The creature let loose a wicked scream.
It was a Pyrrhic victory for the man, though, as the other two were on him, ripping the ax from his hands, pinning his arms behind his back. Pytor felt useless, worse than useless, and the pain came back into him, overwhelming his mind. The sound of the battle faded, and Pytor once more slipped into blessed unconsciousness.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
THE PAST
79 A.D.
As soon as she saw Thera appear on the horizon, Kaia felt a surge in her chest. The oracle had been correct; this was where her ancestors had lived for a long time. She had a vision of the island as a whole, before the destruction, of a magnificent white city with a pyramid in the center. Ships sailing from the port to all points of the Mediterranean.
“What is it?” Falco was at her side.
“Do you feel it?” Kaia asked.
“I feel power, subdued power,” Falco said. “This was a great place once.”
“It is where my people lived for a while after they came from Atlantis,” Kaia said.
“Atlantis?” General Cassius had joined them in the bow of the imperial galley. “That is a story you Greeks made up.”
“It was a real place,” Kaia said. ”The Shadow destroyed it.”
“A very powerful Shadow then.” Cassius said. “What can we do against such a force?”
“That remains to be seen,” Kaia said. She pointed toward the island where they could see the shattered cliff walls surrounding the place where the sea had intruded into the center of the island. “That was also done by the Shadow.”
“Why does this Shadow seek to destroy people and cities?” Falco asked.
“I don’t know that,” Kaia answered. “I hope to get some answers here.”
As they got closer, it was apparent that there were several islands making up Thera. The land, as was usual in this part of the world, was rugged and rocky. A group of white buildings clung to the cliff side that faced the sea, and the galley docked below them. The land that remained was the caldera, or lip of the ancient volcano, a long, curving, steep ridge.
“This way,” Kaia led the way off the ship, Cassius and Falco following. The few fisherman who were on the dock stared at them curiously as they went up a set of stairs cut into the rock itself. They said nothing, stepping back at Kaia’s approach.
A nervous Captain Fabatus immediately cast off and pulled out a safe distance from the land. Like any sailor, he felt safer on the water.
Kaia didn’t stop in the small town but kept going right through it and continuing upward. Falco was sweating heavily, and despite his training, he was slightly winded as they approached the top of the high cliff. He could see the general was struggling even more, but he knew that to offer help would be an insult. He was impressed with the woman’s conditioning as she hopped from step to step. He was grateful when they reached the top. They could look back and see their ship far below, like a toy floating in the water. But it was the view in front of them that had their focus.
The high land curved around left and right, surrounding the inner sea, broken in two places to touch the outer sea. In the center, two small islands poked above the water, a thin line of smoke drifting up from the larger of them.
“This was once all an island, and that” – Kaia pointed at the smoking island—“was a mountain in the center. It was called Palaia Kameni, or Old Burnt Island in your language. The other is Nea Kameni, New Burnt Island. That is where we must go.”
Falco felt uneasy. He looked over his shoulder toward the ocean. It was late afternoon, and the sun was going down. “We need to do whatever it is you want to do quickly,” he said.
Kaia also looked over her shoulder and nodded. “I feel it, too. Danger. But it’s a distance off.”
“But coming closer,” Falco said.
Without another word, Kaia began scrambling down the interior of the island toward the inner sea, following a narrow track that switched back and forth across the steep, rocky slope. Falco saw where she was headed: a small dock where a narrow boat was tied up. An old man was seated in the shadow of a large boulder, watching them approach.
Kaia raised her hand in greeting as they reached the dock. “I seek passage to Nea Kameni,” she said.
The old man peered at her with eyes cloudy with cataracts. He placed his hand on her forehead and remained still for several moments, then he nodded. He held out his hand, and Kaia slipped several gold pieces into it. The old man gave a toothless smile and pointed at the boat, still without saying a word. Kaia climbed into it, Falco and Cassius following.
“It seems as if we’ve paid for the service of the boat and not the man,” Cassius noted.
“He would take forever,” Falco said as he grabbed one of the oars, Kaia the other, and they began pulling.
“Talkative fellow,” Cassius noted, looking back as the old man went back to his place in the shadow of the boulder.
“He has no tongue,” Kai said. “He is the gatekeeper for the Akrotirian Oracle I was told of him. He brings the oracle food and water every morning, but he can never speak of what she tells him.”
“I have never heard of this oracle,” Cassius said. Falco could tell the general was uncomfortable sitting in the back of the boat and having a woman row.
“Few have,” Kaia granted. “She has a special power, as each oracle does. Hers does not involve the future but rather the past. Most people don’t care about the past, as it is over with, and they feel they cannot change it. Of course, many are fools to think the future is changeable also.”
“Are we fools then?” Falco asked.
“We might indeed be,” Kaia said, “but I do not think so. Fate is not all-powerful.”
“It has been in my life so far,” Falco argued.
“Perhaps,” Kaia allowed. “But many times, we make our own fate without knowing we do so.”
