I would say sorry about leaving you all on a cliffhanger, but I can't help myself sometimes. A recent change in my medication has kept me from being able to write too much, but the next chapter should be out as scheduled. Remember to read, comment, send me a message, vote, shoot me a follow, and stay tuned for the next chapter :) Thank you all for your support!

XOXO Ally Layne

Do Not Go Gentle

Chapter 42: I've Been Demigod-Napped

It was a jolt coming from the carriage I was being carried in that ultimately woke me from my unconsciousness. Immediately, I was met with a massive headache that stemmed from the back of my head, the place I last remember being hit.

I was sure there was a massive knot there for good measure and didn't dare move my head from where it hung with my chin to my chest. I doubt I could lift my head even if I wanted to, purely from nausea the blow had caused me.

I've had concussions before so I was well aware that I was sporting a particularly nasty one right now.

This wasn't the first time I had ever been kidnapped, and unfortunately probably wouldn't be the last. I had a perchance to find trouble wherever I went, which was all too obvious to me now.

Dear gods, Glorfindel is going to freak out.

No, he's probably going to do worse than that, but for the sake of Imladris, I'll hope for the best.

I thought back to the last memory I had- when Elrohir had been hit with an arrow. Oh gods, I hope he's okay. Elladan had just had the same thing happen, and I was there for that, too. But this time, I didn't use my water powers to stop it, there was no time...

I had frozen, been too scared to rely on my instincts, and had probably gotten another friend killed because of it.

A tear slid from my eye, falling down my cheek and onto the cloak that still surrounded me.

I still had my cloak.

My hands were bound, but I still had my cloak. I looked down at my thighs and sighed when I noticed that the daggers had been taken. But I felt a familiar trace of my prized pen on my side and knew that there was hope.

Well, if these kidnappers happened to be monsters or orcs.

But from the voices that sounded from the front of this carriage... or rather, a transport for cargo, human cargo by the looks of those who surrounded me, the ones who had kidnapped me weren't orcs after all.

Humans.

These people were humans. I knew that the arrow lodged in Elrohir's chest didn't look like the one Elladan had gotten stabbed into him, nor the ones that fellow elves had in their quivers. These were humans.

Monsters, yeah, but they were human. Just monsters to the core. And unfortunately for me, that made them far more dangerous because of it. Humans are unpredictable. Humans have a mind of their own and sometimes can act on tact or no tact or maybe both.

Can't trust humans, that's for sure.

I'd rather face an army of orcs than be where I am now, but I gotta do what I can with the situation.

I let out a low hiss when I moved my neck to see who was in the back of this cargo carriage with me and was sickened by what I saw.

There were three young girls, who all had to be under the age of eight, two young boys around that same age, three teenage girls who didn't look to be too much younger than me, and two women that look to be a few years older than me.

I quickly noticed that I was the only one wearing shackles, which both annoyed the Hades out of me and gave me some hope.

I met some of their fearful eyes, and a few of them quickly tucked themselves away and out of my sight. Others were too tired to move, and I had to wonder just how long they've been here and been subjected to this.

My stomach boiled at the thought.

"You are awake," one of the women older than me rasped, peering into my eyes cautiously, wincing when she saw the signs of a concussion I knew I bore. "My name is Irene, I've been taken as well. You have been unconscious for a while."

The woman who spoke was beautiful or rather would have been beautiful if it wasn't for the gaunt face, dirt that covered her skin like a second coating, and the dirty lifeless hair that sat atop her shoulders. Her eyes were a deep cerulean blue and bloodshot. She hadn't gotten much sleep, and I couldn't blame her.

I groaned, wincing as the carriage hit another bump and sending a harsh jolt throughout my body. "How long?"

One of the boys spoke up, the young boy with light hair and dark eyes, startlingly looking like a younger human version of Aldarian. "Two days and one night," he said, his voice was hoarse from misuse. I wondered just how long he screamed for help until he had finally given up.

I let out another groan. "Fuck."

Luckily no one made a remark on my vulgarity, as I'm sure they all probably thought the same thing. And from the looks of the poor younger kids, I am sure they have heard and seen much worse since their capture.

"Why do ya wear a ranger cloak?" the other young boy asked, eying my green clothing with a childish curiosity. "You don' look like a ranger tah me."

