by M. A. Roth
When I settle, I crawl on my hands to sit up, but freeze as a set of huge black eyes with yellow slits watches me closely. I stay frozen with fear. I don’t even know what it is; it looks like a lizard that is blown up to the size of a dinosaur. Fear keeps me frozen as it sniffs me, its sharp teeth inches from my face. Its whole body seems to be covered in a silver scale that drips with water. As it breathes on me, gills open at the side of its neck. I drop my gaze to the ground and focus on breathing.
All I can see are webbed feet as my gaze lowers to the ground. Dizziness crashes over me. My hair is blown off my face as the creature lets out a heavy breath again. I look up, and watch as it starts to back away, but it keeps its black eyes on me.
I can’t think straight as it starts to transform. I want to cover my ears as its cries are ear piercing, I can hear its bones crack, its spine arches high into the air, and a mist swirls around it. Soon the cries turn into a woman’s moans of pain and then she falls silent.
All I can do is stare at her in awe. She’s naked but her skin is covered in a silver scale, and long white hair covers her breasts. I can’t see her face, as she’s breathing heavily into the floor. I catch movement at the side of her face. Gills open and close as she breathes and then those same eyes glare up at me—black with yellow slits. I swallow around the lump in my throat as she slowly rises. She has to be at least seven foot tall. I can’t move as she walks towards me.
“What brings you to my domain?” she asks in broken English. I can’t place the accent.
“I’m sorry I... I fell down a hole.”
She silences me. “Do you know what I am?” Her head tilts to the side and she studies me with curiosity.
“You’re… you’re… I don’t know.” I was going to say a woman but with the gills and webbed feet and weird looking eyes. I think differently.
“I am Suraga, the Keeper of Lost Souls.” She reaches me and kneels down so we are at eye level. A shiver assaults me.
“Lost souls?” I question.
“Lost souls, yes. Souls that have parted from the body, yet the body still lives. I protect them until they are joined together in re-birth… or death. Are you lost?” she asks with a hint of mischief in her voice. I’m weary of what she’s asking and know I must choose my words carefully.
“No, I’m not lost. I just want to get back to camp.”
She looks at me with disappointment and rises to her full height. “Stand!” she commands, her voice carries through the cave.
I stand and lock my knees together to keep myself upright. I take in the cavern; the platform that I stand on is about twenty foot wide and circles around the pool of crystal clear water. Large boulders are placed every few feet apart and stand at the edge of the platform… their purpose seems to be holding up the roof… and there are three different routes out of the large cavern… water makes a small path in each, but it doesn’t seem deep.
She raises her hand, getting my attention. “Your soul would serve well in my domain,” she says while her eyes turn to complete slits, eliminating all the yellow.
I swallow and try to keep myself upright. All I want to do right now is run. “My soul is fine where it is.”
She studies me. “Very well, but one day it will be mine.”
Before I can reply, she waves her hand in front of the pool of water, causing the water to part in two directions.
At the end of each side stands a golden door, both doors shine as if they are on fire. “Now I will give you a choice. I see you have two different paths and two different men play a large role in each one. But the choice is yours, as it always will be. The left will bring you to your prince and the right to your warrior.” I move to the left straight away, knowing it is Tristan.
Suraga looks annoyed. But I move quickly. A rock that seems to appear out of nowhere causes me to stumble and I land on the other path, the path that leads to the warrior. I watch in horror as the path to Tristan closes in with water. I turn to Suraga. “Wait, no!”
She shakes her head; a smile plays on her lips. “You are the difference between his rebirth and his death.” She approaches me her hand stretches into the air that shimmers and swirls, before I see something tangible. It’s a dagger. Suraga wraps her scaly hand around it and brings the dagger down to me. She opens her fingers. “Take it.”
The handle is designed in unusual gold swirls, matching the ones that Suraga has on her face.
“To protect yourself with.”
I shake my head. “No, I...”
She turns away from me. “Go, before you drown, and then I will have your soul and it will be no fault of mine.”
