Branded

Dawn came running fast, the children, awoken by a loud bang and heavy footsteps. Supposedly, it was the same men they expected to come, even Alyce expected it. The girls beside him also woke up and was met by the loud noise.

The two leaned closer to him, and same did the others in their cages.

Thump Thump Thump

Noise in the morning

Loud and ringing

The men come up

Marching and stomping

Here they come and in they're going

Bang Bang Bang

Alyce hummed while tapping his foot, earning a look from the two girls. Alyce, upon noticing them, looks away to avoid their gaze

"They must've thought I'm crazy huh? To hum at a time like this", he chuckled in his mind. Alyce loved to create poems and rhythms, even from his past life. He would randomly make one in his mind and sang it only to himself all the time.

And as expected, the door flung wide open. The same men came in with heavy cuffs and chains on their hands. Laughing to themselves, seeing their victims cower at the sight of them.

The two did the same, hiding themselves behind the blonde boy.

Alyce stared the men directly, his ears flapping quite rapidly, his heart beating faster than ever before. As he was feeling this, he felt a chill down his spine… panic. As if to prepare for something big, he began to feel empty. Nothing, just a feeling of rage in his mind, ticking his patience away.

"What's happening?" he asked himself. Not knowing where this sudden emptiness came from.

The two girls felt cold arms wrapped around their waists, both turned to look at Alyce who had nothing but dull green eyes stared forward. His pupils didn't waver when the group he stared at moved. None of them dared to speak, both hearts were beating out of their chest. The atmosphere Alyce had created was even more scarier than what the men did.

It was just plain silence to them unlike the other who had whimpers and cries, one boy couldn't take the fear and ran, slamming his body hard to the cold poles of the cage. Grasping it tight and pulling it while he shouts,"Let me out please!". Banging himself against the cage, begging. The others stood quiet and watch the scene as the boy, to only be slap on the face by a long black whip that slithered so fast in the room.

The boy reacted, grabbing his swollen cheek and slowly turned noticing a tall woman covered in all black petting her whip. Behind her were some men, never been seen before appeared at the entrance.

They walk around the room carefully examining each of the children's traits. As always it's the cats or wolves that had a big population in the kingdom. Many years has passed and the humans grew tired of them, it was the same species over and over again. They wanted something new, rare, something that can turn the entertainment on the stage.

The most popular type of slaves right now was the winged-people. Basically people with wings like the birds. And for each feather has a magic that differs from one another. People will do anything to hunt them down, it was a luxury to own one.

The woman strolled in each child until she came across the last cage. Alyce's cell. Snooping around seeing three children inside. Two girls and one boy. It was only for a moment when she took a glimpse on a quiet kid in the back. Dark at first but then his golden hair glimmered. Closely approaching the cell, she took a glance on his body, a fare skin and a slender body. It was top-notch, quite special for anyone to see.

"Oh what a wonderful sight to see a pure thing dangled in chains and blood. Oh how exciting!", she cheered mentally sending chills to everyone in the room. Her black eyes glistened into black jewels as she thought of a sight. Flushing crazy red on her face.

Strucking a familiar tingle on the boy. "It can't be...a yandere?", Alyce wondered. Turning his stomach into butterflies, but not that kind of happy nervous feeling. He continued to stare in caution. "She looks like a madwoman!", inner Alyce shouted, fretting back to the inner part of the cell. Pushing his back backwards even when there's no more space.

The woman rummaged to her collection of keys and unlocked the cage. The door made an awful screeching sound, she quickly grab ahold of Alyce's cheeks. The girls squeaked, terrified, when the woman approached them. No, him, what could she possibly want? The woman check his sides, observing every nook of his body. "Good, this one will do", she hummed in a glee. Rising up from her kneel with her hand forcing to drag the boy up and out of the cell.

"Stop! Yo-you can't take him!". A trembling shout came from the cell, the woman look back and saw the little brunette stood firm on the ground. As if she swallowed all her fears she

shouted at the woman. All eyes darted at her, some thought "She should not have done that" or "Stand down and just worry about your own safety girl". In their eyes was an act of bravery but it was also an act of stupidity. Who would want to charge at the humans like that? Is what they all thought.

Ella tugged the lady's gown, mouthing her to sit down. But the lady wouldn't budge, still quivering but stood tall. Ella felt a sense of shame rushed into her, how could she? Alyce was always there for her yet she chose to shut her mouth and never act. She was scared, but how much more for the lady infront of her. She must be scared than I was, but...but...Ella continued to curse herself.

The woman send Alyce to the side only for him to be pinned down by the men. She dawdled towards the cell and chokehold the little lady. Rising her up away from the ground as the girl choke on her own.

"What was that?", repeated the woman. "You can't take him!", the little girl shouted back at the woman still trembling and gasping for air. But here pupils clearly meant to look down on the woman, with a trembling smile she left on her face. A small glimmer shined on her neck, hidden under the ruffles of her clothes. Somehow it slip out from the covers revealing a small jade pendant with a mark.

Small but it was equal as a threat to any dirty workers out there. The woman immediately let go of the girl as she slump on the ground coughing and regaining the right amount of air. The woman said no more while having a disturbing expression.

Indeed after a short pause, before anyone can say a word, came shouting and clanging of weapons above the room. "Captain, were under attack!", "JADES AHEAD!", the men outside shouted.

"Jades? Sounds fancy", Alyce snorted. The woman click her tongue in annoyance and look back at the girl who was half-smirking.

It was a small silver pendant with a jade on the middle, formed in a mask and hat symbol. It was a basic knowledge to anyone who lives in the kingdom, not once has this crest have been forgotten or not known.

She turned her back on everyone and tugged Alyce on his collar. She spoke in another language, a language Alyce never knew. Spoke to her men before leaving the room with Alyce. He stumbled as he tried to restrain from the pull. Hearing the cries of his friends and other children as they darted awy from the room.

Soon they arrived infront of a small door, rotting all around as if it was meant to be ignored or hidden. The woman yanked Alyce with her as she entered the room. Shoving the blonde on the floor, she stomped Alyce with her heel as she took out a long cane and placed it on a fire burning at the side.

"Curse this woman stepping on me", grunted Alyce. He tried to stand up with all his might but the woman pressed him down. His animal insticts act on it again, the same burning rage started it again. But it didn't gave any help with his struggles.

The boy was too busy to notice a burning smell coming from above. A small furnace was four feet above him, small ashes escapes the fire in the furnace. Along with a long handle with a symbol made of metal rest near the fire.

A dirtied cloth was lowered and shoved in his mouth, the woman tied it tight leaving the boy choked and gagged over it. Before Alyce knew what was going on, a hot sizzling feeling pressed against his back.

His eyes slowly shot up wide open as if in motion. "MMFFFGGHH!", screamed Alyce. Loud screams filled the room. The thing pressed against him gave him a sudden pain, a burn, a punishment. Was it? He flailed his arms and legs around, the pain shot through out his body. Flinching whenever the thing pressed his back.

It's hot. It burns. It's painful. Alyce felt it all. The woman smirked as she enjoyed the cries of the child. When she took it out, a red devil's tail and roses mark revealed. And with a red, swollen, and burnt back with it.

A mark is what you could say. And with that, he was now a property of the Red Devil's. He gasp for air under the cloth that gagged him. Shuddering on the slightest movements that the woman does. The pain was like electricity, shocking and tense. Then pain and sorrows takes over.

He laid on the ground with his eyes half-open, having dull and the most little white light started to shrink. Trembling all over and beside was the woman cleaning her branding tool from his blood, satisfied for what she had gained.