Arlyse sat quietly, shifting slightly due to the cramped nature of the cage that was just big enough to fit her. She could see glimpses of the other cages in the dark room, though she wasn't sure how many were actually filled. She heard stories about what happened to the humans that were captured. Some were sold off, and if no one wanted them, they were either worked to death or used as food. She shivered a little as something cold and wet dripped onto her. The room was cold, and they didn't get much light until someone came into the room. She was afraid. Not only for herself, but for her people. She wasn't sure how long they would last without her predictions.
Xyrad watched as his brothers and sister went to the cheaper variety of humans, typically the ones that were barely of age to become slaves or the ones who were no longer able to do any hard labor, though they were typically going to be the first to fall if those three became bored for any reason. Even though it had only been a year since he lost an eye to one of his brothers, he knew it was time to at least browse the slave market to see if any were able to catch his eye. "Do you have any... unique humans?" The Obsidian Dragon said in a voice that was smooth, yet somewhat unamused, being thankful that he didn't have to keep brushing his kind of long, dark hair out of his face on the side that now had an eye patch, although he was carefully keeping track of his surroundings with a golden eye. He'd never been to the markets before now, and he was wary of the Kitsune dealer since he'd heard that most of his deals were very much overpriced in the past. That had earned him the chance to enter a room his siblings wouldn't have thought to check, only to realize that the slaves were being kept in much less than ideal conditions. It didn't take Xyrad long to notice one of the humans in particular seemed to be set at a much higher price than her counterparts, although he doubted that it was just because of her appearance that the price was so high.
"What's the story for this one? I doubt you set this high of a price for just her age and appearance alone."
I'd run anywhere else but here. Yeah, I'd light the match to burn all my fears, and now you and I, we don't differ. You gotta learn that an ending don't mean it's over.
"Ah, this one?" the dealer looked to the one he was looking at. "This one is believed to have an ability to tell when there is danger... her settlement had been hunted for some time, but every time the location was found, it was empty before it was raided. It took some scrying, but it was discovered that she would warn her people when there would be a raid..." He explained. He hadn't expected anyone of Xyrad's status to arrive, or he might have raised the prices. "If properly trained, she could give you an edge over your enemies... keeping you from harm.."
Arlyse looked up towards the two. She stayed quiet, wishing she could predict how her own life was going to end. at least it would let her come to terms with how she would die.
Xyrad couldn't help but remain skeptical at the idea of a human possessing danger perception, but upon turning this gaze back to her, he took the chance to take in her features for a second. The cage was just barely taller than she was while sitting, she was thin in a way that was healthy for her, and one glance at her palms told him that she had experience with herbs, though he couldn't help but feel that there was a grain of truth to the Kitsune's words. "I know I'm not going to hear the end of this from my siblings, but after Jethor decided to fight me for the title of heir, I could use an edge. I'll pay double, and to sweeten the deal..." He began to take off one of his gloves, revealing that nearly the entire back of it was covered in obsidian scales that he knew went for a fortune in some of the more illegal markets, though he didn't know if this Kitsune was a part of it as he felt for any loose scales. After successfully plucking six loose scales without major pain, he handed the money to the slave trader before personally handing him the scales soon after, his expression appeared to become more animated as he placed the glove back onto his hand. However, he still had five that had come off on their own, and he knew that the paleness of the human would make the scales stand out if they were to be made into jewelry, which was kept in mind as he watched her be released. "Take the chains off of her, and get some calendula and comfrey poultice. She's injured from how tightly you had them on her wrists." Xyrad had seen it before the Kitsune even took off the chains completely, and as he was able to look at her, he realized that maybe the high price had included her looks as a factor in determining it.
"Try not to move your wrists too much, but what's your name?" Xyrad was careful in his application of the poultice, and he held her hand carefully to make sure that she didn't jerk away, which was still possible despite the comfrey. He didn't mind getting his hands dirty like this, and besides, he didn't trust the Kitsune to apply enough. "My name is Xyrad Draco, and while I'm an Obsidian Dragon, I won't intentionally hurt you." He could already hear a commotion as he guessed that Bynne was using her fire breath to scare a few humans, and if luck was on his side, none of the latter were injured. "Don't let that scare you, that's just a power display going on outside from one of my siblings. Not that I'd do that willingly, but things are kind of unpredictable right now." He knew right as he spoke that he'd have to keep her close for her own safety, but it was then that he decided to try to confirm whether or not she was a herbalist, which ended up being true as he finished applying the poultice to her wrists. "Stay close, and try to keep your head down unless you're told to raise it by myself or my siblings until we start to leave the markets. My brothers, Jethor and Zerme, won't hesitate to try to knock a human to the ground for looking them in the eye, though my sister Bynne might try to hurt any new humans she bought for her own amusement. Once we get back to my home, I'll reapply more of the poultice and allow you to have full access to the herbs we have in stock so you can practice your herbalism. However, we're going to have to stop by a tailor to alert them to start making clothes for you, and you can tell them what material and style you'd like, if that's okay with you?" Right as he finished speaking, he gently grabbed her forearm, but to anyone else who didn't witness his exchange with her, they wouldn't know that his grip wasn't as tight as it appeared as he began to walk out of the room with her. Now Xyrad had to find his siblings before they ended up causing too much trouble, and luckily, he was able to start on the path to them very easily as other dealers began pointing him in the direction that they'd gone.
