Rebirth

Chapter 14: Eridon's LapDog

We passed climbed the stairway relatively quickly. The sun was beginning to set, the sky and clouds bathed in a bright orange color. It was easy on the eyes and nice to look at from this height. If we weren't on a mission right now, I'd sit down and enjoy the sight.

There was a small breeze against my skin. My wounds felt the numb to the cold, and goosebumps formed on my arms. Colder and colder it got as we climbed, and I wish we had brought some coats or something. I'm not a big fan of cold temperatures, even if they never exactly bother me. I just never felt comfortable with them. Probably why I control fire and not water or ice.

The staircase led back inside the tower through another pair of large wooden doors. Pushing them open, Cynthia and I stepped back into the darkness, thankful the tower at least had working heat. Our footsteps echoed against the empty halls of the corridor, and we came to the stairs as expected, and began ascending. Flames sparked in my palm, twitching and ready to be released. I could feel the tension get heavier in my body, and even considered turning back and having Beowulf make his way up here.

That wasn't an option now. We already came too far to wait, and if we met any resistance, we'd at least fight off as many as we can. I got a quick peek at the corridor ahead. Sure enough, there were prison cells lined up along the walls. No guards were present, which I found extremely strange. It was very quiet too. Prisoners were in the cells, yeah, but no one was making a sound. They just watched us walk by, and it honestly creeped me out.

Their eyes were bloodshot, and they were extremely thin and dirty. Looking at them, I felt something inside. Guilt? Sorrow for them maybe. Being locked away against their free will, and being put through who knows what. It was a terrible thought, one I didn't want to focus on.

As we were reaching the end of the hallway, Cynthia stopped dead in her tracks. I took a couple more steps before turning to her. "Hey, what's wrong?" She paused a few seconds, then replied, "Someone's up ahead."

I turned back around, looking further into the darkness. She was right. Someone was standing there in a dark cloak, with half a mask on his face. The bare part of his face held a smirk, but he kept his eyes closed as he began stepping towards us. "Welcome, welcome. You've come very far haven't you? For your master no less."

"Master?" Cynthia questioned.

"He probably means Zhaniah." I explained. "Alright, who are you?"

"Who am I not?" He began. "I've been dubbed by many names, names which hold twisted meanings. I have names, yet I choose to wield none. I walk among the shadows, void of light, but cut the brightness down at any moment." This guy is nuts. He bounded towards me, smiling wide as he leaned close to my face. "Names are but a label. I have no such-" I chopped his head with flames, letting him slam into the floor. "Shut up. You're so annoying." I said, walking past him. Cynthia followed closely behind, but we stopped when his snickers filled our ears. He rose again, watching us. "You are not permitted to pass, my friends."

Flames swallowed me, lighting up the hallway as I charged at him. I threw a punch, connecting with enough force that his head jerked back and he stumbled. Still, he stood, slowly looking at me."Violent one, ain't ya?" I threw another punch, to which he caught. "If you had been fresh, young master, I might've been beaten already. However, you're worn out and tired. Meaning I can do..." He flipped me, slamming me on my back and knocking the air from my lungs, before stepping on my head. "THIS to you!" He reminded me of a character from some game I played a while ago.

Cynthia toss a flame at him, but he somehow stopped its travel midway, sending it back and striking her directly in the stomach. "Wait your turn, Missy." He laughed loudly. God, I hated this guy. Focusing on my wrist, I let my flames roar freely, separating his grip on me. Rising to my feet, I spun quickly and struck his chin, sending him head first into the ceiling. He came down, prompting me to attack again, striking his cheek. "Ooo. Very good, very good." I attacked again, this time, him stopping me and throwing me towards Cynthia as she finished putting out the flame. I slid on my feet, breathing heavy.

"Damn it.. I feel like my body is gonna collapse." I whispered.

"Don't push yourself then. Leave this one to me, go and get Zhaniah."

Slowly, I looked at her. "You sure you can handle him?"

"I'll try anyway.. We're so close, if we fail.."
"Yeah, whatever these guys are up to, it's not good. They wanted Zhaniah for some reason. So, I'll help you push him back, and then go after her." We nodded to each other, then raced at our enemy. I started calling him Eridon's lap dog in my head. It seems like he does whatever the guy would tell him, which could be good and bad.

We slammed heavy fists against his torso. Around me, flames boiled, surging madly as we continued pushing the lap dog back. My goal wasn't to beat him, just injure him enough so Cynthia wouldn't have such a hard time. My plan worked, because in that split second, I heard Eridon's lap dog cry out in pain for a second, losing balance and flying back down the hall. I high fived Cynthia, turned, and began running down the hall. The closer I got, the more I could pick up her scent, and the more I could sense her telepathy connection. I was close for sure. Stopping at the door at the far end of the hall, I took a deep breath and opened the door to the room, then took a face full of magic blasts.