Dex stared at the grey monstrosity in front of him and felt himself shrivel up a little. It was like his element was trying to hide from the concrete, rectangular building. He could admit that the feeling scared him a little, knowing what it felt like to lose his precious air domain when he had become a chade. This isn’t the same situation, he assured himself, don’t be a pussy. It’s just a big, ugly, unnatural building filled with your worst enemies and where no element can thrive. His internal monologue caused him to laugh.
Darius looked at him, askance, “You’re laughing? There is nothing funny about this building. Just looking at the place is giving me the heebie jeebies.”
Darius’s exaggerated, full-body shiver as well as hearing the words heebie and jeebie from the staid man’s lips had Dex relaxing and some of his anxiety slipping away. It was good to have his brother at his side again, even if it was only on loan. “Trust me, Bro, I’m with you. This place is creeptacular. How do you stand it?” he asked his hosts.
Ivy shrugged, “You get used to it.”
Somehow Dex doubted that. But the rangers had a duty to fulfil and he could appreciate their drive to perform their calling, even when faced with personal discomfort.
“Come on,” Nik said, ushering them inside a huge cement door. “Let’s start in the control room. I’ll show you the set-up and go through the security with you all and we can go from there.”
Every wall they passed looked identical to the one before, every hallway a mirror image of the others. They were all a muted grey and made from the same artificial, synthetic substance. Nikolai had explained the prisons were built entirely from man-made materials. There wasn’t anything natural on site – nothing the wardens-slash-chades could potentially bend to their will or coax to do their bidding. Even the air felt thick and murky, and Dex couldn’t help scrunching his nose in distaste.
“You ever think of adding a little colour to the place? Because, dude, this place is fucking depressing,” he volunteered.
Nik pushed his way through a heavy, grey door identical to a dozen others along the wall and cocked an eyebrow, “It’s supposed to be depressing. It’s a prison. It’s supposed to be hell.”
“Touché,” Dex tipped his head in Nik’s direction, finally looking around and seeing something other than grey.
Dozens of security monitors lined the walls, each displaying small three by three metre cells. Almost every cell held a man – or what remained of a man, anyway. Dex could see dozens of chades in various degrees of regression, from simply pale skin, to black eyes, to gaping mouths. He knew there would be no complete chades here, those were executed immediately because even the fake prison couldn’t hold them. Dex’s body pulsed in recognition of his fallen comrades and he knew immediately that many of the chades there were redeemable. Looks like some good was going to come of the visit, anyway.
“Which chade should we start with?” Darius asked, looking equally as uncomfortable in the oppressive environment, his hazel eyes glued in morbid fascination to the screens.
Nik shrugged, “I honestly have no idea. There are some chades here that are less into the transition. We should probably start with them.”
“What about Ignatius?” Lark inquired. “Isn’t that him?” he pointed to a thin man, with long dank hair who looked ill but nothing like a chade.
“That’s him,” Ivy confirmed. “Looks like Max was right about him. He hasn’t regressed into a chade but there’s no doubt he is one sick fuck.”
Nikolai snorted, “Ya think? I swear, that guy is nuttier than squirrel shit. You’re welcome to talk to him but I’m not sure how much good it will do.”
Dex felt himself still as he listened to the words swirl around him. He knew the disgraced Fire Warden was the one responsible for almost killing his brother. If it hadn’t been for Max and her miraculous ability to heal, Dex knew he would have lost Darius before he’d even had the chance to be whole again. If that had been the case, he wasn’t sure if Max’s healing of him would have been so successful. Although, Cali and Hitch would always be enough motivation to get him through even the darkest of days.
“Hey, you okay?” His brother asked.
Dex managed a nod, “Just the thought of what that psycho did to you and the others …”
Darius actually grinned at him, “You are such a big brother. I’m fine. No lasting damage.”
“Really not the point,” Dex grumbled.
Darius had the audacity to roll his eyes at him, “Okay, daddy,” he teased.
“Why you little –” Dex reached out a hand to grab his younger sibling by the scruff of the neck only to be brought up short by Lark.
“Um, I know I’m new to this whole chade-imprisonment thing, but is that normal?” Lark pointed to the dozens of security monitors watching the prisoner’s actions every second of every day.
They all leaned in closely to examine the screens and Dex was shocked to see every single chade now staring up at the cameras as if they could see them through the lenses. “Um, what the fuck?” Dex asked nobody in particular.
“That is definitely not normal,” Ivy’s hushed voice sounded loud in the overly quiet room.
“I don’t mean to sound like a pansy or anything, but that is creepy as hell,” Lark shuddered, stepping into Ivy’s personal space.
“Aw, they aren’t creepy. They’re like excited puppies in a pet shop waiting to be adopted.”
The masculine voice came from behind them and had them all spinning and palming their weapons. Even though the heavy door remained closed and locked, a man stood inside the room. He was wearing a pristine suit of dark charcoal, his long black hair tied back neatly at the nape of his neck, and shiny black dress shoes. Dex didn’t need to see the ornate gold ring on the man’s pointer finger to recognise him for who he was.
