by Eric Vall
“I don’t know what you are, but if you don’t give me some answers right now ...” The fox paused, and her ears twitched as she raised her head to look in the direction of the tunnel the women had emerged from. Two ravens burst from the passageway and their squawks reverberated throughout the cavern. They fluttered their obsidian wings before returning to their perches on their keeper’s shoulders.
“Wait, those ravens,” Rana whispered to herself. Her blue eyes squinted, and I could feel the cogs in her brain spinning wildly. Suddenly her eyes bulged with realization. “Morrigan, is that--”
The elf abruptly stifled the fox’s words with a raise of her hand. The fox woman’s body rose from the ground and hung suspended in the air like a stringless marionette. It was clear that Rana was no match for the alabaster-skinned elf, but I found it curious that Morrigan had used the same tactic that she had used on her goblin adversary. Had she not mastered any other dark magic spells?
It was true that these women had proven to be more impressive than I had anticipated, but they each had various weaknesses that could easily cost them their lives should they encounter a less merciful adversary. They lacked experience, but their potential was attractive. They all needed a little… polishing.
Then an idea began to form in my head.
It was a deliciously brilliant idea, and as it started to take shape, I proceeded to break the illusion. The heavy gray smoke had gradually spread throughout the cavern until the women and their surroundings had been overcome by the haze. But now, the smoke promptly aborted its expansion in obedience to my command.
As the smoke began to clear, the chaos around the cavern ground to a halt and the women all ceased their attacks. Each of the women seemed frozen in place like delicate figurines. On one side of the cavern, Annalíse stood with her sword poised over a very frightened Carmedy. On the opposite side, Rana was still suspended in the air before a frigid Morrigan, but thanks to my quick and benevolent action, she had been spared from the elf’s soul exorcism before it had even begun. The fox’s head was tilted back, and her face was stuck in a petrified expression. She was lucky. While her soul may not have become a snack for Morrigan’s ravens, her soulless body would have become a meal for the many ravenous monsters within my domain.
But the game was over now. I decided that I needed these women for a far better purpose than my own amusement. I needed them alive.
Chapter 3
I looked over the women as the illusion continued to break, and the thick gray smoke receded to wisps before it disappeared altogether. These women needed guidance. Yes, they had valuable skills and showed promise, but they were inexperienced and needed basic training and organization. Their strategies had flaws, and their mistakes had proven to be costly.
Annalíse was foolhardy and clearly lacked training in battle strategy while Carmedy appeared to be very disorganized and reluctant to fight. She relied heavily on the use of her pouches to make up for her lack of combat skills, and she never tried to make the first move. It seemed that Carmedy preferred to flee instead of fight and only used her pouches when she ran out of options.
Rana, while agile and skilled in hand to hand combat, seemed to have no other defensive tactics in her arsenal and carried no weapons. Should she come across a skilled and well-armed opponent or magic wielder, she would find herself in trouble. And as for Morrigan, well, after watching her in defensive mode, it was quite clear that she was only a novice in dark magic. Even so, the fact that she was able to use it was exactly why I needed her. She would be the one to free me. It was the magic of the mages that bound me to this lightless prison. So only someone with the magic of mages could further my plans and allow me to escape.
And once I escaped, I could exponentially increase my power by consuming the other fallen gods that inhabited the various dungeons of this world.
Once I exponentially increased my power, I could challenge the heavens again.
But like every powerful being with designs on conquering the universe, I needed minions.
These female adventurers needed a capable master who would graciously take them under his wing. With the right training, they could become quite a force to be reckoned with … and who better to train them than the world’s mightiest underdark deity?
As the last of the fog lifted from their minds, the women finally began to stir. Morrigan blinked her dark eyes rapidly, and as she lowered her hand, Rana dropped to the ground in a heap of fiery fox fur and curly hair. The fox woman yelped when she collided with the stone floor.
