Still pale and pained from her head wound the other three warned her from going out, but after a few long days she needed fresh air. It would help clear her head, she said. Taking rest by the bakers her tired eyes spotted a young boy cowering by a wall. A tingle of fear went through her- he hadn’t disguised his eyes! A geoptic, simply out in the open. It was like he wished to die! Pulling her heavy body from the wall she hesitated… It wasn’t her problem… She shook her head- no. The sight of him reminded her of herself all those years ago.  She wouldn’t dare turn away. Hurrying over to him in the growing dark she tried to smile at the boy. ‘Hi.’

  He flinched and backed away quickly.

  ‘I’m here to help. I know of a place where you can be safe.’ His eyes were emeralds, and a ball was suddenly lodged in her throat. ‘Trust me, I can help.’ She noticed the pendent on his wrist- The God of Fate, Itha-Shaw. Well, he was in luck, Itha must have been watching over him.

  With a fear-struck look he slowly approached her. ‘Ok…’ He whispered.

  Keeping the boy close with her arm tight around him they walked briskly through the maze walls to the well-trodden alleyway. She knocked on the door and like always two sharp eyes glared at the two. ‘Hey, Kenso.’

  The glasses he wore revealed no deception so the door creaked open as a welcoming mouth. She smiled and held the boys hand as he walked down the abyss stairs. Isadora informed him of everything, the stalls, and the trading system as they walked. She chuckled from the look of his face when everything was revealed. She wondered how she first looked when Veyra showed her it.

  ‘Thank you!’ He hugged her tight. ‘You saved me!’ Slowly the weight on her lifted slightly and hugged him back with a weak smile.

  ‘… It’s ok.’ She didn’t feel so tired anymore.

  She creaked open the huts door. Veyra and Bane had gone out as Zane looked over some scrawled papers. ‘Feeling any better?’ He asked without looking up.

  ‘Yes.’ She sat beside him and slid a book off the side. it read. She mindlessly flicked through the pages, eyes catching pictures of dead or none-existent creatures. The Eternal Library caught her eye.

  ‘If we take the Trading Tunnel to Northscotts, that’ll get us close enough to the shore line.’

  She flipped the dog-eared copy shut. ‘But we’d have to go through the forest.’

  ‘… Yes, that’s the primary issue for now.’

  ‘Can we survive in it?’

  ‘Not for long. Especially not overnight… Some speed boost?’

  ‘Which cities haven’t been taken over yet?’

  ‘Owanpolar, but that would add… four days onto the journey.’

  ‘Better than being mauled by some crazy animal.’ She huffed, too drained to think critically. She stood up and found a forgotten sandwich left on the side. The crude cutting suggested it was Bane’s, so she proceeded to munch on it- he always forgot to finish his sandwiches.

  ‘Someone was taken…?’ The Red Advisor sat across from the Red Knight who had reportedly brought in the geoptic that escaped. Rexford. His eyes shone blue, helmet off to show his unkempt dark hair.

  ‘Yes. A group of three broke in and escaped via the sewer system.’

  ‘This is grave.’

  ‘Why must we kill every geoptic except green-eyed females?’

  ‘That is need-to-know. Describe the one which was taken.’

  He shrugged. ‘Like all the rest. Filthy and weak and-.’

  ‘Hair colour?’

  ‘Dark blue.’

  ‘Eyes?’

  ‘Like… green.’

  ‘What type?’

  ‘… Green?’

  ‘Hunter, tea green, emerald, sage…?’

  ‘Like a dark green.’

  ‘I’ll note down: forest green. Height?’

  ‘5”7? I didn’t measure her. She had a slightly clipped ear.’

  His pencil stopped scratching on the paper and his eyes snapped up. He flicked through a few notes before shaking his head slightly. ‘Thank you… Do you know where they went?’

  ‘No… they’re probably still in the city though, it’s not like any mage would dare go into the forest.’

  The knight noticed the advisor circle a word: spy. ‘You can go, McFleen.’

  ‘You lost your own prisoner?’ A Knight smirked as McFleen as he removed his armour for the day, more than ready for dinner.

  ‘Shut it, Garrison.’

  ‘It happens. You were there right?’

  ‘Yes. A few geoptics and a cephalon broke her out.’

  ‘… Do you know why?’

  ‘How could I?’

  ‘Do you know why we need those sorts of geoptics?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Well I’ve never found one so I’ve never had to go down to the dungeons.’

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  ‘It’s grim. Be grateful you haven’t.’

  ‘… You hungry, too?’

  Rexford seemed to deflate ‘… yes.’ He huffed out. He looked tired.

