by Billy Wong
Trying to push aside his fear for his tough mother, Jacob asked, "What was that about, anyway?"
Wiping bloody droll from her chin, she shrugged. "I don't know, it didn't have much use for words. Too bad we can't question it to find out where such nasty beasts come from, but I didn't exactly have the chance to subdue it alive." She coughed again.
"Mom, you're really hurt. We need to get you out of here."
She smiled reassuringly at him. "No, no, I'll be fine. Though I could use a bit of a break, so why don't you two go and explore the rest of the tower?"
"Rest of the tower? Didn't we already finish?"
"See that hole above? It leads to a hidden floor. There might something there."
Having wrongly left his injured sister behind before, he felt hesitant to do the same to his mother, but Amber too said, "Come on, Corn Cob. The sooner we do what Mom wants, the quicker we can get her out of here to some help."
Jacob wished then he had the arcane skill to heal her awful hurts, though it would be quite unreasonable in this age to expect to fix injured organs with magic. "You sure you'll be okay? We can't lose you."
Rose actually laughed, though it must be torture. "I've always been the girl who gets hurt the worst, and yet somehow ends up the last one standing. These wounds are only moderately bad compared to some I've had."
With a sigh, Jacob accepted her wishes and joined Amber at the window. Of course it was up to his sister to climb to the hole first, after which she would hold the rope for him to follow. For now Jacob stayed in the room while holding the rope for her. To his relief, Rose didn't seem to be suffering too unbearably, looking relaxed at least outwardly where she sat. He supposed maybe he shouldn't have worried so much about her; his mom was, after all, known for the most freakishly godlike resilience a human ever had. So much so, in fact, that she offered even now, "Need help with anything?"
The only help anyone could have given was to hold the rope with him, and he didn't think he needed such aid especially from his wounded mother. "No, just lie down and get some rest. We youngsters can handle this."
"Lie down? But then it'd hurt even more to get up," she said, making him hang his head in embarrassment. Then Amber called for him, and he went to join her up top.
#
Soon after, Amber and Jacob reported they'd found a magical aura on a stone structure in the center of the floor above. Despite her severe injuries, Rose didn't hesitate to climb up after them against Jacob's pleas. She managed it without much observable trouble besides a grimace, and he looked at her with amazement. Studying the thing her children indicated, it appeared to be a circular wall that enclosed a space, but with no visible entrance to it.
"So you think there's a room in there?" Jacob asked.
Rose shrugged. "I don't know yet. All I can say for sure is that the wall itself is magical." After further examination, she said, "It seems to be imbued with some sort of soul magic, along with strengthening and self-healing properties derived from the earth and water elements respectively." The first being very odd. Soul magic was the most difficult type, moreso than the elemental manipulation modern mages were only capable of. But it wasn't generally used in the enchantment of physical objects, especially not immobile ones like a wall. Unless... "I think maybe something's hidden behind that wall."
"Like?" Amber said curiously.
Jacob replied, "I have no idea, but considering some of the creatures Mom's faced from the time of the Old World, I'd say it could be something really bad. Maybe we shouldn't touch it."
She was pleased to hear some wise words of caution from her son, but shook her head. "I beat all those creatures, remember? And I have you two to back me up now. Amber, give me your sword. I'm going to try and see if the wall reacts to it."
She frowned. "What if something comes out, how am I going to defend myself?"
"Then I'll toss it back." Rose patted the axe on her back, her secondary weapon in case she lost her great broadsword. "But didn't I tell you to bring another weapon in case the one we're using as a key was lost for whatever reason? Hell, don't I tell you to always carry backups?"
"I have some daggers and a short axe. But they don't have much reach, and the ancient monsters you told us about..."
Indeed many of them had been enormous and possessed extreme reach... which wouldn't be compensated for by a long weapon alone. "Don't worry, Amber, if I can't give back your sword just leave it to me." Rose said it half in jest, but she was the only one here who'd fought a monster over ten feet tall before. She would be more than a little afraid for her children should they have to face something larger.
