The Shadowed Land

by Ryan W. Mueller

  As she lay there, his breathing ceased. The next words were the most difficult she'd ever uttered. "He's dead."

  Chapter 56: The Labyrinth

  Kara walked in a fog. She had no idea how she managed to put one foot in front of the other. Everything felt cold and lifeless. An oppressive weight had settled over her.

  They'd left Aren where he'd died. There was nothing else they could do for him.

  It was still hard to believe. Hours ago, he'd been full of life. They'd shared their first kiss.

  And now he was dead, another person lost to this cruel world. Another person she'd failed. Aren wouldn't have been here if not for her. She was leading them all to her deaths just so she could get home. How could she be so selfish?

  "I want the rest of you to go home," she said. "I can do this on my own."

  "No, you can't," Tobias said. "And Aren wouldn't want you to go on alone. We chose to come here with you. We knew the risks."

  "Nobody deserves to die like that," Kara said.

  Josef's expression was cold, distant. "The world doesn't care what we deserve. All of life is a game of chance. Aren lost."

  Kara pushed against him with all the force she could muster. Her anger felt like a raging current. "How can you say something so heartless?"

  "That's the way I see the world."

  Kara glared at him. "Well, I hope I never see it that way."

  Josef started walking, leaving Kara a few steps behind. Had his moment of tenderness before been only a brief change from his normal behavior? Now he seemed colder than ever, as if he didn't care that Aren had died. In truth, Josef probably didn't. He was in this for his own reasons and didn't care about any of them.

  With every step, Kara felt like stopping. Maybe a monster could find them and kill her as well. She had no idea what might await her in the afterlife, but maybe she'd have a chance to see Aren again. Something wonderful had developed between them, and now it was gone.

  Taken away before she could appreciate it.

  Somewhere in the distance was the sound of flapping wings. Whatever was making that sound had to be enormous. Kara broke out of her thoughts and peered through the mist, but she couldn't see anything. The flapping grew louder, a menacing sound.

  "What do you think that is?" she asked.

  Josef looked genuinely terrified. "We don't want to know."

  "They're not supposed to be anywhere near this pass," Diana said.

  "They?" Kara asked. "Do you know what this is?"

  Diana nodded. "It's a dragon."

  The flapping grew louder and louder, echoing through the pass like thunder.

  "How large are these dragons?" Kara asked.

  "Large," Diana said, "but not so large that it won't be able to enter the pass."

  Kara spotted a cave ahead and to the right. She remembered Diana's warning about these caves, but what choice did they have? It was better to face an unknown monster than one that would surely kill them.

  She turned to Tobias and Josef. "Does your magic stand any chance against a dragon?"

  Josef shook his head. "Dragons are highly resistant to magic, and because they are creatures of magic, they can kill those of us who are immortal."

  "Then I think we should hide in that cave." Kara pointed ahead. When the others frowned, she said, "Would you rather die out here?"

  She had no idea where this sudden certainty had come from. Had the danger allowed her to forget about Aren, at least for the moment?

  "She has a point," Diana said. "The dragon will kill us if we stay out here."

  The flapping had grown almost deafening. Somewhere up above, a shadow was visible through the mist. The shadow grew closer. The dragon's wings sent mighty gusts of wind through the pass. Then the fire came.

  It started behind them, spraying through the pass in a steady stream. The air grew hot. The fire was thirty feet away. Twenty. Ten.

  Kara pushed her legs as fast as they'd go, but she wasn't fast enough.

  "Hit the ground!" Josef shouted. "I'll shield us."

  Kara didn't even recall flattening herself against the rocks. All she could think about was the heat. The air shimmered, and Kara was sure she was about to die. With the prospect of death so close, she realized she didn't want to join Aren. Not yet.

  She had to get home first, had to know what had happened to Nadia, to Ander, to Aric. Had to show them she was still alive. Aren had wanted her to get home. He'd believed in it so strongly, and she couldn't give up on his dream. But would she ever have the chance?

