Deathbringer

The setting sun of his fifth day upon being abducted shone with a gloomy bronze light upon a large tattered map sitting open on his desk.

Boreal had burst into his room fifteen minutes earlier, brandashing the map with haughty triumph and had presented it with a satisfied smirk as though to say "so there, never again shall you doubt the mighty powers of the IceWings."

Deathbringer had congratulated him earnestly and had unrolled it and propped it open with a few books.

"Well?" Boreal asked after a while. 

"It takes more than fifteen minutes to formulate a plan you know," Deathbringer informed him coldly.  "Especially a working one. Are you sure that this map is up to date?"

"Yes." Boreal said.

Deathbringers eyes trailed down the paper.

"First we need to make sure we know everything we want to accomplish. You're sure this person you want back is being kept in the dungeon?"

"Positive."

"Okay."

Deathbringer sighed and brushed his hair out of his face.

"Well it looks like if we want to avoid any guards we're left with only one other entrance to the dungeon, which unfortunately can only be accessed through this room here, which looks like it belongs to Ginger, so that's fabulous. The only way to get into Gingers room without causing suspicion would be to climb outside of your window, and walk along this ledge here until we reach this window, which we'll need to reach and then go up one more until we reach his window. Even if we don't die doing that, we're doomed if he's in his room at the time. Our only option would be to kill him. Hmmm, actually that might be a good aim."

Boreal's white skin had gone three shades paler the moment Deathbringer mentioned the window. 

"That's just brilliant." He muttered.

"You're scared or heights?" Deathbringer asked, amused.

"No." Boreal hissed. "They just make me feel sick and weak, that's all."

"That pretty much sums up a fear of heights."

"Shut your mouth!"

Deathbringer raised his hands. "Okay, okay. Anyway, say we do manage to get inside Gingers room, and either kill him and dispose of the body or never run into him in the first place, we'd go through this tiny trap door which would probably? Lead us to the dungeon. Then we'd find your imprisoned someone, get them out, which would  involve getting the keys before hand, then we'd go through. . . uh," Deathbringer broke off with a grimace.

"Through the what?" Boreal asked.

"Mmmm, the sewer. That should be pleasant. A small, tight, dark tunnel that will no doubt smell like hell-don't tell me you have a fear of small dark spaces too?"

The look on the IceWings face spoke for him.

"What sort of IceWing are you?" Deathbringer asked, genuinely taken aback.

"The Ice Kingdom is large and open and free. Can you really look me in the eyes and tell me that you have no fears?"

"I have fears," Deathbringer answered truthfully. 

"Whatever. How do you suggest we get the keys?"

Deathbringer's face fell back into a thoughtful frown.

"I guess that is what we'll have to figure out next-" he was broken off by the sound of shouting in the hallway.

Deathbringer and Boreal both looked at each other, then quickly rolled up the map and shoved it under Deathbringers bed before hurrying out of the room to see what the commotion was.

Aphrodite was pinned against the wall, a long leash of leather attached to a collar around her throat.

The man holding her in place had smooth red hair. He was unmistakable.

Cerise, the SkyWing Lord.

"Little wench," Cerise growled. Deathbringer noted that the side of his face looked red and painful, as though it had come into contact with a sharp stinging blow.

"I told you. I'm SICK of you! I won't let you do anything else to me!" She hissed.

"What else are you good for eh?"

Cerise's eyes were wide and bloodshot. Deathbringer could tell even at a distance that the man was inebriated.

He could also tell that a woman was clearly being assaulted.

"Get your hands off of me!"

"You little-"

"Hey!" Deathbringer called. Cerise turned his head.

"You." He sneered.

"She clearly does not welcome your advances, I think it would be best to let her now, don't you friend?" he suggested as politely as possible.

Cerise glared at him.

"Keep out of my business. What gives you the right to call me your friend?"

"My bad, I mistook you for a man. Never mind Jackass, I don't care what sort of crazy rules we have here, leave that woman alone."

