by Victor Kloss
“Ben, there is a reason I am panicking, and I think you just covered it. If they notice anything we’ll never make it out of here. It will likely take one of them approximately a hundredth of a second to squash us both. The only way you could possibly penetrate their barrier would be with something as powerful as they are, or made by them, so let’s just get out of here!”
Ben’s eyebrows shot up and he clicked his fingers. “Charlie, you’re a genius!”
Pulling Elizabeth’s Sword off his back, he moved closer to the invisible barrier, blocking out Charlie’s increasingly worried pleading. Ben focused on the sword and the council. The sword started glowing, and he somehow knew what to do. Instead of piercing the barrier he put the point of the sword on the ground right at the point where the barrier seemed to start and willed his mind to connect. Nothing seemed to change visibly, but suddenly he felt a rush of anticipation as sound started coming through.
“…need to concentrate our efforts here,” someone was saying. “This is where the true imbalance lies.”
“Perhaps,” another replied, “but let us not forget the dangers inherent in the Institute. We cannot allow them to grow complacent again.”
“I do not think we will have to worry about that for a long while yet,” a third declared. “But if they fall, the balance will be shattered, possibly irrevocably.”
Ben struggled to breathe. His head was reeling. It really was the High Council! And they were talking about the war between Suktar and the Institute.
He wanted to listen further, but Charlie grabbed him on the shoulder. “We need to get out of here,” his best friend said softly, hand shaking. “What little I could find about them suggested these guys really like their privacy. If they catch us here, they won’t be happy Ben!”
Ben hesitated, but finally nodded. Completing their mission was more important than satisfying his curiosity, and he knew that even though the sword was somehow keeping them hidden, things could still go very wrong.
“Okay,” he finally agreed. “Let’s go.” Charlie didn’t need telling twice and he practically sprinted out of the narrow corridor, causing Ben to race after him.
He couldn’t help looking back, however, as they sped away. Someday, he vowed, he would find out what the High Council was doing here, and what they were really up to.
But not today.
— Chapter Eighteen —
Moss and Frost
“Which way?” Ben asked once they were clear of that chamber and back in the tunnels proper. He kept resisting the urge to turn around and go back to hear more, but he knew Charlie was right. This was a mystery that would have to wait for another time. They had more pressing concerns at the moment like finding the rest of the Guardians, getting out of these tunnels, getting to Suktar, and completing the task of taking him down and ending this war. The High Council would have to wait.
Natalie was the one who answered. “This way,” she said. “We just need to follow Krobeg’s directions to the intersection point.” She gestured down a side tunnel.
“Right, let’s go.” Ben checked his spellshooter while they still had enough ambient light from the chamber behind them. “I’ve only got one light spell left,” he reported. “How about the two of you?”
They both inventoried their own spells. “One here, too,” Charlie replied after a second, and Natalie nodded. “We may need one for this next little bit, but after that Krobeg said we’d be close enough to the surface to start getting some light through the cracks.”
“Cool. We should hold off on firing it for as long as we can.” Ben knew it was a good idea to keep the remaining spells in reserve, just in case. “Okay, lead on.”
Natalie took the lead. Her elven eyesight was better adapted to the dark, allowing her to see in the gloom and shadows better than he or Charlie could, and as long as they could still make out her figure ahead of them they could follow the path she took.
After a few minutes it did become too dark to even see her outline, and Charlie called out, “Hang on a sec.” Ben could hear his best friend fumbling in the dark, and a second later the distinctive crackle of a spellshooter being fired. Then a small blob appeared directly overhead. It slowly took on form and definition, slimming and reshaping, developing arms, legs, a head and small, fluttering wings. After a few seconds it was clearly a fairy, enveloped in a warm yellow glow like a tiny being made of sunlight. Ben glanced over at Charlie, and in the fresh light he could see his friend blushing.
“I thought it was cute,” Charlie admitted.
