The native led the escapees on the trek back to his village, all the while noting the anxiety on their faces for he shared the same look. "Who are these people?", "Who or what were they fleeing from?" and most importantly "How would the elders react to me bringing these foreigners into our village?", questions like these plagued his mind with worry. Nevertheless, he tried keeping himself calm by telling himself he did the right thing, for no one deserved to be lizard food.

In an attempt to get to know them better, the native made some hand gestures to introduce himself. He made a wave using one hand and a serpentine motion with the other then pointed to his chest, which roughly translates to his name in English being Water Snake. "Name" he said, as he smiled to the escapees. He doubt they would understand but he just wanted an excuse to examine the escapees, looking for signs that they might be dangerous. Besides the oddly excited man, they all seemed relatively alright.

@Kelewen@DriveEMOut@Gentlemanvaultboy@xChrome

Willow walked right behind the native. She glanced back and she smiled encouragingly at the other escapees.
----
John, one of the hand-picked crew, followed Ulric. He caught up to him and said, "Where do ya think they went, sir?" He was a burly young man, and very handsome, his face only marred by a long thick scar down his left side.

"Based only on my experiences with semi-isolated island cultures, we're being invited to dinner." Gregor said to Brinley. "One way or the other." He added quickly under his breath. He looked down at Oliver's little stick writing. He reached over a ruffled his hair. "Too right, Olli boy. He's not half as scary as Ulric or half the guys we shared the hold with. Ha.Ha.ha.ha!"

The native tried to introduce himself, waving his hand in a motion that was very familiar. "Snake? Well isn't that fortuitous." He said with a wry little smile, pounding himself on the chest. "Gregor. Name." So there were snakes on this island. Ohhhhhhh that was good.

@xChrome@Gentlemanvaultboy@Kelewen@DriveEmOut

Willow smiled. "Willow." She pointed to herself looking at the native. He was interesting, very interesting. She had never met a native of anywhere before. This was exciting to her to meet a new race.

@Gentlemanvaultboy@Kelewen@Nikki Moonlight@xChrome
Oliver smiled at Gregor and laughed quietly as he got excited about snakes. The man was insane, undeniably so, but he was just as funny. The native knew fragments of english, which made him creepier in Oliver's perspective. He followed Gregor closely, looking wildly around, waiting for another native to jump from the bushes and hurt them. As for the new girl, she was normal enough, not talking much though.

Ulric glanced at the younger man, nodding in satisfaction at the other's eagerness to learn the tricks of the trade. "Well, assuming this place is as unknown to them as it is to me and I'd wager it is," he started, talking as they continued following the trail left by the slaves, "they'll likely stick together. Safety in numbers, you see, but that just makes our job of finding them easier. They'll also probably run pretty close to a straight line away from the boat for as long as they can, until something forces them to change course. That something is what we gotta keep our eyes peeled for."

---

Being invited to dinner sounded particularly appealing to Brinley. On the ship, the food was only given out sparingly on a good day. During the storm, the slavers hadn't bothered to feed their cargo at all. While her family was far from wealthy, their sheep and chickens provided a steady enough diet and the girl was unaccustomed to prolonged periods without food. That coupled with the strenuous sprint through the warm jungle had left her feeling a bit woozy.

One way or the other. As his meaning sunk in, her eyes grew wide. But a moment later her fist clenched in determination. For some reason, she did not want this man to think her a coward. "Maybe we can just point them in the direction of the captain of that horrid ship. There'd be leftovers for breakfast."

@Kelewen

John nodded. "There were a couple slaves that caught my eye earlier. A man with tattoos all over 'im and a completely white young woman... were there any that caught yers, sir?"

"Whatever the case may be, we're better off with them." Gregor says quietly.

