The burly man behind the counter quietly cleaned the cup. He glanced at the small blonde girl tied behind the counter. The girl’s eyes were open but she wasn’t moving.

“Hey Old man! Do you have something for me?” A jolly voice rang out in the bar causing heads to turn.

“If I didn’t have something for you, I wouldn’t have called”, came the grumpy reply.

A man garnered up in red was the owner of the first voice. He sat at the counter and slid something to the burly man.

The old man raised a brow then scoffed, “Found in the bushes” then cocked his head to the right. The man in red smiled and walked behind the counter.

“Oh? Blonde and blue, rare” he commented.

“You think so?” the burly man replied.

The man in red gave a small nod then knelt down, “Yo”

The girl’s eyeball moved until they landed on him. They stayed like that for a while until her eyelids slowly dropped and she looked dead.

The man chuckled then stood up and dusted his trousers.

'Nothing I haven't seen before' he thought as he walked to the door and in a quiet voice said:

“Sack her”

----------------------------------------------------------

Agnes slowly opened her eyes and looked around. It was dark and she felt weak. She moved her arms and the sound of chains followed. She moved her feet and the same thing happened.

“Would you stop? You’re hurting my ears” came a grumpy and childish voice from her front of Agnes.

“It’s the one who came yesterday” another voice followed. This time female from the right.

Agnes stopped moving and rested on the wall behind her.

“She’s a quiet one” a sassy female voice rang out from the front-right.

“Uh-huh. The first male voice said.

“What’s your name?” A sweet male voice resounded from her left

No reply.

“Name?? Don’t tell me you don’t have one?” the sassy one continued.

“Linde, you are being rude”

“Jeis, we are all in a cage. That itself is already rude”

A sigh was heard.

“Anyone have left over candles? I can’t see a thing” the first male voice said.

“You had the last candle, Kulai” Linde replied.

A chuckle was heard, “What happened to it?” the sweet male voice came again.

“You make it sound like I did something to it, gee Steve”

“Because you probably did”, a totally different voice from the front-left.

“Even Mexa thinks so” Jeis’ voice rang out

‘5 people’ Agnes thought.

A loud sound like iron hitting iron was heard and then the creaking of metal followed by shuffling of feet was heard to the right of Agnes. Light began to stream in as 7 men filed in holding candles.

Agnes cringed at the sudden light.

“Awake now, are you?” came a cold voice.

Agnes looked up at a man wearing a worn out colorful shirt that seemed to have faded from overuse and red shorts. It was the man that put her in a sack.

He squatted down to her eye level and smirked obviously satisfied with something.

“Dinner time” he spoke very softly. Different from what Agnes was expecting, “If you’re wondering where you are, well you don’t need to know since you won’t be getting out unless I want you to” he then smiled, his plump cheeks parting to reveal his brown teeth

“As for how you got here…. You know that, don’t you?” he gave a breif nod to the men behind him, got up and walked away. The sound of the metal door following soon after.

The remaining six men hurriedly opened the cages and dropped the candle in the hold on each cage door.

The children filed out orderly while the man who opened Agnes’ cage went over to unlock her chains. She didn't struggle. Just stayed still.

Soon enough, the men were gone and a middle aged lady filed in pushing a cart. She dropped 6 bowls on the ground and walked out.

The once noisy children did not make a sound while all this was happening.

Once the lady left, they all grabbed a bowl and sat down.

“You coming?” Linde asked.

Agnes didn’t make a sound and just walked over the grabbed a bowl while scanning them.

Linde was human, with fiery red hair and blue eyes.

The girl sitting by her right had green and seemed really stout with a squared nose. A typical dwarf.

The girl opposite her had pale red hair but there was a gray streak of hair on her face. There was a small diamond imbedded in her head and pointy ears but a bushy tail hung out behind her and no claws. She was an elf mix. The gray hair made it all the more clear that she was a semi.

The boy beside the elf mix was smiling gently. He had brown hair and beautiful green eyes. Human.

