Thanks, AvaMarieSchneider for helping me with the beginning of the chapter. I really appreciate all of the help you give me! :D I'm excited for the next chapter! You're going to love it! *laughs hysterically*
Enjoy!
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Drake's point of view-

  "Drake! Follow me!" I heard a faint voice in my head, but I didn't see anything other than pitch blackness. The voice wasn't what I experienced everyday when I blanked out, so dark and evil. Instead, it was a voice that sounded much more happier, cheerful, and squeaky.
Then slowly a scene started forming into view through my perspective. As it came more into sight, I saw that I was in a thick green forest blooming with flowers and vines hung from branches in the dense canopy of leaves above me.
Then, in the corner of my eye I saw someone skipping excitedly next to me. It was a little boy, with blond hair that was about to the mid-length of his neck and wore all blue clothes and a hat that covered his head. A wide bright smile was plastered on the boy's face as he looked at me, his large blue eyes gleaming.
I could recognize that smile and big curious eyes anywhere. It was Armen.
In my sleep, I could feel myself choke and hold back tears looking at my past friend's face, one that I hadn't seen in ages; years. He look so different, and full of life.

"Where are we going?" I heard myself ask. My voice sounded so small and innocent, totally opposite to what it is now.

Armen giggled, still showing off a cute grin across his face. In my sleep, I flinched at the familiar sound of Armen's laugh. "You'll just have to see until we get there."

We went through the thick forest a little more before the trail we were walking on disappeared into a curtain of vines that hung over the path. Armen's soft, small hands went over my eyes.            

  "Don't look."

I heard vines rustle out of the way as my friend removed them in front of us. Then Armen released his hands from my eyes. He started to smile even more when I gasped at what I saw in front of me. A giant tree house, probably even more than half the size of our house was sitting in tree in a clearing. It looked awesome, with windows, steps leading up to the door, and a slide for two little boys to play on.

  "Wow!" I marveled. "You built this?"

  "Uh-huh!" Armen nodded his head, proudly. "All by myself!"

The blond-haired boy ran quickly over to the treehouse, climbed the stairs, stood at the top, and put his arms into the air, giggling. "Doesn't it look so cool?!"

  "Yeah!" I shouted excitedly. I ran over to the treehouse and went to the top with Armen, staring at the marvel that my friend had built. "It's awesome!"

Armen laughed and in a flash he was already down the long slide and was on the ground. He then ran back to the stairs to go down again. I slide down the slide, feeling my stomach go up and down as I went down, but it was a funny sensation. I laughed as I hit the grass at the bottom and dashed to the stairs to catch up with Armen. After what seemed like forever giggling and going down the slide with Armen, I sat down in the room of the tree house, catching my breath.

  "Come up here, Armen!" I hollered for my friend, who was at the bottom of the slide. I heard feet coming up the wooden boards of the steps as I continued to giggle.

But when Armen came in and I saw him, my giggle immediately stopped as I stared in horror of his face. Armen was suddenly older, his hair now black, and his face and body were bruised and cut. Burns also covered his body everywhere. One of his eyes were glowing a bright white as the other one was a light, faded cyan . I heard my younger self scream in horror.

Then in Armen's older voice I heard him say, "You failed me, Drake. Nothing can bring me back. I'm dead...and it's all because of you."

