Alysium

by Tiffany Pelletier

  We left all the weapons we needed behind!

  Before she could yell another warning, Lara and Charlie appeared abruptly out of the darkness, brandishing daggers, ready to kill what they most likely thought was the smaller version they’d already encountered.

  “No, get the sword!” Ranelle screamed as she nearly ran into them.

  Before she could swing them around to retrieve the blade that lay next to Gideon, the creature was upon them, its pincers clicking madly. Its powerful, blunt legs swept theirs violently aside, sending each of them crashing hard onto their backsides like ragdolls.

  Ranelle gasped from the pain as she struggled to call out to the others, unable to catch her breath. Realizing she’d dropped the lantern, she turned and saw the spilled pyrus still aflame, burning across the sandy pathway, casting pyrus light on the underbelly of the enormous creature. The skincrawler backed away in response, snapping its large claws at the flames as if they were a new foe.

  Ranelle used the diversion to her advantage as she rolled deftly to her side and began feeling her way back to where Gideon was lying. Before she made it to the stretcher, however, something hard came down on the back of her thigh, piercing into her flesh.

  Her blood-curdling scream penetrated the darkness as she felt the creatures’ appendage burrow deep into her leg.

  “Ranelle!” Lara screamed as she came from the left side of the skincrawler, trying to stab it with the two daggers she wielded, but the creature’s shell was too thick, and the blades simply ricocheted off. The crawler clicked its pincers furiously and swiped a spiny leg, knocking Lara down onto the ground yet again. This time, the girl didn’t get back up, and there was no sign of Charlie.

  Ranelle rolled again, the wound in her thigh pulling painfully with each movement, causing her to involuntarily cry out. Between her whimpers, only feet behind her, Ranelle could hear the creatures’ pincers click-clack as it approached her. She tried to roll again, hoping to miss its attack.

  Instead, she witnessed a brave Charlie brandishing his dagger. He ran at the creature from behind, bellowing a primal yell as he drove the blade deep into the creatures’ underbelly. A sudden flow of green liquid oozed from the knife wound, and the skincrawler faltered, trying desperately to reach its underside to remove the new burden. Ranelle saw a fleeting look of triumph on Charlie’s dirty face, as he cried out with success.

  Unfortunately, the sound attracted the creature, bringing its attention around to him. Before he could move very far, the skincrawler struck him hard in the head with one of its legs, sending the boy crashing to the cavern ground, his face a mess of blood and sand.

  Ranelle cringed as she saw his seemingly lifeless body lying just feet from the creature. Would it finish him off? Did skincrawlers eat their prey alive?

  Terrified of finding out, she began to crawl away, focusing her attention on getting to Gideon to retrieve the sword. Maybe then, they might have a chance.

  As she tried to get to her knees, the pain in her thigh brought her unwillingly back onto the ground. She tried to stifle her sobs as she slid her body over the sand and rocky terrain, inching her way toward where she hoped the stretcher lay. Before she’d made it even a few feet, she heard the click-clack of the beast’s pincers just over her shoulder once again.

  Knowing there was no escape, she pulled her legs up into her chest to brace for its strike. Just as it lunged toward her, the great beast suddenly halted its attack as it was driven back. Ranelle looked up as a figure stepped over her and approached the skincrawler.

  She saw the glint of pyrus firelight off polished steel as the sword swung back and forth, ringing through the air.

  Gideon?

  She couldn’t believe her eyes as she watched the now fully awake Gideon drive the creature away from her, backward into the night. He swung the blade deftly, avoiding the creatures flying appendages and using the sword to put space between the crawler and where she lay helpless on the cold ground.

  As the beast stumbled backward, Gideon appeared over her, the pyrus fire illuminating the features of his gaunt face. “Keep moving back!” he croaked to her, turning his focus back on the skincrawler that was now rapidly advancing again.