The last person was a male. A pure lurk with the wagging tail and the soft looking ears. A dog lurk, signified by the paws. Well, not exactly dog paws.

“Hello” the human boy spoke, “You never said your name”. Steve.

“Are you dumb by any chance? Or deaf?” the elf mix said. Jeis.

“If she was deaf, how would she know you were asking?” Linde scoffed.

“Ohhhhh” Jeis said in realization.

“Hey guys” the lurk suddenly spoke. ‘Kulai’ Agnes noted.

“What?” Jeis asked.

“Isn’t she a semi?” he asked.

“Wha--- how many times have I told you not to use that word?!” Jeis shrieked as she pounced on him and began to hit him.

“It slipped” he cried in defense.

The rest kept drinking their soup as though it was a normal occurrence.

“She looks like one though” Linde suddenly spoke out.

At that they all turn to the blonde- and blue girl who wouldn’t make a sound.

“She has pointy ears” Jeis gasped.

“But no diamond”

“Wow. She looks human if you cover her ears” Steve’s sweet voice rang out.

“But where is her gray hair?” Kulai asked.

The rest of them looked at her baffled.

“If you cut it, it grows back immediately. I know from experience” Jeis said.

“Maybe her ears just happen to be super pointy” Kulai said.

“Where are you from?” Linde finally asked the question bothering everyone.

Agnes looked up and stared at them for a moment then she lifted up her bowl and drained it then proceeded into the cage closing it behind her.

“I think she’s dumb” Linde said.

“Definitely not deaf though” Jeis chuckled.

“Cards anyone?” Kulai asked.

“With melted candles again?” the dwarf girl finally said something. From the voice Agnes could tell she was Mexa.

“Why not?” Steve giggled.

“I think the soup has sleeping drugs again, sheesh” Linde grimaced as she took a spoon.

“Oh? What kind of tongue do you have to taste it?” Kulai asked with a baffled face.

“You’re the dog here, how come you don’t taste it?” Linde scoffed at him.

“Wha---- heyyy!!!!” He bellowed angrily.

Jeis and Steve just laughed while Mexa kept a straight face.

Agnes slowly closed her eyes, eradicating any sound she could hear and tried to fall asleep.

Images of her dead parents flooded her mind, giving her endless nightmares.

She had barely lived the past few years. She didn't care what happened to her at this point. She just wanted to be back with her parents again.

----------------------------------------------

Agnes jolted up to her body drenched in water.

“Get up!” a roar greeted her. It was dimly lit.

She glanced around and recognized the cage from yesterday.

She could make out the pained faces of the other children. Jeis in particular seemed to be telling her to come out of her cage.

She looked up but could not make out the man’s face. It was blurry and dark.

“I said get up” he screamed and kicked her. Pain coursed through her body but she didn’t make a sound.

Slowly, she descended back to the floor while the man rained kicks on her and she closed her eyes. It were as though she couldn’t feel a thing.

---------------------------------------------------------

“Obedient my ass!” a man yelled as he threw books on the floor, “He gave me a dumb bitch!!!!!!” His big frame heaved up and down making it obvious that he had been throwing a fit for a while.

Suddenly the door opened and a young man walked in.

“Did you manage to get the girl awake?” Tendo asked grumpily without facing the man that stepped in.

“No, Mr. Tendo. We tried everything. Electricity, whips, ice. Nothing” the man spoke.

“Fuck Fuck Fuck!!!!” he screamed and slammed the table making it break into two then walked towards the young man

Tendo grabbed the man by his shirt, “Go get that oldie and tell him, he gave me a defect slave”

He threw the man at the door while the man scurried to his feet and away.

Tendo held his head and clicked his tongue, “What a waste of a hundred…..”

He bit his lips the stood straight up, “Wiser! Go get Marshall”

“Yes Sir!” a clear voice came from outside the door and soon there was silence.

AN: The grammar and spelling errors are numerous. I know. I will do a thourough proofreading when I get back. *Imagine me bowing*

To Remember…