Rage
We stepped into the entrance of the doorway hanging over the cliff. Before going in, I tied Bali securely to a tree nearby, making sure the ropes were tight enough.
As soon as we crossed the threshold, the doorway behind us slammed shut and vanished, transforming the previously glowing door to an ordinary wall. My heart dropped. There was no exit anymore.
The passage ahead was dark, long, and narrow. Everything about the place was eerie, creeping the hell out of me.
With a sharp click of his fingers, fire appeared in Doya's right hand. It became our only source of light. We walked in silence, taking cautious steps, listening for even the slightest sound.
My heart pounded hard. Doya glanced at me and took my right hand in his left, reassuring me that I would be alright. I wasn't sure I believed him.
After some minutes of walking in silence, the path led to an open ground, empty at first, before figures began to appear behind the surrounding bushes, one after another. It was as if they knew we were coming.
Doya instantly summoned his glowing sword. Giselle raised her hands, magic building beneath her skin. I wrapped my fingers around the hilt of my sword. The figures doubled in number, circling us. They weren't Forsaken... or maybe they were, but they didn't look like the ones I knew.
As we stood ready for an attack, one of them stepped out of the bushes, speaking in what sounded almost like a question.
"Kahrei múnor?"
His words were foreign. I looked at Doya and he moved instantly in front of me, shielding me from any possible strike.
"We don't want to fight you!" the man shouted.
I placed my hands on Doya's shoulders and whispered, "It's okay." Then I stepped forward.
"What do you want?!" I demanded.
The man smirked. "I should be asking you that. You invaded our space."
I glanced down at the talisman in my hand. It still pulsed, confirming Jephas was close.
"I'm looking for a man," I said. "I was told he passed through this place."
"And who is this man?" he asked.
"Um... he looks to be in his mid-forties, average height..." I looked at Giselle, then whispered. "Come on, help me."
"He's light skinned, has a moustache, dark eyes, black hair," Giselle added.
The man shook his head. "That's not what we're asking. We ask for a name."
I debated telling them. Something inside me resisted it.
"I don't know," I blurted out.
His eyes narrowed, suspicion settling into his expression. "We are peaceful people. We don't want a fight. But if you bring one to us, we will respond."
Around us, the others revealed their weapons, making their intentions clear.
"We also don't want to fight," Doya said quickly. "We just want passage to search for who we're here for."
"I can't let you pass if I don't know what you're passing for."
The back and forth was going nowhere. I was starting to get frustrated.
"The man's name is Jephas," I snapped.
He smiled faintly. "We are a very small village. I know the name of every single one of us. There is no one named Jephas here."
I slowly stepped forward, rage building within me. "I don't know who you people are, we don't want trouble. We just want Jephas."
"And I'm telling you, he's not here."
Anger exploded inside me. If they weren't going to give me Jephas, I'll take him myself. Fire formed in my palm, hot and unstable. The man responded instantly, drawing magic from the air, power rippling through his body.
Doya grabbed my arm and shook his head. This wasn't a fight I could win.
"Please forgive our intrusion," Doya said calmly. "Our locator spell led us here. If he's truly not here, then something must be wrong with the spell."
"Locator spell..." the man repeated, pulling back his power. "You should have started with that." He paused. "If your spell brought you here and the man isn't one of us, then he's probably with the one they call Balshak. What are you doing looking for someone who works for Balshak?"
"Do you know where he might be?" I asked.
"You didn't answer my question."
I hesitated, the words catching in my throat.
"He killed my parents."
The man studied me for a moment and unexpectedly, he shouted something in a language I didn't understand. Instantly, the weapons were lowered. He stepped aside.
"Go north. You'll find a stream. Cross it. Beyond it, there's a fortress. That's where Balshak stays. And that's likely where the man you seek is."
"Thank you," I said softly.
They cleared a path, and we moved on. We crossed the shallow, rocky stream and after several minutes of walking, the fortress came into view, massive and dark, surrounded by towering walls.
