The Price Of Wishing

The Tower

Davis ran the other way, drawing Prendre away. Davis was quick but Prendre had four powerful legs pushing him forward. Not that it mattered, as after a few minutes Prendre started throwing out his very sharps claws to try and rip into the young man.

Davis already knew where he wanted to go. He could see the tower looming over the rest of the ruins. It was still standing, although it was looking very old and leaning to its side a little bit. He could see statues on top of it, stone guardians looking over a dead place. 

Davis guessed there was some kind of blessing that was keeping it from tumbling. He really hoped it wasn't just an incredibly durable building. Or that it hadn't become a nest for some nasty type of animal.

Oh well, he thought, too late to come up with a new plan now.

Davis could already feel a gust of wind whenever the lion swiped a claw.  Davis had to act fast, so he let his feet fall from under him and threw his chest onto the ground. Prendre sailed right over him and crashed into a wall. Davis scrambled to the door. The door was way too big. Prendre could easily get through it.

"You've gotten faster," Davis noted as the lion slowly walked towards the door, knowing that he didn't need to run anymore.

"Stronger too. I've gotten two new lights since the last time we met."

"Well, that's a shame."

"What are you doing?" Prendre asked as he ducked through the door.

"Hoping this place is blessed against violence."

"That makes sense. That's a smart thing for you to try. Unfortunately, it's not."

"You've been here before?" asked Davis, knowing the answer and feeling his heart drop an inch in his chest.

"A few times."

Just beyond the door lay the steps up the tower. Davis turned and ran up the steps. The good thing about the stairs was that they were too small and too steep for Prendre's paws to fit comfortably, so he kept slipping a little bit. Davis had a bit of trouble with the stairs as well.

When the lion got too close, Davis kicked him in the face, sending him sliding down four or five steps.

"Do that again and I'll eat your foot!"

"Yeah, I'm going to let you get close to me while you keep talking like that." Sarcasm dripped from his voice.

"This is all avoidable, Davis."

"Yes, yes. I know the drill."

Davis kept running up as he spoke. Usually, he would let Prendre try to talk to him, present his old argument as it made him more agreeably to deal with. 

However, these steps were too high and there were too many. Davis didn't feel very agreeable so he didn't care about the lion while climbing them. Prendre similarly gave up easier than he normally would have.

Some of the stairs had hard, cracked edges. Prendre's heavy paws put pressure on the cracks with every step. More so when Prendre put his full weight on them. The stairs followed the wall and circled around the tower leading up towards the flat, decorated roof.

Davis did not have the luxury of feeling tired or slowing down. The lack of his light meant he felt everything more clearly as well. He had to keep going, even as his breath began to come short and sharp, burning the back of his throat. 

Finally, he could see the top of the tower. There was a small arch. It was perfect for him to get through without Prendre being able to follow him. As they rose to the top, the beams that had supported floors that had crumbled a long time ago, came into reach. Davis reached up and pulled one down on the lion. It didn't do any damage, but this annoyed the blue beast and make him roar his frustration at Davis, showing off his large, sharp teeth.