Paralyzed. My body, my voice, my mind.
I’m staring at Kingston in front of me and see the Magician’s corpse strewn across the floor, but I don’t register it. Every inch of me is paralyzed. Numb. Broken.
“Go grab that towel.” Kingston breaks Scythe from the chains.
His voice sounds distant, muffled, as if I’m hearing it from underwater.
My body lifts into the air as Kingston tugs on my chains. They tighten, snap, and then my arms fall forward meeting no resistance. My legs are limp, and I feel like I’m watching myself from outside my body as Kingston helps lower me onto the ground.
Scythe takes the towel and wipes away the warm blood speckled across my face. I see the red pool expanding across the floor.
“Is she okay?” he says.
“Yeah, she’s fine. She’s just in shock.” Kingston continues to hold me in his arms, rubbing my back. “Genevieve, try and take a couple deep breaths. Genevieve.” He turns my face towards his.
Again I notice how beautiful he is, with his glowing white eyes and high-set cheekbones.
“Genevieve, just look at me.” He smiles.
All at once, my senses return and I can’t help but scream. Kingston clamps his hand over my mouth.
“You’re going to have to not do that.” He traps my voice until I fall silent. “You okay now?”
Scythe is standing over me, too, his face painted with concern.
I nod. Kingston releases his hand.
“Here, let’s get you to your feet.” He looks at one of the workbenches. “Go grab that blanket, Scythe. Throw it over his body.”
He does so.
“There. All better.” Kingston moves away from me, but still remains guarded, his hands nearby in case I falter in my steps.
“I’m okay now,” I whisper, my voice shaking. “I just…I wasn’t expecting that to happen.”
“Neither was I.” Scythe glares at Kingston. “I’m not sure I understand what’s going on.”
“Yes, I would imagine you wouldn’t. But you guys are okay. The Magician is dead, and we can get you out of here. I just need to find where he put the portal key.”
“What are you talking about? I have to go get my brother!” A wave of fear crashes into me with the remembrance of Danny. “We’re wasting time standing around here.”
“Are you stupid?” Kingston gawks at me, his eyes bulging. “Really, Genevieve. Are you that dumb?”
“What the hell is wrong with you?” I hiss. “My brother is about to be killed, and you just want me to leave? Are you stupid, Kingston?”
“Genevieve, you’re testing my patience.” He scoffs, reaching under the blood-soaked sheet to check the Magician’s pockets.
“Scythe?”
“If we go search for your brother, there is a very good chance that we may end up dead ourselves.” He glances at Kingston and looks back at me. “We’re not going to be saved every time.”
“I know that.” I bite my lip, trying to hold back my tears as I gaze at Scythe. “But I’m not losing any more family members. Not like this.”
Scythe sighs.
“Got it.” Kingston stands back up. “Go get over on the platform.”
“The Prison Ward isn’t far from here,” Scythe says. “We can go together. If that’s really what you want to do.” He frowns at Kingston. “She will never forgive any of us if we don’t try.”
Kingston slams the portal key onto the table.
“You both disgust me,” he growls. “Why can neither of you make things easy?” He stalks toward the door. “What are you going to do about the security system, Scythe? There are cameras everywhere.”
“Uhh…”
“Yeah, didn’t think about that one, did you?”
I look from Scythe to Kingston, waiting for one of them to say something.
Kingston sighs. “Luckily for you two, I disabled the cameras before coming here.” He heads toward the door, but pauses. “And for the record, Scythe killed the Magician after he escaped from his chains.” He squints at us. “Isn’t that right?”
“Absolutely.” Scythe looks at me.
“I don’t know how else it could have happened.”
“Good,” Kingston says. “Then grab the portal key, and let’s go.”
We disappear into the black corridor.
a
“I would have expected more guards in a place like this,” I whisper, as we continue to wind through the maze of halls.
The dim lighting casts my shadow against the wall’s black stones, and it flickers with the motion of my movements.
“That’s because they’re all at an assembly.” Kingston eyes me with disapproval. “So I would suggest we get this done quickly, before it concludes.”
“It’s gonna be okay,” Scythe says, next to my ear, and wraps his cold fingers around my hand to give me a gentle squeeze. “This will be over soon.”
I tighten my grip around his hand, then quickly let go.
We round the corner, and two guards are standing before us, positioned in front of a purple steel door.
Kingston jars to a halt. “Good afternoon, gentlemen.”
I stand there next to Scythe, frozen. We both glance at each other before focusing our attention back on the two men dressed in black armor.