The water starts to close in, splashing against my boots. I stick the dagger in the band of my trousers and race toward the golden door as the water closes in. I stumble through the door and turn back around to face Suraga… just as the golden door dissolves before me in a blink of light, closing off the cavern… and Suraga, who had turned her back on me. I’m plunged into darkness. I try to calm my heart before I try to figure out where I am now. This door would lead to a warrior who I think is Carew.
I’m in a tunnel that feels man made, by the clay and rocks that push into either of my palms. I pull my hands away as they ignite in pain; I had almost forgotten about my wounds. I move slowly down the tunnel. The knife that Suraga gave me sits in the band of my trousers; each time it hits my hip bone, it gives me comfort. I move slowly, one foot in front of the other.
Water squishes in my boots. I should have stopped and emptied them, but the time and maneuverability in the tunnel wouldn’t make it possible. So I keep moving, feeling more nervous at every step I take. I curse Suraga for sending me here, while arming me for the worst… and why would Carew be looking for me?
My thoughts cease as debris falls from the wall directly where my arm brushes off. The noise of the debris hitting the ground has me closing my eyes. I stand still for a moment, listening for any movements.
The hairs rise on the back of my neck. Something’s behind me. I stay still, waiting, trying to relax my drumming heart. I move my hand until it rests on the knife. Pulling it out slowly, I turn to strike out, but I’m met with air that seems to laugh at me. I shiver from the cold of my damp clothes… and fear, that has curled its fingers around my throat. I need to get out of here. I start to move more quickly, not caring about my noise level any more.
Light shines in the distance. I almost cry with relief and move faster. That’s when I can hear the scurrying behind me. I look over my shoulder, but it’s too dark to make anything out. Move, I keep telling myself.
The light gets closer, brighter. It’s so white that I have to shield my eyes as I run towards it. Whatever is pursuing me is closing in. I push my body harder, moving faster. I’m nearly there.
My knees and face meet rocks as I go down with the weight of whatever jumped on my back. I spit out blood from my mouth, feeling dazed from the fall. I glance over my shoulder and come eye to eye with the snarling face of an exile. My hands dig into the clay as I pull my body towards the light.
“Help!!!” My screams are frantic as two more exiles grab my legs. My hand crosses the line of darkness and into the light, it’s coated in dirt and blood. I focus on the blood under my nails before I’m being dragged back into the tunnel away from the light, away from my only escape, screaming.
CHAPTER SIX
SARAJANE
I wake up and my body is racked with pain. Trying to sit up is unsuccessful, as my stomach protests. My face throbs. My fingers touch a cold slab under me. Opening my eyes fully, I take in my surroundings. I’m lying on a large concrete slab set in the middle of a large chamber. The cavern is flooded with sunlight from all the exits to the outside world. No one is in sight; my hand shifts to my trousers that still holds my knife. How that was possible I did not know, but I’m glad of it as Carew walks toward me.
“Sorry about your arrival.” He stands over me, his dark eyes steady on my face. “But you will heal.” His voic
e carries a note that suggests he doesn’t really care if I heal or not. My eyes skip around the room and towards all the exiles that crawl on their bellies making their way towards me.
Carew bends his huge frame over me, cutting me off from the exiles. His eyes look soulless and cruel. How had Suraga sent me to him? A knife glints in his hand.
“I asked you a question. Answer me or…”
My eyes shoot open at his words; I hadn’t heard him speak the first time. He runs the blade down my face on its flat side, not breaking the skin, but I get the message. He stays hunkered over me and I move my hand slowly to my trousers. His line of vision doesn’t reach that far, but I am careful not to alert him. Once I have my dagger out, I hold it along the side of my leg. My grip tightens on the handle.
“Where is Morrick?”
I swallow. “Outside Humus,” I answer honestly.
Carew studies me for a moment. There is something different in his eyes now. I’m honestly not sure if he will kill me or not. I shift slightly; the throbbing in my stomach grows worse.
