A serene tranquillity lingered through the cavern as a tiny droplet trickled down the side of one of the overhanging stalactites. On a whim, the droplet swooped down from the ceiling, fragmenting upon kissing my skin. A wee bit rolled down my cheeks, leaving behind a wet trail, and I slowly gathered myself.
My head felt as though it was on the verge of exploding, yet I knew not why.
I reached out, gently caressing my forehead; a sticky sensation immediately struck me with a prolonged daze.
I was... bleeding?
I wondered how.
Last I recalled, Captain Wyrmheart had vanished as another man appeared.
I rolled my head, scanning the cavern room; debris was scattered across the entire floor. Large rock chunks had fallen from the ceiling, creating miniature craters sprinkled throughout the place.
Then I remembered Adelaide and Vhersio.
With a sudden haste, I glanced around but could not find any trace.
I threw myself back on my feet; a mistake, really. The world beneath my feet felt as though it were shaking violently. I couldn't find balance, nearly falling back down when someone grabbed onto my arm.
My confusion-ridden eyes faced an old man's golden irises. It was the same person who had arrived when Captain Wyrmheart disappeared just before I seemingly blacked out all so suddenly. The prospect left me both spellbound and questioning my sanity. Given the recent events, I wondered if his arrival had anything to do with my loss of consciousness.
I stumbled in place momentarily, remaining silent briefly.
"Careful now, my child," muttered the man, aiding me in stabilising. "These rugged edges leave behind nasty scars."
I dismissed his words, immediately inquiring if he knew anything regarding Adelaide and Vhersio's whereabouts. "Have you seen them? Where are they?" I hastily asked, stuttering and tumbling over my own words.
My question received a peculiar look.
Perhaps I wasn't specific enough - or I sounded like a dazed lunatic, which I wouldn't write off at this point.
"Adelaide and Vhersio," I specified, although the desperate plea within my voice remained unanswered.
The man's eyes were fixated on the ruined cavern walls. He walked on - leaving me to myself whilst approaching the back of the grotto. The man then proceeded to place his hand around the same area as Captain Wyrmheart had.
Upon touch, he flinched momentarily, his hand recoiling back as though injured.
I recovered my footing, clumsily making my way towards the man as a few crude curses escaped his lips.
"Who are you?"
The man stood silently in place, "Fret not about my identity. 'tis but a trivial matter." He halted his speech as though something had come to mind. He mouthed out a word, yet no word came to be. Instead, he continued his elaboration on the situation, "As for your friends, one of my associates has escorted the boy back to his family. On the other hand, Lady Adelaide and Lord Vhersio will be returned to Silvermoon Wharf in due time, though expect no sooner than nightfall."
Nightfall?
Had the sun already come out?
Various questions rose to mind as I wondered how long I had been knocked out. Moreover, I did not understand why Vhersio and Adelaide could not be back sooner. It was a bizarre thought, really. After last night's brutal onslaught, the Wharf's people needed some sense of relief amidst the horrific tribulations.
"Permit me to return you to the Wharf, young Lady Pryce," so spoke the man. His gentle tone masked the fact that his request came off more as a command than anything else. He had walked over, motioning me to the exit and leaving me with little answers.
Predominantly uncertain about the whole ordeal, I figured the best way to get answers would be to go along with the man; his presence, compared to that of Captain Wyrmheart, was incredibly soothing, even instilling a sense of safety. For I knew this man held no ill will; if he had, I would not yet cling to life after our brief encounter on the rolling hills.
The lanterns along the way had died out before my eyes laid a vast darkness.
Knowing we would yet cross the cursed halls, I was hesitant to approach.
The man noticed the apparent restraint in my movement, and I figured it was a brilliantly opportune moment to acquire snippets of information. "I'll accept your request, but I will not walk through these wretched corridors with a stranger. So please, what is your name?"
He stepped into the darkness, his arm slightly outstretched forward, his open palm facing the ceiling whilst a slight, warm glow emerged out of thin air. A moment later, a smouldering flame hovered above his flesh, basking the whetstone tunnel in an orange light.
