Shadow Slave: The Ascencion

"Bury their bodies; we'll leave as soon as they've been given a proper burial. We can't take them with us; there's not enough space."

Grey regained consciousness when he heard the muffled voice of someone nearby. He couldn't tell if it was someone he'd heard before.

Something else was bothering him.

'It hurts, IT HURTS. AAGGHH!'

Grey started writhing in pain as he became more aware of himself. The voices outside faded from his senses as the searing pain in his body assaulted him.

He breathed heavily as he writhed and tried to endure the pain.

"Looks like I've got one or two broken ribs… an injured arm… and a back full of wounds…"

Grey looked at his body, which seemed to be tightly bound all over, leaving him no room to move. He was lying on the remnants of his iron cage. The opening created by the beast faced the sky, illuminated by sunlight.

'Was I unconscious all night…?'

Footsteps could be heard in the surroundings, accompanied by the clamor of horses and people giving orders. Not long after, Grey felt the movement of the cart in which he was trapped.

They were already on their way to the city where he was to be executed.

'I have to find an opportunity to escape… before the execution. But these guys… if all of them really are awakened beasts, then escaping will be impossible.'

Grey saw the chances of escape and survival growing increasingly slim. His situation was far from favorable—he was injured, exhausted, hungry, and thirsty. If they didn't execute him, he would die from his wounds or dehydration.

As they traveled, Grey was continuously jostled by the cart's bumps, causing his body to bounce and his wounds to be lightly, but still painfully, aggravated.

Grey spent hours enduring the pain and trying not to pass out from the waves of agony washing over him.

Finally, Grey heard someone shouting in the distance, and moments later, the sound of heavy metal structures crashing to the ground.

'Did we reach that city I saw when I first entered the nightmare?'

As if in response to his question, the voice of the man who had threatened to cut off his ear reached his ears.

"We have the cursed child, so you'll be able to get a promotion in your first year with this contribution. Now, I want you to take the brat to the containment cells."

A familiar voice responded—the young man who had spoken to Grey earlier.

"Understood, sir. I'll make sure he can't escape." His voice was firm and resolute.

"And Eos, make sure not to look him in the eyes… I don't want a repeat of what happened last time." The old man's voice was heavy, as if recalling a past event he couldn't bear.

Eos was silent for a moment.

"Don't worry, sir Gustav, that won't happen again."

Without another word, Grey heard footsteps approaching his iron cage.

'What does that mean? What's wrong with my eyes that they can't be looked at?' Suddenly tense, Grey focused on the footsteps coming closer.

"Close your eyes, or I'll have to remove them." Eos's voice resonated through the metal and reached Grey, who immediately shut his eyes.

A moment later, the cage began to lift and move. He was being carried inside his cage.

'He's… terrifyingly strong.'

The short journey while being carried by Eos didn't last long. When they arrived at a massive building made of smooth white stone, Eos set the iron cage down and adjusted it so that the opening acted as a door.

"Keep your eyes closed," Eos warned from outside the door.

"Alright," Grey replied, obeying to avoid being seen as a threat by the boy who could kill him at any moment.

Eos's footsteps echoed within the cage as Grey felt something grasp the chains binding him and easily lift him from the ground.

"Where… are you taking me now?" Grey asked, letting fear seep into his voice. Of course, this was intentional.

There was a moment of silence as the sound of footsteps transitioned from earth to stone, and after a while, began to echo on a dark staircase.

Finally, Eos spoke, but not in response to Grey.

"Keep the cell locked and don't open it for anything. If you look the child in the eyes, you'll be enchant and won't listen to anyone but him. Be careful." Eos's warning was directed at two guards stationed at the door of a specially reinforced steel cell.

"At your command, Awakened Eos!" Two voices responded in unison to Eos's order.

"You'll stay here for a few days until the king orders your execution."

Eos addressed Grey as the footsteps echoed against the metal. They were inside the containment cell.

Grey was left on the cold metal floor of the cell, still injured and exhausted.

Eos's footsteps echoed once more within the cell before a loud noise of metal clashing together reverberated, making the sound echo off the empty steel walls.

'Alright, if what I think is going to happen actually happens, I might be able to live.'

The darkness seemed to recede as his eyes pierced through it, revealing the empty iron cell.

It was just a large, seven-square-meter room, completely empty and without any windows for ventilation. The cell door was closed and sealed, preventing anything from entering or leaving, not even air.

Grey approached the iron door, and his enhanced sense of hearing, adapted to the complete darkness he had been in for the past few days, began to pick up sounds through the iron.

The guards were discussing something interesting.