by Bill Albert
The creatures took up positions on each side of her. She kept the flame sword moving leaving no side open for attack.
The shadows themselves, by their nature, made no sound at all. They had no weapons as such and held the shape of some natural creature, in this case humans, but as their shadow form passed over an enemy they could do severe damage. Just a dark tip of the shadow could cause their target to weaken considerably. Should total darkness cover a victim rapid aging and death would occur.
Simultaneously the shadows rushed at her. Gallif turned to the one on her right and charged it head on swinging. The shadow changed its path and the flame sword passed through the lower half. There was a splatter of gray along the shadow and it withdrew. The second shadow picked up speed, but Gallif had expected this move and jabbed the flame sword forward to impale the attacker. The tip of the sword entered the darkness, but Gallif shifted her weapon to the left while the shadow moved to the right.
Gallif cursed and turned back to see the first shadow return to its pitch-black form. Hurting shadow creatures was easy, but their regenerative abilities were an advantage.
The shadows took up positions on each side of her again, but this time one was near the ground and the other was high above her head. They came rushing at her. She took a few steps towards the lower of the two, tried to cut it in half, but it changed direction and she missed. She barely had time to recover and dodged to avoid the second shadow.
She looked around for a safe spot to fight from. There were torches burning in the attached corridors, but they were too far away for her to easily reach. She still had Jakobus’s torch burning in her backpack but knew the only way to retrieve it would require her to give up her grip on the flame sword. She had also heard of the tactic of creatures to hide in the shadows of their prey and using darkness to gain strength.
They took up positions again and rushed towards her. She swung at them both, but missed, and they closed in for another attack before she could regain her balance. She barely regained her footing when she swung hard and fast at one of them and the flame sword sliced through its bulk. The shadow faded considerably, and she knew she had damaged it and had to strike again before it regenerated.
She started to follow the wounded shadow to strike it again, but the second creature quickly took up a position in front of her. It changed its shape from human to snake and started flowing in circles around her. She took a few swings at it but missed as its circling increased.
Gallif increased her own attacks and used every approach she knew to strike at the shadow snake but failed each time.
The other shadow was getting darker and she knew that it would soon return to its original blackness. To make matters worse it changed its shape from a human to a large boar and started moving.
Gallif kept swinging and moved with it trying to find an opening. She got a few brief hits against the shadow snake, but the blackness was constant.
With the shadow snake still distracting her, the shadow boar took up position in front of the hole she had entered from. Gallif kept swinging, cutting at the darkness, but couldn’t move forward.
For the first time in a long time Gallif was starting to feel fear when a comet of light arched overhead and pierced into the shadow boar. The shadow was wounded badly and was a dull gray when the second comet entered its mid-section and killed it instantly.
Surprised, the shadow snake paused only briefly. Gallif chopped hard at it and even though she missed its center most of its form faded into a dark gray. Quickly, almost as fast as a beam of light, the shadow snake darted down one of the tunnels on this level and was gone.
Gallif turned to look behind her and saw another shadow shape, a human shape, standing by the very edge of the room she was in. She held her weapon tight, ready for more combat, when the shadow fell away and Luvin stepped out to face her.
She knew this Luvin was different from the young boy she had left in the school several weeks ago and because he was different she knew he wasn’t a shifter. It wasn’t just the torn clothes, disheveled hair, or scared body that told her he was different. It was the way he stood, the intense look in his eyes, and the weary look on his face that said so.
“Damn you,” he said and rushed towards her. She held her flame sword back and let him hug her and hold her tight.
Finally, she pulled back and looked at him. She saw a hundred emotions cross his face from confusion to anger to fear. She could also see that, despite his relief to see her, he didn’t love her anymore.
“Damn you,” he said again with a trembling voice and tightly grabbed her shoulders. “Damn you, damn you, damn you!”
“Luvin, please, take this,” she said and quickly pulled the last potion of healing bottle she had from her backpack.
She gave it to him, and he popped the cork and swallowed every drop. After a few seconds the bruises on his skin healed and he looked better. The bags under his eye vanished and he didn’t look so exhausted.
“Damn you,” he said, his voice strong.
“Why?” she pleaded.
“The legend was already growing before you left. When you spent a few days in Atrexia getting noticed, it kept getting bigger.”
“The legend? You’re not making any sense.”
“The legend of the beautiful red head who saved the giant. Singlehandedly,” he spit out the word. “This incredible save by this lone traveler on a pure white horse. Everyone knew it was you.” He swallowed hard and then said, “No one believed that I was there.”
Gallif’s hand went to her heart as cold guilt wrapped around her. She had heard the legend that had been growing around what happened on Festival Day. She had listened to it, sometimes denied it and had even occasionally enjoyed the way the tale grew.
“They turned it,” he said as he looked away, and then started over. “They turned me into a joke.”
“Was it Pate?” she asked.
“It was everyone.” he said with a hard voice.
“You have to stay here,” Gallif said.
“You can’t get out,” Luvin said.
