World of Almega
Outskirts of Domain Ethinzar
Lonely Desert Tower
"This is it..."
He peered through the blowing sands more closely now to get a better look at the abandoned tower, immediately taking note that by how tall it still stood it was at least five stories high. He squinted to see multiple windows spiraling upward in the carved black stone, meaning this old place was primarily constructed to be leading up to what he could only guess was a top for firing off projectile weapons for battle in its years past.
It didn't seem to be in use still.
The people of Ethinzar had long claimed their homeland, with no further need for battle towers.
But as secluded as this place was, out in the wide lonely desert, it only made sense that this was in fact the place he had been looking for.
Because there was still evidence of recent footprints in the sand just at the gaping tower door.
He couldn't help but smirk.
"Oh, this is most definitely the place."
Shaydenn then leaned forward in his saddle to reach out and gently give his mount a pat on the head.
"Pearl, old girl, looks like we've survived yet another crazy off-path journey", he said, never taking his crimson gaze off the building ahead, before removing his feet from the stirrups to slide off the side. He then walked around front, coming to add another pet on her beak. "What do you make of all this, huh?"
The large ivory bird shifted somewhat uneasily, looking at her master with jittery eyes before nudging him lightly in the center of his chest.
He hummed, thought for a moment, and then nodded back.
"Yeah, I like the Light Castle better myself. More homey, less sand..."
"Are you talking to yourself or Pearl?"
Shaydenn then looked over to see Solis coming to a halt on his rather enormous mount.
Solis stopped and got off the creature in a mimicking fashion, and then did just the same as Shaydenn with observing the tower ahead before patting the belly of the monster at his side that looked closely like an overgrown tadpole with a hard shell and a menacing coloration of orange, green, and yellow.
Shaydenn stretched now.
"I always consult Pearl before an investigation - You know this."
Solis half laughed at the minor truth in that sarcasm.
"Animals would know safety best, so why not?", he smiled, now turning to look up at his monster companion. "Right, Egora? You wouldn't let me off so easily if you felt you had reasons to worry!"
The scaly beast opened her toothy maw, letting out a loud agreeable sound that was like a roaring ribbit.
Solis turned back to Shaydenn, motioning his head at the tower.
"This place looks just like what Redd described. It's definitely been left to be buried in the sand as something we will dig up in another century or so for excavation purposes. You think the kid is really in there?"
Shaydenn let his arms fall down from his stretch, one hand coming to land just at his hip as he nodded with that particular intuitive certainty he seemed to have about things.
"He's in there. It's the perfect hiding place."
"No doubt about that", Solis answered, observing the outer display of emptiness with his equally garnet eyes. "No one would bother to look here, not unless instructed otherwise."
Shaydenn grinned.
"And here's where we come into play, Brother. We've got a kid to catch!"
Shaydenn then collected a few things off Pearl from his supplies: metal claws and daggers, a few tiny bottles of selective poisons, cloth rags, rope, and a sack of spices.
Solis did the same to get prepared, turning to Egora to grab a few things: a longbow with a quiver of arrows, a skin of water, a pouch with salted meat, and a fur poncho for the cold desert night ahead.
The two then turned, stared up at the tower, and then readied themselves to go in.
"Pearl, Egora... Wait here", Solis told them. "We're going in."
And from the tower window he drew back with caution.
Someone had seemed to finally find his hideout.
But he wouldn't go without fight...
---
They had entered the tower.
The initial foyer was quite small, simple really, and had just enough room to encase the stone stairwell that lead up to seemingly the next small room with winding stairs. However, and to a pleasant surprise, the next space above was really a large room for a mess hall with another door on the far right side that most likely lead to a hallway before forming, of course, more stairs.
Every floor beyond here was probably constructed similarly, just made for other purposes.
Maybe even living quarters?
Shaydenn and Solis stood just inside the mess hall.
They looked out over a long dining table, which had to have been used not only for eating but also a conference of sorts between the commanding officer, who would take his seat at the far head end, and his fellow soldiers that would line the table. There was a built in stone fireplace on the left wall, for warmth once the desert sun went down. A rug lined the floor, which was now tattered, old, and blood-stained from the battle that had invaded inside these walls at one time.
Whatever this place once was, it was in no condition for living in now.
Which brought them both a sense of concern when they both noticed a single, crumb-ridden plate at the far end of the table that seemed to have been used only a few days ago.