Cerise scowled, and pulled the leash a little tighter, causing Aphrodite to let out a strangled yelp.

"As long as a woman wanders around unbought, I can use her however I like, whether she wants it or not. Get out of here."

Deathbringers mind whirled with indecision.

"Fine then, I'll buy her. "

Shock.

Shock was mirrored on all their faces, but none as shocked as hers.

"Right then," the SkyWing said, handing him the leash to which she was attached. "Take your pet, do as you will with her. Bed her, kill her for all I care. Slit her dirty throat. I don't give a damn about another mans property,"

He stalked off.

Boreal and Aphrodite stared at Deathbringer with wide eyes.

"You-you just bought her?" Boreal asked, aghast.

"What else could I have done?" Deathbringer snapped. He unbuckled the leash from around Aphrodite's neck and let it drop on the ground.

"There you go," he said shortly, and turned to go back to his room.

The sound of two pairs of footsteps behind him caused him to stop and turn around.

"What to you think you're doing?" he snapped, seeing not only Boreal standing behind him, but Aphrodite as well. She bowed her head.

"I am now your property my Lord. I shall go where you go."

"You're not my property." Deathbringer told her sternly. "Go do whatever you were doing before Cerise decided to grab you."

"But I can be useful." Aphrodite protested.

"You think so?"

"I know so."

"Really," he turned away from her dismissively.

"I know that Ginger remains in his room until early afternoon suffering from the side effects of consuming poison. Then he leaves and doesn't return until midnight after all of his meeting are finished."

Deathbringers eyes narrowed. He turned back to face her.

"What else do you know?" he asked.

"I know that you two are conspiring to get away from here."

"I see. Do you know anything else?"

She lifted her chin and tossed her hair over her shoulders. 

"I know that I'll tell you more if you take me to bed with you."

Boreal let out a gasp, then a half snort, half sound of disgust.

Deathbringer grimaced. 

"No thank you." He turned away again.

"I know that if you take me to bed with you, I'll get you the keys to the dungeon." 

Deathbringer froze.

Once again he turned slowly around so that they were face to face.

"Chose something else." He told her. "Anything else, and we have a deal."

Aphrodite looked hurt. "Is sleeping with me really such a horrible thought?"

"Yes. Don't take it personally."

She thought for a moment.

"Fine then." She said. "I'll get you the keys to the dungeon cells if you promise that you take me with you, wherever you go. You can see what it's like for women here. I don't want to die in this place. Surely wherever you plan on going is better?"

What do I say? He wondered.

Say yes.

But, it doesn't feel right.

If you don't do this you don't get the keys, if you don't get the keys, you don't get to rescue Boreal's special person.

Say yes.

Say yes.

"Okay then." Deathbringer let out a breath. "You get us the keys to the dungeon cells, without causing any suspicion,  and I promise to take you with me if we get out of here. Though the chances of us succeeding are about forty to one. Are you willing to take those odds?"

"Yes." She said firmly. "I'll take any odds."

"Alright then."

The three of them walked back to Deathbringers room. 

Deathbringer caught Aphrodite's arm before she turned to leave.

"If I see any sign that you are planning to betray us, " he told her quietly. "I will slit your throat without a moments thought. Keep that in mind."

She nodded, and he let her go.

After she was out of sight, Boreal frowned at him.

"Are we seriously going to put our trust in that woman?"

"Look, it's the best shot that we have. If you don't like it, you can always chicken out."

Boreal drew himself up proudly. "I'll never back out."

"Okay then. I'll see you tomorrow."

Once again, Deathbringer was alone in his room.

He lay on the bed  and stared out of the window into the darkening sky as rain began to fall.

He felt a heavy sense of unease begin to settle in the pit of his stomach.

In that moment, all he wanted was to be back in the Rain Kingdom, without strange books, and Lords. Without haughty IceWing friends and troublesome Sandwings, and the looming threat of the possibility of the future, and a world in which she no longer existed.

Ahhh, this chapter will be split in two since I'm really tired, I'll post the other half tomorrow :)

Sorry!