To no one's surprise, used as bait. Teklomenes learns that his new friend Reyvren is kidnapped, and he goes out to save his buddy, but it was a trap and Tete gets captured too!!! Oh no!
-- @whumperofworlds
My good old friend, used as bait
~Original story~
Masterlist
CW: nonhuman whumpee, nonhuman whumper, multiple whumpees, multiple whumpers, kidnapping, mention of "racial" discrimination, mention of death, death threats, used as bait, bound and gagged, restraints, captivity, ransom, hostage situation.
"Okay, now it’s my turn. Mmmm, why do you always wear such revealing clothes?"
"Well, I don’t spend all my time training for nothing. Besides, lacking scales like you drakones, what else could I flaunt if not my muscles?"
Teklómenes and Reyvren were sitting on a cliff, watching the lush gardens of pink, white, and purple flowers along the slope of the palace mountain. Both young men had grown used to seeing each other whenever Reyvren finished his work at the infirmary, whether to talk or to wander around the surroundings together. Both quickly discovered that they shared many things in common, such as their love for books, so the conversations flowed long and pleasantly, sometimes lasting hours.
"I think I should go now," Reyvren said, standing up and stretching his wings. "I don’t want to leave my grandmother alone preparing dinner."
"Alright, say hello to her for me," Teklómenes replied in turn.
The other boy’s cheeks flushed. His pale face always took on a warmer color when he was with the young avian.
"Okay. Goodbye, see you later!"
The friends said their goodbyes, glad for having each other’s company. Meanwhile, far from that place, someone with darker intentions watched through a spyglass as the two youths separated. A malevolent smile crept across a face.
It was time to act.
~🪶🔥🪶🔥~
Reyvren was walking calmly through the village when he accidentally bumped into someone else.
"I'm sorry," he apologized, embarrassed. The things that happened to him for walking around lost in thought…
"Don’t apologize," a rough voice replied.
When he looked up, Reyvren found a drakón smiling at him with malice, much taller and broader than him. Discreetly, the stranger held a knife in his hand, the tip level with Reyvren’s navel. "Why don’t we go for a walk?"
The boy felt his stomach drop. He glanced to the sides. The wide street was almost empty; no one was paying attention to him. Nothing in his attacker’s relaxed posture raised suspicion, who, leaning forward, gave the impression of engaging him in an intimate conversation. The tip of the knife pressed into Reyvren’s abdomen, not enough to break skin, but enough to send a chill through him at the clear threat.
"Shall we?"
With trembling legs, the young man let himself be guided through several streets until they left the village, heading into the wide fields along the slope. The sun had already finished setting behind the mountain when they stopped in front of an old, enormous barn. Two other drakones were waiting there, accompanied by a shepherd warg.
"Looks like it was easy," one of them commented, not taking his mocking, predatory gaze off Reyvren before he was thrown inside the barn.
"Who are you?! What do you want from me?!" the boy exclaimed, facing his captors. Even though inside he was dying of fear, he tried to appear brave.
The three drakones exchanged looks and laughed.
"The less you resist," one of them said, pulling out several coils of rope, "the less it’ll hurt."
What followed happened very quickly. The three strangers lunged at Reyvren, who, without training and unable even to use the power of fire to protect himself, could do very little to defend himself. Cornered and outmatched in both number and size, his enemies subdued him in no time, pinning him against the ground while rough hands yanked his arms behind his back. Coarse rope bound his wrists, legs, and wings, tightened painfully to the point of agony.
Once he was tightly bound, they dragged him to the back of the barn and threw him onto a pile of hay. Reyvren struggled, but only managed to hurt himself against the coarse rope.
"Why are you doing this?!" he cried, blinking several times to keep the panic tears that threatened to blur his vision at bay. "Let me go! What do you want from me?"
"What would we want with a filthy half-drakón?" one of his captors mocked, crouching at his level. "We don’t want you, we want your little friend. The prince."
In that moment, Reyvren felt true terror. The reality of the situation struck him like a devastating lightning bolt from the sky.
He was bait.
