The silence of the room hung in the air. Mona and his maid was thinking of an appropriate response to the old man, but the words just didn't seem like they wanted to stick in their minds. The man's bluntness was rather unwelcome.
In that moment, nothing could be heard. Thankfully the sounds of the thieves outside in the manor had yet to reach here. Perhaps because these were the servant quarters, and most of the servants were all in the hall, the knights of Faulkner didn't expect to find the young lord hidden here, alive, in a location with nary a single item of value. Mona thought back to his father fending off that commander of the Faulkners. He might be alive, doing his best to hold back the worse of these foes. Perhaps he was already dead, the life in his flesh already leaving long ago. This awkward silence had given him a moment to breathe, a moment for his fears to be realized. As his mind searched for peace, Martha finally broke the silence.
Her gaze fell on Andrey. It was obvious she, nor anyone, would appreciate the man's hastiness. "Lord Andrey, I presume?" Her words were slightly lacking in the respect she typically reserved for nobles. Andrey showed a sign of displeasure, but his face quickly returned to its original state.
"I understand you want to take your time sorting yourselves, but those wolves are rampaging around, not far away. Get yourself together, and show us the escape route." The old man kept looking over his shoulder, his focus squarely tied to the door he entered with Mona. While Andrey didn't seem tired, he kept his wits about him, his hand ready for a sudden intrusion. His time fighting the Faulkners flashed through his mind, his gaze once again repositioning on the maid. "Well?"
Martha gave out a silent sigh. She gave Mona a short squeeze. The young lord was always a shy child, and with his mother dead she had served as something of a surrogate. She looked into Mona's eyes for a moment, before releasing the young man and then turning back to the noble before her. "What of the..." Before she could speak, the noble had already spoken.
"If you were expecting anyone else, they are likely not with us."
"That's...unfortunate." Martha's expression darkened at the thought. She took one more look at the two before her, before her composure returned to normal.
"Marcus and Alena..." The words left her lips, only Mona could hear them being so close. Two familiar faces flashed through his mind, a scene of Martha with those two walking around the courtyard many days ago.
Wiping the wetness from her eyes, Martha's face became more serious. "If it's just us, then please watch the door as I prepare." The maid reached once again into her dress, clearly a spatial enchantment was positioned there. In each of her hands existed a pair of items, an old worn key deserving of a good cleaning, and a flask containing a liquid of sorts, a murky silence within the glass. Martha then began to chant a few words, the liquid within reacting to the mana flowing as it took on a more opaque darkness, all the contents blended into a fine fluid. Only Mona enjoyed this spectacle; Andrey was too busy with laying a variety of incantations on the door next to them. He clearly thought it wouldn't take too long.
"One moment please." Martha unstopped the flask in her hand, an horrible smell leaving its innards. Mona looked like he was going to puke.
"Wait just a..." Before Andrey could finish what he was saying, the maid scattered the fluid on all three of them. The smell dug its way into Mona nostrils, searching for every chance to tell Mona that he was violated by these vapors.
Andrey carried a horrendous expression. "Magmite fluid of all things..." He cursed under his breath. He knew exactly what the maid had in her hands, but to think she would do it so suddenly. He'd have to bathe for days.
Martha was no better, her attempts at keeping a calm face faltering.
All at once, Mona realized what was going on. As the fluid touched his skin and clothes, he felt himself a tad lost. He didn't know how to explain it himself. It was like he was present in the world, but he wasn't. The sting of the fluid had largely disappeared, or maybe he was adjusting to it. In the remnants of the fluid he could feel the Metal energy creating a covering of sorts all around him.
Martha took a look at the key, which all received a healthy splash of the Magmite, the age and rust no longer visible. The brass key looked anew, fresh from the smithy, shining even in the bleak darkness. Martha looked towards one of the walls, her hands carefully aligning in a hidden formation before a keyhole made itself visible to the trio. Placing the key inside, she twisted it twice to the left, three time to the right. They stood in silence, waiting for something to happen.
"Is it broken?" Mona asked curiously.
