Crimson and Gold

A few hours before the confrontation between the Emperor and the Princess, Saria was called for one last patrol with the city guards.

She thought it was going to be another usual day at work, but unexpectedly, she was informed that this time they were leaving Aervelis to handle a matter in one of the nearby villages.

So far, there were no incidents involving the drug beyond city gates, but it wasn’t too hard to believe that it would eventually land in the hands of an outsider. Aervelis was the capital and the biggest city of the region. Thousands of people passed through every day, making it borderline impossible to fully control what got in and what got out.

Thinking no more of the matter, Saria boarded the wagon with other guards from her usual team and headed towards the destination.

It wasn’t until they were on the road for almost an hour that she noticed her companions acting strangely.

There were weird glances stolen when she was looking away. The normally chatty crowd was suddenly quiet, even the most rowdy characters sat in silence with their heads down.

Those who got caught staring at her gave only an awkward half-smile before looking away.

Even though it was supposed to be their last patrol, the mood felt heavy and tense. As if they were ready for a fight to break out any moment.

“It’s a bit weird that the Husks managed to get so far away from the city, isn’t it?” Saria started probing.

The broken silence didn’t lighten the mood. Quite the contrary. The already tense atmosphere became even more suffocating as the guards exchanged glances with each other.

“Maybe they were hiding there this whole time,” one of them answered. He was trying to sound natural, but the faint tremble of his voice didn’t escape Saria’s notice.

She focused her probing gaze on the man, making him immediately regret speaking up. Having nowhere to run, he simply shifted in his seat awkwardly and wiped his clammy hands on his tunic.

“And nobody had discovered them until now?” Saria retorted, carefully observing the man’s every move.

“The old temple hadn’t been in use for decades. Most people avoid it because of the rumors of some evil hiding in there, so it makes for a good place to hide,” chimed in another guard. This one gave off the impression of being braver than his companion, as he calmly met her gaze.

Saria nodded. “You said who discovered it?”

“M-milkman,” stuttered yet another guard.

“If the area is abandoned, and nobody really goes that way, then why was a milkman taking that route?” Saria pondered aloud, carefully scrutinizing the reaction of others. “The merchants usually prefer taking the main route towards Ad Aesim, since it’s safer. Isn’t it weird?”

The guards exchanged looks. The beads of sweat dropping from under their helmets.

“Maybe it is. Maybe it isn’t. We won’t know until we get there, so speculating is pointless.” This time it was the squad’s leader’s time to join the conversation.

His stern voice quickly ended the conversation, forcing the other guards to lower their heads once more.

It wasn’t their usual squad leader. Centurion Drakimus was replaced by a soldier she wasn’t familiar with. After looking around a bit more, she realized that there were some other faces she hadn’t seen before.

At this point, Saria was certain that there was something else going on.

If she had to take a guess, then it was most likely the Emperor’s doing. He probably thought it was a perfect opportunity to get rid of her and stage it as an accident.

Saria scoffed at this idea.

She considered attacking the guards right away, however, the wagon wasn’t suitable for the fight. It was a rather shabby, half-open construction, and aside from her, there were fourteen other people in it.

If a fight broke out, she would be at a disadvantage. Her moves would be significantly limited.

She decided to wait until they arrived at the spot. At worst, she still had the blood magic that she could use if the situation turned too ugly.

During their previous patrols, Saria made sure to never use it in front of the other guards, so while they were most likely prepared for the way she fought, her other abilities were her ace in the sleeve.

***

Half an hour later, they finally arrived at the ruins of the temple.

Right away, Saria felt that something was wrong.

Her senses were dulled, and her head felt uncomfortably heavy. Even her body was acting sluggish.

With great effort, Saria raised her head to look at the temple. At the center of the half-destroyed pediment, she noticed a weird, broken symbol. Despite only a fragment being still visible, she couldn’t help but feel that she had seen it before.

Wherever she encountered it in the past, it couldn’t be any good place, as she immediately felt a chill run down her spine.

Saria gritted her teeth and tried to calm herself down. Panicking was the worst thing to do in her situation.

She took a deep breath and forced herself to stand up straight. “So what is this place exa—”

Before she could finish, a heavy club slammed into the back of her head, knocking her out in an instant.

It was unclear how long she was unconscious, but by the time she woke up, she was already deep within the temple.

