The Troll That Got Away (12)

“... all kinds of exciting...”

Instinct took over. Ishwana dropped to the ground as outstretched arms reached for her. She was too quick, too nimble, and the body to whom the arms belonged went tumbling over her. There was no time to think; Only to react. She shifted her weight as her leg spun round about behind her to sweep another assailant to the jungle floor. More pairs of hands were reaching, grabbing, trying to lay their firm grip upon her slender form. Their strength and force became their weakness as she ducked beneath and turned their own attacks upon themselves. Pirates weren’t all that hard to throw off-balance; The hard part was ensuring they didn’t swagger back for another go.

In the seconds that followed their ambush, she clenched the medallion in the palm of her hand. A part of her suggested to leave the bauble, and run, in the hopes that they’d take it and leave. One glance at Boden told her that they’d never let that happen. Already he was making strides towards her, even as his men were beating themselves with their uncoordinated attacks. She was no mere girl; She was a troll, and a clever one at that. She swung herself about from the arm of a particularly tall pirate, whose hands were to slow to stop her from connecting her feet with his shipmate’s sternum. In the same movement she slammed her heel home between the legs of the same pirate, who fell with an impact that suggested he was out of the fight. She had only a second, and so she dove the medallion-hand into a pouch on her hip. Inside was her escape, her diversion.

Before she could remove her hand, though, she felt the heavy pressure as someone grabbed her wrist. No thought; Only reaction. She squirmed to give her attacker a false sense of superiority, as she applied her dexterous fingers to the hidden sheath along the inside of her opposing hand. The blade was cold. She pulled herself towards the pirate, and whipped her arm up in an arc across where his face would be. She maneuvered away easily as he howled in pain, his hands attempting to cover his bloodied face. The howl turned to rage as he slunk away from the encircling pirates. He clutched a pale red bandana to his face, which in turn was growing dark with his blood. He was screaming a number of obscenities in Common, but Ishwana didn’t have the luxury of time to imagine what they were.  The pirates were wary now, surrounding her like the ravenous sea-wolves they were.

This was her chance, before they decided to pounce again. Her hand shot up, a small metallic capsule held between her fingers. She would have thrown it right then if she hadn’t heard the scuffle by the fire pit. A sword was drawn, but not for her. She took a quick glance, and nearly froze.

There stood the pirate with the face she’d just added a new scar to. One of his men had removed a short sword, and it glinted in the fading embers of the fire. A tall figure lay kneeling beneath them, the blade beneath his neck. His tusks shone as he looked up at her. Bruised, beaten, and utterly pitiful. His eyes bespoke the sorrow he held within.

Zyjiin!

She hesitated, and all became black.

*** *** *** ***

Zyjiin was knocked to the ground again, the rough sand rubbing into the cuts and abrasions that were scattered about his body. A swift kick in the stomach forced him to curl into a ball. He saw them drop Ishwana next to him with barely a glance, the sand flying up from the impact. She was just coming to. Her hand reached for the back of her head, as if willing the throbbing pain to cease. It had been a heavy wooden cudgel that had brought her down. She’d seen him. She’d hesitated, and now she was at their mercy. All because he thought he could have helped. He’d thought he could make a difference.

Fool. Look what you’ve done!

He showed his soul no mercy as he gazed on her helpless form for those few seconds. A guard stood over them as Boden and the others were talking by the closest of the boats. They were getting louder, with one or two waving their arms hysterically. Occasionally they’d all cast a glance at the trolls, but none had a look that was favorable in any way. he turned his eyes back to his smaller companion, who seemed to be trying to focus her blurred vision.

“Zy. . . how long have I been out?” she whispered.

“Only a minute. We be on the beach now.”

She groaned softly, the sand grinding beneath her as she brought her hands up to her face. Her head was filled with spinning coins and jewels. So confusing. She could only tell it was Zyjiin by his breathing, and his scent. He was nervous. She tried to lift her head, but the pain shot back through her skull. She curled up again as she fought to keep from crying out. She heard muffled voices, and footsteps across the sand. This was not a good day.

