Farkas walked as far away from Lucien as the dark tunnel permitted. The Sram was holding the bloody side of his head—he was always such a wimp when it came to injuries, and he didn't even get hit by an enemy. He'd been hurt by a falling stone when the tunnel had collapsed. Farkas would have laughed had there been anything funny about a failed mission or nearly getting killed by that... thing. Still, Lucien dropping the tunnel was the best move he could have done to cover their retreat, even if Farkas would rather die than admit it.
Neither of them wanted to stay the first word, knowing that it would start another dispute neither of them wanted. They were content with the echoing sound of their footsteps and the water dripping on stone all around them.
Akula, though, was another story.
"I'm hungry," she said.
"Please," Lucien retorted, frowning from the annoyance and the pain. "Not now."
"Maybe 'hungry' is a gross understatement," the Shushu-blade continued nonetheless. "It's like you shoved a juicy steak under the nose of a starving man, and only let him lick it once. That kind of hungry. Why do you do this to me Lucien?"
The Sram rolled his eyes. "You should say that to the one who deprived you of your juicy steak because he was having second thoughts."
Farkas clenched his fists. "Or maybe blame the one who missed two killing blows, then flat out refused to just grab our target and leave."
"The Eliatrope knew I was there," Lucien said tensely. "I can't explain how, but it's very hard to surprise someone who can... sense your presence somehow. Besides, he was also our target."
"I still don't agree with that," Farkas retorted firmly.
"Then save your breath for the Master, because you'll need every ounce of it to justify your failure."
"My failure? You're the one who decided to improvise," Farkas corrected. "Like always. The plan worked great before that."
"Either way that doesn't solve my problem," Akula said.
Lucien raised an eyebrow as he glanced at his gauntlet. "Which is?"
"I'm hungry!" the Shushu bellowed on top of her voice.
The Sram sighed tiredly. "On the bright side, soon there might be some Sacrier to the menu."
"I'd love to see you try," Farkas retorted lightly. Indeed, making an angry Sacrier bleed wasn't the brightest idea, and even Lucien already knew that.
After a few more minutes of silent walking (apart from Akula's constant whining, which Farkas tuned out anyway) he saw the golden light of sunset pouring in the tunnel's exit. The Zaap was a mere mile away. At least they would manage to get away from this mess mostly unscathed.
Well, that's what Farkas thought.
They were barely out of the tunnel when two figures emerged from the bushes ahead of them. Farkas quickly looked over his shoulder, only to see that Lucien had immediately vanished into the shadows, like the coward he was.
The Sacrier surveyed the newcomers with a sweeping glance, easily identifying a Iop and an Enutrof. As one could expect, the Iop immediately charged forward with a battle cry, his molten Shushu broadsword opening the way.
Farkas cracked a smile, waiting for the Iop to bash him with all his might and get a welcome power boost. The Iops' reputation of hitting first and thinking later, if at all, was not overrated.
Well, that's what Farkas thought.
"Pinpin, wait!" a woman called. "Don't hit him!"
Both the Sacrier and the Iop turned towards the woman ―a Cra, judging by her bow― standing on a large lower branch of a nearby tree. She aimed an ice arrow at Farkas.
The Iop groaned and threw his sword to the ground in anger. "What, really? I haven't had a single baddie to bash in weeks, and you want to solo this one?" he said with overdone theatrical gestures. "Don't you have any condiseration for my feelings, Eva?"
"Consideration, Iop brain," the Cra woman corrected. "And you don't beat Sacriers by hurting them, that only makes them stronger."
"Clever girl", Farkas said with a twisted smile. "But by all means, play nice and let me have all the fun."
Farkas could do plenty of interesting tricks before he even got hurt, like slamming his skull with full force into the distracted Iop's face. Sadly he couldn't break the ginger's nose, as Iops had none, but he made him stumble a few steps back nonetheless.
At the same instant the ice arrow left the Cra's bow and the Enutrof sent his shovel spinning, but they were both too slow. Farkas had already aimed his hand at the upper branches of the nearest tree and pulled on his bloody tendrils, using them as a grappling hook to get out of harm's way.
