Oran's Awakening

TheJBurger

Twenty years ago, is this how I saw myself? Rotting, wrinkling, dying beneath the sewers, with only the crumbling walls and the maggot-infested rats to keep me company. Every day I have woken up to the feeling of the shackles that rest on and chafe my wrists and legs, reminding me of the ten paces that I call my daily walk. The lock tantalizes me at the opposite end of my cell.

And yet, tonight, I manage to smile beneath it all, because I know tonight is the night they come for me.

How many years ago was it? I remember the countryside. I used to travel, blade in hand across the streams and beneath the caves. I used to watch the sunset every night, every time a different spot from before. It seems so surreal now, like a distant memory, half-faded from my mind. I gave it up for this--every day the same as the last: Grey, dark, cold, and monotone.

And yet, I know it will be worth it. Twenty years of patience, anticipation, and loneliness will be rewarded, because I am finally going to get my chance.

"Click," goes the lock.I am eager to feel the blade again.

tzachs

Has the time finally come? I struggle to stand up. I look at my captivator, Kundar. I have come to hate him, more on each passing day, each time he came holding a bowl of nothing but rice and lay it on the floor, with an indifferent look on his face. If he knew what I thought of him, he would kill me. Then again, if I had my blade with me I would surely kill him.

And yet, he is the second in command, so I must control the way I act around him, I must pace myself.

Does he know? I think I saw a scared look on his face, but it vanished as quickly as it came. “It’s been twenty years, you may approach him now”, he says silently. We walk, not saying a word, reaching parts of the sewers I had not seen before. I hear several different footsteps behind me. We are not alone, they are watching me. We reach a large wooden door, the footsteps behind me stop. Kundar opens the door for me to enter.

And yet, I find myself having second thoughts. The master obviously trusts Kundar, but I don’t. Am I doing the right thing?

“Creek,” goes the door as it closes behind us. Well, there is no turning back now.

Vince Twelve

The light of the stove in the center of the room was blinding after so many years in the dark. I surveyed the room, squinting my pale eyes.

Besides myself and Kundar, with his grip tightening on my shoulder, there were four people in the room. Nearest me was a servant bearing pitchers of liquors and milk. Beyond him were two royal guards wearing red cloaks and wry smiles. And in the center of the room, the Master sat atop a modest wooden throne.

"Oran," he spoke my name as if he did not owe me his tongue. "May I offer you something to drink?"

"You may." I had not heard my voice in years.

A quick step to the side was all it took to throw Kundar off balance. As his grip loosened in surprise, I turned. My muscles may have weakened over the years, but the momentum built up by the heavy iron around my wrists as I spun would more than make up for them.

My shackles landed with a satisfying 'thud' on Kundar's left temple. Before he hit the ground, I had used the momentum to roll myself over his hulking frame, landing in front of the servant. A deft motion sent the pitchers flying into the stove, plunging the room into darkness.

I felt much more at home in the darkness.

Trihan

I could not say the same for the others. They flailed blindly around the room, searching for me; I would not be easy prey, however. Despite the fatigue plaguing my weary muscles I managed to land a solid blow to the side of Kundar's face and heard a sickening crack as it connected. I knew Kundar well after all this time, though - he wouldn't stay down for long. Seizing my chance to finally taste freedom, I sprinted towards the door, opened it but a crack so as to keep as much of the light out as possible, and slipped off into the heart of the Master's dungeon.

To say I knew the place like the back of my hand would be doing a disservice to my appendages, so often had I walked these halls. So often, in fact, that it almost felt like I was leaving home. The thought sickened me, and I pushed it to the back of my mind as I made my way towards the trapdoor that I had dreamed of emerging from someday. Of course, that was the way out, and I wasn't quite done here yet...

LGM

The labyrinthine corridors of the dungeon sprawled out before me. Luckily I had memorized every inch of the floor, the walls, and the low, encroaching ceilings and I knew precisely where I needed to go. As suddenly as I had left Kundar behind me, I came to a crossing. To my left was the trapdoor. To my right was an expanse of filth I dare not lay a foot in. And before me was darkness; a seemingly endless tunnel with no other doors or outlets. It was a vicious trek leading deeper into the dungeon. This is where I needed to go.

I continued forward into the black. My breath echoed off the moist, stone walls as my calves creaked and squealed at their newfound stress. Agility had always been familiar to me, but in the wake of my stay in this Godforsaken cellar, I had to pace myself, for I would surely lose my strength as quickly as it had come to me.

