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Safety Comes With A Price (MysteryShade and BlueAmbient)

M

MysteryShade

Super-Earth
Joined
Dec 29, 2019
Alec was outside, working on the garden that held herbs. He often sold them to the local healer, who would then treat them for free if someone got sick. He began picking some of the herbs that were finished growing, putting them in a satchel only to hear people, his neighbors, murmuring in worry as two men arrived. Alec frowned and stood, making his way to the crowd. That's when he saw the two males and narrowed his eyes a little. Great, the twins that said they'd protect them for a fee - practically an arm and a leg.
 
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Victor has black hair, Vincent has brown hair.

Victor and Vincent, twin brothers, though they don't look identical. They'd been passing through this small village with no aim of where they were traveling when a group of bandits had attempted to raid the village. They'd stepped up, though not before the village's mayor had offered to pay them for their help. The two of them alone had dispatched half the bandits, and chased the other half off.

The mayor had payed them, and explained that bandits were a major problem. A deal was struck, then, that the twins would stay and protect the village, but for a price. That was eight years ago, and the price had increased each year. Every month, the twins came to collect their protection payment. They'd made a home for themselves just outside of town, and frequently would be gone for days, traveling the two day trip to the nearest big city. But they never missed collection day.

Today, the sky is bright blue, not a cloud in sight, and hot. Vincent is laughing at something Victor had said as they ride into the village square. A crowd is gathering, and that concerns Victor. His eyes narrow, and the smile he'd had fades. Vincent notices and sighs at his more serious brother. Looking around at the crowd, he tilts his head. "Where is the mayor with our payment?"
 
"T-the mayor is trying to gather what money he can for you," a woman answered nervously, showing the mayor hadn't gotten all the money that was owed. "No thanks to you guys constantly raising the amount, it's a lot harder for us to get the money we need to pay you and take care of ourselves," Alec stated while crossing his arms with a glare.
 
Victor narrows his eyes at the young man that had spoken up. Vincent growls, maneuvering his horse closer to the woman. "You lot know our protection comes with a price. We give you ample time, we never come early. We had a deal with your mayor, and your town, woman."

It's clear Vincent isn't happy, a deep scowl on his face. Victor is still watching the raven haired, purple eyed young man. That one seems to hold more hatred than the fear the rest of the town has. Victor moves his horse up to his brother's leaning over to whisper low, his words unheard.

Vincent is grinning, now. He looks over at the young man, chuckling softly. "My dear brother has come up with a solution. Give us that man, and we will allow you to keep this month's payment. Only this month." Both men turn their horses toward the young man. "Hurry and make your decision. We will wait for the mayor, or you can tie this man's hands and we will leave for the month."
 
Alec's eyes widened at the deal they decided to strike. "You've got to be fucking kidding me!" He exclaimed and saw everyone sharing a look as if... they were agreeing to it. "Guys, come on, you've known me since I was born!" He told them. "Sorry, kid, but we have to think about the rest of the village," an older man stated and Alec shook his head in disbelief. He then yelped when the men grabbed him and tied his hands up behind his back before shoving him toward the twins.
 
Vincent laughs at the villagers' quick decision. Victor circles his horse behind the boy, and the two of them lean down to grab his tied arms. Together, the twins lift the boy up, laying him facedown over Vincent's horse, half on the front of the saddle, half on Vincent's lap. "Alright, Victor, let's go. We'll come back again next month. Good people, let your mayor know of this decision. We expect you to have payment ready on time next month."

Vincent turns his horse, one hand flat on the boy's back as they start off. "Struggle, and I'll knock you unconscious." They pace is kept to a walk, so Vincent can keep the boy balanced. As they travel, Vincent and Victor talk about random things; whether they need to hunt again, or if they should just make the two day trip into the bigger city for supplies, what needs to be done on their cabin to prepare for winter, though it's a fair ways off yet.
 
Alec grunted as he was pulled up onto Vincent's horse and struggled, trying to get away from them. He grunted as he kept trying to get his wrists free of the ropes that bound his wrists. But then he felt the hand on his back as the horses got going and gritted his teeth at the small warning. But he stopped his struggle. He needed to f "Why the hell do you want me anyway?" He demanded. What could possibly make them want him? Sure, he hadn't been scared of them before, but that didn't stop him from worrying about what exactly they had in mind for him. What also bugged him was the way everyone was just willing to give him up so easily. It was like all those years of living there didn't even matter.
 
