Last time he had casually approached the slave pen, however, now it was done with much more care, as he looked around every corner and inside every shadow twice, cautious of someone being there.

  Even so, his dark attire provided good cover in the dark, a poor man's invisibility, but it got him inside unnoticed.

  As hoped, everyone was asleep. ‘No need to wake all of you, all I need is to find Thirsty.’

  Yet that plan could easily be derailed. Last time he’d attempted this, that slave master had been here, and he’d only just missed being spotted by a hair; however, down here, his chances were much bleaker.

  He was close and carefully keeping to the shadows in the dim crystal light as he looked down every hallway.

  ‘So far so good, no sign of that bastard.’ Of course, he could just be inside one of the cells, doing any manner of horrors, but from the lack of sounds aside from snoring and the slight rattling of chains, it was quiet. ‘Even someone like that takes part in the tradition, it would seem.’

  Even so, he was careful not to wake any of the slaves as he scoured the place, eventually finding an open cell with Thirsty sleeping inside. Despite the darkness, he could see the room wasn’t as barren as the other ones, with some fur on the floor used as bedding.

  Naturally, it struck Kenneth as odd that he would choose to sleep on the cold floor when he had no fur.

  ‘Now then, how do I wake him without scaring him?’ he wondered as he stepped inside. ‘I don’t exactly have a comforting mask or face for that matter--‘

  The moment his foot touched the inside of the cell, Thirsty sprang awake, half-crouching on his feet as his eyes searched the dark quickly landing on Kenneth, as he looked confused.

  ‘At least it was silent,’ Kenneth thought as he started the conversation quietly before he had a chance to speak. “Sorry, I woke you, Thirsty. I would have done it more gently.”

  He slowly rose to his feet and looked around; however, Kenneth had been around Aki enough to know rising caution when he looked at it.

  “If you are looking for my... I’m gonna call her my bodyguard, she’s outside. Between you and me, she doesn’t really like it here, and it’s not like there’s any other exit than the entrance.”

  “What you do for I?” he asked, matching the quiet tone.

  “You can just speak normally, you know I speak Aki as well as Nok,” Kenneth said, studying his body keenly, noticing a few new, fresh scrapes and scratches.

  “What can I do for you?”

  “It’s not what you can do for me, but what I can do for you, you see, your master asked me if I could heal some of those new wounds. He said there was no use in using an actual healer like Nokset when I was here,” Kenneth said. “And well, I’m all for helping people.”

  Thirsty ears both twitched and both eyes blinked twitchingly, as he slowly sat down, “I... I see. Thanks.”

  ‘So far so good,’ he thought, getting to work. Now, a lot of his wounds weren’t stitch-worthy, but he needed time and a reason to talk. “Sorry about the pain, but it helps talking a little about something.”

  “...I do not need to talk... the pain is fine,” He winced.

  “Come now, I’m a doctor, a healer, whenever the pain can be lessened, I lessen it, so how about I start with a simple one. Why do you not sleep on the furs?” Kenneth asked, able to feel his cold skin through his gloves.

  “They are my reward for good work.”

  “...I see. And what kind of work do you do?”

  “Whatever master tells me,” he answered.

  “Okay, and what does that entail, like your daily duties?” Kenneth inquired.

  He shook a little as the needle poked his skin, but it didn’t seem like a pained reflex. “I watch the slaves, I feed the slaves, I notice when the women are swelling, and do what is needed if I have to.”

  “You mean you have helped deliver babies?”

  “Only told, not done it yet.”

  “Well, I’ve helped do it before, and the first time is always scary, but by the third or fifth, you barely feel nervous, as long as everything goes well, of course,” Kenneth explained. “I mean, even when I had to deliver Aki babies for the first time, I mean, I was worried, but it was par for the course, and they were such cute darlings. But I probably don’t have to tell you, you must have seen plenty where you were from, haven't you?”

  “…………I saw many come, many leave right in time,” Thirsty hesitantly answered him.

  “Yeah, it is terrible what war does, killing, murdering, brutality, stripping you of who you were. So, who were you before you were Thirsty?”

  “…A guard commander…”

  “I’ve known a few in my time, all different, so what kind were you?”

  His shaking grew more intense, and Kenneth could clearly see that talking about it, even just remembering, was difficult, if not traumatic. Every fiber of his being told him to stop; he was a doctor, he wasn’t supposed to make his patients feel worse, but he couldn’t.

