章節 4: Circle Five

"You know dreg." His master said. "Those are some nasty horns for a human."

Flo's assault was cut short and parried by the old man beside him, holding down the weapon with his iron-clad palm. "Ya don't even know how to use the thing!" He whispered with disdain.

"Tie him again." The noble ordered the other soldier, glancing a shady look at the old man. "This time, make sure of the locks."

They were inside a sort of vehicle, a car you could say that didn't need a driver. It was automated. There were two rows of seats, with the noble sitting at the front and Flo pincered by the two guards, one of them his ally, sitting beside him.

The old man took back his sword from Flo's grasp; it glowing a red tint just before it returned to its sheath. "Didn't think you'd do it, lad." He whispered.

Flo clenched his fists, piercing his skin with his long fingernails. "I almost had him." He muttered, gritting his teeth. He steadied himself, bit by bit, his horns growing shorter and shorter, its red ambiance diminishing by the second until his horns weren't there anymore.

"Give him a few beatings, will you?"

Flo got socked in the stomach in an instant by the iron clad fist of the other soldier. He growled in pain, curling up like a ball. Flo got jabbed again on his right temple, setting him confused and dazed, his world spinning around.

"Now, that's a good boy." His master taunted, driving Flo to his limit. However, he endured it. "I'll get you," Flo muttered to himself. "I swear I'll get you. I'll get you. I'll get you." He kept on saying.

"I'll get you."

To the window, Flo saw giant metal buildings dotting the horizon, tinted with colors gold, brass, and sometimes hazel. Flo was disgusted by it, but somehow found the aura of the city nostalgic, as the sudden downpour of raindrops came, showering the city along with the roof of the vehicle with heavy rain.

Flo felt calm whenever he felt the essence of rain; somehow, it was like a conditioned feeling. He heard raindrops ticking at the roof of the car; however, he couldn't feel the real deal, as metal and glass walled him inside. As the downpour outside grew more intense, a silhouette of a tower-like building, one that rose to hundreds of times higher than the rest, came into view. He couldn't make out what it was, but he felt its grandeur even as a blurred figure.

As he gawked at the clockwork buildings of the city, even though he got mixed feelings out of it, it was still a grand sight. He wasn't feeling as nauseous like before, so maybe the downpour helped, or maybe...

He eyed the noble in front of him, and his chest started to burn again, his heart racing from anger.

"Get off." The noble said, glaring at Flo. "We're here."

As Flo got out of the vehicle, a cold, wet feeling greeted the soles of his bare foot, leftovers of the downpour. A small sunlight peeked through the gray clouds, resting gently upon Flo's white hair and reflecting against the dank clockwork buildings. However, one structure in front, a colossal one, stood many times higher than the rest, a castle made of brass, copper, and iron, seemingly piercing through the heavens.

At the front of it, where Flo currently stood, was a lot several meters wide filled with nothing but an iron pathway and few metal pipelines and wires. The lot was enclosed in a three-meter circle of brass walls, encircling the castle itself.

A troop of ironclad soldiers marched towards them. The soldiers, around twelve in total, looked similar in the way of armor with the soldiers beside him, however differing in the form of color and design, having a brighter tint and generally a more majestic aura with the white robes they wore.

As they met up with the cavalry, the noble put up a front and proudly asked, "Are you not in the presence of a royal? Where is the bow of you henchmen?"

A woman, looking about in her early twenties, went to the front with majestic and beautiful strides that seemed to hold power and might in every step. "I do not understand your language, peasant." She said, looking strict and cold with a tinge of mature beauty. "Has it not been clear you have been revoked of your noble rights, Gandel?"

Flo, after hearing his name for the first time in his entire life enslaved, took the name to memory. "Gandel's the name." He muttered. Gandel gritted his teeth and shoved over Flo to the ground. "Not after this, Faun."

The woman, apparently named Faun, glanced at Flo for a brief moment, then turned back to the royal soldiers behind her, sending her dark curls swaying as she spun around. "The oligarchs wish for the presence of this young man." She said, a hint of sympathy in her voice. "Bring him along if you will."

"Get moving." The other soldier said, handing him over to the royal guards.

Flo inhaled deeply, then followed a guard emblazoned with majestic white armor, the cold wind brushing against his shaggy hair and rugged face as they marched towards the castle. Flo glanced behind him, as the soldier who promised to help him escape gave away a gesture, a fist pump, as he went up the grand stairs of the castle, along with the steps of ten men, stopping at the forefront of the giant doors made of brass design so detailed.

"Nepoh eht sroodh," Faun called in a foreign language, apparently signaling for the opening of the doors. A loud clink metal sound was made as the giant doors opened slowly and made way for the entrance into the castle.