“I know,” said Jane as she crouched. “It’s all those burned monsters.”
The air was less smoky closer to the ground, which allowed Jane to tolerate the stench somewhat. The smoke mostly lingered overhead, barely moving except to swirl when they passed by. They made their way toward a carved opening at the end of the corridor.
“Sawyer,” whispered Jane.
“Yeah?”
“What if Geoff is the only one who can get us back home and what if he is…you know. Gone.”
There was no answer.
“What would we do?”
“I dunno.”
Jane turned to speak to Sawyer, but as she did she stepped on a loose stone and fell. She put her hand out to break her fall. A jagged piece of stone pierced her palm. She cried out in pain and quickly sat up. She was covered with soot. Jane was relieved to find she could sit on the stone floor without burning herself.
“Jane,” whispered Sawyer, “are you okay?”
He reached down to help her up, but Jane waved him off, irritated with her clumsiness.
Jane looked at the blackened piece of stone sticking out from her palm. Her blood looked black in the green light as it ran past her wrist and down her arm. Ariel knelt beside her and quickly plucked the sharp stone from her palm. Next she withdrew two leaves from her belt pouch and placed them firmly over the wound.
“Here,” she said. “Press this over the wound. It will ease the pain for now and stop the bleeding.”
Jane did as she was told. Ariel wrapped a leather strap around Jane’s hand to keep the leaves in place.
“Better?” she asked.
Jane blinked for a moment and looked at her injured hand. The pain was already subsiding. She nodded.
“Thank you.”
Jane struggled to her feet and looked down. She was filthy, like she had just finished cleaning a few chimneys. Without a word Ariel went forward into the room at the end of the corridor.
“Jane, are you okay?” asked Sawyer.
“Yeah. I feel better,” she said.
They followed Ariel into the room, but soon realized it was a dead end. In the middle of the room lay part of a charred mite.
“That’s strange,” said Sawyer. “Looks like only half of the room is all burned up, starting with that mite there.”
Jane looked at the walls and crypts. Sawyer was right. Only half of the tomb was scorched. The white hot flames had started at the carrion mite and flowed out of the room and down the hall toward them.
“So where’s Geoff?” asked Jane. “What happened here?”
Jane looked to Ariel for answers. The druid was examining the base of the far wall, which had not been scorched.
“Ariel?” said Jane. “Where’s Geoff?”
“You don’t think that he was caught in the flames and got cremated, do you?” asked Sawyer.
“No,” said Ariel. “I do not think Geoff perished in the flames. I think perhaps he accidentally conjured the ball of fire to defend himself.”
Jane stood still and thought for a moment, not sure if she heard Ariel clearly.
“Um, what?” she asked.
Ariel glanced over her shoulder at Jane and Sawyer.
“Earlier Geoff had shown an affinity for wizard magic. Do you remember his mage stone glowed white? I think he ran into this room and the mite followed him. However…”
Ariel’s voice trailed off as she knelt and began studying the floor.
“Hold on,” said Sawyer. “You mean to tell us that Geoff sent that ball of fire down the hall? No way. That’s just crazy.”
“Geoff’s just a kid. What does he know about magic?” asked Jane.
“He was not alone,” said Ariel. “There are two more sets of footprints here.”
“Huh? Who else would be down here?” said Sawyer.
“More grave robbers,” said Ariel.
“Then where are they? And where is Geoff?” asked Jane again.
“Yeah,” said Sawyer nodding and looking about.
“It appears they took Geoff,” said Ariel. “If Geoff did conjure that fireball, the strain must have been too much for him to bear.”
Jane shook her head and snickered.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“Jane’s right,” said Sawyer. “Geoff can’t cast spells. He doesn’t know any magic. We don’t have spells and that kind of stuff back home.”
“I cannot say what happened to Geoff with certainty,” said Ariel. She turned around and began running her fingers over the stones in the wall.
