CHAPTER 19
Rondel's heart raced with fear and excitement. The opening to the altar chamber stood open just ahead, urging him forward despite his fatigue.
He slowed before entering, sword raised. Remnants of the ceremony they had witnessed earlier lay on the gruesome altar at the center of the chamber. The smell of cooked human flesh still hung in the air.
A clash of swords followed by a sudden gasp drew his attention to the far side. There, three young girls in blood-spattered white robes stood beside a large figure dressed in black and gray garb. Despite the disguise, he recognized Andrasta right away from the way she withdrew her sword from a slain man's midsection with a yank and twist. Three other followers of Sutek lay dead at their feet.
He was surprised to be so relieved to see her again. Thoughts of her fighting alone through the maze of underground tunnels had bothered him. Though they had only known each other for a short time, the strange woman had become the closest thing he had to a friend.
Andrasta caught sight of him and the others. She gave a hint of a smile. Rondel couldn't tell whether it was a greeting or a sign of approval. She hurried over with the other three girls in tow, each of which carried blood-slick swords.
It would be like her to find the most vicious of the fighters.
"The girls told me your plans." Andrasta looked to Dendera. "And your idea with the rocks. I'm impressed by both."
Rondel's chest swelled with pride. Compliments weren't something Andrasta easily gave.
"Is this all who made it out?" asked Oni.
The princess stared at the three girls with Andrasta. She wore a look heavy with sorrow. Including the two girls Rondel had picked up along the way, only five of the young women had made it besides Oni and Dendera. A part of him understood Oni's distress. However, another part of him was glad that any had made it through the chaos.
No one answered Oni's question.
Rondel pointed toward one of several openings that fed into the altar chamber. "The girls said the exit outside is that way."
They only made it halfway across the chamber when pounding boots sounded from their destination. Two dozen guards bearing fresh wounds from recent fighting emerged with Menetnashte and his bodyguard, Nizam, following.
Crap.
"Is there another way?" hissed Andrasta.
"None that we can get to from here." His eyes flicked to the opening to another tunnel. "Well, except the way we came in."
"We all won't make it through The Blood Forest this time."
Rondel stepped back, tapping his chest where he kept the remaining clay containers he had stolen in pouches. "We're better prepared if it comes down to us taking that chance."
Andrasta didn't ask what he meant by that.
"I can take out most of them," offered Jahi.
"Menetnashte is a sorcerer," said Andrasta.
Rondel tensed. "That changes things." He slipped one of the clay containers into his free hand, doing his best to conceal the movement.
His palm enveloped the container, the smallest of those he had grabbed.
Hopefully, it's enough.
"Get a little fire ready," Rondel whispered to Jahi.
"The disguises do not fool me," Menetnashte boomed. "Put your weapons down and your deaths will be quick."
Rondel cast aside the itchy face covering. "You mean you aren't going to promise us freedom for returning the girls to you?" He slowly backed away, subtly directing everyone else to follow him as he maneuvered his way closer to the altar. We need something solid between us and them. He suppressed a shiver after catching a glance at the gruesome stone slab. Bugs swarmed atop it, feasting on the sticky blood and gore that remained unclean from the last sacrifices.
"Why bother lying?"
Rondel cocked an eyebrow, continuing to move into position. "We've killed many of your followers and ruined your precious ceremony. You expect us to trust that your promise of a quick death isn't a lie?"
Three large booms sounded, shaking the stone beneath their feet. Several in the chamber struggled for balance. Dust billowed from several of the side tunnels as a fourth concussive blast went off. It rocked the altar chamber with such force, that half a dozen stalactites broke from the ceiling and fell. Everyone dove to avoid the cone-shaped shards crashing to the floor, shattering into hundreds of pieces. Screams erupted from two of the cultists unable to avoid the spears of rock.
Rondel stood, coughing. He blanched when he saw their path of escape had been blocked by fallen stone.
We're not leaving that way. Gods, going through The Blood Forest again.
Angry and frustrated, Rondel couldn't help but taunt the high priest. "Oh, I'm also the one who told your servants where you keep the chemicals."
Menetnashte seethed. "Kill them all."
I just can't keep my mouth shut.
"Jahi! The container," shouted Rondel, tossing the vial toward the cultists.
He dove behind the altar, pushing down Dendera and one of the girls as he did so, hoping the others got the message.
An explosion that sounded like a hundred thunders rang out. His insides trembled from the force.
The proximity of the blast brought down more stalactites. They crashed on impact, breaking into countless pieces. Rondel rolled to avoid falling rock. A piece of stone clipped him in the shoulder, numbing his arm. He swore, not only from the pain, but also from the sour taste of burning chemicals present in the air.
