I don't know.  I just started writing.  I will finish this one honestly.

Clink!



Shae forced one eye open, he hadn’t been sleeping, in fact he couldn’t
remember when he had last had proper sleep, he had been resting his
eyes, trying to block out his grim surroundings.  Shae had often wished
he could black out even for a few hours.



Clink!



The sound was metallic and very quiet, it wasn’t even as loud as the
rusty scraping of Shae’s chains along the icy, stone floor, but for some
 reason Shae’s brain had focussed on that one sound.



Clink! Clink!



Shae forced his other eye open, the purple bruising and swelling making
opening it an effort in itself.  Shae’s eyes focussed slowly on the
wooden bowl of what passed as his food, there was brown liquid in the
bowl along with a few unidentifiable lumps floating on it’s surface, it
had a slightly acrid, rotten smell, he hadn’t touched it, he had left it
 for the rats, if they ate it, it saved the guards forcing it down him
in an effort to keep him alive.  Shae wondered why the guards bothered,
after all it only came straight back up again when one of them punched
or kneed him in the stomach which they inevitably did several times a
day.  Shae moved his head carefully, his hair caked in the dark crimson
of his own congealed blood.



Clink! Clinkety! Clink!



Shae managed a scowl and to add to everything the noise was irritating
him, he could block out the screams, the shouts, the sound of skin being
 flayed from some unfortunate persons body, but for some reason he
couldn’t block out the soft metallic clink, it sounded like a rat, but
unless one of the rats had a metal leg it couldn’t be.  Shae closed his
eyes carefully again, sleep was impossible but he didn’t have to stare
at the grim, blood spattered grey of the stone walls or the filthy straw
 which has was sat in.



Clink!



Shae growled in the back of his throat and forced his eyes open again,
he moved his head very slowly so that his ear was against the cold, damp
 stone of the wall, he felt the iciness from the stone against the
tender bruising on his cheek, it seeped into the gash across his cheek
bone and  began to slowly numb it. 



Clink!



A frown darkened Shae’s dirt covered face, he had FELT it through the
wall.  Shae moved his hand  with an effort as the heavy manacles clamped
 too his wrists made easy movement impossible, even when he was not
beaten to a pulp.  Shae felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up
as the chains attached to the rusty manacles screeched along the stone
floor,

“Damn!” he rasped through his dry, cracked lips.  Shae groaned quietly
as he heard the heavy armoured footsteps of the guards rattling towards
his cell door, it had drowned out whatever had been making the clinking
sound. Shae heard the metal key twist with a loud crack in the lock,
followed by a heavy clunk as the lock opened, he closed his eyes again
and waited for the bang of the door that would probably be the start of
another painful few hours.



Shae tried not to flinch as the heavy bang echoed off the stone walls
and died away in some deeper part of the dungeon, he gritted his teeth
as he heard the chinking of the guards armour in the cell, then it
suddenly stopped and he heard something unfamiliar and unexpected, the
soft rustling of silk.  Shae forced his eyes open out of sheer
curiosity, then had to squint painfully as he was blinded by shimmering
gold robes, Shae turned his head away with an effort, feeling the cold,
heavy metal of the iron collar rub roughly against his skin, he blinked
as rapidly as the blood and swelling would allow him too, what the hell
was going on, who would deem him important enough to want to pay him a
personal visit in the rat infested, stinking, dirty dungeon.


Clink!

Shae’s eyes widened causing him to flinch as the swelling tightened all over his face, he could still feel it through the wall and through his legs which where lying along the freezing stone floor of his cell.  Shae turned his head slowly towards the person, keeping his eyes focussed on the feet which where the only thing not blinding too him at that moment, he saw one of the guards dirty, brown booted feet as they took a step towards him, but they stopped as the person standing between the two burley guards walked forward, the foot fall was soft, Shae managed pained smile, so where the softly glimmering silk covered shoes the person was wearing.  Shae’s  eyes focussed on the shoes until they came to a stop right by his blood coated, dirt covered hand which was almost buried in the damp, brown straw.  One of the guards coughed and Shae heard his harsh voice,
“M’Lord, I urge caution, he might look broken, but he has proved more than capable of breaking necks in that state.”  A soft, low laugh greeted the guards,
“More fool your colleagues for their lack of caution,” came the response, delivered in a low, cool and thoroughly unconcerned voice.  Shae would have laughed if he had been able to muster up the strength to do so, pain stopped any kind of movement that would make him capable of breaking any ones neck.  Shae did managed a painful smirk of satisfaction, but he had managed to kill two of them which was probably the reason he was so badly wounded now that he could not move without blinding pain from one part of his body or another.

