CHAPTER 4

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Then they all came down, one, two, three, four, people began screaming as they began being picked up and carried off. I felt the figure behind me, loosen his grip on my shoulder and I took the opportunity to jam my elbow into his gut as he fell back and I stood up. I heard a scream ahead of me and saw the girl from early with the sketch book trying to fight off one of the creatures trying to grab her.

"Hey!"

Without thinking, oh this might not be the best idea, I ran at the figure and slid under it's arms before kicking it hard in the stomach. The creature doubled over slightly, as I whipped out my knives, and when the shadowy stranger brought it's body up to the light, an angry snarl plastered on it's face I froze. A male stood before me, with the most beautiful face I had ever seen and hazel eyes. His skin was tanned and his hair was a shade of black. He was tall and muscular, but what caught my attention most was the ginormous wings on his back. Illyrian wings, I recalled. I shook my head and focused my attention on the male, now known as an Illyrian. I was prepared to attack first, go for the kill but he grabbed my arm before I could even move it and slammed me into the pole behind, and my skull hit the tough wood and I was knocked into darkness.

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When I came around I heard voices and shouts of protest and pleas. I blinked a couple of times to get my bearings together only to be hit with a pounding headache. I went to clutch my head only to find my hands in chains. Before I could register a pair of firm hands grabbed me, roughly as I began thrashing, furiously.

"Stop your squirming, or else we'll dangle you over the side of the boat."

I stopped my wriggling but glared at the Illyrian as he pulled me across the deck. I tried to take in my surroundings though it was hard to tell with the rain and darkness. I stumbled as the Illyrian began to shove me through a door that led to a stair case below deck. As I lumbered down the steps we where met with another Illyrian, holding a lantern and with a pang of fury I realised it was the same one that had attacked me earlier. I stopped walking and the Illyrian behind me gave me a powerful shove, almost making me fall, I wanted to bark an insult at him but I knew better. When we reached the bottom I was handed over to the dark haired Illyrian as the other vanished up the stairs behind me. I took a moment to survey the room and noticed there where more people, their wrists, chained above their heads. Some where moaning, some where sobbing and begging, others just glared and silently cussed at the Illyrian. He forcibly pulled me towards a pair of chains dangling from the roof above an began cuffing me to them.

"Where are you taking us?" Silence. "What you don't speak, maybe your not the infamous Night court Illyrians after all, maybe your just slavers, taking mortals to be sold." He looked at me a brief moment before turning away again. "We are not slavers, we are taking you to the Night court for questioning, now be silent." His tone made it clear that was the end of the discussion, but I pressed anyway, silence be damned.

"You mean your taking us to our deaths and "questioning" is just a more pleasant way of putting it?"

"No, we are taking you to be questioned, for any information you have on the King of Hybern."

I stared at him, shocked before bursting into laughter. He didn't even flinch.

"Oh really and what exactly would a couple of mere mortals know about the DEAD King of Hybern?"

"We got intelligence, telling us that Hybern is rebuilding it's army and they have hired mortals to highjack ships and take them to the Fae world to spy on us and gather intelligence."

Mortal's being spy's for Hybern, after all they have done to us? The idea was so stupid I had to fight back another laugh but instead I played along with his game.

"So you'll question us, what happens when you find out we don't know shit, I don't supposed you'll let us off with a pat on the back and an apology?"

He looked at me again, and for the first time I noticed he had shadows crawling around him and his hands where brutally scared. Again he stayed quiet.

"That's right, they'll stab a knife through us and call it a day and you'll forget you ever saw us, tell me I'm wrong!"

He said nothing and I finally snapped. I gritted my teeth and used all my power to slam my body against his, kicking him in the process.

"Oh, the big bad Illyrians, it was twenty on ten what of honour and noble?!" He didn't meet my eyes as he finished shackling me to the chains and making sure they were secure.

"I thought you Fae, respected your women." It was a lie, I knew the Fae, especially men, had no regard for their females, but I wanted to get under that monstrous skin of his. He glared down at me, he teeth gritted, his eye's no longer holding that stony, expressionless look.

"You are not a women, you are a spy and a traitor, until proven otherwise."

And with that he turned and left but not before looking over his shoulder and saying, "do not speak to me again." A moment later he was gone, and I was alone. I let my head hang and grunted, from pain or anger I didn't know, but I did know one thing. I hated that Illyrian, with every fibre of my being. I felt my knives in my coat, they hadn't bothered to take them out or they thought I wouldn't be able to use them with my hands chained. But I would get out and when I did, one way or another I would kill him and every other filthy Illyrian on this god forsaken boat and find my brother.

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