Commander Braghaman Larethian

Eleven

(warning: nothing graphic, but there is some torture.)

He woke to his head pounding. The stale taste of what passed for liquor in this Light forsaken place was still on his breath. He let out a groan with the realization that he had probably drank too much the night before.

“Or maybe not enough,” he thought to himself. With a grunt, he rolled over to reach for the bottle that was on the table beside his bunk. At least, that was his intention. Slowly, it dawned on him that he had not moved so much. He tried again to pull his arm around to reach for the bottle, but it would not budge. Slowly, the guard opened his eyes and looked to his side. It took a moment to focus, a moment more to recognize the rope that was knotted around his wrist. He twisted his head and looked to the other side, only to find his other wrist immobilized as well.

“It is about time,” a voice said softly from the shadows in the corner of the room. “I had feared that you had drunk yourself to death.”

Erik slowly stepped from the corner and into the pale light of the small window to this room. His hands rested on the hilts of the knives that hung from his belt. His eyes bored into the prone guard on the bed.

“Who’re you?” the guard slurred.

“No one of consequence. A seeker. I am seeking something and you are going to tell me where to find it.”

“I ain’t gon’ tell you nothin’,” the guard spat out with a growl.

Erik tilted his head and stared at the man for a moment. Then he drew one of his knives and held it up so that the blade caught the pale light.

“You are incorrect. You will tell me everything I need to know. The quicker you do, the quicker the medics will be able to start healing you.”

“I don’t need no medics,” the guard replied, pulling on the rope that tied his wrists together underneath the bed.

Erik moved forward faster than the guard had anticipated. The rogue’s hand closed over the guard’s mouth, muffling his sound. The guard then felt the tip of Erik’s knife poking at his side.

“You will,” Erik said as he drug the tip down the guard’s side, drawing a thin line of blood and eliciting a grunt of pain. Erik moved his blade away and leaned back from the guard who was breathing a little heavier now. “A woman. Priestess. Blonde. She was supposed to be sent to the Maw, but I cannot find any trace of where she was sent from or to. But everyone here that I’ve talked to seems to think you know where she went. Why is that?”

“No idea who you’re talking ‘bout!”

“Name is Larethian. Blue eyes. Here against her will,” Erik added with a frown. He turned slightly and then shoved his blade under the waistband of the guard’s pants. 

“Hey now!” the guard yelled as he squirmed, only now realizing that his legs were tied as well.

Erik pulled up on the knife and started to cut the pants down one of the legs. With one side of the pants cut open, he then reached over and repeated the process to the other leg. With both sides split, he then grabbed at the waistband and pulled the cloth away.

“I’m going to start with your toes. Every time you fail to tell me what I want to know, I’ll cut one off. That means you only have eleven chances to get his right.”

“Eleven? You daft? I only got ten toes.”

“I know,” Erik answered, giving the guard a dark look. He placed his blade next to the guard’s little toe on his right foot. “Shall we begin? Where is she!”

“I don’t know,” the guard started to panic. “I was gonna send her, but then when I went back she was gone!”

“Gone? Where? How?”

“I don’t know,” the guard pleaded. The whole lot of them.”

“Who?” Erik demanded, slicing his blade slowly along the joint of the toe.

“I don’t know! Bunch of women! Humans, elves, Draenei. All of ‘em! Just vanished before…” 

“Before what?”

“Before I could….  you know… Get her outta there,” the guard added hastily.

“Was she injured?” Erik asked, his voice deathly quiet.

“No more than the rest,” the guard offered tentatively.

“I see.”

“You gonna let me go now, right? I told ya’ what I know.”

“I promised that the quicker you answered, the sooner the medics could tend to you.”

“But I don’t need no medics, right?”

———

“I tell you, I heard someone crying out from his room.”

“You don’t think he’s at it again, do you?” 

The two priests looked at each other and frowned.

“I hope not. Something really needs to be done about him,” the first priest added conspiratorially.

“Not our decision. Let’s just make sure everyone is all right.”

The two priest’s stepped up to the door and knocked.

“Sir, we heard screaming. Is everything okay?”

The priest opened the door and looked inside. The groaning sound drew his attention to the bed. The sight caused the seasoned priest to pale.

“By the Light. Quick! Get some bandages!”

Further down the hallway, Erik pulled his hood down further over his head and began walking away, keeping to the shadows.