Darkness greeted Eyde at the bottom of the stone ladder, along with a change in the air suggesting the presence of a tunnel. The sound of his boots scraping the stone floor echoed away from him. Fitful light came from above, casting a shifting pool of illumination as the lantern swung from Kellin’s belt.
As Kellin descended, the light flooded in and confirmed the presence of a long, stone tunnel. Each grey stone had been cut and laid, forming an archway that extended further than the greasy, weak light could penetrate. The air smelled stale and carried the scent of refuse. Eyde also recognised the odour of rotting flesh.
"Well?" Kellin pushed Eyde's shoulder, making him wince. "Go on."
Eyde hesitated. This whole thing had gotten out of hand. He needed a way to make his escape. He turned to Kellin and the others, "Stay as quiet as possible. If the lantrit hear us coming, they'll run." He stepped along the stone, conscious of every scrape of his boots and skittering of the grit that covered the walkway.
The group followed him with more noise than he'd have liked. Their equipment clinked, their armour creaked, and someone was wheezing as they breathed. Gritting his teeth, Eyde continued onwards.
Before long, they arrived at a fork in the path. Kellin nudged Eyde’s shoulder, “Come on, lad. Which way?”
“Hold on,” hissed Eyde. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he all but choked on the rising smell of putrid flesh. There’s something else here, he thought. Other than the lantrits. Whatever it is isn’t picky about eating its kills fresh.
He paced between the two possible paths; both the smell and the sound of running water were coming from the path on the right. His mind spun with plans to escape. He couldn’t make it past Kellin and his men without being caught. Hesh protect me, I’m going to regret this, he thought.
“This way,” he said, attempting to ground himself with affected confidence. “You can tell from these marks on the floor.” In fact, you could not tell, because there were no marks, but his would-be kidnappers looked to where he indicated. Kellin even nodded in sage agreement. Surprised, Eyde resumed his journey, his head spinning as he tried to figure out how he would escape.
Around the next corner, the lantern illuminated a slick, wet area of the wall. Moisture was leaking down from the level above through tiny cracks in the ceiling. Once reaching the floor, it pooled into a small stream that rolled across a walkway and into a narrow canal. Pale moss and lichen grew either side on the wall, and Eyde noticed where pieces had been rubbed away.
“Makes sense,” Kellin grumbled behind him. “With that light-abandoned smell, I figured we’d be close to the sewers.”
Eyde ignored Kellin, the smell of sewage was indeed there, but months in the field had given Eyde plenty of time to understand the smell of a predator's lair. He followed the subtle markings down to the floor. A narrow band had also been worn smooth as if something had been dragged over the stone walkway many times. On either side of the slight groove, there were long scratches. Claw marks.
A predator, judging by those claws. Low to the ground and heavy, Eyde thought. And it’s clearly at home in the dark. Possible culprits flickered through Eyde’s mind as he considered what kind of creature would make this place it's home. None of them were creatures he’d want to meet unprepared.
As they stepped over the damp stone, a short cry went up from one of Kellin’s men. Eyde turned to see that Kent’s boot had caught on something protruding from the canal. As he shook his foot, a part of the paper-like substance broke away from the main piece which sunk below the foul water. The piece that remained attached to Kent’s boot looked rough, segmented, and thin enough to let some of the weak lamplight pass through it.
Kent continued to hop around, shaking his foot until the last of the offending substance had fallen away. Kellin approached him and stuck him around the head with the flat of his hand. “What were you told about keeping quiet?” He hissed into Kent's face, who had the presence of mind to look apologetic.
Eyde’s heart thundered in his chest. In the commotion, his eyes hadn’t left the shedding as it had clung to Kent. A caerna, the thought pinned him to the spot. Why is there a caerna here? As his panic rose further, Eyde willed his legs to move. Caerna were known to be aggressive and territorial; if they were found here with so little room to run they wouldn’t stand a chance.
With torturous effort, Eyde forced his legs to move back towards the ladder but was stopped by Kellin's hand on his chest. “Where do you think you’re going, lad?” He growled.
