by Cameo Renae
“Yes,” he said glancing at me with an odd look.
The symbol was a small circle, attached to the left side of a “V”. The right side of the “V” continued up and then became an upside down triangle, which continued then came to a stop, even with the bottom of the “V”.
It looked oddly familiar. Like I’d seen it somewhere before. Maybe one of the other Guardian’s had one that looked similar. Samuel’s symbol was an “X” with a small diamond in the center. It also had an arrow going through it, from right to left. The left had the point, and the right had a small circle.
I felt the mark on the back of my neck, but it was flat. I never really looked at mark, because I had acquired it when I was a child, and had forgotten it was even there. Plus, I never looked at the back of my neck anyway. Who does?
“So, the double mark on the back of my neck is the same as yours and Alaine’s?”
“Yes.”
“And, Alaine’s mark is the same as her fathers?”
He paused, and there was a look of confusion in his eyes.
“Yes,” he nodded. “You amaze me, child,” he said, shaking his head, laughing. “Just a day ago, you were a scared, sad little girl. Look at you now. You have not only shown strength and fearlessness, but you are also very intelligent.”
I smiled.
The Bloodstone around my neck started to heat up, just as a loud growl echoed in the cave behind us. I knew our conversation was over.
“What kind of creature can make a sound like that? Is it a dog?”
“No. It’s not a dog. What lives in that cave is called a Grimlock.”
“A Grimlock?” I did not like the sound of that. It sounded horrifying and… grim.
Another booming growl was followed with large steps that shook the ground around us, making loose dirt and pebbles dance all around our feet.
The Grimlock must have been coming.
Samuel pushed me behind him. “Emma, don’t make any loud noises or run. Grimlocks are blind but they have an exceptional sense of smell, and impeccable hearing. They’ll be able to smell you, wherever you are, and hear every move you make.”
“Okay,” I breathed, which was nearly impossible to do in our situation. I caught a whiff of something horrible. It was the smell of death. Like a rotted, decaying corpse. “Uuuugh! What’s that smell?”
“I guess I should tell you that the Grimlocks are cannibals. They eat raw meat, as in, anything they can get their filthy hands on. Humans, angels, animals, even their own kind,” he said in a quieted voice.
“Are you serious? Raw meat?” I gulped.
“Yes. So stay right behind me. Unsheathe your dagger and be ready to fight if necessary. If you get into trouble, go for the neck, and make sure it’s deep enough to kill it. You cannot be afraid, Emma. Fear will kill you down here. Do you understand?” he asked. His eyes were boring into mine, making sure that I did understand.
I again swallowed hard, steadied my nerves and nodded. I hoped I wouldn’t come into contact with whatever that Grimlock creature was, but it was inevitable. I would soon have to face this creature. Just the name alone was pretty scary, and the fact that we could feel its footsteps meant that it had to be huge.
“Is there only one Grimlock in there?” I asked.
“No,” he answered. “The last time I came down here, there were around twenty-five or so. But that was hundreds of years ago. There are probably a lot more now.”
“Hundreds of years?” I gasped. Those numbers did some major work on my brain. It was hard to accept that my father was centuries old.
“Yes,” he said with a small grin. “This gate is the place where Lucifer has assigned the Grimlocks to dwell, but he has also allowed a porthole to open for them into the human world, a few times a month. The porthole opens to places where people are homeless, or ridden with drugs and crime. The Grimlocks are only allowed to hunt during a specific time, and only under the cover of darkness. They are sent to hunt for food. So, I suggest that when we make it through the tunnel, that you don’t focus on anything around you. Just focus on getting to the next gate as quickly and quietly as possible.”
“So are you telling me that there might be other humans down here?”
“Yes, but if they are down here, then they are already dead. Grimlocks don’t take their captives alive. They kill their prey first, before dragging them back into Hell.”
