by Jack Crosby
We entered the stable where the grey pale horse was standing with a bunch of hay in his mouth. He swallowed and greeted me. “Oz Grimm, it has been too long.”
“Really? It’s been a few days man.”
He snorted at me. Jets of hot air exited his nose. “Do not be like your father; the world does not need more of his sarcasm and wit.”
“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with either of those!”
Khloros ignored him. “So Oz, what brings you back from Earth? And who is the human who has tagged along?”
“Oh right, Khloros, this is Caspian and vice versa. Trust me, he’s a really cool dude.”
My friend seemed to be weirded out by a talking horse. He put his hand up and Khloros let him rub his head. “Nice to meet you.”
It was time to cut to the chase. “I need your help man, in like a huge way.”
So he listened to my proposition. I told him where we’d be going and the reason why. The big grey horse never balked or interrupted me; Khloros always kept a level head.
He didn’t answer right away, which was typical. Unlike my dad who used his heart to make decisions, Khloros was very tactical. “The Falls of Sorrow, one of those hidden shadow realms that sprung up during the Fall a very long time ago. I am most impressed you understand the fallbacks to this, yet wish to proceed.”
“I totally get if you don’t want to go. I mean the whole, no way back thing, yeah, that’s a bit intimidating.”
It was always impossible to tell when he was laughing or what the hell that sound was. “When you are as old as me, going someplace with little chance of survival is part of the job. The added stipulation of being stuck there never stopped your father and I in the past.”
“Khloros don’t give the boy any unnecessary ideas.”
“I am just stating facts once again.”
These two bickered like an old married couple most of the time. While it was funny to listen, back at the house, I heard mom greet someone at the door. Dad heard too and picked up the urgency. “Okay, it’s time for some decisions to be made, Khloros?”
The large horse held his head high. “I will protect your son and his friend. We will do what is necessary and somehow find a way home.”
With that settled, dad pushed me and Cas up on to the back of the horse. “I wish we had more time to talk about things, but I don’t want you guys getting in trouble.” He backed away, giving us room. “I know you wanted to save your brother, but sometimes people don’t want to be saved.”
“I know.” With one last look, I plunged the dragon’s tooth into my palm. Between the pain and my vision swirling with all different colors, for a second I thought the tooth was laced with LSD or something. Khloros and Cas were still there with me and a new reality began to take shape. We’d made it to the shadow realm – The Falls of Sorrow.
The sky was an off shade of blue. Taking up most of the sky was a moon that seemed way too big to even be real. Cas was even reaching out to try and touch it. I hopped off Khloros and apprised the rest of the landscape. A vast void stretched in all directions and in the middle was a set of three mountains. From the highest peak, water rushed down. It wasn’t normal water either, that much I could tell. There was something strange and awful about it; even at this distance I could tell.
“We should not dally. The Lurkers are here, I can feel them.”
He was right of course; there was an unnatural aura in the air, one that felt like it never should’ve belonged anywhere. “Do we do this via horseback?”
Cas didn’t seem fond of that idea and neither did Khloros. “I assume that you two are not trained riders?” That was a correct assumption. “It may be easier if I take my vehicular shape.”
“This horse turns into a car? Shut. The. Fuck. Up!” Someone was jazzed.
Cas got even more excited when the pale horse shifted forms and took the very familiar 2014 Ford Taurus SHO. I had to practically pull him off the car’s exterior. “You can marvel later, we need to get a move on it.”
I went for the driver’s door only to be shoved out of the way. “No way Oz! I’m the best driver here and you’re not denying me the opportunity to drive this awesome creation.”
“Fine.” He was right too. I wasn’t the world’s best driver and we needed someone with skills. “Khloros, let’s do this.”
The car turned on, the engine revving up. Cas grabbed the steering wheel and slammed on the accelerator. With a cloud of dust behind us, we were off. The two of them seemed like the perfect match as Cas had no issues cranking up the speed. I felt my life may be in danger with his driving, that is until I saw my first Lurker.