Shaydenn walked along the dining table slowly over towards the plate, with each step he took lifting a good amount of dust and sand up in his pace. He picked a few of the crumbs up, smelled them, and then ground them up into smaller pieces of matter between his fingers.
"Dry bread and nuts... But not much else, and not a lot of it."
Solis looked almost distressed to hear this.
"The kid must be living here... And not well. There isn't any food for miles, and the nearest place he could even go to is just on the outskirts of Ethinzar Kingdom where a few small villages are that might have something to spare."
"Still...", Shaydenn mused, turning around slowly to look at the filthy place, "...If the letter from King Ethinzar was just as cruelly written as Redd told us, then the boy wouldn't even be able to get near the kingdom to seek out a few scraps. His face is painted on Wanted posters all over this domain. I see now why he is all the way out here in the first place."
There was then a few rustling sounds heard.
Like quickly shuffling feet almost from the upper floor.
Shaydenn looked up slowly to see a small hole in the ceiling directly above him, to which he then cast a far look over to Solis as he smiled a bit with mischief.
"I think he knows we are here..."
Solis nodded to agree with this.
"He probably thinks we were hired by King Ethinzar, too - We might ought to be careful in how we proceed. I would really hate to scare him more than he already likely is."
"There may not be much around that, Sol. Let's split up and find him anyway. We have a job to do!"
Shaydenn then took the door directly off to the right side to head up further.
Solis, on the other hand, lingered a little longer to secure the first door they came through.
Using the very tip of an arrow on the doorknob, he managed to hear a very distinctive click that told him he had successfully locked the exit out.
Just in case.
There would be no easy escape, if there had to be one.
He then turned from the door and stopped, just as he was going to follow Shaydenn into whatever other labyrinth was above, to notice a large hole in the wall on the left side of the mess hall that was hidden fairly well just behind a long hanging curtain.
Couldn't have been by mistake to try hiding that.
Maybe to make an extra way of escape?
Just in case?
Solis smiled.
He then went over to pass under the curtain to find a short hallway lined with windows and a set of stairs leading downward.
That seemed like a good place to start.
---
Shaydenn spiraled up to the next room.
This room was structured the same as before, but the contents inside were very different. Lining the stone walls between a series of windows were various weapons, from long spears to hand axes. The light shining in revealed suits of leather and chainmail laid out on carefully organized tables that still waited there in the dust and sand for the battle they were made for.
This was the armory.
There didn't seem to be anything significant missing from the room.
However, the dust on the floor had been unsettled recently.
A few scattered footprints had been left behind nearby the hole in the flooring he expected to see.
Shaydenn moved onward and upward.
Next room was a bedroom. A rather large bedroom with nearly fifty cots packed into the space that was the resting quarters for a small army. Each bed looked untouched, filthy under many years of sand that had blown in from the outside occasional sandstorms. A few old clothes were left behind here and there on the floor, and there was a dried up skeleton on the furthest wall that looked as if he had died from an arrow to the chest from a likely battle at the top of the tower.
Shaydenn walked more slowly through the room with a sour expression.
"Eeesh... This is the last place anyone would look to find me dead. Don't sign me up for anymore wars - Thank you..."
He came to the end of the room to stand just at the foot of the dead soldier, to which he made a small salute before briefly placing his hand over his heart in half-felt respect.
"Sorry, mate, I guess it was just your time."
It was then that he heard another scamper of feet from the other side of the next door. He paused a moment, long enough to hear another door above close quickly.
He grinned.
"What goes up... Must come down."
He then followed.
Slowly. Quietly.
---
Meanwhile, Solis took the stairs down into a hidden underground floor.
He came to a stone doorframe and stepped into a chamber, with the only light coming from a recently lit oil lamp of sorts. Inside this room was a table draped with a rather large but thin animal skin that was painted delicately with an ancient writing and drawn landmarks. It appeared to be a map, as he recognized some areas well enough to distinguish that it was depicting the world Almega. However, there was other markings that were drawn with some intentions, like for strategy.
This was battle plan room.
Which made sense to have it here in the lower part of the tower hidden from outside aggressors.
Solis wandered further in as his blood-shade eyes scanned the room carefully.
He came to the end of the table to see there was a pile of cloth bundled on the floor with a few skin parchments nearby with an ink bowl and pen. These skins were not marked in the same way at all as the battle plans, with instead pictures detailed enough to make out two very different women drawn over and over again as if to try perfecting exactly what they looked like.
And they had been drawn within the year. All of them.
Solis lifted up the pictures, nodded to himself, and then rolled them up to put them in his pack.
