An Encounter at the Auction – 3C-HH

Chapter 3 – Getting Underway (continued)

Kaylen’s group moved all throughout the marketplace, stopping at stalls, and shops, and booths, along the way. They picked up a map of the surrounding countryside, and purchased rations consisting of a mix of hard bread, dried fruit, smoked and salted jerky, and cheese. A few of them needed to pick up some extra gear and tools, either to replace things that had worn out, or to supplement their roles in Kaylen’s party. They made sure everyone had a tent and sleeping roll, and even made certain everyone but Ursa had a mount of some form – there simply wasn’t anything big enough for the half-giant – but by that point they were near an unusually noisy section of the market, and that was saying something since the whole place was crowded and boisterous. Kaylen found himself pausing at the edge of a crowd gathered in front of a stage where a pair of teenage boys in drab but clean clothing stood, bound at the wrists. One of them had a small bandage visible on his cheek.

He heard Lyria’s armor clinking as she approached, “You don’t want anything here.” His sister was quick to point out when she noticed him watching the proceedings.

“What’s going on here?” Kaylen asked. “Is that…?”

“A **** auction.” The brown-haired girl confirmed.

“They look pretty young.” Kaylen had never even seen a **** before, at least not that he was conscious of. Though he supposed his old mentor’s indentured servants weren’t much better than slaves.

Lyria sighed, glancing towards where the others were browsing a nearby stall before turning back to her brother. “Do you want a closer look? Do you need to see it for yourself?”

“I think I do.” Kaylen acknowledged.

“Then go ahead, I’ll let the others know where you’ve gone.” Lyria offered, turning to head back to the eclectic group still shopping at a handful of nearby stalls.

Kaylen nodded, and made his way closer through the assembled crowd, towards where the people actually bidding on the auction were standing.

He wasn’t sure how long he watched before he heard Alayni’s voice close behind him, “I never liked this place.” She said, as he turned to see the curly-haired halfling alongside Vesili, the half-elf’s face still shadowed by her hood. The black-haired girl looked uncomfortable and out of place, and it was the first time he’d seen the brown-eyed halfling without some kind of a smile on her dimpled face. He beckoned them both closer, feeling a protective instinct surge up within him.

The violet-eyed half-elf looked like she wanted to say something, but she stayed silent as the three of them turned back to the stage. Shortly one of the young men was led away, and the hawker began extolling the ‘selling points’ of the remaining ****. “He’s the son of a tanner, so he’s used to hard work, and can craft or repair high quality leather goods from tack to boots. Is there none here who could make use of such a valuable skill?”

Then the man pointed towards Kaylen, “You there, you look like the mercenary type, maybe you could use an armorer on the road, this **** is fresh and untrained, so the price is low, and if he’s stuck in the wilderness with you, you won’t have to worry about him trying to steal from you or run away while you’re teaching him.”

The dark-haired boy with a dirt-smudged nose and a bandage on his cheek looked frightened, and Kaylen was at a loss, but then Vesili said, “You could spare him from being purchased by someone cruel.” Drawing his attention so he glanced her way at met her violet gaze.

“What?” Kaylen blinked at her, but the hawker seemed to take that as an encouraging sign.

“Why don’t you come up here, and inspect the merchandise for yourself, young master?” The hawker was waving towards him, gesturing him to come up on the stage.

Kaylen glanced at Alayni, who pointed her chin towards the stage in approval, her brown eyes filled with compassion, and then looked to Vesili, whose expressive violet eyes seemed to plead with him. And so, bolstered by their support, he made his way to the stage and approached the teenage boy. Kaylen noted his eyes were blue, and his skin seemed fair beneath the grim and bruising, though with a light tan.

“How old are you?” He asked.

“Fifteen.” The boy gave him an odd look, partially fearful, but also allowing himself a glimmer of hope.

“Is what he said right?” Kaylen gestured toward the hawker, who stood nearby, watching them carefully. “Are you skilled with leatherwork?”

“Um, I am. Though I’m still learning.” Came the reply, the boy’s blue eyes downcast.

“What’s your name?”

“Gregory. Gregory Thatcher.”

“Well, Gregory, you might have a new master today.”