Feel free to comment.

You are more excellent at writing then I'll ever be.

ER you are a fantastic writer which is why I like writing with you and ask for your opinion. ♥

Shae’s blood covered hand clenched in the straw as the silk shoe his eyes where focussed on  lifted and he felt the soft tip of the shoe under his chin,
“Now let me see what a mess the guards have made of you,” came the low voice quietly.  Shae managed to pull his neck back, away from the foot, in spite of the collar clamped too tightly around his neck, he heard the bones in his neck crunch in protest as soft laughter from the gold robed person greeted his reaction,
“Warrior, I could not possibly damage you any more that the imbecilic guards have and I am not covering my hands in the blood and muck you are covered in,” the tone was slightly sharp, but still quiet.  Shae forced his head up, so he could look at the persons face, but let an unbidden gasp escape him and fell forward as one of the guards planted a heavy booted foot in the base of his back.  Shae bit his lip hard, tasting more blood in his mouth as the guard bellowed at him,
“Keep your eyes lowered scum!”  Shae didn’t bother too move, he doubted if he even had the strength left in his muscles to try, he felt searing pain course up his spine and the all too familiar warm wetness of his own blood spreading across his skin.  A low tut came from the golden robed man and he snarled at the guard, his tone irritated,
“Touch him only when I order you too!  I will decide if he must or must not lower his eyes.”  Shae heard the guards footsteps shuffle backwards and the guard mumbled a grovelling apology.  The gold robes rustled softly around the man’s body as he crouched on his heels, so he could look at Shae’s bruised and bloodied face properly.  Shae opened his eyes wide, shot back and let an unbidden yell of agony out at his sudden movement as he felt a strong, firm hand rest on his extremely sore head.  There was a low, unsurprised laugh from the golden robed man at Shae’s instinctive reaction.  Shae lay still again as he felt the mans hand rest gently on his blood caked, muddied hair,
“You should not be so jumpy in your condition,” observed the low voice, there was an undertone of laughter in it which irritated Shae.

Clink!

Shae’s eyes slowly and painfully focussed on the mans face, this time he was certain the soft noise had come from the golden robed man, he wanted to speak but his throat was so dry it was burning.  Shae’s blurry vision cleared slowly as his eyes focussed on the mans face, he tried to disguise his shock at seeing fine, elven features, he tried to make his jaw work, but the golden robed man shook his head with a wry smile,
“Do not worry about speech for the moment Warrior and I am a half Elf if that makes you feel any more at ease with me,” he advised, his soft voice still quiet and his long fingered tanned hand still resting lightly on Shae’s hair.  Shae managed a scowl, he hated lying helplessly in the stinking straw, he tried movement again, but the pain almost blinded him.  The half Elf  let a quiet sigh escape him and leaned forward,
“It looks as if my robes will be getting ruined after all,” he muttered more too himself than to Shae or the guards.  Shae yelled in pain again as the half elf pulled him into an upright sitting position as gently as he could and supported him with a surprisingly strong arm around his back.  Shae felt sweat begin to bead across his forehead from the agony of just being moved, his eyes snapped too the even, handsome features of the golden robed half elf as the half elf’s almond shaped, glittering blue eyes settled on his swollen face again.  Shae smelt the fresh scent of the forest on the half elf along with an underlying smell of spices and old parchment.  The half elf managed a wry smile,
“Well brace yourself Warrior, I am about to help you too your feet,” he warned casually, he paused slightly then Shae felt something ice cold pressed into his hand and flinched involuntarily, his eyes slowly focussed on what was in the palm of his hand then he felt them fill with tears, he had not shed a tear since he had been forced into the dungeon, but the shiny ob
ject in his hand was threatening to ruin that, he managed to force a few rasped words out of his parched throat,
“Where did you find…..”  Shae coughed, turned away and promptly threw blood up over the dungeon floor as his stomach cramped.  The half elf let Shae fall back against him and told him in a low growl,
“I told you not to try and speak just yet Warrior, questions and such like will have to wait, you are patient I know that much.”  Shae’s eyes focussed on the glimmering pendant in his dirt covered hand, two dragons where entwined in one another, one silver and one gold, at least he knew what the clink had been and why he had not been able to ignore it.  Shae curled his fingers carefully over the pendant, he had no choice, he had to be patient, but he wanted answers, the pendant had belonged to his childhood friend, they had gone through training together, fought side by side and been more like brothers, the pendant had never left his friends neck in the whole time he had known him, only death would have parted him from the pendant.  Shae could feel the softness of what he knew where the now blood covered silk robes the half elf was wearing on his back.  The half elf’s glittering blue eyes focussed on Shae’s face again, he couldn’t see what the warrior really looked like through all the blood, swelling and dirt,
“I am well aware the pendant holds magic, I could hear it too, I am also aware what type of magic it holds, but it belongs to you,” he stated coolly, “You are lucky because that is what has bought me here and that is what has saved you from any further pain.  Now brace yourself, I want to spend no further time in this stinking, rat infested cell.”  Shae gripped the half elf’s muscular forearm around his waist and took in a deep breath, he knew standing was going to be horrendously painful, he hadn’t even attempted it for the last week or so.  The half elf stood, pulling Shae up with him as gently as he could manage.  Shae bellowed in pain, almost falling forward, but the arm around his waist held him firmly upright.  Shae let a few short breaths out, trying to combat the intense pain burning through every sinew in his body, he wanted to throw up again, but he fought the nausea down and swallowed the bile, sometimes he really wished he could black out, he knew the next stage would be trying to walk out of the dungeon, which he was glad of, but not sure if he could manage.  Shae’s eyes went to the gold material covering the half elf’s arm, it was now spattered with blood and dirt.