“Not at the assembly, I see?” Kingston says.
“Commander Starmantle!” One of the guards bows toward Kingston. “Good to see you, sir. We were told to remain stationed here. Were we given the wrong orders?”
“No, no. You’re fine.” Kingston looks back at us. “I’m just here to lock up these two.”
“Oh?” The guard peers at me from under his helmet.
I try to avoid his gaze.
“Yes, there’s been… an incident.” Kingston grabs Scythe by his jacket collar and tugs him out in front. “This one has killed Blaine Fortrunner.”
The other guard gasps. “The Magician?”
Kingston nods. “Yeah, I know.” He gestures to the door. “Do you know if my mother’s still in there?”
I do a double-take. Mother? Wait, what?
The guard shakes his head. “Lady Salharia left not too long ago. I believe she was on her way to the assembly to join the Dark Lady.”
“Perfect. She doesn’t need to concern herself with this right now. I’ll talk to her later.”
“Absolutely, Commander. Anything else?”
“Just open the Prison Ward for us.”
The purple door churns as it rises into the air.
“Thank you, gentlemen.” Kingston motions for us to follow him inside. “Do you know where she locked up the young boy?”
“Block five, row D, cell thirty-one.”
As we enter, the door lowers behind us.
Kingston turns around and nods at the guards. “See you later.”
Boom! The sound reverberates around the Prison Ward as the door settles, locking us inside.
“Whoa,” I take in my surroundings.
The Prison Ward is expansive, with vaulted ceilings illuminated by bright fluorescent lighting. The room seems to stretch on into the distance forever, with countless rows running out into an endless horizon, all lined by cells on each side.
We enter one of the rows, and I can see several prisoners locked behind their cells. There are no metal bars or doors containing them, but only a translucent pink veil separating the prisoners from us. A soft static hums as we pass each cell, and flickers of electricity spark across the pink reflective screens. I feel like I’ve walked right into some sort of futuristic space film.
“For a brief moment, I thought about killing those guards.” Kingston’s white teeth dazzle as his smirk widens. “But then I realized that couldn’t fit into a story anyway I tried spinning it.”
“Um, yeah. About that.” I stop and wait until he turns around and looks at me. “Your mother, Kingston? Who is your mother?”
He scoffs and continues walking. “Not the time nor the place, Genevieve.”
I turn toward Scythe. “Well?”
He shakes his head and sighs. “Kingston’s mother is Valkryn.”
He tries to pass me, but I shoot my hand out and clutch his arm.
“Excuse me?” I stare at Scythe. “She’s what?”
Kingston is several feet ahead of us, but has again stopped.
“Is that true, Kingston?” I hiss, through grinded teeth. “Your mother is one of the women who has been trying to kill me?”
“The two of us hold very different viewpoints on a lot of things, Genevieve. It’s a complicated issue.”
“No. No, it’s really not.” My heartbeat quickens, and my palms start to sweat. “Telling me a whole other world exists beside my own…that’s complicated. Explaining to me that my mother may still be alive…also a tricky situation. But knowing that your mother, your own living, breathing relative, is trying to kill me…well, that seems pretty straightforward. You either want someone dead or you don’t,” I growl at Kingston, my nostrils flaring. “So tell me how that is a complicated issue.”
“Genevieve,” Kingston snarls, his jaw clenched. “Shut the hell up and follow me to rescue your damn brother. Understand?”
“Oh, my, my, my, my.” A voice echoes around us, the words lingering on my ears like mist. “Why such hostility, friends?”
The air stirs next to me, swirling into purple fog as it forms into a humanoid figure.
Naxxorius comes into view, his silver robes tumbling to the ground like moonlit waves. He hovers in place, floating next to Kingston.
“Quarreling will do nothing but impede your quest, ah?” Naxxorius turns his head toward me, and his purple essence dances inside his vessel as he bows. “Greetings, Lady Genevieve. How lovely it is to see you again. I did not believe it would be such a short time frame until our next encounter.”
“Did Valkryn see you in here?” Kingston says.
“Of course not. I would never allow myself to get into such a situation. That’s preposterous of you to even conceive.”
Naxxorius glides down the row, and we follow him.
“So no one saw you come into the Keep?” Kingston says. “And you didn’t try anything foolish?”
“Define foolish.” Naxxorius chuckles. “Oh, lighten up, Kingston. Of course not. I’m simply doing an errand, for which you’re paying me. No need to worry yourself.”
“Kingston told you to come here?” I look over at him. “But that would mean you were already planning to help us.”
Kingston remains silent.