  The beast skirted around Gideon swiftly, gaining ground on its approach toward Ranelle, reaching one of its legs out for a strike. Before it could touch her, Gideon brought the sword down hard, severing the end of the limb from its body. The leg landed on the sandy ground several feet from the crawler, green blood oozing from within the still twitching appendage. The remaining stump spewed hot liquid everywhere as the creature clicked with anger and pain, falling backward as it struggled to retreat.

  Gideon roared at the crawler as he brandished his sword back and forth, sweeping it into the air in a giant arc, driving the creature backward. He continued to step forward, repelling the skincrawler further and further back into the darkness and away from Ranelle.

  As she watched, she realized the spilled pyrus was beginning to burn itself out. The edge of the pathway where the cliff’s edge began, wouldn’t be visible to Gideon as he approached.

  “There’s a cliff! Watch out!” she called into the darkness, but as Gideon yelled, driving the creature back amid its clicks and clacks, her words were lost.

  Reaching forward, she called again, screaming so that he might hear her. Gideon looked back, alerted by her screams, but was unable to make out her warning. Fearing for Ranelle’s safety if the creature remained alive, Gideon took a wild swing through the air as the crawler recoiled from the weapon’s edge. He then aimed the blade at the soft underbelly of the creature, heaving with all his might as he drove the weapon deep into the creatures’ flesh. He pushed with all his weight, driving the sword deeper until the skincrawlers’ legs gave way, and it began to fall.

  As Ranelle had feared, the creatures’ backside was already retreating over the edge of the cliff as its rear legs had held it upright. Now, as it tumbled backward, its body pulled the sword and the boy that was holding it, over the edge. Ranelle screamed and clawed the ground as she watched the shocked look on his face as the cliffside began to buckle and give way to the dark trench below.

  Gideon and the creature then tumbled out of sight.

  “Gideon, noooo…” Ranelle shrieked as she frantically dug her nails into the sandy cave floor, dragging her body past the rapidly shrinking pyrus fire and toward the edge of the cliff. She continued to scream his name, but each time, her voice seemed to lessen. As she pulled her body across the sand, legs unable to support her, arms beginning to shake, she felt her extremities growing cold. She coughed, spraying sand into her face, choking on the taste of metal that was filling her mouth. Struggling forward, bit by bit, she dragged her exhausted body toward the trench. Unexpectedly, her breath began to grow shallow, and she felt her lungs struggle for air. For a moment, she felt as if she were suffocating as she retched and gasped.

  Looking back at her leg, she saw it was still attached, blood barely dribbling from the large hole left from the skincrawler, but she could no longer feel anything below her waist.

  I’ve been poisoned.

  The realization sent her mind spinning as several thoughts consumed her. She burned with the need to reach Gideon, but she was going to die if she didn’t reach her herbs. Her heart tore, half wanting desperately to climb over the edge of the cliff to Gideon, while the other half pulled her back toward her satchel.

  She pounded the ground with her fists in frustration and futilely cried out into the darkness, but no sound came forth. She gasped for air as she felt the suffocating weight of her own body pressing down upon her chest.

  Making up her mind, tears pouring from her eyes, she tried to turn back where the group had been resting before the crawler attack. She dragged herself back over the sand and rocks once again, pausing several times as she retched along the way. When she reached the nearly extinguished pyrus flames, she spied a limp figure on the ground.

  Lara.

  The gir
l’s chest still moved, but her breathing was labored. Ranelle could tell one of the girl’s arms was contorted unnaturally, bent behind her back as she lay still. Knowing she couldn’t help the girl in her current condition, Ranelle continued to drag her body forward until she came upon a second figure.

  Charlie.

  The coy features of his young face were now horribly swollen, covered with a mixture of blood and sand. His twisted and broken flesh was already turning various shades of purple. Unable to tell if he was breathing or not, Ranelle pulled her body desperately toward where her bag lay. Each inch forward now brought with it a searing pain deep in her chest as she began to lose control of her extremities.

  Her head began to spin, and she retched again. This time, thick fluid began oozing out of her mouth, so thick she gagged on it. Willing the flow to stop so she could try to catch her breath, she coughed and choked on the liquid. Ranelle tried spitting it out but began losing control of her mouth entirely as it hung agape, blood drooling out onto the sand.

