by Robin Roseau
"Nothing to burn. One hundred feet of stone."
"True," I said.
"So they'll run out of, well, whatever it is that dragons breathe that lets them breathe fire."
"Or, in the case of invaders from over the mountains?"
"They might have their own light supplies, but they won't last forever, and it's very hard to move around these caverns with nothing but a lamp you carry with you. If they were real invaders. But this is a drill."
"Right," I said. "What do invaders from over the mountains want?"
"We're not sure, but probably virgins."
"Or the Heart of the Heart."
"Or the Heart of the Heart, but no one knows it's there."
"There were a hundred people there the last time I was there."
"Only sixty," she said. "And none of them would breathe a word. You know that, Yalla. We've held these caverns for a thousand years or longer, and the Heart of the Heart has never been invaded."
"But the caverns have?"
"Yes."
"Why is Vérundia so careful that Ralalta doesn't know I'm here? It must be common knowledge where this place is. Everyone in Alteara must know."
"It's not unknown, I would say."
"We've had pilgrims here."
"They arrive the same way your maid did. And we have other places, far more public places. Those are the places most people believe we use. There are three large abbey's, including one in the mountains. We let your maid believe that is where she was taken. Once you come into your full power, you will perform services there."
"Even if I haven't agreed to stay?"
"Even then. We'll be very careful, as you can imagine."
"I won't pester you for more information if you answer one question honestly."
"No promises."
"If you don't answer, I'll continue to pester," I said. "Should I be frightened?"
"It's a drill," she said automatically. Then she paused, knowing I wasn't going to take that answer seriously. "There might only be one or two dragons, and they could be lured easily by the scent of a virgin. Or it could be a herd of dragons. Yalla, if we tell you we're leaving, and we seem a little frantic about it, then yes, that's when it's time to be afraid. Not before. Now we're just cautious."
"Thank you. For that answer, you are allowed to be closer to the bed, but neither in nor on.
She moved back and rested her arms on the edge of the bed, lowering her chin. "Pushing it already, I see." But I offered her one of the pillows.
I didn't push it further, but she looked scared.
* * * *
It was hours later. I had long relented, and all of us were piled on my bed, Féla and Naddí refusing to leave. "You might need us," they had said. Sleep had claimed us, but then there was sound, and we were all suddenly awake.
"Quiet," Larien said into my ear. "Into the closet."
I didn't fight, although they acted like they expected me to. They bundled me into the closet, but they didn't sit on me. "Keep her quiet," Larien said. Then she and Terél stepped out, closing the door.
I couldn't hear a thing.
We were only in the closet for a few minutes before the door opened. "A messenger," Larien said. "The drill continues."
"Has anyone been hurt in this drill?" I asked.
"A few banged shins," Larien said. "Nothing significantly worse than that."
"We should be helping," I said. "You know, to lure the dragons away."
"Dragons?" Naddí asked.
"You know, the virgin-hunting dragons we're simulating in this drill," I said.
"Oh. Those dragons," she said. "If they're looking for virgins, we're safe."
"The guards-"
She snorted. "Definitely safe," she said.
"Told you," Larien said. "Come on."
“I’m pretty sure I’m the one who told you,” I countered.
We headed back to my bed, but I was too scared to sleep. "Will you tell me what the messenger said?"
"We should expect to be here for a while longer," Larien said. "They decided to run a long drill."
"Do you swear no one has gotten hurt?"
"No one has gotten significantly hurt."
"Or eaten by dragons."
"Definitely no one has been eaten by the dragons," she said.
"There isn't much food in here, and not even that much water."
"We have more water. The messenger brought some. They'll do something about getting food out to everyone soon, but that's tricky."
"I suppose dragons can smell cooking fires."
"Yes. It might not be hot food."
"That's not a problem for me. Or I can go a few days. A week or two wouldn't kill me."
"It won't come to that," she said. "There are stores deep below."
"Did we get a message out?" I asked.
"One has been sent," Larien said. "Unless the dragons know a whole lot more about our caverns than they possibly could, the messenger will be able to slip past."
"We should try to sleep," Terél said. "Yalla, if you lie on your stomach, I'll rub your back for you."
"You know, of everyone here, I am probably more capable of dealing with deprivation."
"Perhaps, but you're going to let me help you sleep, because doing so will help me sleep."
* * * *
If everyone else slept, I don't know. Several hours later I was rushed to the closet again, but pulled back out seconds later. It was Daraminesha. She had supplies for us, which she delivered before slipping out.
The minute she was gone, I grabbed Larien by the arm and dragged her into the closet with me. I closed the door and spat, "Why is the acolyte running around while there are six of us in hiding? Answer me."
"You promised you wouldn't pester me for information."
"This is going to get a whole lot uglier if you don't answer me, Larien," I said. "She's a child! If nothing else, you should have made her stay here where, supposedly, we're safe."
