"How'd you do it?" Liam asked.
"We'd love to tell the story," Nadia said, "but we don't have time. We need to get out of the Empire. Now."
"You'll have to speak to Captain Young," Liam said, scanning the crowd. "When he was a kid, his father used to take him to the Fire Mountains. If anyone knows of this secret route you mentioned, it's him." He set the rag down on the counter. "I'll find him. Don't go anywhere."
As Liam marched out of the inn, Markus settled down in a wooden chair, covered in sweat. He wished he could have a cool bath and soft bed, but they could rest once they escaped the Empire.
If they escaped the Empire.
The wait for Liam's return felt endless. Markus kept glancing out the windows, expecting to see Imperial Guards marching toward them.
"Markus, you're gonna drive me insane," Rik said. "Just sit down."
Markus glanced out the window one last time, then took a seat. He fidgeted in the wooden chair, feeling weak and vulnerable. After what they'd done, a few Imperial Guards shouldn't have felt like much of a challenge. But Markus knew they'd had help to get this far.
Help from Warrick himself. It was the only answer that made sense.
They all remained silent until Liam returned with Captain Young.
"Do you know how to get out of the Empire?" Nadia asked him.
The captain sat down, dressed in shabby nightclothes. "One time, my father and I came to a particularly narrow passage where we had to crawl, and we took a path that branched off to the left. At the end of that passage was a chamber full of Imperial Guards. They told us to leave and never to mention this place to anyone. Seems suspicious, doesn't it?"
Nadia hopped to her feet. "Thank you. That does sound promising."
Rik was pacing beside the table. "But how will we get past the Imperial Guards?"
"We have your staff," Markus said. "Can't you shield us?"
Rik scratched at his scraggly red beard. "I can block arrows, but if they go after us with their swords, we'll have to fight."
"We'll make this work," Markus said, wishing he felt as confident as his words.
Liam offered a reassuring smile. "Good luck out there."
Luck, Markus thought. We'll need a lot of that.
After two days of nearly constant travel, they reached Allenton and stabled their horses. They stopped at an inn for one last meal, surprised to hear that no one was discussing them. It seemed strange, like Warrick didn't care that they'd tried to kill him.
Halfway through their meal, a pair of Imperial Guards entered the common room. Markus tried not to watch them, tried to look like a normal patron. He had the feeling Nadia and Rik were doing a better job. Or maybe those were just his doubts, nagging at him as always.
The Imperial Guards' gazes traveled over the party, resting there for a moment, but then the Imperial Guards moved on, conducting a whispered conversation.
"Let's get out of here," Nadia said.
They mounted their horses and rode north toward the Fire Mountains. The mountains were calm for the moment, but when they reached the base of the westernmost mountain early the next morning, smoke was rising from its crater.
"Let's hope it doesn't erupt while we're in it," Markus said as he led them into the cave, feeling as if the walls were suffocating him.
At first, as they walked by the dim glow of Rik's staff, the cave appeared ordinary, but after a few twists and turns, it opened into a larger chamber. A narrow path ran along the closest wall, and maybe a hundred feet below, lava bubbled in a giant pool, casting a red glow upon everything. Heat prickled against Markus's skin. The air smelled of sulfur.
Had Markus died and gone to Hell without realizing it?
No. This couldn't be Hell if he had Nadia by his side. He wrapped an arm around her, and she leaned her head on his shoulder as they walked.
They followed the path, rocks crunching beneath their shoes. Thick gasses choked the air, and the heat made Markus dizzy. His heart pounded like a drum until they reached a more stable area, from which they entered a darker and narrower passage. So far, Captain Young's directions had proven easy to follow.
Markus shot Rik a wry look. "Maybe this place won't be so bad."
Rik groaned, holding his shirt over his face. "Do you have to say things like that?"
"I'm just giving you trouble. You're an easy target."
"Don't worry. I know. It's not gonna change anything."
