The once spinning world seemed to slam to a halt as Ilyana and Baron stood across from each other in that dimly lit hallway. His eyes felt as if they were melting her own, she could see the swirling flames of emotions that shone within them. She knew how much the man before her had to despise her now, the Queen was family to him. If only he knew the truth. There was no point in it anymore, from the look in his mesmerizing gaze, this man she once knew did not come here to rescue her and bring her to safety, it was clear he had come to escort her to her death. Ilyana was too weak at that moment to even try and fight, to try and run for the open door at the end of the hall. Her sharp thinking mind, though deathly exhausted, had already started to think of a plan, an escape. Ever since the few weeks before her attack, her mind, body and soul had been in a perpetual fight or flight mode. Even in this moment, as her body seemed to be nothing but dust, her nerves felt like lightning, ready for anything to come her way. The sweet and caring Ilyana everyone once knew was murdered as well the day her father died.

As soon as Baron had arrived, he had left, his footsteps hastily echoing down the corridor before disappearing outside the walls. The guard who had watched over Ilyana handed the men her belongings even though it was nothing. A simple brown leather satchel, a few knick knacks inside but nothing of extreme importance. They gave her back her shoes, a pair of worn black boots, slipping it onto her sore feet before leading her up the stairs and to the world she had been hidden from.

Immediately the little bit of light from the falling sun invaded her eyes, causing her to harshly close them and look away. The rays felt like fire across her pale skin, her body had grown so used to the darkness and cold. After a moment she let her eyes flicker open once more, squinting softly at first as her eyes adjusted once more to the welcoming sight. It slightly felt as if a weight had been lifted from her chest and she could breath, but only slightly. She knew that even though she would once again see the light of day, it would not be for long. The guards did not let her stand long before they pulled her towards Baron’s steed, helping her onto the mount before they were to ride towards the camp. One guard stayed beside her, leading the horse as she was shackled by her wrists, the cold metal sitting upon the cuts and bruises they had already left.

Ilyana was quiet as they rode, her eyes heavy as they followed the trail of hoofprints and footsteps through the outskirts of the walls. Though she seemed calm, her mind was preparing, plotting. How many men did Baron have with him? How could she get these shackles off of herself? How could she get a weapon? Her find could not think of nationality, it could only think of escaping, to get as far as she could. She knew she would have to wait a few days. To find their patterns, rotations, anything she could learn and find a loophole. She was not going to just give up.

The calm presence she held upon that horse did not last long when she was dismounted at camp. Men began to flood in to see the famous assassin, their eyes all gazing upon her with anger, hatred, disgust. Everything. It felt as if the ocean was closing in on her, surrounded by all angles by armoured men. Her heart began to speed up, the amount of eyes on her causing her chest to tighten. Thud. The feeling of anxiety vanished as her body was pushed to the ground, her shackled hands having no time to react and catch herself. Baron had not returned, so a younger man felt as if this was a good time to display the vile creature that had fallen before his feet.

The blonde haired man lifted Ilyana back up, his lips turned into a curl as he held her sharply by her shoulder.

“Behold men, the royal assassin”

His voice echoed over the crowd, clear disgust lacing his tongue as he shoved her forward towards the center of the crowd.

“Who is ready to bring her back home and watch her pretty little head roll, to watch her body hang from the gallows.”
He sneered, spinning her to face him as his eyes looked her form up and down, Ilyana moving her shoulder to fix the thin slip that shielded her body.

“Though there’s not much left to look at”

The man said in a quieter tone as his devilish smile grew. Fire burned in her chest at his words, at the way his eyes scoured her body. Flight had fallen, Fight had taken over. Ilyana’s brows furrowed, her eyes darkening into a deadly vast pit. She bucked forward at the man, spitting at him. He stepped back, growling as he went to wipe his eyes, though that was the mistake she wanted him to make. As he did so, Ilyana quickly moved forward and slipped behind him, slipping her arms over him so the shackles pressed first against his throat, strangling him.
“You are a dead man”

She seemed to growl as she struggled against his weight, she was strong but not as much as she used to be. Guards moved forward quickly, trying to pull her body off of the blond man as he fell to his knees. Her eyes stayed locked on him, her sights set. But soon the exhaustion would take hold once more, her grip faltering as she was dragged off of the man, thrown to the dirt before being pinned down. Her eyes stayed locked on to him as her chest heaved, her limbs now weakened from the struggle.

Baron Streiler

Cerus arrived not too long after Baron’s guards and Ilyana started their ride on horseback to the camp.

The dragon had landed quietly outside of Dagon’s stone walls in a gathering of trees- oaks as they appeared- as she awaited the man who arrived not minutes later. Baron had slipped himself into the dark leather saddle strapped to the dark creature's back with practiced ease, his form pressing forward in the seat to make take-off easier for Cerus. The suddenness of the airborne that occurred as Cerus pushed off of the earth and through the dense trees earned Baron a few small scratches to the face from the twigs that flew past him. Silence stretched between Cerus and Baron for the first few moments of flight- allowing the young man to ponder what the hell had just happened at the prison. The way the realization had crossed Ilyana’s features as soon as she laid eyes on the man she had destroyed had been too much…

“Executioner.”

