Once Upon a Quest

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  The guards were definitely dragon shifters; they were spitting out bits of fire and smoke as they snored. I found that quite odd but continued on, walking past them, wondering if I would be able to return with Lucy before they woke up.

  This is it, I thought. Lucy was somewhere close. I just had to find her in this damn labyrinth of cells. The brothers were right, and Tobias had drawn an excellent map. It was a good thing I’d listened to my father and asked for their help, although I would never admit it. I was certain I wouldn’t have made it this far without them.

  How many cells were in this godforsaken tunnel? It seemed near endless, and I was becoming increasingly worried that I wouldn’t find Lucy in time before the next shift change. Most of them were empty, but my God, a strong odour of blood wafted through the tunnel and I nearly gagged again. I really needed a stronger stomach.

  Shit! I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard a loud moan up ahead and a cold shiver moved down my spine. That seriously needed to stop happening. Nothing good ever came of it. I didn’t like it. Not one bit!

  I took off at a run, through the nasty water puddling at my feet, until I saw two men in one of the cells. They looked filthy and when I approached their cell, the smell nearly knocked me off my feet. I needed a mask of some sort. God help me. I would not vomit.

  I wondered where the other prisoners were. The underground prison couldn’t have been completely empty. Something felt off about this, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it just yet.

  “Psst. Hey, you two,” I hissed, trying to wake them. I had to repeat myself several times before one of them finally opened his eyes. Oh, damn. I knew straight away something was terribly wrong with them. Their flesh looked like it was slowly rotting away from the bone. Multiple abbesses and wounds covered their arms and legs. I had no idea if they were humans or shifters, but I suspected they were dying. My heart fell into the pit of my stomach.

  The taller one lifted his head and looked at me. His eyes were bloodshot.

  “What do you want, little girl?” the one on the right enquired.

  “I’m looking for my sister. She was kidnapped by Drakins. Do you have any idea where they might be keeping her?”

  I knew I could just walk around and look for her, but it would take much-needed time that I didn’t have. And these pour souls looked like they had been here quite a long while. The smell of mould, blood and sweat wafted again, but I held back my gag reflex. I looked heavenward, thanking God for strengthening my weak stomach. Damn, this was hard.

  The man measured me up for a moment. He had dark matted hair and a long beard. His face was sullen, and his bones were protruding from his skin. I felt so sorry for him. I didn’t know if I would be able to help him or his companion in any way, but I could at least try to get him out of this hellhole. They were in dire need of medical attention, and it made my heart hurt looking at them.

  “Yeah, there has been a girl around here,” the man answered through a strangled cough, “but Julius is keeping her in a golden cage.”

  I couldn’t do magic like Tobias, but I was decent enough at disengaging locks. When I was younger, I managed to open all the weapons chambers with only a few hair pins. Father had to station a few guards outside to keep me away. It had been fun watching the guards faces when I slipped in behind them, and now I just had to apply the same tactics here. Easy-peasy.

  I swallowed hard when I realised he was talking about Lucy. She was here.

  “Tell me where she is, and I’ll get you out of here.”

  He didn’t respond, instead he glanced toward the darkness behind me. I slowly turned my head, and a loud roar echoed throughout the tunnel, and I nearly jumped out of my skin again. What the hell was that? It did not sound like a dragon. Oh, shit. The man started screaming, falling backwards on his arse, and then started crawling toward his companion. He looked completely petrified.

  I turned toward the dreadful sound. In the distance, I saw a large set of glowing grey, almost white-coulored eyes peering at me; a creature like I had never seen before. H-o-l-y shit. The animal was larger than any dog, with long white fur and disgusting-looking, pointy teeth. And, oh damn, the thing was drooling! I was not going to be its dinner. No. I was saving Lucy and this creature needed to die. I only hoped I didn’t die trying to kill it first. Fuck, it was scary looking.

  “They are ruthless, and they will kill you. Run—run now!” the other man yelled. It took me a second to realise that there was another ugly-as-hell beast behind the first one, and they both looked like they wanted to eat me. Damn. It was too dark to figure out what these creatures were exactly.

