Cave Of Forlorn

by R. C. Rutter

  More snickers were heard. “I heard that too. Best mind your manners or I just might sit on one or two of you.” Thorgon leaned over and was smiling from ear to ear. He was able to get himself into the tunnel but it was not going to be a pleasant walk hunched over like he was.

  “Cerberus will lead the way. He has promised Erica and me that we have his full cooperation, didn’t you?” Eric looked at Cerberus and he nodded and walked down the tunnel.

  The sound of rushing water started coming from behind them. The soldiers at the back began pressing forward. They could not see anything yet but the sound was definitely increasing.

  Water was now around their feet and getting higher by the second. Captain Artemus yelled for everyone to run. Thorgon knew he could not so he squeezed himself to the side and let everyone pass. The water was already at his ankles. He tried to move fast but all he succeeded in doing was bruising his body. The water was now past his ankles and halfway to his knees. At this rate, he knew he would not make it so he stopped. Drawing his sword, he drove it into the rock near his elbow. Again and again he did this, loosening the rock. Next he did it to the other side. All that was left was the ceiling. With both arms on the sword, Thorgon plunged it into the ceiling. The others were now out of sight. Again and again he punctured the ceiling. It began groaning as all the weight pushed down on the weakening tunnel.

  At first a few small rocks fell, hitting the water with a splash, then a few more. Thorgon was about to thrust his sword again when the ceiling gave way burying him. Thorgon struggled but the weight was too much. The water was now pressing against the rocks keeping him trapped. He had succeeded though. The water was stopped from going down the tunnel. Now he just had to find a way to avoid drowning or being crushed by the weight of the rocks.

  Thorgon relaxed, thinking about his life and the many blessings he had. He had no regrets. He would easily give up his life so that his friends would live. That was an easy choice. He let his mind wander.

  The buzzing started near his waist. It was strange. Almost like a dream but it kept getting stronger and stronger. Thorgon remembered that Eric’s rocks were in his satchel. It had been a while since he had used them and forgot he had them. They were buzzing. The sound was soon transferred to the rocks around him. He could now hear rocks falling behind him into the water building a stronger wall. As the wall was built, the pressure on Thorgon relaxed and he was finally able to break free.

  “Life never felt so good” he said aloud.

  Thorgon moved as fast as he could down the tunnel to join the others.

  * * *

  King William turned and put his finger to his lips. Antonio stopped to watch where the King was going. He walked up some very narrow wooden steps to a platform.

  Lifting a small panel, the King leaned forward to see through the small holes.

  “And what of the King?” asked the first voice.

  “It is still not time yet. He retains much of his strength. We can’t defeat him yet” was the reply. The King shifted so he could see where the voices where coming from. He almost gasped as he recognized Cedrick, his court counselor. The King was overwhelmed as a rush of emotions overcame him. “It all makes sense now” he said under his breath.

  The other figure was a demon.

  “And what of Sidius? What has he found out? Has he earned his money yet? I am not convinced he will be able to do anything.”

  “Sidius is dead! He was killed by a guard.”

  The demon looked alarmed. “No, that is not possible. The guards knew he was protected and was not to be harmed. Something is amiss here.” The demon paused for a moment. “And what of the guard who supposedly killed him? Where is he now?”

  “He is now chained next to the King.”

  “IDIOT” yelled the demon. His voice was agitated. “Take one of the King’s former soldiers and place him next to the King? What moron decided that?”

  “The guards were just following orders that came from a demon.” Cedrick bowed his head not wanting to watch the reaction and possibly suffer for it.

  The demon did not acknowledge what he said. “Where do your loyalties fall? To the conquering force which is strong and rules or to your former master who was weak, ruling out of compassion and respect? Tell me, WHO?” The demon started walking away then turned around. “Who is guarding the guard? Who is in the dungeon with the two of them?”

  The counselor said nothing.

  “Come, no time to waste.” The demon ran down the hallway followed by Cedrick. Down the stairs and through the courtyard, he leaped down the stairs to the dungeon. He startled the guards who were sitting there playing cards. The cards flew in the air and the chairs got knocked over as the guards immediately stood up.

  “Open the door, NOW!”

  The guard fumbled with the keys and finally located the correct one. He inserted the key, engaged the lock, and pulled the door open. The demon pushed him out of the way and ran inside the room.

  “FOOLS! IDIOTS!” He walked back to the guards. Not expecting an answer he asked “Where is the King?” The guards looked confused. One of them began to say “He’s in there, chained up and…” He grasped his own neck as if he was being strangled and fell to the floor. The demon looked at the other guard. “When was the last time you saw the King?”

  “I dunno, maybe this morning?” The guard started backing up but it was too late. He tried to scream as the bolt of lightning hit him in the chest. He collapsed on the floor.

