Cave Of Forlorn

by R. C. Rutter

  “Well then, all we have to do is wait until they run out of air, and then we can collect the body of the daughter. Not as valuable as alive but still has leverage. I don’t care what happens to the rest.”

  The soldier had finished his report and waited to be dismissed.

  The Queen raised her hand to wave him off but stopped. “No, gather the troops.”

  The soldier cleared his throat and spoke hesitantly “Mistress, we are still tending to the wounded and we are not recovered enough to fight again.” He took a step backward and lowered his eyes in an attempt to avoid her wrath.

  The Queen said calmly “Let the wounded fend for themselves. We need every able body we have.”

  “Yes ma’am. What are your orders?”

  “Is it not obvious? Sometimes I think I am surrounded by idiots. Other times I know it for sure.” The Queen rolled her eyes and started walking down the cave back to the cavern. She stopped and looked back over her shoulder. “We have a daughter to rescue. She is more dangerous alive no doubt but that makes her worth more to be bargained with.”

  * * *

  “So are you a decoy?”

  Michael was looking directly at Gweneviere waiting for a response. She shrugged her shoulders. Since her hands were tied and her mouth gagged, there was not much else she could do.

  Michael looked over at the body of Lydia, lying on the ground, hands and feet tied. She was shaking.

  “What is wrong with her?” Michael wanted to know.

  Gweneviere tried to answer “Shmw nndds enddoot.”

  “What?” Michael had this puzzled look on his face. He took the wad of cloth out of Gweneviere’s mouth.

  “She needs the antidote for the wolf’s poison. If she does not get it, she will die.”

  “Yes, yes, I knew that.” Michael conjured up a vial and placed several drops in her mouth. The shaking subsided as Lydia was cured.

  “Silly girl, thinking she could use her magic on me. It takes years of training to get it right. If she wasn’t the prize, she would be dead right now which brings us back to the matter of you.”

  He glared at Gweneviere, walked over, and stuffed the cloth back into her mouth.

  “The thing is, I don’t know what to do with you. You have the mark too and there is only one daughter. Do you have magic?”

  Gweneviere shrugged her shoulders.

  “Are you the King’s Daughter?”

  Gweneviere shrugged her shoulders again.

  “Who put this mark on you? The wizard? How long have you had this mark?”

  “Ah, what’s the use, you would not tell me the truth even if you could talk.”

  Michael walked over to the door and knocked three times.

  Gweneviere watched as the door opened and Michael spoke to whoever was on the other side.

  “Where are they?”

  “Who?” asked the voice.

  Michael grimaced. “Fair enough question I suppose. Where are my brothers? Where is the Queen? Where is the group that the girls were traveling with?”

  Gweneviere strained to hear the answers but it was hard to make out all the words so she gave up trying.

  Lydia had her eyes open and was trying to tell Gweneviere something but could not get her point across.

  Gweneviere’s attention was pulled back to the door as the voices were getting louder.

  “No, you can not” was the stern answer from Michael.

  “Then you can stay here and perish at your own will. We have a bargain and it does not look like it will be upheld” said the voice.

  “I know nothing of this. You need to take it up with Damien. Until then, you will help me or I swear, your life will become unpleasant.”

  Laughter filled the room. Both girls recognized that laugh. It was Cerberus.

  “Do you DARE mock me?” Michael was clearly agitated. “Your life can end here and now!”

  There was a brief moment of silence as he waited for an answer. It must have been acceptable as Michael turned, waved his hand, forcing Gweneviere and Lydia to stand up.

  “We need to move. My brothers will soon be here and then we can finish it all.”

  Michael untied Lydia’s feet so she could walk.

  “Come, we are moving to a safer room.”

  The three of them walked out of the room as Cerberus yelped.

  “Master, I did not realize what treasures you possessed.” He smacked his lips. “I have always had a taste for the blonde one. If you want to get rid of her, I would gladly take her off your hands.” Cerberus licked his lips and rubbed his hands together.

  Michael glared at Cerberus until he backed down and averted his eyes. “How many soldiers do you have?”

  “About one hundred give or take a few.”

  “I thought you had more. I would not have agreed to this had I known your resources were so few.”

  “Alas, My Lord, I have one resource that is more valuable that any massive army. I know the many paths through the caves.”

  “I don’t trust you” Michael said sternly. “If I detect any trickery, you will suffer.”

  Cerberus cracked a small smile, almost a smirk. “Come Master, I know the way to where you want to go.”

