We left the academy with the first rays of dawn, seven people loaded with heavy equipment, but heavier was the determination raging within all of us. This was our first real mission outside the academy walls, and the outside world seemed distant, like another world, but we had to face it.
"Ironford is two days by carriage,"
Draaken said, staring at the map for the tenth time as if it were the key to everything.
"If we move quickly, we'll arrive by tomorrow evening."
His worry seeped into his words. Despite being disowned by his family, his heart still chased a faint hope of reuniting with them. Despite everything, he loved them, no matter how deep his wounds from them were.
ورغم نبذ عائلته له، ظل قلبه يطارد أملًا خافتًا في لمّ شملهم.
ورغم كل شيء، أحبهم، مهما كانت جروحه عميقة.
"Draaken,"
Elyana said gently, trying to calm the anxiety that had settled on his face.
"Everything will be alright. We'll find your family and protect them."
"And if we find that stupid brother who dared to falsely accuse you? I'll give him a lesson he'll never forget,"
Zara added with a battle-filled enthusiasm.
"Zara,"
Luna warned gently.
"We're here to help, not to create new problems."
"Sometimes solving old problems requires creating new ones,"
Ash said with eyes glowing with strange wisdom.
"That... never sounds logical,"
Marcus said, shaking his head.
"Nothing in this world is logical when it comes to family,"
I whispered.
The carriage we had rented was comfortable enough, but the long journey was more than just crossing miles; it was a test of our determination. Ember was flying in the open sky outside the carriage, sending me reports from her different world, the world of birds that was fluttering with freedom.
"Nothing suspicious so far,"
I said quietly.
"But Ember senses something unusual in the air. The magical energy is becoming denser as we get closer to Ironford."
"This isn't normal,"
Luna said with concern.
"Ironford isn't a magical city; there's no strong magical energy source here."
When we reached the outskirts of the city at sunset, I couldn't believe my eyes. The city that Draaken described as full of life was now empty.
The streets were deserted, shops were closed, and the few people we saw were hurrying quickly, looking at the ground as if they feared facing reality.
"This... this isn't how I remember the city,"
Draaken said, his voice filled with astonishment.
"Where is everyone?"
We headed to the only inn that remained open. The innkeeper, an elderly man with a long gray beard, looked at us with eyes filled with worry.
"Please, don't go out after sunset,"
he said with a trembling voice.
"Bad things happen at night."
"What kind of bad things?"
I asked curiously.
He looked around with extreme caution, then lowered his voice to fill it with fear.
"Red lights in the sky, screams coming from nowhere, and people disappearing then returning... different."
"Different how?"
Draaken asked.
"Empty,"
the man whispered, as if the words were struggling to come out of him.
"As if their souls were drained from them."
It was as if those words were the bell ringing our worst fears. The Red Shadow Organization was here, and they were draining souls in this place.
"The nobles?"
Draaken asked with a broken voice, his heart sinking in sorrow.
"The Ironfist family?"
The man's face changed and became darker.
"The palace has been closed for a week. No one has seen Lord Victor or his father since then."
Draaken's heart sank in sorrow, and we realized there was no more time to wait.
"We need to go to the palace."
"No!"
the man said with real panic.
"That place is cursed now! Those who approach it don't return!"
We rented two rooms at the inn and began planning what to do. We decided to wait until midnight, then sneak into the Ironfist Palace to discover what was happening there.
"If the Red Shadow Organization has taken over the palace, it means they're using it as their base,"
I said, studying the city map that Draaken had drawn from memory.
"My family's palace contains secret tunnels,"
Draaken said in a calm tone, but he was sad.
"We can enter without anyone noticing us."
"Or we can storm it from the front gate and fight,"
Zara suggested enthusiastically, her eyes glowing with the desire for battle.
"Zara, we're seven against an entire organization,"
Ash said dryly.
"It's better for us to sneak in quietly."
At midnight, we began sneaking in. The city was in a solemn silence, as if it wasn't breathing.
In the sky, strange red lights were dancing in the air, lighting the city's sky with an evil color.
"There,"
Draaken pointed to a large building looming in the distance on a hill in the center of the city.
Even in the dark, the red lights were dancing around its towers, as if witnessing an upcoming battle.
We used the side entrances to reach the palace walls, and Draaken led us to a hidden opening in the wall, a secret entrance he hadn't used since childhood.
"The tunnel leads to the palace basement,"
Draaken whispered as he opened a heavy stone door.
"From there, we can reach the upper floors without being seen."
We entered the tunnel one after another. Ember and Luna lit the way with a faint light. The tunnel was narrow and dark, covered with cobwebs and dust, as if time had stopped here.
"I haven't been here since I was a child,"
Draaken whispered, his tone carrying a painful memory.
"I used to hide here when my father's arguments with Victor would take an unprecedented turn."
We reached the basement, and the place was quiet, the silence pressing on our chests. But faint sounds coming from the upper floors were catching our attention—sounds of people talking and strange machines working.
"The plan?"
Marcus whispered.
"We split up,"
I said, taking a deep breath.
"Marcus, Ash, and Luna, search for the kidnapped civilians and free them. Elyana and Zara, stay here to support us. Draaken and I will search for his family."
"And if we face resistance?"
Zara asked seriously.
"Try to avoid fighting until we know what's happening, but if they discover us, don't hesitate to defend yourselves."
We sneaked through the dark corridors of the palace, and the atmosphere was filled with evil magical energy, as if the entire place had been contaminated by unnatural magic.
We reached the main floor, and when we entered the grand hall, we were confronted with a shocking sight.
The place that had been filled with family celebrations in the past had now become a terrifying laboratory.
Metallic tables covered with magical symbols, huge spirit stones glowing with an evil red light, and people tied to the tables, unconscious or worse.
"By the gods,"
Draaken whispered, his voice filled with shock and pain.
"What have they done to my home?"
In the center of the hall, we saw three masked people working around a large table. And on the table...
"!"
"Father!"
Draaken exclaimed with worry, but I covered his mouth before he could shout.
Count Ironfist was tied to the table, unconscious, and a strange magical machine was connected to his chest, as if it was pulling something from him.
"We need to stop this now,"
I whispered.
But before we could move, we heard a familiar voice, but corrupted.
"I think our guests have finally arrived."
Victorian Ironfist emerged from the shadows, Draaken's older brother, but his eyes glowed with an evil red light, and dark shadows danced around him like demons.
"Victorian?"
Draaken whispered in shock, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"W... what have they done to you?"
Victorian laughed a cold laugh, devoid of any warmth.
"They haven't done anything to me, dear brother. I joined them willingly."
"What?"
"Do you think my accusation against you for theft was a coincidence?"
Victor said, his eyes gleaming with evil.
"It was part of a bigger plan. Expelling you from the family was a necessary step. When Father came here searching for you, where they could capture him."
Draaken froze.
"You... you planned this?"
"Of course,"
Victor said, smiling a smile full of ugly pride.
"The Red Shadow Organization promised me unstoppable power in exchange for delivering our family to them. And now that you're here, we can complete the deal."
Anger exploded in my chest this traitor had not only betrayed Draaken but his entire family for power.
"Draaken,"
"Whatever you see or hear, remember that your real brother died the moment he joined these demons."
Draaken looked at me with eyes full of pain and denial, then nodded slowly.
"I won't let anyone hurt my family ever again,"
he said with a voice full of determination, his heart filled with justice.
And so, in Draaken's childhood palace transformed into a laboratory of horror, another battle against the Red Shadow Organization began.
But this time, the battle was more personal than ever.