“Thanks a lot, Morrigan.” The fox woman glared at the elf, and she moaned as she rubbed at her presumably sore backside.
“It was unintentional,” the white-haired elf said as she ran a pale finger across one of her pet’s heads.
“How sincere,” Rana mumbled and blew her curly bangs from her eye.
Across the cavern, Annalíse stood with her sword raised over her head with Carmedy on the ground at her feet. It looked as though the black cat had tripped over one of the ground’s rocky protrusions and had shielded her eyes in anticipation of her demise. The feline cautiously uncovered a green eye and gasped at the sight of the tall female warrior in front of her.
“Annalíse?” Carmedy’s voice was drenched in both fear and confusion.
Annalíse gaped at the small woman and slowly lowered her sword.
“I’m so sorry, Carmedy, I didn’t mean to. I-I- A second ago I thought you were one of those snakes.” The warrior’s freckled face was wrought with concern and remorse for what she had almost done. She offered her hand to the cat and when Carmedy took it, she pulled the cat to her feet.
“It’s alright,” Carmedy said as she laid a hand on Annalíse’s shoulder. “I thought you were one too. When I tripped, I thought I was a goner, but when I opened my eyes, the snake was gone, and I saw you,” the cat said as the two women walked across the cave to join the others. “Thanks for not killing me. I bet it would have hurt a lot.”
“Uhh, yeah,” the warrior woman sighed, and then she quickly helped the cat-girl to her feet.
“Wh- what do you guys think happened?” Carmedy stammered when the group had reunited in the center of the underground chamber. The small black cat was shaking, her ears pressed flat against her head, and the black fur that covered them stood on end. “One second I saw you all, the next I saw these giant snake things.”
“They were illusions and very good ones. It appears that there is someone in this dungeon that likes to play games.” Annalíse seethed with her sword poised and her brown eyes darted around the cave in search of any other unpleasant surprises.
“Yeah, mind games. Twisted mind games. Did you see what Morrigan almost did to me?” Rana frantically gestured at the black-shrouded elf.
“You appeared to be an adversary,” the hooded elf replied. “I would not have attacked had I known it was you. But rest assured, your soul would not have been consumed by Fea and Macha. Your soul is pure.” Morrigan had probably meant for her words to be of some comfort to the fox, but Rana’s groan and slight shiver indicated that they’d had the opposite effect.
“Um... thanks, I’ll take that as an apology.” Rana gave the elf a wry grin.
“As you wish,” Morrigan said with a slight nod. Rana shook her head and released a sigh.
“But why did they stop? Why didn’t they let us all kill each other?” Carmedy asked as she glanced nervously around the massive cavern.
“Maybe they’re not done with us. Maybe they have some other sick way of toying with us.” Rana’s words were glum and absent of her usual lighthearted sarcasm.
The fox’s words weren’t entirely untrue. I wasn’t done with them. But they were no longer my playthings, and though they did not know it yet, they were now my minions. Or at least they soon would be. Yes. They would make fine minions, and with them at my side, I would finally be able to leave this place and expand across the continent as I had set out to do all those years ago.
If I could craft a physical body for myself, these women could accompany my avatar, thus enabling me to escape my cavernous prison. With my new body and the help of my minions, I’d finally be able to invade the other dungeons that spanned the earth and take their masters’ power for myself. Then I would truly be a god amongst gods, an unstoppable being with unfathomable strength. Only one question remained now. How could I get these women to join me on my crusade for power and glory?
My contemplation was abruptly interrupted when the women began to speculate over who or what had been the source of the illusions. I found their conjecture amusing, to say the least. Particularly Carmedy’s.
“Do you think there’s a wizard or something living in here?” Carmedy asked with wide jade colored eyes.
“Now why would a wizard choose to live in a place like this?” Rana smirked.
“I don’t know,” the black cat mused and crossed her arms. “Maybe hundreds of years ago, he came here looking for the treasure and then he got trapped here and never escaped. Wouldn’t that be interesting?” She purred with excitement.
