As she stood in front of him now, her heart beating wildly just like the day they’d first met, she breathed deeply, fanning the fire instead of smothering it. Looking up at him, a small delicate smile danced on her lips. Even though this was the first time she'd ever seen the beautiful key, somehow, she knew it was precious to Gideon, and he was entrusting it to her. It was the loveliest thing she’d ever laid her eyes on and it was now securely around her neck. Leaning forward as Gideon affectionately swept the hair out of her eyes, catching it behind each of her ears, he whispered to her, “keep it safe for me?”
Ranelle gazed into his eyes, a coy smile spreading across her lips.
Placing the key under her shirt for safekeeping, she stared at him as if seeing him with new eyes, feeling content for the first time in as long as she could remember. As the happiness inside her swelled, she lifted herself easily onto the tips of her toes, closing her eyes, hoping that when she bridged the gap between them, his lips might meet hers.
Chapter Twelve
Eventually, the exciting sounds from within station two were enough to brake Ranelle and Gideon's embrace. They sighed, interlaced their fingers, smiling at each other.
“After you,” whispered Gideon, gesturing for Ranelle to enter first. She squeezed his hand in hers tightly, stepping into the supply room, a wondrous sight greeting her.
The other miners were jabbering with excitement, which was well justified. This supply station was roughly the same size as the first; however, the shelves of station two were absolutely bursting with supplies. The top shelves held bunches of dried vegetables, fish, mushrooms, and roots. Stacked on the middle shelves were warm blankets as well as pairs of boots, tunics, and trousers that all looked new. Each garment was made of vibrantly colored leathers that were well-oiled and shiny. Bins constructed from woven reeds were piled high on the bottom shelves, filled with other useful supplies such as sheets of writing canvas, writing utensils, water bladders and flasks, cooking pans, utensils, bandages, and small pots of ointments. Each bin was orderly and labeled as if great care had been taken during its organization. Ranelle and Gideon stood wide-eyed at the bounty before them.
“Where do you think all this stuff came from?” Ranelle whispered to Gideon.
“I don't know,” he replied, in awe.
Charlie and Lara were also speculating where the supplies had originated as Abree slowly made her way toward one of the shelves of clothing.
“I don't know any people who have leathers this nice,” she said as she reached out to touch one of the garments. As soon as her hand brushed the leather, it was evident by the expression on her face that something was very wrong.
“Are you okay?” asked Ranelle as she approached the girl with concern.
“This can't be right,” Abree murmured.
Ranelle shot her a look of apprehension. Since the girl was deep in thought and not answering, she turned her attention to the garments as well. They were sewn from the most gorgeous red-colored leathers that Ranelle had ever seen. As she reached out to one of the tunics, she immediately knew why Abree was so vexed.
“These aren't river lizard hides,” she said quietly.
“What is it?” Gideon asked.
Ranelle gathered up the tunic she had touched and carried it to him. “These leathers are not from the burrows.” Ranelle handed the luxurious red garment to Gideon and watched as he raised his eyebrows as he examined it.
“My father,” said Gideon quietly, “he must’ve had them stored here. There's no other explanation. My father gave me the key, and he’s the only person who could have possibly–,”
“Are you sure it was him?” Charlie interrupted. He’d finished gossiping to Lara and was now keen to join their conversation.
“Quite sure,” Gideon responded indignantly.
“Really, Charlie? You seriously doubt that?” Abree chortled harshly, “You really think that anyone but Obadiah would have stores of clothing like this?”
“Why would he put all of this stuff down here? That’s the first question we should be asking,” said Ranelle crossing her arms over her chest.
“These supplies could be helping people in Ashbourne,” said Lara with outrage, “What gives your father the right to keep all of these things from us?”
Before Gideon could respond, Abree interjected. “Who’re you kidding? This stuff isn’t meant for us, it’s childish to think these things are intended for anyone other than Obadiah himself. It’s probably payment for some favor he did for his privileged friends.”
