Alcingeria Chapter Twenty Nine: The ReturnA Chapter by Ryan Henderson Ceberus and William return from Queen Yuka's castle along with a strange item.
Chapter Twenty Nine The Return:
Sunday June 27th 1690
I woke up and opened my eyes a crack. I could see sunlight streaming in from a nearby window. I got out of bed and inspected the other bunks. Everyone else was up. I went into the kitchen to find everyone sitting at the table with the exception of Martha, who was preparing breakfast.
“G’mornin’ pal.” Walden said to me.
“Good morning.” I said in return.
I went and sat down next to Macalister, Robert and Don.
“What’s the matter, Don? I haven’t heard you crack a joke at Tabatha today.” I joked.
“You’ve been up all of two minutes.” Don pointed out.
“Yes, but I’m still surprised you haven’t done it yet.” I told him.
Don leaned in close to me and whispered in my ear.
“Well, she’s really coming around. She’s not so mean anymore. She’s actually kind of nice.” Don said in a low voice.
“I heard that, boy!” Tabatha joked.
“Can you stop calling me boy?” Don asked hopefully.
“Oh, not a chance.” Tabatha replied with a smirk.
Macalister started laughing.
“Don’s a boy.” He said to himself.
“I am not!” Don snapped.
Walden began chuckling, so did Tabatha.
“She older than you?” Walden asked Don, pointing to Tabatha.
Don’s head sagged.
“Yes.” He mumbled.
Walden cackled and clutched his stomach.
“Oh, man that’s too funny.” He said.
Tabatha giggled. Don sighed just as Martha brought a platter of food out from the kitchen and set it on the table.
“Eat up!” Martha said with a smile.
I examined the carrots, cabbage and peas that were on the platter. I grabbed a few spinach leaves, some carrots and some peas. I popped a few peas into my mouth along with the spinach. I ate the carrots last.
“So, I was thinking about the inscription that’s on your knife, Redmond.” Erin said.
“What do you think it means?” I asked her.
“Given the inscription, it could have belonged to a general or some other army personnel.” Erin said.
I nodded. It made sense.
“Well, whoever it belonged to died long ago. The knife was rusted to heck when we found it.” I said with a laugh.
“What is it with you and old stuff, Erin?” Stella asked.
Erin rolled her eyes.
“Old things are very interesting. The fact that I can read and understand most languages means that I can read inscriptions that are on various things. That just makes them cooler.” Erin said with a grin.
It was Stella’s turn to roll her eyes. She flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder.
“I really don’t get you. Why would you waste your time learning languages and reading when you can go shopping?” Stella asked.
“I don’t like shopping.” Erin said flatly.
“Hmmph.” Stella while looking away from Erin.
Just then, the sound of galloping horses filled the air. It was faint at first, but it grew more and more audible.
“Could that be Ceberus and William?” Martha asked, looking out the window.
The galloping horses then came down the path that lead from Riverguard to the bunkhouse. Riding them were Ceberus and William. I noticed that Ceberus had a leather bag with him.
“It’s them!” Francella said excitedly.
“What’s that Ceberus has? A bag?” Raymond asked.
Martha began running for the door. She opened it and ran out just as Ceberus and William were dismounting their horses in front of the bunkhouse. Martha threw herself into Ceberus’s arms. Ceberus caught her and kissed her.
“I missed you, Ceberus!” Martha cried.
Ceberus chuckled.
“We were only gone a few days.” He said.
“I’m just glad you and William are safe.” Martha said.
Martha pulled away from Ceberus and took him by the hand.
“Come inside, you two. Breakfast is on the table.” She said, leading them both to the house.
They all came inside.
“William! Ceberus! Great to see ya!” Walden cried.
Ceberus regarded Walden with an irritated look.
“Oh, Walden. I didn’t know you’d be here.” He said.
“Yeah, I saw a vampire last night and Martha said I could sleep here, where I’d be safe.” Walden said.
Ceberus just shrugged and laid his bag on the table next to the platter of food.
“William and I have news from Queen Yuka.” Ceberus said.
“Indeed. Queen Yuka informed us of what she has been doing in the last two weeks.” William said.
“Well, go on! Tell us!” Francella said excitedly.
“Alright. Queen Yuka has spies all over Vulrock that feed her information constantly. Her spies recently gave word that there is vampire mafia on the rise in Vulrock. This can lead us to speculate that the same thing is happening in the other provinces. Queen Yuka is cracking down on crime, hoping to increase her odds of apprehending vampire mafia members.” William said.
Martha gasped.
“Vampire mafia? Oh dear!” She said.
