Surge
Phoebe wasn't quite sure how much time had passed when she woke up, only that the chamber was no brighter than when she first stepped in; dimmer, in fact, seeing as she'd been asleep. The girl could just make out the outline of Cinnamon Bun beside her. Gravis was somewhere on the knight's other side, out of view.
Experimentally, she tried moving. True to the Crucible's reputation, she felt no stronger despite the respite, unable to even conjure a flame. Letting her back relax again, the fire elemental absentmindedly fiddled with the silver chain around her neck, coiling and uncoiling it on her finger. CB was able to eventually wake up, having heard the chinking metal, it being literally the only solid noise in the entire room. Unlike FP, he actually felt worse.
His flame shield offered no protection from the vastly uncomfortable heat that the Crucible insulated, even if it didn't cause harm. As he'd feared, lack of any food or water was already having an effect on him, worrying the knight that he wouldn't remain useful to his friend for much longer. Grunting, he attempted to get up, aided by the suddenly alerted Phoebe. Once the two were on their feet, they backed up to at least lean against the wall.
"How are you feeling?" CB asked first.
"The same. You?" she replied.
The candy person sighed, feeling his stomach aching and his mouth drying more by the second.
"Starved and parched."
His grim response didn't do much good, renewing the worry in his companion. Before the thought settled in, CB redirected the topic, looking around into the darkness ahead.
"We should take a look at those doors. There might be an oversight."
His try at raising FP's spirits seemed to fail, but she nodded nonetheless. After glancing over at Gravis, still asleep against the wall, she joined her knight in walking along the wall, feeling for the massive gate that served as the chamber's only opening. Occasionally they touched the engraved markings of long-gone prisoners; last words etched by their fingernails, prayers, or just simple claw marks from their breaking sanity.
Soon enough, the slightly cooler surface of the twin doors graced their senses. Positioning themselves in front, the two began feeling every inch they could, looking for a weak point, or perhaps a screw that could be removed. Unfortunately, even after a fair hour of checking and rechecking, they found only the dozens of dents that others had desperately inflicted in hopes of escaping the living nightmare of the Crucible.
"It's no use, there's nothing we can work with," Phoebe stated in defeat.
CB frowned as he placed both hands on the door, concentrating on any spot they'd missed using the dim light from Flame Princess. Oddly enough, their available illumination seemed to strengthen ever so slightly, prompting them to turn around. Gravis was seen hobbling his way to them, his fire ghostly and weak, but visible. FP quickly stepped over to help, seeing the instability in his walk. Once the old man had joined them at the gate, he took a moment to look upon the barrier between him and the outside world. A quiet hum left his lips.
"Almost two decades, living behind these doors," he spoke to no one in particular.
Cinnamon Bun tried his luck.
"Have you ever found any abnormalities in its design?"
Gravis shook his head slowly.
"None. The scarring impacts you see here are the most any have been able to inflict."
He paused for a while, considering his next words carefully. Turning to Phoebe, he continued.
"But… I may be able to help."
Fully intrigued, the elder's cellmates listened. Gravis placed a hand against his chest.
"I have the same genetic defect as my sons. The effect of mine restricts the amount of energy my matrix releases at any given moment."
Cinnamon Bun appeared confused as to what the man meant, prompting Phoebe to gently reach over and place her hand on the area above Gravis' matrix. She gasped lightly at what she discovered, turning to her knight.
"He's right. The energy trapped inside is tremendous. It's enough to go critical if he strained himself too much."
The candy person nodded in understanding.
"How will that help us though?" he asked.
Gravis hummed thoughtfully once more, gazing at the tungsten gate behind them.
"As her majesty said, that trapped energy has the potential to detonate if triggered correctly."
He locked eyes with Phoebe.
"I can be your escape."
Astonished, FP gripped the elder's shoulders.
"You can't! You can't just end your life like that!"
Gravis reassuringly took hold of her arm, offering his sad eyes to her.
"Your majesty, I have lived the life of a shell here in the darkness. There is nothing left the Crucible can take."
Flame Princess felt his hold tighten.
"If my action can provide you freedom, then I can pass on knowing I gave someone the chance to take back their life."
