Trial One~Time318Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvm1fjwKSoH
Content with his work, the mysterious figure stepped back and observed the body. Across her throat was a tidy, fine slash, a stinging mark of a whip sharp blade and her opened, bloodshot eyes left the messy trail of an uninvited guest. He placed a hand over the corpses eyes, closing them before tucking his dagger back at his side. He walked to the bookshelf next to the window, his steps not making so much as a sound. He quickly scanned the books. Peeking over some atlases and spell books, he noticed there was a part of the wall that looked off. It was unnoticeable but he managed to spot it amidst the darkened cluster of books.
He pushed the books aside and pried at the wall with his small dagger. It opened up and revealed a small square compartment with a single book in it. He pulled the book out and opened it. The book had been hollowed out and inside it was a small bottle that held a letter. The passage of time was evident in the condition of the paper. It had to have at least been 40 or 50 years old. Just as his finger tips grazed the tip of the bottle, an amused chuckle drifted across the room.
"Interesting. Such a young face sent to assassinate the Queen."
He spun around and in a matter of seconds he had drawn his gun and fired at the voice. The voice responded with another chuckle, the bullet being gently held between her fingers.
"Not bad. No wasted movements, you're good for a little runt. Although I have to say, guns suit you better than that measly dagger of yours."
The voice stepped closer. Now illuminated by the moonlight, Illya took the boys hand. He flinched and raised the gun to her head but was surprised when she simply dropped the bullet into his palm. He briefly looked back at the body on the bed to see it dissolving into little orbs of shi.
"A clone...but it felt so real..." He mumbled.
Illya crossed her hands and leaned against the bookshelf. "You honestly thought I wouldn't notice you following me?"
"I...heard the stories of your monster like senses but I didn't think my skills were so half baked either." He narrowed his eyes at her.
"Oh believe me they aren't but I felt a strange presence all day, of course I would be extra attentive."
She tilted her head from side to side, examining the boy's features. Without warning she grabbed his chin and brought his face closer. He instinctively brought the gun back to her head. She let it rest under her chin as her distinctive cheshire smirk formed at her lips.
"You're smart enough to get in my chambers, then you're smart enough to realize that refusing to answer my questions or lying, will inevitably get you killed. First, if you thought the information you sought was in here, why not sneak in while I was away?"
The boy squinted, slightly annoyed at her "devil may care" attitude towards the gun pointed at her face. He took a step back, trying to break free, but her grip was too strong. He gave up on struggling and brought the gun back to his side.
"I tried, but you're clearly prepared for that kind of intrusion. You know damn well about the runes hidden along the perimeter of the room. I had to sneak in just as you walked through the barrier when the runes opened up. By the way, that's a crappy security system. No one can enter but you? What if someone attacked you like this?"
Illya's grin widened and laugh that would never sound from anyone sane managed to slip past her lips. "Oh please. Who do you think I am? Of course my servants can enter but the secret as to how is solely reserved for people who work under me. I'm sure you understand why I can't tell you, Mr.Spy. Let me guess. King Sana sent you to steal information about the priestesses yeah?...no?...then on the capital perhaps?"
"....."
"Of course you're not going to answer." She huffed, pushing him away."Sorry to burst your bubble kid, but you won't find any information about the priestesses or the capital here."
"I don't suppose you'll let me go after this either?"
Illya scoffed. "Come now, I'm not so un-"
She was cut off by the blaring sound of gunfire. She sighed, her torso now riddled with bullets. They stung as they rose and fell with her chest whenever she took a breath. She began digging them out with her nails, leaving behind the open wounds lined with the burns of shots fired at point blank.
"That was rather rude. You shouldn't interrupt people like that."
"It was worth a shot." He thought. He lowered his gun once again and intently stared at her through his goggles. They quietly chimed as they worked to identify her but to no avail. Illya noticed this and grinned as his face contorted into confused and slightly troubled expression. He raised his hand in her direction, a faint blue glow forming around it. Illya couldn't help herself any longer and had burst into hysteric laughter.
"HA! Someone tried that exact same trick on me not too long ago. Sorry kid, telekinesis doesn't work on me." She scoffed tauntingly as she got the last of the bullets out.
The boy watched as the closing wounds pushed the remaining bullets out. "What are you?" He whispered.
In her eyes were the evident flicker of impish intentions. "Wouldn't you like to know!" She teased.
With a snap of her fingers four men stepped out from the shadows, two of which grabbed the boy, making sure he couldn't move."
"WHA—How long have they been there!"
"You can't be sneaking into a Queen's chambers and expect her not to have her guards with her." Hayate stated coldly.
The boy's hands began to glow again but before he could act, Illya casually walked up to him and pressed two fingers to his chest. The glowing faded and wouldn't return no matter how he struggled.
"What did you do to me!" He asked in alarm.
"You won't be able to use that power of yours for the time being. Don't worry they'll return in due time. I suggest you cooperate unless you'd like us to make sure they don't come back after all," said Seibel as he dragged a chair to the center of the room.
Illya made her way over to the edge of the bed, her bullet hole ridden champagne night gown sparkling under the moonlight. She took a seat and crossed her leg over the other. "Alright Mr.Spy, You are going to answer my questions. We can do this the easy way or the hard way."
She smiled at the boy as Luke sat him down on the chair and tore off his goggles, the boy's aquamarine eyes holding a transient glimmer of surprise. When he was seated, she summoned her chains and they wrapped around his legs and arms, binding him to the chair. Seeing as he had no way out, he decided to cooperate with her.
