**二十二 (Chapter twenty-two)
eng: Free him from the chains in his heart.
A/n: Honestly, even after writing this whole chapter I had trouble coming up with a good title. It's good enough for what this chapter is, but I'll let you be the judge of that.
Decided to post this early for you guys... I already have the next four chapters ready for y'all. :)
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Skeleton
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"...Wither?" My eyes widen in disbelief. What are the chances? I actually found Wither!
"Let me guess. You're one of the escaped prisoners that wants to hold me hostage? Revenge, perhaps?" He says, a hateful glint in his eyes. I blink, a bit confused by his sudden accusation.
"Wither, are you okay? What are you wearing?..." He stands up, not providing a response. He pulls out his sword, chuckling almost menacingly.
"You shouldn't have put that sword away," He says.
"Wha-!" He charges at me, blade in hand. My eyes widen as I hop out of the way, inches away from being stabbed. "Wither, what's gotten into you... Oh! Is it the disguise?" I pull off the cloak, easily wiping off the black paint on my face. I toss the cloak to the side. "See! It's me, Skeleton! I fooled you, didn't I?"
He narrows his eyes, his grip still tight on his weapon. "A spy?"
"A... A what? Wither, it's me! Skeleton! Your roommate?..." What's gotten into him?
He responds by promptly tackling me to the ground, pinning both my wrists to the ground. My cheeks flush.
"W-Wither?"
"Where are the other prisoners," he hisses, tightening his hold. "Tell me and your punishment won't nearly be as bad as the rest of theirs."
"Punishment? What are you talking about, Wither? What prisoners?..."
"How dare you refer to me as anything but your highness!"
"Umm...? Wither, are you joking? Your highness? I'd rather drink lava!" His eyes darken at my response. "Why, I never... You will pay for your disrespect!" He pulls out a glowing purple item from his inventory, pulling me up and chaining my wrists together with them. Are these... Handcuffs?
"Wither...? What are you doing?" Wither doesn't respond, forcefully dragging me towards the town. I was in a state of utter confusion. Did I mistaken this guy for Wither? No, it can't be! His voice is identical to Wither's!
"Wither, let go of me... This isn't funny anymore..." He continues dragging me. Getting pissed off, I sweep Wither's leg. He trips and falls over. I narrow my eyes, not pleased at all with his odd behavior.
"Wither, what the hell is wrong with you?! If this is part of your cover or something, just quit the act! Slime and Creeper have escaped! Our friends are okay! We can leave this crazy place now!" I exclaim, trying to wiggle my way out of these cuffs.
He stands up with an absolutely infuriated expression. "Who do you think you are?!"
"I- Excuse me?!" I glare at him. Has he lost his mind?!
"I will have you executed in front of the town if you do not submit immediately!"
"Who the hell are you and what have you done to Wither?!" I shout in response. Execution? This isn't Wither at all.
I scan my inventory for anything that can help in this situation. All I had were a few items, and using my sword while my hands were cuffed would be difficult... Even so, I'd best try. My sword appears in my right hand as I struggle to hold it properly.
"I must say, for a stray... You are quite fearless. Most strays are far less bold than you are, I'll give you that. But, no matter. You are still no match for me." He draws his sword, pulling it back with the full intent of stabbing me in the ribs. I was smarter than that, though. Just as he's about to stab me, I drop to my knees and raise my cuffed arms. Just as predicted, his sword cuts right through the cuffs, releasing both of my hands.
He's stunned, and I use this to my advantage. The two of us spar for a bit, mostly him attacking and me dodging his attacks. His eyes flare in annoyance as he's unable to land a single hit on me. Amused with how pissed off I was making him, I stifle a laugh as I dodge once more.
"How the hell are you able to fight so well with that sword?! Your kind is weak and easily defeated!" Enraged, he swings his sword wildly. I struggle to block all of his attacks due to how fast his slashes were. Despite this though, I didn't back down. I'm getting to the bottom of this no matter what he throws at me.
"Wither, stop this! This isn't you! Sure, we fight sometimes, but what is making you do this?! What is making you work for them?! I know for a fact that you're nothing like the rest of those wither skeletons! You've proven it to me many times! Where has that Wither gone, huh?!" I ward off his final attack, having enough of this. With a swift movement, I slash his sword out of his hands, and it goes flying a few feet away. He attempts to recover it, but I step in front of the weapon and point the tip of my blade to his neck.
"Wither, whatever the hell this is, you'd better stop it immediately. You're weak as hell if you're letting some dude control you."
"This is unseemly! Who do you think you are-!" I silence him by pushing the blade harder against his neck. "Don't go speaking to me like I'm some sort of peasant. If you don't snap out of this right now I might actually stab you." I threaten.
