Arthur Kingsley
"I may not seem like much," a deep voice resonated through the dark room, "but I can fix your problem." A finger came out of the gloom and pointed at the nervous business man. "They call me death himself. My pursuit is silent and my execution..." He cracked his knuckles. "Instant." He held out a hand as if expecting something. "I ask 20,000 silver."
The business man unconsciously backed away. "I-I can have it by tomorrow. Will you still accept it?"
"What kind of fool would turn away money?" The assassin put his feet on the short table between them. "Have the money by tomorrow and I'll have your target gone by the next day.
The man nodded and nervously ran out the door while rubbing a hand through his receding hair.
The assassin chuckled as he thought to himself. My target is George Kennedy. He is 5 foot 10 inches, caucasian, 46, and has a bald head. Based on what I've heard, Kevin here doesn't like him because two reasons. One, he thinks that George is getting down with his wife. Two, he is convinced that George is using illegal methods to get money. Half noble and half jealousy. He nodded.
The assassin, Arthur Kingsley, stood up and stretched. "Time for a walk." He reached for his helmet. It was bronze with a few pieces of steel riveted to it. The mouth was full of long, sharp teeth that looked like an angler fish. The two eye slits were black with sunglass type material, and two decorative gears sat where his ears were. He fashioned it on and grabbed the rest of his outfit. He wore a black trench coat and black gloves. Everything he wore was black, except for the mask, and he adorned his bronze head with a short, black top hat. He went out the back door and immediately began jumping up the stone walls. He bounded back and forth between the walls, going higher and higher, until he finally reached the roofs.
The city was tightly packed and had a huge dome of metal around it. Their was always a deep hum sounding through the floor, but no one paid it mind. The people we're walking through the street, under the massive railway bridges that spanned the whole dome. Trains raced by with passengers hanging outside. The large factories we're all clumped together, and the banging metal could be heard miles away. The smog rose to the ceiling and filtered through tiny holes in the roof.
The large clock in the middle of the city next to the official building struck 10. A loud bell pierced the bustling sound of pedestrians. They began to filter back to their homes.
When the clock struck 10, the lights went off. If you were found out of your house after 10:15, then you're a criminal. They officials would drag you to their building and discuss your punishment. Frequent offenders often went missing, and nobody knows what happened.
Arthur jumped from rooftop to rooftop in a surprisingly silent manner. He took a deep breath through the inconspicuous holes of his mask. The air smelled of coal and human odor. It was not pleasant, but it was home. He stopped on one building and retrieved his weapons.
His combination was unique, with a push dagger in the left hand and a hook sword in the right. The push dagger had a black leather handle and was polished nicely. The hook sword was thin and clean, with a gold inlay handle.
He began to practice fighting, pretending to fight somebody, reacting to the fantasy attacks. He jumped and rolled, dodging fake punches and delivering his own. He kept doing this in relative silence, the occasional breath here and there, until he saw a figure out of the corner of his eyes. A dark skinned man in jeans, leather boots, and a leather jacket stood with his hands up turned.
"The Steampunk Stabber." Arthur said with a slightly mocking tone. "Been a while."
"It has, Arthur." His voice was light and scruffy, yet still deep. "And it will be the last." Stabber pulled out two knives and began bounding over to Arthur.
"Hold up." Arthur stuck his hand straight out. "Why do you try to kill me? What have I done?"
"You are the one other assassin in this city, therefore my only business rival."
"Makes sense." Arthur shrugged and readied himself for a fight. "Please continue."
Stabber lunged with great might and thrusted his knife at Arthur's chest. Arthur dodged to the side and hooked his arm with the sword. He went for a quick stab in the side, but Stabber blocked with the other knife. The two looked like a pretzel in a slow dance before jumping away from each other.
"You haven't lost your edge, old man." Arthur gestured his sword at the 40 year old.
