Chapter 28
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The sky had turned dark, only a lonely moonlight shone through the grey clouds, onto the canopy. The forest had shifted to it's night phase, birds had gone silent and one could only hear the occasional shifting of muffled movements, of predators in the night.
Within this darkness was Draylen, walking carefully through the underbrush, lit up by a dim white halo. This halo was reminiscent to the pure glow of colourless mana, providing some lighting in the darkness.
The boy didn't want to use fire to light his way, lest he accidentally created a forest fire. He certainly didn't want to accidentally provoke another powerful being like the Sun Blessed Cougar, especially when he didn't have the Oasis River Drake nearby.
Even if he did use fire, putting it out would be several times slower than his aura of light mana because fire mana on it's own possessed weak lighting qualities. This meant that in order to use fire mana as a light, he'd have to create a flame, thus wasting several times more mana than if he simply went with his light mana.
Draylen had been walking for several hours now, his pace was slowed by the low visibility and also the fact that at night, everything looked different. It was almost as if he had entered a new world, one which consisted only of the pale moon and his own quiet breathing.
Whilst he was tired from walking for such a long time and distance, he couldn't afford to let up his guard, it was simply too dangerous.
'I don't want a repeat of last time. Ahh, I can't wait for the time when Charcoal and Barong grow strong enough to protect me!'
Speaking of which, the two familiars were currently walking next to him. Charcoal had a somewhat sleepy expression, whilst Barong seemed to be in his natural habitat. Over the past five years, the two familiars had grown a lot stronger than when Draylen first contracted them.
The dragonling was a tier 6 expert, whilst the Lioberus cub was tier 6 primary, showing that they had both advanced at similar speeds to their owner. Not only had their physical abilities advanced, to the point where Charcoal's scales could deflect arrows and Barong could catch them in mid air, but their elemental and racial abilities had also improved greatly.
Charcoal's previous whelp-sized fire breath was now a heavy-duty fire gun, capable of melting substances like metal in seconds. Barong, on the other hand, was able to shoot fireballs from all three of his mouths, very similar to the Spirit Shooter's fire element attack. Additionally, Charcoal's flame had turned from a common orange to a malevolent black/blue.
Draylen had shown the old man, who had in turn exclaimed in surprise. It turned out that the dragon child had the heritage of Shadow Dragons, a special race of dragons which harnessed the power of darkness to create illusions, weaken their foes and boost their own power.
It seemed that the reason why Draylen could hold all of the elements was also due to Charcoal. Whilst he had absorbed earth, fire, water and air mana at Gaia's valley, there was no dark mana. This is where Charcoal came in. Since Dragon Summoner's and their familiar's shared a mana pool, the dragon's dark mana had naturally become Draylen's as well. In order to balance the dark mana, his body also absorbed light mana.
If any other Dragon Summoner were to contract the dragonling instead of Draylen, their own mana would become of the dark element, but because of Draylen's special body type, he retained his own natural mana instead of it becoming 'contaminated' with the dark mana.
Whilst Draylen was thinking of these things, Barong suddenly growled deeply, the fur on his back standing on end. In that instant, the boy cut off his mana aura, plunging the area into darkness. He then activated Charcoal's familiar armament, causing the familiar to become a cloud of darkness before turning into a set or armour and wrist blades.
He then crouched down low, assuming a combat stance.
'The Spirit Shooters won't help here, since visibility is low and I'll be hard-pressed to hit things. Barong is of more use, since he has greater detection and stealth abilities.' Draylen thought, quickly moving toward his growling familiar.
He then quickly patted the three-headed Lioberus, causing it to calm down.
'That's right, good boy. The noise will only make us a target.' Draylen said through their telepathic link.
Whilst the familiars weren't able to understand his word's they knew the general meaning through the emotions conveyed and their master's actions. Thus, upon being told this by Draylen, Barong also lowered his large body.
-Fwoosshh
A spectral chill ran down Draylen's back, causing him to involuntarily roll forward, before turning back around, weapons raised.
Nothing.
Barong's eyes whizzed around the area, searching desperately for the 'thing' which seemed to be watching them.
