Pelya thought she saw a movement in the distance to the right. She froze and looked at the shapes of more buildings, but didn’t see anything.
“What do you see?” Ebudae whispered, grasping Pelya’s lantern arm with her free hand.
“I thought I saw a flash of silver, but it was probably just a plant. It feels like someone’s watching us though.”
“Do you think we should go back?” she asked worriedly.
“No, I really want to see more and it was probably just my imagination.” A small part of Pelya did want to go back, but she wasn’t about to say so.
They continued moving slowly to the manor. Finding the door had decayed, they looked at each other and went inside with Pelya leading the way, her sword held in front of her to confront any danger.
***
Swirling, liquid-silver eyes watched the little human girls go into the building. The children posed no threat to her, but at that moment, the creature hated humans and wanted them all dead. She was also famished and they would make a most delightful snack. A low rumble of hunger emitted from deep within her belly and rolled across the dark cavern. It had come involuntarily and she hoped it wouldn’t startle the girls.
For now, they were not important no matter how tasty they might be. Every effort she had made to get into the city had been thwarted and, even more than hunger, exhaustion was crippling her. The accursed underground city and tunnels contained too many dangers for her to simply rest wherever she liked. However, the larger building the girls had come out of looked promising.
One moment the creature was standing in a dark doorway, the next it moved in a blur to stand against the academy door the girls had come from. Her hearing was supernatural and every word the girls uttered had reached them, especially the part about leaving the door unlocked. Locks were not her specialty and she didn’t want to waste magic casting a spell to open it, or deal with the noise of bashing it down.
She closed the door behind her after slithering rapidly inside. It was quiet and safe. A spider slid down a silken thread, but scurried back upon sensing the intruder. Another step moved her in a blur to the intersection of halls. The need to finish her task was overwhelming and she desperately wanted to lash out and destroy everything in her way, but such actions would be futile.
The hall to the left had the most potential, so she moved in a blur to the end of it. Stopping at the last intersection, she sensed a large room off a side passage. It would be a perfect place for her to rest awhile. Rats and insects in the area scurried for cover and a dangerous animal, called a hollow land squid, trembled in a corner, not having any way to escape. With any other creature, the squid would have stabbed it with poisonous tentacles and drained the prey’s mind of energy, leaving them stupid and helpless. Instead, it died in violent fashion as the mysterious intruder sated its hunger.
Another blur and she was at the entrance to the large room. It had probably been a ballroom at one time, but she didn’t realize that or even care. She could sleep there even though she would take up the entire room. Little effort was required to put wards up to alert her if anyone came. Then she transformed into her true self, curled up and went to sleep.
Perhaps the little girls would come explore the room so she could have a tasty bedtime dessert.
***
The manor was in terrible shape. Parts of the wall had fallen and there were holes in the ceiling where they could look up to the room above. The girls stepped carefully around debris, making their way to a staircase ahead of them. It looked a little bit like an ancient, rundown version of Lady Pallon’s manor.
A low rumbling sound rolled through the air, seeming to come from everywhere outside. They froze. Hair on the back of their necks stood straight and their blood temperature lowered a few degrees. Nothing moved for a minute, including them. When the hairs finally relaxed a little bit, they both let out deep sighs of relief. “What was that?” Pelya asked in dread.
“I don’t want to know. Should we run or hide?” They both stood staring straight ahead, fearful that if they looked for the source of the sound, they might find it.
“Let’s pretend we didn’t hear anything,” Pelya suggested in a shaky voice.
“That sounds like a good idea. I don’t think we’re going to be able to go up those stairs, so we should try a couple of rooms. I think it’ll be safer in here for now.”
“Good plan,” Pelya agreed. Their lanterns showed that the staircase had indeed collapsed on both sides after the first landing, making it impossible to go to the upper levels. They walked through a doorway to the right where the parlor would be in Lady Pallon’s manor, only to find it empty. The shape of it was more like a dining room. Going further, they found the kitchen with empty ovens and cooking stoves that hadn’t been used to prepare food for anyone in centuries.
The sight of everything made Pelya sad. On one hand, it was extraordinary that it was all so well preserved and she wondered what it would have been like when new and clean. The people must have been fascinating. On the other hand, nobody had lived there in forever and she mourned the loss of those people. She was curious as to why everyone had to die. It would make much more sense if they could just live forever.
They exited the kitchen and turned left into another hallway. More of the glowing plants grew in crevices and on the ceiling and they slowed down to look at the different types, touching the leaves to feel the smooth texture. They were surprised to discover that the plants were chilly to the touch for no reason they could see.
A doorway to the left led to a big room. There was an empty fireplace on the right wall and another entrance ahead. A rotten odor emanated from the room. The usual debris was in a few piles on the floor especially near the walls. “This might have been some sort of a room for entertaining,” Ebudae said. “They could have put a bard on a stage along the wall and had seats, or cleared the furniture for dancing.” She spun around in a circle with arms in dance hold.
In the light of the spinning lantern, Pelya saw milky eyes rising from the debris. “Danger!” She ran forward while pulling her sword back for a strike and swinging it around at the creature in one smooth motion. Ebudae dropped to the ground and rolled out of the way.