  * * *

  The King felt a piercing bolt of pain in his side. It was his daughter, she was in danger and he knew it. He could not keep his eyes open but the guards kept up the harassment.

  “Think, think!” he told himself over and over. “There must be a way”

  The two guards heard him squirming and came over to investigate.

  “Right you are them. You heard the orders from the demon. If the King closes his eyes, you are to poke him” said the first guard.

  “Really? But his eyes are open. What are we supposed to do then?”

  “Well then you are to step on his foot, pull his ear, and turn around three times.”

  “Nah, he didn’t say that at all. He said if he closes his eyes, I am to scream in your ear, slap you, and step on your foot.”

  “I don’t know why you are arguing with me. I am not the one with my eyes closed. He is.”

  “No, he is not. Look at him. Are his eyes closed?”

  The King just stared at the two of them and wondered how they ever managed to become soldiers. Then he remembered it was something about a favor to a distant cousin. The pain shot through his side again which brought him back to reality. It was hard to concentrate with so little sleep.

  The two soldiers were still arguing when one of them caught movement out of the corner of his eye. “Did you see that?” He drew his sword and approached the table. Whatever it was, it went under the table.

  He bent down ever so quietly with his sword shaking, pointing at the disturbance.

  Summoning his best voice of authority, he said “You there, throw out your weapons and come out quietly.”

  A slingshot slid out from underneath the table.

  “Alright then, not quite what I was expecting, but okay. Now come out slowly. Don’t try anything funny. We are both highly trained professional soldiers.” The King rolled his eyes.

  A paw reached out from under the table followed by another paw. A head soon appeared followed by the rest of the body and the tail.

  “Well, what have we here? Nice little kitty. How did you ever get in here? This is no place for someone as sweet as you.” The guard put down his sword and reached out. He was met with a lot of purring. “Oh so soft he is. Come here mate, it’s a little kitty.”

  “How did he get in here?”

  “I dunno, but isn’t he the cutest little thing? Here, hold him in your arms for a minute and you will feel how soft he is.”

  The other guard put down his sword too. It was not the smartest thing to do.

  “That he is, so soft, and listen to him purr. Hey King, look at the kitty!”

  The bundle of fur was lifted up and the King found himself looking into the face of a smiling kitten.

  The kitten winked.

  *
* *

  Chapter 25

  Damien raised his hand, ready to strike with a killing curse. Lydia and Gweneviere moved closer together trying to protect each other. Cerberus’ lifeless body was against the wall.

  The windowless room was dark. The shadows cast the rest of the room in darkness and there was just enough light shining in from the hallway to see the expressionless faces. All the demons were completely focused on the two girls. They had been waiting for this moment for the past ten years. The kingdom would finally belong to them.

  Damien stood with his hand raised; he could feel the power from all of the brothers coursing through his veins. All that remained was to utter the killing spell.

  “My brothers, this is a momentous occasion for us. Glory is ours, the kingdom is ours, all of our work, all of the planning, all of the struggles we faced, are here now. This ends it. Are you prepared brothers?”

  Damien stood there silently; he wanted to remember this moment. He watched as Gweneviere’s and Lydia’s eyes grew large. He assumed it was fear.

  It wasn’t.

  The demons were so focused on what they were doing that they failed to notice that they were not alone.

  Damien felt the hair on the back of his neck rise up. Then he felt the hot breath, so close it was like a whisper in his ear.

  The girls stared in disbelief as the face of Shabb came out of the shadows. His mouth was open exposing his fangs. Their heartbeats were racing as they knew that any second he would attack and kill the demon. They dared not move nor say anything to give him away. Lydia and Gweneviere felt their muscles tighten as they anticipated running to the door as soon as the attack happened.

  Shabb was so close to Damien that he would not have any time to react and defend himself. The girls thought he was as good as dead.

  “Hello Shabb, I thought you might show up here” said Damien in a rather calm voice. “Are you trying to intimidate me? Do you really think you could sneak up on ME?” He let out a little laugh. “Come now, you are no match for us. You know there is strength in numbers and we are in control.”

  Shabb changed into human form “And yet you hesitate to kill the girl. I heard you pontificating. Why is it that the tormentor always has to make a speech? Wolves don’t debate, wolves kill.”

  Damien considered his words carefully “And yet here you are yourself, using words instead of just attacking and killing us all.”

  “That is because I did not come to kill you. If I had wanted you dead, dead you would be!” Shabb walked over and stood in front of the girls. “We have an agreement, the daughter in exchange for our own territory with NO interference.”

  Shabb spoke as he changed back into wolf form “You are going to honor your agreement, are you not?”

