The Caverns of Carnage
The Fated Citadel

All of us were silent. The image of thousands of people being lacerated before my eyes would never leave my brain.

Nakia broke the silence. “So, let me get this straight,” she started, “People were killing each other, and so you wiped out the entire earth, because you felt it was a waste of life “force” for you.”

“Indeed,” BloodLust said.

Nakia scoffed. She pointed at Pietro. “And I thought you were evil!”

At that very moment, BloodLust stood up and walked towards an arched doorway behind his throne.

“Come, let me show you the lake,” he said.

“I’ve already seen it.” I said, shuddering.

“Ah, but that was in the past.”

He led us out of the main chamber and we followed him down a series of long, serpentine corridors, and towards the cavern of the lake. My eyes widened in awe;

Instead of the murky blood that had occupied the lake of the past, this lake was pristine. The water was crystal clear, and the jagged rocks at the bottom were visible.

At the far end of the cave, a large waterfall came cascading down, creating foamy ripples on the surface of the water.

The entire cavern was illuminated with a series of torches placed on the rocky walls, and there was a warmth which was absent from the blood lake I had seen before.

“All the power from the blood,” explained BloodLust, “Is condensed inside this Blood Orb.”

He stood there for a moment, gazing at it in admiration, as the deep red glow was reflected in his dark eyes.

“What now?” Nakia asked.

Pietro grabbed my arm and yanked me and Nakia to a corner. BloodLust did not notice as he continued to stare at the Orb in awe.

“I think we should go back,” I whispered at Nakia and Pietro.

Pietro laughed in disbelief. “What? Go back now?”

He looked around at the cave in glee.

“This everything I have ever wanted. I am not going. I shall stay here.” He crossed his arms and leaned back against a rock.

Nakia shook her head. “There is no way we’re leaving two BloodLust’s here. One of you is bad enough, imagine what havoc both of you could wreak.”

I looked at the Blood Orb which I held in my hands and back up at Pietro. He looked at me and uttered a word I had never expected from his mouth.

“Please, Gabriel… please let me stay here…” he said, “Look, I won’t even have to kill anyone anymore-”

“That’s cause there isn’t anyone here to kill.” Nakia interjected back at him.

“There is…” said a voice from behind us. BloodLust had now stopped staring at the Blood Orb and had turned to us.

“What?” I asked.

“There is someone to kill,” he drawled, “Two people, in fact.”

He flicked his finger and almost instantly, strings of tendons and flesh rapidly slithered down from the dark ceiling, and wrapped themselves around Nakia’s ankles and wrists. She tried to wriggle free, but BloodLust’s power was too strong.

“LET HER GO!” I yelled at him.

BloodLust looked at me, and drew out two swords from his cloak. Both were engraved with ’Memento Mori’, and he held them both out to me and Pietro.

“Fight… ” he stated. “The winner gets to stay here with me… and the loser… shall be slain.”

Pietro seized the sword from BloodLust’s hand and swung it with his entire weight downward towards me.

In that instant, my blade came into view, parrying Pietro’s attack a meter away from BloodLust’s grinning face.

I jumped back, and turned, sword upraised, to face Pietro.

BloodLust sighed with pleasure and sat on top of his throne, which had appeared out of thin air, the trapped Nakia and him facing us, the solitary audience to the dire contest.

Slowly, Pietro and I circled each other. Sword high above my head, I prepared my attack; Pietro held a lateral stance. I brought my blade straight down… much more aggressively. I advanced in a flurry of stabs, each met with a loud clang! of Pietro’s blade. He retreated a step at every slash, swirling once to bring his sword up viciously—but I batted it away, shoving Pietro back yet again. He momentarily lost his footing on the serrated rocky floor and fell to his knees.

I stood above him, with the blade in my hands. I could take Pietro. Take his life. Avenge thousands. End the carnage once and for all. Take my place at BloodLust’s side. Yes, even that.

I had the power; the choice was mine.

BloodLust, watching joyously, saw this, and goaded me on, “Yes! Destroy him, and you can stay by my side… think of the power the Blood Orb will grant you!”

I wavered a moment and then realized what was happening. I was suddenly confused again. What did I want? What should I do? My brief euphoria, my moment of dark lucidity, it was gone, in a wave of hesitation.

I took a step back, lowered my sword, relaxed, and tried to impel the thought of murder from my brain.

Pietro looked at me in amazement, and then his mouth shifted into a smile.

“You surrender?” he asked. “Indeed, you have accepted the fact that I am more powerful-”

“I have accepted the fact that you are Pietro Hernandez.”

“That name no longer has significance for me,” he said, savagely. “Pietro Hernandez is dead. And you will be too, soon.”

I straightened up.

“You couldn’t bring yourself kill me before,” I said, “So what makes you think you will now?”

Many times before, in fact—to my recollection—Pietro could have killed me, but didn’t. In the dreams, during the school fire, and later in the cavern. I thought of Lorraine, briefly now, too, of how Pietro had her in his clutches more than once, had even tortured her… but didn’t kill her.

I winced to think of her agony, but quickly pushed that from my mind.

This accusation seemed to infuriate Pietro.

He swung his shimmering blade—it sliced through air, and I ducked behind a giant rock. In the shadow of the boulder, I was out of sight.

Pietro paced the area like a cat.

“You cannot hide forever, Gabriel Coleman.”

“I won’t fight you, Pietro.” I stepped out of the shadows, and threw my sword at his feet.

“Here… take my sword.”

I knew full well this might be my end, but so be it. Perhaps it would be left to Nakia to carry on the fight, without me.

BloodLust stood up from his throne. His smile faltered.

“Pietro, please.” I pleaded. “The Blood Orb’s power has consumed you. All those people you killed. It wasn’t you. I know. There’s still hope.”

I stood there, transfixed, BloodLust’s power keeping me rooted to the spot.

“Even Lorraine knows there is good in you. The Blood Orb hasn’t driven it from you entirely.”

“Stupid idiot.” BloodLust laughed. “Do you think you can change him?”

Pietro raised the sword slightly.

“Please.” I repeated.

“DO IT NOW!” BloodLust screamed.

Pietro raised the sword over his head… closed his eyes… and swung it through the air.

With a thunderous clank!, his sword knocked the Blood Orb out of BloodLust’s hand.

It fell to the floor, and rolled over at Pietro’s feet. He picked it up hastily, tossed it at me, and yelled at me and Nakia, “GO! GO BACK!”

I caught the Orb and grabbed Nakia’s arm, and we both sprinted over rocks towards the edge of the cliff.

I yelled at Nakia. “JUMP!”

I plummeted feet first toward the surface of the lake; the drop was greater than I had estimated and I hit the water, plunging like a stone into a freezing world.

I kicked toward the surface and emerged, out of breath, to see ripples emanating in rings from the spot where Nakia had fallen.

Nakia emerged, spluttering and gasping, from the depths of the lake, and swam towards me.

Overhead, BloodLust and Pietro seemed to be having a brawl. They both fell into the water with a deafening splash.

“The Blood Orb, quickly!,” Nakia shouted. I held up the Orb, and Nakia placed her hands on it.

The moment we touched it, there was a white glow, and the entire cavern faded from our eyes.