We stretched and warmed our bodies again in the cave pool before searching the walls. We found a hidden passageway that went further into the cave system.
Alder wasn’t sure we should spend time traversing the caves.
“These caves go for hundreds of miles under here. If we start down one and become lost, we could never find the surface again.”
The thought of never seeing the sun again, of being trapped down here forever, was terrifying. But when I looked at the passageway, I felt in my heart it was the way we needed to go.
“Something is telling me this is the next step,” I told him, trying to sound confident.
“Alright, I trust you.”
We followed the hidden path as it sloped further down. I kept my hand against the stone wall as we walked. The path was barely illuminated a few feet at a time by Alder’s glow. At first it was a bright yellow, but I noticed the further we went, the dimmer he became.
My anxiety started surfacing after the second hour of descending. The thought of how deep we were, of how much earth lay on top of us. We could be under water for all we knew. It could collapse on us and we would be trapped under here forever, dirt pressing down and suffocating us.
I tried to breathe and push down the fear.
You’re ok. Alder is here. He made that haven. He could get us out of here if we needed.
Alder sensed my thoughts and reached his hand out to mine, his thumb rubbing against me as we walked. Soothing. Loving. It helped some, but with every step the darkness only grew.
Finally, the path eventually began ascending. I almost cried when I noticed the upward slope. My power leapt inside of me. It felt, peculiar. The further we walked, the more my powers seemed to grow. Each step making me feel more and more powerful.
Alder, on the other hand, seemed to be wincing in pain.
He groaned.
“What’s wrong? Is your body still sore?” I asked him.
“No, it’s not that. I don’t know what it is, but nothing to be concerned about I’m sure.”
I was worried.
“Should we stop and rest?”
“No, we need to keep going.”
“Are you sure? You sound winded, I’m worried.”
“I’m fine, Val. I promise,” he said, kissing my forehead.
I reached my power out to him, feeling for his. It was there but felt… different. Weaker.
My heart clanged in my chest at the thought of something happening to him. But he took my hand and pulled me forward down the cave path.
We walked for what felt like hours before the darkness lightened. The path opened only a few yards ahead.
I almost ran into the clearing, so relieved to be outside of the claustrophobic tunnels. The end of the path met an open beach with a wide, midnight blue ocean covered in a heavy layer of fog. The moon was high in the sky. It didn’t cast violet here, though. Instead, the moon was a normal grey. The way it illuminated the ocean and fog made the whole place eerie. A chill went down my spine.
Next to me, Alder was breathing heavily. I placed my hands on his chest as we evaluated the surroundings. There were sharp cliffs on either side of the small spit of beach. The cave we had come through was the only entrance or exit. The ocean of water stretched out before us, no end in sight.
“Just breathe, you’re ok.” I said to him. Though I was not convinced.
He looked… awful. His skin was grey, his glow grey. His eyes dull. It looked like something was sucking the life out of him.
“I don’t think we should go any further. We need to go back. Something’s wrong with this place,” I said.
He shook his head. His shoulders were hunched, his usual perfect posture slumping as he took in labored breaths.
“Why not? You’re not doing well, we need to go back.”
“No, this is it. We are close.”
“What do you mean? What is this place?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never seen it before. But it’s where we need to be.”
“How can you say that? Look at you! We need to get you back. Whatever this place is, it is doing something to you.” I said, my eyes widening with fear.
My power felt stronger than ever. I felt invincible, eternal. I felt powerful.
One simple thought crossed my mind.
Am I somehow absorbing his power? My heart froze.
“It’s not you. It’s him,” he said, reading the expression on my face.
“Him? I don’t understand?” I said.
“We must be close, to the tower where he placed his curse. The closer we get, the more the magic of this place tips in his direction and the weaker I become,” he said, finally pulling himself up straight.
“Then you can’t come, you have to stay. It’s too dangerous,” I breathed, fear racing through my veins.
“No, I have to come, we have to break it together.” Sweat beaded on his brow. How much energy was it taking just to stand here right now?
“There’s no tower. It’s an ocean and we don’t have a boat. We can come back—”
“No, we go forward. We swim if we have to.”
“Alder, look at yourself. You are too weak! Please, you won’t be able to swim!” I said, but his face was set ahead, looking out to the ocean.
“Valeria, you are strong enough for the both of us.” He turned to look into my eyes, his hand coming up to my cheek as he spoke. My lip trembled as I felt his power, felt how minuscule it was now compared to mine.
He was right. I was stronger, stronger than ever. The power in me practically bubbling beneath my skin. I nodded.
We walked forward to the water, preparing for a swim. I stepped into the water, and then another step. A few more steps.
And realized I was walking on the water.
Alder was next to me as we stood, looking out over the sea. The mist swirled around us ominously, setting the entire world grey. The beach behind us disappeared into the fog. We kept forward.
I looked down as we walked. The water ebbed below us, untouched by our steps. It was as if glass was covering its surface and holding our weight. We walked further. How deep was the water? If the magic holding us gave out, we would surely drown this far out from shore. Fear clawed at my throat. I made myself look up and forward. Forced myself to not think about the depths waiting below me.