“You will heal,” Carew says with a sneer twisting his lips. “Now I have one more question. Where is Musa?”
I look at his dark eyes and know if I answer he will have no more use for me. I was lucky the first time when Tristan arrived. This time nobody will save me.
Without thinking about what I’m going to do, I act on the instinct. The knife flies up and lodges itself in Carew’s abdomen. His eyes widen in disbelief as he stares at me, blood pours from his wound, coating my hand in its warmth. I pull my knife out, feeling horrified yet elated.
Carew’s brows furrow as he stares at me before he falls to his knees.
I glance around the space all the exiles are staring at me with hungry eyes. It’s time to go. Pushing off the slab I stand on wobbly legs. I hold out the knife as I make my way to the nearest exit, walking back ways while keeping my eyes on them. They follow me with growls and snarls; they look more deformed in the light. I swallow around the saliva that pools in my mouth.
Teeth sink into my shoulder as an exile attacks me from behind. Screaming in pain, I bring my knife up. It sinks into its cheek. I let go as he rears back, the knife hanging from his face. They move in all around me. Pulling myself to my full height causes me pain, but I try to show no fear. I can’t fight them all, and Carew is starting to stir. Dying like this is something I refuse to accept. I had survived too much. My dad, my sister, Tristan… all their faces swarm before me.
My anger floods my veins; I can feel it stir deep within me… and it explodes. “Die!” I roar in rage and frustration through gritted teeth, looking at all the exiles.
They all fall quiet. Then the one I had stabbed in the face starts to howl and rolls around in the dirt. Before my eyes I watch as it self-combusts, and then the rest burst into flames as well. My eyes roam in shock over all the exiles but soon fall on Carew he’s laying on the ground, his eyes are on me. They shine with awe. His eyes have taken on a chocolate brown tone, making him look...human. I watch him as the flames consume the exiles, and the chamber is filled with their roars of anguish. I need to go now, but Carew’s gaze keeps me rooted where I stand.
Something tightens in my stomach. Carew’s head snaps away from me. I follow his line of vision. More exiles have arrived. My stomach drops and my pulse spikes. Carew’s head whips back to me.
“Run!” he mouths to me.
I don’t question why he would help me now, I just run. I don’t know how long I have run for, but I don’t stop until my body gives out beside a stream. Crawling on my hands and knees, I dip my dirty and bloody hands into the water, taking large gulps. When my belly is full of water, I crawl the rest of the way into the stream and remove my tunic. Pain racks my body. My tunic slaps into the water and blood runs out of it.
“So much blood,” I whisper.
My eyes blur with tears at the mess of my stomach and hands. Bits of stones are embedded in my abdomen from when the exiles had dragged me through the tunnel.
The stones and rough earth had shredded my skin. I pick up my tunic and run it across my stomach, trying to get rid of all the dirt and stones. I scream in pain as tears slide down my face, but I don’t stop. My stomach and hands are not cut deeply but they still bleed. My shoulder aches from where the exile bit me. I dab it, but the pain becomes unbearable. So I just sat in the stream and try to control my racing heart.
I don’t know how much time passes, but the sun is gone and my teeth began to chatter together. I pull my soaking tunic over my head; it clings to my body, igniting the pain again. Every part of me throbs, but nothing bleeds anymore.
I’m healing.
My head swims from all the blood loss as I stand slowly and start to walk in a daze, in what I hope is the right direction. My vision doubles. I reach out my hand in front of me… I could see two. Then I can see torches burn in the distance. I count four of them. I squint and it returns to two.
“Sarajane?”
My legs give way with relief at Alana’s voice. I fall to my knees as the light reaches me and Tristan is there, his eyes taking in my damaged body. His fingers reach out to my face and then he stops, anger and pain fills his eyes.
I collapse into Tristan’s arms, the adrenaline leaving my body.
***
I wake to Tristan sitting beside me. The red roof of the tent is odd over my head, I was so used to sleeping under the stars that it takes me a moment to relax. My gaze meets Tristan’s stare. A blush makes its way into my cheeks. His intense stare is doing funny things to my stomach.
