What Slaves May Say (Amarantha)

[Marcus Ahysen]

What Slaves May Say Timestamp: 3rd of Summer, 512 AV Location: Temple of the Black Sun Marcus sat patiently in the office of his mistress, a one Lilith Roslyn, the Acolyte who first recruited him to the Black Sun. His emotions were a mixture of excitement and anxiety. Lilith had a mission for him. It had been some time since Marcus had undertaken an actual mission for his order, but he had a pretty good idea of what sort of mission he would be undertaking. His skills lent well to undercover work. Marcus was an actor in his youth, priding himself in his ability to become another person and make it believable. Most likely, he would be doing such a thing during his mission. He didn't have to wait long. Lilith soon joined him and sat down in the chair across the desk. "So, Marcus, how have you been?" She didn't expect him to answer, and Marcus knew it. She was simply being pleasant. "I have a task for you. There is a man in Ravok, his name is Arien Morrow. We believe he is an agent of the Syliran Knights, or at least a supporter. You are to infiltrate his household and find evidence to prove this. The Black Sun wants to make an example of this man. If you cannot find any evidence, then plant some." Marcus nodded, understanding what needed to be done, but there were still some details left out. "Is there a specific role you would have me undertake?" The woman nodded, sliding a folder to the Agent. "Everything you need to know is in there." ------------------ Timestamp: 5th of Summer, 512 AV Location: Marcus Ahysen's Apartment Marcus stood in front of the mirror, examining his reflection. He had a new persona to build. The man's name was Benjamin Morrow, a sailor from Zeltiva and distant cousin to Arien. The two men had not seen each other since they were children, but recently, Arien received a letter that his cousin was coming to visit. The Ebonstryfe intercepted the man on the way to Ravok and interrogated him. By all accounts Benjamin had no link to the Syliran knights, and actually had been raised in Zeltiva. The folder Marcus had been given contained everything the Ebonstryfe could dig up on the man, including the information extracted during interrogation. Benjamin himself had been disposed of, and all Marcus had to do was take up his mantle. Benjamin had brown hair, a bit lighter than Marcus, but that could easily be fixed. He also had brown eyes, though Marcus had blue. Marcus toyed with the ideas of morphing his eyes, but he knew that he wouldn't be able to maintain it long enough to hold up the disguise. Marcus figured it would be best not to bother with the eyes. The two men had not seen each other since childhood; it was unlikely Arien would remember what Benjamin's eyes looked like. The most important part would be the accent and the information. Marcus had to sound like a Zeltivan, and he had to recall his information correctly. The Agent quickly applied some makeup across his face and body to darken his skin a bit, changed into clothes more befitting of the sailor Benjamin was, and applied a false scar on his chin, a wound which supposedly Arien himself had inflicted during a childhood brawl. With the disguise complete Marcus set out from his apartment, heading for the noble district. Arien was not rich, but he had enough mizas to purchase a standalone apartment in the good side of town. It was not a huge place, but it was certainly nice enough. Marcus had seen the building before, and was familiar with its whereabouts. When he arrived he cleared his throat, and then knocked three times on the door. Hopefully Arien was home. OOCSo, you should probably be the one to open the door, being that you are the slave. Arien doesn't have to be home right now, I'll leave that up to you. Also feel free to make up any other family members for him as you see fit.

[Amarantha]