Boden approached them, his bandana secured across his right eye with a leather strap, the blood still not dry. He wasn’t smiling. His steps were loud as he purposely moved forward towards where the trolls lay prone. Three of his men accompanied him, while the rest were geared up and ready to push their respective rowboats back into the cove. The moon hung above them as a silent observer.

“Get the wench on her feet!” Boden growled. “I want a good look at the dirty, little thief.”

His men jumped forward to obey his command, hauling Ishwana up by the arms as she offered a weak resistance. Her head swayed as she fought to regain consciousness, her eyelids weighing down on her as she tried to glare at the man who stood in front of her. Her mouth opened slightly as she groaned, but she wouldn’t give him the pleasure of seeing her beg. Her lips tightened and scowled at him, and if she could, she would have bore a hole right through his blood-soaked face. He in turn stood only a foot from her, his arms at his side, clenched and pulsing with anger. His breathing was heavy and laced with malice.

He brought his hand across her face, the back of his embossed leather glove hitting her above the eye. He paused only to bring his arm back for another blow, a punch to the gut that caused her knees to buckle and her lungs to scream for air. She coughed up blood as he hit her with the backhand again, and again, until his rage had died down to a cold stare. He wasn’t finished yet.

“You must think you’re clever, don’t ya? Little girl who thought she could get away. Well, YOU WON’T!”

He screamed the last words as he leaned forward, grabbing her chin in his firm grip, and jerking her face towards his. His rough fingers dug into her cheeks, blood running down between them as he glared at her with his one good eye. His men stood firm, holding her in check even when she tried to wriggle free. They were enjoying this. The guard who stood over Zyjiin was chuckling as he saw what was coming.

“I was going to make it quick, you know. I was going to make you bleed a little, maybe let the boys go a few rounds, but then I’d have the kindness to put a bullet in your head,” he whispered.
“I was going to place it right between those big, pretty eyes of yours. But now? Now you’re going to PAY!”

He struck her again, the blood flowing freely from her mouth, and her senses all gone numb with the pain. She groggily tried to snarl back at him, but it did nothing. She was beat. She couldn’t even focus under his assault. The right side of her face was swollen, bruised, and wet with blood. Her violet eyes tried to focus on him, willing herself to fight back. There was still some fire in her yet. Boden saw it in her eyes. He knew she wouldn’t break so easy, and this caused him to only smile more.

“You’ve carved up my face, little wench, but that is nothing compared to what I’ll do to you. You and your friend are gonna come along with us now. The captain always loves to work with the trolls. You heal so quick, that he can do it again, and again, and again. You’re going to bleed, little troll.”

He violently puller her forward again, taking a moment to grin right in her face. He closed his eyes and smelt her hair, the look in his eye displaying his dark intentions. He intended to abuse her, and break her. There was no mercy inside. In the back of her mind Ishwana was trembling and afraid.

He released her slowly, his hand caressing her cheek as he laughed to himself. He stepped back, and with a nod she was promptly thrown back to the ground. She fought back the tears, fought back the sobbing, and held onto whatever hate she could muster. She tried to move, but the guard above her abruptly stopped her with a swift kick in the ribs. All she managed to do was turn her head back to look at Zyjiin. Her eyes were those of the little girl he knew, not the rogue who’d ld him into this. The sand was growing wet with her blood.

As for himself, Zyjiin had barely moved. He’d watched in horror at what the pirates had done, and intended to do, to her. He’d lain still, afraid to move, as she’d been beaten before his eyes. He didn’t want to think about what awaited them both. He’d seen how the leader had eyed Ishwana, and it made him shudder to think that this was all his fault. They made eye contact, and in her eyes he saw what strength remained. He sensed her uncertainty, her own guilt, and her fear. At least he knew he wasn’t overreacting.

