Realm of the Rogues

Chapter XXVII

As the fog lifts from my head and I slowly wake up again, I can sense that something is terribly wrong. My eyes flicker before being able to focus. I can't hear anything from the extreme ringing that fills my eyes. My entire body is buzzing and I feel like I have to throw up.

Finally, my hearing becomes clear enough for me to hear Hera. She sounds furious, anxious, and terrified at the same time. 

The next thing that hits me is pain. Immense pain. And then I smell blood. The metallic smell surrounds me, only making my nausea worse. I open my eyes and try to locate myself. The first thing I notice is that I'm still on the forest floor. From where I'm lying, looking to the right, I can see Hera surrounded by some beings. After closer inspection, I recognized them from the vision I just had.

I try to remember exactly what I had seen, but the pain overwhelms me once again. I lift my head to look in front of me. I unsuccessfully try to suppress a scream, as I see my arm has been caught in the bear trap. I must have fallen inside the trap, when I passed out, letting my upper body go unscathed, but not my arm, which must have fallen out in front of my head. I finally surrender and let the nausea win as my entire stomach gets emptied. Not that there was a lot in it, to begin with.

I close my eyes and let tears of frustration, fear, and pain stream down my cheeks. My sorrow is quickly drowned out, however, by Hera, who lets out a nerve-racking howl. I look to my right and over at her. Two of the beings have tackled her and are in the process of binding her feet to a stick that's way too thick for her ankles to not be broken around, tied like that. They stand up, and each with an end of the stick on their shoulder, they walk off with her.

I look back up slowly, and if I had the energy, I would have screamed. Right above me, just outside the teeth of the almost closed trap, one of the beings is staring directly into my soul. They are close enough for me to see their completely black eyeballs looking back at me through the animal skull. They tilt their head slightly to one side before they grab the teeth of the trap with their charcoal-looking fingers and effortlessly pull it open. The sudden stream of blood down to my mutilated arm gives me the final nudge, and I pass out.

~~~~~~~~

I don't know how long it has been, but I once again come to my senses. I look down at my feet, or should I say up since I am hanging by them from a branch. I try to ground myself before doing anything else, but it is hard to do so given my current circumstances.

I take a look around me, trying to disregard the feeling of my head exploding due to all the blood being forced down to it by gravity. Really, I should be thankful. Rather the blood being in my head, than leaking out of my broken and almost ripped off arm. Oh shoot, thats right. I almost forgot about that. Before taking a closer look at my surroundings, I look at my arm - or lack thereof - hesitantly. Thankfully, whoever has taken me hostage, has had the decency to tend to my arm before I bled out. It is now wrapped in some kind of medical gauze. I can spot seepings of red - probably blood - and some weird greenish color through the otherwise white material. To my big surprise - and relief - it seems as though, that it might just make it, and not need to be amputated.

I have no idea, why they would waste time tending to it, but I'm glad that I will not be at any further disadvantage than my human body already is. I try to point my index finger, and even though the reaction is slow, and I only manage to straighten it out a bit, it is still wonderful news. I can work with this. Well, as soon as I get down at least.

Back to my original mission, I look at my surroundings. Hanging beside me is Hera. She is tied and restrained to a board, so that her broken paws, which are now also wrapped in gauze, can get a rest. She is hanging head down and so that her belly is exposed just like me. She seems to be unconscious, but in the making of regaining it, as her eyes are twitching slightly.

I decide to remain silent, as the three ominous beings are sitting just a couple of feet away in front of me. We seem to be in their camp, as the ground looks to be tread on often enough for plants to not grow. Furthermore, there's a fireplace to be seen, along with some bows and long sticks resting up against a weapon rack of sorts. The only other place I have seen something like this was at the training arena back in the pack. It seems like forever ago already. I get a little sting in my heart, both feeling sad that I will never see my friends again, but also furious at my father and the Alpha for what led to my banishment.

I strain to hear what they are talking about, but only pick up on what sounds like... crying? But it's not loud and doesn't sound right, as if whoever is making this sound, is conflicted on what to feel.

The three beings stand up tall, and even though I am unable to reach the ground from my height, they still tower higher than me. They turn to face me, and as they approach I see Kai sitting, as a free man, on a treetrunk from the place where the other just stood up. He's looking down at his hands, but as I glance at him, we lock eyes. He does not look like the Kai I know. I feel uneasy I can see a conflicted look in his gaze.