“Hey, May. What the hell was that explosion? It came from the first castle! I hope Wren is well.”
“It was a little terrifying. I hope it means he won and he’s coming down here to meet us.”
The girls spoke as they inspected the castle they had just entered. The place, like the one before, was full of doors. But unlike the other, it was empty.
“Well, I guess that means we have to cross it here to the other side. It’s nice not having to deal with enemies for once.”
“I wouldn’t count on that. Didn’t we feel that presence outside?”
“Yeah, maybe you’re right… But let’s see.”
The girls crossed the hall and reached for the door, but it was locked. Karina kicked the door with all her force, and yet, the thing stood still.
“Do you happen to know any magic to open doors, May?”
“Not this one, K. Can’t you feel the magic on it? We need to find the key.”
The girls looked around the castle. On the first floor, all rooms were the same, empty and dark. No one to be seen. They looked at the second floor, and the sight was the same. Although some rooms had beds and sofas, stuff like that.
“I don’t like the energy of this place.”
“Me neither. Are you feeling the same as me… That we’re being observed.”
“Now that you say it…”
Karina took the single knife she carried in her boot and threw it in the direction they had come. It crossed the air and hit the wall behind. Out of thin air, someone laughed. It sounded like a child’s laugh, but the voice had something perverse about it. May took a stance to battle, while Karina screamed:
“Reveal yourself, demon!”
The image distorted itself mid-air, from the back of the hall, a mirror contorted and transformed, and it revealed a person behind. A young man, so thin that he had been starving for a few days. He had long nails like claws, a blonde shaggy hair, and a face full of scars. He smiled while he moved his hand through his own hair.
“I couldn’t contain myself, it was too funny not to laugh. You two are looking at every room in this castle. Were you looking for a… key?” And the man laughed and laughed. “I’m Bertram, the protector of the castle of Zagan, the manipulator.”
Karina didn’t let the disciple finish, she ran against him, and turned on her heels to kick him with her full force. But the attack didn’t land, as he manipulated the same mirror again and blocked the attack with it.
“Guess we’re in a hurry, aren’t we?”
Karina jumped back and returned to May’s side. She had seen what happened to Wren, so she wouldn’t take risks.
“Just tell us where the exit is, demon!”
“You know what, I might do it. Go ahead, it’s open now. Downstairs.”
“You’re lying,” May stated.
“No, I’m not. I’m being honest, and you can believe me. I’m too lazy to deal with the two of you.” Bertram yawned before he added with one eye closed. “But of course, if I were you, I wouldn’t be thinking of ways to get the two of you out at the same time. You know, the thing about the door here is equivalence. As long as I’m awake, no one can get out unless one person is willing to stay.”
Karina stepped ahead, about to get into the fight. But May placed a hand on her friend’s arm.
“You should be the one, K., to go ahead. I will stay behind and fight him.”
“I can’t leave you behind, May, please, don’t ask me that.”
“I know you trust me. And I promise you I’ll be right after you, as soon as I get out of here.” May looked at Bertram. “I’ll be the one staying.”
“Fine, I don’t mind who’s staying. In the end, both of you will have the same fate. I just hope she doesn’t get too angry with me for letting one of you reach her castle…”
---
As Karina ran, she went down the steps into the hole, and tears fell down her face. The sound of her steps was the only thing that kept her company.
The obsidian lights shone in the dark, but they barely illuminated the path step by step. The third castle seemed to be further down the hole. A chilling air came from down the place; it carried ancient and mysterious magic with it. Karina couldn’t distinguish the enemies, but she felt that they were strong. That scared her the most, to fight the unknown.
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“I know this was the best decision… I just didn’t want to be the one moving on alone.” Karina said to herself. “Wren, May, you two better be coming here too.”
---
May inspected her opponent; what could she tell about him beforehand? Going into a fight, it was important to analyze everything and anything about the adversary.
“Are you trying to read me? Funny of you, still didn’t learn a thing about us disciples.”
May wasn’t like Wren and Karina, to go headfirst into action. But would that help her win the fight? There was only one way to know. The girl jumped and ran in the direction of the disciple. But instead of attacking, she changed direction at the last minute. She jumped up the stairs, and the whole time, Bertram simply watched the scene. A grin on his face as he went down again.
“I find it amusing how scared of me you are. You’re not the fighting type, right?”
Bertram moved swiftly, and he got close to May. The thing that was once a mirror in his hand turned into a knife. The girl barely had time to dodge the attack; the blade cut the air next to her.
“Oh, you’re not a woman of many words, but you’re fast. Tell me, do you think you can dodge me forever? Do you believe for real that you have more stamina and magical power than I? If so, you’re more delusional than I thought.”
