The Guardian of Threshold

by A. A. Volts

  “I don’t know, perhaps they are cooking dinner,” I suggested.

  “Shhh,” I said, motioning for Carla to stop.

  “What is it?” Carla whispered in my ear, causing pleasant chills to run down my spine.

  “There,” I said, pointing toward a snow bank.

  “What do you mean?” asked Carla.

  “We can hide there and observe,” I explained.

  I moved slowly to avoid making noise. I wanted to believe the villagers were friendly, but there was something about the way the place smelled that told otherwise.

  We ducked behind the snow bank and listened carefully to the noises coming from the village below, peeking out every once in a while.

  “Keep the prisoner alive, at least until Lord Phasma gets back!” someone yelled. Carla let out a gasp. I looked around the snow bank, but I still couldn’t see anyone. The smoke was too intense, and the smell was almost unbearable.

  “Are they talking about—”

  “Quiet, someone’s coming,” I interrupted Carla, moving slowly behind the snow bank.

  “Quick, this way,” I said, grabbing her hand as we heard howling in the distance.

  We rushed back up the trail and hid behind a rock just a few feet away.

  “We should be safe here.”

  I decided to take a look to see if they were still coming toward us, but thankfully they weren’t. Instead, they stood behind the snow bank, talking to each other. There were two of them. They looked human, but the first was covered in mud and animal fur. The other creature was dressed the same, except it was carrying a long and heavy metal axe, also covered in mud and patches of dry blood.

  “Who’s the undead Lord Phasma brought back?” asked one of them.

  “I don’t get what the fuss is all about,” said the creature carrying the axe.

  “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s important,” said the other creature as he opened a pack and took out a long, sharp weapon resembling a machete.

  “I’m tired of hunting. Nobody else brings any game,” said the axe-carrying creature.

  “Because that’s the only thing that we’re good at,” answered the other creature as he sharpened his blade.

  “I’m good at other things too.”

  “Yep, like what?” asked the shorter creature.

  “I’m the fastest eater in the village,” replied the oversized creature. “We better catch something different this time. I’m tired of elk meat.” He said, swinging his axe in the air. It was so big that it required both of his large hands to swing it. My dad wouldn’t have a problem finding a job in that village, I thought.

  “I know what you mean, I miss a nice roasted mammoth. When was the last time we had that?” asked the machete guy.

  “I don’t know, feels like many cycles ago. Too many, if you ask me.”

  “What are those things?” asked Carla, peeking out from behind the rock.

  “Sidwick, did you hear that?” asked the axe-carrying creature as he looked in our direction.

  “Nah, it’s nothing. There’s nothing alive up there besides those stupid trees and the crows that live in them,” Sidwick replied.

  “Come on, Delawi, let’s go hunt by the waterfall for a change. Maybe the reason we only find elk is because we always hunt in the same stupid place,” said Sidwick.

  “I hate that place, but okay. I just hope we catch good game. I’m so hungry, I’m afraid half a mammoth won’t be enough,” said Delawi.

  We stayed quiet as Sidwick and Delawi headed down the trail. I thought it would be wise to wait a couple minutes before I talked to Carla, just to make sure they wouldn’t be able to hear me.

  “Oh my God, they smelled awful,” said Carla. “Were they talking about Jonas?”

  “I think so. I remember Phasma calling me undead before,” I replied.

  “They didn’t look much different than us,” said Carla, looking perplexed.

  “Yeah, except for the dirt, the smell, and horns,” I said as we moved back toward the clearing.

  “We need a plan,” I said, looking for clues about where Jonas was being held.

  “I agree. But besides the fact they have very big and sharp weapons we don’t know anything about them,” replied Carla.

  “If we knew where Jonas was being held, it would make our job so much easier,” I said.

  “We need to move closer,” said Carla, starting to walk down the hillside.

  “It’s too dangerous,” I said, worried about her well-being.

