"Can you help me destroy this whole place?" Shiva said with such a straight face at Leif.
"This... whole prison?" Leif asked him back.
"Right. This whole... accursed place."
"... Hoh?"
*** An Irregular's Existence ***
Dumbfounded, Leif's eyes widened in shock at Shiva's most unexpected request. But seeing how serious his voice was when he said it, Leif couldn't help but wonder what drove Shiva to think of such a scheme. "Is it because of the beatings earlier?" Leif asked, his tone showing sympathy at Shiva.
"No. It's much more than that," Shiva calmly responded, but his raging eyes couldn't hide the anger that swelled from within his words. Both of them continued to walk down the path slowly while exchanging words - completely forgetting the fact that they may be pursued at any moment.
"Is this your first time getting imprisoned?" Leif asked him again.
"Yes... But this place isn't a prison to begin with."
"What?"
"It is just a cave at the base of a hill, we mined it for deposits of coal and make a living out of it. But ever since the younger brother of the second marshall was appointed as the new lord here in our village, everything changed. They completely locked us down within this cave and put us into forced labor. From thereon, things started to... fall apart."
Clasped against each other, Shiva's hands were visibly shaking. His eyes in deep red were glued to the ground without a glint of life, almost like it was watching something atrocious that was slowly killing him inside. This was what Leif felt as he watched Shiva by his side, walking with that of a dead man's spirit.
"Oh boy, this escalated way too quickly."
"That's not a surprise. I bet no one outside our village knows what's happening - let alone you dwellers from the city."
"Haha... No, I didn't come from the city."
"What? But the guards escorting you were dressed differently from those in here... So I thought they came from the city, so are you whom they escorted..." Shiva turned his head towards Leif - his brows frowned at Leif's mystery. In response, Leif gave Shiva an explanation of his life prior to their current situation.
"I did come from the city, but I was living in the mountains of Sylvania for all the past 18 years of my life. Do you know that one? Pretty close here, I say."
"I've heard of it, yes," confirmed Shiva with a subtle nod.
"Right. And the first day I got off and went to the city - I got arrested for publicly admiring someone, got transported here by a dark metal cage like an animal, and ended up here on this... cave-looking prison."
"You are... seriously an odd one."
"Yes, haha. That may be true, but you... You do realize that only the two of us form this rag-tag team, right?"
"Yes..." With a low voice, Shiva answered him.
"Then..." Leif immediately turned his body to Shiva and looked him in the eyes - with a strong gaze.
"Do you think we can accomplish that task of yours?"
It was a question that snapped back Shiva to reality. The strong emotions that fueled his irrationality went silent, his senses and thoughts being subdued by Leif's words alone. His mouth dared to open to speak of his resolve.
"In my head, I thought that you are strong... Very strong, having a purpose and power... having a goal in life of your own and all. It was my second time to see someone shine, like a hope in this wretched place, so I..."
Leif remained silent throughout the time Shiva was speaking. Having someone whom he just met praise his deeds was an entirely new feeling for him - after all the unwelcoming experiences he had before meeting him.
"I am aware how unreasonable it is, but to let this hopeful chance just pass is an old mistake I won't be doing again. I mean, you did agreed earlier that you plan on escaping out of here right?"
Leif nodded his head while his eyes were still fixed on Shiva at his side.
"Then we have just the same goal! I will help you escape so let's bring down this entire place!"
"But why would the fact that we, escaping this whole prison, be connected to destroying the whole place?" Confused, Leif's query was on point - it does seem to be unnecessary to do so. He remained clueless until another voice from his far side answered his question.
"Because that is what it takes to do a successful escape."
A raspy voice of a stranger interrupted the conversation between the two. It made them abruptly stop on their feet and vigilant at the direction of the voice. Upon realization, they both were already in the middle of the other chambers that held other prisoners - the ones Leif had passed when he came in earlier.
The person who interrupted them was an old man locked behind the bars of one of the chambers, carefully threading his way near the bars of his room. His thin, frail hands slowly gripped around the poles of steel that separated him from the outside.
The flickering torch hung on the walls outside weakly illuminated his whole body. The bones of his ribs visibly outlined his chest, a sign of poor nutrition and weakness. Wearing a dark tunic that was old and tattered, his whole torso was dirtied with coal and dirt.
