23

Prison Break

LILLI

Long ago with times discord, there came the Children of Relics…

My eyes slit open, a man’s voice echoing in song as I came to, head throbbing. A stringed instrument plinked softly as he sang, and in a daze, I sat up.

One for each realm, they came to be the rulers thought angelic

From Land to Death, beginning and end: Land, Sky, Ocean, Dream and Death

From Land to Death, beginning and end: Land, Sky, Ocean, Dream and Death

My long, grey hair was splayed across the grimy floor, frazzled and loose, my ribbon and bell missing. My hands were covered with strange gloves. Try as I may, they wouldn’t come off, my wrists bound by metal shackles that were chained to the stones at my feet.

Something rubbed against my knees as well. It felt like a thin fabric was separating them from the floor.

My breath fled when I glanced down.

I was wearing loose trousers, the ragged hems reaching my ankles. I was also in a greasy, thin-sleeved tunic that was riddled with holes and strange stains. I recognized neither of these articles.

Where are my clothes? I wondered with a disgusted shiver, the next thought making my skin crawl. And who in Bloods changed them?

Panicking, I reached for my ear, breathing in relief to feel that the small earcuff, if nothing else, was still secured.

Bloods, I must be more careful. I didn’t know where my amulet and scythe-ornament were, but if I’d lost the earcuff, it could have been far worse.

I twisted to examine my surroundings. In the dim light of this dungeon, I saw the walls were made of stone, the place stinking of feral rat droppings and mildew. The front wall was nothing more than iron bars caging me in. There was a single, orange lamp hanging outside where the hallway waited, along with a stairway. Jewel was nowhere in sight.

They threw me in prison. Glorious.

I glared at the gloves squeezing my hands. Dampening gloves. They were woven with rubbery fabric, coated in the secretions of an exotic plant found in the Sky realm. My tutors had called it Yinklît Gel. The sticky substance was known to nullify any elemental Evocation.

I noticed my boots had been replaced with shoes of the same material, so using the soles of my feet to release my Hallows was out of the question as well.

I swept my gaze to the stone wall on my right. The unseen man, likely a fellow inmate, still sang and plucked his stringed instrument.

Those with all three Blessings were the kings, and queen, the Gods did bring

With crowning marks to prove their right, they served to quell the thriving strife

Didn’t I know this song? I vaguely remembered the tune from my history studies… Ah! Yes, that was it: The Ode of Hope. According to my tutors, it was written centuries past, when the Land King was first killed. It was sung in hopes of catching the ear of the lost heir.

Long ago with Bloodlines passed, the King of Land had been our cost.

Without a king, the Land is lost, cracked and broken, torn and crossed

I shuffled to the wall and pressed an ear against the stone. Well, I thought, at least I’m not alone in this prison. Would he be keen on escaping with me? I would certainly need help, with these dampening gloves.

His song wavered on.

And though our Bloodline may be lost, he will appear to us again

One day he will return we know, the rightful throne will be obtained

From Land to Death, First and Fifth: Land, Sky, Ocean, Dream and Death

From Land to Death, First and Fifth: Land, Sky, Ocean, Dream and…

He halted.

It was silent for a time, then he chuckled. “Awake are we? I’m sorry if my song is bothering you, little Grimlette. Would you like me to stop?”

I had to take a shocked moment before answering. “How… Er… Hang on. How did you know I was from Grim if you can’t see me?”

“Aside from your accent? They brought you in after me,” he explained. “You were asleep at the time. There’s no mistaking that youthful grey hair, not on these surface lands.”

Youthful! Nira, bless this man! Finally, someone had the sense to know the difference between an old woman and a young girl. “I see,” I said, then paused. “But how did you know I was awake?”

His tone was pleasant, ignoring the question. “You wanted to ask me something, Grimlette? I can’t imagine why you’d press yourself against the wall like that, otherwise.”

“How—?”

“Another time. What is your question?”

I shook off my confusion, making a mental note to pester him about those things later. There was a more pressing matter that needed my attention. “I had a proposal for you, if you’d accept,” I explained. “I thought, perhaps, you’d be interested in… well…”

“Escaping together?” he guessed, quite on point. “Well, that depends. Why were you thrown in here?”

I blushed. “I may have eaten some apples without paying.”

He clucked a laugh. “Gardener’s Spade! Your excuse is pettier than mine.”

“May I ask?”

“I told a Raider the Day of Revival was approaching. The true king of Land will take his throne again sooner than he thinks, don’t doubt it.” His tone was proud. “He wasn’t too pleased to hear it.”

“He… imprisoned you over a belief?”

