Chapter 1- Life Debt
**Torn
Summary** : A chance encounter will stay with them for the rest of their lives
© Maelandra
4th October, 2009
All Rights Reserved.
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Chapter One- Life Debt
There were one hundred of them, all clad in the light leather armor of a traveling Company. Because of an international wedding between the two major countries that were usually at war, Scordiel was having a "golden age peace"- for now. So, what to do with all the armies he had built for a war that had ended so abruptly... Emperor Victus Alexander X and his new bride Emperoress Kalini Cordelia had the Companies of their combined armies traipsing the untamed forests to increase the slave trade and keep the men busy doing something since they couldn't go to war, pillage, plunder and rape. So the Fifth Company was now going through the Black Forests, looking for humans to enslave and kill. They had been at it for an uneventful month and a half.
Markus stared straight ahead as he and the soldiers about him walked through the dark forests, their eyes watching for humans, their noses twitching, seeking the different scents that wafted through the air. The snow leopard thought this particular stunt was rather foolish of General Kroger but he was just a soldier and could not question his general's decisions lest he wanted to have his head handed to him on a silver platter, this time. He had already learned that lesson a year ago when he had questioned the dragon general. The scarred claw marks running from shoulder to hip and the lack of his left ear were his every day reminders that he would stay in his place and say nothing of his thoughts. And his sister... The leopard closed his eyes for a second, his heart throbbing painfully as he remembered.
"Are we really going to find humans this way?" Dorian asked Markus under his breath, bringing the leopard from his morbid thoughts and memories, as the Company continued to scan the area for humans without any luck, so far as of yet.
The leopard turned his spotted head to the red fox and frowned. His answer came out as a snap, " Don't question General Kroger, Dorian. You know full well you don't want to pay for your debts if he or any of the commanders hear your insubordinate words. You also know how cruel he can be." The fox lowered his head, remembering that fateful day a year ago.
"I'm sorry," Dorian mumbled. "I didn't mean to bring it up. It's just we've been searching for almost seven weeks and nothing has changed! We have seen no humans so we have nothing to take back to the city. Maybe the humans have moved on with their herds of the lesser animals. I mean, winter is coming so perhaps they went South to the plains to feed their beasts." Markus shook his head. Somehow, he knew that was not the case. Humans were very stubborn creatures and they would not leave a place if they thought it was their home, most of the time. "Stop talking," the leopard hissed. "I won't have you suffer my fate by your words or worse. He has been looking your way for some time now. He might show you your place by invading your body, even- especially if you don't want it." He looked at his long time friend, adding, "Please, Dorian. It would drive me mad if General Kroger hurt you because your thoughts are to question him. Also, think what Leonard would do." Dorian blushed under his fur at the mention of the lion, his lover of three and a half years.
As if on cue, Leonard walked back, saying loudly, "We will make camp soon, boys. Be ready to make a fast dinner and head to bed." The lion caught the fox's eye and both grinned predatorily before the lion continued on to spread the news of the general's decision. Dorian sighed and Markus just rolled his eyes. Then his nose caught a whiff of something. When he realized what it was, it was too late. Human males suddenly poured out of the trees, crying their battle cried and ready to engage the animals, wielding swords, axes, bows, and clubs to beat off the soldiers. The soldiers were ready a second later, pulling out their better weapons and the forest rang with clashes and screams.
Dorian and Markus stood back to back as they fought off four male humans expertly. They worked well as a team, watching each other's back as they had done as cubs. A blonde man, wearing nothing launched himself at Markus and the leopard stabbed him through the groin, slicing up and splitting the human in half.
One of the Commanders cried, "Save some, if you can! We need to capture slaves!" So instead of killing, the soldiers started to try and knock out the human males to the best of their ability; there were some casualties, however.
Something flashed in Markus's peripheral vision and he turned. A small human, a young female was running from the battlefield. She would make a good slave, so he pursued her, abandoning the fighting and his friend to retrieve her. She was fast, but he was faster. When she saw him coming, she screamed and ducked through a bush. She tumbled down a steep incline but picked herself back up quickly and began running again.
Markus was almost upon her when she ran to the right and he heard a splash as she jumped into the river. It was late harvest time so the water would be very chilled. Was the girl trying to catch her death? He went to try and grab the back of her tunic from the water, slipped and plunged first into the freezing water. Fighting to get his head above the surface of the fast flowing river, he grabbed onto the girl as she struggled to stay afloat as well. Clinging to him, she coughed into his good ear, but he ignored the noise and tried to swim against the current to get to the bank. It was working slowly but surely, but they would have to be careful of rocks jutting from the river and the ones they couldn't see.
"Oh no," the girl whimpered and Markus turned his head to see what she was whining about. He swore colorfully. The falls were coming up fast and he didn't know how high they were but his gut was saying it was going to be a long, hard drop. He struggled to swim to the banks, but it was too late.
The girl screamed as they went over, letting go of the leopard and he of her. They fell for twenty seconds before their bodies hit the water. Pain enveloped him, blinding and numbing all of his senses as he sunk under the water like a stone, the girl forgotten for a moment. When his lungs turned to fire for air, he regained his sense, and kicked to the surface of the icy water, sucking in air as soon as his face broke through. He noted with half a mind that he was far enough away from the falls so as not to be forced under again. Then he noted that he ached all over and there would probably be dark bruises under his fur but that would be for later concern. Where was the girl?
