Finn felt a pang of guilt for being glad she was here.
“Well, we’re here. We just need to escape and get you back home.”
“I’m tired.”
“Sleep. You will need your strength.”
“What if we’re asleep and miss our only chance?”
“I will stay awake for both of us. Sleep. It's ok,” Finn said.
Nylah closed her eyes.
“I was thinking about the birds … the mew,” whispered Nylah. “You said they could have flown away anytime while you were hunting with them.”
“Yes,” said Finn.
“Why didn't you?” Nylah asked in a soft whisper.
“Why did I not leave?”
“You could have just left … just like the birds.”
“Some cages are bigger than others. The Southern Realm is one large cage for me … or it was.”
“I should never have left the isles and you should have run while you could. Now look ...”
“Had I left, I would never have met you.”
“Finn, you are kind. I am not worth all of this, though,” Nylah whispered. Finn could feel her breath on his face.
“I'm sorry you are here. But if you are … I am happy I'm here with you. I would like to be somewhere else with you … but if it must be here, so be it. I've been in a cage my whole life. If I can free you of yours … well, it will be a good thing.”
“I wish I could show you the isles.”
I want to see the isles.
“We are still very much alive, Nylah. The isles are still there.”
Finn felt Nylah drift into sleep. Her weight was fully against him. He could feel her breath on his neck.
Finn stared at the night sky. The stars pulsed with light in the expanse of blackness around them.
They burn so brightly in such a dark void.
“You rival the stars in this darkness,” he thought aloud. He breathed in the air and pretended to himself that he and Nylah were not captives. Rather, they were a couple finding refuge in the open land and solitude of the night sky. He wished it were true.
I have to get us out.
It was not long until sleep crept over Finn as well.
Chapter 11
Slavers
No one felt rested when the sun crept over the horizon. It cast a soft orange glow that slowly became a deep maroon. Exhaustion and hopelessness had spread like a plague in the night. The ground was littered with blood, urine, and other filth that mixed with the damp earth. The gorgon in the red tunic cracked his whip to wake the prisoners. Some continued to lay unshaken despite the commands of the gorgon in red. They had died during the night or were at the cusp of death. Gorgons pulled them by their feet, as they dragged them to the wagon. The dead and dying were tossed on top of the other corpses. There was a slight movement from the bodies in the wagon. Those that refused to die easily gave the pile of bodies a slight movement. It was as if one giant creature was slowly dying.
Finn stood with Nylah. She held his hand and waited for what the day would bring them. Finn could tell she was more apprehensive than the previous days. He also noticed that the camp was busier than it had been. There was a different atmosphere to it all together.
“We should make sure to stay close today,” Finn whispered.
“Ok. What’s happening?”
“I don’t know. Something doesn’t seem right though. Something’s different. We might get our opportunity. We have to be ready.”
The gorgons slowly got the camp moving. Blood and filth stayed behind in shallow pools. They made no attempt to hide their presence. They brought blood with them and death in their wake. Finn studied the gorgons. There was a structure to their units. Most of the gorgon foot soldiers wore tunics the color of coal and kept their thick tails coiled around one leg like a pulsing vine. The gorgons in red tunics ran the prisoners and had small units of foot soldiers keeping watch. Finn had seen a few gorgons dress in light chain over yellow and black tunics. Their tails were uncoiled; they walked with an air of superiority. They were most likely generals of some sort. They had groups of gorgons under them. Finn thought they were perhaps the same as barons or nobles with land and army under them. The one thing he knew was that they were superior to the others in the camp. Finn could hear the generals giving instructions in their black tongue. The foot soldiers donned their weapons. Some carried banners of black and yellow with serpents embroidered in red.
“The camp is going to have visitors,” said Finn.
“How do you know? What if today we arrive at our destination?”
“No. We are still in familiar lands. They are taking us somewhere further than here. I think we are somewhere between the Southern and Eastern Realms. No, someone’s coming to us,” said Finn.
“Maybe the realms are uniting. An army perhaps …,” said Nylah. She had a hopeful tone to her voice.
“Perhaps,” Finn replied. He did not want to soil her hopes. “We should be prepared though. Whatever it is could be our chance to get out of here.”
Finn took Nylah by the hand. They walked slowly with the rest of the pack. Finn took care to keep them close to the outside of the crowd of prisoners, but kept one or two between them and the gorgons. They could easily get to the center of the group if the gorgons began picking prisoners for food.
“Look up,” said Nylah, pointing above them. A large flock of long necked birds had taken to circling the caravan.
“They look like mud vultures. They’ve taken to the scent of blood we’re leaving behind,” said Finn.
And the scraps of flesh and bone. A black cloud is hovering over us … waiting for someone to lose their way.
“Will they hurt us?” she asked. She then looked around and revealed a small smile. “Surrounded by armed snakes and I’m worried about birds.”
She laughed quietly.
Finn smiled at her.
“Don’t worry. They won’t attack.”
