Chapter 155: The Mosquito Bite
Curses.
Riley’s mind spun with curses in every language he had ever learned, and a few he had probably invented on the spot. Words that were not meant for children, not meant for anyone really. But in the face of almost certain death, maybe even the gods would allow him some leeway.
The figures of darkness closed in.
Their approach was deliberate, taunting, their forms twisting with every step as though the shadows themselves recoiled from them. They looked worse now, far worse, as if the very idea of nightmares had been sketched from their shapes.
The children trembled, their fear raw and unhidden. Riley saw it clearly, saw how their wide eyes and stifled sobs only seemed to amuse these creatures. The monsters fed on it, their voices curling through the air like knives.
"So are you really, huh?" one rasped, its words broken and wrong, distorted in a way that made the children cover their ears.
The other chuckled low. "Let’s see. Let’s see what you’ve been hiding."
They reached the cell door. The world seemed to tighten in on itself.
And then, the light.
It burst out sharp and sudden, flooding the dark corridor. Riley, crouched low among the children and wearing the scratched protective shades he had fished from his things, held himself still. He looked disheveled, like one more helpless prisoner, but in that stillness, there was purpose.
This had been their last line of defense, one they had planned only to use if the tampered lock was truly tested. Who would have thought they would be forced to spring it this early?
Time slowed.
Well, it probably didn’t, but for some reason, to Riley, it was as if everything was happening in slow motion.
The children, those able and healed enough to cast, raised their trembling hands. Together, they unleashed the simplest spell they had learned. Light magic. Just light.
But together, their efforts and mana flared as one, and the corridor exploded with brilliance.
The figures reacted at once, jerking back with guttural snarls as the sudden brilliance washed over the corridor. The light did not burn them, but it blinded, sharp and overwhelming, like a flashbang exploding in the dark. If it was like the other creature he had stashed, then these guys likely had more eyes than they would have wanted at the moment.
Their outlines staggered, movements thrown off as they clawed at the air in confusion.
To Riley, it was the exact moment they had gambled on. The children had followed his instructions perfectly. Eyes squeezed shut, heads turned away, while their attackers reeled in sudden disarray.
"Now!" Riley bellowed.
Miss Risa, who had been waiting for the signal, thrust her hand forward. Power pulsed from her palm, shoving the iron grating outward with a violent clang. The cell door slammed into the shadowy figures, driving them back in surprise.
At the same time, Riley lifted the taser. For the first time, he aimed it at a distance, his thumb slamming down. The prongs hissed and spat, flying toward the blurred shapes of the nightmare beings.
Please, Riley thought. Just pierce. Just let it pierce.
The air crackled with the sound of fear and defiance colliding.
But it was nothing like the movies.
The taser had sparked, had flown true, but his will alone had not been enough to force the prongs through what felt like skin built to resist more than your average kitchen knife. It hissed and spat, crackling uselessly against something too thick, too wrong.
Riley’s pulse spiked. His next haphazard backup plan was one he really, really did not want to use.
The creatures bristled, shadows shuddering as they shook off the light and the impact of the slammed cell grating. For all the chaos, neither had taken any real damage. They weren’t called nightmares for nothing.
"Shhhk—!"
The air split with a sound like tearing metal.
From their twisted forms, long black stakes erupted, sharp as needles but large enough to pierce bone and stone alike. They shot forward with terrifying speed.
THUNK! CRACK! THUNK!
The ground splintered where they landed, stone breaking apart in violent bursts.
"Grab the prince!" one howled, its voice wrong, distorted, scraping the ears raw. "Kill the others! Replaceable!"
The children screamed. High, panicked, shattering cries. The kind that made Riley’s skull vibrate. He felt like his ears would bleed from the noise.
But he moved anyway.
"Shit!"
He hurled himself forward, trusting the artifacts strapped around his body. Trusting the stubborn decisions he had made to wear every single one, even if he looked like a walking junk pile.
He did not need sight to know danger was close. He felt it. The sigil burned hot across his skin, searing him like iron pressed to flesh. His only prayer, as it stung, was that the golden lizard, wherever the hell he was, would at least feel the mosquito bite Riley had sent over as a call for help.
WHUMMMP!
The guardian Hearthstone pulsed to life, its shield expanding outward in a dome of shimmering force. The stakes hammered against it, black needles bouncing and sparking as they shattered against the barrier.
The chamber was filled with light and noise. Sparks. Smoke. Shards of broken stone.
There were definitely screams from the other cells, just as the children gasped. Some were in awe. Most clung tighter to one another, pressing into the teacher’s side as she cradled the artifact Riley had entrusted to her. Their trembling forms pressed together to fit inside the radius of protection.
When the debris finally settled, the prisoners were still standing. Not one drop of blood had been spilled.
The figures stilled. Their twisted heads tilted in unison. And then, slowly, they snarled.
The sound vibrated low and deep, rising until it shook the air itself.
One lunged first, claws unfurling like scythes from what had once been only a blob of shadow. It struck at the shield with violent slashes, each impact echoing like blades dragged across iron.
The second raised its arm. Bubbles formed. Not playful spheres of water, but dense, heavy orbs that looked like they vibrated with power.
Riley’s stomach dropped. He had seen something like this before. He knew what came next.
Not only were they trying to trap them, but with this many attacks, it would wear down the shields much faster!
His whole body went feverish with dread. His palms grew slick. His skin crawled. Water. Always water. He was going to develop some serious psychological trauma from this at the rate things were going.
The bubbles slammed into the shield, bursting with violent ripples that shook the dome.
BOOOM! BOOOOM!
Each detonation cracked the air like bombs going off in the confines of the prison. The children cried out again, some clutched at each other’s clothes as they pressed together.
And Riley—brave, fragile, human Riley—stood between them and the monsters.
The figures laughed, guttural and mocking. Their voices crawled over the stone like insects.
"Gallant effort," one sneered.
"Pointless," the other added, slamming another bubble into the shield.
KRRAAASH!
The shield groaned.
Riley’s jaw clenched.
He had had enough.
"Fine," he muttered under his breath, fury curling hot in his gut.
He thrust out his hand.
A stream of fire roared from his palm, spiraling forward in a blast of heat and color. The sudden flare lit the corridor, flames devouring the next bubble before it could burst.
The shadows recoiled, snarling in surprise.
The children froze, wide-eyed, staring at the fire.
Even Miss Risa’s jaw dropped.
Because wasn’t Sir Riley supposed to be human?
Then how the hell could a human set the dark alight with his bare hands?