He seems to contemplate his next move, but I push the sword harder against his neck as a reminder. "Is this what you meant? Is this the control the king or whatever has on you? Did you lie to me, thinking that you could overcome it on your own? Do you even remember who I am?!"
"...No. You are a weak, good for nothing stray!"
"THAT'S IT!" I pull out the black gem that Wither had given me, slapping him across the face with it. Tears form in my eyes at the sudden rush of anger I had just felt. A comment like that tore through my soul, especially coming from him.
His expression goes blank as he passes out onto the ground, most likely from the force of my hit. Heaving, I drag him as far away from town as I could. I didn't want to draw attention to us at a time like this, especially when Wither wasn't acting normal.
"This should be far enough away...," I mumble to myself. I take a seat onto the hard ground, pulling out a cake and replenishing my hunger bar. Blocking Wither's attacks took quite a lot of my energy.
A few moments later, Wither starts to stir. I pull out my sword, staying on guard. He sits up and his eyes flutter open.
His eyes immediately land on me. His shuffles backwards, seemingly shocked.
"..." I narrow my eyes, cautiously walking towards him.
"My prince!" I hear the roar of a guard from the distance. My eyes widen as I realize we've been spotted.
With haste, I yank Wither up from the ground and run, pulling him along with me. He wasn't resistant at all to my surprise, but I didn't have time to evaluate such trivial things.
"Stop right there!" A guard bellows as they come closer. I continue to run, ignoring their shouts.
"...Skeleton, why are we running?... Wait, how did you find me?"
"Shut up, Wither. Can't you see that this isn't the time for such questions?!" Wither looks as confused as ever, but he runs alongside me silently.
After a few more steps, Wither stops abruptly. He nearly causes me to trip.
"Wither, what the hell are you doing?! They're going to catch us!" I shout. Wither doesn't respond to this, though. His breathing is quick and labored, and he was visibly struggling.
"W-Wither?"
"My prince!" One of the guards exclaim, catching Wither as he faints. My eyes widen as I watch him fall limp into the guard's arms.
"...A stray. You must be one of those escaped prisoners. No matter. You are under arrest." Before I am able to react, another guard pulls out handcuffs and swiftly places them upon my wrists.
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Wither
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Awakened by my own harsh coughing, I sit upright. My vision was blurry.
"Your highness!" One of the healers exclaim, "You're awake! Thank the Lord!" They rush towards me, placing a pill into my hands. "Take this, your highness! It should clear your vision right up!" Too weak to argue, I place the medicine into my mouth before swallowing it. Almost instantly, my vision clears up. My cough seems to subside as well.
"What... What happened...," I mumble. The healers exchange glances. "A prisoner tried to take you as hostage!"
"A... A prisoner?" My eyes widen. That wasn't a dream then? Why can't I remember anything before that?
"Healers, report. Has the Lord returned yet?"
"No, your highness. He is still out due to personal business."
"Where was this prisoner taken?"
"In the interrogation room for questioning, sir."
"Dismissed." I run out of the room in search of Skeleton. I have no idea what events have happened until this point, but I plan to have a clear understanding by the time I locate Skeleton. Moments later, I barge into the interrogation room. There Skeleton was, a defiant look on his face as the guards barked questions at him. I narrow my eyes and make my presence known by clearing my throat. The guards back down instantly, bowing their heads in respect.
"Your highness, here is the criminal that attempted to hold you hostage."
"I am fully aware of that," I hiss in response. "Leave us. You are dismissed."
"Your highness, are you certain-!"
"Are you questioning my orders?" The guards leave at once, shutting the door behind them. I quickly lock the door before exhaling.
"..."
"..."
Skeleton and I stare at each other for a few moments. A bit flustered by this exchange, I pull out my sword and slice up the rope that bonded his wrists together. He stands up and turns around, raising his right hand—
—Before promptly slapping me across the face.
"Ow!" I exclaim, wincing in both pain and shock, "What was that for?!"
"Just making sure you are back to your senses, and not that crazy psychopath you were earlier."
"Crazy psychopath? What?"
"Wither, you have a lot of explaining to do!" He exclaims, glaring at me. "Prince? You're the prince and didn't think it'd be a good idea to tell me?!"
"I-... Look, Skeleton, being the prince of this hell isn't exactly something I'm proud of!"
"That's no excuse! That, and you lying to me!"
"Lying to you about what?!"
"Lying to me about your powers preventing you from getting possessed. Don't even try to deny it!"
"Possessed? Possessed by what? The Lord has absolutely no power to possess me, not anymore!"
"Oh, really? Then why were you on a power trip and threatening to execute me over an hour ago?! Why were you acting crazy?!" He shouts.
"Huh...?"
"You don't remember, do you." He facepalms.
"The last thing I remember before seeing you was... Was, uh..." What was the last thing that happened? "Oh, the Full Moon Ceremony... Wait, wasn't I supposed to perform it? Good grief, I don't even remember..."
