Trial of the Lioness [Plot/Private/Invite Only]

Merrze packed up her stuff and kissed Ku on the forehead as she was still asleep. She wrote a note and left it for Ku which told her that if she woke up and mommy wasn't here it was because she was going out to get some food for the day. Hopefully she could get back soon and spend some time with Ku when the fanalis got back. Merrze wanted to spend time with her daughter, she had been busy with other things and was hoping that they could have some quality time together, Merrze might even pick up a cake on her way home. That would probably make Ku happy and ecstatic, she giggled a little wondering how her daughter would react when mommy came home with cake.

The fanalis headed out the door of her room, she would be going out into the wild to go hunt for some fresh meat, hopefully she would be able to find something suitable.  As she head out she saw the owner of the in that she lived in, she was glad that she was already up so that she could ask a favor of the middle aged woman.

"Hey Aggie I'm glad that I could see you before I left, I might be gone for while so could you look after Ku for me if she wakes up while I'm gone. I know I always ask for you to do this when I leave, and like always if something happens to me take care of her and tell her that mommy didn't abandon her and that she'll be home as soon as she can."

The worrying mother didn't expect anything to happen but she wanted to be cautious, she loved her child more than anything and didn't want anything to happen.

"You say that every time you leave Merrze, you have nothing to worry about I'm pretty sure Ku understands. And knowing you if something bad happens you'll come back with a smile on your face to see your daughter. But you're extraordinarily tough so I don't expect anything bad to happen to you."

Merrze was elated by what she had been told by her friend, she walked out of the inn as she headed towards the exit of the city so that the young girl could get to the wilderness quickly and get home before Ku would wake up. The wind brushed her face gently as she started to rush through the crowds. She was caressed in the gentle sunlight which felt so comfortable to her. She felt as if the day was going to be an excellent one, the redhead could tell that the day would probably have a few surprises in store but at the moment she only assumed that the day would be a good one.

After a hour of walking, which flew by like a bird, Merrze was finally outside of the city. She took in a deep breath of the refreshing air and smiled in happiness about how nice it was outside. The fanalis enjoyed days like this, where it was warm but not hot and had a nice refreshing wind that was not to cold. The young girl gave nice refreshing smile looking around for wild game to hunt. It was early morning so most animals would most likely be just waking up so it was a good time to begin hunting.

She approached a wild boar from behind and was prepared to attack it, she moved quickly and pounced on it plunging her sword into the creatures neck and pulled across to kill it quickly. As she sheathed her weapon the fanalis her a rustling behind her and quickly turned her back. She noticed a group of people had surrounded her with weapons, while Merrze was ready to attack something hit her in the neck before she could react. It barely fazed her but as she began to move the warrior got dizzy and fell over.

She assumed it had some sort of drug on it but the girl tried to move but started to doze off. The people enclosed her with chains in hands, they must have been slavers wandering the area, she was ashamed off herself for not noticing. As the redhead had almost lost all consciousness before passing out she head a raspy voice say something.

"Lucky find for us boys, we found ourselves a fanalis, not even she could handle this drug, it's enough to take down an elephant. This will most likely sell nicely, now let's get out of here. We are near Reim so there might be people out here who could report us."

Looks like the surprise she got was wasn't the one that the girl had been hoping for.

The first thing Merrze felt was the cold hard floors that seemed to be moist and sticky. She was face down on the ground and noticed that she was in a poorly lit cell and could see a man sitting in a chair keeping watch. The fanalis could tell she was in a bad position so she tried to move but then finally noticed something. She was chained to the ground with her body bound tightly to where she could move anything below her neck, her mouth even had a gag in it to prevent her from causing to much noise she guessed.

Soon after realizing how tightly bound she was she tried flailing around like some deranged animal that had gone crazy. Her pupils had shrunk and she screamed or at least tried too causing all sorts of noise. She was having relapses from when she was kidnapped by slaver traders as a child. Merrze felt terrified and confused, the young warrior had no idea what to, her mind was fogged up stopping her from thinking clearly. The redhead's rambunctiousness woke the guard up making him seem furious that a slave was acting up.