•~•~•~•~•~•
Illya nodded as she leaned on the bed. "So your name is Tobius, you're a secret reconnaissance agent and you were sent here by King Sana to get information on exactly what I asked you about earlier." She shook her head. "So nothing I didn't already know."
She turned to face him. When she did, every fibre of his body told him to avert his eyes but he couldn't. He found himself paralyzed under her overruling gaze. A shudder ran up his spine as her crimson stare pierced through him. It seem to reach the deepest parts of him, like she knew all that she shouldn't and saw all that would be. In the darkness of the dim room, unable to do anything but look, he watched as her eyes turned a peculiar color. Her irises emitted a golden glow with little hints of a soft violet hue at the top. If you stared at it long enough it would seem as though the gold moved like the gentle waves on the sea, lulling you into a trance.
318Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbr7l3wNBJ7
"Enough fooling around. Who exactly are you little spy?" Her voice was gentle but held the imperious tone of a sovereign and it pulled him in.
"My...my mom is a gypsy from Jisr and my dad...is from Sutra. I am half fox spirit..." His answers came slowly as he fell further into her trance.
"Your armour, where did you get it from." She questioned, recognizing it's distinctive, Arunian design.
"I made it..."
"From what?" She continued firmly.
"Scraps of guardian armour, mainly from the big field in Aruma An. I made them at the ancient lab in the Altora region."
He wouldn't have told her otherwise but whatever she was doing seemed to be pulling the answers out of him. Illya and the others exchanged glances. they recognized the field he was talking about to be the unmoving field where thousands of her mother's soldiers lay as frozen stone statues, the very field where her mother died during the revolt in Aruma An.
"So you found a way past the rifts?"
"When I was in Sindaria I found a shrine, it looked similar to the ones I saw in books. The ones from Aruma An. I went inside and when I reached the end of it a voice called out to me. He said that I was 'perfect' for his needs, smart, resourceful and able to get around inconspicuously. He told me that if I did as he asked, he would take me to a land rich with adventure and danger alike. I said yes and before I knew it I was within the rifts on a land I'd later discover was Aruma An. He said if I wanted to come back I would have to talk to some horned statue just off the side of a village in the Omphalos region."
Illya's heart sank for three reasons. One being that there was a being capable of breaking through the intense magical barrier the rifts created and transporting people to her homeland and of all the places to be, their shrine was in Sindaria! Two, If King Sana set foot in Aruma An, it wouldn't bode well for her and three, this "voice" is the same voice she had found in the horned statue? The supposed demon her mother sealed away?
"What did he want you to do in return?" She whispered.
"He said to bring a message to the "demon princess with the pale, silk hair."I didn't know who he was talking about but he said that an adventurer like me was bound to run into her eventually."
Illya shifted uncomfortably on the bed. "What was the message?"
"There is life without light, in the darkness of the shadows. You won't be able to hide from the shadows of Goddess Henear forever. The capital will fall and so will you."
Illya clenched her fist. She shut her eyes and dismissed the chains that bound him to the chair. Free from her hold, he shook his head and massaged his temples. He remained seated as he was a tad bit dizzy.
"...so Mr.Tobius-"
"Tobi...people call me Tobi." He choked out.
"...alright then, Tobi. How did the king come to employ such a young boy."
"When I came back from Aruma An he praised me and rewarded me with money for any information I gathered. Since I'm the only person able to get there, he saw me as a valuable pawn in his game...and I'm not that young! I'm eighteen. Don't talk like I'm a kid."
"You...are you content with being a pawn?"
"...it's a job. It's well paying and I get to adventure and do what I want."
"Even if that means throwing away your life? He doesn't care for your well being you know. If you died on a mission or you were gravely wounded, the first thing he'd do is find away to extract all the remaining information you hold. You'd die before it even hit you."
"So what? You saying I should work for you?"
"No. I don't employ brats."
"Wha—whatever! It's not like I'll die anytime soon. I know what I'm doing."
Illya straightened up, narrowing her eyes as she spoke.
"You really have no idea do you. That King of yours sent you straight into the dragon's den and without so much as informing you of it."
Tobi's body weakened under her gaze once again. "Who...who are you."
"Daughter of the late Queen and King of Aruma An, the Immortal Princess, Mistress of the Damned, the Goddess Queen of Solaria, Illya Omarosa," stated Ein.318Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0xO2f0QpZb
"Should we throw him in the dungeon?" Asked Luke.
"No. That place isn't for humans. He'll die before the sun rises if we leave him there. We will send him back to King Jackass for now."
Illya walked over to the book shelf and pulled out a book with illegible scribbles on it. She handed it to Tobi. "It would seem suspicious if you went back empty handed right? Here, this is a random book I wrote in dragon script. It'll take them a long while to translate it so it should keep them occupied for a while."
Tobi took the book and looked it over. "You're giving away your secrets? How is that a smart move?"
"Not to worry, it's pure nonsense. Just a few pie recipes and an odd drawing here and there to throw people off. Rule number one of the game-always stay one step ahead of your opponents. You seem like a smart kid so I'm sure you know he's expecting you to get caught."
"Um...where are you going with this?" he asked warily.
"We have to make it look like you put up a fight don't we?" Illya inched closer, an amused smile plastered on her lips.
"Wait...WHA-"
Illya's opened hand cracked across the boy' face, leaving a sickeningly red welt behind.
"Come now, let's make this believable. How about we give you a few scratches to go with your new bruise hmm?"
Pained screams echoed through the room right into the morning.318Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSk7rq5Z1e7
