They were riding along a narrow mountain path, the air crisp and the sky a brilliant blue. Leianara turned to Aloria, her expression troubled. “I’m sorry for what happened. You almost died, and it was all my fault.”

Aloria glanced at her, her eyes soft with understanding. “Don’t worry about it, I’m not angry with you. You did the right thing, as your father would.”

“I know, but I still feel bad. I think my bleeding heart makes me a bad leader. I’m always getting in over my head,” Leianara admitted, her voice filled with self-doubt.

“Don’t castigate yourself, that creates bad luck. Just be grateful we survived,” Aloria said, offering a reassuring smile.

Raithlin, riding a few paces ahead, turned in his saddle to address them. “And what about the next time she lands us in hot water, and our luck runs out? What then?”

Aloria met his gaze firmly. “The princess will be more careful from now on. There’s more at stake than just our lives.”

Leianara’s eyes flashed with a mix of hurt and defiance. “Don’t tell me you’re turning on me too.”

“I’m sorry, princess, but the kingdom cannot afford to lose you. You’re too important,” Aloria said, her tone gentle but resolute.

Raithlin nodded in agreement. “She’s right. Stop being so stubborn and listen to reason.”

Leianara’s face hardened, her voice rising with frustration. “Stop treating me like some hysterical madwoman. What kind of a queen would I be if I turned a blind eye to evil?”

Raithlin’s expression softened slightly, though his eyes remained serious. “Well, you’ll have to learn how, or this quest will end in our deaths. You do love me, don’t you? You don’t want to see me dead.”

Leianara fell silent, her jaw set in a grim line. The tension between them was palpable, the weight of their mission pressing down on them all. As they continued to ride, the path ahead seemed fraught with uncertainty, each step a reminder of the dangers that lay ahead.

They crept up to the end of the ravine, the rocky walls towering over them, casting long shadows in the fading light. Ahead, they saw a group of horses, over forty in total, corralled and guarded by five Zarocs. Thoradin assessed the situation, his eyes narrowing. “It shouldn’t be a problem to get past them. But what do we do when we run into the others?”

Raithlin, his expression calm and determined, replied, “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

With a nod of agreement, they charged the Zarocs. The battle was swift and brutal; they dispatched all but one of the Zarocs, which they took captive. They quickly unsaddled the horses and drove them off, watching as the frightened animals galloped away into the night.

Raithlin held his sword to the captured Zaroc’s throat, his voice a cold whisper. “What do you know about the cave? Speak or you die.”

The Zaroc sneered, defiance in its reptilian eyes. “Go to hell, human. You won’t get any information out of me.”

“So be it,” Raithlin said, and without hesitation, he drove his sword through the Zaroc’s throat. The creature gurgled and collapsed, lifeless.

Leianara’s eyes widened in shock. “You didn’t have to kill it, Raithlin.”

“It’s a monster. It doesn’t deserve mercy,” Raithlin retorted, wiping his blade clean.

“To him, we’re the monsters,” she replied, her voice filled with sorrow.

“You have to become a monster to defeat evil. I didn’t decide that; it’s just how the world works.”

Leianara shook her head. “You beat monsters by showing them a better way. You beat them in their hearts and minds.” She turned to Aloria. “You stay here. It will be too dangerous.”

Thoradin stepped forward, concern etched on his face. “You should stay here as well.”

“No chance. You will need me,” Leianara insisted, picking up a sword from one of the dead Zarocs. “I know how to take care of myself.”

Raithlin frowned. “No, Thoradin’s right. You stay behind. We’ll handle this.”

“I’m not some helpless damsel, so stop being so overprotective,” she shot back, her eyes flashing with determination.

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Raithlin glared at her, then nodded stiffly. “Have it your way then, but this is a bad idea.”

“This whole quest is a bad idea. We’ve just got to make the best of a bad situation,” she replied with a resolute tone.

Aloria stepped forward, her face a mask of concern. “Be careful, princess. I know you have the heart of a lioness, but don’t let bravery cloud your better judgment.” She and Leianara hugged tightly, a moment of shared strength and sisterhood.

With a final glance at their companion, the heroes turned and entered the cave, the darkness swallowing them as they stepped into the unknown.

They lit torches, the flames flickering and casting eerie shadows on the cavern walls as they entered the dimly lit space. The tracks disappeared inside the cavern, but they pressed forward, their eyes scanning the surroundings. Ahead, a stone doorway loomed, ancient and imposing. They approached it cautiously.

Leianara spoke, her voice a whisper. “There’s supposed to be some kind of maze ahead. Be careful not to become separated.”

Thoradin looked at her, concern etched on his face. “What do we do once we reach this guardian?”

Leianara took a deep breath. “You two draw it away, and I’ll sneak into its lair and find the tome.”

