The Dungeon

by June Leung

  Chapter 8

  Adrian

  Adrian stumbled into the bar in the late evening, reaching for the rooms upstairs, a glass and a bottle of scotch in his hands. At least it would be quiet up there and no one would see him drunk. He pushed a random door, sitting down on the bed and setting the bottle and glass on the bedside table. He let out a heavy sigh, glancing at his watch. There were still five minutes before Benjamin could hand over his shift and come up. He’d told him countless times to just hire a few more staff, but he refused.

  His heart hammered as he stared at the wood-textured wall. At least he tried. He told Helen to be careful. It seemed Lia wouldn’t talk with him any time soon. Maybe the existence of the clan would deter Evelyn.

  Someone knocked and pushed in just as Adrian downed the first glass of his alcohol. Benjamin huffed. “King, don’t drink too much. How can I help you?”

  “Have you… been able to get in touch with them?” Adrian asked, his heart racing. He did too many terrible things that it could be hard to mend. What if his own team didn’t even want to see him again?

  Benjamin nodded, but his face was blank. “I managed to leave a voice message and they’ve listened. Well, at least the sent receipt said so. I think that’s already a breakthrough. They will come back anyways. With how our magic works, it would be to their benefit.”

  Adrian sighed, setting down the now-empty glass. “Still, only because they have no choice not to. Anyways, I managed to tell Helen.”

  Benjamin chuckled. “Could’ve guessed.”

  Adrian’s eyes widened in shock. “Excuse me?”

  “Well, the bruise on your face gives you away.” Benjamin’s smirk lingered, a bit too annoying.

  “I guess so…”

  Benjamin took a seat by his side, glancing at the bottle on the bedside table. “I doubt Lia would have done that.”

  “Right… She’s too kind. I would rather she punch me. I guess it would feel better than getting slapped by Helen.”

  “Good gracious! Try harder with Lia, would you?”

  “I haven’t been feeling that well recently. I don’t mean with Lia. There’s something on my mind I couldn’t get off. How’s The Orbit?”

  “Other than the hotel seeming to be a lot quieter from the outside, I’ve not seen a lot of changes. What’s wrong?”

  “I seemed to smell more magic in the air. Though Zitannas’ power makes it hard to feel other magical things amidst the large city.”

  “You think it is The Orbit’s magicians? Should it be Evelyn instead?”

  “No idea. I don’t know those in the gang very well. Just like us, there could be more around. News of them getting beat would spread in no time. Evelyn did say she would give me a month. I don’t know whether she’ll keep that up, but I could use the time. If only Lia would at least talk to me in a month.” Adrian rubbed his temple. With Lia’s power getting more stable, he didn’t know when she would be back. Gosh, he hated himself. It was so unfair to Lia.

  “Sadly, our spy master is not here, huh? I suppose I can ask around. Maybe some others will have some idea.”

  “Don’t make it obvious. I don’t want Evelyn catching any more attention than she has. You know we barely made it here.”

  Zitannas had a lot more to it than the average human knew. If Evelyn tried, she may get some of them on her side, and he didn’t need that. With his track record, there was no telling what could happen. Maybe he could fight some of them, but he couldn’t fight all at once.

  “Of course, I do think our recent deal earned us a bit more room,” Benjamin said.

  “That deal is a bit too new to be stable. I won’t count on it. Only the cash and the supply matters. There’s no trust with them.”

  “Well, I can’t say I disagree. I will look into it.”

  “Good… Do you really think the two would come back? After what I did…?” Adrian flicked his eyes to Benjamin, his gut twitched. Lia better not know what he did to his people.

  Benjamin let out a heavy sigh. “I can’t speak for them. But I think they understand. If you tell them how you feel for Lia, maybe it would be easier. They only know you want them to be back for an emergency. As you wanted, I haven’t told them exactly what’s going on. You can’t expect them to know how you feel for Lia. Heck, even Lia doesn’t know how you feel.”

  Adrian groaned. “I told you I don’t feel anything for her.”

