ROYALLY UNFAIR .

FOURTEEN - CARTS AND CANNIBALS

fourteen . carts and cannibals .

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Taehyung felt a chill run down his spine at what was clearly Pixie's high-pitched scream, the air thick with tension now. Before he could react, Jordan had already begun to run, pushing all the air out of her lungs to shout Pixie's name as loudly as she could.

"Shit," he muttered and ran after Jordan, far slower than normal because of the cushioning caused by the snow. Jordan ran surprisingly fast considering how short her legs were and once they'd entered a nearby woodland, she was becoming increasingly difficult to keep in sight. "Pixie!" Taehyung began shouting himself, Jeongguk, who was not far behind, joining in. The sudden deafening whinny of a horse silenced their shouts and Taehyung froze mid-run, eyes wide, "Did you-That can't be a normal horse."

Jeongguk frowned, stopping in his own stride. His own eyes widened and his head snapped around, searching, "Where did Jordan go?" He whispered, immediately letting out frustrated groan, "I can't believe this. Jordan!" He shouted.

"Wait-" Taehyung clasped his hand over Jeongguk's mouth to stop him shouting, listening intently. "Hear that?" He whispered. Only just audible was the sound of a woman's indistinct shouts. What was obvious though, was that she was shouting for help.

Jeongguk was off as soon as he had heard the voice, tailed by Taehyung. They weren't running for long before both of them were grabbed, their feet skidding against the ground. Two large hands, hoisted the two men up like ragdolls and just as their mouths opened to shout, their heads were knocked together with such brutality they were instantly out cold.

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"You bastard!" Jordan growled, hitting the wood with both closed fists, the movements causing the rope around her wrists to rub painfully against her skin. She received a laugh in response.

Pixie sighed loudly, "God. We need Taehyung and Jeongguk to wake the hell up so we can try to get out of here," She mumbled, looking at the boys in desperation, hoping their subconscious could somehow hear her.

The four had been thrown into the back of a closed cart, just tall enough for Pixie to sit up without her head hitting against the roof. Taehyung was lying uncomfortably over her, his head resting awkwardly on her shoulder and slipping dangerously downwwards with each bump the cart passed over. Jeongguk's head rested on Jordan's lap. Jordan's ankles were tied to Pixie's and Jeongguk's to Taehyung's, with a knot so tight Pixie worried if her feet were getting enough blood.

"I think he's going to eat us," Jordan whispered, her voice shaking out of genuine fear, "he looks like a cannibal."

Pixie gave her a weak smile, "I'm sure-"

She was interrupted by the vehement sound of a horse – the one that pulled the cart. Pixie had caught a glimpse of it just before she had been thrown into the cart, while her screams for help were being muffled by a freakishly large hand over her mouth. It was far bigger than any horse she had ever seen, but just as docile looking. Its neighs gave off the opposite impression, however – a loud, ear-splitting sound which caused vibrations in the cart. Jordan squeezed her eyes shit and she coughed as soon as the horse had quietened down to make sure she hadn't just lost the ability to hear.

The horse's noises seemed to disturb Taehyung's slumber and the boy smacked his lips, mumbling incoherently. His head slipped off Pixie's shoulders and onto her chest, Pixie immediately squealing, "Taehyung! Get off!"

Taehyung's head jerked upwards at her squeal, eyes shooting open, "What?" He grumbled, eyebrows furrowed as he met her eyes, their faces inches away.