A Peaceful Silence (Akatsuki no Yona Shinah X OC)

Rescue Mission

"Well?" Kumji snarled. Ezra could see the ill-fated intentions in his eyes; the pure evil that swirled in their depths made her stomach churn nauseously.

Yona turned and kneeled at the man's feet, her head down in a gesture of respect. "I am the daughter of a poor Awa merchant," she responded quietly. "I came because I heard you were offering work. I don't know your red-haired princess, but if being her would please you, then I will call myself 'Princess Yona'."

Ezra's eyes flicked to Kumji to see if he would buy it.

"I let myself go too far," he muttered. "Unlike you, Princess Yona would have more self-respect than to grovel before me begging for work, you filthy wench!" He turned and exited the room, the official he'd attacked earlier closing the door behind them.

Yona immediately turned towards Yun. "Yun! Hang in there!"

Yun sat up, coughing. "I'll be fine. I think." He glanced at Ezra. "You doing alright?"

She nodded. "Perfectly fine."

He frowned. "You're bleeding."

She shrugged. "I said I'm fine."

Yun sighed. "Who kicks cute, delicate girls like us? What a jerk!"

"Yona, are you alright?" Ezra asked, worried. "Your ankle is swelling."

"I'm fine," Yona said, her eyes fierce. "I'd forgotten about the pain."

"What Lord Kumji said..." one of the girls murmured. "Is he planning to sell us?" Fear colored her voice. She stood and ran to the door. "Let us out! Let us out!" she cried desperately. "Someone help us!"

"There's no point," muttered another girl. She sat along the back wall, with her knees drawn to her chest. "I've been in here for two weeks. You can scream all you want, but nobody will hear you." The girl who'd been pounding on the door stepped back, despair covering her face. "Lord Kumji only sees us as a source of money. This city has always been this way."

A moment of silence passed.

"Do you want to change that?" Yona asked.

The woman glanced up, surprised. "Change what?"

"This town," Yona answered. "Have you ever thought about fighting back against Kumji for your freedom?"

"What?" the girl snapped, disbelief mingling with condescension in her voice. "Are you really from this town? The only people who talk like that are outsiders and the strong. And idiots."

Yona smiled softly. "I'm not particularly strong," she said.

Bullshit! Ezra thought.

"But I know people who are risking their lives to change this town."

"What are you talking about?" the woman said. "Is someone coming to rescue us?" She sounded like she scarcely dared to hope. "Nobody is that stupid."

"I don't know about that, but if one of these idiots reaches out to help you, you should take their hand," Yona told her. Her hands shook, but she forged on. "If you want to live, please... do everything you can to survive."

~~~

A while later, they were marched into more wagons with blindfolds tied over their eyes. The wagons rolled on for a bit before they halted, and the women were marched onto a ship. The officials sat them roughly on the ground with their hands tied behind their backs. This time, their blindfolds weren't removed.

A few minutes after the officials had left them, Yun whispered, "Ao."

The squirrel immediately shifted in the cloths Yun had used to make it appear as if he had a chest. Ao scrambled behind Yun and began to gnaw at the ropes that bound his hands. Once Yun was free, he released Ezra and Yona. Together, the three of them set to work freeing the women and taking off their blindfolds.

Yun held a hand to his lips as he reached up, banging on the trap door that kept them confined beneath the ship.

"What the hell?" they heard the guard mutter. He opened the door and peered down into the room. His eyes widened when Ezra's hand shot out, grabbing at his robes. She pulled him roughly into the room, and he tumbled down the ladder.

Reaching underneath the kimono she wore, Ezra ripped her knife free of its sheath and held it to the man's throat. "I wouldn't move if I were you," she purred. "Yun!"

"On it!" Yun blew into a small contraption he'd made with bamboo, and a small dart whipped forward to lodge itself in the man's neck. Ezra kept her hold on him until he sank into unconsciousness.

"Is he dead?" one of the girls asked.

"No," Yun answered shortly, plucking the dart out of his neck. "The anesthetic I rubbed on the needle just knocked him out. He'll be out for at least twelve hours."

"Are you really trying to escape?" asked the woman who'd been skeptical in the holding room as Ezra re-sheathed her knife in the holster at her thigh.

Yona nodded, but the woman could see how her hands were trembling.

"Are you shaking?" she asked, standing. Her gaze moved down. "Your leg is injured, too." Her eyes narrowed. "Don't do this. We don't want to get involved in... whatever this is."

Ezra started forward, anger in her eyes, but Yona stopped her with a look. Yona fixed the woman with an intense stare. "I came to rescue you," she announced.

The woman looked confused. "Rescue us?"

"Our job is to signal this ship's position to our allies," Yona said.

"How? The ships have left the harbor, we're in the middle of the sea!"

"I'm going up on deck to launch a firework. It's small, but our allies will see it. They're also out at sea." Yona smiled softly. "Just wait here. I promise we'll rescue you."

Ezra grit her teeth as the word 'promise' slipped out of Yona's lips. She turned towards her friend. "Let's get going."

Yona nodded, and they turned to head up the ladder that led above decks. As Yona stepped forward, her injured ankle almost buckled under her weight. She grimaced and kept going.

"Wait."

All three turned to see the woman standing with her fists clenched.

"I'll help," she announced. "My father builds ships. I'm very familiar with them, so I can show you a shortcut."

Yona smiled brightly. "Thank you!"

"Why?" Ezra asked suspiciously.

"It's like she said," the girl said, glancing at Yona. "If help is being offered to us, we should take it. Besides, we do want to change this town." She stepped closer to Yona. "I'm Yuri."

"I'm Yo--uh, Rina," Yona responded. Ezra smirked as the princess almost slipped like she had when they had first met.

"I'm Yun. Try not to slow us down."

"I'm Ezra."

And so together, the four of them headed above deck.