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THE UNINTENDED CURSE

Ch. 8

'Damn. From now on, it's only going to be maidens that I take over.' I thought to myself as yet again I was only able to get a small amount of food from the overly large meal that we'd just had from an inn that we'd passed on the way to the elf's forest.

After we'd/I had taken over the mans body and mind, did I quickly run through his memories and found the way to the elves forest where he'd captured the elfish maiden and raped her shortly after-words. The trip there would be a long and fairly difficult due to the changing of the seasons, as many a passes through the hills to the elves forest would soon be covered over in snow, making the way nearly impossible to traverse by any normal means. Though that did little to deter me, as I would do my utmost to get as close as possible before the first of the flakes of snow began to fall.

'The biggest problem is that fact that this man would be out of coin to afford the food that we both need to thrive.' I thought as we sat at a table, nursing a tankard of ail that made his head spin pleasantly. Though unbeknownst to the others, the man was not in control of his actions as he seemed to be unaffected by the ail. I thought it best to take over this mans mind and body as I'd done to the deer in the past to make sure that he wouldn't fight me or try and seek out help since he'd lost control over his own body. So keeping him in a constant state of delirium, which allowed me to move his body to my own personal whims.

Getting up from the bench at the inn, I strolled over to a window with his tankard full of ail and looked out at the clouding sky. 'It wont be long before the first flakes of winter begin to fall,' I thought as I had him take a sip of ail. 'So, in the mean-time I shall have to think upon finding a way to earn some coin.' Shifting around the mans memories, I looked deep and hard at his talents/abilities/skills. The man had very few save for a job befitting that of a highway-man, and that wouldn't do since many a man wouldn't travel this way and I didn't want to risk getting this body injured and laid up with wounds if something went wrong.

'If I wish to earn some coin and avoid injuring this body, I must stop thinking like that of a vagabond and put his mind to that of an honest trade.' I scolded myself and looked into his mind once again. Hunting was also not an option as the herds of many different animals would be moving off to greener/warmer pastures and the livestock in the town would be fed from bails of hay in barns by local farmhands that'd already been hired to do just that.

That's when a nearly forgotten memory came into focus and put a smile on the mans lips. 'A deck hand. That's it. In the mans youth, he often dreamed of becoming a deck hand and now that he was close to the sea, (being that this was a fishing village that juts happened to be along the way towards where he/they'd ambushed the elf) he could get a job earning some coin that way. 'After all. Ships are always looking for a strong back and an extra hand at the mast.' Throwing the mug back and finishing off the rest of the ail in a single go, I slammed it down at the table with the empty plate as we passed by it and headed up the stairs, for we would need some good rest before tomorrow as it was going to be a busy/logn day.

Upon the next day, it greeted us with a heavy head and bleary eyes. It had taken me a few attempts to actually get the man to rouse and out of the warmth of the sheets. Walking was another chore, as trying to get the man to remain standing proved a bit of an effort as his head couldn't stop pounding from the after effects of the ail from the previous night. Finally we made it over to the ewer filled with water and I had him drink his fill and wash his face. 'If all goes well today, I'll put some coin in this man pouch and have food a plenty.' Taking up a small knife I began to shave the man as well as cut his hair into some kind of neatness.

After all that was done, I moved him down to the tables of he inn and ordered up some breakfast of eggs and toast. Once we had had our fill, though I was left lacking again, did we make our way down to the docks and began asking about for work. Fortune seemed a little reluctant about us finding work upon a vessel, but after enough prodding and talk with a coin or two passing between hands, we finally were able to get aboard a ship set to set sail for deeper water and the winter fishing grounds. The voyage would take over a month but there was talk that if he did his share of the work and the fishing was good, we'd be kept on and sail with the ship through the coming months. With a sturdy hand we shook the captains hand and we were welcomed aboard his ship to be introduced to his hardy crew.

The ship wasn't going to set sail until the next day before day break, so we spent the remainder of the day studying the ship, being told what our job entitled, and so forth. Searching through his memories, I could see that he hadn't been on a ship like this in quite some time and that had me a little concerned on the grounds of sea sickness. 'If he were to get sick. I guess I'll have to hold down his lunch. Though I do have to admit that it might be pretty bad if he does retch, since I don't want him coughing up me by mistake.' That thought couldn't help but be laughed at and I got...we got quite a few stares.

