You can download this book and other titles in the Prophecy Rock Series at Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Sony, iBooks, and Smashwords.
25
It took the effort of both Kara and Raden to restrain Gama. Understandably, he wanted to call out for Oli. Use every ounce of strength in him to pry open the iron doors. But if he did, no doubt the commotion would bring more guards to their location.
Next to Raden, Oli was the closest thing Gama had to family. Unlike Raden, who still had warm memories of his parents before the massacre at Carhay, Gama had never known who his parents were. He had been moved from one orphanage to the next during his childhood, expelled for his rebellious and mischievous behavior. Not until befriending Raden in elementary school did Gama begin to settle down. Gama rarely ever spoke about his past, partly because he had no idea who his parents were, but more so because the abandonment he felt still lingered in his heart. Raden asked Gama once if he ever wanted to track down and find his biological parents. Gama responded by asking Raden if he wanted to hear a joke, completely ignoring the question. Raden figured perhaps that’s why Gama approached life with such humor. The thought of his parents abandoning him put him in a dark, angry place that he hated being in. Oli had helped to fill that void with her constant companionship. Gama would do anything to save her.
The whimpering rose steadily. Every cry felt like daggers piercing Gama’s heart. With one final yelp, the sound stopped. The three of them sat there in silence. Two of them not knowing what to say to comfort their friend, and the other in disbelief of what he had heard.
The sound of gears shifting and chains clanging together broke them from their grief. They watched as the doors shifted slightly outwards from the surrounding doorframe. A loud click and the doors cracked ajar. The three of them did not know what to expect. They should’ve armed themselves, but given the mental state they were in, they simply watched.
When the doors finally swung open, they could see Oli, transformed into Ripper again and standing above two large shadowy objects.
“She’s alive?” Kara couldn’t believe it. She thought Oli was as good as dead by the sound of things.
“Of course she is! Oli can take care of herself!” The joy in Gama’s voice was contagious. Raden found himself sighing in relief, thankful for Oli’s life, but also for the well being of his friend. Completing the mission with Gama in a state of depression would’ve been an arduous task.
Raden bent down to pat Oli on the head, as she shifted back to her smaller size. “If Oli’s alive, then what was the sound we heard?”
“Cerberus. Two of them.” Kara was picking at the two shadowy clumps on the ground. They all moved in closer for a look. Cerberus were three headed dogs the Vicedonians had in their arsenal. They were vicious hunters. Three times the size of a normal dog, they were extraordinarily difficult to kill in combat. Striking at one head left you open to the other two. Oli, though, seemed to have had no difficulty in nullifying not one, but two of these monsters.
Kara made her way to the crank nearby, turning it tightly to shut the doors. “This place must be crawling with these demon dogs. I realize it now. Those shafts outside aren’t windows, they’re doorways for these dogs. The Vicedonians use them as guardians, but they must also use them as messengers. At top speed, these dogs can outrun even the fastest horse on land. The mountains must be filled with passageways for these beasts to operate in.”
“If these tunnels are crawling with cerberus, we have to be extra careful. Even if they can’t see us, they’ll be able to smell us,” said Raden.
The doors shut tightly, and the group made their way down the passageway ahead. Inside was a labyrinth of tall and short tunnels. Three passages now stood before them.
“Which way do we go?” asked Gama. Oli barked softly. She ran over to the dead cerberus and sniffed. She sniffed the ground, looking for a match. When she found it, Oli took off into the center tunnel, and the rest of the group followed.
“She’s taking us in the same direction that the cerberus go. This tunnel must lead to the other side of the Voras Mountains, right?” asked Gama.
Kara shrugged her shoulders. “Doesn’t matter now; it’s our only lead.”
“These tunnels are tiny. I can barely fit. Don’t they have big fellas like me in Vicedonia?” Gama was hunched over, his head and shoulders hugging the top of the tunnel. His quads were already burning from having to squat slightly. Raden found it a little more manageable, while Kara had no problem whatsoever.
“These tunnels weren’t built to move soldiers. They were made so cerberus could move back and forth between headquarters and the front lines, delivering orders, messages, supplies, what have you.”
