Defiance

Grrrdddd! With one stiff arm, the knight pushes the door open, securing the man on their back with the other.

They step inside, it’s warm, lit by the light of brass colored chandeliers far above, the room is warm, clean, and the air was light, still reeking of that odor. All around them, a maze of pillars, each over a dozen yards tall, reaching to the ceiling above, carved of Ivory, cream, and porcelain stones and engraved with wings, the faces of silhouettes, and dogs baring their fangs. Of all the rooms in the keep, this one bore a white, creamy hue, but not one of gentleness. The colors. They were dull.

The little knight slowly walked inside further down the labyrinth of pillars. There’s no clear exit in sight, only statues. Statues of tall people clad in armor from head to toe. Boots and greaves strapped to their slender forms, leading up to light cuisses covered by tassets. They had gauntlets, curiasses, and rear-braces, carved into their statues. They bore shoulder plates and guards as well as helmets that covered all but their lower jaw. There were many statues, some bowed, some stood guard, others raised a mace to glory, and others a sword ready for battle. They towered over the knight as they walked, each with their own story to tell.

Pap. pap. Pap. Further in the Labyrinth, there stood two statues much like the soldiers before, but they bore the tails of cattle on their rears, graceful feathered wings on their backs, and the horns of bulls on their helms. In one’s hand they held a large, rounded great shield and in the other they held a bo the curved into a dull hook on one end. Ribbons of stone carved like silk draped from their waist to their shoulders and over their back as they posed with outstretched wings, raising the bo to the sky as if an offering.

The other statue held in one hand a large great shield that came to a point at the bottom, they stood tall, taller then the one who rises above them with their wings they too had a cattle’s tail at their rear, feathered wings, and horns curved like a rams and they stood firm and proud clutching a straight bo with their other hand at their side.

Each Statue was beautiful, yet littered with cracks and dust. The knight approached the pair, looking up at them as they walked, then ahead again.

Crackle... A crack grows in the statues across the face of one's helm, the knight slowly paces between the two.

CrACK. Another crack, even louder than before, in the other’s pointed shield.

The knight walks one.

Thud Crumble… The knight turns around slowly to the sound of the statues crumbling. There’s a cloud of dust before them. They set down the man’s corpse. Sitting him against a pillar, along with their things.

Coff Coff Ack… A sound within the dust.

“We’ll need to be careful.” A smooth, light voice whispered from within the cloud of dust.

Wooosh-Clack! clatter. A straight brass colored bo shoots out from the cloud of dust, striking the bone at the knight's hip, sending it flying back, arching through the air, and landing in the distance. The knight turns, starting to race after it.

THUD. They appear before them knocking the knight to their butt as they pick up their bo.

Standing over seven feet tall, a slender frame clad in burnt orange brass colored armor with large patches of rust, vibrant scarlet ribbons draped over their shoulders winding about their body seemingly floating as if they were just a little heavier than air, their wings were a gradient of brown from top to bottom. Ebony, to chestnut, cinnamon, and the ram horns on their helm were a gorgeous bright cream. Their skin was porcelain, and their lips were full and straight.

Woosh. “Leave at once.” The woman bellowed slowly in a low tone, pointing the stiff bo at the knight’s face as they swayed the dull rose gold and bronze, pointed greatshield to their side. The knight clenches their fist as they lower their head slightly.

Shatter… His words played in the knight's mind once more.

A vague, high, gruff voice, with a calm tone, speaks from within the Spangen helm of the knight, uttering one word. It was slow, sharp, quiet, and final.

“No…”