  “IDIOTS! FOOLS! MORONS! Do you know what this means?”

  Cedrick shook his head.

  “It means the King is regaining his strength. I don’t know how, he has not bonded with his daughter yet, and he can’t unless she is here. And he now has help. I am going back into the room. Close the door behind me and do not disturb me. If you do, you will join the guards. UNDERSTOOD?”

  The demon walked into the middle of the room and sat on the floor. He crossed his legs and put his arms out to his sides. Closing his eyes, he detected the faint traces of magic where the King had broken free of the chains. Moving his hands to the left, he found the traces of the guard’s chains. He kept turning to the left until he had made a complete circle, looking for more magic but could not find any. He tried again and again. No other traces could be found. This was not possible. The King was regaining his strength but was certainly not strong enough to hide his magic.

  “This is not good. Not good indeed” he said aloud. He got up and thrust door open. Cedrick jumped and backed up. “I did not disturb you like you requested.” Cedrick put his hands up to protect his face.

  “Shut up, you fool! The King has escaped. It is all the more important now that we find and kill the daughter. She cannot be allowed to get any closer; the bond has already begun forming; now their lives are linked. We have been waiting for this, just did not expect it so soon. We had been bringing her here, closer by the day, watching and waiting for the bond so we could strike. Now they are at their most vulnerable, kill one and you kill the other.” The demon walked up the stairs into the courtyard. He stopped at the fountain in the middle.

  “We need to ensure they all die. Alert the Royal Army. We know they are in the Cave of Forlorn. We march at daybreak. Have them take the engineers with them. The engineers will devise a plan to flood the cave. The army will kill anything, and I mean anything, that emerges from the cave. AM I UNDERSTOOD?”

  Cedrick nodded and departed for the barracks.

  “Oh, and Cedrick…” Cedrick stopped and listened. “Failure is NOT an option. You are being personally held responsible. Fail and you shall die, or worse.”

  Cedrick stiffened his shoulders. “We have an agreement. I shall do your bidding and once it is finished, the kingdom is mine.”

  “No, our agreement is that you shall have the kingdom once the King is dead. You have already let him escape. Kill him Cedrick and you shall be rewarded. Fail and you shall rue the day we met!”

  The demon vanished.
r />   * * *

  They had traveled in the tunnel for two hours so far. Luckily all of them were hot and sweaty so the perspiration smells didn’t bother anyone. They were getting deeper and deeper into the cave as the tunnel sloped downwards. They had no choice. There was no other way to go.

  The sound of water was getting louder and louder. This time it was coming at the front of them instead of behind them. Seth and the others were slowing down anticipating the doom that lay ahead.

  “Hey, keep moving” yelled Seth trying to encourage everyone. “Going back is not an option. We will just have to face whatever it is.”

  Seth took the lead and went around a bend in the tunnel. He froze at what he saw. Shabb was the next to arrive. He bolted, knocking over Seth and took off running.

  Seth was not about to let Shabb escape. “It’s a waterfall” he yelled back. “Time for a bath” as he ran and jumped from behind the waterfall into the pool of water at the bottom.

  There was a small footpath to the right leading down to the water’s edge. Most took the path instead of jumping. Shabb would probably kill anything that attacked it in the water and Seth was protected from danger. The rest were not as confident they would survive.

  The water was cold to the touch and looked very deep. Cerberus walked over and sat at the edge of the waterfall. “I hate waterfalls. My parents were swimming in a pool at a waterfall. They were both eaten.”

  The soldiers who heard this quickly took their hands out of the water. Shabb had already taken a good bath and was shaking himself off at the water’s edge. Seth was floating near the waterfall. It all seemed so calm.

  Eric was thinking that it was too calm. He looked over at Erica who was standing near the water’s edge with her knitting needles out. Shabb was intently staring at the water. His tail was held high and the hair on the back of his neck was standing straight up. The tension in the air grew thick.

  There was a loud boom and then the waterfall stopped. Seth quickly got out of the water. The waterfall was just a trickle now. The rocks from where the waterfall emerged were now groaning as the pressure was mounting.

  Erica yelled “Get back, it is going to blow!” They were too far below to see what was blocking the water but it must be huge. Everyone moved back as far as they could.

  The rumble grew louder and louder as the rocks started shaking. It was as if someone or something was pounding the rocks, pulling back, and then pounding again. A small rock came over the tip of the waterfall followed by a larger rock. The water went from a small trickle to a steady stream. Still no more than a few inches wide, the pounding continued.

  The explosion was loud. The rocks finally gave way and the water came rushing over the top of the ledge. Stuck on the ledge up above was a large boulder.

  “Look at that!” Gweneviere exclaimed. “The boulder is moving. Everybody run!”

