The town now riddled with debris from the artificial arena has grown silent almost like a ghost town after the people ran away for their safety, and Crimson stands to his feet before rushing over to Marigold's side with haste.
Crimson: Marigold!
Marigold: I-I'm fine, I didn't get hit that hard surprisingly.. I thought that was gonna hurt a lot more heh..
She gives him a weak smile before Crimson lets go of her and stands to his feet looking around.
Marigold: (He sure got over my injury quickly..)
Crimson: Stay on guard, he's not finished..
Fallore: Great observation Crimson!
They both look up and Fallore floats above them with a tear in his robe, looking down upon them.
Fallore: Indeed I was just testing your abilities, but I noticed fairly quickly that your strike would have been fatal had it landed..
Crimson: (But I felt it hit his chest.. I miscalculated?)
Fallore: So you wish to defeat the greatest mage in all the land eh? Well here's lesson one boy..
His hand glows a strange shade of purple and the air begins swirling around Crimson and Marigold.
Fallore: You need lots of survivability to take me on, so survive...
Suddenly they are pulled into a vortex of magic, and with the feeling of water swishing around them, they find themselves trapped in a small area pressed against each other.
Marigold: C-Crimson what is this!?
Crimson: We're in some kind of container.. Don't panic, just surround us with water and then expand it in a sphere.
Marigold: Right!
She does as he asked and they both hear a pop before the water vanishes revealing a wooden cabin-like room they're trapped in.
Crimson: We were in what seemed to be a coffin. A fairly large one at that.. He sent us through a portal...
As Crimson's eyes dart around the room taking in every detail, Marigold begins blushing realizing he's so close to her.
Marigold: H-hey could you uhm..
Crimson: Don't tell me...
He lifts up from being on top of her and he walks over to the wooden table in the corner of the room. Marigold dusts her dress off and then grabs her face while shaking her head.
Crimson: (These porcelain hands with nails in them.. The material this small cabin is made of too. So it seems we really are here. My parents always told stories of their adventures here..)
Marigold: Hey Crimson..? What's this?
He looks her direction and sees a strange contraption leaned against the wall with nails and other sharp things neatly attached to the inside.
Crimson: We're in the town of lost souls..
Marigold: The what?
Crimson: Hm you really don't know much about a lot of the world huh?
Marigold: Hey I know stuff! Uh I know who the king is in the kingdom of golds!
Crimson: Do you even know why it's called the kingdom of golds?
Marigold: Uhm..
Crimson: That's fine, being open and willing to learning is what is important, remember that Marigold. The ability to learn things is arguably stronger than any magic you may come across in your life time.
Marigold: O-oh..
She looks down thinking deeply about those words before Crimson grabs her arm, moving her away from the contraption.
Crimson: That there is the breastplate of a living doll. This kingdom has quite a few living dolls, and they are hostile toward humans, so be on guard.
Marigold: Okay.. But can we maybe take a break here?
Crimson: Hm? Of course..
He looks to the side trying to slow down a bit for Marigold, and she sits down next to the table, getting her thoughts together.
Crimson: (Dolls are usually rigged with deadly weaponry, and this breastplate is a testament to this. If I were to guess, Marigold's water magic probably can't block such powerful traps if they shoot through the water at a speed faster than Marigold can even run. It might pierce right through it, so I have to think of a better way to beat them.)
Marigold: (Crimson is always thinking so deeply about everything. I bet he's coming up with a way to save us.. I don't want to bother him but, I should ask at some point if he was a battle general when his village was still.. No that's insensitive!)
Crimson stands in his own corner while Marigold sits in hers for a while, and eventually the doorknob begins twisting slowly, causing Marigold to quickly crawl under the table, while Crimson readies his dagger. The door stops, and they sit in silence for a couple seconds.
???: Wait this is the wrong place.. Maila's gonna be really angry if I don't work efficiently enough...
Then one of the hands fall over from Marigold hitting the table leg, and the person opens the door.
Doll: Who's there?
Crimson: We aren't here of our own accord, someone forced us here, so if you allow us to leave, we won't cause you any trouble..
Doll: A human..? What should I do?
Crimson analyzes her movements as she places her hand on her chin while continuing to think aloud with no emotion in her face or voice.
Doll: Should I capture them, or maybe.. Wait you said "we" didn't you human?
Marigold crawls from under the table and runs to Crimson's side.
Marigold: We will destroy you if you don't just let us go!
Doll: Hm..
Crimson: (The way she moves like that suggests she probably hasn't touched any humans before. In fact she isn't afraid of getting hurt at all. Could living dolls be immortal?)