The burly man unlocked the cage and started to kick Merrze in her stomach vigorously until she soon stopped being so rowdy and making the place too loud. Her stomach felt terrible and was now in too much pain to continue with her freaking out. But the crying still continued, the tears flowed from her eyes like a waterfall. The fanalis felt pathetic at the moment, she felt so powerless even thought she had fought against many things and considered herself a strong warrior Merrze was still afraid of her past after all. She felt weak and most of all she was scarred and worried, she wondered if she would ever see her daughter again.

The warrior felt like a helpless child wondering what she would be able to do. She would try to plan an escape but she could have another attack at any moment. The only thing keeping her calm at the moment was the image of her beautiful little Ku in her head at the moment, she had to get out of here so she could see her daughter. Merrze somewhat tired started to drift off to sleep wondering what time it was and how long she had been passed out, she finally drifted off to sleep still weeping.

---

It has now been a week since Merrze had been kidnapped but she had no way of knowing that. Her eyes now looked soulless and she had bags under her eyes from lack of sleep. The captured girl had no idea what to do or how to escape. She had lost most of her determination over the week. She had been kicked, fondled, forced to eat what she wouldn't even consider food. The physical abuse had stopped since the head slaver said that she need to be kept in good condition since she was very pretty.

She started to think about her future at this time and wondered if she could ever create her own country. She felt so weak and that she could never lead a group of people. How could a person who crumbles this easy ever lead a group of people let alone found their own country she thought. Her determination was hidden inside but the fanalis questioned if she would be up to the task, she could be sold into slavery very soon. If that happened it could decrease those chances greatly, and she also thought how would she even get out of these place and find her way back to reim.

She had to make it back no matter what or how long it took. She couldn't just leave her daughter all by herself and make her feel like she was abandoned. The mother could not let her child go through that, she had felt the pain of losing a parent but Ku would have no idea what happened to her mom and would worry. The thought of putting her precious daughter through that filled her with many emotions, anger, sadness, frustration. It only pushed her drive farther, she would find a way to escape, she didn't know how long it would take but she would do it.

She decided to get some shut eye now, if she was going to escape she would have to be obedient. Even in this dark, dirty and disgusting place she would act as if she lost all hope. When the warrior had the chance she would attack and try to make her escape out of the place, she had no idea how to do it but Merrze was going to keep herself focused so that she could find the best chance and way of getting out of the hellhole.

The fanalis had no idea what idea how much time had been wasted in her isolated cell. Merrze was having trouble breathing since the air was very humid and felt heavy, it had been two weeks since she had arrived but it felt much longer than that in her mind. She wanted to find an attempt to escape but it was a challenge to keep her mind focus on the enigma on hand with her fear always on the edge of consuming her. The redhead could hold it off but everyone in a while fear would consume her and she would have panic attacks, it was a struggle to fend them off and focus on ways to escape from her dark disgusting prison.

Though the young lady wanted to escape there were various factors that she would have to account for, the biggest was she had no idea how many guards there were and if she would even be able to get past them, or how to get out of the place if she escaped her cell. It was quite the conundrum for her, she couldn't just rush ahead and try to escape with brute force, when she got out of her cell she would have to try and figure more about the area and be cautious in case she found large amounts of guards. The curious girl had no plans of being too reckless and hurt herself too bad and end up failing in the end.

She was hungry and lucky for her it was good time, it was time she got her food the bad news was that she didn't get to eat the food herself. The large burly guard walked in with a plate that had stale bread and what seemed to be some sort of meat but she had no idea what type since it seemed to have the consistency of mush. Unfortunately the guard had to feed her, she wanted to get this done with quickly and get some rest to save up some energy. The disgusting man knelt down and then took the gag out of Merrze's mouth, the red head gasped for air and felt relived to have it off. Merrze obediently opened her mouth and the guard forced the bread in her mouth causing her to choke slightly but she ate it quickly and the guard left the mush in front of her and she had to lick it up like a dog, afterwards the guard put the gag back on.