I was taken aback at the sight; of course, this man, too, was able to harness some incredible power.
The very sight distorted into a confirmation of a repeated revelation; I had been living a sheltered life away from people with extraordinary abilities.
I quickly looked at my palm; a bloodstain ran across a few fingers, and I wondered if I had been graced with something like Adelaide, Captain Wyrmheart, and the mysterious stranger ahead.
The man then looked over his shoulder; the flickering light of the tiny flame bounced off his golden irises. He chuckled, mumbling, "I know not for what reason you'd find comfort in the knowledge of what men call me. However, if it eases your mind, you may call me Theos."
At last, a name to the face. As a matter of fact, it was an oddly familiar name to a weirdly familiar face. Although I had never encountered the man before the previous day, everything about him felt as though I had known him for an extended period of time. It was a mystery, a great one at that - one that was not pressing but still held a tight claim to relevancy as I was confident it would become a reoccurring mantra.
Theos momentarily glimpsed back at the collapsed wall, grimacing briskly before he somberly shook his head, "Let us leave these forgotten halls, my child. This place is drenched in nought but despair."
I accepted the proposal, and before long, we ventured through the womb of the mountain. Unlike with Adelaide on my side, these tunnels seemed ordinary in Theos' presence. Something about his aura radiated great tranquillity, a light that illuminated the haunting remains of Crumbled Watch and basked it in the sense of peace.
For a fleeting instance, as we embarked towards the exit, I had seemingly forgotten about the untold horrors that supposedly roamed within.
Through an uneventful stroll, Theos swiftly escorted me to the ruined hold's grand gates; I was impressed at the mere sight of both doors standing wide agape. They were absolutely massive, weighing well over seven carriages each.
I caught a glimpse of something odd; all the gears, chains and other mechanical attributes had either molten in place, given way, or simply torn loose entirely. My mind went off to the moment Adelaide, and I entered Crumbled Watch; I had not seen her damage the gears, but then again, I was spooked - the recent memories were a bit of a haze, in retrospect.
Then, as swiftly as the memory came, it disappeared equally seamlessly.
Whoever had opened the gates - which I could logically only presume was Theos; would have had to part both massive doors, an abnormal feat of brutishly impossible strength.
As the revelation swirled across my mind, a sudden anxiety rushed over me.
Captain Wyrmheart's power was immaculately terrifying, but he vanished when Theos emerged - I was curious if they had interacted in the past. Wyrmheart's departure, alongside that of the Bloodmoon Pirates as a whole, seemed odd to me.
The thoughts continued, losing myself deeper and deeper into the wondrous realm of possibilities.
Perhaps the Captain fled? If so, I could only tremble in Theos' presence, ridden with a steep dread and anxiety while I came to realise the vast, monstrous might he may yet possess, the sheer power he plausibly commanded with a mere flick of the wrist.
Goosebumps ran all over my body in tandem with bone-chilling cold.
Though Theos' appearance had most definitely saved our lives, I knew nought but his name - and now, Adelaide and Vhersio were missing.
The worries remained as I stepped outside into the blinding light of day.
The warm light bathed my skin in a glistening glow, only for me to notice how much dirt and debris was glued to my skin. I hadn't realised it initially, but perhaps spending an entire night within the Sacred Mountains' underbelly was bound to leave some leftover traces.
I rubbed my hand across my left arm, wiping clean a whole stretch of skin; it was everywhere.
Almost instinctively, I ran a hand through my tangled hair, across my shoulders and around my hips in a haphazard attempt to restore a faint trace of cleanliness. Albeit safe to say, the contrary was likely the result.
Theos emerged from the Watch, chuckling at the sight of my frantic and frustrated rebellion. He called out to me, "Let us set out for the Wharf at once. I am of utmost certainty that your parents are stricken with grievous worries about your disappearance."