  Isadora smiled slightly every time she remembered the geoptic boy she had helped, even the trader asking for psy spells didn’t bother her when trying to trade for magical items. She had to explain near daily how she couldn’t do such advanced magic. ‘But you’re a geoptic!’ It was like a broken record…

  She spotted her brothers in the crowd, Bane and Zane, trying to buy the final tickets to the boats. She smiled and waved at them, and they waved back. But then there was a thud on the cavern ceiling. In a burst of dirt a great silver orb was lowered down. Isadora couldn’t move, as if icy fear dug her feet into the ground. People were already running from it and flying down tunnels on brooms… Isadora just stared. Suddenly the pulley system released and the orb fell. She watched it drop like a pebble.

  ‘Isadora-!’ Zane grabbed her arm and began to pull her. Bane ran beside them, shouting profanities!

  The silver orb connected with the ground and a loud, deep BANG exploded across the cavern! Blue light shot out of it! Isadora froze. Suddenly overwhelming pain burst her, everyone, EVERYTHING, off the ground! Blue light exploded throughout the entire cavern- destroying everything!

  She felt sick.

  Isadora’s mind swam as she twitched amongst the shattered wood and bones. She had no idea how long she had been lying there. She titled her head slightly for her family… and the sight of Bane’s bloodied hand made her ears ring.

  She looked for Zane whose head, faced away, and was near buried in stone. A breathless gasp-scream fumbled out of her as tears wetted her cheeks. She tried to crawl over to them but a new voice echoed through the massacre. ‘A successful fall.’ The advisor scribbled away on some paper.

  Isadora saw the blurred figure again… Harold… The Red King. But she blinked and tried to pull herself up. Her eyes went into focus. She could suddenly see his blue eyes and red hair, sharp features. There was a scar near his eye.

  Pure evil.

  ‘Well done.’ He voice was deep and filled her with disgust. He flicked his robe as he turned to a small geoptic boy… Isadora couldn’t believe it. It was the boy she saved! ‘You’ve found the Trading Tunnels within a week. Here.’ He tossed the boy a coin purse. He opened it to see glimmering gold.

  She… Everything seemed to blacken. Colour drained into a black void. He was a spy… A real geoptic and a spy.

  ‘But…’ The King kneeled by the child, not even a preteen yet. ‘The deal was every geoptic dead.’ A knife was plunged into his throat! Isadora’s eyes widened as the child, choking on blood, collapsed dead! The purse thudded into the growing red, staining the gold. ‘This was a good start, but the Tunnels go on for miles.’ He spoke so casually… ‘The Empire would be too thinly spread and the weapon has been designed in the city itself. It is not built for movement.’

  ‘Yes, the scientists are working on making it portable but if you just told us how the orb worked-.’

  ‘You don’t need to know such things. Figure it out.’ He spoke so coldly. Psychopath. ‘It will be vital for the next location.’

  ‘Yes, the mountain school. A scout has discovered the precise location.’ He showed some folded paper- a map.

  Isadora, dead already, suddenly ran from the rubble toward the Red King! There was his advisor and the few Red Knights around him! She picked up Bane’s potion and it exploded, casting smoke over the party she snatched the paper! Running out the smoke she bolted to the closest tunnel! ‘Take her alive!’ He demanded! The Knights rushed at her. She took out the crystal Zane had given her, already charged she shouted ‘flistos!’ as a wall of ice smashed into the attackers. She fumbled into the tunnel. ‘TAKE HER ALIVE!’ King Harold shouted again.

  A knight grabbed her by the throat and lifted her up, her eyes catching The Kings. They… looked terrified, almost… sad… Panicked she thought quickly- she needed magic! Struggling her hand brushed against the tunnel wall, feeling the embedded crystals. The Tunnels were hundreds of years old. The majority of that mages were casting spells and creating potions constantly. The very structure of the cavern was infused with magic over the centuries! ‘DORAKI!’ She grabbed the wall and pulled the earth over the Knight holding her. It was so infused with the energy spell caster could contort it.

  Suddenly, dirt began to spill out! Like a burst water pipe earth gushed out like a wave. It pushed Isadora and she freed herself of the Knights grip and sprinted away as the dirt came down!

  In the silence of the tunnel she dragged her feet out of the soil on bloodied arms, the map in an iron grip. Tears fumbled down her face… Zane and Bane… a cry of agony filled her bloodied ears and beat her fist against the ground. Gone! She looked back but the cave in must have been meters and meters more thick. She wasn’t getting back. But her grip tightened on the map. She couldn’t, she had others to save! Another scream broke free: ‘I’M GOING TO KILL HIM! HIS EMPIRE WILL BURN!’ She cried alone in the tunnel. ‘BURN