Victor cuts off halfway through his sentence when the boy asks his question. He glances at Vincent, who only grins. "Why not? You're an attractive young man." Victor' voice is deeper than Vincent's, almost softer. Vincent chuckles, steering his horse off the main road and down a wooded trail.

"Victor thought it would be nice to have company at home." Vincent is still grinning, and the tone of his voice suggests the boy isn't just here for a friendly visit. "Plus it'll be good to have an extra set of hands around for.. various things."
 
Alec listened to Victor speak and was a bit flustered when he was called attractive while he was trying to get his hands free of the ropes. Damn, the men did the knots in this thing really good, and just tight enough he couldn't squeeze his hands through. But then hearing Vincent, he turned his head to look at him with wide eyes. "Y-you have to be kidding me. Please, t-tell me this is some kind of joke," he told him as he had a feeling of what those 'various' things were that they'd want him doing. No way, he had to get out of here and fast.
 
Vincent laughs, hearing the nervous stammer in the boy's voice. He doesn't answer, instead returning to the earlier conversation with Victor. Eventually, they round a corner in the trail and come to a large clearing in the woods, with a small cabin at the center. To the left is a paddock and shelter for the horses, to the right a small, low-walled garden. To the right and back a ways is an outhouse, separate from the cabin for obvious reasons. Unseen, behind the cabin is a well.

At the paddock, Vincent dismounts before pulling the boy down. His grip on the boy's bicep is tight. "Victor, I'll take him inside, then come back to help with the horses." Victor shakes his head, dismounting and taking the reins of Vincent's horse. "No, it's fine. I'll get them settled, then meet you inside."

Vincent thanks his brother, then half drags the boy to the cabin. Inside is a single room, two narrow beds against the left wall. Thr right wall has a small table and two chairs, a deck of cards on the table. The far wall has a hip height counter with one pair of clay everything; bowls, plates, mugs, and two sets of wooden cutlery. There's also an iron pot and pan, and a small soup cauldron. Beside the counter is a brick fireplace and a stack of chopped wood.
 
Not getting any verbal answers made Alec nervous. Because that laugh basically told him that it wasn't a joke, that what they had planned for him was indeed going to happen. He grunted as he tried getting his wrists free, refusing to give up as he struggled. Plan or not, he had to get free. He had to get away from the twins. But then the horse came to a stop and he soon felt himself being pulled off the horse. He grunted as he tried pulling away from Vincent, but the tight grip was almost bruising. "Let me go, dammit!" He demanded, trying to get the boy to let him go as he was dragged into the cabin. Seeing how small it was made him realize trying to get away would be harder than he thought if he tried sneaking.
 
Vincent pulls the younger male over to one of the beds, pushing him down to sit on the floor. Briefly, he unties the boy's hands, only to pull them around in front and tie them to the bedframe. "Now now, behave. You've been given a great honor, serving your village's protectors. And don't worry, you'll be well cared for in exchange for your service."

Vincent laughs, stepping away to the counter. From a cupboard, he pulls a loaf of bread, a block of cheese and a package of dried meat, all wrapped in beeswax cloth. With his back turned to his new captive, Vincent sets to cutting slices of bread and cheese, and dividing the dried meat, for three sandwiches.
 
The moment his wrists were untied, he tried to pull them away with a grunt, thinking of nothing more than to punch Vincent only to groan when his wrists were tied up again and, this time to a bedframe. He grunted as he kept trying to get his wrists free only to glare at Vincent. "Go to hell, asshole," he snarled, watching him walk off with cautious purple eyes. He then went back to trying to get his wrists free, even pulling hard enough that he knew there would possibly rope burns and bruises. But he didn't care. It was something that could be taken care of when he got away. And no way in hell would he return to his village to live there again. No, he'd only return to get his things and leave for somewhere else. He saw Vincent making sandwiches and still look cautious. After all, why would he trust this guy or his brother with anything?
 