Clink!

Shae managed a weary smile followed by a rush of sadness as he felt the pendant vibrate coldly against his clenched fingers then he flinched involuntarily as the manacles on his wrists clicked open, followed by the heavy, metal collar and they both crashed too the stone floor, sending banging vibrations through the entire cell.  Shae let an unbidden gasp of relief escape him, it made movement a little easier, but he was aware he would not even be standing if the half elf had not been supporting him, he heard the soft, low voice by his head,
“We will walk out of here slowly Warrior, I will not have you fall on your way out when you have survived here for so long.”  Shae leaned heavily against the half elf, he had no choice, he couldn’t walk unaided and he did want to get out of the cell, out of the reach of the guards.

The half elf supported Shae too the long, elaborately paved entrance to the castle.  Shae did wonder how the half elf had persuaded the King to let him go, the King had seemed quite determined to keep him locked away until he died.  Shae tensed as he saw the giant, wooden doors of the castle open slowly and surprisingly quietly then the King walked out with his usual air of superior arrogance, Shae managed to feel angry, irritated and frustrated at the same time, he felt the muscular arm supporting him tense momentarily as the King came to a halt in front of them, trailing a string of guards and courtiers behind him.  The King looked both of them up and down with a half disgusted look on his face and spoke, his tone never losing it‘s superior tone,
“You look almost as bad as the Warrior does, the guards could have hauled him out here, I do not see why you felt the need to fetch him from the cell yourself.”  Shae felt the half-elf let a low, humourless chuckle out, it vibrated through his back as he responded slightly icily,
“I doubt very much if your guards would have bought him up here alive, you can see the state of him as well as I can.”  Shae noted that the half elf had not bothered calling the King Sire or Your Majesty, even though all the courtiers where there and the perceived lack of respect would have earned anyone else a beheading.  Shae wondered who the golden robed half elf was, annoyed that he could barely get a word out without it being accompanied by blood.  The King’s eyes narrowed slightly,
“Be careful of your tongue half breed and keep it respectful, you have only been allowed to take him because of a favour owed.”  The half elf snapped, clearly irritated,
“I am aware of that, you have no jurisdiction over me here or anywhere, you will be well aware I would have taken him regardless of  permissions and you would not have been in any position to refuse me, that must rankle with you, me being a half breed and all.”  Shae felt his head begin to swim with the combination of the fresh air and the effort to keep himself upright in spite of the support, he just stopped himself from swaying as he became aware of the King’s eyes focussed sharply on his face.  The King was clearly angry, but helpless to vent it on the half elf, Shae could not help feeling mildly grateful that he would not be on the receiving end of whatever the King decided to do about his anger.  The King hissed at him,
“You had better pray that you remain under his protection Warrior, if you think your pain could not get any worse, you would be wrong. I was just getting warmed up…..” The half elf growled, his tone spine chilling,
“You would be wise to still your tongue, he IS under my protection and I do not take kindly to people threatening my charges.”  Shae’s eyes flickered too a huge, black stallion as it trotted over to them from behind the King, eyed the now furious King with some distain and came to a graceful halt in front of them.  The horse took a look at him and snorted, it’s breath blowing on his gashed cheek,
