The Last Citadel

by Kevin Ashman

  ‘Why?’ asked Amber.

  ‘Are you kidding?’ gasped Kenzo, ‘you saw that thing. If he gets out, heaven knows what will happen. No, we need to tell Pelosus so he can mobilise the guard to come down here and deal with it.’

  ‘But it used to be a scared little boy,’ said Amber, ‘perhaps it is just some sort of illness that can be cured.’

  ‘I’m with him,’ said Flip, ‘what that thing needs is a sword between its ribs.’

  The door suddenly shuddered from a blow on the other side and the three jumped in fright, staring in horror as it splintered before them.

  ‘Run,’ screamed Amber.

  Behind them, an enormous crash told them the door had given way and an unearthly howl echoed down the passage.

  ‘Quick,’ screamed Flip, ‘he’s coming.’ They ran as fast as they could in the dark, with only Flip’s plankton ball to light their way. Within seconds, they came to one of the junctions and Amber stopped, breathing heavily.

  ‘What are you waiting for?’ shouted Flip, ‘that thing is gaining on us.’

  ‘It’s no good,’ said Amber, ‘it’s too far back to the sewers; we have to hide, come on, this way.’

  ‘Wait,’ said Kenzo, ‘that way is deeper into the catacombs, we will get lost.’

  ‘Perhaps,’ said Amber, ‘but don’t forget, if this thing used to be Crispin, then he hasn’t been here before either, and this place may be just as confusing to him.’

  ‘We could be going into a dead end,’ said Kenzo.

  ‘I don’t think so,’ said Amber, ‘when I was lost down here, I wandered through hundreds of passages. It may be a maze but if we continue in that direction, we will definitely be caught.’

  They all looked at each other for a few seconds before a noise from behind them made their minds up for them.

  ‘She’s right,’ said Kenzo, ‘we have no choice.’ They ducked into the side tunnel and crept slowly away from the main passageway. Kenzo held up his hand and they all stopped, holding their breath as they pressed their backs against the wall, looking back the way they had come.

  ‘Hide the light,’ hissed Kenzo and Flip hid the plankton ball under his jerkin, plunging the tunnel into absolute darkness. Within seconds, the tall and strange silhouette of the creature stalked past the entrance to the side tunnel and even though it was completely dark, for a second, it seemed the space was even darker. As the steps receded, they breathed a quiet sigh of relief and turned to descend deeper into the catacombs.

  ----

  For hours, they wandered the tunnels, finding nothing but dead ends and false entrances before finally sitting down for a rest against the corridor wall.

  ‘That thing could be around any corner,’ said Flip ‘and we would never know.’

  ‘That thing has a name,’ said Amber, ‘he is Crispin.’

  ‘Amber, surely you don’t hold any feelings for him,’ asked Kenzo. ‘Can’t you see the danger?’

  ‘Yes, but back in his cell he recognised me. Just for a second or two, he knew who I was and seemed calm. Perhaps I can talk to him, reach the person he once was.’

  ‘I don’t think that is going to work,’ said Kenzo, ‘any resemblance to the boy he once was has long gone and that beast is all that remains. No, we will take our chances in the tunnels and alert the guard as soon as we can. They can come down here and deal with it.’

  ‘Right, enough talk,’ said Kenzo, ‘we have to keep moving, come on.’ He reached down and grabbed Amber’s hand, pulling her to her feet.

  ‘I’m hungry,’ said Flip as he followed behind them.

  ‘You’re not helping, Flip,’ said Amber who had been aware of her own grumbling stomach for a long time.

  For another couple of hours they wandered through the darkness until finally Flip stopped.

  ‘I can’t go on,’ he cried, ‘I’m hungry and tired.’

  ‘Flip, we can’t stay here,’ said Amber, ‘we have to keep going.’

  ‘Why not?’ whined Flip, ‘we can call out for help, someone may hear us.’

  ‘Crispin may hear us,’ said Kenzo.

  ‘I don’t care,’ said Flip, ‘even if he does come, Amber can speak to him. He’ll probably remember her and show us the way out.’

  ‘Are you willing to take that risk?’ asked Kenzo.

  ‘I don’t care anymore,’ said Flip and slid down the wall to sit on the floor.

  ‘Flip,’ said Amber, ‘You…’

  ‘Quiet,’ hissed Kenzo.

