Held Hostage

It feels like the three of you had been running for so long that you’re surprised the sun hadn’t risen by the time you reach civilization; a small city with crude walls surrounding it off the road, with the gates shut. The faint glow of a lantern behind indicating someone behind, you all make a last sprint to get there, and bang to get their attention.

“Hello?!” You shout “Hello?!”

“Who’s there!” You hear after a brief stammer, from a gruff voice “What are you all doing out there!?”

“Please sir, we’re travelers, looking for a safe place to stay and recuperate. We were resting in the woods and were woken up the **** cry of a werewolf. There’s more out there.”

“All the more reason to keep the gate shut. We’ve had our own die by those beasts recently. They’ve been seen patrolling this place. Preparing for something. We’ll not risk our necks to help the likes of a bunch of strangers. If you got this far you can get to the next town.”

“Please sir” The Colonel spoke up “We’ve been travelling for days now, without a single solid nights rest. If you’re looking for help, we will gladly help you fight back against them, we just need an opportunity to recuperate from our exhaustion. As Paladins of the Sacred Flame, you have my word.”

There was an uncomfortable pause, making you wonder if you would really have to keep going, and what kind of distance that would mean. Before the rough guard spoke, the gate opened, just enough for the three of you to walk in. The guard waited for you, holding his lantern. The man looked gaunt, pale, and scrawny, like hadn’t had a good meal in days, or maybe weeks. Worse, there was something about his eyes that bothered you, an unflinching and intense gaze.

“These are dangerous times” he spoke once the gate was closed “and it is difficult to be too careful. As adventurers, you understand that with such threats, hard decisions have to be made sometimes.” The man had strange manners if this was his attempt at an apology, you think to yourself. “Follow me, there’s only one inn here for accommodations, but it should have the room you need.” You do as instructed, and see that despite the hour, there’s a lot of people awake and working. It must be later than you first thought, you deduce, or these men just have longer and harder days than people in the city.

That throws you as being a little odd as well. There’s no women out in the streets, or any sound of them or children. You wonder how that could be, but as you approach the inn, dismiss it out of mind. It was a spartan space, free of any other guests, and most of the niceties one would expect in a highly trafficked area. You remind yourself you don’t intend to stay long; as long as there’s a decent bed for you to sleep in, you’ll be content. Your guide turns back as soon as you walk through the door, leaving the three of you alone with another man seemingly starved of daylight and basic personality.

“Yes?” He asked in a dull monotone as the three of you approached him.

Dilancia spoke up first “We would like a large room for the three of us.”

He slowly shook his head “No. One person per room, those are the rules.”

You could feel a sense of exhausted fury rise up as you have to negotiate for something so basic, and you’re sure the others are feeling it too. Dilancia at least has a bit more tact.

“Please sir. We’re just here for one night. You won’t even know we’re here.”

“Not my rule. You don’t like it, talk with the Queen.” He said as he reached down and pulled out separate keys.

“Three rooms for three guests. Take it or leave it.”

The Colonel quickly pulled out a hefty coin and took the keys “Don’t worry about the change. We’ll find ourselves to our rooms…” The tavern keeper merely shrugged as you walked off. Out of his sight, the keys were distributed out.

“Something is incredibly off here.” Xandria stated quietly

“Evil” Dilancia responded grimly, “I can feel it, like a dense fog over the land.”

You feel a little disappointed “How do you do that?”

“It’s some of the divine magic we learn as adherents of Mastro, the better to carry out his judgement. It’s how I knew you weren’t dangerous or a threat when we first met.” You smile faintly, buoyed knowing that she always had good feelings about you, although perhaps not romantic ones.

“So, what now? The half-elf asks.

“We rest, as planned. At least, what rest we can get. Enough to keep our feet under us long enough to get to the next town or village.”

“Sounds good on paper.” Xandria says quickly as he heads to his bed, leaving you alone momentarily with Dilancia.

“Shouldn’t we do something, about the evil here? That’s, the job, isn’t it?”

“We wouldn’t know where to start, and it could be too large for us to handle. Whatever we get involved in, we must see it through to the end, no matter what.” You feel sullen, hearing that you know there’s a problem but are going to ignore it. Dilancia seems to pick up on it, brushing your cheek.

“We finish what we set out to do, and uncovering this problem will be our next mission together. I promise.” She steps in close for a light pecking kiss.

“Sleep tight Demi.”

“You too” you respond instinctively. The rented room is small, and like the rest of this town, seemingly devoid of any joy or luxury. The bed is purely functional, which is all you need. At least the small amount of natural light present in the room will work to your benefit as you try to sleep through the day. Each article of armor that you remove brings a small wave of relaxation through your body, until you’re completely undressed. You collapse onto the meager bed, falling asleep easily.

Too easily, in fact…

You are woken up suddenly and violently. Strange men surround you as tear your underwear from your body and restrain you. You try desperately to stop them from binding your legs together and your arms behind your back, but there’s too many of them, and they have the benefit of surprise on their side. You scream for help, but help doesn’t come.

“This is it” You think with fearful resignation “these men are going to **** me! They’re going to have their way with me!” You try with a renewed fervor to try and break free, anyway that you can, but to no avail. Your greatest fear doesn’t come true, at least not yet. Rather than dominating you sexually, they pull you out, kicking and screaming. Your next greatest fear comes true, as you see Dilancia, strong and capable as you’ve ever seen someone, likewise stripped naked, bound, and hauled away.

With cloths shoved into both of your mouths to silence you, you’re both tossed haphazardly into the back of a large wagon, which immediately begins moving off to somewhere. Your mind races wondering why this happening, and what possible nightmare could be awaiting you at your destination.