Oh God. The thought made my stomach turn and I instantly felt nauseous. Those poor humans. What if they had families? What if they had loved ones who were looking for them? That was completely unnerving, and made me want to hurl. But I had to think about all of those who were depending on Samuel and me to make it back to them. Failing wasn’t really an option.
The footsteps were getting louder. I wished I could disappear, but even if the suit could make me disappear, it wouldn’t matter. The damn creature was blind anyway.
But if that Grimlock even tried to take a bite out of MY flesh, I wouldn’t have any problem slicing its neck.
Crap, the thoughts that were running through my mind. Slicing necks? That totally wasn’t me. I could feel a change inside. Something that was making me a little stronger. A little braver. It all started the moment I realized who I really was. My father was a warrior, and his blood flowed through my veins. I would do anything to save the ones I loved. Alaine, Kade, Courtney, Caleb, all of those who were falling prey to the evil agendas of Lucian.
From the darkness of the tunnel came a loud swishing sound. It sounded slow and then started to gather momentum, soon sounding like a tornado. I peeked behind the rock, and strained to look into the darkness, but I couldn’t see a thing.
Then suddenly, a huge object shot from the cave, heading directly at us. In a second, Samuel grabbed hold of my arm, and shoved me flat to the ground, landing over me.
Whatever it was crashed into the wall, sending shards of rocks flying everywhere. I shielded my face with my arms until the debris cleared. When I uncovered my eyes, Samuel was already on his feet, with his sword drawn. I started sitting up, and noticed a huge weapon lodged in the side of the rock wall. It looked like some type of medieval club with sharp spikes, around ten-inches long, set all around it. There was a thick, long rope attached to its handle.
“STAY DOWN, EMMA!” Samuel yelled. As soon as I dropped back down, the weapon retracted and whizzed right over my face, missing me by inches. My heart was racing, and I couldn’t breathe. That was too damn close.
“What the hell is that thing?” I screamed.
“Morning Star,” Samuel answered, his eyes fastened into the darkness. “It’s what they use to capture their prey.”
“What do we do?”
“Just stay put, and stay still.”
Again, the loud swishing sound filled the air, and from the darkness, the huge weapon came flying like a bullet, headed straight for Samuel. He dove to dodge the oncoming weapon, but I heard a ripping sound, and then he yelled in pain.
“Samuel!” I screamed. One of the spikes was lodged deep in his right leg. The spike had gone through one side and out the other. He was on his back, and his leg was twisted and bloodied.
“Emma! Hurry!” he yelled, cringing in pain.
I jumped up and ran over to him.
“What? What do you want me to do?” I cried.
“You need to pull it out!” he urged.
“What?” I couldn’t stand to watch him in pain. First Kade, and now Samuel? I didn’t know how much more my battered heart could take. This trip into Hell was turning out to be exactly that… Hell. It was taking every ounce of strength I had in me to keep it together.
“Emma, you need to pull it out NOW, before that Grimlock retracts his weapon and takes my leg off!”
“Holy crap! Samuel, I don’t know…”
I ran up to him, my hands were trembling. There was blood everywhere. The long spike was embedded deep into his calf and it looked broken.
“Emma. You can do it. You have to do it. Pl
ease,” he said in a more relaxed tone, knowing I was panicking.
“How? How do I get it off?” It was a brutal mess, and I didn’t see an easy way to separate them.
“Just pull the spike off of my leg, and don’t worry about me. I’d rather feel the pain of you removing it now, then to feel the pain of having my leg ripped off.”
“Okay, okay,” I hyperventilated.
Without thinking I reached down, putting one hand between the club, and the other against his leg, and pushed as hard as I could, but it didn’t budge. The club felt like it weighed a hundred pounds.
Samuel cringed in pain, so I stopped.
“It’s not budging!” I screamed. Tears poured down my face.
“Don’t stop, Emma!” he yelled, through clenched teeth.