Falco thought of his inability to allow himself to die in the arena. He had always attributed that to his desire to remain alive to see his children, but they were dead now, and here he was on this strange quest. He could have easily refused the emperor and ended his misery with his head on the pike on the Imperial Palace wall.
Shrugging off these thoughts, Falco peered ahead and could make out a small, pebbled beach on the smaller island, with a cave right behind the beach. “If you cannot change the past, and you cannot change the future, what is the point of anything?” he asked.
“Because it is our fate?” Kaia said with a smile. “And there are some who say both can indeed be changed.”
General Cassius laughed. “A philosopher. They will argue you in circles so that you end with the same question you started with, but it will take you a week to get there.”
Falco wasn’t amused. “I do not care for fate. It has not been kind to me or those close to me.”
“Perhaps that will change,” Kaia said as she pulled her oar as they approached the beach.”
“I doubt it,” Falco said as the boat hit the pebbles. He jumped overboard and pulled the boat onto the beach.
Kaia immediately went toward the cave. The opening was fifteen feet wide by six feet high, and Falco bowed his head as they entered. There was a dim glow ahead and they all paused to allow their eyes to adjust.
A worn pathway went down the center of the cave and curved to the right toward the glow. Falco wondered how many generations of feet had shuffled along the path. As they went around the curve, they could see the glow came from a blue rock set in the center of the cavern about thirty feet in diameter. Falco had never seen such a stone. Across the stone from them was a figure wrapped in dark red robes, seated in a chair made of black stone.
“Welcome, travelers.” The voice was surprising, holding the vibrancy of youth, yet Falco could see the woman was very old as she pushed back her hood and revealed her lined face. “Have you come far?”
“From Delphi, Mother,” Kaia said.
A darkness crossed the old woman’s face. “My sis
ter there is dead.”
“Ah!” Kaia staggered, and Falco helped her to the ground, where she sat, dazed. Then he stood by awkwardly and waited.
“There is not time to grieve,” The Akrotirian Oracle said.
“ I did not feel it,” Kaia said in a low voice, “but I feel it now.”
“There are some things it is best not to feel,” the Akrotirian Oracle said. “The emissaries of the Shadow found her and killed her. But it was you they were really searching for. My sister protected you from them and from feeling her death.”
Kaia looked up. “I thought the Shadow could not come out of the darkness.”
“You forget what you were told. Those who killed her were Valkyries. They had hard white skin that your blades” – she flicked a withered hand toward Cassius and Falco—“cannot penetrate. They always come in a fog that drifts over sea or land.”
Falco shifted his feet uneasily. If his steel would not work against things the old woman spoke of, then what hope was there?
“My oracle sent me here.” Kaia was gathering herself together.
“I know. It is time.”
“Why am I here?” Kaia asked.
“This was once one of the havens our ancestors sought after our home in Atlantis was destroyed by the Shadow. But almost two millennia ago, the Shadow reappeared off the coast. It was stopped at the last minute, but the island was destroyed. A few survived and hid in other lands. You and I, we come from the same line, from Pri Lo, the only surviving priestess. Many, many years ago, our line split, and mine came here to this island while yours went to Delphi. There are others of us, here and there around the world, although in many places the line has died out or been so diluted that a true Defender or oracle is born only rarely.”
“Why did you come here?” Kaia asked. “It is a dead place.”
“I was charged with remembering and examining the past.” the oracle said simply. “And as all oracles, to wait.”
“And now the time has come,” Kaia said. “The Shadow has already caused much destruction among the Romans, and a gate grows to the north.”
The oracle nodded. “I have felt it.”
“What am I here for?” Kaia asked once more.
“To go into the Earth,” the oracle said. She stood and gestured for them to follow. They exited the cave and stood on the rough beach. “All was not lost when Thera was destroyed. With a finger that wavered, the oracle pointed at Palaia Kameni, which lay not far away. “There is where you must go. There is an opening that you will go into. Then you must follow your instincts.”
“What am I looking for?” Kaia asked.
“You will know it when you see it.”
“Which means you don’t really know,” Falco spoke for the first time, tired of oracles and priestesses and their vague words.
The old woman looked at him. “You have a dark soul.”
Falco shrugged. “I’ve been told that many times.”
The oracle’s eyes shifted from Falco and Kaia. “Interesting,” was all she finally said.
“What is interesting?” Falco asked.
“The balance between the two of you,” the oracle said.
Falco laughed. “She is light to my darkness?” he asked, indicating Kaia.
“No. She is the light that will illuminate your shadow side,” the oracle said.
“Do you sense the darkness that is close by?” Falco asked, changing the topic from himself.
She nodded. “Yes, It is closing. Valkyries are coming. There is not much time.”
“Then stop playing word games,” Falco said, “and tell us what we need to know.”
“There is a way to stop the Shadow,” the oracle said. “You” – she pointed at Kaia—“are part of it. You also need a staff with one end a seven-headed snake. On the other end is a blade. It is called a Naga staff. It must be wielded by a warrior.”
“My oracle told me that.” Kaia said.