"At least this generation can tell when someone has skill." They both smiled and dashed at each other for another clash. Arthur hooked Stabber's neck with the sword, which was significantly longer than the knives, then went for another gut stab. Stabber turned his knife and smacked Arthur's wrist out of the way, then swung with the other knife, only to hit the bronze helmet he wore. There was a loud clang from the clash of metal that reverberated through the empty streets.
Police officers dressed in their blue uniforms began to filter out of some of the apartments. They looked around on the streets, slowly looking upwards.
"I best be on my way." Arthur tipped his hat than began bounding back to his house. Stabber only waved as he went the opposite way.
"Hey! Get off that roof!" One police officers shouted from below.
"No problem, officer." Arthur jumped to another roof and waved. "Have a fun night."
They started to run through the alleys and streets, knocking over trash cans and garbage in their pursuit.
I think I'll have some fun he thought to himself as he jumped off a roof then rolled into a street.
"I surrender." He dropped his weapons and raised his hands.
One officer pulled a musket around his torso and aimed it at Arthur. "I want you to drop all your weapons."
"As you wish." He reached inside his trench coat and pulled out 5 throwing knives.
"Is that all?"
"Nope." He reached to his boots and pulled out two more knives, then shook his left hand a bit and another push dagger fell out. "Almost done." He pulled back his trench coat slightly and reached inside to unsheathe another hook sword, then a normal shortsword on the other side. "One more." He reached behind his back and pulled brass knuckles out of his pants, then dropped them next to all his other items. "There, that's all. I'm completely harmless now. He said that as if he were advising them not to touch an electric fence, but secretly wanted them to.
The police approached him and began to pick up his weapons. He kicked one in the face, forcing him to stand up, and blocked a bullet with his body. He pushed his shield at the shooter than turned his attention to the other cop picking up weapons. The cop attempted a hook, but Arthur dodged ,grabbing his wrist, and pulled him hard in the direction he was punching, then turned his arm around at the last moment, putting his arm behind his back and under the control of Arthur. Arthur wrapped his other arm around the guards neck and snapped it. More cops came rushing behind the musket wielder frantically trying to reload his gun.
Arthur ran away from the cops, but jumped from a wall at the last moment, fastening an extra pair of brass knuckles he had in the other pocket in the process. He punched a cop in the nose with the momentum of his whole body, breaking it and knocking the poor man 5 feet away. Another cop tried to tackle him with a bear hug, but he ducked under the arms and threw him over his shoulder into the wall. He countered another punch with his own, breaking the cop's fingers.
There were two left, and the musket was almost reloaded. Arthur kicked one guy in the gut, dodging a punch from the other in the process, then grabbed the puncher's hand twisting it with a disgusting snap. He finished the last guy with a tornado kick, the steel tip of his boots hammering him in the neck, making his spine a cooked noodle.
The musket wielder was freaking out, and began fumbling about with the trigger. He pulled and only nicked the helmet, sending sparks and a metallic twang through the dark air. Arthur began approaching slowly and menacingly, knocking the cop to his haunches.
"Please don't hurt me!" He cried as he scrambled back with his hands.
Arthur picked up one of his push daggers. "Don't worry, this won't hurt a bit." He plunged the dagger into the man's eye, straight to the brain, killing him instantly.
He gathered up his weapons and arranged himself as he was before.
------
He walked through his door to the small place he called home and pulled his trench coat off. The furntiure was modest and the walls were blank stone. He lit an oil lamp and sat at his desk with pen and paper.
Number one thing to do right now is get new weapons. This is not out of necessity, but for fun. I am getting bored with the same old.
He pinned the paper to a cork board above his simple bed and sat on the edge. He wiggled his boots off and set the mask in a hidden spot behind his night stand. He took off his shirt and shoes and folded them neatly in a pile. He laid down and blew out the oil lamp, filling the room with darkness.
------
He awoke to the sound of knocking on his door. He put on a new pair of pants and fastened a black button up shirt.
"Just a minute!" Arthur shouted as the knocking continued.
