Morte, the lost Heir (ONC 2024)

19. Drifting

The heavy double door slammed shut with a loud thud behind Aura and the dragon.

"I never anticipated it would come to this! That they would abandon us in such a manner!" Keenan's voice was filled with frustration. "I had hoped for a civilized discussion, but this is nothing but childish behavior..."

Elgatto felt like something was suffocating him, depriving him of air. He was shocked by the strength of the small elf girl and how badly things had turned. He feared that something irreparable had broken between them, and he didn't even understand why, but he worried about the girl. It only now dawned on him that she was much more important to him than he had let himself believe. In the past few days, he had constantly forced himself not to look or think about the elf girl, and what he truly felt ashamed of was that his fiancée hadn't even crossed his mind.

"Tell me I'm crazy too, but I must go in. Those two won't last two minutes there!" Elgatto's voice quivered with urgency as he approached the door.

"Wait! Let's discuss this. Are you sure this is the only solution?" Keenan insisted.

Nerina stood silently, staring at the walls. "A dragon and a healer. Two strong figures with abilities that would make the enemy flee. The only problem is that neither of them can use their abilities."

"That's exactly what I'm saying! The five of us might survive, but those two! Come on!" The dark elf's voice trembled with fear and uncertainty.

"Survival inside there is not the issue here," Keenan's voice was firm. "The real question is whether we can retrieve the medal and if it's truly down there. Without it, our abilities are rendered useless!"

Elgatto stood waiting in front of the gate, his determination palpable. Nerina continued to examine the walls, her resolve unwavering. Keenan also stood up, packing his backpack with a renewed sense of purpose. He felt that there was a solution here if they also crossed that cursed gate.

"Nerina, you're too silent, and I don't like it!" the orc said. "I can see that you want us to follow them. Otherwise, we would already be killing scorpions on our way up!"

Nerina didn't respond; just smiled and slowly stepped toward the door. The orc also moved towards them, so Elgatto tried to open the double door. But it didn't budge.

"What are you doing? Open it!" Keenan impatiently demanded, trying himself, but it seemed firmly locked. No matter how hard they tried, it wouldn't move.

"Don't get irritated; Aura easily opened it before!" pushed the boys aside. The wizard girl failed, too, so she stepped back and muttered incantations, trying to coax the stubborn gateway to open—but to no avail.

Elgatto began to kick the door nervously, and Nerina pulled him away.

"Should we try the others?" asked the dark elf, heading towards the next corridor, from which more corridors opened to the right and left, each with a passage at their end. "Number one and number two. Which one should we choose?"

They deliberated. "Let's go with number two. It's closer to where they went," suggested Nerina.

"Do you think there's a connection between adjacent doors leading to adjacent places?" Elgatto worried. The feeling that they needed to hurry so that nothing happened to the elf girl drove him more urgently.

"Great prospects! Now we must find Morte, the Loyalty, and our companions!" Keenan laughed in anguish. Then they headed towards the door on the left, which opened quickly, and the two wings swung wide open before them.

A damp, musty smell wafted towards them, and in the dim light, the stone slabs on the walls gleamed eerily. They were going to a place where they probably wouldn't have set foot if it weren't urgently important. Elgatto took a big step forward, and when the door creaked and slammed shut behind them, he noticed the translucent figure standing against the wall, leaning on a heavy, rusty sword. She held the sword in front of her like a shield, and when all three stared at her, she spoke: "Do you want to meet the oracle?" her voice was mysteriously velvety and feminine.

They all looked at each other, and Elgatto replied, "No, that's not why we came. We're looking for someone or rather some people. Maybe you can help us..." He would have continued, but the figure completely disappeared, leaving only the rusty sword behind, and who knows what kept it in place.

"So, what now?" the dark elf looked around. "The map no longer marks the place, so we're completely reliant on ourselves."

"Are you sure we shouldn't have chosen the oracle?" Nerina worried. She stepped back and tried to open the door that had been closed. As she suspected, it didn't budge. Then she tried her magic but to no avail. Keenan pushed the door behind the giant sword, which was also locked.

"Well, we could have discussed this beforehand. I thought it was unnecessary to go through the trials, and besides, I thought Morte could have already passed the test part and could be here somewhere. Or did I think wrong?" the dark elf apologized.

"Well, I think we're fine. Let's look around!" agreed Keenan, uncertainly starting down the dimly lit corridor.

"I hope Aura and the others thought the same and didn't go into the oracle's trial," whispered Nerina because somehow she felt like they were being watched, but she had felt the same way in front of the door.

It was strange to them that the corridor continued straight ahead; if it turned right or left, they didn't have to choose which way to go. This worried the dark elf. He even stopped once to check the map again to make sure there was no marking or indication on it. But there was only the Sepulcher and the four marked doors, with inscriptions on the doors numbered from one to four.

"There's nothing else we can do; we have to continue the journey," he said, nervously tucking the map back into his bag. They became even more nervous when they heard a rumbling, roaring noise behind them.

All three turned around, and they didn't have to think long about what it could be because suddenly, they saw the corridor filled entirely with water rushing towards them. Despite their efforts to escape, the water caught up with them, swept them up and carried them through the corridors until they suddenly reached a room, and the water pushed them onto the floor. It must have been magic because the water disappeared as soon as they touched the ground, and swords were pointed at them from all directions.

They recognized them; it was the team from the Loyalty surrounding them.