"There are no dragons in this portion of the caverns," she said. "They have been lured elsewhere by people who are not children. There are teams protecting the Heart of the Heart. There is one small team prepared to lure people away from the library. And there are teams protecting the other most valued asset we have."
"Me."
"You."
"I'm not the high priestess, Talien."
"Your mother was certainly a priestess, and our former high priestess is the only one missing. There is no other explanation. She taught you the words. You have the hair. You are the high priestess. Yalla, if they take you, it wouldn't be to kill you. It wouldn't even be to isolate you until you die. They would take you, and they would put children in you, and they would keep the children. And the grandchildren. And so on, and so on, and the line would not jump. And so you will let us keep you safe."
"The Goddess-"
"It happened once before."
"And yet, my mother was here."
"So you admit your mother was here."
"And yet, she was here," I repeated.
"Plague, we believe, or possibly death during childbirth. We went five generations with no high priestess, and the country suffered for it. The order suffered for it."
"Now I'm scared."
"If I tell you to do something, Yalla, you must do it. Swear."
"I do not believe I have it in me to abandon anyone, Talien. And that's what you would order, isn't it? I won't promise. I'm sorry."
"Then I will do what is necessary. I hope you won't hate me afterwards."
"I guess we'll see."
* * * *
We remained hidden in my room for three more days. We didn't see Daraminesha after the second of those, and I hoped she was safe. Larien wouldn't tell me.
But then Larien and Terél began making packs. They were making a hash of it, so I said, "I have more experience with this. Are we staying together?"
"We aren't going anywhere yet, but I expect us to stay together, unless someone has to s
erve as a decoy."
"Larien-"
"They aren't killing anyone."
"Not yet. Have they caught anyone?"
"I couldn't say."
"I assume that means yes. Do we know where they're keeping them?"
"We're not talking about that."
"I'll make the packs. You don't know what you're doing. Leave it to the girl of the horse people."
And so using some of my clothes for material, I made up seven packs, because we had the two guards as well. I kept some of the food out but divided the rest, then searched my quarters to see what else should go into the pack. There was only one fire starter, though, and I asked Larien who should have it."
"You," she said.
We hid, but then late in what we guessed was night, one of the guards slipped out, and she didn't come back.
"We leave in a few hours," Larien said. "If we don't receive word."
* * * *
An hour later, the lights went out.
"No one move," Larien said. "Yalla, can you get to your fire starter without making a sound?"
"Yes."
"Get it. Terél, can you get the lamp?"
"Yes."
"Both of you move slowly and do not bump into anything. Crawl if you think that's best."
Crawling indeed sounded best. My pack was near, and I knew where the fire starter was. I'd packed it carefully because I would want to be able to find it in the pitch dark. And so it only took a moment. I worked carefully to open it, and then I made a single spark, enough for everyone to get their bearings.
"Thank you, Yalla," Terél whispered. "I couldn't find the lamp. I have it."
"Stay where you are," I said. "I saw you. Do you have the lamp secure?"
"It's secure. I'm kneeling."
I turned towards her. I made a second spark, fixed her location, and moved closer. I found her back with my hand a moment later.
"Turn towards me," I said. "Set the lamp on the floor."
I heard her set it down. I made a spark to see, then reached out carefully. By feel, I opened it and checked the wick. It was ready to light, so I brought the fire starter close. It only took a few tries before the lamp was lit.
"No one move," Larien said. "Terél, hood that. No more light than absolutely necessary. Yalla, put the fire starter back in your pack and get ready. Tell me when you're ready, then you can help the rest of us."
We moved slowly and in concert, Larien giving directions to us one by one. I helped everyone into her pack, and then we moved to the door.
"I've heard nothing," said Yovalla, the guard that remained. "Not a sound in hours."
"Hood the light completely. Crack the door and listen."
The room grew dark, although not entirely dark. Some light escaped the lamp, but very little. I heard the click of the door, and then we waited what seemed like forever but was probably ten minutes.
"Yovalla, outside and move right, then be prepared to take our rear. We'll be going left. Naddí and Féla, you are sworn to protect the high priestess. You will take our front. Terél or I will give directions, but if we are surprised in front, you know your duty."
"We do," said Féla.
"Yalla, please, please, please do not fight with me."
I didn't tell her I was scared.
"You're telling me we might abandon people."
"They haven't been killing anyone," Yovalla said.
"Do we know who they are?"
There was a good three seconds delay before Larien said, "No." And I knew then she was lying. "If they wanted to massacre us, they would have started by now. If we get you out, and the royal forces arrive, we can negotiate, lives for lives. This does not have the feel of a suicide mission. They will negotiate, but they cannot be allowed to have you in the bargain."
"I won't fight you, for now."
She sigh. "Yovalla, go. Everyone else be ready."
Yovalla slipped out the door then mostly closed it. I realized the door made no noise opening and closing, only the latch itself. I wondered how much maintenance that required. I wondered at the care.
We paused like that another minute or two, and then there was a scratch.
Larien said, "We're going to move efficiently. Silence is more important than haste. Enough light to see, Terél, but no more."
