"This isn't right! Let me go!" Haylee screamed, thrashing about in the arms of the head guard while he dragged her off towards the holding cells.
"I'm sorry miss," he sighed. "But I have to follow my Captain's orders." He explained, clicking open the door to the cell while Haylee panicked at the sight of the hanging chains.
"Come with me," she said quickly, hearing the chaos that erupted overheard. Roars of anger and strikes of thunder shook the ship while she spoke. "Join us." She mumbled, looking up into the guard's eyes with a pleading expression.
"I don't know if I can. Your crew will be slaughtered by Avon." He replied, looking down towards the floor and leaving Haylee with a valid escape. Within a moment she thrust her arms down and freed her wrists from his grasp, before pushing him back and taking a few steps away.
"Don't stop me," she said, turning towards the door as she picked up her pace and began racing towards the closest exit. As soon as her hand landed on the strong wooden door though, a bullet pierced the wall directly next to her head.
"You can't leave! At least you will be safe if you stay in here. If you leave, then Avon will kill you!" The guard argued, only trying to scare her into staying.
"If my crew dies, then I go down with them." She said confidently, pulling open the door as she quickly slipped out and slammed it closed behind herself. Looking around, she spotted some heavy barrels nearby, and after struggling with one for many moments, she managed to lodge it under the door handle. Thankfully, she did it just in time, as the guard had only just decided to follow her.
"What the- let me out!!" He yelled, banging his fist furiously against the door.
"You're safer in there. If you come out then Madison will kill you." She smirked, turning and running away while the guard was left in a state of utter confusion. He knew that he had heard that name somewhere before, but he couldn't quite understand where exactly it had come from.
Chaos ensued throughout the ship, as Haylee continued to search endlessly for an escape, while Elez was left searching the ship on his own. The boy had snuck off long ago in an attempt to find the healing source, but so far he had encountered no luck at all. Every room was either empty or full of sleeping soldiers and booze. So far, he had found nothing close to a healer, and was beginning to doubt that it even existed.
Three more rooms were discovered to be empty, before Elez finally turned to a locked oak door. After a few moments of crafting a suitable lock pick, the boy began breaking into the private room, only to hear chains rustle as soon as he clicked open the lock. Immediately, he froze and considered his options. Either there was a beast inside which could instantly rip him apart, or there was something helpless which the crew was holding captive. Either way, after a long moment of hesitation, Elez opened the door in order to peek inside.
Darkness filled his vision, while the thick scent of blood consumed the entire room. Elez winced and gagged at the awful smell, before creaking open the door in order to allow the light of the hallway to quickly seep inside. Now that the light had entered, Elez could look forwards and see a vast room filled with shelves and bookcases. Atop the shelves, there were bottles of liquid sitting idly in the dust, and filling every bookcase was files and research documents.
"Hello?" Elez called out, mindful to keep his voice low while he searched, stepping around the crowded room in search of the shaking chains he had heard before.
"I'm sorry… Please… I'm sorry," a voice muttered, leading Elez towards the sound as he snuck through the small gap between two bookcases. Naturally, his wings got stuck halfway through, but after some careful wiggling he managed to slip through and stumble into the back section of the room.
There lay a single bed pushed lazily against the back wall, one which was dry with droplets of blood and tears. But Elez stared at the item for less than a few moments, instead his eyes turned up towards the boy who was chained down atop it, his wrists sore from the restraints while tubes fell from the incisions in his sides. He was being restrained like an animal, and sapped of his magic as though he was nothing more than an object.
He had pastel violet hair and deep crimson eyes, with a tall but weak body build. The boy had clearly been neglected and ignored for many days, and was barely holding on with what little magic he could keep for himself. Blood covered his tattered clothes, while his pale skin remained red with blisters and cuts.
"Hey, hey, it's ok, I'll get you out." Elez said quickly, rushing to the boy's side as his hands shakily ran over the tubes, before he began slowly removing them and bandaging over the wounds. Jade's eyes turned to look at him in fear and confusion, while his body was frozen from pain and shock.
"S-stop. Stop. You'll die." He cried, afraid that someone might see what Elez was doing.
"Don't worry about me," Elez smiled, clipping on the last few attachments to his gauntlets before reaching down towards the chains and effortlessly snapping them off. "Come on, let's get out of here." He said, holding out a hand for the boy to take, but his arms were too weak and shaky to even lift. Without hesitation, Elez leaned down and lifted the boy into his arms, and despite their similar height and age, he was light and easy to carry.
"I can't… I can't escape… It's impossible…" Jade muttered, his eyes falling closed from tiredness and the comfort of Elez's arms.
"That's why you have me to help." Elez replied, holding the boy close while he looked around the potion filled room. "What is this place?" He mumbled.
"Healing… healing room," Jade replied, resting his head against Elez's chest while the angel boy wrapped his wings around them both and kept the boy safe and warm.
"Healing room, perfect." Elez smiled, using his wings to support Jade while he reached out with one hand and slipped dozens of potions into his satchel. His eyes wandered over the documents and papers, but he left them behind in favour of more healing.
After a minute or two of looting, Elez clipped his satchel closed and wrapped his arm back around the now sleeping boy, before slipping out into the dim hallway and sneaking around in an attempt to find an exit. He had got what he had come for, now all he had to do was escape.