“Yes. She has also managed to capture a few witches and a few warlocks, whom are now part of her court and act as her servants. To keep their behavior in check, she says that if they act out of line, they will be tortured and then slowly killed.” William said with a shudder.
A chill ran down my spine. Gruesome images came to mind when I pictured Queen Yuka having someone tortured.
“She is also capturing fairies at a frightening rate. We don’t yet know what she wants to do with the fairies, witches and the warlocks. She didn’t tell us.” William added.
I scratched my chin, thinking about what she might want fairies, witches and warlocks for.
“Any ideas on why she needs all those magical creatures?” Raymond asked.
“Well, to our knowledge she does not have a lot of magical creatures at her disposal, but honestly we have no idea what she’d do if she assembled more magical creatures.” Ceberus said.
My eyes fell on the bag that Ceberus had set on the table.
“What’s in the bag?” I asked.
Ceberus picked up the bag, reached in and pulled out a stone object. It was about two feet long and ten centimeters wide. The shaft was square, but near the top of the shaft it had two prongs that were a few centimeters thick branching off to either side.
“What is that?” Macalister asked.
William scratched his head.
“We actually don’t know. Queen Yuka gave it to us before we left. She told us that we needed to find where this ‘fits’. I don’t even think that she knows where it goes or what it is.” William said.
I eyed the object. Something about the shape of the square seemed oddly familiar. The measurements, the size, where had I seen it before? Just then, something in my brain clicked. I knew where that thing went. The door in the ruins. The hole in the door had the same measurements as the square shaft. The object must be a key, and the prongs at the top of the shaft must be used for turning it!
“I know where it goes!” I exclaimed.
Ceberus eyed me strangely, looking for an answer.
“Yesterday, Walden and the rest of us men went to some old castle ruins. We discovered an underground portion of the ruins and found a thick door at the end that even Walden’s destruction magic couldn’t blast through. There was a hole in the door that was the same shape and had the same measurements as the square shaft of that object!” I said.
Ceberus’s eyes went wide.
“Really?” He asked.
“Yup. There’s a door down there that looks like it would take that as a key.” Walden said.
“Well, we should get down there as soon as possible.” William said.
“Is there any other information that you got from Queen Yuka?” I asked.
“Well, only that she really, really wants to find where this key ‘fits’.” William said.
“What could be behind that door?” Don asked.
“Only one way to find out.” Walden said with an adventurous grin stretching across his lips.
“If we are going back down there, we need torches. We may as well bring some food and water as well.” Raymond said.
“Are we actually going down into some old castle ruins?” Stella asked.
Erin nodded excitedly.
“Yes! Just imagine all of the lost and forgotten culture buried down there!” Erin said eagerly.
Stella groaned.
“Erin, why can’t you just be a normal girl?” She asked.
Erin just chuckled, but didn’t say anything.
“Which way are the ruins, Walden?” Ceberus asked.
“Oh, no ya don’t. I aint gonna tell ya the directions to the ruins ‘cause you’re probably gonna leave without me. I’m comin’ with ya.” Walden said.
Ceberus groaned.
“Fine. You can lead the way.” He said.
“That’s what I like to hear!” Walden said enthusiastically.
“Okay, let me pack some food and supplies for you. You all should get your gear ready.” Martha said.
“Aint you comin’, Martha?” Walden said.
Martha scoffed.
“I wouldn’t last five minutes in those ruins, let alone however long you are all staying. Besides, someone needs to watch the house, right?” She asked.
“Well, I suppose. Suit yourself.” Walden said.
I reached into my pocket and made sure that I had my dagger, the knife with the inscription, my flintlock, my gunpowder and my ammunition. When I felt the flask of gunpowder, I remembered that it was almost empty.
“Do you have any gunpowder around here?” I asked William.
William nodded.
“I have a few flasks in my room. I’ll go get some for you.” He said, walking into a room.
He came out momentarily holding a flask of gunpowder that was larger than my other one. I took the smaller one out of my pocket and set it on the table, I grabbed the one William had and I stuck it in my pocket. The flask was full.
“Thanks, William.” I said.
“Any time.” He replied.
I didn’t really have anything else that I needed, so I was ready to go. I just sat at the table and waited for the others. Martha was in the kitchen, packing us food for the trip. It was a good idea. Who knows how long we’d be down there? Thinking of the ruins made me wonder what could be behind that door. Queen Yuka obviously wants it, but what could it be?
“Are you thinking about the ruins?” Erin asked as she walked into the room with a backpack on her shoulders and a holstered knife on her hip.
Her words took me out of my thoughts and brought me to reality. I nodded.
“Me too. I’m excited to see all of the lost culture buried down there, but what worries me is what else may be down there.” Erin said.
