Ch 13: You little sh*t.

The corridors ticked, twisting and winding like clockwork—grand halls and swirling staircases rotated with torque, only small components of a much larger mechanical system.

Ace rubbed his temples, aching.

This couldn’t have happened at a worse time.

His head was burning up while his hands were breaking out in a cold sweat, a slight pressure sat in his ears, and while there were no signs of danger, he still couldn’t shake the creeping sense of dread.

A shadow. Ace turned in its direction, his head light and fuzzy. But there was no one. Only a tall bookcase with four shelves, all full.

Am I seeing things?

He adjusted his eyes, requiring slightly more concentration than usual. The frustration only exacerbated his headache. With the dizziness and pit in his stomach, and only one blue rune stone remaining, Ace was awaiting the finishing announcement.

How many hours have I been in here for?

The library and its never-ending interior made it hard to tell. Ace wondered how Hiro was doing. Was he kicking ass? Or was he being nonchalant, smoking his cigarette in the corner? Hiro had said that as long as Ace survived, he would figure something out. Whether it was with good intentions or not was ambiguous, though he had helped Ace train over the past week, so for whatever purpose he needed him for, he needed him alive. For now, anyway.

The reasons they were after him aside, there were a few more things that struck Ace as perplexing. Firstly, it was the identity of whoever Hiro was talking to, and why he knew so much. If it was someone who could give someone like Hiro orders, it definitely wasn’t some run-of-the-mill thug.

Secondly, were the comments about Ace ‘not being aware of it’. Was he missing something? Clues and signals he had simply missed or not picked up on?

And most important of all, whether they knew Cecilia's whereabouts. The idea of someone knowing her location and keeping it from him was unnerving, but not as unnerving as the possibility of no one knowing at all.

Lost in thought, Ace turned around the next corner, witnessing a stunning auburn staircase lit from the glow of candlelight. It gave him a funny feeling that he wasn’t quite able to put a finger on. Turning around once more to see a large, empty circular room, it finally hit him.

Ah, that’s it. I think I’m going in circles.

                                                                              ***

Hiro stepped over the mangled corpses, scattered across the room bleeding and bruised from the savage battle that had left only two survivors standing. He saw pieces of bones jutting out of strange places and spilled organs staining the once immaculate mosaic floor, woven with intricate swirls and zigzags that struck Hiro as plainly redundant, just like the fancy things the coddled narcissists had in the sky—a waste of effort.

The Minotaur. An ancient dungeon dweller with a gargantuan, brawny stature, armoured with a thick, tan brown hide. A striking bull's head and two bowed horns sprawled on top of the titan’s body.

It lifted one of its colossal hooves, stamping down into the ground and emitting a cavernous roar, sending tremors through the room.

The small boy dodged. He was nimble, the movement of his feet rhythmic like the beat of a soft song. Through the flurry of attacks raining down, he remained calm and composed. Mid-length golden hair obscured his eyes, while his clothes flowed with each change in direction. Ash-grey fabrics wrapped around his body loosely, unlike Hiro’s black and neon green trench coat, which hung with tools and gadgets, limiting his manoeuvrability.

As he leaped back, evading the next attack, the boy twisted his head toward Hiro with a blank expression. It was only a split second, but Hiro caught it. Yet he continued to turn his back toward him, not even acknowledging his presence or giving him a second look.

You little sh*t. I’ll deal with you after the big guy.

A ball of flame. Crackling as it flew through the air, it crashed into the back of the Minotaur, marking his tan brown hide with a layer of soot.

Tsk. Fire resistance.

With the Minotaur and its large keratose horns now facing Hiro, the young boy leaped into the air.

Swoosh.

Elegantly, he launched off the ground as if he were weightless, the cloth surrounding him swaying with his movements. Then, rolling his body forward, he extended his right leg cleanly into the side of the Minotaur’s head, but it didn’t seem to land with force. Quite the opposite, it seemed to only land softly on his cheek.