  “The pain will just be worse the more you don’t talk, and I’ve still got a lot of flesh to stitch, so you'd better start talking,” Kenneth said, feeling dirty.

  “I was liked and hated. I was taken off my duty many times by the commander. She did not like how I looked, but no one wanted to be the guard commander, instead wanting me to be it.”

  “Sounds like you were a man of the people, not so much those in charge,” Kenneth said in slight relief. “So, do you miss it?”

  “…There is… there is nothing to miss…” he replied.

  “I see… I’m sorry to hear that, but if it’s any comfort, my people have a saying. You are never really gone until you are forgotten. So are they important to you?”

  “…yes… I-I remember them.”

  “Do you? Because I personally doubt someone who can forget what his name was remembers much.” He was walking a fine line, but he had to facilitate some kind of independence or unearth some.

  “…I know…” he said, shaking, though he honestly couldn’t tell whether it was out of anger or fear, or a monstrous mix as he turned his head around. “Fashik is my name. I remember.”

  “But for how long?” Kenneth asked, his heart racing. “I can see your body, how long before it crumbles, how long before you are deemed useless. They will die with you, all of them, friends and family, all at the whim of the slave master. He doesn’t care about your life, or theirs.”

  Fashik sat there quietly for a moment. ‘I hope he hasn’t shut down on me. But if so, I'll just have to work at him until—“

  “Master asked you here?”

  “Huh…? Yeah, he did, to treat your wounds—“

  Suddenly, Fashik jumped to his feet and ran. Kenneth barely had time to think as he reacted, leapt ahead, wrapped his arms around his waist, and tackled him to the ground.

  “Yi—“

  Barely without thinking, Kenneth grabbed his snout and shut him up before too much noise was made.

  He struggled fiercely, but even one-armed, he managed to restrain both arms with his own, while keeping his yell muffled. “Hey, what’s the big idea? Why did you try to run like that?”

  Of course, him probably giving Fashik a near anxiety attack and then restraining him could have nothing to do with it, though, nevertheless, Kenneth lessened his grip on his snout a little.

  Kicking his feet, Thirsty squeaked out, “master did not send you. The guard is not with you.”

  He tightened his grip, ‘dammit, how does he know? Did I say something…? It doesn’t matter, if he tells on me now… I have too… no, I won’t even think of that as an option, but how do I convince him to not only not rat me out, but also join in on my plan?’

  Even in his unyielding grip, Fashik didn’t stop struggling. ‘Damn, this guy doesn’t give up, does he? He just keeps… Fashik… no… it couldn’t possibly be…”

  It was crazy to even consider, but he couldn’t think of any other idea. He leaned in close and said into his ear, “Cyrus, Kaci, Esha, Nya Kakili.”

  Suddenly, his struggling stopped as he turned his head to look into Kenneth's eyes, loosening his grip. “Ho-how do you… How do you know those names… I never even told the master.”

  “You really are that Fashik,” Kenneth said in such relief that he almost chuckled. “You remember that Aki woman I told you about, that was her Nya, the commander of that outpost that was burned down when Nok attacked it. Her mother and father were Noki and Imati, and her grandfather, the one all called insane or something like that, was Cyrus.”

  “What… what is her fur color?”

  “Light red, more or less, and by her inner left thigh, she has a white spot, only saw it once though,” Kenneth said as he slowly let him go, keeping his guard up.

  He almost grabbed him again the first time he moved; however, it was not to flee but simply to turn around to face Kenneth, his expression a mix of disbelief, distrust, and hope.

  “What happened after?”

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  He explained everything about how he was at the old battlefield when it happened and how he found Nya fleeing, as well as how she attacked him, adding details only someone who met and saw would know, while avoiding mentioning that he kinda knocked her out. Yeah, hitting a pregnant woman, even if she was trying to kill him, didn’t sit well with him, and probably not her mate.

  “And that was the last time I saw her after she ripped her eye out; she asked me to deliver a message for her children,” Kenneth finished.

  Fashik simply stared wide-eyed as tears fell.

  “Ar-are you okay—?”

  “She really is alive… I saw… I saw her running, but I wasn’t… I didn’t know if…”

  “She is, and so are your kids, all of them safe and sound in the capital with her family, now do you want to see them again and leave this place?” Kenneth asked firmly.

