Way Out

An hour has passed. Carlos and Ruby are on their way back to the gate. The Asperity still wore her mask, patiently leading the people beside the prince without hinting her identity. Carlos on the other hand, held on to his insignia and couldn't get his eyes off of it.

"Your Majesty, is there something wrong?" Ruby asked. Carlos simply shook his head. "Not really." He replied. He had many things to say, but he does not know which one to say first. Looking at his insignia, he was eager to tell everything to his swordsman, the gate, the humans he saved, and his plans. He helped the Cardinal Manors by asking the Asperities for help to find the Red Courtyard, but he was hesitant to allow the Superior Leader's involvement. Still, it was inevitable, she leads the manors, everything has to be told. He reached for his earrings and lightly touched it. "Ami." The confused prince whispered.

"Yes, my prince?" As expected, the leader immediately responded to his call.

"I finally found an entrance to the Red Courtyard. We're on our way back to the safehouse." 

"You have done well, my prince."

"I'll lead the Cardinal Manors to the gate, and, after that I..."

Ruby carefully listened to the prince. Somehow, she felt a surge of excitement through her body. She eagerly awaits his next words. "I want to be on my own. I no longer want to be with the Cardinal Manors. That's all." The prince then drops his hand. Underneath the mask, Ruby's face was brimming with joy.

"Your Majesty, why don't we take the nearest route?" Ruby walked closer to the prince. 

"Huh? But what about Priscilla?"

"Don't worry about her, what's important is we take these humans back to the surface as soon as possible."

"Alright." Carlos agreed anyway. "Lead the way."

Ruby, without patience, overtook the prince and had her back faced towards him. She seemed unusually delighted and even traversed faster, leaving the group panting as they walked. However, things didn't seem to go well as they strayed away from the path they took earlier when locating the humans. They were led into a dark chamber.

The Asperity summoned a flame from her palm, temporarily comforting the fearful humans who had no idea what was going to happen next and where they're headed to. Even Carlos felt scared, but if he were to doubt Ruby, he'd cause more dread to the humans following behind him. He did not bother to question her along the way, nor did he felt the need to halt their walk. He knew Ruby well for years and she would not dare betray him.

Reaching a dead end, they finally came to a pause.

Still, nobody spoke up. Carlos then realized that Ruby had removed the mask she wore while quietly walking through the chamber. She turned around, facing the humans with a grin. The humans too, had already realized she's an Asperity all along. "Why don't you take a few steps backwards? It won't take long." She said.

The crowd obediently followed and moved. Once she was distanced from the crowd, the flame perished, engulfing everything in the dark. What's left was the dim light of her red eyes. Carlos barely saw what was happening before him, but with what's left of the light, he observed Ruby carefully. At this point, he was ready to unsheathe his sword.

Ruby pressed her palm against the cold wall. Within mere seconds, fire grew from under the ground, trailing lines reaching the top. Light returned as the flame from the connecting lines burned brighter, forming angles which embellished the interior of the rectangular shape born of the fire. A larger crack then appeared on the center, when Ruby pushed the wall, an opening was created. Seeing this, Carlos took away his hand from his sword and ran to Ruby. Along with her, he pushed the obsidian door, hurriedly pushing each leaf to the sides.

Surprisingly, the door led to the Superior Leader's safehouse. Completely oblivious that they'd arrive in such way, the servants scurried to the prince and formed lines beside the pathway. 

The humans slowly reached for the light of the safehouse. Stepping into the marble floors, they embraced the gentle air and felt the atmosphere. "We're... back on the surface." One human uttered.

Carlos turned to him and said, "Yes, you are." Bliss suddenly struck the humans and roared with joy, completely wiping off the fear from their faces. They hurriedly pranced around the safehouse, relishing the moment they thought would never come. The children ran outside and into the garden, bathing under the sunlight and chasing the butterflies, while the older humans were served food and tea by the servants.

"The Red Courtyard took away their freedom for so long, they look like children now that they'd regained it." Carlos couldn't help but speak of his thoughts. Ruby heard him clearly. "Ruby, I truly thought you were going to betray me, yet you proved me wrong anyway. I was right to believe that the Asperities were capable of change, you still have kindness in your hearts, it was the Queen who forced you to hide it. If only the Superior Leader could see what I see in you, then maybe... our friends could've been saved. Lorelei, Rohesia... they all should've been spared."

"Then, Your Majesty, help us prove our innocence to the Cardinal Manors so we can stop them from killing more of our companions." Ruby said. "We have done wrong, but we can still atone. We can still stop Lucius, he and the Queen are the true evils of this kingdom. Help us, Your Majesty, save us from the demise we do not deserve."

Carlos was determined, he felt Ruby's "sincerity." And so he turned to her with hopeful eyes and replied: "I will. I promise you that. Along with you, we will save the kingdom, I will save the humans and save the Asperities who were forced to hurt others."

Ruby smiled. Forcefully gently looking at the prince, Ruby spoke. "Thank you, Your Majesty. And with the best of my abilities, I will serve you until your duties as prince will be fulfilled."

"She's lying, you know." Golden Dragonfly appeared.