BA-BOOM!!!

Hiro covered his ears as the sound rang out from nowhere. The Minotaur stumbled back, each of his steps causing the walls to shake.

What was that? A delayed impact? Does the boy have an affliction?

Drawing his right arm back, the Minotaur then threw his fist forward in a large arc,
shattering the mosaic floor. The boy stepped back just far enough so that the shards didn’t reach him.

Glimmering silver particles whirled around as Hiro charged another rune circle, small bubbles crystallising to snowflakes in his palm.

Shooting through the air, the Minotaur shielded himself with his right arm, landing with a quiet chime, they encased its right arm with ice.

The beast lunged its head forward and chest out, unleashing a resounding shout.
“WRAAAAUGGGGGHHHH!!!” The lifeless bodies and mosaic shards on the ground shuddered, and the ice fractured, the small, glinting fractals falling to the ground —a war cry threatening the two challengers.

Stamping forward straight at Hiro, the dust burst up around its knees, its bulging muscles and veins almost bursting out of its skin. A blazing furnace of rage and fury was charging straight at him.

Hiro, with the seconds he had to prepare, didn’t charge a rune circle. Instead, he discarded the remaining stub of his cigarette before lighting a new one. The beast continued building speed.

What are you gonna do? Swing? Stomp?

Only ramping up in speed, the beast began lowering its horned head.

Realising that it wasn’t planning to stop, Hiro felt his heart sink.

The beast dived its horns downward. Running out of options, Hiro emitted a torrent of wind to his right, propelling himself to the left.

With a crash and a seismic rumble, the Minotaur tumbled to the ground, leaving two large indents where its horns had impacted.

Where’s the kid gone?

Hiro's eyes scanned over the bloody battlefield for the young boy, but he was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, he felt a light weight pressing down on top of his head.

“HEY!” Hiro yelled, the veins popping on his forehead. Who does this kid think he is?

The young boy leapt towards the Minotaur, twirling through the air, then, with a swipe from his arm, a high-pitched screech grated through the air, and with it, the great arm of the Minotaur fell to the ground.

Invisible. Hiro didn’t see the attack connect, but he did notice the sound. A sharp pain pinched at his eardrums, seemingly out of nowhere: no rune circle or incantation.

Was it an artifact? A weapon tucked under his sleeve?

With his eyebrows furrowed, Hiro squinted, looking for a clue to his powers. Hiro
was a tactical man, having grown up in the Barrens, his survival instincts had been honed and tested every day. He wouldn’t recklessly enter a battle without an idea of what the opponent could do. With the boys' next strike, he saw it. Small ripples through the air as he attacked, and the subsequent sound. It was precisely that—sound.

As the Minotaur began charging once more, Hiro threw a small runed kunai into the ground with a shrill whistle. With its next step, the Minotaur’s hooves sank inwards, the sludgy, viscous material chaining him down.

Gotcha.

Grinning, Hiro took a small black ball glowing with ivory runes from his belt, hurling it toward the beast. By the time it was flying towards the stationary target, the fight was already over. It was his favourite. He called it—the ball.

KABOOM!!!

With a flash of white light, the stocky body began disintegrating.

Now, where’s the kid?

Hiro walked towards the vanishing body, eyes briskly scanning, but the boy was nowhere to be seen.

Where’s the tome? Wait a minute…Don’t tell me that…THAT LITTLE BRAT BETTER GET BACK HERE!!

In pursuit of the young boy, Hiro’s strides became brisk. Through the burly doorway, he found himself at the head of a long, meandering corridor. Narrow, tight, and liminal, the first thought that came to his mind was ‘suffocating’. Painted with a fading yellow light, the walls were covered in a slightly paler shade of wallpaper.

Footsteps. Hiro spun on his back foot, gathering aether into his palm. The room had once again shifted.

Midnight-blue hair and mesmerising silver eyes.

“HEY! IT’S YOU!!!” she exclaimed.