Into The Light

Chapter Thirty

Dumbfounded, Harley found himself perching at the edge of the Abyss. He had finally gotten to meet the mysterious vampire who had been controlling Lylia, but there were still so many questions left unanswered! What did they want with Lylia? How had Alice known he was coming? And most importantly, what was Alice's next plan. Harley turned the questions over and over in his head as he trudged back to the Magic Academy, but he still could not think of any answers.

By dawn, Harley had snuck back into the Academy. Still deep in thought, he did not notice when he accidentally bumped into the unsuspecting Barats.

"Hey! What do you-oh, it's you," Barats said gruffly. "How did it go? What did that witch do to you?" Shocked, Harley stared at Barats. How did he know that Harley had visited the Abyss?

Barats shrugged as if he were reading Harley's mind. "I know you went. Rahal can scent the Abyss on you." Still bewildered, Harley said nothing till the dinosaur prodded him with its nose.

"Ah, I...Alice made me fight Lylia in something called a 'brawl match'. We don't have that here." he explained. Barats frowned.

"A brawl, huh. And Alice is her name. Alright," he finally said. Harley watched him curiously. Then, he thought of a good question to ask the Dino Rider.

"Barats, I've been meaning to ask...how do you know so much about the Abyss?" he began hesitantly. "You seem to know what a brawl is. I had no idea until I got there."

Barats paused. "Well, I, uh..." he said brusquely. "Ever seen a dino like Rahal here in the Land of Dawn?" Rahal pawed the ground and bayed. "Yeah, I got him from the Abyss. Used to be an apprentice of someone there. Balmond, his name was. A Fighter-Tank, just like me. I learnt a lot under him." Barats shrugged again. "But that was a long time ago."

Harley nodded slowly. That was how Barats had gotten all this information. Then, he hesitated. He had not given up on saving Lylia, of course. But, he asked himself, would it be a good idea to go alone after all? He had definitely tried and failed. Was it worth the risk to ask Barats to accompany him? In the end, Harley decided to give it a try.

"Uh, Barats? Do you want to help me save Lylia from the Abyss?" he asked. Instead of surprise, which was what Harley had anticipated, he merely looked mildly entertained.

"Huh, thought you wanted to be the hero. Sure, though. I know my way around the Abyss," Barats agreed. Satisfied, Harley smiled. Perhaps, instead of a bitter enemy, Barats would turn out to be a friend.