“Of course!” Letharia’s eyes sparkled, and she turned to lift one of the bronze daggers from beside the skull and jar on the stone shelves. “The Elmentia prized bronze above all else. It was the strongest metal of the time.”
“So their weapons and tools would have been made of bronze?” I asked.
“I find no reference in the tablet to steel, iron, or any of the other metals used by the humans of today,” Letharia said. Her nose wrinkled, the way it always did when she was thinking. “Perhaps the smithing techniques of the Elmentia hadn’t yet advanced beyond bronze.”
Earth had had its own Bronze Age thousands of years ago, so it made sense Agreon would as well.
“So the booby traps were meant to stop thieves from breaking into the crypts to steal the bronze daggers.” My eyes traveled down the corridor, where hundreds of shelves with their grisly trophies lined the wall far into the distance. “Any thief who could get down here would find a limitless fortune. Of course the priests would want to protect it.”
“Which means we’re going to find a lot more traps as we go toward the city,” Rizzala added. “There would be priests guarding this entrance, so thieves could only get into the crypts from the city side. That is where I would set up all my deterrents, if I was the one trying to guard valuables.”
“Makes sense,” I said with a nod. “We’re going to have to be much more alert as we go deeper into the crypts. Who knows what other traps the priests set up to stop grave robbers?”
“At the same time, there has to be a way for the priests to travel these halls safely,” Letharia put in. “They couldn’t be worrying about traps while hauling dead bodies.”
“Good point.” I rubbed my chin as I pondered her words. “Keep studying the tablet and see if you can find anything else useful.”
“Perhaps I might be allowed to take the lead,” Rizzala put in. “Or, at least, share the perils at the front of the group beside you. With my spear and your ice shield, we should be able to deflect any more poison missiles.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I said. “Arieste, just in case, you bring up the rear. If there are any traps that fire from behind, you’ll be able to throw up a wall of ice to protect our backs.”
“And what about me?” Irenya asked. “Or am I just here to be beautiful?”
“That’s definitely one thing you do well,” I said with a chuckle. “I need you to be ready to blast fire if any enemies show up.”
“A nice way of saying I’m useless,” Irenya said in a flat tone.
To my surprise, Arieste answered before I could. “Trust me, Irenya, we’re going to need your fire power before this is over.” She placed a gentle hand on the red-haired woman’s shoulder. “Your skills are on offense, so let us help defend you.”
Irenya’s expression grew strange, a mixture of surprise, respect, and a hint of a coy smile.
“That’s going to end very well,” Nyvea purred in my mind. “For you and the two of them.”
I drew in a deep breath and pushed away the lascivious images Nyvea poured into my head. As appealing as the thoughts were, right now wasn’t the time to think about being in bed naked and sweating with two gorgeous women.
“Let’s do this!” I said as I ignored Nyvea’s sultry laughter. “We’ve got to stay sharp. Be ready for anything.”
We set off down the corridor with Rizzala and me in the front, Letharia and Irenya behind, and Arieste in the rear. Nervous tension tightened my shoulders as we walked, and I scanned the darkness ahead for any sign of danger while my ears strained for even the slightest sound that could warn of another trap. Five yards down the tunnel, I caught the click the moment Rizzala’s foot tripped the pressure plate beneath the stone. I threw an ice shield up in time to stop the stone missiles hurtling toward us, and Rizzala’s spear flashed up a half-second later.
“Good catch.” Rizzala shot me a grin and lowered her double-headed spear. “Score one for Ethan.”
“You’re going to make this a competition?” I asked as I dismissed the magical dome and we continued on our way.
“Well, I figured I took down more murlocs than you back in Whitespire,” Rizzala said, “so you were owed a chance to win at something.”
“Wait, what?” I shook my head. “No way you won! I matched you murloc for murloc, easy.”
“As long as you were on the wall, sure.” Rizzala shrugged. “But when you went after those snakes, I took down at least a dozen of the frog bastards myself.”