  “Liar.”

  Adrian glared at him. Benjamin huffed, shaking his head. “C’mon. It is one thing to not tell her, and another whether you really love her. You aren’t thinking you can fight Evelyn without the Elements knowing, right? There’s no way life would be the same anymore. May as well let Lia know and let her decide for herself.”

  “I can’t even talk to her right now.” Adrian downed the rest of his drink, reaching for the bottle, but Benjamin took it and set it further away. Adrian scowled, returning his hand to his side, staring at the glass. “I have my reasons. I know what’s for the best.”

  “Wait.” Benjamin sat up straight, his gaze intense, as if searching Adrian’s face. Adrian raised his brows. Benjamin cleared his throat. “What if the Elements team up with Evelyn?”

  Adrian’s eyes widened. Dammit! He never thought of that. His blood chilled. If he insisted on not killing Lia, Evelyn would go for her. He had absolutely no idea what William would think. If Evelyn just wanted Lia to be dead, she could let William know about Lia’s power, and he would probably kill her himself. Who Lia was and what she had done for the team, William wouldn’t care. For him, the only good dark magicians were the dead ones.

  If Evelyn didn’t tell William about Lia’s power and decided to barge into the clan, there was no telling what would happen. William probably was no match for the dark magic, but Lia would still die for sure. If William was going to die, he better die under Adrian’s hand for what he did to Ariel. Adrian grunted, shaking his head.

  “My King. If we are thinking of the same thing, then there’s only one way to keep Lia alive with the highest chance and getting rid of Evelyn’s threat. We don’t need the Elements to be there to stab us in the back. But Lia wouldn’t like it.”

  The Elements had to go down for things to work. “Yes… she probably would hate me for the rest of her life. And hell, for a dark magician, that’s a long time.”

  Benjamin chuckled wryly. “You would rather do that, right? You only want Lia to be safe.”

  “Is that even a question? Check to see if those two are really coming back. Please help me convince them. And still, don’t tell them the details about Lia and Evelyn. I will do that myself.” Adrian gently squeezed Benjamin’s shoulder. William and Eric wouldn’t worry him, but he would need every one of his team members to be around to even dare to dream of winning against Evelyn. After all these years, who knew how strong she had gotten.

  “Sure. I will keep trying, as I’ve said. We all have a soft spot for you, just don’t keep screwing up.”

  Adrian examined Benjamin’s face, his smirk a bit too smug. He let out a heavy sigh. He hated how Benjamin was right. “I will try. Don’t forget The Orbit.”

  “Of course. When did I ever fail you?”

  Chapter 9

  Helen

  Inside the clan, Helen wiped off her sweat with a towel as her training came to an end. It wasn’t as hard as she expected; hopefully that meant she was getting better.

  William was talking to Patrick as his session just ended before hers. She stretched her arms, rubbing them. Other than getting stronger, there was one thing she liked about training sessions—usually hers were in the morning, so it was time for lunch when they wrapped up.

  “I guess this is everything for today. Get some rest. It’s been a while since anything happened. I am not feeling the best about it. So the two of you better be on your toes.” William nodded to them and left.

  Patrick rolled his eyes, leaning back on the wall near Helen. “He always says that. I think it is a trick to get us to s
tay in training.”

  “You wanted to get stronger anyway. Even if he didn’t say that, you are still going to stick with training.”

  There was a buzz, and they both checked their phones. Helen’s heart skipped a beat when she saw a message from Benjamin. “It seems I have to go. See you next time?”

  “Sure.” Patrick nodded, heading to the bench to gather his stuff while Helen headed to the door.

  Helen went to the lounge, hoping there was no one inside. It had been a while since she heard anything from Benjamin. Speaking of which, what Adrian told her a few days ago surfaced. He said there was someone very strong after Lia—was Benjamin asking her about that? But shouldn’t he ask Lia directly? Lia probably hadn’t blocked him like she did with Adrian.