“It’s not as uncommon as you might think, Grimlette.” His voice grew rugged and dismal. “It’s a crime of treason to claim King Galden isn’t the rightful heir… Especially on a day that celebrates his ancestor’s crowning. Oh, don’t look so surprised, Grimlette. It’s normal here. You may want to close your mouth, by the way, there are bugs flying about.”

My mouth clamped shut, bristling. Oh, that is IT! I’d had enough of this game. “How can you see me?”

His glum chuckles bounced in the dim prison, and I jumped when one of the stones slid back from the wall with a grinding crunch, leaving a square hole that let me see into the next cell.

The opening was just big enough to show the goat-horned man’s head, and he smiled at me. “These cells aren’t very well-made.”

His skin was a deep shade of brown, and his auburn hair was dreaded with red beads—with the exception of one green bead, which was isolated on a single strand dangling by his chin.

“Since your only crime is feeding yourself,” he mused. “I see no harm in helping you. Let me see your shackles.”

Thankful, I lifted my hands to the hole, and the man plucked out a small, thin rod from his hair, along with a short blade that’d been hidden.

“If one plans to openly express his disliking for the king,” he hummed while sticking the rod and blade into my cuffs’ lock, twiddling them around. “Then one must be prepared for imprisonment on a regular basis. Can’t spread the word of our Relicblood’s return if I’m executed, now can I?”

My shackles popped open, and I ripped the dampening gloves off my hands. My fingers were sticky from the nullifying, Yinklît Gel residue, and I wiped them on my trousers. “Thank you… er…”

“Linolius.” He gave another smile. “Or Linus, if you like. I can remove the leg shackles as well?”

I glanced down at the cuffs, shaking my head. “That won’t be necessary. I have a way to deal with them, now that my hands are free. And this hole is too high for you to reach, regardless—”

Another block of stone slid out of the wall, this time near the floor. “There are three other loose stones on this wall,” he said, “but they’re much too high to do any good. Not to mention, I can’t reach them anyway.”

“How do you know where all these openings are if you can’t reach them?”

“You’re a perceptive one,” he muttered. “Come, slide those chains over here.”

I knew he was purposefully ignoring my questions, and although agitated, I conceded. I could have used my Pyrovoking to heat the chains to a brittle temperature and free myself, but I supposed his approach was simpler, and would help conserve my stamina. If I ran into any Raiders during my escape, I would want to preserve my power to fend them off.

I wouldn’t want to kill them, though, Gods no… I could barely stomach the sight of that Raider’s cooked arms—a disfiguring scar that he would carry for the rest of his life… because of me.

I grew sick, calming in an exhale. No. I would avoid the likes of that if I could. I’d only need to slow them down if they pursued. They didn’t deserve the death penalty for carrying out their task as guards. I was the stranger here, the law breaker. That wasn’t their fault.

Linus undid my shackles, which clattered to the floor. I rose to the higher hole, ripping off the dampening shoes and grimaced as I wiped at the sticky gel that coated my bare feet.

“Thank you,” I said, relieved.

“But of course… Howless.” There was a mocking twinge with that last word. His fingers slid thoughtfully over my old shackles, his eyes glazing while touching them. He grinned. “A bit lost, aren’t we? I believe your post is down below.”

I didn’t like that tone. Did he know, somehow? “What do you mean?”

“Never you mind, Howless.” He chuckled, as if calling me that was a joke only he understood. “I believe our escape is overdue?”

I grumbled in annoyance, rubbing my raw wrists. “I suppose… Have you a plan, then?”

“Of course. But we have to wait, first.”

“Wait for what?”

With a grinding scrape, he slid the stone back in place and quickly replaced the second.

Footfalls sounded from the top of the stairwell.

“All right, street scum,” a voice called from above. “The gallows have a gift for you. On your feet.”

I hurried to my cell bars, peering through.

A gold-plated Raider took a ring of keys from his belt. There was another knight with him, and five bronze-plated Footrunners accompanied them. The two Raiders had swords strapped to their belts, and four Runners held spears, the last having only a Shotri holstered at his waist.

I recognized one of the Raiders. He was the knight who’d captured me. He was a thick man, heavyset at his gut with legs the size of small tree trunks. He’d taken off his gauntlets to wrap his burned wrists in bandages and gauze.

I winced at the bloodied dressings. Nira forgive me for such sins… I prayed the Healers could help him well enough.

He unlocked Linus’s cell door, and the bars squeaked open. The second, scaled Raider jerked Linus to his feet.