Alder was agonal with each step. The effort he was putting in for simple walking was tremendous. But he carried on. My power continued to grow. I noticed a pink sheen to my skin, the fragments of my power escaping to the surface.
I took Alder’s hand as he weakened, willing some of my power into him. But it didn’t seem to help. He gave me a reassuring smile and my heart ached.
We walked a few steps more, stopping and giving him time to catch his breath.
His eyes seemed glazed over with fatigue. I reached up and gave him a kiss on the cheek, placing my hand on his other cheek.
“We are almost there, my King.” His eyes glistened at the word King. I hoped my words would fill him, help him find the last few tendrils of energy within him.
I pulled him forward a few more feet, his weight against mine with each step. I still saw nothing but open water. No tower, nothing. Fear danced through my veins, fear that he would become too weak. Fear that this was a trap and there was nothing out here.
I looked behind us. No shore in sight. Would we even be able to find our way back? How would we know which way to go? If we lost our sense of direction for a single second, we would never find the shore. It was nothing but grey mist and water as far as the eye could see.
I swallowed hard and turned back to face forward. Terror clasped around my heart. The blood drained from my face as my heart raced. This could be the end. We had made it this far but could die out here. My throat felt tight and itchy, my chest spasming.
I took one more step.
And there was a shack. A tiny, run-down hovel sitting out here all by itself in the middle of a grey ocean. Its wood was light brown
and looked as if it had been both bleached by the sun and beaten by salt water. It was falling apart. The door hung sideways off the hinges. The roof was cracked and missing pieces. The tiniest spit of land lay beneath it.
It didn’t make sense. This wasn’t the tower, wasn’t the center. Then what was this place?
“Alder, what did we do wrong? What is this? We need to go back.” I told him. But even as I said the words, I felt it.
I felt the tug reaching deep down inside me, pulling me to the shack.
“I don’t know. I don’t know,” he said. His words strained and confused.
I tightened my grip on him as we stepped forward a few more yards to the land. To the hut.
I pushed opened the door to the shack. It swung wide and fell off its hinges, crashing on the ground next to us. The inside was shrouded. I leaned in enough to peek through the darkness. It was a set of stairs winding down to more blackness.
Alder looked pale and nauseous. I placed my hand on his chest to steady him. I searched his face again. His eyes were slits, barely open. His skin was grey and diaphoretic, his power almost nonexistent against mine. His breath agonal. This was killing him.
The pull tightened around my heart, tugging me to the stairs.
“We can do this, we can do this,” I said to him, rubbing my hand against his sweaty forehead. He felt feverish. I placed my shoulder under his arm and led him down the stairs.
Soon the darkness overtook us, only the faint pink glow from my skin illuminating the steps. Alder’s glow was completely gone.
We continued down slowly as Alder’s feet fumbled with each step. My skin felt like it was on fire, the power within me glowing hotter as we descended.
Finally, a light shone at the bottom of the stairs. We were almost to the end, whatever the end was.
A few more steps and we reached a landing. An archway into a large room. Alder’s knees buckled as he fell against me. We toppled into the room. I landed hard on the stone floor, slicing my skin in several abrasions.
I immediately turned to look at Alder. He was trying to pick himself up, his arms pushing against the floor, but he collapsed. A coughing fit overtook him.
I pulled him up, leaning him against the stone wall behind him. Sweat dripped off of him. His tan skin paper white now. His eyes were foggy, his eyelids drooping over them.
“Alder, stay with me. Stay with me!” I said, nearly shouting at him. Pain wretched through my chest and up my throat. Sobs fought their way to the surface.
His vision focused behind me. I turned to look.
I realized the room we were in was a large circle. A table with a large bowl sat in the center. A bone colored bowl.
The wall across from us did not exist. Instead, it was all open. I stood and stepped warily towards it.
I reached the edge and looked out.
We were up several hundred feet in the air. Misty clouds floated by. I could almost reach out and touch them. The ocean lay below us and beyond that, the Labyrinth. It stretched forward and wrapped around us.
Around us. Around the tower. The tower at the center of the Labyrinth.
I heard Alder cough again, but I kept my eyes forward, overlooking the landscape. Tears welled in my eyes.
“Alder, this is it. This is the tower, we made it. We can do this,” I said, relief and happiness flooding my chest. I turned around to look at him.
Alder was standing now, but slouched over. Leo stood behind him, holding him up with one arm. The other held a knife to Alder’s throat.
Chapter 49
“Leo, what are you doing? What are you doing here?” I stuttered, my heart dropping in my chest. Alder was too weak, powerless to fight him off.
Leo’s face was twisted in pain.
“I followed you, I’ve been following you since you left,” he said, his face tight as he spoke, “I need you to know I didn’t want this. I never wanted this. All I wanted was to love you, for you to choose me. I just wanted to protect you, to make you happy.”
“Protect me? You’re the one I needed protection from. Your brothers tried to rape me. You tricked me into a bargain with Daemion. And now you hold a knife to the man I love’s throat. How dare you claim it was for me.”