I looked at the dark-haired boy with a shrug, doing my best to hide the wince that came with the slight movement. "Lord Elrond of Imladris gave me it."

"You know elves!" one of the little girls exclaimed, her eyes wide with glee. The princess curls, light in color underneath the ash and dust that gnarled them, reminded me of a better time. "You must be really special, miss."

I smiled at the young girl indulgently. "So I've been told."

"Are you a Lady or highborn woman?" a teenage girl asked, her eyes bright and wide with renewed vigor. They must've heard stories about the elves and know that sometimes things aren't always what they seem when it comes to them.

"A commoner, really," I told her. "But I'm a ward of Lord Elrond. We will be found, I am sure of it."

The other older woman, the one who hadn't spoken to me, sniffled and started to sob while she looked down at her beaten and bloodied hands, which looked like they had seen a meat pulverizer. I winced at the sight and hoped that there was water somewhere so I could try and take some pain away.

But I couldn't give myself away. Not yet.

If I dared try to escape, there's no way I would be able to save the others. I was going to have to wait and find a better time. Preferably when we weren't all packed in a moving carriage.

"We will never get out of here," she said, looking up into my eyes with her wild gaze. "We are going to be sold, and I can't do it. I can't live that life... I'll... I..." she broke down into sobs, heart-wrenching cries that rocked me to my core.

The younger children started to cry, begging not to be taken as slaves, they wanted their parents. I bit my lip. This wasn't going well.

"SHUDDUP BACK THERE!" a voice called out from the front of the carriage with a few cracking booms from their fist against the wood walls, each thunk of the fist rattling through my skull in excruciating pain. "YA GONNA GET US CAUGHT!"

The crying stopped immediately. I wondered why and had a feeling more had happened with them than I thought.

"If we introduce ourselves I think that'll be okay," I spoke, gaining everyone's attention once more with my words. "My name is Persephone Jackson, and I am 20 years old. What are your names?" I asked quietly, deciding that it was best to start somewhere. Also, it would help to take the younger ones' minds off the impending doom and all.

The young girl with princess curls was the first one to speak. "I am Tira," she spoke, her voice light and pure, like a tiny nymph incarnate. "I am five."

My heart clenched.

"Tira's my sister," another young girl said, sounding slightly more confident with spoken words. "My name is Aria and I'm seven," she introduced herself and placed a hand on the shoulder of the other smaller girl in the carriage. "This is Laila, she doesn't speak. She's my cousin and she's six."

I smiled at the young girls, though I'm sure it came out in more of a grimace.

"I am Timothy," the young boy who had told me how long I was knocked out, spoke. "This is Anthony. My friend."

"My mama watches us," Anthony added, his dark hair ruffling a little with his enthusiasm. "She's the bestest mama ever. She gives us treats and plays and reads to us but she makes us eat the green food. I don't like green food."

I nodded, snickering at the frustration of green food. "I've never cared for green food either."

"My mama says we gots to eat all the green food too so we can be big and strong," Tira said, looking at Anthony and I with wide, earnest eyes.

"She is right," I told the young girl, biting a curse on my breath when the carriage hit another bump. "And now with all that strength you guys have, you will be strong enough to get out of here."

"Really?" Aria asked.

I nodded, smiling. "Really."

The teenage girls introduced themselves as Kaira, Rose, and Nesta. They all had similar facial features and dark hair, making it difficult for me to remember which one was which. Luckily I figured I could blame it on the concussion.

Irene introduced herself as well, placing a kind smile on her face as she did so. I had a feeling it was for the younger ones, trying to make sure they didn't fully discover just how much danger we were in. The last thing we need is for them to start crying again.

"My name is Elfhilda," the woman with the bludgeoned hands croaked. I nodded, giving her what I hoped was a kind smile in return. "I was walking back to my home with a bucket of water for our dinner when I was taken."

"Do you have a family?" I asked, picking out the term "our" in her speech. She looked overall worse for wear, so I needed to try and keep her spirits up and get her to fight.

"Yes, I have a husband and a young son," she choked out, silver lining her eyes when remembering her son. "He is only just turned one, and has just started walking."

"That sounds precious," Irene murmured to the woman, placing an arm around her shoulders. "We will get you back to them, I promise you that."

Elfhilda sniffled into her hands. "Thank you."