"Please wait a moment, young lord." As the maid spoke those words softly, the wall seemed to let off a hazy glow, before the walls seemed to retract back into the outline. A passageway appeared before them, dimly lit by lamps strengthened with an unknown spell.
"Let us be off." Andrey placed the final ward he could muster onto the door behind them, before making his way down the passageway. "I'll cover the front."
This time the maid said nothing. She reached out a hand to Mona. "Young Lord?" A forced smile appeared on her face.
Mona placed his hands in hers, and they quickly took off. Even though Mona was a Novice in Metal energy, Martha steadily fed him a supply of her own strength, allowing the two to dash within the stony tunnel. Behind them, Mona saw the entryway disappear, as the walls fit back into place. Every 10 yards behind them, a new set of walls rose from the floor to the ceiling, sealing the way back.
"Do not think much of this, young lord. This formation was placed here by the first patriarch of the clan. For emergencies we were instructed to keep this hidden, as in such a situation the Metal Labyrinth will do its best to ward off intruders and thieves, leaving them in a neverending, all encompassing formation. While it isn't perfect, its the best means of escape we have. Are you alright, young lord?" Martha had kept the pace of the two steady and quick, doing her best to catch up to Andrey. Knowing who the old man was, she was certain the pair's survival odds would be much greater near him. Thankfully he had taken the front, taking care of the biggest flaw of this formation, where any occupants in the passageway before activation would automatically be placed in the correct path.
Mona thought back to the rush of things going on. Here he was, dashing through this bleak passageway. The thump of rising walls came up every 15 seconds, shutting away another section of this tunnel. The bizarre lamps never flickered, and the floor was smooth and sleek. Their steps didn't leave a single sound. The power of Metal left his heart, steadily reinforcing his sinews, his muscles, his bones, allowing him to move at a rapid pace. Martha's energy was even providing a sort of understanding to Mona, allowing him to better engage his strength more efficiently. Each of his steps were becoming more fluid, like they always moved so well at this pace. Mona thought once more to everything happening. "Are you alright, Martha?"
Martha sighed. Today's joys have become tonight's nightmares. Her friends were dead. Her family too. And the last of her charge was likely here with her. Gone were the simple days. It was inevitable, it felt, but no one welcomes chaos and despair willingly into their lives. Who would? Rest well, Marcus and you too, Alena. She made her silent prayer before returning a false answer.
"I am fine, young lord. As long as you are well, there is nothing for me to worry." The pair made a turn, the corner quickly rising with its wall. With the key still in Martha's possession, the formation knew to close with the rhythm of her speed. With Mona adjusting to the speed of the pair, their velocity was rising. They made another turn.
Mona could tell Martha was lying. He could see something trailing past her face, flying behind them, coming from her eyes. But he didn't say a thing. He wanted to shed his sorrows as well. But he couldn't running, his mind preoccupied with not delaying their movement. Who knows what those wolves were doing behind them?
As if to warn them to go faster, Martha and Mona heard something behind them. A dull noise, then an explosion. Then a splash of thunder. Then a rapid silence. The wailing of gruff men in panic could be heard way back yonder, as back as the entrance to the chambers. Eventually all became silent once more.
"Thank the gods we met Lord Andrey." Martha spoke coolly. A bit of the strain had left her face. Her speed quickened, bringing the young lord behind. She was aware of the spells Lord Andrey had placed in the maid quarters, even aware of the spells he had carefully cast along the walls. While Mona was new to Aura and couldn't see them, she could see the safety measures the old man had put in place. Now if only he could read the room with that intelligence of his.
With their speed accelerating, Mona could see that even the lamps around them became a blur. The speed was frightening, but not as frightening as the ever so distant thuds of walls being broken well behind them. From above Mona could hear something, a distinct mewing from a ways away. Are we under the cove? The thought astounded him. Just how far did the first Aurum take these developments? Breaking his trance, from not far away, a wail could be heard.
"You bastard!" A shriek escaped the man's lips.
"Die, you Faulkner dog." A sound of something being chopped off, then a thud as an object hit the floor. As Mona and Martha got closer, the ghastly scene filled their heads.