  And who the hell cared? I wasn’t planning on petting them because they certainly were not cute little puppies, so I started running instead. It seemed like a much better plan. No need to stick around and see if I tasted like chicken.

  Lucy was here somewhere, and I knew I needed to distract these ugly arse creatures somehow and figure out how to kill them. The beasts snarled loudly, and then sped across the tunnel, trying to catch me. Shit. Shit. Shit. Water was splashing as my feet pounded against the bricks. Up ahead, I saw a shadow pacing in a large cage. My heart stopped and then shuddered. It was Lucy. I could see her clearly now. My God. Lucy… My sister…

  “Lucy, I’m here—”

  I didn’t get a chance to finish my sentence, because one of the dogs or whatever the hell that thing was, jumped on me. It growled in my face—arse breath assaulted me—and the piece of shit raked its claws across my back. Pain exploded throughout my entire body, and I crashed to the ground—in dank arse water.

  Fuck the water.

  My fighting instinct took over, and I cried out at the top of lungs, grabbing the creature by its neck. He was damn heavy, but I spun him around with strength I didn’t know I had and threw his big arse across the tunnel. He smashed against the brick wall, howling loudly.

  I hoped it broke his damn neck. Arsehole, bad breath having, nasty piece of shit. I jumped up and damn, I couldn’t even dust myself off. I wasn’t even going to think of what I smelled like. Arse and shit.

  “Catherine! Is that you? Oh, my lord, Catherine!” I heard my sister’s voice and my heart was filled with hope. I shook my head, holding my sword and trying to breathe at the same time.

  Lucy was indeed in a golden cage. It struck me as odd, but I could think of the reasoning behind a golden cage later. It was her, my dear, sweet sister, and she was still wearing the same dress from when she had been taken. I didn’t notice any visible wounds on her face. I thanked the heavens above.

  This was it. I was getting her out of that damn cage, until a sharp pain jolted through me, and everything slowly started going dark. Damn the luck.

  Chapter 19

  “Catherine, get up. Get up! Please, I know you can hear me!”

  I heard my sister’s voice, and my eyes snapped open. I tried to get up, but my muscles failed to obey me. Dammit. And my head? Shit! It hurt. Someone was standing over me. I had no clue what happened to those beastly dogs. Hopefully, I killed one, but where was his ugly arse twin?

  “Who do we have here? A girl pretending to be a stable boy?” said a voice I didn’t recognise. “Well, Ron, I thought I’d seen it all.”

  When everything finally stopped spinning, I could finally see more clearly. My sword was a few meters away, and I must have lost my wig when one of the arse-breath creatures attacked me. My arm was twisted at an odd angle—it fucking hurt like the fires of hell and, yes, this word was staying in my vocabulary—the wound on my back was bleeding. I could feel it trickling down my back, causing my shirt to cling to me. Peeling that away once it dried was going to feel amazing! Fantastic.

  At least three dragon shifters were in the tunnel now. Then, I heard Lucy again. She was in her golden cage, staring at me with her eyes wide open in shock. I felt nauseous from the excruciating pain racking my body. This wasn’t going to end well, and I needed to pull myself together.

  Where the hell was my sw
ord, again? Oh, yes. A few meters away.

  “Come, Red. What do you have to say for yourself? How did you get in here?” one of the Drakins enquired, yanking me by my hair, pulling me close. “And the princess here obviously knows you. Who the hell are you?”

  He pulled my fucking hair! If the pain wasn’t so excruciating, rolling in waves and, if I wasn’t panting like a dog, I would have killed that bastard. Lucy was staring at me, looking petrified. I needed to get my shit together and remain strong for my sister. She was most important. These shifters needed to die and fast.

  He brought me near his face, he stunk of smoke—I nearly gagged but I refrained, most likely because I was too damned pissed. The soon-to-be-dead shifter was waiting for my answer while the other two were staring at me with mixture of amazement and curiosity. Their leader had brown eyes and short dark hair with a long beard. He licked his lips and I shuddered with revulsion. I was done messing around.

  “Screw you!” I kicked him with my left leg. It wasn’t easy, but adrenaline was coursing through my body. The pain was still there, but I could clearly see my goal straight ahead. Lucy was my focus point.

