The Ladder: Part 1

by David Hodges

  Hazel noticed the guard lifting his sword and pounced toward him. She was completely stretched out in a dive as she reached for his sword arm and barely managed to snatch his forearm as he slashed at Elisedd’s leg.

  Elisedd slammed his foot into the guard’s jaw. The guard’s arm went limp in Hazel hand and his fur shrank back into his arms and neck. His chest rose and fell as he lay there. She grabbed his sword and stood up.

  “Thanks,” said Elisedd.

  Hazel handed Daniel the guard’s sword. “Just in case,” she said.

  They set down the torch lit hall until they heard several sets of hurried steps coming from the end of it.

  Hazel looked back at the guard sprawled out on the floor. She brought her sword up; they were beyond talking their way out. She stared at the end of the hall and tried to control her breathing as she waited anxiously.

  A pair of hulking black mastiffs entered the hallway with their heads and ears erect, their floppy jowls doing little to mitigate their intimidating appearance. They froze and stared at the strangers in their hallway until they spotted the guard lying on the floor behind Hazel. Their curious demeanors suddenly turned vicious as they lowered their heads and bared their teeth, stalking forward. Their deep growls filled the hall.

  Hazel backed up slowly with Elisedd and Fergus. “It’s okay... we’re not gonna hurt you,” she said in the most benevolent voice she could conjure.

  The dogs continued forward, their growling turning to snarls.

  “Don’t think that’s helping,” said Daniel.

  Elisedd, still changed, said, “Run for the door. I’ll see if I can get by them... now!” He dashed down the hall toward the dogs and hurdled over them.

  Hazel sprinted for the door. She heard the dogs snarling behind her. She looked back and saw one of them bolting after her and Daniel while the other chased Elisedd in the opposite direction. The dogs were closing in as she ran by the guard. Then she heard a shout behind her and looked back.

  Daniel was flat on his stomach, his ankle in the guard’s black, clawed hand. “Go!” he yelled.

  The dog was almost upon him.

  Hazel slid to a halt and desperately screamed “Stop!” at the dog.

  The dog slid to a stop beside the guard, then stared at her intently for a moment before sitting down. His partner down the hall had stopped pursuing Elisedd as well.

  The guard looked to his dogs, perplexed.

  Hazel walked toward the unarmed guard with her sword pointed at him. “Let him go!”

  He obeyed the command and changed back to his normal form.

  Daniel righted himself, his chin bloodied from his fall.

  “Are you alright?”

  “Aye,” said Daniel as he stretched his neck.

  “Get up,” Hazel ordered the guard.

  The guard stood slowly.

  Elisedd skirted by the seated Mastiff down the hall and ran to the guard. “Where is my father?” he demanded.

  The guard spat blood on the floor, then reached into his vest.

  Hazel yelled, “Stop!” and stepped closer toward him so that her sword was only inches from his face.

  “Keys,” he grumbled.

  “Slowly,” said Elisedd.

  The guard pulled out a ring with a large set of keys attached. He dangled them lazily on his finger.

  “Take us to him,” said Elisedd.

  The guard smirked, then nodded and turned down the hall. Hazel followed with her sword outstretched. The guard led them to the end of the hall where they turned into another. He walked to one of the many solid iron doors along the hall and stopped.

  Elisedd rushed to the door and shouted, “Father! Are you in there?”

  There was no response.

  He knocked at the door and shouted again. “Father!” He turned back to the guard. “Open the door!”

  The guard picked out one of the keys, unlocked the door, then pushed it open.

  “Watch him,” said Elisedd. He went into the cell.

  Hazel could see Fíodor lying on a cot, completely still. There was blood all over the dirty sheet. Elisedd ran to his father and examined him. He was not moving. Elisedd lifted the frail man up off the cot.

  Hazel saw movement beside her and before she knew what was happening, the guard had lunged by her sword and grabbed her arm. He threw her into the cell and she tumbled across floor.

  When she looked up, she saw Daniel’s arm in the guard’s claws. The guard squeezed and snarled, and Daniel dropped the sword to the ground as he was lifted off the ground.

