Part 2

Once they had tiptoed far enough into the tunnel to avoid being seen from the Undercity, Luna lit a torch. The sudden illumination of the underground corridor caused Luna and Cassian to shield their eyes momentarily. As their eyes adjusted, they were able to make out for the first time the drab details of the ancient tunnel system. Cracked wooden support beams leaned lazily against the carved rock ceiling and walls. This place was dust. Everything was coated in it, and each step forward kicked up a small cloud. The tunnels were mostly narrow, and in some parts, they needed to squeeze through sideways to continue.

A fit of coughing erupted from Cassian, and Luna reached into her knapsack grabbing two handkerchiefs. She held the torch momentarily pinched between her knees and tied one of the tattered pieces of linen around her mouth and nose. “Here, this will help a little bit. Though, I expect we’ll be coughing up soot for at least a week after we get out of this place. Just one of the many joys of navigating ancient tunnels.”

Cassian tied the ratty turquoise rag around the lower half of his face and looked side to side, nerves starting to get to him. “Are all of the tunnels this tight?”

“To be completely honest, I’ve never been through this tunnel system.”

“Well that’s reassuring.” He said, rolling his eyes.

Luna stared ahead into the stifling darkness lurking just beyond the warming light of the torch. “If claustrophobia is the biggest obstacle ahead of us, your highness, that would be just fine with me.”

“I’ll be alright. It’s just I’ve never spent much time in confined spaces. It’ll take a bit for me to get used to it. I’ve been meaning to ask you though — what do the scary stories say about these passageways?” He asked.

Luna looked over her shoulder back at Cassian. “You sure you want me to tell you? Sometimes it's better not to know.”

Cassian weighed the options internally as they trudged through the dusty corridor. “They always say ignorance is bliss, but my curiosity is getting the best of me. And yet, why do I get the feeling I’m going to regret this?”

Luna pushed sideways through yet another narrow crevasse as the tunnel narrowed. “Keep in mind these are old wives tales told in the Undercity to scare children before bed, so take it all with a grain of salt. I have no idea which portions to believe. This will be a long story so prepare yourself.”

Cassian felt a chill run down his spine, and he absentmindedly crossed his arms. “Well, it sure looks like we’ve got plenty of time to kill on our journey through this mountain. Not exactly the most beautiful scenery.” He said, gesturing to the suffocating and dusty corridor with a smirk not half as slick as he thought it was.

“The folk tale begins on a stormy night in the Undercity two centuries ago. A mother named Esmerelda is doing chores around her small farm with her only son, Niklas. A group of boys are going to go exploring in the tunnels on the outskirts of the town and they invite Niklas to join them. The boy begs his mother to let him go play with the other boys, but Esmerelda tells him he can’t go play—she needs his help on the farm. You see, people had been disappearing from the town. Well of course Esmerlda became incredibly overprotective of the only thing she truly loved in the world, Niklas.”

Cassian scratched his head. “You know my parents have always been overprotective of me. When I have a kid, I’ll never shelter them like that.”

Luna shot him a dirty look. “At least you had someone who wanted to protect you. My mother died giving birth to Lane an—”

She froze up and Cassian looked her in the eyes and placed his hand on her arm reassuringly.

“After my father passed, I had to shoulder the weight of looking out for Lane and myself. I wish I could complain about someone wanting to protect me. That’s why it’s a sore subject for me I guess.”

“I’m sorry, I guess sometimes I talk without thinking. I can’t imagine being forced to fend for yourself so young like that.”

Luna stepped over a large rock in the path, knocking his hand off her shoulder. “It’s whatever. Honestly, I don’t even care. It is what it is.”

Cassian didn’t say anything, just climbed up over the rock following her further into the tunnel system. He could see through her mask of indifference though. No one carries that kind of hurt without it taking its toll. Cassian thought, noticing the way her tied up black hair bounced as she walked.

“Anyways, eventually Niklas grew tired of life on the farm and never being able to play with the other boys. Esmerelda woke up one morning to find she couldn’t locate her beloved son anywhere. Fearing the worst, she searched desperately all over the small township for weeks. No luck. No one had seen him. Then one morning the town blacksmith shows up at the farm and tells her that he saw Niklas swimming to the island commune not far from town. Naturally Esmerelda went to the island to get him.”

Cassian scratched his head curiously. “Does the island commune still exist in the Undercity, I’ve never heard of it?”

“The small island is still there, just past the dock district. It's abandoned now though, and the water is way too polluted to swim in these days. Now stop interrupting or I’ll never get through the story.” She said, hitting him in the arm and flashing a scowl at him.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“Jeez! Ow! Okay, okay. I can’t promise I won’t interrupt again though.” Cassian laughed, pretending to nurse his sore arm.