I sat down on the side of him, securing both of my feet against a few of the spikes on the club, and both my hands on either side of his leg, where the spike had entered. I sucked in a deep breath, and pulled back with all my might. I could feel the bones in his leg giving to my touch. They were shattered in pieces, and when he let out a painful moan, I stopped.
“DON’T STOP! DO IT!!!” he commanded. His eyes closed, and his teeth clenched tight.
I pulled again, with all my might, and finally set his leg free from the spike.
Instantly, the rope on the Morning Star tensed and was yanked back into the darkness.
Holy shit! That was too frickin’ close!
I was just about to breathe, when Samuel said, “Emma, you have to get us back behind that rock.” He pointed behind us, to a larger rock that was about ten yards away.
Right now, that rock was as good as ten thousand miles but, I had to do it. I had to get him to safety. As I started to move, I heard it again. The loud swooshing sound of the Morning Star filled the air, and my entire being, with terror.
Shit! Shit! Shit!
Adrenaline coursed through my veins. I jumped up, grabbed Samuel under his arms, and yanked as hard as I could. He tried to help by pushing back with his good leg, moving us backwards about five-feet.
The Morning Star whizzed out of the cave like a missile seeking its target.
I pulled again, as hard as I could, moving Samuel a few more feet back, but then dropped to the ground, flat on my back. The weapon of death flew inches overhead, crashing again into the wall behind us. I quickly leaned forward over Samuels face, shielding him from the flying debris. I wasn’t sure if I should try and move him again, because I knew that soon, whatever was on the other end of this death weapon was going to retract it back.
I waited for a few moments and decided to try. I pulled him again, with all my might. We still had about five feet to go.
“Emma,” Samuel said weakly. I looked at his leg, and it was bent, at the calf, blood was pouring onto the ground all around him.
“What do I do, Samuel?” My voice was shaking just as much as I was.
“Just be strong, and remember I love you,” he breathed.
“I love you too,” I answered. “But, don’t you dare leave me! You need to tell me what I need to do!” Everything began to spin around me.
“Just pray,” he exhaled, and closed his eyes. He must have gone unconscious because I could still see the rise and fall of his chest.
Pray? I already prayed! Did God really need to be reminded that we were in danger? Wasn’t he was supposed to know all, and see all? I wasn’t about to take any chances, so I quickly whispered another prayer hoping it would reach him.
Blood pooled around Samuel’s leg. He was losing so much of it, and I needed to stop it. I pulled out my dagger, reached over to Samuel and ripped off a piece of his shirt. I then crawled over to his leg, and tied it tightly just above the wound. I’d seen it done in the movies, and hoped it would help to slow the bleeding. There was so much blood. Right now, more than anything, I wished Alaine were here with me.
Losing Samuel was more terrifying than anything we had or would have to face, but the thought of being alone, was even more terrifying. So, Samuel not being with me was not even an option, and there was no way I was going on without him.
I knew he couldn’t die from a wound, but until he healed, he wouldn’t be able to move.
Then, an even more horrifying thought crossed my mind. If we stayed here, the Grimlock, or Grimlocks, would eventually find us, kill us, and then eat us. I wasn’t going to be a meal for anyone, and neither was Samuel. There had to be a way out of here. There just had to.
I pulled Samuel as hard as I could, and inch by inch, and we finally made it to the rock.
The Morning Star was still embedded into the side of the cavern’s wall, and all I could think about was when its owner would reclaim it. It had only been a few minutes, but the sooner the better. We were about a foot away from complete safety, and I needed to stand to pull Samuel around behind the safety of the rock. If I could get him behind the rock he would be safe from the danger of any more flying Morning Stars. But pulling him from a seated position was nearly impossible.
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
Every second felt like a lifetime.
I suddenly saw the rope attached to the Morning Star tense. I quickly laid flat on my back, waiting for the weapon to retract.
But something happened.
Something went horribly wrong.
The rope tensed and with a flash it retracted. But as it was ripped from the wall, a piece of it got caught sending the weapon crashing to the ground, directly on top of Samuel.