Emmanuel.
Somehow, Garrett’s son was standing in front of him looking as if he just stepped off the pages of a fashion magazine. He looked exactly as Dex remembered him – other than the eyes. Those were nothing but black holes.
Emmanuel laughed, the sound normal and pleasant, nothing like the horrendous grating sound Nikolai had described from the past; “Look at you all; struck stupid. Surely you have something to say. No?” Emmanuel pinned his dark gaze on Nikolai, “Not even you, Nik? My torturer. And they say I’m the evil one,” Emmanuel tsked.
Nikolai didn’t so much as blink even though Dex knew the words would have struck a nerve. Nikolai had often expressed how certain duties had pained him in the past. Unfortunately, duty didn’t allow for personal feelings and Nikolai had carried out his orders as best as he could.
Emmanuel looked at Dex, “Charlemagne! It’s been too long. I must say, I was excited to learn you were like me.”
Dex felt his stomach roil, for though Emmanuel had the veneer of a gentleman, Dex could feel the putrid stench of evil rolling off him in waves. There was nothing civilised about the thing standing in front of him. And definitely nothing human. “I’m nothing like you,” he assured the chade.
Emmanuel nodded sadly and sighed, “Alas, I’m afraid that is true. You are tainted with light.” He spat the word out, his face suddenly elongating horrifyingly and his mouth yawning open. The grotesque dysmorphia of his face made him look every inch the devil. “It’s disgusting! I had such high hopes for you when father told me you were a chade. But I see I’m too late to save you. You’ve been re-infected with your soul. You’re ugly now,” Emmanuel shook his head, his face returning back to normal.
“Pretty sure he’s not the ugly one. Have you tried looking in the mirror lately?” Lark’s voice sounded from behind him.
Emmanuel’s soulless eyes pinned the earth paladin and Dex had to give Lark credit for his balls – he didn’t so much as blink under the oppressing stare. “Let me guess; you’re the comic relief?” Emmanuel inquired, pleasantly.
Lark snorted, “Hardly. That position is reserved for a certain fire paladin. But don’t worry, I’m still more than capable of kicking your butt.”
Emmanuel’s black gaze bored into Lark for a moment before he grinned, waving a finger at him as if he were a naughty child, “Oh, you paladins. Always so cocky. It’s that ridiculously deep sense of duty you have. My paladins were the same. They thought they could talk to me. They thought they could save me. Even when I was suffocating the soul out of their bodies, they still believed they could help me.”
“You killed your own knights?” Darius’s voice was horrified and Dex knew why. Even when Dex was at his worst, he had never laid a hand on his paladins. Instead, he had fled into exile just to ensure their safety from him.
“Killed? No, not at all. Where did you get such a silly idea? I took them into me – consumed them. They are a part of me now and always will be. Not a big deal, really. They did pledge their lives to me anyway. All those other wardens and paladins though …” Emmanuel trailed off, shaking his head.
Dex spared a glance at the others and knew they were trying to process what Emmanuel was saying just as he was. He seemed to be implying that when he drained wardens, and even paladins, of their vitality they were somehow being housed in his body.
“They are, Charlemagne,” Emmanuel answered Dex’s unspoken thoughts. “That’s what we do. Don’t you recall what it was like to take a warden’s vitality? That rush of power? That blast of pure adrenalin? Why, it’s like a drug. Addictive to be sure. Tell me, did you ever take a life? Drain that vitality until there was nothing left but a hollowed-out shell?”
Dex shook his head, taking an unconscious step backward. Emmanuel’s words were bringing back all kinds of terrible memories. His body no longer craved the vitality of his fellow wardens but the nightmares of that time still haunted him and he often felt the phantom hunger and cold when he was lost in his own thoughts. Luckily, that was less and less, because he had a generous fiancé, a loving brother, and a group of warriors constantly reminding him who he was. Despite all the shameful acts he had committed as a chade, he could say with absolute certainty that he had never killed anyone. He had never drained anyone to the death.
“Ah, I see. You’re still a soul-virgin,” Emmanuel laughed. “Well, I suppose that explains it.”
“Explains what?” Dex spat out.
“Why she was able to cure you. Why you were able to hold onto some of that ugly, ugly light you have. Well, no matter. There are plenty more out there who have fully embraced their true selves. That’s why I’m here – to save my poor, imprisoned brothers.”
“Yeah, that won’t be happening,” Nikolai informed Emmanuel.
“Oh? And who’s going to stop me? You? Your army of redeemed chades?” Emmanuel asked. “That’s right, I know all about your pitiful chadens residing in that hovel. I will be paying them a visit sometime in the future too. Those who won’t fight beside me, will join me – eternally.” He shuddered, delicately, “The thought of all those powers becoming mine. They will be a lovely appetiser to the main course; that cute little redhead you have running around your house.”