“I’m not going out. Pate, Anamita, and Jakobus are crossing the nest down below. I have to find out what’s happened to them.”
“Pate? No, he was the one who accused me of telling the location of the school to the monsters that slaughtered us.”
“He’s wrong and he knows it now,” she said and hoped he could still trust her.
He took a few deep breaths and then surprised her by asking, “You have Anamita with you?”
“Yes,” Gallif said unsure of how he would react. “Something wrong?”
“We talked a few times, that’s it. She was always so distant I’m surprised that she’d come along.”
“A lot of things, a lot of people, have changed, Luvin. Including you,” Gallif said.
“And you,” he nodded.
“Yes, I have to check them at the nest, but I want you to stay here.” She turned and was about to go down but then paused briefly. “I want you to have this,” she said as she reached into her backpack.
***
Anamita had some difficulty crossing the click beetle nest. She had moved much more slowly and uncertainly than Gallif and Jakobus and had back tracked twice. She had finally reached a safe position with Jakobus and had hugged him with relief.
Pate’s crossing went much worse. There were three sets of tracks now and he had mistaken the shuffled prints of Anamita’s for Gallif’s and had found a dead end. Out of frustration, and his vanity, he tried to make his own path but was disturbed by the click beetles as they awoke.
Gallif had started sliding when she heard the clicks and as she entered the nest, she took the flame sword in one hand and quickly scanned the area. As she watched, Pate was just finishing casting and plunged half of the nest into darkness. The click beetles that were still able to see clearly were moving in his direction.
“Do something,” Anamita called to Gallif.
“We’ve got to get th
eir attention,” she said. “They act in unison against threats.”
Gallif looked at Jakobus and pointed to a nest near their side. Jakobus went running with his axe swinging and cleaved the remaining male click beetle in half. Gallif walked to the nest, it was empty, then moved to a second spot. There was a female click beetle inside and she also cut it in half.
There was an increase in the volume and speed of the clicks.
She had been expecting half of the click beetles to go after Jakobus and the rest to come after her. With luck, she’d figured, Pate could have run between the divided animals and joined them. There was no such luck this time as all of the click beetles started in her direction. She had killed a female and the rest of the pack had instinctively singled her as the bigger threat.
There was another change in the clicks. While they didn’t increase in volume or tone they were becoming more synchronized.
The three males that originated in that nest came at her rapidly. She took a few steps back and cut down the first one. She took a swing at the second one but struck the bone shell and the shot went wild. The third was rearing up and preparing to attack as it closed in but Anamita’s sword swung low and cut off two of its six legs. Gallif struck the second click beetle again and managed to impale it with the sword. Anamita swung at the third animal again and cleanly cut off one of its antennae. Out of reflex the click beetle brought its stinger up hard at it her. It failed to strike her leg directly but managed to make a glancing cut in the leather armor and skin. She grunted in pain and stumbled back. Gallif finished her assailant off with a few quick swipes.
The clicks were matching perfectly as each click beetle’s bone armor snapped at the same time.
Jakobus watched as the click beetles moved towards Gallif. He used his axe to destroy some of the males and was relieved that some of the army turned towards him.
Gallif made several quick chops with the flame sword and backed away. She looked up quickly and saw Pate making his next move. She tried to call to him to warn him to stop, but the clicking was so loud he couldn’t hear her. Gallif had hoped with the click beetles now headed towards her and Jakobus he could escape in the path between groups of insects, but again her plan failed. Either Pate’s pride was too much for him or he just didn’t realize the opportunity he had. Instead of escaping to safety and he took a hard swing and cut one of the female click beetles in half. Gallif gasped in horror as all of the click beetles started moving towards him.
The monotonous clicking of the bone armor was almost unbearable and they all desperately wanted to cover their ears for protection. It suddenly occurred to Gallif at how odd it was that the clicking would be so rhythmic. She glanced at the cloud of darkness that he had cast and could just barely see the lights from the tails of the females approaching. She realized too late that the noise would attract more of their kind. Desperately she looked for a way out.
Gallif went to Anamita and grabbed her by the shoulder. She pushed her hard to the path she had taken and moved to Jakobus.
As the rest of the click beetles emerged from the darkness the clicking stopped its rhythmic beat and broke into an explosion of noise.
Gallif felt that there was no choice. If they were going to save Pate, they would have to keep attacking the click beetles and fight against a far greater number.
She heard the swishing of movement through the air and was surprised as two arrows impaled one of the females in the furthest nest. For an agonizing second everything in the nest froze and then the click beetles scattered. It was a frenzy of angry animals, ready for a kill, who suddenly did not know where their target was.
Pate started to attack some of the males near him, but this time Gallif’s cry halted him. She pleaded with him to join them and he started towards them jumping from clear spot to clear spot.
There was another swish of movement as a third arrow cut the air. This arrow impacted into the side of one of the females that was surrounded by newborn. Acting in unison, to protect an injured mother, all of the remaining click beetles moved in her direction.