  Hazel jumped up and ran toward them.

  The guard threw Daniel toward her. She barely managed to move her sword out of his path before he slammed into her and knocked her down.

  The door slammed closed, and the lock clicked.

  Elisedd ran to the door and desperately tried to open it in vain. He pounded at the door and screamed, “No!” He pounded and pounded. He slid to the ground and put his head in his hands.

  “I’m sorry,” said Hazel. This was all her fault. Fíodor was thrown in that cell because of her. He was stuck there because of her.

  32

  CAMERON

  No... please no.

  Time had slowed for Cameron as he watched his arrow spiraling toward the love of his life.

  Then he remembered. Ionga.

  “Noo!” he cried as he jerked his bow to the left, willing the arrow off its course.

  The arrow veered off to the side with no space to spare, sending a tuft of Alexandra’s hair into the air as it planted itself firmly in the tree behind her.

  She covered her mouth in exasperation.

  Cameron fell to his knees with a deep sigh. His heart pounded and his whole body shook.

  Alexandra ran to him and helped him up. “They’re telling the truth, Cameron.”

  “Are you alright?” he asked her as held her face close to his.

  She nodded. Cameron kissed her hard.

  She continued, “Cameron, you have to listen to them. Please, trust me.”

  Cameron turned around and saw Faron and Einar walking cautiously toward him.

  Faron sheathed his sword and held his hands up. “Cameron, we’re on your side,” he said.

  Cameron began to reach for his quiver.

  Alexandra stopped him. “Listen, Cameron.”

  Cameron reluctantly did as he was told and clenched the bow as he waited for the two men to close in on him and Alexandra. He had spent so much energy keeping them at bay and there he was, handing himself over.

  Einar stopped. Faron continued toward Cameron and when he reached him, he gently placed a hand on his shoulder. He spoke softly. “Cameron, I know you’re confused, but I need you to listen to me very closely. Everything you’ve been told about Einar, about Alexandra, was a lie.”

  “Show him,” Alexandra said to Einar.

  “You’re not going to shoot me, are you?” Einar said to Cameron.

  Cameron did not respond. Faron approached him slowly with his hands up. “Stop there,” said Cameron when he was a few feet away.

  Faron stopped, then said, “I’m going to reach into my jacket for a letter.”

  “Slowly,” said Cameron.

  Faron pulled out an envelope with a wax seal. “Do you recognize this?”

  Cameron placed the seal immediately, it was General Marlow’s. He had seen it countless times when he received his orders at the shop. “Where did you get that?”

  “From Ayalon’s desk,” said Faron. The letter inside is addressed to your grandfather.”

  Cameron thought back to the search party that Ayalon had allowed on his estate. “You mean, for the search party? So what, I already knew they had communicated.”

  Faron said, “No. Cameron. The letter was written months ago.”

  Cameron struggled to understand what was being implied. “They knew each other?”

  Faron replied, “Yes, and they planned your arrival here a long time ago. The soldiers you arriv
ed here with were not a search party. They were your escort to Talamh.”

  Cameron began to feel numb. “But... Alexandra...”

  Einar said, “I didn’t kidnap Alexandra. I rescued her from her kidnapper... him,” he pointed to Faron.

  “What’s he talking about?” Cameron asked Faron, frustrated at his own confusion.

  Faron replied, “The kidnapping was staged, Cameron, at General Marlow request. I was sent to make it look like Einar had taken Alexandra. I put that dart in your neck and carried Alexandra off. I was to take her to a safe location. She was never in real danger.”

  “Hold on. You expect me to believe that Marlow...”

  “Listen, Cameron!” shouted Alexandra.

  Cameron took a deep breath, then said, “I’m listening.”

  Faron continued, “Marlow and Ayalon planned for you and your sister’s arrival here... they needed to give you a compelling reason to come, to find the missing Sphere. Marlow must’ve known that kidnapping Alexandra would compel you.”

  “So Marlow knows about all this? About Talamh? About what I am?”