---

"I'm more worried about the stock we're not getting back." Said a young women with short black hair coming up behind them. She wore a short brown vest over a low cut white shirt, showing off a patchwork of old scars over tense and wiry muscle. Her nose had obviously been been broken at some point, one of her ears had a chunk missing from it, and her weapon jangled as she walked. It was a long iron chain laid in coils across her back, the ends swinging like pendulums within grabbing distance. Attached to one was a large iron ball. Attached to the other was an even large, viciously curved hook. Pairs of shackles hanging from her pants leg matched the rhythm of the chain.

Dockside Dinah, professional kidnapper, scowled a crooked scowl at the jungle. "The only thing the Ghurkon hate more than foreigners is oathbreakers, and we'll be both if we show up with even one less wretch than we set out with. Then there's the chain."

She thought back to the hole in the ship, the chain snapped off from the rest in the middle of the line. Each manacle torn apart individually except the last, which was just gone. "I inspected those chains myself fore we set out. Storm wouldn't have broken 'em like that. They'd a' torn out a' the wall before breaking like that. One a' these four's more trouble then they're worth."

Ulric shrugged in response to John's query. "They ain't all that interestin' to me after they're caught," the slave hunter admitted. "Though, that stark white girl, couldn't miss her. Never seen nothin' like her before. Someone paid extra to have her though."

He paused and knelt to look at something that caught his attention, glancing back toward Dinah. "The captain'll deal with the Ghurkon," he said, unworried about the specifics of the deal. But her observations about the chain intrigued him. "But that chain is interestin'." He nodded as if thinking, the corners of his mouth turning up ever so slightly and then seemed to be talking more to himself than the others, "Maybe they'll be unexpected."

After a moment, his thoughts returned to the present and he pointed to the place on the trail that had caught his attention, which was where Brinley's shackle had caused her to fall. "Whaddaya make of this?"

The native nodded to show his approval of his newfound name - Snake, sounds like a name for a stealthy man, and another nod to show his understanding of their names. He heard the word "dinner" being spoken between Gregor and Brinley, which made him wonder if they're here to steal his dinner.

Not long after, they arrived at the village, it was a small village located next to a river. In the middle of the village is a huge bonfire used during ceremonies and in front of it is a huge wooden house, much larger and grander than the other huts surrounding the bonfire and marking the borders of the village. The natives were on about their own business - cleaning, cooking, looking after their young, but everything came to a halt as they stared at the foreigners who have just arrived. They were surprised to see them here so deep in the jungle, as most foreigners stick close to the entrance of the river.

Snake brought the escapees to the huge wooden house, the main lodge of the elders, all the while bearing curious stares from his people. As they entered the house, they were greeted by silence. In the main hall of the house was a long table, and at the end of it an old dark-skinned man who has a fairly large build for his age. The elder stood up and said with a loud, booming voice: "Who are these people!?". It caught Snake by surprise, not because of the loudness, but because of the English spoken by the elder for it usually means it's serious. Snake tried to muster up an answer, but the elder seemed only interested in the replies of the foreigners.

@xChrome@Nikki Moonlight@Gentlemanvaultboy@Kelewen
Oliver frowned, and motioned for the elder to watch him. He pointed at his throat, then acted out talking, and shook his head. He sighed when he realized out of how much the villager probably understood. He went to the back of the group and sat down, looking around at the building interior. He stared at the area on his feet were his shackles used to be and smiled.

@Kelewen

John nodded. "Right, sir." He looked around, trying to keep his eyes peeled.

@xChrome

Willow said, "Forgive us for trespassing, sir. We are escaped slaves...Water Snake found us before we went to the swamp and he brought us here. We mean no harm." Her voice was calm, gentle, and contrite.

"Escaped slaves!? How in hell did you get here? Is this all of you?" barked the elder. Snake stood in silence as the elder questioned the escapees, for no one in the village dared raise their voice against the elder when he is angry. A crowd started to gather around the house, trying to sneak a peek through the windows and eavesdropping through the door. The elder paid them no mind for he has other matters on his mind - the arrival of foreigners usually means trouble, especially slaves, for when there are slaves, there are bound to be slavers.