The creature Pelya hit had rough skin, speckled brown and green in color. It howled for an instant, showing black teeth that glistened in the light. The howl stopped as the sword cut through the right side of its neck all the way through the left shoulder and thin, clawed forearm. Dark blood sprayed from the blade, splattering in a dimly glistening diagonal pattern against the walls and floor behind the creature.
Pelya was stunned by how little resistance the blade met. It was as though she were slicing through soft butter to put on her bread. Ebudae screamed behind her and Pelya quickly turned to see another one lurching toward the wizardess. Its body was five thin, mushy ovals squished together in a way that had made it look like a pile of trash when curled up on the ground. Two pairs of short knobby hind legs thrust it forward while four sets of the tiny arms with three claws at the end reached lamely for its prey.
Ebudae fell on her back while fearfully reaching into a pouch for something. Pelya rushed to her side and slashed upward into the creature just as it loomed over the wizardess. She expected the blade to lodge into the creature, especially since she was swinging one-handed in order to keep the lantern in her other hand. Instead, the sword cut it in half. More blood sprayed in an arc, this time up toward the ceiling. It was astonishing and Pelya noticed it with a part of her mind that was observing everything and filing away details.
She used as much leverage as possible in the swing and followed with her shoulder in an attempt to knock the monster to the side, away from her friend. While Pelya was large for eleven, her size wasn’t enough to budge the mottled creature very much as it began to fall to its death.
Luckily, Ebudae quickly recovered her senses and rolled away toward Pelya. The creature’s body tumbled over where she had just been with the top half
splitting to the side.
Ebudae came to her feet, threw something and said a keyword. A rune ball flew threw the air and hit a third creature that was closing in on Pelya. Green flames burst, rapidly spreading over the monster’s body. A putrid smell assaulted their noses and caused them to gag while the creature’s scream crawled up their skin and gave them chills.
They dashed back into the hallway, glancing to see the creature thrashing in anguish. The green flames cast surreal shadows throughout the room and hallway. There were no other monsters the girls could see. They weren’t about to look for anymore, and ran back down the hall toward the kitchen.
Once there, they headed back through the dining room and into the main hall. The girls rushed out of the front doorway before turning and looking back, fearing that something would follow them. Ebudae held up her lantern. “You’ve got some of their blood on you. Is it burning or anything?”
The question alarmed Pelya. She looked at her tunic, which had splatters on it. She felt moisture on her face and wiped some of the sticky blood off. There didn’t seem to be any burning. “No . . .” she answered tentatively. “Do you think I’ll be alright?”
“I think so.” Ebudae wiped some blood off Pelya’s cheek and rubbed it between her fingers. “It doesn’t seem poisonous or anything. Most creatures really aren’t, but there’s always a few.”
“What were they?” Pelya asked. “You have some blood on you too.” She wiped a few drops off Ebudae’s face.
“I have no idea. I haven’t seen them before. They looked really bad though.” She stuck her tongue out in disgust. “They smelled terrible too.”
From their right came a snuffling sound and they turned to see a shadowy shape low to the ground thirty feet away or so. It was slinking toward them, its yellow eyes staring maliciously. “I want to run now,” Ebudae said fearfully in Pelya’s ear.
They dashed for the steps of the academy together. Pelya began to pull ahead, but paced herself to Ebudae’s speed once realizing the wizardess wasn’t keeping up. The creature made high-pitched squeals as it chased. Pelya felt it getting close quickly, so she swung the sword at it over her shoulder. The magical blade cut through the snout without resistance, just as it had the other monsters. The beast screeched in pain and tumbled to a stop.
Other squeals came from the right and left as the girls ran up the stairs. A pack of the creatures was hunting them after hearing the screams from the manor. Luckily, they slowed cautiously after seeing their cohort hurt. Pelya let Ebudae get to the door and slip inside first. She turned and held her sword out to keep them at bay while backing inside.
The wizardess quickly closed and locked the door as soon as Pelya was in. They rested against it while catching their breath. When one of the creatures scratched on the door, it startled them and they made a mad dash for the library. Pelya looked around for danger while Ebudae unlocked and opened the door.
Once inside, they set their lanterns on the table and sat down against one of the bookshelves. Pelya took the backpack off and set it to the side. “I need to clean the sword before I sheath . . .” She studied the blade, only to notice that it didn’t have a drop of blood or anything else on it.
“There are all kinds of features magical blades have,” Ebudae stated. “It looks like that one always stays clean and sharp.”
“Sharp?” Pelya repeated incredulously. “I cut through those things and barely felt any resistance. I’m not that strong, you know.” Pelya waved the sword in the air. “Even though I practice all the time, I’m only eleven. It takes a while for muscles to grow. Daddy would have cut through them with a wooden sword, but he’s stronger than anybody.” She sheathed the sword
“He’s not stronger than anybody. There are men at Carnival with bulging muscles that can lift all sorts of things,” Ebudae disagreed.
“Daddy is stronger than anybody because he knows how to use his strength better than all those muscle-headed dummies.” Pelya glared at her friend, angry that she would disagree.
