The next day, Leo and I received a scroll in our room. We had left to eat lunch, and when we came back, the scroll had been sitting on the bed. It had a seal, and the seal showed it was from the Upperworld. Though scrolls are very old ways to sending messages - the most recent messages were all sent by appearing on a wall or something. Creepier, especially if they decide to use red ink on a black wall (something common in our palace). I broke the seal and unrolled the paper. How old-school was Bronze? He had used ink to write, too. Not pen ink, but actually liquid ink and a quill. You could tell he used a quill by the ends of words that were faded, and the blotches that were drops. A fountain pen would create blotches that were more widely spread, and ballpoint pens wouldn't create blotches at all. I made sure Leo was listening before I read the letter.
To Ravi,
I do hope you're enjoying your time with your boyfriend. I'm delighted to tell you that the time will end. Bring your lover to me today, or you and your friends will suffer. Isn't this an easy choice? Either allow the Demi-Wolf to live and allow justice to rise, or have your Underworldly friends get tortured - then eventually killed.
The deadline is at midnight.
You won't like what I have in store for you. Let me give you a hint. Potions.
Bronze
"Truthfully, I'm sick of potions," Leo said after I finished reading the letter. "They're drugs. They make the body do weird things and have weird side effects. I'm not even going to include creepy because that applies to ninety-percent of everything I've seen so far."
"I'm already sick of this Bronze guy," I say. "He forgot that we have the sword. Or he's too brave."
"He's going to take potions. Potions can do nearly anything, right?"
"Well, yeah-"
"So he stands a chance. He could have made a potion to make him, er, part demon or something!"
"That's not possible."
"I'm giving an example. He could be stronger than all of us combined after he takes the potions. He could make his skin turn stone hard, and then the sword would be useless."
"No, the sword breaks through no matter what stands in its way."
"Stop trying to make points, Ravi. I'm saying that you're being too relaxed because you have a legendary sword." Leo's eyes shifted in mood for a second. "Unless... you want to just hand me over?" His voice came much softer.
"What, no! I'm not doing that. Leo, I'm sorry, I know we have to take this threat into mind but I'm still a bit shaken from what I did to you."
"What you almost did. The past is behind us, okay?"
"Just don't worry too much. We'll get through," I tell Leo. He nods.
Very short, I know, but I'm going to work on the next chapter immediately. Sorry!