Age of Darkness

Chapter 34: Zaria

We walk silently to the edge of the now quiet city. I can't believe my eyes. I can't believe that the great city of legend is now this, in ruins, a fallen, crumbling, shadow of its former self.

The once towering walls have fallen, the stones broken, and battered on the ground beneath our feet.

The roads are empty, the city lifeless. As are the houses. I look far off, to the center of the city, and see Zaria Castle, home to the King if Altaria, but judging from my surroundings, it is now home to a darker force.

It gives me chills to think of what has happened to this once magnificent capital.

''What in the Goddess's name happened?'' Asks Elizabeth.

''Zirkon...'' I whisper, awestruck... At his name, the wind gusts, and the mood gets even darker.

''Don't speak his name, not so close to his new home...'' Whispers Elizabeth. It seems as if we are the only ones remaining in the world, here...

We wander a bit further, and I, desperate to get rid of the silence, speak up.

''Perhaps we should check out the houses? There could be somebody hiding there?...'' I know. I'm desperate.

''Sure, anything to get out of these streets.''

We duck out of sight, and slip into one of the houses. This is Zirkon's turf. It's best to be careful. The door is unlocked. I guess they were-Are a trusting people, sure nobody would break into their houses. Perhaps it was their trust that led to their downfall?

No. I can't think that way. I do, and I might as well be dead. That attitude gets you nowhere.

We sneak through the house, room to room. Everytime I turn the corner, I hope to find somebody standing there. A citizen, glad to see I'm here. Or Zirkon, ready to kill me...

We find nothing, though. We sweep through the house again, and into the basement, a large room, filled with old things. I go to one side, and push away some stuff, revealing a door.

''Elizabeth?''

''Yes?''

''I found something.'' I try to open it. No luck, it won't budge. Elizabeth rushes up to me.

''We need to get this open. At the count of three, we run at it. Ready? One. Two. Three!''

We rush at the door, trying to break it open, and we succeed. We bust through the door, but instead of breaking into another room as I thought, we fall into empty nothingness below...

I grab onto Elizabeth. I can't see. Everything's all black, but if I'm with her, in her arms, I can die happily.

But I don't die. We hit the bottom with a loud thud. I moan, sore from landing on my back.

''You okay, Elizabeth?'' I whisper.

''Yeah, I didn't die. Where are we?''

I'm not sure. I can't see anything still. I feel the ground. Dirt. Are we in a tunnel, of some sort? I decide to find out.

I rub my hands together, and feel flames licking my fingers. I turn myself into a torch, basically, and light up wherever we are.

I look around the... I was right, it's a tunnel of some sort. Winding paths set before us. Then I spin around, and see a bunch of faces looking back at me, Elizabeth screams, and everything goes black...