  The strong current finally pushed the boulder over the edge and it was coming down fast. The light reflected off the boulder as it turned in the water. First one hand came out of the waterfall, followed by the other. The hands were huge. Then the head leaned forward gasping for air as it disappeared back into the water.

  Lydia screamed and fainted. Seth caught her as she fell.

  The boulder with a head and hands crashed into the pool. No one wanted to believe what they just saw.

  Robald burst through the surface of the water gasping for air. His eyes were closed as he breathed in the cool air. He thought someone was yelling his name.

  “Robald! Robald! Robald!” It was getting louder and louder. He thought he was dreaming until a large hand grabbed him by the neck and began pulling. Then another large hand grabbed his arm and he was yanked from the water.

  Thorgon pulled Robald onto the bank of the pool and was slapping him on the back to get the water out of his lungs. Robald started choking.

  “Okay, okay, don’t hit so hard. I can breathe now.” Robald opened his eyes and looked at all the faces.

  “I don’t believe it. I really don’t” he said as he looked at all the smiling faces. “Wow, what a ride.” He hesitated for a moment then looked around abruptly. “Where’s Lydia? Where is she?”

  Seth pointed over to where Lydia was laying. Robald screamed and stood up. “What happened to her? Who did this? They will feel my wrath!’

  Eric showed Robald his palms. “I assure you, she is fine, seeing you caused her to faint.”

  Robald relaxed. “I often have that effect on women.” The smile on Robald’s face was from ear to ear. He walked over and picked Lydia up like she was a precious doll. He kissed her face and softly called her name.

  “I love this woman with all my heart.” Tears were running down his cheeks. He looked down at Lydia and her eyes were open. “I love you too Robald”

  Robald and Lydia kissed a very long kiss.

  Eric cleared his throat and motioned for everyone to turn away. “Robald and Lydia need a little privacy right now”. Erica started a fire with large pots of stew that smelled delicious. Thoughts were soon turned from the love couple to eating.

  * * *

  Chapter 13

  Cedrick walked to the barracks and found the captain of the guard. “Alert your men. We march within the hour.”

  The captain of the guard stood up and glared at Cedrick. “I don’t take orders from you. Run back to whatever rock you crawled out from under, you are wasting my time.”

  “Let me make this perfectly clear, I have been ordered to take your men with me. If you don’t want to go, I will lead your men. You can explain your behavior to the demons. I don’t have time to argue with you!” Cedrick stood there staring at the captain waiting for some kind of answer.

  “Fine. I shall go with you but make no mistake about it, my men answer to me and me only. It is I who determines when and where we shall fight.”

  “When we complete this mission, I will be the king. Somehow I think I will need a new captain of the guard. I am sure I can find some kind of work for you to do. Perhaps cleaning the kitchen or better yet, shoveling manure from the stables.”

  The captain was outraged “How dare you speak to me like that! I am not one of your lowly servants. I command eight hundred men, all loyal to me.” The captain unsheathed his sword and started walking towards Cedrick.

  Cedrick backed up.

  The captain stopped and quickly put away his sword. He said nothing.

  A voice came from behind Cedrick “Is there a problem here?”

  Cedrick turned and saw that one of the demons had entered the barracks. “No, no, not at all. The captain and I were just discussing our strategy.”

  The demon glanced back and forth between the two of them not sure what to make of the situation.

  The captain spoke “Strategy it was.”

  “You have less than an hour. Better get moving. Have you alerted the engineers yet?”

  Cedrick look startled “I was just on my way now.” He turned and walked past the captain “I shall have your head on a platter.”

  The captain smiled and put his hand on his sword and thought to himself “Sure. You can have it, as long as you survive the journey.” The captain turned around and began yelling at his men to get ready to march.

  Cedrick made his way to the engineer quarters. He did not like going there; the engineers had their own way of doing things and didn’t tolerate ignorance. If you asked for something to be explained, they would just look at you like you were an idiot.

  Cedrick approached and knocked on the door. It opened automatically and the lamp on the table lit. “Pretty cool magic” Cedrick thought.

  “It is not magic. It is engineering, standard answer to the stupid statement. What do you want? We are all very busy doing work for the kingdom.” Alexander stood there impatiently waiting for Cedrick to answer.

  “I am in need of your services.”

  “You and everybody else. Do you have all the necessary forms filled out? Is your funding approved?”

 
“No. No forms, no funding, and no time for this nonsense.”

  “Well, that makes my job easy. Then the answer is NO!” Now, go away before I summon the guards.”

  “Summon whomever you want. I have been tasked by the demons and they decided that the engineers will accompany the Royal Army and me. Shall I call one of them to confirm?” Cedrick stood there with a smirk on his face.

  “You are enjoying this, I can tell. Can you taste the power? Do you want more of it? Somehow I think putting you in charge is a mistake. You are no leader but as you know, I have no choice but to comply. What is it that you need?”