Learning to be free

Z

Z'Greel

Guest
Original poster
There once was a tribe of Lizardkin living in the swamps of Gre'Dle, having little contact with the outside world. They lived there for the longest time, peacefully. But it all changed, when the Holy Empire of Mankind found them. The Holy Empire of Mankind is, as the name implies, an empire of humans. They forcefully converted any humans the met, and slaughtered or enslaved any other races they found. And that includes the Lizardkin of Gre'Dle. Whoever resisted was slain. Those who were too old, or crippled were executed. The rest were taken back to the capital of the empire to be sold as slaves.
The Empire had destroyed many races, but one they could not get rid of was the Elves. They had always been able to hold out, mostly by avoiding the main forces of the humans, ambushing whatever forces they could and raiding wherever they were exposed. And in most of their raids, they tried to save whatever slaves they could find.
 
Name: veil silverwind
age: 123
description: long pale hair to her waist usually to be found in a braid. Tanned skin with golden orbs for eyes. She wears the garb of hunters, a cloak brown pants and leather tunic, fingerless gloves. She has tribal tattoos as well
Race: mostly elven
Background: an woven huntress, she doesn't regard life as highly as other due to hardships in her own life
 
Name: Z'greel Joz'Ly
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Race: Lizardkin
Appearance: Green scales, some small horns. Rather tall, thought not the most muscled of people. Several scars on his back from whipping. Currently wearing some very torn pants and slave-shackles.
Personality: Used to be open and mostly cheerful, however have changed quite a bit since he was taken as a slave. He has started hating Humans, has become rather quiet and rather obedient.


Z'greel was, as usual, carrying food from the carts to the storerooms. It was one of the larger food-stockpiles in the area, and therefor it had quite a few guards guarding it. As he placed one of the crates in the storeroom and was about to leave, one of the guards kicked him down and laughed. It was nothing new, yet he would probably never get used to it. The guards were all like this. Sadists. Kicking. Whipping. All the fun activities. Z'greel staggered onto his feet again, now limping slightly, towards the carts again. He once more thought how much better his life could be if he had been bought to be used as a house slave, rather than being bought by a merchant to carry heavy things, so the fat man didn't have to. And once more, he thought back to his childhood, back in the swamps, where he had been free. Though it was now but a faint memory. He was sure he would die here, worked to death. He sighed heavily, as he was about to pick up a new crate.
 
Veil was in the trees with a few of her comrads watching the camp. Food! Her people needed food. She does hand gestures and the others nod listening to her instructions when her eyes see the slave kicked down into the dirt. She adds this information into her signing and the other elves stiffen. They find slavery disgusting. The two of them slink into the encampment and she pulls out her bow, as a whip is to be hit acrossed the slaves back for a stumble he sees the arrow fly past him and into the guard
 
Z'greel was frightened, as something suddenly flew past him, uncomfortably close to his face. The guard behind him screamed of pain. He threw himself to the ground, hoping not to get hit. He for some reason felt a bit of joy, due to the guards scream, yet he had only been in a combat situation before. The time his tribe was attacked. He crawled under the wagon in fear.
 
She loosed another arrow righ into the guards head, she calmly does this again to the other guards hitting he mark each time. As she does this the others grab the food and retreat to their wagons, she slides from her tree and walks to the wagon, she leans down and looks under at him " come out of there, I am not going to shoot you" her eyes are glowing golden orbs as she looks at him cowering
 
Z'greel hesitated a moment, as a strange woman was commanding him. Seeing as she was in command, he thought it best to simply follow her orders. He crawled out from under the cart and stood up, being quite a bit taller than her. He had his tail between his legs, as he was nervous about what would happen next.
 
" there. See not do bad out here is it. Put your wrists out. Come on you can help us load up and get the hells out of here" she takes an arrow and picks the locks on his slave shackles looking at him, " I am veil" it was a shortened version of her elvish name that made it easy for other races to address her, "I am freeing you. You may leave us or follow us to our encampment"
 
Z'greel became more confused, as the woman took the shackles off him. He had long ago learned that taking them off would mean whipping, if not death. Yet it felt good to finally get them off, after many years. He rubbed his wrists a bit, as she kept talking. "I... Follow you to your camp? But the..." He was about to point at the guards, before he remembered they were dead. Seeing few other options, he simply said "I... I'll help load the carts again." as he ran back into the store-room and got a crate to carry back down to the carts.
 
