"Caiah. Now's our chance, Caiah--Cai, wake up."

"Mmm…wha?" Her ears twitched and she sat up yawning, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

Before her Rhystian waited patiently, face serious and eerily pale, biting his lip in thought. There were dark circles under his pale eyes and his right one was ringed in a bruise--a black eye.

Still sleepy, she stretched and whispered "What are you doing, Rhys?"

"Micaiah, wake up. You know what we're doing." Rhystian set a messenger bag beside her; Micaiah put it over her shoulder. "Quick, before they start the distraction."

"Distraction?"

"Caiah, you're such an airhead," Rhystian muttered, not even bothering to crack a smile. He pulled a piece of fabric--a tunic--off the ground and pulled the shirt he was wearing over his head, inhaling sharply as he did so.

He changed quickly to combat the cold, but Micaiah could still make out the white bandages crisscrossed against the boy's chest.

They'd first met six years ago, at the slave market.

Two slaves, both children--one Mortal, human, around eleven or twelve, and the other a Kitsune, part fox, around eight or nine. Both bought by the same Master, destined to serve the Master and his family.

There were three other slaves besides the two children--Mia, Sothe, and his daughter, Astrid. The five of them stayed in their one-room 'shack' south of the house; Mia and Astrid claimed the only bed while the other three slept on the floor, a bunch of hand-me-down sheets and blankets split between the five of them.

Sothe and Astrid were in charge of tending to the Master's fields; Mia was the cook. Micaiah was set in charge of various chores around the house and Rhystian ordered to work in the fields.

It was a mistake. Rhystian was strong, but not in the physical sense; it seemed like he'd never worked before. By the end of the day he was sun burnt, feverish, and exhausted; seeing his condition, Mia pleaded Master to give Rhystian an easier task. He complied after much persuasion, giving him Micaiah's job while Micaiah tended to the Master's smaller garden.

Micaiah didn't mind the change of task; she loved tending to the plants and being outdoors in general. It didn't take the whole day, and when she was finished she was cooking with Mia or cleaning with Rhystian.

They were workers, following their routine of up-at-sunrise and down-at-sunset; they were used to their usually one meal a day; they were used to the Master family's harsh words and quick threats. Despite what they might have said at times, the slaves were good workers, and Master never felt the need to punish them.

Things fell into a sort of routine. It wasn't necessarily a good one, but it was a routine nonetheless.

The world of Aurora is seperated into four seperate countries: Aurelia, Anima, Hera, and Scargon. Each is known for its individual pros and cons, and the world seems to live in peace.

Aurelia's magic.
Anima's morphs.
Hera's Halves.
and Scargon's slave trade, which trades all Mortals--people without powers--and Halves.