I Scored Myself A Mate

"We have two brutally murdered bodies here I am not so sure it's a good idea to just knock on their door." Theseus said. 

Allias parted his lips, ready to say something when he frowned and fell on his knees. A scream escaped his lips and Theseus looked at him in utter shock. He clenched his fist on the grass, biting his bottom lip as tears gathered in the corners of his eyes. 

"Allias? Allias what's wrong?" Theseus asked him terrified and placed his palm on his back. 

"Find them. Find the witches and make it stop. Please, my head." He screamed in utter pain and Theseus stared at the cottage with a furious expression.

"Oh don't worry I will. Ea and Ares watch out Allias and Mark's body. Demon you come with me." He said. 

The Valley of Fear was small, you could actually see the whole of it with one turn of your head. The power it emitted though it was terrifying to the point that even Theseus, who was usually unfazed about things like that shivered. As he rushed out in the open with his brother following close behind he stopped just before he reached the dark cottage. The shadows playing in the trees, the weird plays of the nonexistent light that made them see as if they were dancing. At first he had thought it were simply dark reflections of the grass, the trees and the flowers but he had been wrong. There were no flowers and almost no light to cast such vivid shadows. They were not just illusions of the light, they were souls. Tortured souls that remained trapped in this place, dancing aimlessly with the muted tune as they tried to find a way out.

Theseus realized those shadows were more than what everyone thought when he felt one slither between his feet. He felt it, cold and desperate touch the thin fabric of his pants and he shivered, his lilac eyes staring at it as it slipped away and mingled with the rest of the shadows as if nothing had happened. They were hundreds, in this endless sea of dark grass and tall trees. Those had all been people that died here, unable to move on.

"Theseus what are you doing?" Asmodeus asked him as he caught up with him. "We need to get to those witches.

"Demon, be careful." The general mumbled as he stared blankly at the cottage. For a second he was sure he saw a figure on that window, staring outside, right at them, waiting but once he blinked the shape of the body was instantly gone. 

"What is it?" Asmodeus asked confused and looked back, the ones who had stayed behind, waiting. Mark's body was left in the carriage. He wanted them to be as fast as they could, he didn't want to leave him alone for too long, he got worried. With his eyes he could also easily spot Allias too. He was still on the ground, his hand in his hair as he pulled it anxiously. He seemed to suffer from a piercing pain in his skull of unknown source. Not actually that unknown but they hadn't verified it yet that it was the witches' doing. "Theseus what are you doing?" He repeated the same question as the elf general seemed unable to move. He was as if he had frozen, his eyes stick on that cottage and he whispered again to be careful. Asmodeus saighed and stood on front of him, covering his vision. The elf blinked, as if he was being weaken by some kind of dream and looked at the demon.

"What?" He asked him rudely and Asmodeus rolled his eyes.

"You tell me. You said we need to be careful" he reminded him and Theseus took a second to think. It was as if his mind had turned blank for a minute. 

"I think we need to turn back." Theseus said and the demon frowned. He looked so shocked back there when Allias was in pain that he rushed here without thinking. Why would he tell him to get back so easily? Whenever it came to Allias he didn't mind the danger, why run away now?

"Why? What's wrong? Allias seems to be suffering." He reminded him and Theseus bit his bottom lip skeptical. 

"These shadows..." Theseus said and Asmodeus traced one with his eyes. "They are souls. They are dead people that have been trapped here. I don't think we should risk going in like this. I think I saw a woman on the window waiting. There must be some other way. Something about this feels completely wrong." He told Asmodeus. The demon stared at the cottage. He did not feel anything, to him it was just a huge black cube and nothing more bit to Theseus it was suspicious. It stirred emotions in him that made him have that worried expression. The elf general took in a deep breath as his eyes traveled to Allias. He couldn't go back now could he? He wondered as he saw his lover. He was on the ground, Ea sitting next to him holding his hand, hoping that he would comfort him somehow. He needed to help him, that was clearly a scheme of the witches but why, why did he feel so terrified by looking at a brick wall? Why did he feel that pressure on his chest? It was as if his feet had become heavy, made him unable to take light steps and get fast to his destination. 

"What about Allias though?" Asmodeus asked. He could see how perplexed he was. "I don't feel anything by looking at that place. Could it be that you're maybe, scared?" He asked him and Theseus raised an eyebrow.

"Do you have any idea what I've seen in my life? Obviously I wouldn't get scared by a cottage or some twin human witches. There is something else." He said avoiding the building with his eyes. "I can't leave Allias like that though." He said, feeling guilty for even thinking about leaving. He couldn't do this to him. "Come on, let's go." He said and signaled Asmodeus to begin walking again. After all sooner or later they would have to meet them, it would be better to just do it now and get rid of it. At least Allias was at a safe distance and he would be able to check the place first. That way when the elf king came here he would feel a bit safer and the general wouldn't worry that much about him or what could happen. Yes, he was simply getting an unwanted task out of the way and dealing with those mischevoous witches so they would stop playing with his lover's head. 

"Do you smell something?" Asmodeus asked and sniffed the air. Theseus soon mocked him, truing to catch some kind of scent but a strong wind blew taking any smell that was lingering away. Little rocks and grass flew in his face as the wind continued and he had to cover his eyes. Suddenly just a three hundred meter walk had turned into a dangerous andevnture. "What the hell?" Asmodeus mumbled as he too seemed to find it difficult to move with that strong air. "Can't we just teleport there?" He asked, fed up with those mind games but Theseus denied it strictly.

"No. I never teleport to placed I do not know and I won't just aplear in their doorstep. Witches can be cunning and those ones are necromancers. We shouldn't risk anything. Let's just go. We're halfway there." He shouted, trying to have his voice reach Asmodeus. The air seemed to get stronger when it instantly stopped.

"I have a feeling those ladies don't want us here." Asmodeus mumbled when a thick fog started to spread around. It was dull grey color and it smelled like smoke, as if a fire had been lit close by. Theseus struggled to see and stepped closer to the demon afraid that he would lose him as their vision got restrained.

"What the hell is happening?" Theseus asked as he coughed. It really wasn't fog, it was smoke. It got into his lungs and he began coughing, desperately asking for air.

"Theseus?" Asmodeus called out his name but he sounded so far away. The general's eyes widened as he realized and he looked around facing only endless grey. 

"Where are you?" Theseus called out only to hear a loud scream as a response. 

He instantly recognized that voice, it was a piercing yell and his head snapped back, his eyes almost popping off his sockets. His heart began racing.

"Help! The king!" Theseus heard Ea scream and the general started running. He didn't know where he was heading to or if he was right. Maybe this was another mind game, maybe it was a trick the witches had thought so he wouldn't reach them but he couldn't stop. He had heard Allias scream clearly, he would always recognize his voice. 

"Allias!" He called out when the fog finally began to clear. Theseus found himself in the same spot he originally was, staring the small cottage, stuck right in the middle and in some peculiar way Asmodeus was standing next to him the demon looked around confused, making the general understand that he wasn't the only one who believed they had been separated. He turned around desperately wa red to see his lover and make sure if he was okay only to face emptiness.

Allias was no longer there, the only people he could see were Ea and Ares searching desperately with their Eyes for Allias.

"Theseus!" Ares shouted. "Allias disappeared!"