on the wall. It was over in seconds.
[I don't know this town. Which way to lodging?] Lenix asks the boy as he wipes the blood from his dagger on the shirt of the man he just stabbed. Then as an afterthought he asks, [what's your name?]
The boy is red from the exertion of carrying his sister up the stairs and out of the building. He is panting hard and sweating. All his concentration is on keeping moving. So he still isn't paying attention to much about Lenix. He just knows he is a tall, powerful man that he doesn't want to anger.
"Ander is my name, and my sister is Fran. I know an abandoned cottage we could go to." Ander's subservient posture and tone of voice are obvious to Lenix even without directly knowing what he is saying.
[At least he acts respectful,] Lenix thinks to Unai.
Unai makes a sound like a scoff. [He's just afraid of you after seeing you kill the lookouts so fast and without hesitation. Death may be common in the slums, but few are truly deadly.]
[Lead the way.] Lenix thinks to Ander.
He has Ander lead them mostly out of pity for the child. He lets the boy set the pace since the kid is already exhausted. Now that they are out of the building they aren't in much of a hurry so it's fine.
Unai growls, displeased at the kind treatment given to the boy he calls the bastard betrayer.
Lenix felt that dark clawing feeling again from Unai's complaint so he points out to Unai what is obvious to him. [Unai, right now this is just a young boy trying to protect his sister. If Imogen's fate can change, so can this boy's.]
Unai is quiet now as he considers Lenix's logic.
The boy on Unai's back begins to stir. Unai sits down to let him slide off slowly. [Lenix, this one is waking up.]
Lenix stops Ander and points to a shaded area nearby. [Let's take a break for a bit. This other fellow is waking up.]
Ander is quick to take advantage of the break. He gently sets his sister down, then slumps to the ground beside her, completely exhausted.
The other teen looks around in confusion as he comes fully awake. Noticing Lenix and recognizing he must be the leader of this group he freezes, observing while he waits for Lenix to speak. The boy is very cautious but doesn't seem afraid. He is clearly evaluating Lenix.
[Have you finished your assessment of me?] Lenix asks him calmly.
"I can tell by the air of confidence you have that you are accustomed to being served and obeyed like nobility. You must be extremely wealthy as evidenced by the height, smooth clear skin and shiny hair, all signs of abundant high-quality food. Definitely a mage with this unheard of power to speak to my mind."
[You have good instincts.] Lenix praises the kid for waiting silently, not raising a fuss in this unknown situation. [I rescued this guy.] Lenix holds Imogen forward a bit to indicate who he is referring to. [ I released the rest of you on a whim. Follow me or go your own way. I don't care which.]
"I'll follow you," the boy says without hesitation. "You were able to break into and then safely leave the pleasure house with a bunch of useless burdens. The best place for me is to stay with you as long as you'll allow me. I offer my services as a valet or other servant."
[For now, help him with the girl.] Lenix motions toward Ander and Fran. [Are we close Ander?]
"Yes, sir. Very close." They would move much faster now with Ander relieved of carrying his sister.
As the sun begins to set, the small group arrives at the cottage. An abandoned, partially burnt out house on the opposite side of the slums. The courtyard is full of weeds, broken flagstone and dying fruit trees. A tall stone wall surrounds the place closing it off from view.
As they enter the house, Imogen begins to awaken.