Phoebe and the man held a staring contest of sorts for a good long while, wordlessly arguing back and forth. In FP's case however, she couldn't compete with the pain and sorrow burned into the old man's pupils. He was asking her for the last act of a dying father; refusing would be criminal. Giving in, she pressed forward and gave him a hug, wishing to share at least some kindness to the poor soul.
"We'll stop Zeus and the others, I promise," she whispered.
Gravis hummed again, using his minimal strength to place a hand to the fiery ruler's back. As Phoebe backed away, she looked over to her loyal knight. CB was just as reluctant as she, but at the same time accepted their companion's wish to give his existence one last meaning. The two slowly walked past Gravis, aiming to place themselves as far from the doors as possible. Carefully walking in a straight line, they eventually met the opposite wall, with the gate and elder completely obscured by the void.
"We're ready," CB called through the chamber.
Back at the gate, Gravis grunted in reply, although with not nearly enough strength to be heard. The man turned to face his prison's doorway, gazing whimsically at each dent and scratch upon it. Taking a deep breath, he focused in on his dying matrix. Like an aging sun, he would use his last pool of energy to unleash it all at once; a force that would surely provide enough power to remove the doors in his companions' way. As the heat began building, Gravis' body brightened, tapping into reserves that the Crucible's dampening hadn't managed to sap away.
Cinnamon Bun and Phoebe could just spot a speck of light in the distance, though it didn't seem to increase in strength over time.
The withering veins carrying magma through Gravis' body, long since dulled by the subpar temperatures, were now a strong orange, moving energy all throughout his limbs. The light produced by his skin was suppressed, as he forcibly contained his physiology in an attempt to overload his matrix. A minute later, his chest began to hurt, a sensation he felt similar to suffocating. Ignoring it, he continued, building up the pressure. It wasn't long before he could make out the spherical form of his heart, glowing brightly from inside him.
Feeling the opportunity to launch all of his thermal energy back into his core, Gravis reached up and placed his hand on the metal gates.
Zeus, Poseidon, Hades… I'm sorry.
Phoebe and Cinnamon Bun shielded their eyes, a sudden flare of blinding light erupting from the opposite side of the room. A shockwave followed soon afterwards, coinciding with a thundering crack of sound that not only rattled their eardrums, but sent a distasteful feeling down their spines. There was a large difference between an object exploding and a person exploding.
CB was able to place himself behind Phoebe, using his bulky and soft body to protect her from being thrown against the wall. He grunted at the impact himself, but knew it wouldn't cause much damage. All at once, as the echoing thunder found a new opening to bounce off into, the stale air within the Crucible rushed out, nearly causing Flame Princess to pass out from lack of oxygen. Her knight kept a firm hold on her until the exchanges of air finally balanced out, bathing the both of them in fresh, volcanic oxygen, which CB had grown used to and Phoebe practically fed off of.
Recovering from the initial blast, the two looked out towards the gate, careful to adjust their eyes to the now present light. Though not blown off their hinges, the tungsten doors were mangled and scarred beyond repair, deformed into shriveled panels of metal, blackened by a massive scorch mark at the point where they once met. A pained screeching came from each one as they loosely swung back and forth by a few inches.
Ashes were raining down from the ceiling, having been thrown in all directions by the detonation. The resulting picture was serene in a way, presenting the exit to those who'd been held within. Phoebe and her knight quickly brushed off the soot that had stuck to them from the explosion, trying not to think about what they were. As soon as they were able, the pair made a dash for the opening, knowing it was a matter of time before someone came to investigate the blast.
Passing through the spot where Gravis had been standing, Phoebe could swear she felt the man's presence for just a moment. Feeling her fire returning in the natural atmosphere, she rushed ahead, accepting the old fire elemental's hopes as her own resolve.
To the surprise of both king and protector, no one interrupted their fervent climb up the dungeon stairs. They did however, begin hearing the faintest sound of battle in the prison's uppermost levels.
"Sounds like a riot up there," CB mentioned.
Phoebe agreed with him, although wondered what could have possibly happened to instigate such a feat. The Olympians would definitely have one of their own keeping close watches on the prisoners. Seeing as they'd find out for themselves soon enough, the pair continued up the spiraling steps, feeling the stone at their feet begin rumbling from distant impacts.
