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15

He opened his eyes, but it was still dark. Of course it was. This damn smelly doeskin was still over his head; his aching, throbbing head... And there was something else, too... a tightness around his muzzle, like rope.

Panic flared up inside Danado's chest once again. He tried to open his mouth, but the knots were too tight. He could feel the ropes biting into the soft meat around his lips, not just one coil, but many. He tried to raise his hands so he could pull the damn things off, only to realise that they were tied, too.

Calm down, Danado. Calm down, just calm down!

Danado took extra slow, extra deep breaths, trying to be as quiet as possible, and he made his muscles go back to being limp. If his attackers were still around, he'd prefer they didn't know he had regained consciousness just yet.

Okay, Danado. What do you know for sure?

He moved his arms and his back just a tiny bit, trying to get a feel for what was going on around him.

He was sitting up against something hard and rough, most likely a tree. The cold breeze against his side and the crackle of leaves underneath his butt supported this theory, but it didn't exactly help him in any way. The village was surrounded by thick woods on all sides. He could be within a stone's throw of the walls, or he could be halfway up the Cora for all he knew.

What else?

His wrists were bound really, really tight behind his back and his fingers were going numb. His ankles were bound too.

You're dead you're dead you're dead...

No I'm not calm down shut up and think!!

"Hey, I think he's awake."

"About time."

Crap!

Danado sniffed the stale air inside the doeskin bag, at first only getting pungent whiffs of his own sweat, but then the other scents starting coming through.

Oh crap I really am dead...

He could smell Thoka, Ivio, Hyker, Sennic, and worst of all, Dorin, second in command for the warrior Wolves. But since Garten's no longer around, Danado supposed he must have been promoted to head of kidnapping.

"You can stop pretending, Dan. We know you're awake."

Danado didn't move a muscle.

"Do it."

Danado tensed up, knowing that a blow of some kind was sure to come, but not from where, when, or who.

Something hard smashed against the side of his face, knocking him over. He could hear the leaves crackle underneath his body and then something stomped down on the back of his head, grinding his face against the fuzzy insides of the bag. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't open his mouth wide enough to produce more than a pitiful whine.

"That's enough. Pull him up."

Someone grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, jerked him into a sitting position and slammed him back against the tree, where he curled his knees up against his chest in a feeble attempt to protect himself.

"Hey, Dan. You awake now?"

Danado recognized that voice as Dorin's. There was no point in trying to feign unconsciousness anymore, so he nodded his head.

"Good. Tell me, do you know why you're out here?"

He had a pretty good idea actually, but he shook his head, hoping to buy himself some time to think, even if it was only a minute.

"No? Then allow me to enlighten you. You've made someone cross, Dan, someone who can make your life very... difficult. But that's not why you're here."

Dandado tried to say, It's not? but what came out was: "Ih hoah?"

"No, you're here because your sister doesn't know any manners."

Don't you dare touch my sister! Danado wanted to shout. He wanted to scream! He strained against his bonds, pulling until they bit into his flesh hard enough to draw blood.

"Thoka, calm him down."

Whap! Something struck his face again. Danado didn't know whether it was a fist or a foot, but it was hard enough to make his eyes water. He had enough time to blink a few times and hope that the odd ringing in his ears would go away when it struck him again (Whap!!) in the stomach.

He doubled over, unable to gasp, unable to retch, only able to breath hard and heavy through his nose. He could feel his own snot run from his nostrils and wipe against the bag in a warm stain that would soon grow cold and disgusting.

"That's enough for now, give him a minute."

"This is boring! Why don't we just wail on him right now? What's with all this waiting and talking?"

"Because he needs to understand, you idiot. This isn't a mindless beating, this is a business deal."

"Pthegh, whatever."

"Hey, Dan? Can you hear me? Whatever you do, don't barf. You wouldn't want to drown in there."

Laughter. The darkness of the night. The darkness of the bag. He was listening to their laughter through two layers of darkness, double-wrapped around his head, and it was terrifying. If madness were a real, living thing and not just a state of mind, this is what it would sound like.

Laughter... laughter... laughter in the dark.

"Answer me, Dan."

Danado could barely breathe in this thing, but he nodded just the same.

"Good."

He heard the leaves crackle, coming closer, and his hunter's senses fused with his imagination to show him a picture of Dorin kneeling by his side.

"You and Lana are very close, aren't you, Dan?"

Danado hesitated, knowing full well where this was going, but what choice did he have? He nodded.

"You wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her, right?"

He shook his head, thinking: If you or Wardo or any of his lackeys so much as looks at her funny I will skin you alive you festering piece of filth!

"Then we can do business. This may be hard for you to believe, Dan, but I'm actually trying to help you. I don't want to see Lana get hurt, and you most certainly don't want to see her get hurt either, so let's make a deal."

You did a great job of memorising Wardo's little speech, you puppet.

"You see, this certain someone who is so very cross with you and your sister is willing to give you a choice. You've already received your lumps for your sins, so... we can let you go. Right now. Fair is fair."

Here comes the catch...

