The cold stone wall bit into Kai's back as he slowly stirred. Pain swam just beneath the surface of consciousness, dull, throbbing. His wrists were numb, chained overhead. His feet slightly lifted, but still touching the ground, chained together.
'Should've just annihilated them with my army. Next time, losses or not, I'll win.'
Then came the footsteps.
Slow. Heavy. Full of purpose and loathing.
But it wasn't the sound that brought him fully back.
It was the voice.
"What did you do with the princess's body!?"
A sharp crack tore across his cheek. Pain bloomed, and he felt his head snap to the side. His teeth tore the inside of his mouth. Blood pooled on his tongue.
He spat a gob of it onto the stone floor.
The first thing he woke up to was violence.
'Typical.'
