Zeke took a careful glimpse out of a corner of the hallway. He glanced left and right, noticing the new changes of the halls.
This time, the color changed gradually from a bright white to a dampening gray and black. It was as though it was starting to dim, like from daytime to evening dusk.
The hallways seemed to shrink as well, the ceilings and walls just a few feet high larger compared to the stories wide size. If he had to guess, they somehow ended up in the inner section of the castle.
Noticing no danger in sight, he turned to his new companions that he found right after waking up in this strange place. A young woman named Mikella walked forward, grasping the ten year old named Clara by the hand as she did so. The little girl, being brave as she is, kept quiet under Mikella’s order, and made sure not to make any sound.
Zeke couldn’t be more impressed. As far as he knew about children, they were always loud, always crying when they didn't get their way. With Mikella like this, he expected at some point that Clara would start sobbing, if just a bit quietly.
But she didn’t even start crying. Her round brown eyes were still wet from earlier, but she held onto Mikella’s hand without faltering. If he were to guess, she was the mature type among her kid friends, and perhaps a bit more shy and not very outgoing.
That couldn’t be more appreciated at this time. As they made their way through, they spent about half an hour traversing the castle halls. As he promised, Zeke would be the first to enter into a new area, which could have the people responsible for their kidnapping.
People that could be dangerous and could turn a weapon at him for leaving his supposed place back there. Then again, he was starting to doubt that a normal kidnapper got them there at all.
Who would just kidnap someone and then leave them there on the floor in a castle? No matter how much he tried to run the logic behind it, all he could think was that he was somehow teleported to some random place and ended up on the floor by falling onto it. That would also explain why his body was sore.
Even now, there were aches traveling all across his body. It didn’t make sense either, even with his earlier logic. His body hurt everywhere, including some places where it shouldn’t hurt, like his fingernails and even his hair.
It was a strange feeling. The more he traversed, the more he realized how his body was feeling. If he were to guess, he could possibly be drugged during his sleep. But if that was the case, would they go so far enough to drug a child?
He turned his head, asking in a low voice. “Mikella, do you still feel sore?”
She nodded. “Yeah, it’s strange. I’m usually fit so this shouldn’t bother me. It’s like everything hurts…”
“Even the stuff that shouldn’t? Like your hair and nails?” Zeke asked, hoping that it wouldn’t sound strange. But that caught her attention as she widened her eyes at him.
“You too…?”
“Shit,” Zeke cursed. “What did they do to us while we were out?”
“Oh god… did they drug us?” Mikella’s voice became tinged in panic, her eyes beginning to widen even more.
“That’s what I was thinking,” Zeke said, his own worries magnifying.
“Clara,” Mikella asked the girl beside her, looking up to her big sister. “How do you feel? Do you feel any pain or anything uncomfortable?”
Despite being so little, Clara shook her head in absolution. “No, Sissy… It doesn’t hurt.”
“Ooh, that’s good…” Mikella let out a relieved breath. Zeke did the same, which meant that whoever kidnapped them didn't go so far as to include Clara into whatever the hell they did to them.
Still, it didn’t help his anxiety as he crept forward with the girls, using his body as a shield for any potential threats. As he kept turning corners, entering into new hallways and locations, he found a wooden door on the other side.
It was a fairly ancient door, with an old fashioned gold-tinged knob with elaborate markings on it. There was even a big keyhole meant for those classic keys rather than the small modern ones.
Studying it, he turned to Mikella. “I’m going to open the door. I wanna see if there’s anything here we can use.”
“Like, a weapon or something?” Mikella asked, tilting her head.
“I’d rather have something in hand while we're here, if you know what I mean.”
Zeke hoped she did, because he didn’t want her to think that he’s a casually violent person. To his relief, she nodded in understanding.
Grasping onto the golden knob and turning it, he thanked his lucky stars that it wasn’t locked. The door opened the hinges wide as he pushed on through.
Inside was a decorated room, furnished to fit royalty. Plenty of lavish designs and furs on every corner of the room. Strange abstract paintings hung on the walls, but none of them made sense to his rattled mind. He could tell they gave a foreboding feel, though.
He held his hand up to Mikella, letting him enter first. Not that he found anybody in this strange small room, but it was better for him to go first just to be safe.