  “It will be fine if you follow my lead,” said Carla as her outfit changed to the same armor the creatures had on minutes earlier. Although dirty and covered in mud, Carla still looked very pretty… including the horns on top of her head.

  The transformation was fantastic and surprisingly fast. I concentrated on having the same look as Carla, and I immediately felt my clothes change to the itchy and smelly animal leathers and fur armor that seemed to come complete with a weapon. In my case, it was a club that was so heavy it made me walk a little off-center. Carla’s weapon was a bow, which looked very stylish on her.

  As we neared the village, it looked and smelled worse than I could imagine. In the center, a huge bonfire marked the epicenter of trade. A giant column of smoke hovered over the area, covering the small wooden cabins with a dense fog. Roasting on the fire were several animals with their heads still attached.

  “I don’t know if this is going to work,” I said as we passed a couple of locals who stared at us.

  “Relax and act natural,” said Carla.

  We passed a huge wooden gate that had been left open and unguarded. As we entered the village, the smell grew even stronger, if such a thing was possible, but thankfully so did the smoke and fog, providing us with cover. Good thing, too, because I didn’t think I was able to disguise the faces I made from the smell.

  “He must be over there,” I said, pointing toward an opening in the nearby mountain cliff.

  “Why do you say that?” asked Carla.

  “Because that’s the only place they have guards,” I replied.

  “Quick, follow me,” said Carla, heading toward a deserted shed.

  “We are going to need a distraction,” I said as we looked at the cliff entrance.

  “I think I can manage that,” offered Carla.

  “No, you would attract too much attention, and besides, it’s too dangerous,” I replied.

  “What? Let me remind you that we’re in this together. Please stop trying to protect me from everything and everyone. If we’re going to succeed in rescuing my brother, you’ll need my help,” replied Carla.

  “You’re right. What do you have in mind?” I asked.

  “You said yourself that I attract too much attention—I’m going to assume you meant that because of my good looks—do you know of a better way to create a distraction?”

  “Good point,” I said. “But how are you going to get away afterward?”

  “It’s really simple. Once you have Jonas, you both make your away up the mountain, and I’ll meet you guys there,” replied Carla as she started to walk toward the guards.

  “Carla!” I said, but it was too late. She left the shed with a look of determination on her face.

  I felt like biting my nails with every step Carla took toward the guards. How was she going to distract them? I wondered.

  I had to think of something, so I walked outside and picked up a few boxes full of old, rusted weapons that were sitting outside the shed. I started to walk toward Carla and the guards.

  From a distance, I could see Carla approaching the guards.

  “I’m new here and ashamed to say that I’m a bit lost,” said Carla.

  “Where do you need to go,” asked the tallest of the guards.

  For a second, Carla seemed lost for words, but then she replied, “I’m going to the forge, I have to pick up some arrows there for training.”

  She must have seen that the box I was carrying was full of old, broken, and
blood-soaked weapons and figured out I was heading for the forge. In truth, I didn’t even know if they had a forge, but it seemed like a reasonable assumption, judging from the smoke rising from inside.

  “I have never seen you here before,” said the other creature, which was slightly shorter and much heavier than the other guard.

  “Like I said, I’m new,” replied Carla, getting visibly angry.

  “You’re a feisty one, so young and yet so bad. You must have arrived with the latest batch of recruits,” said the tallest guard. I think he had a crush on her.

  “Let me guess, you need to go the forge too?” the chubby guard asked me without paying too much attention.

  “Yep, I need to bring this junk to smelt. We seem to running out of ore,” I replied coldly.

  “Go ahead,” he said, gesturing me forward.

  I wanted to wait for Carla, but there wasn’t much I could do. If I lingered any longer, I would attract the attention of well-armed guards, so I had no choice but to trust that Carla was going to figure a way out for herself.

  As I headed toward the cliff opening, a putrid cloud of gas rose from deep within. I couldn’t help but feel a very familiar sensation as I wandered around the cave’s many dead-ends and maze-like tunnels. Phasma had brought me here before. I was sure of it.

