Of Beasts and Bells

by J E Mueller

  There was hardly any light coming from the bottom and from what I could tell from its flickering, it was fire based. Slowly I eased myself down the steps, trying my best to be careful. My hand brushed along the stone wall as I longed for a railing for better support. I had no idea how long the staircase was, and falling on stone would not be a pleasant adventure. Not to mention I doubted anyone would be around to help me if I broke something.

  At the bottom, I was met with a hall leading to holding cells that looked like one might imagine a good old fashioned dungeon to look like. This was probably a whole slew of ‘not good’ and ‘run away now’, but I had to find Marcus. I didn’t dare call his name now. If he was here, I would find him in a moment or two.

  I steeled myself for all possibilities. Was he injured? Missing a limb? Why was he here? I took slow steps forward, looking into every cell carefully and as soundlessly as I could before moving to the next. I didn’t like how loud my heart was beating, or how much it made my ears ring. There was an answer for everything, but that didn’t mean the answers were going to be good or worthwhile.

  I finally found a rather disheveled Marcus in the fifth cell, the hall stretching on into the endless shadows. Whatever restraint I had vanished and I pulled at the barred door.

  “Marcus, are you okay?” I asked frantically, not exactly keeping my voice low.

  He looked up, startled. “You need to leave. Immediately.” His words came out frantically as he moved to the bars to grasp my hand.

  “Not without you,” I scoffed, looking at the old fashioned lock. Maybe I could pick it. I had read a book about lock picking after I had read this awesome other book where the character could do just that. It was all about tumblers and pins and things, at least from what I remembered.

  Marcus looked aghast at me. “You don’t understand. The beast will find you!”

  “Fun times, magical beast. Now, how do we get you out?” I pulled off my backpack and looked through the things I had, praying I had dropped a bobby pin in here at some point or another.

  “It’s spelled, you can’t just unlock it,” Marcus tried arguing. “Get out, forget about me.”

  I frowned at him before resuming my search. “That’s just not going to happen. You’re all the family I have left.”

  A low growl echoed down the hall from the shadows. Of course it came from the shadows. Nothing evil came from sunshine and flowers.

  I moved away from the door, trying to will my magic forward, but like usual, it decided to stay stagnant. “Who’s there?” I called in as much of a tough and defiant voice as possible. It was obviously whatever was scaring Marcus.

  “Run,” he pleaded with me, his voice going up an octave more than normal. I glanced over and saw the desperation on his face, as if that would be enough to get me moving.

  “Leave this place.” The bitter voice from the darkness turned into a low growl, ever getting closer.

  “Not without my brother,” I threw my words with as much anger and venom I could muster. At least I hoped it sounded that way.

  “The thief stays,” the voice shot back before a thundering growl seemed to shake every part of the building.

  “My brother is not a thief!” I retorted, appalled by her cold statement, my magic finally coming to the surface, ready to lash out, feeding greedily off my anger.

  A figure, a cross somewhere between a werewolf standing on its hindlegs and horned beast stepped slowly from the darkness into the steadily lightening shadows. “I am not a liar, that boy is a thief.” Her words came out almost as a hiss.

  I stood firm in my stance, knowing with every fiber of my being Marcus could not be what she claimed. I looked his way for confirmation.

  “That thing thinks because I picked a flower up from the ground, I’m a thief. It had already fallen! I hadn’t even picked the stupid plant,” Marcus explained angrily.

  “You took what wasn’t yours!” The beast was easy to see now. It’s fangs were extended as it growled her message to us.

  “Picking up a flower is hardly stealing,” I scoffed at the thing, knowing I probably should have been leery or at least fearful of this monster. At least my magic was ready to defend me for once, should the beast lash out at me.

  “He took what is mine,” she growled, snarling into my face.

  I took a step back, surprised by just how much this creature towered over me. I had never seen anyone that tall before.

  “Leave now or meet the same fate as him,” she growled lowly.