Much of our time was going to be spent in small boats that would go out from the main one and fish on our own. Usually we would have 10 through 15 lines in the water while others would cast large nets in shallower waters or at the mouths of rivers that we would sometimes pass. Though through it all I proved to be an excellent fisherman. I guess it must have been the fact that I would eat a fish outside of his body every now and then to learn where all the fish were and then cast my lines there or point out to where the others should throw the nets. Though every night that we would all come back into the main boat to tell our stories of how big our catch of the day was, or horror stories of the one's that were to dangerous to try and haul up.

I couldn't stop thinking of how much longer it would be until we were back on the main land and how long the passes that were to be blocked by snow. Though through all those thoughts, I couldn't stop thinking of the next port that we were told that we were going to stop off at and sell off our recent haul of fish. I was told that the next port that we were going to be staying at was a slavers market and if we didn't want to see any of it that we'd have to stay on the ship, as the others that didn't mind the atmosphere, were to be the ones to go in and sell the fish in the market.

Just the mention of slaves brought back memories in my hosts mind and those thoughts were those of what he had planned for the elfin girl that they'd/he'd raped. Then there came a strong desire in him that made him raise his hand without my knowing and volunteer to go into the slavers market and see what was there. B the time I'd realized that his hand was raised, he was...we were chosen to go.

After tying up the ship to the docks at the slavers port, we unloaded the recent catch from that morning into large crates that were being loaded onto carriages that were being pulled by some men that one set was going to the market for us to sell by ourselves and the other to private buyers that'd already ordered the fish. I could tell that the men that were pulling the carriage were slaves due to their slave collars and wrist restraints that had chains running from their wrist restraints to their collars. The thought of these people being treated less than what they were almost made me sick, but I kept myself down in the mans gullet and followed after the cart that was going into the market.

The town was fairly large due to it being so close to the coast and all and that made the market that much bigger, as ships from all over the known world would come in with their prize goods of jewels, foods, and spices just to name a few things that they came here to sell. Though we were probably the only ones here to sell fish, which was a good thing for us as it wouldn't allow our buyers the chance to bartering down our hard earned work/catches. Since this was my first time being at a market or should I say, our first time being in a market, I was just to stand there at our stand and make sure that someone wouldn't try and make off with our goods. So standing off to one side I took in the sites of the market.

The market lined either side of the dirt filled street that ran towards the center of the town and definitely looked like many of the venders had come from out of town due to their many different wares and fancy clothes of many different silks. Many of the booth looked pretty much the same, but you could hear the venders shouting deals out over their neighbor to draw in attention to their booths. It was almost comical to see what some of these people would do just to get a buyer to even look in their direction.

"Keep your eyes pealed their sailor. No telling who might just slit your purse and take your gold." I heard my fellow sailor say as he took his purse and slipped it inside his pants. Doing likewise I slipped my purse into my pants as well and heard the sound of a few coins jiggle around in there that I'd gotten to spend from my work so far.

"How long do you recon that we'll be at port for?" I asked as my eyes darted here and there, trying to take it in all that there was to the market as well as watching for the elusive pickpocket or regular thief.

"With this low heat...I'd say that we'll be here for most of the day." He said with a bit of glee in his voice as he looked up at the sun in the sky. "That's why we do most of our work in the colder moths. The fish lasts longer that way and doesn't spoil as fast under a brutal summer sun."

I turned and nodded to him as I saw my fellow sailor put a fish on the table in front of him, then start to cut up another for chunks that would fetch another price that was much lower than buying a full fish. I watched him cut the fish with a skilled hand for a bit as he would gut one fish to throw the innards of the fish in a bucket set aside. It was at that moment that I caught the sound of clinking chains and turned back to see another carriage being pulled by another group of slaves up the path.

I could see that this carriage was more like a cage with wheels than one pulling boxes that were filled with goods. "Looks like they're parading another shipment of slaves around." Said the man as he wiped his fishy scaled hands on his apron and stuck the knife into the carcass of another fish so that he wouldn't have to go looking for it and accidentally poke/cut himself while looking for his knife. "They do that so that they can show off the slaves that are going to be sold at market in a little while." He explained as I couldn't help but look a little closer at who/what was in the cage.

There were many different types of races within the cage and none of which looked happy to be there. Most of which were different races, but I did see something or should I say, some of them as they caught my eye. Within the middle of the group within the cage were two naked, gray skinned, long eared elves. The two looked so similar to each other that they probably could have passed for sisters or something. It was like, at that moment, time froze in place as both sister turned to look in my direction and we met eyes. I could almost see something in their eyes flash for the briefest of moments, then just like a shooting star, it was gone as the carriage moved onward down the street.