Did he follow us through the caves? Had he heard everything that night, had he been there in the dark listening? The thought sent shivers down me and made my skin crawl.
“It is for you. You don’t know him. He will take your power and use it to finish his plans. He will destroy this place and the four cities. Millions will die, don’t you see that?”
“Leo, please. That’s not true, you’re confused. They’ve brainwashed you. Please, I’m begging you. I see you, I see you with a knife. Please put it down and let’s talk about this,” I said as I took a step toward him. Leo jerked up, pressing the knife harder at Alder’s throat.
“Don’t take another step, take another step and I will cut him from ear to ear,” Leo said, his eyes dark. Sweat began dripping off his face.
“Leo, why?” I begged, “Why would you do this? Please. If you ever loved me, please don’t do this,” I pleaded, tears welling up in my eyes. “Please don’t hurt him.” My voice almost a whisper.
Leo reached into his pocket and pulled something out. Alder’s dulled eyes met mine, a look of sheer helplessness. I shook with rage.
“Put this on and I’ll let him live,” Leo said, tossing me something. It clattered to the ground at my feet.
I bent down and picked it up. It was a metal ring, a simple iron band with a dragon carved into it. Leo was shaking as he held the knife, staring at me as I evaluated it. He was at the ready, terrified that I would attack him as the enchantress.
“What will happen to me?” I asked.
“Just put on the fucking ring or I will kill him,” Leo said. I saw him now, saw the darkness within him. Saw how deep the claws of the Brotherhood were.
“Leo, please. I loved you. You loved me. We have spent our life together, we grew up together. Why would you do this to me?” I said, tears falling down my cheeks. I looked him dead in the eye.
“I’m protecting you. I knew you wouldn’t understand. I knew it. Val, please just trust me.”
Those words. Just trust me. The same words from my dream. We had been here, I had been standing on the exact ledge that was behind me now. Had that been a premonition?
I considered risking it, using my power to convince him to stop. But, what if I wasn’t powerful enough? What if he fought and I lost my grip. No, his knife was too close to the one thing I loved the most. I had no choice.
“If I put this on, you will let him go. You won’t hurt him. Do you promise me?”
“Yes. I won’t hurt him. Just put it on,” he stammered. I knew I shouldn’t trust him, couldn’t trust him. But what options did I really have?
I held up the ring. “Leo, I loved you so much. So, so much.” My heart felt like it would fall out of my chest.
“But it was never enough,” he said, choking on the words, tears in his eyes. The shaking made sense now. He was scared. He was terrified. And so was I.
Alder picked his head up. His eyes nearly closed as he spoke. “Val—My Queen—”
The last of his strength left him as he forced out the words, unable to finish his sentence. Leo pushed the knife tighter, tenting his skin as Alder slumped over in his arms.
“Stop! Please, stop! I’m putting it on,” I said. My hands shook as I looked at Alder’s lifeless body. Fear’s dark claws ripped through my chest. I had my pink diamond snake ring on my right ring finger, I removed it and placed it on my left ring finger. I slid the iron band onto my right.
Leo tossed Alder to the side. He fell against the wall, barely moving. I bared my teeth at his actions, stepping forward with venom seeping out of me.
Leo’s eyes were expectant of something. But, I felt no change. Nothing but anger welling up in me. Anger in my chest. Anger for Alder. Anger at Leo.
“This is what you wanted all alon
g?” I asked him. “THIS? A fucking RING on my finger??” I demanded. His eyes met mine as his face hardened.
“Kill him.” A command. To kill Alder.
He looked at me, waiting for me to obey. His face twisting up in a smile.
I realized then what he thought this ring would do.
I laughed. I threw back my head, the laughter filling my chest. My power rose, and the full form of the enchantress came out. Her dark eyes zeroed in on Leo. His face dropped as fear flashed in his dilated pupils.
“You thought you could control me? You thought this ring would, what? Give you power over me? That’s how you were going to protect me? By killing him? YOU have no power over me. And you never will.” My voice was ice, my lips curled over my teeth as I spoke.
“I— it was supposed to work. I don’t understand,” he said. Fear and confusion seeped out of him, drifting to me in a sweet scent.
“Well, it didn’t.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, his eyes heavy with regret.
He was Leo, my Leo. I thought I knew him. I thought I loved him.
But he was nothing but a liar. He had betrayed me. I could not stop what the enchantress wanted, because it was what I wanted too. I lunged at him.
Leo jumped to the side. His motions switched our positions, his back now to the opening, his clothes billowing in the breeze. The veins in his neck tensed.
I shook my head, “Bad move,” I said. But, I stopped. Was I about to do this? Was I about to kill my best friend? The person who had been there for me my entire life? I looked at him and saw that eight year old boy who had saved me. That seventeen year old boy who had held me in his arms under the stars. My first friend. My first kiss. My first love.
For all of his sins, I knew then as I looked into those blue-grey eyes that I could not be the one to condemn him to death. I couldn’t do it.
He saw the pain in my eyes. The pain that billowed out like waves in between us.
The Labyrinth King (The Labyrinth Series Book 1) Page 27