Mindless Entertainment
Right in front Roland lay a sandy, closed off arena, stained with fresh blood; autonomously gyrating blades and mechanised spike pits formed a small circle around two Atlawa fighting to the death. This was probably the most staggering thing he'd laid his golden eyes on. He was gazing at the ensuing duel from a tall row of seats coiled around the rustic yellow ring like a serpent, positioned next to Ashlyn. She had the look of someone who was going to faint, despite the amount of murder she'd seen and been through in her life.
Directly behind them sat the red figure, pistol in hand. The way they looked seemed so... wrong. As if they were sadistically pleasured by this. He was disgusted by the way they were evidently feeling, but it at least wasn't as terrible as the way the crowd of cloaked adversaries around him were reacting. Screams and shouts went this way and that, cheering on the llamas far below. A few gunshots were fired off to calm the noisy audience, but it was only futile in the end. He tried his absolute best to block out the fiendish jubilation, but he ended up with a terrible migraine regardless.
Every now and then, he received a strange glance (at least, he thought they were glancing at him) from someone within the crowd. He didn't blame the suspicion surrounding him or Ashlyn. They did, after all, stand out amongst the green thugs.
Roland winced when he saw the crude spear of the stronger Atlawa penetrate the gut of the other. And then the clear winner started dragging the loser across the ground, deciding to next throw him into the spinning blades. He shut his eyes then. The crowd went completely silent. He was thankful for the decrease in volume, but it was, unluckily, only momentary. He cringed internally when he heard tortured wails and cries echoing across the arena.
This was sickening. How was anyone delighted to watch this? Roland couldn't begin to fathom the idea of enjoying this slaughter fest. He didn't want to think about it. He wasn't going to open his eyes to the brutality in front of him.
"Never have I seen a contender do that to one of his own," the red entity spoke up. "Normally, they'd make it quick, but this time... I can't describe it."
"You're one of the people that built this place," Ashlyn answered angrily. "Were you not expecting that to happen when you put spinning blades in your arena?"
The figure shuffled around behind Roland. "I guess you're right, dragoness. Maybe we should lay off the swords."
"Maybe you should lay off the arena altogether," she suggested, bitterness edging her tone. "Aren't you slave traders or something? Why kill people when you can sell them off for profit?"
"Because nobody wants Atlawa, dragoness. Honestly, other than the minute amount of power those druids have, they're pretty useless. We only use them for work and amusement. Dragons, on the other hand, have many uses. So we probably wouldn't put them in a death match. Others pay well for dragons. Not like we need the money right now, though."
Roland inwardly trembled. Each time they spoke of selling him, or just trading off others in general, made him feel scared. Scared of what was to come in the future. Frightened of what others were going to do to him... He didn't want a grublin to lay their dirty mitts on his scales.
"You can open your eyes now, dragon," they told him. "It is a little messy, though."
Hesitantly, Roland did as he was told. They were quite right when they said the arena was messy. At least he didn't have to watch an Atlawa be butchered in front of him. There was almost nothing left of the poor thing.
At once, the thunderous cheering picked up again. From his position, Roland was able to get a good look at the successful Atlawa, and he definitely seemed like he was in tears. Really, seeing that only furthered his point about just how dreadful this arena was. How could you be screaming praise at someone in a moment like this?
The traps slowly ground to a halt then. Hooded people entered the ring from a tremendous door opposite Roland's location, just below the huge ring of seats, and got the llama onto his quivery hooves, quickly exiting the arena with him. He had no clue where they were going with him, but he assumed it was back to the cell block.
Thinking that got him pondering further. Just how big was the entire area? This coliseum was huge, so there had to be more to the structure he was in... Maybe there was an exit somewhere.
No, there wasn't any use in worrying about escaping the clutches of his robed foes. He couldn't. There was no way out. There were too many of these people to even think about making a getaway, anyhow.
"We're going back now," his red adversary stated, getting up from their seat. "You've had your fill."
Roland did as instructed. He only gained more suspicious glances from the immense crowd as he stood. He even thought he saw someone grumpily sneer at him, but it was difficult to tell what emotions they were displaying under the hood... Roland wasn't certain if there was something underneath the cloak; he could only see darkness through the hole their face was supposed to be in. It made them look like disembodied spirits.
