I heard a series of shuffling footsteps behind me, and Dash called out, “Guys, I want you all to form a chain. Hold hands so you don’t get lost.”
A body slammed into mine, and I heard a deep grunt. “Blitz?” I guessed.
“In the flesh,” he replied. Feeling down my arm, Blitz grasped a hold of my free hand. Like Dash, his hand was large and warm, but there were no tingles buzzing between us. Maybe I couldn’t blame the darkness after all.
Vixen and Coop were bringing up the rear of the group, and we waited until they had linked up with Blitz before we started moving once more, heading deeper into the cave.
Dash took the lead and kept close to the wall as we stumbled along. The pathway was slowly sloping downward, but it was impossible to know how far it went or how far we’d come. It made me nervous to think about what was in the darkness surrounding us. But I couldn’t hear anything, so I hoped that meant we were alone.
I lost all notion of time as we continued through the darkness. We could have been walking for five minutes or five hours, and I wouldn’t have been surprised. The darkness was exhausting, but I perked up when I noticed a small speck of light in the distance. “Do you guys see that?” I asked, my excitement making my words come out in a rush. I had no idea if the light signaled something positive or dangerous, but, either way, I felt ready to rush toward it.
“Just because it’s dark doesn’t mean I’m blind, claus,” came Blitz’s response.
I ignored him. “What do you think it is?”
Nobody answered right away. They must have all been as clueless as I was.
“Well, whatever it is,” Coop eventually said, “I’m guessing that’s our destination.”
I swallowed down a lump in my throat, feeling both nervous and scared about what we would find when we reached it.
It wasn’t until we were only a few meters from the light that we could finally see where it was coming from. Two large stone tables stood on either side of the tunnel, and a stone bowl was perched on top of each one. The light seemed to be emanating from within them.
I went over to one of the bowls, and as I looked inside, I could see it was filled with a substance that looked like molten lava. The lava only dimly lit the small area we were standing in, but it was still a welcome relief from the pitch-black we’d been trekking through.
“What do you think they’re for?” Vixen asked, as she studied one of the bowls. “Surely they don’t just sit here…”
“I don’t think they do,” Coop said, moving in front of Vixen to get to the bowl. He crouched down and looked underneath it before crossing to the other side of the tunnel and doing the same to the bowl I was standing by. He let out a happy grunt and stood straight once more.
“I think I know what they do,” he said. He looked over at Vixen who was standing closest to the other bowl. “Vixen, there’s a lever under the bowl. Can you see it?”
Vixen bent over and looked where Coop was pointing. “Yes,” she finally said. “You think we need to pull it down?”
“That’s exactly what I think,” Coop replied.
“Okay…” she said. She reached for the lever, and Coop did the same on the other side of the tunnel. The two of them pushed their levers down at the same time, and a moment later, a loud groaning noise filled the silent tunnel. Vixen and Coop both leaped back as the two bowls of lava slowly upturned, and the molten liquid poured over the edges of the containers and fell toward the ground like fiery waterfalls.
“Ah, Coop, are you sure about this?” Vixen asked.
“Just wait and see,” he replied.
The lava hit the blackened ground and flowed away from us, running downhill in what appeared to be two troughs that lined the tunnel walls. The lava gained speed as it raced away from us, lighting the darkened passage as it went. I waited for the flow to stop, but the lava continued pouring from the bowls like it was never ending.
“It’s an ancient magic,” Coop explained. “A long time ago, lava light was used all through the Northern Realm. The lava will stop pouring, and the light will cease once the bowls are turned upright again.”
“Pretty cool,” Blitz said. “Who knew those books you always have your nose stuck in would come in handy?”
“Um, everyone,” Vixen replied. “Certainly, more handy than the hours you’ve spent in the gym.”
“Please don’t offend the muscles,” Blitz said, patting them like they needed consoling.
Vixen scoffed while Dash started off down the tunnel. I quickly moved to follow him. I was starting to understand the group dynamics a bit better, and I got the feeling that Blitz loved riling people up—even in the most inappropriate places.
The passage was far easier to navigate with the lava light, but as we followed it, the air turned cold, and shivers ran over my skin. I almost felt like I was being watched though I could see down the tunnel quite clearly now, and there was nobody there.
I tried to dismiss the feeling, but my skin tingled so intensely that it was almost impossible to ignore. I looked around at the others, wondering if they were experiencing something similar. They all seemed like their normal selves though, and not one of the shifters seemed concerned.
“Come closer.” A breathy whisper brushed past my ear.
I stopped and looked around. “Did you guys hear that?”
Dash stopped just ahead of me and turned. “I didn’t hear anything,” he replied.
“Me neither,” Coop added.
“I swear I heard a whisper.”
“You’re probably just imagining things,” Vixen replied. “Places like this will do that to you.”
I felt certain I wasn’t imagining anything, but I nodded and continued walking.
“We asked you to come closer.” Another whisper drifted through the air as I walked.
This time, I’d definitely heard something. It was louder than before, but still none of the others had noticed.
“Free us…” Another wispy voice implored.
“Dash, I really am hearing things,” I said, trying not to whimper. The creepy voices were freaking me out.