He looked through the peephole to see the business man from yesterday standing at his step with a tan briefcase.
Arthur rushed back and grabbed his trenchcoat, boots, and mask, quickly putting them on. He opened the door and grabbed the man, throwing him into a chair.
"You shouldn't have come so early in the morning." Arthur bent down in front of him with a menacing aura around him. "It's much less dangerous for me and you when it's during the night hours."
"I'm s-sorry, I just couldn't wait. I have the money." He presented the briefcase and opened it. Inside was 20,000 silver pieces.
Arthur grabbed the case and inspected the coins with many techniques to tell if it was real. "Thank you for your money. Tomorrow morning there will be news of a death in your neighborhood."
The business man nodded and smiled wickedly as he quickly exited the building.
Time to use this for a new toy. I want to try something ... Heavy. Something to crush my opponents. He thought to himself as he grabbed 1,000 pieces and put them in his coin purse. He checked out the window for pedestrians, then jumped out his back door. He flew up the walls the same way as last time and landed on the roof.
Time to find the market for weapons. Changes location all the time. He thought as he scanned the whole city. He jumped around, looking for the signification, a decorative poster with a sword in the bottom right, on walls. If the poster was there, then it was the market place.
He spent 2 hours looking through the city until he found the poster. It showed people hard at work in a factory, making blankets, with a small sword in the bottom right.
He hopped down and walked in one of the buildings. At first it looked like a normal pub, but there was a door in the back labeled 'Buyers only'
Arthur walked to the bartender and purposely asked awkwardly. "Where would I be going for the ,umm, weapons?"
"Right through that door." He pointed to the door in the back and went straight back to cleaning his dishes.
The first thing Arthur noticed was the full suits of armor standing in long rows. There were weapons hanging all over the wall, and some on the ground. A scruffy looking man sat at a table, sharpening a sword.
"How is your life going, Daniel?" Arthur asked the man.
Daniel spun around, dropping the sword on the table. "Arthur! It is so good to see you. It's been years. What brings you here?" He hugged Arthur tight.
"I came for a change of pace. I want to try something different. I want something with long range and crushing blow capabilities." Arthur sat on a metal stool.
"I have a few weapons for that. Just give me a moment." Daniel waddled off to another room, sounds of banging and crashing coming from it.
"I have three weapons that I could find, all very powerful. The first here is called a Ji." He held out a long pole with a unique blade at the end. The blade consisted of two crescent shaped blades on each side and a long spear point.
Arthur grabbed the weapon and tested it's feel in his hands. It was decently heavy, but was still more of a slicing and stabbing blade. "I like it, but I want something that deals crushing blows to snap my foes like twigs with."
"Then on to the next one." He dropped one of the weapons on the ground, a staff, and held out, with difficulty, a long staff with a blunt mace at the end.
Arthur held it in his hands and swung it around lightly. The weight of the mace end nearly threw him off balance. This will require it's own technique. He thought to himself. "I think I like this one." He grinned under the mask.
"Then it's yours. For 800 pieces, that is." Daniel smiled kindly.
"Sold." Arthur pulled out his purse and counted out the money. "Thank you for the change of scenery. I was getting a little bored of my old weapons."
"Any time, Arthur. You are like a son to me, and are always welcome." They shook hands as Arthur left the secret hideout with his new toy.
Gotta work on that new technique as soon as possible. He thought as he strapped the weapon to his back with the sheathe he was given. The mace part of the staff sat right next to his right ear, and the blunt spike on the other end was a foot off the ground.
As soon as he got outside, he climbed to the roof and pulled out his staff. He set the mace on the ground and the spike in front of him. He started with instinct, things that felt right and natural to fight with. His first attack, he kicked with his left heel from right to left, then used the momentum to heft the mace off the ground and swing at the opponent. Next, he grabbed the staff and set it across his shoulders, the weighted end on the left. He grabbed the right side and swung quickly as possible, then smoothly spun in a circle and brought the weight down at a vertical angle. The weight hit the stone roof, piercing the area with the sound of the impact. The roof was cracked and pulverized. Arthur quickly sheathed his staff and bounded across the roofs. The staff made him slower and almost threw him off balance multiple times, but he quickly adjusted.