She was casting away her pride but it didn't matter as long as she survived. She didn't care about that as long as it meant she could get through the day as do survive to escape and see her daughter again. The fanalis laid her head down on the cold floor and close her eyes. It was probably only noon but she had to conserve her energy for the day of escape whenever it came.

---

Merrze had been in the cold dark and terrible prison for the total of a month now. She wondered if Ku thought she was dead or if her mom abandoned her, she cried thinking about that but knew that she had to get out of here soon before she put her daughter through anymore pain. She had been building up her strength even though she didn't know how long but she did now that she was in a better condition. If the captive kept this up she would be able to escape in no time when the opportunity would arrive.

She had no idea of what time it was but she assumed it was early morning since the guard had not yet come in to keep an eye on Merrze, then she heard walking. When she looked up she saw the man appear in front of her cell and he walked in. He walked over to the helpless girl on the floor and picked her up by her chains that tied around her body and took off her gag.

"It's your lucky day girl, you've just been sold, your new owner will be here in to days to pick you up but we gotta get you out of this cell and make sure ya look good for the man, maybe I could have some fun with you before."

He smirked as he moved forward to kiss her but she headbutted the man, he was still holding onto her chains so she thrust her self back by wiggling her body, she produced enough force to snap the chain and fell back, since one link was broken the entire thing fell off her. She still had cuffs but those were no match for her, she snapped those easily. The man charged at her with a sword but Merrze was too fast and punched the ugly man in the gut slamming him into the bars of the cell, she saw blood shoot out, he seemed to be dead. She could finally escape now, she took his keys and walked out of the cell.

After a few minutes of walking she had come across other cells with prisoners wailing in pain to be set free. Merrze not wanting to have the people suffer let the people go who thanked her for saving them, she was glad most of the people were okay, some had bruises from beatings and there were women who sobbed since they where probably touched by the guards and couldn't get over it. She felt sad but she would make sure these people got out of the place safely, she wasn't going to let any innocent rot in this terrible place.

As she walked through she got to a split hallway she was prepared to lead the people but ten guard came rushing down one of the hallways. She had to decide quickly so she gave keys to a burly man who said he'd free people, hopefully he was telling the truth and would save some of the others. One boy, who had red hair like her but tan skin stayed and said in a demanding voice.

"I'm going to fight with you whether you like it or not. I can't let a girl fight on her own, it's my duty as a man to protect a women!"

She giggled at the boy and replied back in a cocky tone.

"Alright but make sure not to slow me down, I'm a lot stronger than you seem to think I am so don't be surprised."

The boy was agitated but nonetheless was prepared for a fight. They both rushed at the group of warriors but Merrze was ahead and attacked the guards before the young boy. The fanalis grabbed one guard and kicked his head slamming him into the wall and took his sword, quickly she went ti attack another but he parried her attack, in retaliation Merrze uppercutted him into the ceiling, she took his sword too and was now duel wielding. With two guards down she flipped one behind her for the boy and stabbed two in abdomen and let go getting rid of the swords.

The young man behind her stomped on the man Merrze flipped and grabbed his sword using it toslit the dirty mans throat. Now five down Merrze drop kicked one into the ground and took his sword slamming it in the throat of the other man. she was prepared to attack the next but two surrounded her and slashed at her legs, she barely got cut but it ruined her attack flow. They both attempted again but the fanalis grabbed their swords with her bare hands causing blood to drip but she took them away and impaled them without any hesitation. There were three left, Merrze left one with the boy and took on the other two.

They both attempted to slash her but Merrze moved out of the way trying to avoid, in the process they slashed across he chest leaving semi-deep wounds but nothing that would inhibit her, they where both close enough so she used Dragon Slice with the sword she took and cut through both of their stomach like they were butter. As she turned around the boy and guard were crossing swords, they both parried the next attack and stabbed the man in the heart but he seemed to have taken a lot of slashes from the guard.