“My father doesn’t have friends,” Gideon interceded. Still, the group wasn’t interested in what he had to say as the room erupted loudly, each person arguing their point or concerns. As they hurtled insults toward his father, Gideon simply stared ahead, eyes glassy and unfixed as Abree, Lara, and Charlie all voiced their harsh opinions. Insults swarmed like angry insects buzzing about the room until Ranelle glanced over at Gideon, seeing the expression on his face.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Ranelle interceded, putting up a hand, effectively silencing the others.
The room lay quiet for a few moments, as Gideon shifted his gaze to the floor, unable to defend his father’s apparent hoarding of valuable supplies.
Eventually, Ranelle cleared her throat to break the silence. “What matters is that we’re here, and we need these supplies.”
Charlie and Lara nodded as they exchanged embarrassed looks.
“She's right,” came the voice of an unexpected supporter. Abree limped to the shelves, gazing down at a red leather jacket that looked like it might possibly fit her, “I'm tired of being cold and hungry.” Snatching the garment off the shelf, she hugged it tightly to her chest, the rest of them watching.
Ranelle turned to the others and motioned toward the shelves, “let's take whatever we need.”
A few minutes later, each teenager was eagerly rummaging through the piles of new clothing, with Gideon albeit more reserved than the rest. Everything was made from the softest of hides, unlike any the miners had ever seen. The leathers were pliable, yet tough, unlike the rough, brittle skins that the river lizards supplied. Every item was also dyed a deep shade of red.
As Ranelle left the shelves to explore the back of the room, she noticed two ceiling-high cabinets to the far back corner of the station. Curious about their contents, she approached them. Upon examination, Ranelle found each cabinet was made of wood, like the station door, and was coated with a glossy polish that reflected the gentle light from the pyrus lanterns. Ranelle reached her hand out inquisitively, tugging on the latch. Her expression fell when she realized the cabinet wouldn't open. She pulled a bit harder...still nothing.
Then, she noticed a familiar-looking hole between the two cupboard doors. Ranelle harrumphed to herself and withdrew the small silver key from inside her shirt and slid it into the lock. She turned it, curious why the cabinet was locked in the first place. There was a soft click from the lock, which brought about the attention of the others.
“What’ve you–” Gideon began to say as he approached her.
“What's in it?” interrupted Charlie, nearly running into the others as he tried to get a better look.
“I don't know, I haven't opened it yet,” she snapped with irritation.
As the others surrounded her, she stepped away from the cabinet.
“Gideon?” she said with a smile, motioning for him to open it. Gideon shot her a look of apprehension before reaching for the cabinet doors. He tugged. This time the doors popped open promptly. The miners stood in awe, mouths gaping at the contents. There were long swords, daggers, spears, maces, axes, even several sets of bows with quivers full of arrows. Each weapon was shiny and new, bearing no signs of wear.
“What was your father planning down here?” asked Abree, her eyes wide.
“I don't know,” Gideon said slowly, mouth open, eyes locked on the glinting pile of weaponry. His stomach shifted uncomfortably.
“You said before t
hat you’d seen maps of these tunnels?” asked Ranelle as she reached out, gripping one of his arms gently.
“Mmm...” he confirmed absentmindedly as he turned to look Ranelle in the eye, “I walked into my father’s office a few weeks back, and there was a drawing on his desk. He was nowhere to be found, so I inspected the drawing to see if it would tell me what he was up to.”
“Did you know right away that it was of the mines?” Ranelle asked.
“No. When my father returned that evening, he was sweaty and tired. When I pressed, he said he’d been in Jericho negotiating trades. The plans on his desk had simply been labeled “8,” which was a vague reference. I didn't make the connection until the mining administrator told me that our crew would be opening tunnel eight.”
“The administrator?” asked Ranelle in surprise, “Mayge?”
Gideon nodded.
