The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 1 - Fight or Flight (Part 2)

His eyes moved towards the source of the voice and met with the blue eyes of a very prominent Noble - the most snobbish and obnoxious of them all, Waldo Drake.

Waldo dusted off a richly woven white woolen cloak, which had the White Harrow crest on the front left, and a large red Drake representing his family crest on the back. The wool was soft, warm and comfortable as opposed to the rough sackcloth clothes which the commoners wore. Sackcloth was made from the coarse hair of wild hooved animals and was plentiful and cheap.

Waldo pulled back the hood which extended from the back of his cloak over his head and frowned. His face looked as if he had smelled the most disgusting thing on the planet and was about to throw up.

This can't end well, thought Amadeus to himself. Nobles never bother to come into the commoner camp unless they were in a bad mood and were looking for someone to pick on. I better think of an excuse, and quick. Amadeus racked his brains trying to find a suitable excuse. After pausing for a short moment, he shouted, "I was only trimming the leaves! Let me down!"

"What is your name, commoner?"

"A-A-Amadeus."

"Ah-Ah-Ahmydeeoos, you say?" Waldo said with a laugh, waving his hand casually. "Do you think the Drake was only born yesterday? No sir, the Drake is much smarter than that." Amadeus twirled slowly around in mid-air, limbs flailing.

"The Drake knows that no commoner has been tasked with the trimming of leaves! And the Drake also knows you are only up to no good. Therefore, it is I, the fantabulous Drake's rightful duty to give you fair discipline," he added proudly.

It was well-known fact among the White Harrow commoners. Waldo hated commoners, and thought it was a bother to have them around. Actually, it would be fair to say that Waldo hated a large number of things. As a matter of fact, Waldo even hated his own name.

Even though he was in such a precarious situation, Amadeus couldn't help but to roll his eyes. Waldo always referred to himself as "the Drake" when he talked, which annoyed everyone greatly. Even the Nobles thought it was rather pompous of him.

Waldo paused for a moment to run his fingers through his long blonde locks of hair. He was one of those people who were blessed with ridiculously good looks, and he knew it. Much to his delight, many young girls would fawn over him whenever he walked past.

Suddenly, without another word of warning, Waldo jolted his hand sharply. Amadeus was flung forcefully backwards into a wall, and a sharp pain coursed through his entire back. He landed face first on the cold trodden snow with a crunch.

Amadeus' ears were ringing and he could not feel his face. He lifted his head up, just in time to see another spark shoot out of Waldo's fingers. Immediately, his entire body felt as though it was being pierced by a thousand needles. He writhed in agony and screamed, causing quite a stir. Nearby commoners curiously watched from a distance.

"Do you like that? It's a pain spell. Feels like pins and needles doesn't it? Don't worry; it won't hurt you... yet."

I can't take much more of this, Amadeus thought to himself. It feels as though my body is going to be torn into pieces. Can't let myself black out, or Waldo is surely going to kill me. I need to stay awake.... I need to... fight back. Think fast, how am I going to survive this ordeal?

The only thing more painful than the pain spell, was Waldo's talking. He just refused to stop. "This is the way the world works - we allow you commoners to stay in the edge of our strongholds, as long as you remain useful slaves. You however, are most definitely not useful."