Someone was choking up water and he turned, seeing struggling to keep afloat. He swam over to her and grabbed her about her waist, finally swimming to the banks and falling onto the sands in relief, the girl beside him. The two gasped for breath and simply lay there for a long time.
A cool breeze danced over their skin after a time, and Markus pulled himself into an upright, sitting position even though his muscles burned in protest. Getting to his feet was a challenge but he managed and scooped up the girl. She was much younger than he had originally thought, about six or seven but she was pretty. She didn't fight him as he carried her from the bank and started to head back to his Company.
The sky was getting dark and it would be quite some time before he got back to the camp so he would have to seek shelter for the night. "There are caves not far from here," the girl mumbled, her mind on the same path as his way. She pointed the direction they were and Markus allowed himself to follow her direction. He found them, just as the sun began to set. Inside, the girl told him to go farther in and he found the cave was set as a refugee, a fire pit dug and waiting with a huge pile of wood waiting to be lit. There were furs piled for a bed, a rudimentary table set with berries, bread, and a jar of water. Something rattled and the leopard turned to see in the gloom that two small beast-rabbits were caught in a trap. They were fat and frightened; they looked like dinner. After killing, skinning, and placing the rabbits over the fire, Markus finally looked at the child he had so foolishly chased so far from his Company. She lay on the pile of furs, their wet clothes hanging from a line tied between to stalagmites; they wore fresh, dry clothes the girl had stored in a chest, though the ones the leopard was wearing were tight and uncomfortable since they were designed for a human male. The pants fit- barely- but the tunic she had offered wouldn't fit over his wide shoulders so he was bare chested.
"How old are you, human?" Markus asked, curious.
The girl looked at him and murmured, "Seven. And my name is Nedira."
"Markus," the leopard replied. He turned the rabbits over to start to cook their other side, keeping it even. "Is this your home?"
The girl, Nedira, shook her head. "No. But I play here and I thought that if something bad happened, this would be a good place to hide. But you're here so I'll have to find a new hiding spot. Are you still going to enslave me?"
Markus was silent as he thought about that answer. Looking her over, if she were a leopard, she would have looked a lot like his sister... His heart throbbed again. Her long brown hair was the color of his sister's splotches. Her eyes were gray and held an intelligence no seven-year-old should have. A small nose over a heart-shaped mouth and a small, rounded chin sat well on her oval face. Her pale skin glowed in the firelight. Yes, she was indeed pretty, for a human. Markus let out a breath through his nose and answered slowly, "No. We have saved each other but, I cannot see myself being such a monster and handing you over to slavers just so you can be a plaything to some feline or canine. But I cannot promise you won't be captured later in life."
The girl nodded. They were silent while the rabbits cooked and night settled in. When they were done, Markus pulled them off the fire and put them onto the table. "Careful," he cautioned the girl. "Don't burn yourself." She smiled sadly.
"You sound like my father," Nedira said.
"Is he dead?"
"Probably. One of your men probably hacked him down today." Such a harsh statement coming from one so young made Markus's gut tighten. He felt disgusted with himself. "How did you lose your ear?" Markus looked at her as she took a bite of her rabbit. "Hmm. The rabbit- it's good. I'd've never figured you for a cook." She looked at him expectantly as she chewed and he debated whether or not to spill his guts to the human child.
Finally, he answered, "I lost my ear the same time I got these." He gestured to the claw marks that ran down his torso. Her eyes filled with sadness for him as she looked over the pink skin and then she looked up at him, asking 'how'. "I questioned my general, and he took offense. Then..." Markus shut down, remembering. He put his food down as he remembered that fateful day.
"What happened?" Nedira asked quietly.
Markus murmured softly, "Then my sister tried to stop that bastard dragon and... paid the ultimate price... and I could do nothing about it. He raped her and made me watch. Then he killed her." The child's eyes filled with tears and she put her half-eaten rabbit onto the table and came to him, putting her arms about his neck in a semi-hug. This caught the leopard by surprise. Humans were supposed to hate the animals and yet, here, this child was trying to give him some sort of comfort with a physical touch. And she didn't seem disgusted by him, either... She was strange, and yet it touched his heart that she would try to care for him.
When she sat back down, the rest of dinner was silent. She washed her hands and face in a spring in the cave wall and then came back. Hesitating, she smiled tiredly at him, and then yawned. Nedira lay on the pile of furs and said, "Good night." He hesitated before lying behind her, lying on his side. We remained wide awake for about an hour before he rolled onto his back. The second he did, the child curled up against him, mumbling through sleep, "Fluffy pillow. 'Night, 'night." He stared at the top of her head with mixed emotions but she proved to be asleep so he tried to relax and then, finally fell asleep.
In the morning, Markus slipped out of the cave before Nedira woke and scented out where his Company was camped. He arrived just as Dorian stepped out of his tent he shared with Leonard and the two embraced. The fox instantly recognized something had changed about the leopard and murmured that if he wanted to talk about it, he could. Markus smiled slightly. Quite a story it was.
Something in the back of his mind suddenly said he would see Nedira again and he smiled. He would enjoy that, when the time came.