"What do you want with him?" he asked, but he knew it was useless. They had captured him to lure Teklómenes. And he knew, with absolute certainty, that the avian would come without hesitation if he found out his friend was in danger.
"We’re tired of this life of herding goats," one of the drakones said. "We want easy money. Before the crown can catch us, we’ll already be far away with the ransom."
No, this couldn’t be happening.
"He’ll know it’s a trap!" Reyvren insisted desperately.
The three drakones exchanged looks again and laughed.
"Good thing you won’t be able to tell him anything to warn him."
"No, wait, ple-mnph!"
A cloth with a thick knot in the middle was forced between his teeth and tied behind his head, painfully pulling at several strands of his long black hair. One of his captors began rummaging through the bag they had taken from him and pulled out a small round mirror: the magic mirror Queen Freyra had given him to communicate with Teklómenes.
"Time to call your little friend," one of the drakones said.
The reflective surface of the mirror began to grow increasingly opaque, as if a thick fog lay behind it, before it faded and Teklómenes’ face appeared on the other side.
"Reyvren, are you—?" The prince cut himself off when he saw the image on the other side of the mirror, the feathers at the sides of his head bristling. One of the drakones grabbed Reyvren by one of his horns and lifted his head, while with the other hand he placed the tip of a knife right below his eye.
"We have your friend, Your Highness. If you want him back alive, you’ll have to pay for it."
Bound and gagged, with no way whatsoever to warn his only friend about the trap, Reyvren listened as the criminals gave instructions on how much gold to bring and the location where to leave it.
"You have one hour, Your Highness. Otherwise the damned half-breed will be dead."
"Mmph!"
Reyvren shook his head, but seeing Teklómenes’ terrified and pained face through the mirror only shattered what little strength he had left. He didn’t want his friend to be captured, but he didn’t want to die either.
"I’ll do it," Teklómenes said in a hard voice. "You’d better not touch a single hair on his head before I get there, or you’ll regret it."
"We’ll be waiting, Your Highness."
And with that, the connection between the mirrors vanished. The drakones left the barn, leaving Reyvren alone, with the warg at the door as the only guard. There, alone on a pile of hay, he allowed himself to shed the first tears of helplessness.
~🪶🔥🪶🔥~
Teklómenes felt his mind tearing itself apart between destructive fury and suffocating fear. He had taken the gold he found and flown in the direction the kidnappers had indicated. He told no one, not even Freyra, for he feared for Reyvren’s safety. The kidnappers had made it clear that if he didn’t arrive in time, alone, and with the gold, they would kill his friend.
And he would not allow himself to lose him, not when he was the first and only one he had.
He arrived in front of an old barn, in an area of the kingdom used for raising mountain goats. There he saw three drakones waiting beside a warg. He recognized them from the mirror and knew he had reached the right place.
No sooner had he landed than he threw the sack of gold onto the ground at their feet.
"Here it is," he said sharply. "Now release my friend."
The drakones exchanged knowing looks. One of them took the sack, while another walked to the barn door and removed a huge lock.
"Go get him yourself," they told him.
Without needing to be told twice, Teklómenes pushed the door open and stepped inside. The interior of the structure was empty except for some old wooden crates and tools in a corner. And at the back, on a mattress of hay, a body. Shining red scales stood out faintly in the dimness of dusk.
"Reyvren!"
Teklómenes ran to his friend. The addressed one lifted his head, his pupils blown wide into a tiny point in the middle of his large light-blue eyes.
"Mmm, gmh mph phmm!" Reyvren cried out, his warnings muffled behind the gag, shaking his head frantically.
Teklómenes needed a second to understand, but when he did, it was already too late: the three drakones had him surrounded and lunged at him.
He fought, of course he did, striking noses with his elbows, hitting ribs and stomachs with wings and fists, scratching skin and scales with his claws; but in the end he was still a young avian against three large, seasoned drakones. The battle was doomed to fail.
"You walked right into our trap, little bird," one of the drakones said, while the other two forced Teklómenes to the ground.
"Bastards," the avian growled through his teeth. Coarse rope had already begun binding his wrists, wings, and legs. "What do you want?"