"This conversation is getting nowhere. Anyway, do you have any idea how we're going to get out of here? You escaped this place once, didn't you?"
"What about Slime and Creeper...?"
"They're fine. Slime is, anyway."
"Wait, really? You singlehandedly managed to help them escape?"
"Yes. Along with like fifty other prisoners. Can we talk about this later? This place absolutely sucks," He comments, and I chortle.
"Do you have the potion Herobrine gave you?" I ask. He shakes his head. "Gave it to the others so they could escape."
"What? Why didn't you go with them?!"
"Why do you think, you idiot?" He snaps back in response. "I wasn't just going to leave you here, no matter how much of an idiot you are sometimes."
"Aww, so you care about me?" He glares at me in response, and I chuckle.
Suddenly, loud banging could be heard on the door. "Your highness? The Lord has returned and requested to see you."
"...Oh, shit," I exclaim quietly. Skeleton raises his eyebrow in response.
"Skeleton, you're not going to like this, but... In order to avoid suspicion, you've got to pretend to be a prisoner at my mercy."
"Wh-What?! Wither, what in the world are you talking about?!"
"No time to explain." I grab some spare rope that was hanging on a nearby rack, tying them around Skeleton's wrists (though, careful not to tie them too tight) before unlocking and exiting the interrogation room, dragging Skeleton along with me.
The guards walk closely behind us. As I enter the throne room, a feeling of fear washes over me. If Skeleton is right about me being possessed... I'll just have to act like it in front of the Lord. Once the coast is clear, Skeleton and I can make a run for it.
"Ah, young Ash. Have you already apprehended all of the prisoners?" The Lord asks, noticing a tied up Skeleton in my hands.
"...Almost, father. The search party has been out all day. Hopefully, they return with good news."
"Good. And what's this? A stray? How curious," he says mockingly, "Must've been an easy catch." I could almost feel the anger bubbling up inside of Skeleton, but thankfully he remained silent.
"Easy indeed, father." I could hear one of the guards in the background shifting at my response.
"Wonderful. I will see to it myself that he is executed for attempting to escape," The Lord says, "For now, toss him into the dungeon." The guards start to make their way towards us. "No need, father. I have my own methods of torture I'd like to try on a lowly criminal such as this one."
"...As you wish, son. Make sure to have him ready tonight. He will be executed at the center of town."
"Yes, father." I drag Skeleton upstairs to my room before closing and locking the door with a sigh.
"...Your own methods of torture, huh?" Skeleton says, breaking the awkward silence.
"...Honestly, I have no idea how I came up with that. As long as it's something sick and immoral, the Lord is all for it."
"...The Lord, as in your father?" I flinch at his question, not prepared to answer something so personal.
"...No, he's not my father."
"Then...?"
I sigh. "I'll explain later. For now, you're scheduled to be beheaded within the next two hours. We need to focus on getting out of here."
"Why don't we just run? If we sneak out through the back undetected, it'll be easy!"
"Run? That's impossible, Skeleton. We need to steal a horse from the guard in order to have any chance of escaping."
"Well, your highness, you clearly have the authority to just take one," he says, rolling his eyes.
"It's not that simple... Unless the Lord approves it, I can't just take a horse."
"You're forgetting that my approval is just as powerful as your father's, young Ash." The Queen reveals her presence. Skeleton and I jolt in surprise at the sudden appearance of the Queen.
"Mother, were you listening in on us the whole time?!"
"Oh, please. Is it that difficult to greet your mother properly, Ash?" She walks closer to us, her heels clacking on the floor.
I pull Skeleton behind me, standing defensively in front of him. The Queen raises her eyebrow at my sudden action.
"Young Ash, who is this? Your friend?"
I narrow my eyes, ready to draw my sword at any moment.
"Don't look at me like that. If you're worried about me exposing your plan to your father, you'll be happy to know that I'm on your side."
"..." She walks even closer to me, only a few feet away.
"Why so little trust in your mother?"
"You're not my mother," I hiss in response.
She pauses. "Goodness. Why so hostile? I am willing to help you in your attempt to escape once again." I narrow my eyes suspiciously. "Yeah, right."
"I want you gone," she says blatantly. "If my real son can't be the heir of this realm, then no one should. Besides, you have shown me time and time again how little you cherish this realm. You are undeserving of the title Prince."
"..." Should I trust her? She has always been very loyal to the Lord... This is most likely a trap.
...But, even so... What other choice do I have?
"I think you should trust her, Wither." Surprised, I turn around to face Skeleton. He nods reassuringly.
"...Alright then, Mother."
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A/n: This chapter was written on the same day as the previous chapter... I just wanted to tweak it a bit before publishing. How was it?