They continued down the hall until they reached a dark room with a man sitting behind a desk, He had long black hair and purple eyes, he seemed to be the boss of the place. The fiery redhead would take him down and try to escape, hopefully all of the other prisoners where still okay. She walked towards him, and they had a quick little chat.

"It was a mistake kidnapping me and these people, you will pay for the crimes that you have committed. These people are innocent and you had no right to rake away their freedom for your own gain."

"Oh but you see I did, everyone has to make a living and this is what I seem to be good at so i will continue you at, I will enjoy killing you and putting these future slaves back where they belong."

After the talk was over he walked over and drew his sword, he came at Merrze quickly and slashed, she barely had enough time to react so she blocked. The dark haired man then attacked again and cut across Merrze's arm causing blood to trickle. She tried to slash back but he parried and cut her leg casing her to fall to her knees, he was going to slash again but Merrze blocked and used her force to slam the blade against his chest, the man had lost balance so she used Calming Soul to cut clean through him. She had one but only by chance, she sighed in relief that she had won the fight actually.

She looked through a chest and found her stuff, she put on her clothes and threw away the borrowed sword equipping her own. She had forgot the boy was there and didn't feel embarrassed about changing at first, but he seemed preoccupied looking for his own stuff.

"By the way my name is Merrze, nice to meet you boy."

"The names not boy it's Ahmes, let's just hurry up and get out and save the other people."

He felt embarrassed that a girl was stronger than him but now that they were both prepared they could get out and save the rest. Merrze was covered in cuts but she was glad that she would be able help others, hopefully the rest of the escape would go well.

Stamina:130/200

Moves Used:

The two of them walked out to see people fighting guards, prisoners running away as others fought. The ground outside of where they were kept captive, which seemed to be somewhere in the desert, was littered with the bodies of guards and people who where enslaved. She was glad the people had began to revolt, she didn't like their deaths but admired the fact that they were trying their best and fight for their freedom. In order to help out, since the main reason they were winning was because of numbers, Merrze whistled in a very high pitched tone getting the attention of about 12 guards . She waved to clear out any slaves who noticed she seemed to have something planned.

The guards had encircled her but the redhead gave a slight smirk since they had fallen right into her hands. She slammed her fist into the ground at full force using Fist Of The Giant, which caused large cracks to from and chunks of earth to fly away, all of the guards fell down from leg damage, then slaves who were on the side charged the fallen guards thrusting their blades into them killing them, Merrze looked around and most of the guards had been defeated or were currently being overwhelmed by the rebelling people.

Ahmes, who she had not seen since they both got out here was now leading a group to take out the last of the remaining guards, Merrze looked around to help and saw two armored men about to attack a slave but she grabbed them from behind by the backs of their heads slamming them into the ground with great force cracking their skulls. She looked around looking for more guards but they all seemed to have been killed, victory had gone to the escapees instead of the oppressive slavers, her escape plan ended up turning into a riot that freed all of these innocent people. The redhead was pleased with herself that she was able to accomplish such a thing, she had no idea that she was capable of starting something like this.

As she looked around at the people who now all had their eyes turned towards her for some reason and then she noticed why they were looking at her. There was a small crowd of people pointing at her and saying something, at first she couldn't tell what it was but then she could clearly hear what the group was going on about.

"Thank you, everyone this women is the one who started this all and helped us. She freed us from this place and save our lives. She is truly a kind person for risking her self to start all of this."

The warrior was slightly embarrassed at first and didn't think she was kind but did what she thought was the right thing to do.
People cheered at Merrze and some hugged each other now that they seemed to be free, then people started to wonder where they would go now that they were free, how would they survive and panic ensued for a bit. Merrze had the same thought but they needed someone to lead them. The worried girl didn't know if she could do it but she sure as hell had to try, if they scattered more of them would most likely die. The redhead stood on a large rock and started to speak in a loud tone to get the attention of the people who were in distress.