Following the figure in red, they walked around the rows of seats, moved up a wide staircase, and through the arena's leftmost door. Because he was now behind them, Roland thought of sprinting off, or even striking them down while they didn't have their gaze upon him, but he quickly realised how idiotic that would've been if he had done so. He'd probably be fired upon by their colleagues and escorted to this so called 'Chamber of Fun' if the gunshots didn't kill him. And despite the fact they weren't paying attention, he was sure this particular enemy would still notice him move out of their sight.
"So, what do you think?" they inquired, an almost devious tone to their voice. "I trust it was to your liking?"
"To our liking?" Ashlyn narrowed her eyes into an incensed glare. "Really? How do you find that entertaining, you rat?"
The red figure chuckled at her contumelious remark. "It's not hard, really. When it's the only kind of entertainment you've got, you get used to seeing it. That fight was an exception, though..." They paused for a moment before taking a quick glance at her. "And never insult me, dragoness, or I'll make sure I'm the one ripping those horns out of your skull and not one of those low-grade ruffians."
Ashlyn did open her muzzle to respond, but she must've realised they weren't lying when she hastily shut it again. Roland sighed; he knew his own horns would be yanked out of his head sooner or later. He was surprised they hadn't been hacked off yet, actually. As harrowing as it was, dragon... parts apparently sold for a lot, according to his enemies. Why they weren't trying to profit off of him now was peculiar.
"If you want to sell us," he began, "then why haven't you already? Don't you want the money?"
"Because, dragon." They started to move once more. Roland followed closely behind them, a frown on his face. "There's so much more we can do with you yet. And plus, we're sitting on a gold mine right now. We're not desperate for gems. In fact, money has hardly been a necessity for us at all. Selling you is an afterthought."
That didn't sound great. For himself or Ashlyn, at least. He ended up questioning McRed Hood about this gold mine.
"It's not actually a gold mine," they explained. "But we are sitting on a kofalt mine. A huge one at that. It's quite the game changer when it comes to technology. It's durable, malleable, doesn't wear and it conducts crystal power. It's also explosive!"
"Crystal power?" He had no clue what to think of that. What could that possibly entail...
"Yes, crystal power. By melting spirit gems, you can create power, and then you can run it through kofalt wires. Better than electric dragons, mind you. It's fascinating stuff. I'm surprised you haven't heard of it... Wait, you come from Avalar, don't you?"
Roland wasn't sure how much good revealing his previous home town would do, but what did he have to lose now? "I... Yes, I come from Avalar."
Ashlyn cast her eyes towards him and glared. He had a feeling his quick decision wasn't an intelligent one.
"That explains why you're a little out of the loop," they said. "The bottom side of the main continent is cut off from the rest by the Burned Lands. Around forty years after the Dark Master, the Burned Lands actually spread across the land, separating the cities completely just four years later. Nobody knows why it happened and nobody could get rid of it. It's impossible to get through and there's nothing anybody can do about it."
Roland had heard of the Burned Lands and how it had crossed the continent in history tomes before. He'd seen maps of the Dragon Realms. But now that he was pondering it, every map he'd seen was kind of ancient... This was all starting to make so much sense.
"The oceans to get around all that are filled with huge serpents," they continued, turning a left corner in the lengthy passage they were now treading down. "So that's not an option. And the skies there are impossible to get through without proper cloaking devices, what with all the fire wyrms. Hiding a cargo ship is entirely impossible, as well... It's all just a run of bad luck, if you ask me."
The amount of questions they were answering for him was astounding. Why were they so eager to reply to whatever thought he may have on his mind? In fact, he'd noticed they spoke a lot. Were they trying to show some form of kindness?
No, that couldn't be it. They'd just threatened Ashlyn. There had to be a reason for their insistence... This was all so much to take in.