“How do you feel?” he asks. The deep tone of his voice carries his concern as he waits for my answer.
I move easily to a sitting up position. I feel only a little stiff. “I’m good,” I say.
His eyes relax but his face remains serious. He reaches out and takes my hands with such care while he traces all the scars now left on me with his long fingers.
“What happened?” His voice is full of conflict. I can see he is angry with himself.
“Tristan, you won’t always be there,” I tell him.
His eyes shoot away from me and he lets my hands go as he balls his own into fists. “I shouldn’t have let you go alone. If I just... when I saw you…” The look he gives me makes my chest tighten. I can see the pain of losing me in his eyes, the love he has for me. “I promise you...”
I stop him. “Don’t promise me anything. Just kiss me.”
Tristan leans in and brushes his lips gently against mine. The kiss is soft but there is an urgency in his heavy breathing. I feel it too and want more of him. My hands grip his shoulders and I pull him closer but he breaks the kiss. The haunted look hasn’t left his eyes and I hate that he blames himself.
“I want you to rest.” His eyes plead with me. I’m ready to object but for him I agree.
***
I wake up alone, and purr in contentment as the heat from the blanket has me snuggling deeper under it. My eyes snap open as someone clears their throat. I reluctantly come out from under the covers. Alana grins at me before kneeling down and pulling me into an unexpected hug. I cling to her small frame, glad to see her.
“Thank you for finding me,” I whisper.
Alana leans back and smiles. “I am so glad you are okay.”
I raise my hands. “All in one piece.”
Alana’s smile vanishes slowly as she looks at my hands. Confusion fills her face.
“It’s fine, Alana… just cuts from stones.”
Alana only nods. “We are moving soon. Are you up to it?”
I let out a heavy breath. “I can’t lie here forever, as much as I might like to.”
Alana gets up to leave, she pauses at the door and glances back at me with furrowed brows before leaving. What the hell was that about? Maybe she feels guilty at not being able to protect me? They all seem to feel that way. I get dressed.
Leaving the tent feels like a mistake, as I’m bombarded with questions from Morrick and Trista
n about what happened. I tell them everything, apart from Suraga and Carew. I don’t need them to worry any more than they already do. I also wonder if Suraga was real, or if I banged my head when I fell down the hole.
Once they realize I am done talking, the conversation returns to us getting into Humus. It’s dark again, which I think is the best time to get into the city. We would have no chance of getting in there during the day light. I look at Tristan; he’s always dressed in black, the same as the Saskians.
“Tristan, the black outfits you got… could we not dress in them and pretend to be Saskian soldiers?”
Tristan smiles slightly and looks at Morrick. “She is right. But we can’t all go.” Tristan turns back to me and I know what he is going to say before he even starts. “You would have to wait here with Alana and Mirium until we know what’s going on.”
Mirium doesn’t look satisfied but Tristan continues with his plan. “And Morrick, you would stay here; it would be too dangerous for you to just walk in there.”
Morrick nods in agreement and I can’t stop but think how much of a coward he is.
“We should leave now… tonight… and tell the men that the king sent us.”
“Alright. It is the best idea for now,” Morrick says.
My stomach tightens as I think of anything happening to Tristan. Kiar, Legis and Tristan change into the black clothes and arm themselves; once they are all dressed, they put the cloaks over their clothes.
“Alana, you will protect Sarajane at all costs,” Tristan says once he’s ready.
Alana nods her head in full agreement, as if it goes without saying.
Morrick places his hand on Tristan’s shoulder. “We will be safe here—don’t worry. Just find out what is going on and report back.”
“Yes, my Lord.” Tristan bows his head.
I chew on my lip with worry, in case this is a stupid idea.
“Sarajane, don’t wander off. Stay with Alana at all times. Please.” Tristan stops in front of me and I want to reach up and kiss him but I’m too aware that everyone is watching us.