Damsels of Jormia 2: A Light Novel (An Isekai Fantasy Series)

by Marcus Sloss

  The meals left a lot to be desired, I thought, staring at the same mystery meat from the night before. Hopefully, it would be the last time I would have to taste such a strange and tasteless concoction.

  We ate in silence, sensing the presence of the guards just outside the door. I started to worry that they would be posted in front of the dungeon all day, but after around an hour or so, they left, their voices fading off into the distance as they moved farther away.

  I spent the rest of the day going over the plan with the girls and again in my own head. There really wasn’t much to discuss, but it made things more concrete to say it all out loud.

  Grab the keys, unlock the chains, search for weapons, sneak out the front door, and head for the trees in the distance.

  Simple.

  No guards had visited after Tate dropped off the dinner trays the previous nights, so if all went well, the Lezric wouldn’t know of our escape until the following morning.

  That would give us plenty of time to put distance between ourselves and the village. Nothing could go wrong, right?

  When I noticed the sky start to darken outside my small window, I decided I needed to wake Illia. She would need to be alert if we wanted things to go smoothly.

  “Illia,” I tried whispering first, trying not to startle her awake.

  When she made no reaction, I tried saying her name a bit louder, till finally I practically screamed it at her. Still nothing. I looked around my cell for something I could throw at her.

  Not the nicest thing, true, but who knew when Tate would arrive and if we missed this opportunity, there wouldn’t be another one. I settled on the rock-like piece of bread the guards continued to bring with dinner despite it being inedible.

  I aimed and sent the bread flying. It landed right in her face. She sat up, flailing her arms as if she were under attack.

  When she found the roll of bread in her bed, she glared at me then chucked it in my direction. I laughed a bit when the roll hit the wall with a soft thud. Damn thing might as well be a weapon at this point.

  “It’s almost time,” I said, turning the mood serious.

  She nodded, getting up to stretch in order to shake the tiredness from her body.

  “Everyone ready for this?”

  We all nodded in response, the anticipation of the moment rising. Another twenty minutes passed by before Tate opened the front door, the metal sliding against the floor creating an awful screech.

  Again, he brought our trays of slop in first, quickly sliding them through the slot in the cell bars before exiting to grab Illia’s meal. I inhaled, trying to settle the nervousness that suddenly appeared.

  I watched Illia who bounced back and forth on the balls of her feet appearing as though she were about to fight the guy. When she heard him coming back in, her body settled, the persona of a sweet and innocent girl returning.

  “I brought some of those macaroons I know you like so much,” Tate told her with a cheesy grin.

  “Oh, you spoil me, Tate!” Her voice chipper, which I could only hear as sarcasm.

  He handed her the tray of food and a little box of supplies she had requested of him the night before. It would be too suspicious if she didn’t keep up her nightly ritual, even if she would never get a chance to use the things in that box.

  She quickly put the things down on her cot, getting close to the door as Tate moved away, wanting to be in the right position to grab his keys. Her stare remained intense as she watched him lock her cell and clip the key ring back on his belt.

  She moved even closer to the bars. As he turned to leave, Aquina gasped, catching his attention. All according to plan.

  He looked her way, his body swaying back toward Illia’s cell, but he moved too fast. He rushed to Aquina’s cell, and I watched as Illia’s fingers just missed gripping the ring of keys.

  Shit.

  “I’m sorry, I just felt dizzy all of a sudden,” Aquina told him, no longer needing his attention.

  He stared at her a moment, but then backed up, coming closer to my cell. All or nothing, I told myself, gripping the hard roll that once again accompanied dinner.

  I sprung up from my place on the floor, flying toward the bars with as much speed as I could muster. Making noises only a deranged person would and ignoring the pull of my collar, I reached out at the guard, throwing the bread at the same time to ensure he would feel the fear of being attacked.

  “Fuck!” He yelled, nearly falling into Cera’s cell.

  His attention on me, I growled angrily at him, continuing to reach out as though I wanted to strangle him where he stood. With his attention distracted, Cera silently unclipped his key ring, taking extra care to be sure they didn’t jingle as she slipped them into her shirt.

  “Crazy mother,” Tate exhaled as he spoke, recollecting himself once he realized I posed him no real threat.

  My hair covered most of my face as I continued to glare at him, the disheveled look adding to my attempt to appear insane. He moved fast to get out of the dungeon, luckily not noticing his keys had gone missing.

  The door of the dungeon slammed shut and I allowed my body to relax.

  “Well, damn,” Illia said smiling at me.

  I shrugged, “I had to improvise. Good job catching on, Cera.”

  She pulled the keys from her shirt, letting them jingle slightly, her smile wide from the victory.

  “Are we doing this now?”

  “The sooner the better,” I told her, and she got to work trying out the keys to see which one fit her cell.

  Her door swung open, and she went to Aquina’s cell next, finding the correct key much quicker. Once Aquina and Illia were released, only my cell door remained. Again, she quickly located the correct key from the bunch and the metal bars swung open.

  Now the final problem—the chain around my neck. Cera and Aquina studied the device while Illia remained busy collecting things from within her cell.

