Chapter 7

Extreme Emotions

The stillness of the woods made Arthur restless in his room. His foot steadily tapped the floor. His fingers alternately pressed his upper legs as he sat on the mattress. Dangers prevailed outside, and he was asked to stay indoors for safety. "Just how powerless am I?" Arthur bit his lower lip, lifting his gaze to the gleaming sculptures overhead.

"Hans!" Arthur called. The wooden puppet heeded his call and walked from one corner of the room. He patted the bed and said, "Sit." Hans did so and sat stiffly beside him – unmoving – being lifeless that it was.

Arthur sighed several times, then he stood up and dashed away. "Hans, run after me," he commanded, pausing after each word.

Creaking sounds filled the room as Hans ran after him. Arthur jumped away every time it was about to catch him, but laughter never escaped from his mouth. His lips stiffly pressed against each other. He tirelessly ran to clear his head despite his breaths becoming erratic. Sweat dampened his back. His heart pounded, partly from the exhaustion. But for the most part, it was the vibe of that night. The peculiar peace outside filled him with a sense of foreboding as though something was going to happen.

An earsplitting noise resounded outside. Metals clattered as though they were folding and breaking like a ceramic jar. Arthur stopped from his tracks, his body clenched like a fist. His sudden pause, causing Hans to bump behind him and fall backward. Arthur stayed unmoving, carefully observing the same noise that echoed.

It took him a full minute before he recovered. He hurried to the door and tiptoed. He turned the knob, pulling the door. "Why?" he cried out. He pulled some more and exerted greater force, yet the door didn't budge, not even a bit.

In desperation, he raced to the windows and pushed its shutters. "What is happening?" he exclaimed, seeing that the windows also didn't move.

Arthur then began going back-and-forth from the windows to the door, trying to open them, but his every attempt failed. Suddenly an idea dawned onto him. He quickly towed the wooden chair and brought it near the window. He climbed. Once at the top, he sucked a deep breath and kicked the shutters with all his might. Since he was holding the back support of the chair, his kick only recoiled. The chair slid backward and tumbled.

"Ouch!" He cried out, but the same noise outside silenced his crash.

Arthur sat on the floor. Then he blew on his left elbow while gently wiping the blood that flowed from the bruise. Tears accumulated below his eyes. They wanted to fall, but he stubbornly refused to let them. His body betrayed his will, however. So while sobbing, he stood and crept under the comfort of his blanket.

Tears formed a river, wetting the mattress. Arthur didn't bother anymore to stop them. It was out of his control. The pain already dissipated so he didn't even understand why he kept crying. Besides, he was too preoccupied with the noises outside. "Why am I so powerless? I can't go outside. I can't control any situation. Now, I can't even control my body," he grumbled, frustration growing even further. And as strange as it was, his cries became louder.

"Arthur, just give up! You'll just be a burden outside anyway," he convinced himself, speaking the words in between sobs. "Just think that you'll learn magic sooner or later." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Just think about what Duliri said, you'll be taming a dragon someday. How about that?" With his mouth agape, he sucked another mouthful air. "Yes, yes, like that. Think about the things you could be. A great wizard like Granny!"

Arthur repeated the same words. As his aspirations replaced the frustration on his chest, his cries began to subside.

"So overwhelming emotions still conjure my tears…" A satisfied smile curved his lips once he completely settled down. He rolled over and took down the blanket from his face. "I thought that only worked when I was a newborn."

Arthur stared at the ceiling, giving his best not to mind the noise outside. Duliri and Granny can take care of it, he kept telling himself. Then, he turned over again and urged himself to sleep. But his senses remained alert, not allowing him to rest.

Another metal clatter echoed, catching Arthur's attention. It was barely audible, yet he recognized it. The sound was not the same metal ramming or breaking, but the same sound produced when Pirro, Garo, or Servo moved. Arthur advanced to the door and pressed one ear against it, the faint noise in the living room getting fainter with each passing moment. After sucking a breath, Arthur attempted to open the door, and his gut feeling didn't betray him.

The darkness shrouded Arthur's movement as he sneaked to where the noise originated. A few more heartbeats and he reached the backyard. The light coming from Duliri cast three large shadows.

Arthur inched closer. His eyes widened as he peeked behind the wall. "What the hell?"

A small girl with long black hair stood in front of the three Goth Armors. Both her bruised hands and legs glowed briefly. Then she jumped forward and punched Garo, who stood motionless. Her fist pierced through his helm, and with another blow, it broke to pieces as though a brittle glass. A few more punches and his whole upper body dismembered.

The girl panted while small metal debris showered around her. After catching her breath, she turned to Servo and sent him powerful and quick kicks and punches. In a few breaths, he also fell apart.

Arthur covered his mouth, gasping. His cornea almost left their sockets. He was so wrong to think that he couldn't be more surprised.

The metal pieces hovered a few centimeters from the ground and flew over Servo's and Garo's lower body. They melted, then after a short delay, they reformed the armors' body and head. The scene reset to when Arthur first saw them. The Armors stood completely still while the girl panted.

The girl engaged one more time but the same thing happened again. It was as though they were simply holding her back. They never move nor dodge and the only time they did was when she tried to run past them.

Arthur wanted to stop the fight. It was gruesome for both the armors and the little girl who appeared to be only six years old. However, Duliri warned him before not to get out of his room. While Arthur thought that he was extremely fishy, he had been most serious when he warned him. With a heavy heart, he decided to wait a little long–

Longer? No! Are you seriously going to be silent and stay idly! The words echoed through his head. Arthur clenched his fist and was about to race towards Duliri when Katarina suddenly appeared and quickly descended from the sky. She approached Duliri from behind. "What's happening here?" she cried out, sending Duliri a severe stare.

"Apologies, Lady Allegia," he answered, his voice evidently disturbed. "The spy is a child again!"