  As I ventured deeper and lower, I could once again feel the dread growing inside me.

  “Wait up!” someone yelled from behind me. I turned around, but I couldn’t see anyone, just a cloud of smoke.

  “Wait!” I heard again as a couple locals passed me. I wasn’t exactly blending in like I would have liked to, and Carla wasn’t exactly helping by screaming so loud.

  “Shhh, are you trying to get us caught?” I asked nervously.

  “It’s okay, nobody heard me,” Carla whispered.

  “Where do you suppose he’s at?” I asked.

  “Your guess is as good as mine.”

  “Thanks,” I said sarcastically. “Right it is then.”

  Although the smoke cleared, the deeper we moved into the tunnels, the denser the air became.

  I grabbed a nearby torch from the wall.

  “Good thinking, we may need them,” said Carla. She approached the next torch and pulled it out of the wall.

  “Where did everyone go?” asked Carla, looking around.

  “I don’t know, I don’t think many people come this far,” I replied.

  “Either that, or we took a wrong turn somewhere. I didn’t see a forge or anything like it,” added Carla.

  “Should we turn around?” I asked.

  “Maybe we should’ve turned left. Let’s go back,” said Carla.

  We turned around and went back the way we came and turned left at the intersection. After walking for what seemed like just over half a mile, we arrived at a large underground room filled with people going about their business. Right in the middle of the room there was a pool of golden, molten lava.

  “This must be the forge,” I whispered.

  “How are we going to find Jonas?” Carla asked.

  “I don’t have a clue. We’ll figure something out.”

  Worried, I approached what I assumed was the Forgemaster. He was short, dirty, sweaty, and fat. He had a very dark complexion as though he spent too much time in the sun, or perhaps he just spent too much time standing near the hot lava pool. He carried a huge iron hammer and an assortment of sharp swords and daggers in his belt. They looked so heavy that I thought his pants were going to fall off.

  I placed the box of broken weapons on top of his worktable and waited.

  “Take that junk away from here. Don’t you see that I’m busy? You freaking maggot!” he yelled as everyone around us stopped whatever they were doing to look and laugh at me.

  “Sorry, I’m new,” I said.

  “Why the heck do I always get the new recruits?” he mumbled to himself. “Don’t just stand there looking like an anvil. Make yourself useful and throw that junk in the melt pit,” he ordered as spit spilled out of his mouth.

  “And what do you want?” he said, looking at Carla.

  “I just need some more ammo, and I was told you’re the guy to see,” said Carla, showing off her acting skills.

  “Ha ha, nothing is free here, smash-pie. If you want ammo, you’ll need to earn it,” I heard the Forgemaster say to Carla as I dumped the weapons in the flaming lava pool.

  I rushed back, hoping there was something I could do to help her.

  “What do you need me to do?” asked Carla as she took off her fur jacket and placed it on the Forgemaster’s table. I couldn’t tell if she was trying to show him that she was ready to work or if she was trying to charm him.

  “Take this cage to the prisoner’s chambers,” the Forgemaster said as he handed Carla a small metal cage and some chains, both of which appeared to have been recently repaired but not cleaned of the dried blood stains.

  “Sure, I’ll be back soon,” said Carla as she lifted up the metal cage and left.

  “And you over there, you take this one,” he ordered me, pointing toward a much larger metal cage on the ground.

  I bent over and picked up the heavy cage, but I didn’t dare look at him. I was afraid that if I looked, he would notice that I was sweating profusely. My shoulder hurt so much that I wanted to scream in pain, but I couldn’t show him any weakness. So I held it in.

  “I got more for you to deliver after that one,” he said, laughing.

  By the time I reached the corner, I was exhausted. Once I was out of the Forgemaster’s sight, I placed the heavy cage on the floor and sat down to catch my breath.

  “Tired already?” asked Carla from behind me, scaring me.