Jacob played along. "Yeah, let Mom handle it. She's indestructible." But he couldn't hide the concern in his eyes over her injuries. Like herself, she knew he hoped they didn't have to face another battle anytime soon.
Rose smiled at his compliment and touched the jeweled sword to the wall. Nothing happened, and she walked around it as she had the spire itself, looking for any place the blade could be inserted or a switch pressed. Completely smooth. Hmm...
"Maybe you could hit it and see what happens?" Amber suggested.
It couldn't hurt to try; she wouldn't likely damage the magically strengthened blade with a light swing. Her slash had no effect, and after another look around the wall, she said, "Let's explore the rest of this floor and see if we find any clues. Like Jacob said, there could be a monster imprisoned behind this for all we know."
"But we already looked and didn't find anything," Amber said.
Though he said the words a bit anxiously, Jacob proposed, "Why don't you try using an earth manipulation spell? It's not protected against that, is it?"
Rose was kind of surprised she hadn't thought of that, and supposed maybe not looking forward to battling another giant monster affected her subconsciously too. Telling herself that outcome wasn't likely, she chanted a spell and pressed her palm to the wall, trying to force the material apart. Though she'd known a wall strengthened with magic would be harder to manipulate than a mundane one, the resistance she met surprised her; she wasn't exactly powerful compared to mages of old, but it was still unusual to have put this much energy into fortifying a wall. She concentrated hard on softening and pushing aside the stone one little piece at a time, slowly beginning to create an indentation in the surface.
Then, she heard Amber's voice ask with concern, "Mom, are you okay? Your mouth's bleeding again."
Opening eyes she'd closed with the painful exertion, she rasped, "I'm fine. A little hard work won't finish me off. At least if we do see a monster back there, I can just stop this and let the wall seal it right up again." She continued fighting to open a hole in the stubborn wall—a tough struggle, for as if alive, the stone's water-based healing worked to negate and reverse her efforts.
She heard the twins chant the same spell she had and gladly accepted their help, though they were far less skilled in magic at this time. Still, with her being hurt and tired, their aid made more of a difference than it normally would, greatly speeding her progress.
Finally a tiny hole ran through the entire thickness of the wall, and they could start to glimpse something shiny and metallic. Continuing to widen the opening, Rose said, "Amber, if we see something we'd like to get out, then when the hole's big enough, run in and get it." Showing no fear at the possibility of being trapped inside, she nodded.
As the hole grew larger, the trio realized the metallic sheen belonged to what looked like a suit of heavy armor. When it was finally big enough for a person to fit through, Rose cried, "Now!"
Amber stepped forth gamely and grabbed the suit by its armpits, but as she tried to pull it out of its niche, she only got its heels off the floor before yelling, "Damn, it's really heavy!"
Was she actually unable to lift the armor? Rose knew her daughter had a remarkable strength similar to her own, capable of moving as much weight as most men twice her size—not that Amber was small, being equal in height to Rose's six feet and not thin a
t one hundred eighty muscular pounds. So it was rather odd to see her struggle with the man-sized suit, when she'd hefted small boulders competing at local fairs before. "Are you okay, Amber? Did you tire yourself out too much with your magic?"
"I'm fine," the straining girl gasped as she flexed powerful legs. With a great shout she stepped backwards out of the hole, dragging the armor after her. At last Rose and Jacob stopped concentrating on their spell, and the wall quickly sealed itself shut, though without the contents it was meant to guard.
Mother and children alike panted from their exertion, but Rose caught her wind first and asked with a grin, "Are you getting weak, Amber? My daughter's not supposed to have trouble moving an empty suit of armor."
Several heavy breaths later, Amber protested, "I wasn't! That thing's not a suit at all—it has to be a solid metal statue!"