Raithlin frowned. “What if Baradis already has the tome?”

“We’ll think of something. Come on, let’s go,” she said, trying to sound more confident than she felt.

They passed through the stone portal and entered the maze. The air inside was musty and cold, and the only sounds were their footsteps echoing off the stone walls. They followed the tracks of the Zarocs, finding many of them dead from various traps.

Thoradin examined one of the bodies. “Who built this place?”

Raithlin replied, “Must have been a powerful mage.”

As they moved forward, Raithlin stepped on a pressure plate, triggering a trap. Poisoned darts fired from the walls, and he barely managed to dodge them. They continued, their nerves on edge.

Suddenly, a pit opened beneath them, and they fell twenty feet, landing hard on the ground below. They looked up as the pit closed above them, trapping them in darkness. Another tunnel led away from the pit, and they followed it, their torches casting long shadows.

The tunnel opened into a cavern with a river running through it, and no other exits were visible. “What do we do now?” Thoradin asked.

Leianara looked at the river, determination in her eyes. “We follow the river.”

“We could drown in a dead end,” Thoradin warned.

“What other choice do we have?” she replied.

They doused their torches and dove into the river, following the current downstream. Their lungs burned for air as they swam through the tunnel. Finally, they emerged into another cavern and resurfaced, gasping for breath. They swam to the shore and relit their torches, finding themselves in a huge natural cavern filled with bones of luckless adventurers.

“This must be the monster’s lair,” Raithlin said grimly. “Leianara, you stay here, and we’ll try and find the beast.”

She nodded and hid behind a stalagmite, dousing her torch. The two heroes continued deeper into the cavern. Suddenly, they heard a roar, and a huge creature shaped like a bull with six legs and metallic skin stood before them. Its eyes glowed red, and beams of energy blasted out at them. They dove aside to avoid the blast and retreated, the beast following them.

Leianara watched them retreat, then relit her torch and slipped deeper into the lair. She saw a mound of treasure, and atop it was a white leather book. She recognized it as the tome and quickly stowed it in her backpack.

A voice behind her said, “Princess Leianara, fancy seeing you here. How about you hand that book over before things get messy? I know how you royals hate the sight of blood, particularly your own. Personally, I’m not so squeamish.”

She turned to see Baradis with his Zarocs gathered behind him. He had lost men to traps, so there were only thirty of them left. In the distance, they could hear the heroes battling the gorgon.

Leianara glared at him. “Go to hell.” She doused her torch, plunging the cavern into darkness.

Baradis and his men spread out, holding their torches high as they searched for her. She crept around, but one of the Zarocs saw her and attacked. She fought it briefly before killing it, then ran for the exit while the other Zarocs chased her. One of them tackled her to the ground, raising its sword to stab her, but a beam of energy blasted it in the face.

Thoradin helped her to her feet. “Are you okay?”

Leianara nodded, her heart pounding. The gorgon attacked the Zarocs, their blades unable to penetrate its metallic hide. Baradis cast a spell, fire erupting from his hands and blasting the gorgon, hurting it. The three heroes ran for the exit, but Thoradin stepped in a sinkhole and twisted his ankle.

Leianara helped him up, and they hurried for the exit. They looked back to see the gorgon directing a blast of energy their way. They dove aside, but the blast struck the ceiling, causing rocks to fall and block the exit. They searched frantically for another way out while Zarocs charged them.

Raithlin shouted, “We’ve got to get out of here, or we’re dead!”

Leianara cried out, “Hey, ugly! I’ve got your treasure! Bet that really pisses you off!” She held aloft the book.

The gorgon roared with anger and sent a mighty blast her way. She dove aside, and the blast struck the pile of rocks blocking the doorway, blasting them aside. They fled through the exit and managed to lose their pursuers in the maze.

They wandered the labyrinth, their torches sputtering out. “We don’t have much light left. What do we do? We’ll be stranded in the dark, and the monster will hunt us down and kill us,” Thoradin said, his voice tinged with fear.

As if in response, they heard a roar nearby. Leianara said, “Check the book. There might be a spell we can use.”

Raithlin took the book and scanned through it, finding a page with a map of the labyrinth. They could see a mark indicating where they were. “This way!” he shouted.

They ran down the tunnel, hearing another roar behind them, this time much closer. They kept running, following Raithlin’s directions. Suddenly, their lights died out, and they were lost in darkness.

“Damnit, we were so close! The exit’s on the other side of this wall,” Raithlin said, frustration evident in his voice.

They heard hoofsteps behind them and turned to see the gorgon’s red eyes approaching. It blasted at them again, and they dove aside. The blast destroyed the wall behind them, revealing light from the exit beyond. They sprinted for the exit, emerging from the caverns and mounting their horses before galloping away into the night.