Until now, I hadn't remotely paid any mind to the fact I was missing for hours, even well after the Bloodmoon Bandits departed from the island. By the Phoenix Lord's graces, I realised the steep, unforgiven depth of mental anguish my parents were likely in at this very moment. Father was prone to blame himself for slipups of any calibre; I could not imagine the burden placed upon his heart if he was under the assumption I had not survived the bloodshed.
I knew I had to make things right.
To shatter the daunting sensation of guilt that had likely nestled inside.
However, like any situation, there was another side to the ducat - Adelaide and Vhersio.
As much as I wanted to ease my parents' worries, I could not turn a blind eye to their sudden departure.
Theos appeared to realise my thoughts were elsewhere, halting his track once it dawned on him that I was not following suit. "What is the matter, young one?"
"Where did you take my friends?"
"Pardon me, my child. I cannot feasibly answer your query. You see, my associate and I have some unresolved affairs with your friend, Adelaide. It seems that, in a moment of sheer impulsiveness, she had decided to cast away the sacred vow she took. On the contrary, Captain Vhersio has voluntarily chosen to remain at her side up until the moment we cast judgment."
The notion was conflicting in nature. Although I had yet to keenly familiarise myself with Mother's world of politics, I did possess a vague knowledge of who the members of our Council were. Safe to say, this man was not part of the team I had grown accustomed to.
I briefly wondered why Theos was under the assumption that he would be legally allowed to prosecute Adelaide, let alone what supposed vow or law she had broken to justifiably warrant such an action.
Despite the immense power the man may hold, I spoke out, "You hold no place of authority on Crescent Isle's council." A short, cynical laugh escaped my throat while I still attempted to understand Theos' motive. "You cannot possibly wish to invoke a twisted punishment on Adelaide."
The man shook his head in one sombre swoop, stating directly, "Your intervention matters not." Theos went silent for a moment, his tone shifting a wee bit as it turned emotional. "Though of unprecedented beauty, I fear my hand has been forced. It tragically appears that I must clip the young dove's wings for her best interest."
I refused to budge a step.
Theos began pacing towards the thick treeline ahead. "I will not permit your disapproval to anchor me in place. We will meet again, should fate decide to bestow the blessing."
He did not look back. As soon as he had finished, Theos departed elsewhere, leaving me in a startled state of worry.
Various thoughts came to me, trying to figure out what had occurred that could negatively affect Adelaide - and then it dawned on me. In an instant, a vivid memory of Adelaide's pain-ridden visage appeared before my eyes during the nocturnal calamity. Right! Soon after she saved me, and when I came across her within Cruor Waycastle. I recalled how she had hastily gathered her belongings, readying herself to leave the island - the convincing I had to do to tweak her plans and save Vhersio.
Whatever she was frightened of had likely caught up to her now.
I knew of no details - or at least, a very few, from which I deducted her fright, Theos' arrival and some other factor were likely all part of a bigger picture. An extraordinary tapestry of neatly interwoven connections, a series of links that I could not yet see, alas.
All the realisations had truly encompassed my state of mind, I had quickly lost track of Theos' direction.
"Shit, where did he go?" I cursed myself, writing myself off as no more than a fool for letting him walk out without collecting enough valuable information to pinpoint Adelaide's whereabouts.
I gave myself a mental slap on the wrist, swiftly glancing over potential options to thwart her trial.
Seconds turned to minutes, marked only by the lack of evident results.
The time spent was nought but fruitless.
It seemed hopeless.
Dreading Adelaide's grim future, I journeyed homeward - sulking for a fair while before a sudden concept came to me. If Theos and his associates were able to invoke a sense of law, surely, Mother must be aware of their identities. Mayhaps, even be able to direct me to their base of operations.
The premise reinvigorated me with a new hope.
I would find Adelaide and Vhersio, even if I had to scour all of Crescent Isle's nooks and crannies.
And so, I set out to the Manor of Lords, both with a deep sense of duty and great relief to see my parents once again.
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