  The flames grew hotter. The dragon roared. The air became suffocating.

  But the shield held. The flames lashed at the invisible barrier but couldn't penetrate it.

  "We need to keep moving!" Josef shouted. "Into the cave!"

  They raced the last few feet and darted into the cave. The dragon's flames pushed beyond the cave's entrance, so they delved deeper into the darkness. Diana lit the tip of her staff, allowing them to see a few feet.

  At last, they reached a point beyond the reach of the dragon's fire. They waited there as the dragon continued growling. How long before it decided to leave them alone?

  "What if it stays out there?" Kara asked, shaking so much she could barely stay on her feet. She felt trapped, and panic flared in her chest.

  "We'll have to hope it doesn't," Diana said. "It's that simple."

  A growl sounded, coming from somewhere within the cave. Everybody looked deathly pale in the light from Diana's staff.

  The growl came again, closer. Rocks shifted. There was a place nearby where the cave branched, and soon the monster emerged from this fork in the path. It had them cornered.

  "We'll have to go deeper into the cave," Josef said.

  Tobias took off running. "I don't like the sound of that."

  The rest of the party followed. Kara could hear the monster behind them, but in the darkness, she couldn't see it. Pounding steps grew closer. The monster growled again.

  The farther they raced into the cave, the more unstable the ground felt beneath them. More than once, Kara heard rocks collapsing somewhere nearby. Would the entire cave fall apart beneath them? Her breath caught in her throat, and her chest felt tight with panic.

  Everyone in the party linked hands so that they wouldn't get separated amidst the shaking. Kara clung to Diana on one side and Josef on the other. Touching his hand made her feel a little sick.

  A resounding crack split the air, and the ground gave way. The entire cave was collapsing. Kara screamed, the sound lost amidst the thundering noise.

  She expected to feel something beneath her, expected to hit the ground hard.

  But there was nothing. She fell through empty air, through darkness, screaming the entire time. Maybe Josef was right. The world was a game of chance, and they had lost.

  Then Kara felt as if some unseen force were squeezing her. In the chaos and darkness, she could no longer see the rest of the party. She reached out, hoping to find them, but they weren't there.

  Then it all stopped. She lay atop rocky ground, drenched in sweat, her heart pounding in her ears. Dizzy and disoriented, she scanned her surroundings. First, she saw Diana, Josef, and Tobias. They looked dazed but all right. The entire party lay now in another cave, but this one was illuminated by blue magical light, giving their surroundings an eerie feeling.

  They all got to their feet shakily. "Can somebody tell me what the hell just happened?" Kara asked.

  Tobias glanced around for a few moments. "If I'm not mistaken, we've just been taken to the Labyrinth. Very unusual. Somebody among us must be a Weaver."

  "I don't know what any of that means," Kara said.

  "The Labyrinth is perhaps the heart of the Shadowed Land. It contains some of the most powerful magic, some of the most fearsome monsters. It's also said to be the location of the Nexus." He smiled weakly. "I know what you're thinking. It seems like a perfect opportunity."

  "It does," Kara said. "But even if we find the Nexus, there
are so many worlds. I think I understand that now. I have no idea if I'll go back to my own world." She peered into the distance, expecting to see something dangerous, but the place seemed deserted. "You mentioned something called a Weaver. What is a Weaver?"

  "Have you heard of the Webs of Fate?" Tobias asked.

  Kara shook her head.

  "All right. Imagine the world as a giant spider web. Every event is a thread in that web, and it's the most complex spider web you've ever seen. Now, some of these threads are thicker than others. That means they're more likely to take place. Even more importantly, some people can pull events along a certain path. Those people are Weavers."

  Kara tried to take this all in. "You think I might be a Weaver?"

  "I don't know," Tobias said, "but you have to admit that things have been very interesting in the Shadowed Land since you've arrived."

  "But how could I be a Weaver. I'm nobody special. I don't have magic. I'm good with a sword, but I'm not the best."