He felt an immense weight upon his mind. He’d thought he’d made a decision that would improve matters, not make them worse. He’d been wrong. Like every other time he’d tried to make a difference, he’d fallen short. Now Ishwana was going to pay the price for his failures. He desperately wanted to hide his head beneath the sand in shame, but he couldn’t. He dare not speak, for fear of another blow either upon himself or her. He tried to mouth an apology, but he knew it would mean nothing. It was too late for being sorry.

Get up, Zyjiin.

He twitched as the silent voice filled his mind. What was it thinking? He was surrounded by pirates, who were only a moment away from tossing him onto a boat that was bound for no place good. If he wanted to survive, he’d best lie still and wait for a chance to escape. There’d be a chance. There had to be.

Get up.

Zyjiin squirmed around again. His hands were beneath his head, and the blood from a gash he’d received upon capture had dried up. He was in no position to do anything to change their circumstances. He was a tailor, and had at one time been a priest. A terrible one. He was afraid, and so he cowered. He was afraid for himself, but more so for Ishwana. She would be in more danger than he, not only as she’d given the head pirate a reason to wear an eyepatch, but the crew had begun to notice her in a way that was usually confined to the dark alleys of every city.

He looked up again, as he heard the return of the pirate who’d brutalized Ishwana. He’d just finished yelling at his other men, who were now scrambling to get away from the shore. Something had caused them to speed up their departure, and Boden didn’t look all too happy about it. The pirate cast Zyjiin a cold stare, before crouching down next to Ishwana. He held a medallion in his hand, and waved it in front of her face. Leaning over her, he growled.

“You bloody little minx, you’ve spoiled things again. Those stinking holy knights have followed you and your friend all the way here!”
He spit on the sand next to her in contempt. She glanced upwards, a mocking smile creasing her bloodied lips. She tried to laugh at his misfortune, but the pain caused her to double over again. Behind Boden a pair of his men were watching the tree line, their muskets at the ready. There only remained the one rowboat now, as the others awaited their leader to make his way into his own. Something kept him.

“Well, we can’t let them get any information out of you now, can we?”

He pulled a flintlock from his belt, cocked it, and grabbed Ishwana by the back of her leather tunic. He tossed her forward, her hands raking through the sand as she went, until he’d hauled her up with one hand to stand. She moved a hand to her side, wincing in pain. He shoved her a few steps forward as the guard swiftly kicked Zyjiin, compelling him to stand. The guard hollered at him, and told him to push their last rowboat out. Behind them, Ishwana swayed beneath Boden’s hand, his pistol at the ready as he watched their backs. There was something moving in the jungle, and the faint glow of torches were beginning to cast shadows above on the hill.

He called out to his two sentries, who took hesitant steps back. Their eyes and muskets remained fixed on the torchlight. They were glancing left and right nervously as the number of torches became increasingly visible.

Zyjiin, under the heavy prodding of their pirate guard, was just getting momentum as he pushed the boat out. He felt it let go of it’s sandy resting place and begin to float lightly in the water. It was fairly empty, with room only for a few bodies. There was some netting, a pair of leather bandoliers, and an oar that was sitting right in front of him. An idea occurred, albeit a stupid one: the oar wasn’t much different from the staff he’d used in his own defense a few times. Maybe this was his chance! He walked the boat into the water until it was about his knees. The oar was within reach. He just needed one swing. To get that, he’d need a diversion. There was none. His face fell as he realized how much of a loss he was at. Boden and the other pirate splashed about behind him, with Ishwana in tow. Her head was lowered as she gradually accepted her own failure to escape.

The guard stopped, glancing back to see that his two shipmates were only a dozen or so paces from them now. Looking back at the trolls with disgust, he did what little arithmetic he could handle and turned again to Boden. The leader’s new decoration across his face gave him a constantly sinister look, but the pirate piped up anyways.

“Begging your pardon, but are we really going to try and bring these two back? With the four of us, there only be room for one more in ‘ere.”

“You’re absolutely right, mate,” he grinned. “Seems we’ll have to leave one of them behind, won’t we? Can’t have them talking of course. This one knows to much.”

He raised his pistol, and leveled the barrel at the back of Zyjiin’s head.

“Stupid troll.”

BANG!