by Jamie Davis
When they reached the bottom of the stairs and stood on the floor of the cavern once again, Cari looked at her map overlay and turned right, leading them down a side street. She followed the course laid out before her that only she could see.
About an hour later they came upon another of the fountains in a small open square off the cross street on which they traveled. Helen operated the pump bringing crystal clear, mountain spring water up from the depths. They all drank up and refilled their canteens.
“See, I told you,” Cari pointed out. “I know the way out.”
“We never doubted you, Captain,” Helen said. “Did we, Francesca?”
“Not me,” the other woman said, turning away, embarrassed at her earlier doubt.
Cari didn’t blame either of them for questioning her announcement that she knew how to get out of here. Finding the spring and the fountain helped prove to them she knew what she was talking about. That was all that mattered.
They rested for ten minutes and then got back on the road. The buildings around them grew progressively smaller again as they left the center of the empty city until they reached the outskirts on the other side from where they started.
Just past the last hut along the cavern wall, a broad tunnel opened to the east. This was the way out. Cari pulled out the chalk and once again marked their position and direction on the cavern and passageway walls.
She wasn’t sure if anyone would become separated from the group, but at least this way they would have a chance of finding their way out if they did. It might also serve to help others who came back in the future to find this wondrous city and discover its mysteries for themselves.
King Roland was correct. The eastern tunnel was much less direct than the western tunnel leading into the city. There were many side passages and, on several occasions, turns that could have led them in a direction she might’ve thought was wrong based only on guesses. Now she knew which were correct. She could see the map right there in front of her.
They rested several times along the way before stopping for the night in what Cari knew used to be a storeroom off the main trail. It was down a short side passage, but she led them to it as if she been there before.
“Cari, you’ve done a lot of strange things in the past and I’ve never questioned how you managed it. Even knowing all you’ve done, this ability to know where things are in a place you’ve never been before is kind of strange. Are you sure we’re heading in the right direction?” Helen asked.
“Helen, I promise you, we’ll be squinting up at the setting sun this time tomorrow. Like I said, the friendly spirits in that throne room shared their knowledge with me.”
“You talked to a ghost?” Jaycee asked.
“Yes, and he knows we’re on a great quest to return you to the capital. He showed me the way out of here, sharing his own memories with me in a way that would help me find our way. I think maybe he knew you were a fellow royal person and deserved his assistance to return to your capital.”
“That’s nice. What was the king’s name?”
“Roland, his name was King Roland.”
“I shall remember King Roland when I’m Empress someday. It is important for me to remember all those who helped me when I needed it most, even those who are no longer here.”
Cari wondered if Jaycee referred to her parents and her grandfather the former crown prince. They all died in the raider attack that captured her and sunk their ship. The little girl has been through so much. Cari wanted to make sure to protect her from things that might hurt her in the future. She didn’t deserve any more pain in her life.
That thought reminded Cari of something she had yet to tell the young princess. She hadn’t told Jaycee about the death of her great-grandmother. At that moment, Cari realized she couldn’t take the pain away from a person’s life, only help them get through it.
Over the last few days, Cari had wondered about the best time to tell Jaycee about her great-grandmother’s passing. She thought she’d know when it came. Now Cari wondered if she was really protecting herself from the pain of having to tell the little girl, rather than protecting the little girl from the pain of knowing. That thought made up her mind.
Once the party had settled their things in the storeroom, Helen and Francesca helped Percy set up the camp stove. Cari knew this was the best opportunity she’d have.
She took Jaycee by the hand and grabbed their spare lantern. “Let’s go for a little walk, Jaycee. I have something to tell you and I think we should be alone when I tell you what I have to say.”
Helen looked up, concern and worry creasing the lines in her forehead. She must’ve realized what Cari planned to do. Her eyes met Cari’s and she nodded. That meant Helen agreed. It helped ease Cari’s doubts. They had to tell Jaycee about the Empress and this was the time.
Cari and Jaycee walked back towards the main intersection. There were benches carved in the walls around the circular plaza where three passages crossed each other. Cari knew from markings on the map, this had once been a place where caravans would stop and rest before continuing on the journey towards the dwarven city inside the mountain.
Cari set the lantern down and helped Jaycee up onto the bench before sitting down next to her. “There is something we found out after the battle as we ran up the mountain. It was something we discovered on one of the officers in command of the soldiers fighting against us.”
“What did you find out?”
Cari reached into her pouch and pulled out the announcement of the Empress’ death. She looked at it for a moment then at the little girl sitting next to her. “Jaycee, I don’t know how to say this, so I think I’m just going to say it quickly and then answer any questions you have afterward, all right?”
The little girl nodded but didn’t say anything.
“Jaycee, your great-grandmother was very old. Sometimes old people try to hold on and wait for those in their life to come back and visit them, but your great-grandmother could not wait any longer. I’m sorry, honey. She died about a month ago according to this paper.”