“Kellin, you don’t understand. We need – “
“I’ll tell you what we need. We need to get that stone back or you and I are both for it. But in your case, I’ll make sure the consequences are drawn out and painful,” Kellin’s expression made it clear he would not be moved on the subject.
“No, Kellin, there’s –”
“Some rubbish attached to Kent’s boot got you flustered?” Kellin jeered. “No wonder you’re such a pushover. Where’s your backbone?”
Eyde stared at Kellin for a few moments as he contemplated his next course of action, “Fine.” Turning with all the calm he could manage, Eyde resumed the journey deeper into the sewer.
“Good lad,” Kellin murmured.
The sewer faded to irrelevance as Eyde considered his circumstance. Stuck between a knife-happy old man and a dangerous predator was not where he thought he’d end up when he arrived in Volgorne. Although being as sensitive to light as they are, it must be the lantern that was keeping the caerna away; its keen sense of smell would no doubt have alerted it to their presence by now.
Eyde felt a hand grab his shoulder, waking him from his desperate internal monologue. “I said wait, Vemera take you,” Kellin’s voice was a harsh whisper in Eyde’s ear.
“What?” Eyde froze. Perhaps the caerna was bolder than he anticipated.
If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“One of the little furry bastards ran into that hole,” Kellin indicated an area where a few bricks had fallen away at the base of the wall. Beyond the opening, the path continued to the right around a sharp corner. “Lad, if you’re sleeping on the job I’m gonna –”
“Enough, Kellin,” Eyde snapped, his nerves infecting his tone of voice. “I’ll take a look.”
Without looking back, but with great caution, he approached the hole. His body cast a shadow across the area as it passed in front of Kellin’s lantern.
Crouching down, he turned, allowing the weak lantern light to fall where it was needed. The path beyond the corner disappeared into the darkness, deprived of the lantern’s glow. Eyde examined the area around the hole. The dust and grit on the pathway had been disturbed. Remnants of fur caught on the removed bricks confirmed this was indeed a passageway used by lantrits.
Eyde lowered his head to peer into the darkness behind the wall, the pitch-black interior gaped back at him. Straining over the sound of water trickling into the canal and the murmuring of the men, he thought he could make out the characteristic chittering of lantrits. This must be their nest, he thought.
Gathering his legs beneath him, he made to stand but froze upon hearing a low, gurgling growl to his left. The caerna.
Eyde’s mind raced, filling with panic over large teeth and claws being mere inches from him. He clung to the knowledge that the caerna wouldn’t attack as long as there was light. Living in caves meant a caerna’s eyes were adapted to the darkness; anything above a mere suggestion of a glimmer would be the equivalent of Eyde looking into the sun itself.
“What is it, lad?” Kellin’s voice was growing more agitated.
This is it, Eyde realised. This is my escape. He shuffled his legs underneath him, pantomiming straining into the darkness behind the wall. “I can’t see into the hole. You’ll have to pass me the lantern.” He fought to keep his voice as level as possible.
“Just tell us if the little shits are there,” Kellin demanded.
“I can’t do that without being able to see, Kellin,” Eyde fought to hide the rising panic in his voice as the shuffle of leathery skin on stone rasped beside him.
Kellin gave a long sigh, “I’ll keep hold of it.”
Eyde heard the sound of Kellin’s boots approaching. The light shifted, but the brickwork would keep it from scaring away the caerna. He hoped.
Kellin grunted as he dropped into a crouch beside Eyde, bringing the lantern closer to the hole, and to Eyde’s face, “Well?” He jeered.
Eyde looked up, the lantern’s proximity had robbed his eyes of their ability to see in the low light. His memory of where the other men were standing in relation to himself, Kellin, and the sewage-filled canal would have to suffice. Saying nothing, he blew out the flame of the lantern as it dangled by his head.
[https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/C7m_fGSLaZsHQ6ViNqHYtMEv10IJBmAosWvU7Z0HDQajkSiDE7N4LwEmU-rPeNEqaLNEEVwbWyqbw_UJLFW78YoSDY_4hNRGifFM7Jx6TxLmrdTl16Xe22cwXWsY7A]
The darkness was enveloping. Cries went up from the men as Eyde pushed out of his crouch with all the force he could manage.