A quiet click echoed in the corridor, and again my ice shield caught the speeding missiles a moment before Rizzala’s spear deflected them.
“Two to nothing,” I said with a chuckle. “And by the way, those giant snakes ought to count for at least ten murlocs.”
“I’ll give you five murlocs to one snake,” Rizzala said, “but that still puts me ahead.”
“Fine, then what do I get for all those nagia and merslayers I took down?”
“We were evenly matched on the merslayers, without a doubt.” Rizzala’s expression grew pensive. “You’ve got me beat with those nagia, though.”
“Hah!” I pumped a fist in the air. “And add Zaddrith to my tally, of course.”
“Now wait a minute!” Rizzala turned to me with a mock scowl. “We both get to count Zaddrith. Unless you somehow managed to run all the way to those swamplands by yourself.”
“Fair enough,” I said with a grin. “Still puts me in the lead.”
I glanced behind me in time to see Irenya roll her eyes at Arieste, and the platinum blonde gave a weary shake of her head. They just didn’t understand the fun of a good-natured competition.
At that moment, there came a click from beneath my right foot. Before I could turn around and summon an ice shield, Rizzala’s spear whipped out and batted the two streaking missiles from the air.
“I’m still in the lead,” I said.
“Not for long!” Rizzala’s smile matched my own.
It felt good to have this sort of friendly banter with Rizzala. I’d always been competitive, which was what had made me the best of my class at the Chicago Fire Academy and earned me the spot in Station 52. Now I had someone who could compete with me not just on a magical level, but physically as well. Rizzala was a bad-ass with that spear of hers, as she’d proven time and again in the battle for Whitespire. Another warrior made a welcome addition to the team.
“Not to spoil your fun,” Arieste said from the back of the group, “but perhaps you’d be better off focusing on staying alive instead of competing.”
“Yeah, Ethan,” Rizzala gave me a shove. “Focus up, man!”
I laughed, and Rizzala joined in. I had begun to feel more at ease around Rizzala, and we’d formed a camaraderie during our fighting on the wall of Whitespire. It was good to know she had found a place in our little crew, which was quickly beginning to feel more like a family.
The corridor seemed to stretch on endlessly, and it was hard not to stare at the thousands of grinning, toothless skulls sitting on their rocky shelves beside us.
“I think I’ve found something,” Letharia said.
“We’re listening,” I replied without turning around.
“I wasn’t sure where we’d find the Mistresses’ nests, but something in this tablet just gave me an idea.” Her voice held a excited note. “There’s a section of the tablet that talks about the Elmentian kings, and one of them, King Dentas, stood out to me.”
“Why’s that?” Irenya asked.
“See, King Dentas had four wives, a practice that seemed to be fairly common at the time,” Letharia said. “King Dentas loved each of them equally, so he built four towers to serve as their homes.”
“Like the four towertops we saw poking out of the ocean as we flew over the sunken city?” I asked.
“The same,” Letharia replied. “According to the tablets, the king was found dead of dehydration in one of his concubine’s towers.”
“What?” I burst out laughing. “The king literall
y fucked himself to death?”
“Oh.” There was hesitation in Letharia’s voice, and when I glanced back, I found her cheeks burning. “Er, uh, well…”
It took me a minute for my laughter to subside, and I noticed a smile on both Irenya and Arieste’s lips. “Go on,” I said once I recovered.
“Right.” Letharia cleared her throat. “I called your attention to King Dentas because of the fact that there were four towers. Just as there are four Mistresses.”
“So we’ll find the the nagia nests in the concubines’ towers?” I asked.
“Nagia may be creatures of magic,” Letharia explained, “but they have a few more human traits than many of the other dragon minions. For example, they are irresistibly drawn to luxuries, treasures, and beautiful things.”
“Which there would be plenty of in the concubines’ towers.” I nodded.
“King Dentas was said to be one of the richest kings of Elmentia,” Letharia said. “And one of the last. Doubtless much of his wealth would have surviving the sinking of Emerald Deep.”