'What in the world was that?' I thought as I shook my head for a moment then slowly turned to face the carriage as it continued down the street. I saw both the elfin girls were now at the back of the cage and both looking quite intently at me with their amber like eyes. One of the girls cautiously started to reach out of the cage with her slender like arm towards me but was quickly smacked back by a man with a small crop who I hadn't seen walking along the side of the cart.

"Better not get your hopes up." A voice said as I turned to see that it was my friend again. "I know what your thinking and those elves are going to sell for a price way beyond our purses. Plus, the captain doesn't take to kindly to slaves. Even pretty ones such as those two." He brought down is cleaver separating the head of another fish from it's body, then pushed into the bucket on the side again. "Not only does he not care for the whole slavery thing, he fears that a women aboard his ship will bring bad luck." I nodded to him, returned to the side of the booth, and went back to watching the people pass on by.

Throughout the rest of the day, many people would stop off and purchase a cut or a whole fish from us. Others would haggle down the price, saying that their was another vendor down the road selling the same kind of cut for a lower price, though the two of us knew that that wasn't true as nobody around here would face the chilling waters that would claim a sailors life in less than a few moments.

Though the real highlight of the day was when a small group of mixed kinds of kids that looked to be wearing nothing more than rags came on over and tried to haggle down a deal with my friend. Many of the kids were of different races and varied by greatly by age, but all looked to have not eaten well in the last few months. It was out of the corner of my eye that I saw a little cat girl come sneaking up behind and started to reach up to take a fish from the counter. She was a tabby like cat girl as her fur was a nice light orange color with a white front. The only thing that really made her stand out was that of her paws and tips of her ears and tail, which were black and rimmed with a silver like color.

I wasn't going to have her steal some of our hard earned/caught fish and quickly moved out of sight. Just as the girl had snatched the fish off the counter my friend noticed the girl, but laughed when they met eyes. "I would think twice about that child. Stealing someone's wares is against the law around here and is punishable by removing of that said hand." He said in a tone which made the little girl jump in fright and quickly turn to run off, only to bump into me and fall to the ground.

"RUN FOR IT!" One of the others in the little group yelled as a few of them snatched a few cuts off the table while both me and my friends attention was on the little cat girl.

"Damn those little brats, they just got off with stealing one of my prized cuts." He cursed as he slammed his fist down on the table which made the whole booth shake.

"At least they didn't all get away scott free." I said as I reached down and grabbed the little tabby by the ear and give it a tweak. The little tabby girl let out a yowl of pain as she was lifted to her feet and her face scrunched up in pain as she tried to reach up and remove my hand from her ear. "We've got one of their little gang right here and I intend to make sure that this one doesn't get away." I said as a smirk slowly spread across my face.

"Let me go you disgusting brute. Your hurting me!" She said as I still had a nice pinch on her ear. Then just as fast as she could, she leaned out and bit my forearm.

Normally this would have caused anyone to finch away from the pain and in that, let the girl go, but this body had been hardened by the work out at sea and I was the one in control rather than my host. "Nice try there little kitty, but that wont do you any good." I said as I gave her ear a bit harder of a tweak and she let out another yowl of pain. Giving the other guy a bit of a nod, to which he returned, I took the little cat girl back into the back of the tent and looked down at her. Even though I could tell that she was very young I could also tell that she was very underfed and looked to have been on the streets for quite some time, as many of her rags that made up her cloths barely clung onto her tiny frame.

After a little examination, I came up to her eyes and I could see some fear that looked to be coming from somewhere deep within. "Please...Please sir," She pleaded as she fell to her knees, clasped her little hands together, and looked up at me with tears at the corners of her eyes. "Please don't sell me off to the slavers. I couldn't become a slave again. Not after just recently escaping from that place."

I quickly reached out and caught her chin in my strong grasp and had her look directly at me. "Then what would you have me do then, hmm? Would you have me cut off one of your hands for stealing something from us." The little girls ears that were perked up on the top of her head lost their perkiness and fell to the sides of her head in shame. That's when she did something that I really didn't expect. She slowly reached up to a part of her rags that were hanging on her shoulder and slowly pushed it off her shoulder so that it now hung very limply on her upper arm. She was just about to reach on over to do the same to the other when I quickly reached out and snagged her hand before she could make the rags that hung on her upper body fall off. "What in the world do you think your doing?!" I shouted.

Her head quickly jerked back up to look up at me and I could see the confusion in her eyes. "I have no money, no possessions, no nothing. How else am I supposed to pay to have you keep me out of the slavers possession?" It was at this moment that her eyes began to tear up and she began to wail.