"Simple, we want money. And we’re sure the Queen will pay very well to see her chick safe and sound again."
The knots were secured. Teklómenes struggled, but he was firmly restrained. It would be impossible for him to escape on his own.
"Good, we have the boy. Time to kill the half-breed."
One of the drakones grabbed Reyvren by the horns and began dragging him out of the barn. At his waist he carried a large butchering knife.
"H-hey, wait!" Teklómenes shouted, something tightening painfully in his chest. Reyvren had his eyes squeezed shut, but he could see the tears clinging to his lashes and hear his quick, shaking breaths. "You already caught me! Why do you want to kill him?"
"He’s already served his purpose," one of his captors replied, as if stating the most obvious thing in the world. "We don’t need a useless half-breed. If we let him go, that would ruin our plans. So the easiest thing is to silence him forever."
A broken sob escaped from Reyvren’s throat, and Teklómenes knew he had to do something.
"The Queen will pay for him!" he exclaimed. "Leave him alive, and I know she’ll pay his ransom too. Whatever you planned to ask for me, ask double for both, and I know she’ll agree."
The truth was that Teklómenes had no idea if that would work. He didn’t want Freyra to yield to the demands of these wretched criminals, but he was not going to lose his friend, not now, not like this.
The drakones exchanged looks again and discussed the matter as if their two prisoners were not even there.
"It could work. And we avoid having to get rid of a body."
"Alright. He can live."
"But if we don’t receive that extra money, we’ll kill him and sell his parts."
Having reached a decision, they dragged both young men back to the pile of hay. A piece of cloth with a knot in the middle was shoved into Teklómenes’ mouth and tied behind his head, cutting off any further sound. Once the barn door was closed, the two boys were left alone. Teklómenes twisted on the hay until he managed to sit with his back against the wall. Could there be any way to escape before the ransom was demanded? His thoughts were interrupted by a series of soft, broken sobs, barely audible. He turned his head and saw Reyvren, his body curled tightly in on itself. His shoulders trembled faintly.
The avian boy couldn’t help the sharp ache in his chest. All of this was his fault. Reyvren had been taken just to trap him, used as bait for him. Teklómenes was used to walking a narrow line over danger; but Reyvren didn’t deserve any of this.
He leaned forward and gently bumped his head against Reyvren’s to get his attention. Maybe his captors had taken his voice, and his hands were bound behind his back, but he wanted to do something, anything, to comfort his friend. After a moment, Reyvren lifted his face. His light-blue eyes, heavy with guilt and humiliation, avoided Teklómenes’ yellow ones for a moment, and when he finally dared to meet them, the tears only fell harder. Teklómenes understood that feeling all too well.
As best they could, they shifted on the hay, sitting side by side. They didn’t know if there was any way to escape their fate unharmed, whether the Queen would pay for their freedom or they would find another way out. But if there was anything good in all that darkness, it was that at least they still had each other to hold onto.
Hiii😄 umm can you recommend any shows for the scene where male lead is held hostage like knife to his neck (at knifepoint) if you know some or maybe gun point plsss and also I really love your content very much 💖<3 thanks for your help
Hello there! Thank you so much for the kind words 🥰
Welp, this request had me struggling! It's actually harder to find than I thought 😆 Sure the MLs get abducted, threatened and all, but actually used as hostages? Not really, it's more often their loved ones who get this treatment (unfortunately).
But hey! I scratched my brain really hard and managed to find some, and if anyone can think of others, feel free to jump in!
🇯🇵 Bitter Blood (2014), ep. 1 & 10 (ML finds himself in two group hostages situations and is threatened with guns - hold to his head, shoved in his mouth -, this show is short and fun, I liked it!)
🇰🇷 Missing: The Other Side (2020), ep. 9 (ML is abducted in previous ep, wakes up in this one tied up and hanging upside down, knife is put to his throat to use him as hostage when police rushes in; one of the first kdramas I watched and I really enjoyed it)
🇯🇵 Bloody Monday (2008), ep. 8 (ML is kept as hostage with a few other students, he's manhandled and a gun is shoved in his face; whump is nice in that drama but I was really bored overall)
🇨🇳 Killer and Healer (2021), ep. 14 & 15 ("Healer" ML is kinda the King of hostage situations; loved this one as well!)