Then in my older, deeper voice I heard myself start to hyperventilate from fear and the last thing I heard before I awoke was myself screaming, "NO, ARMEN!!!!"
...
I jolted awake, my head knocking against something hard and painful behind me. I cringed from the sudden agony and reached my hand up to my scalp to rub it, but my arm and hand felt way too weak to move even an inch. That's when I realized I was rocking back and forth in an enclosed atmosphere made of wood. I saw sunlight pouring in through a window with bars and chains laying around everywhere, constantly making rattling sounds as the thing I was in moved. It only took me a few seconds to figure out that I was in an enclosed carriage.
A thick scent of barf and rotten wood hung in the thick hot air and blood was stained everywhere on the brown, uncomfortable walls. Then... I remembered my dream. My nightmare I had. With Armen. Thinking of this made me get lightheaded as I looked around at the dreadful sides of the carriage around me. I started to terribly gag and I ended up throwing-up onto the floor boards next to me, a mix of my food I ate earlier and blood, perfectly matching the gore on the walls. The reached smell became more stronger in the enclosed space I was in. I felt myself getting more and more ill by the minute.
Shackles with long chains were around my wrist, binding me to the hinges screwed onto the wall of the carriage. I could feel my skin getting raw underneath them. Rocking back and forth was making my feel nauseous. I keep gagging, still not used to the putrid smell of blood and vomit surrounding me. Saliva dripped from my mouth, now that my stomach no longer had anything within it to let out. I heard the horses walking, their hooves slicing through the dirt in their stride. Another sound hit my ears. The sound of boots hitting the dirt and drying mud. I tried to stand, but in my weakened state, I fell back onto the rancid wood of the floor.
My chest and my head still ached inside, but I was able to breathe a lot better than I had the night before. I looked down at the wound on my side, seeing my shirt covered in blood, but it wasn't bleeding anymore. An infection is going to set in if I don't do anything about it, but all of my stuff is nowhere to be seen. I looked up at the barred window, longing to see what was outside, and where I was. I wanted to see who was outside that locked door and give myself assurance that they hadn't caught Grayson and Mia as well. I rested my head back, feeling the aching pain of illness in my bones and muscles. My forehead and my back were starting to burn. I sniffed, trying to get rid of the mucus leaking from my nose, but doing so only made me smell more of the putrid aroma of the confinement. I gagged repeatedly, being unable to breathe, and my throat beginning to hurt. Finally it stopped. I faced my head upwards, as I let in and out deep breaths.
My body was suddenly jolted forwards, as the carriage came to a halt. I felt panic rise in me of fear of what was to become. I heard footsteps make their way closer to the door, and a click as it was unlocked. My body tensed up, as the door swung open, revealing three mercenaries staring me down. They came in, grabbing me by the shoulders, and pinned me to the ground. I kicked and squirmed, finding my throat to be in too much pain to yell. They pinned my arms behind my back, unlocking the shackles. I took solace in the few split moments my wrist were free, before different shackles replaced the other ones, feeling even tighter than the old ones. It hurt to struggle against them. The mercenaries pulled me up to my feet, that I struggled to stand on. They pushed me, my body falling out of the carriage, and landing hard on the muddy ground, my clothes and skin now covered in cold mud. They jumped out, and forced an old rag in my mouth. It tasted bitter, and dusty. I couldn't tell if it was the cloth, or the disgusting taste of vomit in my mouth, but I thought I tasted blood on it. Next, a rag was forced over my eyes, blindfolding me.

  "Make sure it's tight. He might be able to teleport away if he can see." A deep voice said above me.

The blindfold tighten around my head, making the sound of my heartbeat thump in the back of my head where it was the tightest. They grabbed my shoulders again, pulling me to my feet, only for a fist to drive itself into my gut. I fell back down to my knees, coughing and gasping as the wind was knocked out of me. I could hear them laugh as they pulled me back up, and turned me around, beginning to push me. I kept falling, feeling exhausted and weak. I tried using my magic, but I quickly stopped, as I feel to my knees, and felt myself beginning to cough up blood. A staggering pain shot up in my chest. Why is this happening to me? It's my own fault... It's all been my fault.
The mercenaries grabbed me by the shoulders once again, and practically had to carry me, until my feet hit a wooden surface going up diagonally. Their fingernails dug into my skin, making me cringe the whole time. Finally, I was tossed roughly onto the wooden floor, as I heard them laughing above me, taking pleasure in my vulnerability. Without warning, I felt as a boot collided with my stomach, and once again I was unable to breathe. I choked and coughed, trying desperately to get air into my lungs. I coughed, finally feeling oxygen enter my body, allowing me to breathe.

  "Quit it you guys!" The one with the deep voice yelled. "We need him alive, and you idiots might just kill him if you keep this up!" The other two men grunted.

He said other things, but they were becoming muffled and distant. Blood and saliva came out of my mouth, pooling around my lips. I didn't care. I felt so tired, and so much aching throughout my entire body. I didn't want to move. I couldn't move. I figured I might as well let my body give out and get proper rest, no matter how little time I'll be able to get. Even if I have a nightmare, why does it matter? I can't stop it, and I'll pass out later on because of my exhaustion anyways, so I might as well just sleep. I closed my eyes, and let my exhaustion take a hold of me, slipping into darkness.