@xChrome

Willow flinched. "This is all of us that escaped. The rest are on the shore being kept there. Our ship was wrecked."

Gregor cleared his throat and stepped forward, giving a deep bow to the village elder. "It's as my friend here says, I'm afraid. Greeting, honorable sir, my name is Gregor Heartway. It pains me to say, but I'm here to confirm all your worst fears."

Gregor straightened up, trying to make himself look as trustworthy and respectable as possible. It didn't really take, but he was undaunted. "There is, at this very moment, two very real problems that you face. The first is that we are undoubtedly already being tracked by the most frightful man I have ever met, and I have met some frightful men in my time. These slavers will stop at nothing to recapture us, and if any of the cargo died in that shipwreck they're going to be looking to fill some spots in the hold. So that's problem number one."

"Problem number two," he said nervously, "is the cargo itself. You see, most of it was acquired by purchasing prisoners with some" his eyes shift over to Willow for a moment. "Extra-legal acquisitions on the side. Now in this bunch you have your harmless sorts; debtors, political dissidents, fringe religious groups, but a good chunk of that is made up of pirates, gangsters, thieves, and murderers. Not a pretty picture for anyone if they get loose on the island, especially if you're already dealing with problem number one, the slavers. It's fortunate for all of us that the ship is still mostly intact."

Upon hearing what Gregor said, the elder grew even more furious than before. "Spare the pleasantries, I am no lord from your land, I am Matahari, the leader of these people! And how dare you come here bringing all these problems!?" The elder took a deep breath to try to calm himself down, he knew the solution was a simple one and there was no need for further discussion. "All of you will leave here at once, I have had enough interactions with slavers in one lifetime, and I do not wish to meet your slaver if what you said is true. I have no reason to keep you here and endanger my people. Leave." The elder gave Water Snake a look of disapproval and said "He will bring all of you back to your masters" then he changed his language to that of his own "and you shall not return until they are gone, and see that you do, alone this time".

Snake had no choice but to nod and grunt, he could not refuse the word of an elder. He gave a sorry look to the escapees, he thought he had saved their lives, but instead it is now his duty to ensure that their lives are once again taken away.

Oliver grew frustrated, and ran over to the elder, and punched him in the face, making a strange growling sound. He continued attacking the villager, refusing to relent. He eventually grew tired and sank down onto the floor, curled up into a ball. His red hair was sweaty, and his face was flushed red. A few tears fell off his cheek onto the floor.

@DriveEMOut

Willow, surprisingly strong, held Oliver back. "Oliver, stop! It's no use taking out your frustration on anyone!"

@xChrome

She saluted the elder. "We will leave at once. I apologize for all of us..." She turned to leave. She had no intention of going back to the slavers, however.

@Gentlemanvaultboy

She murmured to Gregor, "I don't know what you're going to do, But I will not go back to the slavers. I will make a living on this island if I have to."

Oliver's blow caught the elder by surprise, but he had gone through worse, far worse, and seeing that he's just a kid, he took the hits without much resistance. Seeing the kid's fighting spirit, the elder was reminded of his past self and felt a sense of guilt for sending them off, but he had a duty to uphold after all. Before they left, the elder beckoned out to them, "I sincerely hope all of you will find a better life, and were the circumstances different, I would've accepted all of you". The elder then gave a slight pause and said "Oh... whatever happens, DO NOT travel down the river, there are ships travelling away from the island, you do not want to let your masters down now do you...?", finishing his sentence with a slight smile.

"Ahhh, yes." Gregor said conspiratorially. "Wouldn't want us getting turned around in this confusing jungle, who could say what trouble would come from that? Thank you so very much for the hospitality, fleeting as it was. You have a lovely village. If opportunity permits I would love to return under more favorable circumstances, but for now we bid you goodbye."

He helped Oliver back up to his feet, murmuring in his ear, "Don't worry, no one is taking us to Ghurkon."