From the fire into the flames. (Chapter 4)

I frowned as I woke up, the sun's light hitting my face like a slap. my once pristine features were marred by mud that covered half of my face. I groaned, lifting myself up inside the small cage that imprisoned me. Little children gathered around, their eyes wide with curiosity as they watched me struggle. my head throbbed as I tried to stand up, but the length of the cage wouldn't allow it. With no other choice, i settled for a sitting position and focused her ears on the chatter outside.

"Look she's awake," one of them said, their words foreign and incomprehensible to me. my mask-like crown lay abandoned on a far off table where a group of people noisily feasted. One thing did come to mind. they weren't lying about the smell. I hoped I didn't reek like them, my modern world mindset couldn't tolerate such filth.

It dawned on me that i'd witnessed someone die, but strangely felt nothing. An argument seemed to be brewing among my captors.

"Don't lay a finger on her!" a voice shouted, interrupting her thoughts.

Hours turned into days, each moment more unbearable than the last. As I sat in that cage, they would throw scraps of food at me, laughing as they watched me eat. Too hungry from days of not eating, I swallowed my pride and devoured the morsels. They seemed to be waiting for something or someone, and no matter how much I tried to talk to them, they ignored me. Perhaps they didn't understand, or maybe they just didn't care.

I was now a pitiful sight, sitting in a pile of my own filth, my once clean clothes stained and repulsive. Five torturous days passed before finally, someone arrived. A caravan appeared, lines of people shackled behind their wagons. Slavers were the only thing that came to mind. During those days I had tried to figure out who to use my elder blood but just couldn't, it wouldn't work.

"Hope you got me something!" a commanding voice echoed from the caravan's direction.

In a fleeting moment of dark humor, I remembered the hentai I had been drawing about a werewolf mounting a maiden and couldn't help but laugh. Hopefully, that wouldn't be my fate. The opening of my cage brought me back to reality and out of my own thoughts.

"Get up!" one of the men snarled, grabbing me by the arm. Another man mirrored his actions on my other arm.

Lifted off the ground, my feet dragged across the grass as they carried me forward. Malnourished and weak, I thought back to when I awoke in the sea. I had already been skinny, and these past few days had sapped much of what little strength I had left. They stopped in front of a Fat man whom I guessed was the Slaver boss. Unceremoniously dropped, I planted my face in the ground. The tribes laughed while the slaver and his guards seemed more interested in her.

"Interesting," the Slaver boss mused, walking forward and grabbing my hair causing me to lift my face, and examination before lifting one of my arms. He spoke to the man who had dragged her, "What's her story?"

"Found her like this," the man replied nervously, avoiding eye contact with the Slaver boss.

"Bring me her crown," the Slaver boss ordered. The man hurried to retrieve it, speaking in an unnerved tone before handing it over. The Slaver boss felt the intricate metalwork of the crown before lifting it up and instructing one of his men to bring him a slave.

what appeared to be a young boy, dressed in tattered rags, was led to the Slaver boss, fear evident in their eyes. The crown was placed upon their head, and everyone watched nervously as they waited for a reaction. After a few seconds, the boy began to scream in agony. He tried to remove the crown only to find it stuck on his head, tiny little claws digging into his scalp from the ornament. Some of the guards rushed to help, pulling the crown off and revealing the claw marks left by the mask.

"Kessa!" the Slaver boss barked, and a woman dressed in a yellow dress stepped forward from the Slaver's group, stretching out her hand.

The golden yellow light swirled around the boy, his wounds healing before their very eyes. I watched in awe, feeling a mixture of relief for the child and fear for my own situation. A fierce argument erupted between the Slaver boss and the tribespeople, their voices raised in anger as they gestured wildly at each other. Every so often the Slaver boss would point an accusing finger at Ellehish and shout something unintelligible.

"Like I said," bellowed a tall, muscular tribeswoman as she stepped forward, a large ax resting on her hip. "The lass was wearing it when we grabbed her! We didn't know it would hurt your merchandise."

The woman snatched the crown from one of the guards and approached me, as i braced myself for whatever pain might come. But as the crown was placed upon my head, nothing happened. No pain, no discomfort. slowly i opened my eyes in surprise, only to find that I could now understand the heated argument going on around her.

"Look what you've done!" the Slaver boss shouted at the tribespeople, his face red with fury. "You've damaged my goods!"

"Enough!" came a disgruntled voice. A man in blue robes stepped out from one of the wagons, a staff handed to him from within. He approached the arguing parties, exasperation was evident in his tone. "We're not here to sightsee or waste time arguing."

The robed man glanced at the crown on my head, just as it began to melt and merge with my skin. I felt a strange warmth, but no pain. He narrowed his eyes and looked back at the Slaver boss and the tribeswoman. "Get this over with and let's move on."

I couldn't believe my luck, the crown had somehow granted me the ability to understand their language. But with that knowledge came the realization of the situation. That I was about to be sold like merchandise.

As the arguing parties finally reached an agreement and began to disperse, I tried to come up with a plan. I had no idea how I would escape, But I would, No way I would server anyone as a slave.

My headache intensified as I gazed at the robed man. His eyes, cold and calculating, seem to bore into my very soul. I shuddered, feeling exposed and vulnerable. The whispers that followed me among the people only added to my unease.

"Look at her," one of the slavers muttered, nudging another. "Ain't she a pretty one?"

"she'll fetch a pretty price," the other replied with a grin. "maybe if we're lucky we can have a go at her."

The robed man approached the Slaver boss, whispering something in his ear. A vile smile crept across the boss's face, and he nodded eagerly. He haggled with the tribespeople for a few moments before tossing them a sack of coins.

"Congratulations, kid," the Slaver boss sneered at me, his breath reeking of rotten teeth. "Hippity hoppity, you're now my property."

His laughter was like nails on a chalkboard, making me cringe. Even his guards shook their heads, unamused by his crude humor.

"Chain her up with the others," the Slaver boss ordered.

I struggled as they cuffed my hands and feet, dragging me to join the line of slaves. Once shackled, I reached up instinctively to touch her crown, only to feel it still there.

As the caravan began to move, the chains pulled at my raw wrists, forcing me to stumble forward. I winced in pain.

Up ahead, the robed man looked back at her, his piercing gaze never leaving me. It was clear he held some power over what would happen to me but what were his intentions?

"Damn it all," I muttered under my breath, forcing myself to walk despite the pain threatening to consume me. "