They continued to walk for most of the day. The sun beat down on them, although a slight breeze blew in from the east. It kept the thoughts of the heat at bay. However, when the captives finally felt the effects of the sun, it was too late. The heat had already enveloped them in its grip. Finn and Nylah kept pace with the other prisoners but made sure to not overexert themselves. Those that fell to the heat ended up in the wagon or were left behind for the birds to strip to the bone. The heat broke in the late afternoon. The sun had moved behind the clouds causing the sky to turn a deep red and purple. It outlined the contours of the clouds making them appear heavy. The sound of a war horn echoed over the prisoners. It was not a sustained noise but a short burst of raspy staccato blows.
“Something’s happening,” said Finn.
“What?”
“I don’t know.”
Finn clasped tightly to Nylah’s hand. He pulled her forward to get a glimpse of what was happening.
A large host came from the west. They brought with them wagons and carts pulled by long haired oxen that appeared malnourished. Most of the host was on foot, while some rode on enormous jackals. Others walked these beasts with collars and thick steel chains. They were led like dogs on a lease. The jackals were long-legged and had thick girths with matted black hair. Their eyes were black and void of life. There was only a thin strip of yellow iris that outlined their dead pupils. They snapped at each other when too close. There was not a pack mentality between them. They were lone hunters forced together. This was evident by the large scars that some of them had. Others had freshly bleeding claw or bite marks. Finn had only seen scavenging wild dogs or coyotes before. He had never seen this type of creature and felt sure that the others had not either. They seemed more sinister than wild dogs and much larger. Saliva and spittle dripped from their teeth and around the corners of their black mouths. They didn’t lick their face like an ordinary animal would. Instead, they just let the spittle drip off their jagged teeth. They only had one concern: killing and eating. It was like they were from some d
ark land full of shadows and death.
Finn immediately saw that the host was not made up of ordinary men. They appeared distorted, almost deformed.
“What’s wrong with them,” Finn thought but spoke the words aloud.
“Skin Slavers,” a voice said from beside Nylah.
It was an elderly woman. She had dirt outlining her wrinkles, which made her look almost ancient. She wore a tattered dress that revealed her bone thin legs. Blue veins wrapped around them like a tightly coiled vine. Finn could see her sagging breasts through the frayed material of her dress. She seemed to already have the look of resignation. She had decided that she would die a slave or worse. Regardless, it would be soon. Finn felt a burning hatred for the gorgons. This wasn’t the end that this woman deserved. This wasn’t the end that Nylah or he deserved. He hated the gorgons. He hated being a servant of the king. He hated everything else in the world that led up to that very moment. Finn had met Nylah and was unable to have one normal interaction with her. He would die a slave next to a woman that he found captivating. He was once again in a cage. Finn saw that Nylah felt a great deal of compassion for the older woman. She had taken her arm to help her stand.
“Skin Slavers?” asked Nylah.
“People call them by different names … Skin Slavers, Flesh Dreamers, or Spirit Thieves. It depends on where you were raised and if you’re old enough to have even heard of them,” the woman said.
“What do they want?” asked Nylah.
“Us,” replied the woman.
“What is your name?” asked Nylah.
“I'm Tilda.”
“I am Nylah. This is Finn.”
“Where do I know you from?” asked Finn.
“I sold quilts in the market,” replied Tilda.
“You have seen them before? Where?” asked Nylah.
“I’ve only seen them once before now. It was not a large group like this. It was just one of them … a single man. I was just a child. We lived on the southern shores in a small village. Everyone was raised and grew up together. So, the week some boys began to disappear, we knew something was wrong. The elders knew that a stranger was in our midst.”
“What did you do?” asked Nylah.
“Ah. I did nothing. I was just a child. The elders though … they set out to look for the boys. They ended up at a set of caves along the shoreline. The ocean had carved them out, smoothed their edges. It seemed like quite a magical place to play.”
“Did they find them there?”
“They did. The boys were dead but he was not.”
“Was he deformed like these other men?” asked Finn.
“Oh … they are not deformed. They look that way but make no mistake … they are quite human,” said Tilda.
“What is wrong with them?” asked Nylah.
“You just cannot see them up close. Pray you don’t have to. They are members of the occult. You see, they found the man and boys. The boys were dead,” Tilda said. Her eyes began to gather tears. “They had been skinned. Their flesh … it was flayed off them. He was wearing it. This man was wearing their skin.”
“No,” Nylah let out a small gasp. Tears welled up in her eyes.
“They said that he was in such a trance by the fire that he did not hear them enter the cave. He mumbled some type of incoherent speech … some black speech.”
“What did they do?” asked Finn.
“They took the skins and buried them with their bodies. They buried them in one grave to be together.”
“This man, he was a Skin Slaver?” asked Finn.
“What did they do with him?” asked Nylah.
“They tethered him to a stake over the grave and burned him alive. They said it would release their souls in the afterlife. You see, the man - the Skin Slaver - he skinned them and wore their skin. He took their souls, making them slaves to him in the afterlife. It is said that Skin Slavers can travel between life and death. They burned him to free the boys. I remember, he never screamed as the flames took him … not once.”
“Why would these Skin Slavers be dealing with gorgons?” Finn asked, almost to himself.
