His Spider, Shroud

ch.21 Wild Goose Chase

Sorry for my hiatus everyone, school has left me dragging! Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter! Also were almost at 10k views, thank you so much!!!

The door closes just in time, I hear as Patches hits the wall hard. I almost fall over in relief.

"Come on." Tubbo whispers as we start down the long dark hallway. There are a couple of lanterns illuminating the hall and I see as each of our faces glow with the orange light. We get to a spiral stair case that goes down at least twenty floors.

"He's on the sixthteenth floor, cell fourteen." Ranboo calls, so we huff down the seemingly never ending stairway. When we fianlly get to the sixteenth floor I run to the right cell. I wrap my hands around the bar, searching the gloomy cell with my eyes. But no ones here.

"You looking for Wilbur?" A voice startles me and my friends who are also peering in. I look to the next cell over. A man in a blue hedgehog skin on was the one who spoke.

"Who are you?" I ask.

"Conner, but the real question is who are you?" The man stands from his sitting position on the mat.

"Im Tommy, Wilbur's brother, and this is Tubbo and Ranboo."

"What are you guys doing here? I thought Wilbur was locked in because the countries are at war."

"We are, we're trying to break him out." Conner looks at Ranboo confused but after a couple moments says,

"Sorry but you missed him. Dreams taking him to meet up with Technoblade."

"Why?" Tubbo asks.

"Not sure, something 'bout trading for lives."

"Oh no, we got to go." I turn.

"Wait!" Conner screams after our retreating figures. "Break me out aswell!" We all look to eachother and Ranboo shrugs.

"Don't even know what he's in for." Ranboo states. So I turn and run over to his cell, opening it with keys Ranboo gave me for the cells.

"Lets go!" I call to everyone as I take the lead through the hall. But when we get to the door I remember the tiger that almost took my life. "Yeah, we're not going to be able to get out that way." I say as I cross my arms against my chest and lean on the iron door.

"Ranboo, you think you have enough juice to zap us out?" Tubbo asks, puting a hand on Ranboos shoulder, though its extremmaly ackward because of the height difference.

"Yeah, I think so." Ranboo responds so Tubbo and I place a hand on his arm. Conner looks at us bemused, I just grab his hand and put it against Ranboos arm.

Then im in that black space again. The quiezy feeling in my stomach returns but its not nearly as bad as last time. When I open my eyes I see were outside the castle walls.

"That sure comes in handy." I chuckle. Beside me Conner throws up into untamed shrubs.

Then we embark on the journey back through the woods.

"So why were you in the dungeons, if you dont mind me asking." Tubbo asks after some time of silence.

"Well the Pandora Empire has super strict rules as you probually know." Actully I didnt know, but I let him continue. "One of them is that you must be fully chlothed."

"Seems normal." Tubbo adds.

"Well theres terrible poverty through out the country as well. My family, we were dying, we didnt have enough food." The mood turns somber. "The hunger was making me go crazy, I ate my pants.." Conner's gaze is fixed on his barefeet. "Didnt have enough money for a new pair so couple guards got me and sent me to the dungeons, the only jail in the Empire. I think Dream likes knowing all his captives are right under his nose." He rolls his eyes.

"Thats terrible.." Tubbo sqeaks and we walk in silence for a while till I decide to break the unbearable tension with one of my many jokes.

"So, whats your favorite type of weather?" I start.

"Umm, sunny days I guess." Ranboo responds, the three of them look at me incredolus.

"Mines rain, I like when mother nature makes me wet." I shrug, smiling.

***********

We fianlly make it back to Ranboo's cottage, im reliaved to see Shroud all in one peice. We get ready for whats to come, grabbing some weapons and satchels full of everything we might need. Then we hurry to the town of Harpville, where everyone is supposed to be meeting. Hopefully we can sneak in and get Wilbur without anyone noticing.

Harpville is an symphony of sounds. It takes everything I have to not turn and run with my tail tucked between my legs. I see why my family doesnt want me to participate in wars, I immidetaly feel a panic attack start to bubble in my chest. The sounds of men and women grunting and screeching bring back flashbacks from some of the worst times of my life.

But when Shroud licks my ankle I remember to breathe. I need to sit down. I immideatly make an excuse to get away from my accomplices.

"Alright lets split up so we can find where he is. We'll meet up here." I speak confidently despite my insides, which are quickly crumbling. They all nod, and Ranboo and Conner run into the flow of soldiers at the end of the street.

"You okay man?" Tubbo asks putting a comforting hand on my shoulder. I shrug it off and smile.

"Yeah, just a little nervous. We should go." I gesture to the battle and Tubbo gives me a smile and nod.

"Alright, be safe." Then he runs off and joins the intimidating mass of men and women. I feel bad for putting the small boy in this situattion, we're only thirteen, it was dumb of me to think we were ready for this. I feel the tears start to stream down my face so I scoop up Shroud and run, not to the battle but to the right. Down a cobblestone street littered with deep sploteches of red, blood.

My thoughts keep multipling in my mind. Faces fly by in a tornado of memories. I get to the end of the street im running down and see a stack of barrels. From behind I hear shouting and whimpering. I run over and duck behind the stack.

When I look over my eyes pop out. There on the other side Wilbur is tied up to a lamp post, through his gag his muffled sobs can be heard. Two men fight near the barrels, swinging their large diamond swords at each other. Diamond. Must mean they are high officials, or leaders, only important people get those kinds of weapons.

I shiver when I get a glimpse of the faces of the two men. Karl Jacobs and Sapnap. I need to help Karl, I conclude. So I rip out my stone sword Ranboo gave me, I run out behind the barrels, and plunge it through the wood.

1181 words.