Seemed like worthy items to their investigation that might render them more information later.
He walked over to the oil lamp and blew out the fire.
"No kid. Upper rooms."
He started to head out.
Maybe Shaydenn had found something better by now.
---
Shaydenn moved up to the fourth floor.
He entered another room that he half expected to be next.
The Commander's Chambers.
This room was no bigger than the others by design, but the single large bed on the left wall looked far more comfortable and welcoming than the room of the soldiers' below. The entire stone room was padded here and there with now tattered silk, with royal blue drapes over the windows and a crimson rug under the bed.
For the time and setting of this place...
It appeared almost comfy still.
Dirty, but comfy.
The investigation continued when he noticed the footprints again on the floor.
The feet seemed more...decisive now.
As in someone really never came up this way much.
Not until only just a few moments ago.
Shaydenn almost smiled when he saw a particular foot pattern disappear just at the end of the bed.
He stepped closer, slowly, continued to seem like he himself was just casually looking around at the room still, and stopped at the bedside before quickly bending down to look under.
Nothing.
Except sand, of course.
He got up with a quiet sigh, feeling slightly outsmarted.
"Playing games, now, are we?"
With no other place to look, he turned to the next door.
Only other place was up.
Shaydenn went up the spiraling stairs to stop quietly at the next door.
This would likely be the last room before an exit out to the very top of the tower, which meant this was the last area to hide before total exposure up at the surface.
He gently grasped the doorknob, and turned.
But the door didn't budge open.
Something was bracing the door shut.
Like... Maybe a chair?
He chuckled silently to himself.
At least the kid wasn't stupid.
It made the game a little more fun with a challenge.
Shaydenn took a step back, secured his footing on the stairs, and then launched a front kick that had the wooden door swing wide open and nearly come off its hinges. The expected chair in his way also flew into sight in the open doorway, now clattering around on the floor as a few smaller pieces.
He threw his head back with a huff as he entered.
"Nice little ploy... But you'll have to do better to keep me out."
He now observed his new surroundings.
This room was far more open than the others and constructed slightly different. The walls were open wide now with four columns holding up the ceiling, with balcony-like railings between each column that had plenty room to look out over the desert sands. There was old bows with quivers full of arrows on each wall, with drums of oil close by.
This room must have been a station of sorts for archers to use flaming arrows, as they would have had more safety here with a roof over their heads to counter enemy projectiles from below.
Not totally secure, proven by the dead soldier down a few floors, but at least less risk.
Shaydenn now hummed.
There was so much sand constantly blowing in from the side walls that the footprints seemingly ended. However, there was plenty of sand dunes built up on the floor that it was possible that he may be hiding quietly in one of them.
He approached slowly to each pile of dirt, stepped on them, and found his foot touching the stone underneath.
Still nothing.
His eyes turned to the stairs leading up to the very peak of the tower.
"Nowhere left to run."
---
Shaydenn exited out of the tower to come up top.
From here, he gazed out over the desert domain to see dunes upon dunes of sand until they met the majestic Ethinzar Kingdom just in the East. The sky above was a clear blue, and the sun seemed to shine brighter and hotter here as he stood tall on the tower.
He then squinted through the waving space of heat.
High up above, far from where he stood, he could of swore he saw a fast moving light soar through the air heading towards the kingdom in the distance.
But within a blink, it didn't exist.
It only brought him back to the here and now.
And he noticed quite easily that there was no one to be found.
Shaydenn made a quick sprint to the far edge of the tower.
He looked over the edge, down below, just to make sure someone didn't have darker ideas. All he saw down at the foot of the tower was Pearl and Egora gazing up at him with friendly cries.
Now he turned around, staring off with slight irritation.
"Redd never mentioned it was ghost child...", he spat his sarcasm, eyes glazing in annoyance.
He now headed back down the stairs to enter the previous archer room.
---
Shaydenn set foot back in the tower walls.
As he did, he wondered just what he could have missed on his way up to the top.
He stood there for a long while, tapping his boot as if he thought that would help him think better, and eventually found himself growling in frustration before coming over to kick one of the oil drums.
He sighed afterward.
"Where...are you?"
The oil in the drum then bubbled briefly.
Very briefly.
Shaydenn turned slowly.
His eyes narrowed with a gleam of disbelief, and then he formed a bedazzled grin.
"Oh-ho-ho... Now THAT is very good!"
He then grasped the container, pushed it off to its side, and then watched as a blackened figure came pouring out onto the sandy floor with all the oil with him.