He kept searching the room, finding something strange. A wooden rack at the corner of the room, filled with actual weapons. On that rack were two weapons; an axe and a sword.
He widened his eyes. He knew this place looked medieval, but to actually find weapons was beyond his expectations. Looking around, he noticed that nothing of value was there outside of the weapons. He approached them, leaving the girls to follow him in since there was no trouble to be found.
“A-Are those weapons?” Mikella asked in surprise. Zeke could only affirm with a grunt as he picked up a weapon.
He took the axe first and lurched downwards from the heft of it.
“Holy shit, this is heavy…!” He heaved, lifting the heavy axe up into the air. After making a careful adjustment to his grip, he finally managed to hold it with ease.
It was definitely heavy, possibly around forty or even fifty pounds, especially at the head of the axe where most of the nearly glistening metal was. The axe seemed well-designed, the markings on the flat of the blade nearly the same as the markings of the door knob, elegant and flourishing.
It felt more like a noble’s weapon than for some warrior on the battlefield. After putting the center point of the axe down on the ground, he also picked up the sword.
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Thankfully, it wasn’t as heavy as he hefted it up and down. He realized that this might be perfect for someone with less muscles.
Though hearing what Mikella said earlier, perhaps it was better that she gets the axe? After careful consideration, it was better that he had it. After all, if this sword is easy to carry, then she can also carry Clara who seemed reluctant on leaving Mikella. Not that he’d blame the poor child; who would go on their own in a place like this?
“Mikella, take this sword,” Zeke asked, holding out the sword to her.
“What?!” Mikella exclaimed. “You’re kidding me! I can’t take that!”
“I-It would be better for you to have something,” Zeke stuttered. He was taken aback by her sudden refusal. “I’ll still be in front with the axe, but this would be just in case something happens to me.”
“I mean… yeah… I guess…”
Mikella was reluctant, looking at the sword in trepidation, then back at him. Much like the axe, it was fairly presentable. The blade was bigger than his entire arm. It was a simple diamond-tipped blade with a cross guard sticking out of the base, though he wasn’t sure whether it would actually protect the user’s fingers.
Not that Zeke would know how swords worked. The only reason why he would know at all is due to game knowledge alone.
Conquering that fear with a resolute nod, Mikella stepped forward and grabbed the sword from Zeke. Holding it in both hands, she gripped it tight as she lifted the blade of the sword high and swung it down to check its weight. After doing some careful swings, avoiding hitting anyone around them, Mikella pressed her lips together.
“It feels… nice, I guess,” She commented. “Though I really hope I don’t have to use it.”
“Whoa…”
Clara, who had been quiet this whole time, remarked at her sister swinging the sword. Even Zeke had to agree that it was cool to look at.
He smiled at the interaction before he spotted something at the door. He left the door open and the girls didn’t close it, so when he saw something approaching them through the opening, his eyes widened and his mouth gaped.
“That…” His voice was tinged in panic as he kept staring at the thing approaching. “That might happen sooner than you think.”
Zeke immediately pulled Mikella away from where she was, surprising her along with Clara who was stuck to her like glue. When she reacted with a yelp, she glowered back at him; only to instantly screech at the sight.
“W-What is that?!”
The screech didn’t help, especially since now it’s proof that he’s not the only one seeing it. The thing that was approaching them looked like a man fully covered in heavy plated armor. It was a sort of medieval suit of armor, with an equally medieval styled helmet that covered the entire head. It even had a visor used to adjust for better sight. It was open, but there were no eyes within the helm, possibly too dark to see into.
What was even more frightening was that the man in armor wasn’t just approaching them. He had a sword in hand, his other hand free but seemingly hovering in front of him as though to grapple anything they’d throw at him. They saw a living knight coming after them, seemingly thinking of them as invaders.
The knight approached Zeke who stood at the front and swung his sword at him. He yelped, backing himself away from the sword’s edge. It sliced the air, whizzing by his face and nearly cutting him in half had he just stayed there.
The sword crashed against the nearby empty shelf. It crashed, the sword destroying the wood and with ease. It sounded like a gunshot throughout the silence of the room, causing the girls behind him to scream. Zeke only stared, mesmerized that he even had the ability to actually move his ass.
His mind was washed in white to try and find a way out of here. Now that danger has arrived, he has to do what he promised. But after seeing this knight with an actual weapon on hand, strong enough to crush a wooden shelf in one swing, his legs were shaking.