Kaylen turned to the hawker in his colorful vest decorated with cheap jewelry, “Shall we negotiate price?” He asked, trying to sound more confident than he felt.

“Certainly.” The hawker motioned for a pair of slavers who escorted Gregory off the stage, with Kaylen following. Alayni and Vesili caught up with him on the way to a low warehouse style building that contained cages with at least a dozen other slaves, one of which was being brought out towards the stage as they passed.

Kaylen’s group was led into a small room where a large man wearing expensive jewelry all over his body waited behind a desk. “Ah, an adventurer. We don’t sell many slaves to your type.” He stood up, taking in Kaylen and the two women following him. He was a little overweight, but his arms showed strength, even if his clothing spoke of luxuries, as did his well-maintained blonde hair. “So you want to buy the tanner boy?”

“Your hawker said he could repair armor, tack, and other kit.” Kaylen explained. “He also said I could get a good deal due to him being untrained.” A quick glance showed that the blue-eyed boy was despondent, resigned to his fate, it seemed. But another glance at the stocky halfling and lithe half-elf behind him reminded Kaylen what they had said before he’d gone up on stage, and he resolved to improve the boy’s fortunes, as much as he was able. Maybe the adolescent boy would grow to appreciate traveling amongst a band of five attractive women.

The richly adorned **** master sorted through a stack of papers, then stepped forward with a single scroll in hand, and offered his free hand to Kaylen. “Garion Tilk.” He said, introducing himself.

“Adept Kaylen Gallowglass.” Kaylen shook the blond man’s hand.

“Oh, a mage adventurer.” Garion grinned widely, flashing a gold tooth.

“A mage?!” Gregory’s eyes widened in alarm.

But before Kaylen could respond, the door to the room burst open and a dark-haired young woman stumbled in followed immediately after by a burly slaver trying to grab her.

“Master adventurer, please!” The woman beseeched Kaylen, as the slaver who’d chased her into the room finally caught ahold of her arm. “I’m a much more skilled artisan than my brother, let me pay his debt!”

“Danny, don’t, he’s a mage!” Gregory warned.

The woman’s eyes widened, but she did not back down. She had the same blue eyes as her brother, Kaylen noticed, and her tan was a shade darker.

“You can let her go, Barnus.” Master Tilk said. “I don’t think we’re in any danger from this girl, Danny is it?”

The slaver, Barnus, released the girl’s arm. She huffed, and stepped right in front of Kaylen. “Master mage.”

“Adept.” Kaylen corrected.

The girl, Danny, blinked but nodded, “Adept, please. I wish to serve in my brother’s place to repay his debt. I promise I will serve you better, and… I’m sure you’d find my company more pleasing.” She looked down at her plain attire, consisting of somewhat stained brown tunic over a green dress and mud-spattered black shoes, but still attempted a pose to show off her figure.

“Damn, Kaylen.” Alayni interjected, “You’re either the luckiest mage alive, or far more cunning than I gave you credit for.”

Startled, Kaylen turned to the curly-haired halfling. “Excuse me?”

“Oh come on, big guy; this is one heck of a coincidence considering your party composition. If I didn’t know better I’d say you somehow planned this.” She gestured from him to the blue-eyed girl and back.

Kaylen sighed, this situation was getting complicated, and he was already uncomfortable when it came to the issue of slavery, though at least the brown-eyed woman didn’t seem upset by this ‘coincidence’. But he still had to figure out exactly what was going on with this girl and her brother, and Alayni’s comments were only confusing the siblings and the slavers alike.

So, he brought his staff forward, and tapped it on the ground three times while uttering a harsh incantation. Nearly everyone in the room aside from his companions flinched back or reached for their weapons, but after an invisible burst of energy vibrated the air briefly and nothing else happened, most of them aside from Barnus and Vesili seemed to relax slightly.

“What is your name, girl?” Kaylen asked in his most authoritative tone, pointing at Danny.

“Dinnae Thatcher.” She responded immediately, her blue eyes widening at her compelled response.

“Why is your brother being sold as a ****?” Kaylen continued grilling the brown-haired girl.

“He was caught stealing on a prank, and he owes a lot of money, so the judge said he had to be indentured to pay off his debt.” She was still a little alarmed at the way Kaylen’s spell **** the words from her.

