To Tame A Beast

Karma

Realize that everything connects to everything else.
-Leonardo Da Vinci
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Lana's head throbbed, her head spinning, feeling dizzy. She squeezed her eyes shut right, trying to push down nausea that started to build from the feeling of her rocking. She could hear muffled voices, and her eyes snapped open, remembering the events leading up to her unconsciousness. The room was dark; the only light she could see was the glow of light from under the crack of the door and the moonlight that filtered in through the small window.Lana's eyes adjusted to the darkness in the room, the only light a pale glowing from the moon. She clutched her head in anguish, trying to will away the intense throbbing. Her eyes scanned the room, and she squinted, trying to make out the shadowed shapes around her. She gasped as the realization she was no longer on the land of her island home struck her and her heart rate increased, trying to scramble to her feet.

She didn't get far, the shackles binding her wrists not helping her imbalance, tripping when the chain connected to the shackle binding her ankle to the floor went taught. She fell back on her bottom with a hissing as her side throbbed. As if hearing the thud, the room door swung open with an eerie creak as a stocky shadowed figure stepped into the doorway. The face of Lana's kidnapper, whom she still didn't know the name of, illuminated with a soft glow of a candle he held. Her scared eyes narrowed, recognizing the man who kidnapped her.

"Look who's awake. Did you sleep well, Princess?" He grinned, slamming the door behind him, walking towards her with deliberately slow steps. She scooted herself as far as she could until she felt the cold wood of the wall press against her back.

"Where are you taking me?" She demanded, curling herself into a ball to make herself smaller.

"I've found you a new home that will make me a very wealthy man." He grinned, sitting on the foot of his bed.

"I won't be anyone's slave." She growled with defiance, yanking on the shackles binding her wrist in front of her; she felt unnaturally weak.

"You don't have much choice; you won't really have the energy to fight anyways with those sea prism stone shackles. Nor can you use that Devil fruit power." He taunted, flicking her forehead; she jerked her head up, snapping her teeth and biting his finger; he yelped seeing the blood she drew. Then, in a roar of anger, he backhanded her across the face; Lana crumpled to the ground with a grunt.

"You might as well kill me; I won't cooperate." She challenged, trying to force confidence to cover her terror.

"Your new master can decide that once I hand you over, but he never said I couldn't have my way with you before giving you to him. He said firmly, stroking her cheek softly with his fingers; she jerked her face out of his hand, glaring at him.

Setting the candle down on a table, the pirate yanked her up by the collar of her shirt, slamming her back against the wooden bedpost. He retracted his hand, the thin material easily tearing, exposing her shoulder and the top of her bra, the ruined fabric sleeve draping down the side of her arm.

"You test my patience with that smart mouth of yours!" He snapped, tugging her bound wrists above her head, with his other hand brushed down her neck with calloused fingers.

"You're disgusting." Lana snarled, head butting him in the mouth, splitting his lip. He wiped his face roughly, smearing blood across his lip. His eyes blazing with fury as his nostrils flared.

     Lana went to taunt him further when the impact of his knee hit her in the stomach. She crumbled to the ground, the air exploding from her lungs. Lana wheezed, trying to catch her breath, clutching her side, the throbbing pain from her ribs increasing from the blow. She bit the inside of her cheek to hold back the whimper of pain that tried to escape her lips, not wanting to show any weakness.