Ever since Rik had come to save them, his attitude had been much more positive. He no longer looked toward adventure eagerly, but neither was he sullen and angry. Instead, he'd found a middle ground. Sometimes cheerful, sometimes serious.
In short, he'd come to terms with what adventure really meant. It was tiring. It was brutal. But sometimes it was necessary. There was little glory in the day-to-day routine of adventure, in the strenuous days of travel, in losing the people you bonded with on the road.
Lost in thought, Markus looked up only when they reached an open chamber where geysers shot up in places, spraying molten rock across the path.
Rik braced himself against the dark cave wall. "I don't like the look of this."
Nadia consulted the rough map Captain Young had drawn for them. "I don't think we need to cross this room. The passage off to the left should be right over here." She walked a dozen or so steps and pointed toward a small opening. "Here it is."
"We have to crawl through that?" Markus said.
"I know it looks small," Nadia said, "but it's our only choice."
"Yeah, but you're not as big as me."
"I'll go in first," Nadia said. "Rik can go behind me." She turned to Rik. "Will you be all right with that?"
"No, but it would bother Markus a lot more."
Markus put a hand on Rik's shoulder. "Thanks, that means a lot to me."
"Friends stick together, right?"
"Always."
Nadia entered the passage, crawling with her stomach pressed flat to the uneven ground. After scanning the passage for a few seconds, Rik squeezed inside. Markus took a deep breath, then followed, feeling immediately as though something were crushing him.
There was no room to breathe.
Minute after grueling minute, Markus crawled, scraping his arms and legs against jagged rocks. The entrance already seemed like it belonged to a different world. His chest tightened. His breathing became rushed and labored. His heart pounded so fiercely and painfully he thought he might have a heart attack.
"I have to get out of here!" he said, pressed flat against the rough ground. "I can't take this anymore! This place is gonna kill me!"
"Relax, Markus," Nadia said. "You're just having a panic attack. Take deep breaths."
"I-I can't. I can't even breathe."
"Just focus on it," she said. "You can do this, Markus."
Markus did focus on his breathing, and after a minute or two, his panic dulled. But it could easily return. Why the hell would Captain Young go to this place for fun?
A short time later, Nadia said, "I've found the passage off to the left. It looks bigger."
They entered this passage, and Markus exhaled with relief. He could crawl more upright now. Once the passage widened, they stood and navigated by the light of Rik's staff, peering into every dark recess, flinching at every shadow. Surely Imperial Guards were nearby.
The passage opened into a well-lit chamber with a high ceiling. Rik let his staff go dark.
"I think I hear something," someone said from across the chamber.
Not now. Not when they were so close.
"Probably another crazy traveler," said someone else. "Let's go look."
Footsteps sounded, and Markus looked for somewhere to hide, but the dim chamber was completely open. Two Imperial Guards rounded a bend, torches in hand, the light glaring in Markus's eyes.
"I told you there were crazy travelers here," said one of the men.
The other stepped closer, clutching the hilt of his sword. "What're you doing here? This
is a dangerous place."
"We were only exploring," Nadia said, feigning innocence. "Is there some law against that? We didn't mean to disturb you."
"This place is forbidden to all but us," said the first Imperial Guard. "You'll have to go back the way you came. You don't want to test our patience."
Markus felt a rush of fear. "I-I'm not going back through that place! I thought I was gonna die going through there the first time. Isn't there another way out?"
The men spoke to each other quietly, and Markus felt nauseous. Then the second man said, "We could lead you out the easier way, I suppose."
Rik pointed off to the right. "What's over there?"
The first Imperial Guard narrowed his eyes. "Somewhere you can't go, so I suggest you stop asking about it if you value your life. We could kill you just for trespassing here."
"That seems rather harsh," Nadia said.
The second Imperial Guard laughed. "In case you haven't noticed, this is a harsh world we live in. Count yourselves lucky some of our comrades aren't awake. We're not all so lenient."
