Storm Sisters

Chapter Six

~1~

Rory

There was a sort of musical rhythm to the sound of the drip. Drip, drip, drop.. drip, drip, drop. It repeated over and over, with a slight echo that reverberated off the damp stone walls of the dungeon. Really it was the only thing Aura had to focus her mind on to pass the time. In a place where time itself seemed to have stopped, or to not exist at all. With the only source of light being the faded flicker of the torch by the guards post, there wasn't any real way to track the passage of the time.

Regardless, Aura tried to stay positive, unlike Audra who had all but given up hope, and just sat silently bawled-up in the corner of the cell. Sure it was dark, cold, and damp in the dungeons, and there were rats and roaches that scurried about in the shadows, but at least they had been roomed together. Unlike Rory, who had been dragged-off to some unknown fate. 'Poor Rory' Aura's heart sank at the thought.

It didn't make any sense why they had been imprisoned at all though. Upon arrival at the dungeon, there had been a heated argument between the captain and the jailer regarding Rory and his identity as the fugitive for whom the bounty was ordered.

The jailer refused to pay, as he insisted that Rory did not match the description of the man at large in any way, and did not bear resemblance to the drawing of the man's wanted poster.

The captain was furious and after much shouting back and forth, they locked them up anyway. "What am I supposed to do with these girls?" the jailer protested.

"Sell them off for all I care." The captain had shouted as he stormed out.

Now here they sat, imprisoned for an unnamed crime, just waiting for anyone to tell them anything.

Then, amongst the tune of the drip, Aura heard something like a groan from another cell down a ways.

"Audra," she nudged her, "did you hear that?" Audra didn't respond, she just sat there with her face buried in her knees.

Aura walked over to the cell door, a dense wooden door with a small, barred window in it. She was too short to reach the the window, so she just listened below it for a moment.

Again she heard the groan."Rory!" she whispered earnestly, "is that you?"

"It's me." Rory sounded weak. "Are you girls alright?"

"Rory! Im so glad to hear your voice." Now Audra finally raised her head from her sulking position to join Aura by the the door.

Rory coughed then moaned with pain. "Rory are you hurt?" Aura asked.

"Who me? no, I'm better then ever. This place is luxurious." he joked, but the girls could hear the pain in his voice.

"We're gonna get you out Rory." Now Audra spoke.

"Don't you worry about me girls. Just listen to the guards and they'll release us eventually." But he didn't sound very convincing.

Again Rory started to cough, and his coughing grew to high-pitched bark like a seal throwing a fit. Then he went silent.

"Rory?" Aura called out, "Rory are you alright?" No reply.

Now it was Audra who began pulling furiously on the door handle, screaming, "Let us out!"

Her rage brought with it a sudden rush of energy so that the iron handle of the door began to heat-up, and as it did it turned incandescent red, charring the wood black that it was mounted to.

"Audra!" Aura cried out, pulling her sister's hands from the handle. Her palms were singed and smoking. She fell to her knees and began to weep. "Why is this happening?"