The Spark Ignites Pt. 04

"Idiot, you lost control, now she knows how to set you off."

I didn't care, I was too caught up in the rush my powers gave me as we walked off the field, back to our new ally, who seemed extremely pleased. She didn't say a word as we approached her, just opened the door for us. Once we were further inside and away from the crowd, the forge demon patted my back hard as we got further from the door.

"Good, maybe she'll think twice about sending her minions against you now, if they'll just end up as ash in the wind, she might not waste them. Be prepared though, because she may have you fight so much more often to make up for it. Also, hand me those knuckle's back, I want to see how they held up."

I glanced at my hand, which still had tongues of blue-purple flames licking at my fingers. I clenched it into a fist, and the fires disappeared in an instant, no resistance like there normally was. The knuckles slipped from my fingers, and I handed them over to the forge master. She took them and started looking over them closely. I ignored it, as my powers were still occupying my mind.

After how my powers left with no resistance, I felt like I should be worried. I was also worried about how casually I just murdered someone, even if it wasn't in cold blood, but I swept that aside. Survival was the name of the game, so I just nodded. I knew as long as she didn't send her lackeys to mess with my head during a fight, I could keep going like the goddamn energizer bunny. Once we made it back to the cell block Laina and I were in, the three of us paused, Tiria and I both turned to Laina. She glanced at us both, looking back and forth a few times before finally getting annoyed.

"What?"

I looked at my 'master' for a moment before asking Laina a question.

"Do you have a thought on a timeline that could get me out of here? I know it isn't official, but you have to have an idea."

The elf sighed before moving back into her cell. I could almost feel the annoyance radiating off her. I guessed that between my performance in the arena today and my somewhat stupid question, she was probably getting fed up with my shit. Though I did feel like Tiria had the same question, if I was impatient about getting back home and try to unfuck my thought process in the safety of my own bed, I was sure that Tiria was even more ready to get out of here, seeing as she had been probably dealing with that damn puppet master in charge for far longer than I had been alive. I glanced at the forge master, and she was also looking at Laina with a stormy expression, though she was clearly paying attention.

"I don't have any kind of timeline, or even a full picture of why they're waiting, but I do know what it is, at least somewhat. No name, no title, but Lady Graves has someone she is incredibly proud of, she said she's grooming someone with the potential to be a Platinum, if not a Black Skull, he'll be the one leading the raid."

I wasn't sure what she meant by that, but by Tiria's gasp, I guess she knew. She moved close, getting close to the redheaded elf, her eyes wide.

"You have to be joking, someone who can become a Platinum is a special breed of psychopath. Not only that, but that soulless killer you so revere is the only Black Skull left, who could possibly impress that emotionless thing!"

Laina was back in Tiria's face in an instant, rage in her eyes as the shadows around us started writhing.

"She is the best and brightest of us, and you should be more careful about how you speak of her around any Hunter, demon."

I saw another fight about to break out, but I had a couple questions, and I needed answers before these two tried to kill each other.

"Who the hell is this Lady Graves you keep talking about?"

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Chapter 21

Both women froze, and as one, turned to look at me in complete disbelief. It was Laina that broke the silence first.

"Lady Threya Graves is the right hand, and truly the greatest fist that Lord Death has, she is a legend among Hunters, and many of us try to emulate her. She is the last living Black Skull, and for her to train someone means that the recruit has to be something truly special."

Tiria snorted as she leaned back against a wall, crossing her arms under her bust, which pushed it up in a somewhat enticing way.

"She is also one of the most feared names in the Underworld. She led the last great raid against us, and it's said it was her final attack that wiped the entire capitol building along with several blocks around it off the map. She is a monster, able to wield all five elements and any sub-elements derived from mixing them. She used the combination of water and wind to create a vortex around the building, tearing it apart."

Ok, that answered that question as Laina went back to glaring at an uncaring demon. I assumed that Tiria was exaggerating about what she did, at least I hoped she was exaggerating. One woman with that much power honestly kind of worried me, a lot. What worried me for sure was that someone had gained her attention, and enough of it to be trained by her. This person was probably her mini me, dangerous, skilled, and if what Tiria said was true, completely ruthless. I shook my head, and answered my first question, now onto the next one.

"What's with these ranks you keep talking about?"

Now Laina looked over to me, a conflicted look on her face. She looked like she couldn't decide if she should say anything. Tiria however, had no reluctance and began explaining..

"The Hunters have ranks, based on metals. The first three won't matter here, the top three will. Gold, essentially a battlefield commander with the skills and power to murder a greater level demon, they're the face of the Hunters. Platinums are faceless assassins, if assassins didn't care about stealth and just went through anything between them and their target, they are monsters just below the greatest monsters of that organization."

