To Be a Slave

[Brooke]

River sighed, great another day of serving vermin. He grabbed some food platters and brought them out to the Mess Hall. Vermin were everywhere, it made his blood boil. He slammed down the platters and then went back for more. His blood was boiling, he didn't know if he could make it out there again without getting punished for something rash. The horde jeered at him. It was all he could do to not strangle the closest rat. He needed to get out of there, he needed space to breathe.

[Treble Tiderunner]

"River." Tampa put a paw on his arm as she balanced a tray with the other paw. "Calm down. Nothing will be accomplished by banging things around and drawing attention. One day you will not be let off with jeers and an occasional whipping." Tampa looked around, then made a show of switching arms, moving to block easy view of River.

"I heard from Skipper again." She whispered, keeping an eye out for their guards. "Try to stay calm. I'll tell you about it later." Tampa shifted her burden again and took River's, heading back towards the mess hall, just as a guard decided to take an interest in why they were idling.

[Brooke]

He watched Tampa walk off. He would thank her later. Yes, he did realize he was pushing his luck, but he couldn't control his anger. He walked out to the barren Orchard and hid behind an apple tree. Why couldn't I have listened to Brooke? Ah well, what's done is done. He knew Tampa would meet him out here when she could. Hopefully they could talk strategy on how to escape.

[Treble Tiderunner]

Tampa walked slowly past the guard, keeping her head down, the picture of a dejected slave. Inside, though, Tampa fumed as much as her friend. She knew the rat would be looking for a slave to punish after the way River had acted, he was one of the captains, so she hurried past him as quickly as she could. She dumped her last tray in the sink for a mousemaid to wash and slipped out of the kitchen. She had a pretty good idea where River would be.

Arriving in the orchard, she spotted River behind an apple tree. “Hey River, no one’s ever told you how I got in here, have they?”

[Rocky]

Jakk didn't like being here. Sure, he helped overthrow the fortress, Redwall, but he didn't like being confined to this area. He didn't have the freedom he always had. Now he had to steal from these pathetic beasts. They don't have anything good to steal, he thought. "One day... One day, N'tashi." HE muttered cruelly under his breath. He grasped the hilt of his dagger, shaking his head at the rat River nearly floored, "Don't waste your time. If you harm him, you'll die." He said quietly. It wasn't like him to protect others like that, but he was innocent. He didn't deserve that. Sure, Jakk may be evil, but he didn't like slaves. "Next time get up yourself and get it, you filthy bilge swab." He snapped, this time anger rising in his voice.

The rat rose to his feet, and confronted Jakk, "Wha's wrong? I harm your slave?"

Jakk stared at him blankly, "He's not my slave."

"Then why d'you protect 'im, huh?"

"It's not right."

The rat drew his sword, "Neither is your speakin' t'me."

"You don't want to fight me." Jakk said calmly, pawing one of his blades on his back.

Too late. The rat charged him. Jakk sighed, drew his blade, and when the rat was near, he ducked underneath the slash, and came upwards, and with one clean stroke, the rat's body fell, with the head next to it. Jakk sheathed his blade, stared at the other's around him, and walked out to where River was, in the orchard.

He walked over there quietly, "Are you alright?" He looked him in the eye, looked around to see if anyone else was looking. No. Good. He unsheathed one of his throwing knives, and held it out to River, "Take it. Use only when needed. Don't let anyone find it. And don't worry, I have 11 more knives."

As if he first saw Tampa there, he asked, "Would you like one, too?"

[Brooke]

“Hey River, no one’s ever told you how I got in here, have they?” Tampa asked as she sat down. This was her way of calming him down, telling him a story.

"No, but don't tell me now, here comes some vermin to whip me." He turned with a hardened face to glare at the fox that was heading swiftly towards them. When he got to them, he offered him a knife.

"Take it. Use only when needed. Don't let anyone find it. And don't worry, I have 11 more knives."
River grabbed the knife. He nodded his head slowly in acknowledgment.

"Thanks." He said slowly and under his breath. This was one he knew he wouldn't harm at the rebellion. He hid it in his tunic.

"Would you like one, too?"

"Tampa, take it , you don't know when you'll need it."

[Treble Tiderunner]

"No, but don't tell me now, here comes some vermin to whip me."

“I tell you later.” Tampa said from her position leaning against the tree. She watched warily as Jakk approached, unsure as to what his motive was.

"Take it. Use only when needed. Don't let anyone find it. And don't worry, I have 11 more knives."

Tampa was startled when the fox offered River a knife.

"Would you like one, too?"

"Tampa, take it , you don't know when you'll need it."

Tampa hesitated, unsure, was he trying to trap them? Finally, she reached up and took it, tucking the slim blade up her sleeve.

