The Sorcerer Prince

Chapter #12

     Seto is more then ready to leave the collapsing gate. They'll have to find some other way to retake the kingdom without some fancy dark magic portal.
    
     The room shakes violently as the prince hurries back to the door with the familiar right behind him. The grey crystal in the table seems to give a slight pulse of farewell as they pass. This gate will not last until they can visit again. All the remaining relics will be deleted. Phantom only takes the books he can carry on his back as Seto smuggles out the strange box.

     The gate seems to spit them both out when they pass through. Seto yelps as he's thrown out of the gate with Phantom falling right on top of him.

      "Ugh, I think you've squashed me", Seto groans.

     "Now you know what it's like when you accidentally step on your small pet", Phantom replies before sliding off of him. When Seto looks up, he's met by half a dozen hateful faces. Phantom freezes beside him when he sees the problem. He cusses. They were right to have been worried before; their pursuers had caught up with them. The six sorcerers have been waiting for them to come back out of the gate. Tracking dogs are barking and snarling at their feet.

Seto jumps up just as a water freeze spell misses his shoulder. Phantom scrambles up to his feet and deflects another attack with his ability.

"That's the sorcerer! Take him out and capture the prince!", one of the sorcerers yells out the order and points at the familiar. They don't realize what he really is with his human skin.

"Phantom-", Seto tries to warn Phantom, but the familiar shoves the prince back up against the opposite wall as a barrage of attack magic surges at him. Two of the spells fly right back at their casters, but the rest hit Phantom and sends him flying back down the hallway. His head hits the wall with a sharp crack and he crumples to the ground. The familiar shoved his friend out of the way instead of trying to dodge.

"Oh god. Get up, get up, get up", Seto staggers back up in shock. Phantom doesn't move. A pained sadness cleaves the prince's heart in two. He's never felt such grief before. Is this what it was like for Phantom when he died? Seto almost forgets about the sorcerers behind him, but one of them grab onto his arm and yanks him back. "Phantom!", he screams this time, fighting against the reaching arms.

If there was ever a time for his magic to manifest, it would be now. He used to be able to use all types of magic, right? He could heal with the water element! He could help Phantom! Seto rages and struggles against the sorcerers trying to pull him back, tears starting to stream down his face. He searches and calls for any of that powerful heat in his veins, but feels nothing. Seto does not have magic. He can't save his best friend, never mind his kingdom.

Seto keeps struggling until he's exhausted himself. He's already been gagged and drug out of the old wooden mansion with a new black eye to show for it. They're just leaving Phantom alone in that hallway. The group of sorcerers who caught him were traveling on horseback. It's actually surprising that they didn't catch up until now. Along with the gag, a sorcerer ties Seto's hands together and then tires them to a horse's saddle horn. He sits in gloomy silence as his horse is lead behind the others with a lead.

     Even though he's been captured, all he can think about is Phantom. He has to be ok, right? Phantom's always seemed so strong and sure of himself. Even though Seto's only knows him for a short time, it feels like it's been much longer. Some old, unbreakable bond had been reawakened when they met. Seto feels like his soul has a crack in it now. What about Abigail? Is she alright? Considering that she's not already with these sorcerers, Seto assumes that she's still safe with Bodil, Keeli, and Sorin. The dogs must have just been tracking him.

The prince can tell that they're heading back to the capital. The trip will be a lot faster on horses then it was on foot. The lead sorcerer takes the group back to a road and out of the woods. Seto smirks a little when he realizes they took a different route to completely avoid the Zemrlt village. As much as Phantom and Bodil bickered, the Dark Angel would probably be glad to tear these sorcerers apart.