His eyes locked onto somewhere in the air, as if looking at an invisible, intangible entity.
-Huuaaa
Barong's middle head opened it's jaws, the insides of his mouth glowing orange and then red before releasing a glaring fireball.
The ball of flame seemed to collide with something in mid air, as it had burst like it was impacting with something, but the being which was hit did not set alight.
Realising that his familiar had hit the 'Watcher', Draylen pounced forward agilely, stabbing towards the area where the fireball had made contact and where there were still a few dim embers fluttering in the air.
Unlike the usual spongey resistance of living flesh, Draylen's wrist blades only seemed to slow down in mid air as it passed through the Watcher's body.
The boy leapt up a second time, intent on dealing a fatal blow but instead missed completely.
Silence.
Nothing.
The strange chills that ran down Draylen's back faded, signalling the leave of the Watcher. After a few more moments of waiting, the boy let out a faint sigh, before signalling Barong and walking away, albeit with a quicker, more hurried pace than before.
.....
Soon, the sun broke through the clouds, lighting up the world with a warm glow. Draylen finally exited the forest, returning to the cave which he called home.
Opening the unlocked door, the boy walked through the passage, towards his room. On the way, he met the old man. Draylen had a feeling that the old man knew about everything that happened on his journey from his knowing look.
"Well done, Draylen." He said, patting the boy's back.
"Thanks, grandpa." Draylen replied.
Little did he know, those careless words had a profound impact on the old man.
'G-grandpa?!' Horatio exclaimed internally.
He thought back to when the little boy said that to Arboria, and the warm feeling accompanied by it, before nodding lightly.
'Well... He's already my apprentice, like they say, father for a day, teacher for life. Or something like that anyway.'
'That means I'll have to work even harder to provide for him!' A resolute expression emerged on the old man's face, as if he were a soldier on the frontlines, ready to die for his country.
However, the flurry of thoughts was quickly broken by Draylen's worried words.
"Gramps, are you okay?" The boy asked quickly, frowning slightly.
Horatio quickly broke out of his stupor, waving his hands and chuckling.
"Of course, of course, hurry up you, take a shower. I could smell you before you even entered the cave."
Draylen grinned whilst nodding before walking off to his cave room. Horatio, on the other hand, stared at the boy's disappearing back, as if in a trance.
'Grandpa, huh.'
.....
Meanwhile, in a foggy dark castle.
Two people in long, black, concealing robes walked side by side.
"I hear that the boss almost died again." One said with a slight chuckle.
The other looked at him disbelievingly.
"Did he peak on the mistress again?"
The former shook his head quickly.
"No, no, no, my friend says that he was ordered to keep an eye on some kid, probably by the leader."
The robed man was greeted by his companion's strange stare.
"Why does only our boss have strange hobbies?" The companion sighed audibly.
"Actually, I hear that the now dead sister had some strange fetish for children as well."
"Gross. At least she's dead. Wouldn't want her coming after my kids."
The two laughed at the lame joke, before quickly returning to their usual silence. This was because they had reached their boss's chambers. The robed man on the right silently stepped forward, knocking lightly on the large grey double doors.
-Bang bang bang
The pair stood in silence, backs upright and straight, hands by the side. Almost like proper soldiers. They waited for a few minutes, before they could hear the sound of several bolts being slid across the door and the clanking of metal gears.
The two doors slowly began to roll sideways, creating a small opening for the two robed men to slip through. When they stepped into the dark room, the doors behind promptly slid shut, cutting off all light and returning the place into complete darkness.
One of the black robed men looked at the other, before gingerly stepping forward. Upon seeing that there were no death traps like before, they hurried along through the darkness into one of the long tunnels.
Why would they be wary of traps?
Because previously, one of their brothers had failed a mission and upon returning had been speared through his manhood by a floor spike. Said brother was now a eunuch and barely qualified to be called a man.
Whilst the pair had not failed a mission, or partaken in any at the moment, they were still nervous as their boss was well known for his cruel pranks.
The only sound that could be heard in the pitch black tunnels was that of muffled footsteps and the two men's hushed breathing. They walked briskly but quietly, with their hands brushing against the tunnel's wall.
