The moment Liam finds himself in the kingdom situated at the 32nd floor, the kind of weight which is heavy and oppressive encompasses him. The once resplendent castle town is now a corpse-like husk. Streets which should have been alive by the constant murmur of people are eerily quiet, and sometimes the sound is broken by the occasional quiet whinny of a horse or a barely audible whisper of fear. Shadows seemed to lengthen, darken, as if alive.
As Liam stealthily walked through the street, cloaked to avoid observation, deep instincts told him that something terribly, terribly wrong was happening. Caught a few glimpses of citizens with vacant, haunted eyes; guards patrolling the kingdom weren't the same as ordinary soldiers-everyone bore some strange mark of dark energy glowing faintly beneath their armor.
"What in the hell happened here?" muttered Liam, gripping on the hilt of his sword as Nyx, walking beside him in a low form, growled softly in agreement.
Suddenly an sharp whistle echoed in the square and soon followed a very heavy pounding of boots. Liam turned to see an entire battalion of soldiers charging towards him. Before he could react, magical chains of shadow erupted from the ground to ensnare him.
"What—?!"
"Seize him! The king demands it!" barked the lead guard, his voice cold and hollow.
Liam fought back, struggling against the unnatural bindings but their magic overwhelmed even his strength. Nyx snarled, leapt to attack but a surge of dark energy shot from one of the guards, slamming Nyx into the ground. Liam watched helplessly as his companion was also restrained, the shadows coiling around Nyx's body like serpents.
"Damn it... Not again." Liam gritted his teeth as he was dragged toward the castle.
The Castle: A Grim Revelation
The grand hall of the castle where once Liam was brought in chains and bounds no longer bore glory; it was like a temple of darkness, instead of something regality. All the tattered banners hung untidily, and heavy air weighed with dark magic. On the throne- one that he had saved for the youngest prince on the previous floor-sat the princess who had now become the new ruler.
It was chilling to see her. Dark energy emanated from her, and her often kind and intelligent eyes glimmered faintly with malice. The royal allies, who once supported the youngest prince, were now standing beside her like faithful dogs. They looked alive but their faces held eerily blank expressions, understandable in motion, as if their wills were no longer their own.
It tore Liam's heart.
"Welcome back to my kingdom. I'm impressed--you survived far longer than I anticipated." The words softly rang in the princess's voice, deceptively calm.
Liam gazed up at her. "You're the one behind this, aren't you? The Harbingers of Ruin. The dark magic. This was your plan all along."
The princess gave a sneering smile and got up from the throne. Her gown trailed behind her like a shadow; every step she took seemed to cast a shadow over the room. "Oh Liam, it was so easy. You fought so hard to 'save the kingdom', and yet you handed it right into my grasp. While you played hero on the last floor, I was preparing for the true conquest."
It brightened sharply in her glare, and she added in the assembled bitter chill, "All your efforts were meaningless."
Clenching his fists, Liam was at yet unable to answer when an almost-feeble voice called from behind.
"L-Liam..."
He swiftly turned toward the sound, only to see the youngest prince-thin, pale, and shackled like a criminal-being dragged into the room. It was almost like a body gut punch to Liam. The boy who had held such great promise was now completely broken.
"To warn you: Do not lay another finger on him!" Liam roared, his voice shaking with anger.
"Why do you still care for him? He doesn't matter-his death is nothing to the likes of you. One little pointless pawn; a weak one who couldn't grasp the throne you gave him." The laughter resonated like shards of glass inside a room.
"You are weak, princess. Hiding-behind your magic, controlling others with false heat," said Liam heatedly but steadied himself. "You betrayed your own blood for power. But this isn't even close to over."
Her smile, in spite of those narrowed eyes, didn't disappear. She waved flippantly to the guards.
"Take both of them to the dungeons. Let them rot there together."
The Dungeon, A Glimmer of Hope
Cold, wet, and from an occasional draught at times, the dungeon smelled of despair. The walls there pulsed faintly with the same dark energy that Liam had seen throughout the kingdom. Shackled, bruised, and sitting in a corner of the cell, Liam stole looks at the prince who sat across him.
Great hunched shoulders stared toward the floor, murmuring little, "I trusted her... I trusted my sister...".Liam leaned closer. "Listen to me. It's not your fault."His eyes drew together for a moment with pain and guilt. "She created a deception to all. My allies... they are under her trickery, spells. It's using that magic-were forbidden."
Momentarily, Liam advanced in thought. "That's it. Forbidden magic."
The prince blinked. "What?"
Determined, the voice of Liam grew. "Forbidden magic is not invulnerable. It invariably has a weak point; it's cost payed. That's the way magic works. So we can make it break her control if we find the weakness."
The boy showed the manner for a moment: hope versus doubt. "But... how? We are stuck here."
Liam smirked just a bit and glanced towards the iron bars. "Trust me. Dungeons like these are built to keep the likes of prisoners inside, not someone like me."
"What's your scheme, then?" The Prince frowned.
Liam's eyes sparkled. "I've broken out of worse places. And we're not alone-Nyx is still here. Any trap he gets caught in, he's the guy who will find a way to help us. I know it."
At that moment, faint scratching drifted from the far corner of the room. Liam's smirk widened.
"See? That is our cue."
The Twist: Nyx's Rescue Signal
And indeed, the strange sound increased and after a moment, a shape that the prince knew all too well slithered through a crack of the wall. Nyx-now indeed in shadow form-apparently stood there, eyes glowing and holding on Liam.
"Good boy," Liam whispered.
Still ensnared by a couple of magical traces, Nyx could not break him out directly but, however, managed to bring Liam a shard of enchanted crystal-a magical tool that a guard of corruption had landed there carelessly.
Liam studied the shard; he thought fast.
"To get out of here, we've got to have timing, precision, and a bit of chaos." His gaze shifted to the prince, and his smile turned fierce. "Are you ready to fight for your kingdom?"
At that, the prince hesitated, but after what felt like an eternity, he gave a long, firm nod that ignited the spark of determination in his eyes.
Liam lifted the crystal, speaking in a low voice but with resolution. "Now for the first step toward ending this nightmare."
To be continued...