The Kingdom Pt. 02

"Nor will I," Finn adds, just as firmly. "I could never do that to you Jolie."

"But this may be our only chance to stop this," Jolie pleads. "Thousands of people will die if we don't stop him. I'm willing to make that sacrifice."

Fiona and Finn lock gazes with Jolie in a silent battle of wills. After several seconds, they turn to look at each other. Nodding, they turn back to Jolie.

Finn speaks. "You were willing to give your life for mine a short time ago in the clearing. I'm willing to give mine for yours now."

"As am I," Fiona adds quietly. "Remain here with your companions. We will take care of the Duke."

"No!" Jolie cries, grabbing a hold of Finn and clinging on for dear life. "This is not your fight! He's my father! I need to do this! I'm the one who needs to make things right! You weren't even supposed to be involved in this! It's only bad luck you happened to be here."

Fiona wraps her arms around her sobbing friend. "It's going to be okay Jolie. I'm not sure how to explain it, but I feel like this is what was supposed to happen, like you were supposed to find us here. It's too big of a coincidence."

"Strangely, I feel the same way," Finn echoes, looking at his sister.

A vision of the old woman flares in my mind along with the words she spoke about Teritha, Lisbeth, and I.

"It was only a matter of time before they found one another, because they affect everyone around them, altering the course of events.

"Those with a desire to love and protect...will be drawn to them as followers, allies or intimate friends."

Now when I look at Fiona and Finn, I can almost see the webs of light and love connecting them to our group as they stand in the center of a triangle formed by the three of us.

Then I recall the other things she mentioned before we parted ways.

"Take the path less traveled."

"What did you say Quill?" Micaelah asks.

"Take the path less traveled," I repeat louder. Everyone turns to look at me. "That's what the old woman told us."

Focusing on Teritha, I quote the old woman. "When you reach the crossroads, take the path less traveled and you may find a way into the Temple without spilling blood."

"But Kendric said the only other path was a dead end," Corinne points out.

"Kendric?" Teritha queries.

He rubs the scruff on his chin as he ponders it. "I suppose the path could have continued through the clearing on the other side of the statue but was covered up by all those flowers." He seems skeptical though.

"Well, I think it's worth a second look," Teritha decides. "Kendric, how about you and Corinne stay here to watch our backs and keep an eye on our friend?" she gestures to the soldier sitting nearby, still tied up.

Kendric nods. "I think we'll move him into that building over there."

"Good idea. Everyone else, let's move all the horses behind the building and out of sight in case someone from the Duke's army decides to check on things here."

Once the horses are secured behind the building, Jolie and I lead the others to the clearing. When Teritha sees the statue of the dolphin, her reaction is much the same as mine was.

"How is this possible?" she whispers in disbelief, her mouth hanging open. "I commissioned the woodworker to carve that statuette for Jolie, and I only gave him a basic description as to what I wanted it to look like."

As she ponders the impossibility in front of her, Jolie directs everyone else to search the clearing and surrounding treeline for any kind of a path or way through the forest besides the one we came by.

I focus my search on the pool and statue area, testing the solidity of the stone wall and the bottom of the pool with a hefty branch I picked up.

After five minutes or so, Teritha is still staring at the statue, her gaze unwavering. Then it dawns on me that she's not moving at all.

I touch her arm to get her attention. "Teritha?"

But she doesn't respond. Though she's breathing normally and her eyes are open, she simply stares straight ahead as if in a trance.

I try again. "Teritha."

As trepidation begins to grow in my stomach, my eyes follow her gaze, seemingly of their own volition. At first I don't see what's captured her attention. When I do, I feel that tug on my mind again, just like before, only stronger.

There's some kind of depression in the statue, cleverly hidden among the sculpted waves. I step over the wall and into the water, Teritha forgotten. As I reach the raised base of the statue, I see that the outline of the opening resembles the letter "X" and is perhaps one inch wide by one inch tall.

My memory tugs at me even harder, causing me to open my belt pouch and remove an object I've been carrying around, forgotten, for several days. It's the item I purchased at a shop in Carnelia on my way back to the castle the evening before we were forced to escape through the hidden passages. I thought it was intriguing and beautiful, the same way I think of Teritha, whom I intended to give it to as a gift.