Grayson's point of view-

I couldn't believe he ran away. I felt a swarm of emotions rattling inside of my head. I was angry, upset, hurt, but mainly... I was scared. A part of me felt rage that Drake had run off on us, when we promised that we would help him, and that we were all in this together. I felt almost betrayed, but another part of me understood why he ran off like that. Perhaps he was scared that he would hurt us, or maybe he really is losing it. I shook my head, not wanting to think of my friend going insane.

  "Drake!" I called out into the forest, hoping that my friend would answer, but he didn't.

I couldn't help but put some of the blame on myself. I should have looked for him so much sooner instead of waiting a month to find him. I could have helped him before his problem escalated to this point. I guess it is my fault...

  "Grayson, please tell me you found him!" Mia came out from the trees, with bags under her eyes from searching for our friend all night.

I sighed. "Nope. Nothing. I can't believe he just ran away like that!" I yelled, kicking a rock into the bushes.

Mia placed a hand on my shoulder, trying to calm me down. "Grayson, calm down, please! We'll find him! He can explain why he did that."

I calmed down, and turned back to her. I breathed through my nose, and out of my mouth to calm myself down more. Her hand slipped off of me, adjusting her backpack. I pulled out my compass, and looked at it. I knew that it was no help in finding Drake, but for some reason, it made me feel better watching the dial point north.

It was silent between us, before Mia spoke. "You know, he was actually crying before he stopped breathing last night. He was talking about Armen, and how he thought that he was the reason Armen was dead. It was really...sad to watch."

My eyes widened slightly, before a rush of emotional pain went through me. It hurt thinking that Drake believed such a thing. If anything, Armen is probably better wherever he is now, but still, I understand why he felt so much pain behind it. It hurt imagining Drake crying that his best friend was dead. Drake was so calm and collected, even in the events of Armen's death, but after the ship crash, it just seems that every little problem, all of the emotion that he has been holding inside of him is finally starting to crash down on him. I felt all of my anger slip away, instead, I now felt guilty for being angry in the first place. I turned my head away from Mia, and cupped my hands around the sides of my mouth.

  "Drake!" I attempted to call out into the forest one more time. Once again, no reply. "Come on buddy. Where are you?"

My body was shaking for the anxiety that something bad happened to him. I hoped that he wasn't out there hurt, or dead. I hoped that he wasn't hurting himself... He's not in the best mental state, and I know how bad things can get when the mind reached such a state grief. My attention turned to Mia, when she called my name, sounding panicked. I walked up to her, moving some tree branches out of my way.

  "What is it Mi-" I didn't finish. The words were lost in me, as I felt my rage beginning to rise inside of me.

We watched as Luke pushed himself up from the ground, groaning as he placed his gloved hand on top of the dried up blood on his head. He winced, and began looking around, as if he was scared or shocked. A growl escaped my throat, as I pulled out my sword. I pushed Mia back, and slowly walked to Luke, the rage inside of me increasing the longer I gazed upon him.

  "Where is he?" I demanded, not caring if he didn't know. He has to know something, and I'll get it out of him one way or another. "Where's Drake?!" I hissed through my teeth.

He shook his head, his voice sounded frightened or startled. "I-I don't know!"

  "Bullsh*t!" I shouted, lunging my sword at him in attempt to stab him in the shoulder to keep him in his place.

Before the blade could pierce him, he dodged out of the way. My blade cut into the tree, the tip getting stuck in the bark. I looked down at him, as he sat on his knees, panting from the adrenaline. A piece of his sleeve was cut, with a bleeding wound on his arm. If he had moved any later, the blade would have went through him. Why couldn't he have just stayed still?

  "Listen!" He shouted. He was hesitant to continue, swallowing a lump in his throat. "H-he...he was captured. They're delivering him to the empire as we speak."

If it were not for the rage I felt, making me clench my sword handle so tightly, it would have fallen from my grasp. They got him. They got Drake. Who knows what they'll do to him. Memories of my mercenaries days flashed before my eyes, as I remembering the cruel things we did to the prisoners. What if they're putting Drake through such horrible things? I felt tears in my eyes, imagining him being beaten in all sorts of ways.

  "It's your fault...isn't it?" I growled, raising my sword higher. My rage was boiling. I won't let him go this time. Not when he's done this to my best friend.

He scampered to his feet, pulling out his sword and glaring at me, knowing the hatred I held inside of me. I charged, blinded by fury. He held up his blade, blocking every attack I made. It was making me beyond p***ed off. I just want him to die already and quite messing up my life! How much more does he have to take from me?

