The young man's words sounded unsure, perhaps mocking even, or was Altair simply imagining that? Anger flared in him but it was a weak, flickering thing. He didn't have the energy to keep stoke it to flame but he wouldn't let the ember fade in it's entirety. He wasn't sure what about his story the young man didn't believe. The flogging would be made evident enough by the horrid wounds that now ruined his flesh, not that he would offer to show him willingly. There were horror stories of slaves flogged to death in Ellania but they had only been stories, perhaps meant to scare slaves to obedience and only usually reserved for petulant laborers.<br/><br/>“A tale?” Altair repeated. What more did this individual want? The only thing he could see being more obvious was if Cygnus had carved the story into his flesh himself.<br/><br/>“I do not know this Igna's End to say whether it eases my mind or not,” Altair told him softly. Choose to leave? What sort of place would he be turned out in? If that was even the truth at all. A weak, sad smile graced his features at the familiar greeting Snow said to him. Where he learned it, he wasn't sure. Altair repeated it to him, rounding the vowels more and enunciating Snow's pronunciation mistakes.<br/><br/>“Kei te mohio ano koe?” Altair asked.<br/><br/><div class="bbCodeSpoiler">
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<div class="bbCodeBlock-content">Do you know any more?</div>
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</div><br/>“Or just the common greeting?” There was another pause. “Do you want to know more? I will use it if it pleases you.” Cygnus had liked hearing it and Altair found it was comforting to speak in the language of his homeland. At least now, so far away. It brought him back to times that were more pleasant and there was a sliver of hope that this Snow did know the language. If he knew their language, he would know of their culture. If he knew their culture maybe he would be half-way decent and allow Altair to be who he used to be. Cygnus had never really seemed to comprehend his true purpose nor the subtlety to what he did. He was a man who had a chance to taste a fine wine, and yet he guzzled it the same as any cheap ale.<br/><br/>“Tell me more of our destination. It is a place where you would give a slave the choice to leave?” Altair questioned, not understanding this concept. “Do you get foreign visitors?” Perhaps he could convince one of them to take him with them. Dusan was far enough away, but Snow knew his greeting words. Maybe his people did travel this far out. Even an Ellanian. His master had not been so bad, and it was closer to the land he craved to see again than his current location. Of course, he was marked in an undesirable fashion. He would be a hard sell, but perhaps something Altair could hide if he was careful.<br/><br/>He looked back to the other man that had been introduced. Diens. Snow had said he'd served his family for a long time.<br/><br/>“You are a slave?” Altair asked, that making the most sense to him from the wording.