Reaching out to touch and push the standing metal figure, Rose realized, "Hey, it is a statue." Or at least, that was the familiar word that came closest to describing it. But the thing didn't look like any statue she'd seen before. It actually had joints, and didn't seem to be made in the image of a person, but was simply metal molded into a somewhat humanoid shape with a bulky triangular torso and thick rounded limbs. Could it be... a golem?
She'd read of such animate statues in texts about the Old World, but never actually seen one firsthand, though it would make sense for it to have working joints to enable it to move. But as this didn't move, if it was a golem, it was an inert one. Walking around, Rose looked for writing, and one phrase in particular, on the metal hulk. She found it without difficulty on the back of its small, featureless oval head. Guardian of Salvation.
Seeing her satisfied look, Jacob asked, "What is it?"
"Our friend has the exact same phrase on its head as the sword does on its crossguard, so I wager they were made by the same people. But I don't detect any magical aura on it at all, though it looks like it could have been a golem. Now I guess it's junk." She paused. "Not total junk. Even if it doesn't work, it'll be good to study."
"How do we plan on getting it out of here?" Amber said. "It's heavy and there are no stairs."
Jacob took on a thoughtful look. "How much rope do we have between the three of us?"
Rose realized he was probably thinking exactly what she did, and happily replied, "Enough! I'm glad I make you guys carry a lot in case of emergencies. But after we get it down, we'll still have to carry it back to our horses. It's a good thing we brought a wagon for if we found something big, though. And you two are going to be doing all the work, because I'm messed up."
Her children didn't have a problem with that, and Rose rested while they tied thick ropes to the statue. They slowly lowered it four hundred and some feet down, sweating profusely though they'd removed much of their clothing. Amber's well-toned muscles bulged from the strain, and Jacob suffered equally though his softer body showed it less. Luckily, the strong rope held. Finally the statue came to rest on the ground, and Amber wiped her dripping forehead. "Done. You ready to climb down, Mom?"
"No. We've still got the rest of this floor to explore in case you missed something."
The kids made their way around again with Rose, but she too found it devoid of other removable objects. She did note that the walls, unlike the blank ones of the lower levels, were covered with paintings of the glory days of the Old World. These included depictions of shining cities filled with giant buildings that resembled the Tower of Verveem and Spire of Pental, mixed armies of men and monsters clashing, ships which flew in the air, mages performing feats of elemental control on a vast scale, and other assorted wonders.
They marveled at the remarkably realistic and detailed frescos for hours, but eventually had their fill of familiar stories despite the wonderful way they were told and started the climb down. Rose let Jacob go down first before she forced herself to attempt the descent towards the lower section of the tower, Amber supporting the rope she used so she wouldn't have to expend as much effort as if she used her picks. Finally Amber climbed down with picks, the rope around her only serving to save her in case she had a mishap and fell. She didn't, and the family reunited in the room from which the twins had watched their mother fight the great monster. From there they made the long but calm journey to the first floor, and left the Spire behind them.
Chapter 4
Frowning over the inn table where he sat with Amber, Jacob asked, "You think Mom's going to be okay?"
"Of course she will. She's already resting earlier than she wanted, thanks to you." Instead of returning straight to Gustrone, they'd stopped in the riverside city of Birwan for some good food, and Jacob insisted they stay a few days for Rose's sake. She didn't agree she needed it and Amber sided readily with her, but in the end she decided to take a break after all to visit her old friend Derrick, who now ran a branch of the Center for Magical Study here.
Because Derrick was out of town and wouldn't be back for a few days, Rose thankfully took the opportunity to allow her battered self some much-needed bedrest. This left the twins to do things on their own. At the moment they simply talked over lunch, but Amber sensed adventure to be had in the unfamiliar city. "Let's go look for stuff to do, like festivals and stuff."
Jacob sighed. "I'm tired after all that running around, I'd rather just get some rest. Even Mom's doing that and she's famed for her endurance."
"Yeah, but she got beat up bad, and you... didn't. You really want to sit around for days? It's so boring."
