《White Knight》Chapter Thirty-Three - The Channels of a Chase
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Helplessly gazing out into a dark horizon, Lux Buchanan had been gently pushing a boat deep beneath the ground in a set of underground tunnels. A set of mystical blue lights had lit up a guiding path for him in the cold and murky waterways. His connection with Luna had been strong and it was what helped him drive through the darkness. But this had not been his only indicator of safety. Shrubbery and the tips of vines had soon strung up his nostrils, carrying a rather repulsive scent to their aroma. For a second, his nose had begun to shrivel up into a sneeze, but the greenery ceased its attack on the man. With this pause, came a brief change to the blue lights of the tunnels, as they had begun flickering irregularly.
"Luna, are you doing well?" Lux had thought aloud, feeling uneasy to the lips.
Stopping his boat for a moment, his hand had gently grasped one of the crystal lights, as he surveyed it with elegant care. He had given the sea blue light a thorough look and deemed it heavily distressed. Within a blink, the light had faded into a deep shade of envious green, until finally reaching its former colour. Blue but with a hint of emerald green at the heart.
"Luna..."
His dismal call for the spirit had far from reached it, as far above him in the cramped cottage, Luna and Envy had begun to meet each other. Luna had risen up the floorboards and taken a hesitant peek into the eyes of Envy - a clash of colour, as her azure blue sparkled gently above his gross green.
"You are his?" Envy asked her with an intolerable level of disgust as he shielded his young follower, Elsa, behind him.
"Yes, of course. It is my duty to serve my master." Replied Luna.
"Where is he? Did he run?" Impatiently asked Envy.
"Tell me, who are you? I can hold onto a message for you, and you may come another time." Asked Luna.
"You don't know me? I am Envy!" He proclaimed.
"Perhaps you could enlighten me some more?" Suggested Luna.
"No, you are a smart spirit. You are eating away at my time!" Exclaimed Envy.
"Hmm? What do you mean by that?" Chuckled Luna.
"You are not entirely smart." Smirked Envy.
The sinister Envy had clasped Luna with all his might, but this had not caused any immediate harm.
"I am intangible and unlimited, what do you think you are trying to do?" Luna asked with ridicule.
"You see, this is not my body. And this body came with a wonderful gift. Something you would call a divine power. With this power, I can take you and I can keep you." Said Envy.
"Corrupt me all you would like to! My master is well away from you now." Dutifully said Luna.
"Oh, how silly of you. You are leading me right to him." Chuckled Envy.
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He had easily absorbed the spirit, well before Luna could even weep out a final set of words, and soon her innocent blue had shimmered with a slight tint of green.
"Ah, how convenient. He had a set of underground tunnels and you were lighting the whole way!" Laughed the Sin of Envy, as he stared deeply towards the bookcase, it now gleaming with Luna's light.
The chase was now afoot, but Lux had reached a somewhat safe haven. A place far from the clutches of Envy, but a place not entirely hidden from him. The lights were loyal to Envy, and in doing so they had been leading him to the fortress Lux had arrived at. It had been a fortress by sight because the exterior of the building was almost as grand as a castle, but it was definitively more refined for battle compared to a palace or manor. The monstrosity and size seemed threatening, but the building's overgrown vinery had been a sour delight for the eyes. There had been a selection of flowers drawn out across the walls of the grey stoned fortress, but the manner of its placement was ridiculously untamed. The place had not been well kept. Beneath these shades of varying greenery, cracks cried out for air in the grey walls. It had almost been like some kind of prison.
Lux had found himself well within this estranged place, as the tunnel seemingly ended in a dungeon - deep at the bottom of the fortress. Within this single dungeon, a lone beast had been quietly sleeping. Its hair had been long like the mane of a lion, and its nails had a certain length to them that seemed almost inhuman. It had been starved of basic nutrition, and this was clear by the chains that hardly shackled the poor beast up. Except, this was no beast but a man. A man with a sluggish scent to him. Any further investigations would have to halt though, as soon, a jingling set of footsteps had come stumbling down a set of stairs around the corner.
The creator of this noise had arrived in all his glory, as he gathered Lux's attention through the white cloak that shrouded his back. It had been a young man, but one with clear maturity and responsibilities - for his face remained young, but the hairs across his chin compelled one to think otherwise. His eyes, that of a summer hazel, matched his courteous hair that he had trimmed short to the finest degree. The jingle of his steps had likely arrived from the clashing of his blade across his side, and his plated armour - a sight so golden, it had blinded the aged Lux.
"Slave! Wait, who are you? You're no prisoner." He had asked with an instant sense of noble respect for Lux.
"I would answer that, but you would not believe me. How about you tell me where I am?" Lux asked with his hands held upwards for safety.
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"You don't know where you are?" The knight asked thoughtfully.
"Well, judging by this prisoner of yours, I would say somewhere in the north?" Lux guessed, and by the astonishment of the Knight, it seemed incredibly incorrect.
