Rodkin suddenly woke up, unable to feel or move anything. It was pitch black and he could hear a strange buzzing noise coming from all directions.
Is this what death feels like?
He tries to open his mouth but he isn't able to tell where his mouth is. He couldn't even constrict his vocal cords to make a noise.
So this was death then. How did he die? He couldn't remember much... he was... in the wildlands?
Yes that was right. He had been going through Kimas. He was trailing behind Blair... no, no that wasn't right. He was next to her in the caves?
It was so hard to remember, everything was so fuzzy. Is this what all of eternity was going to be like? Well at least he had forever to remember what happened.
Think. Think! What happened? They had made it to a large cavern that was illuminated by luminescent moss or something...
Did they split up? Shit. That's right, after the idiot twins got themselves killed.
Rodkin had been in a group with Selyne, wasn't he supposed to be watching the rear of the group? Apparently he had failed, or maybe he was just never there. The prince wasn't the reliable sort...
Well there is nobody but himself to blame if he is dead, he should have known better than to trust Selyne.
That incessant buzzing noise grew louder, as if it had gotten closer. Surely he wouldn't be forced to hear that for all of eternity. Maybe he could tune it out?
He began to focus on his ears, or where he expected his ears to be; it was impossible to tell if he even had a body, he couldn't feel a single thing. There was no pain, heat or cold, tiredness. Nothing.
While focusing on his ears there was a shift, he wasn't sure what changed; but the buzzing noise was now gone.
In its place, was the sound of a voice speaking. It was his father's voice, he seemed to be talking equations out loud to himself.
He tried to call out for him, but still couldn't figure out how to get his voice to work.
Did this mean he was still alive? Or was this a cruel joke played in death? Perhaps he had landed himself in a level of hell.
Instead he shifted focus to where his eyelids would be, willing them to open, blink, do anything!
After a moment, they opened with a noise that sounded like shutters. It was loud.
Apparently his father heard the noise too, because he stopped speaking aloud and was currently silent. Before long however, he could be heard rushing around the room; speaking to himself at a rapid pace.
"Oh. Oh! He must be waking, yes. Yes! Oh how exciting. Come back to me, my boy!" Rodkin heard his father say.
Did that mean he had died? But his father had brought him back? How had he done that?
Dad. Dad! Dad!
"DAAAH!" He yelled in a gravelly, nearly metallic voice.
"Oh yes, welcome home my boy! It is good to see you after these weeks, Rodkin!" His father squealed.
Rodkin managed to turn his head towards his father, seeing him for the first time since waking.
His father was a small, mousy man with white wispy strands of hair; most likely it was where Rodkin got his stature from. He didn't know his mother and his father never spoke of her, but it was easy to make the assumption still.
"Can you sit up?"
He tried to. It was difficult, but eventually he was able to struggle to a seated position. He heard the sound of hydraulics working as he did the maneuver, with a jet of steam releasing once he had locked into his seated position.
Wait, locked in? How did he lock his back into place?
He took the time to look around the room he and his father were in, noting the dozens of prosthetics that dangled all throughout the room.
He looked down, seeing his entire body was made of metal. What the hell happened to him?!
"You are a lucky one, son. If not for your blood, you surely would have perished to the frostbite covering your entire body." His father said jubiously, bouncing up and down in Rodkin's face.
With a look of concern and worry smeared across his visage, there was only one thought that went through his head.
Father, what did you do to me?
****************************************************
Grilimir's head hung limply to the side, he was chained to a concrete wall within a dark room; deep in the inner cities dungeons, locked away in a cold, damp cell. He was being held there by Desmond Milzan and his own father.
There was an odor that lingered in the air. It was slightly metallic, and horribly putrid. It almost smelled like the rotting of flesh, or what he imagined that must have smelled like. The metallic scent was clearly the remnants of blood.
The thick metal chains were short and they were made to keep his arms constantly above his head, but he wasn't completely pinned to the wall. The effect allowed him to be held aloft even unconsciously.
"He said he spoke... with a goblin?"
He heard the gruff voice of a scary sounding man ask to somebody Grilimir couldn't see, but it sounded like one of the men who ran his group during Kimas. Blair's dad?
"Yes sire, he said that it spoke words. He even mentioned that it even knew how to use human technology."
That was his father speaking. There was no mistaking the undeniable disgust and contempt in the voice.
"Mhm... is that so? Well it is true. They can speak"
He daren't stir nor make any sort of movement for fear of attracting their attention.
"Sire? Really, but surely you jest. I mean we have always been taught that..."
"Yes. Yes, I know the teachings very well, mind you. But it is the truth. A truth my father hid from us for many years, but it was a truth he had no chance of hiding on the battlefield. You are too young to have been in the great war, yes?
Grilimir's father hesitated for a moment, as if he felt he was being judged for not taking part.