"Everyone calm down, I have a plan to maximize the amount of people that survive which can most likely be all of us. First round up all the food you can and start packing it for a journey, I will lead you all to Reim a place where you can all be free and not have to worry about being forced into slavery, for those who don't know it's a place where slavery is illegal. Also grab any weapons that can be used or tools so we can hunt and animals we come across or collect water, which will probably be the hardest resource to get during the journey."

She had no idea if she had the skill to lead these people but she wouldn't let them die. The warrior wanted to bring these people to Reim where they could live happier lives instead of wandering until they die. The girl didn't want these people who had already suffered to have to deal with the chance of death by going on their owns, she couldn't tell exactly where Reim was but she would use the direction of the sun to guide her and the other people there. It would be easier at night to get a more specific location by using the constellations.

After a couple of hours of people gathering stuff for the travel Merrze gathered them all together, which there seemed to be around 200 people, she picked up a torn cloth and used it as a cloak encase there was high winds to come. She started to march in the direction of what seemed to be Reim and went off, she had no idea how long it would take. It could take months by foot to get by Reim but she doubted that based of the time it took her to wake up after capture assuming they traveled by cart.

Stamina:100/200

Move used:

The sun was scorching making the people feel hot from walking, and the winds were high causing some people to be blinded by sand while others guided them through the conditions. Merrze and Ahems were at the front of the large crowd of people leading the way to their destination. It was the second day of their journey but the conditions were terrible for travelling but if they wanted to survive they had to walk everyday if possible. Any time that wasn't spent travelling was spent resting to eat food and get some sleep. They had an order of people traveled during the day but when the sun set they would eat and get some sleep. By early morning they would all have to be up and travelling again, it wasn't the most ideal for the body or they children that were with them but the redhead decided it was the best strategy for optimizing how many people stayed alive during the journey. If the covered more ground they could find more resources like water, or animals that could be hunted and they would closer to their goal.

The violent wind had started to die down and the earlier burning temperatures had lowered, the sun was now starting to set and they had to get some rest and eat for the night. Even though Merrze lead them all they were separated into groups for supplies so each grouped had the same amount of rations as to increase chances of survival. They didn't need to eat a lot at once just enough to have some energy for the next day of travel. Most the people there agreed it would be best to cover as much ground as possible and conserve resources.

Most of the people had started little fires and had began to cook their meals for the night, there were some people gone scouting who came back saying the found an oasis. Each group sent out 8 people to go collect resources like water for their groups, and of course water was the most important, The good thing is most people were able to fashion some sort of container. from furs and skins at the slave prison, to hold water. As the night was in place people at their food and talked happily as they were glad to be alive. Tomorrow they would continue their travel to make it to Reim, hopefully it would be soon, but they could only hope.

---

Two weeks had passed since they had began their perilous journey to Reim. Most people were tired or sick by now and believed that they would die by the time they had reached the country or that they were going in the wrong direction. It was hard to keep people in order, Merrze and Ahmes were having troubles keeping the people in check. She was hoping to have no causalities but the fanalis worried that if they did not make it back soon then people would start dying off quickly. It was still early day, hopefully they could at least make it through this day.

The redhead savior of the people then filled with glee as she looked ahead, she saw it! She saw Reim up ahead, it seemed to be the city in which she had lived. Merrze turned around and had a face of pure bliss despite the fact that it was dirty, tired looking and covered in scratches.

"People that is Reim up ahead that is Reim, it's about 30 minutes away from here we can make everyone only a little longer now. Thank you for holding out this long in these harsh conditions."

The people cheered in happiness and continued to march on, she heard people talking in disbelief. She didn't know how much of a leader she was during this journey she was just glad that she could get back home and bring these people back with her. As they got closer to the city people jeered with even more happiness, the girl just gave a slight smile listening to young and old all cheer together that their lives had been saved. As they walked into the city people dropped their weapons, as the guards commanded. She walked up to one and talked to them.

