by Rex Hazelton
Try as she might, the bedraggled woman looked around to see who had spoken to her, but she couldn't see anything but the tiny dancing point of light. “Where are you?” She ventured a whispered question as loud as she could make it without drawing unwanted attention to herself.
As if in response to her question, the mysterious light began moving across the cavern's vast expanse away from her. Inexplicably, the woman felt compelled to follow, and as she did, she reached down to pick up her stone dagger and the ragged shoes she had earlier discarded. To her surprise, only the echoes of her bare feet, slapping upon the stone floor, could be heard as she chased after the mysterious point of light.
Hearing a gurgling sound disturb the surface of the subterranean river laying at her right hand, she feared Schmar's children were coming for her. So, she sprinted as fast as her trembling legs would carry her. Eventually, the sound subsided and she was left alone, racing after the tiny light that darted about before her.
Reaching the farthest end of the cavern, she passed into a network of tunnels laying beyond. On, the tiny light led her as the underground river flowed along on her right side. Soon, she had out-raced the orange light cast by the luminous vein of rock and found herself running towards regions where she knew only darkness would be found. But surprisingly enough, the little point of light was able to illuminate the entire area around her.
This light must be one of the fireflies that occasionally find their way into the caves, she reasoned with herself. The idea she might be following an insect made her feel foolish; yet, in her reckoning, there weren't any other options. Besides, she welcomed the glowing light that enabled her to see, a light she felt was not under Schmar's control.
In time, the passageway they had been traveling through opened into another lesser chamber. The size of a king's great hall, it had walls covered with plaster decorated with elaborate paintings. In the middle of this chamber stood another stone altar, one the woman felt she had seen before, though the memories of those occasions were broken into puzzle pieces impossible to put together. Here, the tiny light shined more brightly than it had before, and the male voice intoned, “Behold, Nyeg Warl's sorrow!”
Because of the light's increasing intensity, the black-haired woman was able to see, in detail, the paintings covering the surrounding walls. On her other trips here, she had only viewed these pictures by the dim light of a few hand-held lanterns. But now, for the first time, the woman could see the paintings were, in fact, a large map of what must be the place called Nyeg Warl as the voice had indicated.
Studying the map, she saw pictures of Schmar's offspring catching children with nets and ropes. Alongside these were drawings depicting parents lamenting over what, she guessed, must have been the kidnappings. All of Nyeg Warl's rivers were colored red. The woman intuitively knew these were the highways used most often by Schmar's offspring. In one corner she saw a large island labeled the Isle of Regret that had been painted totally red. Scores of weeping children, surrounded by well armed stoutly built men standing only slightly taller than their captives, occupied this island.
While leaving the room, the bedraggled woman felt like she had somehow received a revelation of the scope of the atrocities the beast intended to perpetrate. It came to her mind in a flash. Realizing her personal agonies were just one part of a larger, dark strategy that Schmar and the men on the red island planned to implement, she surmised, They want the children!
After she had had enough time to examine the room, the dancing light led her away from the second chamber and out into territory totally foreign to her. A shroud of fear descended on the black-haired woman. With each step, taking her beyond the parameters of her recent loathsome existence, the shroud fell a little closer. Soon, it began to drape itself around her, tightly. She was being disobedient to all the training the rotund man, and his cruel wife, had given her. In time, a premonition that punishment for her wrong doing would soon catch up with her, began to grip her mind, until she viewed each corner they turned and every dark pocket they passed as a potential hiding place for those who would make her pay for her crimes. Furtively glancing at the river they followed, she expected Schmar's children to slip out of the water and pull her underwater to drown her like the rat she felt she was. Yet, to her amazement, none of her fears came to pass. Instead, the tiny light, leading her along, put more and more distance between her and the enormous cavern Schmar dwelt in.
At the point of exhaustion, the dancing point of light, seeming to sense her plight, slowed down to a speed the woman could keep up with by walking at a brisk pace. All the while, the passageway grew narrower the farther along they traveled, until it was hardly wider than the river itself. Water seeping out of cracks in the tunnel's walls made the trail slippery and treacherous to walk upon. Hair and clothes were soaked by the occasional waterfall pouring out from one of the larger cracks. All the while, the light willed her on.
Moving relentlessly forward, whether she had to scramble along on all fours as she squeezed through a bottleneck, ran along dry ground, or forded the river when the trail was forced to the opposite side of the cave, the woman persisted in following her tiny guide. Terrified by the thought of slipping and being immersed in the flowing river, she felt, if it were not for the reassuring light, she wouldn't have been able to dip even one of her toes into the water.
One time, shortly after fording the river, she thought she heard others making their way through the water behind her. Having heard similar sounds that turned out to be nothing, she chalked it off to her imagination. Strangely, the tiny point of light began herding her into a pocket scooped out of the cave's wall. At first, she tried to resist, but the shepherding light, moving back and forth in front of her, made it impossible to do anything else but comply. So, she stepped into the shallow hole. Glad for the break, the woman sat down to rest. As she did, the tiny light abruptly went out, allowing the darkness to rush over her eyes. Panic drove her to try and escape the claustrophobic hole, but whenever she moved forward the light returned and pushed her back. After several such episodes, that reassured the young woman she had not been abandoned by her guide, she resigned herself to making the best out of their stop.
