by Eric Vall
“Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be is it?” Rana scowled as she sent a few more soldiers careening backward with a few quick punches. The fox immediately dug into the pouches around her legs, removed two of her daggers and flung them into the crowd of ice demons. The elvish blades spun through the air and each of them stuck into the forehead of one of the monsters with a wet thwack. The demons’ heads snapped back from the impact and blood trickled from the wound. A second later they collapsed in bony heaps.
“New plan,” I shouted to the others. “Rana, Annalíse, Morrigan, take care of the ice demons. Carmedy and I will handle the soldiers.” Annalíse nodded and raced out of the throng of statues to meet the ice demons.
“It will be my pleasure,” Morrigan said, and her lips curled upward into a wicked grin as she turned to face the horned beasts.
“Now that’s a plan I can get behind,” Rana grinned as she removed two more of her daggers. “They want to play with daggers? They’re messing with the wrong fox.”
Some of the wretched things continued to hurl their icy weapons while others ran at us once more on all fours, gnashing their teeth at the air. Annalíse bellowed as she charged at them, with Rana and Morrigan beside her. The swordswoman slashed at the hideous monsters relentlessly, and they howled in anguish as their blood splattered across the snow dusted floor. Morrigan raised a tattooed hand to the air and scarlet red magic erupted from her fingertips once more. The fog curled towards the approaching demons and surrounded their bodies. The horned creatures skidded to a halt and fell to the floor writhing and screeching in protest as the red mists consumed them.
Rana sped through the throng of ice demons with such immeasurable speed that she was nothing more than a flurry of red fox fur and curls. The fox woman sliced through the throat of one monster spraying its blood every which way and hurled a dagger at the back of another’s head. The first demon grappled at its throat desperately as dark red blood gushed from its wounds and the second’s head thrust forward before it crumpled to the ground. We had succeeded in turning the tides against our enemies.
Carmedy and I stood amidst the remaining stone soldiers and one after another turned them into dust and piles of simmering hot white liquid. The sounds of explosions, and the squish of fleshy parts being skewered, and the wails of the ice demons echoed throughout the cavern. I had to hand it to the dungeon’s deity, they had given us quite the welcome, and they still hadn’t yet revealed themselves.
Gradually the sounds of battle faded into silence as we beat down our enemies. Annalíse whirled Bloodscale around and sliced through the neck of the last standing horned beast. Then she twirled the weapon in her hand before she sheathed it as the ice demon’s head slid away from its body, a gruesome expression fixed on its face, and thudded to the cavern floor. Finally, it was quiet in the dungeon once more save for the wind that still whistled through the tunnels. Scattered around our feet lay fragments of the marble warriors, slaughtered ice demons, and their severed limbs seeping with blood.
“You weren’t kidding when you said the dungeons here were worse, Annalíse,” Rana huffed, and she wiped the sweat from her brow. “We haven’t even been here that long and look at all we’ve been through.”
“I know,” Annalíse nodded. “Not only that, this is supposed to be the easiest of them all. It’s only going to get worse from here on out.”
“That’s comforting,” Rana sighed.
“You know what they say,” I said with a twisted smile, “anything worth doing is never easy.”
“Yeah, well it should be sometimes,” Rana said with a dry laugh as she walked over to the various demon corpses to retrieve her daggers. “Just to mix things up. My hair’s gonna turn white from the stress of all these near-death experiences.”
“And what pray tell is wrong with possessing white hair?” Morrigan said as her eyes changed back to their normal state. “I should think that you would be proud to hold such beauty.”
“Uh, there’s nothing wrong with it,” Rana waved her paws, “it’s just, you know, not my look is all.”
“It doesn’t suit her complexion,” Carmedy giggled.
“Alright,” I said with a chuckle, “if you all are done talking about hair and complexions, why don’t we move on and see if we can’t find this dungeon’s deity?”
“You got it, oh, dark one,” Rana said with a mock salute. Then she and the others moved to join me as I walked toward a wall that held the entrances to three different tunnels.