Well, that's what Farkas thought, and those unwelcome surprises were quickly becoming annoying.
From the canopy in front of him, Farkas saw a volley of green vines flying his way. He didn't have any time to change course mid-air before the vines grabbed his entire body and wrapped all around him. Unfortunately, they didn't constrict him painfully enough to give him the strength boost he needed to escape.
Hanging upside-down and helpless, Farkas was lowered to the ground until he came face-to-face with a young Sadida woman in noble attire.
"I promise this won't hurt in the least," she said coldly, with a haughty tone. "And I'm sincerely sorry I can't give you what we both want. But I hope for you that Yugo is still alive and well, or believe me, I'll find a safe way to make you regret it dearly."
"Looking forward to it," Farkas retorted casually. He cast a glance around to see if Lucien was doing anything to free him, but somehow... he hoped not. Because talking to these people would be the perfect way for Farkas to learn more about a situation he really didn't like.
Yugo sat on a leaf-covered bed in the infirmary of the Sadida palace. A young, bespectacled Eniripsa healer was tending to his rather ugly wound, under the anxious gazes of Adamaï and Alibert. Outside the window, sunset slowly retreated to leave place to a clear, starry night.
Battered, exhausted, his clothes and half his face covered in dried mud, the Eliatrope wanted nothing more than a warm bath and a comfortable bed. Az stood on top of his hat, surveying the room for any source of further danger.
"Ouch!" Yugo yelped with a wince, startling the little Tofu away.
"Sorry," the Eniripsa said. "It might sting a little."
Adamaï growled. "I'll let you know if it stings too much."
"Calm down Ad'," Yugo said with a smile. "He's doing a great job!"
The Dragon frowned sceptically, blowing a puff of black smoke through his nostrils.
"He's always super protective," Yugo explained as he noticed the Eniripsa eyeing his brother fearfully. "But he doesn't mean any harm, I promise."
The Eniripsa gulped. "If you say so." Adamaï gave him a dark glance.
Yugo chuckled. The fatigue and relief of the situation made him feel euphoric. The Eniripsa hovered his wand along Yugo's wound. It emitted a bright light that easily mended the skin in its wake. It stung for sure, but it was nothing he couldn't deal with.
Suddenly the doors of the infirmary flung open. The rest of the Brotherhood poured in with Amalia in the lead. Still concentrating on his work, the healer let out an annoyed sigh.
"If you can't read the sign on the door, then at least you should know this place is supposed to stay... oh, my apologies, Princess, I didn't mean―"
"No offence taken, Timov," Amalia answered coolly. "Focus on your task before that vicious creature over there gets angry."
"Hey!" Adamaï protested.
Amalia ignored him, staring and frowning at Yugo instead. The boy looked at his feet, prepared for another lecture. Again, he had rushed into harm's way, again, he nearly got killed, again, and he came back looking like he went through a stampede of Gobballs.
If there was a comical effect in such repetition, Amalia didn't seem to appreciate it.
"I feel fine you know," Yugo tried with little conviction, still avoiding her gaze.
Amalia shook her head in disbelief. "Why do I even care? It's painfully obvious you're not the least concerned that I have to worry about you all the time."
"I'm worried too," Alibert said. "I mean, if that helps."
"Someone had to save Chibi!" Yugo blurted out, looking at both of them intently.
"That's exactly what you said barely an hour ago! That what you always say!" Amalia retorted angrily. "Of course someone had to play the hero, but no one said it should always be you. And one day it won't end well, you know that. Let's just... let's be glad today isn't that day."
They stared silently at each other for a long moment. Someone had tried to harm Chibi, and even though Yugo had caused Amalia, Alibert and all the others a lot of worry once again, doing nothing was never an option. But of course he had expected the encounter to go a lot better, and his overconfidence could have costed him dearly.
Yugo suddenly remembered about the Sram telling him how the Sadida had been spying on Adamaï and him. He opened his mouth to ask Amalia, then closed it, realizing it wasn't the right moment.
"There you go," the healer said, stirring Yugo out of his thoughts. Timov looked pleased with his work. The boy glanced at his bare side. He could only see a lighter line across his skin, almost invisible.
