Looming Shadow: Journey to Chaos book 2

by Brian Wilkerson

  “Eric...because you're not in the right mind, I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that second part. Anyway, Mount Heios is enveloped in a Fog Cloud. Without evidence that he's there, it's too dangerous to investigate, even for someone like me.”

  Zettai jumped to her feet, and ran towards the tower, only to be choked by Basilard grabbing the collar of her shirt.

  “I wanna go in there!”

  Basilard pulled her back to the campfire. “Calm down. You’ll die if you do that.”

  “He that is born to hang has no fear of drowning,” Eric recited. “The complexion of this lass is perfect gallows, so she should go.”

  Eric cupped her cheeks with both hands. Zettai's heart raced. She was flattered by his attention and scared by his prediction of her death. He brought their faces close together. Zettai closed her eyes, and Eric head-butted her.

  “Ow...”

  “Hmm... the mind-meld failed...Really? I need to kiss her?” Zettai blushed and hoped. “That's silly. It's a superstition of your time.” Her hopes fell. “Don't get dogmatic with me, old man!”

  “How long is this going to last?” Nolien asked.

  “The Trickster said one hour to one day,” Basilard replied.

  It wasn't an hour.

  Sias approached the fireplace to collect on her payment as a guide – a date. Basilard tried to deflect it by saying he had to watch Eric and Zettai but she glowered and flipped her long, pink hair. His resistance crumbled instantly. In the end, they decided that Zettai could talk with and/or listen to Eric while he carried on a two-person lecture. That way, they could babysit each other.

  Sias enfolded her arms around one of Basilard’s and walked off with him in one direction. Tiza grabbed Nolien's arm in one hand and yanked him in the other. Haburt shuffled in his current building, giggling like Mia with gossip.

  “She's a good study,” Eric said to thin air. For once, there was no Dengel of any kind around. “I taught her a good deal on the way here and she soaked it up like a sponge.” Zettai basked in the praise as visions of herself as a powerful mage danced in her head. “She would listen to you monologue all day, all night, in the bathroom...” She perked up and scowled. “Did I say something wrong?”

  Still scowling, she said, “Are you asking me or Dengel?”

  “...Uhh...what's the right answer? What do you mean you don't know?” Zettai brought out a book and chopped him on the head with the spine. “You're reading my book! Yes, I know you're the author, but I own this copy. Did you understand it?”

  “I had to ask Basilard to define some words, but I understood most of it.”

  “If you had the mana to fuel the spells, you'd make a mighty mage.”

  Zettai smiled and her heart lifted.

  “Too bad there's nothing here except the prohibitively dangerous lair and the unspeakable dangerously mountain.”

  Zettai's face fell. “Yeah...” Then it shifted sideways. “Too bad, indeed.”

  Dusty stone and old cobwebs; locked doors and mystic runes. This was the home of a mage arrogant enough to build himself a castle. To historians, it was a precious window to the past. To mages, it was a holy site. To Ceiha, it was taboo. To Tiza, it was a container for adventure and loot. While Eric was gone, she discovered an additional area of the tower. Now she prowled them with sword in one hand and healer in the other.

  “Are you going to tell me why we're doing this?”

  Tiza answered without looking back.

  “Professor Pathetic isn't the only history buff in the world. Anything here could be worth a fortune to the right person.” She continuously scanned the walls, floor, and ceiling for traps, but mostly for loot. Due to the ambient mana in the stones, everything was blurry in her Third Eye, but she managed, thanks to Spider Daylra’s training. “Just imagine what we could find!”

  “I am. That's why we should stay with Basilard.”

  “Look!” She pointed to a plaque above a door: a crest with a chest. “That must be the treasury.”

  “Then there will be traps.”

  “What's more important to a mage as egotistical and fixated on magic research as the Old Fossil: his vault or his lab?”

  “His lab.”

  “Then doesn't it stand to reason that the lab would be better protected?”

  “Yes, but –”

  Tiza yanked him forwards before he could finish.