"Yes, my lord. That is true, I was too young to fight." He finally forced through clenched teeth.
Grilimir was well aware how his father felt for not being able to participate in the war. It made him feel beneath those who had, and there was nobody who held a more prominent position in the war than Desmond Milzan. Beyond that of the Milzani himself of course.
"Oh it's quite alright, I understand that you were young. I simply ask because if you had fought, you would have known the truth. The Faye scream, beg, and pray just as we do when they die. It doesnt change the fact that they are the enemy, and your boy here consorted with the enemy."
Grilimir allowed his head to relax, realizing he had been slightly lifting his head in the strain to hear what was being said. The mention of him was enough to bring him back to his senses though.
"Well, I suppose it's about time I had words with your boy."
Heavy boots began walking towards the cell door.
Clomp. Clomp. Clomp.
The noise they made upon the stone set frightened a crowd of rats that had gathered around something in the corner of the cell. It sent them scurrying off in random directions, squeezing between cracks in the wall's foundation.
"You may leave now." The gruff voice spoke, presumably to his father but he couldn't tell with his head down.
"Yes sire, the boy is dead to me now." Came the sound of his father's voice, followed by the sound of footsteps receding in the distance. Ghastly cries of desperation could be heard from other prisoners, begging to be released.
Father, why?
"Hello, child. I have some questions for you, but I am not one to dirty my hands with a child's blood. No. That will be a job for the reformer, I will be back in a few weeks; when you are prepared to answer my questions."
Grilimir finally looked up to his captor, unable to believe the words he was hearing. He wasn't even gonna question him right now? But he just told his father...
"But... you just said..." Grilimir stuttered out, barely able to understand what he was hearing.
"What are you going to do to me then?"
"I already told you, I won't be doing anything except asking you some questions. The reformer on the other hand..."
His voice trailed off as he stepped aside, out of the doorway; revealing a tall, skinny looking man, with wispy strands of hair and barely any teeth in his crooked smile. There was a scary gleam in his eyes that terrified Grilimir.
He wheeled in a metal tray on wheels, upon the tray were dozens of strange looking metal implements. Each one looked deadly sharp, or otherwise had some sort of jagged and pointed edge.
"No. No!" Grilimir attempted to back up as fast as he could, forgetting he was chained to the wall.
The attempt flung him backwards against the wall hard, smashing his head against the stone; stars began to float around his vision, causing him to miss the man approaching with one of the implements.
He felt an excruciating pain, it was as if his hands were on fire. Then he heard a ghastly scream, wait was it coming from his own mouth? He wasn't sure.
The last thing he saw was that wicked grin, and a pair of cold, emotionless eyes staring back at him.
**********************************************
Henry marveled at how clean the air was here, he hadn't seen a single cloud of smoke or soot since leaving the underdark and arriving in the capital of Kepsels. At least, he thought it was the capital. It was where Lance said the king and queen lived.
"Hey Lance, are there more cities here, or is this the only one in the country?"
"You know for such a smart kid, that was a really dumb question."
Lavender giggled, she currently had Ziggy upon her shoulders; their long floppy ears swaying crazily with the wind, being so high up.
"Hey shut up! I was just curious, so ummh... how long have the Faye been around for?" He inquired while marveling at the different races that were currently moving about.
A number of them were stopping to stare at the group of them as well, many throwing up a hand to wave hello or performing a salute to Lance his crew. He was quite obviously very famous around here.
"Mhm... that is difficult to answer, the Faye were created by the gods; we have been around for eons, it is impossible to know just how long we have been around. Just as I assume the humans were created by them, but... actually I truly don't know how the humans came about. Maybe Eldrin or Delilah know more about that. And to answer your question before, there are numerous Faye cities scattered throughout Kepsels."
Lance decided to take them to his favorite spot, so they passed through the eastern garden on their way to the great hall.
"So have you heard from Blair yet?"
"No... It has been over a month since I have gotten a response from her, I am starting to get worried."
"Well I am sure there is no reason to worry, perhaps the stone was found and she has no way of telling you? She is a resourceful lass though, I am sure she will be just fine."
"Yeah... I suppose you are right."
Suddenly there was a woman dropped down from a large tree and was standing between lavender and himself, poking each of their cheeks.
"Hehe stop it! What was that for?" Lavender giggled, attempting to poke the woman's cheek in return. "I like you!"
The woman was currently beaming at them. She was absolutely stunning, but looking into those strange swirling eyes; he could see within them, a wild and untamable spirit that was deep within her core.
It was almost like he was staring at an older version of Lavender and Blair combined.
"Hello there you two! You must be Lavender and Henry! And you must be Ziggy, hello you cutie! My name is Delilah!" Delilah said with enthusiasm, scooping Ziggy from Lavender's shoulders and carrying them around on her own.