Our only problem now was how to go in. I didn't want to have any issues with Balshak, I just needed Jephas.
"We need a plan," I stated.
"I can do it," Giselle spoke.
She laid out her plan carefully. "I would approach the gate alone, tell them I'm Jephas' daughter. They'll let me in, and right after, I'll meet with my father."
"But your father knows you're with me," I pointed out. "What if he doesn't believe you?"
"I'll tell him I ran away after the massacre, frightened and desperate for safety," she said calmly. "And that I found someone who opened a portal for me. I'll also tell him I'm scared that you'll come after me and I need protection."
Lying came far too easily to her. I wondered how I ever trusted her to begin with.
"And if he still doesn't believe you?"
"I have my ways, Dana. Trust me."
Trust you? Hell fucking no!
She continued. "Once I'm inside, I'll be our eyes and ears, I'll feed them false information about you, search for any hidden entrance, then return to bring you in.
Doya was silent for a long moment.
"Too many flaws," he finally said. "What if they don't believe you? What if they lock you up? What if there is no other entrance? This plan is full of holes and will take so much of our time."
"There is no need to be so gloomy, I will get the job done, trust me." Giselle assured.
"You have never been in there," he said. "You don't even know if there's another entrance. We need a different plan, one that doesn't sound like a trail of mistakes."
We all fell silent. He was right. Giselle's plan sounded like a load of mistakes and I wasn't about to make one now.
"Okay then," Giselle said, turning to him. "What do you suggest?"
"I have an idea," Doya said slowly, looking at me. "But I don't want you doing it."
"Doya, please," I begged. "We need every option."
"My idea puts you in danger and I don't want that"
"Doya... I need this."
Desperation crept into my voice. I did not care if I became bait. If it worked, that was all that mattered.
He sighed. "You go in as a captive."
He explained further, "Giselle would bring you in bruised and bloodied as a token of loyalty. Once inside, you would call for me, and I would veil-walk to you. That's how I get in, so we won't need to look for an entrance anymore, we just have to find a way out, and I can veil-walk us out."
"Well, why can't you just veil-walk us in?" Giselle asked.
"The power has its limits. I cannot safely veil-walk to a place I have never been, and I have never been inside the fortress, so veil-walking straight in would be a mistake. I could try, but I would arrive blind and exposed, with no sense of where I stand or what awaits me. That is not safe. However, it is different when Dana calls for me. I can see where she is, I know the place, and I appear there. That way, it is safer."
It was dangerous.
But it was solid.
"One thing I know," Doya added, "is that they won't kill you. Balshak needs you."
Then he pressed on. "One more thing, Dana. We need the scroll, the compass, and the key to the Cranium. I assume they have the key by now."
I no longer cared about any of that. But if agreeing would settle Doya's mind, then so be it.
"Okay," I said with a shrug. "Giselle, are you good with this plan?"
"If I get to punch you in the face," she said, a smirk tugging at her lips, "then I'm good with it."
I shot her a glare and braced myself, turning my face slightly.
"Well, do it qui—"
The blow hit before I could finish. Pain exploded across my face. It hurt like hell.
"Gods, Giselle!" I held onto the side of my face that stung.
She just shrugged and gave me another punch
Then another.
The last one cracked my nose. Warm blood spilled out, rushing down my lips.
"That's enough," I gasped.
I handed my bag, my sword, and the pulsing talisman to Doya.
Giselle seized my arm and dragged me towards the gate.
As we drew closer, a shout rang out from one of the Forsaken above.
"Who's there?!"
"I've got something for you," Giselle called out, her voice loud and fearless. "This is the guardian you've been looking for. I captured her for you."
"Who are you?!" he demanded.
"I'm Giselle, Jephas' daughter," she said, a smirk playing on her lips. "I come from Earth, bearing a token."
A few tense moments passed. Then, the gate clanked open — they were letting us in.
