by J. Carrarn
"I don't know what they do in the mines, but all of Tendraal's citizens seem to fear being sent there. When I was here before, I didn't get a chance to find out why."
"If they fear it, why don't they just leave?" Tatjie said, echoing Derin's thoughts.
Sig shook his head. "I don't know."
Tatjie opened her mouth to say something, and Sig hissed.
"Quiet, we are almost at the gate."
Derin realized Sig was right. They had arrived at the gate, a long tunnel with two wide-open doors. Each door had massive white bone chains attached to it, running through the tunnel and disappearing into large holes that had been drilled into the walls.
Inside the tunnel, just beyond the doors, stood two hulking undead. Pale white with bloodshot eyes, they had their chests puffed out while taking orbs from the undead passing them. Each wore black, roughly stitched pants that stopped just above the ankle. A wide belt held it up, and an assortment of bone tools hung from it. Everything seemed made from wyrm hide.
Ahead of them was a group of five zombies that were muttering to each other in low voices. They seemed to be arguing, and two of them looked terrified. The other three constantly pushed them away, and when they arrived at the hulking gatekeepers, they quickly handed in an orb each. The other two stopped and stared at the guards, shaking their heads.
One of the guards laughed roughly and stepped forward. When the two zombies backed up, he jumped forward and grabbed them. With a wide grin, revealing his rotten teeth, he dragged them back to the other guard, who had drawn out something that resembled a wyrm tooth.
"No. We can find two tomorrow! One for each!" one of the zombies screamed, trying to slap away the tooth that was moving toward his face. He didn't succeed. The guard held his arms, ignored his protests, and drew a square symbol between his eyebrows. A moment later, he did the same thing with the other zombie. When they had finished doing this, they threw the two zombies further into the tunnel, toward the city beyond.
"Get lost!" one of the guards said with a rumbling laugh. Then he turned back to the line, accepting orbs from the undead that were quietly waiting.
When their small group was up, Tirella stepped forward.
The guard that had dragged the zombies back looked at her, and his eyes widened.
"What do we have here! A new sort of zombie? Pleasing to the eyes, don't you think, Dough?"
"Keep your new infatuations to yourself and take the orb," the other growled, his gaze passing uninterestedly over the others. He stopped when he saw Sig, taller than even he was, and carrying two containers.
"She pays for all of us," Sig said, his voice even softer than usual.
"Oh, does she now?" The first guard smiled, but his smile vanished when Tirella glared at him and handed him the orb.
"A wyrm orb! How did you get this?"
A sudden silence came from the long line of undead behind them, and the second guard stepped forward to examine the orb.
"By killing a Wyrm," Sig said nonchalantly as he started forward again.
Derin kept his eyes on the two guards as he followed Sig. He did not like this, not at all.
The two guards kept looking at them but made no move to stop them. When Sig passed them, the second one hissed. "And what is in the container?"
Derin flinched, but Sig just kept walking.
"A gift for Scathia," he said, causing a sharp intake of breath from the guard.
They didn't say anything more, but Derin took a look over his shoulder as they exited the tunnel. Both guards were staring after them, their eyes small and calculating.
This will end badly, Derin thought as he turned to the small stretch of open wasteland that separated them from the city. As he stared at the sprawling city ahead of them, he wished he had stayed in Skulltown.
Tatjie stood beside him, silently gawking ahead, her eyes darting over the towering buildings in the distance.
They stuck close together as they headed toward one of the many small passages between the methodically placed square buildings. They had no windows, only small openings at the top with white bars in between. A single door of bone bars like a ribcage showed what was inside—undead. Some were sitting on the ground or lying in a corner, while a few stood staring blankly into the distance.
Derin stared inside as they passed, and a dozen zombies looked back at him. Bruised and battered and with gashes across their bare torsos, they gazed at him with envy and longing.
"What-"
Sig cleared his throat loudly, drowning out the question Derin asked. "Don't ask. Everyone here would know, and we don't want to raise more suspicion than we already have."
Derin nodded, keeping his mouth closed as they continued on in silence. They passed two more of the enormous bone prisons before reaching a long dusty street. On the opposite side of the street was a wall of interconnected buildings, four, five, or even six stories high. Small staircases led to narrow passageways between the tightly packed buildings. Close to where they stood was a wider opening between two buildings that led to another street. The buildings touched roofs high above, making it look like a tunnel. Every few seconds, a warm wind blew out billowing clouds of dust.
Two towering skeletons covered in white bone plate armor moved inside, unfazed by the wind and dust.
Seeing their purposeful step, Derin wondered where they were heading. He turned to Sig and saw him look around for only a moment before moving toward the wide street.
"Do you even know where to go?" Tatjie asked, finally breaking her stunned silence. She followed Sig's tall black figure, looking up at the buildings.
"Not yet," Sig said as he stepped into the street. At that moment, a strong gust of wind struck them head-on, dust and sand pelting their faces.
Tatjie cursed, spitting out a mouthful of sand. "Bile and bone, that's a strong wind. If a newly awoken wanders in here, it will be blown to bits!"