This had to be a first for me. I'd never had a little girl like this cry before me, even when I was human, so I really didn't have a clue as how to handle this situation. Eventually the crying started to make me worry that the other man would be coming back here and checking to see what was wrong. With a worried look around as I scanned the room, I did the only thing that seemed logical at the moment and clamped my hand over her mouth. "Would you stop that already. I am not into kids like that and never will be." When I had clamped my hand over her mouth she seemed to struggle a little more with her wild eyes as she reached up to my hand and tried to pull it away, but she stopped when I told her that that wasn't what I wanted from her.

Once it looked like she'd calmed down a little did I finally remove my hand from her mouth and allowed her a moment to breath normally. "Then what is it that you want from me then? I'm not really good at anything."

At this I really had to think. 'She does have a point. I can't actually just let her go after all, she did try and steal something from us.' I thought for a long moment but stopped as a light bulb went off in my head. "Wait a minute," She slowly looked up at me, then a worried expression slowly crossed her face. "I remember you telling me that you escaped the slavers once before. How in the world did you manage that?"

A defeated look slowly spread across her face as she looked towards the ground and looked at her toes as they played with themselves. By the way that her body-language was telling me, it wasn't a great experience. "I don't really recall how I was captured, but it must've been some time in the night, as when I opened my eyes I was in some kind of cell."

'Most likely drugged in her sleep when she was at home, brought here to the auction house, then sold off. Though that still doesn't explain how she got out.' I thought as she went into detail about her life before her capture. "Not that I don't mind a nice story kitten, but I'm not interested in that. What I've asked is, how did you escape?"

This caused her to stop with her back story about her life where she'd come from and quickly jump forward to the cells. "Since I'm so small and all, they didn't really have a set of manacles that would fit tightly enough around any part of me, so they stuck me in a cell with small bars and left me there. I don't know how long I stayed in that cell, as I would often cry myself to sleep with thoughts of what would soon happen to me. It must have been fate set down upon me from the gods when I found that my tiny paws could actually reach into the lock of my cell. With that thought, I quickly started to fool around with the lock with one of my claws and it was a week ago today that my claw flicked the proper metal piece that unlocked my cell."

I had to admit that that thought really made me smile, as I could see her practically beam with glee at the happy memory of escape. "So, you were able to unlock your own cell. That's pretty impressive for a little kitten like yourself. Makes me glad to think that I never even thought about putting a set of manacles on you." Her eyes went a little wide with that but with a smirk down to her she slowly began to relax a bit and smiled back a second later at getting my meaning. "Now back to your story."

She nodded. "Once my cell was unlocked, I knew that it wouldn't be long before the other guards would come down and realize that my cell was unlocked. So making a quick decision, I decided right then and there that I'd make good my escape. Using my natural cat like skills, I was able to avoid the guards as they passed underneath the ceiling beams I would latch onto and made my way towards the exit. In short order I found a large grate in the floor of a room that seemed to be occupied with empty wine barrels and quickly began to think of how I could use this to make my escape."

"Let me guess. You jumped into one of the empty barrels, the barrel was thought to be empty so they pushed it into the water-way, and you found your freedom shortly after." I finished her tale for her. The look of surprise on guessing her escape plan seemed to surprise her a little bit, but she nodded and smiled. "I must say that your very lucky to have found that room when you did. Any longer and they would've sounded an alarm when the guards found that your cell to be empty and started searching the rooms in hopes of finding you." This all seemed almost to good to be true to me. Could I use the same tactic to my own goals of what I wanted to do? "I only have one more thing to ask you, then I'll tell you of your fate."

The little girl took an audible gulp of air then nodded. "I only want to know where this river is. If you can show me where this river is that you used to escape, I'll give you something very nice."

"Nice," She asked as she looked up at me with a bit of worry in her eyes. "What do you mean by nice?" Her body began to shake a bit as she obviously didn't know what to expect from a guy who told her about giving her something nice.

"Oh, I don't know...Maybe something like...your freedom." I told her and laughed when her eyes went really wide. "And if your information is true and your really able to help me, I'll even pay you for your services." I didn't think that her eyes could get any bigger, but boy was I wrong and I couldn't help but laugh when her tail also perked up and bushed out. "Maybe a little fish, some coin, who knows. It all depends if your information proves true or not."

She remained like that, bushy upright tail and wide eyes, for quite some time before a sneaky look spread across her face but it quickly turned from that to one of curiosity. "Now wait just a minute. Why in the world would you want to know something like that?" She asked as she placed her hands on her hips and looked up at me with a superior look.

"If you really must know, it has to do with two of the newest additions there." I told her but it seemed like this was a bit beyond her, but that is what I wanted it to be.