“I don’t know … I don’t know. I fear, though, that our world is over. The world we have lived in up to now … it's over,” Tilda said, sighing.
“Nothing is over yet,” said Finn. He had to remain calm and positive.
We will escape this.
The army of Skin Slavers forked out as they approached the captives. They rode and walked along side of the prisoners staring at them. No one would look them in the eyes. The tension was palpable. All eyes stared at the ground or another captive in front of them.
“Move closer to the center,” Finn said. “But move slowly.”
“Come with us,” Nylah whispered to Tilda.
They began to make their way into the center of the group. The situation had gotten much worse. Finn looked at the Skin Slavers when he thought no one would see him. Nylah and the woman kept their heads down. Finn saw them. They were indeed human. However, the woman was right. They wore layers of skin on their bodies like armor. One of them had the lower half of someone’s face tied to him like a partial mask. Another wore a tunic made of human flesh. Finn could see what looked like legs and feet wrapped tightly around the slaver’s waist. Finn felt a shiver of pure fear for the first time. The gorgons were an evil that acted upon brutality and force. However, these Skin Slavers were evil that manifested itself with cruelty.
She cannot be taken by them.
Nylah was beautiful. They would take her the moment they saw her. She needed to stay hidden within the group.
A large slaver rode along side of the captives. He was much bigger than the others and had an air of superiority. He was a leader of these men in some fashion. Finn could tell right away. He straddled an equally huge jackal. It was brown with patches of black fur. The beast had bare patches of scar tissue behind its ears and along its neck. It snarled at the captives, as its rider kicked it along and pulled at the reins. The man was completely shaven. He did not have eyebrows or hair along his arms. He wore a thick black vest made from human flesh that was heavily tanned. His leather shoulder armor was adorned with the flesh from human heads on either side. One face was black, while the other was white. They were each pulled tightly over the leather armor. Hair was still attached and draped over his arms. The faces were like death shrouds. No eyes or teeth were left. It was just a face with gaping holes. The man had a large sword strapped to his back. The hilt was made of bone. Finn could only imagine that it was sheathed in some hideous manner.
The man rode to one of the gorgons in a yellow and black tunic. The two leaders discussed the captives. Finn could see the Skin Slaver motioning with his hands over the prisoners. The gorgon was not overly concerned with the Skin Slaver's gestures. Two other gorgons wearing a yellow and black tunic joined them. Finn thought the discussion was becoming angry, due to the gestures of the Skin Slaver. Still, there were now three gorgons and only one slaver. The slaver was either overly confident or completely ignorant of his situation.
One of the gorgons made a nodding gesture and then walked away, as if nothing had happened. The Skin Slaver rode back towards the captives. He spoke to other slavers in a tongue that Finn did not recognize. It was a harsh guttural language. One of the slavers whipped the oxen pulling his wagon. It was covered in hard wood. A large trunk the size of a horse was in the back. It too was made of wood but it had thick metal strips pulled tightly over it. There was a key lock securing the lid. The slaver rode the wagons to a nearby group of gorgons. The gorgons grunted with effort as they took the trunk from the wagon. The trunk hit the ground with a thud, pushing dirt and dust from under it. The wagon lifted up when the trunk was removed. The slaver slapped the oxen a last time with the whip. They began to move again. This time the wagon was directed towards the captives.
The lead Skin Slaver yelled to the others, as he turned his reins on the jackal. The other slavers began to gather around the captiv
es. They stared at them without emotion. The slavers began to separate the men from the women, and children from the adults. The captives were like cattle at an auction. The slavers inspected their skin, mouth, and hair. Captives that passed the initial examination were put in a line to be inspected by an older slaver. The top of his dirty scalp was visible. He had long matted hair dangling from the sides of his head. He wore skins that were dark, most likely from the Claw Archipelagos. The old slavers teeth had a thick crust of yellow coating them. A stench of decay emanated from him.
Finn saw the captives being separated into groups. He grabbed Nylah’s hand and held it tightly. This would be their only chance. He knew, if they were separated, they would never see each other again.
“Finn,” Nylah whispered.
“Stay with me. We have to leave. We are going to run.”
Finn looked around frantically. A forest was to their northwest. However, they were fully surrounded.
“We are going to run,” Finn said again.
“We will never make it.”
“North and then west to those trees,” said Finn. He began to walk in that direction. He led Nylah by the hand.
“They will kill us,” said Nylah. The fear in her voice was palpable.
“They will kill us here or later. This is our only chance. They will split us up now.”
Finn turned and put both hands on Nylah’s arms. They were soft. He longed to have them around him. He looked directly into her eyes.
“If we don’t try now, we will be split up. I don’t see that we will have any other chance, Nylah. Now, you must listen.”
“Finn …”
“Listen, I will cause a distraction. I will get their attention. You must run to the forest. No matter what happens. Don’t look back, Nylah. Run as fast as you can. Do you understand?”
“What about you?”
“Don’t worry about me. I will try to meet you, but you must run and not look back.”
“You are lying. They will take you, Finn.”
“If only one of us can leave, it has to be you. Now, tell me you understand. Tell me you will run.”
A Dark Tyranny Page 8