Soul Goblet

by J. A. Culican

  While she kept the official busy, I followed Gwen off the ship. Even with her concern about heights, she did better with the ropes than I. I discovered it was hard to climb down while my knees were shaking so hard, and almost lost my purchase and fell off ladder twice before we hit solid wood. Leaving everything behind except my satchel with the books and paper, we darted away from the ship and left the docks behind.

  Moving deeper into the city and away from the port, I found, to my dismay, the city was nothing like what I’d expected. The descriptions I’d read were old, and nothing matched up with the pictures or explanations the way I’d hoped.

  "Where do we go now?" Gwen looked around at the massive buildings, craning her neck.

  There was nothing shorter than several stories high, with even the single-family dwellings more closely resembling castles due to their larger size.

  I flipped through the pages, looking at the pictures of the cityscape around me.

  "I don't know. This book was written ages ago. Nothing looks the same. Will? You mentioned you'd been here once."

  Will shrugged. "Yeah, once. I don't know where we are."

  I blew out a frustrated breath. Surveying the street, I looked around for someone who may be able to tell us where the Temple was.

  "What if we ask someone?"

  I looked at Will and Gwen, both of whom shrugged.

  To my surprise, Sel winked at me.

  "Let me," he offered, looking eager with his head up and shoulders back.

  "Are you sure?"

  "I see a servant over there. I may have more luck than you. Give me a moment, and I'll be right back."

  Sel approached a human girl who was sweeping off the steps of a nearby store. She appeared about his age, and while dressed plainly in a grey dress with an apron, she had rich brown hair and pretty blue eyes.

  I was fascinated by the way his personality changed when he was talking to someone he considered his equal.

  Instead of the quiet and deferential servant I was accustomed to, he smiled, joked, and perhaps even flirted with the pretty human girl with confidence I hadn’t expected.

  He came back a few minutes later, looking pleased with himself.

  "What did she say?"

  Sel glanced back at her with a smile. "Nothing. She didn't know about the Temple of Light. She was able to tell me the more important buildings are down that way, though. Maybe we'll find it there."

  My shoulders slumped. I took out the paper from my bag again. It was full of symbols, but none appeared to match up with any of the scenery around me. I allowed my hands to fall to my sides, the paper hitting my leg.

  "Let's go. We don't have much time before we need to return to the ship, so any direction is better than nothing."

  He led the way, walking briskly. I wasn't sure if he actually knew where he was going, but seeing this new, confident side of him gave me some hope. The houses and buildings seemed double or triple the size of what they had been in Sunglen, or even Starside. At times I felt the light was blocked completely by the enormity of the buildings.

  Suddenly, we emerged from the walls of buildings into a large clearing. My breath caught as I stared with wonder.

  "Is that the Temple of Light? It looks like a dragon temple."

  Gwen crossed her arms, one eyebrow raised and her nose wrinkled. Her doubt was obvious, and I couldn’t blame her for it.

  "It could be. The Temple of Light was supposed to be the place where the High Dragons held important summits. This one looks newer than the one depicted in the book, though. I wonder if this temple could be hiding the original?"

  I noticed it had guards stationed all around it, with a clear entrance across from where we were standing. The doors were enormous and wide open, giant rectangular red slabs encrusted with jewels that opened outward, with three dragons standing with large swords at either side. Even with them there, the entryway looked large enough to fit at least two more dragons in between.

  The building itself rose to a point which shone under the bright suns, having been tipped in gold. The rest of the triangular structure was built in a shimmering white stone, similar to the marble of the Library in Sunglen, right down to the gold veins through it. But otherwise, there were no statues or other decorations. It was a smooth, glowing monument to simplicity and beauty.

  "Can you see another entrance?" Will squinted, tilting his head from side to side.

  “No, just the main one.”

  I pursed my lips. Not only was it guarded, it was currently being actively used. I couldn’t see any way we’d be able to slip inside without being observed.

