Astrid to panic, run away, and just give up. She was too level headed and methodical. If there was a problem, she had several people she would turn to for advice. Gemmeth and Celestine were always there for her. Nothing Preta said made sense.
“That’s not Astrid. She would never do any of those things.”
“She just lost her mother. She was just crowned queen. These are very overwhelming changes.” She pleaded with Maddox hoping he would see it her way.
“Well, I’ll give her some time to digest it. I’ll see where she stands in a week or two. In the meantime, I’ll make an announcement tomorrow letting the people know she needs some rest and I will step in until she returns.” He was resolute, and Preta was pleased.
“That’s very kind and mature of you, Maddox. I think you will make a wonderful king, even if it’s only temporary.” She hoped that the idea of being a stand-in king would eat at him enough that he would want to take power permanently. Although his feelings about it didn’t matter too much in her scheme. Preta’s place was in Yantra as queen, and if Maddox didn’t comply, she would take care of him.
………
The ogre led Astrid and Zander south through the grasslands and into the great jungle of Tulim, Preta’s subjects shouting and throwing stones along the way. In little more than a decade, she’d taken over as head of the blood-magic coven and managed to dominate all of Tulim. With the ogres, blood-cursed creatures, and other sorcerers, she had built an enormous army and created fear among the people. Preta had declared herself empress of Tulim with relative ease. However, such a tiny landmass no longer seemed sufficient to the witch. She’d moved on to a larger conquest.
By the time they got to Mt. Naga, they were beaten down and scared. The ogre took pity on his prisoners and gave them some old meat muffins he stored in his coat pockets.
“Thank you, kind sir.” Astrid said to the ogre who only stared in response.
Once they were finished, the ogre climbed into a boat with them and rowed across a muddy inlet to Mt. Naga. It was the shortest way to get there even though they had to pass through a swarm of blood-drinking kyhas that slammed into the dinky row boat in an attempt to flip them over. They could smell blood coursing through the prisoner’s veins, and it drove them insane with hunger, but the ogre was strong and certainly heavy enough to keep the boat on its fateful course. Zander and Astrid were oblivious to the danger surrounding them. Their whole world had become serving Preta, which meant following the ogre. They could barely remember their feelings for each other or anyone else.
They arrived at Mt. Naga, and the clouds hovered heavily over the top of the mountain. The rocky path upward was treacherous and the ogre wasted no time in tossing his prisoners out of the boat and leaving the wretched place. The two rose slowly from the ground, brushing sharp rocks from their limbs. The steep trail looked unforgiving and Astrid had a feeling the mountain was unsafe, so without a word, Astrid walked past Zander towards the shoreline. She gazed out at the muddy banks and decided to swim back to the other side, but as she slowly stepped into the water, a bloodthirsty kyha jumped out bearing her teeth. Astrid ran over the rocks to Zander, who she was still unsure of.
“I guess we better make the best of this. Let’s get moving before it gets dark,” Astrid said like the leader that she was but could not remember.
“Well I’m not dumb enough to get in the water.” Zander shoved past Astrid as he spoke. The two made their way up the smoky volcano in silence. The rocky path was lined by dead trees, the turbulent winds and searing steam that emerged from the volcano. They reached a bend at 500 feet that led them up an even steeper path, listening to guttural groans and high pitched howls from deep crevasses that could have easily swallowed them up with one false step. The pungent smell of rotting flesh and sulfur made them both nauseous. Zander and Astrid feared they would be climbing well into the night surrounded by the songs of the blood demons, but as the sun began to set, the pair found a break from the brutal climb.
To their amazement, they saw a beat up hut resting atop a giant heap of bones. Realizing they would have no other opportunity to rest, they climbed over the bones toward the hovel. Astrid looked down at the bones, and pondered her own fate for the first time since Preta’s spell. As they reached the shack, the sound of the blood demons seemed to dissipate but Zander kicked the door open just in case there was any surprise waiting for them. Astrid fell against the floor, completely exhausted and scared that she would die on this mountain. Zander’s feet were bleeding and his heart raced with terror. They sat together on the floor, hoping for the nightmare to end.