  All feelings that had been before were suddenly replaced by fear. “No master knows, master always knows, always watches.”

  “Your master isn’t watching now,” Kenneth said, trying to snap him out of it. “You alone are trusted to have the keys, sleep without being locked in; that’s why I need you.”

  “No, no, master knows all, master gets it out of me, there is nothing I can hide, all is bare for master, and if not, I will be thirsty again,” his growls grew exponentially.

  “You don’t need to lie to your master, you don’t even need to do anything different for now, you can act the same, all you just have to do is lead everyone here,” Kenneth told him.

  “I’m no leader… I’m Thirsty I’m Thirsty I’m Thirsty.”

  “No, don’t shut down on me, think of Nya.” That seemed to catch his attention. “Think of your kids, think about holding them for the first time. That was robbed from you by these Nok. Think about everything they have just robbed you of: the sound of their voices, their first words, their first steps, their laughter, the worry they feel that melts away in your arms as you comfort them, and everything else. That’s what they have robbed from you.”

  He still looked afraid, but it was a conflicted fear, one battling for supremacy inside him.

  His body twitched, as tears fell, while he scratched his body and clacked his fangs, almost tearing at the seams, as he desperately turned to Kenneth. “I… I-I don’t… know what to do?”

  The fear his master had instilled in him was tremendous, and stood on equal footing with the love from his family and the hope he had ignited in him.

  “For now, only two things.” His voice was calm, but it cut clean through to Fashik as he listened. “Just a little while longer, you pretend to be Thirsty, do your duties, play the part, but once the time comes, I need you to lead, to show everyone you want nothing but to escape. And while you wait, when no one is watching, take one of your fingers and press on the skin inside your mouth for a long time, all over.”

  “I-I can pretend…” Fashik said his voice breaking. “I can do…”

  “That's good to hear,” Kenneth said, placing his hand on his shoulder. “Remember, if you ever feel yourself about to tear at the seams, just keep Nya, Cyrus, Esha, and Kaci, all of them in your mind. And one more thing. ”

  There wasn’t anything more to be done on this front, as he carefully sneaked his way out of the slave pen, none of them awake to see him.

  It had been a gamble, but at least on the onset, it looked to have paid off.

  ‘Now all I need is Thirsty, having lied to me, only pretending,’ Kenneth thought darkly. ‘ I mean, what are the chances he’s actually… it had been some time, yes, and even if, when Nya’s outpost fell, he was taken directly back here, that would be under half a year… I’m guessing. Would someone become so obedient and trusted in such a short time? Then again, I’ve never met the slave master, so…’

  He breathed a heavy sigh. ‘It doesn’t really matter, for now, all I can do is stay the course and… shit!!!’

  Trapped in his own doubts, Kenneth had been casually walking down the street, forgetting he was supposed to avoid being seen, and now, from the corner of his eye, he noticed someone in the dark tugged in between the sloped walls of two buildings.

  He was frozen, locked in place, and as he turned his head, the dark figure looked familiar, especially how his clothes stood out.

  ‘Nokset!’ Kenneth realized. ‘Why is he here?! And… wait, is he crying?’

  It was quite hard to believe, given the situation, but it seemed that it wasn't quite Nokset that had caught him, but the other way around, as in the midst of sniffling, he noticed Kenneth and, barely giving a second glance, turned away, and quickly left.

  ‘What the hell…? Do I say something?’ He quickly questioned. ‘Maybe we just part ways, and nothing will happen. But if he even mentions this to anyone that I’m out here alone, then…’

  “Finally found you, and you are just running away, rude.”

  Nokset stopped and looked back at Kenneth. “What?”

  “Yeah, I’ve been looking for you, and I gotta say, you didn’t make it easy, but… here you are.”

  “Come to mock me, have you?!” He hissed.

  ‘Okay, good. There wasn’t a guarantee he would tell anyone about this, but if he did, I could be in deep trouble. One thing is me sneaking away under the pretense of putting Kolu, and Nokstella to sleep, another is me wandering around doing god knows what,’ he thought. ‘It would probably lead to, at the very least, increased security, or just Split watching me twenty-four-seven. But worst of all, it would put the escape plan on indefinite hold at the worst possible time. At least now I’ve established an alibi of sorts.’