“However,” she said, “since there is no sign of Geoff or his blackened bones, it is safe to assume he either escaped or was taken.”
“Jane,” said Sawyer, “maybe Geoff can do magic. I mean, when he first touched that key it lit up. It didn’t do that for me. And his mage stone glowed white.”
Jane thought for a moment. It was true that Geoff was the one who was responsible for them being here in the first place. After all, they had tried to save him and they were all pulled through the portal. She looked at Sawyer.
“Do you know how insane that sounds?”
Sawyer nodded, “Yeah. But here we are.”
Click.
“There it is,” said Ariel. “Secret door.”
“What secret door?” asked Jane.
They watched as Ariel pushed against the stone wall and a concealed door opened. Ariel stepped through and looked down.
“Two sets of human-sized footprints,” said Ariel. “I do not see Geoff’s footprints.”
Jane and Sawyer walked through the newly discovered door and found themselves in a natural cave. The ground was moist and tree roots hung from the ceiling. There was a damp, earthy smell, but Jane felt a fresh breeze and took a deep breath. She was relieved to find the air was cooler and not filled with stifling smoke.
“So if a couple of guys got Geoff,” said Sawyer, “how bad are they? These grave robbers.”
“They are the worst sort,” said Ariel. “One who robs the dead is capable of the basest acts. They would not hesitate to kill anyone for their valuables.”
“They won’t hurt him, will they?” asked Jane.
Ariel looked at Jane. “I do not know. But we must hurry if we are to save him.”
With that, Ariel, Jane, and Sawyer followed the passage to the mouth of the cave. The opening was covered by a thick layer of tree branches, concealing the entrance. They pushed their way through the branches and emerged into the cool night air. They found themselves back in the forest. Moonlight infiltrated the trees, seeping through their branches and casting a soft radiance on them.
“This way,” said Ariel.
She grabbed the glowing mage stone floating above her head, extinguished it, and returned it to her pouch.
“Oh,” said Jane.
She searched her pockets and realized her mage stone was missing.
“I think my glow gem was destroyed in the fire.”
“At least you had one and could use it,” said Sawyer. “Hey, look at how bright the moon is. I can see.”
Ariel stopped at a small copse of trees.
“Horses,” she said and pointed down. “Their horses were tied here. Their tracks will be easy to follow.”
“Yeah, but they’re gone,” said Sawyer. “We can’t outrun horses.”
“We must hurry,” said Ariel. “For Geoff’s sake and to distance ourselves from the werewolf.”
“Maybe Eben killed it,” suggested Jane hopefully.
With all that had happened, she had forgotten they were being stalked by a werewolf.
Jane looked behind them. There was the silhouette of Silverthorne Manor on a hill. An orange glow emanated from the
center of the walled compound.
“Hey, look,” said Jane, pointing back toward the keep. “Is the keep on fire?”
Ariel turned and walked past Jane.
“Yes,” she said. “It burns.”
As they watched the burning keep Jane thought she heard Ariel quietly sigh and whisper “Eben” under her breath. Then her heart sank as she realized their situation had drastically deteriorated.
“Ariel,” said Jane, “We don’t have Geoff with us anymore and we still don’t have the key or an archway. What do we do now?”
Chapter Sixteen
The Brigands
“C’mon! Faster, horse! Hah!”
“Rolf, whaddaya think a small hedge wizard’ll fetch?”
“Dunno,” said the first, deeper voice. “Ole Aiden’ll decide.”
“Wonder what that was we heard in the bushes rolling around outside Silverthorne Village?”
“Bah! Musta been a bear.”
“Bear? That was one big bear! Well, whatever it was, I’m glad we left it alone. I heard tell of strange creatures roaming about in the forests at night.”
Geoff awakened to the sound of rough voices. He strained to hear more. He found himself bound, gagged, and draped over a horse’s saddle. He lifted his head so he could see where he was, but a hand grabbed the back of his neck and forced him back down. The hand was callused and large—large enough to wrap itself nearly all the way around his neck.
