The Dark Monolith: Heroes of Ravenford Book 3

by F. P. Spirit

  Alana shook her head. “Be careful!” she reiterated, then went off to follow Ruka.

  Donnie’s expression was one of complete bewilderment. He eyed Elistra imploringly. “What’d I do?”

  “If you don’t know by now...” the seeress began, then fell silent.

  Donnie flashed her one of his brightest smiles, then invoked his Boots of the Spider. Glo grabbed his friend by the arm and leaned in close. “Keep the wind at your back. Don’t let it catch you from the side, or you’ll go flying like Seth.”

  “Just like sailing,” Donnie acknowledged.

  Glo wished him luck, then let go of his friend’s arm. The slight elf strode over to edge of the alcove, leapt onto the railing, and stretched his hand out to the wall. It stuck fast. Donnie reached out with his other hand and grasped the wall with it. Moments later, Donnie was crawling across the chamber like a spider.

  Donatello slowly crept his way across the wall of the chamber, the wind steadily beating on him from behind. He looked down and saw nothing but grey mists. He looked up and saw the same. The slight elf gulped and refocused his attention on the alcove that was his destination, still quite far away. Donnie, what have you gotten yourself into this time?

  The chance meeting with Elladan at the tailor’s in Ravenford had led him down a breakneck path to his current perilous situation. True, it was not the first time his life had taken such an unexpected turn—in fact, it had been full of them. From his early days running with a gang of cutpurses, to his servitude to Lord Flynn, and then his time under Captain Mor’Findlas on the Pirate Coast, his life had been a series of near-disastrous events. If there was danger involved, somehow he always managed to be smack in the middle of it.

  Still, this current little adventure had its share of moments. From their triumph over the Serpent Cult at Ravenford Keep, to the successful clearing of the monsters in Lake Strikken, this little group had made a name for itself. Heck, they were even close to finding the treasures of Larketh, the Golem Thrall Master. How many folks could say that?

  There had been some surprises as well. Donnie had never placed much stock in psychics before, pegging most of them as con-artists and charlatans. Elistra, on the otherhand, had turned out to be the real deal.

  “Stay the course and you may very well find what you seek,” she had said back in Ravenford. Just how much did the beautiful seeress know about the past of which he never spoke?

  It was a past that he was constantly reminded of whenever he saw the young teen, Ruka. It was more than just her physical appearance, though. It was the way she carried herself, her aloofness and cutting wit that was so hauntingly familiar. It would be so easy to let himself believe that she’d somehow come back to him, returned in the form of this young shape shifter. But the gods had never been that kind to him. No Donnie, it’s better to leave the past where it belongs.

  His thoughts then drifted to the Dame Alana. From the moment he first laid eyes on her, he had felt a strong attraction to the winsome lady knight. In fact, his heart skipped a beat whenever he was around the lovely red-head. Yet it was not just her appearance that drew him, for he had known many women and found beauty in them all.

  What truly attracted him was the combination of strength and grace she displayed. It made her a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, and yet none of that had hardened her. Fearsome as the lady knight was in combat, she was just as gentle-natured outside of it—well, most of the time. Still, her temper did not dissuade him, but rather fueled his interest even more.

  Donnie roused himself from his musings—the alcove was now only a few yards away. When he reached the edge, he paused and scanned the niche carefully. Something didn’t feel right. Nothing looked out of place, but still, he couldn’t shake the feeling of impending danger. Donnie had learned to trust his instincts over the years, and it had saved his skin more than once. He wasn’t quite sure what was amiss here, but he had an idea how to find out.

  He pulled a coin out of his purse, stretched his arm out, and flipped it forward with two fingers. The coin flew through the air, end over end, landing on the floor of the alcove with a clink. As soon as it hit the ground, sparks began to fly everywhere. The entire floor of the alcove lit up, arcs of electricity dancing across its surface. It was so bright that Donnie had to shield his eyes. A few seconds later, it was over.