He felt the roar of the caerna reverberate in his chest as it rounded the corner, felt Kellin’s hand flail against him as he ran past. He smelled the carrion on the caerna’s breath penetrate the pervasive smell of the sewer. He heard the sound of the lantern hitting the stone floor and the sound of weapons being drawn.
In the darkness, he crashed into what he assumed was one of Kellin’s men. Spinning as he fell, Eyde hit the stone floor before scrabbling back to his feet. Kellin was calling for help, and the sound of snapping jaws and scraping claws echoed from the walls. Eyde turned to put the sounds behind him and ran, one arm outstretched to provide some warning of the walls, following the map in his mind as best he could.
He didn’t know if anyone was trying to follow him and didn't care. His entire world was condensed down to the few corners he needed to take to get back to the ladder, and the sounds of panic and violence diminishing behind him.
The outstretched arm gave little notice as Eyde slammed into a wall. Dazed, he tried to recall the way and began running once more. Blood flowed from his nose and down to his mouth, his deep breaths drawing in the taste of warm copper.
He stumbled around a final corner and let out a small but jubilant wail at the sight of the faint column of light allowed in by the stone ladder. If his eyes had not been so bathed in darkness he may have missed it.
[https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/C7m_fGSLaZsHQ6ViNqHYtMEv10IJBmAosWvU7Z0HDQajkSiDE7N4LwEmU-rPeNEqaLNEEVwbWyqbw_UJLFW78YoSDY_4hNRGifFM7Jx6TxLmrdTl16Xe22cwXWsY7A]
Even the relative gloom of the Roots caused Eyde to squint as he passed through the grate and out into the open air of the stage. He stood, hands on his knees as he gasped for breath for a few moments before the urge to get away took hold once more.
Eyde ran towards his rented room, the single place of stability he had found since arriving in Volgorne. As he ran, he noticed he was drawing attention from those around him. A man running around with blood on his face is going to do that, Eyde, he thought. Spying a nearby alleyway, he ducked inside and began wiping his face with a handkerchief.
“Not having a good day, are you?” a gruff voice spoke from behind Eyde.
Turning, handkerchief still covering most of his face, Eyde faced the man standing in the mouth of the alleyway, thumbs hooked through his belt, displaying the hilts of the knives sheathed on each of his hips.
The embers of recollection kindled in Eyde’s mind, “You were there yesterday, with Mina and the other woman.”
The man grunted, a wry smile somewhat hidden by his short, greying beard, “The name’s Teyvar. I need to know what happened behind the grate. Why didn’t you come out with Kellin?”
Eyde paused for a moment, considering his response, “I don’t know what happened to Kellin. There’s a sewer down there and I happened to get away in the darkness.”
“That doesn’t seem very likely,” Teyvar stepped closer. “Why did he take you down there in the first place?”
“I don’t think I’ll be answering any more questions until you tell me who you are,” Eyde remembered the altercation the day before. “Kellin said someone is after him.”
Teyvar gave a sigh, “We’re part of Daralen’s Vanguard, one of Volgorne’s mercenary guilds. We took a contract to get the stone back from Kellin.”
“Unusual to find a mercenary guild acting as thief-catchers,” Eyde observed, the suspicion evident in his voice.
“In case you hadn’t noticed, Volgorne isn’t at war. Gotta find something to do in peacetime.” Teyvar held up his hands, “I’m not here to hurt you. We’d been trailing Kellin, waiting for him to take us to the gem. He found you in that alley and we saw him drag you off and through that grate. When you came out, I was sent to get your story while Mina and Galatae watch for Kellin.”
Eyde relaxed, letting a little tension out of his muscles. “I suppose you wouldn’t have healed me if you meant me any harm.”
“I’m glad you’re seeing reason.” Teyvar flashed a wolfish grin. “Now, Why would Kellin drag you down into that sewer?”
Eyde gave a mirthless laugh, “Because I told him his gem was down there.”
Teyvar’s brow knitted with concern, “and was it?”
“In a sense,” Eyde pushed the now bloody handkerchief into the pocket of his trousers. He then dipped his hand into the inside pocket of his coat. When it was withdrawn, it held the glittering red gem.