Vampyre: Desire Immortal

Chapter 43

The Library

The mantle of years is heavy.

*****

They had traveled a great distance into the interior of the caves. Xhahari was delighted when they stumbled upon the a large chamber filled with crystals of all shapes and colors and sizes.

"Look, Master," he said, "it is the library of The Celestial Intelligence."

"You may be right, Xhahari."

"Let us harvest all that we can carry," said Perdix.

Xhahari gleefully began picking up beautiful specimens by the handsful. Perdix was choosier. He made his way to the far corner of the grotto, bent down, and picked up four crystals – one red, one yellow, one green, and one blue. He dropped them into the pouch that hung around his neck.

"Master," Xhahari said, "I must have that one."

Xhahari was standing on a small ledge near a large crystal that hung about six feet from the ground. His fingers just grasped the beautiful stone when the rock he was standing on gave way with a sickening cracking sound.

"No," Perdix yelled.

It was too late. The lad disappeared over the side of the abyss. Perdix scrambled to the edge and looked down into the bottomless pit of blackness. Xhahari was nowhere to be seen.

He dropped his forehead on the cool rock. A racking cough tore through his body.

"It is hopeless," he cried.

Perdix's sobs echoed off the walls of the empty chamber.

It was time to go home.

He groaned loudly as his stiff joints slowly obeyed the commands of his brain. His steps were slow and painful. When he came to the intersection that led out of the cave, he mistakenly took the wrong tunnel. He failed to notice, so heavy was his grief.

He had walked several hundred yards when he came upon a large chamber with a sky hole. A clear green reflecting pool shimmered before him. The sun shone on the glassy surface. Perdix came to the edge and looked at his reflection.

A wrinkled, gray face stared back at him.

"I am tired," he said softly. "Just so tired."

He took one step toward the still depth of the reflecting pool. Then, another. How inviting it looked. How wonderful to let its crystal waters drown his sorrows."

One more step, and it would all be over.

He raised his foot and leaned forward.

A man's laughter bounced off the walls of the cavern.

Before he even turned around, Perdix knew who it was. Nobody else in all the world laughed like that.

It was the mocking laugh of Dyryke.