Cill Darae

by Donald D. Allan

  “Be still! Silence! The guards will hear!”

  Katherine stilled. Her eyes lost focus as she probed with her powers. She checked herself and saw she was malnourished. Her powers were almost gone, and she tried to reach out to pull more in but felt nothing. It was then she felt the collar around her neck. She raised a hand and tried to pull it off. James stopped her and held her hands.

  “Don’t. It’s a collar of some kind. I can’t remove it and see no way to do so. It’s a solid ring of metal. Heather and Dog have the same ones in the cells next to you.”

  On hearing that Heather and Dog were okay, Katherine sobbed in relief. “Are they okay?” she managed to whisper with difficulty.

  “Yes, I think so. But like you. We are all half-starved and naked.”

  Katherine’s eyes widened and before she could stop herself she looked down at James' manhood. She twisted her face away and felt heat rise to her cheeks. “By the Word, James! This is unacceptable! Cover yourself!”

  “Right, sorry,” James grinned, giving lie to the apology. “Nothing to be done about it. We need you to get up. We need to free the others and escape.”

  Katherine, with help from James, managed to sit up and put her back against the wall. She covered her breasts with an arm. She looked around her and saw her cell was quite small. It was no more than a small rectangle eight feet long and maybe four feet wide. There were no windows, and the door was made from thick wood, but she could see it was slightly ajar. “How’d you…?”

  “Break free? I’m not sure. It wasn't my doing. I woke, weak as you are, and found my cell open with a key in the lock. It took me a while to get up and moving, but I looked in the cells and found you, Heather and Dog next to mine. The rest of the cells are empty. Katherine, I don’t recognise this gaol, but I think we are deep down under Munsten in an area I’ve never seen before.”

  “Who would free us like that and leave us?”

  “A friend certainly and taking a risk. We’ll figure out who, later. What do you remember?”

  Katherine thought hard. “The street at night. The guards were there near the museum. Then… nothing after that.”

  James nodded. “Same for me. We were ambushed. Taken down by riot arrows. You need to get up. We need to get out of here and quickly. Can you use your powers? Give us strength?”

  Katherine shook her head and then groaned and raised her free hand to her forehead. “No. I have only my reserves and they are almost gone. Something is blocking me.”

  “Hmm. The collar, I suspect. Heather and Dog have the same ones.”

  “You must free them. Leave me here and wake them. Go.”

  James smiled a quick smile and rose. Katherine looked away from his nakedness. She heard him opening a door and then silence.

  She closed her eyes and tried to use her powers. Katherine could sense nothing outside of her own body. She looked around the cell and noticed with horror that the smell of human waste came from her. The floor was covered in her own waste. “By the Word, this is horrible.”

  She tried everything to free her power. She wrestled with the collar and felt with her fingers for a clasp or a way to release it. It was smooth all over and surprisingly light. It was a metal she had never felt before. She failed to find any way to open it. How would a simple metal collar stop me from using my power? This is beyond my ken.

  She kept at her power, trying to find a way past the metal. She grew frustrated and pulled hard at the collar and only managed to bruise her neck. She lost track of time but froze when she heard a sound in the corridor. With relief, she saw James appear. He snuck in and sat beside her.

  “Heather and Dog are awake and recovering. They are the same as you. Heather cannot reach her power. She says she has no reserves at all if that means anything to you. Dog, well, he just lays there whining. Can’t understand a word he says. Well, thought really, right? The collars won’t come off. Perhaps there’s a way, but we can’t see well enough in this gloom.”

  “What next?”

  James looked around. “We need to move and quickly. They will come and find us and who knows what will happen then. We must hide. Get clear. Get those collars off and leave Munsten. Whoever gaoled us used city guards and someone else. I caught a glimpse of one of the people who shot us. It looked like a church uniform. It must be that new Church Guard. I fear the worst.”

  “The worst? What’s worse than this?”

  “That Brent has been overthrown. He wouldn’t allow this to happen. This is his gaol. He must have been removed.”

  “Where do we go?”