  Faron nodded.

  If there was any hope left for him and Alexandra, it had all but vanished. “Why didn’t Marlow just tell me about all this?” Cameron said, more so to himself than the others. I thought he trusted me.

  “How do you think you would’ve taken it? Do you think you would’ve believed him? Do you think you would have been eager to be a part of this, to help find this Sphere that you knew nothing about, that had nothing to do with you? Perhaps he could have forced you. I suppose that’s what he did in a way, but he was able to conceal his involvement, and he was able to turn him against his enemy, not yours.”

  Faron was right, he would not have received the request well. He would have thought the man was insane if he had gone on about a hidden village and a lost stone. “Why should Marlow care about the Sphere?”

  Einar replied, “Because he knows the potential that Fuil and Bheochan holds for his soldiers.” He held up the envelope and pulled out the letter inside. “This is one of many letters detailing military equipment orders... weapons, armor. It’s being manufactured here in Talamh and delivered to General Marlow.”

  Cameron remembered the exchange he had seen near the old castle. That was what was in those crates. That was why those soldiers were at the old castle. They were never there to find Alexandra.

  “How could General Marlow have known about any of this?” asked Cameron.

  Faron said, “My father reached out to him, to make what he thought would be a mutually beneficial arrangement. In exchange for cured weapons and armor, Talamh was to receive substantial payment, protection, and anonymity.”

  Faron said, “Ironic, isn’t it? To stay hidden, the old fool revealed us.”

  Einar sighed. “It was a poor decision and now we are subject to Marlow’s demands, but it isn’t too late to fix this. We can leave Talamh with the Spheres and the Ladder, all of us. It’s the only option now.”

  “Why should I care? This isn’t my problem. As far as I see it, Marlow hasn’t done anything wrong. Ayalon is the one in charge here, isn’t he? It’s his choice.”

  “Cameron! Are you mad!” cried Alexandra. “They’ve deceived you! These people’s way of life is in jeopardy.”

  Einar stepped closer to Cameron and shouted, “Marlow is not the man you think he is, the man is cruel!”

  “Why should I listen to you? I’ve known Marlow my whole life!”

  “So have I Cameron,” said Alexandra. “He has secrets. I’ve always felt it.”

  Einar said more calmly, “I don’t expect you to take my word, Cameron, but I can show you if you let me.” He held out his hand.

  Cameron looked to Alexandra. “Go on, Cam. You need to see.”

  Cameron sighed. He reluctantly took the man’s hand.

  Einar was at a cart covered with vials and tubing. He was holding a bright blue frog in his hand as he nicked its back and collected its blood in a vial. He dropped the blood into a complex array of glass and metal and the blood passed through it. He left it alone. He changed his hand into its patchy gray form, then inserted a syringe into the back of it, drawing blood through rubber tubing into a glass flask full of clear liquid.

  The memory passed.

  Einar was in the Roman building. He was carrying a box that rattled with glass. He walked up the spiral staircase to Ayalon’s office doors and knocked at the door. There was no response. He opened the door. “Ayalon?”

  The room was empty. He went to Ayalon’s desk and set the box down. He noticed a letter on the table. He read, 10 sabers, 50 reinforced coats, 20 nets, as much serum as possible. He heard footsteps approaching the office and stuffed it into his jacket.

  “Einar, is that the medicine I asked for?” asked Ayalon from behind.

  Einar turned to Ayalon. “Yes, I was just going to leave it on your desk for you.”

  “I’ll have your payment sent to you by this evening.”

  “Thank you, sir. What exactly is all this for?”

  “Our safety.”

  The memory passed.

  Einar was in a house, a kitchen. He held a sack open, a Sphere and the Ladder were inside. In front of him, a woman stared at them, astonished. “What have you done?” she asked.

  “What I had to, they’re not safe here. Pack your things quickly, we’re leaving. I’ll be back soon.”

  “Where are you going?” she asked.

  “I’m taking these somewhere safe.” He kissed her on the forehead. “This is the only way.”

  The memory passed.