He was actually going to fight a freaking knight with an axe in his hand? But he could get stabbed with that sword. Hell, he didn’t even have any armor to protect himself with.
Nobody would blame me for being scared, right?
His palms were sweating, and his hands were shaking.
Actually, why the hell am I doing this? I could just run away, no problem!
His heart was beating so loud, not even the sound of the approaching knight’s clanking metal greaves reached his ears.
Who cares about a bunch of people I just met today? Why do I have to be the one to do this?!
His breathing was rampant. His mind was whirling.
Who would care? After all, there were only just the three here. If he left them, nobody would know what happened, right?
But… isn’t that why he has to care? Because nobody else could?
Despite the core part of his survival instincts telling him to dump everything and run for the hills, he charged instead.
His axe swung upwards, roaring at the knight. As he expected, the knight swung back at the supposed invader, and the two metal weapons clashed.
A sharp twang of steel echoed, and Zeke’s arms quivered at the weight. The knight won out, causing his horrifically aimed axe to pivot upwards, his arms up wide.
The knight soon thrust his sword forward, ready to maim him. But Zeke rolled to the side, almost crashing to the ground to avoid the hit. The axe left his hand, but he soon grabbed it back, his heart soon settling its rampant beating to a steady rhythm.
He found it easy to just not think for now. Just swing his axe and avoid the sword. Easy.
At least, he hoped it was. He swung his axe again, this time aiming for the underside of the knight’s left arm. The knight didn’t react in time, still reeling from his thrust. The axe edge dug deep into the armpit, and it was just torn off with a hard clang.
But there was no blood. The heavily armored limb just fell to the ground. He stepped away, amazed that no blood was found. But he soon realized why there wasn’t any.
Because there was no limb attached to the armored arm. It was literally hollow inside.
“There isn’t a guy inside the armor?”
Zeke said aloud, noticing once again the inside of the now open hole where the left arm was supposed to be. Inside was just a cavernous darkness, seemingly nothing inside but more hollow metal.
The knight, however, didn’t stop. Once it recovered, the knight used its remaining arm to swing the sword at him. But after losing the arm, its body jumbled as it needed the other arm for support. Zeke avoided it with ease, but was still amazed that it was able to move.
Now he realized something more terrifying. The suit of armor was moving on its own.
What the fuck is going on here?!
Zeke prepared himself as the knight continued to bash its sword at him. Thanks to its strange lack of balance, Zeke managed to keep up with the knight’s assaults. He kept defending blow after blow, making sure to keep away from the girls by his peripheral. He was actually amazed at his ability to keep up with the surroundings as he dueled the knight.
This feels more and more like a damn video game! It’s really not helping the idea that this might all be just a delusion in my head.
He really hoped it’s not. He didn’t mind the idea that this nightmare scenario was just in his head, but it felt too damn realistic to be fake. That would mean that he’s in need of some serious mental help.
But he also wasn’t keen on the idea of checking whether dying to this knight’s attack would get him out of this strange delusion. And what about the girls? This all felt too real.
Strangely, his mind continued this cycle of whether it was real or not, still fighting the knight by defending its strikes. Despite his hardest, Zeke was too late to do a proper counter attack. The knight recovered from its lack of balance and now was trying to murder him as before.
When he got distracted by that thought, the knight jammed his fingers with the gauntlets, causing Zeke to yell out in pain. The axe dropped and clattered harshly on the ground, his fingers aching and bleeding from the cuts made by the sharp gauntlets’ steel.
But that alone was enough. The knight readied another thrust, too fast for Zeke to dodge away this time. Zeke readied himself for a possible headless end, but to his surprise, something else came straight for his head.
A sword pierced through the base of the knight’s helmet, causing the empty helmet to fall to the ground. The sword just barely pierced Zeke’s head, the tip of the blade scratching the tip of his nose as sharp pain shot through it.
Zeke gave a reasonably unmanly shriek at the sight of the sword. He fell over on his ass, his whole body shaking from the real close death.
“Aaah! S-Sorry!”
Looking behind from the now headless knight, Mikella shouted in worry. Her hands were clutching onto the sword with her life, pulling it back to her side.
Just like that, the knight just fell over to the ground now that it didn’t have a head. It fell with a loud thud, leaving the now headless and armless knight completely still.