This was because the whole area was dark and they couldn't see, thus they had to walk blindly through, relying on memory and instinct. It was a well known rumour within the group that one of their brothers one day forgot to walk with his hands against the walls and consequently got lost, being found years later as a thin corpse within the tunnels.
Of course, they didn't really believe it, but the mere thought of being lost in the area sent shivers down their spine. Soon, the pair reached a dimly lit room with a musky odour. They kneeled with their heads low, as per tradition.
"Master, we have arrived." The two chorused loudly.
The sound of several things being bashed together and metal clanging could be heard, before the slow uneven footsteps of their master.
"You've arrived. Did you bring the soul healing medicine?" A trembling high pitched voice asked.
"Yes." The kneeling man on the right lifted up a slightly shaking hand, holding a vial containing a strange white substance within.
He felt a brush of air and the vial disappearing from his grasp.
"Ahehehe, wonderful, wonderful!" Their master muttered, gazing at the tube fondly.
The thin robed man then turned to look at the two kneeling subordinates.
"What are you still kneeling for? Get out!"
Upon hearing the man's enraged shout, the two quickly got up, bowed and left at the fastest speed possible.
This was because not only did their boss have an unstable personality, he commanded an army of deformed, powerful beasts. If they were to face off against a single one, they would be crushed instantly.
When they left their master's chambers, they involuntarily breathed out deeply. To them, the foggy dark air out here was the freshest and most comforting, especially when compared to the air in their master's chamber.
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The sky had turned dark, only a lonely moonlight shone through the grey clouds, onto the canopy. The forest had shifted to it's night phase, birds had gone silent and one could only hear the occasional shifting of muffled movements, of predators in the night.
Within this darkness was Draylen, walking carefully through the underbrush, lit up by a dim white halo. This halo was reminiscent to the pure glow of colourless mana, providing some lighting in the darkness.
The boy didn't want to use fire to light his way, lest he accidentally created a forest fire. He certainly didn't want to accidentally provoke another powerful being like the Sun Blessed Cougar, especially when he didn't have the Oasis River Drake nearby.
Even if he did use fire, putting it out would be several times slower than his aura of light mana because fire mana on it's own possessed weak lighting qualities. This meant that in order to use fire mana as a light, he'd have to create a flame, thus wasting several times more mana than if he simply went with his light mana.
Draylen had been walking for several hours now, his pace was slowed by the low visibility and also the fact that at night, everything looked different. It was almost as if he had entered a new world, one which consisted only of the pale moon and his own quiet breathing.
Whilst he was tired from walking for such a long time and distance, he couldn't afford to let up his guard, it was simply too dangerous.
'I don't want a repeat of last time. Ahh, I can't wait for the time when Charcoal and Barong grow strong enough to protect me!'
Speaking of which, the two familiars were currently walking next to him. Charcoal had a somewhat sleepy expression, whilst Barong seemed to be in his natural habitat. Over the past five years, the two familiars had grown a lot stronger than when Draylen first contracted them.
The dragonling was a tier 6 expert, whilst the Lioberus cub was tier 6 primary, showing that they had both advanced at similar speeds to their owner. Not only had their physical abilities advanced, to the point where Charcoal's scales could deflect arrows and Barong could catch them in mid air, but their elemental and racial abilities had also improved greatly.
Charcoal's previous whelp-sized fire breath was now a heavy-duty fire gun, capable of melting substances like metal in seconds. Barong, on the other hand, was able to shoot fireballs from all three of his mouths, very similar to the Spirit Shooter's fire element attack. Additionally, Charcoal's flame had turned from a common orange to a malevolent black/blue.
Draylen had shown the old man, who had in turn exclaimed in surprise. It turned out that the dragon child had the heritage of Shadow Dragons, a special race of dragons which harnessed the power of darkness to create illusions, weaken their foes and boost their own power.
It seemed that the reason why Draylen could hold all of the elements was also due to Charcoal. Whilst he had absorbed earth, fire, water and air mana at Gaia's valley, there was no dark mana. This is where Charcoal came in. Since Dragon Summoner's and their familiar's shared a mana pool, the dragon's dark mana had naturally become Draylen's as well. In order to balance the dark mana, his body also absorbed light mana.
