Court of Snakes: This Desert Cage

Wrath - The Palace | February of the Third Year

"Dammit! Why can't you do anything I ask? You worthless, ungrateful slut!"

The shouting was so loud it could be heard all throughout the palace. It was the middle of the night and the noise had awoken Terran from his sleep. He used The Magician and dashed out into the hallway and down a few floors in the elevator, where he followed the shouts to the door of Councilman Wolff's quarters. Terran trembled as he stood there, his hand hovering over his pocket where the cards sat. He knew he was about to witness what The King feared the most, and he knew he was going to have to stop it. His fingers tingled as they held there in the air, the magickal energy from the cards radiating out in an electrifying aura. It would be whatever they decided, and something told him it wouldn't be good.

"All I asked for was a glass of water, not for any of your excuses!"

Something crashed, a rumble that sent shakes through the floor. Councilman Wolff sounded undeniably drunk.

"Councilman Wolff?" Terran shouted at the door, but the yelling and crashing continued and he was ignored.

Terran took a deep breath, indecision in his muscles and his bones. The King would want him to act, and before he thought anymore, the deed was done. He threw his shoulder into the door a few times until it broke off its hinges, wood chips scattering onto the floor, and Terran entered to find Wolff had Vena by the wrist. Her face was red from where he had hit her. Furniture lay on its sides and glass scattered in fragments like ice on hardwood. The curtains had been torn from the wall and crumpled on the floor in a heap. It looked like a hurricane had passed through, and Wolff turned his eyes to Terran so viciously that it reminded Terran of a wild animal. "This is none of your business, Guildenhart."

Terran did not cower under his gaze, and just looking at him made him indescribably angry. With a hard scowl on his lips, he pulled a card from his pocket and laid it on his hand. There had to be justice. Before Wolff understood what had happened, Terran watched the flesh peel away from his limbs, leaving only bone, and one card traded itself out for another as his body transformed. Only a black cloak covered his now bare bones, and his corpse creaked and moaned as he moved. "You have hurt her for too long, Wolff. Do you even feel guilty?"

"W-What?" Wolff stuttered as he stumbled backward, away from Terran's horrifying visage. "What the h-hell?"

"You won't be able to hurt anyone anymore." Before Wolff could run, Terran grabbed his shoulder with a skeletal hand and whispered into Wolff's ear, "Do you know what card I drew? Death. I drew Death."

As Terran touched Wolff, all life from the Councilman began to fade. Color pulled from his face, his eyes, and his clothing until he was no more than a greyscale rendition of his former self. Then, he began to crumble into soot, gray dust that drifted to the ground and through the air like snow. Out of the pile of soot a caterpillar climbed, pulling its way from the dirt, and it inched its way along the ground until it hid under the couch, out of sight.

"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust," Terran commented.

"You killed him?"

The voice came from the door to the suite, and Terran turned to see who stood there. Esmond cowered in the doorway, pale as a sheet. The card faded and Terran first checked if he still looked like Rune, which he did not, and then glanced at Esmond warily, hands up defensively. Down the hallway, Terran heard the clanking of metal guard boots as they scrambled up the stairs. Esmond, Terran suspected, alerted the guards at the sound of the ruckus, but did not expect what he looked upon now.

"Esmond. Esmond, I'm a friend," Terran pleaded.

"Guards!" Esmond shouted as he hastily and weakly grabbed Terran by the shirt to prevent his escape. "Guards! Parisa! Perseus!"

Vena tried in vain to pull him off. "Wait! Esmond, wait! He's one of us!"

"I work for The King!" Terran interjected.

"Prove it!" Esmond's hands trembled and Terran knew he posed no threat.

"Check my tattoo! I'm a user of the cards! I'm undercover for The King!" Terran hissed this in a whisper. He could risk no one hearing.

Esmond spun Terran around and moved his collar. Once he saw the tattoo, he slowly released him, and Terran whipped out The Magician again, covering his true identity once more. At that moment, Parisa and Perseus, backed by a few guards, entered the room.

Parisa looked around for potential threats, dagger drawn. "What happened?" she demanded, authority in her eyes.

"The King killed Wolff." Esmond spoke before Terran had the chance to and motioned toward the pile of ashes. "Rune and I heard the ruckus and when we got here, The King had turned him to ash."

"And you did nothing?" Parisa spat at Terran.

"After him!" Perseus shouted and pointed to the open window. "We may still be able to catch him!"

In a flash, all the guards were gone, save for a few who moved into the hallway again, and Terran turned to Esmond. "So quick to defend a man who beats a woman?" he asked. "If Rune had killed Wolff, you would've turned him in?"

"I am eager to rid this place of evil," Esmond replied. "If Rune was a ruthless killer and had ascended to the throne, able to wield Death as a weapon and Talbot knew, the kingdom would be doomed. Who are you to speak of such things?"

"I am Terran La'Hall. You tutored me when I lived here."

"T-The Sovereign's son?" Esmond stammered and dropped onto one knee. "You're alive... I can't believe it."

"If Lexus hadn't found me, I wouldn't be."

"Come," Esmond beckoned. "We have much to talk about if we are to fix this nasty mess we are in."