Nieve wasn't sure what woke her; perhaps it was just the feeling of wrongness that being in such an entirely different environment caused, even in her sleep. Regardless, she suddenly found herself stirring awake. Her mind felt thick and hazy, and she smacked her lips a few times, her mouth dry.
As she blinked her eyes open, she realized she couldn't see anything. Unease filtered through her mind as she struggled to wake up properly; rarely if ever did she find herself in such total blackness, and her tent always had some sort of light filtering through it.
Nieve made to sit up, but her body was heavy, and moving was made all the more difficult with her hands restrained firmly behind her back. She only succeeded in rolling slightly to the side. Wait, her hands were bound? The shock of panic that raced through her was enough to give herself the jolt she needed to shake off much of her sluggishness.
Blinking more intensely, Nieve realized she was blindfolded as well, hence the lack of vision. She tugged uselessly at her wrists as panic built in her chest and clawed up her throat, her breathing coming hard and fast through her nose as she found her wrists well and truly bound by some sort of cool metal.
Oh Gods, what's happening? She was on some sort of stone floor, and distantly she could hear the sounds of the jungle. She felt tears of panic well in the corner of her eyes, but then she heard the quiet whispers of shadows. Immediately, her fear lessened, and Nieve took in a deep, shaky breath.
The shadows were unfamiliar and curious; a few of them even concerned. They glided over her, though they ignored her when she asked them desperately in Makath where she was. Still, their presence was comforting, and it allowed for her to take the time to force herself to calm down. She was never truly alone, after all. Akajia, please guide me. Despite her mark, Nieve was not often one for prayer. Such was her confusion and panic, the Kelvic didn't even think of trying to shift her forms in order to free herself.
Calmer, the Kelvic attempted to take better stock of her situation. She was clad only in her linen shirt, the hem brushing the tops of her thighs, as she had been when she had gone to sleep. She was blindfolded and her hands were bound behind her back; she could still hear the sounds of the jungle but they were faint, and the stone beneath her was smooth and cool. The scent was unpleasant, making her wrinkle her nose; it reminded her of stale urine.
So then; putting her thoughts together, Nieve knew she was probably inside. Inside where, she had no idea. It was certainly not in the settlement by the beach. Just as she was beginning to put a few things together, Nieve heard breathing that was distinctly not hers.
A new sort of fear crept up through her; this one was more muted. Had she been kidnapped? How? Why would someone want to kidnap her? Questions whirled around like a storm inside her mind, and she waited, her whole body tense. She felt foolish for not having realized someone else was with her sooner, but there was nothing to be done about it.
Suddenly, the other person spoke. The voice seemed more masculine, despite its high pitch. The words that were spoken startled Nieve, and only served to confuse her further, her brow furrowing beneath the blindfold. A part of her distinctly noted that she had been referred to as an 'it', and despite the circumstances, she still found herself offended.
And so, not knowing what else to say just yet, that is what Nieve decided to settle on. "I'm not an 'it'," She said, with a slight frown. She struggled to force herself to a sitting position again, and was successful this time; her head turned to face the general direction of where the voice had come from.
The nasally tone of voice and the excitement, borderline nervousness, in the other person's words made her feel as if she wasn't in immediate danger, and her fear quickly ebbed to be replaced by anger. "A good day indeed, to find myself kidnapped and in a strange place with a strange person," Nieve snapped, her shoulders tensing up around her ears, and her pointed teeth flashing in a silent snarl.
The shadows swirled around her; she could feel them, and she latched onto them for strength. "Don't be mad," One of them whispered to her as it breezed by. Nieve paused, chewing over the piece of advice. The shadows clearly knew whoever her captor was to some extent; either way, she was beginning to feel that perhaps yelling wouldn't get her any sort of favourable response. And she certainly didn't want to anger whoever had kidnapped her, especially when she didn't really know what they were capable of.
Inhaling deeply, her nostrils flaring at the unpleasant smell surrounding her, Nieve forced herself to measure her tone more evenly when she next spoke, though anger still churned heatedly in her chest. "Who are you, and where am I?" She asked. "Why am I here?" She had more questions, questions like 'how did you get me here', 'what do you want with me', but she brushed them aside for the time being, her pulse pounding in her ears.