"This is the Kingdom of Greenwich. The town of Frenze to be precise." The Knight's reply had unprecedented hostility.
"Greenwich. I see, and you are?" Asked Lux.
"Not until I receive yours, sir." The knight replied.
"My name...my name is..." Lux's eyes had searched for an idea until finally, he had settled on one. "Walter." A puddle of water.
"Walter...?" Muttered the knight.
"Walter Buch - Dusseldorf! Walter Dusseldorf, that is my name." Said Lux, biting his tongue.
"Well, Walter Dusseldorf. My name is Kasper Cornelius, general of Greenwich and royal protector to Queen Isabella Rosemary." Said the knight.
"Cornelius. I see. Well, I would love to meet your father. I am from the Kingdom of Bournington." Claimed Lux.
"Ah well. My father once did wonders over there. I believe I have family there, a sister and a mother." Said Kasper.
"They must live in the city. Not the kind of life for me anymore." Laughed Lux.
"Funny. My father says similar things too, Walter. Now come. I must show you around the fortress you are in, the Greenhouse." Kasper chuckled with anticipation, as the name of this strangely wonderful place had finally been uttered.
Long behind Kasper, Lux and even Envy, the peering eyes of Alsop and Maxwell had arrived at the home of Lux in Duke, with the others closely inspecting behind them. It was clear that Envy had already fled the scene, in search of Lux, and this flustered Alsop into a panic.
"Tracks of dirt have tarnished the floor. One big, one small. There is no doubt, Envy beat us here." Concluded Maxwell.
"But how! But how...?" Alsop miserably fell to the floor.
"Strange he didn't kill him straight away." The general observed.
"That is strange. I would have just killed him straight away..." Axel had shockingly said, only to have Victoria thump the top of his head. "If I was some evil Sin of Envy that has lunatic ideas for justice!" He added with nervous laughter.
"So, he is not dead?" Alsop muttered out.
"Well, it's best to have some optimism." Maxwell said with hope.
"No!" Alsop yelled, and with this, he pounded the floor in anger, until finally, he had caused the bookcase in the room to fall over onto the ground.
"The tracks seem to lead through here. Perhaps you should be optimistic, Alsop." Axel said cheerfully, as the group began to venture down into the secret underground tunnels.
"Believe me, Alsop. Your father is far from dead right now. His type of magic is still around the area." Victoria had calmly said, as she pulled him up from the ground.
"My father, Ms Magika, I've never liked him. But I can't lose him, he is all I have." Alsop said with determination as he stormed ahead.
"How did you figure that out?" Quietly asked Thomas.
"Figure what out?" Victoria replied.
"You sensed his magic was used here." Said Thomas.
"Yes...there was quite the disturbance here recently..." Commented Victoria, her eyes surveying the area.
"Perhaps, it was this?" Said Thomas, as he pulled aside a letter off the ground.
"Hmm?" Victoria had been intrigued at the sight of it.
She had realised the essence of haste running through the others as they had found a few boats, and therefore she had very briefly connected herself to the letter. Without the luxury of time, Victoria only gathered a slight amount of the memory letter from Grove Cornelius, but it was enough for her to understand the situation. Leaving it behind, she moved on, finding one admirer waiting for her.
"Is something wrong, Victoria?" Thomas had wondered suspiciously.
"I'm not sure if you should know." Reluctantly replied Victoria.
"Huh? You are keeping secrets from me?" Questioned Thomas with disapproval.
"Believe me. Anything a secret is for your own good." Victoria chuckled. "But if you insist. It seems Envy's desire for justice is based on a misunderstanding. Envy thinks your father and his friends killed his wife." She said.
"Well, did they kill her?" Asked Thomas.
"Really? Envy killed her, but Grove Cornelius seems to think different. He thinks something had an influence on Envy." Said Victoria.
"Well, Grove Cornelius could soon be dead. I'm sure after Lux, he will find him, and then my father will be his last target. Who knows, maybe he will even go for the children." Scoffed Thomas.
"Huh? Who?" The voice of Maxwell had cut in behind the two.
"Nothing. What is the issue here?" Casually asked Thomas, his eyes surveying the empty boats.
"Ah well, we were wondering who should go ahead...but it seems that has already been decided..." Scratching his head, Maxwell chuckled out.
In the blink of an eye, Victoria had departed him.
"Victoria! Slow down!" Called out Thomas.
"Tell that to Alsop!" She replied.
"Tsk. Come, Axel. We should follow after those two." Sitting along the line of boats, the general said.
"No." Thomas halted Axel firmly. "This one is with me." He said with a smirk.
"I am?" Axel trembled.
"You are. Max, go with the general." Concluded Thomas as he dragged the unfortunate Axel with him into the last boat.
Each boat had set off for one destination, much like the very first boat which had landed already at the Greenhouse.
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