Emerging from the stairwell into a narrow corridor, knight and royal were surprised to see quite the crowded hallway. Dozens of guards, previously brainwashed, were now lying unconscious on the floor, having been surgically knocked-out. This was clearly not the work of an Olympian. Moving on, they made their way towards the dungeon's main area, still unable to find anyone up and about. Shouts and cries of battle could be heard growing through the corridors, echoing off the featureless walls.
Increasing the pace, CB and Flame Princess rounded another corner, coming up along the first large-scale portion of the facility. They were finally met with actual conflict. More brainwashed guards stood ahead of them, mercilessly attacking the dungeon's intruders, which seemed to be soldiers. The trained militants were obviously holding back, doing their best to hold a defense while looking for the opportunity to incapacitate their fellow elementals nonlethally.
"Where did they come from?" Cinnamon Bun wondered aloud.
These were not the same soldiers that had attended the trial, meaning there had been a break-in. The question now was how they made it past the Olympians who'd been positioned right on top of the palace. Somewhere along his train of thought, a guard was slammed into the wall, unable to continue fighting. Following this, a voice rang out from another side of the room.
"Sister!"
Phoebe was quick to zero in on the source, eyes widening when she saw her older brother rushing over to her.
"Flint!"
The two royal siblings instantly shared a relieved embrace, before FP let loose with her questions.
"What are you doing here?"
"Busting you two out, of course," he replied.
The man turned to a fellow solider.
"Corporal, the man's weapon!"
The subordinate saluted, removing a large object from his back, revealing it to be CB's lance, which was quickly tossed to him. The knight received it with thanks, then proceeded to hold back another guard. Phoebe and Flint were forced to do the same, parrying several staffs with their flame swords.
"But how did you get past the Olympians? The palace is the only entrance to the dungeon."
Flint grunted as he kicked away an opponent. He seemed confused.
"You're saying that like every one of them was at the site."
Now it was Flame Princess's turn to be confused. As she pushed back another guard, CB took the next inquiry.
"Where did these men come from? Who was even able to alert them to what was happening?"
Flint smirked as he slugged a guard in the gut, causing him to groan and fall to the floor.
"There was one member of the palace who was able to slip away."
As if to clarify, a howl rang out through the room, followed by a large black shape sailing overhead. Several guards were thrown aside when it landed, while the others retreated in fear of opposing their new foe. Cinnamon Bun couldn't help but smile as he locked eyes with his friend.
"JT!"
The noble fire wolf was by his owner's side in a flash, giving him multiple licks to the cheek, making the knight chuckle.
"It's good to see you too, buddy."
Flint motioned for the assembled group to follow, as he led them towards the main hall for a hasty exit.
"All troops, the king is secure, move out now!" he bellowed as they ran.
The soldiers around them acknowledged the command, falling back as they held off the last of the guards. A protective line soon formed on either side of Phoebe and her Knight, with Jake 2 taking up the rear.
"So who did you run into on the way in?" the fiery monarch asked her brother.
Flint deflected a few fireballs before answering.
"Some slippery punk. It was hard to keep up with him; I've never seen a faster fire elemental."
"Hermes," FP clarified.
"Yeah. It took some effort, but we managed to drive him back. I'm sure he went to warn the others so we've been trying to hurry as much as possible."
Understanding the urgency now, Flame Princess encouraged everyone to pick up the pace, even having JT throw the strength-deprived Cinnamon Bun onto his back. The group gradually made their way through the dungeon's exterior cell blocks, finding fewer conscious brainwashed guards as they went. It wasn't long before Flint announced the final set of stairs coming up, which seemed unprotected. Rushing up to the surface, Phoebe and her knight finally witnessed what Flint had been referring to.
The once towering seismic hammer was nowhere in the immediate area, with the throne room's perimeter now just a crater of cracked volcanic earth. No Olympians were in sight, as if they'd abandoned the palace ruins entirely. A look around the horizon brought some answers. One could easily make out the building-sized hammer in the distance, now positioned over the general vicinity of the kingdom's main marketplace. Like the fire palace, it had been torn to the ground.
