Stella lifted her hands, and the iridescent shard of crystal floated down into her open palms. She gasped once she held it, for the crystal radiated gentle inner warmth that flowed up her arms. It gave her a shiver of something she could only describe as...hope.
“Thank you,” Stella whispered through fresh tears of gratitude as she gazed into the depths of the mystical crystal shard. The lady nodded, and touched her hand to her heart, lips, and crown. Stella gently placed the living shard between the gaps in her amulet, and it stayed there, held by some invisible force. The lady smiled.
“It is good that you came. But now you must hurry to your destiny,” she commanded in her musical voice, “for in this we all must dare to be courageous. Our time is short. Now run!” she urged them, and with that, the lady of light flew upwards through the gaping darkness like a shooting star, briefly shimmered into the form of a large white dragon, then disappeared in a flash.
Stella and her friends looked at each other, stunned by what they had just seen. She jumped as the silence was suddenly interrupted by a soft clatter from behind them on the path. Peering into the thick shadow, Stella could make out a shape that appeared to be a small person on the pathway between them and the exit. It walked toward the light of the lanterns, but Stella was relieved when she saw that it was only Nya.
“Hi,” the little girl chirped. Then another, far more sinister sound cut the conversation short.
It began as a soft, low whimpering that sounded almost human, and quickly grew louder. Rok knelt down to look over the edge of the cliff, his lantern held out to as far as he could reach to get a better view. With a gasp, he turned back to Stella and shouted, “The walls are moving!”
Mtumba joined him to look over the precipice, and shook his head. “That's not the walls, Rok, that's something else! I can't say what exactly, but it sounds alive, and it's coming up toward us fast. Wait, I think I can see...oh my gosh, that's...” The boys quickly sprung to their feet and bolted toward the cavern that led back to the cellar. “Quick!” Mtumba said. “We have to get back to the door before those things catch us!”
They ran, but Stella didn't see Nya with them, and took a quick glance over her shoulder. She almost wished she hadn't. There beside Nya, Stella saw the first of the creatures crest the edge of the cliff. It was more than a meter long, and looked like the scariest black centipede she could imagine, and poor Nya...she was frozen in fear next to the ledge, staring in horror as the creature closed in on her. Nya screamed, and the monster paused, its antennae fluttering above the large, dripping mandibles. It cooed at her, skittering around to her other side.
“No!” Stella yelled, and everyone turned. Rok and Mtumba started to move toward Nya, but the prisoner pushed them aside and rushed at the monster with a primal yell. It was distracted, and he used his lantern to knock the creature away from the girl. The oil lantern cracked from the impact, spraying burning oil onto the creature. It recoiled with a piercing shriek, and fell over the ledge.
Two more of the centipedes quickly crested the ledge, and it sounded like an entire hive was skittering up from the depths. The echoes as the creatures climbed toward the promise of food were near to deafening in this vast chamber. One of the large centipedes that had made it all the way up leapt up onto the prisoner’s shoulder, and sunk its fangs into his flesh with a squishing sound. He screamed a curse, and pulled it off, hurling it into the void.
Blood seeping through his grimy shirt, he scooped up Nya with his good arm, and used his leaking lantern to hit another of the monsters when it leapt up at him. It shrieked as it fell, but still they had no time to waste. The man grunted in pain, and kicked another of the freakishly large centipedes off the ledge to clear a path. He saw Stella and her friends were still standing there. “Get moving!” he yelled, and they all hit a hard sprint to escape the horrors that pursued them.
They passed through the caves as fast as their spiking adrenaline would carry them and Stella used the running song Mtumba had taught her. It kept her feet moving swiftly, and gave her something to focus on other than what was right behind them. Mtumba must have noticed what she was doing, because he nodded and joined in the song as he ran beside her. The prisoner yelled at them to hurry, the human-sounding monsters getting louder behind them. Getting closer. Stella pushed herself to pick up the pace, her breath coming in gasps, barely able to keep up the song.