"And then we can go and give Lana what she deserves for her sins, which are much greater than yours."

Danado lunged forward, hoping to headbutt the bastard, but he only bowed through empty air without making any impact, almost keeling over in the process.

"Hey, that's not nice, Dan. I'm trying to give you an opportunity here," Dorin said amidst the chuckles of his comrades.

Danado growled. It sounded weird with his muzzle all tied up, but he didn't care. "Ih uu ough er Ih igh oo!!"

If you touch her I'll kill you!

"Wow. Not sure what you just said, but it sounded intense, Dan. When did you decide to grow a backbone like that? Good for you."

Someone burst out laughing, but was quickly shushed by the others. This set off a spark of hope in Danado's mind. If they were still trying to be quiet, then maybe that meant they weren't too far away from the village? It was a dim ray of hope, but he'd take what he could get.

"That was option number one," Dorin continued, and Danado could just imagine him kneeling there with a smug little smile on his face. "The fair choice, where the punishment is equal to the crime."

Oh sure, all I did was trip Ivio. Knock me around a few times and everything's square. Lana punched Wardo in the face, so what, exactly, would be a fitting punishment for that? A whipping? Beheading, perhaps? You can all go rot in hell.

"Option number two, on the other hand, is where it gets interesting. The one who sent us out here -"

Wardo. Why not just come out and say it!? You think I'm that stupid!?

"- is willing to show her some mercy. But Dan, I'm afraid the punishment has to be given. It's all about balance, and a crime that goes unpunished is a terrible, terrible imbalance on the world. But..."

The leaves crackled, much louder, much closer than before, almost as close as the tree at Danado's back. Suddenly the bag was pulled off his head and the freezing midnight air slapped him right in the face, but at least he could breathe again, and even better, he could see again. He blinked his eyes against the stinging wind, silently urging them to hurry up and adjust to the sudden change in light. The scene materializing out of the shadows, however, didn't do much to set his mind at ease.

Thoka was sitting down on a big old moss-covered boulder, scratching his chin. Danado knew it was him because no other Wolf's silhouette was as fat as his, and standing next to him was Hyker, another Wolf with an unmistakable silhouette because of the missing ear.

As the gloom faded away, he spotted Ivio standing off to the side, pacing and fidgeting, opening and closing his fists, twitching his ears, seemingly on the verge of exploding. Sennic was leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, his eyes constantly shifting left and right, no doubt keeping a wary lookout for anyone unlucky enough to stumble upon their little mission - another dim flicker of hope.

And that only left...

Danado turned his head, and Dorin was right there, mere inches from his face. The Wolf grabbed the tip of his ear, lifted it up, and suddenly his foul breath was flowing inside, riding his whisper. "If you want to... If you really, _really_want to... You can take Lana's punishment onto yourself."

Danado's eyes widened and his heart sped up even faster, pounding away in his chest like a drum. There was something wrong here, some kind of trick, he knew it, but he was too stressed to think properly. Why give him such a 'choice'? Why not simply go after both of them from the start?

"I'll give you a while to think about it," Dorin whispered, his breath disgustingly clammy inside Danado's ear, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. "But remember, Dan, my friends are not nearly as patient as I am. Better think quick."

He gave Danado's ear a little pinch, then rejoined the 'friends' he's never so much as shared a meal with before Ander's trial. They looked at him, practically salivating while he tried to think.

'Mercy'? Is that really what Wardo thinks this is? No, this is just another of his twisted games. I can go free, but then they'll beat up Lana? Or I can take a double beating, and Lana will remain unharmed? What a load of tripe. They'll get to Lana no matter what option I take, so why give me this illusion of choice? What are they really trying to do here? No, wait... that's giving these guys too much credit. They're just muscle. The real question is, what is Wardo trying to do? Dorin said something along the lines of, 'You can take her punishment onto yourself.' Isn't that kind of what Ander did? Is that what Wardo's so bitter about? Is he trying to make some kind of twisted, perverted recreation of that moment so he could try again? To crush the thing he failed to get at the first time?

Danado could feel the sweat drip down his forehead in ice-cold rivulets. What was the point in trying to understand the workings of someone as demented as Wardo? Only crazy can understand crazy.

"Time's running out, Dan," Dorin said.

"I hope he chooses number two," Ivio said, wringing his fingers as if he was trying to shake water off. "That way I can get back at him for tripping me. Yes, I know you did that on purpose you feeb! Everybody does!"

"You're an idiot," Thoka said and licked his lips. "If he chooses number one, that means we get to pay his sister a little visit. With those round hips of hers... and the way she shakes her tail when she walks..." He whistled, and the sound bored into Danado's head like a worm. "The things I'll do to her... she'll wish it was just a beating."

The others laughed and Ivio clapped him on the back. "Ooh good idea! It would be high time somebody knocked her down a notch, always smarting off with that smart mouth of hers when it could be put to sooo much better use."

"I dunno about that, bitch might bite."

"Then you can go first."

Hearty, jovial laughter, like they were sitting around a camp fire telling jokes instead of planning to... to...

