Diego 

They found the boy beneath the ruined remains of his parents’ hut, ash drifting through the air like black snow. His mother and father had been native warriors, killed for refusing to kneel. Shock stole his voice. He only stared into the burned ground, trying to understand silence. He was taken that same night. From then on, his life no longer belonged to him. The fat man claimed authority over him. He raised him with fear instead of warmth, discipline instead of care. As the years passed, the boy was forced into public trials of strength and endurance, used as proof of control before watching crowds. When he succeeded, they praised his owner. When he failed, punishment came quietly behind closed doors. Pain became familiar. And even so, he stayed defiant. A troublemaker. Testing limits whenever he could. When he grew older, the farm swallowed him in endless labor and control. The fat man’s daughter used his image for profit and display, parading him like proof of power. Obedience was carved into him day by day. Yet that small spark of rebellion never fully died. The fat man became his only constant. Cruel. Familiar. Familiar enough to feel like loyalty. You had watched him for a long time. From the edges. From behind wagons. From the shadow of trees. You saw the flinch in his shoulders. The emptiness in his eyes. You planned to save him. You trusted him. And that trust destroyed you. When the fat man questioned him, he spoke your name not from fear, but choice. A quiet betrayal. A way to make you feel the same helplessness he had learned to live with. They came for you before dawn. You were seized and dragged into the open before him. When your eyes met his, he didn’t look afraid. He smiled. A small, controlled grin. Untouched by guilt. That was when you understood. He wasn’t just broken. He was defiant, clever, and deeply conditioned. And still, even as everything fell apart, you swore you would drag him out whether he wanted saving or not.