Character History: Neil On the Road Again

Neil lay there in the sand listening to the waves lap at the cave walls, the smell of salt water on the air. He murmured some comment into the darkness. The human girls had cried themselves asleep about 20 minutes ago. He thought of the many stars that were surely visible outside in the night sky. He left home 2 years ago, but everywhere he went he had the sky with him. His travels had spanned 4 countries, but seemed to be at an end now. He spotted movement nearby. The slaves in the next cell were faking sleep, watching the guard with . . . anticipation?

The pirates barely fed the slaves and were quite abusive. Still, Neil was better off than the teenage girls. Neil worked hard, usually serving food and drink to the vile men of the sea who thought Neil a little crazy. Occasionally, the crew would return with wounded. Neil was expected to tend to them despite his apparent loss of spells (a farce on his part).

Neil's mind raced day in and day out, trying to find an escape, but there was no dry way out of these accursed caves. He begged and pleaded with Old Heakun to no avail. Neil could outrun the humans despite his size, but there was nowhere to run to. The pirates entered and left their hideout via rowboats. They had a large ship out in the cove and nearly 40 men.

Every few weeks, the pirates returned with loot and slaves. They would celebrate and drink for days, then split the spoils and appraise the slaves. During this time, Neil and the girls worked hardest. The drunken sailors were very demanding, but the new slaves got most of the abuse. Inevitably, the rest of the slaves were sold in some nearby port, or died for some foolish reason. Neil and the two girls were the only ones condemned to stay in this god-forsaken hellhole.

Three months went by with scarcely a glimpse of the sky. Neil had given up on ever being free again and began to question his faith. And then a strange thing happened . . .

The latest batch of slaves included some sneaky sorts and others good with weapons. They had apparently not put up much of a fight when captured. The pirates brought them home to be sold as slaves, a mistake on their part.

It was almost as if they had planned on being captured. They drew lock picks and daggers from places Neil couldn't imagine hiding a sharp object. Neil made muffled comments to some unseen cellmate. They moved about very quietly, with practiced ease, while the pirates were drinking and roaring with laughter. Late that night they left the cells and made their way through the hideout. The alarm wasn't raised for another 15 minutes.

Neil, the girls and several other slaves were led out the next morning. Dead bodies were strewn everywhere. Their saviors were still busy looting the hideout, but offered them all food and drink. They were allowed to take any used, normal gear they could lay their hands on and a few silvers. Neil healed them in exchange for the return of his holy symbol. Then they were taken to a nearby port and set free.

The fresh air and open sky were as food to a starving man. Neil was anxious to be on his way, but stayed two days with his teenage friends at a local inn. A relative came for them soon and Neil immediately hit the road. He vowed to never be enslaved again, nor enslave another. The long confinement had nearly broken Neil's will to live. But now he was on his way again, thanking Old Heakun for a most precious gift, his freedom. He renewed his oath to Heakun that day and chattered happily, placing one foot in front of the other as he moseyed down the road, better armed now and a bit wiser.

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