"Fuck Bona, dead humans smell Bona. They'll track her… Fuck," Jack shook his head.
"I know, but I made sure no one was on our tail. They were low-life drunks, nobody will care for their death. Now we just have to understand her situation." Bona said, and Jack looked even more dissatisfied.
KNOCK KNOCK
The door of the room opened to Liza, who walked in and closed it behind her. She looked at the two of them and sat down on a third chair facing them.
"What is this place?" Liza asked, but this time she spoke with a more serious tone that surprised Bona. She had thought of Liza as a vulnerable and lost young demi-human, but the way she spoke said otherwise.
"This place? You're in the only part of the city where our kind isn't in chains or tortured by humans. I opened it after I killed the human who chained me. Year after year, I've taken in runaways like me." Jack answered.
"And Bona, you must be an adventurer, right?" Liza asked, looking at Bona. Bona nodded and took out a necklace with a gold-coloured nameplate.
"Yes, Jack raised me and taught me how to fight. Now I work as an adventurer to make enough money to feed all of us and pick up more of our kind like you, even if Jack doesn't agree with it," Bona said, smirking at the old man who sighed.
Liza leaned in and her eyes turned colder. She looked at the two of them and their eyes narrowed, feeling the tension. "Do you trust everyone here with your life?" Liza asked.
"What are you getting at, kid?" Jack replied, suspicious and more cautious of Liza now. She was saying dangerous words.
"I mean, do they have absolute loyalty and strong determination to our species, to our freedom, to a future where chains are broken forever?" Liza said, and her words made Bona lean in closer while Jack tightened his hold on the chair's arm.
"Liza, speak plainly. But if you're asking about our Spirit…", Bona said slowly, her body beginning to glow with a deep green. Initially, Liza felt the powerful pressure from level three aura, but then it transformed into a flowing green like thick liquid over her. The pressure instantly increased, causing Liza's eyes to widen and her aura to activate to fight back.
"You…Level four…", Liza said, surprised, before smiling. "Good." She said and reached for the side of the metal choker on her neck. Clicking a button, the choker opened, falling to the ground.
Jack and Bona couldn't believe their eyes. They stared at the choker, that showed the soft interior, contrasting with the cold metal outside. This wasn't a normal choker at all.
"Who are you?", Jack asked, standing up.
"My name is Liza, and I am not a slave. I don't belong to anyone against my will. I was raised in a demi-human camp in the forests south of the Kingdom." Liza began.
"Then what are you doing here, and why were you wearing that?", Bona asked.
"This thing is so my lord and I can blend in with the people of the city without drawing attention. The man I serve, the man my camp has sworn loyalty to, is the hope of our kind. He will save not only you but everyone in this city. He will abolish slavery, free us all, and give us a new chance at life. We must all follow him to build a better future for our kind with our own hands." Liza said in a very mature tone, which was very unlike her. Perhaps this city had taken some of her innocence away.
"And who is this lord?", Jack asked, the anticipation in the room rising.
KNOCK KNOCK
Jack and Bona froze as they heard a knock coming from the back door. However, everyone was inside the warehouse at this hour, so it was likely a stranger, most probably a human…
Bona stood up and rushed out of the room, walking between the demi-humans who went silent. The kids watched her, scared, as they had been told stories of the evil humans behind those doors.
"Who?" Bona asked from inside, looking up to see a child mouthing two words to her: "Masked Man." The child looked from the window.
"I believe you have one of mine inside," Ali said from outside, and Bona tightened her grip on the handle, her aura flaring.
"Let him in, Bona," Liza from behind her said aloud.
But Bona was hesitant. How could she allow a human to enter, putting everyone at risk just from Liza's words, who she had only met a little while ago? How could she…
"Bona, trust me. He's not an enemy or a threat. He's anything but that to you and to all of you," she shouted, looking around at the scared Demi-humans.
"If he makes any sudden moves, I won't hesitate to attack him with everything I have," Bona said, staring at Liza, who smiled softly and nodded.
Then, under everyone's watch, Bona opened the door to a giant. They all saw Ali barely fitting in the doorframe, his gold mask and black cloak covering his body.
"May I?" Ali asked, and Bona simply stared at him, trying to gauge his strength before stepping aside. Ali walked in.
The door closed behind him on its own, surprising those inside who stepped back.
Ali looked around the warehouse, a shelter for the Demi-humans: 'slaves, the children of slaves, work slaves, fighters, and broken pleasure slaves…,' he thought, looking at their state.
'And the caretaker,' Ali thought, looking down at Bona, who stared back at him, meeting his black eyes.
