Jasmine was scared. No, scared didn't seem like the right word. Jasmine was terrified.
Nausea worked its way up from the pit of her stomach as her eyes scanned her surroundings. Her breathing quickened and her bound hands started to tremble as she started to realize that there was no escape.
Gravel that seemed as sharp as knives sliced into her body as she was dragged from the Inn, leaving a thin trail of blood. Rough hands gripped her legs so tight that Jasmine was sure they would leave bruises.
Gravel turned into grass as Jasmine's kidnappers dragged her into the forest. Jasmine's eyes filled with tears as the Inn became a mere speck in the distance.
Roots, sticks, and other things scraped against her body as she was dragged further into the dark forest. Jasmine kept quiet, she knew that if she cried out something a lot worse would happen.
Her kidnapper was talking loudly in front of her. She could tell by his uniform that he was a Grey Guard, and she wondered if he knew who he had caught.
Jasmine strained her ears, trying to hear what the Guard was saying, but all she could hear was blood roaring through her ears. Bile rose to her throat, never before had she been this scared.
Jasmine tried to even out her breathing. 'One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three.' Jasmine closed her eyes in concentration. 'Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. Come on Jasmine, you're better than this.'
Jasmine grinned as she began to take back control of her body. Her hands stilled, and her breathing evened out. Once again she listened for the conversation between the Grey Guard and someone else.
"This is the last one boss. Yes, I'm sure this girl is the champion. I watched the battle with my own eyes. Quite a comeback, she'll do good in the Arena." Jasmine's eyes narrowed in confusion, what Arena could they possibly be talking about?
"Yeah, the other finalists that traveled with her are already in the cart. Her bird and that creepy creature managed to escape, but I don't think they're going to be much of a threat. After we load the girl into the cart, we'll be golden." Relief invaded her system. Kree and Fili escaped! They were sure to get help!
'Focus Jasmine. You don't have time for this. You must keep listening.'
The Guard that held her legs stopped. Her feet and legs crashed to the forest floor, and Jasmine winced. She opened her eyes a crack and saw that she was in the middle of a clearing.
A horse drawn cart was parked at the edge of the clearing, and another Guard was standing next to it, loading what looked suspiciously like a body bag into the back.
Jasmine bit back a scream when she saw Lief laying next to the wagon. He wasn't moving, but Jasmine could see his chest slowly moving up and down. Lief's arms were banged up, but other than that, Jasmine couldn't see any other injuries.
"Here she is, boss. The champion of Rithmere. Alive, just as you requested." Jasmine's eyes snapped shut as the Grey Guard by the wagon walked towards her.
The Guard's footsteps grew louder the closer he came. Jasmine forced herself to keep her breaths even. The footsteps stopped, Jasmine could feel the cloth of his uniform brushing her face.
"Are you sure this is the girl? She looks pretty scrawny to me. Harmless, in fact. She is pretty though, maybe you and I could have some fun with her later, if you know what I mean." The men chuckled and Jasmine felt fear creep into her system.
If she didn't get out of here soon, these men would do horrible things to her.
"Let's tie up her legs and get her into a sack. It may be night, but we have no idea what's lurking in this forest. After we make it out of here, we can torture the girl and her friends." Jasmine gulped as the nausea rolling around in her stomach grew worse.
The two men's footsteps grew fainter as they walked away. Jasmine decided it was safe to open her eyes, so she slowly cracked them open. She almost cried out in despair as the Guards grabbed Lief and stuffed him into a moldy sack.
The Guard in charge rummaged through the back of the wagon. His eyebrows wrinkled in frustration. He turned to face his partner.
"Damn it! You only packed two sacks, you idiot. What are we supposed to do with the girl now? If she isn't covered, our operation is done for!" The enraged Guard advanced on his companion.
The offending Guard gulped and cowered away from his boss. He stuttered for a few seconds, desperately trying to come up with a solution to the problem.
"Um, we could... PUT THE GIRL IN WITH THE BOY! They're both scrawny, I'm sure that if we tie them together they could fit into the sack." The rambling Guard squeaked when his boss grabbed his shoulders and slammed him against a tree. "I'm sorry boss, really I am! It's this place! It's throwing me for a loop!" The Guard shook in absolute terror.
His boss stared into his eyes, and after seeing only fear and truthfulness, he dropped his arms from his thug's shoulders. The thug's shoulders drooped and he sighed in relief. Then, an evil glint shone in the boss's eyes. He pulled back his arm and landed a quick punch into the thug's gut. The thug doubled over in pain.
His boss sighed. "Yeah, I know what you mean. The sooner we get out of here and into the Shadowlands the better. This place is way to sunny for me." This time, Jasmine couldn't stifle the gasp that escaped her lips.
The boss turned around to study Jasmine. She went completely still, to any passerby Jasmine would look dead. The Grey Guard in charge glanced over at his thug, who was still doubled over in pain, and grinned.
Jasmine could hear his heavy footsteps, slow and deliberate, stalking towards her motionless body. They stopped, and Jasmine could hear the smirk on his face.
Suddenly, something extremely hard connected with her stomach. Jasmine's eyes flew open as pain exploded in her stomach like fireworks. She cried out in pain. The Guard smirked as he pulled his metal book from her stomach.
"Well, well, well, looks like Little Miss Champion is awake after all. I wouldn't expect anything less from anyone like you. Great fight, by the way." The Guard kicked one of Jasmine's bound arms.
"What the hell are you going to do to us you sick Bastard," Jasmine winced as her head connected with the Guard's boot.
"Shut your trap, girl. I'm the one asking questions here. What's your name?"
"None of your business you mutated piece of metal."
"Well, if you're going to be like that, I can always screw you right here," the Guard bent down and cupped one of Jasmine's breasts. She whimpered.
"J-Jasmine," she sighed in relief when the Guard removed his cold hand from her body.
"Well Miss Jasmine, I'll let you in on a secret. My buddy and I are taking you and your friends to the Shadowlands, where you'll fight to the death in the Arena. My boss said he wanted you alive, but he never said in what condition. If you're a good girl, I'll wait until after we get out of this forest to screw you. If you're bad, I'll have to punish you. Do you understand?" Jasmine nodded in mute fear as a lone tear trickled down her face.
The Guard laughed and wiped it from her cheek. Jasmine shivered under his touch.
"Don't worry, I'll be gentle. My friend over there, not so much. You see, we haven't had a good fuck in a long time, so you're a long awaited change. I'll see you soon, my love. Jerry, you know what to do." The Guard nodded at his thug and backed away from Jasmine.
Searing pain shot through Jasmine's back. She shrieked as her head whipped around to locate the source of the pain. The thug, Jerry, was holding a scalding rod of iron to her left shoulder. Jasmine shrieked in agony as blinding pain invaded her system. Her body started to spasm.
The last thing Jasmine heard was the evil laughter of the Grey Guards as they carried her towards the wagon, still forcing the iron onto her flesh.