  Amber turned to face him.

  ‘What’s the matter?’ she whispered, ‘is it Crispin?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ answered Kenzo. ‘Listen, can you here it?’

  They all fell silent again and strained to hear what had attracted Kenzo’s attention.

  ‘I hear it too,’ said Amber eventually, ‘it sounds like, like water.’

  They listened for a few more minutes, all agreeing that it sounded like running water. Finally, Flip broke the silence and jumped up in shock.

  ‘Aaarrgh,’ he shouted, ‘I’m wet.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ asked Amber.

  ‘The floor, it’s covered with water.’

  Kenzo held the failing Plankton lamp down and gasped as he saw trickles of water creeping along the floor of the tunnel. He reached down and scooped up a few drops in his palm, holding it to his mouth to taste it.

  ‘Oh my god,’ he said as he spat it back out, ‘this is not good.’

  ‘What’s the matter?’ asked Amber, ‘Kenzo, tell me.’

  ‘It's salt water,’ said Kenzo, ‘the tide must be rising again.’

  ‘So what?’ asked Flip.

  ‘We have been travelling downwards for a while,’ said Kenzo, ‘and I reckon we are far lower than the normal level of the sea. If I am right, these tunnels are soon going to be flooded.’

  The water was coming faster now and started to lap around the tops of their shoes.

  ‘We can’t stay here,’ said Kenzo, ‘we have to run.’

  ‘But where?’ shouted Amber.

  ‘I don’t know,’ answered Kenzo, ‘anywhere away from the water, now run.’

  Within minutes, the water was pouring through the tunnel behind them and it was soon up to their knees and rising.

  ‘Keep going,’ shouted Kenzo from behind, all attempts of silence now irrelevant.

  ‘Which way?’ screamed Amber as she reached a junction.

  ‘This way,’ shouted Flip, ‘it goes up hill.’

  They ran up the slope and around a corner into an empty room.

  ‘It’s a dead end,’ shouted Flip, ‘go back.’

  They quickly retraced their steps but came to a sudden stop as Kenzo blocked their way.

  ‘Kenzo, move,’ screamed Amber.

  ‘I can’t,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘there’s nowhere else to go.’

  Amber looked past her cousin and was horrified to sea torrents of water now pouring down all tunnels.

  ‘We’re trapped,’ cried Flip, ‘we’re all gonna drown.’

  As the water level rose, they walked backwards, the water lapping at their feet. Within minutes, they were back in the room with the water rising around their knees. Amber grabbed Kenzo’s arm in terror.

  ‘Kenzo, what are we going to do?’ she cried.

  ‘Kick off your shoes,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘and your cloaks. Quickly, strip down to your underclothes.’

  ‘Why?’ shouted Amber struggling to make herself heard over the foaming water.

  ‘We need to swim,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘and our clothes will weigh us down.’

  ‘Swim where?’ replied Amber, ‘we will never hold our breath long enough to get out of here.’

  ‘We don’t have to,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘all we need to do is stay afloat, look up there.’

  They all looked upwards and saw that rather than have a ceiling, the room stretched up into the darkness.

  ‘This isn’t a room,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘it’s a shaft. If we can stay afloat, there may be
other tunnels higher up. We can do this, Amber. Remember all those summer Moon-days we used to spend diving off the causeways and swimming between the towers?’

  ‘But what if it is closed off?’ shouted Amber.

  ‘What option do we have?’ shouted Kenzo, the water now up to his chest.

  ‘I can’t swim,’ shouted Flip, ‘I’m gonna drown.’

  ‘You won’t drown, Flip,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘all you have to do is tread water and even you can do that. Just lose your clothing and start kicking your legs. Watch me and do as I do.’

  ‘Don’t worry, Flip,’ shouted Amber, ‘we’ll help you.’

  Within minutes, they were floating, their feet kicking frantically to keep their heads above the water as it rose slowly up the shaft.

  ‘Keep it up,’ shouted Kenzo, ‘you’re doing fine.’

  ----

  Chapter 22

  Braille and Pelosus parted ways as they re-entered the keep, with Braille returning to the temporary Barracks while Pelosus made his way to his room to freshen up before reporting to Helzac. Within the hour, he was knocking on the Governor’s door.

  ‘Come in,’ came the response and Pelosus entered Helzac’s apartment for the first time.

