บท 15: Wake Up

Everyone held their breath as the beast tried its best to bust in through the door.

ROOOOARR!!!

BAAAM!

The door shook, threatening to tear off its hinges as the beast's cries echoed from the other side.

BAAAM!

…

Silence enveloped the room as the rumbling stopped before suddenly completely disappearing.

Did it give up?

"The door should hold that thing for now. Instead of standing there, I suggest you try resting while you still can."

I turned around to see Aria kneeling beside a passed-out Tess, tending to her missing leg.

"How is she?" I questioned while walking away from the door.

"She is passed out, probably from pain. Her leg has also been poisoned by that thing's bite. Thankfully, I have some antidotes to deal with these kinds of poison."

"You need some help with that?" I questioned, looking at the frozen wounds on Aria's body.

"I am fine, I may not be a full fledged medic but I know enough to deal with these kinds of injuries."

Nodding, I walked to a nearby wall and began taking out my own healing supplies. I had originally thought I had enough to last the trip, but looking at what had happened. I wasn't so sure anymore.

Finishing dressing up my wounds, I took out some of my food and began eating. Aria was also doing the same thing, sitting beside an unconscious Tess.

"Here, take this." Aria threw a small pill in my direction." This should help you recover your strength."

"What's this?"

"A simple healing medicine." She took out a similar pill and threw it in her mouth.

"Go to sleep; who knows what we might have to deal with tomorrow." Saying so, she took out her sleeping bag and lay down. I followed her example, putting the pill in my mouth before secretly spatting it out in my hand.

At the same time, The Duskwraith exited my body under full stealth and hid beside the nearest wall.

The dark room fell into silence as the three of us went to sleep, or at least pretended to.

With my eyes shut tight, I kept watch on Aria's every move.

Clearly, there was something fishy about this room. By now, I was one hundred percent sure I hadn't seen it when I first checked the castle. Even the entire battle had been fishy. First, I thought she was planning to sacrifice Thorne in exchange for Vexis to get a chance to retreat. Looking back at it, she might have never intended to leave the Fort in the first place.

There had to be a reason why a princess of one of the most powerful families in the entire alliance had arrived in the Wastes, and I was going to find out what.

The night passed out in silence, with three of us in our corners lying still unmoving. Several hours passed like that, but I remained vigilant. It wasn't until near morning that Aria began showing some movement.

Quietly getting out of her sleeping bag, she gave me a quick glance and began walking around the room.

The duskwraith followed behind her, making sure to remain completely undetected while also observing her every single move.

It seemed as if she was looking for something; at times, she would inspect the engraving over the walls and closely look at the stone tiles underneath her feet. When that didn't work out, she took out some kind of orb and began searching around the corners.

I didn't know what she was looking for, but it didn't seem like it was here. Perhaps she knew it too, after a hour of parading that orb around, she put in back in her storage gave out a defeated sigh. Her sight then set over my sleeping figure.

In complete silence, she began walking towards me as a sword made of pure ice began materializing in her hand.

She came closer and closer until she was standing mere feet away from my body. With her icy sword in hand, she placed it over my neck.

"Get up; I know you didn't take that pill."

"Is this how the Nyrith household treats their savior? I even bled for you, princess."

Aria slightly shook as the Wraith deactivated Shroud, its claws inches away from ripping out her throat.

"Bleeding from an already bandaged wound, you mean." She turned to face the Wraith, gathering back her composure.

"This sure is a neat trick. Is this related to that stealth spell you cast in the battle?"

I didn't answer. Seeing that, Aria took a step back. I, too, got up on my feet. Slowly, while carefully scrutinizing each other, both of us disarmed. Wraith dissolved into darkness and her sword into the mist.

"Tell me, that thing isn't out there anymore, is it?" I questioned, staring deep into Aria's eyes. To me, that seemed like the only possible explanation. Like I said, I knew Aria; she wasn't the kind of person to rest while death was roaming only a door away. Not to mention that with that beast magically giving up on ripping the door to shreds.

Aria knew something about this room, something that had made that beast disappear. How? I had no idea. But she did, and I intended to find out.