“Sounds perfectly reasonable,” I said. “So we need to find the palace and get to the towers of King Dentas’ concubines to reach the nagia nests.”
“Precisely,” Letharia said.
“Well done.” I shot her a grin over my shoulder. “That gives us a clear destination.”
“Though how we’re going to get there through the crypts is still in doubt,” Rizzala growled from beside me.
“Ah, on that, I believe I also have an answer.” Letharia cleared her throat. “It seems King Dentas and his concubines were also very devout. They were often seen worshipping at the temple and paying homage to their ancestors. However, no one ever saw them leave the palace. King Dentas wasn’t fond of mingling with his subjects, it seemed.”
“So how did he get to the palace?” I asked. “Through the secret passages in the crypts, of course!”
“That is the best explanation I can think of,” Letharia replied. “King Dentas certainly had the wealth to have a passage built between existing catacomb tunnels and his palace.”
“All we need to do is find out how to get to the palace, and we’ll find the nagia nests. Damn, Letharia, that’s good work!” I shot Rizzala a pointed look.
“Good job,” the dark-skinned woman grunted, half-hearted.
Letharia’s face brightened and she ducked her head, a little smile on her lips.
“Any idea how we find the passages to the palace?” I asked.
“I’ll keep searching,” the dark-haired woman said.
“Thank you,” I told her. “The more we find out about where we’re going and what we’re facing, the better.”
A thought struck me as we walked. If Curym’s minions lived in the palace, there was a chance she knew about these crypts. She could have an army of merslayers and nagia waiting ahead for us. I tapped into the Mark of the Guardian and used it to scan the tunnel ahead for any sign of magic.
I tensed as I felt a small thread of power about fifty yards ahead. To my surprise, it wasn’t the rushing water magic of Curym or her minions. Instead, it was a new magic, one nearly as hot as Irenya’s, but instead of fiery and blazing it was brilliant and bright, as if it blinded my mind instead of my eyes. It almost reminded me of the magical pauldron with the golden gemstone I’d used in Emroth’s cave. Could there be a gold dragon or minion somewhere in the tunnel ahead?
No, it was too faint to be a living creature, barely a blip on my magical radar. It was something else, but what, I couldn’t tell.
I held up a hand to stop our forward movement. “Wait here,” I hissed to the others.
“What is it?” Rizzala asked, her body coiled and ready to strike. “Where is the enemy?”
“I’m not sure,” I said. “I feel magic from up ahead, but not Curym’s water magic. I’m going to go check it out.”
“Be careful,” Irenya called after me.
I approached the pulse of magic slowly, and used the Mark of the Guardian to scan with every step. Oddly enough, the faint thread of power came from my ankle level. I couldn’t see anything, but there was no mistaking the feeling.
I’d encountered the magic of golden gemstones twice before. In my pauldron, which had generated a bright cone of light to illuminate the darkness of Emroth’s cave. And in Grendis’ magical longbow. That gemstone produced a single beam of light like the laser pointer sights used by police offers and the military back on Earth. So what kind of magic would it be here?
My mind flashed back to every heist movie I’d ever seen, and I immediately thought of the lasers used by modern security systems to safeguard valuables. My eyes widened as I realized the truth: the priests of Elmentia had found a way to replicate laser beams using magic.
“Damn, that’s clever!” There was no telling what would happen if I activated the magical “laser” security system, but now that I’d found it, it was easy to avoid.
“Come on,” I said and waved for the women to approach. I stopped them a few feet from the trap and explained the basics of how it worked.
“All you have to do is raise your feet as you step, and there’s nothing to worry about,” I told them.
“You’re certain?” Rizzala asked, her expression skeptical. “I see no light.”
“It’s invisible to the human eye,” I replied, not certain how to explain infrared light, wavelengths, and the electromagnetic spectrum in a way they could understand. “But trust me, it’s there. Right here, in fact.”
I knelt and placed my hand a few inches above the level where I guessed the magical “laser beam” would be.
