Deep below Blackrock Castle, my lab I once tried to hide from Rythian was where I spent a day and a night creating what would surely make the mad scientist pay for his actions. Even though I had my sharp shooter with me, I needed to arm myself. Teep would not be the one to save me this time. If my unbreakable determination to confront the evil madman ended up killing me, so be it.
"What do you think?" I uttered, holding up the weapon I had carefully chosen. At first, I wanted to craft a gun and shoot the man straight through his heart. It sounded clean and efficient but the darker side of my mind was unconvinced. I needed to be witness to his slow and subtle death. It needed to torture him. I needed to torture him.
He looked at the long, sharp sword that may have seemed a bit primitive for a Technomage of my caliber and I admit it was primitive until I got a hold of it. I wouldn't tell him but it was now a ticking time bomb that would go off as soon as I commanded it to. If all else failed, it would be my last resort. He nodded in approval but it wasn't needed.
Slowly, I slid it into the makeshift sheath on my back. I was ready to go now. I wasted enough time trying to prepare. Rythian needed me now. "Let's get out of here."
We left the safe haven of our home and trudged toward the castle in quiet mental preparation. In all honesty, I wasn't as scared as I thought I would be. This was something that I had to do. If it were me in Rythian's position, he would save me in a heartbeat. Just that thought seemed to keep moving me towards a fight I was not guaranteed to win.
The castle sprung up before us as we passed the walls of the Sipsco compound. The sun was beginning to rise but the dark still seemed to dominate the ominous place that had swallowed Rythian and housed the mad scientist. For a second, I may have felt just a tinge of fear. Just a tinge that quickly passed.
I turned to Teep to look at him for what could be the last time in the beauty of the outside world. He held his bow as always and his stare was connecting with mine. I knew he would follow me into this death trap without question. So many things I wanted to say to him. Simple words to show my thanks and yet I couldn't. It would be impossible to keep a straight face if I did, but as we nodded to each other, I knew I didn't need to say it.
It was way easier than expected to break in. The natural vines that climbed the walls made great ladders and we made it all the way to the roof of the castle. There was no sign of anyone which made me uneasy. Teep looked over the side into the courtyard in the center. He gave me the signal that it was also empty.
"Strange, but that's okay. We need to focus on finding Rythian." I said quietly as I stealthily moved towards the closest door. Empty as well. He moved passed me and went in, bow at the ready. When he assure me it was completely safe, I followed him. "We should head lower. I highly doubt he would keep him up here." Something inside me was telling me he was underground or where the light couldn't touch him. It just made sense.
As we moved down the towers of the castle, my paranoia was messing with me. We were going deep into this evil lair but the owner was nowhere to be seen. I was thankful but on edge. My hand wrapped firmly around my sword in case of any sudden movement.
Finally, we came to what seemed to be the lowest part of the castle. It was a long dark hallway that was lined with doors with tiny windows to peep inside. There was something so eerie about it. Chills ran through my skin as we wandered down it slowly. "This place is a prison... It's scary..."
Even though dread was creeping up again, I could feel something familiar nearby. It pulled me towards it. I've felt it many times before. Magical, dark... dying. I found myself standing before the door that concealed it. With the sword, I pried the door open and pushed it open. Flicking on the light, I took in a horrendous sight that nothing could have prepared me for. A sight that made my insides churn.
"Rythian?!" My voice shrieked in cold horror as I ran to him. He was chained down and slumped over. His bare chest had stitches running down it that someone had quickly patched him with. His eyes were lifeless and distant. I held him in my arms and carefully tried to wake him from the trance. "Rythian! Rythian!" Tears began to stream down my face. "What has that bastard done to you?!"
Looking into my eyes, he was dead inside but aware of my existence. "Z...Zoey? Y... you can't be real..."
His words hurt my heart and threw an axe through my wooden expression. Screaming and crying, I held him so close. "I'm real," I wailed. "I've come to save you! I'm sorry I took so long! I'm so sorry!" My tears fell to his face and slipped passed his dead expression. "I almost died without you, but I'm here now! I'm here!"
The words kept spilling out. I couldn't help trying to tell him all these useless words that wouldn't fix a single thing. He was so far broken that no amount of this would save him now. Deeper and deeper, my insides were breaking. I couldn't take seeing him like this. So much crying and so much pain was striking me that I barely felt his hand touch my face. Through the waterfall of tears, I could see some slight color returning to his eyes. A single shred of happiness appeared too. "He told me you were not here anymore... he lied to me... Thank Notch, he lied to me..."
I held his hand against my face and shook from the crying. "He wasn't lying... I wasn't here... he almost killed me... Ravs saved me."
His thumb wiped a tear from my eyes. "I see. I'm so sorry..."
"No, I'm sorry." I said, sniffling. "I almost lost you but you're alive," I was crying in happiness now. "Barely still alive."
He had a relieved smile pasted on his face. "And you came back from the dead."
The fragile happiness rushed over us and we both managed a laugh. Teep joined us and shared his relief. For a moment we were back to how we used to be, but we had forgotten just where we were. We were ignoring the darkness. We were ignoring the danger.
A slow clap broke our fragile moment. I quickly turned to see the blonde, white coat wearing madman. My fear returned and struck my heart. "Well well well, look who it is. You actually managed to crawl out from your grave?" He said with an ice cold voice. "What a shame. I should have simply taken your life when I had the chance."
I grinded my teeth and immediately pulled my sword as I stood to face him. "What have you done to Rythian?!"
He stared at me with a stone expression. My heart was thumping rapidly but his heart seemed to have iced over long ago. "I've just played with him a little bit. That's all."
Anger ran through me at the sound of such a pathetic answer. He was wishing for me to attack him and I would surely answer his wish.
A/N: Hey there. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I was striving for this to be the last one though it seemed to get away from me. Hopefully, the next one will be the last chapter. Thank you for reading and reviewing. How about leaving me a review? I'd love to hear what you think. Sure would make my day. Anyway, I've got to go now. Have a good one, friend.