The Sins of the God King

Chapter 27: Sartos

Sartos' eyelid fluttered as he regains consciousness, and he came to with a start. His bindings kept him affixed to the crobal's back, his feet now tethered as well, in the proximity of the deep-eyed tamer whose stench was reminiscent of rotting fruit.Then he realize, the armor was already taken out from him, a surge of defiance coursed through Sartos, urging him to struggle against his restraints. "Stay still, unless you fancy a tumble off a cliff," the deep-eyed tamer said.

Surveying his surroundings, Sartos glimpsed Realo at the helm atop a horse, his armor and the sword "Fiend's Eye" held in tow behind him. On the few feet back, Sartos was surprise to see the scruffy tamer had Emae similarly tied to his crobal, unconscious. The two creatures labored, dragging a woman and a girl in their wake. The girl's fatigue was apparent, her feet bearing wounds to the rugged journey with visible wounds. Despite her own constraints, the woman clung to the girl. They are moving in a slow pace, clearly avoiding risks of dragging captives on rough ground.

The spectacle offered a stark testament to the burgeoning slave trade in Navo'ri, the tamers' treatment of their captives baring the grim fangs of this odious trade.

Sartos' mind wandered, pondering the events that transpired during his unconscious state. Emae bore the unmistakable signs of a struggle, her arm marked by scratches and a delicate trickle of blood. The added twist of her blindfold perplexed him.

Sartos turned his attention to the deep-eyed tamer and asks, "What have you done to Emae?" Deep eye's reply was delivered with an unsettling calm, "Realo had her removed. She grew too attached to you, to the point of preventing us from even taking a finger from you."

The next question came swiftly from Sartos, "How did you manage it? And what became of the wolves?" Deep eye's lips curled into a small, humorless smile as he recounted, "Well, those mutts became sustenance for our own beasts right here."

A pang of sympathy for Emae welled within Sartos. These marauders were unburdened by moral restraint, not sparing even their own.

The group was nearing the Xeldoria ruins, and Sartos was acutely aware that his continued survival hinged solely on his knowledge of Xeldorian's location. Once they found that its abandon, He knew they won't hesitate to kill him.Realo was an entity unto himself, his eyes harboring a twisted euphoria as he inflicted pain.

Sartos' fingers surreptitiously explored the obsidian blade concealed among his bindings, relief washing over him as he felt its honed edge. He commenced cutting the rope, his movements calculated to evade detection. The faint sound of tearing was drowned beneath the howling wind. Above, the sky darkened with brooding clouds, and the wind intensified with every passing moment. It won't be longer till the rain fall.

"Quickly now, the ground will become treacherous once the rain arrives," scruffy hair barked urgently.

Realo swiftly responded, "I'll forge ahead then." He spurred his horse into action with a sharp smack, the animal breaking into a gallop. These tamers understood the peril of their crobals navigating the rocky terrain in the rain.

"We'll have to carry the captives," deep eye declared, concern etching his face.

Scruffy hair countered, "We've barely any space left, especially if we add them." Deep eye mused,

"Then let the soldier and Emae walk this time." Scruffy hair agreed,

dismounting from his crobal and rousing Emae with a stinging slap to the head. Deep eye followed suit, unbinding Sartos' leg before hauling him down from the crobal, an impact that elicited a sharp cry from Sartos.

Strangely, the pain from his injuries seemed dulled, as if they'd evaporated. Broken ribs and an arm that should have throbbed with agony now registered only as fleeting discomfort. The collision with the crobal's armored head ought to have shattered bones, yet he felt surprisingly intact.