  "You filthy b*****d! You betrayed me! My family is dead because of you, and now you're trying to take away all I have left!"

I swung my blade down on him, but he held the iron blade over his head as he ducked down, blocking my attack once again. Sweat rolled down his face, as he gritted his teeth. He pushed my blade away with his own, jumping back to avoid another swing.

  "You're family is dead because your own greedy decision to steal the dragon egg!" He yelled.

I boiled over. How dare he put all of the blame on me? We're both the blame, but him mostly. Tears of sorrow and rage streamed down my cheeks, burning my skin. I can't believe he used to be my friend, even at the base. I ran to him, trying to slash him through his chest, but he jumped to the side and thrusted his blade forward.

  "You're the one who chose the life of crime!" Luke continued to push the blame.

I got out of the way of his attack, then deflected his next one. Our blade pushed against each other. I gritted my teeth, tears forming in my eyes again. I'm going to kill him. He needs to die already...
My body was covered in sweat, feeling the fight take it's toll on my body and muscles. I learned that he and I are close to evenly matched. Close but not exact. The force that his blade was bringing down on my own suddenly vanished, allowing me to swing my blade, but cut nothing but air. He ducked down, swiftly moving behind me to cut me in the back of my knees. The iron sliced into my skin, and I could feel the blood beginning to down the back on my knees. I cringed, gritting my teeth until it hurt, but I refused to fall over. I jumped forward, and turned around, adjusting the sword hilt in my palms. For a second, I struggled to stand, but my body quickly got used to the injury.

  "You're calling me greedy? I didn't betray my friend for money!" I could see in his eyes that he knew this fact for certain. He just wanted me to give into guilt and give up. I won't give in. Never.

We charged at each other, blocking the attacks of one another. We stepped about, trying to keep our footing as we pushed our blades, the metal grinding against metal as we searched for an advantage point to strike. Both of us made a strike, hitting one another simultaneously. The tip of his blade cut into my cheek, making a cut where the old bruise had finally healed. My own purple blade cut into his shoulder, above his collarbone, tearing the fabric of his robe. I quickly spun around, hitting as hard as I could in the chest and his chin with my elbow. His head went back, as his body fell onto the ground. He groaned and coughed, trying to regain his breath after getting the wind knocked out of him. I turned and stood over him, raising up my sword to finally eliminate him from my life. I rose my arm up, ready to bring it down, but I stopped when Mia jumped between us.

I let out a growl. "What the h**l are you doing Mia?! This b*****d needs to die, now!"

She shook her head, taking a step back so that she her foot was planted on Luke's chest. It was like she was making sure that he didn't make a run for it. She pulled out her sword, and swirled it around so that the blade faced away from me.

  "Don't you see Grayson? We can get him to help us rescue Drake." She stared at me with a cold expression, as she pointed down to him.

I shook my head. "Like he'll do anything to help us. Face it, we have to rescue Drake on our own. He isn't going to help, so it's better if we just kill him now."

I could see her body move up and down, as Luke began to breathe steadily underneath her foot. She looked down, putting her other foot on his sword that fell from his grasp. I could see her give him an even colder look, as she kicked his blade away.

  "We can use him to better infiltrate enemy lines. The empire knows us as threats, not him. We'll just have to make him learn his place." My gaze on her lightened, feeling some of my anger fade.

  "I-I.... I guess." I said, putting my sword away. "How are we supposed to do this?" I was still reluctant to the idea, but I felt the need to go through with it, despite the plausibility of it being a waste of time. Possibly our last regret before our deaths.

She turned to me, and gave a slight shrug with her shoulders. "Simple."

With that, she turned back to Luke, holding up her sword. Luke's eyes widened, but something within them made it seem like this wasn't the first time he was knocked out this way. Or at least not the first time recently. I watched as Mia brought down the handle, taking pleasure in the expression of pain on his face. She was right. He could be useful to get Drake back, but he can still be a threat. None of this would be happening if I would have just killed him in the dungeon.

"Grayson?" She spoke. "He's the one that betrayed you? The reason your family was killed?" I nodded slowly, feeling a pain in my chest from the memory of that night.

Mia pulled out some rope, and began tying his wrist. I stood aside and watched, once again letting the opportunity to eliminate him slip from my grasp.