“When we were down there, we saw a vampire. It attacked us but Walden killed it quickly. There could be more of them down there, so we should be careful.” I said.
Erin shivered.
“I know. I’ve seen the some of the now deceased members of The Vipers be killed by vampires, but I’ve been curious about something.” Erin said.
“What is it?” I asked.
“I know that if you run into a vampire, without the proper weapons you will certainly die. However if a vampire bit you and chose not to drain your body of blood, what happens?” She asked.
My mind was warped back to the horrible day when Don and Robert were bitten by Ignacio back at his cabin. I knew the answer to Erin’s question, alright.
“If a vampire bites you but doesn’t drain you of blood, you slowly are transformed into a vampire. The transformation can be fast or slow, depending on how many times you were bitten.” I replied.
Erin gasped, her eyes wide.
“That’s horrible! Is there a way to revert the transformation?” She asked.
I nodded.
“Yes. You must drink the blood of the vampire who bit you while the vampire is still alive.” I told her.
Erin looked relieved.
“Well, at least there’s a cure. If you don’t mind me asking… How do you know this?” Erin asked.
I decided to tell her everything. Why not? She was our friend after all. She deserved the truth.
“A while ago, Don, Macalister, Robert and I stole fifty thousand dollars from Jonathan Haywood in Relin. We were on, and probably still are on, King Lucias’s list of dangerous criminals. He sent a vampire named Ignacio to hunt us down. Ignacio captured us and was going to harvest some of our blood and then turn us in to King Lucias. Ignacio bit Don and Robert, but we managed to get a stake and we scared him off. Ignacio went for our money and he told us that if we let him have the fifty thousand dollars, he would cure Don and Robert and let us go. He did so and he made off with the money. We haven’t seen him since.” I said.
Erin’s eyes were wide.
“That must have been horrible!” She cried.
“It was, but we pulled through it together. It was Ceberus and William that directed us here to Riverguard. We saw them a day later and they offered to take us here.” I said.
Just then, Francella and Raymond came out of the bunk room. They both had backpacks and knives in holsters attached to their hips much like Erin.
“We’re ready to go. How about you all?” Raymond asked with a grin.
“We’re ready. Who else are we waiting on?” I asked.
“Don, Robert, Macalister, Tabatha, Stella, Ceberus, William and Walden.” Raymond replied.
A few seconds later, Don, Robert and Macalister came out of the bunk room.
“We had to grab our flintlocks and daggers.” Robert explained.
I nodded quickly and looked to the entrance to the bunk room. Tabatha and Stella were walking out. Tabatha was carrying her staff and had no backup weapon. I noticed that she was also wearing a simple black tunic along with a black skirt. She kept her witch boots, but her hat was gone. Stella had a knife in a holster on her hip. They both had backpacks.
“We’re ready to go!” Tabatha exclaimed.
“Tabatha, you changed out of your witch clothes so you won’t be noticed in town, right?” Don asked.
“Yes, why?” Tabatha asked.
“Well, if you don’t want people thinking you’re a witch, shouldn’t you lose the staff?” Don asked.
“The staff stays.” Tabatha said with finality.
Walden was right behind the girls. He was flapping his wings and flying a few feet off the ground and he was right beside Tabatha.
“Yeah, we’re just ‘bout ready to roll.” Walden said.
Martha came out of the kitchen carrying a burlap sack full of food in one hand and several canteens full of water in the other. She set them on the table. I reached out, took a canteen and stuck it in my pocket. The others did the same. I heard footsteps coming from one of the back rooms and I saw Ceberus and William emerge from a room. Ceberus had his musket on his shoulder and a knife in his pocket. William had a flintlock and a knife. They too had backpacks. William grabbed the sack of food.
“We’re ready.” William said as he and Ceberus both reached out and took a canteen for themselves.
They both put their canteens in their backpacks.
“Alright Walden, lead the way.” Ceberus said, gesturing to the door.
“Good luck!” Martha said.
Ceberus leaned over and kissed his wife.
“Thanks, love. We won’t be gone long. I promise.” He said.
Walden grinned and flew out the door. We all followed him. He led us up the stone path that led to town and we passed by the usual mass of people. No one screamed or shouted at us, and I saw that Walden made himself invisible. We made it to the gate.
“Halt! Why are you going out of Riverguard?” The guard asked.
“We are going hunting.” Ceberus lied.
It was a good lie, it would explain the guns that we had on us. The guard nodded.
“Very well.” He said.
Just then, the gate began to open. When it was fully opened, we stepped through and continued walking through the forest. When we were heading into a dense collection of trees, Walden made himself visible again.
“Alright fellas, the ruins are this way!” He said, flying ahead.
We all ran after Walden.
“Do you have the key, Ceberus?” Macalister asked.