“Maybe it’s because she’s a claus,” Coop said. “She’s got different magic to us.”
“But what could she be hearing?” Dash asked.
Before anyone could respond, movement caught the corner of my eye. As I turned toward the wall, my eyes grew wide with horror. The cave wall was no longer solid, and the surface of it rippled with movement. It wasn’t the movement that scared me though—rather what seemed to be trapped beneath the rocky surface.
There were thousands of faces entombed within the walls, and the rock yielded to whatever creatures were stuck there as it stretched around their moving features like latex. Their mouths opened wide and gaped at me, and I could see hands pressing against the rock, reaching out to me.
I screamed and started to run back the way we’d come, but Dash grabbed me in his arms as I tried to get away.
“What’s wrong, Clio?” he said.
“There are beings in the walls,” I said, my voice quavering. “I think they’re stuck in there.” My body was trembling as fear raced up my spine.
“I can’t see anything,” Vixen said.
“There’s nothing there, Clio,” Dash added.
“It must be the prisoners,” Coop guessed. “I wonder why we can’t see them.”
“I don’t care why,” I replied. “Just get me out of here.”
Dash kept his arm around me, guiding me forward and hugging me to his chest. It didn’t stop the eerie whispers from reaching my ears though. There was so much begging and pleading it was agony to listen to. I kept my eyes squinted tightly shut, allowing Dash to lead the way. The voices were one thing, but seeing the trapped beings was too much. I didn’t understand why I was the only one who could sense them though.
Listening to their desperate pleas was enough to drive anyone crazy, and I wasn’t sure how long I could endure it for. But as we walked, their cries suddenly cea
sed. A ringing silence replaced the voices, and Dash came to a stop.
“Whoa,” he said. The awe in his voice was enough to convince me to open my eyes once more.
We were no longer in a tunnel, but instead, we stood at the entrance to a huge cavern. A narrow pathway ran the perimeter of the huge circular cave while the center of the room was hollowed in an endlessly deep hole that plummeted into darkness. We were standing at the edge of a precipice, and there was no way to tell how long the drop was.
Lava light poured from the passage and over the edge of the cliff we stood by. I shifted forward to follow its path. The lava fell in two long streaming fountains, at least a hundred meters tall, before it gathered in a pool far below at the bottom of the cavern.
“Are those cells?” Blitz asked, pointing below us.
I looked at the far wall and saw that he was right. I could see the black glint of bars covering small chambers that were carved into the walls. The lava didn’t provide enough light to see the chambers’ occupants, but I suspected we’d reached the place they kept the most dangerous prisoners of Incarceror.
As I looked at the cavern again, I realized there was level after level filled with cells that reached all the way down to the ground far below. We’d definitely reached the main area of the prison. The only problem now was finding the inmate we were after.
Chapter Fifteen
“I think I can see some stairs over there,” Dash said, pointing across to the other side of the cavern. “We can use them to check out the cells.”
The narrow ledge we were on extended the whole way around the cavern, and as I looked where Dash was pointing, I could see that stairs had indeed been cut into the black stone. They were steep and craggy, and I doubted they would pass any health and safety standards. They led down to the cells on the level below us and zigzagged to the cells on the level below that. As I followed the stairs’ descent, I could see they went all the way to the bottom of the cavern.
“How are we going to find out which cell the nameless one is in?” I asked. There were so many cells in the vast cavern we could spend days searching for him. We didn’t have nearly that much time though, and Jack’s warning about spending no more than twenty-four hours in Incarceror still rang clear in my mind.
“You look’n for somwun?” a voice chirped.
My gaze dipped to the ground, and I found shiny black eyes staring at me. There was a creature the size of a tomten standing at my feet, but his size was where the similarities between him and Tomi ended. The creature was bald, and his skeletal body was knobby. The poor thing was dressed in threadbare cloth and he was hunched over a tiny cane. I wasn’t quite sure what sort of being he was.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“The keep’r,” he replied. “Who you wan’?”
I glanced up at Dash who nodded for me to continue. “We’re looking for the nameless one,” I said.
“Ah,” the keeper replied. “T’is way, t’is way.” He set off in a loping walk, using the small cane to help him as he hobbled along the narrow pathway. He was quick for such a small being, and we all hurried to follow him.
I had expected him to lead us to the stairs, but instead, he stopped halfway around the great cavern and faced the wall. The tiny creature placed his hands against the stone, and a series of golden symbols lit up around them.
I took a hesitant step back as I watched the magic swirling, and slowly, the solid rock seemed to dissolve before my very eyes, and a large chamber was revealed behind it.
“I told you not to disturb me, keeper,” a deep voice growled from the dark shadows in the far reaches of the chamber.
“Visit’rs, visit’rs!” the small creature chirped in reply.
I watched as a figure slowly separated himself from the shadows and came toward us. The man was hunched over with a hood pulled up to cover his head. It cast his face entirely in shadow, obscuring it from view. I couldn’t smell any magic on the man, but I could almost sense his power in the air around me. It wasn’t a vibrant crackle like I felt with most powers. Rather, it almost felt slimy against my skin. I felt an immediate revulsion at his presence, and if it weren’t for the invisible barrier I could sense separating us, I would have backed away. Dash didn’t seem to share my concerns though and stepped toward him.