Lord Andrey stood there. His chest heaving. His clothes were coated in blood and sweat. His expression was hardened and sharp, only releasing when he noticed his clothes. "Now, I wish this was only Magmite." He cursed a few things under his breath, his gaze tied to his clothes, before look at the two.
Mona surveyed the carnage before him. A few of the Faulkner knights laid there, their bodies gouged with holes and bisected in pieces, the head of the last crier having rolled to a stop near the wall. Next to the walls was a small entryway, clearly this was how the knights of Faulkner had broken into this path from here. Blood had been scattered all around, leaving traces of the battle all around.
"Come here, maid. Help me seal this portion of the wall back." Andrey took one deep breath and exhaled. Luckily he still seemed to be full of strength, the six men around weren't able to hold him back. He had taken a fairly clean shirt and trousers from some of the men, before throwing them towards Mona. The boy caught the drab clothing. It was clear Andrey used his Water energy to remove as much dirt he could; the clothes almost looked laundered.
"What are you doing?" Martha watched as Mona looked at the clothes, before returning a look to the old man.
"Isn't it obvious? It's time he changed into something more comfortable. And besides, do you really want the young lord of Aurum to tell these empire snakes who he is? Mona Aurum, change your clothes and hide your dress near these bodies. No, wait. Give it here, we'll stuff it into the broken wall." The old man waited for Mona to finally switch his clothes around, before taking the elegant fabrics and throwing them into this earthen passageway. Taking charge, he used his Water aura to carry the broken sections of the wall, realigning the hole. Under his guidance, the maid used her energy to reinforce the wall, leaving the breakage point almost good as new. Alas there wasn't enough time to dispose of the corpses or blood, so they could only leave this mess behind.
"Hurry up, young Aurum." The old man gestured for the young lord to come forward. Martha once again grasped Mona's hand. While she was slightly displeased with Andrey's commands, her training in the Aurum estate helped her to hide her true thoughts.
Andrey steadied his mana, before he once again became to zip forward. His speed was a tad reduced; he wanted the two behind him to stay in sync with his steps.
Martha returned to before, holding Mona's hand as she began charging her own aura to continue with their rapid movement. Mona followed suit to the best of his ability, leaving the scenic carnage behind. From way back yonder, the trio could still hear the sounds of walls being cut down on. However, a new sound followed.
Mona couldn't tell what it was at first, it sounded like the gulp of a mouth, perhaps the size of a whale. The gulp was punctuated with the random cracking of reinforced stone, a sound that neither Andrey or Martha failed to notice. Their faces grew darker, their steps more agile. The whispers that Mona heard were clearly screams, and the thought came to his mind.
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The tunnel was broken by those knights of Faulkner, right in the cove, and the waters of the world were surging in.
"I can sense your fears in your aura paths, young lord. Fear not, the first patriarch really developed this formation well. Just one thing, watch your step." Martha's words flowed into Mona's ears from in front. And just as Mona heard, he could see a thin layer of water flowing forward underneath their steps. It was thin and light, barely visible, the steps of their dash making little contact with the wet floor. It seemed like the worst of the water was being held back. But then why, why was the distant sound of walls crashing getting...faster?
The torches merged into a row in the rush of things. Andrey was still going strong in this endeavor, but Martha was showing slight signs of exhaustion. Alas, the sound of water disappeared from the outsides of the walls. The labyrinth formation had returned to within the earth. The stone shading had also changed, from their previous color to a lustrous black.
Mona's interest was peaked, but he sent the thought to the back of his mind. He couldn't break their concentration now.
A ways forward, a few figures came into view. Andrey fumed, his speed picking up rapidly, the aura becoming slightly visible to Mona. His water aura left a slight chill, making Mona aware of the sweat clinging to his forehead.
Far ahead, a few men were looking around, not yet visible of what to come. Their gear was bathed in red glows from the nearby lamps, their shadows stuck right beneath them. The beast of the Faulkners was proudly displayed on their chests, the eyes peering all over, behind them another section of broken wall awaited them.
"Rufus, what is this place?"
"Quiet down, you moron! Who knows who's watching?"