They followed Oli for a while. She never lost track of the scent and kept them moving at a brisk pace. They hadn’t encountered anyone for an extended period of time, leaving them with an unsettling feeling. “Where is everyone?” asked Gama.
“I don’t know. Maybe they’ve all fled the area like the citizens at Kih Bayar,” suggested Kara.
“No, there were guards at the front entrance. They haven’t fled. They’re here, in these tunnels, with us… now.” Raden stopped in his tracks.
“What’re you talking about?” asked Gama.
Raden lowered his voice to a whisper. “Try not to panic, but they’ve been following us for a while. I noticed them about an hour ago. They’ve done a good job at concealing themselves. But the last time I turned back to check, I caught the faint glow of six red eyes disappearing into the dark. At least one cerberus has been trailing us, maybe more.”
“Oli would’ve known we were being followed.”
“No, she was too busy following their trail. Her nose is already full of their scent. She probably didn’t notice when they got close to us.”
Just then, something dashed across the tunnel ahead of them. Oli bared her teeth, and the group drew their weapons. Swoosh! It was behind them now. They were trapped in the tunnel with barely any room to maneuver. Swoosh! It was ahead of them again.
Oli and Gama covered one end while the other two watched the opposite side. That’s when Gama saw the eyes. Six red eyes shone brightly in the dark. He could hear the guttural growl of the cerberus as it inched closer. “I got one over here guys.”
“Well we’ve got two over here.” Gama glanced back to see twelve glowing eyes moving about in the dark. Like burning fireflies trying to escape into the night sky. “Aww man,” he muttered.
Oli’s growl echoed through the tunnel. She began with low rumblings, but it soon boomed loudly. Each bark deafening as it bounced off the tunnel walls. Still, she had not yet completely transformed into Ripper. It was an odd pairing to hear Ripper’s voice coming out of Oli’s smaller body.
“Why hasn’t she changed yet, Gama?” asked a panicked Kara. “We’re gonna need her help over here soon.”
“It isn’t that she doesn’t want to. She just can’t yet. Her last transformation was a little while ago, when she took out the cerberus at the door. She needs time to recover before doing it again. She’s trying to change. You can hear Ripper’s voice clawing its way out of her.”
“Well, I guess it’s a fair fight now. You’ve got a one on one.” Raden’s attempt at humor fell on deaf ears.
“Fair fight? It has three heads?” Gama bounced his axe back and forth between his hands. Ok Gama, game plan is to take two of the heads first, and then go for the heart. Oli growled again, reminding Gama of her presence. “I know girl, you’ve still got some fight in you, but you can’t transform. Stay safe, I’ll take care of this.” Oli hid behind a rock, watching Gama nervously.
The cerberus charged forward, teeth gnashing at the air, saliva spewing in every direction. It lunged at Gama. Gama raised his axe to block the attack. The left and right heads of the cerberus bit down hard on the axe handle. The force of the attack pushed Gama to the ground, bouncing his head off the top of the tunnel in the process. The middle head snapped at Gama’s face. Gama pulled his head back just in time. The cerberus’ teeth snapped loudly, inches from his face. He kicked the chest of the demon dog, causing the other two heads to let go of the axe. The cerberus backed up, readying to launch another attack. It lunged forward again. Gama swung his axe in anticipation, but whiffed completely. The enemy leapt off the wall, coming in strong against Gama’s left side. The dog was extraordinarily quick; Gama had no time to think, so instinct took over. He brought down his axe and drove it into the left dog’s head, slicing it completely off. The cerberus let out a terrifying howl, and jumped back to regain itself.
