CHAPTER 8 – IMPRISONED
Johnny dreamt he was floating in an endless void that felt like being in water. He couldn't move as the currents pulled him wherever they pleased. He tried to move but to no avail. Johnny was frustrated as he thought. Why can't I move. Is someone controlling me?
With the flash of that thought, a tall entity slowly started to materialize before Johnny. The entity started out small but rapidly grew. The being kept growing and growing.
At the same time, the entity was growing. the dark void began to fill with light of the universe. It started out small from stars and planets changinv to whole solar systems and clusters of stars reaching to galaxies. The entity also grew with the expanding universe casting a dark shadow over everything.
Johnny could only stare in confusion with the dream. The huge entity finally looked at Johnny if he knew he was there tge whole time. He looked down at Johnny with a smile that made Johnny’s body run cold with fear. The entity swung its hand out for Johnny who couldn't move. Pure terror ran through Johnny as he tried to scream. He was helpless as the arm came down and decimated everything in its path. It then collided with Johnny. His dream then went black.
Johnny found himself waking up like he had a terrible hangover. What kind of dream was that supposed to be? A vision? Johnny thought to himself, feeling groggy.
He found himself lying on a cot in a cold dark room. As he tried to move to sit up on the cot. He found he couldn’t move his arms and legs as if they were bound by some invisible restraints. Johnny wanted to panic but he knew he needed to remain calm. He then thought back to Albert. “Hey Albert, are you around,” he whispered softly. There was no response.
He then thought back to the orc who had knocked him out. He remembered he had tried to call for Albert, but something prevented him from contacting him. He had the same feeling now that he had then of emptyneas. I need to plan an escape and get back to the prototype.
Johnny then looked around at his surroundings. He found himself in a cell that had stones all over. There wasn’t much light to be seen. Only from torches that illuminated the hallway. The room wasn’t very big either. Looks like I'm in some sort of old dungeon. I need to get a better look at my surroundings to figure out how to get out of here.
Johnny got up quietly from the cot and waddled to the cell door. Johnny noticed two human guards by the entrance of his cell. The two were chatting away at a table across from the cell door. They were playing some card game from what Johnny could make out.
Johnny pondered on what to do. I wish I had Albert's help. He made it so easy getting away with blasting everything. Too bad I couldn't just blast everything like he did with the core fragment. Johnny's eyes lit up wondering if he could use the core fragment at all.
Johnny waddled back to his cot and sat down silently trying to make use of the core fragment to help him escape. He managed to make a few lock picks and daggers, before his next decision ended up costing him. He had decided to make a tranquilizer to take out the guards, only for the core fragment to cause him to feel a sharp pain all over his body. He felt like every nerve had been activated at once. He cried out from the pain, losing his balance on his cot and fell onto the floor of his cell.
The two guards heard Johnny screaming and falling. They started shouting to each other in some language he couldn’t understand. Will I ever learn the language here.
Johnny anticipated the guards would come into his cell. If they did, he didn’t have a clue of what they would do to him. Instead, he got quite the wrong assumption. One of the guards came over to the cell door and stared at Johnny. While his companion went out another door. Johnny was in too much pain to stand back up, looking at the guard from the floor. The guard looked at him with a devious smile. Johnny knew whatever it was about couldn’t be good.
Soon the other guard came back with another figure in tow. When Johnny heard the voice, he tried to hide his fear. I’m so dead, Johnny thought. The other guard came to his companion and opened the cell door for the new figure.
The new arrival was the orc shaman he had dealt with before. Johnny tried to waddle away in fear. The orc grabbed Johnny by his racing suit’s collar, which was now in tatters and dirty. With one hand free the orc said something Johnny couldn’t understand.
A green fire burned from the orc’s hand. He’s casting a spell, Johnny thought with his eyes wide in terror. The orc finished what Johnny thought was his chanting.
The orc then grabbed Johnny with his free hand and put it on Johnny’s head. Johnny yelled out in pain. The pain stopped after a few seconds. The shaman released his hand and replied. “Now you should be able to talk with me.”
The orc tossed Johnny back onto his cot and walked back outside the cell. The guards then locked the door.
“I got myself a nice prize, The Loathing One is going to reward me well for capturing you. As soon as this world is no more, I’ll be promoted,” The orc laughed going on a rant.
Johnny was really confused now. Who is the loathing one, and why am I a big prize and what does he mean the world will be no more? Johnny thought as his mind pondered what had just occurred as he sat on the cot.
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“Why am I even here? What did I even do?” Johnny yelled from his cell. He heard the shaman stop and turn back to his cell.
“The reason you are here “champion”. Is because you are in league with the accursed Radiant Alliance. My scouts saw you approach the city last night. I waited to capture you by your campsite. For some reason I couldn't get near you. I abandoned those plans and made it back into the city.
The next day I was informed you were in the city. When I was told about this, I came after you. You gave me quite the headache catching you," The orc said with a grin.
"Since, you are in league with the radiant alliance. I have blocked your magic and any attempts to contact them. The radiant fragment in your head no longer works.” The orc said now standing in front of his jail cell. The orc continued ranting away and confusing Johnny more and more.