  The door's lock was ancient but not rusted. Like the rest of the building, it was preserved by its master's power. The mechanism looked like it came out of the forge last week instead of the last millennium. Tiza considered shattering it with her hilt and strength charm but decided on a different approach. She withdrew a pouch of metal picks and examined the lock with Third Eye. Eventually, she was rewarded with a click and she pocketed her first loot.

  “An authentic lock from the Ancient Dengel period of Dengel's castle. In perfect collector’s edition and exclusive in number. This could pay for another shield.”

  “Or a lot more shoes...” Nolien muttered.

  Tiza whacked him, but he dodged, so instead, she entered the vault while muttering angrily. As she crossed the threshold, a rune activated. A cage dropped on her, but Nolien pulled her back before it could trap her.

  “Wonderful!”

  “You're welcome. Let's leave.”

  “Haven't you heard the phrase ‘pirates don't bury nickel’? Placing a trap means there's something worth guarding, which means there's something worth stealing.”

  Nolien backpedaled Tiza out of the room and placed himself between her and the door. He used his barrier to keep her out. She did something between a scowl and a pout while he examined the cage.

  “This cage has a paralysis rune on the inside of its roof. If this fell on you, you would be helpless. You couldn't even call for help.”

  “That's the beauty of the buddy system; you'll save me because you're a coward.”

  “No, I'll have to save you because you're reckless.”

  “I found a trap –”

  “You were caught by a trap –”

  Tiza's expression was now one hundred percent scowl. “– and it was a restraint trap. No matter what happens, you can just free me afterwards. What's the worst that could happen?”

  “Dengel could escape the Abyss, re-enter this world, float to this mountain, possess me, use my body to drag you somewhere, and then make you his slave.”

  Tiza drew a dagger, punctured a hole in Nolien's barrier, and ripped it open. The shock made the rest of it disappear and Tiza marched past him once again. “I am not some lily-handed lady whose chastity you have to protect.” Then she stopped and added in a small voice, “If that really did happen....would you save me?”

  Before he could reply, she ran away, dodging two more traps and avoiding a snare, and then turning a corner. Capturing no one, they instantly reset and Nolien carefully edged by them.

  After the turn, Tiza found herself in a narrow hallway that terminated with a doorway. Unlike the capture zone behind her, this hallway was decorated like a palace with paintings, rugs, and gilded walls. There were three doorways here; one to the left, one to the right, and one straight ahead. She didn't detect any traps on any of them, so she marched straight to the one on the right.

  It was disappointing. There was nothing here worth stealing. There was just a primitive mattress bed, a mirror, a closet, a chest, a bucket with dried stuff in it, and a rune glowing underneath. This wasn’t a vault; it was a bedroom. Someone lived here once upon a time, and judging by the decorations, it was someone Dengel wanted to keep comfortable.

  Her attention returned to the chest. If someone important lived here, then that someone might have something important. Giddy with anticipation, she crouched in front of it. The wood was covered in runes that Tenderfoot or Dimwit would recognize. One that was repeated over and over was ten intersecting lines that dimly glowed golden-brown. The boys would spend hours deciphering them and debating the best method to open the chest. Tiz
a yanked the thing open. Her face fell once again when she saw the contents.

  Robes, gowns, dresses, kirtles, and the assorted accessories; a tent’s treasure chest for sure. She would have slammed the chest shut had something shiny not caught her eye. Gold threads were sewn into them along with precious gems. All of them were in stunning condition for being two thousand years old. She pulled one out.

  It was a deep blue color and made of silk. The design was high-necked and short-sleeved with a long skirt that had slits down the sides. Gold tassels hung from the sleeves, the waist, and hem. Runes were sewn into every section. Tiza hadn't the foggiest idea what they meant, but her armor had runes just like this one...It was simple and lacked petticoats and...The Mother Dragon was Dengel's boss...could she have worn something like this?

  Still holding the dress, she ducked her head out into the hallway. The only one nearby was Tenderfoot and he was too afraid of the traps, wimp, but...it would be embarrassing if anyone saw her.

  Once she was sure she was alone, she closed the door and braced it with the closet. The strength charm on her wrist glowed as she forced it into place and, even with its help, she felt winded afterward.