I'd run anywhere else but here. Yeah, I'd light the match to burn all my fears, and now you and I, we don't differ. You gotta learn that an ending don't mean it's over.
Arlyse watched Xyrad as he paid the kitsune. She was surprised at the fact that he would pay so much for her, as well as go through the trouble of removing scales to add to it. No one would pay that much for her just to kill her... right? She tried to move to the back of the cage when the kitsune came up to her and opened the door, even though she didn't have any room to do so. She was pulled from the cage by her wrists, the Kitsune glancing towards the buyer before unlocking the chains, causing her to wince. She hadn't really realized how much it hurt until they were removed. Her gaze went to Xyrad when he mentioned the poultice. She hadn't expected a... non-human... to know medicinal herbs like that. The Kitsune had left and returned with what he had asked for.
She stayed still like she was asked, and only winced slightly when he started to apply the medication. She was used to similar stinging sensations, such as when dealing with nettles. She didn't want to ask him about the herbs, so she instead answered his question. "...A..Arlyse.." She got more nervous when she realized she wasn't sure if she was supposed to address him as anything, or what she was supposed to address him as. She relaxed a bit when he introduced himself and said he wouldn't intentionally hurt her. That was.. a relief... ... maybe. It was hard to say. She glanced at the door when the sounds started up. She just nodded lightly when he told her to keep her head down and stay close. Sounded like it was the best way she was going to survive. The one thing that surprised her, though, was the fact that he wanted her to essentially pick out her own clothes. She assumed she would just be told to wear... whatever. She didn't have much time to think about it, though, since she was grabbed by her arm and pulled along. She kept up easily since he wasn't really pulling too much, or going too fast.
Maybe he wasn't too bad... She figured she could at least make sure he made it out of the market safely.
Arlyse, a unique name for a human, especially considering Xyrad usually noticed that Witches used that name out of the many non-human races. "Arlyse, that's not a normal human name by any means." He sounded intrigued as he spoke her name, but at the same time, he kept a neutral expression. They were within about twenty yards of where he'd heard his siblings at, but it was at that moment he realized what she had to address him as. "There are three things you may call me depending upon the situation. When we're around any other non-humans, call me either Your Majesty or Obsidian Dragon, and call me Prince Xyrad when we're around any other humans. If we're alone, and I know those moments might be rare, but I want you to call me Xyrad or by any other nickname you feel is appropriate. It'll be easy to figure out what types of Dragons my siblings and parents are once you meet them, but know that you mainly answer to me when it comes to orders, and do not let my siblings, especially Bynne and Jethor, see you show any sort of fear." That emotion had cost him already at this point, but now was not the time to explain as they had finally met up with the three Dragons right as the Chromatic Blue Dragon had partially shifted to allow for everyone at the market to see her bright blue wings as she lifted a very fearful human slave above her head while starting to fly as well. "Bynne, put the human down, now." The way he spoke made the female Dragon, Bynne, involuntarily do as he'd said as he used a rare Dragon trait known as The Voice to get her to listen, and he knew the effect was much more painful for humans when directed at them since he'd accidentally used it on one in the past. The Voice made Xyrad's voice harsh, and he protectively stepped in front of Arlyse as Bynne, Zerme, and Jethor decided to approach them with their humans in tow, which totaled six overall with each being claimed by the scales they wore.
Bynne had bought three, as evident by her scales being displayed on each of their necklaces having five Chromatic Blue scales.
Zerme had only gotten himself one, which had a bracelet made from five Silver Dragon scales adorning her left wrist.
Jethor had purchased two humans, and because of his actions in the past, his humans had a much simpler necklace than the other humans with only one Metallic Steel Dragon scale hanging from them.
"Must you always be the serious one and use your gift to ruin our fun, Your Highness?" The Metallic Steel Dragon's voice was dripping with fake boredom, but Xyrad could tell that his brother was carefully hiding the malice that had taken over since their duel a year ago. "Jethor, cut the act. You and I both know that you enjoy watching Bynne hurt and scare humans, but at least her and Zerme can draw the line at the sight of any injuries." The comment had swiftly been ignored as the steel haired Dragon, Jethor, came over to inspect the human as Bynne and the Silver Dragon, presumably Zerme, also came over as well. "Does she have your permission to raise her head, Xyrad?" The youngest male, Zerme, asked with a hint of curiosity, and it was clear that he was covered in the most scales compared to his siblings since his sister had the least showing in her completely human form that she'd taken after the eldest of the Dragons had arrived. "Yes, but one wrong move from any of you, and I will hurt whoever hurts her. Do I make myself clear?" He then moved to allow for better access, but he kept close to the human to make sure that nothing was going to happen to her on his watch. "Arlyse, please lift your head. Meet my siblings: Jethor the Steel Dragon, Zerme the Silver Dragon, and Bynne the Blue Dragon." He'd carefully released her arm just enough to where he could have a reasonable reaction time to grab her in case things went south, but to his siblings, it didn't appear to be in a protective way as he watched them study her. "I never thought I'd see the day when big brother would buy himself a slave of his own, but the next time you use that gift of yours on me again, I'll pluck your scales off before roasting you." Xyrad actually appeared to smile at the threat Bynne gave, and considering he wasn't at all concerned, it almost appeared that he was closer to her than his brothers.
