I heard a door creak open.
Hmm? We've already had our rations of the day, though. Who is it this time?
I raised my eyes at the uninvited guest - a man of tall stature with massive bags beneath his eyes.
He's tired. Exhausted, even.
The man stared me down in return, completely ignoring Kaela's presence.
His expression was deadpan, almost eerily so, and I couldn't feel any trace of essence seeping out.
Concealing aura, are we? Such tricks don't work on me, my guy.
Though his essence was entirely undetectable, his slow, steady heartbeat, along with finely controlled muscle movements told me the man was a powerhouse.
Naturally, I could only notice such details due to my exceptional hearing. To the average human, he would've looked like a weakling.
The tips of his hair faintly shimmered with a fiery glow - the trademark sign of a Nether bloodline warrior.
It seems today's visitor is some kind of a bigshot.
Should I wake Kaela up? No… She'll definitely cause a ruckus if I interrupt her sleep. The dude's clearly here to see me anyways.
Finally, he approached our cell and opened the barred door.
I didn't bother raising my guard, instead resting my head on the one, clawed palm.
Not like I can put up a fight even if he's here to kill me, what with the shackles. May as well make myself comfortable.
The man sat down before me, legs crossed, and opened his mouth to speak with an unreadable expression.
"Threadripper."
"Heya, Nether's Prince; that's what you are, right?"
"Call me Malrik."
I puffed up my cheeks in mock offense at his words.
"That's not fair at all. You get to call me by my title, but I have to use your name? I'm Ori."
My overly relaxed attitude gave him pause, but he didn't choose to press on it.
"Then, Ori, how's prison life been treating you?"
My brows furrowed in response. Something about his tone was… off.
I think I get where the incongruity is coming from; he's being all buddy buddy with those questions, but his voice doesn't portray even a hit of friendliness.
Still, I decided to entertain his chitchat, to stall the inevitable if nothing else.
After all, it was obvious why he showed up.
I suppose they thought me important enough to get questioned by a very high ranking figure. Ah, but calling it 'questioning' does my predicament a bit of a disservice. I'm gonna get brutally tortured soon - no doubt about it.
"Glad you asked, Malrik. It's been great. Water's a bit murky, but I've had worse. Actually, please pass my thanks to the chef doing the cooking; the nondescript gray slop tastes amazing."
He responded with silence.
Guess that's my cue to keep talking.
"Hmm, what else? Oh! Right, the security is top notch, too. It's been more than a decade since I've slept this soundly. So, all in all, I'd say prison life's been great."
Along with those words, I lowered my folder arm and dismissed the strained smile.
Some essence involuntarily seeped into my eyes as my voice took on an sharp edge.
"You know, I've been trying to waste some time with idle chatter, but I just realized that waiting for something bad to happen feels infinitely more stressful. So how about it, Malrik? Wanna drop the farce already? It's real fucking off-putting. Ah, and you should work on your amicable face - your acting skills are dogshit."
My words were met with a wave of pressure, so heavy that Voracity naturally activated in retaliation.
How absurd. Such an amount of essence is unheard of for a human his age.
"If you see who you're dealing with, why act so brazenly?"
"Because I'm not stupid. Not usually, anyways. Just ask what you need to ask already; I'll try not to scream."
Just get it over with already, man. All this tension is stressing me out.
The next moment, as if hearing my thoughts, he appeared beside Kaela and struck the back of her neck with a palm.
Out cold. Not waking up any time soon, I figure. Does he not want her listening in to the interrogation? Well, that helps. At least I won't be waking her up if things get bad.
As he walked back to me with deliberately slow steps, a flame flickered to life at the tip of his finger.
"Threadripper… No, Ori. If I sense a lie in anything you say, you'll be getting a taste of Nether's fire. I expect quick answers. Understood?"
"Yeah, yeah. Let's go, bring it on, or whatever it is I'm meant to say. Wouldn't want me dying of a heart attack from all the build up before I tell you everything, now would you?"
I responded dismissively despite better judgement.
His stoic expression turned dark.
Truth is, I was already barely holding myself together in the face of his pressure. Voracity urged me to lunge at the threat right this instant.
Certainly didn't have the presence of mind to act polite on top of that.
But if I attack him now, it'll be my neck getting pierced… Not that instincts can be reasoned with.
"You have a talent for getting on people's nerves."
"I thought so too, but this here girl proved me an amateur."
I gestured toward Kaela with my chin. He shot a brief glance her way, and his face scrunched up.
Whoops. Did I strike nerve? If looks could kill, she'd be dead already.
Ah, but looks can kill, at a high enough realm.
Malrik's next words brought me out of the pointless thoughts.
"Trust me, I know. Now, onto the first question - how did you survive the execution five years ago?"
"I ran away."
"Impossible. There were no escapees."
"Well, you're looking at one."
At my rebuttal, he let out a sigh and brought his blazing finger to my collarbone.
*Sizzle*
My skin instantly started boiling, yet the damage was mild at best.
Incredible control, too. He's freakishly strong.
I smiled wide, teeth showing, as droplets of sweat formed on my forehead.
His irritation only grew.
"Don't waste my time on blatant lies. How did you survive?"
"I'm telling the truth-"
I abruptly shut my mouth with a sharp inhale when the pain intensified manyfold.
Still, an important detail didn't evade me.
He's impatient.
Suddenly, an idea started taking root in my mind:
Could that work? No, it'd be crazy to try… Then again, what's there to lose?
My thoughts flowed faster than ever as I put the pieces together, swiftly concocting a plan that even I found ridiculously reckless.
As expected, Malrik didn't give me the time to think on it any further. He dug his entire hand into my skin, sending waves of scorching heat through it.
At that, I could no longer keep a straight face, and let out a pained laugh.
"Argh… Hahahahaha!! Wow, that hurts like a bitch."
"It will only get worse if you keep dodging my questions. Speak."
"Haaah, yeah. I can… Imagine."
Seeing as I refused to cooperate, he brought his hand lower down, leaving four long burn marks behind.
I remained unresponsive, though my breath had become uneven.
No matter how much effort I put into concealing the new plan, it was only a matter of time before I'd inevitably slip up and reveal something irrevocable - if I said anything, with my mind heavily weighed by the need to suppress Voacity's influence and Malrik's ruthless torture…
Then my last thread of hope would be cut at the roots.
And so, I grit my teeth and pushed on, determined not to say a thing.
The torture continued for several hours. Perhaps longer.
Hard to tell when every minute feels like an eternity.
My agonized cries, mixed with unhinged laughter and tears, echoed through the underground chambers all throughout.