  James thought for a moment. “I dunno. Let’s escape the gaol first, shall we? Come get up. You’ll feel better once you start moving.”

  Katherine tried to stand but couldn’t manage to push herself up. James reached out and took her hands and helped lift her up. Katherine felt her head spin and held a hand to the wall to steady herself.

  “Easy, lass. Take it slow,” murmured James. “There’s no rush. Well, a little bit of one, but get your feet under you first.”

  Katherine looked sideways at James. “Lass?”

  “Aye, lass. You’re younger than me by a fair bit.”

  “When I get better and get this stupid collar off, I am coming back to this conversation.”

  “Whatever gets you moving. Are you steady?”

  “Yeah. Let’s see to Dog. I need to see him.”

  “Follow me.”

  James led the way to the cell three down from Katherine’s. They passed an open door on the way. “That was mine,” he said.

  Katherine glanced in and could see the conditions were the same as hers. They had been left in their cells and allowed to soil themselves. The stench made her eyes water. She hurried past and went into the cell James stood in front of.

  Inside she found Dog lying on his side. His tongue hung out of his mouth, but it didn’t move; it looked unnatural, but she could see he was asleep. Ignoring the filth on the floor, she stumbled to the floor beside him and hugged his neck. “Dog! Dog! Wake up! Please wake up. Come on, we have to leave this place.”

  She tried to sense him with their bond, but the collar was blocking her. She shook him and then sat back and stroked his head and muzzle. He had the same collar as hers, but larger in diameter to fit his neck. Seeing his collar she knew they were specifically for them. Only one person knew when we would be arriving in Munsten and where we were headed. Lana Turner. She pushed thoughts of revenge aside and focused on Dog. She leaned in and whispered into his ear. His nose twitched, and his eyes fluttered open. She saw him look at her and his tail thumped the floor weakly.

  “Hi, Dog. Wake up, love. We have to go. You won’t be able to use your power. We have collars that stop us reaching the world. Hold your reserves. Don’t waste them. Fix what will get you up and moving. Try.”

  She could sense James loitering behind her. She spoke to him without taking her eyes off Dog. “Go see to Heather. Get her on her feet. Tell her she can’t reach out for power. Tell her to fix what will get her moving. Go.”

  She felt him leave and leaned in to whisper to Dog. “Get up, Dog. Time to go. I know you can understand me. Get up.”

  Dog whined and tried to roll to his stomach. Katherine helped pull him over. His grey and white fur was matted and fouled with excrement and he now looked more brown than anything else. Dog was always a medium-large dog, but now he was wasted away to skin and bones. Katherine felt a spike of fear. Whoever had been feeding them hadn’t done as good a job with Dog.

  “Can you stand?”

  Dog tried to rise to his paws, but his legs gave way and he collapsed. He put his head on his paws and closed his eyes. He was already spent. Katherine tried to rouse him, but he stayed out of it. Tears splashed on Dog from Katherine and she wiped at her face. She felt light headed and something more. Infection, she thought. We’ve been lying in our own filth for a long time. We need healing.

  After a time, Katherine heard James approach the cell. She l
ooked over and saw the frightful state of Heather. She was naked, and Katherine could count her ribs. Her red hair was hidden under the filth. Katherine was pleased to see a fire in her eyes. She was angry and that would help.

  Heather came over and sat next to her and Dog. James stayed in the hallway and looked anxious. Heather leaned in and whispered to her. “How urr ye, Katherine? Urr ye hail?”

  Katherine was confused by the choice of words. Heather looked meaningfully at Katherine’s groin and raised an eyebrow. Katherine opened her eyes wide and then checked herself. She seemed whole. She nodded, and Heather looked relieved.

  “Thank Gaea,” said Heather and turned to Dog. She reached out and felt along his body. “He's thinner than he shuid be. His muscles ur wasted awa'. He wilnae be able tae walk. He needs healing.” She looked out to the hallway. “James, kin ye carry him?”

  James came over. “Yes, of course.”

  Katherine had her doubts, but James leaned over and picked up Dog in a cradle carry. Katherine could see the strain on his face, but he did it. She loved him in that moment.