Astrid looked up and saw shelves lining the little shack, holding dozens of tiny jars. Astrid knew they had to contain something dreadful, but before she could do anything to stop him, Zander pulled one of the jars down and began to open it. As he opened the jar, shrill screams filled the tiny shack. All of a sudden, they could feel the presence of several beings gathered outside.
The blood demons surrounded Astrid and Zander’s safe haven. The horrific specters had small misshapen heads and big black eyes set in their deep sockets. Black sludge poured over their tall, thin frames and an eerie red glow pulsed from deep within them. The demons moved in, reaching for Astrid and Zander with their long, spindly fingers.
“We have to get out of here!” Zander screamed through the howls. He grabbed Astrid’s hand and the two leapt between the demons, racing over the heap of bones back to the path. The demons slowly followed the pair and as they ran, the mountain began to shake and spew burning ashes. Astrid beat her wings desperately, but they barely lifted her off the ground. A smoldering pile of ash fell onto Astrid and singed her left wing. She cried out in agony and Zander rushed to her side. Just then, a miracle happened. Their hypnosis began to lift.
“Zander?” She asked meekly.
“Yeah?”
“Do you know why we’re here?” Astrid searched his eyes for answers, but everything was such a fog.
“No…I don’t remember anything. I remember being at the farmhouse, but that’s it.”
“Preta. Remember? Preta was there. She must have brought us here.” With a new fire in her spirit, Astrid got up and looked around. Shaking off the pain from her scorched wing, she grabbed his hand and continued running along the path, fueled by anger. She knew Preta was probably in Yantra, taking her place as queen. It was her duty to save Yantra from the evil witch. She couldn’t figure out whether Maddox was behind their removal from Yantra or if he was also under Preta’s spell, but she vowed to find out.
On the opposite side of Mt. Naga, a sliver of land led directly to Tulim Caverns which extended to the edge of Vovros. Astrid determined they should head there for now, just to get away from the haunted volcano. Once they got further from the mountain, they came across a cemetery. The wind whipped around them and through the looming tombstones, creating a monstrous howl. They continued walking cautiously, until guttural groans echoed from beneath the ground.
The Vovrosi had employed witches at one time to condemn people who disobeyed their stringent laws to an eternal life guarding the border of Vovros. They were the living dead. Astrid had always thought it was a ridiculous rumor, not believing anything so horrible could even be possible. However recent events made her a believer.
“Let’s hurry.” she said. Zander just nodded at her, eyes wide with terror.
Once they arrived at Tulim Caverns they began to relax. Walking inside the caverns, they found a long tunnel lit by torches without any perceptible end. Both were too relieved that the groaning had stopped to worry. They kept moving and once they got deeper inside, the air began to thin out significantly. Astrid and Zander slowed down, struggling with shallow breaths and choking on the smell of mold and animal droppings.
They reached a huge crevasse in the middle of the cavern that was at least two hundred feet wide. There was nothing around to use to get across, but just as they considered going back, the moans returned from behind them. Panic-strick
en and nearly suffocating, there appeared to be little hope until Zander grabbed one of the torches and brought it closer to the edge so they could see. Small stones seemed to be fixed to the wall strategically so that the gap could be crossed.
Astrid was hesitant, but as the sounds of the living dead grew closer, she took a deep breath and began moving across the crevasse. She moved as quickly as she could while balancing on the stones. Just as Zander got his footing behind her, the undead lurched into view. The tall, sinewy creatures scratched and scrambled their way onto the wall just after him and their moans became more menacing. Blood dripped from their rotting flesh down into the endless chasm.
The pair moved faster but one of the creatures got close enough to reach Zander. The cold, dead hand barely touched him, yet he lost his footing and slipped. He fell and grabbed onto the edge of the stones where his feet once were. He dangled from the bottom stones, quickly reaching from one set to the next. Astrid paused in fear that Zander would fall, but he managed to hang on.
They got to the edge and leapt to safety, running at full speed. They followed the narrow pathway around to discover light peeking through sooner than either one expected. The light opened up to
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