The Demon Lord and his Hero

Artemus was forced to rift halfway across the kingdom so he could find the barkeep that had resigned. Having followed two fake leads, the third time was the charm.

He met the barkeep and paid him money to find out that Syryn had travelled to log island to search for the captain of the Fool's Noose.

The anti mage returned to Elysium and put out word that he was looking for information on Idriz and the whereabouts of the Fool's Noose. Artemus knew he wouldn't get the answers from the loyal men on log island. He had to depend on the information network of merchants and sailors that were familiar with the routes and timetables of the many ships that traversed the ocean waters.

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Three more daily meals into his prison since Enkansh's visit, Syryn was restless for news about Drevin's attempts to free him. The darkness was a constant presence and it made him feel like he was rotting in the unmoving water of the dungeon.

Syryn sang to pass away his time. He hummed a random tune at first but it became a familiar song that he used to sing. He hummed and sang bits and pieces of lyrics that came to his lips without prompting.

"Who's singing?!" Another prisoner shouted. "Sing louder."

"That's a human song," another voice joined in. "I know I've heard it before."

Syryn was suddenly excited. The song could be another clue to his origins.

"Do you remember where you heard it?" He asked the voice in the darkness.

"Eh, it has been years since I last went up top. I can't say I remember much of my time spent on the surface."

He sounded old to Syryn's ears. "Why were you on the surface?"

"Why?! Have you been to the surface? It's beautiful. The demented king has the mers thinking it's a war zone up there when the humans actually care little about attacking Silisia. As long as you stay far from the ships, there's no reason to be afraid! I went up there so many times and never got caught by humans."

Another prisoner laughed. "And that's what got you locked in here."

That was when a guard appeared to silence them. Talking was not allowed. Anyone caught talking, or singing, was lashed. The mage kept his mouth shut along with the others after the guard threatened them. Getting lashed meant he would be risking an infection from the stagnant and dirty dungeon water so Syryn was back to talking to himself in his head.

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Six meals since Enkansh's visit, Syryn was let out of his prison.

"Thank fuck I'm out of there," the mage told the guard who was behind him. "I thought Silisia had forgotten about its saviour. That's me. You know that right?"

He was jabbed in the back by the back end of the spear.

"You'll pay for that," Syryn threatened him without any bite in it.

The dungeons were far away from the palace. Syryn was sure that the guards were deliberately taking him through the main waterways that crossed Silisia's biggest urban zone.

Mers stared at the weak and sickly looking human who was being paraded by the guards. Syryn was pale with gaunt cheeks and sunken eyes. The lack of food coupled with how much nutrition his body was using up since his spots had appeared made for a skinny body that looked like it could be snapped in half by a child.

"The saviour of Silisia," a mer with bad intentions called out. "Shouldn't you save yourself first?"

One of his guards laughed. It permitted the other mers to laugh. Soon he was turned into the butt of a joke in the middle of the shopping district.

Syryn closed his eyes and counted to ten. When he opened them, he saw Enkansh in the crowd of mers, gloomy as usual. The siren nodded once and turned away. It seemed he couldn't stomach what was happening to Syryn.

Syryn noted that not all the mers were laughing. There were some of them who looked frightened, some who appeared upset, and others that were expressionless. Why? He thought. Why weren't they all enjoying his misery? He could then turn the kingdom into rubble without a pricking conscience leashing him.

Another jab but this time in his ribs. Syryn folded over in pain. He grit his teeth and swallowed the words that wanted to leave his mouth. Where was the sage? Where was his ally? Resentment overflowed like a dark poison in his heart.

Syryn bowed his head and allowed his anger to simmer beneath the surface. Why did have to go through this humiliation? What crime had he committed that prompted the king to parade him on the streets? He wasn't stupid to believe that the guards had done this out of their own volition. This was his punishment from the ruler of the mers.

Like a freak on show, he was slowly lead through Silisia's busy ways for the citizens to gawk at. It seemed they all knew who he was and why he had come to be in Silisia. Syryn suspected that the louder mers had planted along the route to shout out insults for the public to hear and join in. It seemed they were all targeting his identity as saviour or liberator of Silisia. It was a smear campaign to discredit him. The mage's heart got colder and colder with every minute that passed by.

"No human can be the saviour of Silisia." A voice came from in front of him. Syryn's head snapped up to look at Drevin who said it out loud for the gawking mers.

The prince was a mask of aloofness. His royal crown glimmered in the soft light of the lunar stone that lit up the water.

It was like a punch to Syryn's gut. He knew that Drevin was under the control of the King but it still hurt to hear his friend join in with the enemy's voices.

For a brief second, the silver-blue mer's eyes that were fixed on Syryn softened, and then he turned away, leaving the crowd and Syryn like he hated to be there. The exchange had been brief but it was enough for Syryn to hold onto for some warmth. Drevin was still his friend.