  “Why would I mock you?” Kenneth genuinely asked. “I just noticed a lack of you below and wandered around until I found you. So… mind telling me what's on your mind?”

  “Shut your snout, you… You freak!” He hissed. “All you do is torment me! Force me to learn something I don’t need and, then mock, make fun of me!”

  Nokset turned around, storming off.

  Kenneth actually didn’t need to do any more. If anything, the conversation coming to a close this soon was best for him; that meant his alibi was established, and it was less likely anyone who might be looking for him would find him out here. But even so…

  “I have a proposal if you wouldn’t mind listening,” Kenneth said to Nokset, who, despite how angry he was, at least stopped up to listen. “How about right here, right now, we have a conversation, no hostility, no comments, just a simple conversation.”

  “Why would I do that?” He snarkily responded.

  “There’s clearly something you need to get off your chest, and I’m guessing I’m a part of it, so I’m giving us both an opportunity to get through this, since come hell or high water, tomorrow there’s still class.”

  Nokset breathed heavily for a bout a minute, then dried his eyes. “Fine, let’s talk.”

  There was a bit more hostility in the sentence than there should have been, but at least he agreed to it. “So I’m guessing you don’t like me very much.”

  “Oh, you're being funny now! Of course, I don’t like you!” Nokset shouted. “You come here thinking you are a better person when you don’t have magic, disrespect me, and treat me like I’m some misbehaving child to be punished!”

  “Well then, Nokset, let me set the record straight, I’m not a better healer than you,” he said, Nokset’s expression changing from angry to exalted, before eventually settling on confusion in all of a few seconds. “I can’t magically heal people. All I have is experience and knowledge.”

  “So… all of this is what? You hate me because I’m better than you, and you punish me?!” Nokset emotionally accused.

  Kenneth simply replied. “As good a healer as you are, in truth, all I’m trying to do is make you a better healer, anyone really who wants to learn, who wants to help others. I’ll be very clear, at first I disliked you, but after I learned your crotch grab… well, it wasn’t something as bad here as where I’m from, and the only reason people have an issue with you is because you try to be dominant. Honestly, I just thought ‘get over yourselves’ to those who told me.”

  “You… wha…”

  “That’s pretty much all of it there,” Kenneth said.

  In the dark, it was nearly impossible to tell what color his scales were, but even so, it was clear to see he was confused, maybe even conflicted. “Do you remember the question I asked?”

  Kenneth thought for a moment, “That one with my worth.”

  “So do you know it, have you understood it?”

  “Are we talking gold here, because then I’m guessing—“

  “They don’t care about you,” he interrupted. “Their smiles, their friendliness, all of it is a lie. We are healers, we help them, we save them, but they don’t care about us.”

  “I don’t think I quite understand.”

  “How many of them have bothered to know your name, after you’ve healed them? I saw almost everyone each month, for years, and barely anyone called me anything other than healer…”

  “Come now, I’m sure at least…”

  “Not one of them cares about us… at least… at least I had them. We were all healers, I was the youngest, but they were my friends, we knew each other… understood each other, and now they're gone…” Nokset sobbed.

  “…Nokkrik told me once, you know, that you used to be kinder, happier, a bit of a different person,” Kenneth said calmly. “I don’t know about everyone else, but she seems to care about you. She seems to know how hard you must have taken that loss.”

  With tears running down his face, Nokset hugged his knees. “So what?”

  “Maybe there’s a lot of rotten, ungrateful apples in this basket, but that doesn’t mean all of them are.”

  “Do you think I pretend because I want, lost my friends?” Nokset bitterly replied. “I wanted to cry when I heard, but I was the only healer, and helping everyone eased the sadness, that and the darkness when I couldn’t anymore. Life goes on, they are dead and I’m not, and that is how it is.”

  “That’s very mature of you, but trust me, you shouldn’t keep it all in.”

  “Why do you think I’m here?!” He snapped. “No one was supposed to see me crying over them… over everything.”

  “Then, with everything if not their deaths, what changed you?” Kenneth asked.