"Hi there I'm Merrze a captain in the Fanalis Corps, I have brought all of these people here from a place that held them captive to be sold for slavery. You can take me to the king if you want but please let the people through they need to rest somewhere or wander around the city. "

The guard then smiled and answered as he looked around at all the people.

"It's hard to just let this many people into the city at once, they will be lead somewhere where they can stay for the time being until they have gone through customs and all of that. As someone who already lives here you can go but you will most likely be brought back at a later date."

Merrze was relived that the people would most likely get to stay but that would be the king's decision. Knowing Lagi she believed he would let them stay. But as Merrze was relived she saw something familiar running her way, it was Fluffy who somehow had smelled her, he must have been out for a walk. Merrze hugged her spiky pet as he got closer, if he was here then who was taking him for a walk.

It was a usual Day in Reim. Mommy was gone. Ku does miss her alot. Where was she? Where is my Mother? She was gone for so long. She didnt even say goodbye. She did not leave a massage. She just left. Why did she do this to me
Aggie said it would be fine. Still she was gone now for months. Ku cried in her bed all day and night long. Fluffy tried to cheer me up but nothing could. She did eat less and she had tired eyes. She lost her dear mommy. She a badende and maby she was dead. Ku didnt want to live anymore. Merrze was everything feels her.
Aggie enteren the room. She took really good care of me but she was not Merrze. Every night I had nightmares. They were horrible. Ku woke up screaming all the time and next what happened was fast walking a opening Door. Ku looked then happy at the door hoping it was Merrze but it was Aggie.

Today was a bit different. Aggie was done with me and did put me on the street with Fluffy. Ku walked around town with Fluffy. We walk for hours.Then suddenly Fluffy starts running away. Ku rand after her. Why was she running. Come back Fluffy! !! Did I yell. It was not enough. I followed her till the city gates. Fluffy was with someone. It was a beautifull woman. She had red hair. Does look young and strong. Ku could not believe her eyes. It was her mommy. She walker closer. I now could see her from closer. It really was her. Ku had tears in her Eyes. A lot of things went through her mind. Happenis, sadness, anger, hate, love, relieve and more. She was confused and didnt know what to do. She wanted to say something but the only words leaving her lips were Mommy Merrze

I stand still not able to move a single muscle. I look her in the eyes. My cheecks are wet of the tears. She is paralized. What did I want to do. Run away or eilanden to mommy. She was totally confused.
Instead I stand there waiting for what would happen next

Merrze looked up to see her daughter, the young fanalis was overflowing with emotions at the time. It had felt like an eternity since she had last seen her precious child. It was an overwhelming feeling to see her daughter again and she had no idea what to do. She felt terrible for leaving her daughter even if it wasn't intentional. She didn't know if her daughter could ever forgive her for what she did but the redhead did not need forgiveness, she needed to feel the ecstasy of being with her family once again. She didn't care about anything else at that moment.

The saddened warrior started to drag her feet a remarkably slow pace paralyzed almost at the shock of seeing her child once again. Each step felt like she was walking through a hellish pit of quicksand that was trying to bind her to the past. The fanalis  started to fight against the negative force trying to hold her back. She dashed forward at a breakneck speed using all of her energy to get to Ku, when she reached her child the first instinct was to hug her. As the mother held her child tears started to stream down her face and then she said in a sour tone words that hurt just thinking about them.

"Ku I'm so sorry, I'm truly sorry for leaving you alone for so long when I promised to never abandon you, I know I've left before but this is just unforgivable, I didn't did get to tell you good bye or anything. But before you think I just abandoned you your mother was kidnapped by slavers. But everyday I thought about you and how to escape, I'm sorry it took so long for me to get back but as you can see I saved all of these people. Please don't hate your mommy I didn't want to leave you all by yourself. I promise we can go camping and spend some quality time of just you me and Fluffy."