[Rocky]

"Don't worry. Sure, I dont care for who you are, but the fact that there are slaves there, that just proves that N'Tashi is getting old and lazy. Listen. Im planning to escape or rebel against N'Tashi. "Also. If you need any weapons or armor, come find me, alright?"

It was unusual of what Jakk's motives were today, but he just hated the idea of keeping others as slaves. No matter how bad Jakk was in the past, he always looked down upon slavery.

"Will you two help me with the rebellion?"

[Brooke]

"Don't worry. Sure, I dont care for who you are, but the fact that there are slaves there, that just proves that N'Tashi is getting old and lazy. Listen. Im planning to escape or rebel against N'Tashi." River nodded for him to continue.

"Also. If you need any weapons or armor, come find me, alright?" Who is this fox, why does he want to help slaves of all creatures.

"Will you two help me with the rebellion?" River was stunned, but somebeast to help was better than just slaves.

He nodded and then turned to Tampa, "Are you going to help him or is it just me and him goin' up against the horde?"

[lorki]

Annoyance prickled at the back of her spine. Soko had been keeping to herself in the kitchens, the otters seemed to already be friends so she stayed quiet, on the other end of room mostly. She had bent down to pick a pot out of one of the cupboards and after having not one but five of them pour on painfully onto her feet, jamming them all back in and forcing the cupboard doors shut she stood up to find herself alone. Gone were the others who were suppose to be helping her serve the huge hungry group of hordes beasts outside. She realized, with horror written across her face that she was now facing that task alone.

She shot across the room and began piling food onto plates and shoving them onto a counter near the door. She managed one trip out into the horde, rushing from creature to creature, her ears tucked downwards in attempt to deafen herself to their words. She had returned to the kitchens for only a few moments when the door swung open. She grimaced, her dark eyes falling on a fox that appeared a bit less then unhappy. She swallowed uneasily, "can I get you something?"

Rage speckled its self about the fox's face, "Whas takn' yew so long?" He growled.

"Oh..." She quickly turned and shoveled some food onto a plate for him, "I'm sorry, um... there were other heres before... to help." She held the plate out to him, avoiding eye contact.

He took it swiftly but also lashed out at her. She'd learned to roll with the hits and turned her face as he made contact, carefully avoiding the grunt of the pain but allowing him some satisfaction. "Go find them." He snapped.

Soko didn't even care to explain to him that then no one would be around to serve them food if she left as well. She just nodded and ducked quickly out of the room and out into the hallway quietly cursing her fellow slaves that had somehow seen it fit to ditch their job.

[Treble Tiderunner]

"Will you two help me with the rebellion?"
"Are you going to help him or is it just me and him goin' up against the horde?"

Tampa stared in open disbelief at the fox for a moment, then she schooled her expression and shook her head. “No. River, no.” Tampa looked at Jakk, bowing her head in her most humble, slave-like manner.

“We would rather not, sir.”

[Brooke]

"Wait, what, are you serious, this fox is offering us armor and help and you say no!" River stared at her in disbelief.

[Treble Tiderunner]

"River, you don't know what his real plan is." Tampa chided. She gave him a look that said, Shut up. She looked at Jakk. "He's not quite himself today, sir. Please forgive his speaking out."

Tampa spotted movement in the trees, and finally recognized Soko as she came nearer. "I think someone's looking for us."

[Rocky]

Jakk was, somewhat, confused. "You two have been slaves for a while, now, right? And you don't want revenge on your master?" He sighed, "And I thought I'd seen it all." He mumbled. But why? Why would Tampa not want revenge on the one that did this to her?

"I killed a guard to help out your friend, riverdog, and you still think Im on their side?"

Jakk just sighed again, and looked up, "Also... If I was really on their side, I wouldn't have given you that knife, and if I did, I would tell N'Tashi just to get you in trouble, but I didn't."

He looked back at the two otters, then turned around and looked at the approaching sable, "She's not a guard." He said. "She's a fellow slave." He added. "Well... Fellow slave... to you"

[lorki]

Her ears perked forward. She walked more slowly towards them, she could hear the fox now, the words he said to the otters. A scowl crossed her face. He was arming them? Giving them weapons? That was exactly how slaves got themselves killed. She'd seen uprisings before, she'd seen N'Ashi's torture machines in action as a child. She knew that as soon as N'Ashi was dead another hordesbeast would take his place and things would continue the same way. An uprising was not to be a joint action between the horde and the salves, in the end she and the slaves would lose either way.

Soko glanced over the fox as she came nearer, "Rash actions driven by frustration rarely turn out well, specifically for us." She said, her voice was low, almost a growl. Her eyes turned to the Tampa and River, she tried to write the displeasure off her face, "Plans." She said, her tone a bit lighter, "plans like.. oh, going back to the kitchen before the hungry hordesbeasts destroy it... or us, for that matter is a particularly good one."