climbing at home,’ I encourage myself as I hug the rocks in front of me.
I close my eyes for a moment and try to calm my frazzled mind. When I reopen them, I look back up the pathway and find that my guide is too far ahead to be of any help should I slip. For being in charge of my well-being, he’s not doing that great of a job. Then again, he doesn’t really act like he cares.
Moving quicker than I probably should, I gradually close the distance between us until I reach him again halfway up. He glances at me when I do, giving me a disapproving scowl.
“You know, you don’t look much like a princess.”
The disdainful expression I return prompts him to keep climbing. It’s true, though. All of my sisters had a natural beauty about them with dark curly hair, rich complexion, large hazel eyes, and strong features, whereas I ended up with a much plainer look, lighter wavier hair, rounder cheeks, and browner eyes. I didn’t mind at the time because it resulted in a lot less attention, not that the youngest of four princesses gets much anyway. It was nice to be able travel in and around the city and blend in, to not be seen as an heir of the kingdom.
Still, how the soldier said it makes me feel like he is disappointed, as though I am not living up to something he expects me to be. Wade suggested that people won’t know or care who I am in this place, but it doesn’t seem like that will be the case. I’m afraid of what that might mean for me.
Once all of us reach the top, I rejoin Minerva, who immediately smiles at me when our eyes meet.
“Wasn’t so bad, was it?” she says.
“Not wearing a children’s harness,” I joke back.
A sudden, loud roar then bellows from the inside of the mountain, startling me. I turn away from Minerva to face it, nearly stumbling backwards over the ledge before she grabs and steadies me. I look at her expecting some amount of concern, but once again, she seems completely unbothered.
“What was that?” I gasp.
“The lions.”
We walk through a dark corridor and arrive in a room filled with six of them, each locked inside separate metal enclosures dug into the rock. Their elegance and ferocity stun me, all of them staring at me with hungry eyes and wild demeanors. This is hardly what I had expected Sanctuary to be like.
It is surreal to finally see a lion. Kalepo has an animal park, but lions have never been a part of it. I wasn’t even sure they were real beyond the myths priests tell, like the one describing winged lions that dwell in the mountains and protect sacred treasures. There are paintings of them in the temple, but they hardly capture the magnificence of the beasts before me.
“They’re here to protect us,” Minerva whispers to me, predicting my question.
“How are they supposed to do that when they’re locked away?” I puzzle.
“They are a last defense. If Sanctuary’s outer strongholds are taken and the enemy is making its way up the mountain, the cages will be opened to give us time as we retreat further up.”
I am about to ask what would stop the lions from simply chasing after them, but then I notice a steep, narrow stairway and a ladder at the far end of the room leading to an elevated platform and doorway.
“Have they ever been let loose?”
“Not intentionally,” Minerva answers hesitantly. “Accidents do happen. It’s hard to keep a beast like that in chains.”
As we work our way across the room and up the stairs and ladder, Minerva explains to me that Sanctuary is not a natural cave, but a set of manmade caverns. Those who dug them were desperate to find a place of refuge to the north beyond the canyons. They originally tried to settle in the grasslands near the marshes, but that was a costly mistake since the terrifying creatures from the marshes also use the grasslands as their own hunting grounds. At some point, it was determined that the only possible safe haven was the mountain itself.
The network of caverns was small at first since it took a long time to dig directly into the rock, but over the ages, it became an elaborate labyrinth so complex that no one has a complete grasp of just how big it is or where its many tunnels go.
“Why isn’t there a map or something?” I ask.
“When the darkness in the south began to spread,” Minerva explains, “people started disappearing, here as well. That was before Sanctuary had guards or an army to speak of. Anastasia took charge at some point during that period and decided that for the safety of everyone, people would be limited to the more open areas within the mountain. We soldiers seal off the rest.”
“Anastasia must also be very old,” I point out.