  “I realized my worth,” he quietly hissed. “When I… when we prayed each full moon, we were always together, some came, others went, but it was always… but with them gone, I had to go elsewhere, all accepted me no matter where I went, but no one wanted me. I tried once to never ask anyone, and no one came to me, not once, and they called me creepy behind my back for it. So if they chose my worth, might as well make them pay for it. ”

  “Sounds like a bunch of assholes,” Kenneth agreed with him. “My mother used to say if people aren't treating you right, just walk away.”

  Nokset let out a somber chuckle, “I didn’t think I would ever hear you, of all people, agreeing with me.”

  “Well, life’s full of surprises, but with everything I’ve just said, I have to ask, are you happy with this? Are you happy not being liked, hurting others, because you were hurt? Being the same to everyone, whether they like you?”

  “You're taking their side. I knew it,” he got up.

  “I’m not taking anyone’s side, but instead of expecting others to treat you right and then lashing out when they ain’t, maybe you could try another approach,” Kenneth suggested.

  “And what would that be?” Nokset asked, though his tone didn’t make it sound like an actual question.

  “Have you actually said any of this, your dissatisfaction with how you're being treated, so negligently?” Kenneth asked. “Because if not, then you haven't really been giving anyone a chance?”

  “What would it matter?” Nokset asked in a gruff tone. “Like any of them would actually care.”

  “Probably not,” Kenneth agreed. “Assholes will be assholes, but those are the kind of people who can’t even be bothered to learn someone's name. Trust me, I’ve run into my fair share, but once in a while, after you've trodden barefoot through a river of shit, you end up finding a diamond in the rough, maybe, my luck had me find a few.”

  “Maybe I’ve already found an emerald, Nokkuoras; he could at least remember my name when he asked me to heal him,” Nokset told with a smile. “Your work was sloppy, probably the reason he came to me. Those stitches on his throat were something even I could do better than you did. But it’s good to know you aren't perfect.”

  ‘My work is not perfect…? Stitches on the throat…? Nokkuoras, why does it sound familiar…?’

  “You listening at all?!”

  Snapped out of his thoughts, Nokset looked despleasidly at him.

  “Sorry.”

  “…If you ain’t listening anymore leave… besides I want to be alone,” Nokset said, leaning up against the sloped wall behind him while Kenneth obliged. “I…! I’ve had worse talks.”

  “…Me too, and good evening,” Kenneth bid goodbye.

  Though his worries had lessened, they weren’t gone as his mind now occupied another question. “My work slobby…? Who did I stitch? Nokkuoras, Nokkuoras, Nokkuoras… wait a minute… isn’t that Nokiolite’s student? But I never treated him with stitches… so how? And if his throat was cut, there should have been a lot of… blood…’

  “… Wait a minute, no… could he have been the one I was running after?” Kenneth gasped out loud. ‘But why…? Why was he there…? Why did he run…? Why……… no, he was there, the door flung open and hit Nokstella…. Wait at the door!’

  Kenneth’s heart raced as he broke into a sweat. ‘When she choked me. The doors on those houseboats closed by themselves… was he there too… why didn’t I… wait, wait, wait… no, that’s insane, why would he… just be there…?’

  So much was happening inside Kenneth's head, a maelstrom of memories, instances, ideas, and paranoia. All of it culminated in one plausible answer, ‘he’s watching me…’

  It made sense. If you had a tool, why not use it? And Nokuji could be certain he was being watched thoroughly, with two people telling her the same report each day, so she was certain he stayed in line.

  All of it had Kenneth paralyzed in dread as one question lingered in his mind, ‘Is he watching me now?’

  The silence was his answer.

  He couldn’t be certain, but if he had, it would only be a matter of time before Nokuji knew his plan and, whatever hell she could bring, would come crashing down. The only thing that kept him from just running for the hills and hoping for the best was the possibility that he hadn’t been there to listen.

  Though it didn’t give him much relief, however, his other options weren’t that great. So he simply returned to Kolu, and Nokstella, who still peacefully slept, chewing on his shoulder.

  He didn’t get any sleep, nervously lying with them both for maybe the last time for as long as he could, each moment feeling like an eternity, until the door began to open.

  It was now.

  He sat up and prepared himself. There was a voice, but he couldn’t hear what was said or who said it, as suddenly Split came crashing down the stairs, hitting the ground with a hard thud.

  Kenneth watched in shocked disbelief as she lay bloody on the ground, her clothes torn, each fresh wound oozing, adding to a slowly growing puddle.