  The wolf was now just inches away from Damien’s face as his facial muscles tightened. He knew, power or not, Shabb could kill him in an instant and there was not anything that could be done to prevent it except to lie.

  “Of course, we have an agreement.”

  Shabb sniffed Damien and smelling fear, decided that Damien was telling the truth. He turned his attention back to the girls and changed back into human form.

  “I am here to remind you that you cannot kill her. That was part of our agreement. You overestimate your power.”

  “Nonsense, even the power of Michael was enough to subdue her. All of us here, we are strong enough, we can finish this now.”

  “Stupid demons. Did he overpower her or did she just let him?”

  Damien was getting mad and reached for his wand. He found the face of Shabb right up against his.

  “Dare to test me? You can die right here, right now.”

  “Brothers, prepare to kill them all.”

  Damien expected to hear some movement as wands were drawn. Instead his order was met with silence. Without moving his head, he glanced left and right at his brothers. Each one had a wolf at his neck, lips pulled back and fangs exposed.

  “I thought we had an agreement?” Shabb asked.

  Damien wet his lips. “Yes, we do, we do. Now take your pack and go!”

  “NO, I don’t think you understand me. No harm shall come to the girl. That is part of our agreement.”

  “Of course, it is.”

  “And yet, at this very moment, you were prepared to kill them both. You have no honor.”

  “What becomes of the girl is of no consequence to you. The situation has changed.”

  “Her health and well-being is of concern to you. I shall guarantee that.”

  Shabb looked at his pack and they began retreating from the room. Two of the wolves grabbed Michael and pulled him from the room.

  “She dies, he dies. That should be simple enough that you can understand it.”

  Shabb walked slowly towards the door then stopped.

  “The kingdom is yours, the territory is ours. We raised the girl, our blood is her blood, our power is her power, and the girl is one of our clan. Kill her, harm her, and there will be no place that you can hide. We will destroy all of you.

  “Which one then?” asked Damien frantically. “There are two of them, which one is the chosen one?”

  Shabb transformed back into a wolf and left the room in silence.

  Damien stared in disbelief at what just happened “Brothers, we have a problem.”

  * * *

  “Michael, you did well. Probably saved us from going to war, although some would argue we are already there.”

  “I am sorry I had to put her to sleep. She tried to attack me and I could not risk her trying something dangerous. If she had attacked, well, my brothers, they would have killed her without question and I had to stall until your arrival. Having the other girl there was remarkable, it caused them to debate and delay some more. I had no idea how evil my brothers and I had become, all this just to gain power. Too many lives have already been lost. You know that now, since my transformation, my allegiance is to the King and Princess Lydia. I was not a statue very long but what insight, what a change in life and knowledge. Nothing will ever be the same. I guess I have a new understanding and lease on life.”

  Shabb stared deeply into Michael’s eyes. “What was it like? We have sent many there but none have ever come back until now. Our mutual existence goes back for many centuries. Never understood how changing someone into a statue would protect the kingdom, and consequently protect us. It was our duty to send the brave and courageous ones there to protect the kingdom. It was just something that was passed down from generation to generation so we always obeyed.”

  “Why did you pick me?”

  “I didn’t. The only choices we have are whether to kill anything or anyone at that time or later. We can sense evil. We kill evil. All others that pass the test become statues.”

  “But I am evil. You know that. Why was I spared?”

  “Are you really evil?” Shabb peered deeply into his face.

  Michael remained silent as he reflected on what Shabb was saying.

  Shabb took a step back and relaxed his gaze. “You have your answer.”

  “Then what about Lydia? She was bitten but did not become a statue.”

  “You ask a lot of questions.”

  * * *

  “What do we do now?” Thorgon asked.

  Robald was leaning against the wall and was just staring at nothing.

  Erica was busy preparing some cooking fires and was told to quickly put them out.

  “Save the oxygen please” requested Eric. He found a crack in the cavern floor, placed his staff in it, and lit the top to provide light for everyone.

  Thorgon walked over and tried to comfort Robald but was pushed away. He sauntered over to Eric and just stood there.

  The wizard looked up at him and the expression on his face said it all. Thorgon turned away and began kicking loose helmets. They landed with a clang and a thud on the opposite end of the cavern. After he ran out of helmets, he began flinging shields, smashing them into the wall.

 
The soldiers had formed a circle around the group to protect them from attack. It did not seem necessary but that was their sworn duty so no one challenged their behavior.

  Erica was trying spell after spell attempting to wake up Seth and Malcolm but was not having much luck.