BACK TO WHEN…
Augusta's POV (Past life):
She remembered the first day she woke up in the cave. The ferocity within her remained latent, aware of the uncouth languages of the slavers. Never in her entire life had she imagined that she would be in this sort of position. She'd been compelled to nurse her bruised emotions because young girls like herself were treated with disdain. This was the moment she tried to set out a plan for herself.
She strutted down the corridor, causing the slave chains to collide. Other females like herself moved obediently as well. The uncouth languages of the slavers echoed through the corridors as they issued orders to the slaves, yanking the ones that were sluggish while they loyally obliged to their aggressive yet wordless instructions.
She had learned, right from the beginning of her becoming a slave to remain as silent as the dead. She had been wise enough to know that, having witnessed the misfortune that befell those who refused to adhere to instructions. They were an ordeal.
She remembered how her heart throbbed and how a bile had gathered in her throat at the sight of a ripped body dangling on a stick, rotten and surrounded by flies. The embodiment of evil was the statement that could be used to describe these slavers and their master. She was disgusted by the man who came here every month to take the girls he wanted to himself. It took everything that was within her not to throw up the content in her throat as she and the other female slaves were forced to watch such a dreadful event. The majority of the girls had screamed with abashment when they witnessed the consequence of a character that refused to relent. And it had dashed the hopes of the girls who had placed their trust in the words of the unfortunate girl who, while she was alive had brought hope to them all by saying none of them would continue the life they were living forever and that it was just for a period and all of them would be redeemed from the clutches of the slavers.
She never mentioned any one of them would have their blood spilled before then, or she would be the one to have undergone such a predicament. Nobody was willing to make an attempt to escape if it would cost them their life. It would be dumb. Besides, what was the point of trying to escape in the first place? But maybe she was dumb, dumb enough to consider escaping from this place. She knew how the slaves around here, they were always active in the things happening in their environment. Nothing crawled beneath their noses without them noticing. And if she still continued to be dumb, she may be caught and impelled to undergo circumstances beyond what she could forebear. She growled to herself, fuck the slaver and the man that made her life much worse.
It was odd, for each time she witnessed such foreboding sights, the lesser her fear became. She was beginning to see the reason for their vigour. Perhaps it was a transferrable spirit that had overwhelmed her suddenly. Though she was wise enough to examine her thoughts, so she would be able to learn the reason she thought the way she did.
That was what the other girls had lacked, introspection.
Mayhap she shouldn't make mention of her plans to anyone, to avoid being considered rebellious. For all she knew, they could have died because they made mention of their plans. She could take a different approach to things.
She couldn't believe that this was the evil that happened in isolated areas. Places she never would have thought about. The moment she had stepped her foot into this province, she was compelled to inhale the intense odour of rotten flesh and dried blood, along with the collision of unkempt slaves.
The stench of death and despair hung heavy in the air, and Augusta could barely keep her stomach from lurching. She had never seen anything like this before. A place where people were treated with no dignity, like animals, with absolutely no regard for their humanity. She looked around and saw many of the slaves were barely clothed, even the females and she felt her heart shatter into a million pieces. Why would anyone be so cruel? And in as much as she wanted to help them, she had to remind herself that she had to save herself first.
Augusta realized that she had to tread carefully, to avoid being seen as a threat. She began to make a plan, a way to slowly gain the trust of the people around her. She started by offering to help with small tasks. She spoke softly and kept her head down, making sure not to draw any unwanted attention to herself. As she became more familiar with the other slaves, she began to learn more about their lives and their experiences. She found that many of them had suffered great losses and that they were desperate for a way out of their current situation. She knew that she had to find a way to escape as soon as possible, but hell! There was a man that had his eyes on her like a devil, she couldn't understand the reason why he always had his eyes on her like she was the target...like he wanted her. But she always hoped to not be bought by any master... especially not the overall master of the slaves. He always wore a turban like the people of this place and his piercing eyes made her know that he didn't belong here...that he wasn't an indigene of this place, but one could mistake him for one of them if they didn't look closer. She took her eyes off him.
The air thickened as despair stank in the air. The sound of groans and mourns filled her hair. Even the people who weren't shackled and bound were weighed down by their circumstances. The slaves moved very slowly, like zombies...almost like the air was heavily laid on their backs making each step a laborious effort. Some had given up entirely. Their faces were etched with lines of sadness and resignation. Others still clung to the smallest threads of hope, trying to find a way to survive in a world that seemed determined to crush them. And if Augusta wished to free these slaves, then what would she possibly do even when she wasn't free herself?