"Liza?" Ali said, looking at the bunny-girl who was smiling more than she had all day.
"Yes, we can trust them. They can lead it. Bona is more than capable," Liza said, pointing at Bona, who was now very confused.
"Hey, hey, hey, don't throw me in your plans just like that kid. I don't even know what you're talking about," Bona said, but then Jack shouted from beside the room.
"In here," he said, as he didn't want this to go down before everyone.
The three of them entered the room with Jack, the demi-humans behind them whispering among themselves.
Inside, Ali and Liza stood opposite Jack and Bona. Before they could speak, Ali removed his mask, revealing his handsome face to the two, who were astounded by his appearance.
"Did Liza tell you about me?" Ali asked, shedding his cloak and sitting down while Liza remained behind him.
"She said you were the saviour of our people and that a camp of demi-humans had accepted to serve under you… But I find her words hard to believe," Jack replied.
"Understandable. Well, my name is Ali," Ali began, but was interrupted when Bona's eyes widened and she exclaimed, "THE ALI? Wait, don't tell me you're… No…". Bona looked up at Liza, who remained unfazed by the reaction.
"Bona, what is it?" Jack asked, he never left the warehouse so how could he know about the talk of the city right now.
"Jack, this man… He's the talk of the city and the reason the two Knights' houses are preparing for another march, even though they've just finished a war. He's Baron Ali, the Master of Two Dragons, and the human who's the enemy of the Viscount and every power in the city, including the guild that's plastered posters everywhere to join the war," Bona explained, glancing back at Ali, who remained expressionless.
"That's Lord Ali," Liza said with a wide smile.
"Why are you here? My goodness, if they know you were here, then we're all doomed…" Bona exclaimed, shocked.
"Calm down, I'm here for you and the demi-humans of this city. That's why I haven't burned this city to the ground. I made a promise to a very beautiful fox-girl that I would save you all or at least help you save yourselves, which is where you come in," Ali said, pointing at Bona.
"Explain," Jack said, his voice filled with concern. He knew the weight of those words. They meant fighting back, a fight that could mean life or death, and losing it would bring unimaginable pain to his people, especially the young who would live a life of chains, just like he had once.
"I want to free all the slaves of the city, starting with the slave market and then spreading throughout the city, freeing every slave in every mansion," Ali declared.
"How?" Bona asked, her voice tinged with apprehension.
"Well, first, this will all happen when the army marches out of the city to attack me. Then, you will personally lead the charge. I will have more than forty demi-human warriors with you from the camp. They will arm the other slaves and help eliminate any resistance from the guards. In simple terms, you will first free the warrior slaves you alert beforehand, either in the guild or around the city. With them, you will then proceed to open the cages… Meanwhile, every knight, guard, and human in the city will be preoccupied with something else entirely. You can leave that to me."
"Why do you need us? Why not free us after you have won the war?" Jack asked, his voice laced with doubt.
"Well, because they already know about what happened in my town Obidos. You see, I have executed every human of influence in the town, and demi-humans now walk in my town as normal citizens, protected by the town guards. If news of the viscount's defeat spreads, these merchants will panic." Ali explained.
"And evil men in that state will look to the weak next to them first. Many will die, leaving nothing behind, and they will take nothing that will slow them down. Those who choose to stay might take their slaves as hostages or bargaining chips, believing I have a soft spot for demi-humans." Ali continued, and Bona nodded in understanding.
"When?" Bona asked, her resolve firm. She had trained for this very moment all her life.
"Bona…," Jack said, his gaze fixed on her.
"Jack, I have to. You know this is it… We might never have a better chance." Bona replied, her voice filled with determination.
"Jack, right?" Ali asked, and the old man nodded.
"How about I ease your mind and have all the demi-humans here smuggled out of the city and transported to the camp, along with you? Only those capable and willing to fight will stay." Ali suggested, and Jack opened his eyes wide.
"But the city guards are at every gate, and the gangs control every smuggling route out of the city…" Jack protested, but Liza smiled behind Ali.
"Lord Ali took care of the gangs tonight," Liza said with a smile.
"Took care?" Jack couldn't believe what he had just heard. These were the constant threat he had to evade for years in this part of the city. They would jump at the chance of this many demi-humans being enslaved and sold to the slave master.
"Dead. I killed them all," Ali said, looking at Bona, who couldn't believe it. "They didn't even put up a fight." Ali snapped his fingers, and two heads rolled on the ground.
The heads belonged to the pair of fallen nobles, and Bona recognised the two straight away, even sensing some of their aura still lingering…
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