He rose slowly, shaking his arm to get some feeling back.
The ringing in his ears faded and anguished cries of men dying took their place. Squinting into the fog of dust that began to settle, he steeled himself for the worst. The altar chamber had already been a gruesome scene to behold with congealed blood and half-cooked human remains. However, freshly mutilated corpses of cultists added a new level of horror, some missing limbs or half a face.
The less injured cultists rose, dazed.
His group had fared better. None were dead, although the girls, wearing the least amount of clothing, bore a host of new scrapes and cuts. Jahi was helping his sister up when Rondel realized that Andrasta had been calling his name.
Where is she?
He saw her crouched, sword drawn and ready. Rondel followed her stare. Menetnashte's bodyguard stood across from her. A massive sword, some four feet long with a blade wider than any he had ever seen rested in his relaxed right hand.
"Andrasta! Let's get up the tunnels before they recover," he said.
"I can take him," she whispered back.
"What?"
"It won't be like Fern."
"Fern? Did you get hit on the head? If we go now, we can make it up the tunnel before they recover."
As soon as the words left Rondel's mouth, he knew they weren't true. Around the bodyguard, the surviving fourteen cultists, gathered. A couple helped Menetnashte to his feet.
Andrasta met his eyes. "Promise you will not interfere."
The request didn't surprise him. "I promise."
"By the gods, I said kill them!" shouted a very angry Menetnashte.
* * *
"Get behind the altar," Jahi yelled, pushing his sister into the other girls.
The cultists swarmed forward like a group of angry ants. They passed the giant monolith of Nizam and climbed over rock and dead bodies. Menetnashte waited and watched.
Andrasta and Rondel stepped into the path of the attackers, killing each of their first opponents quickly. However, the next several men came on strong and forced a retreat to keep them from being overwhelmed.
With invisible hands, Jahi snatched up two stones by his feet and propelled them forward. Then two more. He singled out the cultists nearest Rondel and Andrasta. All four rocks found their marks with sickening crunches and dull thuds. The bodies dropped hard.
Jahi almost smiled at his accuracy until he realized that his efforts had barely slowed down the others. He sent two more stones forward, helping Rondel and Andrasta one last time before several of the cultists came at him in a rush. His arm shot forward and streaking flames enveloped three men. They writhed and shrieked as they burned.
Fresh smells of charred flesh and hair mingled with the residual odors present in the altar chamber.
Fire once more leaped from Jahi's hands toward a group of more hesitant cultists that had retreated near Menetnashte. The attackers raised arms in an effort to shield themselves.
The fire ran into an invisible barrier, dissipating.
The cultists exchanged glances.
Jahi went into another spell, thinking he may have made a mistake on the last. An immense power pushed against him, hampering his efforts.
"So Horus's boy is blessed with talent." High Priest Menetnashte walked forward, standing by Nizam rather than behind the bodyguard. "Let's see how blessed." He waved his men forward sharply. "Go!"
The cultists rushed forward again. Jahi tried to fling stones at the men, but could not. Menetnashte blocked his efforts. He knew he should try to focus on battling the high priest, but the approaching swordsmen seemed like a much higher priority.
He swore loudly in a phrase he had heard Andrasta use, bracing for death.
* * *
The altar chamber had become a mess, yet none of it held Dendera's attention like her brother's reaction to the mayhem.
Jahi had always been smart, but he had also been timid. She never thought about that part of his personality much because he was her little brother, someone she looked after like her own child. Seeing him cast spells of earth and fire with both speed and confidence brought her a sense of pride that overwhelmed the brief sadness she had felt for seeing him grow up so quickly by taking lives.
The way he's taking the cultists out, Rondel and Andrasta only need to hold on for a few moments longer and Jahi will have eliminated everyone here.
Then Jahi's next attack faltered.
She listened to Menetnashte speak and her certainty of victory collapsed. Jahi wavered on his feet.
The attackers surged forward at the high priest's command. Dendera panicked, hand searching for a weapon. It wrapped around a rock and in desperation she flung it forward. To her surprise, it struck the lead cultist in the temple, staggering him.
Frantically, she groped for another rock, railing at herself for doing too little too late. I should have stood by his side.
A high shrill rang out on her left.
Nailah rushed past her and ran the staggered cultist through the side. Blood spurted from the wound as she withdrew her sword. A moment later she traded blows with another of the men. The four other girls came up beside Nailah and engaged the three remaining cultists.
