The Dragon Hunter and the Mage (21 page)

“Down there,” Leth yelled. He was standing next to a stairwell. “The screams are coming from down there.”

At the bottom of the stairs, they found another narrow corridor. The screams got louder and louder until the corridor gave way to a massive opening. Inside was a crowd of statues, but they could see people moving between them. And not just people.

“It’s Irenya,” Clea said. “And Orisius and….”

“What are those things?!” Leth asked.

The only answer he received was the sound of Athan’s prayer flask lighting up, followed by the usual mumbling.

“We’ve got to help them,” Clea urged.

The blade from Leth’s sword rung out as he unsheathed it. Nahir mirrored him and drew out his knife, then looked at its tiny blade and snorted. “I don’t think this is going to do,” he said, sheathing the knife. He moved to one of the stone warriors and stole a massive battle-axe. It had to weigh as much as Nahir himself. The Cyrinian looked pleased. “Let’s go.”

Leth nodded and the two of them charged towards the creatures. Taking an arrow from her quiver, Clea looked at Athan and Aric.

“The two of you are unarmed,” she said. “Best if you stay here.”

Before Aric could reply she was off.

She must think I’m a useless coward.

“We have to do something,” Aric told Athan.

The former acolyte opened his eyes and faced him pitifully.

“I’m doing the only thing I know….”

Shifting his weight frantically, Aric looked at the others and saw Ashur throwing a stone at one of the creatures. The beast was knocked down to the floor but jumped back up with cat-like reflexes.

“You really think that will help?” Aric asked, indicating the prayer flask with his chin. There was no malice in the question. He truly wanted to know.

“No,” Athan replied. “I don’t.”

Aric bit his lower lip as he saw Clea firing two arrows at one of the monsters. The creature merely stumbled back a little.

“Screw it,” Aric said, then dashed away towards her.

Clea fired another arrow. This time, she hit the beast right between his eyes. It barely even flinched.

Aric saw her reaching for another arrow. The monster was an arm’s length away from her. She fumbled around her quiver, gasping.

“Goddess!” she screamed.

Bam!
Aric elbowed the monster, knocking it to the ground. He rolled to the side, trying to give himself enough room to stand back up. He knew the creature would slice him open if it got close enough. Except it didn’t. Instead, the monster scrambled back, hissing before it ran away.

“I think…” Clea said, astonished. “I think you scared it….”

“I did?”

That didn’t seem very likely. At the sound of a curse, Aric looked over his shoulder and saw Leth slashing one of the creatures’ torso open.

“Why won’t they die?” Leth yelled.

“Because they are already dead!” Nahir replied, swinging his axe.

If it had worked once, why wouldn’t it work twice? Aric gritted his teeth and charged. Leth heard him howling as he approached and barely had the time to dodge and let him by.

Bam
!

Once again, he crashed elbow-first against the creature, hurling it to the floor. And once again, as soon as it caught a glimpse of Aric it fled as quickly as it could.

Leth was rendered speechless. “What th
e‒
”   

“AVA’S MERCY SAVE US ALL!” Athan screamed from the back. It was hard to tell if he was yelling or crying. The former acolyte must have been inspired by Aric’s success because he was charging with all his might. Ava’s fire leading the way as he held his prayer flask firmly in his hands.

“What is that idiot doing?!” Leth asked.

Athan crashed against a monster that Ashur was barely keeping at bay with a lance and the two of them fell to the ground, wrapping around each other. Suddenly, flames erupted around Athan and the creature. The former acolyte jumped up, screaming and twirling as flames ate through his jacket. Hastily, he shucked the jacket off, throwing it away. Fire was enveloping the monster as well, except it didn’t have a jacket to undress. It shrieked and howled hideously, hurtling from one side to the other as the flames consumed it.

“Fire!” Aric screamed. “They’re vulnerable to fire!”

Their scaled skins cracked and shred beneath the flames until there was nothing left of those bone chilling things.

“Goddess damned beasts…” Ashur spat as the last of the four monsters shrieked and squirmed.

“Put the torch out, Ashur,” Aric said. “We should save the fuel until we’re out of here.”

“You put it out,” Ashur replied, tossing the torch.

Aric caught it midair and swallowed a curse.

“Here,” Clea said, taking her leather vest off. “Use this.” The tunic she wore underneath the vest was bloodied.

“Are you alright?” Aric asked, wrapping the flames with the vest, carefully so not to burn himself.

Clea looked down at the blood stains. “These aren’t mine, don’t worry.”

She smiled at Aric, and butterflies woke up inside his belly.

“Athan,” he called, jerking his stare away from Clea. “How much fuel do we have?”

The former acolyte looked at his prayer flask. “A few more drops,” he replied. “We’ll have to make them count.”

“Understood,” Aric said with a nod.

Then, echoes of what sounded like a stampeding herd thundered from one of the many corridors feeding the hall.

“Oh no…” Irenya groaned with dread. “How many more of those things can there be?”

“It’s not the creatures,” Nahir told her. “It’s Trissa and the others. Listen.”

Everyone became quiet, trying to decipher the noise. Was that screaming?

“I think they’re crying for help,” Clea said.

“I think so too,” Aric agreed. “They’re trying to find us. Come on.”