Tiria had my complete attention now, I just assumed that all Hunters were just that, no official ranks, just kind of an internal understanding of who could handle what. Hell, I didn't even know they recruited people, just assumed they were manifestations of Death, like a wraith or specter. I was about to ask about the last rank, but Laina's quiet voice interrupted me.

"The Black Skulls."

Tiria nodded, looking away from us both.

"Yes, them, my mother was young around the tail end of their true reign of terror. Back when there was more than Graves, the rulers down here knew that Guides were not to be fucked with. Now though, weaklings like Zarika think they can get away with killing them. Idiots, all of them, The Hunters turned Exrikan into a crater because there was an attempt on a Guide's life, Zarika killed two. This explosion has been coming for a very long time."

That was surprising, all this, potentially the destruction of this entire area, for two people? It was a weird thought, the literal embodiment of Death held so much care for his underlings. But there was one last thing that was bothering me. I turned my eyes to my so-called master here.

"How did you even find out about this plan? You were gone for a little bit before Laina started saying anything."

Her lips quirked into a slight smirk before she tapped at her neck, right where I still had my damn collar on.

"Unlike a general fighter like the elf, you are a privately owned gladiator, not a lot of those that aren't loyal to their masters, so I put a transmitter rune on it that lets me hear what you hear and say, so I would know if I needed to throw you back in chains. I'm not stupid, I do remember a slave revolt I saw from your world. Some empire named Rime, Rume? It was something like that, it's been a long time, either way,"

She moved towards me, pushing me into my cell and slamming the door shut.

"I watched, and I learned, gladiators can get uppity if they aren't kept humbled, have an eye kept on them until they prove they can be trusted. Zarika does it by playing on their desires, I've seen others use slave runes and drugs, breaking their minds and bending them to their will. I try and treat mine decently, never enough to make them think they're equals, but I don't break their will."

That actually made sense, she hadn't been exactly cruel to me, or tried to bribe me in any way. She had been very clear she was in charge on that first walk I had into the arena, but afterwards, she hadn't been particularly mean to me. If anything, she reserved that antagonistic side for Laina alone. Now, I thought I understood why. Tiria had seen what the full force of the Hunter's wrath could bring, and Laina was here to tear this place to the ground with that very same wrath.

I shook my head as Tiria slammed Liana's cell door shut with more force than was strictly necessary before turning to leave. She was very antagonistic of the elven Hunter, and I wasn't entirely sure that was the best idea. I didn't know either of these women well enough to say that at the end of this whole thing, there wouldn't be a betrayal. Though, I roughly trusted Laina to at least get me home, whether or not Tiria would be making it out of here alive, that was still up in the air. As I laid down on my bed, Tiria called out over her shoulder.

"Get some sleep, you made the bitch angry today, those two fools were two of her favored enforcers, expect to fight again tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that."

With that, she walked away, leaving Laina to mutter something under her breath that I assumed was unflattering towards the fiery woman. I heard her bed creak as she threw herself onto it with a sigh.

"I hope Lady Graves gets this going soon, because I will burn out long before you do without a proper rest."

I hummed in agreement, I had things to straighten out at home, and the sooner I could get back to them, and honestly, back into Alariel's office, the sooner I could untangle the complicated feelings in my head. Now that I had time to think again, my dreams with Bri just wouldn't go away, just scratching at the back of my mind. I wanted to understand why I was having these dreams about my damn sister, and that second dream honestly really had me shaken when I had the time to think. It was hard, very hard, to get any sleep, but somehow I managed it, if only barely.

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Chapter 22

And so it went, so many fights, usually in bursts, three or four matches in a row before giving me a break for a couple days and allowing other fighters to spotlight. Some of my matches were duos with Laina again, but most were just me fighting alone. Every fight made me more and more concerned about how easily my powers came at my slightest call, almost like they were happy I was using them more. Just like in the fight against Zarika's enforcers, they never gave me the backlash they normally did when I dismissed them, and it was just that, a dismissal. Before coming here, if I fought with my powers, I would have to essentially shackle them again, and they would throw a tantrum, leaving me weak and powerless. Now, it was casual, even easy, and with no fight.

After most fights, Laina and I would talk, mainly because there wasn't a whole lot else to do, and sometimes Tiria would be there too. There weren't really any real updates about when the plan would kick off, but she did assure us that it was almost time. I was insanely happy, because I could get the fucking hell out of here, but that was not exactly the problem that was consuming my mind at the moment.

