by HC MacDonald
Into the walls I went, ready to save my friends.
Chapter 3
Arena
Leon
It had been over a week since we saw Raina. Today we had company in the cells. A raider was walking up and down the hall harassing the cell mates. One boy in particular he liked to pick on. I was angry at the boy for reacting. Even more angry at the raider for taunting him. The boy was going to get himself killed.
I smelt the scent of her coming, I was eager to see her. I waited for the guard to leave, but he did not. I watched as she began opening the grate it squeaked louder than ever before. The guard turned at the noise. Some of the other prisoners began to bang on the floor and bars. I knew they were trying to warn her. I watched as the others kept his attention. She snuck out of the small opening. I wanted to stop her. My heart leapt at the anxiety when I realized she was about to attack. This was to dangerous. With her daggers in hand, she ran toward the raider. She stepped on his leg and landed on his back slicing at his neck all at once, catching him completely off guard. It was so fast. The raider fell with a thud. She grabbed his keys and knife. Unlocked the cell closest to her and handed the prisoner both items. She then moved forward to the door.
She was only a few steps away, when it swung open and a second raider entered. He quickly saw what was going on and charged at her. She waited patiently. Now both her daggers were visible. Then at the last moment ducted between his legs, slicing him under the knee caps. He fell to his knees. Without stopping she turned reached over his shoulder and stabbed him in the chest. It was a clean stab. The raider clutched his chest. She slit his throat, finishing the job.
I watched now as she ran to the door, looked out and shut it. My cell was being opened. Kayley and I pushed forward into the narrow hall. Everyone who wanted to leave was out. There were others, still sitting in there cells. They no longer wanted to live. They would stay.
She huddled the group together. “You are to go out that door” pointing to the one the raiders had originally entered from. She was looking at each of us as she talked. “Have courage, stay together. At the end of the hall turn left.”
She was cut off then by an older man. “You must be mistaken, right leads us to the exit.”
She shook her head. “Right will get you killed. Go Left! At the end of that hall is a staircase. Go halfway down the stairs, you will see a red stone. It is loose. So are the stones around it. Move them aside and crawl through.”
“Will we all fit?” another prisoner asked.
She continued, “It will be tight but if you go one at a time you will fit. This hole will take you outside. Make sure to put the stones back in place. Hide in the brush against the wall till nightfall. When it is pitch black, run one at a time to the woods. If you travel through the night, you will be far enough away to evade recapture. Do you understand.” It wasn’t a question, more of a statement.
She then pulled a young man aside. He was roughly her age. “Take care of Kayley for me, will you?” She pleaded with him. He nodded and they hugged. I felt just a bit jealous of the intimacy. She then moved to Kayley. She hugged the girl. “You listen to Matt. He will keep you safe.”
“Are you not coming?” Kayley asked surprised.
“No, there are a few more I need to help before I can leave. But, I promise it will be soon. Maybe, we will see each other again, when we least expect it.” She hugged the girl again. Then went down to the door. She slipped out, and moments later was back. “Time is now everyone. Be quiet, be quick.” She held the door and ushered them through.
I was the last in line. When I got to her I stopped. She looked at me, with a quizzical look.
“I can’t leave without you.” I stated.
She looked up at me ready to assure me it was okay, when I allowed my body to transform completely back to me. She was shocked. I saw for a brief moment a tear wet her eyes. She threw her arms around me. I felt so relieved. I looked at the waiting patrons on the other side of the door, and waved them on. With a nod and smile, they all left. I didn’t let her go.
Raina was the one to brake the embrace.
“Why are you here? Were are the children?” I could hear the panic in her voice. I was quick to respond, not wanting her to worry or suffer.
“Sanna and Ethan took the kids the night you were taken. They are keeping them until you return.” I still had my arms around her waist. I lifted my hand to wipe her cheek. She had let the tears fall. “Those loyal to me are watching over Ladow. I am sure they are happy as larks.” I smiled and could see she was envisioning them all. It made me happy.
“And you? What happened? Did they attack the village?” Raina asked.
“No, I came to rescue you. Not going so well though is it.” I smiled at her.
Raina laughed then. “I don’t know that I ever told you, but I practically grew up here. I know all the secrets to this place. I was safe, you shouldn’t have come.”
“Sanna told me. I still had to try. I couldn’t imagine you here all alone.” I embraced her then.
It was a quick embrace. She pulled away. I could tell she was thinking. “All right, I have an idea. I can’t leave yet, but you can help me. Right now we need to put these guys in a cell. Can you drag one?” she asked.
I helped her hide the raiders under hay we collected from all the open cells. She hid the keys behind a loose brick. Once more, asked the remaining cell mates if they wanted to leave. None took her offer. I followed her back to the wooden door. She opened it again, sneaking a peek. I stayed behind her. She closed the door and turned to me.