  Across the room, the Governor was looking out of the window toward the ring of outer towers in the distance. He glanced over as Pelosus entered.

  ‘Stargazer,’ he said, ‘you have returned at last, and with good news, I hope.’

  ‘Mixed news, Sire,’ said Pelosus, ‘yet fascinating all the same.’

  ‘I will be the judge of that,’ said Helzac. ‘Sit down and tell me everything.’

  They both took seats at the central table, facing each other across the polished Mahogany surface.

  ‘First of all,’ said Pelosus, ‘our understanding of the second city seems to be correct. There is overwhelming evidence that a complete stand-alone civilisation existed down there, heaven knows how long ago.’

  ‘People like us?’

  ‘It would seem so. The dwellings are the same as ours and most contain the remains of all the same sorts of things you can find in any house today in the streets of Bastion.’

  ‘Like what?’

  ‘Furniture, platters, cutlery, that sort of thing. In one house, I even saw the remains of a child’s cot and various playthings, so it is obvious that these people were family oriented. There are alehouses, market streets and even areas that seem to have been given over to the growing of plants. Everything you would expect to see in a thriving city.’

  ‘But?’

  ‘But that’s where it gets confusing,’ said Pelosus, ‘we searched all day yet there was no sign of any exit through the outer wall to the sea or any method of accessing the main Citadel. These people were entirely confined between the two outer walls with no way of getting out. Whatever it was they did, they were entirely self- sufficient.’

  ‘That’s impossible,’ said Helzac.

  ‘You would think so,’ said Pelosus, ‘but I found these.’ He opened his side bag and pulled out a range of items, placing them on the table before him.

  ‘Bones?’ said Helzac.

  ‘Jaw bones,’ confirmed Pelosus, ‘but the like of which we have never seen before.’ He picked up the largest and held it up. ‘This is the lower jaw bone of a large animal,’ said Pelosus ‘but not a Narwl or a Ranah, look at the teeth. The beasts of the sea that feed our people have either no teeth, or the pointed incisors of the predator. These are flat and ground down through wear.’

  ‘And?’

  ‘Teeth get worn through constant grinding of food,’ said Pelosus. ‘Our old people display similar symptoms after chewing their food for a lifetime. The teeth of this jawbone suggest this animal was not of the sea, but of the land.’

  ‘Preposterous,’ said Helzac, ‘there is not such a beast in existence nor has there ever been.’

  ‘I know it is difficult to conceive,’ said Pelosus, ‘but all the evidence is there. The back of the jawbone is constructed to hold powerful muscle, the front teeth are arranged for gripping and pulling rather than tearing of flesh, and the rear teeth are obviously worn through grinding foliage of some sort. I think this animal was a grazer of plants and was farmed by the people of the second city.’

  ‘You must be mistaken,’ said Helzac, ‘we would know of such things.’

  ‘With respect, Governor,’ said Pelosus, ‘we didn’t even know of the city, let alone how they lived. Yet as you say, the idea is indeed preposterous, so I sought further evidence and I found these.’ He reached in his bag and pulled out six food platters.

  ‘Platters of Mahogany,’ said Helzac, in awe, ‘these people must have been very rich or very stupid.’

  ‘On the contrary,’ said Pelosus, ‘it would seem that Mahogany was quite a common commodity. Almost all of the platters I saw are Mahogany as well as furniture, carvings and ornaments. In fact, there is very little made of Narwl bone in the entire place.’

  ‘Amazing,’ said Helzac, ‘we should arrange an expedition immediately to collect all this wealth.’

  ‘Sire?’

  ‘We can’t leave all this down there,’ said Helzac, ‘we should collect as much as we can while the waters are low. If there is as much as you say, we will have to start immediately. You will make the arrangements.’

  ‘Turn them over,’ said Pelosus quietly.

  ‘Sorry?’

  ‘Sire, turn the platters over,’ repeated Pelosus.

  Helzac reached out and did as instructed, his eyes locked on those of Pelosus in annoyance at the Stargazer’s tone of voice. He finally looked down, and his gaze stayed there for several seconds, before reaching out to turn the second platter, closely followed by the other four in quick succession. Finally, he looked up at Pelosus, his manner completely different. Each platter had a carving on the base and though the water had worn away much of the surface, enough detail was still visible to make out the outline.