The weeping redhead held the tiny and fragile child in her arms glad that they could be together again. She had no way of knowing what excruciating emotional pain she must have been through from the thought of being abandoned again. Merrze didn't plan to be as careless to not travel with Fluffy again with the risk that this type of situation would happen once more.

Ku did look how Merrze got closer to her. I felt her arms around my weak body. Tears flow like a river on my cheecks. Mommy. The smell of her mother hher touh and her voice were warm. Ku felt finaly her mother again. I hug her back. Ku hugs as tight as she can. She missed her so much. i go with my hands through her long red hair. Mommy was so worried. I thougth you abadnodn me or that you were killed. I thougth i would never see you again mommy. I thougth about you every day and every night. I prayed and was here with fluffy at the front gate everyday atthe front gate. Waiting for your return.

Ku makes little fists and with her weakened body she hitted Merrze on her back. Not hard but just enough so merrze would feel it a little. She start to cry harder. Never leave me agai mommy. Do never leave me again for so long. I already lost my mommy nad my daddy. Theywre kiilled by soldiers. I was so scared you were taken from me too Mommy.

I stop hitting and lean weak against Merrze. She was exhausted already. THat was not strange. She did almos eat nothing and her body did look starved. I hold Mommy. I forgive you mommy. Im proud to cal you my mommyand i would love to go camping with you mommy. but promise me you wont leave that long ever again. If you do then atleast take me with you mommy . Mommy and promise from now on you say goodbye to me everytime you go.

Ku keeps holding her mother and kisses her on her cheeck. I love you mommy Does Ku whisper in her ear. Then she falls asleep tired of all the emotions and everything that just happend right now.

Spoiler:

Hidan was flipping his long purple hair as he looked over a few things.  He was mostly into fashion of all sorts,  but he was more into the paperwork at times instead of himself and his own clothes. Right now, the main idea was to make sure that Lagi had less work to go through , as well as keep an eye on him  to make sure that he’s doing his job as emperor of this country. “hmmmm…..”  Hidan would say as someone walked in and whispered something in his ear.  Hidan sighed as he made a gesture with his hands and looked at his nails.’ I don’t suppose I should say that I’m waiting for my nails to dry this time around? Do I have to be the one to tell him?

Apparently, someone from the Fanalis corps managed to  liberate people that have been captive be sold for slavery. Hidan hasn’t heard all of the story, but the emperor must be told  and  notified. This Merrze girl was something to the young emperor,   Hidan wondered how he would handle this.

---

After being informed, Hidan, Emperor Lagi,  and a few guards were traversing towards the current location  as to where Merrze, Ku, and the slaves were.  After Lagi took a glance at Merrze, he started to address the slaves.

“Welcome to Reim,  I am King Lagi. I am known as the Dragon Emperor Lagi, I go by many names. However there is one thing that I have to get clear.  From what I was told, you people were going to be sold into slavery, the abundance of how many that I see here can indicate that you might even be considered as stolen property depending if the people that you were liberated from had any country relations. In case of a diplomatic dispute, for me to fully represent you if it should occur, I would advise you to apply for Reim citizenship, even If it’s for a month of two before you fully decide what to do.  Slavery is outlawed here,  and  there is an abundance of produce that can be distributed among the group as well as a place to stay.  Follow Hidan and the guards over here, and make yourselves at home.”

After that,  Hidan would then escort  the former slaves to get washed up, fed and even clothed.  Lagi walked over to Merrze with a frown.” What happened….was it heliohapt? ” Though he would look down at Ku with a shocked and nervous look on his face. When did he feel so nervous around Merrze in the first place? Was it because she was a parent? If there was one thing that Lagi struggled with , was expectations. Did Merrze like Lagi for him, or did all she want was a father figure in her daughter’s life? Maye it was both, but was Lagi even a good influence?“ is….. this…. Your?....” Lagi couldn’t really finish the sentence at this point.

She patted her sleeping daughters head and picked her up, Merrze was tired too but she would take her daughter back home before she would get any sleep for herself. Even though her precious daughter had fallen asleep she said something her as a sort of reassurance encase the young child could still hear anything.