“We will be leaving,” announced the half elf, “I have work to do with him thanks to your Guards efforts.”  Shae’s eyes fastened on the horse, he wondered how in Hell’s name he was going to manage to get onto the stallions back, the horse was massively tall and he couldn’t even stand on his own two feet, he doubted very much whether the half elf was strong enough to actually lift him clear off the ground.  Shae felt some relief when he realised the King was making his way back too his castle, courtiers and all.   Shae felt the golden robed half elf chuckled again, as if he had read his thoughts,
“Do not worry,” he muttered, his voice low.  Shae’s eyes widened as much as the purple bruising would allow them too when the stallion knelt in front of them and stayed in position quietly waiting for them to mount him.  The half elf manoeuvred Shae onto the stallions broad back as he bellowed again in agony, Shae let himself fall forward against the black mane as the half elf mounted the stallion behind him and the stallion stood, he could feel blackness at the edge of his consciousness and surprised himself by being glad, he heard the half elf’s low voice by his ear,
“You are safe enough Warrior, you can let go.” Shae let a shuddering breath out, he instinctively trusted the stranger, he had no idea why, but he had learned many years ago to trust his instincts.  Shae let the creeping blackness take him over, at least it would afford him relief from the agony he was currently in.  Shae’s hand remained tightly clenched over the pendant, he couldn’t let it go, not even when he was unconscious.

Clink!



Shae woke to feel the soft vibration of the pendant still clenched in
his hand and his whole body still painful, he kept his eyes closed until
 he felt soft blankets covering him.  Shae opened his eyes, he wondered
where he was, wherever it was it was a damn sight better than where he
had come from.  Shae sniffed, he managed a grim smile through his pain
at least he was clean, he could smell the freshness of soap.  Shae’s
eyes flicked around the bright, sunlit room the bed he was lying on was
situated in, they focussed on two people not far away from the bed as
whispering reached his ears, there was a beautiful woman dressed in sky
blue and the golden robed half elf who had just stepped away from her,
it looked as if their heads had been close together before they noticed
he had woken, they had obviously been discussing him.  Shae tried to
move cautiously and was pleasantly surprised when he found movement
easier than he had done for months.  Shae manoeuvred himself into a
sitting position slowly as the half elf walked fluidly too the side of
his bed and looked down at him, an unbidden half smile crossing his
lips,

“You have been asleep for a few days, you needed it, your body needed to
 begin to heal,” he informed Shae in is low calm voice.  The woman came
silently up behind the half elf’s broad shoulder, her luminous green
eyes focussed on Shae’s clean, but still black and blue face.  The half
elf glanced at the woman then sat elegantly down on the edge of the bed
by Shae and stated airily,

“We may as well make introductions and clear up why I felt the need to
drag you out of the Kings dungeons, I can inform you now he did not let
you go willingly.”  Shae’s eyes focussed sharply on the glittering blue
ones in the tanned face of the half elf, he nodded carefully, surprised
again when no pain accompanied the small movement, he cleared his throat
 cautiously, half expecting to taste blood,

“I want to know,” he began very slowly and not sure if his vocal cords
would work properly, “How the Hell you came by this pendant?” His deep
voice vibrated through him but no blood accompanied his speech, he
scowled, he wished he had the strength to stand, but he knew it would
bring on nausea and he had already thrown up blood once in front of the
half elf.  The half elf’s almond shaped eyes went too the pendant in
Shae’s now unclenched hand, another smile twitched on to his lips and he
 turned his head towards the woman as she stooped towards him, he
whispered something in her ear and she walked towards the door
silently.  Shae’s eyes followed the beautiful woman, it had been a long
time since he had seen a woman anywhere near as beautiful as she was and
 at least she was human, at least he thought she was human.