The problem I was having now, had nothing to do with my powers, or my dreams about my sister, of which I had had a few more. It was that I had been taken from my cell, a bag over my head, and dragged somewhere I had never been before. I knew this was going to be bad, simply because the three demons who had bagged and chained me were the three that had accompanied Zarika whenever she came to see me. I had the feeling I was finally starting to get on her nerves, especially how I refused to succumb to her or anything she said. So now I had a feeling she was going to take a more personal touch.

I was roughly shoved into a chair, my arms bound to its arms, and the bag was roughly ripped from my head. I was in a small, brightly lit room. So bright I had to squint before my eyes readjusted. Now I could see Zarika, standing in front of me in her original form, a scowl painted across her face. She reached out to roughly cup my cheek, a playful pout transforming her angry face.

"You, slave, have vexed me long enough, you will either submit to me of your own free will, or I will break you until you're begging me for mercy! Grugo, Ikra, you may begin."

I looked at the two brutes that she had with her, both were tall, taller than me for certain. One was orange with a single horn rising from his forehead, his friend was purple with a crown of bone studs across his eyebrow. They both looked like they belonged in the arena more than in a torture chamber. I smirked at them both as they approached me.

"Well boys, what games are we going to play? Maybe some chess, or perhaps Monopol-"

I was abruptly cut off when the orange one punched me in the face, snapping my head to the side. I felt my cheek cut on one of my teeth, filling my mouth with a metallic tang. The brute stepped back, letting me recover for a moment. Zarika moved up again, a sweet smile on her face as she did so. I could sense a glamour coming down over her, almost drawing me into a spell, but I bit down on my other cheek, the pain keeping me from falling under.

"Come on, your life could be so much better, and we could skip all this unpleasant business, just become mine, and we could rule this place like gods."

I looked up, my eyes glowing a baleful blue-purple as I gathered up the blood in my mouth and charged it with my powers until I felt it bubble in my mouth. Just as she was about to speak again, I spat a mouthful of boiling blood directly onto her face. It landed on her cheek with a sizzle and she let out a screech of pain as she jerked back. She wiped the blood off her face as quickly as she could, backing far enough away that I couldn't do that again. Once she calmed back down, she glared at me with all the hate her cold, dead heart could muster.

"Make, him, suffer."

And then, her two brutes moved in to do just that. They beat me with as much creativity their small brains could figure out. Thankfully at the end of the day, they were still just muscly idiots. Their inspiration ended at breaking fingers, nothing truly creative. A master sadist like Katarina could inflict so much more pain with so much more grace, no need to break a bone. They still hurt me, a lot, but my powers could heal me quickly enough, given ten or fifteen minutes without injury. As it was, they had a hard time healing up with the amount of bruises Zarila's minions kept inflicting on me. With every strike, I only made grunts or groans, never giving her the real satisfaction of hearing me scream.

It had to be over an hour, but The sound of fingers snapping brought the torture to an abrupt halt. My mind was reeling, and I felt one of the bastards grab a fistful of my hair and yank my head up to look at the queen bitch herself. She looked curious, but in an odd way, like the way I would look at an ant doing something strange.

"You've been here, taking this abuse for almost an hour now, but still nothing, what keeps you together!"

I grinned weakly, and in my completely fucked up state, I let something slip.

"Because your world is ending soon, and I want to watch you burn."

I saw her coal black eyes widen, just like the sadistic smile across her lips, and she grabbed me by my ear, almost tearing it off. She was in my face again, just like during our first meeting.

"Oh, I am well aware of the traitors in my midst, but I wanted to give you one last chance before I execute you with those two women you seem so fond of."

That little statement made me go still, she fucking knew?! I had been here for at least a month, fighting for most of that time, and she had known the entire time we were in on a plot to destroy her. Fuck fucking fuck. Zarika continued, her tone becoming overly regretful, and I knew she was doing it just to fuck with me.

"And I was hoping you would repent, join me, and maybe I would have spared those two, made them your sex slaves, underneath you, and, more importantly underneath me. Now, you will join them in the arena tomorrow for public execution. Boys, take him back to his cell, we're done here."

She turned away, about to leave, but if I was going to die tomorrow, I wasn't going to go quietly. I felt my powers come as I called them, and they leapt from my hands, catching her left leg in a blast of flames. She shrieked again, as she fell, grabbing her now blistered leg. I was still smiling as she ordered her men to beat me more, because I fucking finally got to hurt her. I may die tomorrow, but I didn't let her win this round, or any of them. Hopefully that burn scarred, and she would never be as pretty as she tried to be. I was soon beaten into unconsciousness, but I was still smiling.