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“This way, Prince Ephraim!”
Forde’s voice bounces off the stone walls as they practically dive onto the staircase. Ephraim jumps the bannister with a clang; his armor scraping along the wood and stone as he lands on the next floor unharmed. Forde goes after him as Kyle takes the long way; his ankle still not fully recovered from the injuries he had sustained during their capture. They reconvene at the bottom together for only a moment before tearing down the hall with their weapons held high.
Renvall is a maze of a place, that much is certain.
In truth, they hadn’t gotten to see this part of the fortress during their first tour of the fortress, but Forde is certain that the building must have been designed with “getting people lost” as its main objective. The hallways are winding, the staircases are nauseatingly tight, and the sheer amount of floors to navigate… it’s an architect’s nightmare. Or maybe an architect’s wet dream, if they’re a freak like that.
Forde smirks at his own unsaid joke as they skid around another corner. No time for humor now, the enemy is still on their tail-
Something clangs behind him, and he turns around just in time to see Kyle hit the ground again, his armor scratching the floorboards as his chest and face meet the ratty carpet with a thud. Ephraim slides to a halt at the noise, wheeling back around to face his knights.
“Now’s no time for rest, my friend!” Forde dashes backwards to drag Kyle to his feet before the other man can even process that he has fallen, leaving him dazed even as they begin to run again. Forde doesn’t let go of the other knight’s shoulder… the sound of their footsteps is uneven now…
“Your ankle-”
“It’s fine, we must keep moving!” Kyle stumbles again as they reach the top of another stairwell- they’re almost free, just a few more floors. Forde lets go of him, only for the other man to sink to his knees, his head bowed. “A-ah… perhaps not…”
“Kyle. Buddy. Come on now. We’re almost there-”
“I’m fine, I’ve got it-” He tries to stand, only to sink back to the ground with a weary expression. “No, actually... I don’t,” he says, shoving lightly at Forde’s legs. “You can’t afford to stop now- Go! See the Prince to safety!”
“ I think the fuck not! ” Forde yells, shaking his friend. The sound of enemy footsteps draws closer- they’re probably on the floor above by now- “I’ll carry you! It’s only a short distance!”
“No,” Kyle states. “I’ll slow you down terribly. I’ll stay here and see if I can hold them off-”
“They’ll kill you!”
“They’ll throw me back in the dungeon, that’s what they’ll do.” Kyle sighs, using his lance to pull himself to his feet, his armor rattling as he puts weight on his injury. “Come back for me when this is all over. I’ll be fine… I made it this far, right?”
Ephraim, who had run to the bottom of the stairs alone, pokes his head back around the corner. “Uh, hello? Are we escaping?”
Kyle shoves Forde with force this time, enough to make the other man step away. “Like I said… I’ll be fine- Go! ”
The first enemy rounds the corner, blade at the ready. Kyle turns to him, drawing his own sword with his off hand as he continues to use his lance as a crutch. Forde dashes away from the soon to be grizzly scene, one hand dragging Ephraim away from the carnage by the arm.
“But Kyle-”
“We’ll come back for him, Milord. Like he said… I’m sure he’ll be fine.”