“As soon as...you get...to the door...start shutting it!” the prisoner shouted from behind them.
Rok nodded, easily the fastest of them, and Stella saw the light from the small, strange room they'd started in. Almost there! She panted, losing her song a little, and looked behind her. The prisoner was swatting the hard, serpentine creatures aside with his leaking lamp, leaving trails of fire behind him as he ran. He held Nya tightly, and she cried as they went, able to see everything over his shoulder.
Stella saw that Rok and Mtumba were already working to swing the massive door closed, but it was moving too slow. She finally got there, and helped push.
“Hurry!” Stella yelled at the prisoner, who looked ragged as he carried the crying girl in his arms. He hurled his lantern over his shoulder with a grunt, buying himself a brief respite as the monstrous centipedes dodged the flames.
The prisoner and Nya finally made it through, but Stella felt her heart sink when she saw the swarming mass of those things rushing down the cavern toward them, skittering along the walls and even on the ceiling as they squealed in hunger.
Stella pushed harder than she could ever remember, but felt the stone wall budging only a bit. Then footsteps were rushing in from behind them. The monks! She almost cried with relief. Soon there were large hands beside hers, and then even more beside them, and then the gateway to the depths was closed with a heavy click.
One of the monsters had made it through part way though...cut in half from being caught while trying to wriggle through the passage. Even so, it still had life in it. The monster lunged at Nya with a high shriek, but Rama leapt forward, and with one powerful blow from his large fist, sent the creature sailing into the unforgiving wall with a wet crunch. Then it fell to the floor, spasmed once, and died.
Rama took a deep breath, and then lifted his daughter into a big warm hug, gently patting her back as she sobbed into his shoulder. “It's all right, honey. You're safe now.” Then he turned to look at the frightened young adventurers, as they stood surrounded by the monks. “And that, children,” he said, pointing at the dead monster, “is why we keep that door closed.”
22
Dangerous Company
“Just remember, if he so much as looks at me funny, I'm putting him back in the cellar.” Raya was still incensed about what'd happened, and was letting everyone know it, especially Stella and her friends, but the fact that she now held her daughter healthy and safe in her arms was at least partly thanks to the prisoner. “And if you were any older,” she continued at the teenagers, “we'd all be having a very different conversation right now.” Rama nodded. Stella wished she could crawl under a rock, but kept her chin up.
“I've told you,” said the prisoner, “I just need my serum, and I need it soon.”
“Not until you answer some questions,” Raya said.
“Awesome,” the prisoner grunted, trembling slightly. He was obviously in pain, but held his composure remarkably well. The monks had taken care of his wounds with disinfectant and bandages, and the prisoner had complained about how backward this planet was. Stella had to admit, she'd seen better medicine on Cristos, but they did what they could with what they had here. That's just how it worked, she supposed.
As they sat at the table by the crackling fire, Stella took a closer look at everyone while absently rolling her amulet in her fingers. The real Captain Hawk was standing off to the side with Kita and Skippy. The adults were whispering to each other, so Stella only heard a few words. “Dangerous,” caught her attention, and Mtumba nodded. He'd noticed she was listening in. She snuck a covert smile to
him when no one was looking.
“Care to share what's going on in there?” Raya asked, and Stella jumped, caught off-guard. She quickly pocketed her amulet, and then relaxed a bit as she saw how tender Raya was holding her daughter, Nya. Stella took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
“It's...just...” Stella began, but couldn't figure out how to put it into words. She looked at Rama and continued. “Even though I know we weren't technically supposed to be down there,” she looked at Rok and Mtumba, “I think that maybe on a deeper level we really were supposed to! I know that might sound strange, but...I mean, what we saw...who we saw...it's important that we were there. I'm sure of it!”
“She was beautiful,” Rok whispered, and Stella sighed. The prisoner clenched his jaw and looked away, emitting a small grunt of pain.
“I have no doubt,” said Raya. Rama put his hand on hers, and she spared him a gentle glance.