  ‘What are they?’ he asked.

  Pelosus took a deep breath and blurted out the statement he knew was going to cause him trouble.

  ‘Land animals,’ he said, ‘the likes of which, we never knew existed.’

  ----

  Helzac was pacing back and fore across the room, muttering to himself as Pelosus waited patiently. He was staring at the carvings again, fascinated by their form for the hundredth time when Helzac joined him at the table.

  ‘You are sure of this?’ asked Helzac picking up one of the platters again.

  ‘Yes, Sire,’ said Pelosus. ‘If you look carefully you can just about make out their form.’ He picked up one of the plates and pointed out the outline.

  ‘This one in particular is very interesting as it has a carving of a man alongside, so we can see the relative size.’

  ‘It has four legs,’ said Helzac in awe, ‘and look at the head, it’s almost twice the size of a man’s and elongated. And the body, it is almost the length of a young Narwl.’

  ‘It is rather large,’ agreed Pelosus, ‘but what is more interesting is the fact that the man in the carving is leading the animal by some sort of tether. They seem to be domesticated.’

  ‘Is such a thing possible?’ asked Helzac. ‘Could we tame the beasts of the sea to come when called? The people would never go hungry again if so.’

  ‘I don’t know about that,’ said Pelosus, ‘but these pictures present more questions than answers.’

  ‘And do you have a theory?’

  ‘I do,’ said Pelosus, ‘though it is very controversial and may cost me my head.’

  ‘We are alone,’ said Helzac, ‘and I give you my word that your views will remain private, no matter how strange.’

  Pelosus considered carefully. Though Helzac was a brute of a man, he was known as fair and a man of honour. If he gave his word, then he meant it.

  ‘Okay, Sire,’ said Pelosus, ‘I will tell you, but they are only theories at this point.’

  ‘Continue,’ said Helzac.

  ‘
Well, first of all, these platters seem to be a set and deliberately portray six different animals, ranging from the large one you have in front of you, right down to a small version that stands no higher a man’s shin. The very fact that they are inscribed onto platters says to me that these were food animals. Along with the evidence of the jawbones and the large open spaces between the houses, I have concluded that they were indeed farmed for their meat and grazed on some sort of plant life grown purposely for their fodder.’

  ‘Seems like an expensive hobby,’ said Helzac. ‘Grow valuable food just to give it to something else that then becomes food anyway. Why not simply eat the crops?’

  ‘Who knows?’ asked Pelosus, ‘it may be the output of the meat was greater than a few bushels of plant life, it may be the taste or texture; we may never know, but suffice to say there is evidence that supports this theory.’

  ‘Okay, we will go with this,’ said Helzac.

  ‘The problem is,’ continued Pelosus, ‘I can’t see how they could have evolved thus in the confines of the city. Life takes tens of thousands of years to evolve, yet these platters depict at least six different species right here within the Citadel.’

  ‘That’s easy,’ said Helzac, ‘they could have come here like us, on the back of the great Narwl.’

  Pelosus stared at the Governor in silence, wondering how far he could take this conversation without raising the man’s ire.

  ‘You do not talk, Pelosus,’ said Helzac quietly, ‘have your theories come to an end or have I said something that causes you concern?’

  ‘Sire, what I am about to say is controversial and has cost many people their lives throughout history.’

  ‘You are talking about the blasphemies?’ suggested Helzac.

  ‘I am,’ said Pelosus.

  Helzac considered for a moment before sitting back and folding his arms across his huge chest.

  ‘Okay, Pelosus,’ he said, ‘we have come this far, we may as well get this all out in the open. Tell me everything you know, everything you have heard and everything you surmise.’

  ----

  ‘Sire, as you are aware, our scrolls tell us that tens of thousands of years ago our ancestors roamed the ocean on the back of the great Narwl, the biggest beast ever to exist. Eventually, after a heartfelt prayer from the priests at the time, Arial, the Six-fingered Saint, descended from heaven and caused the Citadel to arise from the waters, giving us a permanent and bountiful home. However, within the underbelly of Bastion’s population there have always been stories about an alternative existence. One where animals such as those depicted on the platters ran free in never ending spaces where a man can walk for days without sight of stone walls. Of places where wood grows straight out of the ground as weed grows from the seabed, and of fresh water flowing freely along the ground where any man can drink without paying the tally.’