Picture in your mind a beetle if you will. Give that beetle the horns of a bull and the ability to shoot ink like an octopus. Got it? Okay, now imagine this thing is the size of a large pit-bull. You my friends have the Lurkers! And oh yeah, they’re fast – so very fast.
More began to come out of the ground with each passing minute. Soon there was a herd of Lurkers behind Khloros and there wasn’t anything we could do except keep moving forward.
Cas took a quick look around the car. “Mr. Grey Horse sir, is there anything like nitro or a boost button?”
Beside the emergency brake, a cap popped open. “An old friend installed dragon’s fire. I do not know if it will kill the Lurkers, but it should increase our speed.”
Before I could chime in on this, Cas hit the button and a roar of fire burst out from the back of the car. The first set of Lurkers took the brunt of the fire, but most continued to push right through. However, speed was the goal and the car took off like a rocket. Cas was laughing like a maniac while I was holding on for dear life. Almighty bless him though, he never once lost control of Khloros.
“Oz, we got a problem!”
My eyes were closed, hoping this would end soon. “What now?!”
He hit me on the shoulder. “Damnit Oz look!” I did and saw a river quickly approaching. “What do we do?”
How the hell was I supposed to know? I wasn’t the driver or the car! “Khloros, you jumped an ice bridge once right?” My dad loved to tell that story about getting away from the Kraken. “Could you do it again?”
As calm as ever, “I was a horse when I did that. I do not ever remember trying this as a car.”
We didn’t have much of a choice. The river bank was almost here and Cas wasn’t slowing down at all. We looked at each other and silently we knew what had to be done. I grabbed whatever I could and held on tight. Cas pressed down as far as he could with the accelerator and we hit the bank hard.
From below I could see we were over the water. Behind us, the Lurkers stopped, looking on angrily at the escaped targets. That’s where the good news ended. We missed the opposite bank by a few feet and splashed hard into the water. My head hit the dashboard and that was all she wrote.
Chapter 30 – The Falls of Sorrow
Someone hit me hard on the face. When my eyes didn’t open right away, I got hit again. “Would you stop doing that?”
“Dude you’re alive.” Cas, it was him hitting me. “Damnit man, you’re a lot heavier than you look.”
I opened my eyes and saw we were sitting on the ground, in some sort of forest. I heard the sounds of water nearby, so we must’ve been close to the Falls. “Dude, did you get the number on that truck that hit me?”
Instead of punching me again, he sat on the ground. It was then I realized just how wet we were. “Forget the truck, that river did a number to us. Khloros saved my skin, but you fell out so I had to go back in to get you.”
As much as I wanted to get up and go barnstorming the Falls of Sorrow and confront my brother, rest was what was needed. Food as well, but we didn’t exactly plan to go camping. Khloros was nearby and he suggested that he could scout the nearby terrain to see what resources were available. I knew he’d be okay, that was one horse I’d never want to mess with.
Cas looked pale. “Dude, are you sure you’re okay?”
“My little
dip to save your dumb ass took a lot out of me.” He collapsed on the ground. “Don’t mind me… I’m just a wee bit tired.”
No this wasn’t right. His eyes were starting to glaze over and his breathing was becoming labored. I put my hand on his chest and his heartbeat was definitely irregular. Not knowing what to do, I pulled his shirt back to start chest compressions when the cause of this became clear – there were two weird looking leeches attached to his side.
I grabbed the first one and tried to pull it off. The stupid thing wouldn’t budge at all. I gripped it once again and yanked. “Stop!” It was Khloros.
I let go of the leech and put my hands up. “What’s wrong? We need to get these things off of him.”
“Those are Abyss Leeches and proper removal is not something you can do.” He moved quickly beside Cas. “This takes a more skilled hand, or in this case, mouth.”
