77 A dire scene

As I opened the doors to the lower level room of the passengers I felt my heart beat quicken. The first thing that struck me was the smell. I covered my nose as my eyes burned from the heavy excrement smell. The sound of coughing, crying, and singing filled my ears.

The room itself was quite large, it was almost the size of the Marquis's pavillion. The ceiling was high, and the room was wide as it was long. There was no light so the only way that I could see anything was from the light in the corridor. I looked down to see bodies of people packed close to each other as if they were sardines. The slaves' ebony skin blended in with the room. Their eyes looking over to me with initial fear. Sadness filled me as I realized the source to their fear. As soon as I opened the door their voices sounded as they began to talk to each other in a series of clicks and tongue movements. I walked forward as I walked in between the hundreds of people. There were several barracks at the back of the room where several children and women sat.

As I walked in between the bodies of people my eyes rested on the many whip wounds which covered most of the passengers' bodies. Red welts decorated their backs and their ribs showed through the thin layer of their skin. Ropes tied their hands and chains connected each person to the other. This had reminded me of A person by my foot coughed out blood as the person lying next to him turned in order to avoid getting sick. Most of the people were sleeping or talking to one another. Despite the conversations, there was not a single laugh. Most of the conversations sounded solemn as if they were about the individuals talking about their previous lives as people before becoming property. My eyes moistened as I looked at the state of these people. They weren't just human beings, they were people with lives. People who had families back home. People who had others who cared about them and depended on them. People who are being sent to the unknown.

As I walked in between the individuals their faces filled with terror engraved themselves in my heart. No history book could encompass the reality of both the TransAtlantic trade and slavery. The dire scene of how people are being treated prove that the modern times might have it better in some places. Despite the advancement in time, there are still events in modern times which put slavery to shame in the cruelty. But to be someone who sees this in person, it is not only frustrating at my helplessness but depressing as well. I watched the individuals look at my hands in fear of having a whip. Once they didn't see a whip, hope of food filled them. I sighed. I didn't have food. i then walked back near the door and asked.

"Is there anyone here that can speak English?"

I waited as the people silenced before an older man answered.

"I can, but a little."

"What is your name?"

"Chike miss."

A slight British accent tinged his words. He must have been somewhere in the U.K before being shipped to the U.S.

"You can address me as Mila."

Chike nodded as he asked.

"Before you ask any more questions, Miss Mila may I ask one?"

I nodded.

"Go ahead Chike."

"How can I trust that I won't be in trouble with what I say?"

I nodded in understanding. I don't blame him for being worried. He is subject to punishment after all if he talks about his Master unfavorably which is what I want him to do. I have no guarantee that I could help these people. Especially witht he way of how my restrain from changing history is definitely holding me back. In response to that I at least hope that I could provide some comfort to these individuals. Something told me that Johannes wasn't thinking of releasing me any time soon but I have to get back to my ship as soon as possible. I need to get the ship going to the Bermuda Triangle as soon as possible so that I could go home.

"I can assure you that I am your ally. Your master is quite the asshole."

Chike blinked as he heard me address Johannes with such contempt. He chuckled as he said.

"You are quite interesting Miss Mila."

I smiled as I answered.

"I could say the same to you Chike."

For the rest of my time in that room, Chike filled me on what he had experienced along with the other slaves under Johannes. Similar to Priscilla's story he described how Johannes had promised their previous owners that he would take care of them. He would show the new slaves favorable experiences before he would resort to torture. Johannes was known to the slaves as being someone who was two faced and went from being overly sweet to a torture maniac in seconds. After my long talk with Chike, the other slaves would chime in occasionally in their language. Chike would then translate and tell me.

After spending about three hours in the room, I stood up as my wounds began to burn. Before leaving I waved at everyone as I closed the door behind me. I sighed as I walked down the dark corridor. As I reflected on what they told me my head bumped against a figure. I apologized as I looked up.

"Are you okay?"

As I looked at the familiar smile on Baron's face, for some reason I felt like all that I was keeping in came flooding out. Tears crept out of the corners of my eyes as Baron pulled me towards him and held me in his embrace. I cried for the people in the ship. I cried for the reality of my situation. I cried after remembering all the shit that I have been through.

The minutes flew by as I sobbed. Nothing could ever make me forget this day or the events that had ensued. Something in me was yearning with much vigor to go back home. My original goal has now changed. I had originally felt content with staying and becoming a pirate, but now all I want to do is go back home. My want has now become a need.

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Thank you so much for reading my luvs! Stay safe and be careful!