“Ancient is probably a better way of putting it,” Minerva suggests. “Some people believe that she is one of the oldest surviving rangers, but from what I’ve gathered from the few rangers I’ve come across, I’m not so convinced. She keeps us safe, though, and has for ages, so I trust her, whatever she is.”
We continue through a number of large rooms similar to the first, each filled with more beasts than the last. It must be difficult keeping them all fed, but based on their thickness, their keepers seem to manage just fine. I ask about it, and Minerva explains that much of what is hunted in the north is for the lions. It sounds like an overwhelming task, but I suppose it’s worth it for the peace of mind they provide.
After climbing up another level, I expect to see more of the same but am instead greeted with hundreds of wandering eyes, those belonging to Sanctuary’s residents. I am immediately taken aback by how poverty-stricken they look. There is a great variety to their attire, some of the clothing seeming very peculiar, but what all of it has in common is that it appears dirty and worn-down from years of use.
Most of the people do little more than glance at me before returning to whatever they were doing, but a few keep their eyes on me as I walk among them. I avoid staring back and instead study the cavern itself, which is much larger and has higher ceilings than the areas I was in before. It also has a natural look and shape to it, as though this hollow already existed within the mountain before being tunneled into.
Unlike the entrance to Sanctuary, the cavern here spreads out into a wide openness, one with dark areas too distant and spacious for the light from the many fires and torches to reach. People wander around freely, some of them disappearing into faintly lit hallways that I assume go to other open areas.
The soldier in charge of us, whose name I still don’t know, leads us on a long journey through the almost endless mass of people before finally coming to a stop in front of another dimly lit hallway. He then turns and looks at Minerva.
“I’ll take her in to see Anastasia. The rest of you are dismissed for the day. Return here for new orders in the morning.”
The discharged soldiers seem eager to leave and excitedly return the way we came. Minerva, on the other hand, seems hesitant, winking at me before following the others much more casually.
“Follow me,” my escort then says.
Beyond the hallway is an open room with what looks like a throne at its far end. It seems out of place here, as if anyone would want to take pride in being ruler over a kingdom such as this, not that the dust covering it suggests it is still used.
“Where is Severin?” a mild, calm voice calls out from a dark corridor to my right.
A tall woman then emerges, her long blonde hair glistening in the candlelight so white it almost seems surreal. Really everything about her appears majestic, almost angelic. Even in her humble, worn-out clothes, she doesn’t look like she belongs in this place. This could only be Anastasia.
“He had to stay behind,” the soldier explains, apprehension in his voice as though he is afraid of how she might react, “but he wanted you to know that he will be back before dark.”
“Very well, leave us for now,” she says coolly, turning and looking at me as he walks out of the room without a word. “You must be Kaela.”
Although it shouldn’t surprise me that she knows my name, I’m troubled by how she says it, like she takes no pleasure of meeting me and is simply stating a
fact.
“And you must be Anastasia,” I reply sharply.
“You have a bit of an attitude,” she remarks.
“I’m just tired of being passed around like an object.”
“Do understand,” she begins much more empathetically, “that the lack of politeness here has little to do with you, so don’t take it personally. Kindness is simply not a trait that gets you very far in this world beneath the clouds. I’m not sure what it’s like where you come from, but this place is one where brevity and function are much more important than making sure that someone’s feelings don’t get hurt.”
I suppose that that makes sense. When I think back to growing up in Kalepo, I recall that courtesy and etiquette were sometimes more burdensome than helpful. Maybe it will be nice to be in a place where things work differently.
“Wade informed me that he didn’t tell you very much about the plains, which is what I requested of him, so let me do you the courtesy of briefly explaining a couple things to you.”
“When did you talk to him?” I blurt out, more interested in learning where he is than in hearing her answers.
“Not long ago, but if you’re wondering, he’s already gone. With his debt repaid, I asked him to leave.”
“What debt?”
“That is between him and me, but to be short, it is not customary for Sanctuary to harbor rangers. Doing so puts everyone here in great danger. He was desperate, however, so I made an
The Outcast and the Survivor: Chapter Four Page 4