Bertram moved once again, but this time, when May was about to dodge, he retracted the movement and kicked the girl. She flew across the main hall, barely able to stop and stand on her feet. That was a bad analysis, to think that the disciple wouldn’t be a good physical fighter. She shouldn’t judge them by their appearance.
“Will that make you stop underestimating us?”
“I’m not underestimating any of you.” May ran against the disciple. “It’s simply that I’d rather take my time.”
She punched Bertram, who defended easily with his bare hands. She swirled in her heels, turned around, and kicked him. The attack was once again easily deflected by the man.
May manipulated the light in the place to make it flicker and cast illusions. She mixed herself with the illusions. She took advantage of one moment of distraction and tried again to kick the disciple. This time, even though he was able to defend from the attack, it wasn’t as perfect as before.
“Do you think you can defeat me with tricks like that? I can already say that you don’t have brute force. And yet, you’re trying to fight me directly. You’re used to being in support, never fighting, always letting your friend take the initiative.”
“This is none of your concern. If I’m used to fighting or not, this won’t matter. In the end, I’ll be the one standing here.”
“You sound confident, even though I still haven’t even used my powers. But I guess it’s time to show you what horror looks like.”
Bertram moved his hand, and he morphed the mirror into something else. It resembled a liquid that oozed in his hand. He touched one of the pillars and disappeared into it.
Silence engulfed the whole place, and May found herself alone. She looked every way, where had the disciple gone? As a precaution, the girl got far from the pillars. And as she was about to run in the direction of the door, a hand came from the ground and grabbed her ankles.
“Thinking about going somewhere else?” A voice along with the hand. It started pulling May downwards and trapping her in the ground. “Well, I guess you’re going to stay here for a while,” Bertram said and laughed. His body appeared again, and he morphed out of one pillar.
He got close to the hunter and looked at her from above.
“But how can I play with you? Should I give you a quick death? I don’t think you deserve it, but maybe if you beg…”
“Shut up, you monster.” May placed both of her hands on the floor, she exploded the ground to free her feet. She jumped back and observed the damage to her legs. “I guess there’s no point in fighting if I don’t do my best.”
May extended her hands and moved them in a way that was almost like a dance. Orange monarch butterflies surged in her hands; they flew in multiple directions. It soon formed what was like a cloud of butterflies in the place.
“I told you that tricks like this won’t work against me, May,” Bertram said, and with a movement of his arms, more than half of what the girl had done disappeared. “You should know better than that… Hey, so now you’re thinking that hiding will give you time.”
The hunter, nowhere to be seen, as Bertram looked in both directions. Out of thin air, a hand materialized, the fingers intertwined in the disciple’s neck. A single butterfly next to Bertram’s shoulder.
“Bold of you to assume you’re the only one that can create illusions and disappear.” May spoke as she appeared behind the man and squeezed his neck. As he choked, she completed: “Too busy for words? I thought your disciples would be stronger than that. You know one thing about my powers and why I don’t use them very often? They don’t suit well irrational creatures like monsters. But other human beings… That’s another story.”
May tightened her grip; she tried to smash the man’s neck. But as soon as she did that, Bertram’s body dissolved into a black liquid that was absorbed by the floor.
The girl looked confused. Where had the disciple gone? Careful about the ground, May closed her eyes and focused her magical energy on her other senses. The hearing, smell, and touch. She noticed that it was a fight she wouldn’t be able to trust her own eyes.
The girl ran ahead and focused her power on her punch. She felt that she had hit something and heard a murmur. In a split second, she dodged and got down. She felt the cutting air pressure above her head. She spun on her own heels and tried to kick the enemy off the ground. May heard the movement of a jump. She aimed her hands above her head and said:
“Burn through it all, chaos fire.” And although she didn’t see it, she was sure of the flames that emanated from the palm of her hand; it burned everything above. But the heat sensation didn’t last long, as she felt it all dissipating and a gust of air that swept it all away.
May jumped back and dared to open her eyes. Across the room, Bertram observed her carefully.
“I guess you’re really the smart one of the duo, huh. But knowing one thing or two about survival won’t take you far, you know.”
“I don’t need to be taken far. I need to defeat you here. Even if it costs my life. I trust Karina to finish the mission. But I guess a demon like you wouldn’t understand that kind of feeling.”
Bertram raised his shoulders. His face was painted with a malicious expression as he walked in the direction of May.
“You wanna know something? I’m tired of that, guess the fun of playing is over. Let’s finish it. Let’s make you regret every word that left your mouth today.”