First off, I have no clue what a radiant fragment is. Second, I never used magic. I just have technology. I am still surprised he was able to disable that. Better just ask him some more questions to see if his ramblings spill important info. Johnny thought, trying not to fall asleep from the orc’s ramblings.
Johnny asked the orc more questions to see what he knew. After all, if anything Johnny learned of being in the military, information was always key. He decided to play along.
“Right, I’m part of the Radiant Alliance. So, what does that mean for me? Johnny replied in a sarcastic tone.
“Your death.” Replied the shaman.
Johnny was speechless with that. He watched the orc leave with a smirk on his face. He just sighed as he lay on his cot trying to think how he could escape.
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Some time had passed for Johnny as he drifted in and out of sleep. Since he was bound and couldn’t go anywhere. He occasionally brought food and water. He had trouble eating and drinking with the restraints. The guards had to help Johnny with eating and drinking. They abused Johnny by pouring it down his throat until he inhaled it. Johnny was fed up with the abuse.
Wait until I get out of here, I’ll show them. He thought with a hatred expression as they just finished their most recent feeding.
After the guards had left, he tried to contact Albert again with no success. “My mind is still blocked.” He mumbled with a groan remembering the shaman had cut off the core fragment. Johnny just decided to doze off with nothing else to do.
Johnny started having weird visions of a blond-haired female elf as he drifted from sleep after being locked up for days now. The first dream showed her where he had first ended up in the endless dried grasslands. She had the look of frustration on her face as she was looking for something. The next vision soon shifted with her running in the direction he had just come to the city. She looked to be in a hurry as she looked like she had found something. The most recent vision Johnny had of the elf was at Johnny’s campsite where the prototype was still parked untouched. The elf looked at the prototype then over to the walled city. Her face began to frown. At this point she dashed off into the forest. That was the last vision Johnny had of her.
Johnny was woken from his sleep from tye sound of a disgruntled voice. “Time to get up you lazy mule. It is time for your sentencing,” one of the guards said. Johnny rolled over on his cot and just ignored the guard talking to him. He heard the cell door open. Johnny waited for the guard to come closer, hiding a smirk on his lips. I got a nasty surprise for you. You meaty prick, Johnny thought, making grim on his face even wider.
The guard reached out for Johnny. Who turned over grabbing the guard in surprise. The guard yelled out to his companion for help. “He is trying to escape!” Yelled the guard.
The other guard got up from the table he was sitting at, knocking over a few chairs dashing to help the other guard.
Johnny swung his legs around off the cot and kicked the guard in the stomach who had called for help. The guard stumbled backwards and landed on top of his companion, who had entered the cell, in a tangled mess of limbs,
Johnny got up onto the cot and used it as a trampoline as he jumped a few times, while the two tried to untangle themselves. Johnny then catapulted off the cot like a springboard. He used the momentum in his legs to kick the guard who had fallen on his companion in the gut. Johnny heard a loud crack in the man’s chest. Johnny winced at the sound. The guard screamed in pain as he doubled over before falling unconscious.
That must have broken something. As if I care after the way the guards have been treating me. He continued ranting in his head.
The other guard was struggling to get out from under the other guard. “I’m going to gut you like a trout for that,” He yelled back.
Johnny then jumped back onto the cot and jumped once more. The other guard had just managed to stand up. Johnny dove off the cot towards the guard with his arms stretched out together with his legs. He piled into the man’s face with both fists. Johnny busted his nose and began to bleed.
While Johnny was still in the air, he swung his feet forward for a stomach kick knocking the wind out of him. The guard gasped for breath before crumpling onto the floor in a heap.
Johnny sighed with relief. He was now free. I had watched way too much wrestling, Johnny thought as he waddled his way out of his cell into the prison. He had now made his way into tte hallway. How do I get out of here? He thought. While he was thinking, he heard a familiar voice. “What the? How did you break free.” Said the voice.
Johnny turned to see a sight of horror. It was the orc shaman.
The shaman looked past Johnny into his cell. He saw both guards lying beaten and broken. “Oh, you are so going to get it now. I’m going to make sure you suffer even more now,” He said.
Before Johnny could react, the shaman snapped his fingers. The invisible binds on Johnny lit up with an electric shock. He thought he was being electrocuted from the pain that made him scream. The pain soon stopped. Unfortunately, for him the shock had only paralyzed him.
“I have enhanced your body with radiant magic. If you try to use that radiant fragment at all. It will cause you more pain than you think. Also, where I plan to take you, it will be used against you,” The orc said.
Johnny just looked at him thinking this orc was dumber than he appeared. The orc had reactivated the core fragment. Although Johnny couldn't use any magic. He tried to make an anvil with the core to use to fall on top of tte shaman's head. He was quickly shocked by twice the pain from the bindings. The orc laughed at Johnny as his face slammed into the ground.
“If your try to use radiant magic, those bindings will shock you more painfully each time you try.” The orc said with a sneer. The orc then planned his next move.
Johnny suddenly found himself trapped inside a ball of magic. It lifted him off the ground. The ball of magic glowed a neon blue color as it sparked with Johnny tapping his hands around trying to break free. “Your trial awaits.” Said the orc with a disdainful sneer as he carried Johnny away.