Chapter XI: Isn't it exciting?

tom and Izzaker go on a magical journey together.

I worked my way through the labyrinth that was the prison. I found no guards at all. It was strange: I’d expect to see some cowering, or some refusing to leave their post, or some who simply just couldn’t escape, but there was nothing. The place was deserted. I found the door, barred from the outside, in the far east wing of the prison. I pulled back my leg and thrust it forward, blowing the door off its hinges. What I saw outside was a nightmare.

The town was in flames. Skyscrapers were imploding, people leaping from the windows; either in panic or in meditated calmness, I couldn’t tell. The streets were littered with burnings cars and corpses, it was as if a fireball had struck the entire city. The asphalt boiled. Smoke hung in the air so thickly that it stung my eyes even through my glasses. If it weren’t for my mask, I would be choking. If there was a hell, this would be it. I heard a voice in my head snicker at that particular thought. “What the f**k happened here…” I said, awestruck.

Izzaker appeared next to me, the orange flames reflected in his eyes matching his blaze-colored hair. He looked indifferently at the carnage around him before speaking. “You did.” He told me in a very confident tone.

“What?” I replied in shock, “No I didn’t! I was in prison, with you!”

Izzaker gave me a shrug and shook his head. “That’s not what they say.”

“What who says?” I asked. I turned to face him, but again he was gone.

I wandered down the street, jumping from car to car, since my boots would melt into the asphalt. Izzaker sat on the ground about a quarter-mile ahead of me, eating a banana. “Y’know…” he began, swallowing a large lump of banana, which looked painful. “I kinda like the scenery here. It’s ominous. Spooky.” He nodded appreciatively, his silvery-gray hair bobbing up and down.

Just then, a man came running down the street, carrying a basket of bananas strapped onto his shoulders like a backpack. He was kinda short, and had a long black ponytail. He was thin and pale, running barefoot along the sludge and I had no idea how he could carry such a heavy basket. He raised one hand up into the air as he ran waving frantically.

“Izzaker! Lord Izzaker!” He called loudly. Izzaker looked visibly annoyed. “Lord Iz-” The man started again, before his feet got stuck into the ground and he fell forward on his face, the bananas spilling all over the road in front of him. Izzaker shot to his feet.

“No!” He bellowed in a rage. He teleported around the muck, picking up the bananas and cradling them in their arms. I think he stepped on the man a couple times in the process. “My darlings…” He said softly, with a tear rolling down his cheek as he picked up the last fruit. “You’re okay now… Izzy’s here…”

I cringed a little at the name Izzy. Izzaker teleported away, seemingly to take his ‘darlings’ to safety. I carefully made my way over to the man. “Um… you need help?”

The man was smiling cradling the last banana against his chest, sinking sideways into the steaming tar. “No! My Lord Izzaker shall save me! He accepted my gifts…” He giggled giddily, swaying (as much as he could) with the banana in his arms. “He truly does care about his most devout follower!” He laughed happily as his mouth filled with tar and he sank. I wasn’t sure if I felt bad for not helping him, or relieved. He looked so happy. I shook my head. Today was a weird day.

I made my way into the wreckage of the building that Alex was supposed to rendezvous with me in. The parking structure appeared to have fallen apart from the left side, the right side burning, but intact. I climbed my way up through the scaffolding, all the way to the top of the structure. She was nowhere to be seen. I turned and scouted the place. There was no sign of her, dead or alive. I walked toward the edge of the ruins and looked out across the street. The rubble had formed a sort of hill. It was almost like someone could climb down…

I squinted my eyes and saw, about a quarter of the way down the slope, an arrow sticking straight out of the ground. I knelt next to it and looked down the hill more, spotting another. I approached and knelt by that arrow as well, Izzaker appearing over my shoulder.

“Whatcha looking at?” He asked, his mouth again full with a darli- I mean, a banana.

I spotted the other arrow and stood, walking towards it. “Why are you here, Izzaker?” I asked politely, my curiosity getting the better of me. I doubted his answer would do anything to alleviate my confusion.

He shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m bored. And this is new, interesting. Isn’t it exciting? It makes me- Hey, what’s that?”

And like that, he was gone again. I guess I was right. I reached street level again, and there I found what I believed to be the source of all this. In place of the ground in front of me was a huge crater, at least 50 yards in radius, encompassing what used to be the heart of the country. It was as if a meteor had impacted the earth, yet there was so sign of it. Standing in the center of the crater was Izzaker, his neon-blue hair standing out in contrast to his dark brown background. He turned appreciatively in a circle, eyeing the rim of the crater. He whistled, then disappeared again. I looked around and resumed following the trail of arrows. It led to a cluster of arrows, making large indicator arrow that pointed north- towards the single standing skyscraper in the city. It was completely untouched, from what I could see. It seemed like a trap, yet it was also my only choice. I went into the nearest building and climbed to the top, trying to get a better look. I was met by Izzaker, standing at the edge of the roof. I stood next to him to survey the area.

He looked down at his wrist, pretending to look at a watch. “You should probably hurry.” He said.

“Wha-” I turned to ask, but he was gone again. I leaped down and started my trek towards the landmark. The flames seemed to intensify as I went forward, but oddly enough I didn’t feel any heat. The smoke had stopped stinging. Again, my curiosity beat out my logic and I moved my mask down. I took a deep breath, and it filled my lungs like fresh air. I took a stone and cast it into the flames, and it disintegrated. I then ripped off a piece of my scarf and did the same, and it too erupted in flames. Yet, oddly, when I stuck my hand into the fire, I felt nothing at all. Don’t push your luck, Tom. A voice said in my head.

I realized then that Ikai must have been protecting me somehow. I took note of it. I stood and took another step forward, but was then violently thrown to the ground.