"This isn't a castle. This is a freaking fortress." Shiv grumbled when Duncan caught up to him where he was standing in front of the metal-coated wall surrounding the massive metal structure that resembled a giant turtle shell.
Duncan stared at him with a weird expression. "But you kicked down that gate like it was nothing."
"That was a gate, Shorty. This is a fortress. There's a very big difference, as you can clearly see." Shiv replied. He frowned at the wall in front of him, looked up, then went back to frowning at the wall. With a shrug he punched the wall, activating various skills. The impact and effect of his skills was immediate, with a flurry of fire, ice and steam expanding in a ring outward with the shockwave caused by the force of his punch. When everything cleared, he frowned at the underwhelming dent in the wall. "Looks like I am gonna have to go over it." That was a disappointment.
"Why didn't you just jump over to begin with?" Duncan asked when they both landed on the other side. He sounded exasperated.
"The skill that lets you fly reduces your weight, right? And I'm lazy, so I skip leg day often, so I'm not confident that I'll be able to jump over that when we're escaping and I'm holding Blaze."
"What is leg day?"
Shiv didn't bother with the question, instead shoving his hands in his pockets and approaching the heavily-guarded entrance to the Turtle-shell fortress lying atop the hill before him. After a moment's consideration, he activated a mix of abilities in a way he hadn't done in quite awhile.
Lava Lover made itself known, melting the gate and going on to create a river of lava all the way up to the fortress itself. Screams of agony and shock were heard from the guards and soldiers within the walls, but Shiv's expression only became harder. He stopped and turned his head just enough that Duncan, who was behind him, could hear what he said. "She better be here." And with that, he stepped onto the lava. Keeping a steady pace, the lava spread out in the area in between the fortress and the outer walls, making it a bubbling, popping, hissing hell.
Aside from a few fire-wielders and clever earth-wielders, everyone on the previously green grounds died in burning agony.
Shiv ignored all of this, making a beeline for the entrance to the fortress. He barely hesitated when a rain of fire and earth came at him from behind, only waving his hand at Duncan before kicking the metal door before him. He felt and heard Duncan activate several powerful wind abilities focused on diverting enemy attacks as he kicked the door repeatedly, slowly making it cave in.
Finally, he'd done enough damage that some careful manipulation of the earth below him allowed him to shove the door out of the way. He stepped into the fortress just as the sound of flesh being sliced repeatedly entered his ears. He knew Duncan had finished up the attackers outside, but didn't have time to think about it, because a wave of spells was racing toward him from within the fortress.
He reacted without hesitation by stepping outside and to the side, letting the flurry of elements fly past him without causing any damage. When the last of the spells died off, Shiv tossed a rock past the opening, then quickly glanced around the corner while the rock received another barrage. He immediately pulled his head back, and barely missed getting his eyebrows electrified. During his quick look he was able to activate an ability, (Lightning Summoner), within the narrow room. The chaos that ensued would have been an impressive sight to behold, were Shiv so inclined as to risk his face in looking again. The sound of crackling lightning and thunder that was much too close more than satisfied him, however.
When the skill died down, Shiv entered the building yet again, thinking about how he'd basically tossed a bomb the size of a striped horse into the building. The crater that had replaced the floor and the lack of walls that had previously been there proved to Shiv that his assessment wasn't far from the truth. He looked up to find that two floors had been annihilated, and made eye contact with some very confused and shellshocked men.
"I'm looking for a feisty little girl with fiery hair who likes to talk about plants. Have any of you seen her?" Shiv called up. The men shook their heads slowly, still in shock. Shiv's eyes narrowed and his voice gained a dangerous edge. "Where's your top boss? The commanding officer or whatever. Bring him to me. Now."
The men stared for several long seconds before one of them finally shook himself out of the shock and yelled, "Intruder! There's an intruder in the fortre-" He was unable to finish because a spear made of air had penetrated his open mouth and shot out the back, rendering him dead instantly. Duncan landed next to him as he crumpled down in what seemed like slow motion.
"The report said she was in the dungeons below this hunk of iron." He crouched and informed Shiv, and pointed deeper into the building. He leaned to the side to avoid a fireball that was sent at him, and looked up with an even more dangerous fire burning in his eyes.
Shiv didn't bother to stick around, knowing Duncan was more than capable of eliminating those survivors on his own. Instead he began to run, proceeding deeper into the fortress.
As he went, it quickly became evident that the inhabitants of the construct were all attacking him and preventing his descent with everything they could muster. At one point he was actually forced to backtrack simply because of the extreme amount of combatants that were blocking the corridor he'd been traveling down. He fixed the problem by breaking through the wall, which was much thinner and weaker on the inside, effectively creating a new path that wasn't blocked.
He proceeded in this manner, killing when he had to, and creating new paths when forced to, until he figured he was in the center of the fortress. The room he was in was rather large, with a high ceiling that had a dome made of multi-colored glass that let in colorful light that made the room seem eerie and uninviting.
Shiv had managed to lose his pursuers and avoid the last groups of defenders, so they didn't currently know his location, thankfully leaving him alone in the room. He stood still, looking at the various tunnels and entrances, then studying the glass above. A sigh escaped his lips, and he shook his head. With a scowl he set his hands on fire and placed them on the ground in front of him. At first, the ground melted with a slowness that was excruciating, so he increased the temperature dramatically. And then some more. Soon, blisters were beginning to appear on his hands, but now the floor was steaming and melting away with much greater speed.
Unfortunately, the floor seemed to be as thick as he was tall, so it was still taking far too long for his liking.
And when he heard a shout from behind, his anger increased dramatically. The shout was followed by a stream of fire that enveloped and blinded him, though he ignored it.
The fire didn't bother him at all, and his clothes were supposed to have a strong resistance to fire. In fact, this was probably the least annoying attack that could be sent his way.
When the fire began to die down, and he still wasn't done melting through the floor, he yelled out, "oh no! Not fire, my weakness!"
The flames redoubled and he almost thought he could hear men calling for more fire mages, but the roar of the flames made it impossible to discern what exactly was said.
Just as the flames redoubled yet again, he felt the floor give beneath his hands, bringing a smile to his face. "I'm almost there, Blaze."
He dropped down through the newly-made hole and smiled when his feet came into contact with familiar, manipulable stone. He made some jut up to fill the hole and surveyed his surroundings. He was in a metal room with an iron door across from him. He shuddered, pushing back the memories of his last time being stuck in a place like this.
After looking through the iron bars to make sure Blaze wasn't outside the door, he exploded it outward and entered a corridor that was flanked by many doors exactly like the one he'd just knocked down. "Blaze!" His shout echoed down the hall, but he received no response.
With a grim expression, Shiv began making his way through, checking each cell to make sure his daughter wasn't gagged or unconscious in any of them.
He searched every single one, and came up empty handed.
He roared, then. He roared with a force that failed to show the pent up turmoil of emotions that swirled inside him. He yelled until he couldn't anymore, then punched the wall, putting a hole in it.
Abruptly, the world shook, and Shiv had to brace against the wall to keep from falling down. The shaking was followed by the aura of a familiar presence that sent a chill down Shiv's spine.