"Peekaboo!"
Shaydenn just laughed as the small body floundered around a moment in a slippery mucky mess.
The boy now coughed and gasped for air before looking up with alarm.
Shaydenn gave him a glinting smile.
"Theeeeeere you are! We've been looking ALL over for you!"
The young man narrowed his pair of sapphire eyes, quite aggressively, and then quickly turned to dash off down the stairs with surprising sure-footedness after being coated in oil.
"Hey! Come back-"
Shaydenn looked baffled a moment.
Only a moment.
He then went over to the open wall, looking down to the series of windows.
"Yo, Sol! He's heading down your way!"
There was a moment of silence.
"Head down! We'll cut him off!", came an answer from below.
Shaydenn nodded, now taking off down the tower stairs.
"Yeah? Let's see just how fast you can run, kid!"
---
He grunted from the adrenaline rush surging through his body.
He whipped past the windows on the way down the stairs, running like a blur, moving what seemed to be headlong into the bottom wall below before sharply turning into the doorframe to just keep dashing downward in the spiraling labyrinth.
He shook his head, the wind catching his messy hair to pull back out of his face, before blinking the black liquid out of his burning blue eyes.
He would not stop.
He knew what would happen if he did.
His heaving breaths echoed in his ears.
His heart pounded.
From above he heard footsteps racing.
Getting closer.
Was this really it?
He squint his eyes, forcing his feet to go faster.
"Never... I'll never go back to Ethinzar!"
---
The boy skidded into the mess hall.
He raced alongside the dining table and headed right for the door that lead out into the desert wastes.
He bumped into the wooden door, grabbed the knob, and turned.
But the door didn't turn.
It was locked.
He pulled at the door a few times, hoping it was just jammed, but he let go when he realized that way was shut and it would be a futile attempt to try forcing it open with his small body.
The windows. The windows in the hallway beyond the drapes.
He turned, remembering his contingency plan, and raced for the curtains.
As he went to pass through the drapes...
He suddenly found himself bashing into something that knocked him hard onto the stone flooring, sending him curling up in a tight ball from the instant rush of pain and recoil.
A shadow then swept over him, engulfing him entirely.
He looked up to see Solis now standing there over him.
"Sorry, kid. Looks like you are out of options."
The young man, stunned a moment, just stared up at him.
Solis stood at 6'9" tall and probably weighed somewhere around 250lbs, built seemingly purely out of tight muscle. He was garbed in rusted gold plate with brown and orange cloth underneath.
He had long hair that spiked just at the top, but otherwise laid on his back like the mane of a mighty beast, shaded lightly red in front before naturally turning into a dark maroon behind him.
His face was somehow most interesting.
The eyes were a bright garnet, met with a striking contrast of blue from an outer birthmark around his left eye that was like an odd patch you might see on a dog. It blended all perfectly into his tan skin, like a well-made tattoo.
There was an expression he didn't expect to see on a big guy like him.
A smile. A warm one at that.
It seemed to radiate off him almost.
Confused and disoriented slightly, the boy finally scrambled back away on his hands and feet until he managed to finding his footing enough to stand there defensively before Solis.
Next thing he knew...
Shaydenn then appeared through the other door, and wearing a smirk on his face.
The boy turned to him, glaring, realizing he was now pinned between the two.
Shaydenn was also very tall, hanging just around 6'7" height, and likely somewhere around 200lbs by the looks of how slim and lean his muscular body was. He was dressed very different from Solis. He was wearing a sleeveless skin-tight cloth shirt that was white and black pants, with the only armor on him being black plate for his gloves, boots, and a belt that weaved into a blue and white cloth that draped down to his feet. There was also a black shackle around his neck, and underneath a necklace could be seen that depicted a white wolf head.
He had almost contrasting hair from Solis, too, in regard that his long strands were instead light blue that faded darkly into azure back behind him.
His eyes were equally red, but appeared more dangerous from the crimson outer birthmark that looked like he had been scratched by the talons of a large bird of prey. His skin was also tan, and even more noticeable by his arms being fully exposed with more markings just on his shoulders.
His crooked smile was not sinister exactly, but it did look more cunning.
Solis now stepped further into the room, grabbing the dining table from the center to turn it on its side to barricade the hole in the wall.
Shaydenn took this opportunity to reach for a dagger and quickly lock the door he came through.
The two turned back to the boy and came closer after securing the door, catching a much better look at him now after the oil mostly had dripped away.
