BXBX NOVEL Chapter 192 - Dead Or Alive?
He looked at the men. "Let's bring them inside the castle so that they can receive the antidote from the cursed King!" he told them. "If you see a black liquid, don't step on it! Avoid it at all costs or else it will enter your body and poison you just like what it did to your dying friends!" he warned them. He doesn't want more of Graven's men falling into the hands of the cursed King! A problem that he's trying hard not to be repeated.
The men obeyed the old man's order, they lifted their friend's body and entered the decaying castle. Terros followed them inside while carrying Graven's unconscious body in his arms.
Inside the rotting castle.
Gently, they placed the dying men side by side on the ground.
Terros addressed them. "Leave this place at once! It's not safe here! Stay a few meters away from this place! Don't worry about your friends, I'll watch over them!" he ordered them.
Immediately, Horace and the others left the castle.
Terros went to the corner and hovered in the air a few meters away from the ceiling.
He began chanting an ancient spell that he learned from his old master. He transformed into his invisible self. A few minutes later, he was cocooned by an invisible barrier protecting him from any object that would come his way.
He shut his eyes, trying to detect any foreign aura circulating in the air.
The first detection comes fast and fades away in just a blink of an eye...then the second detection is getting stronger until the whole place was bursting with the powerful aura.
Terros knew it could be the cursed King's spirit encircling the dying men. He never dares to blink his eyes wanting to witness what will happen to the men lying in the ground. He looked everywhere trying to spot the presence of the black liquid. He saw them scattered everywhere on the wall, and there's a lot in the ceiling waiting to drop over his head. But he doesn't have to worry about the black liquid above his head, the invisible barrier will protect him securely, it can't be penetrated by anything.
He concentrated once more and found the source of the strong powerful aura lingering above the dying men. Suddenly...the ground beneath the men opened up and swallowed them. Terros witnessed exactly the way Graven described his experienced when he was swallowed whole by the ground where he stood upon.
The ground returned to its normal state as if nothing happened.
He can no longer detect the powerful aura anywhere.
The King's spirit retreated underground!
He teleported outside to inform the men what happened to their friends after they left.
Terros find the men outside the castle, huddling together under the shade of the tree. He made himself visible.
"Grandpa, what happened in there?" Horace asked in a worried voice.
"The cursed King's spirit arrived and the ground opened up swallowing everyone down into the basement," Terros replied.
"What's going to happen now?" one of the men asked.
Terros sighed and shook his head. "I dunno...one thing for sure...our friends are now in the mercy of the cursed King. But the King told them that there's an antidote if they returned here, and that's what we've been doing... we brought our friends back for the cure. Let's hope that we can still see our friends alive soon!" he replied.
"Grandpa, do you think Lord Graven is still alive?" Horace asked in an apprehensive tone.
Terros released a deep sigh. "I hope so. I hope they're all alive," he said in an optimistic voice.
Horace's face marred with desolation.
Terros patted his shoulder. "Horace, I know that Graven had put the heavy responsibility on your shoulder. You must go back to South Pond Town and managed everything there accordingly as per Graven's instruction. Just leave at least three people here to wait for the result. A for the rest of the men bring them back home. Don't worry as long we have a piece of good news, I will send back one of your comrades to bring the good news to you," he suggested.
Horace breathed deeply. The old man has a valid point. He agreed with his suggestion. "Okay, Grandpa. I and some of my comrades will return to South Pond Town now."
Horace proceeds to explain to the men that they need to go back to South Pond Town, he assigned three men to accompany the old man to watch over the crumbling castle.
Terros watched as Horace and the others disappeared from the place.
The men looked at the old man. "Grandpa, what we're going to do next?" they asked in unison.
"Let's just wait here, guys... If they are meant to live...sooner or later... they will certainly come out of the door of the castle alive," Terros replied, wearing a dispirited look on his face.
The men wore the same desolate expression on their faces.
Terros understood very well the men's feelings because it's hard to just stay idle not doing anything - especially that their friend and their master is ten feet below the ground.
'Are they dead or alive?' That is the worrying question that is running in the men's minds while watching the castle in front of them.
Terros released a deep sigh. "There's nothing we can do but wait..." he said aloud.
The men agreed with his statement.
Meanwhile...
Ten feet under.
The men were put in a chamber, their hands and feet were bound by chains, and three black men dropped a small object inside their mouth that looks like a capsule.
A few minutes later.
The men opened their eyes one by one, they're all awake! They looked at each other in shock.
Collective murmurings can be heard around them.
"Where are we?"
"Where is this place?"
"I thought we already died!"
"I think we're in the basement under the ground!"
"We're back in the abandoned castle!"
"The pain in my chest was already gone!"
"I feel much better now!"
"Damn! Both our hands and feet were chained!"
"We can't escape this place!"
"We're going to meet our doom soon since we come empty-handed!"
Graven and Calder just stared calmly at each other amidst the confusion and commotion among the men.
"My lord, what do you think the King will do to us since we failed to bring Lady Laura with us?" Calder asked.
Graven sighed. "I'm expecting some punishment soon!" he took a wild guess.
"Do you think he will release us again?" Calder asked.
"Maybe, because we haven't brought Laura with us yet," Graven replied. He can't tell his men that she already found his wife, they might be tempted to betray him behind his back and abduct Laura just to remedy their situation once they're out of the castle. He doesn't want such a thing to happen to his wife especially that she's already pregnant. The King might kill the baby inside Laura's tummy.
If Laura is taken into this place, she will survive but the baby won't have any chance of surviving. The King would surely kill the offspring of another man but will forgive Laura because she's his mate and she has no idea about her fast life!
The cursed King wants to have a reunion with his lady love in this lifetime, and he will do everything in his power not to reveal to the King his wife's whereabouts!
A few minutes later.
Somebody entered the chamber.
The black men bowed their heads.
"The prisoners are all alive, your highness!" said one of the black men.
The King arrived, he wore a black hooded cloak, his face was partially hidden by the hood. His gaze sweeps everyone in the chamber. His gaze landed on Graven. "Bring that guy in my room!" he ordered to the black men and left the chamber.
The black men went to Graven's side and escorted him out of the chamber. They entered the room where the black pool was located.
Besides the black pool were a table and two chairs.
The black men shoved Graven into the chair and walked away, they took their position near the door.
Graven stared at the black pool that looks like a goo... the pool is calm this time, with no movement on the surface, which means the King is not swimming in his black pool. Where is he? He saw him in the other room a while ago.
He was trying to recall in his mind what the black men have done to him and to his men, why they suddenly regained their consciousness? Unfortunately, he can't remember a thing. All he can recall was him opening his eyes and discovered that they were inside a chamber.
The cursed King entered the room and sat on the chair facing Graven. "If the black liquid didn't punish you and your men, you won't come back here! You didn't take my order seriously! Do you think I'm joking?" he glared furiously at him.
Graven sighed. "My wife is missing, he was abducted by someone! I've been trying to find her whereabouts all this time, but I failed!" he answered.
The King stood up and went to Graven's side. He put his hands on Graven's head. "I warned you, if you lied to me, you and your men can no longer get out of this place alive!" he warned him.
Graven felt his body turning stiff, damn! The cursed King freeze his body.
The King began reading Graven's memory.
Oh, no! Graven was getting worried, it seemed the King was reading his memory!
Damn! The King will know everything... that he's lying and he knows Laura's whereabouts!
He's dead meat!