The Ladder: Part 1

by David Hodges

  Daniel replied, “Well, if our theory is correct, Aatu’s been a thorn in his side, hasn’t he? Aatu is loyal to Ayalon, and his wolves found Otus’s body... in fact, Faron stayed there with Aatu and sent Cameron and I off. There was something going on there, I think Aatu is on to Faron.”

  “Or maybe it’s the other way around,” said Hazel.

  “How do you figure that?” asked Daniel.

  “Remember the man and his dog who saved us from the bandits? If it was Aatu and he was following us perhaps he was doing so on Einar’s orders. He could have been making sure we got to the village so that we were changed, so that we could find the Sphere.”

  Daniel said, “That doesn’t make sense, Hazel. He had the Sphere, he gave it to Ayalon.”

  Hazel shook her head. “I know it was him on that road.”

  Fergus said, “I think we’re forgetting someone in all this conjecture... what of Elisedd? I think you’ve been manipulated since you arrived. I think your friendship with Elisedd was planned. I think his father wanted to keep track of you. He was the last person we saw before we found the Sphere. He saw the shield, he must’ve told his father.”

  Hazel thought back to when she first arrived in the village and slept in the hay loft. “No. We met only by accident. He was surprised when he learned where I was from.”

  “Perhaps he’s a good actor,” said Daniel.

  Hazel thought of Elisedd’s secret, and her error in thinking her feelings were mutual.

  “Hazel, perhaps your feelings are a bit biased,” said Fergus.

  Hazel entertained the notion that Elisedd did not find her by accident, that he feigned his feelings for her only to stay close, to know what she was up to, not to deflect suspicions of his romantic inclination as he had claimed. It explained why he would take the effort. The thought of it made Hazel feel even more foolish.

  Despite that, she decided not to tell Fergus and Daniel about what Elisedd had been forced to reveal to her. She made a promise, and she was going to keep it, at least until she was certain of what was going on.

  Hazel’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. Daniel stood up and opened the door. It was Elisedd, with a basket in his hand.

  “Good afternoon,” said Elisedd.

  There was a palpable tension in the room and a delay before anyone thought to greet him back.

  “Afternoon,” Daniel finally said.

  Elisedd said, “Hazel, I was hoping I could speak with you for a moment, in private.”

  “Err, Elisedd, perhaps,” Daniel began.

  Hazel wanted to hear what he had to say. She yearned for an explanation, one that would prove Elisedd and Fíodor were truly her friends. She stood and interrupted Daniel. “Of course, come in. Daniel, Fergus, do you mind?”

  Fergus and Daniel both looked back at her apprehensively.

  She gave them a subtle nod.

  Fergus stood up and followed Daniel out of the room. At the doorway, beside Elisedd, he said, “We’ll be just down the hall.”

  In case there was any truth to the suspicions, Hazel sat down beside Crúbail, which was resting on the table in its scabbard.

  “What’s that?” asked Hazel, looking to the basket Elisedd was holding.

  “My mother wanted me to bring it for you, just some food and treats. She told me to tell you she’s sorry and just as confused about all this as anyone else.” Elisedd set the basket down.

  “Thank you,” said Hazel.

  Elisedd said quietly, “Hazel, I know how this must look.”

  Hazel said, “To be honest, I’m surprised you aren’t in a cell with your father. Not that I want that, but after the way you were treated in Derby.”

  Elisedd looked mournful, then said, “I know, but thankfully, your uncle values evidence and there is none.”

  More support for Daniel and Fergus’s theory of Faron’s involvement. She nodded and resisted her instinct to reach for Crúbail.

  Then Elisedd said abruptly, “That’s all I really had to say. G’day.” He went to the door, then turned back and said, “And Hazel, enjoy the rolls while they’re warm.” He left the room.

  “Alright,” said Hazel, puzzled.

  She went to the basket and unwrapped a kerchief. A folded piece of paper rested on top of the rolls. She unfolded it and read.

  Close your door, and enjoy, trust me... you can find me at the stable.