She swings an equally large crate onto her own shoulder and helps. She is silent and the other elves are much kinder to him telling him they take in ex slaves all the time, he would be happy they even had others of his kin he could be with. She remained stoic, her cowl up, and she merely loaded the cart and then went through the mans pockets and looking for anything o use she would need or want
 
He mostly listened to what the strange men said, as they loaded the wagons, answering only when asked a direct question. As the last of the crates was loaded onto the cart, he became unsure about what he should do. They had said they'd bring him to their encampment, so he simply placed himself behind the cart, ready to follow it on foot. He'd only rarely been allowed to actually sit on the carts when he was brought along for a long trip, and only when specifically told to get on it, to not slow them down.
 
She sees that he is not getting in the cart and shakes her head at her oblivious companions, "get in and sit down lizard. We will not harm you" her voice is smooth and quiet, almost like a whisper. Her face is the only one he hadn't seen thus far, he could only see her eyes beneath her cowl, "we have about a days ride until our encampment. Since I saved you, it is my duty to help you find your place and make sure you are adjusting well"
 
Z'greel once more followed her orders hesitantly, and sat on one of the crates in the back of the cart. It was not the first time he had gotten a new master, and he was always slightly hesitant in the beginning. He was trying study these people that were somehow different from the others, without being too obvious with his staring. His confusion was obvious on him. He had seen greenskins and shorter pinkskins other places, but no tall pinkskins being used as slaves. Yet they did not seem to be of the Holy Human race, as he had been taught to call them. So there were either more races looking like the Humans, or there were different looking Humans. He wished to know, yet he did not dare ask, knowing the punishment could be harsh.
 
She walks by the cart and th horses begin to walk, she likes to walk through the trees and has no desire to sit in the cart with him. One of the men came over and put his hand on her shoulder, "Astran'sveil'ah?" She blinks her full first name in use, "Lief'tenra?" They begin to talk swiftly in an elegant tongue, he had used her whole name to catch her attention and it had worked, after their conversation she nods, "stay in the cart lizard" she jumps into the trees and he sees her running through them faster then the horse moves, she was scouting and killing
 
As she ran off, having ordered him to stay where he was, he figured there'd be some time until he got his next task. And, as he occasionally did when he had a moment, he closed his eyes and said a prayer, almost silently, to the god. It was one of the few things he still had left from his kind. One of the few things the humans hadn't whipped out of him.
 
She smiles shooting the few humans that were in their path and returning landing in the cart next to him and she settles by him, "what is your name that I shall call you?" She looks at him, she would not harm him and he would be safe with her. She was a hunter not an overseer. "How long have you been enslaved to the humans?"
 
"You may call me whatever you wish. Though my birth-name is Z'greel." He said, carefully. "And I've been a servant since I was 12, so 22 years." He spoke with a slight accent, as one would expect. He had learned the Common language, yet it was quite different from his own.
 
She tilts her head, he was a creature of caution, "we do not have many suppiles so alas you must share a bed with me until we reach the encampment. Do not fret, no harm shall come to you" she says reassuringly as the wagons halt an she pulls out her makeshift home, she bunk was indeed big enough for the both of them, she goes to her allies and tells them the location of the stream and they set up camp, "do you hunt Z'greel? I am a hunter by trade. I shall fell a deer for dinner if you would wish to accompany me?"
 
Being that he was taken at such a young age, Z'greel had never shared a bed with a woman, for sleeping or other reasons. He had also been too young to be brought on the hunts. "Um... I've never hunted before. Never really held a weapon of any kind... But I'll try my best, Mistress." He looked at his hands as he finished. Even though he had been a slave, he had made sure to keep his teeth and claws sharp, as his father had always reminded him.
 
She nods and makes sure to go slow enough through the forest that he can keep up, she points to the brush and smiles " deer. See this" she shows him the branch " it's broken, the green means fresh. And these" she shows him the hoof print. "are deep meaning heavy hooves animal, may e a stag"
 
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