The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 18 - I Won't Let You (Part 2)

"What do we do now?" Bastian asked.

"I'm going to get her back," Amadeus answered as he walked towards the commoner camp boundary, not waiting for the others to reply. Rei started to follow after him, but hesitated when he remembered Waldo's promise of what would happen to Izumi if Amadeus did not go alone. He could only stand there and watch, his face creased with worry and desperation as Amadeus disappeared into the trees.

Walking through the forest, Amadeus felt a fire burn within him, its heat moving to all corners of his body. He felt an incredible unreserved anger, one of which he had never felt before. It wasn't long before he approached a clearing in the middle of the forest.

In the middle of the clearing was a wide and deep pit. Flames filled its entire bottom, casting shadows on the walls of the pit. In the middle of the pit was somewhat of an island and on it stood Waldo Drake. He had Izumi tied up securely at his feet and she could be seen struggling against her bonds. Gene, Lockheed and Willie stood at the edge of the pit, chatting amongst themselves. When they saw Amadeus approach, they stopped and looked at him.

"Stop right there," he warned as Amadeus approached the edge of the pit. "If you take another step, the Drake will put this Exile out of her misery. "A simple kick..." he demonstrated as he gave Izumi a nudge with his foot "is all it takes for her to go down into the fire pit. It won't be a painless death, oh-no-no. She will scream as the fire consumes her body slowly. It will be most entertaining to watch."

Gene, Lockheed and Willie walked menacingly towards Amadeus. "Don't move a muscle," Waldo said with a sadistic smirk on his face. "The Drake is done fighting fair. You have made a fool of the Drake one too many times. If you so much as lift a finger to fight back, down-down-down goes the little Exile!" Waldo broke into a maniacal laugh.

Waldo scratched his brow, suddenly remembering something. "Where's Turney?" he asked his friends. "He's missing all the fun."

"We couldn't find him," Willie replied. "He's been missing since this morning."

"Oh well," said Waldo with a shrug. "It's his loss. He's going to miss all the fun we're about to have. Now..." Waldo paused and took a dramatic bow, gesturing to his friends "...over to you, boys."

"We're going to enjoy this," Gene laughed. Gene, Lockheed and Willie cracked their knuckles in anticipation as they came within arm's reach of Amadeus. Willie stood behind the other two, remembering what had happened in his previous clash with Amadeus.

"Careful guys," warned Willie. "He has this weird ability to absorb our magic and use it back on it. He did that the last time I fought him."

"Oh we won't need magic for this worm," boasted Lockheed as he formed a fist with his hand. Lockheed was larger than the others, and Amadeus could tell that he could hold his own in a fist fight even without magic.

"That's right Lockheed," nodded Waldo. "Don't use any magic on this worm, let's show him how worthless he truly is. Amadeus, remember this well. Try anything funny and the Drake will push your friend down into the pit. Understood?"

Amadeus gritted his teeth and nodded.

"Very good, now bow down to the Drake like the worm you are. It's time you learned your rightful place as a commoner."

Amadeus got down on his knees, using his hands to support his weight. He felt the snow between with his fingers. Glaring at Waldo, he bowed down unwillingly.

"Lower worm!" Waldo exclaimed. "The Drake wants to see your head touch the floor."

Amadeus complied, lowering his head until his forehead was touching the cold ground.

"Now, your whole camp is about to die at midnight anyway. So let the Drake have his way with you before then, and the Drake just might let your friend live. I think it's time you apologized to the Drake for your grievous misdemeanors. Now apologize, worm!"

Amadeus lifted up his head, his entire body still prostrate. "I'm sorry," he whispered while looking Waldo in the eye.

"What was that? The Drake couldn't hear youuuuu." Waldo said in a sing-song voice as he nudged Izumi closer to the edge. She struggled desperately against her bonds but they didn't budge.

"I'm sorry!" Amadeus shouted as loud as he could.

Waldo stopped pushing, and lifted his foot off of Izumi. "That's better. Now that you have admitted your sins, it is time for your just punishment. Boys, you know what to do."

Lockheed threw the first punch. Amadeus felt Lockheed lean in with the full weight of his body. The impact of the punch was explosive, causing Amadeus to flip over and fall on his back.

"Get back up," commanded Waldo.

Amadeus wiped off the blood from the side of his mouth and lifted himself back up. He was quickly greeted by another blow to the belly from Lockheed and a kick to the ribs from Gene. He collapsed to his knees and tumbled forwards, his face greeting the snowing ground. Willie watched nervously from behind the two, not wanting to be caught off-guard again.

"Get up again," said Waldo while doing a little dance on the spot.

Amadeus struggled to get to his feet, but managed to slowly get upright with the help of his arms. He looked at Izumi, whose tear stained eyes were filled with fear. He smiled weakly at her, as if to say 'It's going to be okay'.

"Willie," Waldo called out. "You said that this worm warned you not to spit on him again? The Drake says you should do it now to make a point. Go for it."

Willie, finally finding his courage, walked cautious towards Amadeus. Looking around uneasily, he leaned in and spit on Amadeus. "This is how you should do it Willie," Lockheed grunted as he shoved Willie out of the way. Gurgling, he collected saliva in his mouth before releasing a humongous wad of spittle in Amadeus' face. Amadeus remained motionless, complying with Waldo's command. The spittle trickled down the side of his face.

Gene did not like the feeling of being left out. Lunging forward with all his might, he elbowed the side of Amadeus' face. The force of his elbow threw Amadeus off his feet and drove his head towards the ground. Amadeus gasped for air, no longer able to feel the side of his face. His entire body was drained of strength, his limbs felt weak and lifeless.

Finding his confidence, Willie strode towards Amadeus' trembling body. "Get back up if you can, worm," he sneered. He kicked Amadeus causing him to roll lifelessly across the snow, leaving red streaks behind.

"Get. Up. Again." Waldo spoke slowly, emphasizing each word with glee.

Amadeus' entire body shivered in pain. He channeled all of his energy into his arms and legs, willing them to move. I need to keep at this... just a little longer. As long as Waldo is satisfied and Izumi is safe. He managed to stand up briefly but almost immediately stumbled back down to the ground, his legs giving way.

"You know Amadeus, you disappoint me. I thought you were tougher than this... You know what? The Drake changes his mind. The Drake thinks he'll kill your friend anyway. In fact, The Drake is so exceedingly generous; he will let you watch her burn slowly to death just for kicks and giggles."

"I won't let you," Amadeus replied weakly.

"Sorry, my hearing is a little fuzzy. What did you say? You won't what? You won't let the Drake kill your friend? Oh-ho-ho... you are hilarious Amadeus. You could be the official jester of White Harrow if it weren't for the whole camp being wiped out and all. Anyway, back to you. You won't let me?" Waldo eyed Amadeus amusingly. "Watch me." With that, Waldo cackled with pleasure and kicked Izumi towards the edge of the island.

As Izumi rolled off the edge, her eyes met Amadeus. She didn't need to speak, the desperation in her eyes conveyed everything she wanted to say – 'I don't want to die'.