Not knowing what he was talking about, I watched in horror as he leaned in and began probing the first leech with his teeth. When he found the spot he was looking for, he bit down hard, quick and swift. The leech ripped in two with blood shooting everywhere.
Oh man it was disgusting. Khloros did the same thing to the second leech, splitting the parasite in two. When both were dead on the ground, only then did the horse back away and give me room to tend to my friend. On his side were two nasty looking gashes from where the leech was drawing blood from him. I took off my coat and with Asunder, cut strips of fabric to tie around the wounds in makeshift bandages.
“Here, have him eat these berries.” He dropped a bunch of sticks off of his back that had red berries on them. “I do not believe they are lethal.”
I took him at his word because well, he knew shit. I forced a few handfuls of the berries into Cas’s mouth and like a dog, forced him to swallow. Slowly the food brought back some color and his breathing seemed to improve. “He’s not going to be in any shape to help me.”
Khloros seemed to concur. “What audible to the plan must we incorporate?”
That was easy. “You tend to Cas. I’m going after Jacoby alone.”
Even though I knew he was against it, he wasn’t about to stop me. “Very well young one. I will make sure your friend is safe. You do your best to stay safe too.”
Rubbing his head, “Thanks buddy. I knew you’d understand.”
“Now go before I change my mind.”
****
It didn’t take long to walk through the forest to find the source of the rushing water. From my vantage point on the ground, the water hitting the pool below sounding like a freight train. It was both beautiful and very much scary. About halfway up, I saw an opening behind the Falls – my gut told me that was where I needed to go.
When I reached the ledge, water was flying everywhere. I didn’t realize just how slippery the rock wall would be and wasn’t even close to wearing the proper attire to scale this thing. Still, I was this close, getting further than anyone would’ve assumed and something like a wet cliff wasn’t going to stop me. Using a bit of caution, I released my wings; if I fell, I hoped the chains would protect me from the drop.
The natural hand holds and footings were tough, yet my adrenaline more than anything pushed me through. With each step I made up, I was that much closer to avenging Tyra and Argus. I was that much closer to making Jacoby pay for his crimes. I used that as motivation not to fall. Tyra’s face was burned in my retinas.
At about the halfway point there was a ledge which I used to rest. I had just enough room to stand up tall, only with my wings away. My body burned, my joints ached. Any sensible person would’ve stopped this foolish crusade, but I wasn’t sensible. Knowing Morgan and Jacoby wouldn’t be leaving this place either made the decision that much easier to swallow. If I saved the rest of the world from their sins and crimes, living the rest of my life here (no matter how long) would be worth it.
My only regret was that Cas and Khloros were here too. Granted, they came by their own free will; it just didn’t make it right that they should suffer the same fate as I was prepared to. Who knows, maybe once the deed was done, I’d find something that could help.
Putting them to the back of my mind, I went back to climbing. The closer I got to the top, the more slippery the rocks became. Each move was a calculated risk – make the wrong grab and I would be on my way back down to the ground. Even with my wings for protection, I didn’t know if I’d survive.
That doubt caused me to almost lose my grip. I chastised myself, “Focus Oz.” I found my grip and pulled myself up. Now wasn’t the time to get complacent and let my concentration wander. Looking up, I saw my destination was almost within reach. With a few more movements, my hand grabbed the ledge. Pulling myself up to it, I was there.
Just out of view from below, the citadel behind the water wall was impressive. It looked like something carved right out of the rock, probably from magic. The lines were sharp and daunting; the rock itself was black and cold. There was a lot of magic in the air, more than I’d ever felt before.
I was a bit taken aback that there was no guardians either around the base of the Falls or here. Then I realized that this shadow realm was a guardian in itself. I thought back to the dragon tooth that Mephisto gave me; just what kind of creatures used to roam this place?