“I don’t get it. If you’re a Voidweaver, why are you doing so much for me?”
“Perhaps you should not question Kingston’s actions,” Naxxorius says, “but merely appreciate that he is doing them, ah? Sometimes it is better to take the plain dish from the top than risk pulling out the ornate china from the bottom.”
Before I can reply, we stop in front of a cell and I see Danny inside, lying on a stone slab.
“Danny!” I gasp, running towards the cell.
Kingston reaches his arm out in front of me and pulls me to a stop.
“You’ll electrocute yourself if you touch the barrier.” He holds me back.
After a moment, he lowers his arm, and I walk as close to the pink screen as I can. My brother’s chest slowly rises up and down, and a peaceful look is spread across his face, as if he were merely at home taking a nap. He appears uninjured, with the only thing out of place being his messy brown hair spiked atop his head.
I pull my lips into a disheartened smile as a tight lump settles into my throat.
“Do you think he’s all right?” I take one more glance at him before turning to Kingston. “You don’t think they hurt him?”
He shakes his head. “No, he’s fine. As a general rule, my mother doesn’t hurt children.”
“Oh, isn’t that good of her.”
Kingston sighs. “I’m not sure how to pull off this next part.”
“What do you mean?” Scythe says.
“How to fake this.” Kingston runs his hand through his hair. “We obviously can’t just let him out, or everyone is going to know you had some sort of help.”
“Okay,” I reply. “Sooooo…”
“I don’t know. I was thinking we could blame Naxx?” He looks over at the elemental. “I don’t suppose I could bribe you into that?”
“I offer my services when I can. But as you know, I will not break neutrality. That would damage my relationship with the Voidweavers, considerably. You understand, ah?”
“Yeah, whatever. Okay, well, then Scythe is going to have to attack me.” Kingston pulls out his sword from its sheath, and the prison barrier’s pink light reflects off the steel. “And we’ll stage it that way.”
“What? No. No way.” Scythe backs away from the sword. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Well what else do you want to do?” Kingston growls. “Come on. We don’t have a lot of time here, people.”
“Forgive me for intruding, but might I offer a suggestion?”
Scythe jumps, startled by the voice coming from the cell behind him.
A tall, elderly man approaches the pink barrier. His long white beard flows halfway down his chest, a stark contrast to the tattered beige robe draped over his gaunt figure. As he smiles at us, the creases around his soft gray eyes become more prominent, radiating a warm glow, even within the Prison Ward.
Kingston gasps. “Magister Maldridge. I apologize. I did not realize your cell was near here.” He bows toward the old man.
The magister holds up his hand in protest. “Formalities are neither expected nor warranted, my dear boy.” His gaze moves from Kingston to Naxxorius, and finally to Scythe. “I am glad to see you’re all alive and well.” As he looks at me, his smile widens even more. “Genevieve DeWinter.” His voice is soft and light. “My, do you have your mother’s beauty. My name is Mengurion Maldridge, and it is lovely to meet you.” The smile fades, and his face hardens. “But there are more pressing matters at hand.” He motions to my brother’s cell. “Have Naxxorius disable the barrier and knock Kingston unconscious.” He nods to Kingston. “You can tell your mother that you were going to put them in the same cell as her brother, when they caught you off-guard. There is no doubt she will be upset, but you are her son and she will forgive you.” He looks back to Naxxorius. “You can help the three of them escape. Does someone have the portal key to return?”
“Yeah, I have it.” Scythe pulls it out of his pocket.
“Excellent.”
“What about you?” Kingston says. “You can get out, too.”
“That will be an additional charge,” Naxxorius says.
“Shut up, Naxx,” Kingston snarls.
“No, I cannot go with you,” the magister says. “There is no rationale for why I would have been let out, too. It will give you away.”
“But—”
“No, Kingston. Think logically, remember?”
Kingston hesitates before straightening up. “I understand.” He motions to Danny’s cell. “All right, Naxx. Go ahead and—”
“What’s going on here?” Valkryn’s voice shatters the air, her words piercing like glass shards.
“Ah.” Naxxorius fades away before Valkryn can see him.
Kingston steps out in front of Scythe and me, his body rigid as he approaches his mother.
“Damnit!” he says. “I told the guards not to bother you. Everything’s fine. I’ve got it under control.”
“Do you?” Valkryn raises her silver eyebrows. “Because I was told that Blaine Fortrunner is dead.”
“Yeah, well, there was an incident.” Kingston motions to us. “But I was able to intervene.”