"Wow, thank you!" he said with a grateful smile.
"My pleasure," the Eniripsa answered. He retreated hastily, in a obvious hurry to get as far as possible away from Adamaï.
"You went for the cavern's exit, right?" Yugo asked the others as he put his ruined shirt back on. "Did you find anything interesting?"
"No," Tristepin said, his face contorted in a stubborn pout. "Of course we found the only baddie in the entire Kingdom, and of course Eva forbade me from smashing him into a pulp."
"Pinpin..." Evangelyne said with an exasperated sigh. "Yes, we have a prisoner Yugo. A Sacrier, so of course 'smashing him into a pulp' was not a good idea. He's in the dungeon, waiting for us to go interrogate him."
"Err..." Yugo began awkwardly. "Interrogate him?"
"Yes, like... asking him questions," Evangelyne said cautiously.
"And breaking his teeth if he doesn't talk," Adamaï added mischievously.
"Great idea!" Tristepin said.
"No way! Taking revenge is not the point," Yugo warned firmly, frowning at both of them.
Adamaï shrugged flippantly. "Of course. It's just a pleasant side effect. And since we can reasonably expect him not to say anything before we take a whole lot of revenge on him, everyone will be happy. That's the way an interrogation is supposed to work, isn't it?"
Yugo stared at his brother, blinking incredulously. Adamaï laughed.
"Relax bro, I'm joking. Though you do always seem to worry for the people who've done the least to deserve it."
"That way he doesn't have to care about the people who do deserve it," Amalia said grumpily.
"What? That's just not true Amalia!" Yugo said, more heatedly than he first intended. "I... well, you know I care about you. I mean... all of you."
Yugo felt the heat rising to his cheeks. He looked down at his feet.
"Then you have a peculiar way of showing it," the Princess said as she turned on her heels.
Well, they did have a point. That Sacrier had attacked Alibert and kidnapped Chibi, yet Yugo couldn't make himself angry at him. Before that, he had also cared about the fates of Nox and Qilby, despite everything they'd done.
Maybe Adamaï was right. Maybe Yugo did have his feelings mixed up and ought to work out his priorities. Or maybe they were all wrong. As much as he tried, Yugo couldn't understand how one life could be priceless, and another one an... an inconvenience.
Ruel put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you all right, kiddo?"
Yugo nodded, offering his old friend his best fake smile, which he hoped was more convincing than it felt.
"Yes. Just tired," he said curtly while he stood up. "Let's get done with it."
The complete Brotherhood of the Tofu descended the spiral staircase to the Sadida prison, with the addition of Joris and Armand. Soon they entered the dark and gloomy dungeon under the Palace, a large volume with its walls lined by prison cells, and a pit of smelly swamp water at the bottom. Most of the cells stood empty, which confirmed Yugo's impression that the Kingdom was rather safe and peaceful.
"Oh, this brings back memories," Ruel said brightly.
"What?" Yugo asked.
"That's a long story," Amalia cut in as she stopped in front of a cell. "Here he his."
From the back of his dark cell, the Sacrier threw them a disinterested glance. He had been chained to the wall, and he looked rather bored.
"Let us in," Amalia commanded to the Sadida guard near the door. The soldier nodded and used a key that made the door of magical vines disappear.
Joris turned to Yugo and Adamaï.
"I shall be conducting the interrogation," he said in a low voice. "Please don't take offence, but it's not the sort of skill I'd expect you to master. If you want to ask questions, please wait until I get him to talk."
Yugo nodded, relieved that he didn't have to take a more active role. The situation made him uneasy.
"And what if he doesn't talk?" Adamaï asked grimly. "He's a Sacrier after all. How persuasive can you get before he's powerful enough to escape?"
"We have our ways," Joris said evasively. "Let us hope we won't have to use them, of course."
The three of them went to stand in front of the Sacrier, with the remainder of the company watching from the corridor.
Farkas didn't seem to register their presence, his expression indiscernible. Granted, the blank eyes didn't help.
"I take it you already know who we are," Joris said.
The Sacrier didn't move the slightest, or show any sign of interest.