Cari reached out and grabbed hold of Jaycee’s hand giving it a gentle squeeze. Jaycee looked up at her, tears welling in her eyes. Cari wondered how much of her great-grandmother the little girl remembered. It had been over a year since the shipwreck. Jaycee couldn’t have been more than four or five years old the last time she saw the Empress.
“Was she sick?”
“I don’t know,” Cari said, shaking her head. “It says here she was 97 years old when she died. That is very old, even where I come from with modern medicine. I know she had a long life full of excitement and adventure, and I think she will be happy even after death knowing you are still alive. I think sometimes that is all we can hope for.”
The two of them sat in the pool of yellow light cast by the lantern. Only a few tears streamed down Jaycee’s cheeks. But she wiped them away as soon as they appeared.
“Does this mean I am the Empress now?”
“Yes, I guess it does. “
“Then I want to do something as Empress. Something important and official.”
Cari looked at the little girl and raised an eyebrow in question. Jaycee squeezed Cari’s hand and nodded. “Cari Dix, kneel before your Empress.”
The little girl’s voice sounded strangely official and old for her age all of a sudden. It was as if she suddenly spoke for all those who’d gone before her, including her great-grandmother. Cari paused for a few seconds, then dropped to one knee in front of the little girl seated on the bench here in this underground cave. Jaycee drew her belt knife and held it before her. “Bow your head, Princess Cari Dix. “
Cari did as she was asked, bowing her head until she stared at the floor of the cave. She felt the light tap of Jaycee’s knife blade on each of her shoulders and then felt the weight as the flat of the blade rested against the top of her head. “Princess Cari Dix, your father served as a protector of the realm and champion of the former Empress. Since he i
s not here and you are, I choose you as my protector and champion. I bestow upon you all the rights and responsibilities belonging to that role. Do you accept this task?”
Cari nodded as she stared at the floor. “Yes, my Empress, I accept.”
* * *
New status achieved — Champion of the Empire
25,000 experience awarded
* * *
Cari looked up when she heard the rasp of metal as Jaycee slid her dagger back into its sheath. “Now, Cari, it’s official.”
Jaycee had a huge grin on her face when Cari looked up at her. Before she could react, the little girl threw herself from the bench into Cari’s arms, wrapping her in a huge hug. “Now nothing can go wrong. I have an official protector just like my great-grandmother did.”
“Yes, you do. Shall we head back and see what they’ve cooked up for dinner?”
Jaycee nodded and the two of them held hands as they returned to the storeroom.
When they returned to the other three companions, Helen looked up from where she was stirring something in their pot over the small portable stove. “Everything alright?”
“Everything’s fine. We have a remarkable young lady here in young Jaycee. I think she’s going to make a wonderful Empress.”
Cari went over and sat down with her back against the wall, facing the doorway. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m starving. I don’t care if it’s jerky soup or not. I just want something to eat.”
Percy had a huge grin on his face and nodded in agreement. He was already standing next to Helen with his tin cup in hand ready to receive his portion of dinner. Percy had apparently reached that age boys reached where they seem to grow right before your eyes.
Where once she had seen a young cabin boy, now stood a young man on the edge of becoming a teenager. His shoulders had begun to broaden and the muscles in his arms had become more defined. Cari remembered how he proved himself back in the forest protecting Jaycee. She was glad to have him along as one of their companions.
Helen served up the meal she had concocted with a sort of flatbread griddlecake and jerky stew. What should have been meager camp rations tasted like a feast to Cari. Being down here in these tunnels and being chased through the mountains above had given her a new perspective on what good food was. In the case of what she was eating now, good food was any food you could get.
“I think we can wedge that door closed in such a way that it will be tough to open it. That should allow us to sleep more soundly again tonight. Everybody get comfortable. We’ll be leaving the mountains sometime tomorrow. Then the quest really begins. There are people out there who are not going to want us to reach the capital with the new Empress. We’re going to have to be on our very best guard.” Cari looked around the room, meeting each person’s eyes. Every one of them nodded. They understood the stakes.
Cari settled back and finished her meal, sopping up the last bits of liquid with the griddle cake before eating it to end her supper. “I’ll take first watch, then Helen, then Francesca.”
Cari watched as each of her companions laid out their bedroll and settled down for the night. After they all got situated and ready for sleep, she turned the lamps down low to darken the room.
While they drifted off to sleep, Cari brought up her Earth Sense ability, going over the map once more. She found if she concentrated on a portion of the journey laid out before her, she could sort of zoom in to pick up more detail. Cari focused on the exit from the mountain, trying to determine what lay beyond the exit from the tunnels. It looked like they emerged on a broad plain extending eastward. Her Earth Sense didn’t give her any more information than that. Given what she knew of imperial maps, it had to be somewhere along the eastern caravan route.
That put them well along the road to the city of Hyroth. Hopefully, by the time they reached it, she’ll have figured out a way to contact her other friends so she could meet them and plan out how to get this little girl on the throne before Prince Timron got there.
