*This wasn't just about me anymore. They'd caged this magnificent creature, used it as a weapon, and now they were torturing it to break me. A raw, primal fury surged through my veins, hot enough to burn through the cold water. I stopped struggling against the guards' grip. Instead, I focused inward, past the pain in my lungs and the ache in my knees, to the spark of magic they'd tried to snuff out.*
*It was still there—flickering, but unbroken.*
*Having enough, I stretched a hand to the leader's direction and to all our bewilderment, little blew crystal formed in front of my palm and shot it at him and hit the whistle from the man's hand slightly scraping him.*
*The whistle tumbled to the floor. The men stunned released their grip giving me a chance to resurface my head. My eyes locked with the the beast who looked at me confused and grateful for a second before flying off. The leader walked towards me in fury. With his face distorted in anger, he submerged me into the water that I thought my back would snap. He roughly jerked my head more into the water till I finally lost most of my consciousness.*
*My body went limp, the last spark of fight draining out like water from a cracked cup. The world faded to a blur of cold and pressure, the leader's furious shouts muffled as if I were underwater—wait, I wa*underwater. The thought drifted lazily through my mind, disconnected from any fear. It was quiet here, peaceful almost, the pain finally ebbing away.*
*But then a new sound cut through the haze—a deep, resonant*thrum*that vibrated in my bones. Not the whistle's torture, but something warmer, older. A voice, low and familiar, echoing in the dark corners of my mind:"Misty. Stay with me."
*The voice was a lifeline, yanking me back from the edge. *
"Whose voice was that? Am I Misty?"
*I asked my self through the haze*
"Boss at this rate she would die and we would loose a lot of money".
*One of his men spoke his concern. After what felt like an eternity of consideration, the leader, finally pulled me out of the water. *My body convulsed, coughing up a river of icy water onto the stone floor. The leader's grip on my hair loosened just enough for me to slump forward, my cheek pressing against the cold, wet stone. My lungs burned, each ragged breath a struggle, but the voice in my head was clearer now, a warm hum beneath the chaos.*
*The leader's boot nudged my ribs, none too gently. "Pathetic," he spat, but there was a hint of unease in his voice. "Get her up. I was considering taking her to a better room but she would stay in that cage till the buyer asks for her." * He snorted*.
*My vision was blurry, the room spinning, but I could make out the leader's scowling face above me. "She's not worth a dead body," *he snarled, shoving me roughly against the stone wall.*
"Tie her up. And someone get that damn whistle—we need to find that beast before it comes back."
*His men moved quickly, yanking my arms behind my back and binding my wrists with thick, scratchy rope. I was too weak to fight, my body trembling uncontrollably. As they tightened the knots, a tear ran down my cheeks*