"Will I get to go home to my mama too?" Tira asked, eyes wide and hopeful.

I ignored the painful ringing in my head when I nodded to the young girl, who looked like she could burst in glee. "Did ya hear that Ari? Miss Persephone says we gets to go home to mama!"

Aria quickly quieted her squealing younger sister down, shushing into her ear while eyeing the front of the cab worriedly. "You need to be quiet, Tir. Use your inside voice."

The young girl's eyes widened further and clasped a hand to her mouth before repeating with a loud whisper, "Miss Persephone says we gonna go home, Ari!"

I let out a little chuckle, but immediately stopped when I realized just how much my head didn't like it when I laughed.

"Are you alright?" Irene asked me worriedly, placing a hand on top of my arm. "Does your head bother you?"

I swallowed back the nausea that threatened to bubble in my gut. "I need a second I think."

My teeth were gritted together and I kept my eyes shut, trying to ignore the dizziness that threatened to pull me under.

"Persephone?"

"Why is she all tied up, anyway?"

"Is she gonna be okay?"

"Does she need someone to kiss her head to make it all better?"

Another low groan escaped my lips as I opened my eyes to see the others staring at me with worried faces. "I'mma be okay," I muttered, doing my best to ignore the slur of the words.

Irene, however, didn't seem to be fooled. "You just need to relax, Persephone, you have a terrible concussion. The last thing we need is for you to throw anything up."

The nausea flitted in my esophagus. "Mhm."

"Ewe! Is she gonna puke?"

"Anthony, shut up."

"You're mean to me, Timmy."

"Stop being mean to Persephone."

Another groan of discomfort fled from my lips. "Boys, stop arguin," I mumbled, before clenching my teeth together when the vomit started to force its way up my throat. I focused on my breaths, ignoring whatever they must've said back to me, determined to not throw up in this small carriage.

Surely that would follow with plenty of the others following suit, something I'd rather not experience.

I distantly heard Irene and Elfhilda move to coerce the boys into getting along, and continued to allow myself to hang against the restraints like a ragdoll. I really didn't feel well. But we really needed to figure out how to get out of here. And I wasn't going to use everyone vomiting on each other as an escape plan, so something else was going to have to happen.

"Next stop, d'ya know when?" I croaked, looking up and around the carriage to see if anyone had an answer.

"You were the last reason why we stopped, so I am not too sure," Irene revealed as she ran a hand through Anthony's hair. "Do you know why they restrained you and not us?"

I looked down at the horrendous chained restraints locked around my wrists and ankles. They were probably going to leave a mark. "I am a part of Lord Elrond's legions," I revealed, watching as their shock turned to awe and some even horror. "They shot down my patrolling partner before taking me."

"They must know that you have some fighting capabilities, then," Irene voiced, her eyebrows furrowing even further as she continued, "Your capture must not have been random."

I blinked, ignoring the stars that circled my vision. "You're right."

"The rest of us were taken based on convenience," one of the teenage girls- Nesta, I figured- said. "Why'd they take you then?"

I rubbed the ring on my finger as I lost myself in thought. It must've been someone who didn't like me, who wanted me gone. Unfortunately, that list was rather large, so it was going to be hard to figure out suspects.

"Believe it or not, some people just really don't like me," I mumbled as I started to study the chains to see if I could find any weak spots to work with. Riptide wouldn't work on the iron, but perhaps if I could figure out a way to use any water that could be spared, I could...

There's a keyhole, which makes things relatively easy. A large keyhole too, so it might be a quicker pick than something smaller.

"Do you know where they're taking us?" I then asked, watching carefully as a few of them seemed to stiffen at the words.

"We are headed south," Timothy answered, looking up at me with wide, wary eyes. "Past Rohan and Gondor and to the Otherlands. That must be where they want us to go."

"Otherlands?"

Irene interrupted, "He means the Southern tribes of the Dundanligs, who have been in wars with the people of Rohan for ages. They are a large part of the slave trade market, and human trafficking."

So this is what Elrond and Halbarad had been discussing. And, like always, it looks like I've just found myself right smack-dab in the middle of it. Yay me.

"I won't let that happen," I decided, looking at the others in the carriage with what I hoped was a strong sense of determination. "I am going to get you guys out of here. And I think I have a good plan to do it, too."