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"Alright," Master Zico said, "everything is set."

"Don't forget to get information," Master Robess said, "it wouldn't do to come back empty handed." He winked at Zed as the portal started up.

"Whatever," Zed said, "I'll be back soon."

Master Zico nodded. Robess had been informed by Mikki who had been giving his household his famous bread. He just happened to be in the vicinity and decided to see Zed off. He would have escorted Zed through Tusk, but as it was, he was far too busy to help someone as of right now. Of course - at the time, he wasn't.

Zed arrived at the Island of Tusk sometime that morning. He had actually woken up a little late from a fitful sleep and had only woken up because Mikki had run in telling him to get up. Mikki wasn't able to come with him - after all, he had to two bakeries to help run and as luck would have it, Mikki wasn't exactly "fighter material". So, he went off by himself and here he was now.

Zed had a habit of just going in headstrong, but this morning he had to play things careful, only because the council wanted answers. Zed walked through the island and occasionally came across the rogue Tuskan who wanted his shard for some reason or other. Of course, they never were able to even touch him. In fact, he barely wasted any muscle on any of them. There was, however, the occasional trickster, which was more of an annoyance than anything.

And then he came across the castle. He thought of his options - Option One was to run straight in and hopefully come across Roya, and Option Two was to sneak around and see what information his ears could pick up. He didn't fear either option, but it would probably work in his favor if he were to at least try to get some sort of information from the Tuskans. So...Option Two was obviously the smarter one. To carry out his plans, he knocked out the guards at the front gate and strolled right in, not even caring who may or may not spot him. From there, he just ran around in circles looking for Roya.

"Move her to the altar," one of the guards said and walked into her cell. They practically dragged her around, nearly ruining her clothes in the process. The ropes that had bound her had rubbed into her skin, causing red splotches to appear around her wrists and ankles. Obviously, the ropes had been knotted to perfection.

When she was at the altar, she was literally thrust onto it and had completely lost her balance. And then...the current King of Tusk stepped up to the side. Grinning, he looked around, and she decided to do the same.

Several rows of Tuskans, both humanoid-like beast-like, were sitting and standing in perfect view of the altar. They were all facing her with utmost curiosity. Apparently, they were just as clueless as she was as to why she was even there. She turned her attention to the king as he raised his arms the crowd went a little wild with excitement - whatever was going to happen was going to be exciting for them, she assumed.

Little did she know, Zed had just stumbled upon the very same room and watched with equal curiosity as the king of Tusk began his speech.

"Children of Tusk, both beast and humanoid," he began, waving his arms to and fro, "many of you I can clearly see are excited for what I have to present to you. However, this is a very serious matter.

"As many of you know, Tumblar has been a rival for some time for the Island of Tusk, and for several different reasons," he paused as if to consider his next words, "I have come to you today with yet another reason why we must conquer Tumblar. Here, I present to you," he reached over and grabbed Roya harshly by her left forearm. She squeaked as she stumbled forward. Her eyes were wide with a hint of fear swirling through her body to display to the gathered crowd. "I present to you a girl from Tumblar." There were several "boos" and "woos", but he silenced them immediately. "Do not be so quick to judge, my comrades, my subordinates, and my brethren," he continued casually, "this woman," he brought her right in front of him and placed both of his hands on the center of her chest, but higher up near her collar bones. He grasped her clothing and then with one forceful jerk, tore the fabric clear of her skin to show her smooth, creamy skin beneath. Luckily, the rip didn't go any lower than mid-chest and covered her more vital parts, but her shoulders and upper chest were now bare to the entire world - at least, that is how it was in her mind. "Behold! I child of Tusk!"

Roya screamed and bent forward to attempt to cover herself from the prying eyes of the Tuskans. She could hear several complaints and yelling. Many were outraged shouts. Some were gasps of shock and resentment. "Yes, my friends," the king continued, "a child of Tusk has somehow been smuggled into Tumblar! It isn't so much that she was there in Tumblar, but the mere fact that she is clearly Tuskan! She was not legally born there nor was she legally brought there by normal terms! Instead, this young woman was taken to Tumblar from right beneath our noses! This girl has given us a reason to invade Tumblar! To take a child from another country is strictly prohibited! They have gone against our rules and regulations, and now we must seek war!" There were shouts of agreement and excitement, but Roya didn't care. She didn't want to become any more exposed than what she was.

It was horrible...using her as some sort of example. They couldn't have found a better way to expose her to Tusk? Instead of make a spectacle of her, they could have calmly asked her their questions. She could have confirmed everything and yet they had to do this. It was terrible! And she was still sensitive about the whole Tuskan issue, too! She hadn't wanted anyone to find out...but somehow everyone did. And she was okay with it...but she didn't want others to know! How did the Tuskans even hear about her?

Guards came and dragged her out, each gripping an arm. She didn't have a way to cover herself from there. Her ripped clothing fell down her chest in tatters, and tears spilled over from her eyes. She was absolutely humiliated if she did say so herself. She could only hope that someone would come for her soon.

With a final sob, she disappeared behind closed doors that blocked out all the noise save for the hard clatter of the boots from the guards. She was thrown into a random room, or so she thought, and was pretty much left there to wallow in her self-pity. She laid there on the floor, her face in her crossed arms and the rest of her body sprawled out.

She could hear the guards talking with each other, but whatever they said went straight passed her ears. She could hardly concentrate with all of her crying. She was much too focused on the main event that she even missed the sound of bars breaking.

We all know that this is way out of character, but in order to make the story fit, I wanted to make her a little emotional. Let's just pretend it's her time of the month, okay? Lol!