Riven moved quickly, despite the pain he was experiencing. If he had stayed there any longer, he would have been caught.
He walked past the rusted carts and balconies, staying close to the streets and trying his best not to raise any suspicions or give anyone the chance to stare at him.
He believed he was safe, as he thought no one had seen him.
After all, it was just a thought. A voice cut through-
"You are slower than I expected."
Riven froze there.
"Fuck. Did I get caught? Wait, this voice... It's not that of an adult."
He looked forward.
A boy blocked the exit of the alley. His dark blue and gold armor shone faintly in the dim light. He seemed about the same age as Riven. A fancy-looking spear rested on his shoulder, which looked out of place in the dirty backstreet.
His brown hair was gently blown by the wind, and he had calm, golden eyes.
His stance exuded a commanding presence.
Riven wondered with terror, "Who is he? He seems to be around my age."
Riven stepped back slowly in caution, asking
"Are you one of the inquisitors?"
The boy smiled.
"I am Sareth. From Starbound Hall. You know? I came here to collect a pest."
Riven stayed silent. The chains under his sleeves twitched as if they sensed the threat before he did.
The voice inside Riven whispered, "Run. He came for you. You are not strong enough to confront him. He's a blessed one."
Riven realised he had to flee. But he was certain that the person in front of him would catch up. He had no choice.
Riven asked the voice inside him. " Blessed one? Either way, I will die. Can you lend me your power for a bit?"
The voice replied, " I can. But you'll lose something significant."
"I don't care. Just help me out."
"Fine. Just say Unbind the Chains."
"Unbind the Chains!."
On his palms, a dense, violet-black smoke-like substance developed.
"What's this? I don't remember having a power like this."
"Remember the black gem you discovered in the cave? That black gem is an ancient portal gemstone. It has its own space. I kept my chains in that location. When you speak "Unbind the chains," the space creates a portal on your hands, causing the chains to emerge from the portal rather than your flesh. When the chain was kept inside your body, it used a lot of energy from you. "This is a better choice."
"I see. So my palms are now acting like a portal. "
Sareth stepped forward.
"Chains, huh? I've seen curses before," he said. "But yours… is one of the most unusual kinds. I don't know what you are, but Van Joiva was right to send me."
Riven replied, " I don't want to fight you. "
"Then die quickly."
Sareth dashed in.
The spear came faster than expected—Riven barely dodged in time. Stone exploded where the tip struck, pelting him with grit. Riven hit the cobbles hard, his shoulder taking the impact.
Then Riven stood back again. The black chains emerged from the portal in his palms. They lashed out like a whip, trying to slash Sareth. Without breaking a sweat, Sareth dodged them swiftly.
Riven spun them around again, like a cyclone, trying to create distance. The metal links screeched against the ground, creating sparks.
Sareth was quicker and had more combat experience.
His spear darted like lightning, cutting through one of the chains. Riven was hurt as the chain was a part of his power.
"Riven! Go, don't consider anything. Just go."
Riven threw a shattered crate at Sareth's head and dove through a tight alleyway. His pain was just increasing as he didn't get any time to recover.
"I can't win this. He is much stronger than I."
Sareth landed behind him again.
"I expected more. You're not the first cursed brat I've put down."
"Indeed, I am not strong, but I will do whatever it takes to survive," Riven replied.
The chains burst from the portal again. It went after Sareth and lashed at him. But Sareth deflected it with his spear. And in a swift he already reached in front of Riven.
He struck Riven in the gut with the blunt end of the spear. Riven flew back while spraying blood from his mouth.
Riven collapsed to his knees, choking.
"Pathetic. I wasted my precious time on a trash like you. You are among the weakest dark bearers I have fought," said Sareth.
Riven tried to stand, but the spear was already at his throat.
"Don't worry," Sareth said calmly with a grin. "You'll be useful as a lesson to others."
His vision started to blur.
"I won't go down like this, you sh*t head," he muttered.
Sareth stomped on his chest.
"Oops! You already have."
His eyes closed slowly; the last thing he saw was the cold sky above the alley.
Then everything went black before him.
[To be continued..]