Gorgoroth (Haladras #2)

TWELVE

Skylar tried everything he could think of to break free of his enclosure. The only thing he succeeded in breaking was his will to escape. All he wanted now was to die. A coffin was twice the size of the cramped confines that held him bound, and surely just as dark.

Shouting for help had done him no good. His voice gave out on him long ago. Kicking had only bruised his heals beyond feeling. He vaguely wondered if he'd ever be able to walk, should he manage to free himself. His hands were likewise bruised and bloodied from beating on the walls of his enclosure. Whatever pain he felt in his voice, feet, or hands, was consumed in agony from being cramped for so long. His back and legs burned with pain-ached for but a moment's reprieve.

He had no idea how long he'd been imprisoned in his torture box. Every minute passed with the most merciless crawl. A whole day must have gone by. A whole day, trapped in that awful state, unable to see or hear anything of his companions. Scarcely able to move.

The hours crept by.

At last, muffled noises came from somewhere outside his box. He perked up his ears, and held his breath. There were voices. But he couldn't make out what they were saying. Then there was a loud bang on the side of his enclosure, followed by metallic scraping sounds along the sides and top. For a moment his heart gave way to the hope that someone was trying to rescue him. He kept quiet, so as not to jeopardize his rescuer being captured. For a while, he heard nothing more. Perhaps, this rescuer sensed danger, and fled the scene. Who could he be?

Without warning, his enclosure jerked to one side, bashing his head against an enclosure wall. He grimaced and rubbed the knot he already felt forming on his temple. Before he could recover, the enclosure rocked again, to the other side. Then he felt himself being lifted off the ground.

Skylar pressed his hands against the sides of his enclosure. He felt vulnerable-uncertain who was moving him, how high he was, or even was held him aloft. If the enclosure fell...

A loud thud and a shutter echoed around him as the enclosure collided with something. What was going on out there? If someone was trying to rescue him, he had an odd way of going about. Why doesn't he just open the crate?

Another jolt. Skylar felt his stomach lurch. He was falling. No sooner had gravity taken over, than the enclosure crashed with something beneath it, and Skylar's head struck the enclosure's bottom.

He's trying to kill me!

Skylar waited anxiously to see what would happen next. A few more muffled voices reached his ears. Nothing intelligible. Were there two voices he heard? The voices stopped talking before he could determine how many there were. Something slammed shut, like a door or a hatch. Then all went quite for a long while.

A roar like the sounds of an engine, followed by a rumbling of his enclosure, suddenly gave credence to the fear he'd tried to suppress. This was no rescue. It was a kidnapping. That sound he heard-he felt almost certain-came from a ship's thrusters. A ship containing his crate. Containing him. A ship bound for where and for what intent? Were Endrick and Grüny on the same ship?

He tried to force himself to stay calm and think. Perhaps he was mistaken.

The sound of the engine grew louder. The rumbling grew in intensity, until it shook so violently, Skylar had not doubt.

He was on a ship. A ship departing Oon Vunda.

He felt the g-force strain on his body as the ship blasted off the ground and rocketed into the sky. The force was less than what he had felt on the Luna. He wondered if this ship was larger than Grüny's old ship. It didn't matter, though. Either way, the ship belonged to his captors.