16 A Monster ( 1 )

The closer they came to Kalani's corner, the more antsy Nyx became. She had to escape!

As they passed by Nelson and his comrades, Nyx darted a glance at them with the best doe eyes she could muster.

However, unlike her expectations, Nelson mouthed a sentence to her followed by an upward quirk of his lips.

Narrowing her eyes, Nyx slowly deciphered his words,

"Farewell... friend...?"

"..."

'Friend my ass!' Nyx shrieked inside. If she wasn't in a certain someone's arms, she probably would have given him a piece of her mind.

Feeling his clothes being crumpled by her fist, Kalani then took notice of her crinkled nose and finally her pout. On her lower lip, he could see the outline of a self-bitten wound as well as the purplish bruises beginning to appear on her limbs.

An unknown ache spread through his heart before he realized he was staring and looked away.

'What is wrong with me?' he mulled over before his eyes lowered to the ground. 'Is it because she resembles... Lucas?'

The stuffiness from his chest reappeared like a constricting rope, making him grow somewhat pale.

Then, distinct sounds of chains instantly drew his attention away from his thoughts, forcing his steps to halt.

His heart nearly stopped with it.

'Why is she here?'

With vibrant, red hair cascading down her pale shoulders, she was a mesmerizing sight, but to many here, it only meant that death was around the corner. Stifled sounds of breathing echoed through the prison as no one made a peep lest they catch her eye.

The lady's hazel irises scanned the prison before landing on Kalani.

In Kalani's arms, Nyx was transfixed by the lady's beauty and attire. Her knee-high, inky dress swayed as she strolled towards Nyx, who then noticed Kalani's grip on her grow tighter. Nyx winced slightly from the pressure and peered up to see his playfulness from before had completely vanished.

'Who is she?' Nyx pondered. 'To make him this anxious...' In the midst of her thoughts, the lady had reached them. Unlike the awe Nyx felt initially, now all she could feel was a cold stare from the lady drilling a hole into her body. Nyx stiffened from receiving the blatant killing intent.

Thankfully, Kalani placed her down behind him, allowing the stifling pressure to subside somewhat.

Eyeing the boy before her, Sofia sternly spoke, "These bruises— who did this to you?" Kalani lowered his head, sealing his lips in hope that she would leave them alone.

When he didn't respond, Sofia turned to face the sentries standing near the barred entrance. "Guards, tell me who did this."

"Warden, it was that girl," the armored man pointed to Emma, who was still unconscious, lying against the rocky wall meters away. Children huddled around her in the darkness scattered, afraid of being implicated; however, Emma's friends stuck by her.

"Kill her then," Sofia ordered. Nyx's eyes widened before deciding to speak up; however, another person beat her to it.

"That's not necessary, Warden," Kalani flatly muttered. Glancing back at him, Sofia let out a soft chuckle.

"If you had told me the first time instead of acting rebellious, I would have considered sparing her with her life intact, but isn't it a bit too late now?" Sofia crooned as her words reached many ears, sowing seeds of despise among Emma's friends.

Only the more experienced teenagers like Nelson recognized the twist in her words. She only mentioned 'considered', leaving one to wonder if she would have really spared the person.

Coming even closer to Kalani, Sofia purred into his ear, "Dear, do not test me." The lady then glanced meaningfully at Nyx behind him. "Otherwise, there won't be just one death..."

Kalani subtly clenched his hands before finally nodding to show he understood. A satisfied smile formed on her lips.

However, they then heard a clear voice address to Sofia, "Please Warden, could you forgive her mistakes just this once?" Turning her dainty face toward the voice, Sofia gazed at the young man standing in the way of the sentries.

Light of the sentries' torches illuminated the face of the young man, who was so unnaturally pale that he was evidently ill. Yet, if one stared at his mellow, silvery eyes carefully enough, they shimmered with fervor.

Once he caught the attention of Sofia, he prostrated himself facing Sofia, begging, "Please Warden, could you spare her?"