  She took off her tunic and pants and put on the blue dress. As soon as it settled, the laces in the back tied themselves. Tiza paid it no mind. Her friends and Professor Pathetic made such a fuss over the Old Fossil, she figured this was child's play. She gasped when it tightened over her chest and waist.

  Spider Daylra always wore a dress on her missions and the skirts were this long. Surely fighting in them was possible…Experimentally, she began a battle dance, but the skirt tangled her legs and she nearly tripped by stepping on the hem. After a couple tries, she got the hang of it and performed several without error.

  She thought of the mirror, hesitated, and slowly stepped in front of it. The bodice was as snug as it felt and the gold tassels were showier than anything she'd wear in battle but... rather than a vain lady, what she saw was proud officer.

  Picking up her scabbard, she attached it to her waist with one tassel. The cord in the hem was removable and fairly strong for decoration. Maybe it’s for assassination... she thought. Spider Daylra taught me how to do that. As for the sleeve cords, she figured they were flails; the stones on the end would stun or put an eye out at the right speeds. Curious, she looked in the chest and found a matching ribbon, a pair of gloves, and stockings. She used the first to tie her hair back into a ponytail. She felt kinda silly, but looked far from it.

  Instead of a string of pearls, a loop of horns adorned her neck and instead of diamonds, resonance stones graced her ears. Her arms bore gloves and gauntlets instead of a shawl. The only bracelet on her wrists amplified her strength and the only rings were used for magical combat. She put one hand on her sheathed sword and the other on her hip.

  “I bet the Mother Dragon looked just like this at my age.”

  “You are spawn from the Insolent Dragon Girl?” her reflection asked.

  “A talking mirror! Are you programed to tell Old Fossil's guest how beautiful she is?”

  “If you are spawn, then you must be here to steal.”

  “Abyss, yes. In fact, I bet a tent would pay a fortune for you.”

  “As a lake reflects the moon, so does your answer.”

  “...Huh?”

  While she was talking, she didn't notice the glove's cords reaching for each other. With a sudden pull, they yanked her hands behind her back. She pulled but couldn't move them. She looked over her shoulder and saw the cords had tied themselves together. Worse still, the sleeve cords had wrapped around her elbows. Before she could do anything, they tightened, firmly pinning her arms to her back. She twisted and pulled against the cords and lost her balance in her struggles.

  Then she noticed her bound ankles. The stocking cords twisted around themselves and lashed her feet together. The cord at the hem was following suit around her knees. She squirmed in her ropes and ended up in a kneeling position just in time for a final cord to slip around her waist and tie her hands and feet. All it took was a final tug and she was hogtied.

  “Abyss, take mmph!”

  The ribbon untied itself and wrapped itself between her teeth. Five times the lengths circled her head – with her shaking it furiously – before knotting themselves behind.

  “Grrmm!” she mumbled with one last futile shake.

  She knelt there in the tower’s chamber, dressed up and tied up like some fantasy damsel in distress. Her pulse accelerated and her breath came quick and shallow. Forcing herself to remember her training, she repeated Sathel's words in her mind: Stay calm. Find a way out. She started by testing the bonds for weak points. Runes blinked on the cords and they grabbed tighter in response. She groaned as they dug into her skin. My charm!

  It glowed and quickly faded as its power was absorbed by the gloves.

  “No unauthorized magic,” Mirror Tiza declared.

  The scabbard was still attached to the waist cord, and the waist cord was now tied next to her bound wrist. If I could just grab the hilt...

  Because of the other cords, she couldn't quite reach it. She rocked to get momentum and her fingertips grazed the pommel stone. Next time for sure! Her fingers grasped the hilt Yes! She fell over.

  “Mmmmm...” She moaned as her head hit the stone floor. With her hand on the hilt, she began to pull it out. Then she stopped. There wasn't enough slack in the glove cords for half an inch. Again, she started to panic. Adrenaline flowed, but even then, she couldn't break the cords; the runes glowed brighter with every attempt and held her even tighter.

  “Tiza!” a voice called from beyond the room, “Where'd you go?”