How amusing. I was far more powerful than a wizard, but Carmedy’s comment was ironic, nonetheless.
“Yes, Carmedy, that would be very interesting.” Rana rolled her eyes.
“There’s no wizard in here, but there is something very strange going on,” Annalíse mumbled with another quick glance around the cavern.
How could I get these women to join me on my crusade for power and glory? Should I threaten them, or appeal to them as their savior? I mulled this over for a few moments before I finally came to a decision. I’d capture them. After all, it would be much easier to negotiate with my future minions if they knew what I was truly capable of. I needed to speak with them, but not yet, and certainly not here. I needed to corral them into a part of the dungeon that was void of traps and monsters.
I would have to take the women to my nexus… it was my dwelling space and the place where I had slept away the last few hundred years. I didn’t want to hurt them, but I needed to show them who their new master truly was. Satisfied with my new plan, I set it into motion and turned my attention back to the women’s discussion.
“No way, it’s not a mage either,” Rana sighed in response to another one of Carmedy’s theories. “It’s not a wizard or a mage or a cursed goblin or anything like that.”
“Well, who do you think--” Carmedy’s words were suddenly cut short when her swishing tail was yanked by some unseen force. She slowly turned her head but before any of the women could speak, the cat’s arms were suddenly hoisted into the air, and her body jerked backward.
“Carmedy!” Rana squealed as she grabbed for the cat, but her paw grasped only air. Carmedy shrieked in terror as her ghostly assailants quickly hauled her away toward the dark, dank tunnel behind her. I resisted the urge to chuckle as I began to swell with pride. My shadow slaves were quick, quiet, and above all else, efficient. I had issued the order only moments ago, and they had already begun to do their master’s bidding. Their alacrity would be deserving of a reward when I next spoke to them.
Carmedy’s feet dragged across the stone floor as she screamed in protest. She kicked at the air and twisted and writhed against her invisible kidnappers but to no avail. The other three women stood in a horror-stricken stupor before coming to their senses and rushing to Carmedy’s aid, but it was too late. Even if they’d had the right sort of spells and gear to deal with my shadow slaves, they had waited far too long to react.
Carmedy’s screams struck the silent air one final time. Then the pitch-black tunnel swallowed both her and her shrill cries. One down, three to go.
The remaining women dashed toward the tunnel where Carmedy had been taken.
“What do we do?” Rana asked, her eyes flicking from the tunnel to the other women.
“Maybe send the crows?” Annalíse asked, turning to look at Morrigan.
“They’re not crows, they’re rav--” The elf’s words were cut off as she stumbled, and she collided with the damp ground. As she lifted herself up with one hand, she whirled around to grasp at her ankle.
“Something just--” Her words caught in her throat when she was abruptly flung in the opposite direction by her elbows.
“Rana! Annalíse!” the elf cried out. I could actually hear the fear in her voice, and the other two women’s eyes filled with horror when they turned to see their friend being dragged away exactly as Carmedy had been. They were right to be scared. There were few things more terrifying than the unknown. Even worse, this was something that they couldn’t see and something that they had no control over. I could sense their feelings of powerlessness and fear begin to well up inside of them. I could see it on their faces. The panic. The bewilderment.
The cries of Morrigan’s ravens filled the cave, and they flew around her in a black feathery flurry of confusion, unsure of where to strike. Morrigan’s fear seemed to have turned to anger, and as she was dragged away, the dark-eyed elf did not scream, but grunted and spat out what I assumed to be a string of curses in her native language at her imperceptible attackers. Perhaps she had begun to realize that her soul exorcism was useless against her captors. She could not suck out a soul from a soulless shadow slave.
“You go after Morrigan. I’ll get Carmedy,” Annalíse shouted before resuming her sprint. Rana nodded and took off in Morrigan’s direction, but the pale elf and her phantom-like captors were too far ahead. Before Rana made it even half a dozen steps, the elf along with her pets were thrust into another tunnel and consumed by its darkness.
