A Pirate's Life for Mei

Another Gift

She could have just given up. Mei knew that she wouldn't really die here, that she'd respawn and live on, albeit in official custody.

But when the hands reached into the cage for her, instead of going quietly to her doom, she grabbed the warrior's wrists and held them in place while she kicked him in the face.

The warriors behind him shouted in surprise and some laughed.

The one reaching for her fought against her, getting kicked in the face again. She scratched his arms with her nails and even bit his hand. She was panicking but also angry. She was not going to let them take her. She was not!

He leaped backwards, cursing and jumping about in pain, his hand bloody.

Mei glowered at them, panting. She felt warm blood on her lips and it wasn't hers.

To her surprise, the group of Carib warriors reacted in two very different ways. About half of them glared daggers and looked ready to jump in next, perhaps furious that a woman would dare fight them.

The other half stood there, arms folded, and laughed with genuine pleasure. They found her resistance hilarious. More, there was a measure of respect in some of their eyes. Perhaps they, too, were unused to a woman standing up for herself. But in their cases, they seemed to approve of it.

The angry warriors moved forward to try and retake Mei, but the good-natured ones pulled their fellows back and talked some reason into them. Mei's door was closed and locked again.

Only when the chains were back in place did Mei allow herself to feel relieved. She sagged against the back of the cage and tried to catch her breath. She'd bought herself more time.

Her actions puzzled her. She understood in her head that resistance was futile. She'd been powerless against her own government's corruption and there was honestly little she could do in the face of the prison guards and their power here. So why, when her back was pushed to the wall, did she keep fighting back instead of willingly giving in? Was she only delaying the inevitable? Was she stubborn or just stupid?

The warriors weren't done yet. They milled about in front of the cages and continued to debate. This time, they chose the middle cage with the brunette, the redhead, and the thief.

The brunette saw them coming and scowled and bared her claws. The thief backed up as far as possible and made a fist, looking scared.

But the redhead just lay there, staring at nothing. So it was her that they dragged out by the feet.

The brunette reacted, throwing herself forward and slashing the warriors with her fingers. But she wasn't committed enough to do any real damage. When that failed, she tried to grab the redhead and hold onto her. "Help me!" she shouted at the thief next to her.

He just sat there. "No. I'm not giving them any reason to take me instead."

But Mei reached through into their cage and tried to get her hands on the woman's clothes, trying to stop her from being dragged away.

"Winny!" the brunette shouted, tugging on the woman's arms. "Leave her alone, you monsters!"

It was no use. Mei felt the woman slip out of her fingers. The redhead was swiftly hauled out and the cage slammed shut and chained once more.

"Winny!" the brunette cried out in despair. She hadn't seemed all that concerned for her companion so far, but perhaps her heart had changed in the heat of a more dire moment.

Winny seemed to come awake at last. As she was pulled to her feet, she blinked and looked around at all the Carib warriors ringing her, some leering at her, and she screamed. She tried to run away, but the men circled her again and easily held her in place.