Valkryn moves closer. Her green high-heeled boots echo rhythmically throughout the Prison Ward. For the first time, I can clearly make out the woman who has been trying to kill me. Her latex suit consists of two colors, black and amethyst, patterned so that one half of her upper body is the same color as the opposite leg. Her silver hair falls to her back in curls, causing her pale face to appear even whiter, and her toxic green lipstick stands out against her violet eyes.
As cold as she appears, I can’t help but be mesmerized by her beauty. Her neck is supple, her cheekbones high set, and her face perfectly symmetrical.
She stops just inches from me.
“You have become quite the nuisance to me, Genevieve DeWinter.”
Hearing my name spoken by her sounds odd, like foreign words I don’t recognize.
“I certainly hope you’re worth the trouble that the Dark Lady thinks you are.”
“Well, I’m not.” I stare back into her eyes.
I imagine she’s about the same age my mother would be right now.
“Genevieve—”
“It’s fine, Scythe.” I keep eye contact with Valkryn. “Yeah, your magician friend did the test on me, and it turns out I’m not a paladin.” I scoff. “In fact, I’m not even a Formulist at all.”
She turns to Kingston. “Is this true?”
Kingston glares at me. “According to Fortrunner’s machine, yes, that’s right. She isn’t a paladin. But the machine could be wrong. You know his projects aren’t always perfect.”
“Perhaps.” Valkryn rubs the side of her face, and I see her nails are the same color as her lips. “And what about him?”
She’s still focused on me, but her words make me look over to Scythe.
“What about him?” Kingston says.
“He’s served his purpose, hasn’t he? He got the girl to come here, despite that he has been utterly useless to us this entire time.” She crosses her arms as she examines Scythe. “I’m assuming he’s the one who killed the Magician?”
“Yes, but—”
“Then at this point, he’s done more harm than good.” She glares at Scythe. “We don’t need him anymore.”
“I know. That’s why I brought them here. I was going to lock the two of them up with her broth—”
“She can stay. The Dark Lady is still going to want to question her, regardless of her utility as a Formulist. But him? You can just kill him.”
“No!” I shout.
Valkryn points her hand at me, and a dark shadow wraps around my body. An excruciating spasm washes over me as my muscles tighten, contorting me into a rigid position. I can’t move or speak.
“You already have your sword out, Kingston. I am telling you to dispose of him now.”
He looks down at his sword, still unsheathed from when he was offering it to Scythe to attack him just minutes ago.
“Kingston, please. I’m exhausted.” Valkryn rubs her forehead. “Don’t make me do this. Don’t put me into a worse mood.”
He looks from the weapon to Scythe, who’s just standing there.
I want to scream. Yell. Punch and claw and cry.
Run away! Please just run away. Run!
Scythe looks over his shoulder at Mengurion Maldridge, who is still observing all this from his cell. He has a stoic look on his face, his lips pressed together as he stares back at Scythe.
I don’t know whether or not he’s surprised by what’s happening, but Scythe turns to me. And even amongst the bruises and cuts scattered across his face, the swollen cheek, the blackened eye, and that he’s trapped here in the Prison Ward because of my brother, he smiles.
And at that moment, I realize this boy, who I’ve hardly known, is willing to die for me.
Swoooooooosh!
The sword’s steel pierces the air before penetrating Scythe’s abdomen. I watch in horror as Kingston steps closer, twisting the weapon deeper into his body.
Scythe gasps, his eyes wide as blood erupts from his mouth. He falls forward into Kingston, who lowers him to the ground as he retracts his sword. The pool of blood shimmers across the floor, reflecting the barrier’s pink light as it pours from Scythe’s body.
My heart is racing. Head pounding. Breath feels like fire burning through my lungs.
But I’m still frozen in place.
Blood gurgles from Scythe’s mouth as his gasps become shallower. Kingston stands and wipes his sword across Scythe’s clothes before placing it back in its sheath.
“Go get the Dark Lady,” Valkryn tells Kingston, paying no attention to Scythe’s bloodied body. “I’ll handle the girl.”
Kingston glances at me before heading back down the hallway. Scythe’s body is now lying motionless on the ground.
Valkryn nudges him with her boot.
“Well, Genevieve,” she flicks her hand at me, and my body melts from its pose as I crumble to the ground, “it looks like your friend is gone.”
My face is pressed against the cold concrete, inches away from the blood that’s still spreading. Its smell is strong in my nostrils, and I feel my tears well-up as I match my gaze with Scythe’s lifeless eyes.
He’s dead, Genevieve. He’s dead, and soon you are going to be, too.