by R. J. Miller
“Your definition of easy is different from mine.” Deric breathed. Standing up straight he could feel the notches in his back pop rhythmically.
“Oh poor dear,” Emilia mocked. “I thought you said you scaled waterfalls bigger than this?”
“I may have exaggerated,” Deric chuckled. “It was actually a small set of falls that led to a tiny stream. All I had to do was climb a few rocks and I was at the top.”
Emilia laughed and turned away from him. “Here,” she pointed at the entrance, “We just have to follow this for a little while longer and we’ll be in the chamber.”
Deric grimaced, hopefully, all this would be for naught and he could report what he saw to Lord Maerec. That is after he killed the girl. “My lady,” he said politely and did a mock bow.
Emilia scowled but nevertheless took the cue to take point. “I guess I must since I am the only one who knows where we are going.” She was about to head in, but turned around quickly and glared at Deric, “Don’t try anything. I could just as easily get us lost in here so even if you kill me, there’s no way you’re getting out alive either.”
Deric smiled, he was impressed with the initiative the girl showed. Maybe he wouldn’t kill her after all. Maybe he would just turn her over to Lord Maerec and let him deal with her. “Very well,” he said. “Lead the way.”
“Gladly,” she muttered.
Deric was a little nervous to see what was in store in these caverns, but he did make one thing clear to himself: If he did get out of this alive, things were going to change and maybe not for the better.
I’ll accept death with open arms. The problem is will she?
VI.
“What do you mean, he’s gone?” Lord Maerec threw a cup that nearly made contact with Councilor Pinesteel’s head. She had ducked but the goblet had shattered on the tile floor and the other council members were looking at their Lord Regent with concern.
“Frankly, it’s exactly what it means,” Lord Pinesteel said having recovered from dodging the cup. “Heorulf hasn’t been seen for at least three days and Lord Baric hasn’t left his home in the last two.” She looked around at the other council members and almost subconsciously they nodded in agreement.
Lord Maerec flung himself back into his chair, breathing heavily. What a nightmare this week was turning out to be. First, Lord Baric was found alive in a back alley with some two young whores and brought home to his mansion on the plateau, where he hasn’t departed from since. And what was worse was that Deric Heorulf of all people was missing. No had seen him since he left the council chambers three days ago and Lord Maerec was aggravated that no one has made any progress on investigating his disappearance. “Okay,” he paused, “If somebody doesn’t give me good news soon, I’m going outside and looking for my butcher myself!”
The council members a looked at each other grimly. “Lord Regent,” Councilor Thell said hurriedly. “That would be most unwise. We need you here.”
Maerec leaned forward in his chair and sneered at the young man who had spoken. “I will not be coerced to stay in this room while my friend, a man who I call brother is out there somewhere, possibly hurt or worse!” He felt rather vulnerable speaking it aloud but is was about time the truth got out. Deric was the only person who he has ever cared about. He looked around the chamber in disgust. The others didn’t care. To them, Deric was just a pawn in their sick game. But Deric wasn’t a pawn in Maerec’s eyes: he was a knight in shining armor and the only one who he could depend on.
“Lord Regent,” Thell chimed in again, “You’re going to have to come to the realization that Heorulf might already be dead.”
Maerec glared the young man, “Guard,” he called and almost instantly one of the men adorned in silver chainmail was at the large concrete table. Maerec was tired of Thell. He was tired of all his council members. “Kill him.”
Without hesitation, the guard nodded and approached the young councilor. “What are you doing,” Thell shouted. “You can’t just kill-”
The rest of his words were silenced as the guard dragged his blade across the young man’s neck. The blood began to pool as Thell struggled for breath, the crimson river drenching his gray cloak. Eventually, the gurgling ceased and Councilor Thell just sat there, his dead eyes transfixed on the Lord Regent.
“Get some other men and drag his filthy corpse from my presence,” Maerec hissed and turned to the rest of the council. “The rest of you, get out of my site!”
The council nearly ran out the door, scurrying like an invisible slave driver had whipped them.
“Pinesteel,” Maerec said to the middle-aged women. “Not you, you stay here.”
Taken aback Councilor Pinesteel sat back in her chair and stared at the lifeless body of her fellow council member. “He was just an ignorant youth, my Lord Regent. You know he didn’t mean anything by what he said.”
“I don’t care,” Maerec stood up from his throne and walked to the other side of the room to where Pinesteel was sitting. “I just might kill the whole lot of them. Except you, of course my dear, you’ve been as loyal to me since the day we first met.”
Councilor Pinesteel smiled, Maerec had been good friends with her late father and almost treated her like a daughter. He was the one who gave her the seat on the council and she in return helped him rise to power in secret while the other councilors bickered amongst themselves. “I’m grateful, my Lord Regent, but I must ask, why did you ask me to stay.”
Lord Maerec pulled up the empty chair next to her and sat down. “I need you to procure something for me, it’s not too much trouble.”
“Anything, my Lord Regent,” Pinesteel said placing her delicate hand on his large scarred one.
They had always had a platonic relationship but Maerec knew that she always wanted more than that. “Do you still have your father’s old armor in his study,” he asked kindly.