  “Very funny, you got the small one,” I said, pointing at her cage.

  “I guess you’re not as good-looking as I am,” said Carla.

  “It’s about time we finally made some progress,” I added, stretching my arms and legs.

  “Yes, hopefully Jonas will be there,” replied Carla.

  “I hope so because I can’t take this smell for too much longer,” I said, smelling my own armpits. “Since the smell is not coming from me, it has to be coming from this stupid armor.”

  “At least that’s what you think,” said Carla.

  “Anyway, what is this thing made of? It’s itchy as hell,” I complained.

  “If I had to guess, I would say animal hide. Come on, let’s go,” said Carla, offering me a hand.

  I threw the heavy metal chains over my sore shoulders and, after a gasp of pain, started to drag it along.

  After walking for a while, the torches once again started to grow far and few between. It wasn’t much longer before we reached a huge clearing that smelled far worse than I did.

  I almost got sick as we entered what could only be the prisoners’ chambers.

  “Jonas? Are you here?” whispered Carla as we both looked around, perplexed by the sheer size of the place and the deplorable conditions within.

  Some of the creatures appeared to be eating their own skin, while others picked at the putrid skin of their cellmates.

  We must have walked almost to the end of the chamber looking for Jonas. The creatures in the cages looked like the creatures from the village… that, is until we reached a chamber with a decaying sign that read “UNDEAD HALL” above the entrance.

  “Here, he’s got to be in there somewhere,” I said, pointing at the sign.

  “I hope so,” replied Carla.

  “Jonas!” Carla said a bit too loud.

  “I’m here!” came a faint reply from somewhere in the chamber.

  “Jonas? Is that really you?” cried Carla, almost in tears. “Quick, I think it’s coming from there.”

  “Jonas, where are you?” asked Carla again as we walked through a maze of cages; some were on the floor while others were suspended in the air.

  “I’m in here!” replied Jonas, sounding louder.

  We took two sharp left turns and followed the trai
l. I could swear that some of the people in the cages looked dead, but they weren’t. They were humans, although barely recognizable. One thing I was sure of, they certainly weren’t treated as human. I’d seen homeless people who looked better cared for. Most just laid in their cages, some still bleeding from what I assumed were their mortal wounds. They laid there as though they didn’t have the strength or the will to stand up.

  “Oh my God, why are all those people in cages?” asked Carla, crying.

  “I’m not sure. They look sick and tortured,” I replied, trying to be strong.

  Never in my entire life did I think I would find people in these conditions. They didn’t have any water or food, not a bathroom in sight.

  Although it was freezing outside, inside the heat was almost unbearable. At first, I rather enjoyed the warming sensation, but soon I realized it wasn’t a blessing, it was a curse.

  When I heard Carla’s loud gasp, I quickly made my way to her.

  “Oh my God, Jonas, what have they done to you?” asked Carla from a few yards away.

  ***

  I found Jonas covered in dry mud and still in his pajamas, which were muddy.

  “Are you all right?” I asked, glad to see him but worried about his well-being.

  “That depends on your definition of all right. But I’m happy to see you guys,” replied Jonas.

  “What happened to you?” asked Carla.

  “I’ll gladly tell you guys all about it. Just as soon as you get me out of here and we leave this hell hole behind.”

  Unfortunately, the cage was locked with a rusty, old padlock.

  “Where do they keep the key?” I asked.

  “I dunno, some short dude carrying a hammer put me in this cage, but I have only seen him a couple times.”

  “That’s got to be the—”

  “The Forgemaster,” Carla said. “I’ll get the key from him and be back for you soon, little brother.”

  “I’m not little!” complained Jonas, although I didn’t think Carla heard him because she had taken off running toward the forge.

  “I better go with her to make sure she doesn’t get into trouble,” I said. I looked him right in the eyes and let him know I was going to be back for him. That no matter what happened, he could count on me to protect his sister and free him, even though I was the person who got them involved in this mess in the first place.