She opened the hood, and a dim beam of light poked out. Larien took my arm. "All right. Go."
Féla and Naddí stepped out first, then Terél, then lastly, Larien and I.
"Féla, first left."
And we set out.
* * * *
For what I thought might be two hours, we heard and saw no one. The only light was from the lamp that Terél carried. We moved deeper and deeper, stepping cautiously and stopping often to listen.
At one of the stops, Yovalla heard people behind us, faintly.
"I'll lead them away," she offered.
"In the dark?"
But she slipped away, and we moved deeper. And now we were five.
And then we were four, as Naddí turned left when we turned right. She would be luring people back up the direction we had come.
We descended deeper, then took a break to drink and have a bit to eat.
"Spill nothing," Larien said quietly. "Not one crumb."
"Where are we going?"
"One of the supply rooms," she said. "They'd have to search for a month to find it."
"How do you know where we are?"
"The day you vow you are one of us forever is the day we begin to teach you that."
"You would believe me?"
"Well, we expect the Goddess to be involved, and she would see into your heart."
We reached the supply room and never heard any other noises except those of the mountain itself. Once we were inside, Larien breathed a sigh of relief. "If we hear nothing, we stay here a week. By then, either the royal forces have arrived, or they have not, and we will decide then."
We took inventory. I put together beds on the floor, the four of us together. We set a rotation of guards, and we settled in.
Hostages
For four days, we heard nothing. Terél and Larien began to bicker. I had long grown quiet. I didn't know what was decided, but nothing changed.
Hours later, when they were both asleep and Féla had the watch, she quietly woke me. They hadn't been letting me take my turns, so I was surprised. She gestured me to be very quiet, and we moved to the far corner of the room. She whispered into my ear.
"We need to know what is going on. Larien and Terél can't agree, so I am going to go. Are you going to stop me?"
I turned to look into her eyes, barely light by the lamp. Then I whispered into her ear, "If they're killing people, would you tell me?"
She surprised me. She nodded.
"You can't possibly know where you're going."
She pulled my ear down. "Naddí and I are the queen's very best spies, Yalla. I do not know these passages well enough to have gotten us here, but I can leave and return, and I won't be followed."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"If you're wrong, you could die out there before anyone finds you."
"I'm not wrong. I know the secrets, just not all of them. If I go, Larien will be very angry with you."
"I can handle her."
"I think so, too, and better than Terél can."
"Do you have food and water?"
"Yes. I'll have to take a lamp, but there are four more. I set one there. It is ready to light, but the spark might wake Larien."
"I'll wait an hour."
She nodded, collected the lamp, and was as quiet as a mouse as she slipped from the room. I sat down near the door, leaning against it and listening for sounds, careful to avoid sleeping.
* * * *
"The lamp went out."
I didn't sleep, but I had zoned out, there in the dark. "I'll light it," I said.
It took only a moment. Terél and Larien were both sitting up and looking at me by t
he time I had it adjusted. I didn't look at them right away.
"How long has she been gone?" Larien asked, the words tight.
"I'm not sure. Maybe an hour or two."
"This is mutiny."
"She's a spy, Larien. Perhaps we should let her spy."
"It was not your decision or hers."
"And yet we made it anyway. We need to know, Larien, and she promised she could return undetected. She is risking only herself, and she knows the risks."
"It was unnecessary."
"Only you believe that," I said. "And you are not my queen."
She said nothing. Terél got up and worked on making a little breakfast for us. We ate quietly then I said, "I would like to sleep, but I want a promise you'll wake me when she gets back."
"I'll wake you," Terél promised me. I wouldn't have believed Larien.
* * * *
She didn't have to wake me. I woke when the door opened, and I was already blinking sleepily when Féla slipped back in. Larien turned to me and said, "You stay right there."
"Féla, you made a certain promise to me."
"They aren't," she said. They weren't killing anyone. Yet.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Not another word, Féla," Larien said. "I mean it." She turned back to me. "Do not move, or you will find yourselves tied up in that bed."
"Bully," I said. But I folded my hands in my lap and nodded.
The three slipped out of the room. They were gone a few minutes, five perhaps, maybe ten. Probably not ten. And then they slipped back in again. Larien looked at me.
"No one is hurt beyond bruises, at least that Féla could learn. For now we continue to wait. That is all I am telling you. Do not pester us for more."
Féla ate a little then curled up to sleep. A moment later, I curled around her. She looked over her shoulder at me. "It is about time you admit you wish to share a bed with me."
"Cute."
"Were you ever going to let us win you?"
"It was very, very close a few times," I said. "I just felt weird. It felt wrong."
"Why?"
"You're my maids. All right. I know that's not why you really came, but still..."
"So? We were willing. More than willing."
"Roll back over." We snuggled in, then I whispered into her ear. "It felt good," I told her. "I was afraid if you got me, it would be another conquest and you would move on. The game felt good, and I didn't want it to be over."
