Yours, H || Golden Guard x Reader [DISCONTINUED]

5 - Eventful Escapes

[Art by karumkin on Twitter]

Y/n's POV

I'm quickly gaining on the Guard, hair flying behind me as I whip through the caves. But for what he lacks in speed, he makes up for in agility. He circles and curves like a cardinal in flight while I get slowed by the narrow walls and large rocks. He manages to dodge my spells, but I'll be close enough to hop onto his staff soon.

The Guard smashes through a row of stalactites, causing the ceiling to shake dangerously, but I make it through before anything can collapse. Okay, maybe he's less agile, more reckless. But he's running from me, he's scared. Good.

I mentally scold myself for giving him a chance in the first place. If there's one thing Eda's constantly telling me, it's that I can't trust the Emperor, and I was stupid enough to think she could have been wrong. I just hope the others are holding up.

Who am I kidding? This is Eda and Amity we're talking about.

I'm practically on his tail at this point, but as I'm turning the corner to grab his cape, I smash into his body instead.

We fall to the ground in a tangle of limbs, and I wince as I land harshly on my ankle. Ignoring the pain, I scramble away from him, kicking his palisman across the floor while pulling my own closer. I briefly register the large cavern around us as I stand, but my eyes stay pinned on the Guard, who's still sprawled on the ground.

He attempts to get up, but I have the upper hand, knocking him to the ground face-first and sitting on his back, my palisman pointed firmly at his neck. To my surprise, he doesn't even fight back.

"It doesn't matter anymore," he says, defeat ringing clear in his voice. But I know better than to trust his tone, I learnt that the hard way. He somehow manages to sigh, which I can imagine is a little hard to do with a whole witch sitting on your back. "Look around us."

Who does he think I am? Of course I'm not falling for that.

"The lake's dried up." A spike of anxiety ties my stomach up in knots. I allow myself a quick glance around the cavern, my breath hitching at the sight. A sign to my left reads 'Eclipse Lake', but the lake-shaped hole next to it contains nothing but dirt.

"No." I say, my voice barely a whisper. What happened here? What's going to happen to Luz? Have I failed my best friend?

I give the Guard an extra shove for good measure and scramble to the lake. I run a hand along the floor of the cavern. Nothing. I sit down in the dirt, defeated.

It's okay Y/n, I try to reason with myself. After all, we only came here to give Amity peace of mind. I'm sure there's another way to heal Luz. There's always another way with her. She wouldn't want me to give up.

I watch silently as the Guard scrambles around, desperately digging through the dirt. He shakes his head, muttering to himself. But no, I shouldn't feel bad for him.

Luz wouldn't want me to give up on him either.

I groan and throw back my head, but even then I can't help smiling. Even when she's not here, Luz still has an influence.

I move closer to the Guard, keeping my defences up. I take a seat next to him. He continues to dig, though we both know it's in vain.

"What did you want it for? The blood, I mean?" His hands stop for a moment, magenta eyes moving to mine. It might be a trick of the light, but they seem to glint with tears. He sighs (he does that a lot) and draws circles in the dirt.

"It's not for me, it's for Un- uh, Emperor Belos." I can't help but tense at the mention of the Emperor, but the Guard continues with his dirt drawings. I know he's affiliated with Belos, but right now all he looks like is a lost little kid. "He needs Titan's blood to make a new portal key. Can't get to the human realm without it!"