The Deathly Nothing

Chapter 13

A bargain was never a good idea, anyone who had made one usually sealed their own inevitable doom. I was certain that a bargain offered by the ruler of death and shadows would be the worst of them all. We seemed to both hold suspicion in our eyes but her's were waiting with an uneasy exhilaration. The room was still, frozen even Craith seemed serious unlike his usual child-like self.

"Tell me where she is," I ordered calmly, yet my voice shook with desperate anger. Doreah smiled, her eyes flashed dangerously like a fox eyeing a hen house. The Queen leant forward on her desk slowly, the corners of her lips rising upwards to form a nasty smile.

"Of course, after you have futhfiled your end of the deal, stranger," she stated as Rudylin prowled behind her chair silently, as if she were the Queen's personal guard dog. Not that she needed one. It was a warning not to dip my toes in the water to weigh up my options, instead I should jump right in. Do what had to be done.

"I don't want to play a game or gamble your Majesty," I sneered looking from her to the general that glared in my direction, "tell me where my sister is." I could heart Craith mutter from the otherside of the room, words that quickly subsided as Rudylin looked over to him.

"It is not a game, think of it more like business. We can help eachother out in sorts." I finally leant back in my chair and cleared my throat. "You are probably wondering what you can do for me aren't you?" she laughed, opening the draws of her desk, flicking through huge stacks of paper.

"What do you want?" I said through gritted teeth, my head began to pound. Doreah smiled as she held up one of the sheets of paper in front of her, gripping it with her fingers- I was sure it would rip. Rudylin could see the paper from where she stood and she glanced at it, a moment to view it was all she needed. The general's eyes narrowed a little, she swallowed and held her hands behind her back. Craith had risen from the armchair, I heard the leather moan as he got up and walked over to Rudylin.

Then, they all looked to me, standing there together. The all powerful Queen of darkness, her loyal subjects at her side. Unbreakable and maybe even unbeatable. Doreah lowered the paper and turned it over before sliding it to me. Upon the crumpled paper was an illustration of a crystal of sorts, one I had never seen before. It was pure white with a jagged shape and the artist had dipicted glimmers down it's sides.

My eyes trailed to the writing at the bottom, a name I knew at once- The Life Crystal. The source of all magic, the crystal that had created my world. When people had learned of it's magical properties they had been able to extract magic from within it and use it for whatever they wished. To power machines, grow vegetables in a matter of days and most of all for a source of power.

However it was lost to the Underneath, during the time everyone disappeared after a single man disrupted it's magic. It was said he chanelled 'too much' power and everything backfired- that's how the Underneath was formed. The Upper World had then begun to rely on other crystals more, together they could become a primary source of magic but never as effective as the Life Crystal.

Nobody had knowledge of what happened to the man, the arguable creator of the Underneath, the one responsible for plunging the world into turmoil. The one who tore familes apart. Many believed he too went to the Underneath, to rot away in a place of nightmares. To live with the dark result of his nightmares.

"I thought you'd recognise it rather famous isn't it?" Doreah whispered cocking her head to the side as she looked at the paper in my hands. I lay it on the desk and pushed it back to her.

"That's what you want, the Life Crystal?" I asked quietly with a frown. The Queen nodded and held the paper over her head, Rudylin and Craith exchanged a glance before both diving forwards to grab it. Doreah seemed to try and ignore the comotion behind her as her face darkened, waiting for the struggle to subside. Rudylin was victorious as she pryed the paper out of Craith's hand, moving away to the window staring at it in wonder. Craith trailed behind her as Doreah continued,

"It is here somewhere buried in this world and it must be found as soon as possible," she commanded with a face that paled even more until she looked almost ill. My face contored in confusion as I scratched my chin.

"Alright you want it and it's out there, so why not just go and get it?" I inquired, she looked annoyed as if I doubted her 'talents' and saw her incapable. I cracked a smile, well I dared to but it seemed her power had began to dwindle as she seemed to tense in her chair. "You can't find it can you, no matter how hard you try, or- or how far you look. What a shame-"

"Finding crystals is not an easy task, even for me. It requires a certain skill. Do you not think I have tried? I've stopped at nothing to the point of refraining from tearing the world apart" Doreah spat with a fury that caused Craith and Rudylin to look over and fall silent. "I need a crystal finder, lucky for me I have one right in front of me," she hissed and seemed aggravated with my presence despite the fact I was apparently useful for her plans. I frowned and stared at her.

"How did you know I was a crystal finder?" I asked as she crossed her arms, then looked at Craith. I followed her gaze to where he stood near Rudylin. During my time in the cell Craith had visited me nearly everyday, we had exchanged details during conversation. Now it seemed he'd been extracting them from me all along, delivering my information on a silver plate to her. I shook my head and gripped the leather of my chair, squeezing it tightly. Craith opened his mouth to speak, taking his hands out of his pockets but I cut him off.

"Don't bother, mate," I scoffed, making sure to drag out the last word. The archer seemed to recoil with a face full of contrition, tugging his bow over is shoulder. I looked away and back to Doreah, "You believe I can find it?"

"I would hope so, otherwise, I'd loose hope on seeing your sister as her days would quickly become- limited," she rasped lowering her eyes to me. At once I rose from my chair, ready to launch myself over the desk, to clasp my hands around her neck-

A single jerk of her head and I was shoved against the nearest wall, Craith inhaled, Rudylin seemed unbothered and for Doreah, she stood right in front of me. Her fingers danced up to my chest were they remained, tapping against my skin- brushing over my thudding heart. We were virtually the same height, maybe I was a few inches taller, yet I felt as if I looked far, far up at her. I felt her breath on my face as she stared into my eyes. "You need me if you want to find her. You will comply, you will make this deal." With my breathing shaky I didn't dare blink, she would see the fury in my eyes, the resentment.

"I wouldn't last a minute out there with your monsters," I said lowly, truthully.

"You won't be alone. I'd never get my Life Crystal if I sent you into the big bad world all my yourself," Doreah seemed to restrain a smile of sorts as she slowly turned her head to Craith and Rudylin. They seemed to get a message as the pair exchanged a glance. Craith smiled in contrast to the General beside him, she glared at her Queen.

"A quest of sorts, haven't had one of those in a while. Brilliant, it will be splendid to spend some quality time together," he exclaimed with a wink to us all. Rudylin rolled her eyes before striding to the door and twisting the handle-

"Stop right there," Doreah ordered calmly, still holding me against the wall. "Take him with you, dare say he'll need some sort of training otherwise we won't make it more than three miles," she stated looking back to me, analysing me. Rudylin opened her mouth to retort but simply nodded and took her orders. The door was about to close when she poked her head around it.

"I look forward to inflicting some pain," she said in a montonous voice, her eyes shone with worrying excitement. Craith coughed and pushed the door shut, leaning against it with an innocent look. Rudylin brought herself closer, her lips parted.

"You find me my Life Crystal and you shall see your sister," she asserted inches from my face, "do we have a deal?" This deal could give me death, it could give me Mirielle or maybe something unknown. Yet it was my only chance of finding my sister, to take a stroll through the deep depths of darkness with three strangers, none of which I could trust. I straightened myself and extended my hand.

"Deal."