Examining its intricately carved patterns once again, I see it's as much a work of art as the statue before me. The top half is more or less flat, perhaps a half inch thick and two inches wide, transforming into a spiral at the middle, then to a criss cross shape at the bottom.

Holding my breath, I rotate the object in my hand until I'm looking at it from the bottom end. I rotate it again as I bring it up to the depression.

The criss cross end fits the opening in the statue perfectly. Pushing it in all the way rewards me with the sound of a click, followed by the sound of stone sliding on stone. I watch in fascination as the entire statue slowly moves backwards.

"What just happened?" I hear Teritha say, sounding slightly disoriented, as she joins me in the center of the pool. Her question is forgotten by both of us as we see before us a steep, spiral stairway leading down, into the shadows.

Our reverie is interrupted by Kendric's voice. "We need to leave, now!" he announces, trying to yell as quietly as possible, as he emerges from the forest path into the clearing at a run, Corinne at his side. Between the two of them, they appear to be carrying most of the gear we had loaded on our horses.

"What's going on?" Teritha asks.

The others quickly gather near the statue to collect their items as he explains. "We heard what sounded like a large group of mounted soldiers approaching from the Temple road. Sure enough, that's what it was. There were at least fifteen of them. Too many for us to handle and there wasn't enough time to come here to warn you and still leave with the horses. They would have spotted us anyway. So we grabbed what we could, hoping you were successful in finding another way out of here."

Teritha gestures and says," I think it's safe to say we found something."

"A tunnel?"

"It appears so. How much time do we have?"

"They've probably reached the crossroads by now. It won't take them long to find the soldier we left in the building. He overheard us talking, so he knows we were coming back here to look for another way into the Temple."

"Alright, let's move quickly then. Everyone, follow me."

"Finn and I will make sure you escape safely and without a trace," Fiona declares, unshouldering her bow.

"But he also overheard you helping us," Jolie interjects. "Your lives are now forfeit along with mine."

"Come with us," Teritha tells them. "There's no need for you to remain here. Besides, we'd be honored to have you join us."

Fiona turns to look at her brother, who nods. Turning back, she says, "Thank you Duchess."

"No. Thank you Fiona, and you Finn. With your help, our odds of succeeding are that much greater."

With that, she turns to descend the staircase.

§ 18 - Penetration

After Corinne begins to make her way down the stairs, Kendric instructs me to go next. Before I do, I grasp the key and pull it out of the statue. Almost immediately, the statue begins to slide back to its original position.

Kendric quickly follows me down the stairs. As he reaches the bottom, the daylight above vanishes, the opening closed once more, plunging us into darkness.

"Now what?" Lisbeth asks nervously.

"This is what," Micaelah answers cheerfully. After a few sparks, followed by a small flame, a dim light slowly illuminates our surroundings, thrown off by the everburning candle she still has with her. It's not much, but it helps.

With its help, we're able to locate a cache of unused torches in a small alcove four feet off the floor near the entrance to an arched hallway. After lighting a couple, we find ourselves in a small, circular room, ten or fifteen feet across, with a flat ceiling eight or nine feet above. Both the room and the hallway are made of tight fitting, dressed stone. The five foot wide by seven foot high hallway leads off in the direction of the Temple, I think. I'm a bit disoriented after descending the spiral staircase.

"Well, I don't think we need to worry about going the wrong direction," Teritha observes. "With luck, the path ahead will be just as clear. Now, if everyone is ready, let's begin what will hopefully be the last leg of our journey."

She then proceeds down the hallway with a lit torch in hand, the rest of us in her wake. First Kendric and Corinne, then Lisbeth and Micaelah, followed by Jolie, Finn and Fiona. I bring up the rear.

The way is level and easy, and we make good time. I can hear Teritha, Kendric and Corinne speak quietly to one another up ahead, but I can't make out many of their words.

Jolie, Finn and Fiona also speak quietly to one another, mostly about what happened at the castle after we escaped from the city.