I was confused when they walked out, seeing the goat-shifter was still in shackles. His chains were longer than mine had been, and he didn’t have dampening gloves. I supposed he didn’t have any dangerous Hallows like me, but I expected him to have taken the shackles off by now. Had he run out of time?

More importantly, I thought, frowning when Linus began chuckling to himself, why is he laughing at such a time?

“Wipe that smile off before I rip it off,” the reptilian Raider warned as he dragged Linus out of the cell. The man had a crooked, hooked nose that leaned to one side, lips chapped and tan scales flaking in some places. “And I don’t know what you’re laughing at. You think being strung up to dry is funny?”

“Certainly not,” Linus disagreed in mock cheer. “You, however, will be a grand source of ridicule when the heir has you beheaded for treason.”

He gave a nasally laugh. “Is that right? Kheh! Kheh, heh—” He fell into a coughing fit. Once it settled, he set a hand on his armored belly. “Guess I didn’t learn my lesson when your friends told me the same thing before they hung yesterday, eh?”

Linus only smiled wider, the gesture vindictive.

“Well.” The scaled Raider snorted, spitting a disgusting blob of black sludge. It smelled like chewing tobacco. “You’ll get your turn in a few minutes. And you can thank one of your little friends for that. He cracked, told us all about your little hideout before we put him out. Should probably pick your friends better when you’re a ghost—”

Linus jammed his elbow into the man’s side. The knight grunted in a start, releasing Linus.

Death’s ghost, he’s free! I clutched my cell bars, thrilled as I watched the goat swiftly sidestepped around the Raider and twirled behind him with such dexterity, his feet may as well have grown wings. His feet shifted, ready to make a dash for it, and…

Linus pulled a sleight-of-hand and drew out the scaled knight’s sword from its scabbard, the steel glinting in the firelight with a long scrape. My thudding heart dulled. His grin turned wild, and with shackled hands—

Linus slit the sharp metal over the knight’s throat.

Blood sputtered from the Raider’s neck as he collapsed to the ground, crimson dripping from Linus’s blade. Linus’s eyes were stale when he stared at the fatter, stunned Raider and the five Footrunners behind him.

“Wh… what…?” I stammered, horrified. “What are you doing…?”

Linus didn’t break his gaze from the other men. “Providing an escape for you, my little Grimlette.”

“W-wait! Not like this—!”

The thicker Raider drew out his sword, and four Runners prepared their spears, the fifth cocking his Shotri. The fifth let loose a stream of Shockspheres at Linus. The goat crouched under the spheres, which shattered against the wall behind him and aimlessly spewed bolts of lightning, and he rushed for the Runner.

I screamed when he drove his sword into the man’s stomach—puncturing through the breastplate—and shoved the Runner to the ground, pulling out his soaked weapon.

The remaining Runners thrust their spears at him, and Linus twirled between the staves, slicing without pause.

I quickly evoked my flame Hallows, my hands heating with an orange fire as I directed the flames at the iron bars caging me in. The metal warmed, rising until the rods blushed red.

“Stop!” I increased heat so the bars would melt faster. I couldn’t fling the fire, for fear of hitting the other men. Linus moved too swiftly for me to aim with confidence.

Red painted the walls, bones and lances fracturing at the force of Linus’ blows. Now, only the rotund Raider remained.

“Demon…!” The Raider quivered, his grip tight over his sword’s hilt. The smell of urine swelled as a wet spot dripped from the man’s leg onto the floor. “Rebels aren’t trained like…! L-like…!”

“How does that old creed go again?” Linus sighed, stepping over the soldier’s fallen comrades. “Ah, yes. ’My courage is my honor, and my honor is my strength’. You seem to have forgotten that bit, haven’t you, Brother?”

The Raider inched back. “H… how do you know that? That’s only taught to Raiders—”

Linus darted for him. Their swords clanged, the blood on Linus’s blade flicking onto the man’s startled face. He swung for Linus’s head, and the goat twirled behind him and stabbed backward, plunging his blade through his foe’s back while the tip pierced out his chest.

My cell bars finally met their brittle temperature and I broke open a large hole for me to climb out. I rushed for them, hands blazing with licking flames.

Linus slid his sword out of the man’s chest and kicked his corpse to the floor. Then he bent over the Raider’s remains to retrieve the crimson-spattered keys that’d dropped during the slaughter, calmly unlocking his shackles.

“You’d best leave before others come down, little Grimlette,” he advised with an invigorated inhale through his nose, as if this dank dungeon was an open field, and the horrors at his feet were nothing more than a patch of delightful daisies. “We wouldn’t want anyone thinking this mess is yours, mm?”