The street ahead of them was dark, and what little light there was came from the entrance, casting long shadows. The red light of the setting sun crept through a few holes and cracks between the buildings. Besides the two armored skeletons, a few other undead moved ahead of them along the curved road that bent around one of the buildings. More small stairs and tunnels in the sides of the structures led away from the main road.
"So? Where are we going?" Tatjie asked. She was staring down the street with a frown.
"We need to find a safe place to stay. Last time I was here, there weren't many free quarters left in this area," Sig replied, marching down the road.
"What? Aren't we supposed to find Scathia?"
Sig shook his head, and for a moment, Derin saw the uncertainty on his face before the familiar stoic mask replaced it.
"Not yet. We need a place for you to stay while I scout around."
Nobody replied this time, everyone followed Sig down the road.
Derin looked inside a few of the smaller alleys and saw doors on each side of the winding corridors.
As they walked along the bend in the road, they arrived at a massive intersection of dozens of roads. Undead in many shapes and sizes moved along it, most heading deeper into the city. Sig followed the masses, and the rest followed him. The street, also riddled with small alleyways and stairs, led to another intersection, and then another, and soon Derin had no idea where they were.
After he lost track of how many intersections they passed and streets they had followed, they turned a corner and saw a vast square ahead of them. The last rays of red light came through the open square roof. Lining the walls were dozens of balconies, stairs, and bone ladders leading up to them. Undead sat and stood in small groups on the balconies or ledges, looking down. Their voices filled the square, drowning out the soft howling of the wind.
In the middle of the square was a bone table, and on it stood a green zombie. He wore odd red Wyrm-leather pants and had bulbous yellow eyes that seemed ready to pop out of their sockets at any moment. Dozens of undead stood in front of him, w
hile two massive red skeletons flanked the table. The yellow eyes examined the undead below as they passed him by.
"What's this?" Tatjie asked as she moved forward.
Sig frowned but followed her without answering, and together they joined the growing crowd. The undead around them were mostly fleshies, and all were clustered together in small whispering groups.
As they stood waiting, more undead came and joined the throng.
When Derin guessed there were almost a hundred undead gathered, the green zombie made a wet coughing noise. Spitting yellow mucus onto the ground, he raised his head.
"Fine. This should be enough," he said dubiously. The zombie continued, raising his voice until it turned shrill and harsh.
"So you all know how this goes, but seeing as you're all dense as bone, I'll have to repeat it!" He raised a finger in the air. "For one mana-orb, I'll find you an empty room in one of the outer rings. For four, you get quarters in the middle, and for those who got lucky, I can get you a deluxe apartment in the center of the city for twenty!"
None of the undead complained, waiting quietly for the zombie to continue.
Staring at them, the zombie nodded when nobody spoke. "Good, that's good! A smart bunch this time! Now let's hope you can pay up! Raise your hand if you are looking for a room in the outer ring."
Sig lowered his head beside Tirella. "Grab another orb, and make sure nobody sees."
Derin frowned as he saw most of the zombies around them raising their hands, some still arguing amongst themselves as they did so. Sig wanted to have this guy arrange a room for them? And why did he keep asking Tirella to grab orbs?
Tirella looked at Sig, then sighed and nodded. Raising a hand beside the stone container, she pressed it against and then through the stone. With a small plop, she yanked out an orb while the hole closed instantly.
"You're like Solus!" Sig exclaimed incredulously. He had never seen or heard about another stone shaper.
Tirella quickly pressed the orb close to her chest, covering it with her hands. None of the surrounding undead seemed to have noticed. After a moment, she looked at Derin. "Not exactly the same. I can only shape what I touch."
"Still… you could touch a lot if you put your hands down on the ground!" Derin said, wondering how much she would be able to shape in a single go.
The green zombie raised his voice again, a thin smile across his yellow-flecked lips. "So, most of you were out of luck again? Fine! Let no one say that Borl doesn't help the unlucky!" He snapped his fingers, and three other green zombies came from one of the small alleys.
"Put your orbs on the table and then follow them!" Borl shouted.
Except for two other groups, all the undead in the massive gathering moved forward, and one by one, they placed orbs on the table. Borl kept a close eye on the growing pile.
When the last of the crowd had deposited its orb, the whole group left the square and headed through a small alleyway.
Borl stared at the three groups that remained. Three zombies with coal-black skin, each with enormous tusks and covered in oddly shaped white bone plates, stepped forward.
"Borl, we need a room in the center, but we are one orb short. Cut us a deal!"
Derin and the others looked at the tusked zombies. After a second, Derin turned to examine the last group. It was a ragtag bunch of skeletons and zombies that surrounded a smooth, red-skinned fleshy with long black hair. Besides the red one, none of the others seemed to look around or move, just standing there, staring at the pile of mana-orbs.
Borl didn't immediately reply to the black zombie's request, staring at the one who spoke for a while.
"Nualir…you know I usually don't do this. However, you are one of my best customers." He let his words hang for a second before nodding. "I can make an exception, but only If you bring me two orbs in compensation when you return. If you fail to do so? Well… you know what the consequences are!"