"Of course my first question would be to know who you are."
No reaction.
"Who are you working for?"
The Sacrier snorted noisily.
"Why did you want to kidnap an Eliatrope child, and kill the other?"
Only silence.
Joris sighed and scratched his chin thoughtfully. "You know, there's only two ways to go through this moment. The easy and comfortable one: you talk, we listen. And the not-so-comfortable one. The choice is only yours, and whatever it shall be, rest assured we well get our answers in the end. So, by all means, pick wisely."
The man only let out a noisy sigh that sounded like boredom.
"Good," Joris said. "I'm glad you made up your mind so quickly."
He reached inside his blue cloak, and drew out a glass vial containing some murky substance. As he uncorked it, Yugo hastily stepped forward to grab his shoulder.
"Joris, wait! What is that?"
"A potion," the hooded little man answered flatly.
"I can see that," Yugo pressed on impatiently. "But what will it do to him?"
"It's only meant to weaken his powers."
Yugo blinked in confusion. "Oh... that's all? I mean, it's... not that bad then, right?"
Joris gently yanked his shoulder out of the boy's grip. "Of course not. That way, we can make sure he won't be able to escape as we extract the information we need."
"Uh... 'extract'?" Adamaï asked. "What does that mean? How do you 'extract' information?"
For an answer, Joris nodded towards the door. Yugo hadn't noticed before, but a tall, brawny Sadida with an especially emotionless face had joined them. He held a crate filled with varied metal instruments that gave the boy a cold shudder.
"No!" Yugo exclaimed. "You can't do that!"
Joris glanced back at him quizzically.
"You don't wish to know why this person attacked you and your family? And most importantly, what further plans he may have to harm your entire people?"
"I... of course I do," Yugo stammered. "But not that way."
"Sure thing, Master Eliatrope," Joris said, letting his impatience show through his usual mask of calmness. "What way shall it be, then? I'm all ears."
"I don't know!" Yugo retorted angrily. Why couldn't that damn Sacrier just talk? The boy turned towards Adamaï, motioning him to say something, silently asking him for help.
The Dragon sighed, his face set in a stern mask.
"Look Yugo, I don't like it either, all right? Bashing that guy for a bit sounded fun at first, maybe... or maybe not. I agree this is all messed up. But what choice do we have?"
Adamaï paused, his gaze elusive as he tried to pick his words carefully.
"Maybe Joris is right, maybe someone really wants to make sure our people won't ever come back. At the council of twelve, most of the leaders were hostile towards us. They hated the idea of our return, so that's definitely possible, and if some of the most powerful people in the world have decided to stand in our way, then we need to know everything we can, right?"
Yugo crossed his arms and frowned angrily at his brother. "So you'd be fine with torturing a prisoner? That's what you're telling me?"
Adamaï shook his head firmly. "No, of course I'm not fine with it, but... we really need those answers, one way or another. No one forced him to go attack us, and no one's forcing him to keep his mouth shut now. He made his bed, and now he has to lie in it, and the fact that his bed is a rack is his problem. Try to be rational for once. The return of our people is way more important than he is."
"He saved my life," Yugo stated flatly.
The Dragon gave a nervous snicker. "No, I saved your life, remember? Just because he got cold feet halfway through doesn't mean you would have survived in the end."
"We're heroes," the boy insisted. "Heroes don't do that kind of thing."
"Yugo, listen," Joris cut in suddenly. "You need to stop seeing the world in only black and white. You have honourable goals, but sometimes you must be ready to make hard decisions in order to reach them."
Yugo clenched his fists. "Hard?" he demanded. "Hard?! How is beating up someone who can't fight back hard? It's easy! It's easy and it's wrong!"
His angry voice rang around the prison, and he felt a familiar kind of righteous anger swell in his chest. The same kind of burning rage had fuelled him when he fought Nox, or Qilby, but it was disturbing to feel the same against people who were supposed to be his friends.
"Sacrificing everything and everyone to reach his goals, that's what Qilby would have done," Yugo said. "But we're better than him, aren't we?"
Joris squinted his eyes. "Then what is your proposition? Would you want to just leave the prisoner be?"