  Abyss take it! If Tenderfoot sees me like this – She writhed in the cords, but they didn't give an inch. They were too strong and growing stronger by the second. “NNNPPHH!” Desperation flooding her veins, she pulled as hard as she could and whimpered when they snapped back tighter than ever.

  “Tiza, I'm getting worried.” Nolien's voice increased her panic. “Which one are you in?”

  Can't let him see me, can't let him see me, can't let him see me. Her pupils disappeared, body rigid. I CAN'T LET HIM SEE ME!

  Blue light flared from inside her. She pulled and the cords strained, stretched, frayed, and snapped. She pulled the ribbon out of her mouth just as the closet toppled over and Nolien jumped through the broken doorframe. He stared. His teammate was lying on the ground, glowing bright blue, and wearing a deep blue dress. She glowered.

  “I found it in a chest!” She jumped up and her aura pushed him outside. “It belonged to a warrior that's an undead skeleton like the ones that killed Dengel. Does it look good?”

  “Yes...I mean no... I mean uh...it's a...”

  “What!?” Tiza demanded, her aura scraping the ceiling.

  “A...a dress.”

  “What's your point!?” The aura flared with every word. “Do you think I care about your opinion!? I'm a warrior not a –” The aura vanished and she stumbled. “Not a...” She fell forward and Nolien instinctively caught her. “Damsel...” Her eyelids slid shut. Carefully, Nolien put her down and checked her pulse; steady. She was only sleeping.

  “Just Videlicet Mens...” he muttered in relief.

  It was a technique used to accelerate the soul's mana intake and boost physical and spiritual abilities. Only veteran warriors or monks could control it. For others, it was spiritual adrenaline, generating a short burst that could damage the user's body with repeated use. This was her second time in two weeks.

  “If Basilard finds out, he's going to be mad.”

  He examined the ruined cords and found archaic prison runes. Activated by verbal command, they snared whoever wore them and powered themselves from their host; they'd grow stronger the more the host struggled.

  “Apparently, Dengel wanted to make sure that whoever lived here never left...”

  He brought out his own Mana Juice and poured it down Tiza’s throat. She protested and he spoke
her nickname softly while assuring her it was just “Tenderfoot.” She relaxed after that and allowed him to continue treating her condition.

  “Just like Najica...I thought Sathel was working with her on this... Tsilaer was right. I can’t control her actions; only my own.”

  He scooped her into his arms and carried her out. She stirred before he reached the trap hallway. She got her bearings, turned red, and upper-cutted him. He dropped her and she scrambled to her feet.

  “What the abyss do you think you're doing!? I don't need to be carried. I'm not some tent that's so weak she can't walk. How dare you carry me like –”

  Her eyes were wide and scared. They begged him to agree with her.

  “Are you listening!?”

  “Of course. I was looking for you because I found more living skeletons.”

  “Really?” Her eyes narrowed. “Are you coddling me?”

  “I really found some,” Nolien said, thrilled that her room was the last he checked. “I was going to tell you before you...um...used Videlicet Mens.”

  “There was a monster in there and…” She raised her arms to act out the battle, but then dropped them. “Who am I kidding? We can’t let Daylra find out about this.”

  “Absolutely! After Najica, it…you know.”

  “Yeah…okay! I'm gonna change. You stand at the door the skeletons are at.”

  “Got it.”

  “And don't peek!”

  “I would never! A gentleman –” She glowered again. “A teammate respects his fellow's privacy.”

  Still glowering, she returned to the chest room. Minutes passed. Nolien faithfully stood his post without ever considering to peak. More minutes passed.

  “Uh...Tenderfoot...”

  “Y-yes?”

  That shy, sweet, and embarrassed tone didn't sound like his teammate and it stirred feelings other than camaraderie.

  “...I...I...” She paused. “I can't get this off...”

  By sunset, Team Four+ gathered at the fire to share dinner. Tiza was still wearing the dress she found and her face had been a shade of crimson all evening. They ate dinner in silence because no one wanted to comment. Finally, Eric said, “Isn't someone going to ask where the princess came from?”