  “Next time lift wi' yer legs ye dumb eejit.”

  James smiled and headed to the hallway. Katherine and Heather followed behind him. “To the left I think.”

  They headed down the hallway and found a large banded door. It was slightly ajar.

  “Katherine,” said James. “Check ahead. Make sure there’s no surprises waiting for us.”

  Katherine opened the door a little more and peeked through the opening. Seeing nothing she moved through the gap and disappeared through. On the other side was a small flight of five stairs leading up. She crept up and looked around the corner. A long corridor devoid of any doors or adornments lay before her. Two torches burned weakly in wall sconces and provided the only light. The air was already fresher than their cells and she breathed in deeply. Certain this was the right way she hurried back and brought the others up.

  Katherine moved about twenty feet ahead and sighted another door at the end of the corridor. It looked ajar as well. Whoever freed us kept the way open for us. We owe whoever it is. I hope we live to thank him or her. Or them. Whatever happened they needed to keep moving. Caution was only slowing them down and Katherine was already breathing heavily with exertion. Sweat broke out all over her body and she felt the signs of a fever. We need water and a washing.

  They gathered at the new door and waited to catch their breath. James had to put down Dog for a spell. He was panting pretty loudly, and Katherine didn’t like the sound of it. It was too wet. Once James felt stronger, he hoisted Dog back up and Katherine opened the door. A large stairwell lay before them leading up into darkness.

  “Up we go,” whispered Katherine and led the way. She stopped counting steps when she reached fifty. Katherine kept a hand to the right wall and Heather helped James navigate the steps in the dark. When Katherine reached the upper landing she almost fell forward when her foot failed to land on another step. She spied a glimmer of light and moved forward to find another door, left open a crack.

  She tried to listen, but her breathing rasped in her ears. She waited for the others to catch up and then pushed the door open a little and peered through. On the other side was a large room with tables and odd tools on peg boards. James looked in and grunted.

  “Torture room. I know where we are. I was in here once.”

  Heather held a hand to her mouth in shock.

  James noticed her reaction and smiled. “Not me. A prisoner. I was a witness. The man had killed a rich family and hid the gold he stole. Wanted it for his own family. We had to torture where he hid it from him. It didn't take long.” James moved further into the room. “Follow me, I know the way. We should be clear for quite some time. It’s rare to see anyone this far back in the dungeon.” James looked back at the door they just came through. “I always thought this was a storage closet.”

  Katherine paused by a large barrel and peered inside. She sniffed the liquid contents and then dipped a finger in and tasted it. “Water,” she croaked. She looked at James and he looked hopeful. She found a ladle tied to the barrel and dipped it in. She took a sip and then started gulping it.

  Heather came over and pushed the ladle from her mouth. “Easy, Katherine. Easy. Take it slow.”

  Katherine looked annoyed but nodded and handed her the ladle. They took turns drinking water and ignored the faint musty taste. They trickled water into Dog’s mouth, and he responded a little and licked his muzzle. Once they had quenched their thirst, they took turns dousing each other and washing off the filth. By the time they were done half the water in the barrel was gone. Katherine felt reinvigorated and felt a stirring of hope. Heather seemed lighter in step as well. James sat on the floor and ran his fingers through Dog’s fur and flicked matted hair away.

  “How much further?” asked Katherine looking at James. She saw Heather staring at James and nudged her before he looked up and caught her. Heather had the decency to blush and turn her head.

  James stirred and looked up at her. “We have quite a way to go. But the next part of the dungeon from here is the area most used. There will be guards. Many guards. We can’t hope to fight them. I’ve been trying to think what to do, and I can’t think of anything.”

  Heather tutted. “This is a braw fankle. We're naked. We cannae juist donder oot o' 'ere, kin we? We need a plan. We need tae gang somewhere!”

  Katherine nodded. “We need clothes. Food. Shelter. You know the city, James. If we do manage to get out of here, where can we go?”

  James laughed without humour. “This is the dungeon. It’s meant to keep people in. I can’t honestly think of a way out. Whoever opened our cells didn’t leave us a way out. We’re trapped in here. We might as well still be in our cells.”