However, due to his proximity to Arlyse, only she could tell that Xyrad was tense as Jethor came to inspect her, which was odd considering he didn't appear to have a reason for it at the moment.
I'd run anywhere else but here. Yeah, I'd light the match to burn all my fears, and now you and I, we don't differ. You gotta learn that an ending don't mean it's over.
She couldn't help but be curious as to why he would think it wasn't a normal human name. She supposed non humans had greatly different names than humans did, since there were so many other species with their own languages. She wasn't sure why she should care, though. Non humans took over the world before she was even born and drove her species nearly to extinction... being a slave wasn't really even any better, since the majority of them ended up dead anyways. Her mind wandered to what he said she could call him, and what to call him when. At least he stated the specifics of each. It made things far easier for her, and give her a better chance at surviving. Not showing fear, though, would be difficult. She was completely terrified inside, knowing anyone could decide to kill her... just for the fun of it. She needed to do her best for self preservation.
Even though her head was towards the ground, her eyes went slightly up to the group coming towards them after he had told one to put down the human she was tormenting. Maybe dying was going to be better than the situation she was now in. All she could really do was listen, though she could tell there were more humans in tow of the three who approached. She wondered how long they would last... how long she herself would last. She lifted her head whenever she was told to, doing her best to keep calm.
Jethor seemed to be completely emotionless as he studied Arlyse, and since Xyrad wasn't being forceful with her, it was likely that he had something planned for her in the future. Of course the Obsidian Dragon was on guard in case his younger brother were to do something, but the younger Dragon's rose colored eyes perked up as he noticed her fear. Although it was clear that one wrong move would result in his head being ripped from his body, all he gave was a huff before speaking in a low voice to the human that even the other Dragons had difficulty picking up. "Xyrad won't always be here to protect you, and there's a storm coming that I hope you will manage to survive once it hits because it will be devastating." At that moment, the girl was pulled away from him as the eldest of the currently present Dragons stepped in between them again, but Zerme could tell she was shaken by whatever the middle brother said to them. "Arlyse, please lower your head and stay close." "You picked a good one brother, but she's more suited for cleaning than anything else. Bynne, we should keep our humans close to us for the time being in case Jethor decides to threaten them in any way. He's got to be planning something big in the future, and we're going to need all hands on deck for when that happens." The Blue Dragon kept her comments to herself before silently giving the orders for her slaves to follow her to a more open area so she could shift and return home. Once Jethor and Zerme did the same, Xyrad turned to face Arlyse before removing a glove from one of his hands putting that hand on her forehead for a brief second.
Xyrad had another ability due to his nature as a Gem type Dragon, although it became rarer with each generation since they'd began to take on human forms around six hundred years ago, mainly as a way to watch out for another uprising of Demons after a rebellion that caused all non-humans to unite in an effort to stop them. He felt his palm heat up in a way that was more like a fire was beginning to catch on the kindling, but instead of burning Arlyse, it began to burn at the negative emotions caused by the encounter with Jethor, and he felt his hand grow cold as he pulled it away, quickly replacing the garment as he shook his head to clear the remnants of the negative emotions from his thoughts. "You can tell me what was said to you later, and don't expect that ability I just used on you to be used often. Using my Empathy... it takes a toll if I use it too much, and I can only take on so many negative emotions at once if I know the source, which makes it harder when I know there's a lot more going on beneath the surface because of my grandfather's actions causing the invasion of Norden. Though let me be the first to welcome you to the mainland for Oscana, the 'Land of Monsters' as your ancestors used to call us back in the day after we united with the Elementals and the Angels to help seal the Demons away after the Infernal War." Caelum and Elementa had done nothing to help Norden after the invasion, but after contacting them to see if there was any signs of the seal on Inferos was starting to break around the time he was a hatchling, that was when the rumors about a human Key began to spread like wildfire. As of right now, he didn't realize that as he led her through the markets to get more of the supplies she'd need to both prove and improve her ability alongside her clothes, he'd actually formed an emotional link to her for some unknown reason, but he had his own reasons to be nervous to begin with as he gauged her reactions to their surroundings. At that moment, they happened to arrive at what appeared to be an upscale shop that focused on scrying tools known as Mystia's Scrying Tools, and while Xyrad wasn't all that familiar with the first Witch to appear in the Shade family in generations or her work, this was a good starting point for Arlyse to learn how to scry so she could improve her gift in the future.
"Do you want to go in, or should we focus on getting you clothes instead?"
I'd run anywhere else but here. Yeah, I'd light the match to burn all my fears, and now you and I, we don't differ. You gotta learn that an ending don't mean it's over.