The Admin's Reign: A Spark of Hope

Chapter 4

"WHAT?!"

The walls of the capital palace shook with the enraged shout of Romeo. The servants scampered out of the room, shutting all the doors. Petra straightened from her wince, his loud voice having penetrated her eardrums.

"I heard every word." She confirmed.

"How could he-I gave him so much and this is what I get?! Betrayal?!" The Admin slammed his fist down on the armrest of his throne.

"What are you going to do, my lord?" She asked.

"When he returns, we will hear his observation, then we shall decide his fate," Romeo replied. "I'm sure I can come up with something perfect."

______

Radar munched happily on his fresh apple from the kitchen. This place may have been filthy, damp, dark, and scary, but the food was amazing.

"Did you get any pie?" Nikki asked, holding her own pie in her lap.

Radar shook his head. "You got pie?" He asked.

"Yeah, want some?" She offered. "I'm not gonna eat it all."

"Sure!" He replied.

After one more bit, she got the pie tin through the bars and slid it across the hallway to him. He picked it up and pulled it into his cell.

"Thanks."

"No prob."

After a few moments of silence as the two ate, Nikki spoke up. "So, who were you taken from?"

Radar looked up, swallowed and answered. "My parents."

"Ah," She said. "The girl who used to be in that cell was taken from her parents too, but something happened to them...and she went off to work."

"So...is this the unlucky cell?" He asked nervously.

Nikki chuckled. "Nah, just a coincidence, I'm sure your parents will be fine."

"What about you, I mean, I know you were taken from your brother but...what happened to your parents?" Radar inquired.

She shrugged. "Not long after the empire started, our parents just disappeared one day. We don't know where they went or what happened to them, but for the longest time, it was just Jesse and me."

"How many years have you been here?"

"More than six, I know that much...beyond that I've long lost count." She replied.

"Wow,"

"Yeah, it's pretty messed up."

Suddenly the building shook, rubble fell from the walls and ceiling as a loud shout rang out through the palace.

"WHAT?!"

All in the brig froze.

Radar was the first to break the heavy silence.

"W-what w-was that?" His voice was a couple octaves higher than he intended.

The inmate in the cell next to Nikki answered. "That was the Admin, somebody is deader than dead."

He gulped.

"Well," Nikki spoke a moment later. "I really hope it isn't as bad as it sounds."

"Same." Radar replied.

________

Ivor made his way into the palace, having readied his 'report' on his observation of Jesse. They had agreed that he would confirm the Admin's suspicions. Whatever he planned to do to fix the problem, he knew that they would be able to rescue Nikki and Radar before either of them came to harm. He and Jesse planned to work on their rescue plan the next day, making sure that the only flaw in their plan was indeed taking care of Petra. He had a pretty good idea of what they could do, he just hoped it would work.

The doors to the throne room were opened for him as he approached. He entered and bowed.

"Ivor!" Romeo greeted. "Glad you've made it back, so, what have you observed?"

The ninja shook his head. "You were right, master!" He said. "Jesse spreads hope throughout his troops, turning them against you!"

"Oh, how I enjoy being right." The Admin smiled, leaning back in this throne. "Well done, Ivor."

"I'm glad I could be of service to you." He replied. "So, what would you like me to do next, my lord?"

"Oh, I don't need you to do anything, in fact, my plan doesn't include you at all," Romeo replied.

A black hole grew in Ivor's stomach. There was something in his tone that was unsettling, what had he found out?

"Petra has told me things, Ivor," The Admin continued, causing the ninja's chest to tighten.

'No.' He thought. 'He couldn't have.'

"Things that don't please me at all."

__________

Jesse was happy to be back to his own bed in the capital. This place would never be his true home, but it was as close as he was gonna get. Ivor had told him he would report to Romeo and then come back and work on their plan to free Nikki and Radar. His hope was stronger than ever, but it didn't do anything to help him sleep. He couldn't help but feel like something horrible was about to pass...