  No one was in the lounge. She sat on the couch and checked the message.

  > Hey, you have some time today?

  She rubbed her chin. This was a bit random and broad from him. Or did something happen with Adrian? That man was a stubborn nut to crack.

  > Yes. And what’s this about?

  > Well, I am heading to The Orbit later today. Would you want to tag along?

  > A very strong magician like you is scared of that hotel?

  > I am not, come on… There is also something I want to ask you about.

  Helen frowned, though she knew it was safer to talk face-to-face in case someone in the clan got hold of her phone.

  > I think I can, tonight?

  > I am thinking now. Up for it?

  > I need my lunch.

  > Count it on me.

  She stared at her phone, not sure whether he meant it. But if he wanted to pay for food, why not? Benjamin gave her a location for them to meet up, and she headed out of the clan to the bus stop soon after.

  When Helen got off the bus, Benjamin was leaning on a lamp post near the parking lot of The Landmark. The Orbit was a block away. He seemed to be oblivious about her walking up to him. “Hey.” She poked his shoulder.

  He almost jumped, straightening so much that he hit the lamp post. He rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. “Well, didn’t see you. Let’s get going.”

  “Come on. You’re not that oblivious. What’s on your mind?” she asked as they headed to the entrance of the mall.

  “A lot…” he sighed, sinking his hands into his pocket.

  The Landmark was a high-end mall, not somewhere she would go a lot. Not to mention after the meteorite monsters, driving past Central Park brought back too many memories. Inside the mall, there were name-brand shops she didn’t even know how to pronounce. Not a lot of people were around, probably because it was an afternoon in a normal workday.

  “Tell me what could make you worried? Or would Adrian be mad about it?”

  “Well, do you happen to have a trick or two to help people in conflict to be OK with each other?” His frown deepened as they stopped by the directory board of the mall.

  “Who are they? You pissed off Adrian again?” Her heart skipped a beat. She made him talk to Adrian about Lia a while ago. In their attack on The Orbit, he seemed to be fine with Benjamin. Had that backfired now that Adrian and Lia weren’t talking to each other?

  He smiled wryly, shaking his head. “Not really. Adrian and I are fine. Just someone else is not fine. He needs me to talk to them, but I don’t even know how to talk about it.”

  “You up for sushi?” She pointed at the directory. He nodded and they turned that way. She continued, “Well, without more context, it would be better to just let them talk about it. If I had an idea, I would’ve used it on Adrian and Lia yesterday.”

  He laughed, shaking his head. “I know, right? I don’t even understand why.”

  “You know him a lot better than I do and you still have no idea?” She lifted her brows as she gestured to the waiter for them to get seated. While Benjamin poured the green tea, she took a dish of tuna sushi from the conveyor belt.

  “I mean… His reason is not that bad. If it was a century or more earlier, I’d let that slide. But I can’t imagine how he was still clenching on it.”

  “How old are you guys really?” she asked.

  He smirked as he took a California roll for himself. “Asking about age is not very polite.”

  “When did you get the idea that I am polite?” She narrowed her eyes on him.

  “Longer than you can imagine. Back to the topic. It seems an outsider like me could do nothing, right?”

  “I think it is the case. It is not our problem after all. Though no wonder both of us are affected by it.” She shrugged. Before the swordfish went too far away, she snatched the dish to the table, taking another bite. There were few benefits of eating out in an expensive place; other than the food seemed to be tastier, maybe the price tag helped.

  “Is Lia alright?” Benjamin took a sip of his tea.

  “You mean her power? I… think so? I met with Adrian a few days ago. I think you know about it. He gave me a piece of amber.” It probably wouldn’t be for the best if she told him how she slapped Adrian.

  “I see.” He let out a heavy sigh. “Why must we get stuck between them?”

  “I wonder. I guess we are a bit too keen on helping them a bit. Anyways, why are you going to The Orbit?”

  “The King wanted to know whether there are still some of them around and whether they are still going after Lia.”

