Viktor awoke, shivering uncontrollably. Darkness, like I'm wrapped in the night itself. And so cold. Am I outside? "Where am I?" The steady drip of water sounded from somewhere nearby, slowly, once, twice, then again, on and on. Besides the water, silence reigned. Deafening, defeating silence. Images flooded his mind as he began to work his legs up and down, bending one, then the other. The inn exploding. All of us running through the woods. Barrad and that woman stepping out behind us. Then everyone falling. Sleeping?
This is hell. The water continued to drip and he shook his head, feeling something dried in his hair, forcing his bangs together. Wincing, he endeavored to stand then groaned when he realized his hands were secured by something above his head.
Prison?
Leaning backward, he felt his hands touch stone, the coolness of it rushing through him. His mind began to race, an image of each of his friends, in turn, coming at him like an arrow hitting a target and seeming to sink into his chest with a painful force. Fjalda and Mari skipping across the green. Kellen balancing his cup on his nose. Eliza explaining a new archery technique. Enialis keeping us all in line.
Where are they?
He called out each of the names of his friends into the impenetrable darkness. Nothing, no answer. Nothing at all.
"Anyone?" Drip, drip. Infinitesimally slowly falling water answered him. I'm imprisoned somewhere. No, no, no. Reynar. The inn. The forest. I need to remember, to figure out why we've been brought here. He closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. One breath in, only here. One breath out, only now. One breath in... A crash sounded from somewhere in front of him. "Get up boy." A gruff voice called to him and the flickering light of a torch surrounded the area. Rubbing his eyes, he took in the scene before him. Pale grey walls, and... The voice was coming from the raven-haired woman in front of him with a half-moon scar arcing across the left side of her face. The same one from the party at the inn. The same one who took us. With Barrad. She wore a full suit of resplendent, seemingly newly forged black armor and matching boots, smiling down at him as he imagined a cat would smile down at a mouse.
"Well, well, we meet again, though it's a pity Barrad needs you alive or I'd show you how skilled I am in the second round."
Like a cat expecting a feast.
Just my luck.
"You were easy to best," He endeavored to shrug, but groaned as rivulets of pain shot up his back.
"Confident. We'll see how long that lasts." Still the same terrible smile.
He shook his head violently, shivering out across his entire body. "Where am I?"
"You don't know do you?" She rubbed her hands together rapidly, leaning against the doorframe of the cell, allowing her back to fully slump against it. In a decidedly un-soldier-like manner. Viktor tilted his head backward, noticing that his hands were secured with iron shackles. "Nothing to say?"
Looking down once again, he winced at the protest from his neck, spreading across his skull. "Where the hell am I?" He shouted, hearing the words rasp out of his throat and bounce across the cell and out into whatever lay beyond. The woman gave no reaction to it except to sigh and say, "you're going to find out soon. Poking him with a spindly finger, she added, "It's way more fun keeping you in suspense."228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrprCgSE8QI
She's crazy and enjoying this. Not answering anything directly. A torch or a lantern, some kind of light, passed by and the room was illuminated even more. Then, a knock rang out, as if on a nearby door, and another set of voices began to speak, one shouting over the others. Though they were muffled, what Viktor could make out made him wince.
"No. no, no, no. What did you do with them? If they're dead, I'll take care of you myself." The scream that followed, tearing through his cell's wall, made him shiver once again. 228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvjTB8WYnKU
Mari. His heart leaped in his chest and he turned his eyes towards the sound as the woman tracked his gaze with her smile. Eating into the back of my consciousness like a horrible sickness. She's dangerous and I'm trapped here with her and whoever's helping her. 228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtYhYUmqHug
"Say no all yeh want, you're coming to see the general." The second voice ground through the air as a sound like a heavy weight dragging across the floor followed and more protests from Mari followed. A rough, Oryndyrian accent. From the western coastal cities with large hilltop farms. Some of them used to pass through Silverwood. Years ago.228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAqOPhvuSB1
"Who's the general?" he said, focusing on his hands instead of the woman, whose eyes he felt boring into him. "Rhys Merahir." She spoke in a rush, adding something in a mutter that sounded like, "for now." I'll keep that in mind. "And he's the one who brought us here, to wherever this is?"
"Now you're getting somewhere." She grinned, which to Viktor's annoyance, made him shiver again as if her happiness was wrong in some way that he could not seem to place. Blasted lady doesn't answer anything at all with any useful info, except the name of their general. Which I don't recognize.228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOiyOQg5pxC
"You sure do spend a lot of time in your own head." The woman moved from her place on the far wall, striding towards him in a hurry. "That's just about enough fun for us now, it's time for you to come with me." She bent down, beginning to unlock hands with a key, then pointing to a thin sword on her belt. "Don't try anything." As if I'd...228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe2uLbBRnsL
"No, no, get off me, you disgusting oaf." Mari’s shouts came as if from a long tunnel.228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI27ki79hPY
Where are they taking her?228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsvuUSb0KRF
228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRCegNtQWJ
228Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUydTPUdHyX
