by Eric Vall
“I, ah, yes, I should be here first,” Naomi stammered.
“Okay, then--” I stopped as my dragon instincts perked up.
I could feel a shift in the air as someone entered the tunnel. The change was slight, and it seemed no one else had noticed. I glanced at the Sundex, and I wondered if it had an effect on my senses.
Then I lifted a finger to my lips and pointed to the tunnels.
“Hide now,” I whispered. “I guess we got lucky, because they’re already coming.”
Each of us hurried into the tunnels around the cavern to wait.
Now, I was ready to catch these Green Glass Sect bastards red-handed.
Chapter 6
We sat in our separate tunnels and waited for the Green Glass Sect members to come and try to take the Sundex. As time ticked by, my stomach growled, and I realized it had to be evening by now, and we’d missed dinner. There was no sunlight in the catacombs, so it was hard to tell when night finally fell, but I shushed everyone when I heard the faintest whisper of footsteps on the sandy floor of the tunnel.
Someone, or several someones, tried to take silent steps down the path to the cavern, but my dragon hearing picked up on the gentle strides of at least three, maybe four, people as they crept toward the Sundex.
I stuck my hand out of the shadow of my tunnel and signaled the others with three and four fingers. I couldn’t see them respond, but I hoped they could see me enough to have a heads up. I planned on taking these guys out all by myself, but it didn’t hurt to have backup ready.
I pulled myself into a squatting position and waited as the footsteps grew louder. Finally, a man wrapped in a creamy robe with a leather strap around his hips snuck into the cavern. A long saber dangled from his belt, and he gripped a small dagger in one hand and a torch in the other as he took slow, small steps into the open space. His long brown hair was tied back into a ponytail at the base of his neck, and he wore a cream-colored bandana around his head.
By his unfamiliar garb, the human was clearly not a member of the Sect, and I was taken aback as I tried to figure out who he was.
The man’s dark eyes widened when he saw the imaginary Sundex on its pedestal in the middle of the room, and when he turned back and motioned to someone, two more men and a woman strode in behind him. The men looked odd, and their faces were set into a grimace as they trotted into the room, but the woman took the lead and strolled past the first man.
The mysterious woman wore a headwrap that covered all of her face except for her bright green eyes, and a thin, white outfit clung tightly to her curves. A small leather belt circled her waist and accentuated an hourglass figure, and her eyes darted around the dimly lit room briefly before they settled on to the Sundex.
The men followed behind her as she approached the pedestal, and a broad grin stretched across her face.
As she reached out to touch the mirage, though, she nearly fell forward when her hand touched only air.
“What the--” she cried out.
Before they could react, I shot my webs at the cluster of thieves in the middle of the room.
The woman whipped her head around in time to see the web flying toward them, and she grabbed one man’s hand and dove to the side.
Then my web wrapped around the other two men and squished them together as they yelped in confusion.
“Shit,” I cursed as the other two thieves searched wildly for an exit.
They seemed to realize they would get lost if they picked another random tunnel, and they turned to see me emerge from my tunnel with my fire magic simmering on the surface of my hands.
“Get out of here, Sila!” one of the trapped men shouted.
“Don’t run,” I warned her.
“Fuck you,” the woman spat. “What are you going to do to stop us?”
I growled and bellowed a column of fire at their feet.
“What are you waiting for?” Sila cried out as she took a step back and pushed the other man in front of her.
“He’s a dragon,” the man gasped. “You said no one guarded the Sundex!”
“Guess you were misinformed,” I chuckled.
Aaliyah and Nike emerged from their hiding places and stood over the men who struggled against their web prison.
Then I smirked as Naomi stepped out of her own tunnel on the other side of the two remaining thieves.
“Nowhere to run now,” the lizard hissed. “Might as well surrender.”
“Never!” Sila screeched, and suddenly, she conjured a ghost-like creature that resembled a large hawk. The winged beast was nearly transparent, and its caw echoed through the cavern as its beady eyes searched for its prey. Then Sila giggled wickedly as she pointed at me.
Uhh, the fuck?
The ghost bird shrieked and leapt from her hand to fly toward me. It stretched its giant talons out and flew straight for me, but I dodged the apparition just before the claws could sink into my chest. Then I reached into my spatial storage and pulled out the Sword of Hatra.
“Don’t let them escape!” I yelled at Naomi. “I got this thing.”
Naomi quickly muttered a spell, and the sand in front of each tunnel turned into a murky liquid.
Quicksand? Nice touch.
Sila and her male companion were effectively trapped in the cavern with us, and I turned to see the magical hawk had looped around and was headed for me again.
This time, I was ready.
I rushed toward the incoming beast and gripped my blade above my head, and as the hawk reached for me, I thrust the sword up and into its chest.
But nothing happened. It was as though my sword had gone through the empty air without touching the beast at all.
The hawk’s talons tore across my shoulders, though, and I could feel blood trickle down onto my chest.
The transparent bird could attack me, but I couldn’t strike it. So, how the hell did I kill this thing?
I growled as I considered my options, and I looked up to see Sila grinning with satisfaction at my dilemma.
“I can go back in and help you,” Miraya offered quietly from beside me. “Our connection should strengthen the blade even more.”
“Let’s do it.” I nodded.
In a flash of white light, Miraya returned to my spiritual sea. Her purity rejuvenated my body, and I grinned at her serene expression in my mind’s eye.
I regripped the Sword of Hatra and faced the ghostly hawk again as it screeched before it took another dive at me. Then I felt the hot sensation of Miraya’s power as it combined with mine, and I thrust the blade into the plunging bird’s chest. The strengthened sword sliced into the beast’s transparent body, and it squawked with pain and rage as it struggled against the blade. A clear liquid like water poured out from the wound, and I twisted the sword inside the bird’s body as I finished the job.
The ghostly beast disappeared in a flash of light, and Sila screamed in frustration.
Take that, Miraya chuckled in my head.
“I can take her,” I called out to Naomi. “Get him.”
The lizard nodded and conjured a black fireball to throw at the male thief. As the orb flew at his chest, he dodged it and nearly fell into the quicksand, but he caught himself on his toes and flung himself away from the sinking pit.
I turned and focused on Sila, who began to mumble a spell and threw her hands out at my feet. The sand in between the stones started to shift and move in waves until a man rose from the ground and stood before me. His sandy features were set in a grim stare, but his dark eyes seemed like black holes as he stood motionless.
“After him!” Sila ordered the sandman.
He grumbled and took a big step toward me. The ground shook with his movement, and more sand slid down the walls of the cavern.
I swung the blade around and sliced through the sand creature’s torso. I thought it would cut him in half, but the sand merely separated and then came back together after my sword passed through.
Okay, new plan.
So, I opened my maw an
d released a plume of flames over the beast’s body from his head to his feet, and I continued to push the fire over him as he released a strangled roar.
When I couldn’t hear any more noise, I closed my mouth and chuckled at the glass figure that stood before me. The once emotionless features were now hardened with the sharp angles of glass, his black eyes had become clear, and the lights from the torches seemed to dance within his body. Then I elbowed the translucent form and watched as it shattered into pieces on the ground.
“No more beasts,” I grumbled as I turned back to Sila. “Surrender now.”
“No!” she screamed.
Naomi continued to throw fireballs at the man who had leapt backwards and now stood with his back to Sila’s side. Then the lizard mage conjured a larger fireball the size of a basketball and launched it at the man.
He grunted and ducked, and the black fire landed on Sila. She screamed as the black flames engulfed her white clothes, and a moment later, she fell to the ground in a smoldering heap.
“I surrender!” the man cried out with his hands raised. “Don’t burn me!”
“And why shouldn’t we?” Naomi said with a threatening grimace as she held another fireball in her hand.
“I’ll tell you whatever you want!” he begged. “Please, just don’t do that to me. Sila would never have surrendered. That’s why I ducked. I want to live.”
“Tie him up,” I ordered Naomi. “We need to get some answers.”
The lizard cocked her head at me and twirled a finger in the air, and swirling black wisps of magic encircled the man and held his arms down to his sides.
Then I nodded to Aaliyah, and she sliced through the webbing that held the other two thieves together.
As Naomi tied them up with her magic tendrils, too, I conjured another messenger.
“Find Vallen and Alyona,” I instructed the kaleidoscope-colored beast. “Let them know we’ve captured the traitors. Lead them back to us.”
The little dragon dipped his head and zoomed down the tunnel.
With that taken care of, I stepped forward and tested the bindings on one of the men, and the magical rope held tight. The man grimaced at me but didn’t say anything. His brown eyes looked up at me with little interest as I put my face close to his, and I had the oddest sensation that he smelled like nothing. A man who was on a mission should smell like sweat or the sand he sat in, but he had no scent at all.
“Who are you?” I demanded.
The man gave me a blank stare as he sat on the ground before me.
“Why did you come here?” I prodded.
He continued to sit in silence, and I grunted with annoyance.
Maybe he is mute? Miraya suggested.
“They aren’t real,” the man who had surrendered spoke up.
“What the hell does that mean?” I growled as I turned to him and whipped the scarf from his head.
The bandit’s tan skin was wrinkled from the sun, and his dark brown eyes looked me up and down before he took a deep breath.
“Sila was a manipulation mage,” he explained. “She could turn one thing into another and tell it what to do. Like she turned the sand into that guy you turned into glass.”
“So, these guys are like the sandman?” I asked.
“Yes,” he confirmed. “They’re made of sand, water, and clay.”
“Like a golem?” Naomi suggested as she peered at the two blank-faced captives. “I’ve never seen one before.”
“They only did what Sila ordered,” the thief said. “So, you won’t get anything out of them.”
Just then, Alyona, Vallen, Ravi, Laika, and the dryads rushed into the cavern and stared at the captives.
“Everyone is alright, then?” Vallen asked as he wrung his hands.
“Well, everyone except for that one.” Naomi smirked and jerked her thumb at Sila’s dead body. “And it turns out those guys aren’t even real people.”
“They’re golems,” Alyona breathed, and her amethyst eyes widened. “Very well made. Which of them is the mage?”
“It was the woman,” I replied. “But this guy claims he’ll tell us everything we need to know.”
“I said I would!” the thief insisted. “Listen, my name is Byron. I was born in Zura, and I don’t want to die!”
“Okay,” I said as I paced in front of the thief. “Why did you come here?”
“The Sundex,” Byron replied with a shrug. “Sila said they wanted it. We came with her.”
“They?” I asked. “Who are they, and what did they want it for?”
“I don’t know,” he answered as he looked down at his feet.
“Ohhh,” I scoffed.
“You really did it now,” Trina chirped.
“You made the badass dragon angry,” Polina giggled.
“And now you’ll pay,” Marina finished in a singsong voice.
I called on my terra magic and splayed my fingers in front of Byron’s face, and he gulped as the turquoise tendrils of magic left my fingertips and headed toward his mouth. Then the coils pushed past his lips and dove down his throat.
“Agh!” he groaned as he swallowed several times and then coughed up blood that spattered on the ground in front of him.
“Let them take the truth out,” I advised. “It doesn’t hurt as much.”
He shook his head, and his eyes bulged while his face turned an angry shade of red.
“I can’t look!” Vallen groaned as he covered his eyes and scurried back into the tunnel that led to the castle.
Then the terra magic escaped Byron’s mouth, but nothing else came out.
“What the hell?” I growled.
“What happened?” Alyona asked as she walked over next to me.
“I’m not sure,” I replied and studied the thief, who averted his gaze.
He may be under a protection spell, Miraya said as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully in my mind’s eyes. If Sila cast something on him, it had to be fairly strong to withstand her death.
“Makes sense,” I answered. “The golems survived her death as well.”
“What makes sense?” Naomi asked as she glanced at me.
“Miraya thinks he’s under a protection spell,” I replied with a nod at Byron. “It’s preventing my magic from working somehow.”
I think I can help, Miraya offered. If you don’t mind my taking human form again.
“Of course,” I replied and then did my best game show host voice. “Come on down!”
There was another bright flash of white light, and then Miraya stood before us with her white hair pooled in the sand at her feet.
“Gods,” Byron breathed with wide eyes as he took in the spirit’s beautiful form.
“Don’t even think about it,” I growled and spewed sparks that hissed and crackled at his feet. “She’s mine.”
“And you won’t like me, once I’m finished anyway,” Miraya added with a Cheshire cat smile. “Tell me why Sila wanted the Sundex.”
“I don’t know,” Byron grumbled and looked away from her.
“Hmm,” she murmured, and she took the few steps forward to place her fingertip delicately on his forehead.
“Noooo!” he bellowed as a ray of pure white light pierced the skin on his head.
The smell of burning skin filled the air, and gentle tendrils of smoke rose from his face.
“Try again,” the spirit coaxed.
“She said they wanted to sell it to the highest bidder!” Byron gasped as he scrambled to scoot away from Miraya. “I don’t know who, I swear!”
“I believe you,” the spirit replied as she tapped her finger against her plump lips. “But I also need to know how she found the Sundex’s location.”
“Well, uh--” Byron stammered and coughed again.
“Come now,” Miraya murmured as she pressed her finger against his head again.
This time, the laser light of her magic burned through the rest of his skin and meat until we could see the creamy surface of his skull underne
ath.
“Fuck, okay!” he screamed and jerked his head back. “Sila never told us for sure, but I saw her talking to some guy when we were in Peoria a few weeks ago. She never told us who he was, and I knew better than to ask.”
“So, why the disease on the crops?” Miraya pushed. “Is it a Blanche Curse?”
“Yes,” Byron panted, and his chest heaved up and down. “Sila said if the people were worried about the crops, no one would be guarding the Sundex. She said it would be even easier to steal it… ”
“And?” I asked after he remained silent for a moment.
“And no one would care if we stole it because everyone is worried about the Breach,” he finished, and he dropped his chin down to his chest.
“So, you’re just a bunch of thieves?” Alyona breathed. “And you took advantage of an impending war with the demons?”
“It sounds bad when you say it like that,” he muttered.
“It is bad, dumbass,” I replied. “How do we get rid of the curse?”
“Sila kept a journal with all her magic in it,” Byron answered as he jerked his head toward her body. “It’s in a pouch on her belt.”
I nodded to Nike, and he crouched down next to Sila’s burnt corpse to find the book. A moment later, he lifted a small journal from her belt and held it up. The cover was badly burned, but as he flipped through the pages, they seemed to have remained intact. Probably another protection spell.
“Alyona, see if you can find the spell so it can be reversed,” I directed her.
“Yes, my lord,” she murmured as Nike handed her the journal, and she immediately stuck her nose in its pages.
“Let’s get these idiots upstairs and find somewhere to hold them,” I added and gestured to our captives.
“We only have one prison cell,” Naomi cut in. “I’d recommend keeping the one that actually has a brain.”
“Good point,” I agreed. “How do we get rid of a golem?”
“Like this,” Miraya replied and stepped over to the silent creatures.
She spread her palms over their heads, and suddenly, their bodies seemed to melt until only two piles of rubble remained.
“That works,” I chuckled. “Let’s go.”
“Should we bandage his head?” Naomi asked as she gestured to the seared mark Miraya’s magic had left on Byron’s brow.