I stopped before the entrances and tried to get a sense of the deity’s presence. It didn’t take long determine which one would lead us to the deity.
“This one,” I nodded to the left tunnel. Annalíse and Rana quickly relit their torches and together the five of us walked into the shadowy passageway. This one was quite similar to the last and had the same black stone pillars lining the walls, but I observed that further up ahead in the tunnel the rows of pillars stopped and even further still was a faint crimson light.
As we continued on our way, the intensity of the light grew brighter, and the use of torches was no longer necessary. With the growing presence of the blood-hued glow however came an unremitting chill to the air. The deeper we ventured into the dungeon, the lower the temperature dropped.
“It’s f-f-f-freezing in here,” Carmedy’s teeth chattered, and she positioned the hood around her head so that her face could barely be seen. “Even my new clothes aren’t helping.”
“I am in agreement,” Morrigan shivered and Fea and Macha nestled close to her head. “These frigid conditions are most unpleasant.”
“Too chilly for you eh?” Rana said with a devious grin. “Now what was it you guys kept telling me back when we were in the desert? ‘Stop your whining, it’s not that bad,’ I believe it was something along those lines. Well, now the shoe is on the other foot.”
“Your point has been made,” Morrigan said with a slight sigh that came out as a white puff of cold air. “Carmedy do you not possess some sort of potion to provide us with warmth?”
“Oh, that’s right,” the feline alchemist said chipperly, and she started to paw through the pouches on her belt. “I almost forgot.”
The cat-girl chose one, undid the string and poured out the contents into the palm of her hand. Even tinier bundles tied with twine tumbled out, and she handed one to each of us. I didn’t intend to use the substance yet, but out of curiosity I opened the little sack that Carmedy had given me. No sooner had I undone the string did a fragrant spicy scent waft up to my nose. It smelled of cinnamon and cayenne.
“What is this Carmedy?” I said as I peered into the bag and saw inside that there was a vibrant red powder.
“I don’t have a name for this stuff yet,” Carmedy explained, “but it’s made with ginger, cinnamon, some cayenne. Ginger actually has a variety of medicinal uses. Not only is it a natural antioxidant and antiseptic, it improves the body’s circulation which in turn increases your temperature.
“That’s quite fascinating,” I said with a smile. Carmedy always got excited when she talked about medicine and herbs.
“If you think that’s interesting wait till I tell you about the chemical makeup of cayenne,” the cat said elatedly. “I bet you’ve all always wondered what makes cayenne peppers so hot.”
“Not particularly.” Morrigan raised an eyebrow, and Rana held back a snort. Carmedy didn’t seem to notice however and continued to prattle on with her explanation.
“You see, cayenne peppers have a chemical inside them called capsaicin which is a lipophilic chemical that can produce a strong burning sensation. Actually most members of the capsicum annuum species contain--”
“Carmedy, a shorter explanation if you please,” Annalíse interrupted the rambling cat.
“Oops, sorry,” the green-eyed woman said with an apologetic smile. “The point is, this stuff should knock the chill out of you, but just like the cooling powder the effects are temporary.”
“I don’t believe
I’ll have a need for this,” Rana said with a self-satisfied smirk, and she tried to hand her pouch back to Carmedy.
“I’d hold on to that if I were you,” Annalíse warned as she stowed her bundle in her pack. “Right now, we’re in the warmer region of Tamarisch, the weather is going to turn much more bitter as we progress.” As she spoke the haughty smile faded away from Rana’s face. The fox thief frowned down at the bundle in her paw for a moment before she finally stowed it away.
“Of course, it is,” Rana grumbled to herself as we continued through the passageway. By now the tunnel was very well lit, and we had nearly reached the area where the pillars stopped. Every crack, nook, and cranny within the obsidian colored walls was completely visible. I could feel the deity’s presence growing stronger. Soon their power would be within my grasp.