“It is,” he agreed. “And it works just as well as the orbs I’ve been using, so why not go with something with a little more….” He searched for the right word.
“Flair?” Natalie suggested, smiling. All three of them were grinning as they set off again, the tiny fairy flitting just ahead of them to light the way.
They followed a few twists and turns, Natalie and Charlie directing them through each crossing, and after a few minutes Ben noticed that the tunnel seemed to be sloping upwards slightly. He took that to be a good sign.
When the fairy finally dimmed and then vanished twenty minutes later, he was pleased to note that he could still make out his friends, albeit dimly. They had reached an area that was no darker than twilight, and without the fairy’s illumination, Ben could tell which direction the diffuse light was coming from. Sure enough, they continued in that direction, and after a few more minutes they came to a wide intersection, like a crossroads but underground. From the ceiling overhead, through a myriad of tiny cracks, unmistakable rays of daylight were peeking through.
They’d made it to the meeting point, but it was empty.
“You’re sure this is the way Krobeg indicated?” he asked as they approached the intersection, slowing now that they didn’t have to worry about covering distance before their light spells ran out.
“Absolutely,” Charlie confirmed. “We followed his instructions, though admittedly most of those consisted of ‘keep heading up and towards the light, you can’t miss it’.” He shook his head. “There weren’t any other passes that led this way.”
“Maybe they went ahead,” Natalie suggested. “I know I’m looking forward to clean air and open skies again.” She repressed a small shudder, and Ben realised just how hard this trek must have been for her. Natalie was very much a creature of nature, particularly life and sun. She was most at home in a forest or on a green plain, someplace warm and alive. Being trapped underground with nothing but cold rock everywhere must have been a nightmare, but she hadn’t complained once.
“Maybe,” Ben said, though he didn’t think that was likely. Dagmar would have wanted to wait until they were all together, and they would have understood it was safer to stay out of view, especially because no one knew exactly what awaited them on the other side of this junction. Ben decided to check, just in case. He crossed to the far side and looked around. The path was wider here, and sloped upwards, but it was empty.
“Maybe we turn off into one of these two side passages,” Charlie suggested. He stepped into the intersection, turned to the right and quickly vanished from view. A moment later he reappeared, shaking his head. “They aren’t this way,” he confirmed.
Natalie had checked the opposite way, and returned right after he did. “Not here either,” she said.
“Hello?” Ben called out, keeping his voice low. Nothing moved and no one responded. “They’re not here,” he stated. “Which means something must have happened to them.” His stomach twisted. He had suggested they split up. What if he had doomed his friends? And the Seen and Unseen Kingdoms in the process?
“Okay,” Natalie declared, her tone matter-of-fact. “Then they must have been stopped somewhere between here and that chamber. So we retrace our steps until we find them.”
Ben sighed. He knew she was trying to keep things upbeat, and he appreciated that, but it didn’t stop him from feeling guilty. Still, what else could they do? He fell in behind his friends as they turne
d and began walking back the way they had come.
When it got too dark for him or Charlie to see anymore, they paused to confer.
“We don’t know how far they deviated from the path,” Charlie pointed out, “or how deep they are now. We can’t waste our last two light spells just yet. We may need them.”
“I can still see a little, enough to keep us from bumping into walls or missing turns,” Natalie offered. “Put your hand on my shoulder Charlie, and Ben, put your hand on his. I’ll tap your hand once if we’re turning left, twice if we’re turning right, and three times if I’m stopping. That way we can also make sure we are quiet so if there is anyone out there, they won’t be able to hear us easily. Got it?”
Charlie cleared his throat. “Um, maybe reverse those?” he suggested. “Because if we need to stop short, probably best it doesn’t take three taps to let me know.”
Ben couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Yeah, he’s right,” he agreed.