"Well, thank you for being kind to us," Nadia said.
Markus noted that neither man carried a bow. He glanced at Nadia and Rik, then peered toward the passage off to the right, the forbidden one. Their path out of the Empire.
Nadia and Rik nodded, and they all took off at once.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" demanded one of the Imperial Guards as they gave chase.
Markus raced along the passage, hanging a little behind Nadia and Rik. Rik had lit the tip of his staff, but natural light now streamed into the cave. If they'd judged correctly, that light was outside the mountains.
"Get back here!" shouted one of the guards, but the party kept running. The passage brightened, and the exit appeared ahead. As they raced through it, Markus felt a moment of resistance. The barrier.
He turned back to the cave.
"Well done," said the first Imperial Guard. "You certainly fooled us with that innocent act."
"So you can't cross the barrier?" Markus asked.
"No," said the second. "The Imperial Guard seal prevents it. It might have a lot of uses, but the drawbacks are rather annoying." He smiled. "Good luck out there."
"You don't seem all that upset," Rik said.
The first shrugged. "Well, the way we look at it, people who head out aren't gonna come back. So no one ever has to know about this."
"Interesting way to see things," Markus said.
The second chuckled. "As long as you don't come back telling people how to get out, we don't really care what you do." His gaze hardened. "But don't let us see you again."
The men retreated into the dark passage.
"I can't believe it," Markus said. "We're actually free."
Nadia had tears in her eyes. "It is nice, I suppose—the best outcome under the circumstances. I might not have killed Warrick, but at least I have you, Markus." She gave him a quick kiss. "I think I can live with that."
"I think I can, too."
Ahead of them stretched rolling hills dotted with occasional trees. Markus thought he saw a faint plume of smoke in the distance. Some kind of settlement, he hoped.
"In a way," he said, "this is how it always should've been."
"What do you mean?" Rik asked.
"Well, all these years, escape was my only future worth living. For a while, I joined with Nadia's quest, but I'm not sure I ever thought it would really happen. Always, somewhere in the back of my mind, this was what I wanted. After all, who are we to change the world?"
Nadia sighed deeply. "As much as I hate to say it, perhaps you're right. I think my mother would be happy to know I've escaped Warrick. That I tried at the very least. That I've found a man I truly love and a good friend in Rik. I shouldn't be happy, but I am."
Finally. Markus had wondered how long Nadia could go dwelling on her failures. Even she had to see that they'd taken on the impossible. There was no shame in their failure.
The three of them wrapped arms around one another. Markus felt a twinge of pain where the snake's fang had pierced his arm, but he wouldn't let that bother him.
"It's an endless world out there," Rik said, "and I'm looking forward to it."
* * * * *
Darien leaned back in a wooden chair, feeling more relaxed than he had in a long time. The last few days had given him another difficult stretch. Once again, he'd told his Imperial Guards to give a convincing act in chasing Nadia, Markus, and Rik. Letting them go too easily would have thrown all Darien's plans into chaos.
He smiled, appreciating the party's skill and resourcefulness. Despite his manipulation of events, many people could have died at some point throughout that insane quest.
Now they were outside his control. He saw many futures that brought them back into his plans, but there were just as many in which they chose their own paths. Normally, this would have bothered him, but now he felt strangely at peace. He had time to recover from the exertions of recent weeks, of the many years before that.
Saving the world was a difficult job.
Part I
Lands Unknown
Chapter 1: The Shadowed Land
Kara stood in a land of mist and shadows. The air felt cool and damp, and there was no sun, only this gloomy gray light. Where the hell was she? One second, she'd shoved Rik away from that silvery being. The next, she'd found herself in this alien place. Alone.
She took tentative steps, small rocks shifting beneath her, jagged and unforgiving. The ground was barren of life.
She was no longer in Woodsville, no longer in the Empire, perhaps not even in the same world. Did a path home exist, or was she stranded here forever?