  “The keyhole is still intact unlike your wrist shackles,” Aquina announced, focusing on the back of the collar.

  They tried each of the keys, one at a time, but none of them opened the lock.

  “Dammit,” Cera huffed, frustrated.

  “Here, try our wrists,” Aquina encouraged Cera, trying to calm her fury.

  It seemed our captors weren’t as concerned about their wristlets coming off since they didn’t bother melting the keyhole shut. The shackles clicked off one at a time and Aquina rolled her newly free wrists before turning to do the same for Cera.

  I pulled at the chain still attached to the wall, but it showed no signs of loosening.

  “Maybe there will be something that can help in the weapons chest...” Aquina rushed out of the cell, keys in hand to the wood storage unit at the back of the dungeon.

  A few key tries and the lock opened with a satisfying click. Inside were our weapons. Well, Aquina’s and Cera’s, anyway. I had come to rely so much on my mana gift that I had yet to find myself a proper sword and while they did manage to bring my staff along, with things as they were it was but a mere stick.

  Aquina grabbed both her staff and mine before handing Cera her battle hammer.

  “This might work,” Cera said excitedly, grabbing something from the box before she rushed toward my cell.

  She stood in the doorway, with an axe in hand, a mischievous grin on her face. Worth a shot. I sat on the floor of my cell, pulling the chain taut as Cera stood over it, the sturdy-looking axe raised high.

  Using the full force of her strength and body weight combined, she struck the chain, a loud clang echoing throughout the dungeon. Fuck. Sparks flew where the metals collided, but the chain remained connected to the wall.

  Her confident smile faltered, but she raised the axe once more bringing it down just as hard for a second, third, fourth time. The guards would certainly hear this, I couldn’t help but think.

  “Just leave me here,” I told them, my desperation rising with each clash of the metal, my eyes never leaving
the entrance of the dungeon.

  My voice drowned out by the constant clanging, I tried again, “Please, there’s no reason we should all be caught.”

  “That you would even suggest that.” Cera’s face flushed red, either from the physical exertion or the rage fueled by my suggestion, and her strikes never stopped.

  “No one is leaving anyone behind,” Aquina assured me, her hand clasping my own.

  The axe came down a final time, the chains succumbing to the constant beating, and I finally found myself free from the dungeon wall. I wrapped the extra length of chain around my shoulders, trying to make sure it wouldn’t hinder me if I needed to fight.

  “Me next,” Illia cut in, holding her long pale pink hair in her arms.

  She quickly smoothed it out on the dusty ground, laying with her back to the floor. Aquina helped her smooth it a bit straighter and then nodded to Cera that she should proceed. Cera shrugged, after all she still held the axe, then let it fall over the hair in a straight line.

  When Illia stood, brushing off the dust from her clothing, her hair fell to her waist. She quickly got to work, plaiting it in two loose braids that hung on either side of her head.

  “We have to hurry,” Illia broke up the moment, rushing to her cell to retrieve the sword she had stored under her bed.

  “I trust you know how to use this?”

  “Of course,” I said, thankful to have a weapon.

  Illia adjusted the bag she had readied onto her shoulders and took hold of my staff, while we all prepared to exit the dungeon together. While the world outside the dungeon was dark, I found it hard to believe the racket we made wouldn’t have raised any red flags within the village.

  We slowly opened the door, our fears quickly being realized. A line of fully armored guards waited outside the dungeon prepared for whatever may have been the cause of the commotion. I quickly slammed the door shut, realizing we would need to find another way out.

  “We need to barricade this door,” I shouted, grabbing everything I could and piling it in front of the door.

  I could only assume it wouldn’t be long until the order to investigate would be given. When enough boxes, beds and oddities were thrown up against the door, I started searching the room for another means of escape.

  All the windows were far too small for any of us to fit through and while the bricks of the building would surely give way with enough pressure, we did not have the luxury of time. The guards began banging on the dungeon door, trying to push their way past the barricade. It wouldn’t be long before they succeeded.

  “Dammit. Dammit. We are so close.”

  “Heh-heh-heh. Now don’t say I never did nothin for ya,” Illia stepped forward, pulling her grenade prototype from her bag.

  “Don’t just stand there, take cover.” She warned us, taking a few steps back herself.

  Aquina, Cera and I moved behind one of the overturned cots, eagerly anticipating the explosion. Illia pushed a button on the top of the device, triggering a series of slow beeps. It certainly didn’t resemble any grenade I was familiar with.

  Still, I tried to remain hopefully, refusing to take my eyes off Illia as she readied herself to throw the bomb. The door behind us rattled fiercely, the guards desperate to gain access, momentarily distracting us from the weapons test.

  As they pushed closer to entering, Illia inhaled deeply. I saw her mouth the words ‘please work’ before she threw the device toward the brick wall at the other end of the dungeon.

  As soon as the grenade left her hands I rushed forward, grabbing her by her slender shoulders to pull her behind the overturned cot. The device slammed into the wall and to everyone’s surprise and relief, it exploded upon impact.