I stood a safe distance back, teeth barred and grown fox ears curled back. The floor was a maze of red ooze now, stray drips trailing between the cracks and seeping to my feet.

“How could you…?” My voice shook. “I could have waited until they were gone to free myself. I… I could have…”

His face sagged with exhaustion, lids heavy with dark circles. “Two of them were planning to trade you off to a whore house for a fair sum,” he said, massaging his neck. “Unnamed foreigners make the best illicit products here. Harder to track.”

“I… I still would have escaped by my own means.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that. This way was just simpler, I thought. Much faster. You see? You’re already free to walk out, and with no hassle or shameful groping.”

“It doesn’t matter what they would have done!” I shouted, blinking enraged tears. “They didn’t deserve this! I… I charge you for breaking the First Law of Death…!” My sharpened teeth ground so hard, my gums grew sore. “Those found guilty of needless murder receive the death penalty themselves!”

“If you had the mind to burn me alive, you would have done it already,” he grunted, rubbing his lids tiredly. “Don’t trouble yourself. You’d be breaking the very law you seek to enforce, anyway.” He cast me a sidelong glance, then grinned at my new, loathing glare. “Oh, you can’t hide it from me, Grimlette. You cannot end a life before its time so frivolously.”

I kept my flaming hands up while he walked past me and entered his old cell.

“I’m not a Necrofera,” he went on, “so you won’t harm me so long as you aren’t under attack.” He retrieved his stringed instrument and threw his blood-stained sword to the ground. The clatter echoed against the stone walls surrounding us.

He hummed. “Now that the men are already dead, and I pose no threat to you, I’m afraid there’s no legal incentive for you to harm me. Your only duty now would be to apprehend me. But I’ll not go willingly, and you’d have to kill me to convince me otherwise. Though, you can’t do that, can you?”

He gave a pleasant smile, the speckled blood on his face dripping between his lips. “No, you can’t yet bring yourself to commit such sacrilege. I’ve felt it, little one. Yours is an honorable soul. You’ll not strike down a man without arms—”

“Watch me!” I swept up his discarded sword and rushed for him. He hadn’t time to blink before I leapt up and kicked him to the soiled floor, pinning him with my knee, bringing the blade’s tip to his chest…

I froze.

My fingers gripped the sword’s hilt with shaking fingers, arms poised to drive the steel into his heart. They wouldn’t move.

I saw myself, seconds into the future, the blade sinking into the soft muscle and ending it. His eyes would dim. His face would pale. The blood would seep from the wound, his breath would fade to silence.

It would have been so simple… I’d done it hundreds of time with the Necrofera, this wouldn’t have been any different. Yet why couldn’t I do it…?

“As I’d said,” exhaled Linus. “It’s not in you. My time has not come. And you cannot interfere with my fate, not so dismissively. It’s part of your heritage. Now tell me, will you go against your instinct, little fox-wolf?”

I stiffened, the blade still aimed at his heart. “How did you know I was half wolf?”

“Hybrids are quite rare, aren’t they? To have both traits of parents with different shifts, it’s such an oddity… Normally, only the dominant trait is given to the offspring.”

“I said how did you know?” He was toying with me, and I was long beyond aggravated. “You seem to know more than you should—about everything. Where are you getting your information?”

“Observation,” he said simply, smiling. “Your ears are thin and large, like a fox, yet your claws are not prim and delicate. They are thick and strong, much like your teeth. That, along with your quick temper, is typically known to wolf shifters.”

“And everything else you seem to know about me? Like where my ‘post’ is? We’d barely spoken in our cells, yet you act as if you know who I am. How?”

He couldn’t contain his chuckling. “Come now, Grimlette. You should know the answer.”

He seized my pinning knee and twisted it upward, tossing me aside like a sack of feathers. He was strong, more than I’d anticipated. No wonder those men hadn’t give him much of a fight.

I was shoved against the stone wall and fumbled to regain footing, gripping the sword firmly as Linus rose to his feet.

“I’d said before that I merely observe and deduce. I did not lie.”

It finally hit me. “You’re a Seer,” I said. “That’s how you know things you shouldn’t?”

“Very good,” he praised. “Prophetic Hallows does come in handy at times. Though I’ll admit, I’m not as talented with past and future events. What I See is mostly the present; who someone truly is, and what they seek. You, for instance, are not just any stray Howless visiting the surface on holiday. You seek a man with heterochromia. Someone has sent you after him… Who is your employer, might I ask?”

“If you don’t already know, then it’s not your concern.”

“Oh, but it is.” He retrieved his stringed instrument from the floor and began plucking out of habit, leaning against the wall casually. “You see, I seek the same man. I wish to know who my competition is.”