Without a word, Oni was at Dendera's side, placing a stone in her hand. The princess swung her other arm forward. Oni's stone struck a cultist in the shoulder. Dendera flung her rock and quickly picked up another. She hoped that if they could help Nailah and the other girls hold off the cultists, Jahi might find a way to defeat Menetnashte.
* * *
Andrasta's sword swept out, severing her opponent's arm at the elbow. She followed the attack with a thrust through the throat. The body tumbled into the other corpses at her feet. She was about to chance a quick look around the chamber to gauge Rondel and Jahi's status when Nizam's longsword swooped toward her as if the giant had materialized out of thin air.
"Always assume your opponent is capable of the impossible. That they are inhuman. Better than the gods themselves. Then you will not be surprised by what they do."
Her master's words echoed in her mind as she met the blow. The clashing blades sent a shiver down her arms and into her shoulders. Swords slid apart and the dance began.
Nizam was not hesitant in his attacks, stepping into every one of his thrusts and slashes to maximize the power behind them. In any other fight, Andrasta would have used his tactics to her advantage to counter against the aggressive moves. However, Nizam never lost his balance, never stepped wrong. Even with what seemed like the most reckless of attacks, he always brought up his guard to protect against her strikes. Never falling for her feints, it was like the bodyguard knew where she would attack before she did.
High screeching sounded to Andrasta's right. She flicked her gaze in that direction and almost paid for it dearly as Nizam pressed. She ducked under the sweeping attack, brought her blade up to block the follow-up, and then slid to her left to avoid the third move in Nizam's combination. The third move struck her hip. She managed to avoid the worst of the blow, but enough of Nizam's blade tore through her armor, slicing flesh. She winced.
"Weak."
Rage surged through her at her former master's taunting voice.
Nizam finally made his first mistake, overreaching when he sensed victory. Andrasta rolled away from the assault and sliced open his thigh. The bodyguard briefly looked down. As Andrasta rose, he gave her the slightest of nods as if a sign of respect. Before she could consider how to respond, he jumped at her.
She steeled herself against the assault, bobbing and weaving, parrying and countering. She tried several times to mount an offensive, but the sounds of other fighting began to weigh on her.
"You cannot fight their battles, only your own."
She clenched her jaw. "You're wrong."
Vocalizing her thoughts made Nizam pause for the briefest of moments. Andrasta shuffled backward and pushed through the pain in her hip as she hurdled three cultists she had killed earlier. She winced upon landing, despite taking the brunt of the impact on her good side. She ignored the pain in her hip and jumped to the top of a fallen stalactite to rapidly survey the rest of the chamber.
Nizam came at her in a rush, trying to knock her off the stalactite. She dove from the rock before he struck, drawing the dagger strapped to her chest as she did so. She came up fast, intending to throw it at the High Priest after assessing the situation, but in the last second he had taken cover behind a stalagmite.
She swore, running from Nizam to buy time. Each step sent lances of pain into her hip. The bodyguard stumbled afterward, limping because of his cut thigh. He closed on her quickly. Andrasta needed to make a decision on where to help, either Rondel or Jahi. With Menetnashte hidden, the choice seemed logical.
Besides, I need to trust that Rondel can help Jahi afterward. I can't do it all. Not while fighting Nizam.
Her arm whipped forward, releasing the dagger just as Nizam's sword whistled through the air.
* * *
Blood splashed across Rondel's face, surprising him as he hadn't struck his opponent. Nor had he been struck himself. A dagger protruded from the side of his opponent's neck. The cultist dropped his sword, choking as his hand went up to a familiar looking hilt. Rondel thrust his blade into the man's gut, just under the sternum. The cultist sank to the ground.
Rondel's breath came in ragged gasps. He had surprised himself with how well he had fought.
It's not over, fool.
He looked up, taking in his surroundings as rapidly as possible. Andrasta fought Nizam in a flurry of blows that he could barely track. Watching the weapons twirl in the air, he wondered how the woman had found time to help him.
Though he wished to return the favor, he remembered his promise.
Which makes it even more curious why she risked herself to help me.
Free from battling his opponent, he saw that he had not been alone in his struggles. Two girls fought against cultists while Dendera and Oni pelted them with stones. All worked to protect Jahi who kneeled on the chamber floor. The boy looked to be in immense pain.
Menetnashte hid behind a large stalagmite with an arm extended outward toward Jahi, attacking him with some spell Rondel could not see.
One of the two girls fighting the cultists screamed in anguish as a spout of blood erupted from the girl's shoulder, where it met the neck.
Rondel wanted to help the last girl standing but knew the smartest move was to take out Menetnashte. Guilt balled in his gut. Sound reasoning did not make the decision easier as he knew the girl would likely die.
But I have to remove the most dangerous threat first.