He hopped down to his door and quickly slipped inside his house. As soon as he opened the door, he could hear somebody walking through his building. He got low and quiet, moderating his breath to inaudible levels.
"There's no one here right now. Search the drawers. Look for anything that links him to the police murders."
Better than I thought. He thought and nodded to himself. No matter what I do, the only way out of this is relocation. Might as well have some fun with it. He smiled and unsheathed his staff.
One cop got closer and closer to Arthur, until he could hear him breathing. He dashed forward and jabbed the mace into the cops stomach. While the cop was winded, he swung the staff around, bringing the crushing blow from above. Bones snapped like twigs and a splattered pool of blood came from the crushed torso.
Oh my God! That is brutal. He could barely contain his laughter as he looked at the maimed corpse.
"What was that?" The cop ran into the room to see Arthur standing over the pile of blood and gore. "Stop right there." The cop tried to sound tough, but Arthur knew he was fearing for his life.
"Don't worry. It will be quick." Arthur swung the mace end into the cops stomach, sending him to his knees. He spun the mace back around and hit the back of the victim's head with great force, exploding his skull and sending gooey brain matter splattered against the wall.
Favorite weapon of all time. It ends conflict so quickly. He thought to himself as he gathered his precious belongings, which really was just his money, which he had a lot of.
He left the building with a large bag of silver pieces tied around his back. He struggled to climb to the roof and immediately ran off.
More police showed up to the blood infested crime scene, some losing their lunch. Arthur dashed across the roofs like a horror movie santa, the reindeer bells replaced by the clinking coins. He quickly dropped at Daniel's shop.
"Ah, Arthur. Why are you back so soon? And why do you have that huge bag of money?" Daniel's eyebrows knotted hard. "Did you get in trouble with the police."
"I didn't get into trouble, but I would have if I stayed at my house." Arthur took of the mask and smiled.
"How many dead this time?" Daniel crossed his arms half jokingly.
"Only two. If you count last night, then it's 9 all together."
"Jesus, child. At least try to stay out of conflict."
"The two today were already in my house. The seven yesterday were on purpose." Arthur buffeted his curly black hair around and laughed.
Daniel just shook his head and got back to work.
"I was wandering if I could stay with you for a bit."
Daniel turned and they studied each other's faces with a loving aura. Daniel had a strong brow line and a large, scarred nose. His chin was almost a perfect square and held a thick, grey beard. His skin was rough and tanned.
Arthur had a thin nose and a thick, pronounced jaw. He had a clean shaven face with no impurities such as acne. His skin was smooth and pale, like a vampire's.
"I shouldn't have to tell you this, Arthur. You are always welcome here." Arthur hugged the squat man. "Be warned though, we will move every once in a while."
Arthur was about to unpack when he exclaimed out loud. "My contract! Sorry Daniel, but I have to go fulfill my request, if you know what I mean." He dropped his belongings and money.
"Make this one less brutal. Please?"
"Ok, I'll use my dagger." Arthur sprinted out the door and jumped to the roof. He looked at the huge clock tower.
7:35. So close yet so far. He thought to himself as he pulled the information on his target from memory.
Arthur scanned through the city like an eagle, quickly finding his target's street. He silently jumped into a position where he could see through the business man's window.
He sat for an hour and a half until George finally returned home. George immediately sat on the arm chair in front of the window.
The large clock struck 10, stopping the foot traffic and forcing everybody home. After a few minutes, the light turned off and the city went silent. Arthur's eyes adjusted to the darkness as he continued to watch his target. He waited until George was in his bed to move. He jumped to the window sill and tried to open the window, but found it locked. He pulled out his lock pick and a wire and began to fiddle them around in the lock.
