Page 36 of Own to Obey

Treska brought her dinner, but she didn't feel like eating it. She just paced the room, looking out the window, trying to determine what kind of land she was in and then headed toward the map to see where they would have docked. It was obvious that they would dock at Nyek Island, but nothing that she saw out the window seemed to signify that they were at the island. It was confusing.

When Treska returned she was dressed just as heavily as Shaya was, except she wore a fur overcoat that looked enormous on her.

“Are you ready?” Treska asked.

“No.” She shook her head. “But I will never be.” She smiled. “Let's go.”

Treska held up a thick furry overcoat. “This is for you. You will need it.”

Shaya nodded numbly, as Treska helped put it on her. An incredible heat enveloped her as Treska did all the buttons and ties so that it was secure around her frame. She then fixed a hat on her head and stepped back to look at her. Nodding her satisfaction, she said, “Let’s go.”

Shaya followed Treska through the corridors and along the empty decks, until they reached the loading hatch she had entered so long ago. Treska took the stairs first and then beckoned for Shaya to follow, but when she did she found herself on the stairs and outside of the boat, and for the first time she saw the Southern Isles.

Before her, the landscape was covered in snow. Shaya stared in shock. Snow whipped around in the air and all visible trees were bare, their branches covered in thick blankets of snow. She surveyed the horizon, searching for the other Isles that were supposed to be nearby, but she could see nothing but swirling snow in the wind.

“Sessah arren Omega-drek!”Meet your Omega!

Shaya’s head whipped around at the sound of Kardos' voice, and she saw him standing at the foot of the stairs on a platform, a hand gesturing up to her while he addressed an enormous amount of people. Her eyes widened as she saw that the crowd spread far into the distance. There couldn't have been that amount of people on the boat, could there? Where did they all come from? She hadn't even noticed them before because they were all dressed in white, only their faces visible from the bulky fur clothes and overcoats that they wore.

At the shinno's words, the crowd cheered, and Shaya gripped onto the side of the stairs, the sound startling her. She glanced down and saw Treska at the bottom of the stairs beckoning her to come down, but she couldn't move. All of these people were looking at her, and her nerves expanded paralyzing her.

“I, Kardos Nyek, of tribe Nyek have returned an Omega to the Southern Isles after one hundred years!” Kardos bellowed to the crowd, who continued to cheer along, and Shaya swayed, translating what he had said as quickly as she could. But by the time she got the gist of it, he was speaking again and she couldn’t keep up.

Treska beckoned her furiously to step down the steps as the crowd cheered and bellowed again. But Shaya was watching Kardos. He was grinning at the crowd, gesturing to her, and when he glanced at her, it was with a face that was proud, but it shot a coldness straight to her heart. He wasn't proud of her. He was proud that he owned her.

Treska hurried back up the steps, and took Shaya’s hand, urging her down. Shaya let her lead, hoping that the sinking of her heart was just her own silly assumptions. After all, she did not understand everything he said. He was a shinno after all, he most likely had responsibilities that he had to meet, and of course bringing an Omega to the Southern Isles would be something to be proud of.

She told herself not to be silly. She was simply feeling insecure about the fact she hadn't seen him all day.

When they reached the bottom, Treska led Shaya to stand a few feet from Kardos and then jumped a few steps back so that she was on her own. The crowd waved and cheered her, and she managed a small smile and wave back, before glancing at Kardos. The proud smile on his face did not fill her with any comfort and soon he turned back to the crowd, speaking to them again. This time she didn’t even try to figure out what he was saying. Next to the platform stood the woman who had examined her after her first time with Kardos. She seemed to be watching her carefully. Shaya offered her a small smile, but she was distracted by another loud and raucous cheer by the crowd.

Finally, when the shinno finished speaking, Treska led her off the platform and down onto land, finally.

Her foot sunk deep into the snow, and she bent down to touch it, marveling at the strange texture and substance. She had only ever heard about snow in tales that Kyus told, and there was one area of the Western Lands where snow fell almost every year, but it never settled. In Kyus’ stories, the snow was so deep that it went calf deep, and this was almost the same. Now she knew why she had to dress in the clothes Treska had secured.

Treska led her away from the crowd, and they trudged through the snow toward a row of carriages that sat on top of the snow. Walking in the snow was difficult, it required her to lift her legs higher and take bigger steps. By the time she reached the carriage, her breath was coming quicker but the carriages caught her eyes. They were more like sleds. The bottom of them had no wheels, only long, flat paddles, and they were each attached to a team of white and gray hounds, who were enormous. Shaya watched them nervously as Treska helped her into the carriage, but the animals sat calmly, barely moving at all.

“Are you well?” Treska asked as she sat down.

Shaya nodded, though she was feeling a little strange about everything that was happening.

“You will be used to it,” Treska said in her halting Common Tongue.

Shaya sighed. She knew Treska was right, this was just a new environment for her that she would have to get used to. But as Treska began to climb out of the carriage, her nervousness returned. “Where are you going?” she asked, alarmed.

“I must travel in the other one,” Treska said pointing at one of the carriages further back. “This carriage is not for me,” she said, smiling wryly.

Shaya opened her mouth but didn't really know what to say. She didn't want Treska to go, she was the only familiar thing in this land apart from the shinno.

Treska grabbed her hand and squeezed. “You will be used to it, Shaya,” she said smiling, pressing her hand tight.

Shaya nodded and watched her climb out of the carriage. She leaned back against the carriage wall, taking deep breaths trying to calm her nerves. She was here in place of her sister, she had to continue to find the strength her sister would have had. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw men standing along the row of carriages at either side. It looked as though they were guarding it. Of course that made sense.

Her eyes drifted up into the horizon, and she had to admit that she was disappointed that there was no greenery in these lands that she could see so far. No abundant trees, no colorful flowers, no grass. Just rock, ice, and snow. Suddenly the stories and information she had read and heard during her time learning about Southern Lands’ culture began to make sense. Many of the things expected from the people in the culture, came from what they refer to as the “conditions of the land.” Did that mean that it snowed here all the time? She shook her head and sighed. If that was the case, she may indeed struggle here. There were a number of islands that made up the Southern Lands, and hopefully not all of them were as hostile as Nyek.

She suddenly noticed the noise of the crowd becoming louder. When she peeked out of the carriage window, she saw the shinno making his way toward her carriage.

He looked amazing. He wore a thick gray and white fur overcoat with a hood that was not up, allowing his strip of blonde hair to be seen against the white. His beard had grown, but Shaya had kept it neat and shaped it to match the shape of his face, and it made him look incredibly handsome. His blue-green eyes sparkled and every step was strong and swaying and dominant, showing his confidence in himself in this Land. As he headed toward her, she marveled at the breathtaking sight of him.

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