“Go right out the door. Then take the first right you come to. Down the hall is a room on your left. I think its the second door. Inside clothing for new recruits. Dress there. Then you can move about the fortress without worry. Do not transform whatever you do though. They do not allow shifters to be one of them and I don’t know what they’ll do to you then.” She lowered her head at the thought. Then looking back at me said, “I need you to be in the control box at the far end of the arena in two days. Don’t eat or drink anything on that day it will be tainted. Once the games are over, leave the way I instructed the others. I will meet you in the bushes at nightfall. Can you do that?”
“Yeah, I got it, two rights and second door on left, change and fit in. Be in the controls in two days. Go out the back and wait for you.” I leaned down and brushed my lips to hers. Then opened the door. No one was in site. I crept to the corner and looked around. The hall was empty. I looked back at the door. Raina was gone. I didn’t linger. I ran to the next corner, looked both directions. I could hear footsteps headed my way. So I ran. The second door was a closet, so I ran to the next door. It opened. Sure enough uniforms piled against the wall. There was no one inside the room. I shut the door gently and began to change.
I looked around the room. There was a stove in the corner, I thru my clothes in and watched them burn. There were a few cots against the far wall. By the door I had entered, and a duties chart. I wrote a fake name into the area control assignment for two days from now. I was happy to have a reference of time. I laid on a cot, and allowed myself to get some rest.
I had slept for hours before I was awaken by a commotion in the hall. I opened the door. Outside the hall were raiders. One looked at me. I froze. Not knowing what to expect. The raider said nothing and continued down the hall. When the procession passed, I lingered behind them. They had gone into a great hall. It was a banquet of food. I stood against the wall watching. There were others like me stationed around the room. So I mimicked there actions. We stood unmoving till the raiders had finished there dinning. When the last raider left, I watched as the others began scavenging for food. I was disgusted. I knew I needed to fit in. Considering the strange looks I was now getting, I decided it best to act my part. I knelt down and scavenged for food. When they saw me bite into a half eaten chunk of meat, they went back to their own forging. I was hungry and disgusted at the same time. I ate anyway.
I
left with the others. Copying them in there tasks. We cleaned the big hall. We cleaned the raiders quarters. Then we went to the room Raina had sent me. There we changed uniforms grabbing from one pile, and discarding into another. They all took a cot. I found the empty one. Sat on the edge for a moment before laying down.
“You got control duty new guy.” Someone laughed out.
“Better him than me.” Another said.
I didn’t say a word. I didn’t want to give myself away. I lay on my cot staring at the stone ceiling.
Morning came. I was awake before the others. I slipped out of the room. I wanted to explore the fortress before the others were up. I followed the mazes through out. I walked down a hall that led to the open air. It was the seating for the arena. I went to the stone wall railing and looked over the edge.
The arena court was large. It had makeshift hills and valleys. There were a couple barren lifeless trees spread sporadically around the court. At one end of the wall was a large tunnel. I guessed that was where whatever horror they put in here would come from. There was a cage suspended above the tunnel. I could only guess what that was for. At the opposite end was a two tiny barred openings. My guess, this was the control center and where the clean up crew came from. It was sickening to look over the courtyard.
I followed the rail to the back side of the arena. Then varying twists and turns made it to the small openings. I was right. The controls were the first caged opening. Great, I would have a ground view of the action. The controls were set in a cell. It was a series of pulleys. I stepped into the cell shutting the door behind me. I practiced opening and closing the small iron gate. The gate was heavy to lift and slow to open. I didn’t know what Raina had in mind, but this was going to be tough. It took me hours to get the timing down. I ventured back to the small room.
When I got back, no one was there. I went to the great hall. There I took my place against the wall and waited. I watched as the raiders ate and drank, becoming merry. They had done the same the night before, but this was different somehow. The festivities moved out of the great room and into the halls. I watched as the others dove into the trash to eat. I reached down and grabbed a piece of bread. Then recalled Raina’s warning, don’t eat or drink any of the food. I set it down, but made it look like I was scavenging too.
When the cleaning was done, I could see the others were drunk and merry. I remembered she would have tainted the food. As I walked out into the hall, I could see raiders lining the walls. Some still festive, some, passed out. I went to the arena controls, and there I waited.
The seating around the arena began to fill. Cheers and yelling. Bets and fighting. All were taking place. At the controls, the area was full of raiders still celebrating. Food and drink were still being passed around. I was offered many times a drink. Even had one throw at me. I smelled of wine. I was happy for once to be in a cell.
I heard the arena horn blare. The audience cheered. I watched as Raina was escorted into the wooden cage above the tunnel. Something didn’t feel right. What was going on? Another horn blared. I saw a small group of people ushered in through the tunnel. They were frail, scared. One even looked up at Raina. She pointed to me and began yelling. Then again, maybe it was to the door she pointed at, I couldn’t hear. The man started running full speed across the arena towards me. My instincts took over. He was headed to safety. I was the only thing keeping him in the arena. I started the act of moving the rope and pulleys, working on getting the gate up. The raiders behind me still celebrating.