Drake's point of view-

The noises of the distant world began to slowly grow louder. I could hear people talking, but had yet to regain my ability to move. Finally, I was able to open my eyes, but when I did, I saw nothing but darkness. I tried to move my arms and legs, but something was binding them. I tried to speak, but a rag was tied in my mouth preventing my cries for help. Finally I remembered my current situation. I felt a sharp pain in my side where the wound was, and cringed.

  "There." A male voice said. "That should keep any infection from spreading. I can't believe the emperor wants this thing alive." The pain faded.

'Thing'. The name struck me hard. So I've been reduced to a simple item. Something that people care so little for that they can't even name it by gender. It hurt more than it should have.  I heard wooden floorboards creak as he walked away from me, and mumbling a bit further back in the room.

  "How does something like that happen?" A voice said.

  "Either some freak science experiment, or a crazy parent." Another voice said in disgust.

My Ender ear perked up. "Do you think the rumors are true? That He is somehow connected to him?"

A soft, light and delicate voice spoke. He sounded so young. "Can we take off the blindfold and see?"

I heard a sound on the floorboards as if someone was pushed. "Idiot! I already told you, if he can see, then it might give him an advantage. If he can teleport like Enderman, then we'd be screwed!"

The floorboards once again creaked. I felt my body become tense in fear as his voice grew closer, mumbling in obvious anger.

  "You think it's fun killing people? They had families. People who loved them, and you took them away!"

The next thing I knew, rubber made contact with my left cheek. My body hit the wooden floor, my lip bleeding from the kick and soaking into the gag. Repeatedly he stomped on my back, shouting at me. Calling me a murderer. It's all true.
I felt my back getting covered in bruises. I could feel tears escaping from under my closed eyelids and staining the blindfold. He kicked me in the face, bruising my cheek and giving me a bloody nose. I could feel the blood going down my lip, accompanying the blood that was already present there. I felt pain shoot through my body, making me cry out in agony.
Even with the intensity of the pain, I felt something inside of me like pleasure. I wanted to laugh out loud until I couldn't breathe. I wanted to laugh at the pain. Laugh at the men inflicting it. My screams began to mix with laughter, making a noise that sounded almost inhumane. The onslaught on my body stopped, as I let out one last cry mixed with a dark chuckle. I was struck with that unwanted feeling again. The feeling of not being the only one in control of my emotions. Not being the only one within my body.

  "So, what are you? Some disastrous creation, or perhaps something more."

The floor creaked again. His voice grew close to my face. I could feel his breath on the side of the human half of my face.

  "Or are you that d***b demon that persecuted us for thousands of years? Using this weak body as a disguise so you can fool us?"

I didn't know what to say, honestly. They would never believe me and the truth. Once again his foot forcefully rammed into my side.

  "Answer me!"

I had to catch my breath. I was in pain, and getting no break. His boot collided with my stomach again, this time, it hit with such force that bile rose in my throat. I turned and got on my knees, trying to push myself up as much as I could so I wasn't laying in my own vomit. I could smell the bitter and familiar scent of blood. I felt the energy increase in him as he got ready to strike me once more, but the soft voice yelled, no longer sounding gentle.

  "Stop it! He's had enough!"

I fell back down, not having the strength to move enough in order to stop my head from falling into the pool of blood lying on the wooden floorboards. I tried to catch my breath and get air into my lungs, struggling to breathe after the beating. I heard about three men laugh, as the floorboards began to creak again, going away from me this time.

  "Clean up this mess. I'll be back soon."

With that, I felt three life forces leave the room, leaving one behind. Suddenly I tensed up as the sound of the creaky floorboards got closer. I tried to move, but the ropes on my wrist and ankles still prevented me from even trying. I panicked when two hands touched my shoulders and began to move me. I kicked and trashed around as much as I could, wanting to scream, but only succeeding in accidentally inhaling the blood that was still lingering in my mouth.

  "Stop! Calm down! I'm trying to help, alright?" The light voice said.

He pulled me up, allowing my to properly sit, and rest my back on the wall, but the bruises made resting irritable. I was thankful when he removed the gag from my mouth. I looked down, spitting out as much blood as I could, hoping that I wasn't getting any on him. His hands touched the sides of my head trying to lift up the blindfold, but I flinched when he touched the newly formed bruise on my right cheek.

  "Oh, sorry." He said, pulling his hands away, but quickly putting them back, and pulled off the piece of old rag.