“Are you the nameless one?” Dash asked.
The man chuckled. It was a rough sound that put me even more on edge. I glanced at the others, wondering if they were feeling the same way. Blitz seemed unbothered while Coop’s expression was intense and focused. Vixen looked ready to run away, so I was glad to see I wasn’t the only one having serious doubts about this guy.
“Ah, the reindeer, I foresaw your arrival,” the nameless one said. “Though there was a future where you did not arrive.” He edged forward, to where the wall had once been, and I could see the end of his nose as he tilted his head to look at each one of us.
“Dasher,” he said. “Vixen, Cupid, Blitzen, and...” He stopped when he finally arrived on me. “And who are you?”
I glanced nervously at the others, who all gave encouraging nods for me to answer him. “Clio,” I said, looking back at him.
“Clio,” he repeated. A shiver ran down my spine as he said my name, and his gaze seemed to linger on me. “I did not foresee you.”
My blood ran cold at his words. I was too scared to ask him why he’d seen the others but not me. Perhaps he was just messing with me.
“So, you are the one we’re after,” Dash said.
“Yes” came the nameless one’s reply. “Though just because I can help you doesn’t mean I will. What is it you want?”
“There is a krampus named Crow, where is he?” Dash asked.
“I’m afraid I need a little more information than that,” the nameless one said, tutting as he shook his head. “I see many krampuses named Crow.”
Dash glanced nervously in my direction and I nodded for him to continue. We’d come this far; there was no point in holding back now. “Well, this one is using elves to kill innocent beings,” he said, facing the cell once more. “We believe he has a Christmas star.”
“Ah,” the nameless one said. “Yes, I see.” He didn’t continue though.
“So, can you help us?” I asked, stepping forward.
Under the shadows of his hood, I could see the creature’s teeth as he smiled. They were sharp things that were surprisingly white. “I could…” he wagered.
“But…” I said.
“But, what do I have to gain?” he replied. “Perhaps if you were willing to form some sort of…trade.”
I looked at Dash, and I could tell he felt the same sense of foreboding as me. We needed information about Crow and the star, but entering into an agreement with the nameless one sounded risky.
“What do you want?” Dash asked. He sounded so brave, and I wished I could hide my fear so easily. The nameless one made me nervous, and I couldn’t wait to get away from him. He kept glancing in my direction, and without being able to properly see his face, I had no clue as to why.
“Nothing from any of you,” the nameless one eventually replied, nodding at the shifters. He turned his head to look at me once more. “But, perhaps I could make an exception for her.”
By this point, it felt like my heart was in my mouth. “What could you want from me?” I asked.
“Nothing too big,” the nameless one replied. “Just a small little favor.”
I immediately started shaking my head. “I can’t do that,” I replied. “Surely, there’s something else?”
“No,” he said. “But, I will give you this little glimpse into the future. I know where to find your krampus, and if you don’t get to him soon, there will be more innocent deaths. I can guarantee it.”
My eyes were wide as I looked at Dash. He walked over to me and grabbed my arm, leading me away from the cell. “You don’t have to do this,” he said. “Don’t let him trick you into a favor. We’ll find another way.”
“Yes, but in the meantime, there could be another murder,” Vixen said, coming to stand on my other side.
“I can’t have more deaths on my conscience,” I whispered.
“And I can’t have you endangering yourself on mine,” Dash replied.
Before he could convince me otherwise, I turned and walked back toward the nameless one.
“I need to know if this information is worth it,” I said. “Tell me about the powers of a Christmas star and whether or not Crow has one. Then I will consider your offer.”
“You want this information for free?” he purred.
“Well, it’s the only thing that will convince me,” I replied. “So, either I get this freebie or we’re not going to have a deal.”
The nameless one smiled again, sending a shot of nerves through my entire body from my fingers through to my toes. I really wished he’d stop flashing his teeth; I think they freaked me out more than anything. Even though he was the prisoner, I felt like he was firmly in control of our negotiations.
“There are three Christmas stars,” he said. “Powerful objects they are, but each star’s power differs from the others.”
“And does Crow have one?” I prompted.
“Yes,” he replied with a knowing hiss.
We’d suspected it was possible, but the knowledge Crow had the star was frightening. I took a deep breath in to try and calm my nerves before I continued. “And what does this star do?”
“It has the power to shatter the world as you know it,” the nameless one replied.
Well, that didn’t sound good. “If I agree to this, can you promise me that no other innocent beings will be hurt by Crow?” I asked. “Can you see that we will succeed and stop him?”
“We are at a fork in the road,” the nameless one replied. “In one scenario, the information I give you will ensure you stop Crow.”
“And the other?”
“You will fail,” he replied.
“And what if I refuse to make the deal with you?”
“I cannot see a future where you do not take the deal.” He sounded so certain, and his blunt reply had me feeling queasy. Was there really no future where I walked away from this without owing the nameless one a favor?
Christmas Magic Page 17