Pinesteel thought for a moment and shrugged, “That part of my home has been blocked off for so long. Frankly I’m not sure if he was just buried with it or not.” She was only three when her father had been murdered by some voltage zealot and most likely couldn’t remember what the armor even looked like. “I’m truly sorry, my lord.”
“That’s alright, my dear,” Maerec said, “I would still be most grateful if you could check anyways. I know it’s asking a lot but there’s something I need from it. Something that meant a lot to your father and that I desire.”
Pinesteel looked at him suspiciously, “If I find his armor I’m going to need to know what it is.” She was always a clever girl, even in her youth. She saw right through Maerec’s ruse and he couldn’t help but be proud of her genius intellect.
“How about this,” he said quietly, flipping his hand over and squeezing hers gently, “I’ll tell you what it is, but you have to promise you’ll find the armor no matter how long it takes. If it’s not in your home, I want you to check his grave and if it’s not there I want you to check the chambers. He may have left it in one of them.”
Pinesteel nodded and smiled. He knew she couldn’t resist any dorm a flirting from him.
And that’s how he liked it.
VI.
“Well, it looks like you’re going to kill me after all.” Deric leaned against the hard wall and took several deep breaths. Deric looked as Emilia collected what little rainwater had seeped through cracks into the cavern with her blouse. There were a lot of things he wasn’t but he liked to consider himself a gentleman. He stared at the walls of the room, trying to block Emilia’s topless form from his peripherals. “If you’ve only got so much water, go ahead and drink it. That way, we can both get what we want.” He hadn’t eaten anything since they entered the cave three days ago, nor had any water in the past two, and was getting weaker by the minute.
“That’s not fair,” Emilia said gathering the last bit of droplets that she could. “It would be the dehydration that kills you, not me.” She approached him and he closed his eyes while she squeezed nearly half t
he water from her shirt into his mouth. “When you die, I want you to know that it was me.”
“Well,” Deric said through a rough coughing fit from the water, “You’re the one who got us lost, so I think I’ll let it count.”
Opening his eyes a little, he could make out a small smile forming on her lips. “I didn’t get us lost,” she said. “It’s this damn cavern. There must have been a cave in not too long ago. But I think I know where to go from here.” Deric heard her squeeze the last remnants of water out of her shirt and the sound of her pulling the wet shirt back over her bare skin. “Do you hear that humming noise?”
Deric opened his eyes and listened silently. She was right, there was a soft humming coming from the south of the cavern. “Yeah,” he grumbled. “What is it?”
Emilia helped him up and pointed to the wall where the sound was coming from. “The circuit must be on the other side of this rock. Luckily, I think there’s still a path that would take us all the way around to the entrance.
Deric walked over to the wall and placed his against it. A faint vibration moved through his fingertips and he couldn’t help but wonder of the immense power that was only a few inches beyond his reach. “How did you turn it on?”
Emilia was already halfway down the path of the over passageway. “We didn’t,” her voice echoed against the rocks. “It was already on when we found it.” There was a pause before she spoke again. “Actually, that was how we found it.”
Deric started to make his way down the path as well, curiosity biting at him as he walked. “Enlighten me about this discovery.”
Emilia’s voice was getting louder and louder the more he walked down the path, “Well,” she said, “We were walking near the bottom of the plateau; where all those spiky rocks are and heard a noise coming from behind them. That night we hiked up to the top and found out how to make our way to the entrance just like we did three days ago. It only took us a few hours before we found the entrance.”
“Are you ever going to tell me who we is?” Deric was getting close, and he could make out Emilia’s figure in the dark. Now more than ever, he wished they had brought a torch. Fumbling around in the dark for something to hold onto was not his idea of a good time.
“Who do you think I am talking about?”
Deric had his suspicions. Other than some that zealots that plagued the region, there was only one person with the knowledge of how chambers worked who would risk betraying the Lord Regent. “How the hell did Baric climb down that cliff?” He had reached where she was and was only a few inches from her now. He could see how the wet blouse accentuated her curves and how her chest was reacting to the cold. “Last time I saw him, he looked ancient.”
Emilia noticed how he was staring and covered herself in response, “It doesn’t matter.” Carefully, she lifted her hand and pointed to their left. “We’re here anyways.”
Deric turned around. The hard rock had bent in almost a foot and inside was a large steel door. It seemed to be in good condition considering its age. But whatever symbols were etched on its face were long gone, worn away by time. Deric walked forward and touched it. The steel was as cold as ice and gave him a small shock when his skin made contact with the metal. “How do we get in,” he asked.
Emilia walked passed him and motioned toward a large lever at the bottom of the wall. “I’m going to need your help lifting it,” she said placing both hands on the mechanism.
Deric nodded and knelt down. Placing his hands where hers weren’t, he pulled with all the strength he could muster. Slowly, the wall began to rise and light started to fill the cavern. When the wall was pulled up halfway, Deric yelled and pulled as hard as he could. As if his body had listened to his commanding bellow, the wall was flung all the way up into the ceiling, where it latched on to another mechanism, holding it in place.
“After you,” Emilia said quietly.
Deric nodded and went inside.