  I kicked him in the face and then rolled on the ground, grabbing my sword at the same time. The other two arsehole shifters didn’t have a chance to react. They were too slow, and I stabbed the first one in the gut. Blood poured from his wound and he cried out in agony. I landed back on my feet, breathing hard with a smile on my face.

  “Get her, Rudolf! What the fuck are you waiting for?” the shifter who I’d kicked in the face, roared.

  Oh, damn. He didn’t look so well. His nose was clear on the other side of his face. Oops. I chuckled a bit.

  Rudolf didn’t seem very confident and his movements were limited. He removed a short sword from his waist and came forth, going for my left side. I dodged to the right; my arm was either broken or sprained. Either way, my left arm was still quite useful.

  “Come on, pretty boy. What are you waiting for? Show me what you’ve got.” I smiled wickedly as our blades crashed together. Now, I was in my element. I was on the attack, ignoring the pain and my wounds. I was killing a dragon!

  He roared, pushing me, trying to make me drop my sword. It wasn’t happening; I was too fast. “Silly, shifter. Have you never met a princess with a sword? Oh wait. Who cares?”

  I continued taunting him, meeting his strikes, one after another as bits of fire and smoke escaped his mouth. Oh, my! Was he getting pissed? Good. Just the way I liked them. Pissed and then dead.

  Suddenly, something snapped inside of me, and I attacked with deadly force. I whirled around and struck him in the gut with my elbow. He staggered on his feet, and I jumped, kicking him in the face. Blood sprayed from his nose. It was quite gruesome, it now matched his buddy’s.

  “Catherine, watch out!” Lucy’s voice rang in my ears. It was too late, someone had wrapped his meaty arm around my neck, pulling me down. I lost my balance for a bit, and then twisted from his embrace and managed to trip my aggressor, sweeping my right leg beneath him as I turned to face him.

  I crashed on top of his body and heard a loud, “Ooof.” I was back on my feet within moments, panting. My entire body was hurting, but I wasn’t about to allow a bit of pain to stop me now. When I got a good look at who had just attacked me, I noticed it was the ugly-as-shit shifter who had pulled my hair. He was going to pay for that.

  I pounced on him before he could move and commenced to beating him to a bloody pulp; his face was barely recognisable when I was done. When my fists were well and truly numb, I decided that was enough. He could die, or live disfigured. I honestly didn’t give a shit. Time was running out, and I had to get Lucy out of that godforsaken cage.

  I walked toward Lucy’s cage once I made sure the three shifters were knocked out cold or dead—it didn’t matter. I grabbed her hands, trying to take in steady breaths at the same time.

  “God, Lucy, I’ve missed you.” I was still breathing heavily. “Back away now. I’ll unlock the cage and get you out of here. We can finally go home.”

  My arm was getting worse by the second, and I hoped it wasn’t broken, but for now, I could suck it up and deal with the pain. Lucy seemed all right. I couldn’t stop looking at her. Her dress was a little torn but otherwise, she seemed to be in good shape physically.

  “Oh, Catherine, you won’t be able to open the lock,” she said, but I wasn’t listening. “Julius used a warlock to cast a spell on it.”

  I removed my hair pin from the pocket of my trousers and began fiddling with the lock. I wasn’t wasting any more time, and I hadn’t made it all this way for nothing. I had to get her out of here, but nothing seemed to be working. I needed Tobias’s magic. Now. Dammit!

  “Shut up, Sis and let me work. I’m not leaving without you.” Sweat was pouring down my face, and I wondered just where the hell the dhampir brothers were. They could supposedly feel if I was in distress. Did this or the attack by the arse breath, ugly-as-all-hell, whatever the hell those dog-looking creatures were, count? Apparently not.

  “Stop being stubborn and listen to me,” Lucy urged. “There’s a warlock a few cells down from me; there are two of them. They can help you get me out of here. I’ve seen him doing magic.”

  I kicked the bars in frustration as the lock wasn’t budging at all. My hairpin was bent, and the bars shimmered with golden light. The magic from the cell rushed through my body, causing dizziness to wash over me for a moment.

