The jail room was a small confined space, so dirty that rodents would make it a lair for their kin. The humidity made it perfect for raising bacteria and infectious microorganisms and the foul smell of alcohol, vomit and rot was nauseating. There was a weak light emitted by the candle’s dying fire which barely lit the room, creating nothing more than shadows.

  It was localized on the cellar. All that could be heard was the slow water drops and the muffled sounds coming from above, rats and cockroaches would also be listened to – but they were more respected than anyone that came for the stay.

  Lower than a cockroach, how much further could a human fall in the scale of evolution?

  Suddenly, a high pitched noise entered the door’s crevice, someone was coming. A desperate voice could be heard, it begged to the Gods, begged to the King, begged to all of humanity – it was asking for mercy, justice, fairness. It was a man’s voice, and he appealed vehemently for forgiveness.

  Soon after, a dull, heavy sound, echoed through the halls, immediately followed by a tortured scream and a numbness of ears.

  A clink noise. Two steps. Insert. Turn. Push. The door was open and a pale man in rags was thrown inside the room with ruthless force. Before any light or any hope could reach it, the door was closed shut, returning everything to its original state.

  “Argh… Goddam… Goddamnit… Why… What do they want from me…?”

  The man had busted lips and was so thin his skin reached to the bones. Seeing as he held the belly with both his hands and cursed at his own fate, probably a stomach injury too. He experimented dragging himself towards the light, but something gradually formed in his line of sight. It was a strange figure that made him flinch.

  “Is that…”

  The man jumped back at his corner, colliding with the wall and falling to his knees. Since his body was in such a fragile state, he got heavily bruised and started coughing, blood dripping from his mouth.

  On the other side of the room was a human shadow. A shadow with pitch black eyes, so ominous they stood in between the darkness like two shining gems.

  “W-Who… Argh… Who are you?”

  He tried to act composed, but his trembling, dilated pupils and heavy panting gave him away.

  “I don’t want any trouble… Arrrrgh… I-i just want some… Peace ‘kay?

  The figure didn’t answer, it just kept staring indefinitely at the feeble man with those eyes which seemed to swallow the world. One could feel he was staring not at the man, but deep into his soul. They were eyes of a predator, a cold-blooded thinker – or killer even.

  As the two of them voicelessly agreed not to give each other any troubles, the room got stuck in a piercing silence as dead air filled the putrid basement.

  That solitude didn’t last, however. Two strangers met in a jail room. There are people that have problems enough of their own or don’t want to partake with other’s problems, they usually don’t speak much, especially about their situations. But there are those that can’t keep their mouth shut no matter what.

  The man was still feeling horrible, but better than before. The pain was bearable.

  “So… Why are you here?”

  At his question, the strange figure moved an inch. The man panicked once again.

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  “Sorry, sorry, i didn’t mean to offend you, forget the question i didn’t wish to know, i mean –Argh… Forgive me i won’t ask anymore!” dude was so freaked out he almost bit his tongue talking. His heart was beating so fast it could collapse at a moment’s notice.

  “… mbling” muttered the figure.

  “… Huh?”

  “I’m here because of gambling” he said. The voice was masculine, it was calm, careful and attentive.

  “Gambling… What a small world, i’ve been chased out for gambling too…”

  “… I lost some money, but not enough to get me in jail. In fact, i could pay the debt within two to three months of normal work.”

  “Yeah, me too… I work in the iron mines up north. It’s hard, but it keeps the coin flowing…”

  “… It was a plot. I don’t know who planned it and don’t know their reasons, but something is up.

  “You know… I was thinking the exact same thing. I mean, about what happened with me.”

  The man turned silent for a moment, he was remembering how it happened. It was so sudden… They just appeared and took him in. He couldn’t stop asking why it happened with him, a man who had never wronged anyone. He was leading an honest life.

  “What’s your job?” he asked.

  “… I work in the north too. Section 36, level D. Miner”

  “What a coincidence, i was assigned there too… How come we’ve never met?”

  “…I work till late and come for a drink at a local bar. I barely speak with anyone”

  “Do you mean the Ringing Bell? I go there for a drink sometimes too…”

  “On that night…” the man’s voice trembled, but it wasn’t an emotion overflowing inside him. His eyes widened and looked straight into the jail partner.

  “I didn’t come back to see my family. When i returned, they were gone, they took them from me. Alicia, my wife… Serana, my daughter…”

  “Wait, these names…”

  “Robert, my son…”

  “How do you-”

  “We’ve never met before, but your eyes tell me all i need to know about you, Kayl”.

  The man spoke the truth, his name was Kayl and he had lost his family to the debt collectors. They took them away by brute force, but... How did he know about it? He never told this story to anyone – he wasn’t offered the chance to do so. Was he one of the culprits? Or maybe he knew something about what happened? Kayl needed to know.

  He dragged himself, reaching for the candle once again, pressing it forwards to see the face of the mysterious man.

  “Who… Are you?”

  Before he could determine his semblant, the candle’s fire finally died down and everything turned into complete darkness. The man grinned as he let out an amused laugh.

  “… Are you interested in becoming a mage?”