  I looked over at Marcus who nodded. I knew he wanted me to leave, but I couldn’t, things wouldn’t work out -or so my gut told me. If we were being honest, there was no way anyone would care to listen to me about this problem. People rarely took me seriously, and the few times they did I was certain it was just to humor me.

  “Take me instead of him.” I stood as tall as I could, steeling myself in place in case she tried to intimidate me again.

  “No Ash, this beast means forever,” Marcus called frantically.

  The beast ignored him. “He doesn’t deserve freedom.”

  “He deserves it more than me,” I replied, meaning every bit of it. This seemed to confuse both of them, as they uttered a ‘what’ almost in unison, but I didn’t explain. “He deserves it more than me,” I replied firmly, never taking my eyes off the beast.

  The beasts anger seemed to relent a moment, uncertainty flickering across her eyes for the briefest of moments. “Fine, take your cell.” She motioned vaguely to the cells as a snarl escaped her lips.

  “How do I know you’ll let him go?” I asked, not daring to move.

  “He will go free. I am not a liar,” she snarled, anger fully resuming at my question.

  It was going to have to do. I nodded at her, turned to the empty cell closest to us and sat down in it. The beast shut the door behind me before opening the cell Marcus was in and knocking him out in one swift motion.

  I jumped up as a scream escaped my lips of its own accord. “What are you doing to him?”

  “Setting him free. Idiot won’t be able to leave the woods awake,” she growled back as she set off with him slung over her shoulder.

  Watching them leave, I hoped and prayed he would somehow get back okay.

  I couldn’t tell how long I sat in the dungeon. The cell wasn’t exactly interesting, and while I had my backpack, I hesitated to use anything I brought. I didn’t know how much of the magic around here would hinder my phone, and if I didn’t have that, I wasn’t sure if Marcus could find me again. I knew he wouldn’t just give up. That was never his attitude. I just wasn’t sure exactly what he would do.

  Not that I knew what I was going to do either. I wondered if I could scrounge up enough magic to dispell the lock or bust out of here by some sort of magical means. It was interesting to muse, for a while at least. My magic rarely worked on command. I tried to let it work whenever it surfaced, but try to force it to rise? It was too stubborn. Few people with primal magic ever really got the hang of it. The ones that did were terrible at explaining how they made things work.

  So I sat, and dozed, and sat some more. My body ached from the stone floor and I was exhausted from my journey here. What did it mean to be trapped forever? Would I just be left here to rot, or would they give me the bare minimum to live? I hadn’t exactly thought out any of these choices. At least Marcus was safe. In theory. I apparently only had the word of a beast, who imprisons people for picking up fallen plants. That wasn’t the most comforting of things to consider.

  I heard the sound of the heavy dungeon door opening, followed by a small metal thunk going slowly down stairs. This clearly was not the beast. Nothing came to mind of what it could be. Of who it could be. Were there other monsters trapped here? I was sure if Marcus had seen another, he would have mentioned that, but he only gave warning of the beast.

  So, I waited. The thunk echoing louder in the stone corridor as it slowly approached. I looked hard, confused as to why I couldn’t see anything whe
n I heard a small hello near my feet.

  I glanced down at the other side of the cell to see a small talking flashlight and gave a yelp in surprise. It flickered on and off in greeting before talking once more.

  “Good evening Madam! How are you?”

  I stared at the flashlight. There was no reasonable way this thing could talk. No mouth was moving, it just simply had a voice.

  “Uh, hi. How can you talk?” I asked bluntly as I crouched down to get a better look at it.

  The flashlight didn’t respond for a second. “That’s a funny story,” it replied in an accent I couldn’t place. “You see, by now I’m sure you’ve come to notice we might be under a bit of a spell. So, long story short, I was serving her majesty when poof! I became a flashlight.”

  I nodded my understanding. “That has to be incredibly powerful magic, and to go so unnoticed that no one’s freed you yet? That’s crazy.”