"Wait, who's there?"
Thankfully the three knights were still adjusting to the passageway. They didn't even see the attack. They didn't see as the ever so thin layer of Water mana rushed forth, like a net of blades, coating their entire bodies. For a second, the three men froze in place, before they fell apart, slabs of meat and flesh and bone and blood fell aplop. A new shade of red covered the darkened floor, slick with their fluids.
Andrey began to slow down. While Mona and Martha were keeping their original pace, the old man made quick work of their bodies. In a few moments, the old war veteran found what he wanted, putting the stack of scripts in his right hand, before returning to the sprint in the halls.
His eyes affixed on the papers, Andrey kept up with Mona and Martha. Eventually, the sound of Andrey filled the heads of the two.
"We need to change our pace. They are aware of the formation, and are carefully checking for weak points." The words entered the heads of Mona and Martha.
The sound of papers being shuffled came from Andrey's fingers.
"Nothing about the Lord of Aurum in these papers. Or any of the guests." The thoughts from Andrey's interception threw Mona in a bit of spin.
"Are there any ways we can take one of the alternate paths?"
"Lord Andrey, you seem to be rather aware of our house's inner workings." Martha was surprised that even this detail was in Andrey's memories.
"We don't have the time for this." He gestured with his eyes behind the three, the sounds of breakage steadily keeping up with their pace. Were they slowing down? Given how long they have been running, it's possible.
Lord Aurum gave out a short sigh. "Alright, listen. I am rather close with Signor, close enough to know a few things. At a later time, you can hear me regale the stories of your father and lord, you two. But right now, tell me, are there any alternate paths nearby?"
Martha grimaced a bit, focusing her attention to her mind. "At the next turn."
"Good." Mona watched Andrey return to laying down aura traps and magic formations behind them. His hand was casting skills in all sorts of directions. Time was of the essence, and when Andrey felt assured of his work, he returned his focus forward.
*****
Just as Martha said before, the incoming corner was approaching rapidly. The group began to slow down, lest they crash into the wall. The three came to a crawl standing in the corner. To the left was an ongoing hallway, much like what they saw before. The dull thud of scattered stone and dust was still coming up the pathway, the walls of the formation were being crumbled one by one. Martha took a few deep breaths, steading herself.
"Young lord, please follow the method I showed you earlier in channeling your Metal aura. It's not a formal technique, but it can help regain some of your strength." Martha had been able to regain her foothold. Mona nodded to Martha, freeing her to return to the wall. She stood before a lamp, her own aura being channeled in a particular fashion. The wall in front of her glimmered for a moment, recognizing her arrival. She gave one last glance to Mona, before getting to work. Tiredness oozed from her figure, her hands flashing with sigils along with the wall.
Before Mona could start, Andrey turned back to him. His hands were ripping apart at the scripts; their worth had run out. "Young lord of Aurum, hold on. We are close to a junction point, giving us a chance to scatter ourselves further. Are you holding up well?"
Mona gave a false murmur of agreement. He had begun to charge his aura. It flowed in from each of his ragged breaths, condensing in his abdomen, radiating into his blood stream, before gathering. Funneling, thinning into a steady strand of Metal energy, these wisps combined into a steady stream that rushed through the rest of their veins, easing his flesh and steeling his mind, the remaining bits of energy gathering into the ring around his heart. It had dimmed considerably in their run to this corner, and now was slowly regaining its luster. His mind relaxing, his concerns returned back to his father. Was he dead? The possibility seized him, the loneliness ready to pounce on his spirit.
Andrey could tell what Mona was thinking, but didn't say a thing. It was a given the child would try to keep a strong front. He knew plenty enough of Mona thanks to Signor, and could guess what was going on. But he didn't know how to console Mona with that thought of his. And he wasn't alone. Signor Aurum, are you already dead, unable to see him ascend? His mood had declined considerably. The time that passed was not short since Andrey last saw the duke.