The window clicked open and Arthur pushed it slowly. He quietly set his feet down and snuck through the dark house.
The room was bare of many decorations, and only had one chair with a small table next to it.
Either a minimalist or poor. Arthur opened the door to George's bedroom where he laid alone in the tattered sheets. He got close to the victim and stood over him. Arthur tapped his forehead to wake him up.
As soon as George opened his eyes, he was grabbed by the throat and lifted into the air.
"Who are you?" He said as he was losing the color in his skin.
"You know me. I'm your not-so-friendly neighborhood assassin." Arthur squeezed with lethal force and crushed the man's wind pipe. He let the limp body hit the floor and dashed back out the window and up to the roof tops.
------
"I'm back!" Arthur shouted into the empty weapon room.
"Welcome home." Daniel said as he walked back in the room. "I made some stew if you want some."
"Thank you. I'm starving." He walked into the kitchen rubbing his hands together. He greedily grabbed a bowl and served himself some of the amazing smelling beef stew that Daniel would always make when he was a child.
Arthur fell into a saddened mood, thinking about his past. Both of his parents died when he was 8, and that left him destroyed. He grew accustomed to the beggar's life on the nasty streets of this city until Daniel found him. He was trying to steal bread from Daniel's porch when he was caught by the wrist. Daniel saw the look in the poor child's eyes, the look of a broken and battered soul. Instead of getting angry, he only hugged the child. He offered the kid a residence in his home, and that's how Daniel became Arthur's father figure.
As if he was reading minds, Daniel added to Arthur's thoughts."Good times. You were such a skinny boy back then."
"I'm glad I tried to steal from you." He scooped the stew gently into his mouth.
"Me too." Daniel huffed.
They ate at a small, wooden table topped with iron candlesticks and other weird decorations. They spoke and joked, when Arthur all of a sudden keeled over.
He heard a sound, like a heart beat of a mountain. There was a gripping sensation in his chest that soon went away.
"Are you okay?" Daniel was on his knees next to Arthur in a second.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just some heartburn." He exhaled and got to his feet. The booming heartbeat was still in his ear, and he heard a chorus of whispers coercing him out the door. "I'm gonna go for a bit. Get some fresh air."
When he left the building, the voices began giving him directions. They led him through the streets, over the roof tops and across the whole city. The voices told him to enter a building, the Creator's house. It was heavily guarded, but had one window on the second floor out of every body's view. He snuck through the elaborately decorated halls and followed the voice's directions. They led him to a door that seemed to hum with power. He pushed open the door and saw a crystal, about the size of a thumb, floating above a pedestal with nothing attached. It glowed with a dark purple tinge.
"Grab it!" The voices shouted in unison.
He dropped to his knees and grabbed his head, a splitting pain shooting through his skull.
"Grab it! Grab it! Grab it!" The voices chanted with pain in their voice.
As soon as he grabbed it, the voices were replaced with a ground shaking rumble. He heard music in one place, speech in another, and hammering metal behind him. The world around him seemed to fade away.
An old man stood draped in a purple toga. He radiated command and respect. "Greetings, Arthur Kingsley." The background noises disapeared as soon as he spoke.
"Who are you?" Arthur got up from his knees.
"I am the master of sound, Savuk. We don't have much time before you wake up. The reason those voices beckoned you here is because you are the one we have chosen to wield our powers."
"Who do you mean we?" Arthur took off his mask and asked.
"The other four masters."
"Masters of what?"
"The crystals of power. There are 5 crystals of power that help keep this universe together. There is sound, me, light, energy, matter, and time. We have chosen you to wield these crystals because we believe that your the only person left that could. There is a dark being hoping to destroy this world and everybody in it."
"You want me to save the universe?"
