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"But we aren't going to rely on that. We're going to plan for the rest of the day and see if we can use our powers, whatever they are, to get the fuck out of here," Charlie whispered with a determined look in his eye.
His words bolstered me and my chest rose as I took a deep breath for the first time since being thrown in the cave. My jaw set.
I will not fail my family again. We will escape.
CHAPTER4
BAELEN
“Welcome friends! Today’s market will open in a few moments!” the cheery voice called from the streets outside, encouraging people to move into the market square.
Damn it!I cursed, realizing I didn’t have as much time as I thought I did.I need to move. Now.
Squinting in the harsh light of two suns, I walked around the large stone wall that protected the market. Sweat dripped down my face as I trudged through sand and kept my eyes hidden and my movements sure.
The people of Drakor were huge, scaly, and yellow-eyed, which, when cloaked, I could pass for based on my size alone. But if discovered, my unscaled skin and my red eyes would betray me as something far more fearsome. And there wasn’t time for that.
When I heard of four titans in Jeten, the slavery capital of Drakor, being sold to different owners on the same day, I knew I needed to come. It wasn’t often these days that slave markets sold more than one of the same species since activists would attack and free them. Not that I would call myself an activist.
I brushed my hand against the sun-cooked surface of the wall, searching for a particular stone.
Got it.
My fingers traced the edge of a small button, and I pressed it to release the lock on a secret back door. Pulling it open slightly, I peeked through the crack to check for a guard or passersby. Thankfully, there were none, and before anyone could discover me, I slipped into the market’s produce room.
I sighed as I felt the cool relief of shade, and my eyes adjusted easily to the dimness.
“Fantastic selection of slaves! Pick a new worker today!” the street caller yelled, making my blood riot.
Slavery had been normalized in many places across the realms, but it was barbaric and cruel and killed many races—races that were currently locked in cages in the “produce” room. Their terrified faces haunted me. I wouldn’t save them all. I couldn’t.
You won’t end it today. But you make progress with every freed titan,I reminded myself.
Walking quietly through, I glanced at every cage, the occupants quivering as they looked at my eyes and whimpered. They probably thought I was there to buy them.
Spotting a cage of four titans, I kneeled in front of their cage. Two males and two females. They were all colored in shades of gold, as was typical for titans, but their hair was red, gold, brown, and black. The males, despite looking broken and injured, stood in front of the females protectively. I was glad that although they had suffered, they hadn’t forgotten the teachings of their people.
The dark-haired female whimpered at the sight of me. I whispered, “Don’t be afraid. I’m here to get you out.”
The males didn’t let down their guard, and I smiled. The red-haired one stared warily and asked, “Why?”
“Because I am building an army. And I need soldiers.”
I took the sword from my belt and slashed it across my finger, letting my blood drip into the lock on the cage. I manipulated the blood to push the pins of the lock to the right place, listening for a small click as each slid home. Within a few moments, I had opened the cage door. The occupants smothered a gasp but didn’t move.
“What are you waiting for? Let’s go.”
“We are not soldiers. We are slaves. Slaves don’t make good soldiers,” the red-headed male whispered.
“Doesn’t matter. We need to leave,” I growled.
The other slaves up for sale noticed the titans were being let out of their cage by someone who obviously didn’t work for the market and began to call out.
“Sir! Sir! Please, sir! Free us! Free us too!”
The titans glanced at the other cages and then each other before diving out of the cage.
“Where do we go?” the second male asked hurriedly as the calls from the surrounding cages grew louder. I steeled my heart against them and concentrated on only those I could help.