  "Look at how many people decided to help you on your quest to get home," Tobias said. "Do you think an ordinary person could have made all this happen?"

  "I don't know," Kara said, "but this sounds too much like fate, and I don't believe in fate." She glanced at Josef. "As you said, the world is more like a game of chance. You never know what's going to happen."

  Josef avoided her gaze. "Well, I wouldn't go that far. Weavers are real. I can't tell if you are one. My skill in reading the Webs is limited. But it is possible."

  Kara turned back to Tobias. "How did you know this is the Labyrinth?"

  "Because I entered it once before." He looked down at the ground. "I didn't get very far. It's a place I never thought to enter again."

  "Well, we're back now," Josef said. "We could use your experience."

  Tobias raised his eyebrows. "You've never been to the Labyrinth?"

  "No, I've had other things to do. I've never seen the need to go somewhere so dangerous." Josef frowned. "Just out of curiosity, what prompted you to try your luck here?"

  "I was younger then, and a lot stupider."

  Josef chuckled, almost sounding human again. "We've all been stupid at one time or another. Great power often leads to great stupidity."

  "Enough discussion," Diana said. "How do we get out of this place?"

  "We have three options," Tobias said. "We find the exit, we find the Nexus, or we die."

  Chapter 57: The Bridge

  Kara and her party started through the Labyrinth, following its twists and turns with no idea where they were going. The blue magical light made it easy to see and allowed them to have their weapons ready.

  "What else is here?" Kara asked. "I mean, besides monsters?"

  "Traps, most likely," Tobias said. "The Labyrinth is . . . unusual. Doubt we'll face the same thing twice."

  Kara scanned her surroundings for danger. "How was a place like this created?"

  "No idea," Tobias said. "It's been here since we came to the Shadowed Land."

  They walked in silence for a while, listening for any signs of monsters. For the first few hours, though, the Labyrinth seemed deserted. However, Kara had the feeling it was lulling them into a false sense of security.

  Josef had taken the lead. Tobias was content to stay back with Diana and Kara. Diana looked pale and terrified. Kara doubted that Diana had expected to face a situation like this. Would Diana charge them a higher price for the added danger?

  Of course, that didn't matter to Kara. All she cared about was getting out of this place and escaping the Shadowed Land. There was something tempting about using the Nexus. It was a risky endeavor, but if she found the Nexus, could she let that opportunity escape her? After all, there was no guarantee Krinir would help her. Or if he even could.

  A faint scuttling came from up ahead. Kara tensed, peering into the distance. From around the next twist of the passage, a strange creature emerged. It had a head like a giant cat, pincers at the end of its front legs, and six more legs. Like a spider.

  It opened its mouth, revealing enormous fangs, and a green substance sprayed from its mouth. Josef and Tobias both raised a shield, and the poison dissipated before it could strike them.

  "You hold the shield," Josef said. "I'll take care of the beast."

  The monster launched itself toward them, moving with catlike grace and agility. As it leapt, Josef sent a shard of ice at its soft underbelly. The ice pierced the creature and its attack stopped just short of them. Green blood dripped from the wound.

  "Don't touch the blood," Josef said. "I think it holds some kind of poison."

  Kara darted around to the side. She wasn't sure what she could do. If she got close enough to hurt the beast, she'd risk touching its blood.

  Diana used her staff to send flames at the creature, but the flames didn't appear to affect it. Instead, it shrieked with rage and launched itself toward her. She tried to duck to the side, but she was too slow. The creature landed atop her and pierced her shoulder with its fangs.

  She screamed, and her body began convulsing. Then her flesh began to sizzle. She screamed more loudly, but there was nothing anyone could do for her.

  Josef continued to send shards of ice at the creature. He stood right behind it, dangerously close. Each shard of ice hit the creature's underbelly. It was dying, but too slowly.

  Diana stopped screaming and fell still. Kara wished she could do something, but she couldn't get near the creature without risking her own life. Still, Diana didn't deserve this. She hadn't been involved in Kara's quest like the others. She'd simply agreed to lead them through the mountains—a journey she'd made countless times.