"In due time. Right now, you must collect the other 4 crystals to obtain the power to fight this dark being, Murashni." Savuk shivered at the mention of his name. "He is a foul creature of the darkness that has no love for anything. He is cunning and manipulative, but the worst part is, his powers grant the title of 'Murashni the Galaxy Destroyer.' we are unable to wield the crystals, or else we wouldn't have called upon you." He began to look around worriedly. The white expanse began to shrink to darkness. "You will learn more from my brothers." The white expanse blinked out of existence, and Arthur opened his eyes to see the real world again. The only problem was that this was in a prison cell.
Well, damn. Didn't think I'd get caught so soon. He didn't struggle against his chains attached to the wall.
A knock came from the iron door. "Arthur, we are coming in to pat you down once more." Two guards filtered in the small doorway and stood in front of Arthur who was on his knees, unable to stand up. They began to feel him for more weapons or items, and found the crystal in his pocket. "We are confiscating this item. It is in ownership to the creator himself."
"I don't care. Doesn't look to valuable to me. I just have one question for you. What do you plan to do with me?"
"Exiling. Its standard procedure for criminals as bad as you. You have been linked to 296 murders in the last 12 years. In my opinion, I think you should just be killed. Than again, I heard the outside world is unforgiving, if you can even survive." The guard put the crystal in a glass case and walked out of the room with his partner.
They only linked me to 296? That's kind of low. I thought they could do better than that. He sat down and leaned against the wall. And what's with the outside world? Is there a whole other place outside our city? Is that why this dome is here?
He started to feel a pulling sensation on his hand that grew stronger and stronger. It started to lift his hand up, but he yanked it down. He heard yells down the hall, then saw the crystal bore cleanly through the cell wall and land silently in his hand. A few moments later the guards burst in.
"What did you do?" One hit him with his baton.
"I didn't do anything. I guess I was chosen by it." He held his hands up in a placating gesture.
"Don't give us that bull. What did you do?"
"I already told you. You just need to believe me." The guard hit him again in the temple. Hot blood began to run down his cheek as the guards filtered out of the room.
What else can you do? He held the crystal up to his eye. He began to feel a faint heat come from the crystal and his chains began to vibrate. The chains vibrated faster and faster until it was still to the naked eye. It snapped with a quiet tink, and Arthur was let loose from his chains. Nice. I should make some gloves for these crystals. Easy use.
Arthur walked up to the door and held the crystal to it. The door began to vibrate as the chains did, and the lock snapped. He pushed it open with a creak, causing the guards to turn around.
"How did you get-" Arthur immediately punched him in the throat with lethal force. The other punched straight forward. Arthur's fist went just under the guards and pushed it out of the way while punching him in the face at the same time. He grabbed his nose, stunned, and Arthur snapped his neck.
Now, where is my stuff? He began to walk down the hall way and scour the rooms. He found his stuff in a room with 3 guards in it. They all faced away from the door, giving him an easy way in. Two stood next to each other, and one sat down. They were playing a game of darts.
Arthur snuck behind the one at the very left and snapped his neck with one swift move. The other turned at the sound of the noise. Arthur sent his elbow into the guards nose, then jumped over him while wrapping his arm around his neck. The other stood up, but too slowly and suffered a broken nose. He snapped the other guards neck and approached the one with a broken nose.
"Should I let you live?" Arthur grabbed his mask and put it on.
The guard nodded frantically.
"Why?" He crouched in front of the man, coming eye to eye with him.
He swallowed hard. "I-I just don't want to die."
"What's your name?"
"My name is Max smi-" Arthur grabbed his throat and picked him up.
"Too boring." He faked yawned while he suffocated Max. He let the limp body fall to the ground and began reassembling his entourage of weapons.
I want to see this outside world. I'll have to go ask around for the exit.
Arthur continued walking down the stone halls in search of more police. He came to the front desk that had two sitting at it.
"Excuse me." He walked around the corner and held his hands up. "I was just wondering if you could hurry it up on that exile. I really want to leave this city ASAP."
The guards pulled out batons and jumped over the desk. "How did you escape." They approached cautiously.
