Amir flicked his wrist towards an orb, summoning a burst of sapphire flames. It floated closer, enlarging as it neared him.
"Show me the Caverns." he whispered into it, leaning back in his chair. It glowed brighter, then displayed an eagle-eye view of the dark caves far below the spires of Imnus Myrkur.
Cages lined the jagged walls, thin and pale victims closed inside. Stalactites hung from the ceiling far above, each of their point filed to a sharp tip. Pits of tar pooled around the lumpy floor, squirming creatures inside.
It's most recent edition, though, was the keeper of the Sword of Souls which now rested in the hands of King Malachi.
Was this really a good idea, working for the King? Since my employment, I have spent days traveling, fighting, and infiltrating without any gratification. And on top of that, I've been locked away inside of this room researching while the king pretends he did it all himself. Maybe I should-
A knock on the door broke him out of his thoughts.
"His Majesty is requesting entry."
Amir blew out the orb and hastily stuffed it in his cloak pocket.
"Come in." he said, composing himself. The king entered, gold robes fluttering behind him.
Amir bowed, then sat back down on the chair.
The king put his hands behind his back.
"Amir, you have done well. Your work is admired and has given the Shadowhawk Society the power to activate the volcano. I think it is time for you to know the truth of what the Society really is."
Amir sat up.
"As you know, there are the six demons that created the Earth: Selva, Demon of Souls, Grellzin, Demon of Greed, Zenvous, Demon of Knowledge, Aaeliir, Demon of Ability, Sheino, Demon of Shape, and Faelias, Demon of Fear, the one I have harnessed. Zelznik, your sprite is the off-branch of Zenvous.
"What you don't know," he continued, "is that they have a creator. The demon queen, Xeivia. The Society's mission is to awaken her, destroy her, and put me in her place as the demon king. This is no small feat. In order to awaken her, you must gather all of the artifacts together and fuse them into a crystal of pure power. With this unity, a portal to her world will be made, allowing me to slay her. And with the help of Faelis and the Gauntlet of Fear, it's core artifact, I can petrify and control people to do my bidding without question. And as for our most recent prisoner, she will be the human sacrifice required. "
"What about the Rebellion?"
"My first target. I will attack. Anyone who doesn't come to our side I will use Faelis against."
"And what does this have to do with the dragon?"
"Ah, yes. In order to fuse these items, you will require an immense amount of energy, more than any mortal can possibly have. But a dragon..."
"I understand." Amir said, turning away. "What am I to do to move this process along?"
"Use your sprite. Learn of the dragon and its nature, then journey to the volcano as my second in command. I'll be waiting there in nine days. Do not disappoint me."
"Oh and, Amir," he added, "If you don't have the information by then, I'll kill every single prisoner here."
"May I ask why?"
"Because I've seen the way you act around them. You think no one deserves to be treated like that. So really, motivation. You're a murderer either way."
And with that, he walked out, cape trailing behind him, leaving Amir sitting there, nearly petrified.
- < ~ > -
Three days into his search, Amir had found nothing that magic could pry for. He had read all the scrolls, books, and ancient carvings that the palace had, yet nothing told him what he wanted.
As of know, he was on his way to the dungeons. Until now he had avoided it, staying as far away from it's ghastliness as he could. But When all else was seen, it was his only option.
Making his way down the dark corridor, he pulled his hood up, shadowing his features. At last he came to the end of the hall, a smooth portion of wall forming the dead end. He placed his hand against it and hit with a blast his mental energy. It glowed faintly, splitting into millions of tiny particles, allowing him to step through. The darkness behind was oppressive, yet the faint hints of light implied a spacious area.
As Amir went on, the corridor narrowed until both shoulders were scraping against the wall. It was humid and hot, each step making it worse and worse. When he thought he could bear it no longer, the passage suddenly widened and a wall of frigid and putrid air hit him. He took a deep breath, then stepped forward into the chamber, looking all around. Upwards, black stalactites hung down, paint sapphire auras encircling them, then disappearing. All around him crude looking cages were barely distinguishable in the darkness, prisoners barely visible.
Amir continued in, eyes adjusting. The room was larger than it looked, and it took him a long moment to venture across. More than once he stepped into a puddle of tar, a worm-like creature latching on to his boots, tripping him every time. Just outside the Keeper's line of sight, he took a deep breath, then stepped forward.