"I don't get it, what are they doing?" CB questioned.
FP had no ideas to offer as she heard the hammer pounding away at the ground. Her attention was only broken when Flint laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Sis, we've got to move."
The ruler nodded, but had her doubts about their next step.
"Where though?"
Flint smiled again, clearly having thought ahead.
"I had a squad of men secure a holdout on the northern end of the outskirts. It's an unused refinery, underground and well-hidden. The twins are already there. We can retreat to plan out our counterattack."
Flame Princess didn't look convinced however, with Cinnamon Bun voicing her concerns.
"Counterattack? Flint, we don't have the numbers to stage an assault, especially with the power those elementals pack."
The prince groaned in irritation.
"There aren't even a dozen of them, and even then they're never all together at any moment. If we strike their isolated members it'll be quick and effective."
CB shook his head.
"You don't understand. They have another force now, and it's one we don't know the full capabilities of."
Phoebe faced her brother.
"It's true, Flint. Our army is spread out and disorganized, while the Olympians just finished creating an entire horde of soldiers."
The older sibling frowned.
"Created?"
Before either FP or her knight could explain, one of the men called out a contact. Everyone turned to eye the position he was pointing to, seeing the lava beginning to bubble furiously. Dozens of soldiers prepared to fire their powers at the enemy, steady and determined. Another area also experienced the same bubbling, this time from the opposite side. Another portion of Flint's troops prepared, only for yet another side of the palace ruins to bubble as well.
When it was clear that they were surrounded, Flint gritted his teeth, looking around at each stationing of men.
"Steady…" he called.
Finally, heads, arms, and a wide array of weapons burst from the lava, revealing at last the enemy that had ensnared them. The two who had witnessed them before grew nervous, all while Flint just moved forward with his show of power.
"Blow them to pieces!" he shouted.
Giving a battle cry, every soldier around unleashed a furious blast of flames, following it up with either streams or concentrated balls. The preemptive strikes slammed into the emerging minions, blowing a large portion of them back into the molten rock from whence they came. Those who'd remained charged towards the center of the ruins, clearly aiming to recapture Phoebe. Flint wouldn't have it, ordering the platoon to form up and create a defensive posture.
"Don't let this scum anywhere near the king!"
"Yes, sir!" the men replied, focusing their fire.
Flame Princess stood forward, adding her own blasts to the mix. She'd managed to regain a decent amount of her energy since leaving the Crucible. As her flames impacted the nearest several minions, something dreadful happened. Rather than being blown to bits, her flames were absorbed by them. The artificial veins within them glowed brighter, their movements suddenly increasing in speed. Shocked, Phoebe immediately stopped, realizing her fires would do no good.
As the battle dragged on, Flint eyed the edge of the lava, seeing the never-ending line of soldiers emerging. As bad as that was, Cinnamon Bun soon pointed out an even greater worry. The minions that had previously been blasted apart, whether it be arm or leg, or simply bisected, were getting back to their feet, new limbs being regenerated in a gush of rapidly solidifying magma. Cursing, Flint ordered the platoon to huddle in, unable to keep the distance for much longer.
"So this is the power of the Phoenixian Legion," CB mused.
Seeing what she'd helped create, Phoebe could only bite her lip in frustration, witnessing the horde come near enough to warrant close-combat. The fire elementals produced flame swords, parrying and slashing at the legionnaires. Although many were sliced apart, they simply rebuilt themselves. Upon closer examination, Cinnamon Bun noticed abnormal heat waves being drawn from the surrounding lava, absorbed by the recovering minions as their injuries healed.
"It's no good, they use the surrounding thermal energy to trigger self-repair as necessary."
Cursing again, Flint looked back from the fight to his sister, currently being flanked by CB and Jake 2 for protection. The older sibling knew there was only one course of action at this point.
"Phoebe, get out of here."
Astounded, FP's next fireball went off course, fizzling out in the air.
"What!? And leave you all here?"
Flint grimaced, but held his ground.
"They're after you. If you leave, they'll break formation and we can make a run for it to the holdout. We'll meet you there."
