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Ixxy was poised to drag herself—and somehow, Hydn too— up the wall back to Net’s throne room, when a rope fell from above.
“Tie on!” said the gruff voice of one of the guards. She didn’t need telling twice. She made a great loop around herself and Hydn and tied one of the quick knots she’d been taught. She tugged on the line for good measure. It went tight and began to pull their weight out of the water. The rope vibrated oddly as it went. Was it being pulled up by one of Net’s crazy winch things that held her up in the sky? There were certainly enough of the things there for one to be used in that way. There was certainly none of the pause-pull, pause-pull of people hauling a rope in. The loop she’d tied around them both, pulled against her and squashed her in against Hydn too. It wasn’t comfortable, but she could still feel him moving, so she didn’t care. Rough hands grabbed them at the top of the wall, pulled them over and then with a ‘zip’ their hands were tied again.
“Hey!” Ixxy was incensed. Of course the Queen of the Net would renege on a deal. Of course she would. “At least get him some medical attention.” She got a whack in the head from the butt of a trident for her troubles, she sprawled across the floor. At least she sensed the limp form of Hydn being dragged towards the door before she lost consciousness.