Cari’s mind continued to ponder the problem throughout her stand at watch. And even after she woke Helen and got into her own bedroll, she found worries about her other friends and even about her parents intruding into her dreams.
Chapter 15
Hal ducked back into the shadows as the Duke of Charon’s curfew patrol walked past the alley in which he hid. He waited until they passed by and continued on their way down the street before backing up a few steps and turning to run back down the alley to where Mona and Stefan hid.
As soon as he arrived back at their hiding place, Mona spoke up. “Why are there so many patrols? You said there weren’t that many out and about when you went on your scouting runs.”
“There weren’t. Something else is going on tonight. I wish I knew what it was.”
“It could be they are making their move on Tandon,” Stefan suggested. “I got a junior officer from one of the naval vessels to talk a little more than he should two nights ago. He told me their admiral had received word of a new mission. It might be they’re going to try and blockade Tandon to keep the Duke there from doing anything to stop the plans to put Timron on the throne.”
“We have to get past them,” Mona said. “We don’t have much time if we’re going to make it to the fishing fleet as they leave the harbor for the morning’s catch.”
“I hope they don’t keep them in the harbor,” Hal said. “If there is a major operation going on, it might cause them to tighten security down there like they have here in town.”
“We have to get out of the city, Hal. Cari is going to need our help.”
“I know, honey. Come on, let’s go down this branch in the alley and see if we can find a way to get closer to the harbor and the fishermen’s docks.”
Mona and Stefan fell in behind Hal as he led the way down the alley until they reached the next intersection. There were no patrols in sight so he led them across the street to the other side. They darted into another alley leading in the direction of the harbor.
He shared Mona’s concerns about increased security. He also shared her determination to get out of the city and on the road to helping their daughter.
The next alley continued for some distance before opening on to a market square. Hal stopped at the opening of the alley, listening carefully. He could hear the tromp of booted feet on the cobblestones. There was a patrol somewhere nearby. He couldn’t see where it was. The market stalls in the square blocked his view.
“You two stay here. There’s a patrol out there, somewhere. I can’t figure out which direction they’re going. Let me check on their location then I’ll be right back.”
Mona and Stefan nodded and he turned, sneaking out into the market square. Slipping from stall to stall in the market, Hal stayed in the shadows as much as possible. There was a little moonlight and the gas lamps in this part of town were few and far between. It gave him plenty of opportunities to keep out of sight.
The patrol had stopped on the other side of the square and the soldiers sat down on one of the picnic benches set up in front of a line of market stalls. They must serve food here during the daytime. The guards were taking their break and sat in a place where they could both rest and see the street in both directions. That was bad. This was the only way down to the fishermen’s docks. There was no way he, Mona, and Stefan were going to get past them without being seen.
Hal started to back up and sneak back the way he came when his boot knocked over an empty bucket in one of the stalls. As it clattered and rolled across the cobblestones, every single one of the guards resting on the picnic bench turned and looked in his direction.
“Jenkins, go over there and see what made that noise. There’s not supposed to be any townsfolk out and about in this area. Only the fishermen are allowed up and out this early.”
“Aw, Sarge, it’s probably just a stray cat chasing a mouse.”
“Yeah, well suppose it ain’t? We are supposed to be patrolling for people breaking curfew
and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. Now get over there and check out that noise or I’m going to put you on report again.”
Hal looked around looking for someplace else he could hide. There was no way he could move from the shadows in which he hid without stepping out into an area that was relatively well lit. The guards were all looking this way and would spot him immediately.
The biggest problem was Jenkins. He walked in Hal’s direction and Hal knew the guard was going to spot him as soon as he turned the corner around this market stall. Hal drew one of his daggers and prepared to fight. He had to make this fast and silent.
As soon as the unlucky soldier turned the corner, Hal jumped forward. He shoved his dagger up under the hapless guard’s chin and into his brain. The young man’s body stiffened and then let go of his musket. Hal reached out with his free hand, grabbing the gun before it fell to the ground. He hugged the patrolman’s body against his own before slowly lowering him to the ground. They were behind the market stall so no one could see them.
* * *
2,500 experience awarded
* * *
“Jenkins, what do you see?”
Hal checked the musket. It was loaded and primed for firing. He shook his head, reconsidering using it against the guards. Any gunshots at this time of night would draw every nearby patrol instantly. Hal laid the musket down on the cobblestones. There were only five other guards in the patrol. He could take them. After all, he’d done it before back in the old days.
Hal waited a few more seconds, sheathing his dagger, then charged around the corner directly at the seated guards at the picnic table. Hal’s hands whirled in a continuous motion, firing a stream of throwing knives from the sheaths strapped across his chest. The first four flew true, striking each of the closest guards. Two knives embedded deep into the backs of both men. They never saw it coming. They slumped off the bench to the ground, dead.