Chapter eight
Innocence of one
"Teck!" Skyler's voice echoed in the distance. "Teck! Where have you gone?" It's pitch black. A loud explosive sound wakes me from my slumber just to remind me I'm in this chamber. I must have dossed off while relaxing. I lift my hand off the wet ground and my palms covered in blood. I look over at Dante. He's against the wall laying down. Blood leaks from his side. "What happened?" I crawl over to him and sit him up. He's getting cold. I smack him on the face and he wakes up. Still dazed from the loss of blood. His eyes open halfway and close constantly. He groans as the wound starts to char. Bursts of flame appear inside his flesh wound. Amazed by this magic he bestows I stare at it as the gash slowly closes shut. I sit beside him making sure he's not actually dying because if it's true that he has the same power as me and he can show me, I can't have a dead mentor.
In this place an hour feels like a day, a day feels like a week and a week feels like an eternity in this chamber. The food we get isn't enough to sustain our strength. Weak, we sit there leaning against the wall, ready to pass out. We only have a few weeks left. But I don't think we'll make it. The plan is ready for execution. The only thing that frightens me are those four guys that stand watching us fight to the death. This guy, Dante, hasn't been very clean in who he is. Then again neither have I. It's getting hard to breath in this place. It feels like the walls are slowly closing in on me.
But once I get out of here I swear they'll pay for what they've done and what they continue to do. We need new leaders. No more corruption. It's sad to see that nobody else sees this, easily manipulated by them. No more shall they reign power over the people. With nothing to do I feel my sanity slowly drifting away and a storm brews inside my head.
Hours pass by and Dante is able to walk around. "I wish I wasn't so weak." Dante quietly mumbles.
"What?" Teck hesitated to ask.
"Magic. Mines weak." Dante said in anger.
"You must be joking. Nobody I know can just melt the chains that bind them without feeling pain. A simple flam practically melts my face!" He said laughing.
"If I was as strong as you think I would be able to melt these walls. But I can't! I tried multiple times!" Dante yelled as he let out a long burst of fire that slammed against the wall opposite of them and spread out in all directions almost engulfing the whole wall in an inferno. The heat was tremendous. "See, nothing." He said as he lowered his hand.
Teck laughed "how long have you been at this?"
"More then ten years if I remember correctly." He sighed feeling powerless. Teck just sat there in silence. The only thing that crossed his mind was that he's been here more then ten years. That kind of torment has it's effects on a person. He hasn't seen his family in so long, not only that but not being able to see the world and how it's changing would have a massive effect. Caged since a child, not knowing what it's like to feel free.
"There has to be an easier way out." Teck demanded.
"There is none." He replied with a grin. "People come in. They don't get out."
"When does the food come?" Teck asked curiously.
"It should be coming soon. If not then were defiantly dead men." Dante laughed "were dead already!"
"I have an idea. You keep by the door-" Dante interrupted Teck "they'll know."
"How exactly." Teck asked.
"No idea." He calmly said "a voice rings in your head warning you to stand back."
"Voice?" Teck started getting some sort of idea of what they do.
"They can enter your mind and know everything your thinking about doing even before you think about it." He said smiling. "There's one way and that's your plan. We must wait." He sighed as he laid back down to sleep.
"I can't believe this!" Teck thought to himself "tests? What test is this. Before I went unconscious I heard one say I passed the test and I'm on to the next, or am I going crazy? Thoughts like this is what bothers me. Power? I couldn't even defend myself from two guys." Teck lifted his hand off the ground and looked at his palm. "Magic?" He focused his energy to his palm. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in. He could see a slight glow through his eyelids. He grinned and opened his eyes. His hand was glowing red and smoking. "Come on!" He thought as the light grew brighter. But no sign of a flam.
"Almost there" Dante said to himself. "He just needs little a push."
Teck took another deep breath, held it in for a moment and exhaled. The glow creeped down towards his forearm. The color of a flame was inside him, struggling to breach the surface of the flesh. Teck places his palm on the metal wall and it burned bright. Like fog, flames creeped across the wall. He let go before the flam hit Dante's back. He looked at his palm again. "Weak." He said to himself. Teck laid down and fell asleep quickly due to lack of food and water. Hours pass by as they lay there silently.
"There's finally out." A hooded man said with a deep scratchy voice.
"You two get them" another man said as one opens the door. The two hooded men open the door and slowly walk in as if there hovering. Passed out in a puddle of dry blood Teck and Dante lay silent.
"Quickly now." An elderly woman demanded. There cloths stuck to the floor as the two men picked up Teck and Dante. They carried them in there arms down the dark hallway. A short walk to the arena. A wide open field with strategically placed boulders and broken pillars. Blood stains stain the sand between there feet. Blood spatters on the rocks. Bones of men lay half buried in the sand. Rotten flesh gets snatched away by scurrying rats. Light peers roof. Balls of fire hang from above leaking drops of embers upon the battlefield. The flickering of light caused the shadows to dance on the ground. The for hooded people part ways as the two in front jump three stories up to a ledge where they wait.
The other two walk in opposite directions towards a stone wall, it opens and they walk in. A small room with a sword set on two hooks on the wall close to the door. They lay them down on the sand and walk out. The door closes close behind them. They too jump up to there places. Above them a symbol was engraved in the stone walls; A triangle with a pair of feathered wings inside covering a hollow circle.
Teck and Dante lay in a dark room opposite of each other as the four hooded people linger above eager for them to wake. It could be hours before they wake up. But when they do. They'll have to face each other to the death or the four will strike them down where they stand.