“Well, I don't know who...or what...she was,” Mtumba supplied, “but she came out of the dark and talked with us. She said that our king needed our help.”
“No,” Stella corrected. “She told us we had to hurry to help him.”
“The King,” Rama whispered, and then looked at Raya. “Do you think she meant...”
“The High King, I'm sure,” Raya finished matter-of-factly. “Especially if it's related in some way to the information I have on my amulet.”
“What's in there, anyway?” Eli asked from the corner.
“It's an encrypted file of a meeting between two very powerful, dangerous men,” Raya answered with a glance at Rama. “They’re powerful and dangerous enough to have their true identities encrypted. I'm not sure if you realize how difficult that is...but I'm positive it's something neither of them wants made public.”
“What was the meeting about?” Eli interjected, and Skippy beeped excitedly. “Quiet, Skippy.” The little airbot buzzed sadly, and hovered closer to Kita, who patted him on the head.
“They were discussing how to manipulate the House of Lords into declaring war,” Raya said. “Part of a plan to overthrow the High King and take command of the Empire. Horribly treasonous and decidedly criminal, but there's not much I'm willing to do without knowing who they are. It would just paint a target on this monastery, and our order wouldn't last half a cycle once that happened. Luckily they’re attempting to use subtlety for now,” she sighed with a gesture at the prisoner, “though I doubt we have much time until they try a more forceful approach. Still, that doesn't explain why the High King would need our help.”
“It's important that we find him!” Stella exclaimed.
“But why?” Raya asked. “You're far too young to put yourself in a position like that. Why should you be expected to help him? You don't even understand what you'd be walking into.”
“I might not understand everything you do, but I know that when a friend needs me, I'll be there,” Stella said firmly. “Every time.”
“Your friend?”
“Absolutely,” Stella nodded, and Mtumba and Rok voiced their affirmation.
Raya shook her head. “Rama, this is far too much intrigue for me. What are your feelings?”
Rama considered thoughtfully, and spoke. “My own parental concerns aside, if I was told by an ancient being of unimaginable power and grace that I was needed somewhere, and urgently...well, I just hope I'd have the courage to listen, and to do what was asked of me. Even if I didn't understand it and even if the idea terrified me.”
“You're not making this easy,” Raya whispered.
Rama shook his head. “Easy and important make rare acquaintance...and they seem determined.” He looked at Stella. “Yes?”
Stella nodded decisively, and then looked at Captain Eli.
“Whoa, kid,” Eli laughed and held up his hands as he looked at the other adults. “Even if I could get us to the Prime Citadel, they're gearing up for war. We'd never get past the port.” Skippy beeped again, and Eli gave him an irritated look.
“What did he say?” Rama asked.
“Nothing,” Eli waved it off. “He needs to go do maintenance on Slowpoke. We don’t want any more surprises while we’re warping.”
“Eli,” Kita whispered, “I think Skippy’s right. They need us.” Skippy beeped happily, but Eli just crossed his arms and shook his head.
“Right,” he mumbled.
“There must be something we can do to get inside,” Rok said, and everyone looked at him. Eli raised an eyebrow, but Raya sighed and reached around her neck to remove her amulet.
“Actually, I believe you might have another way in,” she said as she set her amulet on the table with a solid thunk. “Someone wants this very badly, don't they?” she asked the prisoner who looked like Eli Hawk. He nodded.
“Yes...” he answered haltingly, “but I don't know who, and that's a problem.”
“Still,” Raya countered, “I bet that if you told your employer you've got it and want to renegotiate your arrangement, you might be able to kill two birds with one stone.” The adults were nodding, though some did so grudgingly.
“Now, if we let them do this,” Kita reminded everyone, “they'll need someone to look after them.” Rama smiled at Eli, who reluctantly nodded.
“Fine,” Eli rolled his eyes, “but I still think it's crazy sending kids into this kind of situation.”
