by R. Moses
Chapter Four
Kara climbed down the ladder slowly and her foot reached the cellar floor sooner than she would have thought.
She called out as they peered at her, “See?” Hardly a climb at all.” She glanced at the tunnel behind her. It was full of yawning darkness. “Hurry. I don't have much light.”
Icari took the lamp from Naomi and clamped the handle in his teeth. He swung down quickly.
Naomi hesitated at the lip. Kara said sharply, “Vayne could be hurt. Or dead. And we are not leaving the other lamp with you. So if you want to stay there, you are staying there in the dark.”
She and Icari shared a worried glance as Naomi stood frozen. They knew they would not leave her, but they had to save Vayne...
Naomi slid over the lip and climbed down, her eyes squeezed shut the whole time. Kara felt sorry for her for a split second. She was so timid and weak, it was a wonder she survived the trials of carnival life.
Icari whispered, “I think I see a light ahead.” He had taken a few steps away from them, pressing himself against the weeping stone walls. He turned to Kara. “Do you mind holding the lamp so I can get our holy water ready?”
“No.” She took it and he got out two vials. He split the rest of the blessed water between them.
Kara said grimly, “Ready?”
He nodded and said, “If a demon spirit comes at you, say, 'I banish thee to the aether.' It will not stop the spirit most times, but should slow it if you mean the words and put all your mental effort into the saying. Literally envision the spirit drifting away.”
Naomi whispered, “I thought only mages could banish or repel spirits.”
“A common misunderstanding,” Icari said. “Believe in yourself and banish the spirit with your will.”
Kara touched the hilt of her knife, tucked safely in her leather belt. “Got any spare vials of holy water?”
“There are a few drops left in the skins.”
“I'll take it!” Naomi whispered eagerly. She shrugged apologetically at Kara. “I don't have a knife or light.”
“Knives aren't much help against spirits.”
Icari pulled out the skins and Naomi took them. He said, “We don't know if the spirits are working by themselves or controlled by a dark mage. A knife could come in handy. Mages bleed like everyone else.”
A low gurgle warbled through the tunnel. They all started forward with the mutual understanding that hurry was needed. Kara saw the dim light Icari mentioned, at the very end of the tunnel. She lost all sense of caution and started running ahead of them, the long tunnel breezing by in a flash.
She burst into the room with the cold light and skidded to a halt as she took in several terrible things at once.
Vayne, strapped to an altar, his face slack, eyelids closed. Probably the altar where she was supposed to shove Hither's knife.
A dark shadow looming over him, lowering itself.
A young woman chained in the corner, all jutting bones and snarled hair.
And last of all, a man holding a candle, his tunic red, his eyes dark as sin.
Kara, with a deep-seated instinct, knew this man was a mage, and a dark one at that. Cold throbs of power seemed to thicken the air around him. He was the source of all her problems. And with that conclusion, she did not plan or think.
She acted.
Whipping her own knife out, she sprinted across the room, past Vayne, past the chained girl. Everything seemed to slow down no matter how fast she moved. The mage's gaze flicked to her.
Then they were falling in a tangle of limbs and shouts. His candle went flying straight through the black shadow. The flame extinguished immediately.
Kara thrust her blade to the mage's throat as she clamped her knees around his torso and arms. Somehow she had gained the best position in all the shouting and falling. Even this close, she was careful not to make direct eye contact with him. He could draw her in with his powers, make her a different kind of slave...
And she was a free woman now and would stay that way.
She commanded, “Call off the demon.” She stared at his mouth for the response.
The mage grinned and his arm moved a bit against her leg. She hissed, “Freeze. Or you are dead.”
She wondered if she had the guts to slit his throat and realized she did not know.
His arm froze but his lips began to move again. He said, “What did Hither offer you to stop me?”
Kara blinked, uncertain. How did this mage know she worked for Hither? Refusing to be distracted, she said, “Call off the demon. Now.”
The mage whispered something and a gentle whisk of energy coasted by her. Unwilling to take her gaze off the mage's lower face, Kara asked, “Icari? Is the demon gone?”
“Yes.”
“Is Vayne alive?”
“Yes.”
“Is the girl alive?”
“Yes.”
Kara said softly, “Your choice, mage. Live or die.”
He laughed and said, “Live, naturally.” His voice was low and smooth, the voice of a well-bred and highly intelligent man.
She said, “Here's how we make that happen. I am going to get up now. You are going to use your magic to travel at least fifty leagues from here. And know that I can throw a knife with perfect aim at your throat.”
The mage smiled under her, showing straight white teeth. He said, “Sounds fair.”
Kara jumped up and backed away to Icari, still holding her knife out. The mage stood with grace, and dusted his tunic off with long fingers. Now that she was getting a good look at him, he seemed vaguely familiar. He was tall, with wavy blonde hair and chiseled features. Not quite handsome, but not quite ugly either.
The mage looked over all of them then focused on Kara. He said, “I suspect we will meet again, young woman with a black heart and old soul. Kara.”
She blinked, wondering how he knew her name. The metallic taste of naked terror flooded her mouth. She ignored it and snapped, “My heart is red like everyone else's. Now leave or this knife will be buried in yours.”
The mage laughed and muttered arcane words in a dead tongue. A loud crack, a miniature whirlwind of displaced air, and he was gone.
Kara stumbled back and sagged against the slimy walls. She allowed herself to take three slow, deep breaths as she relished the lighter atmosphere of the room. Naomi ran over to unstrap Vayne, whose eyes were now open. He moved when she urged him to, but seemed incapable of independent thought or motion.
Icari was staring at the mystery female, at the locks on her chains. He did that short nod that meant he had made a decision or figured a problem out. Kara knew the girl would be out of the chains quickly; he was an expert lock picker. One of the many side jobs a carny had to do.