  “I need my staff,” stated Katherine.

  “Forget the staff,” said James. “Get another.”

  “Not possible, James. I need that staff.”

  “It could be anywhere, Katherine. What you ask is impossible. Let us work on one impossible task at a time.”

  Katherine crouched next to James and looked him in the eye. “I can’t leave without it. You have to trust me in this.”

  James scowled. “Katherine be reasonable. It could be anywhere. Anywhere. Tell me where it is and then we can determine how to get it back. Otherwise, drop it.”

  Katherine looked to Heather for support, but she shrugged. “We kin aye come back fur it, Katherine.”

  Katherine felt defeated. James was right it could be anywhere. But she had to get it back. It was the last of Gaea and she couldn’t abandon her. She also thought perhaps Gaea could help with the collars. Whoever had made the collars had access to knowledge not commonly known. A thought occurred to her at that moment. “The Chamber. Where is it from here?”

  James looked surprised. “The Chamber? Huh. I’m not sure. Let me think.”

  Katherine waited while James thought. She saw the smile flit across his face and bit her lip. He looked up at them and smiled wider.

  “Huh. The Chamber. It’s not far. There may be a way to get there if we can find access to the secret tunnels. I know a room in the dungeon that might. It’s a safe room. A place for guards to retreat to should there be an uprising in the dungeon. The way should be clear. It’s not often travelled down here.”

  “’N’ howfur dae ye ken o' this steid, James Dixon?” demanded Heather.

  “The guards played cards there. I might have played a hand or two in my time.”

  Heather looked at Katherine. “Men.”

  James snorted. “And women. They played, too.”

  Katherine clapped her hands. “Let’s go. Lead on, James.”

  James lifted Dog and led the way. They passed through doors and corridors and soon Katherine was lost. James kept them moving as fast as he was able. They saw and heard no one. Torches were a rare thing, but the passages were lit. After an hour, and a couple of rest breaks, James stopped before a wall. He placed his right ear a
gainst the stone and listened for a spell. Satisfied he stepped back and nodded to the wall.

  “Push the wall, ladies. It will swing open.”

  Katherine and Heather glanced at one another and did as he asked. They pushed with their shoulders and felt the wall shift. They pushed harder and the wall section opened into a hidden doorway. Beyond the door all was dark.

  “Grab a torch from the basket and light it, Heather,” ordered James and she did as he asked. They pushed through the opening and found themselves in a large room. Shelves lined the walls and barrels were stacked in a corner. Central to the room was a large table. One wall was covered with a large map of the dungeon.

  “Close the door and bar it with the rod there,” demanded James and he laid Dog down on the floor as gently as he could.

  Heather and Katherine pushed the door closed and placed an iron rod against the wall in a socket. No one would be able to open the door from the other side.

  “Light a lantern. They’re over there in the corner. There should be preserved food on the shelves and water in the barrels. This place was meant to withstand a siege.”

  Heather lit a lantern and then with Katherine they searched the shelves. They found weapons of all kinds, plus clothing, biscuits and water. They soon dressed and soaked the hard tack biscuits in water to soften them. For a time they simply enjoyed their safety and a return of sorts to normalcy. They sat quietly eating and feeding Dog.

  Heather examined Katherine’s collar and gave up. “Tis hopeless. Tis yin solid piece o' metal. Thir's na seams or catches. Tis a miracle o' craftsmanship.”

  Katherine nodded. “I thought so. This is something I would expect from the Chamber. Which is why I want to head there. If we can find a way to remove it, it will be found there. Also, we can escape through the Chamber. There’s access to the bay outside Munsten.”

  James nodded. “I agree. It’s our best bet. Provided we can find a way out of here. We should start searching for a way out. There has to be. Otherwise this room is just another gaol cell.”

  They spent the next hour searching the walls and trying to move the shelves. They found no sign of an opening. Tired, and with their food sitting in their stomachs making them groggy they agreed to sleep for a spell. James took the first watch and they slept.