The Keeper was on her feet in an instant, arms raised defensively. She was pale, the darkness already taking a toll on her.
"I don't know what you want but I am NOT giving to you!" she yelled, glaring at him.
"That's unfortunate," he said calmly, acting as if they were merely having a conversation, "seeing as you once again put your citizens in jeopardy. I'll have to tell them that you were to stubborn to save them. Goodbye." he turned away, hoping it would work.
She let out a yell of frustration.
"What do you want?!"
"Tell me what you know of Mount Draco."
"Mount what?"
"Draco. Don't play dumb."
"I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. What I do know is that you are a filthy THEIF and you should be in this cell not ME! You are a disho-"
"Heard it before." he interrupted. "Now spill." he said, pointing his finger at her. A cobalt thread shot out of it, wrapping itself around her neck. "You can't lie."
"I'll say it again." she said slowly. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
Amir was taken aback. Keepers were supposed to know everything about the demonic and draconian world, experts in the matter.
"You got what you wanted. Now get out." she said through clenched teeth.
"Uh, sorry?" he said, temporarily dropping his facade. Then turned away, but before he was out of earshot he said, "And, um, sorry for this. I don't think anyone deserves this. Not even the worst of people." And with that he walked up the steps, lost in his thoughts.
- < ~ > -
Four, five, six days had passed, and Amir had no ideas. But something told him that the Keeper was not telling him everything, or that something very important was related to her. And so, less reluctantly this time, he descended the claustrophobic steps into the dungeons.
Once he reached the cell, she jumped back, but recovered quicker this time.
"Hi." he said awkwardly, not really sure how to ask, and saying I think you're hiding something and I'm really suspicious so spill but I actually have no idea if I'm right probably wasn't the most effective way...
"Hi." she said, sensing something was wrong. "What do you want now?" her tone a bit harsher than intended.
"Do you know if you have any like, important family ties or something?" he asked, trying not to seem skeptical.
"When the King attacked, my father lead the defense. And, despite what you think, he was the rightful keeper of the Sword of Souls. That's it."
"Okay. What about, say, royal blood?"
"Nothing I know of. My family was poor for generations up until my father created the town," she replied, tears welling up at the thought of it, "and then we were moderately poor, like everyone else."
"I'm sorry. I was the one that infiltrated and stole the sword. I never realized what it would do, and now I can't do any about it." he apologized, despite himself.
"I wish I could say it's okay but, it's like, really not. But I don't hate you anymore, if that helps." she said, frankly a little surprised at his sincerity. It seemed real.
"Okay. But now that we're talking more openly, to be honest, I hate what I do. When I was small, I was didn't know who my parents were, where I was, or what my name was. After days of walking, I came to a small town. As I grew up, I excelled in sneaking, stealing and combat and was sent to Imnus Myrkur to train as a guard under King Malachi. As time when on I climbed the levels until I became an elite agent. All the praise I received went to my head and one day I left to be independent. I was twelve then, and hardly ready for the outside world without a a dozen others to assist combat, and I soon returned and tried to prove myself by stealing Gormaallz's Amulet, one of a demon's soul artifact's. I failed and one and a half years later the King sent me with a dozen others to your town to steal the Sword of Souls."
"Um, wow. Okay."
"And by the way, I know that your dad was the righteous owner of the sword."
"Thanks. By the way, I never got you name." she said, hoping she hadn't gone too far.
"Oh, I'm Am-" At that precise moment, A glowing circle shot from his hand into the air, enlarged, then twisted into the King. Or his holograph, rather.
Amir kneeled, then got up.
"How is your search going, Amir?" he asked, hands clasped. "I need to move your deadline up to tomorrow."
"It's going well. I have acquired ample knowledge from the Keeper. I will deliver my findings to you tomorrow at dawn."
"Very well. Good luck." The hologram vanished and transformed back into the disk.
Amir turned to Sky, pale.
"Do you know what he's going to do to all the other prisoners here if I fail? Kill them all. Except you. Mount Draco needs a human sacrifice. You are that sacrifice."
Sky paled, blood rushing to her head.
Amir placed his hands against the floor, closed his eyes, then pressed. The bars of the cages glowed, wavered, then disintegrated.
"What are you doing?" she asked, alarmed.
He stood up, smiled grimly and said, "Breaking you out."