Verange

Chapter 2

Elis paced the floor in front of her council. “Elis, listen to reason, you just returned after 3 months of absence. We were worried that you wouldn’t be back this time.” The man to her right, Leyer, spoke to her quietly and she sighed. “I’ve told you. I’m fine. Just a little bruised.” She lied, attempting to appease them. In honesty, she had been beaten and whipped numerous times and felt as though she were about to collapse as well as punched soundly on her jaw. She sank down into her chair and stifled a groan as her back pressed against the back of the chair. All across it were scabs and tears in her skin from the whip. Usually she would be able to heal them herself with a bit of magic but it was hard after so long of being drugged. She was one of the few people who had the ability in the Verange and she didn’t trust anyone else to heal her properly. She closed her eyes and rested her head against her palms and a flashback clouded her mind.

30. 31. 32. Elis counted silently as the whip lashed against her skin. Her own warm blood dripped down her back and pooled beneath her. She had been whipped everyday for the past 68 days and her back was little more than one large scab with a few pieces of skin holding it all together, and the scab was being torn and the cuts were being deepened. She was bound with chains against the wall, her hands above her head and her ankles shoulder width apart. The man whipping her got to 50 and stopped as he had previously been told to. It was getting harder and harder to keep her pain to herself. The door to her cell opened and another man walked in. “Elis. Still not willing to talk? Give her 10 more.” The guard started to protest, the limit of whippings was 55, but Conrad shouted 60 with a roar and the guard sent the whip across her skin again. Elis went slack against her restraints for a moment before her body tensed with pain. Her hands fisted and her legs quivered. When 60 was reached she barely could keep in touch with reality. She was barely aware of a man turning her face towards him and pushing her thick hair behind her ear, revealing their pointed tips. “If you tell us where the elves are, you can leave. This torture can stop.” The man tilted her head up and looked her over scrutinizingly. A glare crossed her face. “I’ll never betray my people like that. You can kill me if you want. But their hiding place will remain secret.”

 The man took the whip from the guard and tossed it lightly in the air and catching it again in his one remaining hand. “What of the Verange? You can’t hold near as much loyalty to them as you do to your own race.”

Elis sighed softly and shook her head slowly. “You can’t understand what it is that drives me. I will not reveal their position either. Beat me all you wish. Sick your dogs on me and send your men to do as they please with me. Not even with my dying breath will I betray those I love.” A muffled scream escaped her as he sent the whip down across her hip, drawing more blood. She let out a dry laugh. “You’ve already given me 60. One more will not faze me.” Anger crossed his features and his fist collided soundly with her jaw. She frowned when the taste of blood filled her mouth. She spit downwards on the floor and wasn’t entirely surprised when it was red.

He reached down into a bed of coals and withdrew a hot iron. She turned her head away and bit her lip lightly. She hated this part. The tip of the hot iron was close enough she could feel the heat radiating off of it. “Just tell me Elis. Even you can’t stand against me. They have little hope to withstand my might.” She turned and glared at him. His face was pale and his brown eyes looked almost black, a look she found fitting. She spit at him and let a slight amount of satisfaction settle within her when he had to wipe blood from his face. He set the iron back in the coals and sent his fist into her stomach. The air escaped her lungs and she struggled for a moment before she could breathe properly. “Now now. We don’t want that do we?”

A low groan slipped out of her lips and he smiled at her. “So you can feel pain. For a moment I wasn’t sure you elves were even capable of that. All your kind does is stare at the stars and wonder how they can right the world. But none of them ever take any action. Not like you do.” He seemed to compliment her but she refused to accept it. The probability that he meant anything he said here was very slim. Her people may not be as active in the world as they once were but they would spring into action should he threaten their home.