“’ey there! Get yer ’ead down an’ stay still!” growled the deep, rough voice.
In the darkness all Geoff could see was the ground as it flew by in a blurred motion. Who are these men? Geoff wondered. Why was he tied up?
“Trouble there, Rolf?” asked the first voice.
“Nah. The boy woke up is all.”
Geoff felt a tingling sensation deep in his chest and a sharp pain in his head. It reminded him of how he felt when he gulped down too much cold soda at one time, a brain freeze. He moaned and closed his eyes. He let his body go limp, surrendering to whatever situation he found himself in. The cool night air rushed by while he bounced on the saddle. Before he went unconscious again, he heard the large man above him speak.
“Almost there. Better lemme do the talkin’. Aiden’ll be mad we didn’t come back with nothin’ shiny, but at least we got this lil wizard.”
The next thing Geoff knew, cool water trickled from his scalp past his temples and into his ears. It caused Geoff to shudder and turn his head. A wet cloth fell from his forehead. He was lying on a hard wooden surface and he smelled the smoke from a nearby fire. He heard voices and every now and then someone laughed.
The pain in Geoff’s head had subsided, and with the exception of a bruised neck, he was fine. He opened his eyes. It was dark. He raised his head and surveyed his surroundings. His hands and feet were still bound, but his gag had been removed. He noticed bars all around and realized he was in some kind of cage. The cage was sitting on the back of a wagon, and bits of straw were scattered about the floor.
“You should be still,” said a girl’s voice from behind him.
Geoff looked over his shoulder and saw a girl in the dark corner of the cage. He was unable to see her face because it was covered by her dark blond hair. She was small, about his size.
“Who are you?” Geoff croaked. His throat was dry.
The girl didn’t answer. Geoff squirmed and twisted himself around so he was facing her.
“Where are we?” he asked.
“Trouble,” said the girl. “We are in trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“The worst kind,” she said. “Are you really a wizard?”
“Me?” asked Geoff. “A wizard? No way.”
The girl leaned forward, and Geoff could see she was a young elven girl. Her face was smudged, but not enough to conceal her attractive features. The angular contours of her jaw and cheeks reminded Geoff of Ariel. Her hands were bound too.
“They think you are,” she said, nodding toward a group of men gathered around a campfire.
“Huh?” said Geoff.
“They think you are some kind of wizard. Are you an apprentice, perhaps?”
“No.” Geoff shook his head.
She leaned back into the darkness and sighed.
“Then we are doomed,” she said.
“What do you mean?” asked Geoff. “I don’t understand.”
He scooched his way to the bars at the side of the cage opposite the elf girl. It was a small cage, but large enough for their two slight figures.
“Who are these people?” he asked.
“Thieves,” said the elf girl. “Robbers and slavers. In other words, typical humans.”
“What do they want with us?” asked Geoff, ignoring the slight.
“Simple,” she said. “They wish to sell me to the highest bidder, and you…well, if you are not a wizard then I suspect they will try to make a slave of you and then perhaps kill you…eventually.”
Geoff frowned. He licked his lips, then wriggled his hands and wrists in an effort to free himself. Almost got it, he thought. Just a little more. He had nearly worked one hand free when he heard a familiar voice.
“There he is. That lil hedge wizard there’ll fetch us a pretty sum of coins.”
It was the booming voice of the big man who had Geoff draped over his saddle.
Geoff stopped what he was doing and looked in the direction of the campfire. A giant of a man was standing beside the cage pointing at him. He had a thick, bushy mustache that rested under a crooked, scarred nose. His bald head glistened in the firelight. He was dressed in a mismatched bit of leather armor that was clearly too tight for his large belly. A shorter man with a medium build emerged from behind the giant and held a lantern up to the cage.
