Savage - Prinxiety [Sequel To "Monster"] [COMPLETED]

Chapter Twenty-Three

An unsettling chill set upon the two of them as they stared at the door Luis had disappeared behind. Thorn inhaled shakily, looking down at her feet as she stayed silent. Roman felt a wave of guilt and regret upon seeing her trembling shoulders. He cautiously put a hand on one of them in an attempt to comfort her. 

"Thorn-"

"What's next?" she snapped, pulling away from him and looking toward the ceiling. "Did you hear me bastard? What's next?"

The prince fought back a wince from the harshness of her tone, trying to remind himself that she and Luis had chosen to come with him on this quest. It wasn't his fault if something happened to them, it was the evil villain behind all this. 

What am I thinking? We're going to get out of this, he thought, shaking his head out. I'm going to get Virgil back, we're going to win, and we're going to go home, all of us.

"Now you two wait," the voice boomed suddenly. Shivers ran down Roman's spine as he looked upward towards the source. "If the young prince gets through the maze, your door will unlock, and the two of you can proceed to the next trial. If he dies, you'll be forced to send another member of your little party into the maze."

The prince narrowed his eyes and looked toward the door they were supposed to go through. "So be it," he muttered, sitting down.

As the minutes began to tick by, his anxieties and guilt crept back up on him. He watched as the princess paced a little and fidgeted with her ring finger; the engagement ring from her fiance was in between her forefinger and her thumb, spinning. Roman could feel his stomach swirling uncomfortably. 

How could he have been so selfish? Just because he was miserable without Virgil doesn't mean everyone was; everyone else had found happiness again and moved on, but he hadn't. He had practically forced them to put their new happiness at risk to try and recover his. It wasn't that big a deal until now, when Luis could be suffering because of his actions and Thorn would be suffering from not knowing if her lover would be coming back to her. 

"Thorn?" he said softly, getting her attention. "I just wanted to say... I'm sorry..."

She stared at him in confusion. He sighed heavily and pulled his knees up to his chest. "What are you talking about? Sorry for what?"

"For all of this, Thorn, this is all my fault," the prince said in despair. "I forced you and Luis into this instead of just keeping the cursed Virgil in the cells and waiting to come up with an actual plan. I should've just done this alone! This is my happiness we're trying to fight for! You two were happy again and now Luis is in danger because of me."

"Okay hold on there, this is not your fault," she corrected. "And don't be so self-centered, this isn't just about you. We're here, not just to save your boyfriend, but Luis' brother, and King Patton's son. Just because they've moved on doesn't mean they don't miss him."

Roman sighed. "I know that, but ever since he... I've just felt so alone..." he admitted, realizing he'd never talked about this with anyone. "Luis had you, Patton had Logan, but me? I was alone for the first time in my entire life. I trusted Virgil with everything and I thought he trusted me too; I guess he didn't trust me as much as I thought considering he didn't tell me about his magic. I'm still a little confused about that... the fact that he never told me... but it does't matter now, I've just felt so hollow and empty without him, and then when the opportunity arose to get him back, I jumped on it without considering the consequences."

"And no one is mad at you for that," Thorn said. "Well, your father is probably not pleased, but Luis and I understood what we were signing up for and understood the urgency of the situation. It's going to be okay, Roman. We'll get through this. I can feel it."

He nodded and hugged her gratefully, feeling calmed and reassured by her words. "Thank you Thorn, I needed to hear that from you."

Just as he finished speaking, the sound of a lock clicking came from the door they were supposed to go through. They both froze and then pulled away from their embrace. They looked toward the door, feeling their hearts begin to accelerate as they looked back at each other. Roman's gaze was wide and unsure, while Thorn's was narrowed and determined. They both stood up and headed towards the door.

The princess reached it first, wrapping her hand around the handle. With a deep breath, she gave a firm tug. It creaked open painfully slowly. 

They exchanged another look before nodding and heading through the doorway, into the dark corridor it led to. Roman held out his hand as the door closed behind them and drenched them in darkness. A small orb of flame appeared, but it was barely enough to illuminate the corridor immediately in front of them. 

It wasn't a surprise; he was exhausted, dehydrated, and injured, of course his magic wasn't up-to-par with how it usually was. They pushed forward anyway with determination. The prince could feel that he was getting closer and closer to getting Virgil back. 

That's when they reached two doors once again. "Welcome to the second trial," the voice said, appearing once again out of nowhere. "One of you is to enter the door on the left and face the challenge that awaits. Only when you succeed will the other be able to continue through the other door. Chose wisely, for wisdom is the key to this challenge."

"Wisdom?" Roman muttered in confusion. "A knowledge test?"

"I'll do it, I know more than you by a long shot," Thorn said without hesitation. He opened his mouth to protest. "Oh no you don't, none of your heroic bullshit. I'm the smartest of the two of us, and I have a feeling the next 'trial' is a fight, which you're better at. So I've got this one, just wait here."

The prince couldn't do anything to stop her as she headed for the left door. She was right after all. "Thorn, good luck," he said, nodding to her. She nodded and headed through the door.