"So, Avalar is kind of ancient when compared to cities like Port Cobalt and Dawnfront up north. Even worse, there's no kofalt at all in Avalar's small section of the world. Without that, they're not going to improve at all. Nobody from the other continents are willing to come across with supplies, either, because each and every ship they've brought has either been shot down by a sea serpent, or swallowed by a fire wyrm... So it gets neglected. Our continent's a dangerous place."
The number of questions they had an answer to was astonishing, yes, but the sheer amount of inquires they'd now raised was more so. What was this kofalt substance? He hadn't heard of it in any text he'd studied. Cloaking devices and cargo ships? What about fire wyrms? Where were Port Cobalt and Dawnfront, besides north? He'd never seen them on a chart before. Instead of being able to voice any of his questions, however, Ashlyn seemed to have one of her own.
"If nobody is able to get across the world," she spoke up, breaking her short silence, "then how will you get us to the Forbidden Mountains?"
He was surprised he hadn't thought of that. With a wall of what was basically certain death ahead of them, how did Roland's cloaked foes expect to cross it? They could soar around the globe and make it to the other side, but for a few quick gems? That didn't seem like a good use of time.
"I'm glad you asked." They gazed back at her. "With the dreadwings, it's actually possible, surprisingly. The fire wyrms ignore them. They probably hate the taste of them. I've heard from someone it's like eating rotten flesh."
So there was a way over the wall of searing magma... Using the enemy, of course. Absolutely perfect. Exactly what he needed to hear right now.
As their huge conversation started to die down, Roland took to peering around. He was starting to realise just how unnaturally immense these hallways were. Why they were so large was quite strange. How did the scarlet hoodlum even know their way around this massive complex? Roland was certain he would lose his mind trying to walk these halls. It was impractical.
He looked to the stone walls beside him. Unlike the arena, they were bland; he exhaled deeply. Boredom started to settle in. Whilst attempting to find something to do, he looked at the walls once more and found a little enjoyment in staring at the shadows of everyone flickering against the wall's rough surface. The way they were projected was eerie, like large, deformed beasts shambling along with one another. It did provide him with a little amusement, though.
"Almost there now," his imprisoner mentioned. That only meant his time to be free of his cell was coming to a swift close. Roland felt as if he should've darted off when he had the chance, effectively escaping the clutches of his foes. He wasn't even being led around by a chain, only casually walked back to where he was supposed to go. That firearm by their hip, however, was enough of a deterrent. If this figure could somehow shoot Ashlyn's ice shards out of the air, he didn't want to find out how accurate they were when it came to firing off at dragons.
And then they were back at their cell after having passed the others. Roland gazed at it disdainfully, not desiring to enter once more, but after an encouraging push from his crimson incarcerator, he heard the door slam shut behind him.
"Don't worry now, dragons." They locked the door with the set of keys they had on them. "If you stick to the rules, your quality of life here will improve. See, we've already arranged a bed for you two."
It was true. They had given them a bed. A single dull, white bed. Great. Roland had already decided he would be sleeping on the floor tonight. What a sick prank...
"And don't think about trying to escape again," they said. "I'm leaving the sensor on, so there'll be an alarm if you try to get out. I'll see to you two tomorrow."
That was that. McRed Hood flicked a switch on the wall outside of his cell and paced off, leaving himself and Ashlyn alone. He looked down at the floor for a few moments. It was hopeless now.
He peered at the ice dragoness. She seemed fine. Why? Virtually everything was lost now, and she was okay? He sighed.
"Are you alright, Ash?" he asked. Ashlyn frowned at him.
"Um, yeah," she answered. "I'm okay. Why, Roland?"
"Just asking." He rubbed at his cranium. "I... I don't know, Ashlyn. I just have a feeling we won't be escaping this place... I have no idea what to do."
"Hey, look." She offered him a smile. "Life's hard. It has been on both of us. But I know we'll pull through in the end, just like we always have. Try to have a little hope, Roland. You never know what might happen next."
"But that's the thing, Ashlyn." He exhaled before walked over to the single bed, placing his clawless paw atop it. It was surprisingly soft. "I don't want to know what happens next. It's hard to have hope in our situation. And... I just can't be sure about us actually 'pulling through', you know? We're only going to end up being-"
"Stop that," she intervened, losing the reassuring smile. "We will get out of this. You can be sure of it."
