"I think you're lying to me," says Dugu with a smile, "but you will not have to feign madness for long. The horrors Zhan-Ukhel will visit upon you when we deliver you to him will surely make you lose your mind. For now, though, I think I have heard enough from you. I have agreed to deliver you to my master alive, but he didn't specify you had to be completely intact—perhaps it's time I gave you something more immediate to worry about."
He signals for two of his followers, who run forward and unlock the cage before dragging you out onto the muddy ground. Dugu reaches down and pulls you to your feet with one hand before delivering a savage punch to your stomach with the other. He shoves you backward, and you stagger and collapse on the ground a few feet away, winded, the laughter of Dugu's guards echoing in your ears.
"Svarog," you mutter, "if you're going to help me, do it now."
As Dugu steps forward, a wind picks up, disturbing the branches of the trees above you.
It is accompanied by a dull, thudding sound that you feel as much as hear, a sound that seems to come from deep within the earth and makes even the hulking bandit leader stop and listen.
Next