"Keep your wits about you. Those dogs are getting closer by the minute." Andrey left Mona to those words, before he walked a tad backwards. His aura began to charge as well, taking in the Water energy in the area, creating a slight haze. Surprisingly, his hands were simultaneously casting a sigil spell as well, something stronger. The 4 surfaces around Andrey began to glisten with the gleam of old runic letters, stretching like a web with Andrey at the center. The temperature of the area fell by a noticeable amount, a slight chill crawling up Mona's flesh.
Mona was a bit drawn in by the scene, before he took one more glance at Martha. She had dropped to a half knelt position, sweat visible on her temples. The strength it took to keep up with the formation was quite excessive on her.
Hearing the looming crashes getting closer, Mona returned to practicing the informal technique Martha showed him. So far, he was a third of the way back to full, the ring in his heart flickering with a steely grey. If he had some time, maybe he could have learned more from his father on how to proceed down this path. Without his father, his family arts were effectively gone, and now he had to trudge through the path to mastery on his own. The thought of that void from that day now felt like a premonition to him.
34, 37, 40. The ring in his heart was gathering strength too slowly for Mona's liking. And even less likable were the sounds coming from further in the hallway. He could hear something else now. Mixed in between the collapsing walls of rubble and ruin. Surfing just above the light layer of water that had been filling these halls from the cove came the distant shouts of men.
Tired. Deathly. Enraged. The wheezing of whatever group was coming down the hall way was still a ways behind, but their arrival was imminent. Andrey furrowed his brows, ceasing his attempts to charge his rings, maximizing his attempts to affix the complicated magic sigil designs onto the surfaces of this corridor. They glimmer far more frequently now, flashing like a cascade of meteors flying through the night of a new moon. Bedazzling to say the least.
Martha's breathing had long grown heavy. Her posture reduced to that of a kneel, the sweat dripping more easily into the thin layer of cove water below her. Her clothing damp, her mind agonizing as the sigils before her were finally forming a shape, that of a door. It didn't seem long until the way through would be ready.
"Curses! It's done at last!" Andrey opened his shut eyes. His breathing returned to normal, his face a tad pale. The spell was set. He took a deep breath, exhaling his exhaustion as much as he could. Under Mona's alarmed watch, Andrey gestured his hands forward, his ring and thumb closed into each palm. A haze sprung up around. The chilliness disappeared almost instantly. Instead the air around the young lord felt dry, as if the humidity was stolen from each inch of the corner passageway. It gathered around Andrey, a fine mist dancing with joy around him. The mist became impenetrable, difficult to see through, and like a living thing it soared in the direction the trio of survivors had come from in the hall way. The last wall that had come down in their run disappeared, along with the walls of the corridor. It now looked like the hallway itself grew from this cloud, and nothing could be seen past.
The sounds of the crazed knights fell silent for a moment. Then a few light thuds began to echo out, before the sounds of suffocation came back to Mona's ears. Lord Andrey! The old man himself spoke before Mona could ask a thing.
"That spell won't take care of all of them." As soon as Andrey said those words, the fury of the opposite party rose to a new level. The walls were coming down faster. Before it seemed they were focusing on efficiency, taking cautious steps in the formation. Andrey's previous traps likely inspired this behavior.
But that was no more. The walls shuddered far more loudly now, albeit they did seem to fall slower, so perhaps Andrey's means did have its desired effect.
"Get up, young lord. It's almost time." Andrey stood before Mona, his hand outstretched. Mona returned his in turn, being pulled up from the wet stone; after all that running, he couldn't tell what had soaked his clothing more.
Standing before Martha, Mona tried to give her some of his Mana, but felt it blocked.
"N...n...no, y-young lord. S-save it." Martha was on the edge of her consciousness, the last of the sigils merging with the door on the wall. It gleamed a dark shine, as if it was absorbing the life from its creator. Until finally the last sigil reworked itself into the final missing piece of this door. The brilliant creation of Metal energy blinked, before it vanished. Right before the three, a stone wall rose, revealing a dark pathway within the wall, an ancient odor of dust wafting into the space.
"Can't have that hold us back." Andrey quickly threw out a single gesture, a layer of thin water holding the air of the pathway within the tunnel. "We can't afford to leave any traces."
