Ridley

I stared at Vandel, and he stared back, still smirking.

At last, he leaned forward, pushing back his damp hair. "Aren't you going to ask what I need you for?"

"I would prefer to talk to you as little as possible," I retorted.

Vandel rolled his eyes. "Fine, be that way." He then glanced at one of the guards, pulling a face. "He's no fun. Anyways, Sir Ridley, why don't you and I strike a deal? I'll let you live under one condition—you perform a little task for me." He chuckled under his breath. "It's simple, really. I need you to fetch an item called the Cloak of the Heavens. Long ago, a warlock put a curse on the cloak so that only a human could retrieve it. The jackass did it literally just to spite me. Bring it to me, and I'll let you go."

I took a deep, steadying breath. "How do I know you're not lying? You've tricked me before. Whose to say you'll keep your word?"

Vandel let out an exasperated sigh. He glanced back at the same guard, talking loudly, as if I wasn't able to hear him. "Such a fussy one, this boy."

He turned his attention back to me, motioning for me to approach with a curl of his fingers. The guards pushed me forward, and Vandel leaned closer, the bubbles from the bath brushing against his bare shoulders. Lifting a hand,  he carefully traced a circle on my forehead. As soon as his finger left my skin, the area he touched began to prickle, like the sensation when your leg falls asleep. 

I blinked. "What...what was that?"

"A binding spell," Vandel said, sinking back into the bath. "It's designed for deals. Until you retrieve the Cloak of the Heavens, you won't be able to move more than ten feet away from yours truly. However, the moment you hand the cloak over to me, the seal will be broken, and you'll be free to go. How's that for a deal?" He grinned. "Of course, we can simplify matters by me throttling you right here and now with my bare hands, if you'd prefer."

I had no idea what the Cloak of the Heavens was, but there had to be a reason Vandel was cursed from retrieving it himself. It was probably an extremely dangerous and powerful item. Morally, I shouldn't assist him in getting his little clawed fingers on it. But then again, I was of significantly more use to the kingdom alive. Deep down, a selfish little part of my screamed that I couldn't die yet, not until I found my father's killer. I would be able to defeat Vandel eventually, I decided, even if he did have the Cloak of the Heavens. So it would all even out in the end, right? 

Finally, I gave a stiff nod. "Alright, I'll do it."

"Marvelous! Then the deal is sealed."

The instant the words left Vandel's mouth, the circle he'd traced on my forehead started to burn, as if it was branding itself into my skin. I clenched my teeth, attempting to ignore the pain as it gradually subsided.

Vandel clapped his hands. "Tuttle, fetch me my clothes!" Suddenly his eyes narrowed, as if he had just remembered something. "Oh...wait. Before we go to get the cloak, we need to make a quick stop."

------

I trailed behind Vandel, making sure to stay close to him. I wasn't sure what would happen if I went more than ten feet away, but I figured I probably didn't want to find out.

Vandel came to a stop in front of a little wooden door, begining to rapidly pound on it. "Open up, you disgusting lump of bones!" At last, the door creaked open. Vandel rolled his eyes. "Took you long enough."

I froze when I realized what I was staring at. A goblin. I hadn't expected to encounter any in this region; the Alterians had driven them out of our kingdom years ago. The thing was hideous, and smelled like rotting fish. It took everything in me to keep from gagging.

Vandel frowned, crossing his arms as the goblin bowed his head. "Can I help ya with anythin', me lord?"

"Yes, Boris. You can learn to be a halfway decent artist."

"What are ya talkin' about, me lord?"

Vandel groaned. "Oh my gooooods, are you serious?" Do you have literal shit for brains?" Vandel rolled his eyes as the goblin simply scratched his head. "Let me say it in a way you can understand." Vandel proceeded to draw out every word. "Yoooooour aaaaaaart suuuuuuuucks."

The goblin shrugged. "Don't really care."

"HOW DO YOU NOT CARE? YOU'RE THE ROYAL PORTRAIT PAINTER!"

"I dunno'."

"You don't know? You don't know? Are you fucking serious?!" Vandel pushed me in front of him. "See this, Boris. This is what a human looks like! Got it? The eyes are here, okay? That clear enough to get through all the mush that's sitting in your head right now instead of a brain."

The goblin went silent for a moment, then he simply shrugged again. "Yep. Got it."

"That's it?" Vandel looked just about ready to pull his own hair out. "Holy shit, you are the worst, Boris. Do they call you Boris because of what a bore you are...err...is. Get it? Bore you is? Boris? It's funny." His head snapped towards me. "Laugh, that's an order."

I made sure to give the fakest, most monotone laugh I could possibly muster.

Vandel glared at me. "Wow, thanks."

"Just doing as I'm told."

Vandel cleared his throat. "Well, I think we can both agree that this has been a lovely little excursion. Now, let's actually start the mission!"

"It's not a mission. You're forcing me to do it."

Vandel glowered at me. "Okay, for once could you try to stop ruining my fun."

"I don't think that's possible."

Vandel sighed heavily. "Maybe I really should have just killed you and saved myself all this trouble."