Everything, from then on, seemed to play in slow motion.
I watched as the huge spikes pierced through the side of Samuel’s chest, his eyes opening wide in pain and horror, his body being torn from my grasp and pulled across the jagged rocks, and then he disappeared into the darkness of the cave. It all happened in a split second.
His screams echoed through every part of my being, shattering my heart and soul.
I glanced down and looked at my empty, bloodied hands. Hands that weren’t strong enough to hold onto him, or pull him to safety. Up until this very moment, I’d never felt more helpless, or more alone.
My world was crashing down all around me.
Samuel’s cries thundered through the cave, sending jolts excruciating pain through my heart. He was dying. My father was dying at the hands of that horrible creature.
What the Hell was I doing still sitting here, allowing it to happen?
Suddenly, a small flame awakened in the deepest part of my being. A flame that began to burn brighter and brighter, quickly torching every ounce of fear I’d had until this moment.
I rose to my feet, grasped my dagger tightly, and ran toward the cave.
Chapter 12
I ran with one purpose and one purpose only. I would either save him, or I would die trying.
Samuel’s cries echoed off of the cave walls and right into my ears, sending a rush of adrenaline through me. Even though I was running as fast as I could, his cries were getting softer and softer, like he was quickly being carried further and further away from me.
As I reached the mouth of the darkened cave, my nostrils burned with an overwhelming stench of rotted flesh. I swallowed down the bile that attempted to push its way up my throat.
The dagger started to glow around me, lighting my path. I was glad that I had this dagger. It saved me so many times, and gave me a sense of hope. It was my only companion and ally now that I was all alone.
I held it down to the ground and noticed mammoth sized prints that looked almost like those of an elephant.
“Oh God. Please help me,” I whispered, as I pushed on into the darkness.
My steps were quick but short, trying to get through the maze of rocks, attempting to see what was ahead of me, and trying to stay on my feet. Then, I finally reached the end of the tunnel.
Outside of it small fires were spread out about every twenty feet or so. As I got closer I noticed that a few of the fires had spits above them. A few were em
pty, but there were a few that had…Hell no! No. No. No.
I gasped, and closed my eyes hoping that the disturbing scene I’d just witnessed would disappear, but when I opened them again, everything was still the same. I was still living the nightmare.
There were whole bodies on those spits. Human bodies roasting above the fires. A few even had parts that were missing. The surrounding ground was covered with the bones of those that had already been consumed. I suddenly became sick. I had to focus and fight the nausea and dizziness that had overwhelmed every part of me.
I thought they only ate raw flesh. Maybe they learned to cook their food in the few hundred years that Samuel was away. Either way, it made my stomach turn.
But then I noticed that the whole area was empty.
Where were the Grimlocks?
And, where was Samuel?
I needed to find him. I needed to get to him before they killed him.
I scanned the area, stepping out of the cover of darkness. I walked a few yards out, and then I saw them. A few hundred yards away, in the far right corner.
Giants.
That was the only word that I would use to describe them. And there were lots of them. Like at least fifty or more, and they were all huddled together. To me, from a distance, they resembled the Cyclops. Enormous, hideous creatures that were only mentioned in fairy tales.
They began to growl loudly, and looked as if they were fighting each other.
And then I heard him. Samuel. I heard his cries again, but they were very weak.
He was dying, and I needed to get him out of there. I needed to save him. I knew exactly where he was. He was directly in the middle of the Grimlocks.
I swallowed my fear, but my pulse and breath quickened at the same time. Heat began to emanate on my chest and glanced down to see the amulet glowing a bright red. I took hold of it, and squeezed, hoping whatever enchantment was on it, would somehow enter me.
Deep inside, I knew I was going to try and save Samuel, but we probably wouldn’t make it out alive. It was inevitable. I hadn’t transformed yet into the Super Angel of the prophecy. I was still mostly human, and was weak and easy to kill.