Natalie sighed. “Fine,” she said. “One tap for stop, two for turn left, three for turn right. Ready?” She turned back around. Ben heard a muffled gasp from his best friend and guessed that meant Natalie had taken his hand and rested it on her shoulder. Then Ben reached out for Charlie. It took him only a second to find his shoulder.
“Good to go here,” he said, and a moment later they started moving again.
It was slow going now, since he and Charlie had to rely upon Natalie’s guidance and be careful not to step on her. Normally she could keep pace with either of them or actually outstrip them, of course, but here underground she had to go slowly, especially since they were looking for any hint of their friends. Without any light to go by, Ben lost all sense of time. They could have been walking for an hour, a day, a few minutes, or anywhere in between by the time he felt a single tap on his hand. He stopped at once, and even so nearly barrelled into Charlie.
“What’s going on?” he whispered. The sound carried easily in the narrow space of the tunnel, which only made it feel more claustrophobic.
“I think I found something,” Natalie answered. Her voice came from lower to the floor, and Ben guessed that she was crouching down. “I’m going to make some light.” A second later he saw a faint glow right near the floor. It took him a second to figure out what she had done — she had summoned a spell into her spellshooter, causing the weapon to glow as it began to ready the spell for release, but then hadn’t actually fired it. Clever! It was a tiny bit of illumination, not enough to light their path, but for scanning a spot on the ground it was probably just enough, especially with her eyesight.
“Yes, there are scuffmarks here,” she reported finally, allowing the glow to fade and, from the sound of it, rising to her feet again. “It looks like something got dragged down this side tunnel. I would have missed it entirely, but the air smells different.”
Sure enough, now that she said that, Ben could feel a faint whiff of air on his face. It felt warm and damp, like a swamp. Odd for under ground, and he said so.
“Could be an underground lake or river,” Charlie offered. “Though, yeah, normally those would be colder, not warmer.” In such close proximity, Ben could feel his friend’s shrug. “But maybe things work differently here.”
“Well, it’s where our friends went, I’m sure of it,” Natalie answered. “And I don’t think it was willingly.”
“Then let’s go find them and bring them back,” Ben declared, anger creeping into his voice. Nothing was ever easy. He drew his spellshooter. “Keep your weapons in hand, just in case,” he suggested.
A second later, they were moving again. This tunnel was narrower than the last, enough so that Ben held up his hand and was able to brush against the wall without having to stretch at all. It was also, he noticed after some time, not as dark as it had been before.
“I can almost see again,” Charlie said. “I mean, I can if I squint. So much easier knowing I’m not going to step on Natalie’s feet.”
“Hear, hear!” Natalie agreed. “I can see clearly now, too, which makes things a lot easier. There’s a definite trail here, several feet going this way, but more scuffmarks, too.” Ben could hear the frown in her voice, and knew what she was thinking. It definitely sounded like their friends had been captured. But by whom? And to what end?
They continued walking, and the path was definitely lighter now, enough so they could walk without holding onto each other anymore. That allowed them to resume a more normal pace.
“It’s this moss,” Charlie reported, gesturing towards the walls. “It’s all over the place, and it’s glowing. Not a lot, but enough to see by down here.”
“I’ll take it,” Ben replied. He sighed, suddenly feeling the long trek. “I hope it’s not too much further, though. I’m wiped!”
“Yeah, me too,” Charlie agreed. “I’d kill for a nap right now.”
“Here,” Natalie replied, passing him something and then something to Ben as well. It was a dried apple, and Ben eagerly bit into the tough, leathery fruit. “Best I can do right now.” She paused. “I’m tired too, though. Weird — I hadn’t noticed it before you said something.”
“It’s been a long day, or whatever,” Ben told her. “We’re all feeling it. As soon as we get the others and get out of here we’ll feel better.”
“Right,” she answered. She started off once more. Even though they could now see well enough to not need her eyesight, Ben was happy to let Natalie take the lead here. She was quieter and more graceful than either him or Charlie.