"Yes!" Yugo answered sternly. He crossed Adamaï's gaze, and suddenly realized the comparison with Qilby may have hurt his brother. Yet Adamaï, oddly, kept silent as he looked sideways, hiding his feelings.
"I do not believe that is a wise decision," Joris said thoughtfully, his gaze resting on the chained Sacrier. "Although, since this is a prisoner of the Sadida Kingdom, neither of us have the final say on the matter." He turned towards the door. "Prince Armand?"
Yugo couldn't believe his ears. "Are you really going to just ignore what I―"
"Of course Joris, do what you must," Armand interrupted smugly, leaning on the door frame. "And if some of our guests feel like they can't handle a little torture, they can always wait outside."
Yugo crossed the Prince's gaze and frowned angrily. Under his hat, he was boiling. At that moment, storming away from the shady room, from the palace, from the entire Sadida Kingdom felt like a great idea. But he realized he was the last barrier standing between his friends and a deed he couldn't tolerate, and he knew leaving wasn't an option any more.
Yugo could feel the numerous stares following him as he calmly walked the few steps to stand right in front of the prisoner, facing all of them.
"No. You won't touch him."
Armand's little smug grin widened into a broad smile. Next to him, Amalia was motioning Yugo to drop the matter. Adamaï looked at him blankly, like he was staring at a ghost. Ruel pointed a finger to his temple, gesturing his own doubts about Yugo's sanity.
"Or what?" Armand asked light-heartedly.
"Or nothing. You won't touch him."
The Sadida Prince laughed heartily, while Evangelyne mouthed the words what are you doing to Yugo.
"So that's really how it works with your kin." Armand said. "You throw your conditions to our face, or in this situation your puny little tantrum, and you threaten us with a fight if we don't give in. What a stunning sense of diplomacy."
"Prince Armand, please," Joris cut in sternly. "Everyone has had a rough day, and maybe we shall let the matter rest for tonight... before some of us say unfortunate words they might regret tomorrow."
Joris said the last few words while looking intently at Yugo, but the young Eliatrope wasn't discouraged the least.
"You can wait until tomorrow," he said flatly. "As long as you want. It won't change anything. I won't let you do that."
To Yugo's surprise, Adamaï suddenly jumped to stand at his side.
"What are you doing, bro?" Yugo asked in a low voice.
"You're a crazy fool," Adamaï whispered back. "But you'd be way more crazy to believe I'd let you deal with them on your own."
"Fine, as you wish," Armand said with a dismissive wave of his hand towards the twins. "If it's useless to wait it out, then we will settle the matter here and now. Gua―"
"I'll talk."
Yugo blinked in confusion and turned around, realizing the Sacrier had spoken for the first time.
"What?" Joris asked.
"I'll talk," Farkas repeated calmly. "You're laughable Joris, far below your reputation. And that Sadida monkey with all his shiny toys, I couldn't wait for him to tickle me."
Joris squinted his eyes snidely. "Then why spoil yourself all the fun?" he asked.
The Sacrier pointed his chin at Yugo.
"When they briefed me on this mission to kill you, they told me a lot about you. They told me how you were a threat to the World of Twelve as we know it, and a danger to innocent people everywhere."
Farkas laughed scornfully. "No offence, kid, but as the only decent guy here, you're not what I expected. Either they were wrong, or they lied to me on purpose, and I'd really like to know what's going on in this story."
"They?" Adamaï asked.
"The Guild," Farkas answered casually.
The twins exchanged a blank look and shrugged, as did all the others. A nameless Guild didn't ring any bells for them. However, Joris looked at the Sacrier in surprise and bewilderment.
"What, you know about them Joris?" Yugo asked curiously.
"Yes," Joris admitted. "I know them very well. In fact... I often work with them."
The Sacrier laughed. "Looks like you'll have a lot of explaining to do, Joris."
The main reason why I cut the chapter here is not for the cliffhanger, but rather because I just wanted to finally stop rewriting it after three different versions. That was surprisingly difficult, but thanks to Slavok helping me with his insightful editing, the end result feels satisfactory. Well, as per usual, you're the only judge.