“Of course I have it.” Ceberus said.
We ran on through the forest, ducking low hanging branches and jumping over the occasional fallen tree. As soon as I began recognizing the scenery, we broke into the area that had the fallen trees concealing the staircase.
“Windstorm!” Walden cried, directing his hand at the fallen trees.
The trees flew out of the way and Walden flew down the staircase quickly. The rest of us followed without hesitation. As we journeyed deeper underground, it got dark. We went a little deeper in and Walden said something under his breath. The familiar fireball sprang to life in his hand, illuminating the area around us within about ten feet.
“That’s a cool spell, Walden.” Tabatha said.
“Thanks. It’s only Fireball. Standard Destruction Magic spell.” Walden said modestly.
Walden began flying forward and we followed him.
“We forgot torches, didn’t we?” Francella asked.
“Too late now, I guess.” Stella said with a shrug.
Erin looked around in fascination. Her eyes were full of wonder.
“Just imagine how old this place is! I wonder what treasures we’ll find down here.” She said in awe.
“Y’know, I never thought a dame like you would have been interested in this kinda stuff.” Walden said to Erin.
Erin’s eyes went wide with surprise and she scoffed.
“I’ve dedicated my life to learning languages and I simply adore old things as well as foreign cultures!” She blurted.
Walden chuckled.
“How ‘bout you? You like it down here?” Walden asked, turning to Stella.
Stella shook her head violently and made a disgusted face.
“Ew! No! It’s gross down here and it’s all dirty! The only upside is the adventure.” Stella said.
Walden laughed. No, not a laugh. A hearty cackle.
“That’s more like how a dame should react to this place.” He said.
“That cackle, fairies aren’t supposed to cackle. That’s what witches do.” Macalister said.
“Watch it, buddy.” Tabatha said without looking at him.
Macalister shot a frightened glance to Tabatha and leaned over to me without taking his eyes off her.
“She scares me.” He whispered.
I almost laughed, but held it in. Macalister probably would have broken my neck otherwise. A big, strong guy like him afraid of a witch that was probably half his size. It was funny. Just then, I heard something. The others must have heard it too, because they stopped.
“Does anyone else hear that?” Macalister asked.
Robert shot him a look that clearly said ‘shut up, you fool!’ We all looked around for the source of the sound. We heard rapid footsteps come from nowhere for about two seconds, they stopped and a female vampire threw herself into our little circle of light. Before anyone could react, it grabbed hold of Erin and pulled her close. Erin let out a terrified scream.
“Erin!” Francella cried as he reached for her.
The female vampire laughed and backed away. Erin struggled against the vampire, but it held a firm grip on her. The vampire brushed Erin’s short black hair aside with her hand, exposing her neck. The vampire pulled her fangs back over her teeth and went straight for Erin’s throat!
Crack!
A thunderous gunshot sounded. The vampire’s head snapped back as blood sprayed across the ancient stone walls. It fell to the floor, not moving. Erin screamed and ran back to us. I looked to see that the vampire had a bullet between her eyes. I looked back to our group to find Ceberus standing in a shooter’s stance holding his musket, pointing it at the vampire. The muzzle of the rifle was smoking.
“Nice shot!” Walden shouted.
“I’ll s-say.” Erin stammered, looking nervously at the vampire.
“Are you okay Erin?” Tabatha asked.
Erin nodded distantly. She was scared, but she’d get over it.
“C’mon, let’s go before more come.” Walden said, flying ahead of us.
Everyone else turned away. I don’t know what made me do it, but I stayed a little longer than the others did. I bent down, surveying the vampire.
“Hello? Anyone home? Let’s go!” Walden called anxiously.
Before I got a chance to answer, the vampire suddenly jerked to life! I let out a scream of fear as it lurched at me, catching me by surprise and pining me to the ground. It expertly held my hands down by my wrists, pinning them on either side of my head on the ground.
“Redmond!” Robert yelled with concern.
I could hear him running after me. I was feeling relieved that I would soon be rescued, but also terrified that if he didn’t hurry, I’d die in seconds. I then heard something that crushed any hope I had left. It was the sound of metal clanging against stone. Robert swore. I snuck a quick glance over while trying to fight off the vampire and saw that a metal grate had fallen from the ceiling and landed in front of Robert, preventing him from reaching me. I turned my gaze back to the vampire. She was baring her fangs, her red eyes locked on my neck.
© 2015 Ryan HendersonAuthor's Note
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Ryan HendersonCobourg, Ontario, CanadaAboutI will review your work if you send me a read request, I like to help writers get off of the ground, I will also suggest ideas for your work if needed. Please note that I don't really like poetry... more..Writing
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