Extra:
🇨🇳 Are You Safe (2022), ep. 5 (male leads are captive and one is threatened with a knife, but not sure if it counts because the knife is used to threaten to cut his finger, not his throat)
we're all broken pieces floating by @chromatophorica (chromatophorica on AO3)
Summary:
“Yeah um,” the broadest of the three looked at his badge, “Buckley, huh?” An odd smirk settling on his face. “That’s handy.” Buck’s about to question what that means when the man holding his side drops his arm, revealing a handgun, pointing directly at Buck’s chest.
---
A quiet afternoon at the firehouse goes sideways when things take a violent turn.
Eddie’s knee buckled the same time Buck’s did and the heart swooping somersault of nearly falling dashed a cold sweat over his skin. But Bobby didn’t let Eddie fall. His fingers were clamped tight around the back of his collar, tight enough to nearly choke him, and threw Eddie behind his broad back before Eddie could even blink.
He almost wished he had. Then he could’ve missed the way Buck’s face went slack with surprise as the arm curled around his throat. He could’ve missed the way that surprise drained the color in his face in panic as he fell backwards. He could’ve missed the way that panic flared into terror the moment the gun at Buck’s head stopped his fall.
But Buck’s choke was as loud as a gunshot and Eddie flinched like it hurt his own ears.
“Nobody move! I said nobody fucking move!” The man punctuated the order with a slam of the barrel of his gun against Buck’s temple as he spun them around so that the truck was to his back.
Buck’s legs were long and awkward, bent at the knees and holding his weight on his heels as the man’s chokehold kept him nearly folded sideways. The man jerked his arm, tugging Buck with him, and Buck choked as he scrambled to hold onto the locked elbow over his windpipe.
Wild blue eyes scanned the scattering crowd around them until they landed on Bobby and then Eddie.
Kolya gripped Sheppard’s neck and forced him to look at him. Sheppard winced and tried to turn away from him. Kolya sneered and let him go.
“It’s so nice to have you in our care again, Colonel. I am so glad that you’re here. You, my lovely friend, are going to make a very profitable hostage.”
“Well, I’m always happy to serve,” Sheppard fired back sarcastically.
Kolya looked him up and down in a way that made Sheppard want to take a step back. He knew that look. That was the same look that had him bound, gagged, face down, and ass up in a POW camp.
“Try it, and I’ll bite your dick off,” Sheppard hissed.
Ryder ran fast, lungs begging for a break. He ignored the ache and pressed on, legs carrying him as fast as he could manage.
The Tempest was in view, but Ryder still felt so damn far from it. He couldn’t get the distress call out of his head, and it encouraged him to run even faster, nearly tripping over his own feet with his speed.
But they reached the Tempest finally. Ryder called out as soon as they were onboard, heart slamming in his chest from the run and from sheer fear of what they’d find.
I’m starting to regret agreeing to write all these, but I managed to plan a bit yesterday so I’m feeling more confident then I was! A little. Still flying by the seat of my pants here haha.
(Slight blood warning)
———————————————————
“Not another step, Earth ninja.”
Cole stopped in his tracks as he entered the room, senses on high alert as he took in the scene in front of him.
The museum room was a mess, display cases shattered with glass and broken artifacts littering the floor. A few tables were overturned, and there were at least five of the robbers they’d been sent to stop lying on the ground, twitching slightly as leftover electricity sparked off of them.
Cole took all this in, but was mostly focused on the sword currently resting against Jay’s neck.
“Jay!”
His worry skyrocketed as he looked at his brother. He should’ve known better than to split up on what was supposed to be a simple ‘stop the thieves from robbing the museum’ mission. Nothing good ever seemed to happen in this place.
Jay watched Cole from where he was kneeling on the floor, arms held up in surrender. He didn’t look so great, several scratches littering his person and a large bruise forming on his face.
“Cole, he’s-“
The man pressed his sword tighter against Jay’s neck.