  Then Einar was looking down at a stone roundhouse from above in a tree. A guard was standing at the door. Einar pulled a dart from his waist and hurled it at the guard. The guard fell to the ground and another exited the house. Einar brought him down the same way, then he leapt from the tree and went into the house. It was a mess, broken glass and splintered wood littered the floors. Einar noticed a piece of parchment on the table. He picked it up and read it.

  The Ladder and Spheres for your wife. Midnight, the Roman building, alone.

  Einar slammed his fist on the table.

  The memory passed.

  Then he was walking through a dark hallway, only the faint light of night entered through the hall’s windows. The interior was ornately adorned with dark marble floors and columns.

  Two Laochra followed closely behind Einar, their armor clinking as they walked. When they reached a door, one of the Laochra knocked once. It opened, and the three of them entered a square room lit by torches on the walls. Four more Laochra were spread around the room. Though it was dimly lit, Cameron was able to recognize them. Aatu, Cuyler, Bjorn, and Faron.

  Einar was led to the center of the room. He was touching something in his cloak, metallic and spiraled, the Ladder.

  Aatu knocked on a solid wooden door. Ayalon opened the door and entered the room. General Marlow stepped in behind him, followed by a man who was guiding a woman by the back of her neck with a saber at her throat. Like Marlow, he wore a red coat of the royal army, but his face was obscured by the shadows of Marlow and Ayalon.

  “Where are they?” said Ayalon.

  Einar pulled the Ladder from his cloak and held it up in front of him.

  “What of the Sphere?” asked General Marlow flatly.

  “My wife first.”

  Marlow sighed, then nodded. He looked at the soldier behind him and gestured toward the woman. The man stepped into the torchlight, and Cameron recognized him immediately. Captain Henry Marsden. Captain Marsden looked back at Marlow for confirmation.

  The General nodded.

  Then Marsden slit her throat.

  Cameron let go of Einar’s hand and jumped back, horrified. He could conjure no words for the man in front of him. A man whose loved one was stolen from him.

  Einar broke the silence. “I escaped that night, and I followed Marlow back to Leicester. I had no plan other than to kill him for what he h
ad done until I saw Faron using my darts on you and Alexandra. I followed the carriage and commandeered it from Faron. I brought him with me as my prisoner. I had to find out what was going on. Faron knew his father was in the wrong, so he told me everything. Faron was to take Alexandra to Marlow’s country home where she would be kept while you were escorted by Marlow’s men to Talamh. He told me of his niece and nephew, hidden away all this time at a farm in the middle of England. He told me about his sister... your mother, and her hidden Sphere. He told me how Marlow and Ayalon had orchestrated the kidnapping as soon as your sister was of an age to be changed so that the two of you could be used to find the Sphere. Ayalon would be able to keep Marlow satisfied with the additional Fuil to cure more weapons and armor.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me the truth from the beginning?” Cameron asked Faron.

  “You wouldn’t have reacted well... how would you have known who to trust? I couldn’t risk revealing my alliance with Einar to my father.”

  “What of Hazel, how did anyone know she would follow me here?”

  “We didn’t. The plan was for you to convince her to come here after you had learned about Talamh. Turns out that wasn’t necessary.”

  Cameron sighed as he struggled to take all of it in. He had already felt he was little more than a tool for Ayalon to find his precious Sphere, but to be deceived by Marlow, a man he looked up to, was not what Cameron would ever have expected. Then something occurred to Cameron. Was this why Marlow had taken such a keen interest in him in the first place? Could he have been planning this for so long? “When did this arrangement between Ayalon and Marlow start? How long have they been planning to bring me and Hazel here?”

  Faron said, “Ayalon has been providing Marlow with equipment for months, we know that, as for when they first hatched the plan, it’s uncertain.”

  If Ayalon told Marlow about him and the Sphere years ago, it might be the only reason Marlow ever cared about him. His gifts, his job, his loyalty at the shop, just to gain his unwavering trust, to blind him from the truth. Cameron let the thought pass, then said, “How many people know?”