Maybe due to something in his words, the lady motioned to her guards to await further orders before walking toward the young man.

"Come," she uttered with a cursory glance at Kalani, who watched her slim figure approach the pale youth.

Kalani's emerald irises dulled with anxiety, but then something slipped into his hand, warming it. Whipping his head back, he realized Nyx was squeezing his hand as she shakily stood up.

"I'll go with you," she whispered assuredly to Kalani. Like the kindled warmth on his hand, he could feel it seep into his soul.

Yet as he gazed into her deep, choco eyes, the vision of Lucas's death overlapped with her thin frame. The small flame inside was instantly snuffed out, replaced with a sense of chilliness.

'I cannot let you die like 'he' did...' Kalani thought before pulling his hand away. Before Nyx could protest, Kalani quickly strode forward, following Sofia's footsteps.

The girl watched his back go further away as she tried to process the hint of sorrow on his face.

...

"Thump... thump.."

The thuds of the youth's heart hurried in tantamount to her approaching steps. Fear and unease weighed down on his body, making him unable to catch a breath.

"I swear on my life that this won't happen again," his weakened words sounded like mutter to his ears. Plus, he wasn't even sure if she had heard him.

Despite facing the ground, he watched with bated breath at the stretched, womanly shadow edging closer.

The deafening silence he received for his petition made his palms sweat profusely, and his wildly thumping heart didn't help him either.

However, the young man gritted his teeth with one thought.

The steps he heard abruptly ceased as it was replaced with chuckling above him. Although he couldn't see her, her laughter revealed her disdain.

His chin was lifted by her slender fingers, letting tremors race through his body at the sight of her 'gentle' smile.

"I'll consider it if you give me your wings," she stated as she tapped lightly on his black wings.

Every winged person shrank from horror.

Flight had an important place in a winged person's life, and depriving them of their wings was equivalent to removing the limbs of a human. Many criminals who had received this punishment almost always suicided as the yearning for the skies was too much to bear.

The youth remained frozen on the spot, but just as everyone assumed he backed out, his chapped lips moved.

"If you'll forgive her, I'll gladly give up my wings..." his low voice resounded.

Sofia's eyes narrowed slightly, letting a minute pass to let the cruel realization sink in as if giving him another chance to change his answer.

But the young man didn't say another word. Instead, his lids had shut closed with peace over his pale complexion.

...

A glint of striking red flashed through her irises for a brief moment before she gave her command.

"Guards, take them."

The nearby sentries unsheathed their swords before proceeding to saw off his wings.

The children and slaves alike huddled together with their eyes closed, trying to not see the gruesome sight. Despite blocking their ears, they all heard his muffled cries and the crisp snaps of his bones.

Nyx's stomach churned as the haunting sounds reechoed off the cavern's walls even though she covered her ears. However, Kalani silently took the whole scene in.

The young man writhed in utter pain as fresh blood leaked out of his bones, pooling onto the ground.

'Is she really that important? Enough to die for?' Kalani pondered with misted eyes. 'I don't understand... and I probably never will.'

Once the operation was finished, the sentries stood back, waiting for the warden's next orders.

Observing their handiwork, Sofia ordered with a calm voice, "Now kill the girl."

Everyone collectively gasped.

With a face full of disbelief, the teenager croaked, "Why?... Y— you promised you would spare her..."

Touching the soft, black feathers, Sofia hummed, "I only said I would consider it; not that I would save her."

The youth turned deathly pale as he mumbled out repeatedly, "Please no... no..." He reached out a hand toward Emma as through his falling lids, he saw the sentries walk toward her— his beloved.

Yet unexpectedly, a slender figure blocked the sentries' path as her voice proclaimed aloud, "I won't let you do it!"

Sofia frowned while it was Kalani's turn to stiffen up. Nyx held the shovel in her palms as a weapon, preventing the sentries from approaching Emma and her.

