Underground I [Job Chain/D]

Spoiler:

Ayero frowned at the young man in front of her, her brow creasing as she studied his body language and the expression on his face. ”Are you sure?” Her tone was low and strong, demanding to know that what he told her was indeed true. Yusuf, the Fanalis man standing before her nodded. ”Yes, Colonel. I’m sure it’s true.” His voice held a note of urgency as his eyes met with Ayero’s, his gaze reflecting a firm resolve. Ayero sucked her teeth before tilting her head back and closing her eyes. She remained silent for a few moments before opening her eyes and refocusing on Yusuf. ”Alright. I’ll check it out.”

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Slavery was now illegal in Reim, and while some traders were shut down, others moved swiftly into the underground. As much as Ayero hated to admit it, the slave trade was a large part of Reim, and there were quite a few that opposed it’s abolition for both social and economic reasons. It would be an adjustment for the country as it came into a new age, and part of that adjustment would be to eradicate as much of the underground slave trade as possible.

When Yusuf informed her of an illegal slave trader post in Remano, Ayero chided him for buying into rumors without investigating for himself. But as it turns out, the young man had followed up on the gossip and had found some suspicious activity going on in one of the shadier parts of town. He relayed this information to Ayero, and that would explain why the Fanalis woman was standing in front of a run-down building at dusk.

She had taken care to cover her scarlet hair with a scarf, not wanting to draw attention to herself. Well….she did look suspicious cloaked in dark colors, but it wasn’t as if that sort of thing was uncommon in these parts. Besides, she planned to investigate this supposed slave trader hideout as quickly as possible.

Making sure that her sword was at her side, Ayero decided not to linger in front of the building for too long and quickly found her way inside. She moved as stealthily as she could through the halls of the old building, walking carefully so as to not cause the worn floorboards to creak. Her right hand rested on the handle of her sword, not wanting to draw the weapon just yet as the glint of metal could possibly give her away.

The sound of several male voices reached her, muffled by the walls and distance. Ayero flattened herself against the wall and inched towards the source of the noise. Her ears could only discern snippets of the conversation until she came upon a door in the hall that was slightly ajar. Moving carefully, Ayero peeked through the crack and was greeted with the sight of three men sitting in chairs arranged in a circular fashion, with a girl on the floor in the center. Her hands were bound and she looked frightened, too afraid of the men to even speak or move.

[WC: 512/500]

”We could sell her to a brothel, maybe? She’s got a decent body. Face isn’t too bad, either.” One of the men grabbed the girl roughly by her chin, sneering when she squeaked in pain. ”Quiet!” He reeled his hand back and delivered a slap across the young woman’s face, causing her to cry out again as she crumpled to the floor.

Ayero’s eyes narrowed and her fists clenched briefly. She had seen all that she needed to see to make a decision. With the fury of a Fanalis, she kicked the door hard enough to loosen it from its hinges. The commotion caused all four people in the room to turn towards the doorway, surprised to see a figured standing there. The three men rose from their seats, the captured girl momentarily forgotten. ”Who are yo—“ One of the men brandishing a blade stepped forward, demanding to know who the strange intruder was. But before he had the chance to finish his question, Ayero’s knee met his stomach. The man flew back from the force of the Fanalis strength, causing the other two men to clench their teeth and step forward.

Ayero paused to take stock of the situation. One down. One with a whip, one with a blade. Don’t hit the girl… The second swordsman darted towards her, swinging his bladein a downward arc at Ayero. Not missing a beat, the Fanalis parried his blade to the side with Parare before landing a swift kick to the man’s stomach.

[Trained: Parare 125+/125 w amulet reduction]

Spoiler:

An expression of shock flashed over the Slave Trader’s face at seeing his two guards being taken out so quickly, but his face quickly hardened and he cracked his whip. ”You’re going to pay for that!” He lashed out with his whip toward Ayero, but the woman raised an arm to block the weapon using Guardie as she ran forward. She attempted to punch the man in the head, but he sidestepped her attack, lashing out with his whip once more.

Ayero grunted as she dropped down low, avoiding the whip and sweeping her leg in a wide arc in order to knock the Slaver’s legs out from under him. It worked, and Ayero sprung upwards before landing another punch to the man’s stomach. The Trader keeled over with the force of the blow, sprawled out on the floor like his other two men. They’re going to have some nasty tummy aches when they wake up. Ayero turned her gaze to the girl who was hiding behind her hands, frightened at all that was going on. Right, so…I’m going to have to carry four people out of here.

[Trained: Guardie 125+/125 w amulet reduction]

Spoiler:

[Stamina: 270/290]

Spoiler:

[Exit]