Shadows of Avarice (BxB)

Chapter 34

Xia's heart was beating fast as he walked down the dungeon. He glanced into each cell in search of the noble, but they were all empty. He didn't know whether he was expecting to see many prisoners or not. Since being here, not much happened to warrant someone being locked up. Only the nobleman crossed Osiris; no one else.

Technically Xia did as well, but the sultan was overlooking his crimes.

He kept walking in search of any sign that the nobleman was still there. He hadn't gone through the whole dungeon yet, but he was beginning to believe that man was no longer here. There was no sign of life; there was no movement and no noise. Xia was starting to think the worst. He didn't know Osiris to be a violent man, but he didn't know everything about the sultan. After all, the noble hurt someone precious to him.

It wasn't until Xia was about to give up that something caught his eye. It was hard to see in the dim light, but at the end of the hallway in the final cell, Xia could make out a figure. The figure had their back against the wall as they sat on the floor with their head buried against their knees. They had their face hidden from view, so Xia couldn't tell if it was the noble or not. The tattered rags that the man wore didn't give anything away.

Xia mustered up the courage to quietly say to get the man's attention, "Um, hello."

Since the dungeon was deathly quiet, Xia's voice sounded loud to him. He quickly glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot. Besides the men whom Amani distracted outside of the dungeon, there were no other guards around. With only one person locked away, there wasn't much need for more security than that.

When Xia called out, the figure stirred. Slowly, they glanced up, and Xia was met with the face he was hoping for. However, Xia wasn't prepared for the state he was in. The nobleman had plenty of bruises, a black eye, and his lips appeared to be split open. He was hardly recognizable with all of those wounds. This man might have kidnapped Xia, but he didn't want to see him in this state. He believed this man should face justice, but not like this. He didn't want someone to get hurt because of him, even if this man had intentions of Xia being harmed first. Xia only wanted him to be locked up for his crimes.

Slowly, Xia asked, "Who did this to you . . . ? Osiris?"

He already knew the answer, but he needed it to be confirmed.

"Yes and no. It was the beast inside of him who did this to me." The nobleman glanced at Xia's new attire and scrutinized his face without the makeup. While Xia didn't appear to be a woman in this state, it was still obvious who he was. His hair and ears would be a dead giveaway no matter who he tried to dress up as.

The man scoffed as he looked Xia up and down. "Why am I not surprised? The universe plans on making a fool out of me once more by revealing that you've been a man this whole time. Spill the reason why you're here. I don't intend to amuse you for long."

If this man wanted to get straight to the point, then Xia would oblige. He didn't want to be in the dungeon for long anyway.

"I didn't come down here for my amusement, nor to gawk at you. I need information regarding Osiris' curse. He doesn't remember how he obtained it. He was too young, but perhaps you remember. If you tell me who cursed him, then maybe I can reverse it." It was worth a shot. From what Xia knew, no one tried to fight back against the source. It seemed that most people who knew about the curse wanted to pretend it didn't exist. Xia couldn't pretend, though.

Osiris mentioned that the curse was taking over more often. Xia was afraid that it would take over completely one day. If that happened, Xia didn't want to imagine the consequences. If Osiris became a bloodthirsty monster each time, then he would destroy Rasea. It was either he ruined his kingdom, or someone destroyed him. Xia didn't want either outcome to take place. If no one else would do anything to save Osiris, then Xia would. He would keep searching for a way to save his betrothed.