“That blade will work against the Valkyries. And you will find it where I send you. That you did not know. But what I do not know is if there is a place for all this to come together near this new Shadow.”
“What kinds of place?” Falco asked.
“You will see when you go there,” she pointed once more to Palaia Kameni.
“Then let us go.” Falco headed toward the boat.
Kaia reached out and took the old woman’s hands in hers. “Thank you.”
“I wish you well on your journey,” the oracle said. “I am the last of my line here.”
“I suggest you leave,” Kaia said.
“And go where? And do what?” The old woman shook her head. “This is where I belong. Go now. Your killer is right. There is not much time.”
Kaia and General Cassius joined Falco who was waist deep in the water, ready to pull the boat offshore. With a heave, he had them afloat, and he jumped aboard, grabbing an oar. Falco concentrated on rowing, his muscles enjoying the feel of the wood in his hands, the strain of exertion. He looked up and saw the oracle was still standing on the shore, watching them. Then he glanced over his shoulder and saw another small section of beach, a dark hole just above it. He adjusted his stroke so the nose of the boat was headed toward it. Within minutes, they were ashore.
As Kaia scrambled up the slope toward the opening, Falco paused. He could see the smoke coming out of the top of the cone that made up most of the island they were on. Then he looked around. There was a hint of darkness in one of the openings that led to the outer sea. He turned and ran after Cassius and Kaia.
“We have no light,” Cassius noted as they stood just outside the opening. A tunnel dove steeply into the side of the cone, the sides of it smooth. They could feel heat coming out of it, washing over their skin.
“I can find our way in the darkness,” Kaia said. She pulled two short pieces of rope out of her pack. She handed both to Cassius. Then she took the end of one and signaled for Falco to take the end of the other. “I’ll lead.” She stepped into the opening and began descending, the two Romans following, like sheep on a tether.
The light from the opening faded as they went down, and soon they were moving in complete darkness. Falco wasn’t worried, though, because he could sense what Kaia did, the path of the tunnel as it made slight turns left or right, but always descending. The temperature was rising, and sweat poured down Falco’s skin, irritable underneath his armor.
Kaia suddenly halted, Cassius bumping into her. “What is it?” the general asked.
“There is a branch here; two tunnels,” she answered.
“Left,” Falco said from the rear.
“Yes, left,” Kaia agreed after a moment, and they continued on their way.
Falco could sense something ahead and below, something of considerable power but not active. It wasn’t the dormant volcano, although he was picking up the power in the Earth, but something different. He stumbled as a vision of a stepped pyramid, a woman lying on a platform on top, came to him unbidden. Then it was gone, as quickly as it had come. He continued on, by then he paused when the others did, as the Earth shook under his feet.
*****
On the small beach of Nea Kameni, the Akrotirian Oracle had watched the three disappear into the opening. She had never set foot on the other island, even though it was so close. She had always known it would not be her fate to go there. She was just a signpost.
Despite the darkness she sensed coming, her heart was joyful. When she had produced no heir to her post, she had worried that her line would die without fulfilling its destiny. But now she could die in peace, knowing that what had been slotted to her line had been accomplished. It would be up to others to take the battle further.
She startled as the ground shook. The quake lasted for almost ten seconds, then stopped. She turned toward the main island, where her gatekeeper was looking out at her, his hand covering his eyes. She waved, indicating for him to leave, but she knew he couldn’t see well anymore. She yelled as he got into a second boat that he
kept at the small dock and began rowing toward her.
“Go away, old fool!” she called.
He didn’t stop rowing.
“Nectarous, go away. Save yourself!” she called out, but he kept coming. She sat down wearily on a stone. Then her eyes were transfixed by the site of a brownish gray fog boiling in over the water, coming through the southern gap.
*****
“Hurry,” Falco was whispering, although why, he didn’t know.
“I’m going as fast as I can,” Kaia replied. “What if there is a sudden drop-off or a chasm?”
“Then you die,” Falco said. “But if you don’t hurry, you’ll die anyway.”
“Hold!” Kaia called out, and Falco felt it at the same time. The air was much hotter and the walls had disappeared. They were in an open area, deep underground, how large he didn’t know. Then he blinked as there was a very faint light ahead and above them.
“What is that?” Cassius asked.
“Where we are going.” Kaia began moving. The others didn’t need to hold the rope now as their eyes, so used to the dark, locked onto the light like a beacon. As they got closer, Falco could make out a pyramid enclosed inside the large chamber, the light coming from the top of it. It was the same as the one that had been in his vision. They reached the base and began going up the wide steps toward the top.
“What is this place?” Cassius’s voice sounded unnaturally loud, echoing off the walls of the chamber.
“This defeated the Shadow long ago,” Kaia said. “It was buried here when the volcano exploded.”
“But why is it in a chamber?” Cassius asked.
“Even after stopping the Shadow, there was enough power to keep it from being swallowed up.” Kaia was almost at the top, the others close behind. “In the old days this was in the center of a great city.”
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