The Awkwardest Victim

As I've said before I'm used to being kidnapped for me, but its rare for me to be kidnapped for someone else. I felt out of sorts, unable to figure out my place in this whole scheme. Would they threaten me to get to Val (laughable but they didn't know that)? Should I just get out since shackles can't hold me and these guys weren't involved with the death magic? But that would put Val in a bad situation and maybe these guys just were throwing a really weird surprise party (and boy would that be awkward to kill them in that case). So I was basically trapped until Val was returned, which meant I had to try and awkwardly make conversation with the muscle who didn't talk to me at all.

Like I would try and get him to talk about something, anything, but he just sat there and grunted occasionally. No outright threat to shut me up, or put me in a hurt or anything. Just sat there and existed. That actually told me a lot, it told me A. These guys were planning on killing us, because they had the masks off so we could see who they were. B. This guy was intending on specifically killing me, because he didn't want to humanize me before he had to kill me. C. He was a terrible conversationalist.

So I sat with my would be murderer waiting for Valrym to return and plotted his demise. Thanks to shackles not actually working on me any longer I was able to work all the necromancy I required, he was dead when I wanted him to be and I knew that, even if he didn't. It actually made my conversation attempts with him charming in retrospect, him feeling all smugly in charge not saying anything all the while he was a farts whisper away from having the life sucked out of him like so much Saturday morning garbage. Eventually Valrym was returned to me, he had a closed up eye on the right side and would probably have more facial bruises showing in a few hours.

"They are going to kill us you know that right Trezlan." Valrym had a resignation to his voice, the kind that told me he had given up.

"Oh they'll try, several hundred have over the years Val, but they'll fail, they always do." Through his one good eye he gave me a skeptical look but I was confident, because I'm always totally confident... Yep that's me Mr. Confident... Look just turn the page already ok...