You're Never Alone

Chapter 14

Word Count: 1023

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Phil waits hours for Dan to wake up but it takes a while. A soldier with green hair and some foreign accent brings him food. It's the same guy who put Dan in his cell with kind blue eyes.

"Hey," he says quietly and Phil looks up at him in surprise. "Dan will be okay, alright?" Phil nods and the soldier walks away.

There's a small barred window in Phil's cell and he looks up at it every now and then. Even though it's cold outside, it's not cold in the dungeon because of the bulletproof glass on the other side of the window. By the time Dan wakes up, it's the middle of the night. Phil looks over as he leans against the wall, quietly watching as the prince arises slowly. Dan opens his eyes and his head is pounding. At first his vision is foggy but he blinks it away as the dungeon comes into view and he tries to sit up but pain shoots up his spine.

"Take it easy," Phil mumbles to Dan and the prince looks over to him with a small smile.

"I've been through worse." Dan stubbornly sits up and rubs his temple. "How long was I out?"

Phil sighs. "Well based on the sun, I'd estimate roughly 15 hours." Dan nods and Phil hands him a small cup of water through the bars. "Drink this." Dan sips some before giving it back. Dan puts on the tshirt left on the floor with a lot of struggling before sitting back down. The two sit in silence for a few moments before Phil speaks up. "How the hell are we going to get out of here alive?"

Dan shrugs. His father is unpredictable so anything he does is a surprise to everyone. "Honestly, I have no fucking clue. I'm sure the rebels will think of something."

A couple days later when Dan is feeling mostly just sore, the king comes back. Phil inwardly groans, wondering what he'll do this time. The soldiers unlock their cells and make them stand in front of a new table in the middle of the room. Phil noticed the cuffs on Dan's wrists after he was tortured but he chose not to mention it. The table holds six wine glasses that contain clear liquids.

Dan remembers this game as a kid and a teenager. It's a firebender game that he's played with his friends all his life.

"What the hell?" Phil mutters and the king smiles.

"Dan, why don't you explain?" the king prompts and Dan rolls his eyes before speaking.

"It's a firebender game. There are six glasses with each one full of some type of poison. Depending on how old you are, the poison strength depends," Dan explains and Phil nods, listening carefully. "The poisons can do anything from putting you in a coma that lasts for a few days to making you incredibly ill to even creating hallucinations. You choose one cup and take a sip but of course there's a catch. One of the cups contains water so you have ⅙ of a chance of being safe."

"Choose wisely," the king warns and Phil is shoved forward, forced to go first.

He looks at each cup carefully and picks the one second from the right. He takes a deep breath before putting the glass up to his mouth and taking a small sip. He hands the glass to a soldier next to the table and walks back to his spot next to Dan. Dan looks at him worriedly before going up to the table for his turn. Phil starts to feel woozy behind him but Dan doesn't look back to notice his small sway.

Dan picks the cup third form the left and grabs it right as Phil collapses on the ground. Dan quickly looks back at him and immediately knows that Phil will be out for god knows how long. He turns back to the glass in his hands as a soldier gently puts Phil back in his cell. He swallows nervously before taking a sip slightly bigger than Phil's, knowing he'll regret it later. He reaches out to hand the glass to the guard but it drops from his fingertips onto the floor, shattering.

The king looks up in surprise but Dan leans over and heaves. What a bad idea to take a drink instead of a sip. Dan knows he's going to be puking for a while so he waves off the soldiers and unsteadily walks back into his cell with a soldier closing it behind him. He immediately collapses to his knees as his stomach heaves again. Thank god someone put a bucket in here.

That's how the two stay for the next couple of days; Dan heaving up everything he eats and drinks while Phil soundly sleeps in the cell next to him. Anytime he looks up the world spins and tilts making him more nauseous. Someone always comes in the morning and at night to clear out the bucket which Dan is thankful for.

Finally when Dan is too weak to even stand, Phil wakes up. He slowly sits up and yawns before looking over at Dan and gasping. Dan lays on the floor in his cell curled up in a ball and pale as pale can be. Phil is awake in an instant and he gently shakes Dan awake through the bars between them.

"Dan," he whispers and Dan's eyes weakly open, looking at Phil. A small smile forms on his lips as he looks into Phil's wide, ocean eyes.

"You're awake," Dan says hoarsely and Phil nods. "How're you feeling?"

Phil chuckles slightly. "I think I should be the one asking you that. What happened?"

"Well," Dan whispers shifting slightly so he can look at Phil easier. "After you passed out, I took a drink from my glass which turned out to be the poison that makes me puke so I'm doing great."

Just then, soldiers walk in and grab Dan from his cell, pulling him away from Phil and the two don't see each other for a while.