The Figure in the Dark

Maya crashed to the ground. Her knees turned pink from the impact. Her long black hair glistened in the afternoon sun that broke through the gaps of the blue drapes. She covered her face but she couldn't stop her tears.

No music would be played that day. The only sound that came from the music lounge was her whimpers. The gentle breeze that blew through the open window seemed to drown that out too.

"What kind… What kind of person does this…" Maya cried as she brushed her wrists on the corners of her eyes. She didn't understand but somehow, she was more afraid of the truth. She placed her damp hands on her pleated skirt and pushed herself up. It took all the strength she had but what was done claimed a piece of something bright in her.

The piano was torn to pieces. The strings were cut and twirled like waves. The keys were smashed and scattered like dominoes. The piano lid was vandalized with red spray paint; There were many demeaning words but underlined in the center of the black canvas was the largest word: THIEF.

Maya knew exactly who the culprit was. She only told one person of her dream. She didn't know the lengths Io Hara would go to crush that. She felt that she should've kept her mouth shut. Was it naive to think that dreams should be shared? Isn't that what idols are for?

Everything felt wrong.

"What do I do…" Maya clenched the piano's side and her fingertips turned white. The room, the piano… It was her place of progress, her starting point. Her family wasn't well off like Io Hara's was. She felt lost before anything even began.

She stood still and the amber glow cast a long shadow of her that stretched the room, over broken piano keys and splintered wood on the floor. She was numb from a broken promise, a promise to herself that her dreams would come true.

'Should I give up?'

But as soon as Maya thought about placing her dream in a chest and throwing away the key, something changed in her. She hated herself that she even entertained the question. Her white uniform wrinkled as she clenched her heart. Her heart didn't ice but it was doused in gasoline and set aflame. Her chest tightened and she panted, unable to control the sensation. It was a feeling she never felt before… It was a raging fire.

It was fury.

-----

Pop! Pop!

On the floor, Athalos removed the potions from nose and rear, he felt a little tingle on the latter. He was invigorated from the effects of the potions he ingested, orally and otherwise. Though at the same time, he knew he received irreparable damage to his very soul.

But Athalos thought of Maya. Not for revenge- that was a secondary thought- but if she survived that walls' collapse. He quickly palmed the floor behind and felt her arm. He cried with relief, "Lady Maya! I'm so glad you made it! Do you believe in me now?! Even on the many brinks of death, I, Athalos, has proven time and again that I am a natural-born savior-"

"I'm over here." Maya dryly spoke. She was sprawled on the floor and caught her breath. She was as pale as a ghost. She wasn't sure how they kept surviving deadly situations. She only knew how each breath she took was sweeter than the last.

Athalos' face was puzzled as he felt what he thought was Maya's arm. His hands reached the tip and the shredded sharp feeling was familiar. It was half his staff. He embraced it tight to his chest and cried, "No! Staffington! I thought you of all people would leave this wretched dungeon unblemished!"

Maya struggled to get up. She sat on the floor and drank the last health potion from her shoulder bag. She reserved it just in case they would survive. While chugging the potion, she saw that both Frina and Gregory were lights out.

"Wake up, Gregory! I promise ye it shall be yer only name!" Graff shook the bat's shoulders. He didn't even check on Athalos and Maya. He forgot about Frina too.

Maya drank the last drop and placed the empty vial back into her bag. It was her habit back on Earth to reuse containers, especially tupperware. She gawked at Athalos who rocked back and forth while embracing the broken staff. "Who the hell names their staff?"

"More than you know." The figure replied.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

The figure rose from its throne and slow-clapped its way down every step of the grand staircase. It took a while because there were more than thirty steps.

Maya took the time to look at her surroundings. The white light that illuminated the room came from a gem beside the throne. It's rays bounced off large sleek sheets of translucent gemstone positioned around the room. The grand staircase, where the figure continued its entrance, had a dingy red carpet. Apart from those, the surroundings were still all rocky and earthy.

Maya's blue eyes widened. She had to stand up. The figure became clear and it wasn't like anything she had seen before since her arrival. "Nope. Those aren't shoulder pads."

Clap. Clap.

"Clap… Welcome dear adventurers." The being ran its talons above the ruffle of black feathers on its head. His beak was mustard yellow and contrasted his bright yellow eyes. What Maya thought was absurdly large shoulder pads were the peaks of his folded majestic wings. His wings spreaded out from his dark cloak and revealed the blue tunic he wore, his hind legs, and clawed feet. He brushed his absurdly long eyebrows that had a tail on opposite outer ends that reached his cheeks.

"An Avian?!" gasped Graff by Gregory's side.

"Well… Well… and well." Athalos, half-staff in hand, stood up with a smirk that even the kindest of people would want to punch. "And the riddle makes sense now. Athalos got that- Excuse me, who? Athalos got that."

Graff snapped back, "What riddle?! The last one doesn't even have anythin' to do with birds!"