  Donnie uncovered his eyes and searched for the coin. He quickly found it, or at least what was left of it. In place of the coin, a slag of melted copper sat on the floor. The discharge of electricity had been so intense that it melted the metal. Donnie let out a deep sigh. “Phew, guess I won’t be stepping in there.”

  The slight elf climbed into the alcove, careful to stick to the wall. Donnie had always been a quick study, and his short time with Seth this day had paid off. He had not gone even a few feet when he spotted a set of cables running to the floor. They had been fairly well masked, inset and painted the same color as the wall, but Donnie found them nonetheless. He followed them up to a section of wall where they stopped.

  Donnie saw nothing at first, but felt around there anyway. His fingers soon outlined a small, invisible box attached to the wall. He swiftly found the latch and popped it open. The entire box immediately became visible. Inside was a glowing bulb that connected to the two cables that ran from the box. Next to the bulb was a switch and a keyhole. Donnie tried the switch at first, but it was locked firmly in place. No matter.

  Donnie reached into a pouch on his belt and pulled out his favorite lock pick. The little pick appeared quite well used, but it had seen him through many a tight spot through the years. Donnie inserted it into the lock and jiggled it around. The lock turned out to be a standard pin-tumbler. Donnie fiddled with the pins for a bit until he heard a loud click. The tumblers fell into place and the glowing bulb immediately went dark. Donnie felt rather pleased with himself. Not bad, if I have to say so myself.

  Just to be safe, he reached into his purse and pulled out another coin. He then flipped it onto the floor and shielded his eyes. Nothing happened. Donnie smiled as he stepped down onto the floor, first one foot, then the other. Without warning, the floor shot out from underneath him! The force was so great that even his Boots of the Spider could not hold him in place. Donnie was launched backwards, out of the alcove where the wind swiftly grabbed hold of him. Before he knew it, he was being spun end over end, out into the center of the chamber.

  Above the Clouds

  A long stone bridge stretched out before them, its piers rising out of the mists below

  When Ruka saw Donnie get launched out of the alcove, the young teen nearly jumped over the railing into the chamber. Alana had to grab her by arm and forcibly hold her back. “You can’t get to him. The wind is too strong!”

  Ruka jerked her arm free. “Oh, yeah? Just watch me!”

  “Wait!” Elladan cried to the duo. “Look!”

  Out in the chamber, Donnie flipped end over end, the wind whipping him through the air. As he drew near a floating disc, the slight elf pulled in his arms and legs, curling his body into a tight ball. Suddenly his hands shot out, barely catching the edge of the disc. Donnie yanked himself forward, flipping his legs under himself, and firmly planted his boots on the bottom of the disc. The disc wobbled precariously for a few seconds, then finally stopped. The onlookers breathed a collective sigh.

  “Didn’t I tell you?” Elladan yelled over the wind. “Nothing to worry about!”

  The companions watched as the acrobatic elf carefully climbed over the top of the disc. He crouched there, both hands and feet planted on the surface. Donnie rode the disc until it neared another one, then deftly leapt to that one. He rode that disc to the center of the room, then jumped aboard the larger platform. Seth met with him, the pair having a brief conversation. When they were done, Seth headed to the right-most edge of the platform, while Donnie carefully crept his
way down the narrow walkway toward them. A few seconds later, a disc reached the central platform and Seth leapt on board, beginning a journey toward the right side of the chamber.

  “What’s he doing?” Lloyd cried over the rushing wind.

  “I think he’s trying to make it to the right alcove!” Aksel yelled his answer.

  The companions followed Seth’s progress as he approached another disc. The halfling leapt to that one, bringing himself one step closer to the right side of the chamber. Donnie reached them while Seth was still in transit. The moment he entered the alcove, both Ruka and Alana rushed up to the elf. Donnie visibly flinched, but instead of scolding him, the duo threw their arms around his waist. His eyes went wide. “Whoa! What’d I do?”

  Alana, not letting go, exclaimed, “You scared the heck out of us!”

  Ruka, still holding him tight, yelled, “Don’t you dare do that again!”