  “He told me there is someone very strong that is doing that.” She frowned. Maybe it would also be safer for Lia to stay in the clan.

  “Indeed.” He rubbed his temple. “We don’t even know how it will end.”

  “The oh-so-mighty Adrian also didn’t know?” There was no sign of a smile on his face. Even when they were barging into The Orbit, he wasn’t at all tense. But now…

  “I think he is nervous but doesn’t want to show. For him, I could understand. He can’t quite talk about his own struggles. That’s an old enemy. Another dark magician like him.”

  “You?” She lifted an eyebrow. Benjamin was also a dark magician?

  “Not the same. She is an origin. I am just a little dark magician with the King as my origin. Adrian leant his power to me. The origin is much stronger.”

  Whoever that was, this didn’t sound like good news. “Why Lia? No way Lia knows her?”

  “Those with power think differently. When they have power, they want to stop others with the same power. Lia is also an origin. Though she is still in the learning phase, that woman won’t risk letting her gain power.” He took another sip of his tea, but his hand was shaking slightly.

  “Lia wouldn’t pose harm to anyone. She just wants to help more people.”

  He stared at her for a moment longer than comfortable until he cleared his throat. “I know. Lia is almost the most harmless woman I’ve ever met. But for me, the King, and that woman, our world doesn’t work like that. Somehow Lia expressed her power under the King’s wing didn’t help. If Lia had never known she had the dark magic, or no magician was with her, maybe that woman wouldn’t care. She and the King fought very hard back in the day.”

  Helen swallowed with her throat dry. “So she thinks that Adrian will join hands with Lia and become a threat to her.”

  Benjamin nodded with a solemn face. “Yes. That woman and the King have a grudge that goes way back. Probably no better than the one… Never mind. Let’s say it was no fun.”

  Helen squinted. Maybe it was about Adrian and William? That she already knew, but Benjamin should know that she knew. Why was he hiding it?

  As the meal wrapped up, Benjamin called over the waiter. Helen blinked. “Are you sure you are paying for me?”

  He chuckled. “Funny you didn’t ask till now. Yes, I said it in the message. I don’t want to see you survive on ramen for the rest of the month.”

  She rolled her eyes. “While William doesn’t pay a lot, it is not that bad.”

  “It’s the King’s money anyway.” He winked as he signed the bill and handed over his card.

  “After he pai
d you, it is your money.”

  “Except he doesn’t pay me.”

  She stared at him. “What?”

  Benjamin peeked as the waiter walked off to swipe the card, he said, “We use his card. So it is his money.”

  She laughed. “Feel like living in your mom’s basement? No wonder you don’t dare piss him off.”

  He huffed, rolling his eyes. “Well, I contributed in earning the sum, so no, I am not living in a basement.”

  It didn’t take long for them to arrive at The Orbit from the mall. It was a good sunny day, not too hot for Helen yet. The Orbit looked to be quiet. Compared with the last time they were there, the parking lot seemed to have a lot fewer cars. Maybe there were less people in the afternoon than at night.

  They walked inside. Most of the decorations looked the same as the last time. Helen’s eyes went to the small lounge area at once. She and Benjamin were there last time, had the fun of finishing a cheesecake there and the fun of messing around, breaking a wine glass on purpose. She smiled at the memory, right at the time when Benjamin looked to her and winked. It seemed he was of the same mind.

  By the lift area, he tugged on her elbow. “Hey, I think it is a good idea we use the way we communicated last time we were here.”

  “Right, it seems to be better,” she said. He took her hand and a warm stream of power trickled inside her. It scared her last time that happened, reminding her a bit too much of the way Adrian attempted to kill her when she found out about Lia’s dark magic. Slowly, the warm flame lit by Benjamin’s power settled inside her, giving a gentle sense of him being around. She willed, testing?

  He flashed a smile and pressed the button for the elevator. Come on… you know it’s going to work. Testing, really?

  Does Adrian know about this? I think when he asked you to look into The Orbit, he didn’t mean you should bring me along.