Chapter 27: Prison.

The metal clanging reached my ears as I walked, its source being the plate armor I was donning. Despite the layers of clothes I wore under it, the gentle breeze blowing inside the tunnel still gave me the chills. But that was fine. As much as I yearn for the warmth of my home, duty called and I chose to answer.

I reached the entrance soon enough then climbed the stairs leading outside. I arrived at a narrow plain flanked by two massive walls. Looking up, I saw the dark sky and the stars littering it. Unfortunately, the moon didn't grace us with her presence tonight.

Looking ahead, I saw my comrades lined up in front of the altar. It seems I was the last to arrive, but that mattered little with the ceremony having yet to start. I took my place among them and waited. A while later, the High Priest arrived to give his usual speech.

I find myself ignoring everything he said, my mind wandering somewhere else. The sun would be rising soon and we would have to depart. Who knows if I will ever return to this place? The faces of my parents flashed before me, their eyes brimmed with pride as they saw me off.

I wanted to tell them but couldn't bring myself to. That would be too selfish. Too shameful. Their only daughter couldn't possibly be afraid to walk under the sun. I have to fight. I have to…

Huh?

Those two… those two aren't my parents…

Their only daughter?

Hold on! Since when did I become a girl!!?

What in the world is going on?

What is this place?

Who are these people!!?

~[ ]~

Mark's eyes snapped open like a dead man who had just come back to life. His body jolted up and he held his chest, gasping for air while looking at his surroundings. He was once again in an unfamiliar place, though a familiar face came into sight soon enough and helped calm him down.

"Good morning, Master." A girl with ruby eyes looked at him for a moment then continued peeling the apple in her hand. "Did you have a bad dream, perhaps?"

Mark stared at her for a moment, still in a daze.

"Yeah…" he paused briefly then added. "A bad dream…"

'Huh… was it?…'

Mark tried to remember but nothing came to mind. It wasn't strange for dreams to vanish the instant he woke up, but for some reason, he couldn't shake the feeling that he experienced something truly disturbing. Fortunately, the feeling didn't linger for too long.

Getting off the bed, he raised his arms and stretched his body. His eyes didn't ache and he felt energy flowing through him. That could only mean one thing: he was able to sleep well without getting disturbed.

With a satisfied smile on his face, Mark began to look around once more.

"A hospital?" All the white hinted at that being the case, in addition to the robes he and the silver-haired girl wore.

"A prison would be the appropriate word," Lara spoke in an even tone. Keeping his calm, Mark walked to the other side of the bed and sat facing her. She pushed the small plate on the stand beside them toward him. It had a few slices of apple on it.

"Thanks."

Mark only realized how famished he was when he bit into one of the slices. As he began working on the third one, his gaze turned to the silver-haired girl sitting across from him.

"So it wasn't a dream…"

"What was?" The girl asked.

Mark brought the half-bitten slice to his mouth then stopped.

"The whole thing." He said then took a bit. "You, the dragon, the monsters. I can't believe all of it was real."

His left leg came into view just then. He remembered it getting smashed by some rubble, but now it was back in perfect condition. In fact, there was not a scratch on his body despite the carnage he went through.

"Hold on, how long was I out of it?"

"Two days, more or less."

Her words didn't register right away. After doing some quick calculations, Mark's eyes snapped open.

"Two days!!?"

"Yes, two days."

His sudden outburst seemed to have bothered the girl, as shown by the glare she directed toward him. Calming down, he quickly reorganized his thoughts then began asking the important questions.

"Malarak… is he dead?"

"Yes."

Hearing the confirmation allowed Mark to sigh in relief.

"What about the kids?"

It was a bit difficult to worry about anyone else after everything that happened, but now that he was safe, Mark couldn't help but wonder what happened to them.

"They're doing fine." A voice came and the curtain beside the bed was pulled aside. "Physically, at the very least."

Mark looked up at the person who had just arrived, knitting his brows a little. For some reason, he felt like he knew the guy, but after a moment he realized he just recognized his voice.

"Oh, motorcycle guy!" Mark exclaimed as he made the connection.

"I prefer 'I was shot while trying to help' guy." The man replied, his smile clearly forced. "Mind telling me why you did that?"

Mark stared at him for a couple of seconds. He finally understood what Lara meant by the place being a prison and with that the stress of being in a crisis returned. Closing his eyes, Mark rook a deep breath and tried to stay calm. Something caught his attention at that moment and he began sniffing around.

"As I thought." Coming to a stop, Mark pinched his nose and turned away from the strange man. "You stink."