If any other Dragon Summoner were to contract the dragonling instead of Draylen, their own mana would become of the dark element, but because of Draylen's special body type, he retained his own natural mana instead of it becoming 'contaminated' with the dark mana.
Whilst Draylen was thinking of these things, Barong suddenly growled deeply, the fur on his back standing on end. In that instant, the boy cut off his mana aura, plunging the area into darkness. He then activated Charcoal's familiar armament, causing the familiar to become a cloud of darkness before turning into a set or armour and wrist blades.
He then crouched down low, assuming a combat stance.
'The Spirit Shooters won't help here, since visibility is low and I'll be hard-pressed to hit things. Barong is of more use, since he has greater detection and stealth abilities.' Draylen thought, quickly moving toward his growling familiar.
He then quickly patted the three-headed Lioberus, causing it to calm down.
'That's right, good boy. The noise will only make us a target.' Draylen said through their telepathic link.
Whilst the familiars weren't able to understand his word's they knew the general meaning through the emotions conveyed and their master's actions. Thus, upon being told this by Draylen, Barong also lowered his large body.
-Fwoosshh
A spectral chill ran down Draylen's back, causing him to involuntarily roll forward, before turning back around, weapons raised.
Nothing.
Barong's eyes whizzed around the area, searching desperately for the 'thing' which seemed to be watching them.
His eyes locked onto somewhere in the air, as if looking at an invisible, intangible entity.
-Huuaaa
Barong's middle head opened it's jaws, the insides of his mouth glowing orange and then red before releasing a glaring fireball.
The ball of flame seemed to collide with something in mid air, as it had burst like it was impacting with something, but the being which was hit did not set alight.
Realising that his familiar had hit the 'Watcher', Draylen pounced forward agilely, stabbing towards the area where the fireball had made contact and where there were still a few dim embers fluttering in the air.
Unlike the usual spongey resistance of living flesh, Draylen's wrist blades only seemed to slow down in mid air as it passed through the Watcher's body.
The boy leapt up a second time, intent on dealing a fatal blow but instead missed completely.
Silence.
Nothing.
The strange chills that ran down Draylen's back faded, signalling the leave of the Watcher. After a few more moments of waiting, the boy let out a faint sigh, before signalling Barong and walking away, albeit with a quicker, more hurried pace than before.
.....
Soon, the sun broke through the clouds, lighting up the world with a warm glow. Draylen finally exited the forest, returning to the cave which he called home.
Opening the unlocked door, the boy walked through the passage, towards his room. On the way, he met the old man. Draylen had a feeling that the old man knew about everything that happened on his journey from his knowing look.
"Well done, Draylen." He said, patting the boy's back.
"Thanks, grandpa." Draylen replied.
Little did he know, those careless words had a profound impact on the old man.
'G-grandpa?!' Horatio exclaimed internally.
He thought back to when the little boy said that to Arboria, and the warm feeling accompanied by it, before nodding lightly.
'Well... He's already my apprentice, like they say, father for a day, teacher for life. Or something like that anyway.'
'That means I'll have to work even harder to provide for him!' A resolute expression emerged on the old man's face, as if he were a soldier on the frontlines, ready to die for his country.
However, the flurry of thoughts was quickly broken by Draylen's worried words.
"Gramps, are you okay?" The boy asked quickly, frowning slightly.
Horatio quickly broke out of his stupor, waving his hands and chuckling.
"Of course, of course, hurry up you, take a shower. I could smell you before you even entered the cave."
Draylen grinned whilst nodding before walking off to his cave room. Horatio, on the other hand, stared at the boy's disappearing back, as if in a trance.
'Grandpa, huh.'
.....
Meanwhile, in a foggy dark castle.
Two people in long, black, concealing robes walked side by side.
"I hear that the boss almost died again." One said with a slight chuckle.
The other looked at him disbelievingly.
"Did he peak on the mistress again?"
The former shook his head quickly.
"No, no, no, my friend says that he was ordered to keep an eye on some kid, probably by the leader."