I was looking at the man running. The others stayed huddled together. I could barely hear Raina yelling at them to run. They wouldn’t move. Another horn blasted. The man running fell at the sound. He looked behind him only for a second then scrambled to his feet and began running again. He still had two-thirds the way to go. I had only managed to get the gate up a few inches. I watched as a snapper came out of the tunnel. The others were now scattering in all directions. One headed for a tree the others ran to various parts of the arena. I kept pulling on the rope to open the gate. The snapper made it to the first person, cowering in a trench by the wall. He was quickly devoured. The man running to the tree had made it and was now climbing to the top. Another had picked up a stick and threw it at the pursuing beast. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The snapper moved in, unaffected by the sticks being thrown at it, and in one swift movement bowed its head and bit the man in half. All the while the raiders cheered at the action. The man that was running to me was past the halfway mark. He was slowing down. I wanted to yell at him to run faster. The snapper was slow, but would be able to catch him if he didn’t hurry.
The snapper moved to the tree next. The man was on the top branch. Holding on to the swaying dead tree. He was above the head of the snapper by a few feet. I hope he can wait it out at the top. Then I saw the long green slime covered tongue whip out of its mouth and wrap around the man pulling him free from the branch and towards the mouth of the beast. An agonizing scream filled the air then cheers from the crowd. I was sick to my stomach.
I had the gate up halfway now. It was high enough for the man to crawl under. I looked and saw that he was now walking. His legs probably tired from exhaustion and lack of food. He was barely moving. I screamed at him to move. I felt the cage I was in rattle as a raider banged on the bars threatening to throw me in the arena.
“Routing for the traitor I see.” He cackled out and took another drink of his wine. “I should throw you in there also.”
He reached for the door, but then swayed, and I watched his eyes roll back into his head. Down he fell. I looked about, most the raiders had passed out or were incoherent. The drug was taking affect. The crowd in the arena was still rowdy and wild. I watched as the man struggled to move he was less then a fifty meters away. I could see the sweat and fear on his face. I watched as the snapper closed the distance. I kept moving the gate upward, inch at a time. He was twenty paces away. The snapper close on his heels. When he collapsed from shear exhaustion the snappers whipped out his tongue and easily pulled the man to him. He was no more.
I let go of the rope, my hands burning with blisters. My arms burning with pain. The cage dropped with a loud clang. The snapper moved about the arena. When it was satisfied all his meal was done, headed to the tunnel. I wasn’t watching. I couldn’t. It made me sick. I sat in the cell staring at the floor. Then I remembered Raina.
I looked back at the dangling cage. She was moving about. What is she doing? Then it dawned on me. No, I screamed. As the snapper passed under the cage she kicked out the bottom of the floor landing on its shell. Down its back she slid running full speed toward me. I grabbed the rope and began pulling as hard as I could, the crowd giving an overwhelming cheer in the arena.
The snapper had turned around and whipped out its tongue, barely missing her. She continued to run, stumbling over branches and body parts. I kept pulling on the rope, the gate barely inching up. She was half way to me. Snapper hot on her trail, tongue barely missing her each time. I kept pulling working on the gate. The rope burned in my hands. I couldn’t let her die, not here, not when we were so close.
She was almost to the gate. I had barely a foot of room under it. She slid down on her stomach. It was not enough. She grabbed the gate trying to help me lift it. I kept pulling on the rope, I just needed a few more inches. I saw the green tongue whip from the corner of my eye. It wrapped around her waist. She anchored her arms around the bars holding tight as it pulled on her. I could see the fear in her eyes as she looked at me. I pulled as hard and fast as I could, the bars still only budging an inch. I heard her covering rip. The snapper’s tongue whipped back, her sack cloth in its mouth. I looked back in time to see her slide under the bars. Her back scraping against them ripping her skin as she moved.
She was through the gate as the tongue whipped into the opening. The snapper grabbing hold of one of the fallen raiders. She scrambled over the body as it was dragged beneath her and disappeared in a crack in the wall. I
let the gate drop. Missing the snappers tongue as it landed. The crowd in the arena booed and I could hear the movement of the raiders above. I went to the crack in the wall. Raina was not there. Remembering our plan I quickly moved down the path that would take me to out meeting place.
I had been hiding in the bushes for hours. Night was now setting. I waited for Raina. The moon was high in the sky and still no Raina. My worry was getting to me. I snuck back to the whole in the wall and began moving stones. I was ready to move the last one I needed to see into the hall when I jumped out of my skin. A hand was on my back. I turned not knowing what I would find. There stood Raina. I grabbed her into my arms in a hard embrace. She winced at the movement, but embraced me back. I felt a dampening on the back of her shirt. When I pulled my hands away saw they were bloody. I pushed her back to look at her face.
“Are you okay?” I was so concerned about her. It was a stupid risk and a horrible plan. I was grateful she hadn’t told me about it. I wouldn’t have let her go thru with it.
“I’m tired and sore, but will be okay.” She moved and lifted a stone, put it back in place. I helped her clean up my mess. She then took my hand and we crawled through the bushes together. At the end of the fortress we waited for our opening.