The cabin door opens then, Victor stepping inside. He removes his coat, hanging it by the door, then walks over to sit at the small table. His dark eyes are watching the boy tied to the bed with an eerie sort of calm. "What is your name?"

Vincent turns his head when his brother speaks, looking between Victor and the boy. He half smiles. This could be a good thing. Victor had never shown interest in anyone before. Having finished the sandwiches, Vincent plates two of them and takes them to the table. He then returns for the third and brings it to the captive boy. "I won't untie you, but you should be able to eat. Or I can hand feed you. What'll it be?"
 
Alec saw Victor come in and narrowed his eyes as she saw him shift his gaze toward him. He was a little caught off guard when the man asked for his name. At this point, he had wondered if it even mattered, of it they would have chosen a name for him... like some pet. Though was glad that didn't seem to be the case. "Alec," he answered reluctantly, though still tried to get his wrists free. He then saw Vincent come over with the third sandwich and he looked at it cautiously for a moment. "Fine, I'll eat it - on my own," he muttered. He couldn't deny he was hungry, but he refused to be fed by this man. Somehow, he felt like no matter what he wanted, there would be some kind of price to pay.
 
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Vincent smiles and sets the sandwich into Alec's hands. "Good boy. Cooperation will get you rewards." He chuckles, then moves to sit at the table with Victor. They speak quietly, but the small cabin means Alec can still hear them. They're simply accustomed to speaking in low tones. "Victor, we'll need to go hunting again soon. We're almost out of dried meat. And I think the salt barrel is getting low too."

"We can hunt tomorrow, but there's no point making a trip tp the city. The furs aren't ready yet, we won't have anything to trade for salt. Not to mention I sold the last of my bone carvings last week to buy you that new skinning knife." Victor shakes his head as he speaks, then takes another bite of sandwich.

Vincent sighs, stretching out his legs. "Well, we'll just have to be careful how much we hunt. Until we get more salt, we won't be able to dry much meat. And the last thing we need is food going to waste." Vincent looks over at Alec, watching him eat. "Do you know how to hunt, Alec? What about foraging? Do you know what's good to eat from what's poisonous?"
 
Alec didn't look convinced at his words about cooperation would get him rewards as he took the sandwich. He lifted the piece of bread off to check it before putting it back and hesitantly took a bite as if to test it. It tasted like any other sandwich. So, he wasn't being dosed with anything that would affect him as far as he knew. He felt the hunger pains disappearing as he ate more of the sandwich while listening to the twins. He frowned a bit as he listened to them talk about their troubles. But hearing the question that was directed at him, he was a little surprised. But then he scoffed. "Jeez, you don't bother to learn a thing about the village you're paid to protect? I was basically the village's herb supplier. I learned everything from the healer we have there. And I grew gardens to sell off fruits and vegetables. Of course, I know what's safe and what's not," he deadpanned. And with that knowledge of his, would they actually trust him not to pick something poisonous on purpose? "And as for hunting, no. I don't know a thing about that."
 
Vincent laughs at Alec's scathing reply. That's quite the attitude for someone tied to a bed. Victor just shakes his head, staring intently at the boy. Vincent speaks once he's done laughing. "We know none of you could protect yourselves, you don't even have a proper blacksmith. As for herbs, the ones you can grow in your gardens and the ones that grow in the woods are very different. Not to mention there's a few that have very similar appearances."

Vincent pauses, leaning back in his chair and folding his hands behind his head, his sandwich finished. "So basically what you're saying is that you're not good for much other than gardening." Victor snorts a small laugh, putting the last bite of his own sandwich in his mouth. "Should teach him to cook and clean. Then he'll be more than just a gardener and a bed decoration."
 
Alec gave am annoyed look at Vincent's words. "You think I don't know that, idiot? Just because I said I grow herbs doesn't mean I don't know about the herbs that grow out in the woods," he deadpanned. "Jeez, and these are the assholes our elder decided to pay to protect us?" he uttered under his breath with a click of his tongue. But then hearing the twins, he gritted his teeth. "You asked nothing about cooking or cleaning, dipshit. I can cook and clean just fine. I did live on my own so I had to take care of myself." He finished his sandwich and huffed as he looked away from them. He had to get away from them. Either being their slave would kill him or his own depleting sanity from being around them.
 
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