Gone (Previously the Fan-Fiction There and Gone Again)

Chapter 4: An Uncomfortable Meeting

Kyna wasn't sure how much time had passed in the small cell that had become her new home. Little natural daylight traveled to this depth of the caverns, and she found herself in the company of the same dim lantern light, no matter the time. Sometimes she slept, passing in and out of restless and troubling dreams. She saw the hospital, her apartment, and the faces of her friends in those dreams, but each time she awoke, she was reminded of her whereabouts, and her grave situation.

She was not completely forgotten down in the dungeon. Twice a day, an elven woman would push food and water through the bars to her. Kyna had tried many times to speak to the woman, but she had kept silent, leaving as soon as she pushed the food into Kyna's cell. Once a day she was permitted a basin of warm water to wash with, and she did her very best to stay clean. Her scrubs had seen better days, and she yearned for a change of clean clothing and a real bath.

"You know," Kyna muttered to herself in the silence of her cell. "I thought it would be a lot more fun to end up in a different world. A little more, 'Let's go on an adventure!' and less 'Let's lock you up in the dungeon.'" She shifted, her back pressed against the cold stone of the floor. At least it was smooth and not jagged.

Lorayon was right, they had treated her reasonably well, but the fact remained that she was here against her will and had done nothing wrong. He had not returned since, and she had heard nothing from the elf King himself.

"I guess I'm just supposed to rot here," she spoke into the darkness, exhaling heavily. "Because apparently, it's a crime to be found injured on the forest floor, unarmed, and with no food or water. If that's my charge, then I'm guilty as hell."

She was not expecting an answer.

"I've always found it amusing how humans will talk to the darkness that surrounds them," a voice echoed through the bars of her cell.

Kyna lifted her head from the cell floor, looking towards the door.

Only the faintest shuffling of fabric alerted Kyna to the figure that stood at the doorway. Her eyes fell on sage fabric inlaid with threads of silver that fell sumptuously around booted feet. As her gaze traveled upwards, following the folds of the fine fabric, she realized who was standing before her.

"Shit!" she cursed, shuffling until she was upright with her back against the far wall. Her eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat.

"I cannot tell from this distance if it is guilt written on your face or if it is fear." The elf king's voice was like silk on glass, slipping between the cell bars like a cool breeze.

Einar turned his head to the side, viewing her out of the corner of his eye. He interlaced his ring encircled fingers at his waist, one thumb tapping against the other. After a great moment of silence, he turned to face her fully, pale blue eyes twinkling in the lantern light.

Kyna couldn't take her eyes off him. The book surely didn't do him justice. Nothing could have prepared her for the man she gazed upon. His face was crafted of smooth, yet strong lines, and stretches of long blonde hair rested on his shoulders like strands of spun silk. Words could not do the Elven lord justice. She could see his relation to Lorayon, but the elf king's eyes held the weight of time that his son's had not yet shown.

"Come here," he spoke into the silence between him.

Kyna stood slowly, reluctant to leave the shadows that obscured her from his penetrating gaze. She knew it was in her best interests to cooperate, as spending the rest of her life in prison was not on her bucket list. She did her best to smooth out her dirty clothing.

"Do not worry about your appearance," Einar coaxed. "You have greater things to be concerned about."

Kyna stepped up to the bars of the cell, the light from the lanterns illuminating her face. The ice of her blue eyes glimmered, and she stared at him defiantly.

"Why throw me in here?" She hissed, gripping a bar tightly with a hand. "I've done nothing wrong."

Einar stepped closer to the bars, inspecting Kyna.

"Bypassing my patrols and getting this close to my kingdom is anything but 'nothing wrong'," he spoke coolly, his jaw clenching slightly. "In fact, it is of great concern. Do you have a name?"

"My name is Kyna," she answered, resting her head against the cold bars.

"How did you get here?" His strangely luminescent eyes watched her with interest.

Kyna knew she had to choose her words carefully. Her fate was already teetering on the edge of a precipice she did not want to go over. She had to tell the truth, but not give him any reason to think she was insane.

"I was traveling home," she started, averting her eyes. His gaze easily disarmed her, and it was paramount that she keep her story straight. "I'm a healer in my village and was up all night healing a man. While I was heading home-"

"You are a terrible liar," Einar interrupted her, the faintest smirk playing on his lips as he reached out to grasp her chin through the bars. "I have lived for a very long time, Kyna." Her name rolled off his tongue with ease. "Do not think me so easily fooled."

"It's the truth, dammit! I mean you and your kingdom no harm!" Kyna's jaw clenched. It was the truth, well, almost the truth. Dammit, that sounded like bullshit of the finest. Good job, Kyna. Nice work.

Einar's touch was smooth on her chin, and she could feel the pressure of his fingers increasing ever so slightly. He moved close enough to her she could pick up the faintest scent of cedar wood on him. His gaze was unrelenting as he studied her, seeing through any facade she had tried to raise.

"It may be based in the faintest of truth," he elaborated, his voice so cold she could almost feel the ice in his breath, "but you are being anything but honest." He slowly wiped away a smudge of dirt from her jawline with a finger before releasing her. "Are you a threat?" he mused softly as he stood back to regard her. "I don't think you are, but caution is warranted. I shall release you from this place."

"Thank you," Kyna breathed, falling to her knees in relief.

Einar tilted his head.

"Do not mistake this for an act of kindness," he said with indifference. "You are to remain in my kingdom under close watch until I find out exactly who you are and why you are here. Lorayon mentioned you had medical skills. You can put them to use." He paused and looked at her once more, drawing his steely gaze over her. "And, I will find out the truth, Kyna."

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