The flames burn in a beautiful dance against the star speckled sky , the screams sang a sweet song of life lost and forgotten. Homes, palaces and slums were all embraced by the blaze, families separated by walls of fire a hundred feet high. Raiders slaughtered, raped and pillaged, townsmen fought valiantly, mothers gave their lives selflessly, children hid, cried and innocence bled.
~
Soon the sound of rattling chains was all she had ever known, she couldn't remember the feel of a mothers love, the soft touch of someone that had truly loved her, the rattling of chains was the only constant thing in her life. She had no name, they hadn't been bothered to give her one and they took the one her mother gave her away, she was an object to be handed out to the highest bidder. Her mind was constantly wondering what would come next, she was always plotting and preparing her next attempt at freedom. There was one thing she was certain about, escaping these shackles was the only choice other than death. Being a slave was not all she will ever be seen as, she is more than that. And she was right. This girl despite all the trauma she has endured was destined to change the world, she was going to be the one the prophecies spoke of but no one could guess and not even the Gods could stop such a turn of events. And they tried to stop her, believe when I say they really tried.
~
~
~
I stood among the other slaves, the ones who had been raised by slaves themselves, the ones that raised me and the ones I had raised myself! All waiting to be dragged on stage and sold like cattle at a market. I look at the faces around me and see that any hope that once shone bright was little more than a spark, hardly there for a moment, only seen if you look so close it hurts and I knew I had to do something. I've fought back before and I will do it again and again and again until I win or die trying. I'm going to stand up on that stage as nothing more than a piece of meat to these people and spit in their faces. I'm going to throw the years of torture in their faces and prove I will not be their thing to play with, I will not cry and I most definitely not show weakness.
With a tug at my neck I look up to see the slavers pulling at my chains to drag me up onto the stage, I felt my heart race in my chest. Is it fear or is it excitement or perhaps and odd mix of both. I climbed the steps of the stage in what felt like slow motion and when I looked out into the crowd of faces each one was inspecting me as though I were a piece of meat in a butchers window. I felt greedy eyes burning my flesh, I knew this would be the auction that sold my body, the auction that would decide whether or not I would live and there was no way in the name of all the forsaken Gods that I was going to let these men kill me, so I did something even I didn't think I had the courage to do.
I turned to my slaver and in a moment of bravery I spat in his face and threw my leg into him as hard as I could, hurting both him and myself in the process. In a state of shock his grip on my chains loosened for hardly a second but it was enough for me to be given an opportunity to run, and I took it! I pulled the short chain wrapped around and hanging from my neck to my chest and took off into the crowd, the people parted like an ocean, mouths agape and utterly dumbfounded. Pain shot up my leg with every step I took, but I couldn't stop, I could hear them chasing me, screaming at me to come bag like I was some dog. I took a sharp turn into a nearby forest and ran deeper and deeper fighting the undergrowth that threatened to clutch me tight and pin me down.
The next thing I knew was that the ground gave way underneath me, throwing me down a hill and I hit cold water, fast running water, and was dragged down and tossed in all different directions. I tried to get back to the surface. I couldn't breathe. I could feel my chains getting pulled just as violently by the water as I was. Then without even a second warning, the chain around my neck got caught on something, jolting me back, slamming my head into a rock. It was so cold. It was so dark. My head hurt so bad. My lungs felt like they were burning. I thought for sure this was the end of my life, I thought that after all I have endured I was going to die in fear and alone in the world. But then, as I closed my eyes happy at the fact I was dying in my brief moment of freedom, I felt a pair of hands grab me at the waist and pull me from the icy water.
It was getting darker. I couldn't see anything. All I could do was listen, listen to the angelic voice of the person who had pulled me from the river, they were calling for help, for a medic. They were trying to talk to me but I couldn't quite make out what words were coming out of their mouth, all I could hear was the beautiful melody. They weren't who I was running from and that's all I cared about. I was free and alive. But I, I can't remember what I was running from... In fact, I can't even remember who I am!