Rondel sprinted toward Menetnashte. He took only four steps before the high priest's other hand darted out toward him. Rondel didn't see what hit him, but he felt it. The impact threw him several feet. He landed hard on his back, striking his head.
He wanted to swear, but with his head spinning, found he couldn't quite remember words to fit the occasion. He rolled to his knees and then his feet. Somehow Jahi had found a bit of life and sat up.
Menetnashte on the other hand looks worse than before. I guess he shouldn't have wasted so much power on looking younger.
A large rock thrown two-handed by Dendera struck the last surviving cultist a moment after he slashed into the exposed thigh of the remaining girl. The man's head whipped back and he collapsed to the floor. The last girl, finished the cultist and, began hobbling toward Menetnashte, determined and grim.
Gods, how did they even capture this one to begin with?
Menetnashte's hand lashed out at her. The girl struck the ground hard. Jahi rose to one knee. Recalling something Andrasta had mentioned when she and Jahi first fought, Rondel gritted his teeth and steadied himself.
"Jahi! He's getting tired. Fight it." The boy shook his head, eyes clenched. "Think of Dendera! Do you want her to die here?"
Jahi yelled while getting another leg under him.
Good. But still not enough. I have a feeling this is going end up hurting a lot.
Rondel rushed toward Menetnashte on wobbly legs. The high priest flicked his gaze toward him. His face looked remarkably older than it had earlier, and sweat slicked his brow. He struck out at Rondel again, and the former minstrel tumbled.
A ball of fire flew across the chamber, but dissipated before hitting the high priest. Rondel half-crawled, half-walked toward Menetnashte while the priest and Jahi began to trade attacks of cumbled earth that zipped around like annoyed flies. Rondel's heart raced in both fear an excitement being so close to the sorcery.
The boy can do it. I just have to keep diverting Menetnashte's attention.
Menetnashte grunted under the weight of a fire ball. Jahi yelled in pain.
Rondel propelled himself forward to close the distance between him and the high priest. He dove, sword extended. It bit into flesh just as a burst of orange light came from Jahi.
He got caught at the edge of the attack and was thrown back a dozen feet. Everything hurt.
But I'm not dead. Or burning. That has to be a good thing.
Rondel opened his eyes to Oni kneeling over him, her mouth silently moving. The buzzing in his ears began to clear. Swords continued to clash in the background.
"Are you all right?" he finally heard her ask.
"Menetnashte?"
She looked to the side. "Dead."
Rondel followed her movement and saw his sword in the priest's side. Smoke flitted up from his clothing.
"Jahi?"
"Alive. But weak. Dendera is helping him."
Good.
Rondel fought through his pain as Oni helped him sit up.
Jahi leaned against the bloody altar while Dendera doted over him. He gave Rondel a small nod. The girl who had bravely fought against the cultists was busy wrapping her leg and other injuries with torn black cloth.
All heads turned to the throat ripping cry that erupted. Rondel hadn't noticed until then that the sound of fighting had ceased. Rondel freed his sword from the high priest and looked to the opposite side of the chamber while moving toward the scream.
Andrasta had been backed up against the wall of the cavern. She held her sword close to her chest as Nizam pressed into her with all his weight.
She yelled again, struggling against the larger man's strength.
"Help her!" cried Oni.
"She told him not to," reminded Jahi. "She would be upset if we interfered."
"That's ridiculous," said Dendera.
Nizam's blade inched closer to Andrasta's face.
"It is," said Rondel. Promises or not, I'm not watching Andrasta die. Let her be mad at me.
He took a step forward, but halted as soon as he began. Using the wall to support herself, Andrasta brought her knee up once, twice, three times into Nizam's crotch.
The bodyguard shuddered. Everything else happened so fast Rondel barely caught it all. One moment Andrasta's knee was in Nizam's groin, the next her blade slid from Nizam's and sliced across the side of his head, severing an ear.
He reeled back and Andrasta lunged, piercing the man's side under the armpit. She withdrew the blade and slashed it across his stomach. Nizam dropped to his knees. Andrasta took off his head with one more swipe.
She walked toward them without pausing.
Rondel remembered her comment about Fern. "You did it."
"I told you not to help me. No matter what," she said. It was the first time Rondel truly saw the woman tired.
"I didn't do anything."
Her eyes flicked to the sword in his hand. "You were about to."
Rondel braced himself for a fist to the gut or at least a tongue lashing for being ready to go against her wishes.
"Thank you," she whispered as she passed him.
Rondel's eyes widened. He was about to say "you're welcome," but Andrasta was busy limping toward the tunnel that led up to the ledge encircling the chamber near the ceiling.