"And what makes you feel so sure?" Roland questioned her. The hopelessness looming in the air seemed to strike at Ashlyn for a moment; she closed her mouth up, clearly uncertain of how to respond to his inquiry. "There isn't a way out of here, Ash. We can't even get out of the door without tripping an alarm... Do you have a plan or something?"
"Roland, look... I..." She directed her eyes to the floor for a second. "It sounds stupid. It really does. But have a little faith. I know we'll come out okay... Where's the hopeful, happy dragon I know? Despite the situation, you always seem to be completely fine, but when faced with this, you just give up? What gives, Roland?"
"What gives?" he repeated, unable to meet her eyes. He went and sat up against the wall near the bed, folding his paws. "You're right, Ashlyn. It does sound stupid. I just... I can't look forward. How do we even get out of here? There's no way... I don't care anymore."
"Well, I'm not going to idly sit by and wait for our impending doom, Roland," she stated, adopting a slightly angrier look. "You can sit and brood in the corner all you want, but I'm actually going to try. Can't you do the same? I remember a time when you were optimistic, but that seems to have changed. What happened?"
"And I remember a time when all you did was mope," he remarked, looking up slightly. She seemed taken aback. "You walked around like a wraith all the time. But I didn't call you out for it. Can you not be hypocritical?"
"You..." She pointed at him with a toe, her face contorting into something much more threatening. "Why would you even bring that up? Don't you remember what I've been through? At least you weren't chained to a wall and beaten every night."
"Oh, and here comes the pity party. I guess I'll join in." Roland was getting rather agitated by this. There was no way she was going to convince him at all. "I spent weeks, sometimes months, living on nothing but scraps because I couldn't get the money. I starved almost everyday. I lived in a sewer pipe. I had to dodge the guards all the time. And you know what? I was beaten too! Seth hated my guts. So don't just say your life's been tough."
"Do you know what torture feels like, Roland?" she growled. He didn't answer her. "It feels like having your scales peeled off of your body one by one. Like having hot steel pressed up against your stomach. Like having thousands of volts move through you at the same time. And I had to deal with that every single day of my life, Roland! Even after submitting to Aurus!"
That... sounded dreadful. Roland couldn't come up with a retort to her words. He wasn't able to relate to that at all. And now he was regretting yelling at her. Again... Why was he being so stupid all of a sudden!? Roland wanted to slap himself for treating her the way he did.
"You know, I've been refusing to bring all that up," she continued, taking a deep breath and moving a few steps closer to him. "I didn't think you wanted to hear about it. But that's what I've had to go through for the past few years. I still have the scar from that steel on my stomach..."
Roland curiously looked at her pale grey underbelly and was quite startled to see that she had a marking there, just below her ribcage. He'd never seen it before, but it was small. Spotting it without trying to search for it would've proved difficult.
"I-I'm sorry for yelling, Roland..." She ran a paw through the blue frills atop her head. "I just... I want you to be happy, like you usually are. I hate to see you like this. But can you please have at least a smidgen of hope? It would do us both some good."
Roland lifted himself up and directed his gaze to the stone bricks beneath his paws. He let out a sigh. "I... Ancestors, I'm a jerk."
"No, you're not a jerk," she exclaimed, a little shocked. "Far from it. You just... need to look forward to the future. You told me that once, you know? You've completely changed how I look at life, Roland."
That he did. If anything, he was the one being the hypocrite now. He'd made sure Ashlyn heeded his words, but he hadn't taken them into account himself. Roland lifted his eyes a moment later.
"Yeah." He was able to manage a slight smile. "Alright. I'll try."
Ashlyn softly tapped his side with her the flat of her blade. "Good dragon. Now how about we get some sleep. We haven't been awake for long, but I'm already feeling a bit exhausted..."
"You can take the bed." He winked. "I'll sleep on the floor."
Ashlyn walked over to the wall beside him, slouched against the stone bricks, and narrowed her eyes. "You don't always have to be like that. I'll sleep right here. You take it."
"No." Roland sat back down again, leaning against the wall next to her. "I insist."