What he saw before him made his heart sink. The whole room was live with voltage, the Ancient Power running through all the lights into a large machine in the back. The large generator, at least that’s what he thought they were called, was responsible for the humming. But it wasn’t that, the lights or the other live machines in the room that made him feel sick.
It was the seal that was imprinted on the generator. The seal of the Lord Regent. Deric fell to his hands and knees and began to weep. All his courage, all his pride was washed away when he saw the seal of the only man he thought he could trust. He had done terrible things for Maerec, killed an innocent man for him, all for the so-called cause of preventing the use of the Ancient Power. Yet here it was, Maerec’s biggest lie, crushing Deric’s very being.
Emalia kneeled down next to him and placed a hand on the small of his back. “See,” she said, “I told you that if you saw what I saw. You’d want to take your own life.”
Deric looked up at her, tears in his eyes. “No,” he whispered. “I don’t want to die yet.” He stood up from the steel floor and turned to face Emilia. Placing a warm hand her shoulder. “Not until I repent for what I did. Not until I rip that lying bastard’s throat from his neck.”
VII.
The armor took four guards to carry it into Maerec’s study. To stand it up right it took six including Councilor Pinesteel. She had found the set in the Chamber Three, adjacent to the temple in town. Her father must have kept it there knowing that Maerec or some other high official would be the only one to find it. It stood at almost seven feet tall and was made from the finest metals in all the region. The chest plate had the Pinesteel crest, a sword and pine branch crossed over a shield made of solid gold.
“Well done, my child,” Maerec said looking up in awe at his new prize. He stroked the large metal arm and felt how smooth it was. “This armor has never seen battle. Truthfully, I think your father wore it only once, and that was in my presence.”
Councilor Pinesteel smiled, “It is a magnificent set, my Lord Regent. My father was never one to damage something so beautiful.”
“He was magnificent in it. Oh, you should have seen him, child. He was a god among mortals and he knew it.” Maerec walked around to the back of the suit. Near the hip was a small slot that was hidden to all who didn’t know of its existence. Gently, he pulled it open and withdrew the small chip that that was nestled inside. “And this is what gave him his immortality.”
Pinesteel looked at the small chipped confused, “I doubt that a mere extra piece of armor could benefit my father so much.” She reached out to touch but Maerec pulled his arm back slowly.
“It is no mere extra piece my dear,” Maerec said holding the chip up. “This is what your father had spent his life’s work creating. If only you could understand the power that this gave him oh-but that wouldn’t be wise. I promised to keep it a secret.”
“You promised to tell me everything once I found it,” she said. “I think my father would have wanted me to know.” She walked back around the set and placed her hand on the chest piece like Maerec did. “At least, I hope he thought me trustworthy enough.”
“Of course he did, my child,” Maerec said with a sly smile. “Forgive me for being so callous. It has just been so long since I’ve seen this. I almost lose myself in its beauty.” He handed her the chip, “Why don’t you go ahead and activate it it?”
“Activate it?”
“Yes,” he said. “On the desk near my study, there is a slot just like the one on your father’s armor. Place it inside and pull the small lever next to the shelf. The one over there.”
Pinesteel studied the chip before she nodded and made her way to the table. Maerec heard the clicking of the chip entering the slot and smiled. She then made her way to the lever and placed both hands on it, giving it a rough pull. A loud hum began to fill the room as Maerec now made his way to the table. “When I give the order,” he said. “Push the lever back in place.”
“Yes Lord Regent.”
“Now.”
Pinesteel pus
hed with all her might and locked the lever back into place. Almost instantly the humming stopped and the chip was automatically ejected from the slot. Maerec took it in his hands and felt the heat it was giving off. Turning around he lifted the chip up to show Pinesteel, “This is how we are going to rid the world of the Ancient Power.”
Pinesteel looked taken aback at the statement, “I don’t understand my Lord Regent.”
Maerec smiled, “Have you ever heard the phrase fight fire with fire?”
Pinesteel shook her head.
“It’s a saying from the Old World. The only way I can help you understand is if I show you.” Maerec walked past her and replaced the chip into the armor’s slot. In moments, the suit began to move and gave off subtle discharges of voltage. The Ancient Power was giving life to the suit once again.
“But my Lord Regent,” Pinesteel said, “You would go against your own decree and control the abomination?” She caught on quick and by the look on her face, Maerec could see that she had listened to him all too well.
“That’s why that phrase makes sense, child. To destroy the Ancient Power, one must use it himself.” Maerec climbed into the suit and let it stand at its full height. He felt powerful and each step he took was the step of a giant. The earth shook at his feet as he turned to face Councilor Pinesteel. “You see, child, this is the only way. This is the only way the world will be free from the fear of Nature’s Fire.
Then Maerec smiled inside the helmet, It’s a shame you won’t be around to see it. And in one movement he lifted his left arm and slammed it against Pinesteel’s chest. Instantly, her body flew across the room, a look of surprise and betrayal on her face. She hit the wall with a large crack, the sound of her neck snapping echoing around room before she fell to the ground. Maerec looked down, her lifeless form twitching on the floor, a pool of blood beginning to form on the rug.
No one must know of what I am about to do…