The young man before them was small in comparison to the two of them, but he was at average standing height of about 5'7" and appeared to be at 14yrs of age. He wore a long dirty brown shirt that had holes in some places and it came down just under the waist and sagged, swallowing him obviously because his tan boney arms suggested he weighed only about 100lbs at best. His pants were a faded green and ripped in some places from probably a few close calls from the local monsters of the desert.
His size was one thing, but his physical traits was another.
Besides being filthy from the oil and sand that covered him head-to-toe, the boy had hair colored in two very distinct shades of natural blonde and lightning blue that was swept off to the left side before spiking. His hair was messy, unkempt, with some strands longer or shorter in places as if he had tried to cut his hair himself with a more unsuitable instrument, like maybe a knife.
The eyes were a surprise, too. Instead of hinting an actual fear, they seemed to house some inner instinctual violence like that in a cornered animal ready to strike back for his right to survive. This made his flashing azure gaze seem threatening, with a clear warning to approach with caution.
He was likely no ordinary boy.
But then again...
The two brothers were not so ordinary themselves.
Shaydenn now swaggered down slowly alongside the table, shaking his head lightly at the boy covered in black that brought him an honest-to-goodness laugh.
"Ha-ha! The oil drum... Spark of genius, kid!", he flashed his smile, impressed. "Just don't light any fires for awhile, yeah? It was a nice try, but I always come with backup - And no one gets past Sol, sorry to tell ya!"
The young man now set his teeth in a snarl at him.
Shaydenn just grinned back, now stopping at the end of the table to corner the boy.
"By the way... The big guy over there is Solis. I'm Shaydenn. And you must be Jared, am I right?"
The sapphire eyes now appeared more intense, anxious almost.
Solis then cast Shaydenn a quick glance, as if to say to be more subtle with his approach.
"What Shaydenn means to say is... We didn't come to hurt you, Jared, we just want to talk", he started with a smile, now meeting the quickly shifted blue stare. "All we know is that you are in a lot of trouble with the kingdom of Ethinzar. You were reported in the King's letter to have killed a slave owner, fled, and now the King wants you publicly executed to set an example. It is a crime punishable by death to murder a slave owner due to the kingdom still very much involved with slave trade and ownership."
He took a step forward now slowly, with the boy backing away defensively.
"What happened exactly? Why did you kill that man??"
The azure eyes now narrowed.
Jared, back now pressing into the wall behind him, then reached back to pull a knife out from his pants. He thrust his arm out forward, holding the blood-stained blade threateningly between them.
"You're not taking me back to Ethinzar!"
Solis now raised his hands up to suggest he calm down, with Shaydenn nearby ready to unsheathe a dagger of his own if need be.
"Whoa, whoa! Easy there now...", Solis said gently, eyes now on the knife. "You might want to put that down, kid, before you hurt yourself. I promise you, we are not here to harm you."
"Yeah, what kind of guys do you take us for, huh?", Shaydenn added, almost offended. "We're not here to take you to Ethinzar, either, ok? Where we come from, children are not executed to prove a point. Come to think of it, we don't even condone slavery..."
The boy did not look convinced, shoulders raising up like a hissing cat.
"Liar! You're either Ethinzari guards or sell-swords, here to take me back for my death sentence! You just want your pay! What else could you be here for if not that? Why come all this way for any other reason??"
Shaydenn feigned a sigh, then smirked.
"I'm the Captain of the Guard for Casake Auriel - The Light Castle - and have been sent by our Leader Redd to find you. It was only a few days past now that our Leader received the letter from the King of Ethinzar, as Ethinzar has now sought out help from its allies in an ever branching search for you. Worry not, as Redd secretly disagrees with how Ethinzar plans to punish you. Like I said, we do not kill children."
Solis now nodded sincerely to promote this statement.
"Leader Redd would rather honor his friendship with King Ethinzar by taking you in at Casake Auriel - Removing you from this area to prevent further crime to the kingdom as well as rehabilitate you there in our newly established government instead."
He smiled, still warmly.
"You would be safe there with us. Shaydenn and I have been ordered to bring you back to the castle. You will have everything you need there, I promise you that. No one is going to hurt you. We're only here to help."
Jared made a most defiant look.
"I'm not going anywhere with you!", the boy yelled back. "I don't know who this Leader Redd person is, but if he is allies with Ethinzar then he likely wouldn't tell you two goons the truth and just hand me over to be executed anyway while filling his pockets with blood money!"
He breathed a moment as both Solis and Shaydenn fell silent.