  "It looks like it's about time for Gwen and me to put on a little show. What do you think?"

  She blinked, narrowing her eyes as she looked at Will. "Are you saying what I think you are?"

  Her words came out slowly, but I could see her lips curl up with amusement.

  "What are you saying, Will?”

  "Well, I'm sure she’d like to get back at me for suggesting I leave her wolves behind. What better time to do it than while you search for the entrance to the temple?"

  I looked between the two incredulously and was about to object when Sel piped up.

  "If you two can keep the dragons at the front along with the dragon-bonded humans busy, I'll go around the back of the building with Rhin. If we get stopped, I’ll create another distraction so you can continue searching."

  "Oh, I don't know, guys. I don’t like this plan’s potential for disaster."

  It sounded like my friends all planned to draw the fire of the dragons so I could find an entrance, which was a horrible idea.

  Gwen placed her hand on my shoulder, giving me a confident smile. "You know as well as I do, you’re the one who needs to get inside, not us. I highly doubt anything awful will happen if we start a fight in public other than being thrown off the island, which will happen if we get caught anyway."

  “I don't want you guys taking the fall for me."

  My protest was ignored. All three had crossed their arms and were looking at me as if I was a stubborn child.

  "Okay, fine. But be careful. I want you to run instead of letting anyone get their hands on you." I waited with narrowed eyes for them to agree to my terms.

  "Absolutely," Will agreed. "I have no intention of letting anyone catch me. But at least this way you might be able to find the way into the Temple of Light without a dragon guard catching you first."

  With my heart in my throat, I walked away from the obvious front entrance while Will and Gwen headed straight toward it.

  We’d almost made it around the building when the commotion erupted. People were shouting, and I heard the crash of something breakable. I moved faster.

  Not sure how much time we had, I was beginning to despair we wouldn't find another entrance when I noticed a golden door behind one of the guards stationed on a smooth and otherwise boring corner of the temple. It called to me, and when I got closer, I saw the same dragon symbol from the Library front and center on the archway, shimmering in the light just above the dragon guard’s head.

  "I see a way in. But how do I get past the guard?"

  Sel squinted. "It looks like I’m up."

  He gave me a smile as I looked at him with a furrowed brow.

  Taking a page out of Will’s book, Sel winked. "Don't worry. One of the things I’ve learned as a servant is to be both invisible and fast. I'll be fine."

  I watched, my heart in my throat as he darted toward the guard. I hesitated briefly, worried I could be unleashing something unstoppable if I opened the entrance, but knew I needed to move while he created the diversion.

  My desire for answers and my need to stop the growing evil was stronger than my fear, and I acted. Slipping behind the guard once his attention was firmly fixed on Sel, I overheard him acting like a complete miscreant.

  I was relieved to see a simple mechanism on the door when I sized it up. With the guard stationed so close, I needed it to be easy. But even
as I prayed for it to be unlocked, my eyes fell upon a small engraving beside the entrance. Symbols, the same as the ones on the page in my bag. Without even pulling it out, I recognized a line corresponding exactly to three symbols on the page and pressed them.

  Dragon. Sun. Dragon.

  As I waited breathlessly, a small panel slid open beside the golden door. I walked into the darkness beside it, and into the ground below.

  Chapter 23

  The darkness inside the temple was overwhelming until I allowed my eyes to adjust, the way I’d been taught in the forest. I remembered I still had the notebook Jarid had given me. I hadn’t used it yet, and while I hoped I didn't need to, it was nice knowing I had a Librarian who could help me in a pinch.

  Slowly, the walls and the shape of the temple gradually took form in the dim grey light. I couldn’t help remembering the mirrored walls in the Library with trepidation. Hopefully, nothing dangerous awaited me here, as I was completely on my own.

  I patted my satchel, feeling the comforting weight of the books within. I paused, pulling out the paper. With barely enough light to see the paper in front of me, I blinked, rubbed my eyes, and looked again, certain I’d imagined it. In the dimness of the temple it appeared to me the symbols were rearranging themselves.