Not long into her time of rest, she heard footsteps and voices coming up the pathway. In less than a heartbeat, she became rigid, as rigid as a fawn hiding in the brush. After years of trying to avoid Schmar's attention, she had become an expert in such tactics. Vague memories of laying so still she couldn't hear herself breath or feel her heart beat, while desperately hoping Schmar would pick someone else to force into his odious rituals, passed through her mind. No! Keeping quiet was no problem for her.
As she waited to see who was following, something landed on her finger, something small. Looking through the blackness towards where she knew her hand lay, the woman saw an almost imperceptible flicker of light burst forth, momentarily revealing a crystal had come to rest upon her hand. Looking up, she wondered if a fragment of rock had fallen from the cave's ceiling. Strangely, the stone stubbornly refused to be shaken off. When the object fluttered against her hand, she thought, Oh! It's the firefly.
Not long afterwards, the tall woman, in the flowing black dress, came into view, leading a company of armed men down the path. These were the adults who lived among the tortured throng of children. Though some were as pitiful as the children themselves, many were cruel oppressors in their own right. Some of the older ones, wrinkled with age, were the most lethal of the bunch. The young woman had always tried to avoid them almost as much as she did the beast himself.
The tall woman charged past the hiding place and into the darkness, like she hadn't any need for a lantern or torch. A clacking sound went with her. Soon, the men, holding lanterns, arrived and the tunnel was washed in light. Nevertheless, they didn't pay the young woman the least bit of attention. Then one of them stuck a torch into the hole where she was hiding and peered inside. To her utter amazement, the man looked right past her, as if she weren't there.
Hearing her gasp, he thrust his torch deeper into the hole, moving it from side-to-side. Satisfied nothing was there, he turned and scurried off after the others.
After some time, the noises the tall woman's entourage made faded as they hurried down the corridor, leaving the blacked-haired woman stunned by what had just happened. What kind of magic is this, the woman thought.
Stretching her tired body out in the shallow hole, all she had gone through finally caught up with her and sent her nodding off into exhaustion induced sleep. Fitfully tossing about, the cries of a baby haunted her dreams until she gratefully awakened from her tormented slumber, dripping in sweat. When she opened her eyes, the tiny point of light reappeared and began flitting about. How long she slept, she couldn't reckon, but she was glad to find that some of her strength had returned. Though hunger gripped her stomach, the woman knew she had energy enough to put even greater distance between herself and the loathsome cavern. So, onward she went, the ever-present light illuminating the pathway in front of her.
At first, they proceeded slowly. The woman wasn't certain whether the firefly was advancing with caution or was giving her time to awaken. Nevertheless, the second leg of the race was taken at a more dilatory pace than the first. Occasionally, her tiny guide repeated the behavior of herding her into some crevice, or under some overhang, before extinguishing its light. At these times, her companion would, again, come to rest upon her hand. The woman felt comforted by the firefly's reassuring touch. Though danger lurked all around her, the little light's presence brought her the gift of another unfamiliar emotion. For the first time in memory, the black-haired woman felt hope.
During the times in which the firefly herded her off into some harbor of safety, distant shouts and sounds of bugle blasts could be heard echoing down the cave's sinewy tunnels. Occasionally, she heard slurping, gurgling noises rising from the underground river's swirling currents.
Once, while she hid in the gross darkness, she reached down and touched her tiny guide with her other hand. Gently vibrating, it emitted a faint golden glow as it submitted to her touch. Petting the firefly's hard exoskeleton, she once again mused, what kind of magic is this?
Fed by a series of small tributaries, the subterranean river was growing in size, and the tunnel grew right along with it. After another long break, the darting firefly picked up the pace as they hurried onward. Huge stalagmites and stalactites now adorned the tunnel's wider parts. The light, that the tiny guide cast, revealed a wonderland of colors and shapes. Seeing this, the black-haired woman could hardly believe the nightmarish hole was capable of producing such beauty.
While admiring nature's handiwork, her gaze fell upon a huge obelisk, sitting in the middle of the water like it were a giant river troll. “Burn it to ashes,” she shouted aloud, heedless of those who may be near enough to hear her cry. The hope which she had recently found began slipping through the fingers of her mind. Standing beneath the towering monument, whose surface was covered with etchings of spiders pouncing upon little children, the young woman quaked with dread. As she shook, the voice of the tall woman slipped into her mind, reminding her of what would happen to those who violated the warnings inscribed on the huge stone.
Gather around me my children and let me tell you about the kindness your father extends to all of you. The tall woman's merciless voice persisted in intruding into her brain. As long as you stay near him, he will protect you from the giant spiders infesting the warl, those that feed on the blood of disobedient children... Far down the corridors of his kingdom, at the edge of unspeakable danger, a marker of stone rests in the middle of our river, a marker etched with pictures of the dangerous creatures that live beyond. Here, your father's protective hand can reach, and no farther. Death awaits any child who passes this marker. Feigning sincerity Schmar's wife added, So, don't scorn your father's love. It will only bring you harm.
