There seemed to be a common theme amongst fantasy literature that suggested that a truly brave and courageous man could resist the agonizing pain of torture and refuse to give the torturer the pleasure of screaming. The torturer would grow angry and apply more and more punishment in which the victim would just smile in victory and pass out at the right moment, denying his captor the satisfaction of breaking his victim.
Zuken called bullshit on that one.
Torture hurt. It really, really hurt. It especially hurt when the torturer was a being that held a penchant for misery and a sadistic edge that made sociopaths look like naughty kids. When he was being tortured, Zuken considered it a smart move to avoid what pain he could over puffing up his pride. Ultaf didn’t need any more incentive to hurt him.
He was distantly aware that he was screaming in agony but it didn’t matter to him. He was above pain, beyond pain, his mind hovering just far enough from his body to be aware of its actions. Every bit of his mental concentration was being used to hold together this ancient psionic technique that he had learnt from a recluse in the Baramunz kingdom that could safely transfer his thoughts and memories away from him, and yet maintain a metaphysical link that he could use to get them back without frying his brain. It was like he could see his own body before him, his skin all frost-bitten and blue from the freezing, cold air, and his digits missing, reddened frozen stumps for fingers and toes. He was missing all the hair on his body, and that made him feel a tad queasy and he couldn’t have that.
Any loss of concentration and he’d come rushing back into his battered body.
It had happened a few times before. Zuken would like to claim that it took hours for Ultaf and his men to break his mental hold but he was kidding himself. In less than a minute, the psions had reached into his head and dragged him back into the agonizing world of real life — and fuck, it hurt so badly. Ity only reaffirmed his position here in this prison. Ultaf was playing with him, testing and prodding him like a small child might do to an injured bug before squashing it.
He became aware that his screaming had stopped, and immediately drifted back in close enough to pick up his external senses. Ultaf didn’t like it when he talked to him and received no answer and demonstrated his displeasure accordingly. Immediately, his vision swam, the walls of the prison fading in and out of focus, and his entire body throbbing with pain. It was painful, but only a fraction of what he really should be feeling. He took deep breaths, one after the other, in and out, in and out as his turbulent emotions swam to the foreground. Panic, fear and unbridled rage assaulted him from all directions and he was barely aware of his body thrashing about.
And then the strangest thing happened, as a weird energy surged from the back of his head and into his chest, while his muscles went limp. A feeling of utter exhaustion, fright and at the same time, euphoric exultation filled him, the various illusions dancing upon threads of his will, demanding his complete focus and attention. He choked, and wondered if he was about to die.
It’s me, said a masculine voice that he didn’t recognize. Don’t fight me.
A sudden warmth flooded into his body, and his lifeforce suddenly blazed up like wildfire. The lifeforce-suppressing manacles could not restrain it, or perhaps they were simply unable to. The power doubled, and then doubled again, seeking to cool and comfort, but behind that was something different, yet equally familiar. Not merely soothing but healing…
And then his eyes snapped open.
His neck moved by its own volition, and Zuken didn’t resist. His eyes took in his surroundings, at his own broken, tormented form, at the torture chamber he was tied to. His thoughts turned to his recent interactions with Ultaf, though after flickering through several memories of him listening to his boorish self-righteous tones while having his men torture him, other memories rose to the forefront of his mind, memories connected to his current condition by tenuous connections he didn’t immediately understand.
He remembered asking Elena to obscure his memories as always, and to allay Olfric into following her. He remembered the psions pulling off information about Tanya being stranded in the borderland owned by the svartalfars, him flaming mindless rage among the svartalfars that provoked them to destroy the Well and bring wrath upon the Shimizu. He remembered his meeting with Ultaf in his own office, refusing to accept that Tanya was the same Shimizu princess Ultaf had paid him to search for. Finally, the strange presence withdrew, and Zuken reasserted his mental shields while simultaneously suppressing the sudden burst of anger he felt at this strange presence meandering through his mind.
“It has been quite some time now,” came Ultaf’s voice.
Zuken shuddered in fear. Had that presence been… Ultaf?
No, whispered the voice. Where… where are you?
Meanwhile, Ultaf slid into view, his eyes gazing upon Zuken’s battered form almost fondly. “I’ll admit, Banksi, your perseverance is rather… endearing. I’m enjoying this.”
He leaned forward, his rotten breath on his face, and smiled. “It is all for nothing, Banksi. I know that the girl houses all your secrets. You think that so long as she is out of reach, I cannot kill you. But guess what, I hired the best of the best to find her. Lady Kandra herself. She found out about the Creature, didn’t she? You went through so much to keep her safe, but to what end?”
He grabbed his chin tightly, twisting his fingers into the raw wound tearing down his left cheek. “She has found the changeling. They are bringing her to me as we speak. Just watch, Banksi. After she has undone her obscurations, I will strangle her neck myself. I have won, Banksi, and there is nothing, nothing you can do that will change that.”
Zuken couldn’t help himself. He laughed. It hurt and it felt wonderful.
“You’re —” he coughed. “You’re lying.”
Ultaf went very still, and took a step back. Fire flickered in his eyes, cold and angry. “...What?”