Kaylen turned to Master Tilk. “How much is his debt?” He asked, observing that the blonde man’s hand was still resting uneasily on the hilt of his curved sword.

“He owed five gold doubloons, I bought him for four, but if you purchased him, the remaining debt would transfer to you.” Tilk also seemed somewhat surprised by the words he’d spoken, making Kaylen curious, but he had to deal with this situation first.

“Can she sell herself to take on his debt?”

The **** master merely nodded.

“Would that change the price?”

“Typically yes. Female slaves always fetch higher prices.”

“Typically?” Kaylen responded. “That hardly sounds fair.”

“Well, the…” Tilk stopped, and bit his lip.

“It’s because of sex.” Alayni said. “Many men are willing to pay more expecting to be able to have sex with their slaves, even if it’s not always legal.”

“Why would it sometimes be legal, and sometimes not?” Kaylen asked, confused, as he turned to look at the short curvy woman.

“Because she’d be indentured, rather than a life ****.” It was Tilk who responded. “A debtor who becomes indentured does not lose the right to consent.”

“Yet, you still wanted to charge me more for her?”

“Master Mage, it’s just a way to gain more profit, we don’t encourage people to break the law.” Barnus responded.

The **** master sighed. “We don’t see it as unethical to gain a bit more coin because people might make assumptions.” He admitted. “But your spell is forcing us to be entirely factual.”

Kaylen blinked. “I meant that to be a targeted spell.” Kaylen admitted, though the **** master didn’t seem to understand the distinction.

“Well, how about this? I’ll pay you six gold doubloons to buy his debt, and transfer it to her.” He pointed first at Gregory, then at Dinnae.

“I might ask for a little bit more to compensate us for our time and trouble in transferring the debt if nothing else.” Tilk explained, trying another tact.

“What would be a fair price to handle that transaction, then?”

Tilk looked torn, but finally said, “Well, we need to make a profit, and two doubloons isn’t much profit. I would have asked for six doubloons for the boy, and increased the price to eight or nine for an adult female, but seven would still be fair, transferring the debt doesn’t cost us anything.”

“An upcharge of sixteen percent for something you admitted costs you nothing?” Alayni asked, both eyebrows raised incredulously.

“It’s fine, Alayni.” Kaylen interjected.

“I’m with her on this.” Vesili cut in.

Kaylen glanced between them, but then nodded, turning back to the **** master. “I’ll pay you six doubloons, and eight silver royals.”

Tilk sighed heavily, but eventually nodded, “You drive a hard bargain, Master Mage. But I accept.” He moved back behind his desk and began writing out a contract, meanwhile, Dinnae had moved to where her brother still sat on the ground, and began speaking with him in a low tone.

“How are you doing?” Vesili asked, coming up on Kaylen’s left side.

“I think this transaction was more complicated than it needed to be.” Kaylen admitted, looking between the black-haired half-elf and the curly-haired halfling as she came up on his other side.

“Should I be concerned about your intentions with that girl?” Alayni asked, quirking one eyebrow.

Kaylen shook his head. “I didn’t even come here planning to buy a female ****; that was her choice. I honored her desire to protect her brother, not her appeal to whatever attraction I might have for her.”

“Well that’s good for me then.” The halfling added cheekily, causing Kaylen to glance at her, wondering what she was hinting at.

But before he could question her on it, Tilk came back around the desk and presented the sheets of parchment for Kaylen to review, “Here’s the contract.” He explained, as Kaylen took a quick glance, noticing their agreed upon price listed at the bottom of the first page. “We have a branding wand we can use to transfer the **** mark, or if you are familiar with the marking spell, we can let you place your own mark on the girl.” The **** master continued.

“I know the spell.” Kaylen replied, turning to Dinnae and her brother as Tilk waved them forward, with Barnus standing close at hand. Both his companions stayed at his sides, showing their solidarity despite whatever misgivings they might have had.

“First, I’ll need you to sign here, Miss Thatcher, indicating you are taking on your brother’s debt, and agreeing to servitude in his place.” Tilk handed the girl a quill, and she took a moment to scan the scroll before signing her name in a tidy scrawl.