  Kara stood by Tobias, hoping his shield would protect her. The creature had turned its attention to Josef, who backed away, launching more shards of ice at it. It was gaining on him.

  "You have to try something else!" Kara shouted, trembling.

  Josef waved his arms, and the air grew terribly cold. A moment later, the creature stopped as if it had frozen solid, and then it toppled over onto its side.

  "What did you do?" Kara asked, stepping closer hesitantly.

  Josef glanced at the monster. "It's an ice spell. Makes the air very cold, so cold it freezes the monster's blood. I wasn't sure if it would work. It stops some creatures in their tracks, but others are resistant to it."

  Kara took a few steps and knelt beside Diana.

  "Don't touch her," Tobias said. "She's covered in venom."

  Diana wasn't breathing. Her face looked pale, showing no signs of life.

  "So senseless," Kara said. "How could God allow such a horrible world to exist?"

  Tobias looked on with a grave expression. "I wish I had an answer for you."

  "God doesn't care about us," Josef said. "History has shown us that much."

  To Kara's surprise, she agreed with Josef. Once, she might have believed in the goodness of God, but now she'd seen so much tragedy. Before, she'd blamed it on Warrick. Now she had to consider that God was the source of so many terrible things.

  She hadn't known Diana all that well, but she still felt hollow when she looked at the woman's lifeless body. Too many people had died on this quest.

  "We should get moving," Josef said. He cast only a passing glance at Diana.

  Reluctantly, Kara left their guide behind. It seemed wrong to watch all these people die and simply leave their bodies there for monsters to eat. She'd never had a chance to bury any of the friends she'd lost. Many had burned in Crayden, leaving nothing behind. Since then, she'd been busy on this quest. In some ways, it helped distract her, but every loss was an immense weight upon her chest.

  They continued through the Labyrinth, walking in silence. What could they say to each other right now? They'd lost so many people, and they stood little chance of escaping this place. Kara didn't want to dwell on all the negatives, but this wasn't negativity; it was realism.

  Kara had no idea if Josef knew where he was going. He looked confident enough, but he always seeme
d confident. Though she had no proof, she suspected he'd been in this place before and had lied to Tobias. She suspected a lot of things about Josef.

  "We need to find a teleportation stone," Tobias said, breaking a long silence. "That's how I got out before."

  "That won't be easy," Josef said. "Teleportation stones are exceedingly rare, even in a place like the Labyrinth, where the magical energy is more likely to create them."

  Feeling numb, Kara didn't want to ask any questions. She followed Josef's lead and prayed they wouldn't run across any other monsters.

  The Labyrinth felt as if it would never end. They followed passage after passage, took turn after turn. Everything looked the same. They could have returned to a passage they'd already taken without knowing it. There were a few monsters, but Tobias and Josef handled them easily.

  Kara felt useless. Once or twice, she got involved in a battle, but Tobias and Josef did most of the work.

  After a long time, perhaps days, they reached an open chamber, where they stood on a thin ledge overlooking a chasm so deep Kara couldn't see its bottom. A narrow bridge crossed the chasm, but it didn't look stable. Kara couldn't see anything supporting it.

  She pointed at the bridge. "Are we going to cross that?"

  Josef gave her a stern look. "You see any other options?"

  "No," Kara said. Why did Josef always have to treat her as if she were stupid? She knew she was involved in situations beyond her capabilities. He didn't have to remind her.

  They started across the bridge. At first, nothing seemed amiss. Kara tried not to look down, but as soon as the thought crossed her mind, she had to. The world faded away into blackness below her, and suddenly she felt as if everything were spinning around her.

  "Careful," Tobias said, grasping her arm.

  She steadied her balance. "I'm all right. I just looked down, that's all."

  "Must you always be so foolish?" Josef asked.

  She glared at him. "Must you always be such a bastard?"

  Tobias stepped between them. "Look. This isn't the place to argue. Let's focus on crossing this bridge."