  She mouthed silent words as her head spun and began to droop, all hope of reaching her bag…lost. She lowered her head down onto the sand and felt the coolness of the rough granules against her cheek. She was so tired. It felt good to rest her head for a bit as her eyes began to flutter, and her body grew heavy.

  A nap would be nice, she thought to herself as the severity of her current circumstances was lost within her air-starved mind.

  She began to count her breaths, something she’d done since she was a child when it was time for her to go to bed at night.

  Twenty…twenty-one…twenty-two…the counting brought her gentle comfort as darkness surrounded her.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Ulenna and Mayge pushed through the masses of people on their way back to Ashbourne. It hadn’t been nearly so busy when they’d left, and they had the feeling that something had changed since they’d been gone.

  “I see miners about,” said Ulenna as she spied several people wearing miners’ garb as they hustled here and there.

  “Mmm,” Mayge agreed, wearing a look of worry on her chubby face. She attempted to quicken her pace, which proved difficult as she was indeed out of shape.

  By the time they reached the mining district, Mayge was panting, her face red and sweaty. Her determination hadn’t waned, however, as she continued straight for her office, snapping at people who got in the way.

  Ulenna glanced around at the excited atmosphere of the burrow until she recognized a small girl on clean-up duty.

  “You!” she pointed and called to the youngling, slightly embarrassed she couldn’t remember her name.

  “Fraine,” said the girl curtly as she approached Ulenna with curiosity.

  “I’ve been away, what’s all the excitement about?”

  “Oh!” said the youngling as her freckled face broke into a huge grin, “my best friend’s coming home!”

  “Your best friend?” Ulenna repeated, confused.

  The girl nodded vigorously, her dark red curls bouncing up and down with the movement of her head.

  “Who’s your best friend?”

  “Ranelle Blake!” said the girl with a broad toothy grin, “All of ‘em are!”

  “Who?”

  “The lost miners! They finished clearing the tunnel an’ there were no bodies! That means they’re ALIVE!” said the girl as she positively shook with excitement.

  “They didn’t find any bodies?” asked Ulenna incredulously.

  “No, they didn’t,” said Fraine with a sudden look of irritation as if everyone should be as excited as she was.

  “Sorry, I’m just surprised is all,” Ulenna tried to excuse away her shock.

  “Well, you shouldn’t be because my best friend is a survivor. She’s as tough as they come. I knew she’d make it!” Fraine explained as she stood up tall and proud.

  “Have the search parties found them yet?” Ulenna inquired, mustering up enough faux excitement to keep the girl engaged.

  “No, they didn’t send any search parties,” said Fraine with a contemplative look.

  “They didn’t?”

  The girl shook her head, sending her curls bouncing about once again. “The Regent and his aide waited for the ‘all clear’ then headed in themselves!”

  “The…Regent?” Ulenna stammered, her stomach lurching.

  “Yup, I suppose he wants to be the first one to see his son or something,” shrugged the girl, as she looked around, rapidly losing interest in their conversation.

  “Well, thanks for the info, you can get back to cleaning duty,” said Ulenna, dismissing the girl.

  “Oh, cleaning duty’s been canceled for the day!” the girl reported with another wide grin.

  “Canceled?”

  Frain nodded. “The Regent said for us all to take some well-deserved time off,” Fraine recalled carefully, reciting the words exactly as the Regent had delivered them.

  “Time off?” Ulenna repeated with a blank stare.

  “Yeah, we get to relax!” said Fraine with excitement as she nearly hopped up and down with pent up energy.

  “I see,” said Ulenna, forcing a smile.

  “I’m going to go get my friend’s cot ready! She’s been gone for ages!” the small girl reported with a wave as she hurried off toward the dormitories, skipping and darting between people along the way.

  Ulenna relaxed her expression, breaking into a brisk walk, determined to report the unexpected news to her mistress.