With creased brows at the interference, the lady eyed the girl before her. "Then do you want to exchange your wings for her life?" Sofia inquired icily, her gaze turning darker by the second.

Before Nyx could say a word however, Kalani had swiftly stepped in front of Nyx and clamped her mouth with one hand.

Surprise flickered through Sofia's eyes.

"Let me propose a bet instead, Warden," Kalani uttered with a wide smile, changing to a sunny demeanor. His current character went against his normal persona, which struck as odd to her, but she was never one to back out of a potential game.

"What is the bet?" she asked with an amused raise of her brow.

"Heal everyone first," Kalani pointed to the young man, "including him... and in exchange, you will provide me with a weapon to fight those two men to the death." The boy gestured to the two sentries edging closer to them. "If I win, you will let the girl and the boy both live, and if I die, you can kill them both as well. Fair deal?"

Intrigued, Sofia leaned forward and, with a hand over her mouth, let out a chuckle. "I'll agree to everything you said except for two things; one— you won't die, but if you faint, that is your defeat. Two— Treatment for them will only happen after you win. Three— Instead of those two," she remarked as she glanced at both of the nearby sentries, "you will fight these two."

When Sofia softly clapped her hands, two clothed men materialized by her sides. One, around Kalani's height, carried a longbow on his back while the other held a sheathed sword on his waist. It was as if Sofia paired youngsters around his age to make it more fair.

'Invisibility?' Kalani mused, eyeing them as he recalled Nyx's info from last night.

—"Every practitioner can go invisible to the naked eye by 'cloaking' themselves with their 'spirits'; although, this would take a certain degree of control to achieve."—

Heavy rasps from behind helped him to snap back to reality, and he turned to gaze at the unconscious youth.

'He won't live long,' Kalani mused with narrowed eyes. Turning to Sofia, he answered with a shrug, "Deal."

Sofia then snapped her fingers, and a snow-white uniformed woman appeared from behind the warden. With hurried steps, the white lady knelt beside the youth, lifting her palms over his inert body.

A familiar verdant light streaked into the young man's bleeding wounds.

Curious, Kalani squinted as he observed the lady, whose figure was enveloped in white cloth or armor— including an ivory mask covering her entire face.

After finishing, the white lady appeared to tilt her head in Kalani's direction but quickly changed her movements, bowing toward Sofia. "It's done, Madam."

Signaling toward Kalani, Sofia commanded, "Now, heal him."

Like an obedient machine, the white lady sent a striking ray into Kalani's body, shocking the boy as he felt a cleansing sensation sweep through his veins.

Then Sofia uttered, "We don't want you losing the bet because of your fatigue; am I right, dear?" To which, Kalani merely nodded.

Twitching a lip inwardly, Kalani mused, "This is better than what my Aunt can do." Stealing a glimpse at the youth, he discovered the bleeding was staunched, and color began to return to the young man's face.

"I have held up my part of the deal..." the warden's lips curled up in excitement, "As for the battle, you can only stay inside the boundaries, and if you manage to kill one of my subordinates, it is your win," she explained with such tenderness in her voice.

Once she turned to the two clothed guards though, Sofia remarked frigidly, "You both cannot wear armor or use magic to kill him, do you understand?" She arched a brow at her last question.

Yet, after not allowing them to respond whatsoever, Sofia directed the last question at Kalani with a smile gracing her lips, "Shall we begin?"

"Whenever you are ready, Warden," Kalani responded flatly.

"Good luck then..." her voice echoed softly before something was thrown at him, yet before he could tell what it was, stunning light illuminated the cave.

Caught off guard, Kalani shielded the oncoming glare with one arm — albeit late; due to this, he was temporarily blinded.

As he tried to recover from the glare, a suspicious glint caught his eye, to which Kalani involuntarily dodged by tilting his head.

"Crack!"

A shadowy blur imbedded itself into the rocky wall behind him.

...