Gama did not wait for it to attack. He got up and launched his own offensive. He threw a small dagger at the enemy and followed it up with another swing of his axe. The center head caught the smaller dagger with its mouth, but the right head wasn’t so lucky. Gama chopped down on its neck. The swing wasn’t as clean, though, and Gama found his axe lodged into the neck of the beast. He tried to complete the cut, but it was stuck tightly, wedged deep into the bone. The center head dropped the dagger it was holding in its mouth, and snapped at Gama’s face. Gama let go of the axe in his hands and rolled backwards to safety. The beast was almost done for, the right head losing massive amounts of blood. The beast had become noticeably slower, too. Gama needed to finish it now while it was still dazed. He moved forward, grabbing the lodged axe handle again. The center head again tried to bite down on Gama. Instead, Gama timed the attack perfectly. He ducked low, and the cerberus chomped down on the nearly decapitated right head. The right head fell off, hitting the ground with a thud. The axe was now loose; Gama gripped it with both hands and swung it with all his might. The axe drove deep into the cerberus’ chest. The eyes of the remaining head rolled upwards, and the beast collapsed to the ground. “One down, or is it three?” Gama let out a huge sigh of relief.
Raden and Kara were having trouble dealing with their end of things. With six heads snapping at them ferociously, they were constantly on the defensive. The two cerberus seemed to be working in tandem, alternating with their attacks.
“At this rate, we’ll never finish this fight!” Kara shouted. Raden was preoccupied fending off his own attacker, but he needed to think fast. He was the leader of this mission, and it was his job to find them a way out. He suddenly realized that the noise behind him had ceased.
“Gama, are you still alive?” he shouted.
“Of course I’m alive! Thanks for the vote of confidence, Rad. I handled my end. You guys look like you’re having a bit of trouble over there.”
“That’s putting it mildly. We need your help, Gama.”
“There’s no more room, you guys take up the entire width of the tunnel. I’ll probably hit one of you by accident.”
It’s true, thought Raden. “Then we need to collapse the tunnel. Hammer away at the ceiling until it caves.”
“Won’t that trap you with the two dogs?” questioned Gama.
“We need to time it right. As soon as you feel the tunnel begin to give, we’ll haul ourselves over. Hopefully the ceiling will cave in behind us, trapping the two cerberus on the other side.”
“I don’t know, Rad… sounds too risky.”
“Just do it, Gama!”
Gama immediately began hammering at the ceiling. The dirt flowed down almost instantaneously. Soon it was pouring in. “We gotta go now, guys!”
Raden and Kara jumped through the collapsing dirt. Raden made it out safely, but a large clump of dirt landed on Kara’s back, pinning her tightly.
“I’m stuck!”
The dirt was falling fast, covering Kara’s head in a matter of seconds. Her hands were stretched forward, the only visible sign of her remaining. The tunnel was now three quarters filled with dirt, the two cerberus attacked from the remaining opening. Gama fended off the two by poking his axe at them, while Raden grabbed a hold of Kara’s hands and pulled with all his strength. The weight of the dirt was unbelievably heavy, grasping tightly onto her body. Raden feared he would break her arms if he pulled any harder. She was quickly losing air as well. He pulled hard again. Her body shifted slightly. The tunnel was almost blocked off now, and the two cerberus could be heard on the other side. Gama dropped his axe and helped Raden pull. Kara’s body began to shift. One final tug and Kara came flying out, her body drenched in dirt. She gasped for air, her lungs burning deeply. Raden wiped the dirt off her face. He cupped her face in his hands. “I’m so sorry. That was too risky. I… we almost lost you.”
Kara caught her breath. “It worked, Raden… it’s all that matters.”
Oli barked, reappearing from behind her rock and reminding them that they needed to keep moving. She took off again as they trailed closely behind, the pace a bit slower now.
“That was too close; we can’t afford to encounter another group of them. We don’t have the energy to fend off another attack,” Raden said.
Kara had her arm wrapped around Raden’s shoulders. As he helped her walk, he held her tightly with his other arm. She may have been covered in dirt, but the feeling at that moment was something she would never forget.
“Thank you, Raden, for saving my life,” she whispered in his ear.
He didn’t look at her or say anything, but his arm tightened around her body. That was more than enough for Kara.
“Hey, what about me? I helped save your life too, ya know?”
Instinct and bad habits wanted her to say, shut up, Gama! I wasn’t talking to you! But she had felt humbled by her need for help. So instead she said, “Yes, thank you, Gama for saving my life. And you too, Oli.”
Oli paused for a second to bark what could only be interpreted as, you’re welcome while Gama grinned from ear to ear. “I never thought the day would come when Kara actually thanked someone. I mean besides lover boy over there.”