  Hazel had no idea what to make of the cryptic message, but she certainly was not going to eat one. She picked up one of the rolls and examined it. It was not even warm. Then she felt something on the back of her hand. She turned her hand over and saw a tiny spider crawling over her fingertips. She gasped and dropped the roll.

  Before she could brush it off, she felt the spider bite her.

  Then she was no longer standing in her flat. She was in a dark room, her hands moving in a blur over a contraption on a wall. Blankets of spiders were crawling behind it. It was Fíodor’s workshop. There was a knock at the door behind him.

  Fíodor got up from his bench and answered the door. Ayalon stood there with Aatu and his wolf. Ayalon said, “Good evening, Fíodor. We have another order. Same specifications as the last, fifty units this time.”

  “Fifty!” exclaimed Fíodor. He continued, “Pardon, sir, but that seems a bit excessive. I’ve hardly finished the last order.”

  “He didn’t ask for your opinion,” Aatu grumbled.

  “With all due respect, sir, I could use a bit of rest.”

  “You can rest when Talamh is safe. This is not a request.” Ayalon turned and left.

  Aatu pulled a bag of coins from his cloak and dropped it to the floor.

  The memory passed, then Hazel was in a cave, sitting at a small table with four others, all of them cloaked. It was the same cave Ollie had been to.

  Faron and Elisedd were at the table, wearing hoods. She recognized another man, it was Alviva’s father, his bow leaning on the table. She had never seen him alive. She only knew his face from his wake. Alviva’s mother sat beside him.

  “Why have you brought us here?” said Otus.

  “We need your help. This deal with Marlow can’t go on, you know that as well as I. What happens when his men are fully armed with our weapons? What happens when we fail to meet his demands?”

  Otus said, “The general has an army at his disposal, and, more importantly, our secret... what choice do we have other than to cooperate?”

  “We can leave Talamh... all of us, disappear. We can hide the Ladder and the Spheres.”

  “And undo everything your ancestors worked for? This is our home,” said Clara.

  Fíodor said, “And it’s becoming our prison. We are being forced to work more by the day, our actions further restricted... and don’t try to tell me it’s for our safety, it’s about maximizing production. Talamh is no longer the haven it was meant to be.”

  Clara said, “We can’t just leave. Where would a thousand people go unnoticed?”

  “Anywhere but here. We could blend in with the unchanged as many Athraithe did centuries ago.”

  “How do you expect to convince everyone?”

  Elisedd replied, “By telling them the truth about Ayalon’s deal with Marlow, about Einar.”

  Faron said, “In time, but only when the Ladder and Spheres are secure. There will be panic.”

  Otus said, “Say we hide the Sphere and the Ladder, that still leaves the Sphere Einar stole, you expect him to believe that we’re on his side now? After we let his wife die?

  Faron replied, “I’ve already spoken with him.”

  “What? When?”

  “When I went to Leicester to stage the kidnapping. Einar ambushed me on my way out and took me and Marlow’s daughter to a hunting cabin. That’s when I joined him. I told him where to attack Cameron’s escort. He was going to show Cameron the truth, but there were complications. It became clear that we need to wait to tell Cameron and his sister the truth. We’ll let them search for the hidden Sphere
. Once it’s found, we can make certain that it doesn’t end up in Marlow’s hands.”

  Otus looked down at the table as he contemplated his decision.

  “Will you join us?” asked Faron.

  Otus looked to his worried wife, then to Faron. He nodded.

  Faron looked to Clara, and she gave a concerned nod.

  The memory faded, then Fíodor was in what looked to be a dungeon. A ray of light came through a small window near the ceiling. The room was all stone except for an iron door.

  Fíodor was sitting on a stiff cot when the cell door creaked opened.

  Aatu entered with a pair of his wolves while Ulric and Coinín waited at the door. He walked up to Fíodor until he was within arm’s reach. His wolves stalked in on each side of him. “Where is he?” he asked coldly.

  Fíodor did not respond. Aatu picked him up by the neck. “Where is he keeping the Sphere!” he yelled.

  Fíodor coughed. “I don’t know.”

  Aatu punched him hard.

  Hazel could feel the force of the blow, and the warm blood running from Fíodor’s nose over his mouth.