They continued to walk, and now it was not only noticeably brighter but also much muggier. Ben guessed that Charlie had been right about some kind of underground lake. He was really feeling the fatigue now, and it was starting to take effort just to keep his eyes open and his feet moving, but he forced himself onwards - they had to find their friends.
All of a sudden, Natalie stopped, so abruptly Charlie nearly stumbled into her.
“Shhh!” she warned in a tense whisper. “Do you hear that?” They listened closely, and after a second Ben picked up a faint murmuring. “There’s someone up ahead — a lot of someones!”
“Not our friends?” Ben asked, and wasn’t surprised when she shook her head. “Swell. Alright, let’s see what we’ve got.”
The three of them crept forwards, and came to a low archway. Beyond it, the rough tunnel widened and dipped into a room similar to the one they’d seen the High Council in, with a few notable differences. It was nowhere near as polished. The walls were more natural, irregular and roughly carved. The ceiling was lower. It was dimmer, the light coming from the moss that seemed to cover everything. Unlike the council’s chamber, which had been bowl-shaped, this space continued outwards. The far side of it looked to be a low lake, with the water lapping against the rock.
But it was the structure right before that edge that drew Ben’s attention. A spur of rock jutted up from the ground, everything carved away on either side to create a low, wide table — or an altar.
And stretched out atop that shape were four very familiar figures.
“Uh-oh,” Charlie muttered beside him. “Are they?”
“They’re alive,” Natalie reported, her voice equally tense. “I can see them breathing.” She frowned. “They aren’t even tied up.”
“So what happened to them?” Ben wondered aloud. He glanced about — and started with a gasp as he suddenly realised his friends weren’t alone! He had been so focused on them that he hadn’t registered the other figures in the rough chamber. They were no taller than Krobeg, he guessed, and draped in long swaths of cloth that looked like crude robes. Around the fabric Ben could see grey-green skin and — he squinted — what looked like scales. Between that and the broad snouts, wide, lipless mouths, and narrow, slit yellow eyes protruding from their hoods, he guessed that he was looking at some sort of lizard-folk.
And it seemed they were about to sacrifice his friends.
“We have to do something,” he said and was shocked to hear t
he words emerge from his mouth in a slur. What was wrong with him? The whole world seemed to tilt a little, and he rested his hand on the wall, having to struggle just to lift it that high. He was so tired!
“Oh, hell,” Charlie muttered, sounding equally lethargic, and Ben raised an eyebrow. It was rare to hear his best friend curse even that much. “I think it’s the moss,” he reported slowly, holding out his hand for them to see. It looked oddly sticky. “It’s oozing some kind of pus or something; that may be part of the dampness we’re feeling — and breathing.” Charlie sighed. “I think it’s what’s wiping us out so much. It’s got to be some natural substance that puts people to sleep, and it’s all around us.”
Natalie nodded heavily. “That would explain why they aren’t tied up,” she managed, her words just as sluggish. “And how they were able to get Krobeg without a fight. Those lizard-folk must be immune to the effects.” She frowned. “How are we going to rescue them, though? We can barely move ourselves.”
Ben forced himself to think about that. “What happens if we light the moss on fire?” he managed after a second. “Would that cancel out the effect?”
Charlie looked horrified. “No, don’t do that!” he gasped, and his alarm was enough to jolt Ben back to full wakefulness for a second. “The fumes would be ten times worse!” He shook his head. “Even if we did burn all of it — and it’s everywhere — that wouldn’t get it out of the air.” He considered their options, and brightened. “But the opposite might work!”
It took Ben a moment to catch on to what his best friend meant. He felt like he was drifting through a fog. “Freeze it, you mean?”
“Yeah.” Charlie nodded. “It’s so warm down here, right? I bet this moss thrives on the humidity. Cold might kill it, and clear the air a bit. Our heads, too.”
“It might help another way,” Natalie suggested. “Lizards don’t like the cold. I bet lizard-folk don’t either.”