Michael Mathias - Kings, Queens, Heroes, and Fools

Hyden let go of his extended vision. He’d thought about making his and the High King’s presence known to her. Surely she would remember Talon, but he decided that getting her excited and full of hope, when they were still a long way away from being in a position to help her, would serve no purpose.

“She’s there, just like you said,” Hyden said.

Mikahl was several yards down the left hand branch of the hallway, looking around in the dim reaches of Hyden’s magical light. As he returned to the junction, the satisfied grin on his face told Hyden that Mikahl had heard him.

“If we’re at about the same level as the surface of the lake, then we are at least five stories below the main floor of the castle.” Mikahl looked from one tunnel to the other. “I guess this way.” He started them deeper into the structure.

“I’m following you,” Hyden said as he made an arrow mark in the mold on the wall. It pointed back the way they came from.

They roamed the dungeon for several hours. Hyden lost track of how many marks he made. They’d come up three separate staircases so far, and the cells on the level they were currently on were not nearly as large as those below, but they were still big.

“We were just here,” Mikahl said with a frustrated huff. Hyden’s mark was on one of the other walls pointing off to the hallway across from them.

“We go left,” Hyden said.

“Are you sure?”

“Just…” Hyden stopped his voice short then whispered, “Did you hear that?”

“No.”

“Shhhh,” Hyden hissed. “Listen.”

They both strained their ears into the darkness. Apparently some of the keen senses Hyden shared with his familiar were beginning to stay with him when they were apart. Mikahl couldn’t hear anything, but Hyden was sure he could hear a long low groaning. After he heard it again, he started off toward the sound, leaving Mikahl no choice but to follow.

Hey took a few turns that Hyden didn’t bother to mark, and found another stairway leading up. The sound was coming from somewhere on the floor above.

“I don’t hear anything,” Mikahl whispered.

“It sounds like somebody in pain,” Hyden replied softly.

“After you,” said Mikahl, making a show of the fact that Ironspike was at the ready.

Hyden checked the tension on his bow string. His arrow was nocked as they started up.

“Why are you sneaking?” asked Mikahl.

Hyden looked back with narrowed brows.

“Your light is already shining into the hallway up there. Let’s get up before something traps us in the stairway.”

Hyden had to laugh at himself this time. He hurried his pace and, once he was standing in the wide cell-lined passage above, the source of the sound became apparent. He walked straight to a locked cell door. A look in the head-high window hit him like a fist in the gut. Before Mikahl had even caught up to him, Hyden had the bolt thrown and was starting into the cell. Behind him, Mikahl was protesting, but it was too late.

Lying chained in the corner of the putrid smelling cell was a body, nothing but skin and bones really. It was obviously that of a giant. The poor starved figure was easily thirteen feet from head to toe. He was so near to death that Hyden thought it might be inhumane to try and save him.

The giant moaned again, “Booohhhrrrg.”

Hyden knelt beside the emaciated form and took its huge head into his lap. He poured a few drops of water onto its swollen cracked lips. “I think he’s calling for Borg.”

Mikahl found himself raging. He could imagine King Aldar’s fury if he were to see this. He could imagine Borg’s fury. He rummaged through his wet shoulder pack and found a satchel of meat that was only semi-damp. “Here.” He handed it to Hyden.

“Booorrghh.”

“Borg’s not here,” Hyden said. “Eat this.” He put a small piece of the soft jerky in the giant’s mouth then dribbled some more water.

After the giant finally swallowed he spoke in a raspy whisper. “Tell Borg they…” the giant started quivering. “They killed Dalla.” He shuddered and gasped in a breath, but then fell still.

“By the goddess, don’t die,” Hyden pleaded with tear-filled eyes, but he knew it was too late.

“He’s better off now,” Mikahl said, putting a hand on Hyden’s shoulder. Had he thought the touch of his blade wouldn’t just kill him, he might have used Ironspike’s magic on the giant. “Did he say to tell Borg that they killed Dalla?”

“Aye, and I will, but…” Hyden raised a hand to still Mikahl and cocked his ear to the side, listening again. He started to say that he heard something, but just then a big dark figure came up out of the hall behind Mikahl. Hyden tried to warn his friend, but wasn’t nearly quick enough. A huge clawed paw smashed the High King across the cell into the wall with a thumping clatter.

Hyden slid out from under the dead giant. He‘d sat his bow down and it was half a dozen paces across the floor. As he started for it, he realized that he wouldn’t get to it before the grotesque beast got to him, but it was too late. He was committed to the action. He pulled an arrow from his quiver as he strode, and just as his hand closed on the grip of the weapon, the beast kicked out at him, causing his legs to come over his head. Just before he crashed into the floor he saw something else skitter into the cell. It wasn’t nearly as big as the beast that was attacking him, but it looked pretty dangerous. It was some sort of scorpion-like thing with a long dripping stinger curled up over its segmented body. He couldn’t tell any more about it because, when he impacted the wall, blackness engulfed him.

Mikahl blinked his eyes open, but still saw nothing. Instinctually, he reached to his shoulder and pulled out Ironspike. As its symphonic rush of power filled him, he rose to his feet and surveyed the room by the light of its blade.

A malformed breed beast was bearing down on Hyden, who was lying limp across the cell. Only the sudden brilliance of Ironspike’s glow stopped the creature from tearing into his friend. Mikahl stepped forward and, with a mighty heaving arc, slashed at the thing before it could turn on him. The blade sliced cleanly across its back, but not deep enough to do serious damage.

The creature roared and turned so quickly that Mikahl was caught off guard. A savage claw ripped out at his chest. As he saw the sharp digits coming at him, he called forth Ironspike’s magical armor. It spared him the brunt of the damage, but he was still gouged across the ribs. As he thrust his sword at the creature’s guts, he felt more than saw, another presence in the cell. He dodged the scorpion’s venomous stinger just in the nick of time, but in doing so he was forced to pull a blow that would have killed the other beast. By the time he caught his balance, the sword’s glow was surging purple with his growing anger.

As soon as Mikahl had his feet, he charged the great hairy monstrosity with a savage attack. His first chopping blow took the beast in the upper arm and left a bone-deep gash from shoulder to elbow. His next spinning slice ripped across its middle, but not deeply enough to stop it. After that, he had to run as fast as he could across the cell to try and help Hyden. The scorpion was scurrying toward his helpless friend with thick, honey-like venom dripping from its tail spike. In all the commotion, he forgot about the huge corpse sprawled across the floor. His foot caught on one of the giant’s legs and he ended up stumbling right into the scorpion’s angry stinger.

It just missed his flesh.

As he went twisting by, he stabbed at the thing. The tip of his now white-hot blade hit the stone floor hard after going straight through the hell-spawned creature. It skittered across the floor into the corner, leaving a trail of thick yellow slime. He doubted it was dead, but at least it was away from Hyden.