  The entire structure shook, debris flying toward us, blocked by the thin mattress and metal frame of the cell beds. We coughed, inhaling the smoke that filled the room. As the dust began to settle, we were able to see the extent of the damage the contraption caused.

  A huge hole had been blown into the back side of the dungeon. Even some of the roof had been displaced in the blast.

  I signaled to the girls that we needed to move, and we rushed toward the newly made opening. I grabbed two lit lanterns off the wall before following the girls through the massive hole in the wall.

  The guards of course were aware of the explosion and were making their way toward the source as we moved. Each held a long spear in their hands, moving in formation toward us.

  I felt my heart beating in my throat, recognizing that there would be little chance of out running so many guards, but nevertheless we kept moving forward. We aimed for the tree line in front of us, a wide prairie situated between the village and that forested area.

  Luckily for us, the lizardmen didn’t seem to carry any long range weapons, so they would have to catch us first or they held no hope of stopping us. The guards remained on our tails until around halfway through the prairie and then they just stopped.

  I chanced a glance behind us, and they were stone still as though they weren’t allowed to cross any further. Their reaction was unsettling, but in the moment, I could only be grateful they were no longer so close behind us.

  I heard the shouting of orders, the commands unclear, but still none moved in our direction. Regardless, we maintained our speed, continuing well into the forest to be sure we secured enough distance between ourselves and them should they choose to pursue us once again.

  “We made it!” Illia shouted excitedly when we reached a small clearing deeper in the forest.

  “Did you notice how they just stopped all of a sudden?” Aquina asked, having seen the same thing I had.

  “Yea...what was that about?” Cera wondered out loud, but no one could answer her question.

  “Maybe they didn’t think we were worth chasing any further.”

  “Us maybe...but did you really think they’d give up so easily on you?” I asked Illia who seemed to forget why she had been captured in the first place.

  She grew quiet, knowing my words held truth.

  “So then why did they just stop...and right at the center line. It’s like they weren’t even trying after that point.”

  “Does it even matter? We are free now. We can start heading to Illia’s village to fulfill our promise, and then we can focus on gaining skills for the invasion. That is what is important.”

  While I agreed with Cera, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. I scanned the area, but everything read very...normal. Although dark, I could still make out the lush pink grass that carpeted the forest floors, the abundant trees, filled with leaves of a brilliant green hue.

  I noticed Aquina bent down, her lantern extended outward as she examined the flora with a worried look on her face. She moved to another flowering plant very quickly, panic written on her face.

  “What’s wrong?” I finally asked, although I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the answer.

  “It could be nothing,” She spoke softly, her words contradicting her expression.

  “And if it isn’t?”

  “Then we need to get out of here...now.”

  Just the words I wanted to hear.

  “Tell us what you are thinking,” I tried to remain calm, my eyes already searching for the way out. I was thankful the moons were full and providing a soft glow of illumination throughout the forest.

  For some reason, I could no longer see an exit. Thick trees surrounded us on all sides, the village we’d just left no longer visible in the distance. While we may have hauled ass to get deep into the forest, we hadn't been running for that long.

  It seemed impossible that no thinning of the trees or exit points would be visible from our central location.

  “See this flower?” Aquina pointed out a blooming flower, the stem thin and long that opened to deep pink-purple petals covered in spots. “And this one too.” She moved on to a mass of small, white buds growing close to the forest floor, the leaves around them a mix of black, blue, and purple resembli
ng a galaxy painting.

  “What about them?” Illia questioned, getting closer to the plant, examining them suspiciously.

  “If my memory is correct, then this is an alpha lily and that is a blooming nebula.”

  She said the names of the flowers as if they held a great significance. I certainly didn’t catch on to her fears, and when I glanced at the other two, they didn’t seem to know what she spoke of either.

  “So, what’s that mean,” Illia broke the tension, clearly unable to read the seriousness in Aquina’s voice.

  “They are flowers I’ve only read about in herbology manuals. The most concerning part is that they can only be found in a place called the nightmare forest.”

  “The nightmare forest? That doesn’t sound good.” I spoke my trepidations out loud, already picturing all the horrific reasons a forest would be known by such a name.

  “Do evil beasts live in this forest or something. Do we need to worry about being attacked?” Cera glanced around her, gripping her battle hammer tightly.

  “I... don’t know. There is not much information written about the nightmare forest. It’s not that no one has tried to collect more data, but instead most who travel within the forest are never seen again.”

  Her words resembled the ghost stories young kids would tell to freak out their friends during sleepovers. Regardless of my initial instinct to brush off the tale as impossible, the fact that this was a different world meant that forests that consume those who enter could exist. Still, I found this explanation hard to accept without first exploring other alternatives.

  “Are you sure those aren’t just baseless rumors someone spread to keep people from venturing into the forest at will? Maybe there is something in here that they are trying to protect. You know, like these fancy plants. Besides, not everyone went missing if you were able to read about the plants in the manual, right?”

  “I suppose, but even those that made it out said it’s not a place they would ever return to willingly.”