“Why are you looking for Xavier?”

He continued plucking as he gave me a curious look. “Not only Xavier, Howless. I also seek his brother. I have reason to believe those twins have an importance—one that we, as a nation, cannot afford to lose.”

My hairs stood on end. I’d heard this before, from the King of Dreams. He was the one who’d sent me here. Find Xavier, he’d said, and reunite him with his brother. With one missing, there will be nothing left for us.

What had he meant…?

I blinked, suddenly noticing what the bard was playing on his instrument. The tune was all too familiar, melancholy and lamenting.

“That song,” I whispered, shock twisting my glower. “How do you know that song?”

He closed his eyes, still plucking the strings. “It was playing in your subconscious, when you had me pinned. Curious though, it felt important to you. What is so special about this Requiem?”

“That prayer holds more meaning than a monster like you deserves to know. You disgrace its birthplace with your tainted fingers.”

He gave a soft hum and started up the stairs, still playing. “Fascinating. Well, I’d best be off. Oh, and you’re holding that sword all wrong, Howless. Your hands are too far apart, and your positioning is poor, stance too close, and weight too far back. Perhaps you are better suited for a scythe?”

I blushed and trotted to the bottom step, calling up. “Wait!” He paused at the top, finally ceasing his music. “Yes?”

“You… you called him your Brother.” My throat was tight as I lowered the sword. My voice quieted. “That Rockraider. Was he truly your Brother-in-arms?”

He gave a long, solemn exhale. “Once, perhaps. They were all traitors to the true heir, after swearing their allegiance to a false ruler. My king will return, I heed you wait and see… And he will take the throne away from this imposter. When that happens, he’ll know my loyalty remains with him. Best luck to you, fox-wolf. I believe we’ll be in touch.”

He disappeared upstairs, leaving me alone in the cellar. Nausea churned as the smell of fresh death permeated. It took me some time before I found the courage to drop the sword and climb after him.

When I reached the upper floor, which was thankfully empty, Linus had gone. I found my belongings in a box under a desk, which had apparently been confiscated after the Raiders imprisoned me. I thanked the Gods it was all here, clothes and all. Though, I hadn’t time to change here. I quickly grabbed my amulet and other possessions, shoving them into my Storagesphere.

I tied up my hair with the ribbon and bell while I hurried out, sliding my scythe-ornament into the messy bundle.

Once outside, I jumped into the bustling crowd, the festival’s music still blaring as it had been earlier. It was strange, how the once energizing notes now made my chest ache. The vibrations were only a daunting reminder of its new, hollow pain.

I found an alley and hid within it, pressing my back against the brick, sliding to the ground with a heavy heart.

A twitter sounded above, and I saw my little crow was fluttering down to me. I cupped the bird in my hands. “Jewel…! I’m sorry. I made you wait so long…”

I felt like retching, the stink of fresh blood clinging to my nostrils. I may have been accustomed to death, but only after it was done. And I’d never been proclaimed as the reason anyone had to die.

I folded my legs to my chest. “I-I need to stay focused, Jewel. I came here to find Xavier, not get involved with a… Jewel?”

The bird had buzzed out of my hands and perked her head, as if listening. Sensing. An eerie stillness overcame the alley as I stared at her, our Bond taut and tensed.

“Jewel?” I asked again, cautious. “Please, no. Don’t you dare…”

I was cut off when Jewel began to chirp sharply, her cries rising to a violent scream. She fluttered out of the alley with warning songs.

“Oh, Gods damn it all!” I groaned.

I jumped up to follow the crow while slipping out the hair ornament to ready my scythe.

Nothing for it now. If there were demons here, they weren’t going to kill themselves. I couldn’t save those men from a madman. My teeth barred, scythe materializing. But I can still help others from the…!

I gasped and dug in my heels, skidding to a stop.

The warmth fled from my face.

There were hundreds of beasts…! Fifteen or twenty, I could handle—barely—but this many? I was still weak from hunger and my stomach ached terribly. The pain was almost crippling, the apples weren’t enough. My leg was still sore from the previous wound in Adrial, and the running I’d just done had only aggravated it.

My eyes trailed the approaching swarm as the townspeople caught sight of the looming creatures. Screams sounded, followed by a stampede of terrified shifters rushing past me to escape. I stood frozen, eyes glazed at the Fera crawling from the buildings.

On a different day, in my own realm, I may have stood a chance against a fifth this many. But if I fought this amount, I couldn’t kill them all. It would only be an invitation for a quicker death than I’ve been expecting. If I wanted to survive until my proper execution date, I had to run.

And so I did.