The robed man was greeted by his companion's strange stare.
"Why does only our boss have strange hobbies?" The companion sighed audibly.
"Actually, I hear that the now dead sister had some strange fetish for children as well."
"Gross. At least she's dead. Wouldn't want her coming after my kids."
The two laughed at the lame joke, before quickly returning to their usual silence. This was because they had reached their boss's chambers. The robed man on the right silently stepped forward, knocking lightly on the large grey double doors.
-Bang bang bang
The pair stood in silence, backs upright and straight, hands by the side. Almost like proper soldiers. They waited for a few minutes, before they could hear the sound of several bolts being slid across the door and the clanking of metal gears.
The two doors slowly began to roll sideways, creating a small opening for the two robed men to slip through. When they stepped into the dark room, the doors behind promptly slid shut, cutting off all light and returning the place into complete darkness.
One of the black robed men looked at the other, before gingerly stepping forward. Upon seeing that there were no death traps like before, they hurried along through the darkness into one of the long tunnels.
Why would they be wary of traps?
Because previously, one of their brothers had failed a mission and upon returning had been speared through his manhood by a floor spike. Said brother was now a eunuch and barely qualified to be called a man.
Whilst the pair had not failed a mission, or partaken in any at the moment, they were still nervous as their boss was well known for his cruel pranks.
The only sound that could be heard in the pitch black tunnels was that of muffled footsteps and the two men's hushed breathing. They walked briskly but quietly, with their hands brushing against the tunnel's wall.
This was because the whole area was dark and they couldn't see, thus they had to walk blindly through, relying on memory and instinct. It was a well known rumour within the group that one of their brothers one day forgot to walk with his hands against the walls and consequently got lost, being found years later as a thin corpse within the tunnels.
Of course, they didn't really believe it, but the mere thought of being lost in the area sent shivers down their spine. Soon, the pair reached a dimly lit room with a musky odour. They kneeled with their heads low, as per tradition.
"Master, we have arrived." The two chorused loudly.
The sound of several things being bashed together and metal clanging could be heard, before the slow uneven footsteps of their master.
"You've arrived. Did you bring the soul healing medicine?" A trembling high pitched voice asked.
"Yes." The kneeling man on the right lifted up a slightly shaking hand, holding a vial containing a strange white substance within.
He felt a brush of air and the vial disappearing from his grasp.
"Ahehehe, wonderful, wonderful!" Their master muttered, gazing at the tube fondly.
The thin robed man then turned to look at the two kneeling subordinates.
"What are you still kneeling for? Get out!"
Upon hearing the man's enraged shout, the two quickly got up, bowed and left at the fastest speed possible.
This was because not only did their boss have an unstable personality, he commanded an army of deformed, powerful beasts. If they were to face off against a single one, they would be crushed instantly.
When they left their master's chambers, they involuntarily breathed out deeply. To them, the foggy dark air out here was the freshest and most comforting, especially when compared to the air in their master's chamber.