“I don't disagree with you, Eli,” Raya said, “but Rama makes a good point. The children seem to have a unique role in this strange situation, and if that's true, we need to help them succeed...however we can. Even I have to admit that whatever's going on here is more than I can fathom. Unless you know something I don't?” Eli shook his head, and Raya gave a solemn nod.
Stella's head was spinning. Were they actually going to go to the Prime Citadel to find a high-ranking traitor that would want to kill them? All to help protect the most powerful man in the universe? All because that floating woman had told them to? Stella huffed, and wondered what she was getting them into...was she doing the right thing? How could things possibly get any more confusing than they already were?
Rama looked over at the prisoner, who seemed increasingly uncomfortable. Raya turned to the mysterious man. “We have what you want, but before we hand it over, we need your word that you'll help these children, and that you won't betray us.”
The prisoner scoffed, but nodded. “Yeah, don't worry about me. I want some answers here too, you know.” He looked Raya in the eye. “I promise I'll help as much as I can. Just so long as you understand I'm not a miracle-worker...okay?”
“Fair enough,” Raya sniffed.
Rama gestured to Captain Eli. His old friend came over, and Rama whispered something to him. Eli nodded and left the room with Kita, Skippy bobbing through the air behind them. After a moment, they returned and handed Rama a sturdy gray satchel. “Aha!” he said, and removed a small air-injector tube. He promptly handed it across the table to the prisoner.
“I still don't think this is wise, Rama,” Raya muttered.
“Ne c'est pas,” he nodded, and his wife smiled.
Stella wondered what it was Rama had just given the prisoner. Could it be poison? After what they'd just talked about, that would seem strange, but then again, strange seemed to be the new bar for normal these days.
“You're not killing him, are you?” Stella asked with a nervous glance at Raya, “Because whatever else he's done, you should know that he just saved your daughter.”
Raya laughed, but shook her head. “Of course I know that, and no, we're not murderers,” she said. “That's from his own bag.”
The prisoner laughed, and then coughed. “Don't worry, I'll be fine. And this is something I need you to see, anyway, especially if we're all going to be working together.”
“Why?” Stella asked him.
“Something that lady down there said got me to thinking about things in a different way.” He sighed. “I need someone to know who I really am. Someone I can see. But it's not something I've ever shown anyone, so..
.” Then with a nervous glance at everyone there, the prisoner lifted the small vial, hands trembling slightly. “Here goes,” he joked as he took the small tube and pressed it deep against the flesh of his healthy shoulder with a grunt, the contents hissing out into his bloodstream. He gasped, eyes wide, and everyone watched in silence as the strange process began.
It was subtle at first, but then he grunted, and things started shifting visibly under his skin. Wet sounds accompanied these rumblings of the flesh, and Stella noticed a strange, foul odor. Like something between a sharp chemicals and a damp hay-bale.
In front of their eyes, the stranger underwent a complete metamorphosis in under a minute. He went from looking just like Captain Eli Hawk into someone...completely different. He became smaller with a series of awkward, crunching un-growth spurts, shrinking in his clothes like a mad dancer, his hair and skin darkening a lot, and lengthening just a little.
He screamed once as Stella heard what must have been the man's teeth shifting. Stella nearly retched right there, but turned away and kept her stomach under control. She'd never seen anything like it, and apparently neither had anyone else. Raya held her daughter to her chest, shielding her from the uniquely discomfiting display with a soothing lullaby.
Rok and Mtumba were clearly fascinated by the bizarre physical transformation, though obviously for different reasons. Mtumba seemed highly disturbed, whereas Rok looked highly intrigued.
Once the process was done and the prisoner had finished shaking, it was no longer a man sitting in front of them. Instead, they saw an elegant, sharp-faced woman who possessed the darkest eyes Stella had ever seen. Strangely captivating. The woman looked more athletic than curvaceous, a fact emphasized by the lithe gesture of sweeping back a dark lock of hair. She was still panting. The process had obviously been very hard on her. After a deep breath, she looked across the table at everyone in turn, and spoke in a rich alto.
Phoenix Rising (Dragon Legacy) Page 15