  What had vaguely resembled a map in Sunglen had now rearranged itself into lines. It was a map, but not the way I’d thought it was. Squinting harder, my mouth dropped open as the dragon symbols began to line up. Nine symbols, to be exact.

  Tracing them with my finger, I looked up. I needed to head to the right if I was understanding the symbolism correctly. A few short feet down the narrow hallway, I came to a door and I smiled. The main entrance had been ornately decorated with priceless gems, but this one was a stark contrast, appearing to have been etched into bare stone.

  Hieroglyphs were arranged across the top and down the sides, traveling to the right and down before moving back up and across to the left in an ever-decreasing circle. Otherwise, the door was bare. No handle, no lever, nothing I could use to enter other than the symbols themselves.

  I compared the paper to the doorway. The characters rearranged themselves again. Now the nine dragons were organized by size. I looked back at the door, realizing each dragon was slightly different. I held up the paper to compare them. What was the map trying to tell me? I looked at the narrow hallway behind me, realizing the temple, at least the part where I was currently, was too narrow for any dragon. Unless…

  Suddenly, I understood. The hallway was only wide enough for a dragon who could shift into a human form, which meant only a High Dragon would be able to access the tunnel and this doorway. Or a dragon-bonded human or elf. This doorway was impassable to any of the dragons currently residing on Bomrega Island, which meant it must be part of the older temple.

  Based on the amount of dust shrouding the halls, no one had been here since the High Dragons had disappeared.

  I closed my eyes, thinking of everything I could use to help me open the doorway. I smiled, grabbing the book Jarid had given me and quickly jotted a note.

  “What is the name of the last High Dragon king?”

  I waited only a brief moment and watched with amazement as words appeared in response, along with the name in Dragon. He’d explained it, but seeing it for the first time was still impressive. When I looked at the hieroglyphs on door again, I knew exactly which one to touch to open it.

  "Thanks, Jarid," I whispered into the silence.

  I didn’t have to wait long. The wooden door slid sideways, revealing a well-lit room which almost blinded me after the dimness of the hallway. Something about it bothered me despite it being easier to see.

  That was it—it felt too easy. I stopped in the entrance, carefully examining the room. If it was too easy, that could mean … my heart sank. The floor appeared to be a plain and creamy marble, without cracks or color changes, but set into the decorative paintings around the room were tiny holes that almost blended into the wallpaper.

  Holes which looked exactly like the motion-activated dart holes my brother had been learning to make this year.

  Luckily, I had some knowledge of elven traps and how to avoid tripping them thanks to him letting me watch him work.

  I closed my eyes, remembering the words to the spell I’d learned at my father's knee in childhood. This spell was useful with this particular style of trap. The air next to me began to shimmer as I chanted the quiet words. The spell was working! It had been a long time since I’d used it and I hadn't been sure I remembered it well enough to activate it.

  I stepped forward, placing each foot cautiously after checking the floor, and focusing on the walls and ceilings.

  Praying I was correct about the floor and the trap in the walls, I moved slowly, in case the spell didn't hold. I had no idea if it would last long enough to get me to the other end of the room.

  Sweat trickled down my back as I moved with agonizing care to where the exit waited, tantalizingly close, yet so far away.

  This door was a brilliant crimson red, but instead of reaching for it when I was close enough, I stopped.

  No, this wasn't right.

  The first door to the outer temple had been golden and matched the surroundings. The second door had been plain, engraved stone. This door didn't match the room, even though it was gorgeous and seemed to be the proper door for a king to enter.

  I turned to survey the room again for another way out and this time, my eyes were drawn to a small, ceramic urn resting just beside the crimson door. It was completely out of place compared to the rest of the room, which had been decorated to benefit someone of great wealth and style.

  The plain brown jar, not even ornate enough to earn the title of vase, did not belong in this room.

  Another test.