Mona watched as Martha struggled to stand, before he rushed over to her side, helping her up. She heaved heavily, a few drops of blood falling and diluting in the water below, before being carried steadily down the path. "Haa...haaa...one moment..."
She lifted her hand uneasily, flashing another gesture with her hands. In front of her, a small orb of Metal energy, a Metal Ball, began to be gathered. Once it reached a decent amount, Martha groaned silently as another sigil was created with her free hand. Once this spell was done, it was cast atop the orb, the Metal Ball now carrying a significant rune Mona didn't recognize. With some of her remaining strength, Martha threw the ball of energy down the original pathway.
"We...can go now..." Martha stumbled a little forwards, before Andrey caught her, before carrying her in his back. The maid wanted to protest, but quickly felt the heaviness of her eyelids welcome sleep.
"She really gave it everything." Andrey said a few words, before gesturing for Mona to enter past the layer of mist. The smell of age and earth returned to his nose, his eyes swallowed in darkness. Behind Mona, Andrey stood on the other side of the water wall, entering in. The entrance swiftly sealed shut, noticing that Martha had passed to the other side. In darkness the pair stood.
"Reach into the side pocket of mine, and pull out the... orange piece of parchment, warm to the touch. Then, fill it with your aura." Andrey turned back to where Mona stood in the darkness, the young lord within the realm of his aura scene.
"Okay." Mona made his way to where Andrey's voice came from, before finding himself uncomfortably close to the man, but he wasn't aware. Lord Andrey's attention was somewhere else.
"Hurry." The words came like a whisper past Mona's ears.
He shuffled through his pocket, remarking inside for its size. He felt a few scrolls, before he felt the aforementioned heated piece of paper. Pulling it out, he couldn't see a thing in this dark pathway until he fed it a bit of his Aura. And alit it went, a small crackle as the bits of paper were burnt away, a steady reddish flame quietly feeding on Mona's aura.
"Good. Now stay silent." Andrey nodded to the familiar face peering into the miraculous flame, before returning his attention outside.
After a good thirty or so minutes moderate shuffling could be heard not too far away. Shouts. Stomping about as commands were made. A wall broke, and Andrey's face grew dark as he could hear things Mona's body couldn't hear with his limited range of aura.
"Arden of all men. Good. Perhaps the gods are on our side." Andrey face however didn't brighten at all. As Mona was finally able to hear the group of knights outside unknowingly miss them, rushing down the other hallway, Mona was left alone in confusion. Shouldn't we be glad? Those knights have left us...
Martha's eyes had slightly opened; her consciousness steadily restoring. The sound of those knights had awoken her from her nap, but the groggy maid still took time to check if Mona was safe. A weak outline of a smile greeted him back, as if to tell him she was doing great. Andrey used a bit of his aura to condense the dampness from their clothes, leaving the group dry but left with the stench of the age of this secret passage, mixed with the muck interlaced in their clothing.
"Bring yourself beside me, young lord." Andrey made room, just enough for the two to stand beside each other. The flame in Mona's hand gobbled at his Mana energy, but so little of it was gone that he barely felt a thing. The flame illuminated the path forward, a winding path that seemed to also steadily rise.
"Maid, where does this lead us?" The old Andrey resurfaced for a moment, ignoring Martha's condition.
"...A bit aways in the back of the estate. I think... near the stables? I'm sorry, I...can't think well right now." Martha took a labored breath, her appearance lacking the vigor she had before the pursuit.
"That's good enough. Come, young lord of Aurum. Let us see what waits for us beyond the dukedom estate." Andrey sighed, then began to take steps forward. His heavy expression didn't change, but he did began to accumulate his water energy once more. The surroundings had little of it, but he took what he could collect here.
Mona continued forth. Arden...Arden...let's not meet anytime soon. Mona was glad the worse option was now chasing a ball of Metal energy far away in vain, somewhere in the formation. Perhaps they were disgruntled and lost right now. His steps were steady, sometimes peering at Martha with care, the rest of time looking upwards toward the path in front.
He could only hope that not everything was lost, but his cadence told a different truth. Into the void he went, looking for answers once more.