Ian stood on his flaming throne, deep in the belly of the Hollow. He spent most of his time with his favorite minions that he had dragged with him to Hollow. Within the boundaries of the Hollow, he was all-powerful. One his favorite perks. With one flick of his fingers, he could have all he wanted in a blink of an eye
He raised his hand and waved it at the obsidian wall. In front of him appeared images of events from another realm. Another perk he had been blessed with, now he knew how Ettrick and witch knew about their whereabouts. Ettrick had access to all the realms. He could see everything despite his powers being limited to Hollow only.
He snapped his rotten fingers, and the image changed and settled on Iris. The three minions stopped and watched the events unfold.
" Get back to work!" Ian ordered in a flat tone, and the minions, as he liked to call them, resumed their scrubbing with their heads down. They were undeserving to look at the woman they had betrayed.
Iris was standing on the bed with the books in front of her, trying to decipher them. He had watched her fall apart when she woke from her deep sleep. His memories were still intact, but he knew they would fade eventually. Ian knew that sooner or later, he would have forgotten all about her. He looked at his rotten hand and clenched it in front of him. He was disgusting, he knew that, but there was nothing he could do about it. The Darkness within him was pleased and had finally stopped whispering hateful words, pushing him to commit horrors and despicable things. All he remembered was that he once loved the woman in front of him, and he was happy, but he felt nothing but endless emptiness.
" You should speak with her!" Nobos, one of the Hollow Lords suggested, approaching him. He was in no mood to hear his nonsense.
" You've been gawking at her since you came and claimed the throne!" Nobos yapped some more, standing in front of him.
He waved his hand, and the image disappeared. His flaming eyes turned to Nobos " What brings you here ?" He bluntly asked, blantlaly ignoring his previous statement.
Nobos bowed" The House of Lords have convened! Among the subject of our discussions!" he paused for a moment and looked at his minions " They can't stay here! They belong with the living!" Nobos informed and turned to look at his minions again.
" No! They will remain within the confines of my palace until I say so!" Ian flatly answered.
Ian had tried to sound angry, but it wouldn't transpire in his tone of voice. He was puzzled. Was it because he had no soul? What was it with the bland, monotonous tone?
" There will be consequences! They are disrupting the natural order! You must set them free!" Nobos reasoned. The Lords looked nothing like he did. They had facial expressions, and their greyish skin wasn't rotting like his, but they weren't as powerful as he was. So that was the price he had to pay. There was always a price and a cost! Saho was right.
" Worry about your lands, Nobos! And I'll take care of the rest!" Ian pushed himself off his flaming throne and walked to where his minions were.
He pointed at Athan " You see, these three have caused a great deal of trouble! They are the reason why the veil between realms is fading! They knew it was happening, and they didn't say diddly squat about it! They've known for quite a long time! If it weren't for them, I would have been in the arms of the women I've been gawking at !" Ian cut the story short and scuffed Athans' head with his hand.
He wasn't angry. He just wanted to make a point. The way he saw it, they needed to be taught a lesson, and it was within his power to do so. Also, Hollow was pretty boring, and they provided good entertainment.
Nobos frowned " I see! I understand, but it is not within our right to pass judgment. Only the gods can do such a thing!" Nobos informed him, and Ian let a hollow chuckle.
Not because what Nobos said tickled him. It was because he mentioned the gods, and he knew the gods didn't give a shit about anyone else.
Nobos frowned " I've never seen a Guardian with a sense of humor!" he remarked, surprised.
" I'm not amused in the least! You sound as if you lost your senses Nobos! Return to your home! The audience has ended!" Ian walked back to his flaming throne and plopped himself on it.
Nobos bowed " I will relay your decision to the House of Lords!" he said and vanished in front of him.
Ian waved his hand again, and Iris appeared in front of him. She was still very much on the bed, with the books in front of her, frowned and glared at them.
"What are you looking for?" he heard himself asking, and his minions stopped working.
" Did I say you can stop!" Ian said without taking his eyes off Iris. He could see them even if he was looking at them.
One of them grumbled something, but they returned to scrubbing the giant vats in the throne room used to torture and punish unruly inhabitants of his realm.
" Silence!" Ian said when one of them whispered. He didn't know which one. His eyes were still very much glued to Iris.
What he had felt for her seemed so distant. A lifetime away. He had no idea how long it had been for her since he had left her lying on the ground senseless, but in the Hollow, time flowed differently. Faster, he concluded when Athan's hair turned grey shortly after he had brought them into the Hollow.
Rhya wasn't far behind, nor was Tyla. Their bodies grew weaker, and he knew it would be just a matter of time before they would perish. It was her wish, and that was his way to rid her of the pesky thorns in her ass. It was the least he could do after he had broken every promise he had made to her.
He waved his hand, and the image disappeared. His eyes went to his minions buried deep in one of the vats. All he could do was wait, and he knew soon enough they would fall victim to merciless Hollow. Just like she did when she had blindly trusted them. In his opinion, there was no better punishment for them.
Ian grunted when a sharp pang of pain shot through his shoulder. He didn't know he could feel pain. Ettrick didn't even flinch when the witch pushed her sword through him.