We had just reached the edge of the line of pillars when Rana suddenly held up a paw for us to stop.
“Wait, hold on just a second,” the curly-haired woman muttered, and she cautiously stepped forward. The fox tilted her head and narrowed her eyes at the walls ahead of us on either side.
“Do you hear something beyond these walls?” I asked the blue-eyed fox. “Is there an enemy approaching from either side of us?”
“No, that’s not it,” Rana mumbled.
“Then what’s the problem?” Annalíse questioned. “Why did you make us stop?”
“These walls,” Rana said as her eyes roamed across the sides of the passageway. “Why do the pillars just stop here?”
“Maybe whoever decorated the dungeon ran out of them before they finished lining this tunnel.” Carmedy shrugged.
Normally Rana would have offered a snarky retort to one of the cat’s fanciful suggestions, but she said nothing, and her gaze remained fixed on the walls.
“What importance is the presence or absence of pillars?” Morrigan said with a look of disinterest. “They are merely objects of ornamentation.”
“They’re not just decorations,” Rana said as her eyes slowly widened with realization, and she immediately bent over to remove one of her boots.
“I know those boots are uncomfortable for you Rana but is this really the time to be taking them off?” Annalíse folded her arms across her chest. “And you still haven’t explained why you made us stop.”
“This is why,” the fox-tailed woman said quietly and without another word she reeled back her arm and tossed her boot into the air in front of us.
“What in the--” Annalíse started to say but her words cut off when a series of icicles sharpened to a sinister point abruptly shot out from both walls as the boot sailed through the air. Most of the frozen weapons missed and crashed into the opposite walls and shattered upon impact, but two of the icy projectiles managed to pierce the top part of the fur covered shoe and lodged themselves as the boot fell to the floor.
“Oh,” Annalíse gulped. “I see now.”
“I think the words you’re searching for are: ‘thank you ever so much Rana, for keeping my royal rump from becoming shish kabobed,’” the fox said with a dry grin.
“Never mind the praises,” Morrigan interjected. “How are we to cross such an obstacle?”
“If one of us can manage to make it across I’m certain there will be some sort of mechanism on the other side to disable the icicles.” I stroked my chin. “It’s a very common practice to have traps like this set in such a way.”
“So, one of us has to make it across without getting, you know… skewered?” Carmedy said as she nervously glanced at the walls.
“Yes.” I nodded as a sly grin spread across my face. “Any volunteers?”
“Not it,” the green-eyed cat shook her head, and she took a step backward. I looked over at Morrigan who made no motion to offer her services. Annalíse hesitated for a moment but then opened her mouth to speak.
“I will volunteer,” the swordswoman said as she bravely took a step forward.
“I was joking earlier,” I laughed. “I will send my shadow--”
“No,” Rana said. “I’ll do it.”
“My slaves will not be injured by the--”
“I want to do it,” the fox-girl interrupted me again. “I see the holes in the walls. I can flip past them. Don’t worry. Aren’t you all about us proving ourselves as your minions?”
“Well, yes, but one mistake and you will be very dead, so--”
“I won’t make a mistake,” she said confidently. “Leave this to me.”
“Very well.” I nodded my head in approval even though I felt a twinge of fear in my stomach. I was a powerful fallen god, but my sphere of magic could not return someone dead to their living state. Sure, I could reanimate them as a skeleton, or wraith, or zombie, or a dozen other undead types, but Rana would no longer be Rana, and the thought of losing the clever fox-girl did make me feel uncomfortable.
But still, she was right, I did want them to prove themselves.
“Thanks, Boss,” the fox-girl said as she smiled at me.
“Please take caution,” Morrigan said as the red-headed woman removed her other boot and stretched her orange fox feet.
“Aw gee elfy, I didn’t know you cared so much,” Rana said with a wink. “Alright, let’s do this.”