She felt lost. Terrified.
No one would come looking for her. She had to take matters into her own hands, as she always had. She wasn't the type of person to sit around and allow others to save her.
She would find her own way home.
Mist drifted all around, preventing her from seeing more than ten feet. As the mist moved, it cast strange and ominous shadows upon the uneven ground. She felt as if that mist were choking her, as if she were trapped with the walls closing in on her.
Deep breaths, she told herself. Deep breaths.
She'd never been an anxious person, but a situation like this was enough to make anyone panic. Already, she felt as if her old life were a distant memory. Her eyes welled with tears, but she steeled herself against her fear. It would only be a hindrance in her quest to get home.
She stepped carefully among the loose rock. Every sound seemed amplified in the silence, and her chest felt tight. What if she truly was alone here? What if there was nothing to eat or drink?
As she walked in the gloomy light, the mist drifted in clouds of varying thickness.
Hours passed with no signs of life, and she held back tears, vowing to remain strong like Nadia.
Would Kara ever see Nadia again? They'd been friends for so long, and despite their many arguments, Kara loved Nadia like a sister. How would Nadia do without her? Would she succeed in killing Warrick?
Kara wished now that she'd told Nadia the truth. After Woodsville, Kara would have accompanied Nadia on her insane quest. The destruction of Crayden had changed everything.
With no sun to mark the time, Kara had no idea how many hours were passing, and she had nothing to guide her path. Perhaps she was walking in circles. Everything looked the same. Barren rocks. Stunted trees. That horrible mist that seeped into her bones, making her shiver.
She decided to rest awhile on the jagged rocks. Though she peered into the distance, squinting against the mist, she couldn't see anything.
The world felt lonelier than ever. Even the sound of her footsteps had gone. She shivered in her light traveling clothes, listening to the silence, praying for some evidence that she wouldn't die here. She heard nothing.
Once she felt rested enough, she resumed marching. Her steps echoed, and she felt as if she were losing
her mind.
Later, she finally heard a sound apart from her own. Someone, or something, walked nearby, dislodging rocks. She froze, chest tight, wondering if she should call out. If it was a monster, it would mean her death. If it was a person, she had no idea how they'd react.
But she had to take the chance.
Her voice sounded strange and harsh. "Hello?"
A low growl sounded. She shivered, backing away, feeling lost and vulnerable in the chilling mist. She had her sword, but would that be enough against whatever beasts lived in this strange land?
Rocks shifted nearby. Another growl. She peered through the mist, and a shadow appeared, prowling closer. The beast looked as large as a bear, but she couldn't discern much else. She felt as if she'd been doused in icy water. There were other sounds, soft and farther away, but she couldn’t determine the source.
Her sword felt insubstantial. Her death was only moments away.
She leaned against a stunted, gnarled tree with no leaves, her breathing labored and loud enough that the beast would hear her. Heart pounding, she tightened her grip on her sword.
The monster emerged from the shadows, standing maybe fifteen feet away. It was indeed the size of a bear, but it looked more like a predatory cat. It moved with easy grace and casual deadliness. It had a cat's lean face, but its eyes were bright red, glowing in the misty gloom.
The cat lunged at her. She ducked around the other side of the tree as if that could save her. The monster scratched her arm with one of its claws. She felt searing pain and retaliated with a swipe of her sword.
The cat was too quick, retreating and preparing its next assault. It lunged again, leaping atop her. She held her sword out and tried to plunge it through the cat's chest, but the cat's weight pinned her to the ground. It began tearing at her with its claws. Using all the strength she had, she held its jaws away.
The beast's putrid breath filled her nostrils as it growled and snarled, snapping at her, wearing her down.
A brilliant orange glow lit up the mist. The cat shrieked and recoiled, giving her a chance to breathe. One of her ribs felt cracked. Sharp pain crisscrossed her body, coming from dozens of scratches, some of which looked deep.
World in Chains- The Complete Series Page 53