Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Luna didn’t charge alone. Other animals followed in her wake: horses, a wolf, a few pigs and chickens, even squirrels.
“Stand behind me, Majesty.” Gustav planted himself before Avera, his sword ready to slay her steed.
“No. You can’t kill Luna.” Avera threw herself past him, bloody hand outstretched.
Luna whinnied as she rose on her hindquarters, readying to trample. Avera didn’t flee but rather darted close enough to slap her steed’s chest with her red-stained hand.
The effect was immediate. Her mare gently lowered herself and snorted in apology.
“I know you didn’t mean to hurt me. It’s okay— Ah.” Avera yelped as another horse head-butted her, knocking her down. She hit the floor and grunted as the impact tore the gash in her palm wider.
“Avera, left!” Gustav yelled and she didn’t question. Avera rolled.
Just in time.
A wolf landed where she’d been, muzzle pulled into a snarl.
Its cloudy eyes and visible canines left no doubt it would harm her, yet she doubted she could get close enough to touch it without getting her hand eaten.
With not even seconds to spare, she did the only thing she could think of.
Whipped her wounded hand in an arc, sending droplets of blood flying.
They hit the wolf—and everything else in the vicinity—leading to a stunned moment as the animals bespeckled in blood woke.
Those that shook off the compulsion fled, a sudden exodus from the cavern.
The wolf darted through Luna’s legs, heading for the exit.
Her mare shivered but didn’t bolt in terror as the predator ignored her in favor of escape.
Avera stood and clenched her fist to pool some blood before flinging it again at the next wave.
Not as efficient as Opal’s spell, but it worked.
The animals touched by her Voxspira essence reverted to their normal selves, and instinct made them flee.
The few she couldn’t get to in time were dispatched by Gustav.
“Thank you.”
Her rook grimaced as he eyed his sword and the mess at his feet. “Never thought I’d be whacking rodents with my beauty.”
Soon, only they, Luna, and the pair of horses Josslyn managed to hold on to remained. Unsaddled, but at least they wouldn’t have to walk.
“How long will my blood keep the people and animals safe from the mist’s compulsion?” Avera aimed the query at Opal.
“I don’t know. I do know you don’t have time to stand around. Once the effect expires, I expect Zhos will try to rebuild its army.”
“Will you come with us?” Avera pointed to Luna. “We can ride double so you wouldn’t have to walk.”
Opal shook her head. “I cannot leave. My duty is here.”
“Doing what?” Avera asked.
“Given we’ve finally met, and I don’t expect another heir anytime soon, I shall do my best to block the entrance.”
“Block it how? You are hardly strong enough to place rocks large enough to deter anyone,” Gustav asked skeptically.
An enigmatic smile tugged Opal’s lips. “I have my ways, but I imagine Zhos will find a way around it. Its influence keeps growing, which is why you must hurry.”
“You’re sure I must go to Verlora?” Avera dreaded the thought of leaving Daerva.
“If you wish to save us all from the evil that rouses, yes.”
“Verlora?” Gustav bellowed. “There is no way we’re going there. It’s a death sentence to all who do.”
“You don’t have to go,” Avera stated, not mentioning the fact she’d told Opal the same thing.
“Why do I get the impression you’re going no matter what?” His brows beetled.
“Because apparently there is no other choice.”
“We’ll see about that,” Gustav muttered.
“I wish we had more time. I have so many questions,” Avera murmured wistfully.
Josslyn interjected, “So do I. What is this place? Who are you? What is going on?”
“The queen can explain on your journey. If only I still had the written accounts that spoke of Zhos. Alas, time and incidents eroded them. But I hear the Verlorians were good at preserving old text.”
“Assuming anything still even exists,” was Gustav’s sour rejoinder. “I don’t see how leaving the continent is Avera’s best choice. Surely removing the pretender and traitor to her throne is more important.”
“There is nothing more pressing than this quest. Queen Voxspira must journey to Verlora if there is to be any hope at all for Daerva and the rest of the world. The foe we face is ancient and mighty, its influence ever-expanding, and she is the only one who can stand in its path.”
“And if she dies?” Gustav’s sharp reply.
“Then we are all doomed.” Opal’s lips turned down at her ominous message.
“This passage we’re to take, how long to traverse it?” Avera asked.
“That depends on the traveler. I’ve never been through it myself. My understanding is it is a day’s walk, but I don’t know how many rest periods that includes, if any.”
“Can’t we ride?” Josslyn queried.