“I’m almost there, Morrigan!” Rana called as she darted into the tunnel and raced through a large but shallow pool of water just before the tunnels.
Perfect.
Every footstep sent splashes of water flying into the air and moistened her fur. She had just reached the end of the pool when a diseased arm the color of rancid salmon burst out of the water and grabbed her ankle. Several large chunks of skin and tissue were missing from the limb, and it looked as though it had been ravaged by some flesh-eating disease.
“Ahhhh!” Rana cried as her leg went out from under her, and she toppled forward off balance. Her body crashed into the water and sent waves of fetid water spraying into the air.
She broke her fall with her paws and looked over her shoulder to see what had caught hold of her. The moment her blue eyes met with the disembodied arm, an identical hand burst from the water and latched its decayed fingers onto her other ankle. The arms began to pull her deeper and deeper into the murky water. The shallow water was no longer so shallow. I had seen to that. Rana let out a spine-chilling scream that caused Annalíse, who was in mid-sprint in another tunnel, to jolt to a stop.
“Rana!” the tall warrior called out. She paused as a look of helplessness began to creep onto her freckled face. She quickly looked back and forth between the tunnel that Carmedy had disappeared into and the rapidly sinking Rana. Time was not on her side. “Hold on, Rana!” Annalíse cried in a combination of frustration and fear as she raced toward her redheaded companion. “I’m coming!”
Rana flailed and clawed at the water helplessly. There was nothing for her to grab hold of to keep herself from being dragged beneath the surface. Once my water demons got ahold of their prey, there was no way to escape them. The fox’s body descended further and further into the water until only her head and arms were left above the surface. Her hands snatched wildly at the air in a final desperate attempt to save herself before she was dragged under entirely. The surface of the water began to bubble like an unattended pot. Then one by one, the bubbles burst and vanished until the murky water was still. The last thing I saw was the tips of Rana’s red curls before they disappeared beneath the water.
That left Annalíse as the last.
The brown-haired swordswoman had only arrived at the pool when Rana’s head had gone under. Then the valiant warrior leapt into the water and searched for the fox in a fit of manic confusion. The water was once again shallo
w, and both Rana and my water demons were gone.
“No…” Annalíse breathed. “They can’t be. I just… I just… aggh!” she screamed in frustration. She began to slice at the water furiously with her sword, and torrents of spray flew into the air. As I watched her futile attacks, I felt a slight pang of guilt. I could tell that she blamed herself for the loss of her friends. She had named herself the leader of their group, and she clearly felt responsible for them. She had honor and the makings of a good leader. She soon would be, with my help.
It seemed a bit ruthless to send more of my monstrosities immediately after the human woman witnessed her friends being kidnapped, but I had no choice. We had business to take care of.
By now, Annalíse had fallen to her knees in the cloudy water with her arms limp by her sides. Her sword lay loosely in one hand. A single tear trickled from her brown eye and rolled down her cheek. She sniffed and hurriedly rubbed the tear away with her tunic sleeve. After she stared down at the water for a few moments, she swiped at the murky liquid angrily with her free hand. Her irate gesture caused droplets to pepper her face and braided hair.
“What good am I if I can’t even--” She paused at the sound of movement in one of the tunnels. She turned to look over her shoulder and gripped her sword hilt tightly. A soft chorus of slow and steady scratching was coming from one of the side tunnels.
They were right on time.
The sound grew louder and swelled to an echo that vibrated throughout the inky black passageway. Somewhere in the tunnel beyond was a massive horde of creatures, dragging and clawing and scraping its way across the stony surface in a sinister cadence. And it was getting closer by the second. Annalíse suddenly whipped her head around in the opposite direction. The exact same scratching was coming from the opposite tunnel in an incessant and ominous march.
