Civil Twilight

Chapter 1

Darkness. Each bump and lurch sent her into another tizzy of agony and misery. As Lyllian slowly opened her eyes, she could see last rays of the sun were sneaking through the cracks, shedding light on her small prison. She lifted a hand to her forehead, feeling a painful lump just above her right temple. She attempted to sit up when an intense pain ripped through her skull; holding her head in agony, she waited for the throbbing to subside as the sound of her heart pulsated in her ears. She stared at the floor trying to take in what had happened.

Knowing that her captures would take anything they deemed of value, she reached up for her necklace almost in a panic. Relief washed over her as she found it still safely tucked under her dress. Hugh had been given strict instructions she was never to take it off and assured her it would bring her luck. The unusual amber trinket had been a generous gift from Hugh which she treasured greatly. Realizing what had occurred she began to sob uncontrollably; she felt forlorn and lost. She tried to calm herself as each shuddering breath caused searing pain in her head, but no matter how hard she struggled she was unable to. Eventually she was able to compose herself but she couldn’t shake the lingering feeling of dread that knotted in her stomach. 

She let out a deep breath and then tried in vain to see past her small cage, but wasn’t able to see enough to get a sense of where she was. Time seemed to drag on for an eternity, the rhythmic motions of the carriage occasionally giving way to sudden jarring motions. The intense throbbing gradually gave way to a dull unrelenting ache.

Light eventually gave way to darkness. She was offered a brief reprieve from her prison and provisions that were nothing more than leftover scraps that smelled half rotten. She refused to eat it, her hunger having not won out quite yet. A few of the men eyed her in a way which made her uncomfortable, their looks obviously hungering for something more than just the food in their bellies. A tall, lanky man came walking towards her, “Get back, bunch of f***ing blathering buffoons. Last thing we need is one of you pathetic fools to damage our latest acquisition.”


Lyllian should have felt grateful, but somehow his words sent a chord of fear ripping through her. “We sorry Juslye,” came a voice from a short, squat man, “You know us, we don’t see young girls much,” he said licking his lips as he eyed her.

“I understand Henry, but you can have all the whores you want when we fetch a decent price for her,” he reached out to touch her hair, “She should fetch a decent amount, if we play our cards right.”

Lyllian tried to back away, but found herself corned next to the carriage and was she was forced to endure him. Looking at her like a hungry animal, he noticed something that caught his eye and his hands wandered from her locks to the thin chain around her neck. Putting one finger underneath it, he gently pulled it out of her dress to examine what was attached to the cord. Alarmed, she grabbed the amber amulet in her fist determined not to lose it; however, Juslye was stronger than her and eventually wretched it out of her hands, “Give that back!” she spat with anger attempting to retrieve her precious gift.

Juslye merely shoved her to the ground and continued examining the unusual trinket, “We should be able to get a decent amount for this as well,” he seemed captivated with the remarkable charm.

“No, I need my necklace back, please don’t take my necklace!” she pleaded and begged, her face wet with tears. He ignored her and turned his attentions to the eagerly awaiting mob, “I highly suggest that you blaggards keep to yourselves; should you spoil our booty, you will be sorry.”

A hush fell over the crowd, and more than one face looked disappointed. Lyllian was soon forced into her box once again and as the door shut she began to sob, having lost her most precious possession, her world was now completely devoid now of any hope.



**Author's Notes**
I've tried to resolve the spacing issue but for some reason writing.com doesn't want to preserve my spacing like I asked it to.

Originally this was chapter 6…I decided there was actually too much information, much of which was boring, so I cut out the first 5 chapters. Nixing out the boring stuff, I decided to jump right into the start of the story: Lyllian’s beginning of her new life. What this meant was I cut out a huge amount of back story that I’m going to try and fill in later on as I go. I tried not to drag out the scenes too much, just wanted to highlight on them a little so we could move onto the meat and potatoes.