Doll: Wait that's a great idea.. You two will come with me to see Maila.
Marigold: Crimson what do we do!?
Crimson: ..Maila.. Let's go with her.
Marigold: O-okay.. I trust you.
Doll: Good, follow me and stay directly behind me, or you will be attacked on the spot.
Crimson: I understand.
They follow her out and begin walking down the dark street which is only lit up dimly by fire lamps. Crimson notices all the dolls walking around carrying boxes and other things around in lines like ants, looking at him and Marigold.
Crimson: It seems that by being directly behind you, the others assume that we aren't a threat. Interesting..
Marigold: Crimson I'm scared..
Doll: Don't be afraid, they can't register you as a threat as long as you walk straight behind me. They automatically register you both as captured humans instead. Well that is what you are I guess..
Crimson looks up at the pitch black sky with a few stars scattered around, and then he looks forward at the large structure that looks to be a mansion ahead of them.
Crimson: Marigold, does anything seem out of place to you?
Marigold: Other than the really out of place dolls..?
Crimson: The sky.. It wasn't night when we fought the king's mage.
Marigold: Wh-what..? You're right, it was actually in the middle of the day!
Doll: King's mage? If you were at a place in a different region then that would explain the sky.. Our region is unique in that it has a small moon that is forever over it. The sun passes behind it so we get no sunlight ever. That's just the shadow region for you..
Crimson: Interesting, so there's another moon closer to earth hovering here?
Marigold: That's really freaky...
The doors automatically open when they step in front of them, and they enter the mansion to see all sorts of surprisingly non-creepy dolls around.
Marigold: Woah they look so pretty!
Crimson: Interesting...
Doll: Those are Maila's maids, and those dolls over there are the chefs that cook her meals. These are just knights who are supposed to protect her.
Crimson: I see, this Maila person is interesting.. (She's a human. The other dolls don't appear to be able to eat, especially with the breastplate pieces that have traps. Maila creates these dolls most likely, but I thought it was strange how this one we're following was acting toward us. She's surprisingly peaceful.)
Walking up the staircase, Crimson drops his guard a little while inspecting this nice place and it's inhabitants. And Marigold is completely in awe looking at all the furniture and dolls that are decorated beautifully.
Doll: We are here. Try not to embarrass me in front of lady Maila..
The double doors open slowly and when the sight hits their eyes, Crimson and Marigold are confused even more. Inside the room, a young looking girl sits in a royal red chair while smiling and watching two dolls in white dresses perform a ballet performance. Music plays from a machine nearby as well, synced with their dance.
Doll: Milady, forgive my disturbance but, we have prisoners..
Maila: Fritz, please take them to the royal dungeon then. As you can see, I'm enjoying your sister's performance.
Doll: Well you see, they actually didn't come here on purpose, they were forced here by a king's mage.
Maila: Ah Fallore.. I really do detest him. What do you have to say for yourselves then prisoners?
Crimson: You detest him do you? Then may I ask your majesty, please help us exact revenge for you.
Maila: Your.. Majesty? Hm, why exactly do you want to exact revenge in my stead?
Crimson: Well we also want revenge on him, but lack the proper strength to do so on our own. So I ask that you lend us a hand..
Maila: Hmm... Who is the girl with you then?
Crimson: She is a friend, who is helping me on my journey as well..
Maila: A friend you say.. Fritz, be a dear and help them out. I permit you to leave the town.
Fritz: Milady I...
Maila: No objecting, you must make haste. But first come closer to me.
She steps forward walking passed the two dolls which have stopped dancing, and she kneels down.
Maila: That boy's pretty cute, so please learn more about him for me while you're out..
Fritz: M-milady, he can hear you from here!
Maila: Chop chop!
Fritz turns to them to see Crimson looking to the side awkwardly and Marigold with a befuddled face that says a million words, and she walks back over to them.
Fritz: Well I will be accompanying you on this journey it seems..
Crimson: Thank you your majesty, and thank you Fritz.
Maila: Eat a meal before you head out. My chefs are excellent!
Marigold: Thank you so much! I was getting pretty hungry..
They walk down and into the neat looking kitchen to wait for the chefs to eat. After their food gets there, they begin eating, while Fritz stands by waiting.
Marigold: You can't eat?
Fritz: I have no need, I'm a doll. Finish up quickly because I have a feeling our journey will be long. We need more than just us to beat that mage..
Crimson: Those were my exact thoughts, let's set out then.
They finish eating their meals and begin on their real journey. Stepping out and walking through the streets again, they finally reach the outside world, and Crimson takes the lead..
*End Of Chapter 2*