Luna rolled her eyes before continuing the story. “Where was I again? Oh yeah, so the people who lived on the island were a mysterious and private bunch and unsubstantiated rumors around town said they practiced witchcraft. Esmerelda arrived and snuck around the island searching for her son. Oddly enough, as she explored the island, she found it completely deserted. Eventually she stumbled upon a hidden cave. Inside of the cave the commune was chanting around the dismembered body of the preacher’s wife who had gone missing the week prior. On the cave wall was a depiction of a witch, painted in blood, that oddly enough bore a striking resemblance to Esmerelda.”

Luna paused, bringing her hand up to her chin as the tunnel ahead of them forked. “Hmm, I’m not sure which way we should go.”

Cassian’s jaw dropped, and he looked behind him into the pitch-black abyss. “Uh oh. I don’t think I like the sound of that.”

“Don’t panic, getting lost sometimes comes with the territory of exploring tunnel systems. My gut says we should go right.” She said looking back and forth between the two tunnels in front of them.

“Okay, what’s informing that gut feeling?”

“Well—the path on the right just seems—right.”

Cassian's eye twitched a little and he put his hands on his hips. “Please tell me you’re kidding, right?”

Luna started off down the tunnel. “Right. So, Esmerelda waited until she could get Niklas alone and she begged him to return home with her. Niklas was indoctrinated by the commune by that point however. He refused to leave. Esmerelda saw only a single opportunity to get her son back. She returned to the town and went straight to the grieving preacher telling him of what she saw on the island.”

Luna paused for a moment thinking she heard a noise from down the tunnel. When she had convinced herself it was just her mind playing tricks on her she continued the story. “The preacher, driven mad by the loss of his wife and emboldened by cheap rum, worked up the town into a frenzy and they stormed the island. They hanged and burned every member of the commune in the town square for the murders and for practicing witchcraft. After the frenzied mob dispersed, Esmerelda got her son's charred body down and held him all night weeping. Mind shattered by the death of her only son, she put his blackened skull in a burlap sack and went to the island. Finding her way back to the cave she begged the witch to reunite her with her son.”

Just then a gust of wind shot through the tunnel extinguishing the torch. Total darkness fell over the pair and Cassian's heart nearly jumped out of his chest. A terrible silence gripped the narrow passageway, and the only audible sound was Cassian’s heavy breathing as he nearly fainted. The sound of flint striking tinder echoed out down the tunnel and they were returned to the realm of light when Luna relit the torch.

“You okay, your highness?”

“That was freaky, right? Where did that bloody wind come from?” Cassian asked, trying to calm himself down and get his breathing under control.

“Yeah, a little bit freaky I’ll admit. But sometimes cracks in the mountain allow for gusts of winds to come through the tunnel systems. It’s best not to panic. Just remember to breathe, don’t need you passing out on me.” Luna said, likely trying to convince herself as much as him.

“Okay, you’re probably right. Just a wind tunnel. These things happen. This is okay…”

Luna continued down the cramped passageway. “Now this is where the story gets super creepy. You sure you want me to finish the story?”

Cassian breathed in deeply. “Yeah I guess I’ve made it this far. Better to hear how it wraps up. I don’t know why, but I’m guessing it’s not a happy ending?”

“You could say that. The preacher found evidence on the island that painted Esmerelda as the head witch of the commune. She was still distraught from seeing her son hanged when they came for her. The preacher and his men hellbent on revenge, wrapped chicken wire around her head and nailed her into a coffin before burying her alive on the island. All was well in the town for a fortnight. But then one day the congregation went into the chapel for sermon and found the preacher missing. They poured out into the town square only to find the preacher hanged by chicken wire. His wife's opal necklace wrapped around his neck. Esmerelda stood there, bloodied, and dirty, chicken wire still tangled around her forehead, eyes black as night. They say the ancient witch of the island took Esmerelda’s body.”

Cassian gasped, noticing Luna chuckle at his reaction he straightened up, puffing his chest out in a sad attempt to hide his fear.

Luna shook her head and continued, “The townsfolk chased her to the mouth of the tunnel with torches in hand. She fled into the darkness. Groups of men entered searching for her, but they were never seen or heard from again. And so, that’s the reason no one ever uses this tunnel system.”

“It’s probably all made up, right?” Cassian asked, glancing over his shoulder behind him into the darkness.

“No one really knows if the stories are true,” Luna shrugged. “Everyone I know has just stuck to always avoiding this place. But either way these tunnels give me the creeps and I can’t wait to get out of here.”

Cassian put his palm over his face. “Yep, I definitely shouldn’t have asked to hear the story.”