A half hour later we reach a twenty foot square room clearly designed to be a rest area between the statue and the Temple. In the center of the space are a few benches with tables like the ones at the crossroads, sturdy and functional. Along the walls are what appears to have been pallets for sleeping, but the fabric and stuffing have either mostly rotted away or been scavenged by rats or mice.

One corner of the room has a small enclosed area with stone walls and a drain in the floor, obviously to be used as a privy. The opposite corner contains stone blocks and slabs stacked to create alcoves for the storage of food stuffs and water. The previous contents of the various containers left behind likely consumed by the same scavengers.

After a brief rest, we continue on our way with fresh torches in hand. Five minutes later, the passage begins to slope downward. Five minutes after that, the sloped passage becomes a stairway leading downward, the bottom hidden below, beyond the light cast by our torches.

"Did the two of you cross any bridges between the Temple and the crossroads?" Kendric asks Finn and Fiona.

"A few actually," Fiona replies. "Crossing smaller creeks a minute or two apart, but nothing as big as a river."

"How far from the Temple were they?"

Finn answers. "Perhaps a mile or so." He looks at Fiona for confirmation.

"No more than a mile and a half," she adds.

"That's probably where we're at then," Teritha surmises. "We'll just need to go under that for a bit, then the passage should go back up towards the surface." Addressing the rest of us, she asks, "How is everyone doing?"

How am I doing? I'm feeling okay I guess, but honestly I think I'd be terrified if we didn't have the torches. Glancing around, most of the others seem to be holding it together with the same amount of success as I am. Except Jolie, who's looking at the stairway with wide eyes and trepidation.

"Jolie? Are you okay?" I ask, concerned.

"I really hope we get to see daylight again soon. I never realized I'd miss it this much. This is completely different than the passages in the castle." She takes a deep breath. "I think I might need someone to hold my hand through this," she declares, allowing herself to be vulnerable.

Finn quickly complies.

Jolie appears grateful but still afraid despite his gesture. "Let's hurry up and get this over with," she suggests.

"Alright. Watch your step," Teritha advises, leading us deeper underground.

The stairs descend in a perfectly straight direction. Somewhere around one hundred and fifty, I lose count of how many steps there are. Shortly after that, for better or worse, the stairs end.

We find ourselves standing in a recessed area in the face of a large cavern, the ceiling far above, illuminated by a soft blue, ethereal glow cast by some type of vegetation growing on the walls. Looking down, we can see the cavern floor forty or fifty feet below. To our right are stairs carved in the face of the cliff, leading down.

"Do you think we should turn around and try another approach," Kendric asks out loud, sounding as if he's hoping someone else will think that's a good idea.

Teritha turns to study his face. After giving it some thought, she replies, "No. I think we need to trust the Spirit. She said there was another way in, but she didn't mention it would be easy. Just that we could avoid spilling blood."

"Hopefully that includes ours," he retorts.

"Oh come on Kendric. You're not going soft on me, are you?" Corinne teases.

He gives her a look, one eyebrow raised.

All he receives in return is a shit-eating grin.

Teritha fails to hide a smile. "Despite my curiosity as to where this conversation might lead, we should keep moving." As she begins down the steps, she adds, "Keep your eyes open for anything unexpected down here. You never know what might be lurking in this place."

"Hopefully nothing big and hungry," Lisbeth states.

§ 19 - Terrorization

The stairs to the cavern floor are traversed easily, as is our trek across the cavern floor. We find navigating by the natural, bluish light easier than with the shadow-casting torches, which is probably a good thing since we'll likely need them later. Not using the brighter light will also help keep from drawing unnecessary attention to ourselves in case there actually is something big and hungry down here.

Also to be safe, Teritha has us all remain as quiet as possible as her and Kendric lead us along a winding path through the many obstacles scattered about. Stalagmites, boulders and small pools of pungent liquid abound. I'm not sure how they keep their bearing to know which way our path lies, but I trust them.

Micaelah drops back to walk beside me for a bit, holding my hand as we go, since we're no longer confined by the width of the tunnel.

The cavern stretches on, seemingly with no end, but that may be just my perception. And I'm sure the ceiling is up there somewhere, though I can't see it. Jolie seems to be doing better now that it's not looming so close. In any case, she hasn't let go of Finn's hand yet and he doesn't seem to mind. I catch him glancing at her sideways, often. He's probably just concerned about her well-being.