  Donnie placed an arm around each of their shoulders. “Trust me, that is not a performance I want to repeat!”

  Alana and Ruka slowly let him go and stepped back. Donnie gazed from one to the other with clear affection. “Unfortunately, I need to go back out there!” he yelled over the whooshing sound of the chamber.

  Without warning, Ruka lashed out and punched him in the arm again. “Be more careful this time!”

  Donnie grabbed his arm, but didn’t complain, instead, gazing at the young teen fondly. Ruka spun around and stomped away, covertly wiping the moisture from her eyes. Alana stepped forward once more, this time embracing Donnie like a comrade. “Good luck!”

  Donnie gave her a bright smile, then visibly steeling himself, strode to the edge of the alcove and climbed back out onto the wall.

  A few moments later, Seth reached the alcove embedded into the right side of the chamber. After his discussion with Donnie, Seth knew the floor here was electrified, so instead of leaping directly to the alcove, he jumped toward the wall of the chamber. The wind buffeted him, but he had already accounted for that and landed neatly just outside the alcove. Seth carefully climbed into the recess, keeping to the wall. He swiftly found the trap mechanism just where Donnie said it would be. Seth had to admit he was impressed. This elf learns pretty fast.

  Even so, Seth would never admit that to his face. Donnie also warned him about the spring trap underneath the floor. Seth could have searched for that box, too, but didn’t feel like wasting more time. Instead, he climbed around the back of the alcove and stepped down on top of the lever, straddling it with either leg. He grasped the lever with both hands and gave it a hard yank. It easily pulled back, clicking into place. Outside the alcove, the wind began to slow down. Seth smirked with satisfaction. So these levers do serve a purpose after all.

  The halfling quickly climbed back onto the wall and out of the alcove, beginning the long crawl across the chamber toward the recess opposite the entrance.

  Just as Donnie reached the alcove on the left side of the chamber, the winds began to die down. Although he couldn’t see from this angle, Donnie assumed that Seth had pulled the switch across the way. Donnie carefully climbed along the wall until he reached the back of the alcove. It took a bit of balancing, but he reached for the lever while still standing on the wall. Donnie grasped it with both hands, giving it a good tug. The switch moved toward him, clicking into the opposite position. Out in the chamber, the winds died down even more. Donnie grinned in triumph. So it is the levers!

  Donnie swiftly climbed out of the alcove and made his way along the wall to the one opposite the entrance. When he got there, Seth had already arrived and disabled the electrical trap. Donnie watched as the halfling straddled the last switch and pulled it. Once it clicked into place, the wind in the chamber died down and stopped. Across the way, Donnie heard cheering. He spun around and saw the others waving and crying out in triumph. With a brief wave, he turned back to Seth.

  “And just when I had gotten used to the ringing in my ears,” Donnie quipped.

  Seth, however, paid little attention to him. Instead, the halfling seemed fascinated with the back wall of the recess. Donnie squinted his eyes and followed Seth’s gaze, but saw nothing. “Find something?”

  “False wall,” Seth answered, reaching for a spot on the back wall of the alcove. He moved his fingers up and down, then abruptly stopped and pushed against a section of the wall. A door slid open in the wall next to him. Donnie could see a small room beyond the doorway, with another lever. He eyed the floor suspiciously. “How much you want to bet it’s electrified?”

  Seth’s face remained impassive. “Probably. I’ll check for traps if you get the switch.”

  “Sure.”

  Halfling and elf climbed their way along the walls into the backoom. Sure enough, Seth found another trap mechanism. He quickly disabled it, then Donnie, already in position, climbed down and pulled the last switch. Out in the main chamber, the middle platform disconnected from the walkway and floated upward about a foot.

  “Interesting,” was Seth’s only comment.

  Donnie cocked his head to one side and stared at the platform curiously. “I wonder what it does now?”

  “Won’t know until we try it.”

  Donnie peered at Seth and shrugged. “Let’s go, then.”