  “The two men who look like beggars?” I enquired, and she nodded. Well, they certainly didn’t look like they would be helping anyone at present.

  There was no time to think about this. I had no idea how to break that damned spell and release her from the eye sore they’d called a cage. I needed Tobias, but for that, I guessed I’d have to get inside the main part of castle. Hell, I stunk of arse, sweat, dank water and God only knew what else. I was certain Tobias’s cover charm wouldn’t cover that sort of stench. Anyone would be able to smell me from a mile away. Hell, I smelled me, and it wasn’t particularly pleasant at all.

  Well, that bonding spell he’d placed on us was just shit! Maybe he wasn’t as advanced in magic as he and his brothers had assumed. Who knew at this point or maybe I was too far away. Oh, dear God! What If they were in danger? What if Julius had learned of our plan. Shit. Shit. Shit. My mind was in chaos.

  “Yes, they are real warlocks,” she assured me.

  I put my good hand up in a stopping motion, and she didn’t say another word. I could hear someone approaching. I glanced at my dear sister, still holding her hand. My heart was in my throat, because I realised an unknown number of Drakins were headed our way.

  “Dammit! I’m not leaving you here, Lucy.” I began pacing around, trying to think on my feet. I didn’t have much time. “Three dhampirs are with me, but they’re with Julius, attempting to distract him so I can save you, but the damn spell!” I slammed my fist against the bars. I should have thought that through a bit more. I was already in pain and that hurt like hell.

  “You have to go now, otherwise they’ll capture you, too. Please, Catherine, I’m begging you,” she near shouted, and tears began streaming down her lovely face.

  I cried out in frustration, hearing the shifters drawing ever nearer. She was right. I couldn’t get caught right now, because then it would be up to the dhampir brothers to save us both. Eric, James and Tobias were on my side, but there were only three of them.

  I looked at Lucy and my heart broke. This wasn’t fair, nothing had gone as planned, and I wanted to cry. We failed, but no one had expected Lucy to be locked up in a magic-infused golden cage. This was just shit! All of it. Just shit.

  I clutched her hands tightly. “I love you, Lucy and I will come back for you. Please don’t give up on me.” Releasing her hands, I blew her a kiss with tears welling behind my eyes. “I’ll find a way to break that damn spell, and every single one of these Drakins will die. Stay strong, Sis.”

  She nodded, wiping her
tears. “I love you, too, and I have faith in you, Catherine. I’m so sorry for everything I’ve ever said about you being a fighter. I’m grateful to have you as my sister.” She was near sobbing now, and my heart was breaking a bit more with each passing minute.

  The sound of shifters approaching were far too close, and I knew I had to leave. “Remember, I’ll be back soon.”

  And with that, I took off down the long corridor toward the rear entrance, attempting to make my escape. I had failed to rescue my sister. But I wouldn’t fail a second time. Shifters were going to die, and it would be bloody. My Lucy was coming home and soon.

  Chapter 20

  Crying, I finally made my way out of the tunnel and onto the castle grounds near the rear entrance of the stables. I didn’t wait for the brothers and took off running toward the forest; I wanted to head back to the brothel and take a bath. I needed to come up with a solid plan once the boys arrived. And Tobias was the key. I would be needing his magic.

  When my crying turned into a heaving sob, I dropped to the forest floor in a heap, placing my head between my knees. I was so close, and yet I had failed to save Lucy. I just wanted her back; I wanted my father and to go home. I hated this dreadful place. But most of all, I hated Drakins.

  I couldn’t stop myself from crying; the tears were coming on full force now, and I was trembling all over, near dry heaving from the pain of loss and from my injuries. What was I going to do? I realised I was falling into a pit of despair, and I had no idea how to pull myself out of it. I felt so lost, and I needed my sister to kick me in the arse. She was always my voice of reason when I acted like an idiot. That thought only made me cry harder, causing me to lose my balance and fall into an even bigger heap on the cold ground.

  I heard someone approaching, and I couldn’t even gather my wits about me to see who it was. Dammit! I needed to get my shit together, or I would surely die in the forest and never be able to save Lucy. Again, I wailed louder, cupping my face into my hands.