Chapter 6: Travel to Wild Wood
Prince Jacob ached all over. There was a cold sensation that ran from his head all the way through his nerve endings that felt like cold bugs slowly marching everywhere. He was afraid to even open his eyes. He could hear the people outside and knew that he was not home. He hoped and prayed that his brothers were safe still. As he was contemplating what he can do with the strange feeling aches in his body, a person entered where he was and spoke.
" I see that you have awakened little prince." The man's voice was very soft, which surprised Jacob. He was expecting to be shouted at or at least mocked more. The softly spoken statement really made him wonder what the other person wanted from him.
" Why don't we sit you up and get you something to drink." He heard the man walk closer to him and Jacob decided to look at his captor. He opened his eyes and immediately regretted it. The small amount of morning light that filtered through the cart he was in felt like he was staring straight at the sun. His eyes closed in tears before he got a look at the man.
A soft chuckle sounded through the room before the man spoke, " Sorry little man, but I am afraid that I used some rather unconventional as well as illegal means to capture you. As you can see for yourself, the use of this spell has some rather distressing side effects for the people it's used on. You will be blinded by all light except for moonlight for at least a week." There was a pause as Jacob felt some hands gently grab his arms and sat him up.
" Here drink this juice, it will help get rid of the other side effects currently running through your system."
Jacob felt the cup at his lips and slowly drank. The juice had really fruity and a small nutty aftertaste that was not too bad to drink. After he finished the cup, he could feel his limbs returning back to normal. He couldn't help the relieved sigh that exited his mouth.
The same chuckle sound came from his front right side. " Easy lad, I will bring you some food."
He could hear the man leave and some small talk outside, but it was all about him, not about where they were, where they were going, or even who would have attacked, so Prince Jacob quickly lost interest in the conversations outside. Instead he focused on seeing how much of his body he could move.
His hands were behind his back and tied too tight to wiggle out of. His legs were tied at the ankles and just about the knees. Those were not super tight, but they were not easy to shift either. He sighed in frustration as he heard someone step up into the cart. He assumed it was the same man as before and when the man spoke, he was sure of it.
" I am afraid that our cook isn't the best, unlike in your palace. We only have some oatmeal here for you. If we are lucky, there might be some fruit in it. Now open up and I will give you your food"
Jacob considered not eating for half a minute. He was surprised at how good it smelled and in the end just could not resist. He really hoped no poison or other drug was in this oatmeal. He opened his mouth and he felt a spoon enter it. The taste wasn't that bad, though the texture was a little too mushy for him, but beggars couldn't be choosers. After finishing the bowl of food, the man helped him outside to relieve his bladder. Honestly, Jacob was quite irritated that he wasn't in a condition to do this by himself.
His hands and legs were tied back up when they reached the cart and climbed in. He could hear the others around him packing up everything. Soon they were back on the road. Of course the man who had helped him also put a silence spell on him. Jacob recognised the chant from when his mother would cast it on himself, his brothers, and sometimes everyone in fathers court. Jacob decided to practice his meditation on the way. There was currently no way he could escape when he could not even see.
Before Jacob knew it, a week had passed. He did what he could to exercise both his mind and body to escape when he could see again. The problem was that even after a week, the effect on his eyes remained. He was starting to doubt whether he would ever be able to see again. At one point during the week, they had stopped and got more supplies somewhere, Jacob had been frozen by yet another spell just before entering the town. He was really starting to hate his mage caretaker. He was constantly either berating the man or himself. He just really hoped his eyes would return to normal soon.