Excalibur {Complete}

16

When I woke up, it was dark and gloomy around me. It smelt musky in the room I was in as well. With a pounding headache, I tried to see through the darkness. Slowly my gaze adjusted to the area and I could make out shapes and things around me. Moving, I lifted myself up and found that my hands had been tied before me. Grimacing, I gave a deep frown as I sat up using my abs. How many times am I going to get my ass kidnapped I swear...

"Valkyrie?"

I took in a sharp breath and turned around. Behind me there was someone leaning up against the wall. I shuffled around so that I could face them, falling forward on my hands so that I could sort of crawl toward the voice that I had recognized instantly. When I got close enough I let out a soft cry of fear and sorrow. Tristan's face was bleeding from a deep cut across his cheekbone, his lip was split open and there were cuts along his arms and chest.

Leaning forward I pressed my face against his other shoulder that didn't look injured. At least I thought it wasn't until Tristan groaned in pain and I immediately pulled away from him with a gasp. Reaching up with my tied hands, I gingerly touched his face brushing my fingers across that strong jaw line. It was hard not to start crying as I knelt there.

"Tristan... What... What happened?"

"Ambushed," he answered softly, he sounded so tired and in so much pain. That sound alone crushed my heart, it hurt so much to hear him like that. My breath hitched as I struggled to keep from crying. I let out a sharp breath as I hung my head. My fingers dropped from his jaw down to his chest where I curled my fingers in his ruined shirt.

"A-and Zak?"

"Here, unconscious, I think."

I glanced around, trying to find where Zak was. I found him a moment later, sprawled out across the floor on our right. I moved slowly over to him, crawling on my hands and knees. It was awkward with my hands tied up as they were. When I got near Zak, I pulled myself up and rested my hands on his chest. I couldn't exactly reach out and touch his neck the way my hands were tied up, so I settled with resting on him and waiting to see if his chest rose and fell. It took a moment but I felt his breathing, it was slow and shallow.

I looked up from Zak's body over to Tristan who was propped up against the wall. Crawling back over to him, I positioned myself right next to his side and was careful not to lean on him too much though I wanted to touch him so badly.

"How is he?" Tristan's voice was soft and slow as he asked me the question.

"Alive, breathing slow, but fine as far as I can tell, but I'm not a doctor."

Tristan nodded slowly, "I know."

"Who ambushed you?" my throat was dry as I asked the question. I was pretty sure I knew the answer to that already, but I suppose I had to make sure. I was hopeful that it was some other asshole that had caught us, then again from what I remember when I was attacked, I knew it wasn't so.

Tristan laughed lightly, a short, strained sound that made me wince as I reached out to touch his arm gently, "Who do you think?"

I frowned, "Alik... I know. I shouldn't have asked."

"It's all right. Not your fault, Valkyrie."

"Try not to move too much, you're hurt so badly," I said softly, shifting against him. I eyed his body as he tilted his head back against the wall. Both of his arms were behind his back and probably tied there tightly. It was a little too dark to see exactly where all his wounds were, but his arms were bloody just as his chest and stomach were. I found myself biting my lip in nervousness.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," he said gently and stretched forward a bit to press his lips against my cheek softly.

Shaking my head, his kiss seemed to be the switch to my hot, salty tears. With a shaking breath I gazed at him, my lips trembling as I sat there feeling utterly useless. I couldn't believe the feeling of helplessness that coursed through me. It hurt worse than the time I had been Alik's captive and slave to his drugs and being raped. It was worse because it was Tristan who was in pain and not myself and there was nothing I could do to help him. In light of that, I couldn't stop crying.