We made way as the fox took several steps backward. She shook her legs, tilted her head to either side and flexed her paws as she leaned forward as though she were preparing to run a race. The blue-eyed woman took a deep breath and then sprinted toward the edge of the line of pillars. She pumped her arms as she sped across the floor with a look of determination in her eyes. Right before she reached the last pillar, she raised her arms, kicked out her front leg, and tilted sideways into a cartwheel, a horde of icicles flying on either side and between her outstretched legs. As her legs came down, she twisted her lower body so that her feet came landing right behind her. As soon as her feet touched the ground, the flexible fox arched her back into a backflip, and as her legs flew over her head a cluster of the deadly icicles hurtled past her tail. No sooner had her feet met with the floor, she sprung into the air and tucked her knees into her chest as she twisted into a backward somersault.
As she flipped through the air, dozens of icicles whizzed past her head and huddled frame, but none made contact. Upon her descent back to the ground Rana stretched out her arms and landed in a handstand. No sooner had her paws touched the floor did she arch her body forward to lower her feet to the ground. The fox woman took a quick step to the left as a few icicles flew past her calves. Immediately afterwards a group of the icy projectiles launched toward her head, and she dropped to the ground with her leg stretched out to one side narrowly missing them.
I heard the others suck in their breath at the near miss and Carmedy bit her lip. Rana was halfway there. The curly haired thief quickly pulled her extended leg into her chest and without hesitation curled herself into a ball and rolled forward on the ground just as several more of the sharpened pieces of ice shot out at the very spot where she had just been crouched.
Having missed their mark, the icicles shattered against the walls. Rana rolled to her feet and as soon as she stood up even more icicles sailed out toward her ankles and torso. The acrobatic fox instinctively jumped with her arms raised in the air and curved her body as the frozen weapons sailed past. She landed on her paws and turned a few front flips before she finally bounced on her feet. A split second later a cluster of icicles shot out where her paws had only just been.
Then Rana had made it across.
“Piece of cake,” the fox chuckled between a few huffs. Then she flipped her hair back with a puff of air and grinned at us.
“That was amazing!” Carmedy gasped as she clapped her hands together.
“Yes!” Annalíse sighed as she also clapped.
“I will admit that I am very impressed,” Morrigan said, and both of her ravens let out matching caws of approval.
“Very nicely done,” I said to Rana. I knew that the curly-haired thief was agile and flexible, but I
had never seen her move like that before. “Now, go see if you can find the mechanism to turn off this trap.”
“You got it,” Rana nodded, and she ran off ahead, turned a corner and was out of sight.
“That was amazing,” Carmedy breathed. “She jumped over there and flipped over here and then just, wow.”
“I must confess, that was quite an impressive display of agility,” Morrigan said quietly.
“Well don’t go praising her too much,” Annalíse chuckled, “Or she’ll never let us hear the end of it.”
“You’re right about that,” I said with a laugh. We waited quietly for Rana’s return or for a sign that the icicles had been disabled. After a few minutes we heard a loud grinding sound followed a sharp click.
“That should do it,” Rana called out from somewhere up ahead, and a few moments later she popped her head out from behind a corner. “Toss my boot over here just to make sure.” She nodded to the boot that she had left with us.
I bent over to pick up the shoe, reeled back my arm and threw it into the air ahead of us. The boot sailed upward and thudded to the ground without any interference whatsoever.
“Yay! You did it Rana,” Carmedy cheered as she jogged forward. “You were fantastic, I wish I could do that.”
“Ah, it was nothing pussycat.” Rana waved her paw passively. “Just doing what I do best, besides stealing of course.” As the rest of us walked over to join them, I stooped over to pick up both of Rana’s boots and held them out to the fox when I reached her.
“I believe these are yours?” I smiled.
“Ugh, those things.” The fox-tailed woman wrinkled her nose as she took the shoes from me. “I’m tempted to just leave them here, they only slow me down.”
“That may be, but given what Annalíse said about the temperature growing progressively colder, it’s probably best if you hold on to them. You can always take them off when you choose.”
