1 CHAPTER 1

Throughout all of history the powerful has always taken advantage of the weak but what happens when the weak bond together to fight for freedom and be relieved of living in pain?

Long ago while exploring the seas a rich sailor by the name of Tartianus discovered a luscious land. After exploring the land, he realized that the land was uninhabited, so he decided to make it his own country and he named it Malistania. For decades Malistania was a peaceful country and the people who came there found solace, it was a paradise. In order for the country to run more efficiently King Tartianus's eldest son Julius suggested they form three provinces: Gador, Narcos and Fidan. Julius observed that the people living in Fidan were much stronger and swifter due to being in the mountainous area where Fidan was established. Prince Julius then came up with a devious plan to enslave the people of Fidan so none of them would grow too powerful and overpower the king and he also wanted to exhort them and receive free labour. He poisoned King Tartianus who he knew would not agree with his plans and he framed the people of Fidan for plotting the death of the king by sending a Fidan maid to kill him. The Fidan maid had unknowingly fell into the trap and brought the poisonous wine to King cementing the fate of the Fidan people. The whole country was in shambles after the death of the King which resulted in Prince Julian's plans going exactly how he had wanted. After a year of civil unrest Fidan was turned into a slave province. Narcos was turned into the Agricultural province and Gador was the country's capital where the king resided. Decade after decade passed as the people of Fidan suffered in silence, until the year of King Cesar Tartianus the 85th King of Malistania, the year that changed everything.

*****

The sky was dark and the atmosphere chillingly cold. The crow of death perched in the tree I was laying under and peered down at me with cold black eyes. Someone was going to die; did he know who? Was it me was that why he was staring at me so intensely? The crow screeched its warning of impending death and flew away. As if finalizing the crows' message, the thunder rolled loudly, and the dark clouds suddenly burst with aggressive rain.

"Bebe!!" My mother's worried cries dragged me from my drifting thoughts, and I ran through the angry rain to get her. Upon birth every new-born slave baby is named by the master I was given the name Timothy which means "timid dog". We were reminded every day that we were worthless so down to the names that we were given must be one fit for a beast. My mother hated it she only called me "Bebe", or she would affectionately say "My son". She embraced me and pulled me inside our small home. All slaves had a one room house to sleep in on the estate. Those slaves who didn't have families had to sleep in the slave quarters a big wooden building with sleeping mats for the family less slaves. In the morning the male slaves would awake at the crack of dawn and get ready to go to the coal mines or the lumber mines. The female slaves would get ready to start with fixing food doing shores around the estate or going to the mountains to scavenge for fruits to bring to the master. I've been a slave from the moment I was born, every breathe that I took belonged to my master. Because i was a child i was allowed to work in the main house on the estate but on my 13th birthday I would start working in the coal mines. In three days, I would no longer be a child, but I would be forced to be a man. My mother smiled sadly as she pulled away to inspect me " In three days my little Bebe will become a man" she rubbed my hair affectionately. I knew she was scared many kids who went to work in the mines was not able to endure the torturous labour and either tried to run away or kill themselves, some died due to mining incidents or overwork.

"Mary don't coddle the boy he's going to do just fine. Isn't that, right?"

My father's deep voice boomed in the small room. He was a tall man with big shoulders and thick dark hair. His eyes were always smiling, he always said "Just because life is hard doesn't mean I have to be unhappy as long as I have my family, I have a reason to live. Maybe if I didn't, I would consider killing myself then" I felt at ease because I had them, I could live as a slave and die as a slave because they were here smiling at me, encouraging me and loving me. I looked at my beautiful mother who was now chastising Dad about bringing mud in the house. She had a slim build, a beautiful face, and deep green eyes like mine. She always said I was the perfect combination between her and Dad because I had her green eyes and Dads dark head of hair. She also said I had such a handsome face I would definitely make trouble among the girls as a teen. Three days until my thirteenth birthday I wonder how we would be celebrating it.

Caaww Caaww Caawww.... The crow of death is back, and it was peering down at me. For some reason instead of being by the fire next to my mom and dad I was outside under the big tree. I felt like was laying in something wet. When I rose my hand, it was covered in blood. There was blood everywhere. When I looked back in the tree the crow was gone. I felt fear rise up in me because I couldn't move. Where was mother? Was she ok? What about father?? "Help!!" I screamed.

Panting I flew up off the mat, I was just dreaming but it felt so real. I tried to calm down and get my thoughts in order when I heard sobbing coming from outside. I got up and cracked the door open to speak outside. My mother was sobbing in my father's arms. There was a man I didn't recognize standing there he had an eyepatch over one eye, he had on a black hat, and he looked absolutely terrifying. I recognized a short fat lady who often worked with my mother and her husband who would always go to work with my father and sometimes sneak off for a drink with him. Miss Sue and Crazy Henry was what I always heard my parents refer to them as.

"What are you going to do John? You beat the shit out of that guard for trying to get Mary to fulfil his nasty desires, so you know he's going to come after you, it's only a matter of time. Oh damn! Damn it all to hell!" Crazy Henry muttered as he paced back and forth.

Tears filled miss Sue's eyes, she rubbed my mother's back and looked at my father hopefully, "maybe it won't come to that. The guard was wrong everyone knows Mary is not in good health how could he even think of trying to take advantage of her?" Miss Sue's voice trembled, and it sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than anyone else. After a few minutes passed the man with the eye patch spoke up his voice low and emotionless.

" I say you leave this Godforsaken place and somewhere far because there is no getting out of this. That good for nothing motherf****** is probably getting ready to put some plan in action as we speak. Honestly speaking you should have just murdered the son of a bitch and I would have helped you bury his ass. It's too late to kill him now because he probably already ran his mouth to his other guard friends." He let out a sigh and took a swig of whatever he was drinking. No one replied after he said his piece, the reality of his words weighing on their minds.

Suddenly my mom broke the silence "Bebe...what will happen to my Bebe?" Her voice was cracked she sounded weak and exhausted. Overcome with fear I closed the door and ran back to my spot on the floor. I closed my eyes and tried to force myself to go to sleep but I couldn't forget what I had heard. I wasn't dumb from their conversation I could decipher that one of the masters' guards' saw my mother and had tried to rape her and he probably would have been successful if my father hadn't happened to be going to look for her at the main house. I fell asleep wishing father had murdered the guard and buried his body with the help of eyepatch man.