The black zombie snarled and nodded in agreement. "I know. I know!"
"Quite sure of yourself… I wonder what you have found this time…" Borl's eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the zombie, but then he laughed and snapped his fingers again. "It's a deal then!"
Another green zombie, small and agile with long yellow hair, jumped from one of the balconies. She landed with a soft thud, rolling twice before jumping to her feet.
"Orbs on the table and go with her," Borl said, turning his attention to the remaining groups.
"And you?" He said with a greedy gleam in his yellow eyes as he stared at the last two groups. Sig didn't respond yet, and the others remained silent, all of them looking at the last group besides them.
"The middle."
A soft, smooth voice came from the red undead. It walked forward and dropped four orbs on the pile while the other just followed after.
Borl nodded and snapped his fingers without any comment. Another green zombie, similar to the first three, exited from an alley. The red undead followed it, the others walking in single file after him.
"Creeeepy…" Tatjie said as she looked at the line of undead disappearing into an alley.
"Be quiet," Sig whispered, hushing the others just before Borl turned toward them.
"Right, and now you? I've never seen you before… and believe me; I would know if I'd seen you!" Borl said with a grin, his bulbous eyes focused on Sig for a moment as they sized him up.
Derin shuddered when he saw the zombie lick its lips.
This one is dangerous!
"Quarters in the center for multiple days," Sig said, nodding at Tirella and ignoring the frown on Borl's face.
Tirella moved forward and carefully placed the wyrm orb beside the pile. Compared to the others, it was massive, easily as large as a dozen of the smaller orbs.
"Wyrm orb…" Borl hissed as he kneeled and snatched it. "Where did you get this?" he growled, staring at Sig.
"Killed a Wyrm," Sig replied stoically.
A silence fell across the square as the undead sitting and standing stopped muttering and talking. Derin looked up and sucked in a breath. All eyes were on Sig, shining and greedy.
Borl got down from the table and walked toward Sig, stopping in front of him. "You did? By yourself?"
"Yes," Sig said with a finality showing that he was done discussing it. He raised his eyebrow. "The quarters?"
All around, the murmurs of the undead began again, but this time it was easy to hear what they spoke about. The words' Wyrm orb' and 'center quarter' popped up repeatedly.
Borl grinned, his eyes gleaming.
"Sure. I'll bring you myself. Special customers need special attention after all!"
He turned around and snapped his fingers again. Dozens of green zombies streamed from the alleys where they had been hiding, quickly grabbing the orbs and the table and carrying everything away. The two red skeletons stayed with Borl.
"Follow me!" Borl said, moving toward the far end of the square.
The party silently followed him as he led them into one of the numerous alleys that led away from the square. Derin took a quick look over his shoulder. The denizens of Tendraal were all staring after them.
Why do I get the feeling we've just added to our troubles? Derin thought just before he stepped into the alley after the others.
Steaming hot
A soft notification ping drew Solus from oblivion. His head felt as if someone had driven hot needles through his skull and into his brain. Keeping still, he drew in a careful breath to test how hot the air was. It didn't seem to hurt his lungs as much as it had before, at least no more than the monstrous throbbing pain coming from the twisted mass of muscle on his back. Of more immediate worry was the fact that he had been blinded. Something had crusted over his forehead and his eyes, preventing him from opening them. As he struggled to raise his head, part of this crust broke away.
He tried to sit up, but his left arm wouldn't cooperate. Using the arm he could move, he felt around his face. A thick layer of a hard, brittle material cov
ered his forehead and eyes. Scratching at it with his fingers, he began to peel it off until he could crack his eyes open.
All was blackness; not even the familiar green glow of the stone around him was there to greet him.
Not exactly an improvement, he thought.
Probing around his other arm, he found that more of the same material was holding it in place. He began to break it away. Although it was quite brittle and broke easily, it took him a while to clear most of it. When he finally managed to tear his arm free, he pushed himself up into a sitting position.
He started blindly feeling all around him, and he deduced that he was still in the tunnel he had created. It was a tight fit. Just a bit wider than he was tall.
The soft ping of a status notification sounded out again. He blinked and realized his status had been pinging for a very long time. Summoning it increased the pain in his throbbing head, but the blue rectangle hovering in front of his face reassured him.
That was until he read the notifications.
> Minimum requirement met.
> New evolutionary options added.
> Warning!
> Energy levels dangerously low
> Mana levels below safety threshold
> Activating low-energy mode to prevent malfunction.
> ERROR
> ERROR
> Mana-field mana depleted. Extinction imminent.
> Two hours and three minutes remaining.
> Shutting down
> …
"Fantastic…" he grumbled as he closed the window.
He sensed along his waist, hoping there was still an orb left that he had forgotten. Touching his grey flesh, he cursed. His stone armor was gone, and with it the orb container.
Getting up was a chore, and not being able to see didn't make things easier. His stone sense was unresponsive, and slowly Solus began to realize just how dire the circumstances he found himself in were. With the realization came fear.
He was blind and disintegrating in a tomb of his own making, deep under a lake of molten rock.