OOCHope it's okay! Amarantha walked barefoot down the hall of her Masters apartment, a pile of fresh sheets stacked carefully in her arms and humming pleasantly. She had been busy for the majority of the morning, washing Arien's dirty laundry, changing the old sheets on his bed for new ones. For once though there was no need for her to rush, she was alone in the apartment; Arien had rushed out earlier after sending his fist through a window. The thought of it caused a nasty smile to spread her lips. The man had gone to hit her, his heavy fist raised in anger. Luckily for Amma she had managed to duck out of the way and avoid the blow. Not so lucky for the idiot throwing his fists around. Still smiling Amma set the sheets away in a small linen closet and smoothed out her dress. All the tasks needed for the morning were done and she hurried back to the small, cramped closet of a room that had been allotted to her. Retrieving one of her books, a weighty volume entitled The Secrets of Massage. She closed the door behind herself and all but skipped into the sitting room where she coiled herself down onto one of the large, soft lounges. She sat with her long legs drawn up underneath herself and leaning to the side against the feather stuffed pillows. Sighing in relaxation she carefully opened the leather bound cover and turned to the first page. It wasn’t the first time that she had read it, not even the second or the third. One would think that after reading something so many, many times you would get sick to death of it, or at least memories it line for line. Not Amma though. It seemed that each time she read it she would remember something she had not before. Just as she began to read the first page there was a knock at the front door. Glancing up Amma gazed at the large, hardwood door curiously, shutting the book gently. There was no possible way that it could be Arien; he would never knock to enter his own home, and there was no one else living here but him and herself. Standing slowly Amma wondered on what she should do. She and Arien had only been in Ravok for a few months and during that time her master had not had a single visitor, so she wasn’t quite sure what her duties were when it came to greeting visitors. Setting her book down on the table, Amma hurried over to the door and unlocked it, opening it slightly so that she may glance out. A man stood before her, fairly young with brown hair and blue eyes. Opening the door wider she smiled tentatively. “Good day sir. Pardon me but I’m afraid the master of the house is out at the moment; Is there anything that I can help you with?”

[Marcus Ahysen]

Marcus waited patiently for Arien to come open the door, but instead he was met with the beautiful face of a woman. He wasn't surprised though, according to his information Arien did have a slave. Her name was Amarantha, if he recalled correctly, though Benjamin wouldn't know that. And Marcus wasn't playing Marcus, he was playing Benjamin. Putting on his best Zeltivan accent, Marcus greeted the slave. "I'm sorry, milady. I thought he'd be expecting me. My name's Ben, Ben Morrow. Arien's cousin, from Zeltiva. I sent a letter ahead of me, did he get it?" He had to remember not to treat Amarantha too much like a slave. In Zeltiva there were no slaves, and so Benjamin would not likely think of Amarantha as a slave unless it was pointed out to him. "Would it be alright if I came inside. The ferry ride over left me awfully thirsty, and I could use some water if you have any." Marcus waited patiently to be invited in, knowing that Benjamin wouldn't be so rude as to simply walk in without an invitation. He wasn't an agent of the Black Sun anymore, he was a common sailor, and a foreigner at that. It was surely a step or ten down from his normal station, but Marcus was more than ready to play the role. OOCSorry for taking so long. I generally don't post over the weekend. That is family time.

[Amarantha]

The man spoke with an accent that Amarantha did not recognize. At the mention of the letter Amma arched an eyebrow. She knew for a fact that Arien had received the letter, as she had brought it to him herself. "Nice to meet you Mr. Morrow. My master did receive your letter, but due to a... unfortunate accident he had to rush to a healer." Amarantha said, biting the inside of her check to keep the snigger out of her voice at the mention of Arien’s injury. Opening the door wider Amma stepped back, allowing the Zeltivan man entry. "Please, make yourself at home while I fetch you a drink." She said with the most respect she could muster. She turned and walked quietly through a small arched doorway that lead to the dining room which doubled as a kitchen. There were a few tall, double door cupboards and a small table surrounded by four chairs. Walking to the table she picked up the pitcher that sat on it and retrieved a clean cup from one of the cupboards before returning to the sitting room. Setting the cup on the table that sat between the two lounges. Carefully she poured the water, wary not to spill a drop. When she was done she set the pitcher in the center of the table and handed the man the cup.

[Marcus Ahysen]

"An accident!?" Marcus didn't have to feign surprise on that reaction, he truly was surprised. The accident must have just happened for him to not have been informed of it in advance, and the agent hoped it wouldn't interfere with his mission. However, with Arien out of the house, it did give him time to chat up his slave and see what he might figure out. "I do hope it was nothing serious." Marcus accepted the drink, taking a seat on a comfy chair. Glancing around the room he used his apparent distraction to think of a way to bring up the subject of the knights. He knew he couldn't just dive right in, but it was always best to have some sort of a gameplan. Marcus returned his attentions to Amma quickly enough, knowing that a Zeltivan sailor like Benjamin wouldn't let his attentions wander for too long from a beautiful woman in the room. "So I didn't know my cousin had a wife. How long have you two been together, anyway?"

