"Run!"
River dashed . Tripped . And fell .
Yes ,shackles . He forgot.
Something in his gut screamed at him that if he wasted time he to get up now, it would cost him his life. He rolled to his side ,just in time , before a giant paw of vice claws crashed down on to the marble ,right where his head had been .
The forepaw was huge. Larger than reason allowed him to comprehend . There were five claws on it, each bigger than a grown man ,sharper than swords.
A roar boomed above his head.
River made the mistake of looking at it in the eyes.
It was colossal. It was black . And it was angry .
It wanted him dead .
He backed away , unable to tear his gaze away from this monstrosity ,straight out of a nightmare. The base of the alter hit his back and he shivered against its coldness .
Fear froze him, making his waist go soft . Panic held him in a vice like grip .His breaths came out in shallow gasps at the sight of its beastly eyes bearing in to his soul.
River forced his body to move. He had to move . He had to run . Before it could squish him to the ground like a rotten tomato under a cart wheel .
Move ..move ..move..MOVE !
The paw swinged at him .
Its size did not come at the cost of speed, it seemed. The movement was nearly a blur.
The world tilted .
The beast struck down the marble platform, blasting it in to smithereens with a crash . Chunks of it flew everywhere . River breathed in mouthfulls of dust and coughed .
"Fuck !" Wolfram cursed as he helped River to his feet ."That was close "
River 's slugglish brain figured that Wolfram had somehow pulled him out of danger's way the last second .
A roar akin to thunder echoed in the shrine once again . The beast stirred, purring , its three pairs of golden eyes searching for the subject of its ire. Smell of smoke hit River's nostrills.
Wolfram frantically searched around and picked up a heavy block of broken marble from the floor.
"River ! L-legs apart!"
He brought it down on the chain connecting his ankles together . Sparks flew , but the thick chain remained unscathed. River held on to Wolfram's shoulder to balance himself as he stared at the otherworldly creature ,who seemed to be puffing out steam in agitation .
"W-what i-" he stammered , tongue feeling wrong in his mouth.
Wolfram slammed the block once again on the chain , panting . " A Soul Retriever "
He groaned, frustrated. The block abruptly started glowing in a soft golden light. When he clobbered the chain with it again , it seemed to have done more damage than before.
River dug his fingers in to Wolfram's shoulder .
Kaizer was glaring at him , his now gold irises gleaming under the shadows of the giant entity . His lips were curled in a snarl ,the expression sparking visceral fear in River .
Einar had passed out in his arms . River hoped he was only unconscious from exhaustion .
Kaizer cradled his limp ,fragile frame in his embrace, like it was the only thing that anchored him to sanity. The sight was hauntingly beautiful and unsettling . An avenging angel .
The beast charged , almost at the same heartbeat as Wolfram delivered the final blow on his chains with a grunt. . The marble block cracked in to two and his feet was finally free .
Wolfram clutched River from his wrist and dragged him behind one of the pillars , missing the attack by a hair's breadth,again.
River stole a glance and saw that the creature was blocking their way out.
"H-ho-"
"I dont know " Wolfram whispered in between pants "Ill distract it ,you run"
"B-"
"I can hadle it.. "Wolfram said , giving him a confident nod "probably "
Probably ?!
The Soul Retriever sniffed around , growling , trying to pin point its prey.
River finally took in its form with a semblance of a clear mind . The closest thing it looked like was a cat .
A monstrous feline with six eyes , its dark fur matted and twisted, a nightmarish distortion of the adorable mammal. The air crackled as its unnaturally large form silently prowled, sending shivers down River's spine.
"It cant s-s- see well " River noted .
"Sharp as always ,huh?" Wolfram somberly patted his back . "Not so fun fact. It can breath fire "
River's jaw dropped to the marble floor .
That explained the omnious smell of smoke that hung in the air. It was coming from the the beast. River broke out in gooseflesh at the thought of being scorched in to ashes alive .
River forced himself to think. What should they do now ? How should they distract the creature...
Think ..think ...think
River quickly assesed the interior of the shrine , looking for something anything , that they could use in to their advantage . But the panic and fear paired with the suffocating smell of smoke clouded his brain ,hindering his ability to -
River grabbed Wolfram's arm "I have an idea!"
* * * * * * *
Kaizer gently stroked Einar's face, the pallid skin soft under the pad of his thumb .
The white hot pain shot up his spine in blinding waves as he adjusted the unconscious man in his arms. But he did not care. Kaizer nuzzeled his face into the nook of his neck and breathed in . The mellow fragrance of the herbal oil on Einer's skin overwrought the stench of smoke and chaos in the shrine, immediately calming him down.
Einar's breath tickled his ear and he tightened his arms around him . He was alive . He was here . Gods have not taken him away.
Kaizer's eyes stinged and tears welled up in them before getting soaked in to Einar's hair.
"Im so..sorry" he whispered softly careressing his prominent cheekbones . "It was..all ..my fault"
The Retriever growled behind him . Verlice was hiding . It didnt matter . You cant run away from The Retriever .
"I.." Kaizer sobbed , each violent jerk raking through him making him see stars behind the eyes from pain. His little pester of a brother had dislocated his hip. Sitting hurt, having dead weight on his lap made it unbearable.
But it didnt matter. He get to hold him like this. Like he had always wanted to.
"I..just cant watch you suffer ..anymore" he breathed in the smell of smoke .
"If I kill him..I can ..finally save you " He smiled through tears and pressed their foreheads together " You can watch Emby grow..you can teach him the sword "
The foul stench of smoke made him cough a little. "It was all my fault..you did not deserve ..any of this..I was so.. foolish..stubborn..and .." he hovered his lips over Einar's forehead in a ghost of a kiss "you had to suffer for it"
Kaizer was faintly aware of the intense odour of fire now. The Retriever roared in agitation , the sound louder than thunder . It howled ,having lost all its senses to the cloud of smoke suffocating it.
Kaizer nudged closer to Einar ,loathing to part from him " So..Ill set things right..no matter the cost"
He turned his glance at the shrine , now englufed in a sea of flames . The ceiling high tapestries have all caught on fire.
"I will kill him"
Author has something to say
Author was burnt out. Hope you did not miss me too much .
Author appreciate you all so much . Thank you for readinggg. Drop a comment and a vote.
Thank you !
Mini theatre will return in about another two chapters!

Einar Ashford

Kaizer Schulz