"It's okay sweetie, mommy is never going to leave you again like that.  I just hope I'll be able to protect you from whatever dangers may come in the future, wait no I will be able to protect you no matter what comes our way."

The fanalis looked at the king with sunken eyes and a tired face but managed to give a warm smile, despite the partial red appearance she had from crying only minutes ago. She was glad to see Lagi, she felt his presence was a bit calming, she had no idea why but it just was. The tired girl walked closer to the king while carrying the girl and spoke while smiling greatly, despite her tiredness and lack of food.

"I don't know if it was Heliohapt honestly, they seemed to be some sort of separate organization based on how things were being ran. Something I never realized until I left was that there were insignia with spiders on them. And yes beautiful sleeping child here is my daughter Ku. Honestly this isn't how I wanted to introduce her, then again I didn't want any of this to happen, but if I had to go through that again to save these people I would gladly experience it again. I'm surprised they listened to me or that I managed to lead them here, I'm just glad all of those innocents were safe."

The mother sighed as she held her daughter, the memories ran through her head and would be there forever most likely. She had gained control of her fear just partially. Before it always consumed her but now she could warn of panic attacks, she also was starting to learn how to lead. The terrible experience had seemed to have been good for her partially.

Lagi nodded, but he was unsure what to make of all of this. However form what he saw of Merrze, she hasn’t eaten in a while. He wasn’t even sure that she bathed or anything?” Do you have a place to stay? Do you want to come over and wash up? Even get something to eat if you want? I still can’t make any sense of this, I don’t know how you even met these people, but you don’t look too well. We can talk about it later unless you already have a home…then I’ll just send for a carriage escort.” Lagi was trying to be kind in his own way.
“I guess its mother and daughter time, it’s not my place to interfere with that. She must have been worried sick and missed you greatly.

"Lagi I can't bother you with that at this moment, you have your own things to deal with. I'll just travel back to the in where I am currently residing. And you don't have to worry about me, I know how to take care of myself well enough so there is no need for you to worry."

In all honesty the feisty redhead was on the verge of passing out. Every increment of time felt double the length to her at the moment. She hadn't slept for the past three days because she was forcing herself to stay awake to keep watch to make sure nothing happened while the others would rest, she also gave away most of her food during the journey to some of the younger children since it was more crucial to them then it was to her. She did appreciate the kind kings offer but she didn't want to bother him. She just hoped she would be able to make it home, most of her strength was sapped but she was managing to hold Ku like it was nothing.

Lagi shook his head as he observed the girl. “……..” He then waked over to Merrze and swept her off of her feet and cradled the woman into his arms by using bulk up strength. He wanted to buff himself up a little more because he didn’t want Merrze to rest him, as well as being able to carry two people effortlessly and without any kind of mistake. He would then use bulk up- speed in order to race back to the palace. “ Sorry if I’m taking the initiative and didn’t ask for permission, but you aren’t ok. Anyone can see that, and i‘m not going to leave you alone. At least not right now….”
There was a little more running until Lagi started to slow down a little bit when he got to the palace doors. “ You can leave in a day or two, but I think it would better if you stayed with me for a small period. Just until you get some food in you and rest. If the fanalis corps asks for you, I’ll even personally write you a letter to pardon you from duties for a day or so if it’s anything important….. it’s the least I can do. So…. Let me help you. “

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Spoiler:

She leaned against the man, too exhausted to even blush at this moment in time. Normally the redhead would be drowned with emotions but she fell safe and happy in his arms. She didn't like the idea of seeming weak and helpless but now was not the time to let her fanalis pride get ahead of here, she wasn't in the best condition to take care of her young child. She smiled and pressed closer onto him closing her eyes while giving him a warm welcoming smile.

"While I'm against it I'll let you off the hook for now, but thank you honestly, it pains me to admit to it but truly thank you, I'd been through so much and it's good to have a warmhearted person on your side."