Opal shook her head. “While your mounts will fit, the tunnels aren’t tall enough.
You will need torches to light your way.
” Opal entered her cave abode and returned with a sturdy limb; the end charred.
She also had some rags and a leather bladder which she claimed held oil to keep the torch burning.
Opal hugged Avera and whispered, “I have faith in you, Avera Voxspira.”
“I’ll do my best to find the seals.”
The trio grabbed the bags Avera had dumped outside Opal’s cave before heading out, their mood somber as they trekked to the other side of the mountain.
The ledge narrowed as they approached the area Opal claimed held the tunnel.
A disgruntled Gustav led the way, his stallion at his heels as he followed the path around to the other side.
Avera and Josslyn kept pace behind. Luna brought up the rear, herding Josslyn’s horse.
The boulder Opal mentioned didn’t completely cover the crevice it hid.
Once Gustav shifted it aside, a musty scent, hinting of decay, wafted free.
Before slipping into the opening, Avera glanced across the wide space to see Opal watching.
A tiny woman on the literal edge of evil, counting on Avera to somehow stop it, leaving her with so many tumultuous emotions and questions.
Who was this man who’d fathered Avera? A thief, apparently. Why had Basil taken the seals? What did he want with them? Had her mother known his intentions? Approved? What would Avera find in Verlora—if they even made it?
“Let me light the torch before we enter.” Gustav prepared it, wrapping a rag dipped in oil on the tip before lighting it. It emitted a faint burning smell but not too much smoke.
As they entered the tunnel, the air cooled noticeably despite the lit torch.
The heat rising from the fires in the hollowed city pit didn’t reach this enclosed space.
The passageway, which was a mix of natural rough stone and chiseled spots, had height and width enough to accommodate their horses if they travelled single file.
The low ceiling, however, made it impossible to ride.
Gustav muttered, “Hope we don’t get ambushed. Gonna be tight quarters if we have to fight.”
“Opal mentioned rats and spiders as the main threats, meaning we should be fine.”
He snorted. “I doubt they’re the variety we’re used to if she felt a need to tell you about them.”
Most likely he had a point.
Josslyn cleared her throat. “So, are you going to explain who this Zhos is and what is happening in that stone city?”
Where to start? “Zhos is some kind of ancient enemy of humanity who’s been trapped for centuries under that lake of ice at the bottom of the pit.”
“Who trapped him?” Gustav asked.
“People, apparently. Don’t ask me how,” Avera stated quickly. “I would imagine it wasn’t easy. Opal called herself a guardian and claimed the city used to have many more.”
Josslyn glanced over her shoulder to ask, “What happened to them?”
Gustav had an answer. “It’s probably the same thing that happens to many small hamlets. A desire to see the wider world leading to young people moving out. Attrition that comes from lowered birthrates when not enough new blood is introduced.”
“Add in the fact Zhos didn’t pose a threat until recently and they most likely were bored as well,” Avera added.
“Why did Opal stay? It must not have been pleasant living there alone,” Josslyn stated softly.
“She claimed to see visions of the future. That it was her task to inform the new rulers of Daerva of the threat that lived under the lake.”
“Your mother met her?” Gustav inquired sharply.
“She did, both times Mother visited.” Avera paused. “From what Opal said, the second visit, when she brought Basil, started Zhos’ awakening and attempt to escape. Now it is up to me—to us—to stop that from happening.”
“Seems like that would be rather easy. Put out the fires and block the cave.” Gustav offered a very direct solution.
“If only it were that simple.”
“Why can’t it be?” Gustav retorted.
“Because during that second visit, my father stole five rocks that acted as some sort of seal. Hence why Opal needs me to go to Verlora. I’m supposed to find them.”
Interrupting with a snort, Gustav drawled, “I see rocks all over. Not sure why we need to travel to Verlora.”
“My understanding is they’re not ordinary stones.
” Not that Opal had said much about them.
Avera had no idea what they even looked like.
Size, color, shape. Nothing. “I assume they have some kind of power because, since their removal, this Zhos has been gradually extending its influence via what we call the mist. It brought the people of Herder’s Respite to do its bidding.
Drew animals, too. Although, with that said, I’m not sure how Zhos managed to infect Benoit. ”
“What’s Benoit got to do with this Zhos thing?” Gustav barked.
Josslyn, though, gasped. “The master he and the admiral spoke of. Do you think—”
“They’re one and the same, yes,” Avera interrupted. “According to Opal, Zhos somehow managed to convince Benoit to kill me and my family.”
“Why?”