Ania and Lison were standing in the central meeting place of the agri-center along with about four hundred other slaves. Several of the children who were sharing a hut with them had been taken for sale, others had died or were dying. Ania didn't know if they were dead or alive, but they had been taken away. One of the other girls had been taken, probably to be trained as a concubine. Now new slaves were arriving.
Jacen, Jaina, Zekk and Tenel Ka were dressed like the locals of Tibor. They had landed the ship a few kilometers from the agri-center, then joined what they suspected to be a slave transport.
A man stood in the center of the gathering. He appeared to be in charge of this operation. "Ok, you four," the man said, addressing the four friends, "you'll go to quarters #48." Turning to the crowd of slaves, "who's in 48?" Two girls stepped forward. "Ah, Ania, Lison. Good. It'll do you some good to have some men to take care of you in your hut." The man put his arm around the blond girl's waist.
"Thanks for your concern, Jafa." The girl moved strategically closer to the four "new slaves" as if to examine them, moving herself out of Jafa's reach.
"Well, if any of you girls feel the particular need to thank me..." Jafa moved towards Tenel Ka and placed his hand on her jaw, drawing his finger along her jaw, down he neck and on her collar bone and shoulder.
Jacen took one step towards Jafa to remove his hand before Ania and Lison spotted the situation. Ania moved casually between Jacen and his target, well Lison moved between Jafa and Tenel Ka, grabbing the girl's clenched fist, ready to strike. "We'll know where to find you, Jafa." Lison said as she pulled Tenel Ka away. Ania did the same with Jacen.
Once they were away from the meeting, the six teenagers moved towards the hut silently, Ania and Lison leading the way. As they entered the hut, Ania remarked, "It's getting late, and work starts early. You should rest. You offlanders won't be used to the heat."
"How did you know that we were offlanders?" Jaina asked nervously.
"Don't worry, no one else will figure it out. Jafa's a fool, and few of the slaves have had contact with outlanders enough to know their differences.
"You all reacted too surprised and violently to Jafa's advances. No attractive female slaves would be surprised at a manager acting like Jafa. That means you're knew slaves. The only people on Tindor are slaves and managers. The managers are of noble families and speak with certain formalities and subtleties, which you lack. That means you're from off planet"
"How do you know about outlanders if you're a slave?" Zekk asked.
"My mother was a manager, I grew up a noble. Now, go to sleep. Tomorrow I want to hear about why you're here."
Ania ran through the maze of mirrors again. Her reflection was begging for help. It was Lerid's voice asking for help. She saw herself raise the hammer, and break the mirror. She turned around to another mirror, and saw her own reflection, it was her, not Lerid. She saw the hammer raised again. Then her father appeared. This time he was holding her in his arms. He said, "I'm coming Ania. It's ok, I'm coming home..."
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ok, this is getting obnoxiously long. I know there isn't much action yet, but I promise there will be lots soon. Give me feedback. I have tough skin, so don't worry about my feelings