A sense of satisfaction surged through Zuken. “If you had Elena, you’d have her here, ripped my mind and be done with it. Not boast like a fool.”
“Has your stay here taught you nothing, Banksi? Do you wish to be dead? I can inflict horrors upon you to create legends that last a decade.”
He didn’t flinch. “I think you’ve got too much on your plate already, Ultaf. Lord Naowa won’t stop until he has your head. You exterminated a race that crafts our Wells, you buffoon. And you still don’t have a clue about Tanya. Not even my blessed Father can help you now.”
Zuken spit out blood as he laughed. “My family threw me out because I was weak. But look at me now, without lifeforce, without mana, imprisoned and tortured, and yet, I set things in motion that brought down the end of a Sacred Clan. Thanks to you, Ultaf, I have become strong. And that’s how I know I have won.”
He met Ultaf’s eyes. “And that’s why you’re lying to me about Elena. Because you’re a coward. Because you’re weak. Because you’re afraid someone will break into this place and free me.”
“Free you from here? This is the Peak, you fool. Forget saving you, no one can even get into here alive without my permission.”
“Really,” asked Zuken. “And why is that? Go on, you’ve got to tell me, Ultaf.”
“I do?”
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“It’s… tradition,” Zuken managed with a tight grin. “Whenever the hero… gets captured by the bad guy… the bad guy always tells them about how nobody will find him… so that the good guy can find a way out and escape.”
Ultaf stared at him and Zuken waited for the pain he might inflict upon him. Then, to his surprise, Ultaf tossed his head back and laughed in pure amusement.
“You are amusing, Banksi. Just this once, I will entertain you. This is the Peak, my grandfather’s stronghold. The heart of Shimizu territory in the Northern Dominion, and protected by my grandfather’s invincible army. To come here is to die.”
That infernal grin again. “Now then,” said Ultaf. “You have my location. I eagerly await your attempts to foil them.”
And with that, Ultaf turned around and walked away. Had he looked back, he’d have noticed that his prisoner’s eyes were not their usual brown, but an unearthly green.
----------------------------------------
To say that Lukas was pissed was to say that Everfrost was cold.
As soon as he was done, Lukas held out his hand, and conjured a shard of featherglass, and closed his eyes. The shard glowed an eldritch blue, before returning to its normal shade. He handed it to Tanya, and stood up. No more words, not even a look at anyone’s eyes. Instead, he just walked past everyone, but not before glaring at the skinwalker that made it a point to stay a certain distance away from him lest she accidentally provoke him into doing something unfortunate. She was fully aware of how unsettled Lukas looked, and her own role in the current state of affairs.
That wasn’t to say that Solana was afraid for her life. Far from it. Maybe a lasting injury or two, or perhaps genuine permanent damage, but even that would be absolutely pointless. She had crossed more lines with her plan involving Tanya and Lukas had stayed from killing her then. He wouldn’t lose his cool and try to kill her for helping Ultaf Shimizu in the first place.
But that didn’t mean she’d needlessly make things worse.
She crafted a three-dimensional conjuration of the memory, much like she had done with the attack on Zuken Banksi’s mansion earlier. Not a single one left the room until the memory had finished playing, only to stare at Solana with various degrees of apprehension and animosity.
“So….” said Tanya finally. “You told Ultaf about me. You’re responsible for the attack on Zuken.”
Solana met her glacial eyes with her dark ones. “I have dealt with various groups in the Empire for centuries. In return, I gain knowledge of places where I can access food, and resources. Places where my kind can requisition resources for our survival. It helps us direct attacks, sometimes directly, and at times, through proxy.”
“That’s just ridiculous,” claimed Olfric.
“Reality is stranger than fiction, Asukan.”
“Why did you attack Zuken?” asked Tanya.
“It was just a side bet, to be frank,” said Solana unrepentantly. “I expected with the Shimizu after you, Banksi would no longer choose to get involved. Honestly, the moment the Outsider entered my lair with you, that plan became unnecessary. I certainly didn’t expect the Shimizu to attack Banksi’s mansion.”
“How are we going to get Zuken back?” asked the changeling at last.
“Zuken made him say it, didn’t he?” asked Olfric. “The Peak. In the Northern Dominion. It’s close to the border between Eaborid Kingdom and Baramunz, and a no-trespass zone.”
“Because of its Shimizu property?” asked Maude.
“No,” growled Tanya. “Because it's dangerous. A world of ice, with ever-constant stormy clouds raining lightning upon the terrain, with vast icy chasms and crevasses. The entire place has one large snowstorm cocooning it. Layers of mysteries and illusions interwoven more delicately than embroidery, and every single step assures you that you are moving to your doom. Your eyes fool you, your instincts fool you, and death traps lie in wait for you to make a single mistake. It’s like one giant anomaly in itself…. Maybe it even is. All we know is that the Wind King sealed the entire area from outside interference. And there are… himthursars, abominables, frost-wolves, you call it. And that’s ignoring the most dangerous monster of all — my grandfather.”
The room was dead silent for well over a minute as its occupants digested the information. Even Solana, who was pale to begin with, looked practically cadaverous.