Lark and Darius took a dangerous step forward, unable to help themselves upon hearing a threat to their liege. “You won’t ever put your filthy hands on her!” Darius snarled.
Emmanuel tsked, “Like I said before – so cocky. Shall I show you how I am going to do it? Would you like a little taste, pretty paladin?”
Emmanuel’s jaw unhinged and Dex saw his brother clutch at his chest and stagger. Lark and Ivy grabbed an arm each to keep him steady and Dex felt rage burn through his body when Darius turned pale and started to gasp. He stepped in front of his brother unthinkingly, and raised his sword. Now that he had Joyuese back, he carried the blade everywhere. Emmanuel seemed amused by Dex, his attention now off Darius, and Dex could hear his brother’s breaths returning to normal. But before Dex could strike at his enemy’s neck, Emmanuel turned his open mouth upon him. Dex braced himself, expecting to feel the long-past but never forgotten tugging sensation of having his vitality drained. But it never came. In fact, he felt nothing at all as Emmanuel seemed to gather himself and try again.
“How is that possible?!” Emmanuel yelled, looking pissed and put-out.
Dex was just as stupefied as Emmanuel was. The chade couldn’t harm him. What the actual fuck? But then he remembered why he was standing here, whole and free in the first place, and he felt himself grin despite the dire circumstances. Max, he thought. Somehow, Max curing him had also made him immune to having his vitality drained. If it was the case with all the other chadens Max had healed, then they might just have a chance of beating Emmanuel and his followers after all.
Dex lowered his blade, allowing it to point harmlessly to the floor, and shared his little secret with the room; “Max,” was all he said.
The three-letter word made his four companions smile but it had the exact opposite effect on the chade in front of him. It was like waving a red flag at a bull. Emmanuel threw his head back and screamed the most horrendous sound Dex had ever heard. He was even forced to raise his hands and block his ears but the sound could still be heard echoing inside his head. The sound of metal scraping on metal caught his attention and he turned to the monitors just in time to see every single cell door swing open. The freed chades didn’t hesitate as they charged from their tiny prisons and flooded the hallways. Dex knew with absolute certainty that they were all heading in their direction.
“Well, Charlemagne? Not so smug now, are you? Your little custodian bitch isn’t here to save you,” Emmanuel’s mouth still gaped open and his cultured voice was a distressing parody of civility.
“Well, that isn’t strictly true,” Lark volunteered, smiling as he tapped his head. “Step back,” Lark cautioned his teammates.
Dex scrambled back along with Darius, Ivy, and Nikolai, just in time to witness a shockwave of power blast from Lark. Emmanuel looked like he had been hit by lightning – his entire body lit up and he went rigid, shuddering and seizing where he stood. When Lark staggered, Ivy caught him before he could fall to the ground, and Dex knew their only chance of channelling Max’s power was spent. Darius was unable to do it because he wasn’t a potentate, and although Nikolai was, he was not bound in Max’s Order. Luckily, Emmanuel appeared damaged enough that Dex felt a little bit of hope that they would make it out of there alive. But just as he took a step forward, sword raised, Emmanuel dropped his pretty-boy persona.
The being standing in front of him looked like a rotting corpse; his skin was beyond pale and was a sickly grey with ribbons of it literally hanging off. His long black hair was dank and oily and looked to be falling from his skull in clumps. He was beyond emaciated and even as Dex watched in morbid fascination, Emmanuel’s fingernails grew into two-inch claws, a thick yellow substance dripping from them. Dex gagged, knowing it was pus.
Emmanuel glared at them all but now seemed incapable of speech. Pounding on the door behind his back had the grotesque figure grinning maniacally. He pointed a bony finger at them, as if marking them for death, before he melted into the ground as nothing but mist and shadow. Dex didn’t have time to marvel at or fear what he had just witnessed, because he knew the thundering noise coming from beyond the door was the result of dozens of pissed-off chades.
“Nikolai? Tell me there’s another way out of this room,” Dex pleaded.
The Commander of the Rangers shook his head, “Sorry. This is a secure room. Only one way in or out.”
“Great,” Lark snorted, now sitting on his arse on the floor and looking very green around the gills.
Nikolai leaned back against the control desk, seemingly unconcerned, “Don’t worry. That door is enforced with the same material we use to make the chade shackles. They won’t get through.”
“Didn’t seem to matter to Emmanuel,” Darius pointed out, scythe gripped tightly in his fist.
Nikolai shrugged, “Yeah, well. He ain’t no normal chade is he? That guy is majorly fucked-up.”
Dex snorted, “No shit.”
“Besides, the cavalry is already here,” Nikolai pointed to the computer monitors and the dozens of rangers that were now pouring into the hallways. Nik pointed to a red button, “Distress call,” he explained.
Dex exhaled in relief. He was positive the five of them could do some serious damage to the chades. But not before they did some serious damage in return. So, instead of putting his old sword to the test straight away, he sat back and watched Nik’s rangers cut down the frenzied chades by half before joining the fray.