  When she entered Mayge’s office, the older woman looked up from her desk with anticipation. “Any idea what’s happening? I can’t find any miners on duty!”

  Ulenna nodded and took a seat with apprehension. “A young girl just informed me that the miners have cleared the collapsed tunnel. Apparently, Obadiah Warren dismissed everyone’s work duties after that. He then took his aide with him to find the survivors,” Ulenna reported.

  Mayge stared at the girl, her expression blank as she processed the information before speaking. “Survivors?”

  Ulenna nodded. “Apparently, no bodies were found so they are assumed to be alive at this point.”

  Mayge’s eyes bugged as she pulled a fresh piece of parchment toward her, leaning forward on her desk as she hastily scribbled a note. Ulenna watched as she wrote quickly, then rolled the paper up, bound it with a string, and stood. She made a motion for Ulenna to follow her as she left her office and went out into the busy burrow.

  Glancing back and forth, looking for something or someone, Mayge nearly jumped as she rushed forward, calling out to a young boy who was heading toward the dormitories.

  “Mays, a word please!”

  The boy stopped on his heels, a look of disappointment on his face as he turned and approached the mining administrator.

  “Yes, ma’am,” said the boy, obediently.

  “Have your duties been dismissed like the others?”

  The boy nodded with a smile as he gave a nervous glance between the two women.

  “Then, I have an errand for you,” said Mayge holding up the note she’d just scribbled.

  The boy looked at the note forlornly, sensing that his vacation was abruptly coming to an end.

  “Deliver this to Tess, the keeper of the hermit stall in the Grotto, and I’ll extend your time off to three days,” Mayge offered the boy, her eyebrows lifted.

  The boy stared at the rolled parchment, then back at Mayge, as if suspecting the deal was too good to be true.

  “Three days?” Mays inquired, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.

  Mayge nodded, wiggling the note between her fingertips as if it was a delicious treat.

  “Okay!” said the boy with a grin, nearly hopping up and down on excited feet.

  Mayge smiled, then dropped the note into the boys’ hands, and he rushed off, sprinting down the main road that led toward the Grotto.

  “What was the note for?” asked Ulenna, turning toward the older woman.

  “It’s a call for reinforc
ements.”

  “From the others?”

  Mayge nodded.

  “Why do we need reinforcements?”

  Mayge led the young woman down the lane toward their living quarters as she spoke, “because we’re going down that mining tunnel to look for those children.”

  “Why would we do that?” Ulenna asked, the look on her face clearly showing her distaste for the idea.

  “Because, when the Regent finds them, my dear, he’s going to kill them.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Her eyes were tightly bound as she awoke, the fog suddenly lifting from her head as if she was underwater, coming up for air.

  “Hello?” Ranelle called out tentatively, her voice shaky and raw. She immediately felt the fear rising within her, unsure of where she was or who was with her. Reaching up to touch her face, she felt the bindings secured tightly across her eyes. Leaving them in place for the moment, she reached down and touched her legs, finding them there, but still numb. She tried to lift her leg to feel for the wound left by the skincrawler, but gentle hands batted hers away.

  “Don’t do that just yet,” came a woman’s soft voice from beside her.

  Ranelle jumped painfully, leaning away from the voice, unsure of its proximity. A moment later, she felt the weight of a person sit down next to her as delicate hands pressed her gently back onto something puffy and soft.

  A pillow.

  She was in a bed, and it was a comfortable bed too. Her hands sunk into its thick, velvety cover. It reminded her of Gideon’s bed back at the manor.

  Gideon.

  His face swam into her mind as her heart leaped into her throat, uncomfortably.

  “Where are my friends,” she demanded, her voice raspy.

  “Shh,” the woman’s voice replied quietly, “they are here, but resting.”

  Ranelle calmed when she heard they were close, but the eye covering made her very anxious.

  “Why are my eyes bound,” she asked, more softly this time.

  “The transition is not an easy one, and if we don’t take precautions, you could be left blinded.”