“What did I say about talking?! Shut up!”
Cole glared at Jay’s captor, taking in his appearance. He was a strangely ordinary looking fellow; mousy greying hair, a smattering of freckles, glasses. But his eyes held something dangerous in them, and Cole had a feeling that this guy wouldn’t go quietly.
He shifted his weight, moving ever-so-slightly forwards, and the man immediately pressed the sword harder against Jay.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
Cole froze.
A thin line of blood now trailed its way down Jay’s neck, and Cole saw him wince.
“Now. You’re going to stand there and let me go on my way, earth ninja. And not follow. Sound good?”
Cole scoffed with a confidence he didn’t feel. “And why exactly should I let you walk away with some priceless museum artifact along with my friend?” he asked, heart thudding.
“Because,” and here the man’s face grew nasty, “if you don’t, then your friend loses his head. And I do mean that literally.”
Cole felt his heart sink into his stomach as the man pushed Jay to his feet and began to back away. Jay was keeping his emotions in check pretty well considering, but he could still see the glimmer of terror in his eyes. How ironic would it be that if after all they’d been through Jay met his demise at the hand of some wacko museum crook? And all because Cole didn’t manage to stop him?
He couldn’t let that happen.
As Jay and his captor inched towards the window, Cole shifted his foot ever so slightly, using his power to feel the earth underneath the museum floor. It was a good thing they were on the ground floor, he thought. This wouldn’t work nearly as well if they were fifty feet up. He made eye contact with Jay, and gave him a discreet nod.
Jay nodded back with a faint determined smile on his face.
Then in one swift movement, Cole brought his foot down hard on the floor, sending a shockwave directly at Jay and the robber. The two were thrown off balance, but while Jay was expecting it, his captor was not. Jay ducked as the sword was lifted off his neck in surprise, the man falling flat on his back when Cole spinjitzued into him. Lightning lit up Jay’s palms, and he didn’t waste any time in zapping the robber unconscious.
Then he dropped to one knee, panting heavily.
Cole barely spared a glance for their fallen enemy, merely making sure he was unconscious and would stay that way before running over to Jay.
“Hey, you alright?” he asked worriedly as Jay lowered himself to sit, a hand rubbing the thin cut down his neck.
“Yeah... yeah, I’ll be fine.” he chuckled nervously. “Just uh, y’know. That was... kinda close.” Jay exhaled heavily, taking the hand off his neck to inspect the blood now covering it. The slice had pretty much stopped bleeding, and Cole could tell it wasn’t too serious, but it still needed some attention. He ripped a bit of extra fabric from his shirt and handed it to Jay, who pressed it back over the cut.
Cole nodded in satisfaction, and slung an arm around Jay’s shoulder. Then he jumped in surprise as Jay leaned over and hugged him.
“Thanks Cole.” he muttered into his sleeve. “That was pretty close.”
Cole sighed good-naturedly and patted his back. “Yeah, but we’re alright now. And you’d do the same for me you know.” They sat there in silence for a few minutes, Cole patiently letting Jay hug it out. After almost ten minutes though, his knees were starting to hurt and Cole tried to pull back, but Jay continued to cling to him.
“Jay we have to take this guy to jail eventually.”
“Do you recognize him, Buck?” Bobby asked. “Or any of these guys?”
Buck shook his head lightly, mindful of agitating his injury. “None of them. I—I have no idea what’s going on, you gotta believe me—”
“I do, Buck, I do. Calm down, it’s alright.”
“I don’t know why he wants me,” Buck whispered, begging, pleading for Bobby to believe him. Fuck, being the cause of a firehouse siege had to be grounds for firing, he’d finally reached his last strike just weeks before his probie year ended.
so weird writing about these ocs cause they have so much backstory in my head that i need to at least hint at so that the scenes make sense but without falling into the trap of writing too much lol. Elaine is a monster hunter who used to be passing work acquaintances with Cutter but after the main events of the story they end up drifting closer together.
—
CN: beaten, held at gunpoint, taken hostage, pistol-whipped, blood
theartofmadeline
baratheonpilled
turnnoffyourmind
pixelskylines