The group followed the sound and Athan placed his prayer flask at the ready. Tiny Glowstone crystals lit the way across the tight tunnel as if they were inside a punctured box, and the echoing voices became clearer and clearer. A girl was crying for help. Actually, more than one girl. At least two of them.

With the torch at the ready, Aric guided them towards the screams. They took several turns and climbed a steep staircase.

Clea was the first to see them. “There!” she said.

“Quick! Help!” Dothea screamed.

The three girls were pushing a door, trying to close it, but several blue arms and legs were sticking out, keeping it from slamming shut. Trissa turned around, trying to gain more purchase on the ground, and blood dripping from her arm smeared the door.

Nahir, Orisius, and Clea rushed towards them, helping them hold the door.

“Athan,” Aric called, “quick, give me light.”

With trembling hands, Athan flicked his prayer flask open. He nearly dropped the red vial.

There was a pound on the door so powerful it made everyone pushing it jump.

“Quick!” Aric urged.

Steadying his own arm, Athan ignited the torch and fire quickly engulfed it.

“Ok, everyone,” Aric called. “At my signal, get behind me.”

The three girls hesitated, exchanging worried glances, but Nahir and Leth reassured them with a nod, and they decided to obey.

“Now!” Aric yelled

The group jumped away from the door and the creatures burst through like a growling flood. Everyone ran behind Aric except for Nahir and Leth, who took positions at his side. The creatures charged and Aric torched the first one. All it took was a simple kiss from the flames and they instantly spread across their blue bodies.

Strangely, none of the monsters tried to attack Aric, going for Leth and Nahir instead. It made the fight even easier, Nahir’s axe and Leth’s sword funneling all five remaining creatures towards Aric.

The last of the monsters was still hissing within the blaze when Lyra grabbed Aric’s collar.

“You have to hurry,” Lyra said, sobbing. “Ergon’s hurt.”

“Tharius stayed with him and we came for help,” Dothea added.

Aric cursed. “Take us there!” he said. “Athan, the fuel. Stay close to me.”

The former acolyte nodded, his milky white hands wrapping around the prayer flask as if it were the most precious of jewels.

With Lyra in the lead, they ran across several passageways until she stopped, gasping. Aric felt a shiver. They had just entered another tunnel and there was blood smeared across the walls and floor tiles. At the other end of the corridor pieces of wood dangled from the hinges of what had once been a door, but there was no one in sight.

No one dared to say anything for a while until Clea pushed through the crowd and stepped into the middle of the mess of splinters and blood. She circled, trying to decipher the leftovers from the fight, and Aric joined her, the flame on his torch dancing nervously.

“The blood trails that way,” Clea said, indicating the shattered door. “I think they have been taken.”

Lyra bawled and her eyes welled once again.

“They’re probably dead by now,” Ashur said.

“Shut up, you idiot,” Leth snapped.  

If Ashur was going to retort something he changed his mind under the stares of the rest of the group.

It was Clea who broke the silence. “We can try to follow the blood trail…” she ventured.

“We don’t have to,” Trissa said. “I think I know where they are.” About a dozen puzzled looks turned to her. “When we were attacked… we had found a huge cache of Glowstone. I think the creatures were protecting it.”

Aric looked down at his own chest. “Maybe that’s why they don’t attack me,” he said. “Because I’m wearing Glowstone.”

“So, they think you’re one of them or something?” Leth said.

“Maybe…” Aric said. “Trissa, do you remember where you found the crystals?”

“Yes. Follow me.”

Trissa dashed away. She turned a corner and climbed a wide staircase, checking over her shoulder to see if the others were keeping up. She didn’t seem to care that there were patches of ice everywhere. Aric almost asked her to slow down, but quickly changed his mind when he checked the weakening flame on his torch. Then he heard a squeak from behind, followed by the sound of shattering glass.

Aric stopped, turned around, and saw a livid Athan, laying on the ground, staring at the remains of his prayer flask. What little liquid it contained was now spilled across the frozen steps of the staircase.

“I’m… I’m so sorry,” Athan mumbled.

“Crap…” Leth said.

Everyone quickly turned to Aric. The torch still burned in his hand, even if faintly.

“I think we’d better hurry,” he said.

This time, Trissa didn’t even reply. Didn’t even make sure the group was following her, she simply darted around a corner, curls of black hair bouncing on her head. Then, she stopped right next to a door’s threshold, doing a silent shush sign. The Company lined behind her, backs against the wall, and she gestured Aric to peek around the door.

It wasn’t a room, it was a cave. Except, unlike any other cave, this one was blindingly bright. Massive Glowstone crystals pierced its ground and ceiling like pillars. There were so many of them it was impossible to count.

A cache of Glowstone
, Trissa had said. More like a mountain of it. There were enough of those crystals in there to build a palace. The most unsettling part was how the blue pillars felt like they were humming, even though Aric couldn’t really hear anything. Between them dozens of the scaled creatures walked around like restless ants, doing nothing except admiring the mighty structures. Twisting his head, Aric searched the cave for Tharius and Ergon.

“I see them!” he whisper-screamed.

The two boys were laying on the ground, looking to be unconscious. A dark pool of blood spread beneath them.

“Aric,” Trissa whispered. She pointed at his torch.

The flames were dying out. Only a few of patches of the torch’s cloth still burned.

“I’m going in,” Aric said.