Just as Jazz had promised, he found them effortlessly. He even made it inside the room, though none of them had seen any of the many doors decorating the walls open. Soral decided not to question it. He still wasn’t confident on exactly what it meant for him to be a kitica. Luckily, he seemed to know exactly where he was going, but the path that a cat naturally took was not really made for people.

They were able to push their way through the crates somehow without being caught, but had to run to keep up with Jazz as he zigzagged down the hallways. Before they knew it they had slipped past the place they had come in from and entered some kind of display room. Or what had been one.

It was complete mayhem. Whatever items had been displayed were shattered and scattered in a mixed up mess on the floor. The guests in the room were pleading with a silver haired man as he tossed one of the few items left in one piece between his hands. Of course, that man was Storm, and Storm was clearly enjoying himself.

In front of all of the guests were two men, one of which Soral recognized as Gero. The other man wore an all black working outfit of some kind with thick gloves. Whoever he was, he seemed especially calm next to the frantic Gero.

“Get out you filthy pest!” Gero shouted, “Why is this blasted collar not working?!”

Upon closer inspection, Storm had a thin silver collar around his neck. Did he really need it removed if it did nothing to him in the first place? Then again, it couldn’t be comfortable to have a collar on your neck, useless or not.

“Just a moment ago you were saying that this was your final mercy,” Storm mocked, “I had no idea you were quite this merciful.”

Soral held back a laugh at that, barely muffling it as a snort. Unfortunately it was enough to draw attention to them, and the fact Janon was with them. As Gero whipped around he seemed to realize what was really going on. This was probably bad, but Soral didn’t dare open a portal, and he wasn’t confident he could teleport Storm without touching him.

Ruena stepped forward, eyeing the space between them and Storm, and the men who stood in the way. “I don’t think Storm can move,” she whispered.

He couldn’t move? Soral looked again and noticed it. Perhaps it wasn’t that he was immune to the collar, but that the collar had a different effect on him. Once they made eye contact, Storm gave him a small nod as if to confirm his thoughts were correct. This was a little extra bad, then. If Storm couldn’t come to them, they would have to go to him.

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“Janon, return to your room,” Gero ordered, focusing in on his son.

“No,” Janon refuted, “I will no longer obey your orders.” He tried to stand strong, but unconsciously shifted slightly behind them at his father’s glare.

Ruena took another step forward. “We are just here to rescue Janon,” he told Gero, “We will spare your trade if you let us take him.”

The man in the black work clothes began to laugh. “You? What could you possibly do to this place? Or are those talents behind you your loyal minions that you have prepared to sacrifice?” He took steps forward of his own and reached out to grab Ruena’s arm that she had outstretched to threaten Gero.

Soral stiffened as Ruena barely reacted in time and pulled back. He didn’t like the confident smile on the man’s face as he kept talking.

“Now, don’t be difficult. I only want to help you,” he told her, “I have always thought it such a pity that the only heir of the great Alodan Duchy is a powerless runt. I can fix you.”

Disgusting. The way he looked at her made Soral’s skin crawl, and Ruena seemed to agree with the sentiment. The contempt in his tone reminded him of Doc, but his contempt was aimed in a different direction.

“No thanks,” Ruena told him, “I don’t need any magic or powers.”

“You think so now, while they willingly follow your lead. What about the first time they disagree? Will they look down on your opinion as someone who can’t do anything anyway? A helpless damsel playing hero.”

Soral felt his magic swelling within him as the man’s words filled him with fury. He wanted him to disappear. Just like Doc. Should he say that na-

“Now!” Janon shouted, snapping Soral away from the dark plans and definitely bad ideas forming in his mind.

Instead of saying a certain forbidden name, Soral spread his magic wide, attacking every collar he could find. There were hundreds. No, thousands that he could feel. That did nothing to stop the wave of magic he sent out, sending out all of his earlier fury out with it.

He was only focused on one collar as he grabbed Ruena’s hand and pulled her back to the others. In a moment, once his collar clattered to the floor, Storm was beside them. There was no need to hesitate. Soral took them back home.

==========

A powerful wave of magic pulsed through the room, and the intruders vanished in the moments after it passed. Gero was furious, but that fury slowly sunk into fear as he heard the collars in the room fall to the ground with a clatter. The collars on display broke to bits. That was all Gero had time to notice before everything fell to complete mayhem.

Slaves turned on those who had owned them moments before. Beasts he had caged and collared broke free and rampaged blindly. Any item that had escaped Storm’s path of destruction was soon lost to the chaos.

“This is quite the unfortunate turn of events,” his associate mused, unbelievably calm despite the situation, “I’m afraid you likely won’t survive this.”

“Sir Blacksmith?” Gero asked. He had a feeling the man was going to abandon him here. He only cared for his greater pursuit; creating the perfect living weapon.

“Goobye, Gero,” Blacksmith said, and walked off through the showroom turned battleground with an effortless strut, not a single attack moving his way.

As he watched him leave, Gero snapped to his senses. No one had attacked him yet, but soon every person in this room would have a reason to kill him. Luckily he had a few escape routes prepared for this very situation. It would be a shame to abandon the trade he had worked so hard to create, but he couldn’t do anything if he was dead.

Soral, and that Alodan brat had done this. He would bide his time and reclaim what was his. Until then, he needed to be sure no one else could enter this place again once they left it or all would be lost. There were secrets here he could not afford to be found.