Fairies of The Black Circle

9

Duman shivered as the cool, damp air of the cavern brushed over him, in harsh contrast to the warmth of the beautiful sunset. 

He walked down the dark, empty hallway, a few flickering torches lighting his way, his footsteps echoing ominously around him. God, he'd forgotten how much he hated it down here.

Almost a century ago now, this place had been a prison brimming with captured Earth fairies, waiting for their fates to be sealed. 

Now all it did was serve as a cold memory of those dark times. 

The corridor was lined with cells, each with a unique magic seal to open them, and the shadows of the bars drew long lines over Duman's body as he continued to travel stoically through the cavern. 

In his hands was a small, pine box that rattled with each step he took, the slight jolt from his movement shaking the contents slightly. It made a sound like chains chinking against each other, the noise also reverberating around the empty space.

As he turned the corner, the highest security cell loomed into view. 

It was slightly larger than the others but what really set it apart was the complexity of the locking mechanism. Ogron had spent months deciphering the incantation from ancient texts to be able to implicate it onto this prison. 

Escape from here was impossible.

Within the cell was a singular, wooden chair, placed directly in the centre and a fairy, curled up on a straw bed along the back wall, in foetal position, as if as a last defensive resort. 

Her hair lay messily around her face and her eyes twitched irregularly, her face twisted unnaturally like she was struggling against something.

Just outside the metal bars, Anagan sat, his head leant against the wall, his arm resting on a bent knee while his other leg extended outwards, his eyes shut. 

Duman smirked at his sleeping friend. 

What was he thinking? Bringing a fairy back to base with him. 

Granted, she had put up a good enough fight against the four of them, but was quickly outmatched and knocked unconscious by a brutal blast to the temple from Ogron. Never one to be merciful. 

Duman was quite excited by the prospect of a hostage but he wasn't completely oblivious to the reactions from his brother. 

He had seen how Anagan's eyes seemed to soften when he realised Flora was going to be alright. He had noticed how his gaze lingered on her when they had first put her in the cell, and his reluctance to leave her side thereafter. 

After over a century of living with the guy, it made sense that Duman could easily see through Anagan's sloppy attempt at nonchalance. Even more so now that he knew Anagan had been sleeping by her cell instead of in the comfort of his own bed.

"Hey." Duman grinned as he kicked Anagan awake. 

His eyes bolted open as he gasped in shock, his posture straight, his muscles tensed, hands out in front of him ready for combat, before he realised it was just Duman.

"Ugh, you dickhead." He moaned, slumping back down against the wall which was met with the sound of Duman's laughter. "What do you want?"

"Well," his tone was cheeky and accusatory, "I just happened to notice that somebody was spending a lot of time by this cell?"

"It's called guarding, idiot." Anagan retorted indignantly, though he felt his heart beating faster than usual. "Maybe if you weren't completely useless, you would take over for a bit."