  The flashlight rocked forward, as if it were nodding back at me. “That’s not even the craziest thing! No matter though, that’s not a worry for you. How about getting out now?”

  “I’m free to go?” This was the weirdest thing I had probably ever asked a flashlight before.

  “No, no, sadly not, but her majesty thought a room would be better suited for your stay.” The flashlight nodded once more.

  I stared at it, not sure I was exactly comprehending the situation. “So, I’m not free, but I get a real room? That’s a very weird prisoner setup don’t you think?”

  “You’re talking with a flashlight and you’re worried about weird?” The flashlight let out a loud, hearty laugh. “Oh, you’re a funny one. Let’s get you out now, yes, shall we?” The flashlight moved and touched itself to the door. The cell door slowly swung open as the flashlight jumped carefully out of the way.

  Well, this wasn’t the turn I was expecting today to take. Not that anything in my life had prepared me to guess I’d run into an enchanted castle where the residents were turned into trinkets and household objects. Which made a few more things click.

  “So, all of the staff are objects now? And her majesty is what? Guarded by the beast?” I asked casually.

  I wish I could figure out what look the flashlight was giving me. “The staff present that day, yes, we are all objects you would find around here. Her majesty got the worst of it and is the beast.”

  I hoped I kept my stare blank. If the royalty was a beast what did that say about them?

  “Right this way, Madame!” The flashlight called as it started to hop off toward the stairs.

  I followed casually behind it, surprised it could set a reasonable pace. I had a dozen questions for it, wondering if a flashlight needed rest or recharging, but felt they might be considered in bad taste to ask. Instead, I silently followed the flashlight as it hoped and waddled up the stairs.

  Once we reached the ground floor, I heard the sound of things scurrying and moving away. I looked around at all of the furniture and decor around me and wondered which could be people and which weren’t. It occured to me that they all likely heard me searching for my brother. They sat by and watched the fallout while doing nothing to help the matter. Was there a reason behind it? Were they afraid of their ruler turned beast? No doubt there was reason to be if my interaction with her said anything. Who went flying off the handle over a flower?

  My questions didn’t matter as I continued to follow the flashlight up to the second floor where a mantel clock sat at the top of the stairs.

  “This is a bad idea Luce,” the old clock chastised, her tone far more disapproving than I thought a clock could manage.

  The flashlight laughed. “The only bad idea is one unpursued my friend!” The flashlight, Luce, continued to happily hop around her, heading for the hall on the left.

  I tilted my head at the clock, wondering what she was going on about, but I didn’t want to lose sight of the flashlight. It didn’t seem I had to worry about it much. The clock waddled from side to side, working hard to keep up with the flashlight.

  “And what are you going to do if-” the clock started to ask.

  “My dear Regina, are you going to look a flashlight in the face and try and tell them they have bad ideas?” Luce replied before seemingly turning to me. “You’ll have to excuse Mrs. Pendulum here. She’s crabby at the best of times.”

  “I am not crabby all the time!” The clock almost caught up with the flashlight, but Luce kept two steps ahead of her, laughing the entire time.

  “ So you say! I have yet to see it and we have been here a very long time.” Luce laughed once more, picking up the pace.

  “I will not be disrespected by a child’s flashlight!” Mrs. Pendulum retorted as she continued after Luce.

  “And yet you choose to be!” Luce laughed and continued along merrily.

  I didn’t know a flashlight could be such a troll, but I kept the thought to myself. I followed them down the hall, passing too many doors and going around the corner before being led up a spiral staircase.

  The entire time the clock and flashlight argued about nonsense. I wondered how long they had been trapped here. It made me curious as to how they had so much to say after being stuck together for so long. Too many nights Marcus and I had dinner in silence. There weren't any interesting things to say aside from what he was working on and what I was reading. Occasionally we’d have something to talk about dealing with friends or acquaintances, but that was less often than not. At least for me.