The mystery girl (Or woman? Kara was not sure, she was that age that could be adolescence or early adulthood, but her demeanor suggested girl) had purple eyes and black hair. She was covered in old bruises and layers of crusted dirt. She did not say anything as Icari began to undo her locks. She merely sat there, on the stone-cold floor, in a filthy tunic that might have been brown. She was wearing a necklace with an enormous oval pendant on it. No shoes. No leggings. When Icari was finished undoing her chains and locks, he stepped away.
Her gaze was as blank as Vayne's.
Kara glanced anxiously between her and him. Had the mage taken their souls? Would they be one of the Hollow? She did not want to scare anyone by uttering this aloud, so she kept her fears to herself. Maybe they were just in shock...
The mystery girl looked up at Kara and reached under her nest of hair. There was a small click, then the mystery girl held out the ornate necklace to her. She whispered her first words. “It is all I have to give for thanks. Take it, please.” Her voice was as small and clear as dew drops on a chilly morning.
Kara hesitated. She felt awful for taking anything from this traumatized girl, but did not want to further upset her by declining this incredible gift. Kara walked over and squatted
down. “I will hold it for you. I cannot accept such a gift. But I will keep it safe until you feel better.” She took the necklace from her stick-thin fingers, relieved that she could speak and act on her own. Not Hollow, then, praise the Goddess in all her wisdom.
Her hands drifted back down to her lap as Kara studied the necklace. The chain was thick silver, tarnished with age. The oval pendant looked like it was made of ivory, but she was not sure. Painted on the ivory was a unicorn's head. Despite the dim lamp light, she could see the miniature was made with breathtaking detail.
It was stunning, if old-fashioned. Kara suspected it was worth a fortune.
“Kara?”
She turned to Icari, who was supporting Vayne. Naomi was holding the lantern and satchel now, a few feet away, staring at her lover with wary caution. Kara knew Naomi feared Vayne was Hollow too. Icari asked Kara, “Can you help her get out of here after you insert the knife?”
She almost let out a nervous bout of laughter. In the craziness of rescuing Vayne and this stranger, she had completely forgotten about the original assignment.
She sprang to her feet. “No problem. Go ahead and get a head start. We will catch up. Mr. Hither said once the knife was inserted, things could get tricky.”
Vayne said weakly, “Things are already tricky.” He gave her that smile that melted her middle to mush, though with not quite as much charisma as usual. “Thanks, Kara. I owe you one. A big one.”
She blushed and looked over at the altar. She was profoundly relieved he could speak and remember her name; that meant he was not Hollow. She said, “No big deal. I save lives every day. Except Tuesdays. I rest then.”
Out of the corner of her eye she saw him shaking his head with a wry grin and she glanced back to see his gaze still lingering on her. Her heart sped up as Naomi scuttled to his side and pressed close.
Icari said, “Since we are nearly out of here, let us use both the lamps. I think there is enough oil to last us. You take one.”
“Good idea.”
By the time Naomi had gotten the lamps prepped and lighted, Kara was at the altar, studying the mage design. It was a deeply carved seal of power, with runes she did not understand.
As Icari and the others lurched out in an awkward hobble, she gathered her nerve to do this one last task. She imagined her mother, free and beside her. She could do almost anything to earn the coin if that was what she gained.
She pulled Hither's knife out and glanced to see the girl was standing and looking at the exit tunnel, her hands limp by her side. Naomi had left the lamp beside her, and the flickering light made the girl look half a waif and half a ghost.
She held the knife over the slot and a shiver coursed down her back. A deep sense of wrongness pervaded this act. A little voice that fought for good said not to do this, that terrible events would unfold, a chain reaction of evil consequences...
She gripped the handle with nerveless fingers and plunged it into the slot.
The girl moaned-and nothing happened. No glow, no portal, no ghosts.
Kara backed away, bent down to scoop up the lantern, and grabbed the girl's elbow. Her skin was ice cold. Kara suspected that hurry was needed while evil unfurled itself from sleep, so she tugged insistently on the girl.
They shuffled down the tunnel. The girl did not seem to feel the rough stones under her feet nor the cobwebs that crept over their shoulders and head.
They reached the ladder and Kara urged the girl up. “You go first.” She grabbed the lamp from her.
The girl climbed with shaking arms. She disappeared over the lip then Kara put the lamp handle in her mouth. It tasted of sweat and oil. She hefted right after then popped her head out of the stump to see the girl was pressed against the unicorn's flank.
She climbed all the way out and closed the door to the cellars then transferred the lamp from her teeth to her hand. She took the girl's fingers to pull her towards the exit, wondering what was frightening her so.
She turned around, following her stare when she would not budge. She almost dropped the lamp as fear coursed through her.
Every single dead animal had their stuffed face turned to them. Even as she stood frozen, she heard something nearby making a creaking, rubbing noise as it swung itself to face them. She unglued her gaze and turned her head slowly.
The unicorn was now looking at them, amber glass eyes unfathomable.
Kara pulled the girl's fingers. “Run.”
The girl stayed pressed against the unicorn's flank and kept staring at the opposite wall.
Kara followed her stare and saw the way out had been blocked. The two gigantic dragons, one blue, one green, had unwound themselves from the wall. They now weaved across each other, blocking the doorway, dusty scales still sharp, yellow teeth even sharper.
One opened its mouth and a dry hiss puffed out. Kara's mind was whirring through possibilities. They could try to go back down in the cellar, but their light would give out before they explored half of it. Stumbling about this in pitch black, with a half-mad girl in tow...
A small voice that reminded her of distant bells on a quiet night said, “Flee. They cannot follow you into the sun.”
Kara looked around, confused. That voice was not remotely human.