The Miner

Taaa, taa, ta, ear-piercing sounds could be heard coming out of a dark hole on the side of a small barren mountain. 

Two guards in black robes stood outside this hole.They held long spears in their right hands.

Judging from the way they carried themselves,they most likely lacked the necessary spear proficiency.

The two men idly spoke about they family lives such as how hot their wives were and who had the hotter wife.They mainly focused on the brothel in the nearby town. The place had many beautiful women and these guards hoped to have them at least once before their deaths.

"I am tired of the slave women ." said one of the men.

"After three years,it is to be expected ." said the other.

They were surrounded by nothing for miles. The dark hole they protected every day had never been attacked and no one would dare do so. This had made the guards complacent.

"I can not believe that this used to be an actual forest." said one of the men. 

The other nodded his head as he looked at the tree stamps that surrounded the small mountain.

"This was inevitable. Ever since the spirit stone mine was discovered in this small mountain a few years back, the forest simply had to go. "responded the other man.

The two guards continued their chat over the mining sounds coming from inside the shaft.

When one followed the sounds into the dark shaft, one would discover a small world of its own.

There were countless tunnels leading in all directions. In each tunnel, one would see men and women in ragged clothes. These people used pick axes to dig at the sides of the tunnels while some dug to deepen the tunnels. These people looked malnourished with their bodies nothing more than bones but they continued with their work.

Their eyes seemed dead. They had no hope whatsoever.

The tunnels were damp and cramped , but no one complained. As these people worked, some men dressed similarly to the guards at the entrance could be seen moving about. These men held long whips.

Shwaaass, a guard whipped one of the miners that had stopped to rest for a moment. 

The sound of the whip made all the miners increase their efforts.

"You animals even have thoughts of slacking. You are criminals not fit for human society. Do your work and maybe you will get out of here." shouted the guard as he looked for his next victim.

All the miners or to be more precise, all the slaves flinched with each step taken by the guard.

With each crack of his whip, hearts beat faster and the sounds of pick axes shattering rock increased in the shafts.

This was the way of the mine. Day in and day out, the slaves worked to the bone just for the flimsy chance to survive the hell that was the mine.

Ta, ta, ta, ta, deep within the mine, a woman in rags swung a pick axe with all her might. 

She was covered in dust and mad covering up her appearance. Whether she was beautiful or ugly was a mystery but from her curvaceous body, she would not be considered ugly.

She had a nice ass, small waist and large breasts. This was all most men needed in a woman.

On top of all this, her body was tall and slender. Although her face could not be seen due to the mud that caked it, her body alone was enough for men to lust after her. 

She swung the pick axe as though her survival depended on it. 

She was alone inside this shaft but she did not seem to mind. Even the darkness that covered the shaft did not stop her actions. 

After a few minutes of swinging the axe, she stopped for a moment to catch her breath. 

She breathed rapidly with her chest moving up and down. 

When she finally regained her breath, she touched her belly with her right hand. 

She was pregnant. 

Her belly was already swollen and she could go into labour at any moment. 

She sighed slightly. She did not look worried at all. She had a beautiful smile on her face. 

She lovingly rubbed her belly for some time before she went back to work. 

She continued swinging the axe until she was able to get a small blue stone out of the wall. 

The stone shone with a brilliant light. Power emanated from the stone in waves. 

This was a spirit stone.

It was a mass of solidified spirit Qi. 

The woman smiled brightly as she examined the stone. 

"Finally, this should be enough to buy my freedom. "murmured the woman as she gently put the stone in a small bag that was tied around her dainty waist. When one looked at this woman, they would not get the feeling of someone being held in slavery. 

Her body was neither malnourished nor fat. It was simply fit. 

She continued her work until she heard a loud bell sound in the shafts.

"Time to meet my owners. "she said as she put the axe down. 

She moved to a corner where she grabbed a large black cloak that she used to cover her entire body including her face. 

The cloak was now just a rag but it was enough to cover up her beauty. In these mines, a beautiful woman would not survive. She needed to be something else.

The cloak was able to cover up her swollen belly as well. 

When she was done covering herself, her entire aura changed. She now looked like the most dangerous thing one could meet in a dark alley. 

She moved with confidence and power. This was not the walking style of a woman. This was how a full-blooded man walked in his territory. 

She walked through one shaft after another. The shafts seemed to form a long and complicated network that could confuse anyone. This was not the case for this woman who walked as though these shafts were a part of her. 

Finally, she emerged into a large opening. 

Hundreds of slaves had already formed a line.

At the head of this line, a guard with a scroll and a quill stood. 

He was making off something from the scroll. 

The woman did not waste any time as she walked to the front of the line. As she passed the other slaves, none of them dared look at her. 

The dark cloak waved behind her as though the embodiment of darkness itself. 

The other slaves faced the ground and closed their mouths.

When she was about to reach the front of the long line, a brave slave came out of the line and glared at her. This was a young man about twenty years old. 

"Why do you get to go to the front of the line ?" shouted the angry youth. 

The woman did not answer and made to avoid the young man. 

When he tried to move towards the woman, another slave tried pulling him backwards, but the youth was able to wiggle away from the other slave to face the woman. 

Bang, a single punch was all it took. 

The young man's head exploded like a watermelon. His brains splattered on the other slaves.Screams filled the place but the woman was not bothered in the least bit as she walked away as though nothing had happened.

When she reached the guard, she handed over her small bag. 

The guard said nothing. He grabbed the bag as respectfully as he could. 

His hand could be seen shaking slightly. His efforts to hide this fact were laughable. 

"Deduct the price for that slave over there. "said the woman.

 A heart-wrenching scream came from the back of the line.

"She killed him. She killed my son. "shouted an old man as he screamed his lungs out. 

The woman did not even turn around to see what was going on. 

She laughed in a manly voice that shook the hearts of many. 

"Of course I killed him. He dared block my path. A good dog should not block my path,did you not teach this to your son. "said the woman in a man's voice. 

The entire place went quiet.

"He is the Miner. There is a good reason as to why he is in charge of this place. "said one of the miners. 

The guard opened the bag and deducted the price for the dead slave. 

The woman turned around and walked to the side where she sat on a dilapidated chair as though it were her throne.

She then closed her eyes as the other slaves handed in their bags. "Ten strikes of the whip." declared the guard after some time. 

Sounds of a whip meeting flesh covered the entire cave. 

By the time the guard reached ten whips, the slaves had collapsed into a bloody mess. 

"If there is another slave who has not reached the quota, I suggest that you step forward to save us both some time. "shouted the guard with a smile on his face. The woman opened her eyes at this. 

She knew that trouble was about to begin. 

A few slaves became nervous. 

One of them jumped out of the line and ran for the exit. Everyone just shook their head. 

All the guards remained in their positions. 

Not even a single guard went to chase him down. 

A few seconds later, terrible screams could be heard out of the shaft where the slave had run. 

After the screams, there was total silence. 

Footsteps could then be heard approaching the opening.

A tall muscular man entered the place. His eyes were wild and his black beard was untamed. 

He was holding the head of the slave who had tried to escape. The young man's blood was dripping to the ground with a sickening sound.