"Then I guess I'll be sleeping on the floor next to you," she giggled. Roland put his face in his paws. He wanted her to feel comfortable... It wasn't like he didn't want her by his side, though. Heck, they'd slept together before and neither of them had been at all awkward about it.
Still, he was surprised by how quickly they could go from shouting angrily at each other to being friends once more. Maybe he just needed to stop being an insensitive jerk. Yeah, that was probably it... He had better things to put his mind on, though.
He rolled his eyes and finally replied with a drawn out, "Fine..."
Ashlyn laughed at him. Roland looked up at the bed longingly. Oh, how he desired to snuggle up inside of it now that she wasn't taking the opportunity he'd given her. But that would be impolite. Instead, he tore the blankets off and wrapped them both up inside of it. Ashlyn gave him a funny look.
"Great idea, Roly. I was feeling quite cold."
Roland grinned, deciding to play along. "Yeah, I know. It is a little chilly in here. I mean, it's not like you're an ice dragon or anything."
She fired off an ice spike for good measure; it shattered against the wall. "Nope. Not at all. I'm not sure, but I feel like that was electricity."
"Wow, and I thought you were firing off an earth blast. Silly me."
She chuckled. "Let's check again, shall we?"
After drawing her head back for a second, a noisy blast of concentrated ice blast forth out of her muzzle, echoing across the entire cellblock. Once more, her golden ring glowed. Roland furrowed his scaly brow.
"Yep," she grinned. "Definitely a wind dragon."
Roland grinned at her behaviour, but he was confused again by her ring. He opened his maw to ask her about it, but somebody beat him to the punch.
"Will you whelps shut up!? We're all tryin' to sleep here!"
He immediately bounced back in fright, only hitting the wall behind him as a result. Ashlyn seemed a little surprised, but definitely not as shocked as he was. As a matter of fact, she started laughing hysterically at the deep tone a few seconds later.
"Oh, if I have to face you in the arena, I'll be sure to tear you limb from limb!"
Ashlyn's laughter only continued and Roland soon had to join her after quickly making sure they weren't in any immediate danger. Did this prisoner seriously think he could defeat her in battle? That was hardly a fair fight. An angry Ashlyn against practically any sentient race wasn't particularly equitable if each side was on even terms.
"Bah! You dragons think you're real funny, don't ya? By the Ancestors, shut it!"
"Oh, how about you shut your trap, Evans!" a different voice hollered. "You're louder than the pair of them!"
"I'll wipe the floor with you next, nugget!"
"By the gods, Evans. Let them have their fun! They're only children, you lumbering oaf!"
Roland couldn't help but bury his head in the soft white blanket keeping him warm and snicker. Unfortunately, the screaming match seemed to halt there. He wanted to hear more about this Evans and... a nugget, apparently.
Minutes of waiting later and everything had settled. The repose now was calming, but at the same time, a little unnerving. Another lengthy breath slipped out of his muzzle.
He felt something hastily come down on his side, forcing him to the left slightly. He was alarmed for a split second and almost leaped to his paws in surprise, but after realising it was only Ashlyn's form, he relaxed. She must've fallen asleep. He smiled abashedly to himself, yet he ended up leaning into her himself, if only to get off his spined back.
Roland knew he could fall to sleep knowing he could have at least a little faith. Especially in Ashlyn... He was reminded again of what the yellowy dragoness, Nara, had told him through writing.
'Put your faith in her...'
He wrapped a wing around her. He was sure she wouldn't mind. It definitely made him feel a little more snug (doing it on the bed would've been very strange, however). And right now, he wanted every last bit of warmth. After the events of today, he hadn't really been able to pay much attention to it. But the encroaching coldness of outside was really starting to work its way inside now.
However, the icy temperatures of winter weren't all that much of a problem to him. It wasn't something he needed to worry about. His primary goal was getting out of this cell. And with Ashlyn, he was sure that was possible now. They only had to find an opportunity and take it, as meagre in number as those were going to be...
Ashlyn was correct, though. He needed to have hope... It was what they were relying on, anyhow.
He knew it was going to be a long, arduous process. But he also knew they would succeed in the end, just like they always had.