  The duo climbed along the wall, back into the alcove, when Donnie got a sudden idea. He stopped halfway across the wall and turned his body around so he was facing toward the inside of the alcove. Seth stopped and glanced at him over his shoulder. “What are you doing?”

  “You’ll see,” Donnie replied mysteriously.

  Before Seth could say another word, Donnie jumped into the alcove. The floor immediately shot up, sending him flying out into the main chamber. Donnie heard cries of dismay from across the room, but he was too busy concentrating to pay them much attention. He flew through the air across the chamber, toward the central platform. When he started to lose momentum, Donnie pulled in his arms and legs and flipped through the air twice. The circular motion increased his speed just enough, allowing him to land on the central platform.

  Donnie landed in a crouch, then immediately stood up, and bowed to the folks at the entrance. He then turned around and bowed to Seth, feeling rather pleased with himself. Seth, however, was not to be outdone. The halfling repeated Donnie’s performance, launching himself into the chamber just as he had.

  Donnie stepped back and watched with keen appreciation as the halfling flew through the air and executed three perfect flips before landing on the platform in front of him. Donnie strode up to Seth, clapping slow and loud. “Nicely done—had to get in that third flip, I see.”

  “Yep,” Seth responded with a self-satisfied smirk.

  “You two are crazy!” Alana yelled from across the walkway.

  Donnie spun around and grinned at the lady knight. “You just figuring that out now?”

  After a short chuckle, the pair went over to the switch on the dais. Donnie stood back, proffering it to Seth. “Care to do the honors?”

  Seth nodded graciously. “Don’t mind if I do.”

  The halfling reached up and pulled the switch. The central platform rose slowly upward. After a few moments, Seth pulled the switch a second time. The platform stopped and descended back to its original position, hovering about a foot above the walkway.

  “Anyone want a ride?” Donnie called out from across the chamber.

  “I do!” Lloyd cried back, obviously eager to do something other than just standing and watching.

  “I’m coming, too,” Ruka shouted, though the teen sounded more annoyed than excited.

  Glo cast a quick glance around the group and shrugged. “Guess I should go. Someone has to keep them out of trouble.”

  Aksel gazed back at him and grimaced. “Unfortunately, you’re right.” He let out a brief sigh. “I’ll come along as well.”

&nb
sp; “I think I’ll be staying here,” Alana said, peering over the railing and cautiously eyeing the bottomless chamber below.

  “Me, too,” Elistra said, standing herself next to the lady knight.

  Elladan cast a half-smile at the others. “I guess I’ll stay and keep them company.”

  Aksel’s eyes flickered briefly around the alcove, and then he gave a brief nod. “Probably a good idea.”

  After a short goodbye, Lloyd, Glo, Aksel and Ruka crossed the narrow walkway to the central platform. When everyone was aboard, Seth pulled the switch.

  “Next stop, who knows where!” the halfling cried as they rose up toward the mists above.

  “Be safe,” Elistra called after them. Glo glanced down at seeress, noting the concern on her face. She stood at the railing of the alcove, not moving until the platform blocked her from view.

  “Wonder what we’re going to find up there?” Lloyd speculated aloud.

  Glo turned his gaze upward as the mists enveloped them, then everything went gray.

  The platform continued to rise through the mists, or at least that is what it felt like—it was hard to tell, with nothing but fog surrounding them. Glo held his breath, straining his ears to pick up any sound, but all he heard was the shallow breathing of his companions around him. Not even the rising platform made any noise. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they rose out of the clouds. A long stone bridge stretched out before them, its piers rising out of the mists below. Glo searched the mists, but could not tell what those piers were resting on.

  “Nice little trick there,” Seth said, with a nod toward the free-standing bridge.

  “Indeed,” Glo agreed.

  There was a circular hole in the bridge directly above them. The platform continued to rise until it passed through the hole, stopping when it was level with the bridge. Glo glanced toward both ends—the one side of the bridge ended in a blank wall, but the other side led to two large doors, inset into a tall archway.