The sky had turned dark, only a lonely moonlight shone through the grey clouds, onto the canopy. The forest had shifted to it's night phase, birds had gone silent and one could only hear the occasional shifting of muffled movements, of predators in the night.Within this darkness was Draylen, walking carefully through the underbrush, lit up by a dim white halo. This halo was reminiscent to the pure glow of colourless mana, providing some lighting in the darkness.The boy didn't want to use fire to light his way, lest he accidentally created a forest fire. He certainly didn't want to accidentally provoke another powerful being like the Sun Blessed Cougar, especially when he didn't have the Oasis River Drake nearby.Even if he did use fire, putting it out would be several times slower than his aura of light mana because fire mana on it's own possessed weak lighting qualities. This meant that in order to use fire mana as a light, he'd have to create a flame, thus wasting several times more mana than if he simply went with his light mana.Draylen had been walking for several hours now, his pace was slowed by the low visibility and also the fact that at night, everything looked different. It was almost as if he had entered a new world, one which consisted only of the pale moon and his own quiet breathing.Whilst he was tired from walking for such a long time and distance, he couldn't afford to let up his guard, it was simply too dangerous.'I don't want a repeat of last time. Ahh, I can't wait for the time when Charcoal and Barong grow strong enough to protect me!'Speaking of which, the two familiars were currently walking next to him. Charcoal had a somewhat sleepy expression, whilst Barong seemed to be in his natural habitat. Over the past five years, the two familiars had grown a lot stronger than when Draylen first contracted them.The dragonling was a tier 6 expert, whilst the Lioberus cub was tier 6 primary, showing that they had both advanced at similar speeds to their owner. Not only had their physical abilities advanced, to the point where Charcoal's scales could deflect arrows and Barong could catch them in mid air, but their elemental and racial abilities had also improved greatly.Charcoal's previous whelp-sized fire breath was now a heavy-duty fire gun, capable of melting substances like metal in seconds. Barong, on the other hand, was able to shoot fireballs from all three of his mouths, very similar to the Spirit Shooter's fire element attack. Additionally, Charcoal's flame had turned from a common orange to a malevolent black/blue.Draylen had shown the old man, who had in turn exclaimed in surprise. It turned out that the dragon child had the heritage of Shadow Dragons, a special race of dragons which harnessed the power of darkness to create illusions, weaken their foes and boost their own power.It seemed that the reason why Draylen could hold all of the elements was also due to Charcoal. Whilst he had absorbed earth, fire, water and air mana at Gaia's valley, there was no dark mana. This is where Charcoal came in. Since Dragon Summoner's and their familiar's shared a mana pool, the dragon's dark mana had naturally become Draylen's as well. In order to balance the dark mana, his body also absorbed light mana.If any other Dragon Summoner were to contract the dragonling instead of Draylen, their own mana would become of the dark element, but because of Draylen's special body type, he retained his own natural mana instead of it becoming 'contaminated' with the dark mana.Whilst Draylen was thinking of these things, Barong suddenly growled deeply, the fur on his back standing on end. In that instant, the boy cut off his mana aura, plunging the area into darkness. He then activated Charcoal's familiar armament, causing the familiar to become a cloud of darkness before turning into a set or armour and wrist blades.He then crouched down low, assuming a combat stance.'The Spirit Shooters won't help here, since visibility is low and I'll be hard-pressed to hit things. Barong is of more use, since he has greater detection and stealth abilities.' Draylen thought, quickly moving toward his growling familiar.He then quickly patted the three-headed Lioberus, causing it to calm down.'That's right, good boy. The noise will only make us a target.' Draylen said through their telepathic link.Whilst the familiars weren't able to understand his word's they knew the general meaning through the emotions conveyed and their master's actions. Thus, upon being told this by Draylen, Barong also lowered his large body.-FwoosshhA spectral chill ran down Draylen's back, causing him to involuntarily roll forward, before turning back around, weapons raised.Nothing.Barong's eyes whizzed around the area, searching desperately for the 'thing' which seemed to be watching them.His eyes locked onto somewhere in the air, as if looking at an invisible, intangible entity.