章節 15: Execution
The relentless march of footsteps echoed back and forth, jolting Vael from his slumber. A fog of disorientation clouded his mind, his surroundings a mere blur of shadows as his eyelids struggled open. As clarity gradually seeped back into his vision, the grim reality set in: iron bars encased him, a prisoner in his own body as much as in this cell.
A flicker of memory ignited — the Sable Serpents. They had ensnared them. His heart clenched as he scanned the cell for his companions. Lyria and Elrik lay motionless nearby, but Moxy was nowhere to be seen. "They've taken your pet, if that's what you're searching for," Luminara's voice echoed in his mind, laced with a venomous rage.
"Who is 'they'?" Vael murmured, his voice barely a whisper.
"Those lizard fiends enslaving my kin," Luminara spat out, each word dripping with contempt.
With legs trembling like aspen leaves, Vael stumbled over to Lyria. "Lyria, wake up," he urged, his voice a hushed plea as he gently shook her. Silence was his only answer. A mirror of desperation led him to Elrik, but he was met with the same lifeless stillness.
Suddenly, a sinister hiss slithered through the bars. "They aren't dead, at least not yet," the voice taunted. As the figure approached, Vael's eyes adjusted to the dim light, revealing the source: a Sable Serpent, but not just any — he was adorned with regalia that whispered of authority and malice.
The creature's scales shimmered like obsidian, and his eyes, orbs of malevolent fire, fixed on Vael. "My name is Lord Zephyrian," he announced, his sibilant tone a symphony of threats. A grin, sharp and predatory, unfurled on his lips. "It's a pleasure to finally eat — oh, my apologies, meet you," he corrected, the malicious amusement evident in his twisted smile.
"What do you want with me?" Vael demanded, his voice echoing against the cold stone walls.
Lord Zephyrian dismissed the question with a wave of his hand, his focus elsewhere. "Tell me, boy, what transpired atop that mountain? It seems you ventured there with intent."
Vael bit back his words, his silence a fortress against the serpent lord's prying.
"I see how this is going to be," Lord Zephyrian mused with a sly grin. A snap of his fingers summoned a guard from the shadows, clutching a familiar lizard creature in his grasp. Vael's eyes widened in horror at the sight of Moxy, a fierce protectiveness igniting within him.
"If you lay a finger on her, I swear I'll kill you!" Vael roared, the iron bars of his cell rattling with the force of his anger.
"Kill me?" Lord Zephyrian's laughter was cold, mocking. "Look around, foolish boy. You're trapped." His fingers traced a sinister path along Moxy's dormant body. "Answer my question, and perhaps I'll return your pet. Refuse, and I'll slaughter her before your very eyes."
Silence clawed at the walls of the cell as Lord Zephyrian's ultimatum hung in the air. Within Vael's mind, Luminara's voice was a panicked whisper, "You can't reveal the prophecy's fulfillment; He'll kill you!"
Vael's response was a silent resolve, a thought directed solely at Luminara. "I can't risk Moxy's life."
Turning his gaze back to Lord Zephyrian, Vael's voice was steady, "We ascended the mountain to initiate the ritual."
Lord Zephyrian's lips twisted into a grotesque smile. "And?" he prodded.
Vael held his stare, defiant. "I'm not certain of the outcome, but one thing is clear—I stand before you now, not ensnared by any ritual."
Lord Zephyrian's amusement soured at Vael's veiled insolence. "Splendid," he spat, his facade of civility crumbling. With a flick of his wrist, Moxy's limp body was flung through the bars. Vael caught her, his arms cradling her with a mixture of relief and seething anger.
"Cherish this reunion," Lord Zephyrian sneered, turning on his heel. "Guards! Assemble the Elysians in the town square. This wretch's execution will be a spectacle to remember." His laughter echoed, a sinister promise, as he vanished from sight.
Vael's hands curled into fists, the serpents' mocking retreat still echoing in his ears. Luminara's voice cut through the rising tide of his anger. "The prism stone, Vael. We must find it."
But Vael was trapped in a mental maze, searching for a way out. His reverie shattered at the sound of stirring—Lyria's voice, faint but gaining strength, pierced the gloom. "Where am I?" Her eyes fluttered open, confusion etched across her face.
Elrik followed suit, wincing as his hand found the wound on his thigh. The bleeding had stopped, yet the pain was a cruel anchor, hindering his movement.
Lyria's gaze found Vael's. "Where are we?" Her voice was a blend of fear and fortitude.
Vael's response was grim. "The Sable Serpents' prison. They're planning a live execution."
Elrik's brow furrowed. "The old Elysian prison?"
Elrik paused, a distant look crossing his features. "I've been here before," he confessed, as Lyria's gaze sharpened with curiosity.
"What for?" she prodded.
Shrugging off the question with an awkward scratch of his head, Elrik's voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. "Wasn't anything major. But, there was this guy next to me who swore if he had something hard enough, the walls might give."
As the group frantically searched their pockets, they found nothing. Vael, driven by desperation, unleashed a barrage of punches against the wall. The stone refused to yield, his efforts only resulting in bloodied knuckles. "Damnit!" he cried out, the sound echoing off the unforgiving walls. "We can't just sit here and let them kill us."
Lyria, rising to her feet, directed their attention to the wall stained with Vael's blood. "Look," she said urgently, pointing to a pattern emerging amidst the crimson. Taking Vael's injured hand in hers, she pressed it against the cold stone, his blood acting as a revealer of secrets. "Ouch, that hurts," Vael winced.
"Quit being a baby," Lyria chided without looking up, her focus on the symbols now fully visible. "I've never seen these before. Can anyone read them?"
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