"Are you my new mom?" Lavender asked as innocently as she could, but she threw a devilish smile towards a now balking Lance.
Delilah beamed at the question and raised an inquisitive eyebrow towards Lance.
"That's a great question hun, am I your new mother?!" Henry could tell she was enjoying how uncomfortable this made Lance.
Wait, Lance was uncomfortable?! Henry didn't think that would be possible for the brutish hobgoblin.
A young looking man with a dark complexion rose from one of the two thrones that was seated just feet before them now. He began to glide down the stairs without a word, waiting until he was before them to speak.
"Hello, and welcome back my friend." He did a low bow to the children before embracing Lance in a close bear hug.
They squeezed each other tightly for a moment before releasing simultaneously.
"Welcome to our hall children, I am Eldrin; the current king, this is my sister; she is the queen of our realm."
His eyes were swirling too. It was so strange, before Blair he had never seen such a strange occurrence. He would ask Lance about it when he got a chance later, now wasn't the time for such questions.
"So like... why do your eyes swirl? Because we have a friend who is the same age as us, her eyes do that too!"
The eyes of Delilah and Eldrin went wide, shooting strange glances towards Lance, who was currently dragging his hand down his face in frustration.
"What?! That can't be possible!"
"Yes my friend, it is true. There is a girl of your blood back in Sonnet, she has fiery red hair and mesmerizing green eyes that constantly swirl as your own and Delilah's do. Her name is Blair, Blair Milzan and she is the granddaughter of Thomas Milzan."
He allowed her name to hang in the air, creating a thick tension that made Henry feel like he was walking through syrup. Every step was more difficult than the last.
Blair was a high elf royal?! And how the hells do they know who the Milzani is by name? Henry didn't even know what his name was.
****************************************************
It had been several weeks since Kimas had ended, and Blair was back in the inner cities once again. Everything had been progressing as normal, she was set to start her magical studies at Verkins and was communicating with Henry and Lavender whenever she got the chance. She had even told her uncle about the stone after that heartfelt night they shared talking.
Then one day, she woke up tied to a chair that was positioned directly in the center of a strange chalk circle.
"Hello daughter." Came the voice of her father from a shadowed corner of the room.
He stepped forward into the light, stepping into the circle itself; behind him there was a gruff looking soldier, he kind of looked like Grilimir.
"I have some questions to ask about your Kimas, no lying now remember." He gave her a wicked smile.
Well this was dramatic, dad. Really? You had to go and tie me up to a chair just to ask me some stuff?
"Okay, sure thing. Can you take the ropes off though?"
He raised a backhand to her, with a seething look in his eyes he spoke.
"Shut it, Blair. I am not in the mood for your childish antics."
"What happened after you entered the caves?"
Okay. This will be easy, just lie. Stick to the story we all gave last time and there won't be any problems.
"Well, we went into the caves. You already know that though, you probably followed and watched it happen. Selyne nearly gave away our position with his blasted firearm, so I took it away from him. Once we entered the caves, the twins got themselves killed with a clearly visible trap running along the floor."
Okay. So far so good. This should be really easy. Now she just has to say they ran through a few more tunnels and found an exit.
"We split up into groups after that. I knew it was a bad idea, but I wasn't really worried about our group so I didn't say anything. I had a really good group actually, once we had split up. We heard clear signs of other children dying reverberating throughout the caves. Then we entered this great hall, it looked like it had been there for ages."
Wait. This isn't what was rehearsed. What is going on? It's like my mouth is just speaking of its own accord. Why can't I lie right now?!
"There we met a hobgoblin who said he went by the name Lance." Desmond's nostrils flared when she said his name.
Uh oh. She suddenly remembered the name of the hobgoblin who nearly killed him... it was Lance.
"So everything your boy said was true, Thrain. Down to the last word I would imagine, continue Blair."
Grilimir gave them away? But why would he do that? She had trusted him...
"Two members of my group asked to join Lance, and he accepted their proposal. After that we dined, and were shown out by a goblin who went by the name of Ziggy. Ziggy has learned how to use our technology and Lance is able to imbue his magic into it. Lance apparently rides a giant spider that can phase shift."
Shit. Shit. Shit. This is bad, this is really, really bad! Why can't she stop talking? She is gonna get them all killed!
"Okay thank you Blair, that will be enough for now."
She suddenly stopped speaking, as if under some form of compulsion. It must have been the circle she was sitting in.
"You know, I would apologize for using such crude methods as a truth circle; but you won't remember any of this anyways. Take heart in knowing you didnt get tortured, like Thrain's boy. In fact, I intend for you to have no such memory of the entire event."
He raised an open palm and held it to her face, effectively sealing off any oxygen she had.
"NO!" Was the last thought she had before blacking out.