Heavy chains tied her to a wall in an underground chamber. The sharp rubble scattered around was digging painfully into her legs and back. The stale air felt heavy, carrying a strong scent of rot and decay.

The leader of the squad and his two lackeys stood some distance away from her, holding torches to light up the darkness consuming the chamber.

Saria groaned, pushing herself from the floor, the heavy chains weighing down on her already weak body.

“Welcome back among the living… for now,” the squad leader mocked. The two guards next to him sneered like well-trained parrots.

Using the wall behind her back as support, Saria steadied herself and glared at them. “How about we make a bet on which one of us is going to drop dead first?”

“I don’t make bets with corpses.”

“Heh… Coward.” The moment the insult sounded, the Leader spat out a curse and delivered a kick to Saria’s stomach.

The impact shook the wall, causing a bunch of dust and sand to fall through the cracks in the ceiling.

“Watch your mouth, fiend. The only reason you’re still alive is that a filth like you isn’t worthy of dirtying my hands.” In the dim light, the fury in the leader’s dark eyes flickered like a spark eager to turn into a blazing flame.

Saria spat out the blood gathered in her mouth and laughed out loud. “Ah… Torturing a chained prisoner. The Squad Leader is so brave,” she mocked.

The man wasn’t bothered by it. He looked down on her, a crooked smile glued to his face.

“Even if I unlock the chains, what are you going to do? You can’t even stand on your own. How are you going to fight the three of us on your own?” he asked, then walked closer and raised her chin with the pommel of his sword. “Or maybe you’re going to use your blood magic? Hm?”

The mention of her abilities left her momentarily stunned. They shouldn’t have known that. She made sure to never use her magic in their presence. Lysandra went out of her way to keep this secret well hidden, so how did he know that?

Saria immediately realized that her situation was much worse than she had assumed.

She tried to focus on her abilities, but no matter what, her magic felt completely out of reach. As if something was blocking her.

“What? It’s not working?” the leader teased, encouraged by the panic in her eyes. “What a pity. I guess, you can’t do anything after all.”

Gritting her teeth, Saria glared at the man. “What did you do to me?”

“We didn’t do anything,” he said, taking a few steps back to look around the chamber. “This is an old temple of Aelius Basileus, the only true King of the Heavens. The Golden Flame is the only magic allowed in these grounds.”

That explained why Saria started feeling so bad the moment they got near the temple. There had to be some kind of enchantment or a spell put around the place that neutralized other types of magic. Something like the chains used by slave traders, but on a large scale.

The bad news was that until she left the affected area, she was almost completely defenseless.

The magic-disrupting capabilities of this place were extraordinary. It cut her off from her magic completely, leaving her not only powerless but exhausted. Those without any magic weren’t affected as much.

Saria took a few deep breaths to calm her racing mind. Panicking was pointless. She needed to stay calm if she wanted to find the way out of this situation.

Analyzing everything that had happened so far, she concluded that her best option right now was to wait until the rescue team arrived.

It had already been a few hours since they left the Palace, and by now, Lysandra had to notice that something was amiss. The Princess had eyes and ears everywhere, so it was unlikely that the Emperor was able to pull this off without her knowing.

With a bit of luck, she was already on her way to the temple, so Saria had to hold out for only a bit longer.

With that thought, her heart calmed down significantly, and her head got clearer.

Noticing the change in her eyes, the Squad Leader scoffed. “What? Do you believe that the Princess is going to save you?” he asked, leaning against the dilapidated column. “If my estimations are correct, then she’s already locked in her chambers with a full garrison of guards keeping watch.”

Hearing the confidence in his voice, Saria couldn’t help but feel amused. To the Leader’s surprise, she let out a small chuckle, even folded her arms behind her head as she lazily leaned against the wall.

“You know…” she started, her eyes closed as if she was resting. “Underestimating me is one thing, but Lysandra?” Saria opened her eyes to glance at the confused guard. “She’s going to have your head for that.”

Against his better judgment, the Squad Leader shuddered as a cold shiver ran down his spine. Obviously, the woman was toying with him. The Princess couldn’t do anything. She was powerless, even more so against the Emperor.

And yet, he couldn’t bring himself to laugh at this threat.

Clenching his jaw, he kicked Saria’s abdomen with all of his strength and spat as she fell to the ground. “Fucking, crazy bitch. I’m done wasting my time on you.”

Sparing her no second glance, the Squad Leader gestured at his men and left the chamber, leaving Saria in complete darkness.