“Why can I still not eat?! You said it would stop sooner!”
“You needed more information on that map and our relationship, so it cost more. Simple as that.”
‘This thing is around solely to piss me off.’
“Do you have a name so I can yell at you properly?!”
“No name. Would you like to give me one?”
“Does giving you a name trigger anything like with the food?!”
“No.”
“Does this conversation cost anything?!”
“Also no.”
“Fine I’ll call you Adum, short for Adumbrate.”
“Agreed.”
“Adum.”
“Yes?”
“Shut the fuck up!!!”
Normally I don’t yell this often but it has been almost two day of absolutely stuffing myself sick with any food or water I can get my hands on without resolving the underlying hunger or thirst and I’m starting to lose my mind.
I’ve been traveling in the general direction of Shale mostly to satisfy my own curiosity about the whole thing and to see what Aith means about me changing things.
It has been really slow due to the fact I’m starving and dehydrated and reaching the end of my rope I collapse at the edge of a lake I’ve been walking around for the last little while. Stripping what I have on I simply roll myself in until I’m submerged.
‘Oh that’s the stuff right there. Nice cold water.’
Since I can’t get sick drinking anything on account of my current predicament I just suck in anything and everything I can fit in my mouth until the taste of murky water returns to my tongue.
“Finally! I’m done!”
“Creative.”
“Didn’t I tell you to shut up for a while?”
“Doesn’t mean I have to listen.”
“Well, you’re not wrong there.”
*Snap*
‘Shit.’
“Emby I’ve finally got the delirious foxes attention took him long enough to notice us.”
“You notice.”
“Whatever, you just have to be right.”
Slowly turning my head to the voices with my hands up I spot two wolves at the edge of the lake, the albino is massive and completely dwarfs the melanistic one standing right next to it.
“Hands up means nothing fox we know you only need to use your mouth.”
The melanistic one is the one mumbling half of their sentences turning its head down to the ground and to the side before looking back up to talk normally.
“Pretty.”
The albino one talking in stunted sentences like it can’t even be bothered to communicate.
‘Can’t out run a couple wolves.’
“No can’t.”
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
Seemingly reading my thoughts the albino – Emby? Responds to me and steps closer to the water before shifting its eyes up and behind me. Feeling a swell of water behind me I know I’m truly fucked.
“Surren-”
My voice is cut off from behind by a massive hand wrapping itself around my throat and stuffing a couple fingers in my mouth before I have a chance to get it out.
“Hmmm. We’ll be having none of that. Don’t worry, my hands are clean.”
‘That’s not fucking important right now!’
And finally the third voice, slow and deliberate like it is considering every word twice before speaking. Picking me up by the neck and turning towards my captors face, my struggling stops due to just how firm the hold that hand has on me. Seeing eye to eye an additional seven feet off the ground with a red skinned black eyed humanoid, I realize I am very fucked.
‘Ah fuck he’s a corrupted human.’
“Hmmm. Sayde, the muzzle if you will.”
“Why me? Yes sir, coming.”
Coming into view to the side of me isn’t the melanistic wolf but a wolf-therian woman with deep black hair, sad black eyes and deep gouging scars on her chin, neck and right arm. In her hands a metal plate with straps that will prevent me from using my mouth if applied. Shaking her hair to be in front of her face when we make eye contact she hands the muzzle to the man currently holding me high enough in the air to break something if I fell awkwardly.
‘How do I get out of here if I can’t talk!?’
“Nothing do.”
‘Forgot about you.’
“Here still. Pretty.”
“Hmm. What’s he thinking?”
“Obvious. Want escape.”
“Hmm. No need to escape little fox. This.” Waving the muzzle in front of my face. “So you don’t get trigger happy. I have experience with your kind and I don’t want repeats. You’re surrounded by us, so play nice. We just want to talk for now. Get dressed, I’m not fond of looking at other men’s junk.”
Forcing the muzzle onto my mouth ignoring my thrashing and biting, the giant sets me on the ground next to my stuff. Right as I’m about to go for the knife in my pack to cut off this muzzle, a woman with white hair and red eyes who looks exactly the same as the other one but without the scars steps between me and the bag.
“No no.” poking me in the forehead then tapping her own with a knowing smirk. “You dress. Pretty.”
‘Why are you calling me pretty?’
“Want eat.”
“Hmmm. I assume you’re curious, everyone is, she calls beings that she perceives as strong ‘pretty’ don’t mind it she won’t, right Emby?”
“Not commit.”
Shrugging her shoulders she grabs the bag and returns to her previous position while I get dressed. Leaving the bag she returns to my side and licks the side of my face while I try to escape her sudden grasp. She’s stronger than she looks.
‘Get the fuck off of me you lunatic!’
“Tasty Pretty. Talk open.”
“Hmmm. You didn’t have to do that and you know it Emby. You can talk to the rest of us now.”
Agitatedly tapping the side of his head, there is a look of disappointment on his face that could only be rivaled by a father as he stares down Emby.
“I don’t want to talk. I’ll be scouting around.”
‘Whats her problem?’
“Hmm. She’s not very social even on her best days, don’t mind it.”
‘Right, you guys can hear me.’
“Make talk easy. No lie.”
‘Can you get her away from me?’
“Hmm. I apologize, but no, she’s very willful.”
Rubbing a scar on his arm the giant gives me a shrug.
‘Pathetic.’ The giant loses the placid look on his face for the second time with that comment.
“Hmmmmm. You talk, but you must realize there is a cost benefit to everything. Your complete comfort isn’t actually worth all that much.”
‘Oh great. Another person talking about the cost of everything.’
“Hmm. Not as lost in the dark as you look. Emby if you please.”
Letting go of my arm and pulling a familiar notebook out of her satchel she hands it to me.
“Pretty make draw?”
The shiny innocent look she gets in her eyes when she asks that almost makes me forget that they’re holding me hostage and despite my best efforts to remember that fact, my heart still manages to skip a few beats.
‘You’re good at that.’
Cutting back to her original aloof look but with a smile that makes me feel distinctly unsafe-
“Pretty no dick-led fool.”