The knife pointed outward more at the two.
"I won't go! You can't make me leave!"
Shaydenn now raised his brow.
"I'm sorry? Did you say we can't make you?"
Solis also now chuckled at this.
"Oh, we most certainly CAN. And we will. Whether you like it or not."
Now the brothers moved closer simultaneously.
Jared got ready to fight back.
"If you two don't want to hurt me, then why are you doing this?!"
Shaydenn stepped a few more paces closer.
"We told you. We have our orders, kid. Now, we can do this the easy way...or the hard way!"
The Captain of the Guard then went to reach out to grab Jared, but the boy turned with surprising reflexes to land a quick laceration on the lower arm where the plate glove didn't cover.
Shaydenn recoiled, taking a step back to look down at the cut that now bled there. His crimson eyes then made a death glare on the rebel child.
"Gah... All yours, Sol, before I kick his ass for that!"
Solis immediately stepped up.
Jared turned to him to go for a thrust, but the knife made contact with the golden armor instead and sent it ricocheting just out of his hand. Disarmed, the young man backed up against the wall.
"Now what are you gonna do?", Solis questioned, gaze taunting him.
The boy was bent on not giving up.
Jared then launched himself off the wall to attempt ramming into Solis to knock him down or throw him off balance, but the result was similar to before with him bouncing off the large man back into the corner.
"Owww..."
Solis hadn't budged, now just laughing at him.
"You sure are a fighter, I'll give you that. But honestly, kid, really... It's over."
Jared's eyes were burning still under his shadow.
"I'm not...going..."
"You're just being stubborn", the man sighed.
Solis made his move.
While Jared was literally cornered, Solis quickly grabbed hold of his shirt to pull him up into his arms, hoisting him up high off the flooring. The boy was now wiggling and squirming, his back turning to be held securely just against Solis' chest, with his body pinned down by pretty much one arm alone.
"Noooooo! Ungh! Let me go!"
Shaydenn now smiled at the struggle, feeling quite avenged. He then reached in his pack for one of the rags, tossed it to Solis, and then continued searching for the rope he made sure to bring along.
"Sorry, kid, you're coming with us! Redd wants to see you in a few days tops!"
Jared writhed in the grasp.
"LET GO OF ME! I'M NOT--MMPH!!"
Solis had clasped his hand with the cloth over the boy's mouth and nose.
Jared now opened his eyes wide, reaching his hands up to claw helpless at the armored arm that pinned him down, feeling the rushing sensation of fear as he realized he couldn't move and couldn't breathe.
"Gnmmph!"
"Easy, now, easy...", Solis told him, voice somehow soothing in his ear.
Jared watched as the room started to blur, and his vision went in and out with less oxygen.
Shaydenn then appeared just before him, face cutting in and out also.
"Don't fight it, Jared... It's already over. Just let yourself fall asleep."
The rope then came into view.
For just a moment.
Then everything faded to black.
Solis now removed the cloth.
He lowered himself to his knee a moment as the boy gently laid back against him unconscious, and then he lifted the child back up into his strong arms in a more cradling-like embrace.
Jared's head now rested just on the gold chestplate, sleeping now like a peaceful infant.
"He looks better this way... Who would have guessed?", Solis shrugs.
Shaydenn, now securing the boy by the limbs with the rope, half laughed at this.
"Heh... He sounds better this way."
"For sure", Solis agreed. "But... It's his first day with us. Give it time!"
Suddenly...
The two were thrown back into the nearest wall.
The light from outside turned a blazing green before bursting into a pure white. The whole tower violently trembled, the sound of several floors above them being demolished from the explosion outside.
The shaking came and went quickly, and the mess hall lit up with what looked like lightning from outside until it eventually settled to reveal the outer desert once more.
They waited in the floor until there was all but silence.
"What the f**k was that?!", Shaydenn bellowed, now standing with a cross expression.
Solis, hoisting himself up to a stand with Jared still safely in his arms, then came over to a window to sate his equally horrified curiosity.
"Shay... You might want to look outside. Ethinzar is gone."
Shaydenn turned almost pale.
"Gone? Like... Not there? That CAN'T be possible!"
The Captain now went over to the main entry door, opened it easily from the outer doorframe crumbling from the blast, and walked out to see Ethinzar Kingdom now blazing in the distance as nothing but a crater left.
Solis came out to stand beside him.
"Sol... I think Ethinzar is gone", Shaydenn mimicked in a haze.
"That's what I said, Brother..."
Discord
Light Style