Gallif looked back at the path upward and saw a brief movement in the darkness. She grabbed Pate and Jakobus by the arms and pushed them to the safe exit. She stayed briefly as they started to climb to protect their backs, but soon joined them.
“Where’d the arrows come from?” Anamita asked as they all got to the next level. “I thought they came from behind me, but there was no one there.”
“Yes, there was,” Pate said flatly, and they all looked in the direction he was staring.
Luvin stood, not far away, watching them. He held the bow in his hands with an arrow pointing downwards to indicate he was ready for a fight. The red tinted armor that Gallif had given him, like all cast garments, had fit to his form and he made an impressive sight.
Pate started to move towards him and Gallif planted herself between the two.
“He didn’t tell anyone where the school was, Pate,” Gallif said forcefully. “I did. When Zaslow first met me he put something in my drink. That and the pendant he had given me, like the ones we’ve seen, I believe allowed him to read my mind. When he asked me about my home I thought of the school.”
“Where did he go?” Pate asked without letting his gaze drift from Luvin. “You left before the attack and showed up after.”
“Rayjen sent me on an errand,” Luvin said quickly. Despite his apparent confidence there was still some shaking in his voice. “He wanted some things and figured it would be best if I was away for a while, so I went alone.”
Pate finally looked away as he remembered one of the last times he had seen his father. “He did mention they had new students,” he said.
“What would he have done?” Gallif asked to try and back up Luvin’s story. “Would he have wanted the students to keep teasing?”
“No,” Pate said after a few breaths.
Luvin caught movement to one side and glanced at Anamita coming forward. He nodded to her and she nodded back then looked off leaving him feeling as if he was still being pushed away by her. He wondered just how much she had changed after all. Gallif made sure he was introduced to Jakobus and the dwarf welcomed him warmly.
“How did you get in here?” Pate asked. Though he was starting to see Luvin in a new light, he was not ready to completely believe him.
“The same way you did,” Luvin said. “When Gallif and I were going to Atrexia on Festival Day there was a quake when we passed by the lake. The water level had dropped even though there was no outlet stream. It was as if the water had been drained away.”
“Trust him now?” Gallif asked Pate.
“No,” he replied. “I just want him to stay in front of me.”
“Fair enough,” Gallif said. “I’ll need him with me.” She turned to Luvin and asked, “Have you seen any signs of a man named Zaslow who is being followed, worshiped, by aquilus?”
Luvin was surprised that she knew of what was going on inside the mountain and nodded that he had. “There’s a temple, several layers up from here, where he meets with aquilus. I’ve caught him from a distance but haven’t gotten close enough to hear or see much of what he says and does, but it looks like he’s feeding them something to keep them happy. There’s over a hundred aquilus up there.”
Almost in unison they gasped.
Jakobus asked, “What do they do? Do you know why he has them here?”
“Sometimes I think he has them here just to make himself feel more powerful, but there was also a change recently. They found something up there. I’m just not sure what it was.”
“Up where?” Jakobus asked.
“Starpoint Mountain is riddled with caverns and tunnels. There are open shafts with completely smooth and bare walls. He spreads out his cloak, some type of cast, and just steps into the air and is lifted away.”
“Have you seen people, like us? Captives?”
“I’ve seen,” he started to speak and then paused for a deep breath. “I’ve seen bodies.”
“What’s ahead of us?” Gallif asked as she drew her flame sword.
“A few more levels of this stuff,” he said motioning around the bare rock area. “The legend that no one has been to the top of the mountain may, or may not, be true but there have been lots of attempts over the years. Lots of people made it inside,” he said. “They brought things.”
“Things?” Anamita asked.
“What kind of things?” Jakobus wondered aloud.
“Natural and unnatural. Cyclops, minotaur, even a fomora.”
Gallif shook her head as a cold shiver shocked its way up her spine. Jakobus said a quick prayer and even Pate was shaken by the thought.
“What is a fomora?” Anamita had to ask.
“A creature created by casting,” Jakobus said.
“Dark casts, very evil,” Pate added. “Usually made up of different parts of creatures. A lion’s claw, an alligator’s tail, a true monster, deadly, and very tough.”
“How do we fight it?” Anamita was unable to stop asking questions.
“You don’t,” Gallif said. “Neither can Jakobus or Pate. Only cast weapons can damage a fomora.”
“That is something I might be able to help you with,” Luvin said and they all turned to him. “There are a few things I’ve found.”
“Where are they?” Pate asked forcefully.
Luvin looked straight at Gallif. He was ignoring Pate’s question, but at the same time, was telling Gallif all she needed to know. “There is a place, about three layers up, where I have a few things hidden.”
“Jakobus, I want you to watch our backs,” Gallif ordered. “You two in the middle,” she said to Anamita and Pate. “Luvin, I want you right next to me,” she said. “Let’s get moving.”
Despite the twists and turns in the tunnel Gallif could tell that after five hours they were still headed in the same northern direction. The tunnel had varied in shape and size, sometimes they traveled single file, sometimes side by side, sometimes they crawled. Despite sneers from Pate she let Luvin lead them and didn’t question his directions.