At the bottom of the citadel was a large iron door. There would be no way to breach that. Instead, I tucked close to the far west wall, staying in the shadows as best I could. I was even afraid to communicate with Asunder, for fear that the witch inside might be able to pick up on our communication. I was alone in this task, and I was quite okay with that.
There was a spot closest to the wall that looked like some sort of drainage opening. I got closer and realized that it hadn’t been used in a very long time. I gave the bars a slight push and the old metal started to give. Not watching to snap it off and make any unnecessary noise, I slowly went to work bending them, just enough that I could get through. With a hole big enough created, I said a quick prayer and ventured off into the darkness before me.
Chapter 31 – The Old One
I quickly discovered the drainage entrance dropped off into a pit. Thankfully my wings were still out and the drop wasn’t that far. I landed rather awkwardly, but the wings and water covering the ground broke my fall. When I stood up, I was okay. The only thing was I found myself standing in knee high water. That was a bit of a bummer. Asunder remained in his dormant state. Something about the energy down here seemed to interact with the silent blade, but I was still worried about Morgan sensing us. No, I only needed to bring him in for a dire situation.
Opposite of me was another wall, this one with a ladder carved into it. An odd light helped me see the way to it, so I began the arduous walk over. I hadn’t even gone ten steps when the weird light went out, giving me the feeling something really weird was going on here.
“A visitor… so many years have passed since one has come to see me.”
This voice belonged to someone particularly large. When the odd light appeared again, it was only then that I understood it was attached to the creature I was here with. It had a humanoid shaped body and seemed to be leaning up against one of the walls. The light came from its forehead – was it a third eye? The hilt of my sword vibrated just for a moment before returning to its quiet state. “Umm, hello up there.”
He (I think it was a dude) stretched his neck down to get a better look at me. “You have a similar signature to the one upstairs. Are you another of Death’s brood?”
“I am.” He didn’t sound angry or resentful, more curious. “Do you know my dad?”
“A very long time ago the two of us met. He still carries with him a token from that meeting I’m sure.” He leaned back up against the wall and sighed. I had no idea what that token could be. “When the other like you arrived, I assumed it was an agent of his sent to finish up the last of the Old Ones. However, I was left here to rot away, not a care in the world.”
Part of me felt sorry for the thing sit
ting down here. Unfortunately, I had a few of my own issues to tackle. “That sucks and I’m sorry, but I need to get back up there and finish the job I’ve come to do.”
He chuckled, which shook the room. Man, I hope that didn’t give me away. “I see, you are here to eliminate the witch and the other like you, are you not?”
There was no need to hide it. “Yeah I am. Are you going to try and stop me?”
“Oh no, not at all. In fact, I would be most gracious if you were able to pull off such a feat.”
Wasn’t that sporting? “This is a turn of events. Haven’t really had many people on Team Oz lately.” I looked over at the ladder. “You’re a big guy; you think you could give me a lift outta here? That’d be a big help in conserving energy.”
The light on his forehead brightened. “I would be most happy to.” He swooped down and picked me up. I was able to stand up in his palm as he carried me over to the exit. “Anyone who opposes the witch is an ally of mine.”
He wasn’t moving all that fast, but it was getting the job done. “So, how did you end up down here?”
“That is a long story, much longer than we have here. Just know the witch you seek to destroy wrongfully evicted me from my throne here.” Ahhh, so he was the previous ruler of this shadow realm. “Now I am just a remnant of what I used to be.”
We reached the exit. From his palm I was able to slowly push the door open and look out. The coast was clear. “Thanks for your help. I don’t think I ever got your name though?”
“My name is irrelevant young one, but you may remember me as The Crooked One.”
****
I was glad to be out of that area. Not that my new friend was all that scary, there was just something off about him. Probably from being stuck in that dungeon for years. That’d definitely do it to a guy. With that behind me, I was back on the hunt for my brother and Morgan. Being back on the first floor, I could see this place was a maze of corridors and doorways. I hooped I’d be able to navigate the way without giving myself away.