Ebudae looked ready to protest, but stopped at the look on Pelya’s face. Then she sighed and looked at her hands in her lap. “I wish I had a daddy like you.”
Pelya grabbed her in a big hug. They held onto each other, giving support for the danger they had just escaped and for childhoods that, to them, seemed terribly tragic.
They gathered their things to go back to the manor, looking forward to cleaning up and getting a hot meal. There was no danger in the hallway since the creatures couldn’t get through the locked entry. The rest of the journey back to the stairs and up to Ebudae’s rooms was uneventful.
One of the wonderful luxuries the manor had was a water pump in the bathroom. Ebudae had a rune stone that heated the water and they were able to wash off the blood and dirt from the day’s events. As Pelya hadn’t brought any other clothes, Ebudae loaned her a dark blue dress that was a little short, but not too frilly. The warrior hated it at first, but after a while found it relaxing.
They went down to the ancient academy two more times that week, but never into the city. Ebudae showed Pelya certain details about reading and writing in some of the old books. It opened new paths of knowledge to be explored and they spent quite a bit of time in the library. When Frath finally came to take Pelya back to the barracks, both girls hugged fiercely and vowed to see each other whenever possible.
Chapter 16
Uncle Bobbell wasn’t well liked in the Guard. He was quieter than most and tended towards sullenness. It didn’t stop him from being one of Pelya’s favorite people though. Bobbell was one of those individuals who was destined to be a private all his life and preferred it that way. He did the job well, but not enough that someone would notice him for a promotion. His personality was such that nobody really wanted to be around him if they could avoid it.
He was only five foot seven, a couple of inches taller than Pelya. His thin mustache and goatee were black like his oily hair and he had a grin that rose a little higher on the right side of his face below a cheek that jumped with an involuntary tic now and then.
Frath and Bobbell had both been raised in Dralin’s miserable orphanages and entered the Guard’s Program for Criminal Youths. They developed a strong friendship despite being completely different in just about every way. They were no longer in the same squad, but kept the friendship. Bobbell belonged to a squad that handled law enforcement among wizards. It was by far the most dangerous job in the City Guard because the wizards of Dralin tended not to obey many laws. The fact that wizards in Dralin tended to be especially powerful and crafty compounded that problem.
“What shall we do today, my little viper?” Bobbell asked Pelya in a voice that sounded like a tiny hammer tapping a sheet of metal. It was early morning, two days after Pelya had come back to the barracks from Lady Pallon’s estate. They sat on a bench outside a small café a distance east of the Guard District, eating fruity pastries to start out their morning.
“Why do you call me your little viper, Uncle Bobbell?” Pelya asked out of curiosity. He had done so ever since she could remember.
“Because you’re quick as a snake, just as deadly and nobody notices you until they’re right on top of you,” he answered with a grin that twisted the right side of his mouth upward more than usual. “You didn’t answer the question,” he pointed out. “What do you want to do?”
Pelya leaned in and whispered, “I was hoping you’d teach me more about picking advanced locks.”
“Hush. Let’s do something else. You already know almost as much as me.” He stuck his tongue out at her
She returned the gesture. “Fine. I want to go to Wizard’s Mall.” Pelya knew he would never take her there, but she wanted to go anyway. Wizard’s Mall District contained shops with just about every single type of magical item possible including the rarest artifacts in the world. As with everything in Dralin, it was dangerous. The streets were crowded and curvy and there were endless alleyways, making it easy to get lost. In Dralin, people who go
t lost generally stayed that way.
Amazingly, Bobbell didn’t say no right away. Instead, he stared into the distance, the tic in his cheek working double time. The sky was clear and the air was cool from overnight thunderstorms that had washed the streets clean. Birds sang in the branches of green trees that lined the street. The Blossom District was a large residential area with nice houses, quite a few parks and gardens, and a relatively low crime rate considering it was in Dralin. In any other city, the rate would be appalling.
“You have to stay by my side the entire time. If you go off on your own, I’ll bend you over my knee and paddle your butt no matter who your father is. Are we clear?” he asked seriously.
“Yes, Uncle Bobbell. I know to stay with you at all times,” Pelya said immediately and earnestly. There was no way she would disobey. She couldn’t believe he might actually take her.
“Unless I fall. Remember, the code of the Guard requires at least one person to report. If a unit is ambushed, one member must always report,” Bobbell recited. It was a Guard policy that someone must remain alive to report the death of comrades. They had to drill it into each and every member because most had a natural instinct to fight to the death.
“You’re not going to fall, Uncle Bobbell. We don’t have to go if it’s that dangerous,” Pelya replied quickly. “I didn’t really think you’d say yes.”
“Nah. It’ll be fine. You’ll enjoy the Wizard’s Mall a lot and I saw something there last week I wanted to buy you. Come, my little viper.” He stood and took her hand. “We’ll go through the Tower District and walk around some of the crazy streets along the way.”
“You don’t have to buy me anything, Uncle!” Pelya protested in dismay. “Everyone buys me things and I don’t need anything else. Plus I have my own money.” Guard members didn’t make a lot, especially privates. She probably had more money than he had ever earned.
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