Tundria's Gauntlet

Chapter 5 - John

We finally stopped running and ducked behind some trees. There was an ominous building in the distance, it was seemingly well-guarded. I could tell it was a prison. Archie had been vague when he talked about our destination, but I know a prison when I see one.

"Remind me why we're here again?" I said sternly.

We had been traversing this forest for days now, evading capture and surviving off the land. He won't tell me why the king is after him, I'm very suspicious but he's my only chance at surviving here, so I've been biting my tongue.

"You want that gauntlet off right? Well, word is that someone in the prison carries the information we need. You don't have to go in if you're scared. I understand."

I sighed to myself. Of course I'm afraid, but I do want this thing off my hand before I get myself killed. Thorn hasn't contacted me or shown his face since I got here, so I'm just going to assume I don't need this stupid thing on my hand anymore.

"Archie, I just don't want to die. How likely is that to happen if we go in there?"

He thought for a moment.

"For you? Next to zero. The king has an interest in you for some reason, so I doubt the guards will hurt you. For me? A little more likely. They view me as a traitor, so my life is worthless to them."

I reached out and placed my hand on his shoulder.

"Why are they after you?" I asked.

He gently brushed my hand off and turned towards the prison.

"Ask me questions later, the shift change is about to happen. Get ready to jump in."

He held out his paw to me. I wouldn't say I'm used to the teleporting thing he does, but it does come in handy at times. I took his paw and felt a surge of warmth flow into my body and before I knew it we were behind the gates. The new guards hadn't reached their post yet so we had only a few seconds to get into hiding again. We ran behind a nearby pile of wood logs. I turned to Archie and he pointed towards a side entrance that seemed to be for the guards only. I understood and did my best to quietly follow him as we made our way over there. When we reached the door he held up his paw and muttered something. I heard a click and the door suddenly flew open. Archie ducked inside, I followed closely behind. We seemed to be in some sort of break room, there were counters aligning the east and west walls with various assortments of what I assume are snacks. 

"Alright, the cell we are looking for is in the west wing, just follow me and don't make a sound. They don't have many guards within the prison, mainly traps infused with mana. But I can detect them, so we should be fine." Said Archie. 

I nodded silently and tried to keep pace as we went down corridor after corridor. Each one more dingy than the last. Every surface felt slick and damp, the air was musty and hot, and it was insanely dark.

"Where are the cells?" I asked.

"They're here, but we can't see in them. It's a security thing, they think that if the prisoners can't see into the halls then they'll behave better or something. But the charm works both ways, if they can't see out, then we can't see in."

None of that made any sense to me, but I nodded along anyway.

"If we can't see in, then how will we find who we need?"

Archie sighed, probably a little frustrated with all my questions.

"I can detect him as well. He's a powerful mage, so his body carries a constant aura of power."

I decided to leave my questioning at that and just continue following in silence. Eventually Archie stopped. I nearly bumped into him, it was so sudden.

"We're here." He whispered.

It just looked like a stone wall to me, but then Archie slammed his paw into the wall. Light began emanating from his palm, filling the gaps in every single brick. Before my eyes, the wall slowly faded away, revealing a small room. There was a worn out bed attached to the right wall, and a bucket in the far left corner. The rest of the room was empty, barring a few puddles on the floor. I shuddered to think of having to live in this place every day. Something moved out from under the bed, it was too dark to make out what it was until it got closer. It was an otter, he was taller than both me an Archie, he had a scar on his left eye, and he seemed to be missing one of his paws. His clothes were worn and ripped in quite a few places. Certainly didn't leave much to the imagination. He looked very intimidating as he stared down at us, and he smelled like a burning building. After silently glaring at us, he backed up a bit and sighed.

"I know why you've come. I can help you, but you must do something for me in return."

Archie nodded. "I am fully prepared to get you out of here."

Panic arose within me.

"What?! I didn't know we were doing a prison break! We can't do that!" I yelled.

Archie motioned for me to be a bit quieter.

"He's our only option. It's not like I'm anymore popular with the law anyway and you've been just fine with me. I know none of this is ideal, but I need you to trust me, John. Please."

The look in his eyes was almost desperate. Every part of me wanted to say 'absolutely not', but I knew that I didn't really have a choice here. I know nothing of this world, and right now Archie is the only one who is keeping me safe. I let out a long sigh and nodded. Relief flooded Archie's face as he turned to the otter again.

"I've dropped the barrier, you can step out here."

The otter nodded and slowly took steps in our direction. I felt my body freeze up as he got closer, but I tried to look as calm as I could. He walked past me and stood next to Archie, he looked him up and down before placing his paw on Archie's chest. Archie looked nervous but let it happen.

"I knew it. Your mana... It's damaged." Said the otter as he felt around Archie's torso.

Archie's ears fell flat and he looked away, his eyes seemed full of shame, or maybe regret, it was hard to see in the dark.

"Y-yeah." Was all he said.

The otter shook his head.

"I haven't met many who attempted such a sacrifice and survived. That was incredibly dumb of you, but I commend your strength."

Archie kept staring at the ground.

"What are you guys talking about?" I asked.

The otter looked over at me, then gave Archie an annoyed side-eye.

"You seem to be trying to help this creature, yet you haven't brought up your condition? That's a dangerous play."

Archie's regret quickly turned to annoyance.

"We'll talk about it later. We need to get out of here now."

No one argued, the otter held out his paw the same way Archie does when he's about to teleport us. We took hold and suddenly we were back in the woods.

"That oughta be far enough. We have maybe half an hour before they do their cell checks. We need to be 5.3 miles away by then, otherwise the phantoms will pick up my scent." Said the otter.

"You know an awful lot about this stuff." I said nervously as we began moving.

He simply nodded. I guess now isn't the time to talk. We walked for what felt like hours, nothing came after us so I can only assume we're in the clear of whatever a 'phantom' is.

"Dog." Said the otter, breaking the silence.

Archie grumbled, but glanced over at him.

"Yeah?"

"We're going to be on the move for quite awhile, why don't you tell us about your sacrifice. This creature here deserves to know."

I could feel Archie tense up next to me, but after a moment he sighed.

"Alright fine. But it's not a pretty tale, prepare yourself."

I held my breath in anticipation as he began telling the story.