“And I’ll need you to sign here, after you pay the agreed amount.” Tilk indicated the spot in the contract, and Kaylen counted out the coin and gave it to the **** master before accepting a quill that was handed to him. He signed where he was prompted on every copy of the form, then rolled up one set and slipped it into his scroll case before turning back to face his new ****.

Tilk brandished his wand over Gregory’s arm, causing a mark that had been magically imprinted on his skin to slowly fade. Then he stepped away as Dinnae stood forward, facing Kaylen with a brave but nervous expression.

“Where would you like the mark?” Kaylen asked, feeling somewhat charitable.

“Somewhere it won’t be seen.” Dinnae responded, still compelled to honesty by Kaylen’s spell.

“Oh?” Alayni interjected teasingly.

“It has to be somewhat accessible so it can be checked.” Kaylen gave the halfling a look to quell her before turning back to the blue-eyed woman in front of him. “I assume you wouldn’t want to be unnecessarily exposed every time someone might need to check it, so where would you like me to place the mark that you would be moderately comfortable being checked on a semi-regular basis?”

Dinnae blushed at the brown-haired halfling’s suggestive querry, but then turned slightly away from Kaylen, pulling her hair over her shoulder to expose the back of her neck. “Maybe here, just above my shoulder blades, where it can be checked without removing my tunic, but won’t be easy to spot when my hair is down?”

Kaylen drew his own wand, and gestured for Vesili to tug down the neckline of Dinnae’s tunic in the back, to expose a small patch of skin between her shoulders. She complied, though the half-elf was only about as tall as the spot the girl wanted her mark. Then Kaylen very carefully chanted the incantation for the personal mark spell, while tracing patterns in the air with his wand, and after a moment of this, his personal sigil appeared on Dinnae’s back, a few inches down from the base of her neck, but a little above the space directly between her shoulder blades.

“It is done.” He announced, and Vesili retreated quickly, rubbing a spot on her own arm covered by her sleeve.

“It burns a little.” Dinnae admitted, rubbing at the spot with one hand as she turned back to face the three of them.

“That should fade soon enough.” Kaylen assured her.

“Mine burned more than a little.” Gregory muttered, seemingly reassured by Kaylen’s spell being less intrusive than the magic that had been used on him, though he still glowered impotently at the mage who now owned his sister. It was clear he felt a desire to help her avoid losing her freedom, while knowing full well there was nothing he could do.

“You are lucky.” Vesili told Kaylen’s new ****. “Magic like that can be quiet unpleasant. I’m sure you’ll be well taken care of with Kaylen and his party.”

Kaylen was at a momentary loss for words, but decided he didn’t wish to linger here, so he gestured for the two siblings to follow him, as the five of them made their way outside. Neither Tilk nor Barnus seemed inclined to follow.

Once they were out of general earshot, Alayni addressed Dinnae and her brother. “I think you’re going to appreciate your time with us. I can’t lie and suggest you’re for certain going to enjoy it, but I think you’ll find it much less arduous than you might fear.”

“We’ll make certain he is fair with you.” The half-elf added, her violet eyes looking between the two siblings.

“I will endeavor to be fair.” Kaylen told them. “If there is something you must do before we leave, I will allow you to do it. Is there someone who will take care of your brother while you are traveling with me?”

“Thank you. All of you.” The tanned girl smiled at them before addressing Kaylen directly. “We’re supposed to be staying with my mother’s brother since our parents passing. Gregory kept running off to mess around with other boys his age, but I think he’s learned his lesson, and won’t run with them anymore, isn’t that right?”

“I don’t want to anymore. They’re still my friends, but I don’t want their kind of trouble.” Gregory answered, and Kaylen once again knew he was being compelled to honesty thanks to his spell.

“Then let’s go get you introduced to the rest of the party. I am certain they will also treat you fairly, and most of them should take well to you.” Alayni said.

Kaylen nodded, “After that, we will deliver your brother to his uncle. We’ll also need to get you some gear for the journey before we’re ready to depart.”

“Of course.” Dinnae said demurely, blushing at their welcoming displays.

Kaylen nodded once again, then gestured to the market square ahead of them, where he could see Ursa standing near the fountain, the half-giant looking bored. “Now let’s get going.”