  “Faron isn’t here to protect his pet Creiche.” Aatu’s pale blue eyes eyes dilated and his lips curled into a snarl, revealing pointed teeth.

  Hazel could feel his claws digging into Fíodor’s neck.

  Aatu growled. “Let me make this very clear, things are going to change in Talam. You and your kind will be put in your place and none of the Laochra will lift a finger to stop that from happening.” Aatu squeezed Fíodor’s neck harder, his claws breaking into his skin. “What else was in that cave! Did the girl take anything besides the Sphere?”

  Fíodor weezed. “No, there was nothing else.”

  “When Faron isn’t looking, I’m going to bring your boy in, and I will make him talk. He’s softer than you, isn’t he?”

  Fíodor spat blood into Aatu’s face.

  Aatu snarled viciously and threw Fíodor backward into the wall.

  Fíodor’s head slammed against the stone and his vision narrowed. The last thing he saw as he slumped onto the cot was Coinín staring at him from the doorway, his eyes full of guilt.

  Then Hazel was back in her flat. She was sweating and short of breath. She reached up and felt the dry skin under her nose before quickly reminding herself it was not her pain she had felt. She felt faint and nearly collapsed to the floor before catching herself on the table and knocking a chair over. She steadied herself, then rushed to Daniel and Fergus’s flat.

  “What’s wrong?” said Daniel.

  Hazel lifted her finger to her lips. “Everything,” she said, her voice trembling.

  Hazel quietly explained all she had seen in Fíodor’s message to Daniel and Fergus. The staged kidnapping. Marlow. Otus. Aatu’s foreboding threat.

  Daniel said, “You’re certain, Hazel? He could be fooling you.”

  “Trínasúile doesn’t lie. I knew we could trust Elisedd and his father.”

  Fergus replied in a hushed voice, “To be fair... they were keeping secrets, and they were helping Einar... even if he isn’t the sinister madman we thought him to be.”

  “What about Marlow, what deal? How does he know about the Sphere?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Have you told Cameron?” said Daniel.

  “No, I’ll tell him now,” said Hazel. She went to Cameron’s flat at the end of the hall. She cracked the door and saw his bed, empty, then opened the door fully. He was nowhere in sight. “Cameron? Are you here?”

  There was no reply. Bollocks. She returned to Daniel and Fergus’s flat and said, “He’s gone.”

  “Of course he is,” said Fergus.

  “We’ll go talk to Elisedd for now. We can figure out where to go from there. C’mon.”

  Hazel rushed into the stall Elisedd and Augie were working in and gave Elisedd a big hug.

  “I take it you got the message,” said Elisedd in a hushed voice.

  “Yes. I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”

  “I must’ve missed that,” Fergus muttered to Daniel.

  “We have to find Cameron, he doesn’t know.”

  “Faron is telling him everything now. He’s taken him outside of the walls to see Alexandra and Einar.”

  “I’d love to see how that plays out,” said Fergus.

  Hazel said, “What about your father? We have to get him out of that dungeon... he’s hurt.”

  Elisedd frantically ran his hand through his hair. “I know, but it’s too dangerous. We should wait for Faron.”

  “It could be too late by the time.” Hazel stopped when she heard the sound of armor and galloping in the distance. She peered out of one of the stables and saw a group of four Laochra approaching. A pair of wolves ran alongside Ulric, Coinín, and Tod. “It’s Ulric... we need to hide.”

  “Follow me.” Elisedd led them up into the hayloft, and they hid behind a pile of hay near one of the windows. It was the very same place Hazel had hidden her first night in the village.

  Hazel listened carefully as the guards entered the barn, their boots stomping over the wooden floors.

  “Where is Elisedd?” Ulric shouted below.

  “I don’t know, he left...” Augie said, his voice trembling.

  There was a slap and a whimper. “Where did he go?” Ulric demanded.

  “I told you! I don’t know,” he cried.

  Hazel saw Elisedd clutching the hay in front of him with white knuckles.

  “Search the barn,” said Ulric. Footsteps worked there way up toward the hayloft.

  Hazel held her breath.

  A set of paws padded over toward their hiding spot. Hazel reached for Crúbail under her coat.