I was finally able to see. The room had a desk, with candles on top, and multiple chest with gold and jewelry inside, with maps hung up on the wall. It looked a lot like a pirate ship, but I could feel the increased pressure, making me realize that we were on an imperial airship. My eyes looked up, examining the man. He wore a hat, and a long coat like most other mercenaries. He had auburn hair, and hazel eyes. He took a few steps back, looking at me in aw. He swallowed a lump in his throat.

  "Y-your eye... So...the rumors are t-true." It was obvious that he was shocked and scared.

  "Listen, it's not my intention to hurt you unless you hurt me or my friends." The thought struck me. "Where are they?"

He shook. "I don't know, honestly." He still looked scared.

He's the enemy, no matter what kindness he tries to give, but still, the look in his eyes made me want to prove myself. To prove that I wasn't all that bad... Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I am all that bad.

  Murderer

I put my head back on the wall, realizing how much pain I was in. It was like I could each individual bruise on my back and my sides. I licked my lips, and spit out more blood. The man tilted his head, then got down on his knees in front of me. He lifted up a white cloth in his hands, and placed it on my face. He wiped away the blood, this time being more careful to not touch my injuries. He pulled away, and smiled.

  "I'm Nathan. What's your name?"

At first I was hesitant to answer, but the words slowly made their way out. "Drake. My name is Drake."

He closed his eyes and held out his hand, as if waiting for a handshake. I lowered one of my brows, waiting for him to remember that my hands were tied behind my back. His eyes opened with this realization, and he pulled his hand away, putting it on the back of his neck as he scratched it. He looked away from me, as his cheeks turned red.

  "Oh, right. You're...tied up." He seemed like was the shy type.

  "You're not like those other guys. Why are you mixed up with jerks like them?" I asked.

He let out a sigh, as he put the cloth on the blood soaked ground, moving it around so that it absorbed the thick liquid. He didn't look up at me, avoiding eye contact. It was like he was either focused or remembering something.

  "Have you ever been to the empire? More specifically, in the towns surrounding the palace?"

I shook my head. "No. I haven't, yet." I empathized the word 'yet'.

He closed his eyes. "Well, it's not a good place to be, honestly. From the surface, the place is beautiful, and perfect, but the truth is, the empire is filled with sin and grief. There are many people out in the streets that others pass by and ignore. I should know."

I tilted my head, curios as to what he was getting at, and how it related to my question. But mostly, I was intrigued by his statements. I wanted to hear his story, and learn what the empire was truly like behind it's breathtaking shell of a nation.

"I used to be one of those people. Out on the streets with nothing but the clothes on my back."

It was hard for me to believe that someone like him, so caring and young, could be out on the streets like that. Even so, it's nothing new,really. I had seen that throughout my time in the badlands, and like every other heartless person, I walked by. Maybe I hadn't noticed at the time that those people needed help. I could have done something.

  Another to add to the people you've killed.

I tried to ignore the voice in my head. My body felt heavy. I felt fatigued and a wave of anxiety suddenly hit me. More memories of Armen and my nightmares went through my mind. I felt a chill down down my spine, as I tried to fight back tears. I'm just a mentally broken mess. I sniffed, the tears and bad memories going away.

He spoke again. "I was desperate... I wanted to escape the life of a peasant. So, I signed up for military training, and became a mercenary." He chuckled. "This was my first time out in the field, to tell you the truth."

A smile went across my face. I was glad to assume that he had yet to get blood on his hands. I wish he would quit this job and keep his hands clean. Only earlier did I finally realize what deviation I was bringing for killing all of those mercenaries. The guilt was beginning to wash over me again. As if reading my mind, he asked a question, seemingly as bothered by his thoughts as I was of my own.

  "Why do you fight against us with Grayson? Did he promise you a reward or something?" His brows lowered. "Or are you truly filled with bloodlust?"

I felt like I was hit in the stomach. He went from being nice to accusing me, and giving me a glare and tone of hate. I actually began to quiver from his gaze. Or was it just because my sudden anxiety?

I looked at the floor, not wanting to see that hatred in his eyes. For a second, he gained some of my trust. "Grayson is my friend, and he has been my friend for years. Admittedly, we actually haven't been around each other much until the past two weeks and some time last month, but we've grown close." His expression shifted, as if he was intrigued and understanding my reasons.

  "Of course I'm going to follow my friend through any storm, and even if he was now a criminal, I refuse to abandon my friend, no matter the consequences. I promised to to help him with the egg, as he promised to help me save Armen..." I've said too much. My eyes became heavy with the grief of my memories of Armen.

