HYDE'S POINT OF VIEW.
I stop at the door for a few minutes,
And the consciousness hits me;
-I'm actually going to meet my death once I step into this room-
I look around the desolate corridors.
-Indeed there seems to be no escape route-
I take a deep breath, as I speak to myself;
-This is the end Hyde, accept that-
The magnificent door is grand and imposing, and I wheeze as I reach forward and thump my fist on its shiny surface.
"Come in..." Faria's voice calls from within.
I grasp my chest in bid to steady my thumping heartbeat as I grab the handle and pull.
I step into the room.
-A shiver runs down my spine as my eyes span across the occupants of the room-
A long wooden table is the centrepiece of the room.
Around this table is seated a number of individuals.
Their faces are hard to make out due to the dimness of the light,
-The entire room is lighted by a single candle placed on the head of the table-
On closer inspection, I perceive the frigid expressions dressing these faces.
Their hostile eyes concurrently swivelled to regard me as soon as I entered.
-The gravitas these people possess is literally smothering-
My face becomes hotter and a nausea drowns my subconscious as I find myself so pathetically out of place.
I would like to clasp my hands together tightly in front of me, but; I only have one.
My shoulders are sagged, and my face is down.
-I feel their eyes boring holes into me-
Then a deep but remarkably gentle voice cuts into this icy atmosphere;
" Don't just stand there, take a seat... we've been expecting you"
The one they call Lord Fenice, is seated at the head of the table, his fingers are steepled and his eyes are fixed on me.
He has long red hair, and striking green eyes, he is clad in a dignified brown cloak.
He gives a slight, encouraging smile;
"Come on, join us" he offers again.
I gulp hard as the room comes alive with subtle disapproval, however braving up, I step to the empty seat at the end of the table.
-A brief silence-
"Now...tell me your name... I'm Fenice" he speaks softly.
I bite my lower lip in discomfort at being spotlighted for so long.
-Am I not going to be killed anymore?-
Someone beside me nudges me roughly.
-I briefly turn to see that it's Treya-
She glares at me despicably and I only realise that I have kept Lord Fenice's question hanging.
"Um... I'm uh, my name's....Hyde" I stutter.
The Lord chuckles slightly,
-He appears amused-
"Where did you say you picked him up again Faria?" he turns to Faria who is sitting a few seats away from him.
She jolts upright;
"At our successful raid of the Upper Mage's household, we picked this servant up sir..." Faria accounts,
Mic who is opposite her grunts;
"Sir...I was absolutely against bringing this useless fellow along" he remarks offishly.
The room starts bustling with commentary.
My side eye glances across the unfamiliar faces;
-An indecently clothed woman with muscles the size of boulders-,
-A pale, lifeless looking man with a horn sticking from his head-,
-An arrogant looking guy who looks about my age-,
-A hunched over individual whose features I cannot see due to his sitting arrangement-
"I say we kill him" the muscular woman asserts plainly.
-The 'him' is me right?-
"This mannerless kid walked in on me dressing and didn't offer as much as an apology" she adds expressionlessly.
The horned man snickers and undertones;
"Apparently you didn't dress up well enough-" "-I heard that Clot!" she interrupts him with a roar.
"Surely the Reformation doesn't require any freeloaders my Lord" the hunched over man inquires in a breathy voice,
"I say that he stays Lord" Faria whispers to Lord Fenice.
-All their talk reaches a crescendo and begins to sound like buzzing in my head, I'm getting intoxicated at their bawling-
Lord Fenice claps his hands twice.
-Pin-drop silence falls on the room-
"I have reached a decision" he chimes.
His eyes fix on me;
"Unfortunately as it is, the Reformation does not have a hobby of accommodating freeloaders," he pauses methodically.
"Infact only people who have proven themselves to me may be called disciples, hence our few numbers" he gestures round the table dramatically.
I clench my fist;
-Why is he making it sound like I could have done better to live?-
He smirks; "And you my boy, have done nothing to earn that validation..."
My heart feels squeezed;
-Why do I have this feeling when I was bound to die from the start?-
He is still speaking;
"Also, nobody who has seen our whereabouts can be allowed to live"
My heartbeat quickens;
-Might have been better if I bled to death that day-
"And so I regret to announce to you Hyde but..."