"I'd be bored following you around to this party and that, standing there while you chat it up."
She gave him a critical look. "You wouldn't have this problem if you weren't so scared of meeting new people."
"I'm not scared. Maybe a little nervous, but not scared."
"There's nothing to be nervous about, especially so far from home. Even if you make a bad impression, it won't matter much considering you'll probably never see those people again."
"It'll still be embarrassing," Jacob muttered. "And if it's not likely we'll make lasting friendships for the same reasons you just outlined, what's the point."
"Well, it can't hurt, can it? Better than waiting for Derrick to come back for however long."
"You go ahead then, have fun."
"But it'll more fun with you around, Corn Cob! And you can pretend to be my boyfriend, in case some guy I don't like starts bothering me."
He groaned at her familiar request. "People are going to make fun of me again. I'm not exactly a suitable boyfriend for you."
Amber struck a sultry pose, then burst out laughing. "Me? I'm a rough girl."
"You're still too pretty for somebody like me. Except your stomach, maybe."
She shrugged as she touched her abdomen over where she'd been impaled. "Not if you had a heart of gold. I think that's more important than pretty boy looks."
"You sure about that? Anyway, what the hell are we talking about?! We're siblings!"
Amber laughed again. "Of course I wouldn't consider courting you. I meant ugly boys in general."
"So I'm ugly, huh?"
"No, just, you know... not that attractive..."
"Don't worry sis, I know what I look like. Just an average dumpy kid, yes?"
"Oh, most dumpy kids find a girl to love them eventually," she reassured him, "and you've got the advantage of having the kingdom's greatest heroes for parents."
Her words did make him feel a little better. "For having the same advantage, you don't reject too many of the boys who ask you for a date."
"Only not the first time... it's hard to know someone's merits without giving them a chance. So, are we going to party or what?"
"I told you, I'd be bored."
"You need to start learning to have fun sometime."
Their debate went back and forth in a roundabout manner until a disturbance at the far end of the inn drew their attention. A burly man of fair complexion stood shouting at a similarly light-skinned blonde seated in the dark corner, waving his fist
s as if on the verge of attacking her. Amber began to stand, and Jacob gripped her arm. "Shouldn't we leave it alone? It's none of our business."
"None of your business, maybe. Would Mom let some poor girl get beat up by her drunken husband or whatever in her sight?"
Shaking him off, Amber strolled leisurely towards the pair, and Jacob cringed at the fight about to break out. While his sister wouldn't likely need any aid if the man was alone, if he had friends lurking nearby, Jacob was fairly sure to end up taking his share of lumps helping her out of a jam. He couldn't quite make out the words spoken between Amber and the man, but guessed she was telling him what a coward he was for picking on a woman, that he should try her on for size, and otherwise provoking him. The only surprise, then, when he punched her hard on the chest and she returned the favor, was that they weren't exchanging full-on shots to the face yet. But Jacob's jaw dropped when the woman stood to hug Amber, and the man joined in the embrace.
#
She'd recognized them when she approached their table, but Amber hadn't been sure they remembered her, at least until Edward noticed her and immediately held up his hands in a submissive gesture. She'd tried to "rescue" his wife Sheila once before in nearly the same situation on the southern Norh plains, just beyond Kayland's northern border east of Coblan. Several drunkenly overzealous acquaintances of his had been nearby, and before he could even try to explain himself, one of them already smashed a chair over Amber's face. She'd fought back, and after a huge brawl against five of Edward's associates, was left battered and bruised if victorious.
To her surprise, Sheila and Edward had offered to take her home and patch her up, explaining that while they'd been arguing loudly in public, it was far from a case of husband abusing wife. The merchant couple were both competent brawlers, and if it came to a fistfight which it rarely did, Sheila's chances were just about even as her quickness and ferocity made up for her spouse's advantage in size. That day, they'd forgotten their quarrel at least for the night, and enjoyed getting to know Amber after their odd meeting.