"That's my bad." The avian raised his hand. To Maya, he almost sounded British. "I lost track of the theme I had going and well, I had already built the walls too. Sadly, the point of no return was way gone by then."

"So can we have the damn sword?" As amazed as Maya was, she was exhausted. "Oh. Is Jeff's friend still alive?"

"Why yes! Alive and well as you can see!" The avian spread his wings again as he twirled. He held up his hand, a bird's claw had four talons, one on the thumb. "It's kinda touching how Jeff managed to call for assistance. I mean, given I swiped his torso. Well, it was dark. I have black feathers and a cloak too. I guess one should never be too hasty to judge one's character."

"You killed Jeff?! How could you do that to your friend?!" Athalos shouted as he tried to snap his half-staff into a… quarter-staff. He gave up and continued, "We'd never sully our hands with such betrayal!"

Maya slowly looked at Frina and Gregory on the floor. She cleared her throat. "How could you intentionally do that to your friend?!"

"I hear you. I really do. But…" The avian tapped his beak thrice in thought. He shrugged and the friendliness in his eyes disappeared, replaced by a factual stare. "He just wasn't entertaining."

Graff was unnerved. He felt uncertain of the outcome if a fight broke out. He joined Maya's side and spoke carefully, "A bird lookin' for kicks in the ground. Not a sight I've seen to tell ye the truth. Who are ye?"

"And here I thought pleasantries passed." The avian puffed his chest and stood unforgivingly proud. "Last name, Vhou. First name, Bika. Bika will suffice. My friends, previous Jeff included, are allowed so."

"Bika…Vhou… Oh god." Maya shook her head and almost broke the empty bottle in her bag. She wasn't sure how a lame pun managed its way to an avian's name. On the flipside, she couldn't help but think of playing that game with Graff.

"An avian of the Vhou clan?" Athalos, using his heightened sense of smell, found his way to the chicken basket. He plopped down, cross-legged, and licked the oil of a chicken drumstick. "I heard it was one of the highest clans literally in the levels of the sky. Very rich too."

"What the hell are you doing?!" whispered Maya as she rushed over to Athalos. She tried to get the chicken off his hands and mouth. Her efforts were met with Athalos' uncanny dodging and the half-staff prodding her face. "You don't think eating a bird in front of a very big bird that killed Jeff is a smart thing to do?!"

Graff stayed silent and sweat in place, a puddle formed around his feet. He had eaten so many. He retreated from Maya's side and found shelter as he discreetly crawled under Gregory's wing.

"I will allow it," said Bika in a calm but superior tone. His face turned sour. "Chickens, birds with sad capabilities of flight… Ugh. Don't let me get started with those penguins too. Now that's a sadder sight."

"The sword." Maya pointed to the pommel sword by the throne above. "If we can just have it, we'll leave you with your traps. That's all we really want."

Bika scoffed with a smile. "Why when the festivities have only started?"

"Festivities?" Maya was apprehensive. Remembering Jeff's fate, she took a step back.

Bika flapped his black wings and the torches died. He flapped again and, in a nimble smooth glide, he returned to his seat at the throne. He took the translucent crystal at his side, the one that illuminated the room through bouncing off mirrors around the area. The place returned to its natural state, the darkness.

Maya kept close to Athalos; She recalled where he was seated. Her heart pounded and almost burst out her chest. Even if she drank the last health potion, a fight was the last thing she could manage. She whispered to the man who she could hear still munching away, "What do we do?! Frina and Gregory's out! And where the hell did Graff go?!"

"What happened, Lady Maya?"

"What do you mean— Oh right. Torches are dead and lights are out! And how can you eat at a time like this?!" Maya palmed the darkness and got the drumstick out of Athalos' hand. She took a bite too.

"Oh. Well…" Athalos licked his fingers then cupped his ear. "Bad news, I'm afraid. The dwarf is still alive. I can hear his greasy belly rub against his breasts. It's muffled but my hearing is too good to mistake that sound—"

"Caw!" Bika heaved the crystal to the center of the ceiling and it looked like a shooting star in the night of the cavern. Before the crystal hit the rocks and earth, it stopped and floated like a lone chandelier. The light was a faint sparkle but then the avian pushed a button, beside a rope that stretched upwards to the ceiling, on the throne. "And caw."

Three mirrors, which had their backs turned, swiveled around the luminescent crystal and three beams of light fell and circled on Maya and the party. The rest of the cavern retained the dark, except for Bika's yellow eyes.

"Is this a spotlight?" guessed Maya. She spotted Graff, who flapped the unconscious Gregory's wing in an effort to hide himself, and ignored him. As she dragged Frina closer to her and Athalos, she spoke, "What is happening?"

"You all have actually been a treat to watch." Bika's voice echoed through the shadows. "The fire arrows were probably my favorite. But that isn't what fills my beak and heart. And I sincerely hope you fare better than Jeff. "

Bika crossed his legs and rested his chin on his fist. "Well, go on. Entertain me."