  Then a pointy nose poked through the hay, inches in front of Hazel’s face. Ralf cocked his head at Hazel, then began licking her face.

  “What is it?” Ulric called from the other end of the hayloft.

  Ralf pulled his head back from the hay. Coinín replied, “Nothing. He saw one of the horses out the window.”

  Ulric said, “C’mon, he isn’t here. We’ll flush him out soon enough. They’ll be assembling at the old castle soon. We need to go.”

  Hazel listened as the pair left the hayloft.

  Ulric said, “If Elisedd should return, tell him he’s needed at the Roman building… his father’s life depends on it.” The group marched out of the barn.

  Hazel peeked out of the window behind her and watched them ride away.

  Elisedd stood and said resolutely, “Forget waiting. We’re getting him out of there.”

  Hazel looked toward the Roman building where several guards were between the columns at the front entrance. She went back into the alley.

  “Is there really no other way down?” she asked Elisedd.

  Elisedd shook his head. “We have to go in through the main level, from there, only one set of stairs leads to the lower level.”

  Hazel looked to Daniel and Fergus. “Any ideas?”

  Daniel grinned and threw an arm over Fergus’s shoulders. “I’ve got one.”

  Fergus shook his head. “No, not this time.” He slid out from Daniel’s arm and pointed at him. I agreed to be your diversion then, grudgingly I might add, because we thought the Laochra were protecting us, that is no longer.”

  Hazel stepped up to Fergus and said, “Please,” as she took his hands. “A life might be at stake. Be brave for us.”

  Fergus became more serious as he looked into Hazel’s eyes. He nodded and said, “I can do that.” He put his hands on his hips and began pacing. “Then what? Say you get through those doors, there are sure to be more guards inside.”

  “We can improvise,” said Elisedd.

  Fergus replied, “I know you’re eager to help your father, but what use are you if you get thrown in a cell with him?”

  Daniel said, “I’ll do the same as you once we get in... see if I can’t draw them all outside.”

  Fergus shook his head. “That’s as close to a plan as
I can expect from you, isn’t it?”

  Daniel shrugged.

  Hazel grabbed Fergus and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you, Fergus. I know you can do it.” Given the dire situation, she only felt a bit guilty exploiting his feelings.

  Fergus took a few deep breaths, turned toward the Roman building, then blasted out of the alley, sprinting full speed at the guards. He waved his hands at them and hollered “Help! Einar is here! He’s taken Cameron!”

  Hazel watched as he reached the guards and pointed down the road while he crouched over with his hands on his knees as if he were catching his breath. One of the guards pushed Fergus in the direction he had been pointing them toward. Fergus glanced quickly toward Hazel in the alley, then jogged off with them.

  Sorry, Fergus.

  “Quickly,” said Elisedd as he walked out of the alley with haste.

  Hazel followed him into the Roman building. The large foyer was empty. She walked behind Elisedd over the marble floors and through the tall columns until they reached a door in the corner of the building where the polished marble had transitioned to older stone.

  Elisedd tried the doorknob. It was locked. He backed up and took his shoes off, holding them in one hand, then began changing. His legs narrowed and lengthened as chestnut fur covered them. His feet were replaced with hooves. He took a few steps back, clacking his hooves over the marble, then launched himself at the door. He lifted one leg as he flew toward it and kicked through it with an explosion of splinters.

  “I see stealth isn’t a priority,” said Daniel as he followed Hazel down the crudely cut stairs.

  They encountered an iron door at the bottom. Elisedd reached for the handle, then watched as the latch above it began to lower on it’s own. He took a step back and changed back, his legs regaining their normal form.

  A guard appeared with his sword drawn and said, “What’s going on!”

  Hazel said, “They need your help! Einar is in the building. He’s after the Ladder!”

  The guard looked at the shoes in Elisedd’s hand, then down at his bare feet.

  Elisedd changed in an instant, then kicked the massive guard in the stomach, sending him airborne through the doorway. The guard landed hard, groaned on the floor, and began to sit himself up, his eyes dilating and black fur growing from his neck. Elisedd moved to kick him again.