Crowns and Guns.

Memory (part 2)

I wake up from the soft sizzle of a fire. I am propped up against some kind of wooden surface, probably a tree trunk. My hands are tied behind my back and around my neck something that feels like a collar, holding my head firmly in place. It feels as if it is made from wood, and attached to the tree trunk.

I open my eyes and look down. The large wound on my stomach seems to be sewn shut with some vines and covered with a mixture of herbs and a trick, sticky green substance. It doesn't hurt anymore. The lower part of my nightgown is mostly intact, although it is covered in spots and stains of dirt, blood, and the strange black liquid. I can see my bare feet poking from under the skirt, and they seem really dirty and bruised. My ankles are tied to the root of a tree with some kind of vines, locking me firmly in place in a sitting position.

I look up to see a large fire. I can feel the heat of the flames on my skin and through the thin fabric of my nightie. It feels strangely comforting after having spent hours in a cold forest.

Above the fire hang some skewers, with different kinds of meat on them. I can clearly smell the roasting meat, and my stomach growls. I haven't eaten since yesterday, and I suddenly realise how hungry I am.

Behind the fire sits the elf, staring at the fire, eating what looks like a giant drumstick of sorts. It is holding it at the end, which seems to be covered with a piece of brown leather, ripping off large chunks with its teeth, chewing on them loudly, and then tilting its head back to demonstratively swallow them. After a while, it notices me staring and puts the giant shank back down.

"Human spawn, you are awake." It says.

I struggle against my restraints while trying to avoid the elf's piercing gaze. It snickers.

"Safe your strength, human spawn. Don't try to escape. You won't succeed."

I struggle harder, hurting my wrists and ankles in the process.

The elf shows its teeth. "Human spawn, sit still, or I will hurt you!"

I freeze in place and hesitantly look up at the elf's face. The reflection of the fire in its eyes and teeth makes it look even more alien than it did in the darkness.

The elf smirks. "Human spawn, you must eat. You have to regain your strength."

It picks up one of the skewers from the campfire, and holds it near my mouth, allowing me to rip off a piece with my teeth. "We elves eat both raw and cooked meat, but I have learned humans prefer it cooked."

I reluctantly start chewing. The meat is raw on the inside and burned on the outside, and it is very tough. I can barely chew it. Besides that, it also has some kind of weird taste, but I can't really put my finger on it. Despite how hungry I am, it does not go down easily. I force myself to swallow it. I then stick out my tongue, trying to get the nasty taste out of my mouth.

The elf looks back at me. "I suppose this is not the kind of taste you are used too, human spawn."

I shrug.

The elf rubs his nose while narrowing its eyes. "We elves are not like you, humans. We don't kill and eat innocent animals. That is barbaric."

My stomach turns. Then what the hell did I eat.

The elf shakes its head, and continues. "Elves are predators, carnivores, we only eat meat. But unlike you barbaric humans who kill innocent animals, we only eat sapient creatures that are able to consent to being eaten. Like humans. Or elves."

I feel the chunks of meat I just ate coming back up from my stomach and start vomiting. My skirt gets covered with little chunks of meat and stomach acid, and I keep retching, trying to rid my stomach of every single piece.

The elf snickers again, picks up the shank it was eating earlier, and tears off another piece. After chewing on it and swallowing, it smirks at me. I turn my head away, avoiding its gaze, and trying to ignore the existence of the meat skewers, still cooking above the fire.

"You don't have to talk to me, human spawn. If you even can talk."

I look back up at the elf, and I realise what the elf is holding. It isn't a large shank, it is a human leg. And the piece of leather at the end is a shoe, the same shoe Mom was wearing earlier.

I struggle again trying to get free, with all the force I can muster. I can hear my heart pounding in my head, and my vision gets blurry.

After a minute or so of fighting against restraints that won't bunch an inch, I calm down. My body feels numb, and I feel weak and tired. My Mom stayed back to protect me. To give me a chance to escape. And I got caught anyway. She died for nothing. And so did my Dad. He should have just, handed me to the elf. Then he and Mom would still be alive.

The elf keeps nibbling on the leg while staring at me, but I don't care. I just am quietly sobbing. Tears run over my face. I want to kick and scream at the elf, how horrible of a creature it is, but I can't muster the energy.

The elf picks up another skewer and tries to get me to take a bite, but I turn my face away. The smell disgusts me, and I retch.

"You must eat, human spawn. You need to strengthen."

I look at the elf and ask it the main thing that is on my mind.

"Are you going to eat me too?"

The elf puts the skewer back down and smirks. "You are way too valuable alive. I have other plans with you. You humans have stolen something from us elves. And I am planning to trade you to get it back."

The elf shakes his head. "If you are not going to eat, then let's just get this over with."

It grabs the wooden collar around my neck and pulls. To my surprise, it moves without resistance, and I am suddenly pulled forward. I can feel the vines fulling on my feet as they are still stuck, and I end up sitting on my knees, with my feet pressed against the plank connected to my back. I scream in pain.

The elf violently shakes the plank and I feel the vines around my ankle coming loose. My stomach turns again and the board smacks against my back and neck, squishing my arms still tied between them.

"Okay, pull your knees to your chest."

I don't move an inch. The elf sighs and flips the board, so I end up lying on my back. It drops it on the ground with force, sending a shock wave through my already battered back.

It forcefully grabs my legs and pushes them to my chest, almost folding me in three. Despite my protests, it starts tying them together. It then ties them to my body, securing me fully in this uncomfortable position.

Then, the elf reveals a large blanket, made from woven vines, covered in flowers. It throws it over me, covering my full body and head. It leaves plenty of holes to see through and breath but makes me claustrophobic anyway.

I then feel the elf lifting me, and it starts to move. It travels through the forest with big jumps, and I feel the restraints shifting, as my body shakes and bounces against the board. I figure I am tied to the elf's back, as I seem to be moving backwards. The forest gets thinner and thinner until it makes place for grasslands. Then we climb a giant cliff, and it gets colder and colder. I shiver in the cold wind, and my breath starts to condense on the vines.

After a while, the elf stops and crawls inside of a building. From my vantage point, I can see overgrown stone chairs and tables, overgrown stone walls, and large windows with a breathtaking view. The elf forcefully puts me down on one of the tables, sitting upright, and then speaks.

"Human, so you have come. I am surprised."

I am confused. Is it talking to me? Then another voice answers, and I realise it is speaking to someone else.

"You thought I wouldn't show up?" the voice says.

"Humans cannot be trusted,"

"If you don't trust me, why did you even show up?"

I hear the loud slamming of metal on stone. "Enough chitchat human, have you brought the artefact?"

"I have."

"Then let's talk business."