The Crimson Magister Chapter 4: V1-C4: Captive Princess

Read chapter 4 of The Crimson Magister by Okram on NovelPedia.

Sheira didn’t know what had happened. One moment, she had been watching her guards fight the ambushers. The next, she woke in a bandit camp, bound inside a small cage deep within a damp, foul-smelling cave. Several torches lit the cave, though some had already been choked out by the moisture. Her protective items were gone. So was her dress. A strip of cloth gagged her mouth, and chains bound her wrists and ankles to the cage. Her captors had given her only ragged human peasant clothes, coarse enough to make her skin itch. They had not even given her shoes. Splinters bit into her feet whenever she shifted. Sheira struggled against the chains, but they barely moved. Her thoughts went to Azure and the rest of her guards. She tried not to follow that thought too far. If she were here, then her friend was dead. Grief overcame her, and tears slid down her face. The chains barely let her move. All she could do was watch her tears fall onto the wooden floor of the cage. She wondered why anyone would go through so much trouble for her. Deep down, she already knew. They wanted her holy blood. Sheira didn’t know how long she had been captive, but it certainly felt as if it was forever. She was not allowed to grieve the loss of her dear friend for long before she heard footsteps coming closer and closer to her cage. From the corner of her eye, she noticed three men approaching her. She could make out that they were talking about something, but she couldn’t hear what, and she did not care much. Her mind circled back to Azure, then to the future waiting for her. She expected to become cattle for some rich noble who wanted her blood. And Sheira was certain no noble would stop at only that. She shuddered at what these people had in store for her; she didn’t want to think about it, and yet that was all that went through her head. All she could do was close her eyes and pray they would lose interest. Her prayer went unanswered. The three men stopped in front of the cage. The old man carried a cane and wore expensive clothes. She curled in on herself as much as the chains allowed. "Master will be quite pleased with your work; he has spent so many decades trying to obtain this kind of specimen." The way the man looked at her disgusted her; he looked at her like she was just an item to be traded. The man tapped his cane on the ground before turning to the two men. "You two, get out of here. I would like a moment alone with this specimen," he said, turning back to Sheira with a wicked grin. "My master has already sent a carriage with a reward to your headquarters. Go and arrange transport for this specimen to the City of Razul," he said as he placed his hand on the cage. Two men bowed before disappearing, leaving the infirm man alone with Sheira. The man stared at her without emotion, only scanning her as if she were an ingredient. The man let his cane fall and gripped the bars of the cage. He pressed his face between the bars as he stared at her before whispering, "You will be put to good use, elf. But, let’s deal with the Golden Rose first, shall we?" he said, cackling like a lunatic before catching himself and coughing into his hand. "Anyway, your new home is already waiting for you," he said while holding onto the cage with one hand and grabbing his cane with the other. Sheira just couldn’t deny it to herself anymore; she was truly going to become someone’s slave, and once again, like every time before, she was helpless. The man poked her with the cane, causing her discomfort, before nodding and reaching into the cage. He touched her head, and Sheira’s consciousness faded. *** Golden Fang was still worried about what had happened after he left his fighters to deliver the princess. One moment, they had executed the ambush flawlessly. The next, one of the defenders had turned into a monster. He pulled back his hood and mask, allowing himself to breathe some fresh air after all this time. As he removed his hood and mask, he revealed a face