The first thing Geoff noticed were his eyes. They were black. He sneered at Geoff with an expression that was devoid of any compassion. His thin beard and mustache were as black as his eyes, and his olive skin looked rough and leathery. He wore a leather jerkin over a long white shirt that was unbuttoned enough to reveal a gold chain around his neck.
“So, boy,” said the man. “Rolf here says you’re a wizard. Tell me, can you cast spells?”
Geoff shuddered and swallowed, but said nothing. He knew a bully when he saw one.
“I asked you a question, boy,” snarled the man with the lantern.
Geoff stared at him.
“Aiden, I tell ya he was in them catacombs of that there Silverthone Castle an’ he casted a spell that not only fried a buncha them fat, dead-eatin’ mites, but his friends, too. Cedric ’ere saw it too.”
A small, chubby man appeared on the other side of the man called Aiden, nodding his head.
“True enough,” said Cedric. “This here boy lit everything up. White flames everywhere! Rolf and me barely got out with our lives. We thought ye might like ’aving a wizard around. We heard they was good luck and all.”
“’ere,” said Rolf, presenting the dagger Ariel had given Geoff. “He had this ‘ere elven knife, too. Figured ‘e was doin’ a bit o’ grave robbin’ ‘imself.”
“Him? Hah!” said Aiden as he took the elven dagger and without a word he reached into the cage and jabbed Geoff in the arm.
“Ow! Aarrgghh!” Geoff jerked away, grabbing his arm. The pain shot right through him. Geoff looked at Aiden. He didn’t have to do that, he thought. What does he want?
“So he can speak,” growled Aiden. “But I’ll be damned if he’s a wizard. Come the morning he better be castin’ spells or it’ll be yer hides.”
Aiden leaned forward so his long, thin nose protruded through the bars.
“And if you don’t cast any spells that’ll make me rich, then I’ll cut you into lil bits and use you
as bait next time we go fishing.”
Aiden halfheartedly lunged at Geoff through the bars with the knife. Geoff scooted away. Tears welled up in his eyes. Aiden laughed, and Rolf and Cedric joined in.
“At least we’ll have some sport with him,” said Aiden. “Make him squirm and squeal before we’re done.”
The three men walked back to the campfire. Geoff lay against the far side of the cage looking at his arm as tears rolled down his cheeks. He felt the warmth of his blood as it ran down the length of his arm to his wrist. Sawyer and Jane are dead? That can’t be, he thought.
“Is it true? Did you kill your friends?” asked the elven girl.
Geoff looked at her and shook his head.
“No. Well…I don’t think so. I couldn’t have,” he said as he winced in pain.
“That is a strange answer,” she said.
“What I mean is I don’t remember,” said Geoff. “I was running in the dark. A big carrion mite was chasing me. It got closer and closer until it was on me. Then…”
Geoff paused.
“I thought I was going to die. I felt a pain deep in my chest and my head began to ache. I think I screamed, but I’m not sure. The next thing I remember I was a prisoner. It seems like a dream now.”
The elven girl sat silently in her corner of the cage.
“I don’t know what they’re talking about,” said Geoff. “I wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
He heard fabric ripping and before he knew it the elf was next to him binding his arm. Geoff watched her. Now that she was closer, he could see that she looked to be his age. Her smooth, slender hands moved quickly to stop the bleeding. He was amazed at how she was able to bind his wound with her hands tied.
“Thanks,” he said. “I’m Geoff.”
She glanced at him for a second as she finished tying the bandage.
“Ishara,” she replied.
Geoff smiled. “That’s a nice name.”
She returned to her corner without a word. Geoff opened his mouth to continue the conversation, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. He was tired and his arm hurt. He leaned back against the cage and continued to wriggle his hands. Was it true? His memory is fuzzy. Cast a spell? Him? Sawyer and Jane can’t be dead, and especially not Ariel. She’s such a powerful druid. But what if they were dead? There wouldn’t be any way to get home now.
Wizard's Key (The Darkwolf Saga Book 1) Page 19