Danado closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the rough bark of the tree. He understood now. He understood perfectly.

"Well it looks like Dan has reached a decision."

Danado nodded.

"If it's option number one, the fair choice, just look up and we'll untie you. No problems. If it's number two, look down."

Dead leaves blew against his face, ripped from the black claw-branches of autumn sleepy trees. They creaked and moaned in the darkness, waiting for spring to come along and awaken them from their half-deaths. But spring was still very, very far away.

"Well, Dan? We haven't got all night."

Danado knew what he had to do, but he was scared. He's never really been in any serious trouble before, certainly not anything so extreme it might end up costing him his life. Maybe this was how Ander had felt, tied up beneath the Cora statue, watching as his tribesmen prepared to tear him apart. If he was given a magical out in that moment, a choice that would free him from the torture that was to follow, but would condemn a loved one to suffer in his place, would he have taken it?

A week ago Danado would have given the question some serious thought, but after seeing everything that Wolf was willing to go through just to keep his friends and family safe, it made him feel ashamed for feeling even the slightest hesitation.

And yet...

He was scared. He couldn't not feel scared. He wasn't strong like Ander. He wasn't brave like Ander. He wouldn't be able to take that kind of punishment, not even half of it. He didn't want to get hurt... he didn't want to feel that kind of pain... He just wanted to go home... He just wanted...

Home...

He just wanted to go home, build a little fire while Lana plucked the pheasant he had caught earlier. Then sit around, talking all kinds of nonsense while they waited for it to cook over the flames. He liked his birds nice and juicy, so he'd take his half first, but Lana wouldn't touch anything until it was practically burnt to a crisp, so he'd almost be done eating by the time she started on hers. Then, after they were done and the bones were neatly piled up in the corner for later disposal, they would close the divider and crawl into their bedrolls, Lana on the left side of the tent because she didn't like the way the windward side sometimes flapped and rippled in the winter months, Danado on the right because he knew. Of course, they'd hardly ever drop off to sleep right away. They'd stay up and chat for a little while in the dark. Stupid little things.

So when you finally gonna get a mate, Dan? You're not getting any younger.

You're one to talk.

Caiya asked about you.

She did? Really?

No, not really.

That's cold, sister. That's very, very cold.

Hehehe.

That's what he wanted. But if he made the wrong choice, then how would he ever be able to sit around and talk nonsense with his big sister ever again? How would he even look her in the face knowing that everything about to befall her was the product of his own cowardice? And what of afterward, assuming they let her live?

How?

Danado looked down. He saw the leaves blowing around his knees, saw his own stomach rise and fall in time with his rapid, terrified breathing. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest and his gut squirm inside his body. He could hear five sets of feet approaching, crunching through the dead leaves.

"I'm actually kinda surprised, Dan," Dorin said. "I expected you to sell out and save your own tail, but it looks like our new leader was right about you."

Danado tried not to shake. Ander never shook. He was brave throughout the whole thing.

But he couldn't stop. They'd barely even touched him and he was already shaking like a baby.

"Come on, let's get this over with," Thoka said. With his chance at fulfilling whatever perverted fantasies capered behind that sweaty brow denied, the fat bastard sounded rather peeved, but Danado didn't know exactly how peeved until he heard the soft, muffled thump of something heavy striking the ground.

He raised his gaze a tiny bit, but kept his head down so they wouldn't think he had changed his mind. What he saw made his heart leap up in his throat and his blood turn to ice.

The thing that had made that sound was a gnarled, splintery tree branch. It started out as thick as his arm, then widened out near the base like a club. There was a single leaf still attached near Thoka's grip.

The others had them, too. Ugly things of various shapes and sizes, randomly broken from whatever tree happened to strike their fancy.

Danado moaned. It was a pitiful sound, but he couldn't help it. Ivio chuckled and twirled his branch around and around, jumping from one foot to the other in his excitement.

"Hey, Dan," Dorin said, coming closer, casually smacking his branch against his open palm, making him wonder what kinds of sounds it would make when swung in earnest. "This goes without saying, but..." He bent down and smiled. It was a happy, carefree smile, the smile of someone with no worries or regrets. "If you tell anyone what happened out here tonight, or if you decide to rat us out to the Chieftain, then all deals are off. We'll come after your sister, and the things we do to her will make the things we're about to do to you look like a gentle handshake. And don't think we're alone, either. We are but five of an ever growing family. There is nowhere you can run, nowhere you can hide where we cannot see you. Don't even try to pull anything sneaky, because we will find out. Even if we go down, there are dozens more to pick up where we left off. Do you understand?"

I will not cry. I will not cry. I will not cry.

Danado nodded.

"Good, very good," Dorin said and ruffled Danado's hair like a kindly uncle. "Then there's only one thing left to do."

I will not cry. I will not cry. I will not...

They raised their clubs, one after another.

"It's been nice doing business with you, Dan."

Danado closed his eyes. A single tear ran down his cheek and was quickly absorbed by the ropes around his muzzle.

Throughout the whole thing, he never lost consciousness. Near the end, he wished he could.