I heard a noise ahead. I was nearing my destination. I clenched my fists and my shoulders tightened as I braced myself for the coming storm. And then, a loud roar rumbled from behind.

Akatosh

Cursing my bad luck, I sped up a little. The guards rallied much faster than I had expected. It seemed like I picked the worst possible moment to strike against those rats – right before a patrol came around. Still, it might work. I wouldn’t stand a chance in battle, but the guards’ armaments made them slow and clumsy, and I was ahead of them. I would have to finish this quickly, however, if I wanted to escape afterwards.

Assuming the plan worked, that was? I had spent many depressed hours in cell, cradling the small, yet crucial metal object we smuggled in, praying the plan would work?wondering if it could work? we knew it would take long for the opportunity to arise, but twenty years? Was the plan even in motion? Had I been given the sign yesterday, or was it just cruel coincidence, rotten luck spoiling another splendid plan? Or would we finally succeed in what our predecessors and ancestors had not?

I forced myself away from these dark thoughts to focus on the situation instead, as I sped around a corner and down a flight of stairs, now mere meters from my destination. Not the time for doubt.

DanielH

I stumbled out of the staircase and into an alcove, where moonlight bathed me. Across the room was a tiny boat on the waterfront, which I had used to get into the dungeon so long ago. It seems even the Master, in his wisdom, still does not know his own castle.

Untouched for twenty years, I cautiously lowered myself into the boat. Luckily, the journey is short. As the soldiers stormed the staircase, I pushed off and began rowing to the other side of the river. The boat creaked and strained, like my own body. Half way across, the boat had already began to sink. By the time I reached the bank, I was weighed down by my soaking wet clothes. But it was worth it.

That tiny metal object should be found soon- I had left it in the Master's chamber, and surely any second he will pick it up, setting the final part of this plan in motion- ending the Master's rule. I didn't even know if the others were alive. It didn't matter. I dropped to the floor behind a bush. When I woke in the morning, I would learn of what became of the plan- success or not.

Andorxor

At the next morning I awake with Kundars spear at my throat. “You should have run away further.” It was a failure. I don’t know if I misinterpreted the sign because I wanted it to be over or if one of the others failed, but that doesn’t matters 20 years of my life are wasted for nothing. I deserve any punishment the master dishes out for my escape, because of my stupidity.

Kundar turns me around and chains my wrists behind my back. Even Kundar can learn something new if the lesson is painful enough.

Akatosh

Kundar does his best to make the journey back as painful as possible, but I hardly notice. I feel numb… empty… drained. This had not been part of the plan. Kundar should have been dead by now, taken out by the chaos the small trinket would have left behind, or outside the main gates if he had survived by chance… why didn’t it happen? Why didn’t the artifact do what it was supposed to? If the others had failed, why had the soldier given me the sign? All those years spent waiting in the dark… had our efforts been for nought? Had I thrown my life away? For once in his miserable, treacherous life, Kundar had been right; I should have run away further, run and never stop, away from these lands. Damn my curiosity!

Kundar makes haste, leading me along the riverbank. I think his boat is towed further downstream. Sensible, as it would have allowed him to catch me, had I tried to escape this way; the current was too strong in the other direction.

Downstream… something was amiss there. My instincts had atrophied in the last two decades, but they had not left me. There was… something strange in the air…

LGM

There was a soft cutting sound of the air. A small pebble flung towards the boat, hitting Kundar squarely in the temple. Without a single groan, Kundar toppled over into the river. I watched as the swift current carried him away and under.

In the treeline, I heard laughter. A high-pitched squeal of deviance. I squinted in hopes to catch a glimpse of my supposed adversary, but I saw nothing.

As the boat drifted down its pre-determined path, I came to a clearing. In the distance I saw the castle. A dark cloud was swarming above it. Perhaps my mission had succeeded after all. Lightning struck the towers, crumbling the stone. I could hear screams of torture and pain. As promised, the device had brought chaos to the realm of the master. But at what cost? It was only then that it occurred to me how unsure I was of the chaos held within that tiny sphere. The screams grew more intense, and I imagined soldiers and servants alike being slashed and torn apart inside the castle. I didn’t know whether to feel justified or to feel remorse.

It was no matter. The laughter from the forest returned. Another soft cutting sound in the air followed me into darkness.