“Mayge assigned us to tunnel eight?”
“Yeah,” Gideon insisted, unsure of where her line of questioning was headed.
“How good of a look did you get at the map?” asked Abree, ignoring Ranelle. The whole group was now hanging on Gideon’s every word.
“Not very good…I mean, I have a decent memory for details, but the map was ripped on the edges, as if it was part of a larger one. I do remember seeing the two supply stations we’ve already found.”
“Maybe there are more,” Ranelle suggested.
Gideon gave her a frustrated look. “Maybe, but I don’t understand how my father, if it was him in the first place, could’ve gotten these things down here. Tunnel eight has been off limits for cycles.”
“Right,” Ranelle agreed, “but also, Mayge told me only tunnels one through six were safe for active work, so why would she assign us to this tunnel if it was unsafe?”
“I don’t know,” Gideon responded.
“Who cares?” said Abree spitefully.
Ranelle gritted her teeth to keep herself silent. She didn’t have to defend her thoughts and ideas to the placid girl.
As she and Abree glared at each other, Lara asked, “Why would Obadiah have put everything down here? Wouldn’t he just have stored it in his house?”
“Yes,” Gideon responded, “Our house is large, with many rooms; there are lots of places he could hide things. What I can’t explain is where he got it all from. I don’t know of any creatures that have hides like these.” Gideon held up a new satchel to illustrate the beautiful leather.
“Maybe the leather has been treated to make it softer?” Lara suggested, hopefully.
“And grow hair?” Abree mocked, rolling her eyes at the girl, “You have to be stupid to think these hides are from anything in the burrows.”
Despite her harsh words, Ranelle had to admit that the detestable girl did have a point. The leathers in the supply station were unlike any animal skins she’d ever seen. Water snakes had a distinct scale pattern, as did river lizards with their warty skin and thick hides.
“Perhaps they’ve discovered a new type of animal in one of the other burrows?” Charlie spoke up.
“Or, maybe these hides came from a creature outside the burrows,” Abree suggested raising her eyebrows. Instead of elaborating on her suggestion, she limped toward the weapon cupboard. Licking her lips, she pulled out a few of the smaller daggers stacked into a pile at the bottom of the cabinet.
“That’s doubtful, Abree,” Charlie sighed, rolling his eyes.
“It’s possible that these things could have come from Jericho. You did say that your father has been negotiating trades with them,” Ranelle suggested. She turned towards Gideon, who remained silent, apparently lost in his own thoughts.
“What are we going to do?” Lara asked with worry, “I mean, with weapons like this, who knows what kind of beasts we’ll find down here.”
Ranelle reached into the cabinet and lifted out one of the daggers. It felt light as she examined it, turning it over in her hands to take in the details. Forged with a sturdy metal, the blade was expertly sharpened and absent of the usual pits and imperfections that plagued the tools back home. She couldn’t see any deficiencies in the edge at all. In addition to the smooth metal surface, several brightly colored gemstones had been set into the wooden handle. “These weapons aren't from the burrows either. I’ve never seen stones like these. None of our blades are this flawless either. Ashbournian forges can’t get hot enough to produce a blade this clean and free of impurities.” Ranelle's heart began racing as a million more questions rapidly popped into her head.
“What’s outside of Alysium?” Lara asked frankly, generating odd looks from the others.
“Outside–” Ranelle started.
“–Alysium, yes.” Lara finished impatiently, “What’s beyond the burrow walls?”
No one answered.
As the group of teenagers exchanged looks, Gideon spoke up, “I think the unwritten rule has always been that we’re not supposed to ask that question.”
“Ha!” Abree laughed harshly. “Finally feeling some of your father’s oppression, huh?”
“Shut up, Abree,” Gideon snapped before shoving his way out of the group.
“Gideon,” Ranelle called to his retreating backside, but she was too late. He’d already burst free from the station and into the outside corridor.