“Shut up, Gama,” both Raden and Kara had spoken at once. They all laughed a bit. It was a rare moment of levity on this mission so far. So full of death and dark omens, they had forgotten what joy and laughter had felt like. Except for Gama; he was always laughing at something, appropriate or not.
They walked for a bit longer, encountering nothing but the stillness of the tunnels. The tunnels began to transform from dark black to shades of grey. They could see an opening up ahead of them. Faded blues of morning mist greeted them welcomingly. They had spent the entire night making their way through the hills of the Voras Mountains. If not for Oli’s guidance, they would never have made it out alive.
When they reached the opening, they could see the powerful force of Mother Nature at work. Roaring waters poured down the opposite side of the mountains, crashing into a beautiful lake below. They turned back to inside the cave. Immediately beneath them sat a shallow pool of water. Raden was hesitant to let go of Kara, but she released him instead.
“I’m okay, go ahead,” she whispered softly. He was hesitant at first. Kara nodded approvingly before Raden agreed to release her. Raden stepped into the pool. The ground was steep. With every step he took he sank another foot. He was soon swimming in it.
“I’m going to see what’s underneath,” he said.
He dove down and disappeared for a while. Gama thought about comforting Kara with soft words of reassurance, but the look on her face revealed she didn’t want to be spoken to at the moment. Raden reemerged moments later. Kara’s shoulders drooped as her body relented with relief.
“There’s an opening underwater. I’m not sure how far it goes, but it looks to be the only way out from here.” He glanced over to the opening overlooking the waterfall. “Or we jump off the cliff and pray the fall doesn’t kill us.”
“Down the hole.” Both Kara and Gama spoke simultaneously. Oli sneezed. “I’ll take that as a yes, too.” They took the deepest breaths they could and dove down into the water. They could see the hole immediately. It was wide enough for Gama to fit, relieving his internal concerns about getting stuck and left behind. Raden led the way through the hole. It was a tunnel the cerberus must’ve used as well. To think that they could swim underwater was impressive. The tunnel veered downwards. As they descended further, the water seamed to increase in flow. Soon, they found themselves thrust downwards at high speeds. They must’ve traveled down a few hundred feet in mere seconds. Finally, they shot out into a pool of water, floating weightless for a moment. A muted silence filled their thoughts. Peace. This is what serenity must feel like. No sensation of oneself, no weight, no feeling. Just complete oneness with everything around you.
They drifted up and broke the surface of the lake. The world came rushing back into their bodies. Lungs filled with much needed air. Cold water had drenched them down to the bone. They looked around frantically, trying to gather a sense of where they were. They looked up and saw the cliff’s edge from which they had been staring down moments ago. They were now at the bottom of the lake. The waterfall was crashing down violently behind them. They hauled themselves up to some nearby rocks and lied still for a while. Faculties gathered as reality settled in again. They looked across the new lands before them. They could see a large Vicedonian encampment down below. Armies numbered in the thousands. Cerberus and other strange animals could be seen. They had finally made it into the heart of the Vicedonian base camp.
A sense of relief washed over them, knowing they had actually made it this far. They continued to survey the base, looking for entrances, doorways, and other escape routes by which they could sneak in. That’s when they noticed the armies below gathering in a circular formation. In the center stood a much larger figure. He had an aura about him, his skin glowing an electric blue. The glow began to emanate brighter and brighter. He raised his arms into the air and a gigantic boulder lifted itself off the ground. He threw his arms forward and the boulder flung itself across the field, smashing into the side of the mountains. When the smoke disappeared, Raden could see the charred markings of the Ancients scorched into the mountainside.
“It’s him,” spoke Raden hesitantly.
They had found him. He was real. It was the Candidate.
###
I will post one chapter each Saturday (there are 50 chapters in all). If you just can’t wait, you can download the complete book and other titles in the Prophecy Rock Series at Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Sony, iBooks, and Smashwords.
You can also follow me on Twitter, or like my Facebook page. For more information, see my website www.tsaelow.com Your support is appreciated. Thanks for reading!