“Just step over my hand and we’ll be safe,” I told them.
Rizzala leapt over with her usual agility, but the other three women allowed me to lend them a hand to cross the magical trap. Once they were all safe on the other side, I stepped over myself, careful to lift my feet high.
“Well, that went well,” I said with a relieved grin.
“Let’s just hope all the traps from here on out are magical like this one,” Irenya said, “not mechanical like those stones.”
“Agreed!” Arieste said.
Thirty yards down the passage, we found ourselves confronted by a door which looked like solid stone. This one, however, had a handle and no visible lock. I scanned it using the Mark of the Guardian, but found no magical traps to go off. Unfortunately, that didn’t mean it was trap-free.
“Pull the door open,” I told Rizzala. “Anything happens, I’ll be ready to shield you.”
“Got it.” She nodded, and I was glad to see a trusting look in her eyes. We really had come a long way in the last few days.
I drew in a deep breath and tapped into the ice magic as she reached for the handle. At the first sound, I’d throw up a shield to protect us. I felt Irenya and Arieste both accessing their magical abilities. We’d be prepared for anything.
Rizzala tugged on the stone door and it slid open without a sound. I tensed in anticipation of a threat, a missile, any kind of trap, but nothing happened. Tense seconds ticked by as I waited, and still nothing.
“Maybe this door’s not trapped?” Irenya put in.
“That would be nice,” I said. “But just in case, we’d better be careful.”
The hall beyond had smooth stone walls, and I was glad to be free of the skull-laden stone shelves. We’d had enough creepy for today.
“I’ll go in first,” Rizzala volunteered.
“And I’ll go with her,” Arieste said as she stepped between Letharia and Irenya. “I can throw up a shield in case anything goes wrong.”
“Okay,” I said. I could see no threat, but that didn’t mean there were none. “I’ll keep an eye on the hallway behind us and be ready in case there’s a trap.”
My gut tightened as Rizzala and Arieste slipped into the room, but my anxiety was rewarded by silence. Letharia and Irenya followed, and still nothing. I tensed as I stepped into the room, but the walls, floor, and ceiling were as inert as reg
ular stone.
“All that for nothing,” Irenya said, with a little laugh. “These tunnels are really making us jumpy!”
“You can never be too careful,” Arieste said. “We learned that well enough in Ironfast.”
Suddenly, I felt something press against my shoulder, and I whirled to find the stone door silently closing behind me of its own accord. The moment it closed, there was a loud thunk, followed by two gut-wrenching clicks. Nothing good ever clicked.
A loud rumbling sound echoed loud in the chamber, and horror writhed in my gut as I realized the walls were moving.
They were going to crush us alive.
Chapter Six
The trash compactor scene from Star Wars flashed through my mind. There was nowhere for a sewage monster to hide, but that didn’t make the slowly closing walls any less deadly.
I whirled back toward the door and hauled at the handle, but the heavy stone refused to budge. That loud thunk had to have been some locking mechanism clicking into place, so we weren’t going to get out this way.
My mind raced as I instantly ran through all our options of survival. The corridor was too narrow and short for me to turn any of the women into dragons, so I couldn’t use their strength to our advantage. No way to batter down that stone door or break through the walls.
“Irenya!” I shouted. “We need light to see the far end of the passage.”
I felt the surge of power as Irenya tapped into her magic, stepped between Rizzala and Arieste, and shot a thin stream of fire down the corridor. The flames flew for a full fifty yards before they struck a solid steel door.
“That’s our way out!” I shouted. “We need to move now!”
Rizzala, Arieste, and Irenya took off running, but Letharia was far slower to move. I had to grab her arm to get her running, and she barely managed more than my jogging pace. Even though the walls were closing at slowly, they would snap shut and crush Letharia long before she reached the door.
Again, my mind flashed back to that scene from A New Hope. Han Solo and his crew had used steel beams to slow the crushing walls. We might not have steel beams, but we had magic to serve the same purpose.
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