The others were just ahead of her.
Rondel hurried after them.
* * *
By the time they reached the stone platform overlooking the altar, other cultists had staggered into the chamber. Rondel briefly looked over the half wall.
Panic dominated the cultists' behavior.
Their leader is dead.
Rondel didn't stick around to see what the cultists did next as thundering explosions sounded once more.
Too tired to waste the energy, none of Rondel's companions spoke while snaking up the tunnels out of the underground hell.
It was midday when they reached daylight. Rondel used his good hand to shield his squinting eyes. Though the light was a nice welcome after the claustrophobic darkness below, the heat beating down on them did nothing to relieve their exhaustion.
The climb down the mountain was painstakingly slow, even with Jahi's steps available to them.
Rondel was the last to reach the bottom, helped down by Andrasta. The girls were already drinking from the water seepage Jahi had shown them.
He managed a smile after he and Andrasta took their turn at the water. "I'm tempted to say a prayer to the gods for actually smiling down on us for once. I thought the urilaudium explosions might have covered the water."
"What gods would you pray to?" asked Andrasta.
Rondel frowned. That was a good question. Each culture had its own pantheon. And though many shared similarities, the god of Bratanic was remarkably different than any god in Iget. He hadn't thought about his god in some time.
"Wodan is the god of my country, but I haven't prayed to him in years. Probably why I was only tempted to say a prayer and not moved enough to actually utter one."
Andrasta tilted her head. "You don't ever curse his name either."
"No. I curse all the gods because it isn't just Wodan that I have no use for."
Andrasta laughed. "My thoughts as well. I don't know if I can ever remember praying to the gods of Juntark. However, if the mood does strike me to pray, it will be after we make it through The Blood Forest."
Rondel rose to his feet and stared at the edge of white trees adorned in crimson leaves. "Good point."
"How are we going to get through?" asked Jahi. "I don't have the strength to do half of what I did last time." He paused. "I don't think any of us do."
Rondel looked him over and saw how tired he was from his battle with Menetnashte. "Can you manage the occasional ball of fire with any accuracy? It doesn't have to be large."
"I think so."
"Good." He turned to Andrasta. "Can you throw a couple rocks into the trees?"
She raised an eyebrow. "You really think it's still there?"
"I'd rather know for sure. Wouldn't you?"
The woman snatched up a few stones, walked closer to the trees and started humming them into the trees. On the third throw, a familiar sound shook Rondel's bowels.
"Ah, such a sweet voice." His sarcasm choked down his fear as he walked toward the roar's origination.
"What was that?" Oni asked in a shaky voice.
"Ammit," said Jahi. "Yes, it's real. As is every other nightmare you've heard about The Blood Forest."
"And we're going in there?" asked Dendera.
"No other option," said Rondel.
He bent down and removed a clay container from his pocket. He took out a small knife and shaved some of the clay off of one side of the container so it was weaker. Setting the container on the ground near the forest's edge, he placed stone around three of the four sides of the container to help redirect the blast of the chemicals through the weakened part of it.
He jogged back to the others, wincing with each step.
Gods, this is going to be a hard journey out. His hands brushed up against his pockets. At least I still have that bit of food. Though it won't go far between us.
After he moved everyone into position, as far away from the container as possible, he gave Jahi the signal.
A small flame formed in the boy's hand. He took his time crafting it while taking aim. Everyone rolled into balls as far away from the container as possible.
The howling blast sent dust and loose stone down from the mountain. The only sound louder than the explosion itself was the following cry of Ammit. No longer did it scream with frustration, but with agony.
They stared out at the trees. The urilaudium and kilogen infused blast carved a blackened corridor into the woods. Fading thunder and snapping trees sounded as the fleeing Ammit crashed through the forest, wailing. Blood and bits of grayish flesh marked the trees to the left of the path caused by the explosion.
"Too bad there isn't a verse in your song about this."
Rondel looked over at Andrasta. She wore a small grin.
Jahi cleared his throat. "How about 'To fight the Ammit, one would have to be a fool. That is unless you've come prepared with the right tools?"
Rondel snorted. "Needs some work. But it's a good place to start."
"Well, how about-"
"Later," cut in Andrasta. She pointed to the forest floor where a few of the vines and splintered trees already began trying to reclaim the scar caused by the explosion. "We need to move."
They set out at a fast walk down the charred path.
"Do we have enough of those clay containers to get us to the other side?" asked Oni.
Rondel stared at the end of the path that he had created and frowned. He checked his pouches.
Only four left.
"Maybe," said Rondel, hustling ahead of the others before someone asked him to explain.