A familiar voice addressed the man through his head as his attention drew to the creature he was riding upon, stiffening ever so slightly. She was going to make him talk. Gods…

“The assassin was taken to the camp along with Commander Riordan and Lesseli Kite. They are more than capable of catching her if she attempts anything.”

There was a stretch of silence between the two of them and Baron could feel himself holding a breath. The dragon was the one to break the silence, her voice careful- almost hesitant, her words considerate.

“And did the girl look alright?”

Baron swallowed, forcing himself to speak against the emotions he dared his face to express.

“As alright as you’d expect for a woman who’s been confined to a singular dark cellar for months to look…”

He paused and when there was no response he added,

“She was provided with new clothing. The men were ordered to supply her with food and drink as soon as they arrived at camp.”

There was a small sound that came from deep in the creature's throat,

“Hm.”

Baron nodded, his back straightening as his eyes kept themselves trained on the fields upon fields of green ahead of them. The rest of the flight- only a few couple of minutes- was quiet, aside from the continuous whipping of air against the ears of Baron. The camp came into view only after Cerus had flown over the cover of trees, a widespread clearing with tents and dimly lit flames littering its appearance. Baron’s dragon had noticed anything before he had quickly followed, his gaze following her swiveled head as they circled a few hundred feet from the ground. Men gathered around what looked to be the entrance of the camp, creating a circle formation around what looked strangely like… Baron’s brows furrowed briefly at the head of long brown locks on the earth below. Well, shit.

“Exactly what I was thinking.”

Cerus’s wings folded to her sides as the two descended at high speeds, wind ruffling Baron’s dark hair as the dragon's wings opened to slow their descent as they neared the ground- landing feet away from the circle of soldiers. It didn’t take long before heads were turning and the murmurers among the men began, their bodies shifting uncomfortably as both the dragon’s and Baron’s eyes scanned over them. They landed on the pair in the middle of the formation, and Baron stiffened at whom he saw pinned there and by whom he saw pinning her. The low, rumbling growl emitted from the giant beast as she took a step towards the scene- her jaws curling back to show off the blades that lay there as teeth. The blond soldier must have finally recognized that he had been caught in the act of… whatever the hell this was, jumping to his feet and releasing the woman under him’s wrists while the crowd of men around them seemed to spread out, going back carefully to attend to their duties. Baron's eyes slid slowly from Ilyana’s form, bringing them to level with the man now standing by her side.

“Lieutenant Harkins, you are to report to my tent immediately…”

The blonde young man spent no time lollygagging, nodding once before turning on his heel and heading off in the direction that Baron could only place as his own sleeping quarters. The man’s shoulders squared as his attention drew back to her. His amber gaze narrowed faintly but the rest of his face revealed nothing as he took in her disheveled appearance. She had putten up a fight… That wasn't a surprise, he was well aware of the mindset of not going down without a fight. Something he related to far more than he’d like to admit. His gaze flicked back to Ilyana’s, jaw setting as his mouth opened to speak, his tone deep and distant as he spoke.

“As it is obvious that you can’t seem to keep your hands off of my soldiers, Cerus will be keeping an eye on you tonight.”

He held her gaze for a moment longer before blinking, turning to follow the direction of where the blonde man had headed off to make eye contact with the dragon, giving her a small nod before continuing his brisk pace.

Baron’s tent was larger than the smaller ones surrounding it, the Tyrisian flag waving at the top peak of the structure catching the man’s eye before he spread the flaps of fabric to enter. The blonde soldier from earlier stood admiring the suit of armor that stood in the corner of the tent, whirling around when Baron’s footsteps became audible. The dark-haired executioner made his way to the wooden cabinet that sat to his right, briefly glancing at the other man before opening it to reveal some of Tyris’s finest alcohol- pouring himself a shot glass and setting it to the table at his side before turning to the guard, a perfectly sculpted brow raised in question.

“Vodka?”

When the man’s eyes flickered from the crystal glass on the table and back to Baron, he shook his head quickly- causing the executioner to place the bottle back in the wooden cabinet and lock it before leaning against the table at his side, picking up the glass and swirling the drink inside it around.

“Attempting to cause harm to an unarmed prisoner of The King is low. Even for you, Lieutenant Harkins.”

Said lieutenant’s eyes widened quickly as he opened his mouth to speak. However, Baron’s hand raised- silencing the man as he continued on.

“It is against the King's wishes for any harm to come to the woman before reaching Tyris and even then, the only harm that will come to her will be by my hand or the King’s himself.”

The Luietanant audibly swallowed and Baron continued.

“I should have had Cerus roast you alive as soon as we landed… but I thought otherwise when I reasoned that it may be more effective to speak with you instead.”

That way he didn’t need to lose an important addition to his fleet… that would be a waste. Baron’s gaze grew hard, his words darkening as he took a step forward.

“This is the rest of the men’s and your final and only warning you will be receiving from me on this subject, so I suggest you listen very carefully, Lieutenant. You will not lay a finger on the assassin that will accompany us back to the palace. Not unless you wish your head to accompany the marble floors of the palace before hers even gets the chance to. Do I make myself clear or will you make me repeat myself?”

His voice was poison. It was deadly. And all the guard could do was nod.