The Quest for Niall

LOUIS

Louis had abided by the original decision of finding the plot of those men.

Life couldn't get much better. Louis being dragged away from Liam, thrown down some large pit with a strong current, landing face-down in front of the enemies, getting tied to a pillar with a thick bundle of rope in some large room, the villain and his comrades jeering and showing false sympathy towards him.

Yes, life was totally epic.

All Louis could do was stand there listening to those men and wait for his friends to rescue him from there.

They were coming, right?

Louis got his answer right away. Right out of the pit, Liam appeared and fell in front of the men. Louis stared at him in wonder. Liam actually read his mind?

"Wha– where did I – LOUIS!" exclaimed Liam. He ran to Louis and gave him and the pillar a bear hug.

Louis sighed. Liam didn't understand the situation, did he? He probably didn't even notice the pillar Louis was tied to. Classic.

"Where have you been hiding, you old chap? And why are you..." started Liam, but stopped when he saw Louis nodded to Liam's right. Liam looked to his side and his face fell. "Oh", muttered Liam.

All the men were staring at Liam, the leader rubbing his palms. "Well, well. Look whose here. Welcome, Liam Payne", said the leader.

"Good move, PE Master", Louis congratulated Liam. Liam, their strongest person, was caught. Zayn, Harry and Niall would definitely make a good team, but having Liam on the rescue team was quite a huge advantage, which was currently lost.

Why was Liam a huge advantage on the rescue team? Well, he was the one who went jogging and made sure his body got 'physical exercise'. He had very quick moves, was a great dodger and distracter (in moves; Niall and Harry were the masters of prank-distraction) and when he had to save anyone, he would ensure that both he and the person would escape safely.

Liam was ordered to be tied to a pillar which was next to Louis. Two men brought him to the pillar, and they started binding him with rope. But every time the men would finish two rounds of the rope, Liam would thrust his arms out and the rope would break. This went on for a long time. Louis watched the process, deeply impressed by Liam's muscle-strength. But every time, Liam's strength decreased. Finally, when the last bit of rope was left, Liam could not break the ropes, and the two men tied him tightly to the pillar. The men stepped back, exhausted, and walked back to their leader. The leader then started his false sympathy show again. "Oh, you poor boys. You came here to save your friend Niall, but you got caught. You just made our work easier. Two boys caught? Double bonus. It's just like the old saying –"

Louis was intently listening, but Liam didn't seem interested. "What does that have to do with us?" he snapped.

The man joined his hands and smiled. "Let me tell you the plan. So, it starts –"

"WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO WITH THIS PLAN OF YOURS?"

The man's smile wavered. "I was getting there –"

"WHY ARE YOU CHASING MY FRIENDS? WHY DO YOU NEED THEM?"

"I need them for –"

"LET US GO NOW! AND STOP CHASING OUR FRIENDS!"

"But I need you all for the –"

"LET US LIVE OUR LIVES! WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT US?"

"That's what I'm trying to –"

"HOW DID YOU FIND US SO SOON, IN THIS WORLD FULL OF PEOPLE? WHY ONLY US? DON'T YOU HAVE BETTER PEOPLE TO CHASE?"

"ENOUGH!" the man bellowed. He snatched a spoon from his pocket and held it under Liam's nose. Liam's eyes focused on the spoon. Louis rolled his eyes. Liam was not going to be of much use now. Louis was sure of it.

"I'm trying to tell you and you're not letting me FINISH!" the man held the spoon closer to Liam's eyes. Liam glued his head to the pillar.

"But, I think I'd rather see you like this. It is entertaining." The man sneered. "Look at you, all paralyzed, frightened, and unable to move – at the sight of a sp-sp-spoon!" the man laughed haughtily. His colleagues joined him.

Louis looked at Liam. Liam was statue-still. He knew he had to get Liam moving. Louis leaned towards Liam and whispered, "C'mon, c'mon Liam, you can do it. Just move. That thing is about one-thirtieth of you, buddy. Make that move. Ignore it." No change. Louis sighed and stared at the ground, in thought. He remembered how he had got Liam to move at the traffic signal. Yes! thought Louis. He leaned towards Liam and said, "Hey, you cowardly, scaredy-cat! You hear those men laughing? They're laughing 'cause you are scared of a spoon! They're insulting you, buddy? Don't you hate insults? How horrible those men are..."

Then did a ray of hope appear. Louis seemed pretty sure that Liam's gaze had shifted up to the men rolling in laughter. Liam started fuming. Soon enough, Louis heard a SNAP! Liam had broken the ropes yet again. Louis smiled, satisfied. Now Liam would handle the rest. Louis could just kick back and enjoy what would happen next.

Liam strode over to the men, who had stopped laughing and were staring in horror at Liam. Liam towered the men and said, "Scared of spoons, eh? Well, let's see if you are scared of THIS!"

SMACK! BOOM! CRACK! THUD! OW!

That was the end of it. Liam stood up and dusted his hands over all the men on the floor. He walked triumphantly to Louis, beamed and said, "Hey, bud. Some ropes got you down?" Liam walked to the back of the pillar and suddenly the ropes slipped off Louis. Louis rubbed his arms and strode away from the pillar. He and Liam hugged each other. They were just about to leave when a blinding flash threw them back. Louis groaned, rubbed his eyes and squinted in the direction of the light. He saw a hooded figure draped in black, holding a stick which Louis felt was a lot like a magical staff. The figure looked a lot like the Ghost of Christmas Future.

Louis and Liam stood up shakily. The figure regarded them with a cold air of hatred. Louis shivered, but he wasn't sure if it was from the cold or from the fear.

The figure spoke in a raspy voice, "Well, well, if it isn't Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson. Two of the five who I have been most anxious to meet. Having you both here, especially Liam Payne, is a huge benefit for me. Zayn Malik, Harry Styles and Niall Horan will come searching for you, and soon I will have all of you in my custody. My evil plan is all coming together." The figure laughed wickedly, and Louis shivered again. Yeah, Louis was pretty sure it was the fear now, not the cold.

"Sorry, uh, guy-in-the-gloomy-hood, but our friends are going to find us and we all are going to escape this completely dull place safely," replied Liam, trying to sound confident.

The hooded figure laughed maliciously. He faced Liam, and said, "Oh, I don't think so, Payne. Your friends will never be able to make it out of here without you, much less want to make it out. Speaking of your friends, let's have a look and see where they are."

The figure held out his hand revealing long, dark, branch-like fingers. Louis shuddered yet again. A crystal ball appeared in his hand. He gave the ball a rub with his slender fingers, and the ball suddenly had mist swirling in it. Soon, the mist parted and Louis saw three figures. Louis' jaw dropped. Harry, Zayn and Niall were wandering around a square room lit with torches. Liam stuttered, "H-Harry....?" and Louis muttered, "Z-Zayn...?" at the same time. Then Louis said, "But who would lead the others to such a place?" Then it dawned on him. Louis looked at Liam, and then looked back at the crystal ball. Louis and Liam shouted at the same time, "NIALL!!!!"

The hooded figure chuckled. "Yes, yes. You are speechless, are you not? Well, perhaps I should pay them a visit." So saying, the figure began to dissolve into thin air. "No!" cried Louis, but the figure had dissolved. Louis turned slowly towards Liam, whose mouth was open in shock. Liam shook his head, "What have we done? Zayn, Harry and Niall are going to be in deep trouble now."

Louis nodded, "We have to find them and get out of here before it's too late."

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