A Rock And A Hard Place

"These men keep whispering your name. Saying something about a prophecy but that's bullshit. You don't look like a miracle. You're just a good fighter, that's all there is to it," Mathos chuckled, slapping Agashi's head.

"Don't tell me you're jealous," Agashi smiled, rubbing the back of his head as Mathos withdrew his hand.

"Jealous? I've been doing this for as long as I can remember. All of a sudden you luckily kill a sub-level demon and you're the hotshot? Those red markings don't change anything. I'll kick your ass if you step out of line."

Their friendly banter was interrupted by the clang of the iron gate. They turned towards the gate of their enclosure and saw the lugina staring at the both of them.

"You there, come," one of them called out to Agashi, a stiff finger pointing in his direction.

"Go on, hotshot," Mathos laughed, slapping Agashi's head once more as the both of them laughed.

"Made a new friend?" Alice asked as they walked away from the Mathos and the rest of the men.

"What do you want from me?" Agashi demanded.

"I don't care what marks you have on your body, but when you're asked a question, you respond," Alice's lieutenant warned.

The council members were all seated when they arrived, all except Eredin, he appeared to have arrived last and was whispering at Eliott.

"You survived the bloodlake again, it seems," he taunted, glaring at Agashi.

"Do you know what the marks on your body represent?" Eliott asked, pointing at him. Agashi took one look at his body and shook his head.

"Go ahead and tell him, Eliott. He needs to know what he's up against," the stone demon smiled, the rest of the demon contingent chuckling, much to the lugina's annoyance.

"Those are the markings of Ur'ul Thuk," Eliott began.

"You're going to fight Urug and die, that's what it means," Eredin interjected, a wide grin pasted on his face as he leaned back into his seat.

"I don't understand," Agashi murmured, turning to look at Alice.

"Oh! She can't help you. You have a decision to make; accept your responsibility or face the consequences," Eredin threatened.

"Eredin!" Eliott barked, stopping the demon from saying more.

"Alright, alright. Butter him up all you want but I just told him the truth," Eredin raised his hands in the air in mock surrender.

"You have a full day to decide. Till your decision is made, you will be excluded from the bloodlake," Eliott told Agashi. It was clear he intended to give him the news gradually but Eredin had ruined any chances of that happening.

"Decide what?" Agashi challenged.

"Alice!" Eliott called, raising his hand and waving dismissively. Agashi was immediately removed from the council hall.

"What was he talking about?" Agashi asked as soon as they were outside.

"You really don't know, do you?" Alice asked, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"He knows. The bastard is just pretending," the harsh lieutenant interjected yet again.

Alice watched as Agashi was pulled away from her and back towards the lower class enclosures. She followed at a distance, trying to decide whether Agashi was being truthful or not.

When they arrived the cell, the scene was gruesome. Every prisoner who had shared the space with Agashi was dead, their bodies strewn across the floor.

The walls were splattered with dark streaks of blood, and the air was heavy with the iron scent of death.

"By the gods, what happened here?" one of the lugina muttered, his voice barely a whisper. Agashi's eyes were wide with shock as he recognized Mathos among the dead.

"Look at them," another whispered, pointing to the wounds on the bodies. "These were no mere knife cuts. These men were torn apart."

"Look closer and tell me what you see," Alice ordered her lieutenant.

The man nodded and began his inspection, and after some seconds, he had his answer.

"Heshni scum," he hissed, pressing his finger against some black liquid pooled on the floor.

"What is it?" Agashi demanded.

"I thought we had time. Bring him," Alice ordered.

"Wait, what? Where are you taking me?" Agashi resisted, but a stern look from the lieutenant was enough to discourage further action on his part.

"You're in more trouble than you know. The funny thing is you don't even realise it, do you? Pretending you don't know what's happening here is only going to make things worse for you," Alice warned.

"They're still here. I can smell them," the lieutenant interjected, drawing his sword and dropping into a fighting stance.

"You both stay here. I'll get him to Roku," Alice instructed, pulling a fist-sized device from her pocket and throwing it into the air. The air around the device shimmered as it suspended itself and with a loud hiss, a portal came into view.

Agashi was handed to her and together they stepped into the portal. They could hear Heshni curses in the air as the portal disappeared from view.

"What was that? Why are they after me? Did they kill those men?" Agashi demanded, glaring at Alice.

She peered at him, unable to decide if he was being honest in his ignorance.

"Come here, we don't have the time for all this," she grunted, grabbing him by the arm and pushing him forward.

"You could at least tell me where you're taking me, you know?" Agashi complained. Alice didn't respond, she simply walked behind him and nudged him forward with the hilt of her sword.

They walked for almost an hour before an abandoned building came into view. Agashi turned to look at Alice, and she simply nodded at the building.

"I'm just a pawn in this game you are playing, aren't I?"

"I'm just going to say what every one of us is thinking. I don't trust you, you show up here with these red marking that are supposed to identify our saviour and yet you know nothing really. If he can't explain what you are, I'll kill you myself," Alice threatened.

"Who's he?" Agashi asked, worried by Alice's threat. The silence and the nudge at his back told him she had no interest in answering his questions.

Inside a building, an old man sat by a fire, watching them approach. Agashi couldn't see any other person so he assumed this was the "he" Alice spoke about.

"It's him, isn't it?" The man laughed, standing to his feet and peering at Agashi.

"Who are you? What do you want with me?" Agashi demanded, stealing a glance at Alice.

The old man didn't say anything, he simply untied his cloak and let it fall to the ground. On the man's body, in place of the red marks that now adorned Agashi's body were dried up scars.

"My name is Roku Lagarde, Alice's father. I know you're not from here. You're not the first," the man chuckled, reaching for his cloak.

"What... do you... mean?" Agashi stammered, shifting his gaze to Alice.

"We don't have much time, so I'll explain this as fast as I can," Roku continued. He was no longer smiling.

"The council gave you a choice which you feel you can refuse. You're here because you need to understand that there is no choice. You must accept the title of Ur'ul Thuk or die without returning home."

Agashi panted as the man's words echoed in the empty building. If he knew about how he got there, that would mean he knew how to leave, wouldn't it?.