  But as I leaned over to pick it up, I saw the shimmer around me vanish and I ducked, hitting the floor just as a silent whoosh passed my head, pulling a strand of my hair as it thudded directly into the wall next to where my face had been a second earlier.

  I rolled, placing my hands on top of the jar, and was whisked into a tornado as the faint sound of darts missing their target echoed in my ear. The racing of my heart told me I was still alive, and against my better judgement I pried one eyelid open. I was in another room, still holding the jar. Clearly, I’d been right about the door.

  This one was decorated in solid blue and filled with treasure as far as the eye could see. Gold objects filled every available surface—floors, chairs, tabletops. Even the chandelier glowed with diamonds and semi-precious gems. I couldn't see a light source, but the whole room was bright as day without the aid of lamp or candle.

  I exhaled, still holding on to the brown jar. I was reluctant to put it down. It might be my only way out. My eyes were drawn to the center of the treasure room, where a single large emerald, as beautiful as Gwen's eyes, beckoned me.

  "Rhin, Rhin. We're waiting for you. So lonely. Can you take us home? Show us the daylight. We would be ever so grateful."

  Trying to clear the thoughts the gem was putting in my head, I tugged on my ears. How many times had I read about objects controlling someone's mind? If you didn't know how it was talking to you, it usually meant it was trying to kill you. The compulsion was almost overpowering to pick it up. I screwed my eyes shut again, bringing the urn closer and hugging it tightly.

  I focused on the jar, noticing for the first time it wasn’t a uniform color. Instead, it had hieroglyphs painted in a slightly darker brown than the background. Now that I’d detected them, I could see similarities between the hieroglyphs on the door and the paper I’d been using as a map.

  I shifted the weight of the jar to my left arm, curling it into the crook of my elbow as I rummaged in my bag for the paper Jarid had ripped out for me.

  Yes! It was the same symbols.

  But when I examined the sheet further, I realized there was one symbol which wasn't on the page. Or anywhere else I’d been, for that matter. It was a go
blet. I looked around the room, careful to avoid looking at the emerald I could hear now shouting my name in increasingly strident and nagging tones. In a strange way, it was starting to remind me of my mother's admonitions to be more ladylike. The bizarre idea made it easier to ignore, and I turned my attention back to the room.

  When I’d first opened my eyes, I’d only seen the blue background and the riches around me before being transfixed by the emerald. Now I could see the blue was varying shades. The wallpaper had intricate circles layered on each other, the ceiling was a pale sky blue, and the floor a pale grey.

  The goblet wasn't on any of the tables, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t in one of the many piles of items that covered the floor. Despite it not being anywhere obvious, I wondered if I needed to find it to get to the next room.

  There were no doors or windows now that I was here, and if the portal was another object like the jar, I didn’t know what it could be. Nothing looked out of place, other than the jar I was already holding. Every other object was valuable and some sort of jewel or decoration. Except…

  I turned around.

  A simple fireplace was behind me, lit with a small but cheery glow. It was nestled in between two diamond-crusted armchairs and I'd already ruled it out on my primary survey of the room, but I realized it was because I’d been looking at the chairs.

  The fireplace itself was plain grey marble, unadorned by any trim or priceless objects. Even the floor had veins of silver and gold through the marble, but the fireplace had nothing I could see to break the uniform stone appearance except for a tiny detail on the left corner.

  I held on to the jar while placing the paper back in my satchel, stepping cautiously onto the plainest sections of floor I could see. I didn't know if the floor would move, but I was expecting at least one more trap, if not more, to be lying in wait for me.

  Then the inevitable happened. I fumbled the jar. A yelp escaped me but I managed to catch the jar before it fell. As I did, I stepped on one of the gold marble veins in the floor. Just the tip of my shoe, barely a brush, but my foot felt heavy. Eyes wide with surprise and fear, I looked down to see gold on the toe of my shoe. Real, heavy gold, and the worst part was that I couldn't feel my pinky toe.