-It's more annoying knowing the fact that I had the slightest chance to stay alive and yet I didn't seize it-
"You'll just have to die Hyde"
At this statement, something fills me up;
I surge upward, my chair scraping violently on the floor surface.
Before anyone can understand what's going on;
-I am on the table-
I scramble forward in a rushed crawling movement,
-The table offers bad footing but this rush of energy propels me forward-
Lord Fenice's eyes widen as he finally acknowledges the threat I pose.
-But he is simply surprised, not worried and definitely not scared-
He is startled as I reach him at the end of the table.
I snatch up the huge candle and point it threateningly at his face.
-I might end up getting even more hurt if I go for the kill-
-He already has a small scar on his face that greatly resembles a burn mark-
-SILENCE-; -CHOKING SILENCE-
I sniff as a tear drops from my eye;
"Please don't kill me... please" I plead with a wavering voice as I withdraw the candle;
-Wax dripping on my hand-
For a second I lock eyes with the Lord;
-He wants me to prove myself to him-
I grit my teeth as put my stub forward;
I press the candle-fire on my raw flesh.
-The crackling fire combined with the agonising pain that hits me feels like death itself-
I yelp as I drop the candle and soothe my flaking skin.
Everyone is absolutely astonished, entirely flabbergasted at my actions.
Mic acts first.
"I told you this kid was a bad idea" he addresses Faria as he violently reaches forward and drags me to the floor violently.
My body hits the ground with a thud.
Mic proceeds to pummel me with viscous blows.
-Everyone looks on wordlessly-
Soon, I find myself losing grasp of my consciousness,
Through my blurred sight;
I see Mic stretch backward as he opens his mouth.
-The width of his mouth is unending and it is filled with hundreds of sharp teeth-
He holds me up by the ruff of my collar, and is about to push me into his mouth,
I sigh heavily;
- I feel better dying now because at least I made an effort to live-
"That's enough Mic..."
Mic is stopped just before he can chuck me into his mouth by Lord Fenice.
"Lord?" he is visibly surprised at Lord Fenice's intervention.
"Don't kill him..." Lord Fenice arises and comes over to where my body has been dumped by Mic.
He crouches to me and holds me by the face, he has a broad smile;
"Because somehow, this kid has managed to prove himself to me"
HYDE'S POV END.
CAMADA'S POINT OF VIEW.
In a matter of time, we have managed to clear out about half the creatures.
However;
The pangs of hunger in my stomach and exhaustion is slowly taking the better of me.
I lose guard;
-SMASH-
Something collides into my back;
I scream out in agony.
I slump to the floor in a panicked frenzy.
-I do believe my backbone was broken-
A beast wastes no time to launch itself at me.
Luckily, Sesugh who is not far off blocks it off with a forcefield.
But he turns his attention back to another creature threatening him.
-For a minute, nothing comes at me, I just lay down on the floor at centre of the battle-
An injured creature drags itself to me,
I am unable to sit upright and my entire body feels deadened as I am incapable of moving anything.
I impulsively press my hand to my back in frustration.
The creature slithers to me steadily.
The light illuminating my hand becomes even brighter and a hot sensation pushes onto my back.
Suddenly, my body moves on its own with an upright jolt.
-My backbone has been fixed?-
I jump away from the creature that has made its way to me.
Something slimy drags me up.
-A creature's tentacles-
It's about to push me into its mouth;
-Apparently my light powers have no effect on it-
My mind works fast and I shudder at the idea that drops into my brain.
I continuously ram my arm into the creatures brick-like body.
Soon enough;
A sickening sound like a wet plop, followed by a sandy sensation sends a wave of agony spamming through my entire body.
-I have to hurry or I'll die-
My arm dangles numbly by my side at an incredibly unnatural angle.
-My shoulder-socket empty, successfully dislocated-
-I am unable to comprehend the immense anguish going through my body-
In a matter of seconds, I seize my own wrist and pull hard, in attempt to yank off the now free ball joint of my arm, I focus strain on my damaged shoulder capsule.
A tearing, shredding sound follows a wet 'SCHLOP'
My upper bone has been yanked off from its torn surrounding tissues and muscles.
Barely with any energy left, I swing my severed bone viciously at the creatures head.
The bone collides brutally with the Beast's dense skin with a CRACK and the creature drops me down instantly in agony.
I scramble away then;
I WAIL.
CAMADA'S POV END.