The most noticeable of all, both eyes of the old man showed deep scars from being slashed in a cross-like manner - rendering him blind for the rest of his life. It was a real sorry sight for the two. The old man started to speak again.
"Shiva, are you there?"
"Old man Petro!" Shiva responded in disbelief.
Suddenly, dragging footsteps could be heard coming from inside the remaining cells. Soon after, different people approached the opening of their cells to see both of the young men who were outside and free. They began to bang on the bars of their cell and asked questions.
"Shiva! What happened there?"
"I heard the warden growl a couple of times!"
"How did you escape!"
"Isn't that the prisoner who just came earlier!"
"Hey, Shiva! Tell us what happened!"
As their voices grew louder and more intense, the once-silent atmosphere was slowly and steadily replaced by an alarming and chaotic ruckus. It quickly spread throughout the area, causing a sense of unease and confusion among those present. Everyone demanded an answer from Shiva and screamed questions at him - like their very life depended on it. Shiva, who was in the middle of everything, couldn't produce a response back to them. Amid everything, Leif's attention remained drawn to the old man who spoke at them earlier.
"Boy with the bright light."
"Bright light? Wait - can you even see me?" Leif responded, but it didn't get a reaction from Petro. Instead, with a straight voice, he asked Leif... a simple question.
"You are an irregular, aren't you?"
Leif, at what the old man has said, was shocked and instantly became wary of him. The old man, after all... was correct.
Irregulars. Human beings - granted with supernatural powers capable of harnessing various natural laws of the world. Through a mysterious awakening that started manifesting three months ago, one could possess an unlimited potential with growth far surpasses that of a normal human.
The awakening happens with a mystical revelation within someone's dream - this was the testimonies of the people who experienced it. In their dreams, a mysterious entity always appeared and told them a short message.
One was told, "Through the embers of the bright and warm flame, I choose you."
Another one claimed that he was told "From the mighty waves of the oceans and sea, I choose you."
Everybody had the same experience, but with different messages - messages of different concepts.
Is it the gods? A higher being? No one knew who or what was the cause of these awakenings as it just happened like a natural phenomenon. But one fact was certain - the power of an irregular revolves around the concept of that entity's message. A concept of something - and yes... it can be anything.
Back to the present - Shiva, who had been at the center of a heated scene just moments before, overheard what Petro had said. Though he was confused and furrowed his brows in ignorance, he couldn't help but be intrigued. Unfortunately for him, the voices of the other prisoners drowned out the conversation between Leif and the old man.
"I am curious about how you managed to arrive at that conclusion," Leif answered back to Petro's claim, but the old man just smiled back at him.
Shiva went near the old man and asked him. "What do you mean he's an irregular, old man Petro?" His eyes showed his earnestness as he hoped to understand the word's meaning. But the other prisoners interrupted his questioning with their ramblings.
"Hey, Shiva! Don't ignore us!"
"Tell us what happened!"
"Are you and that guy escaping?!"
An endless stream of questions was once again fired at Shiva. One after the other, their shouts rang in and out of his ears. All Shiva knew next was the sound of something that snapped inside of him.
"YES! We are escaping, and will tear this whole place down!" Roared like a beast angered, he shouted at the top of his lungs back at the prisoners. His voice watered down the commotion that was happening, shut the prisoners off of their shouting, and made the area whole silent again.
After a few moments of silence, Petro felt something was off and immediately turned his head around... as if he was locating something with his hearing.
"This is bad, you two," Petro said - fear enveloped his words as he spoke. Leif quickly looked in the direction of the exit and thought of something to himself. He shoved Shiva behind him with a warning.
"Get ready Shiva."
Shiva grew anxious at Leif's sudden change. His guts told him that something was going to happen, and his mind hoped that it would be not what he was thinking.
Soon, a bunch of fast and tiny footsteps can be heard in the direction of the exit. From the weak light emanating from the torches hung on the wall of the passage, both of the young men saw the figures of trouble approaching them.
Standing at the height of a child, their green skin gave them an otherworldly appearance. Their eyes were as fierce as those of a devil, and their sharp fangs inspired fear in those who saw them. Their pointed ears protruded from their head while hair strands grew out of the nostrils of their pointy nose. Some had their torso drenched in red blood as they were dressed in rags and animal pelts that covered their lower body.
Leif, under his breath, spoke of the name of these little devils.
.
.
.
"Goblins."