Similarly, Fiona occasionally looks over her shoulder at Micaelah and I. I suspect she's also a little nervous about being so far under the surface, so I smile at her encouragingly when she does. I'm not sure what she's trying to communicate with her return half-smiles.

After winding our way through the cavern for perhaps fifteen or twenty minutes, Lisbeth beckons Micaelah to come up and walk beside her again in the middle of the pack. Soon after, they're holding hands and whispering quietly to each other.

Eventually we reach the other side of the cavern. In front of us is a sheer face of rock with no passage or stairway in sight.

"Now what?" Corinne asks quietly. "Should we split up so we can check both directions for a way out?"

Teritha looks skeptical. "Your thoughts Kendric?"

"Well, we haven't seen or heard anything alive down here, so I think we could split up to save time, as long as we're careful and don't stray too far or for too long."

"Alright. The five of us will follow the wall in this direction." Teritha points to her left. "The four of you," she says, indicating Jolie, Finn, Fiona and I, "go that direction. If you haven't found a way out within five minutes, turn around and we'll meet back here. If one group does find the way out, the entire group should go find the others immediately. Any questions?"

"Yeah," Finn says, wrinkling his nose. "Does anyone else smell that?" He looks around.

"Probably those pools of stagnant water," Kendric replies. "I noticed some of them were worse as we got closer to here."

"Be careful you don't accidentally step in one as you search. I'd hate to find out what it would do to your skin," Teritha instructs, turning to lead her group away. Micaelah hugs me and gives me a quick kiss before following.

Our group of four also turns to leave in search of the way out, but before we've gone even a hundred feet the other direction, we're attacked by something out of a nightmare.

Right away I notice the stench, the same smell Finn pointed out, only much stronger. Then I hear a scraping noise.

"What's that..." I begin to ask, reflexively pulling out one of my throwing knives, but I never finish my sentence. It's big, and unbelievably grotesque in appearance, but fortunately not very quick, else my tale would end here.

It lunges at Fiona, the smallest target. I grab the back of her leather cuirass and yank her out of the way as massive teeth barely miss turning her head into a snack. Stumbling backwards into me, she turns and gives me a look filled with pure terror, surprise, relief and gratitude.

The creature crashes into the cliff face, temporarily disoriented.

My first thought is why we didn't see the monstrosity until now, because it's certainly large enough, twice my height and at least ten times my weight. Looking closer, it makes perfect sense. Its scaly hide is covered with the same luminescent vegetation as the stone walls and boulders around us, giving it natural camouflage.

Apparently, it's not so invulnerable as to be fearless about being attacked though. It must have waited until the four of us were separated from the others, choosing to attack the smaller of the two groups.

My second thought is that the puny throwing knife I'm holding won't even scratch its scaly hide were I to make the attempt.

My third thought, I vocalize. "Run!" I shout, pulling Fiona with me.

As we bolt in the direction we were planning to go in the first place, I hear Teritha's group yelling back to us. I yell back a warning, telling them to run the other way and to save themselves, unsure whether or not they hear me. But there's not much I can do to find out since the creature is between us and them.

So the four of us run, skirting the cliff face, frantically searching for an exit, or at least safety. The creature lumbers after us, putrid and slathering, no more than thirty feet behind.

A hundred feet later, or maybe two hundred, I hear Finn shout something from just ahead of me. He's cursing, I realize, which seems uncharacteristic of his quiet demeanor, but his word choice is colorful. Apparently his shin is actually what found something, which he explains is a massive pile of rubble.

I spend a few precious seconds to examine the obstacle impeding our escape. It appears the cliff face collapsed at some point, leaving a pile of debris at least forty feet high, spreading far out onto the cavern floor.

I'm about to tell the others to skirt around the pile when I catch movement in that direction. The stench suddenly gets even stronger, confirming the presence of a second creature.

"Climb!" I shout, hoping these things won't be able follow us. "There's another one of those creatures on our right!"

We scramble up the debris, our knees and shins taking a beating in the process. The creatures follow, climbing slowly, but persistently, intent on their prey. Finn reaches the top first, announcing his arrival.