By The Count Of 10

Kai reached his room and pulled the ladder back to its original position. He looked around the room for something to do. 

He needed a distraction. He could see that person vividly standing in front of him. In the exact same state he had last seen him. 

Looking down, Kai grabbed a book off the desk and flipped through it. Desperate trying to immerse himself in the pages. He placed the book on his face and closed his eyes.

But it was even clearer now. Now was those times Kai hated his strangely autobiographical memory. It was driving him insane. He couldn't get rid of it no matter how much he pushed it aside.

It just kept getting closer. It appeared on the ship once. But once he was truly alone, the dead swarmed him. Once he let his guard down, the person appeared right in front of him.

Kai gritted his teeth and grabbed the book and snapped it back into its original position. He threw the book across the room and saw a pair of shoes slowly closing in on him.

There wasn't a word that could describe the chaos he felt. It was a mixture of emotions that were never compounded before.

"Leave me alone." Kai murmured, pulling at his hair while looking at the face of his nightmares. 

He couldn't stand it anymore and opened the window, he pulled himself up on the roof and hoped it'd stop following him. He looked down and saw the lights on the bottom floor had already disappeared.

Slowly, Kai went to the edge of the slanted roof. He used every crack and design in the brick wall and wedged his shoes into those small gaps as he gradually felt his way down to the building.

Kai made it out of the house in the midst of the night. It was oddly calming despite the fact that he had just encountered the thing he didn't want to see most. He let the night breeze swept through his hair.

Making his way to the same spot as just now. He lit a small flame on his finger, moving it around to gain a better overview of his darkened surroundings. 

It was the same. Those rusted metal bars that could break at any given second. But this time, rustling sounds could be heard. It was barely noticeable. 

Kai subdued his fire and forced his eyes to adjust to the night light. He watched as a pair of guards walked into the stairway down with a basket of bread and bag of water.

Wasn't it too late for them to be giving the prisoners the food? 

Pushing himself off the grass, Kai followed behind them. He didn't bother staying silent. 

"Sir knights!" Kai yelled softly. Acting as if he was out of breath. 

"What?" Their heads turned at the word of 'knights' they held their heads high and looked at the kid who was obviously in distress. What was such a young child doing in such a dangerous and secluded area?

"A bear! I saw a bear on the other side, my sisters are still there! Please save them." Kai begged, tears dripping down from his eyes as he fell on his knees.

They both looked at each other and back at the boy. They had their tasks to finish up for the night and they normally wouldn't bother with such requests that weren't ordered by their leader. But seeing such a saddened expression tightened their chest.

"You're injured badly. The bruises and cuts on your arm."  Knight stepped forward and placed his basket of bread down. He reached out and tried to get a closer look in case the boy. It'd hurt his conscience if he didn't help someone who begged for his help.

Kai grabbed the knight's arm which was cladded in armor. He gripped it tight and bent it in a direction that the arm had never been in before. He pushed it even harder. Until he heard the cracking sounds. 

The knight roared in pain as he grasped his arm. It was stuck in a strange direction, his forearm bent backwards, pointing at chest. He suddenly felt a cold feeling forming at the tip of his mouth as it shut him up. 

The other knight had a slow reaction. He couldn't believe what he had just witnessed. The child that had just begged for help had now just crippled a Knight for life with a simple twist. 

"Unlock the gate." Kai ordered, pointing a sword at the other knight's face. He had just grabbed a weapon off the silent knight's sheath. He didn't feel the need to defeat the other one, just from one look, he could sense the other's terror.

The other knight felt around at his waist as he detached the keys and jammed it into the keyhole, hoping it'd open anytime soon. He had just been sent here right after his training had finished. They told him it'd be an easy job!

Finally, the gate clicked open and the knight heaved a sigh of relief. 

The knight suddenly felt himself losing his vision as a pain as he felt an invisible force gripping his neck tight. He summoned electricity at the palm of his hands to give himself a jolt that'll make him stay awake. But he lost consciousness before he could even try.

Kai looked behind and stared at the trees  before heading in. He was expecting a deadlier fight but from what he could tell, those two weren't that experienced.

He could feel the revolting smell of sweat and metal enter his nose once again. He could never seem to get used to it. He looked around and saw most of the prison cell empty.

Kai ran down the right side of the cells in search of a specific one. If he was right, it was the fiftieth one. And he indeed was. 

A teenage boy leaned his head against the crusty bloody walls, his under eye bags prominent. 

"Knock knock." Kai said in a whisper, careful not to wake the others up. From what he knew, this person was a light sleeper.

Bingo.

The boy woke up, his eyes glaring at Kai for daring to wake him up from his sleep. But his expression turned to shock.

"What are you doing here? Trying to make fun of me?" The boy asked. Genuinely curious why the person from before had come back willingly.

"Is the guard who hit me on duty tonight?" Kai proceeded, completely ignoring the person's question. He had no interest in answering him.

"Why should I tell you?" 

Kai took the keys he had nabbed earlier and dangled it in his hands. It made a chime every time the keys met.

"If I tell you he is, what would you do?" 

"He is, isn't he?" Kai could immediately tell. The boy in front of him couldn't act at all. Panic was written over his face.

Kai threw the keys in the cell and smiled. "If you don't leave by the count of 10. You'll get mixed up in the fire."