A Tale of Two Knights

Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The caravan traveled slow but steadily, through the vast forest on the Caringoll Islet, carried by the massive trolls and tarragons.

The entire party was sluggish, everyone moved slowly, but Sully and Ludo didn't know why.

The night was extremely dark, Ludo couldn't see anything without the lanterns that were attached to the caravan, however, even though they were shining, they barely revealed anything. They were just enough for Ludo to see where they were going.

Sully couldn't see anything because of the lanterns on the outside of the caravan. He suspected that everyone inside was completely oblivious to where they were going. Not a single sound was heard except for the sound of boots crunching on the grass they were walking on. No one dared to even speak.

The glass windows of the caravan were specifically made so the people that were inside could see out, but everyone on the outside couldn't see in.

Ludo couldn't see anything inside of the glass.

They passed down five miles of the forest ridden with arch trees, however, Ludo wasn't even affected by the smell anymore. He was used to it.

He had a faint memory of people selling dried arch tree leaves at the market. He had seen them crush them until it was just darkened powder, and then they would snort it. He suspected the general smell of arch trees made them experience pleasure, but he never understood why someone would pay so much for one of those little bags.

Since then, he had seen lots less paying for the arch tree dust, as the price for them only increased as time went on. The majority of arch trees remained on this island, but no one dared to even step foot here to collect arch tree leaves, for obvious reasons.

Arch trees were different. Like normal trees, they would grow plentiful with leaves in the summer, but would remain bare in the winter. However unlike most trees, they would only regrow a total of five times before the tree dies. After that, the tree was dead forever, the strong smell the only reminder that an arch tree once existed there.

After hours of walking, Ludo felt that they would never reach the base, but then another announcement came from Megæra.

"Everyone... We have finally made it to the base. We will unload the rest of the captured and then we will perform the ritual for Zenith."

Ludo everyone was silent. They were too tired to celebrate.

The unloading process began. Ludo saw another patrol guard open the metal doors to the caravan, and five other patrol guards helped him in getting the captives out.

"Get the fuck out!" A patrol guard yelled while shoving a captive out of the caravan. He stumbled for a bit, then regained his balance and continued walking with the rest of the people.

Ludo noticed that all the captives had shackles on their hands, some people having bloody wrists from struggling to get out of them.

He tried seeking out Sully from the group, however couldn't see a single sign of him. Must've been an invisibility spell Ludo thought, walking with the rest of the patrolmen.

Everyone got out of the caravan quickly, they were all traumatized by the event that they had seen prior. They walked out without hesitation, oblivious to their ultimate fate.

A large gray cave stood in front of the caravan, The cave enormous in size, about double the height of the caravan. It was unsturdy, with cracks and crevices inside the rocks that held it up. The patrolmen led the people into it. Sully followed other patrolmen, as they all went inside the cave together.

Ludo looked back and around, trying to find Mægara and Zolag, as well as the Lich, however he could only spot the goblins and lauf following the patrolmen into the cave as well.

The cave was dark, but torches lit it up, enough for Ludo and the other guards to see ahead in the cave.

The captive walked out of order, behind the patrol guards, none of them saying a word. Ludo kept walking with them, not knowing what exactly to expect.

They all walked until they reached the end of the main route of the cave, but more paths were available than this. Ludo sensed that they were deep underground.

He heard the familiar voice of Megæra yet again, and looked forward. She was with Zolag, announcing.

"Bring the people to the rest of the captives in the cave. Then you will go to your barracks in the topmost section of this cave. As you know, this is a vast cave system, and we expect everyone in their barracks at midnight."

Ludo sighed, thinking it was the end of the announcement, but then heard

Zolags' deep and rough voice echo throughout the cave.

"Also... I have been informed that a patrol guard is an imposter among us. We don't know if this is true or not, but it has been reported by an anonymous person. Report any suspicious activity between patrol guards immediately."

Ludo was still. They had found out... Who is this Anonymous person that somehow discovered my plot?

But he didn't think much of it. He had more important things on his mind.

It was midnight, Sullivan was not with the rest of the captives. He was invisible due to a spell that he had casted prior. Not having to worry about mana storage calmed Sully down for the most part, but his body was numb from the cold, his evergreen cloak barely enough to keep him warm from the cold breezing air around him.

Everyone else was in their barracks, everyone was sleeping. It was the perfect time. I hope Ludo is up too He thought. The plan would be foiled if he didn't join in.

He sneaked across the cave, through the main hall, and into strange rooms he had never seen before. The candles that were stuck on both sides of the cave were still lit. The candles were easily thirty feet above the ground of the cave. How they would get extinguished remained a mystery. Sully suspected that they kept burning until they ran out.

Sully turned a corner and saw another cave passage, this time a waterfall glistened with the light of the candles. The water flowed beautifully, clear as air, with a hint of mana inside the water to give its special golden glow.

Besides the stunning waterfall, Sully heard voices from the other side of the room.

He saw the shimmer of candles on the floor, but the rest was covered by the waterfall. What the- A metal gauntlet grabbed his neck and mouth, and when he turned around, he saw Ludo in his original form, without patrol guard armor.

Ludo motioned for him to shush, then they listened closer for the voices.

"What are they chanting?" Ludo whispered.

"Not sure."

The chanting suddenly stopped.

"Wait... What's going on?" Sullivan asked.

The Lich appeared in front of them. His appearance was the same when he was on the caravan. His eyes still glowing with green manæ, and his body wearing rags.

"Hello Ludo."