Everyone turned to glare at Abree, who held her hands up defensively, “It's not my fault he can't accept the truth.”
“Choose a knife,” Ranelle growled between clenched teeth toward the spiteful girl, “If you think you can bear the added weight.”
Abree turned her nose up as she reached inside the cupboard to pick her weapon with a humph, as if any other response was unworthy of her effort.
Ranelle clenched her fists, trying hard to keep the nasty words she had for Abree behind her teeth where they belonged. Turning to the others, Ranelle said, “We don't know what we will face out in those tunnels. We need to be prepared.”
Charlie and Lara nodded.
Abree ignored her as she walked away from them with the armaments she’d chosen.
Sighing to herself, Ranelle reached into the cabinet and pulled out a weapon, then backed away so the others could follow suit. She watched as they timidly inspected their choices, trying to pick a blade that might suit them from the horde of options. When she was confident that they had an idea of what they were doing, she left them to find Gideon.
Stepping out into the station two tunnel, she didn't have to go far to find him. Sitting on the ground, Gideon was staring at the wall in front of him. Ranelle could tell that he was in a self-deprecating mood. Hoping to pull him from of his daze, she let the tip of the weapon she carried fall sharply to the floor, emitting a loud clank that echoed through the tunnel.
The sound startled Gideon, and he looked up at her with alarm.
“I picked one for you.”
Gideon blinked as he looked at the blade of the long sword that stood before him. The short edge of the sword was darker than the long side. Two contrasting metals had been combined to create one beautiful blade. The grip was wrapped in leather cordage, and the pommel was a large, translucent stone.
Gideon got slowly to his feet as Ranelle held the sword out, offering it to him.
“I've never seen a weapon like this.”
“Neither have I... maybe it’s another relic from beyond Alysium.” Ranelle laid her hand on Gideon's shoulder, “Regardless where it came from, what's important is that it’s fit for a leader.”
“I'm no leader.”
“Gideon, just because your father is oppressive, that doesn't mean you can’t do better.”
“How am I supposed to be a better leader than him? He’s the only example I’ve ever had,” said Gideon hopelessly, as he held the sword out to her.
Ranelle pursed her lips, pushing the sword away gently as she pulled Gideon in closer to her, careful not to brush up against the sharp-edged weapon. “I'll help you,” she whispered.
Gideon looked into her eyes, feeling his despair
begin to dissipate. His heart quickened. “How,” he whispered.
Ranelle reached for his arm, following it down to the hand that clenched the long sword. Slowly, she pulled the hilt of the weapon out of his grasp and leaned it against the tunnel wall. Turning her eyes back to him, she smiled. “We’ll do it together,” she whispered as she interlaced her fingertips with his, pressing their palms gently together. Her smile was infectious, and the corners of his mouth twitched upward without his control. As his expression softened, he pulled her in swiftly, wrapping his arms around her slender form. Ranelle emitted a laugh, bright and clear into the air. Caught off guard by his bold gesture.
“What would I do without you, Elle?”
Her eyebrow raised as she lifted herself up onto the balls of her feet, reaching so that her lips might touch his. As they met in the cold mineshaft air, time felt still, the heat rising around them as they held each other close. When they broke free, Gideon wrapped his arms around Ranelle once more, pulling her into his chest. Ranelle reached her arms around back, burying her face into the warmth of his shirt. Despite being bruised, dirty, and tired, being in Gideon’s arms brought her an ease she hadn't felt since before her parents had died.
“I wish we could be like this, always,” Gideon whispered into her ear.
“We have to take each day as it comes.”
Gideon sighed, his head drooping, “after all the time it took me to get close to you, I wish we were back home. I just want to be together.”
Ranelle mulled his words over in her mind before replying, “Do you really think your father would’ve let us be together?”
Gideon pulled away from Ranelle slowly, “I haven't really seen him much lately.”
“You haven’t?”
Alysium Page 11