The Ancient Prophecy

65 : The Maze - Iro

Iro had never seen the inside of the Prison . But it looked just like she imagined from the short descriptions of Alk and the other generals . Dark circling corridors . A chill that penetrated the bones of anyone who dared to wander through the Maze . Whispers of prisoners , or souls who were once one , slowly trying to make your mind go crazy . Cages that contained corpses of ones imprisoned or their bones .
         The daughter of Hyperion could not deny the fear that slowly crept inside of her at the thought of what she was bound to see . But she pushed through the fear that engulphed her , reminding herself of the reason she decided to join Phedora's mission for . He is alive .
         Aemillious was alive . Iro felt it . She knew that the son of Kronos must be somewhere inside the Prison , either holding on for life or already in a frenzy of madness . And Iro wanted to find him . She wanted to find him so she could tell him he had been right . But only partly .
         The Titans should have been overthrown earlier . The Finders should have been rallied against Kronos . But not under a chosen leader of theirs . Not so they could rule over the world in the titan's stead when the battle was won . And not so they can forsake the Resistence further on .
         Iro also hoped on finding Aemillious so she could inform him of his brother's death , tell him that the only supporter of his cause was now a soul in the wastes of the Underworld .
         At the thought of Chrys , Iro scowled . Memories pierced her mind as she ran through the labyrinth alongside Alk and Phedora , the dark corridors and the sight of prison cells momentarily forgotten . Not even the whispers of the dead could distract her now that her own thoughts flew through her head .
        Chrys had been the closest thing she had to a brother after Aemillious betrayed her . She knew him even before Chrys became a general of the Finders . He had been helping her , giving her advice on how she could rise in rank and fulfill her dream of becoming a co-general . Chrys had been the older brother she never had . And thinking he had been a liar , trying to avenge is younger brother all this time ... All these years ... It angered her . It made her feel stupid .
          And it was only then , after she heard the truth about Chrys and his death , that she realised the son of Kronos only used her . Maybe he had been genuine , actually being besides Iro , before Aemillious was thrown into the prison . But it all started to slowly change after that . And Iro hated that she had never seen it sooner .
          Chrys knew that Alkaios had defeated Aemillious at the Tournament of the Finders . He knew that she , Iro , was the only person Alk talked to peacefully , and therefore she must know informations about him that not many knew . He used all those informations that Iro stupidly gave him , mistaking it as simple curiosity on Chrys' side , to use them against Alk . To try kill him . Though not even Iro herself knew of Alk's visits to the Resistence's base until some days ago , when eavesdropping Alk's conversation with Phedora .
         Maybe Chrys even contributed to the hate against Alkaios . Iro remembered the awe the other  finders looked at Alk with in his first days in the Finders . She remembered the cheers on the day he became a general . The finders used to adore him . And now that Iro finally thought about it , it never added up with the recent happenings around the base . With all the rumours that seemingly kept on surrounding Alk at each step he made , at each decision he took . Even after Chrys' death , they kept on appearing .
        Alkaios . Iro's vision focused again on the path she ran on . The whispers started again in a corner of her mind . She looked in front of her at her half-brother who ran behind Phedora . He was her brother . Her actual brother . Even if they knew eachother for only two years , it felt as if she knew him for a lifetime . Alk was the only person Iro had told about her past . Iro had been beside him in some of his worst times . She witnessed some of his worst outbursts . Alk sacrificed his life to protect Iro . And she could not deny the relief she felt when she saw that he was still alive and standing .
"I lied in the face of the last person that I can consider family .", Iro recalled . Had Alk spoken of her ? She never heard such guilt in his voice .
         The three ran until they met another dead end . Phedora started tracing the side of a wall until they found themselves in another hallway . It was as if the girl had done this many times before .
         Neither talked as they ran through the Maze . They all concertrated on getting to the Vault quicker , not daring to stop any more than some seconds to catch their breath before speeding again . None could risk to divert from the path or get hypnotized by the whispers that rang inside all of their heads .
         Iro kept taking glances inside the prison cells , searching for any sight of a flock of light brown hair or a pair of emerald green eyes . She heard the crack of bones under her feet as she continued to run .
         They ran again into a dead end . And another one . And yet another . It was as if the labyrinth was twisting itself on purpose so they could not find the end of it . Or perhaps that is exactly what has been happening . Iro remembered the tales of folks who tried to get to the Vault . They never had a happy ending .

                                                     ***

          It felt like whole hours passed since the three had entered the labyrinth . The whispers inside Iro's head developed into screams . They were loud enough for her not to hear her own steps . They were loud enough to hear what they spoke of .
"Find the Vault ."
         Iro chose not to concentrate on the voices . The last thing she wanted was to fall behind or go insane .
         When the daughter of Hyperion thought that they could get lost in the Maze , she saw a faint light at the end of the corridor . All three sped up at the same time , eager to see if the light meant the end of the labyrinth .
          As they got closer to the light , it got brighter and brighter . Iro squinted , wandering so long through the dark corridors making her eyes adjust slower to the light .
          At last , the three found themselves in front of a massive round door about the size of the wall . It was made from obsidian and it seemingly had no handle . And it is not as if anyone could manage to pull it open if it had one .
          The voices died , leaving behind a hollow silence . Iro realised the light they all saw was coming from the altar that stood in front of the door . Maybe we will have to use the key on the altar ?
           As the three paced closer to the altar , Iro felt the mood inside the room change . She could not quite place the lingering feelings of anticipation and nervousness with their current situation . We did it . We found the Vault ... So then why do I feel as if I am missing something that is right in front of me ?
          Iro then noticed that the corridor they came from disappeared , now another wall standing behind them , stopping them from backing away .
          The daughter of Hyperion spoted the inscription from the altar . But before she could make sense of the dagger that stood on top of it , she noticed a shadow cross the corner of her eye . Her hand instinctively gripped the handle of her sword that stood at her hip , turning in the direction of the sillhouette .
           She recognized who stood in front of her before he could step into the light . Iro drew her sword in a quick move . Even if she had been looking for him , she still needed to be cautious . There is no saying of what he could do .
"Fancy seeing you all here..." Aemillious took a step into the light . Iro noticed his pale face and the way his skin clinged onto him , the contour of his bones almost entirely noticeble . His hair was a mess and his clothes were ragged . The only thing that remained the same was his emerald green eyes and the glint of insanity that sometimes flickered in them "Do say... how long has it been since I have been thrown in this place...?" he smiled in a way that sent a shiver of unease across Iro's spine .