  "Armen?" He questioned, his expression reverting to curiosity.

I opened my mouth to speak, but then there was a click at the door. Panicked, Nathan grabbed the long strip of cloth that was once tied around my eyes, and he forced it back around my head, blindfolding me once more. I heard him stand up, and the floorboards creak as he walked away from me, then made his way back.

  "What are you doing, Nathan?" It was the voice of the man who had beaten me.

Suddenly, a rag was shoved into my mouth, the ends being tied together behind my head. I could feel the shaking in Nathan's hands, tied the knot. His breathing was unsteady, like he was startled, or even scared.

  "N-nothing! He, uh, his blood was getting in the gag and choking him, so I decided to change it , that way he doesn't choke himself to death. You know, because that wouldn't be good." He let out a fake chuckle.

  "Well..." I heard the other man getting closer.

I pushed my back harder against the wall, ignoring the pain from the brushes from the previous beating he had given me. My body was sweating again, anticipating for the pain to come.

  "This should keep him out of our hair for awhile. I've got a few vials." What was he talking about?

  "Wait!" Nathan called out.

I let out a yelp, as I needle was driven into my neck. I cringed at the sudden, unexpected pain. Sure, I suspected to be kicked or punched, but not stabbed with a needle. I felt the cold pint point metal tip go through my skin and into my vein. A burning liquid was then injected into my body, coursing through my veins. It could feel it reach my heart, and pump throughout the rest of my feeble body. I was becoming nauseous, dizzy, and drowsy. My body became heavy again, as I shut my eyes below the blindfold. Words being shouted from one man to the other were growing distant. My mind began to drift away from consciousness, sending me back to my own personal h**l. The last thing I remembered was the burning pain making it's way through my body.
Some people like pain because it reminds them that they're not dead. I hate the pain now more than ever, because it reminds me that I'm still alive...

Grayson's point of view-

I watched as Luke opened his eyes, and let out a gasp when he saw me. He tried to struggle, but he was tied up around his waist and his legs. I made sure Mia made the ropes extra tight. He tried to kick and thrash around, but I could tell that his movement was hurting him. The ropes constricted too tightly around him. I messed with my sword that was in my hands, imaging the pain I could inflict on him. Imagining driving it across his neck and watching the life slowly drain from his eyes as he bled.

  "Look, the b*****d's finally awake!" I said, stabbing my blade into the ground.

  "Why don't you just kill me? Isn't that what you want?" He snarled at me.

I stayed silent. If it was up to me, he would be dead. "Listen, you got my friend into this mess, and you're going to help us get him out of it."

He closed his eyes and shook his head. "What makes you think I'll help you?" I heard the amusement in his voice.

My breathing pace increased as I burned with fury. I pulled my sword from the dirt and stood, putting the tip on his neck.

  "Because I'll f*****g kill you if you don't you son of a b**ch!"

"You won't kill me! You need me alive."

"Try me!" I pushed it into his skin, making him bleed. A look of fear sparked in his eyes.

  "Grayson, stop!" Mia yelled, grabbing my arm.

I let my arm fall back down to my side, then put my blade away. I took in a deep breath and let it out, trying to calm myself down. I looked back up at him, seeing a look in his eyes like the one he had when I hit him after he got me out of the dungeon. I regret not killing him then and there. A question sparked in my mind.

  "Answer me this, Luke. Why did you get me out of that dungeon if you were just going to pursue me and try to kill me anyways?" There was a moment of silence, as he looked down, as if trying to find the words to say.

   "I-" He hesitated. "I was scared. I've been scared. I am just a greedy b*****d." His tone had guilt inside of it.

He was silent for a minute, as if realization was finally setting in after so long. Over a year, and is he just now realizing his sins? He cares about nothing but money, and he made that clear. Trick or not, I don't care. He's nothing to me.

He continued. "You told me that you would kill me, so I figured...have the upper hand. Kill him before he kills you. I...I've been awful. I'm... I'm sorry."

I saw tears in his eyes. I don't believe a word he says. He did that all for money, and he can't make an excuse for his wrongdoings. Apologies aren't anything, especially when he's done so much to me. My wife is dead. My son is dead. My friend is practically dying and in the hands of my worst enemies. He's not my friend. I guess he never truly has been. He's unforgivable.

  "Apologies aren't going to bring any of them back." I said, turning away from him, as tears started forming in my eyes. I don't want to look at him anymore.