With the sinister voice still tumbling through her brain, the woman was shaken from her painful reflections by large shadows moving along the walls rising up before her. Terror clamped about her throat when she thought she heard the sounds of scurrying, clicking feet coming from up ahead, making it impossible to breath. Sadly, the bedraggled woman began weighing the afflictions Schmar had dealt her against the fate of having a giant spider drink her blood. Slowly, the magnetic pull to return to the abusive pit she had scrambled out of tugged at her as instincts for survival kicked in.
Sensing her distress, the little firefly came to rest upon her finger, but this time its reassuring light didn't go out. Instead, her tiny guide lifted her hand and gently pulled her forward, past the horrifying obelisk, the harbinger of doom she feared would come in the bone crushing mandibles of a bloodsucking monster.
Closing her eyes, the memory of her daughter's face appeared before her mind's eye reinforcing her resolve to try and escape. Weeping, she obliged the firefly, letting it lead her into what she assumed was certain death. Resigned to her fate, the woman gained comfort knowing she would soon join her child. But to her surprise, the spider's embrace never came. In time, she opened her eyes to see the obelisk was nowhere to be seen. It lay far behind her, waiting to intimidate those who might follow her example and try to escape.
Seeing her eyes were open, the firefly flew off her hand. Flitting about, it led her farther away from Schmar and the foreboding marker.
After much time passed since they had encountered the obelisk, the cavern's blackness, laying ahead of them, began to give way to another source of light. Eventually, the illumination the firefly provided was eclipsed by a brighter light, one that rushed upon them and back down the tunnel- painful light that made the woman reticent to move forward. Then, after turning another corner, the cave opened up into a world of intimidating brilliance, the likes of which she had only seen in her dreams.
Soon, the woman walked out of Schmar's cave and back into the warl.
Looking upward, the cold stone ceiling of Schmar's loathsome lair was nowhere to be seen. Limitless sky had taken its place. Rubbing her eyes, because of the bright splendor engulfing her, the black-haired woman tried to adjust to the intense light bombarding her from almost every possible direction. Lifting her head higher, her body jerked as the brightest light she had ever seen blinded her. Turning her head away from the overwhelming sight, star bursts of red, blue and purple floated before her eyes. Trying to get her bearings, the young woman staggered about, confused. Finally, stepping back into the cave's shadows, not far from its mouth, she wisely gave herself time acclimate to her new surroundings.
But, her tiny guide would not let her remain there for long. Aware of her problem, the little firefly- whose light was now barely visible in the surrounding brilliance- led her from one shadow to another, those cast by boulders laying in a shallow rocky gorge. Fleeing through the stony cut, the two sojourners were soon confronted by a greenwood, spreading out before them like a verdant sea, a sea big enough to hide in. So off they flew, seeking sanctuary beneath leafy boughs, amidst ferns, and the thick underbrush growing wherever the trees had not taken root.
Though she was exhausted, the woman knew she had to put more ground between herself and the evil cave, if she wanted to make good her escape. So, she pushed onward through the clinging undergrowth, until she collapsed in weariness, landing on the soft forest floor. Laying on her back, she stared up in amazement at the chartreuse leaves fluttering in an early summer's breeze. Somehow everything she saw seemed familiar to her, but she hadn't any idea of what she was looking at. The long winters she spent in Schmar's cave and the magic found there, had erased her memory. She had no idea she was looking at something called a tree, nor did she know, she was laying under something called the sky.
The multitude of colors filling this blindingly bright place were overwhelming her senses. The grandeur and beauty, of all she beheld, was unsettling for one who was used to the shadows and muted light common to the cave she had lived in for most of her life. Anxiety set in as she tried to examine the strange ne
w world she had recently stumbled into.
Sensing her fear, the tiny firefly came to rest upon her finger. Its now familiar presence had a calming effect, re-igniting the flame of hope she had first felt in her flight from the dreaded cave.
Holding her finger before her eyes, the young woman was disappointed to find the firefly's illumination shone too brightly for her to make out its form, even in the light of day. As was its custom, the little guide began gently vibrating as she touched it. The golden glow, that appeared whenever she caressed her companion, returned, enveloping her in sleep. Falling into the deepest repose she had ever known, a dream of a black-haired man and an auburn-haired woman, walking through a forest with a little girl holding each of their hands, appeared in her sleep. Her interest piqued, the young woman followed close behind.
“What's that Daddy?” pointing above her head, the little girl quizzed.
The young woman, following the child's lead, looked up to see something moving along the ceiling of light spreading over them.
“Why Muriel, that's a red hawk,” her father replied.
“What's that?” Once again, the little girl pointed, now in another direction.
“Why Muriel, that's an oak tree.”
The young woman watched with rapt attention, as the little girl's father patiently answered question after question. Soon, the young woman- who was caught up in the game- found herself hoping the little girl would ask her father about something that interested her. To her amazement, the little girl immediately asked about the very thing that had caught her attention. The coincidence of this happening, over-and-over again, encouraged the young woman to venture her own question.