-HuuaaaBarong's middle head opened it's jaws, the insides of his mouth glowing orange and then red before releasing a glaring fireball.The ball of flame seemed to collide with something in mid air, as it had burst like it was impacting with something, but the being which was hit did not set alight.Realising that his familiar had hit the 'Watcher', Draylen pounced forward agilely, stabbing towards the area where the fireball had made contact and where there were still a few dim embers fluttering in the air.Unlike the usual spongey resistance of living flesh, Draylen's wrist blades only seemed to slow down in mid air as it passed through the Watcher's body.The boy leapt up a second time, intent on dealing a fatal blow but instead missed completely.Silence.Nothing.The strange chills that ran down Draylen's back faded, signalling the leave of the Watcher. After a few more moments of waiting, the boy let out a faint sigh, before signalling Barong and walking away, albeit with a quicker, more hurried pace than before......Soon, the sun broke through the clouds, lighting up the world with a warm glow. Draylen finally exited the forest, returning to the cave which he called home.Opening the unlocked door, the boy walked through the passage, towards his room. On the way, he met the old man. Draylen had a feeling that the old man knew about everything that happened on his journey from his knowing look."Well done, Draylen." He said, patting the boy's back."Thanks, grandpa." Draylen replied.Little did he know, those careless words had a profound impact on the old man.'G-grandpa?!' Horatio exclaimed internally.He thought back to when the little boy said that to Arboria, and the warm feeling accompanied by it, before nodding lightly.'Well... He's already my apprentice, like they say, father for a day, teacher for life. Or something like that anyway.''That means I'll have to work even harder to provide for him!' A resolute expression emerged on the old man's face, as if he were a soldier on the frontlines, ready to die for his country.However, the flurry of thoughts was quickly broken by Draylen's worried words."Gramps, are you okay?" The boy asked quickly, frowning slightly.Horatio quickly broke out of his stupor, waving his hands and chuckling."Of course, of course, hurry up you, take a shower. I could smell you before you even entered the cave."Draylen grinned whilst nodding before walking off to his cave room. Horatio, on the other hand, stared at the boy's disappearing back, as if in a trance.'Grandpa, huh.'.....Meanwhile, in a foggy dark castle.Two people in long, black, concealing robes walked side by side."I hear that the boss almost died again." One said with a slight chuckle.The other looked at him disbelievingly."Did he peak on the mistress again?"The former shook his head quickly."No, no, no, my friend says that he was ordered to keep an eye on some kid, probably by the leader."The robed man was greeted by his companion's strange stare."Why does only our boss have strange hobbies?" The companion sighed audibly."Actually, I hear that the now dead sister had some strange fetish for children as well.""Gross. At least she's dead. Wouldn't want her coming after my kids."The two laughed at the lame joke, before quickly returning to their usual silence. This was because they had reached their boss's chambers. The robed man on the right silently stepped forward, knocking lightly on the large grey double doors.-Bang bang bangThe pair stood in silence, backs upright and straight, hands by the side. Almost like proper soldiers. They waited for a few minutes, before they could hear the sound of several bolts being slid across the door and the clanking of metal gears.The two doors slowly began to roll sideways, creating a small opening for the two robed men to slip through. When they stepped into the dark room, the doors behind promptly slid shut, cutting off all light and returning the place into complete darkness.One of the black robed men looked at the other, before gingerly stepping forward. Upon seeing that there were no death traps like before, they hurried along through the darkness into one of the long tunnels.Why would they be wary of traps?Because previously, one of their brothers had failed a mission and upon returning had been speared through his manhood by a floor spike. Said brother was now a eunuch and barely qualified to be called a man.Whilst the pair had not failed a mission, or partaken in any at the moment, they were still nervous as their boss was well known for his cruel pranks.The only sound that could be heard in the pitch black tunnels was that of muffled footsteps and the two men's hushed breathing. They walked briskly but quietly, with their hands brushing against the tunnel's wall.This was because the whole area was dark and they couldn't see, thus they had to walk blindly through, relying on memory and instinct. It was a well known rumour within the group that one of their brothers one day forgot to walk with his hands against the walls and consequently got lost, being found years later as a thin corpse within the tunnels.Of course, they didn't really believe it, but the mere thought of being lost in the area sent shivers down their spine. Soon, the pair reached a dimly lit room with a musky odour. They kneeled with their heads low, as per tradition."Master, we have arrived." The two chorused loudly.The sound of several things being bashed together and metal clanging could be heard, before the slow uneven footsteps of their master."You've arrived. Did you bring the soul healing medicine?" A trembling high pitched voice asked."Yes." The kneeling man on the right lifted up a slightly shaking hand, holding a vial containing a strange white substance within.He felt a brush of air and the vial disappearing from his grasp."Ahehehe, wonderful, wonderful!" Their master muttered, gazing at the tube fondly.The thin robed man then turned to look at the two kneeling subordinates."What are you still kneeling for? Get out!"Upon hearing the man's enraged shout, the two quickly got up, bowed and left at the fastest speed possible.This was because not only did their boss have an unstable personality, he commanded an army of deformed, powerful beasts. If they were to face off against a single one, they would be crushed instantly.When they left their master's chambers, they involuntarily breathed out deeply. To them, the foggy dark air out here was the freshest and most comforting, especially when compared to the air in their master's chamber.