“Well…” Olfric was the first to speak up. “...shit.”
Elena didn’t say anything. Instead she just scrunched into herself, and looked at Solana. “How are we going to save Zuken?”
“I personally believe it's worth playing the long game here,” said Solana. “Ultaf Shimizu shall not kill your friend until they have lost everything. And that means we still have enough time until the Shogun —”
“Solana,” Tanya cut her off bluntly. “I understand the situation, and I understand what your intentions were. And yes, I also know that Lukas wants you alive for some reason. But I want to know if you ever try this shit on me again…”
Glacial eyes bore straight into her jet black ones.
“I will kill you.”
It wasn’t a promise. It was an eventuality. Regardless of how vast the difference in skill and experience between them and how much time it took, the girl would bring that idea into reality should Solana push her luck once more.
The skinwalker felt the slightest, meager facsimile of a chill run down her spine at the vow. And she smiled.
Despite the girl lacking in fortitude or direction, despite her past and her dependance on the Outsider, it appeared that the Outsider had been right after all.
This girl could be the next Queen.
“I assure you, girl, I know better than to doubt your dedication and your vows.”
Tanya didn’t say anything, maintaining her stare for several more seconds before huffing and closing her eyes once more.
“Maybe I should get Aguilar to come —” began Olfric, but Tanya cut him off.
“Don’t,” she said. “Let him be. I fear his ire has peaked to an almost unmanageable plateau. It’s… concerning.”
Pissed to the point that even the girl herself was worried. That was not a good sign.
“Why?” asked Olfric, frowning. “I mean I’d understand if the Shimizu had abducted you, but this is Banksi. He and Banksi were… associates at best.”
“At face value, that’s the case, yes,” said Tanya despondently. “But you’re overlooking one critical detail. Lukas saw through Zuken’s memories, and what he did to protect mine and keep his identities secret. There’s a debt, and Lukas can cross every limit to resolve it.”
“Shit. He’s really going to try and break Zuken out of that place, isn’t he?” Olfric paled, coming to the worst and likely conclusion given the circumstances. And Solana agreed. If there was one thing even she could count on the Outsider to have in extreme situations like this, it was tunnel vision. A hyper pin point focus that allowed him to bear through her own machinations, and win an unwinnable fight against herself and Empress Meynte.
“He’s probably doing that now for all we know.” Maude lazily waved her hand, only to pause as everyone else in the room began to pale. “Eh… I was joking.”
“By Wind, he is planning on breaking into the Peak and assassinating my grandfather as we speak,” Tanya muttered as if coming to terms with a cold reality that she didn’t want to believe was true. “We’ve got to stop him before he does anything reckless.”
“I’m pretty sure you can stab him with Everfrost all over and paralyze him temporarily until he’s calmed down enough to act logically,” Solana suggested with a completely serious face.
“Won’t work,” said Maude with an equally grave expression. “The Empress tried that. He just burned his frozen arm and regrew a new one.”
“You’re right,” said Olfric. “He did that in the anomaly too. Perhaps take him out completely?”
“I can paralyze him,” suggested Maude. “He wouldn’t even know what was happening.”
“We’re not stabbing him with Everfrost, or paralyzing him either,” Tanya snapped, pretending to ignore the slight pang of childish disappointment from Maude.
“I’d heal him back.”
The sad thing was that Solana highly suspected that the oni was being serious about the paralyzing bit.
“Please be serious about this,” said Tanya. “Why don’t we just try talking to him about this before deciding to do something ridiculous? We know where Zuken is, and we know they are going to keep him alive —”
“Suffering horribly every waking moment but alive,” Maude pointed out.
“Not helping,” Tanya muttered. “Can we not… you know, pass this information to Lord Naowa? He’s the Shogun, and the Shimizu are on slippery ground as it is. Maybe if he can get permission from the Empire, they can get him out?”
Before any of them could say anything, a subtle chill went up their collective spines, as Lukas Aguilar entered the room.
Solana was impressed with the raw desire to murder that flooded the room. It felt less like something a person could possibly produce, and more like a genuine, malicious curse, not unlike the one emanating from the Desert above.
“We need more of those memories,” said Lukas Aguilar. He looked at Elena. “You are coming with me and Tanya tomorrow. I need every bit of information about the Peak if we’re to take it by storm, and I’m not content to let Zuken suffer until then. So, tomorrow, Tanya and I are going to meet the Shogun of the Llaisy Kingdom and use what we know to our benefit.”
He looked at the faces around him, and sighed. “I see, you’ve arrived at the same conclusion then.”
“To the Zwaray Keep,” said Solana.
Lukas paused, and looked at her. “The Keep? But I thought —”
“The svartalfars are gone, yes,” said Solana. “And ever since then, Lord Naowa has been staying there, with the rest of his entourage. Rumor is, they are doing their best to reactivate the Well. If you want to meet the Shogun, that is the place you’ve got to be. I can… set things up, if you want.”
“Don’t think this changes anything.”
“I wouldn’t dare,” said Solana coolly.
Lukas’s glare stayed on for another few seconds, before he turned around and left.
----------------------------------------