"My secrets." He shrugged and pulled out a hook sword. The inside hook part of the blade was dulled for better pulling capabilities.
One guard dashed forward and swung from above. Arthur hooked the baton and twisted out of his hand and then swung the sword clean through his wind pipe. The other backed up in fear. Arthur lunged forward and hooked the man around his neck.
"Please don't hurt me." Tears streamed down his face. He was young, around 20.
"Just tell me how to get out of this dome." Arthur pulled him closer and turned his voice into a menacing tone.
"There is a building on the far side. That's all I know."
Arthur slit his throat and let the blood spill on his sleeve. He left the prison and looked at his surroundings. He was a few miles from the factories.
I've got nothing to lose. He decided to walk down the street nonchalantly, and people began to scream when they saw the bloodied sword and clothes he bore.
"This is fun." He mumbled to himself as he sent people running with a point of his blade. "Don't bother getting the police!" He shouted to the crowd. "I just killed them all!" More people went running through the streets, eventually leaving Arthur to his lonesome.
He decided on faster travel, and climbed to the roofs. He surveyed the city in search of the building the guard talked about. The factories puffed smoke out of their smoke stacks in constant collumns. Their was a small, white building built into the wall behind one of the factories.
There it is. My ticket out of here. He jumped over the streets. He shouted happy words, but he held fear in his heart. He did not know what would be out there, or what would happen to Daniel. He feared the unknown, as all humans did.
"There he is!" Guards were chasing him on the streets, a few climbing up after him.
"I just want to be exiled already!" He shouted to the group. "Let me go in peace!"
"Let us escort you to make sure that you are not lying."
Fair deal. He nodded to himself. "Promise to let me leave?"
"Yes. Just get down."
Arthur jumped down into the group of his chasers. Two went to grab his arms, but he quickly stopped them with his fists. "Peacefully." He said, as if it explained it all. The two guards held their bloody noses as the rest continued walking.
------
The inside of the building was run down and lined with rusty steel. Two guards, dressed in black, stood at a desk. They looked much less aloof then the blue suited guards.
"We have a prisoner. He escaped then requested exile as soon as possible." One guard stepped up to the desk.
"Come with me." A black suit led the group to the back. "Only the prisoner from here on. Go protect the city, like you're supposed to."
Arthur was led through a steel door into a room with equipment and a huge door in the back. There were bags with strings attached that read 'parachute'.
"As soon as you leave through that door, you're on your own."
"I kind of expected that from exile."
"No, that's not what I mean. Once you leave, there is no physical way of you returning without the whole city in shambles."
Arthur let that sink in as he was given one of the bags and a thick coat.
"What is the bag for?" He said as he inspected it.
"You put that on your back and pull the string to slow your descent."
"What do you mean 'descent'?"
"This city is in the sky, and exile means you are leaving to the ground. The parachutes open up to a large cloth that makes you fall slower." The guard tapped the parachute as he spoke.
The city is in the sky? How is that even possible?! Arthur tapped the bronze mask in thought.
As if reading his mind, the guard responded. "You'll see shortly. Get ready to jump. Put on the coat, then the bag over it. Pull the string once you're a good distance from the city. If you don't die, impressive." He slapped Arthur on the back.
"How do I know when to pull the string?"
"When the city is the size of a watermelon above you." He grabbed a lever and readied himself. "Jump when ready." He pulled and the large doors swung open. A blast if arctic air swept in and chilled Arthur to the bone. Wind whipped his hair and clothing around. "I suggest a running jump!"
Arthur's lips froze and the air was sucked from his lungs. Frost began to show on his metal mask.
Oh my God. What is with this cold! Thank god that the guard gave me this coat. He breathed out slowly, causing vapor clouds to filter out of the breathing holes in tiny wisps.
Arthur backed up to the other wall and stared at the outside world. There were white dust like things being flung violently in the wind. He ran full speed and flung his whole body out the door like a rocket