Chained Hearts: From Slavery to Sovereignty
Chapter 85: Strange Village (02)

Chapter 85: Chapter 85: Strange Village (02)

"I will check," Alistair said. He stood and went to the door.

He opened it slowly. A boy stood outside. He looked about ten years old. He held a basket tightly. His wide eyes darted around nervously.

"You brought food?" Alistair asked. His voice was soft.

The boy nodded. He pushed the basket into Alistair’s hands. Then he turned and ran away without a word.

"Wait," Alistair called. He stepped onto the porch. The boy was already running down the dirt path. "That was strange."

"What happened?" Oronik asked as Alistair shut the door.

"The boy gave me the basket and ran," Alistair said. "It was like he thought we would eat him instead of the food."

Alistair placed the basket in the center of the group. It held bread, cheese, and apples. The food was simple, but it was enough for the night.

"At least it is not poisoned," Oronik said. He picked up a loaf of bread and took a careful bite.

"The children are scared too," Morren said. His voice was full of concern. "I have never seen anything like this before."

Cassian picked up an apple. He turned it in his hand as he thought. "Something deeper is going on. This fear is not just about monsters. We need to stay alert."

The small house fell silent after the group finished their meager dinner. The lantern’s dim light flickered weakly, casting shadows on the wooden walls.

Everyone chose their spots for the night. They split into three groups. Two groups went to the two small, cramped rooms. The third stayed in the small hall.

Cassian shared the hall with Sir Alistair and Keren Cavrov. They were keeping watch over the house.

Soon the exhaustion took a toll on everyone’s body, and they fell asleep.

Cassian woke up sometime after midnight. The room and outside were filled with silence. Moonlight slipped through the wooden shutters, faintly lighting the room.

His throat felt dry. He sat up carefully and reached for the water jug on the low table nearby.

The cool water soothed his thirst. Yet, he felt something was not good. The strange feelings came again when he tried to walk outside the other rooms. He felt something pulling on him or touching his consciousness, but he could not see anything.

and the feeling got intensified when he stood at the door of the cramped room. A strange suspicion rose from the bottom of his heart.

He hurriedly opened the room door, and the room door opened with a creak, and Cassian’s expression froze when he looked inside; there was no one inside; the room was entirely empty.

He hurriedly walked towards the other room and opened it to find only Morren Roneyev and Oronik Faelor. The trainees were nowhere to be seen; the room was also empty, without their traces anywhere.

How could they have left in the presence of Morren and Oronik, and suspicion filled his heart? He walks towards their sleeping figure and tries to wake them up.

Morren... Oronik... Wake up! The trainees, they are not here! Cassian shook them hard, but to no avail; they did not even budge. They were lying there motionless but with their breath intact. They look like they were just asleep.

Cassian’s expression froze as the thought came to his mind. He walked into the outer hall and tried to wake up Alistair, but his response was the same as theirs.

He turned to Keren, who lay near the far wall and shouted. "Keren, wake up!"

The elf stirred. His silver hair shimmered faintly in the dim light. His sharp eyes opened. He immediately sensed the tension in Cassian’s voice.

"What is it?" Keren asked. He sat up and rubbed his temples.

"They’re not waking up," Cassian said. His tone was steady, but his eyes showed his unease and fear. "It’s like they’re trapped in a dream."

Keren crawled over to Alistair. He pressed a hand to the knight’s forehead. After a moment, he glanced at Cassian. "You’re right. They’re deeply unconscious. This isn’t natural. Something is keeping them there."

"Can you break it?" Cassian asked.

"Not without knowing what caused it," Keren replied. He shook his head. "It’s like they don’t want to wake up."

"Stay here and watch over them," Cassian said. He was already heading for the door. "I’ll find the trainees; all of them are missing."

Keren hesitated but nodded. "Be careful."

Cassian stepped into the cold night. The silence of the night felt heavier now, almost unnatural. The small village seemed empty.

Then he heard it. A piercing scream tore through the air. His blood ran cold. He sprinted toward the sound.

The scene he found left him frozen.

In the village center, the trainees fought each other. Their movements were wild and erratic.

Llyris tackled his twin brother, Ivis, punching him with feral intensity. Kallus swung his sword at Aerich. Aerich barely dodged, his face twisted in anger.

Orion Hart stood in the middle of the chaos. He laughed madly as he smashed barrels and carts with unnatural strength.

Their eyes glowed faintly. Their faces were twisted with rage. They looked as if they had lost all sense of who they were.

Cassian’s voice rang out. "Stop! What are you doing?!"

No one reacted. It was like they couldn’t hear him. The villagers cowered in their homes. The once-disciplined trainees were tearing apart their lives.

Another scream echoed. It was a woman’s voice. Cassian spotted a villager running into the woods. One of the trainees chased her.

Cassian drew his sword. His knuckles turned white as he gripped the hilt. He had faced many monsters before. But this...

This was a nightmare.

Cassian’s voice rang out in the dead of night. "Llyris! Ivis! Stand down!" But his words vanished into the air; no one seemed to listen to them.

The trainees did not respond. Their glowing, rage-filled eyes held no recognition.

Llyris slammed Ivis into the ground, his fists flying with unnatural strength. Kallus broke from the fray, his blade glinting in the dim light.

He turned toward Cassian with unsteady steps, like a predator stalking prey.

"Kallus..." Cassian began to talk to him, but his voice faltered. Something was deeply wrong. There was no hesitation in their eyes. Only coldness and uncontrolled rage.