  When we reached the door at the top of the landing the flashlight nudged it and the door swung outwards. I stared at it for a moment, wondering what magic allowed these objects to open doors. I was more than certain they were aware they didn’t have hands and did not want to bring up a sore subject.

  Instead, I offered a smile when they turned to me.

  “And here we are Madame!” Luce declared with such enthusiasm I was certain he’d have the world's biggest smile if he had a face. I glanced around the circular room and took in the bed, closet, and closed off room under the staircase that spiraled upwards into a loft.

  I nodded approvingly. “It looks wonderful.” I carefully stepped around them looking at the knickknacks and the handful of books left on the end table.

  “Wonderful!” Luce stated, causing me to turn toward him. “We shall retrieve you for dinner when it is time!” He hopped out of the room.

  “We shall do no such thing. This woman is her majesty’s prisoner!” Mrs. Pendulum declared as the door swung shut behind them.

  I had no idea what disagreement was going on between the two of them, but I wasn’t going to argue the change in accommodation. Still, the word prisoner was thrown in, so I walked over to the door. Sure enough, it was locked. At least this was an upgrade.

  I did a slow walk around the room. The closet had some nice formal wear and some basic outfits, so that was cool to see. I was not entirely sure anything would fit, but having the possible change of clothes would be nice. As I continued on, I noted the dresser was empty and when I approached the wardrobe it appeared to be snoring.

  I hesitated touching it and listened carefully. The sound of gentle snoring was clearly there. I tried clearing my throat to get their attention, but the wardrobe did not wake up. I glanced around. Not seeing anything I could nudge it with, I carefully knocked on the side. The plan worked and the wardrobe jumped slightly while it flailed its doors for a moment.

  “What is it?” it called out loudly and as if it was out of breath.

  “Um, hi?” I tried replying, unsure what to do now that I woke them up.

  “Oh, yes, the new guest.” Her voice became calm and gentle. “Nice to meet you.” She gave a yawn, her doors flapping a bit. “It gets a bit dull around here. If you need an outfit let me know, otherwise, I’m going back to sleep.” She did not seem surprised or impressed with my random appearance and I wondered if I wasn’t the first prisoner.

  “Oh, okay…” I hesitated. “What’s your name?”

  The wardrobe y
awned loudly. “Taelyr.” A moment later the gentle snores resumed.

  “Okay then.” I shrugged and continued exploring. It didn’t seem like she wanted anything to do with a conversation. At least not right now.

  I was glad to see the closed small room was a bathroom. Aside from that and a few books, nothing interesting was on this level. Curious, I climbed up to the loft and was disappointed to see it lacked much of anything. A few paintings on the wall had claw marks through them. A love seat was torn to bits and didn’t look like anyone should try sitting in it. Everything else was probably removed after whatever rampage or tantrum had occurred.

  With nothing more to see, I headed back down. There wasn’t much to do trapped in here. At least unlike the dungeon it was comfortable and there were books. First though, I headed to one of the windows and looked out. It was too dark to make out anything more than a little bit in front of me. The lack of light here was almost shocking. Even the small town we were in seemed to have a constant glow coming from somewhere. From how the building was falling apart there might be some good handholes to climb my way down. I didn’t trust the idea. Climbing down things was not my strong point. I had gotten stuck in enough trees and forts growing up to remind me of that.

  If there was a safer opportunity to escape, I’d take it. It would be worth the wait.

  Chapter 4

  ——Nadia——

  My pace quickened as I growled at the useless hatrack that had come to tell me about Luce and his latest folly. I wasn’t sure if I was more angry at him meddling, at Hatton tattling needlessly, or myself for imprisoning an innocent. Not that there was much I could do on that end. Foolish idiot wanting to rescue a thief. What nonsense. Peasants were often daft like that, thinking their sacrifice would do anything to change the overall impact of the world.