[Amarantha]

"No, just a minor cut. He should be fine." Amarantha said stiffly as the man took his drink and sat. Twisting her hands together behind her back she eyed her book, hoping that the man wouldn't mention it. If Arien found out about the small amount of belongings she had hid in her small room he would take great interest in destroying them of selling them. Needless to say the man did not like her. Ammas’ head snapped up in surprise of his next question. "Wha-What!?" She choked out. He thought they were married!? The mere idea of it made Amma's stomach turn. Taking a deep breath to regain her composure Amma smiled sheepishly and gave a quiet chuckle. She remembered hearing somewhere that slavery was outlawed in most of Sylira; Zeltiva must have been one of those places. "I'm afraid you are mistaken, sir. I am your cousins’ slave, not his wife."

[Marcus Ahysen]

"His slave," Marcus blurted out in feigned shock, "My cousin keeps slaves!?" Marcus made a show of calming himself down, pretending that he was angry and then taking a deep breath before finally settling and taking a sip of his glass. "Sorry, I forgot this was Ravok.. back home, slavery is illegal. I never would have thought Arien one to keep slaves.. but I guess he has to. Yknow.. because. Well, anyway." Maybe she would pick up on what he said, finish his sentence for him perhaps. If she knew about the Syliran Knights, she likely knew that they weren't allowed to keep slaves. But if he was undercover, then having a slave was a good addition to his disguise. Of course there was the off chance that he was just a regular person.. not that it mattered. One way or another, there would be evidence proving he was a knight before the end of the day. "So.. how long have you ah... been in service to Arien?"

[Amarantha]

Amarantha raised an eyebrow, surprised by the man’s shock. Surely it wasn't that surprising- Did the man know nothing of Ravok? Her question was answered for her after he calmed himself down with a sip of the water. So she was right, slavery was illegal where he was from. Amaranth’s brows arched further as he went on. She knew, of course, about her master’s real purpose in Ravok, but she wasn't sure if it would be wise to mention it now, when anyone could be listening. Besides, just because the man claimed to be Arien’s cousin, it didn't mean he held his best interests in mind. Amma knew from experience that family could betray you just as readily as anyone else could. "I have been in slavery to Arien for barely half a season. He bought me from the stands shortly after he arrived here." Amma remembered the day well as it was easily one of the most embarrassing days of her life. She shuddered at the memory.

[Marcus Ahysen]

"I can only imagine how awful that must feel," Marcus lied, feigning concern for the slave. He felt no pity for the woman. As far as he was concerned, she sold herself into slavery. Any slave could escape if they wanted, or die trying. It was their own choice to remain a slave, and if they didn't have the courage or willpower to fight back, then they were meant to be subjugated. Many people saw slaves as less than human, but not Marcus. He merely saw them as defeated people. Personal views aside, however, Marcus had to play the role of a concerned Zeltivan. "I still can't believe my cousin would own a slave.. but I guess I'll have to wait until he returns to question him. So.. how has he been, lately. We haven't seen each other in a long time. He hasn't gotten into any, um.. trouble here.. has he. I would hate to think what dreadful things might happen to him if he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to be." Marcus was still trying to get the slave to slip up, to mention something that might blow her master's cover. Some slaves were extremely loyal, much like his Aurum, but she was a kelvic and she couldn't help it. Amarantha was only a newly purchased slave, so hopefully she bore no loyalty to her master. Or fear.. fear could be just as big a deterrent, if not more, than loyalty.

[Amarantha]

"Well, he hasn't gotten into any trouble that I know of, but it’s just a matter of time before someone finds out he's from Syliras. Ravokians and Sylirians don't exactly get along, and if you add he's... profession... to that then he'd be in a world of trouble if anyone was to find out." A small smile tugged at Ammas lips as she spoke, amused by the thought of her 'master' being dragged away by Black Sun members. She worried of course, that if anyone were to find out she would be punished as well, as an accomplice. Sighing Amma studied the man before her, crossing her arms over her chest and slouching slightly. There was something about the man that made her feel uncomfortable. He asked a lot of questions, and as a person who values what little privacy she can get, Amma was starting to get a little suspicious. Perhaps he is simply a concerned relative! Amma scolded herself for naturally assuming that the man was up to no good. "In any case Arien should be back soon." She said, as much to herself as to the man before her.