Phoebe shook her head.
"Forget it! You don't know any of that for sure! You think I'm willing to leave my people and family to chance-"
What Flint did next caused anyone watching the exchange to freeze in place. He bonked Phoebe on the head. As she stood there, too shocked to even speak, her sibling grew red in the face.
"King or not, I'm still your older brother dammit! So let me perform my unspoken duty and protect my little sister!"
He huffed nervously, yet kept his fierce gaze on Flame Princess, waiting for the results of his outburst. All the men nearby were torn between watching and blasting, causing an unfortunate shift in position against the Legion. Eventually, Phoebe pursed her lips and closed her eyes. She threw herself at her brother, who returned the embrace, quickly pulling away to continue.
"I'll carve you a path," FP decreed.
Flint nodded, then turned to his troops.
"Prepare to retreat! We're falling back to the holdout!"
Acknowledging, the men huddled up further, nearly in contact with the three individuals and fire wolf in the center. Cinnamon Bun and his king climbed onto JT, standing by. Flint gave them one last nod.
"I'll see you in a bit."
To his surprise, FP shook her head.
"I'm going to get help."
The militant sibling flinched.
"You can't be serious!" he cried.
Flame Princess narrowed her eyes, giving him a commanding look, making the man uneasy.
"I'm your little sister. Let me perform my unspoken duty and keep you from doing something stupid."
The soldiers knew better than to comment, but their commander was left defeated, sighing and tightening his fists. He debated internally for a moment, then reignited his flame sword, ready to engage their enemies.
"Fine."
He glanced at CB.
"Bring her back to us," he ordered.
The knight saluted in reply, giving his word. With one final exchange of glances, Phoebe and Flint separated, with Jake 2 giving a strong leap upwards, leaving the soldiers far behind. FP was quick to bring her hands together while CB kept her steady, unleashing a torrent of fireballs upon the legionnaires below. Although her flames were ineffective directly, the force of impact from her projectiles easily tossed aside dozens of the artificial elementals.
Flint swiftly led the charge through their opening, which CB and Flame Princess viewed from above, relieved that the plan worked. At the same time, the Phoenixian Legion neglected to begin pursuit of the fleeing soldiers, instead looking up at JT as he flew away, carrying with him their target. Without a word, the horde slowly made their way back towards the lava, obediently returning to dormancy until called upon again.
As Jake 2 soared over the city, Phoebe and her knight noticed how abandoned all the buildings were. The likely scenario was that the elementals had fled from the invading Legion while their king was locked away in the Crucible. Zeus seemed to want everyone out of the way of his goals, whatever they may be. Flame Princess was thankful that he was in such a rush that he didn't bother having his horde hunt down and eliminate the civilians. Under such conditions, the military had orders to evacuate citizens to appropriate underground shelters.
She could only hope her people could hold out until she could gain the strength to fight back. As it stood, there was no point in assaulting the Olympians; it was suicide.
"Where to?" CB finally asked, seeing as they were nearing the bordering mountain range of the kingdom.
Phoebe stared down at her ruined home a few seconds longer, then moved to staring straight ahead.
"The Candy Kingdom."
Hm, I guess not much to say this time. I've got updates to read anyway.
TimeManipulator99: We'll see where it goes... (evil laugh)
gamelover41592: Thanks.
The Space Wizard Storybook: Glad I could provide some history.
TheMentalAdventurer: I think there have been books, somewhere in the background maybe. Fiery Crusader gave a good defense.
Fiery Crusader: Good point. And yes, imperfection is natural, that's what makes it fun to work with.
Major144: Glad I nailed it. Though in some ways it was a massive info dump.
Neo Deadmau5: It does seem successful to use mythology for a lot of people.
jethockey7: Ha, I've been there before. Thanks.
Guest (MUTO TOHO): Fair point, I suppose drifting away is natural though, expanding the possibilities.
Ledgeion: Possible, but I didn't want to be too parallel. Besides, all the names I give my OC's have ulterior meaning. Check out Latin sometime.
mattn00ch: Sorry about that, I'll admit it was a little later than usual.
Hope you enjoyed and thanks for any comments/reviews!