“What are you talking about?” the handsome stranger asks.

I turn to my brothers, “Get him and his friends out of here. Arrest them and bring them to the royal dungeon. Maybe they know where other temples are.”

“Arrest us? No, we did nothing wrong. We aren’t-” The stranger gets cut off by Strider forcing his arms behind his back while Theon heads over to the others. Luckily they were a lot more compliant than the boy in Strider's arms.

As they head out of the pub and up the stairs, I turn to the other people. All of them stared at me for causing a scene on their peaceful day.

“Nothing to see here. Go on with your day,” I say.

I need them not to notice me as I find a place where I can burn this place down without anyone escaping. When I confirm that everyone is back into their conversations with one another, I head towards the bathroom. Maybe I can set something on fire there. It’s far enough from the door to create a distraction while I set the entrance on fire.

I walk into the bathroom as my mind races on how I am going to start a fire in here when I hear snarls and squeaks. I look up, losing my train of thought, and see my nightmare for the second time today. The old lady is slowly turning green while the veins that litter her entire body become deep purple.

“What? I brought the children to you. I did what you wanted Darkness. Please, what did I do wrong?” she sees me, “You, I knew you were trouble. You took those kids out of here.”

I realize what she is talking about. The stranger and his friends. Maybe they were supposed to do a mission together and she was supposed to bring them here so they can execute said mission.

The old lady twitches as her body turns fully green and her teeth become sharp and yellow. Her mouth opens but her voice doesn’t come out, instead someone I haven’t heard in centuries.

“My daughter, you can stop this awful war if you just join the side you were destined for. I can give you everything you ever wanted and need, after all, I am your father and I must provide for you.”

“You may have been a part of my creation but you will never be my father,” I spit out.

The old woman shrieks before she lunges at me. Taking me off guard, she was able to tackle me to the ground, but she couldn't keep me there long until I push her off of me and into the wall. I hear a bone on her back crack with the impact and she shrieks even louder but it doesn’t stop her from getting up and attempting to lunge at me again. This time I am prepared and pull out the Glint that is sheathed secretly at my ankle. Stepping to the side, I push the Glint into the old lady with one smooth motion. Her breath catches as a surprised look falls onto her face. She looks at me but I see nothing but an evil witch before me.

I pull out the Glint in a fast movement and with a thud the only falls to the ground. She isn’t there for long before her body quickly turns into dust.

“May Light shine upon you,” I whisper. She can’t be saved now but it is nice to think that maybe somewhere in the afterlife she can have a change in heart and follow Light.

I huff out a sigh of annoyance. This is the first time Darkness has used a human as a vessel to communicate with me. It probably won’t be the last time and because of that I am greatly annoyed.

I walk into a wooden stall in the bathroom. Perfect, I can set the wood on fire and carry on with the original plan. I put my hands on the wooden walls and throw a little spark on it, waiting for the wood to smoke up and the flames to come to life. Once I could feel the heat and smell the scent of charred wood I run out of the bathroom as if the fire was the scariest thing ever. I push the door open with so much force that everyone turns their heads to me.

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“Fire!” I scream, “Everyone get out!”

Screams chorus in front of me as a stampede of people hurry their way out of the underground pub. If anyone were to get trapped inside then there is no way they would survive. Luckily for me, the followers of Darkness condemn themselves to him and give their lives to him until death. Therefore, the followers of Darkness will not leave the temple and if they are a coward then they will be punished by Darkness which will help us find them easier to kill. It hit two birds with one stone.

I see the bartender going on his knees, praying to Darkness as if he will save his soul. He prays for special protection as if he is worthy of such treatment. It disgusts me.

I shake my head and run out of the bar before I am trapped under the ground. I won’t get killed but it will take me a very long time to dig myself out of the ground if it collapses on me. As I run out, I see my brothers taking the four betrayers back to the royal prison and running faster to catch up with them.

“Let us go,” the handsome stranger says.

“I will,” Theon replies, “When we are in a nice shaded and cold room where there are nice big metal bars to keep you in there.”

“Don’t worry, Xavier. It’s going to be okay. Trust me,” the girl with blond hair says to the handsome stranger.

Xavier.

That is the handsome name of the handsome stranger.

No, Orien, keep your head on the mission. Remember what happened when Theon fell in love with someone? You can’t let this happen to you.

If I feel like I would be devastated if Xavier were to die right now, I can not imagine what Theon went through when his wife passed away.

“Shh, everyone, even you Theon,” Strider commands.

Theon huffs and pouts while leading our prisoners towards the entrance of the castle. I tell my brothers to bring them to the prison and that I will meet up with them after I get Amelia. She deserves to know what is going on in her kingdom. After all, she is now the only one ruling it, therefore she should be there when we interrogate the prisoners. I send two guards to follow my brothers to make sure the prisoners don’t try any funny business.

I ask where Amelia and two different guards escort me to Chopver’s throne room. The throne room is about the same size as the one in Krosla’s castle. In here there are shades upon shades of green, from almost as white pale to almost too dark to be called green. Spread along the field of green are golden statues of mythical creatures next to past royal rulers. I walk to the edge of the dark green carpet where it meets two steps that lead up to three thrones. On the far one to the left sits Amelia looking exhausted. Standing next to her is Hammonet with his mouth zipped shut, not daring to interrupt his queen’s mourning.

“Your Highness.” I bow.

“Orien, what can I do for you?” Amelia says. The corners of her lips lift a little after realizing it is me.

“I have captured prisoners and have brought them to the royal prison if you would like to come with me to ask some questions.”

“What have you arrested them for and how many?”

“I have arrested four young adults. Seeming to be in their very early 20s and have arrested them for being in a temple of Darkness.”

Amelia’s eyes widen. “I thought we burned all of those down. Do you think this temple is the one that helped turn my poor husband?”

I look down, not sure how to respond. I neither confirm nor deny that is what happened to the king but I can certainly tell her that this is illegal and therefore there needs to be punishment.

Amelia quickly gets up from her throne, gestures to Hammonet to follow her, and races down the two steps. “Bring me to them.”