We were led into the fortress. Their eyes lingered on Giselle, yet no suspicion followed. Something was off.
They tried to pull me from her, but she tightened her grip, insisting she would see Jephas first.
We were taken into a vast chamber. I scanned the room, and then I saw them — the scroll, the compass, and a golden box, no doubt where the key was kept.
Moments later, a man stepped inside. Jephas.
Heat rushed through my veins. I wanted to strike, to scream. Instead, I swallowed it all. I had to play my part if this plan was going to work.
"Father, I'm back. I missed you," Giselle said.
What?! Did she just say she's back?
"I brought her for you," she added, pushing me toward her father.
"Oh, my baby girl. I knew you'd get the job done," he replied, pride and relief in his voice.
What the hell is going on? Did I just walk into a trap?
Was she lying all along?
She told me she never came here to the Labyrinth.
I stared at her, trying to make sense of the betrayal.
Instantly, I summoned Doya in my mind. Within seconds, he appeared beside me.
"Doya, it's a trap!" I screamed.
Jephas' eyes widened at Doya's sudden presence, and in an instant, he signaled the other Forsaken in the room.
I acted without thinking. With a wave of my hand, I froze them in place. Luckily, I was stronger here, far stronger. They didn't stand a chance.
I locked eyes with Jephas, my glare burning like fire, as I lifted him off the ground, choking him midair.
Doya moved swiftly toward the table where the scroll, compass, and golden box lay, carefully placing them into my bag.
The room was tense. I turned to Giselle, who stood there watching as if nothing was wrong.
"What the hell, Giselle?" I demanded.
"Please, I'll explain. I didn't betray you. I promise," she said.
The lies, the deceit, it was too much. I couldn't take it anymore.
"Please, Dana, just let me explain," she urged.
Without a second thought, I flung Jephas against the wall. He hit his head and slumped unconscious for a moment, just long enough for me to hear what Giselle had to say.
"One minute," I said.
"I didn't betray you. I know I lied, but I wasn't trying to betray you," she said quickly. "I've been here before. Once. My father told me to bring you here, just in case he didn't get the chance himself. But that wasn't my intention, it was a coincidence. When he told me this, I was still working with him. Then we became friends, and I started to like you for real. He thought I was playing you, but I swear, I wasn't trying to betray you."
I didn't believe a single word. Whatever truth hid inside her story, I would deal with her later.
"Well," I said flatly, "I'm still going to kill him. He murdered my parents."
She said nothing. Maybe she hated him more than I realised.
Jephas groaned and tried to push himself up. I stepped closer, my powers humming beneath my skin with every step. I tilted his face upward so he was forced to meet my eyes.
"This will be the last face you see."
As I readied myself to finish him, a powerful force seized me and threw me hard against the far wall, the impact drove the air from my lungs.
What was that?!
"Dana!" Doya screamed, panic cutting through his voice.
I looked up.
A towering figure stood over me, cloaked in a dark hood. Power rolled off him in heavy waves. With a single gesture, he released the Forsaken I had frozen, sending them surging toward us.
"Finally," he said with a smirk, "the guardian is back."
I tried to summon my powers, but before I could channel, he moved his hands controlling me. Pain and pressure wrapped around me. My body lifted from the floor, suspended in the air, shaking, trembling, utterly helpless.
He was stronger.
I couldn't move an inch. My body refused to obey me. The only thing I could manage was to shift my eyes toward Doya.
He looked back at me, fear flashing across his face, but he was already overwhelmed. The Forsaken were closing in from every side. There were too many.
He fought through them, shouting my name as he tried to reach me, but they kept coming, one after another, swallowing the distance between us.
I turned my gaze to Giselle. She was under attack too. Her father, still on the floor.
The room began to blur. My thoughts slipped, my strength fading, as though the power inside me was being torn away. I tried to fight it, forcing my eyes back to the hooded figure, but it was useless.
He smirked, holding me in place as he drained what was left of me.
Then darkness swallowed everything, and I blacked out.