Chapter Text
1.
A name like “The Dungeons of Fear and Hunger” doesn’t inspire much confidence in what you’ll find inside. Still, Cahara was an optimist. If he could just make it out with Le’garde in tow and get paid, it would all be worth it. For his unborn. For Celeste.
The abominations he’d found throughout the dungeon were to be expected. Not pleasant, but…expected. He’d hardly thought he’d find any sane people down here with him.
So seeing a perfectly normal-looking little girl locked up in a cage was a pretty big shock.
“Holy shit, is that a kid?” Cahara whispered.
He took a quick look around to make sure this wasn’t some kind of trap. Using little kids as bait was low, but the creatures Cahara’d been dealing with were the lowest. Fortunately, the coast seemed clear. He slowly approached the cage. The red-haired girl wore a black dress that was a little too big for her. She was facing away from him, sobbing quietly.
“Hey, there,” Cahara said, voice still low.
The girl gave him a quick backwards glance, then returned to her sobbing.
“No, no! It’s ok! I’m not gonna hurt you. C’mon, look at me! I’m not as big and scary as the guards. See?”
She slowly turned to face him. Now that he could see her front, Cahara could see the scars riddling her arms. He tried his best not to wince.
“There. I’m not so bad, right?” Cahara asked.
The girl offered no reply. Tears welled up in her eyes. Those eyes had seen great suffering, the sort of things that you’d never unsee. Those were eyes that no child should ever have.
“My name’s Cahara,” the mercenary introduced.
He held out his hand through the bars for a handshake. The girl flinched. After a moment, she slowly cupped her hand in his and shook. He could feel her shivering.
“Nice to meet you. Hey, look. How about I get you outta here? That cage doesn’t look too comfortable. Sound good?”
Again, Cahara was met with silence. But he wasn’t planning on leaving this kid here, whether she liked it or not. With a small key he’d managed to find, he unlocked the cage.
“After you,” Cahara said, holding the cage door open. “Don’t worry. I don’t bite.”
The girl looked him up and down. She stepped out of the cage, one small foot at a time, and stretched a bit.
“That’s better, huh? Hey, how’d you get in there? Do you have family somewhere around here?” the mercenary asked.
No response.
“You don’t talk much, do ya. Got a name?”
Still nothing.
“Alright. Welp, I’ve got a job to do. You can come along, if you like. Not exactly safe for a little girl, but…I guess there aren’t really any safe places in here.”
Maybe he shouldn’t have offered. It was difficult enough getting resources for his own survival. A kid would be extra work. But he wasn’t heartless just because he was a mercenary. It was the right thing to do. Anyone would’ve done the same, in his shoes.
Besides, the little pitter patter of her walking behind him was comforting, in a way. Helped remind him he wasn’t all alone in here. That staved away the fear, just a little bit.