Descendants of the Kings (Book 2)

Ch 41: Forevermore

The inside of the mine was as dark as a dragon's maw. What little light had been present at the entrance quickly disappeared, along with the icy, but fresh air.

Soon, all they had to guide them was a hand on the carved walls of the mine, and the pitter patter of leaking water. That, and the overwhelming stench of rot and rusty blood. It almost made Ella want to turn back around, into the storm's embrace.

It was tight quarters down in the shafts. A series of thin tunnels burrowed deeper and deeper into the bowels of the mountain, barely large enough for the miners to scutter through, pushing their trolleys.

It was the suffocating type of environment that made people stir crazy after a while. Dark, damp, and stuffy with stale air. Every step of the way, Ella was sorely reminded that she was one step further from open ground. Further into the dark maws of the mountain. It reminded her of the Council of Oberon's underground quarters, with that preternatural lack of natural light.

It was a shocking sight, then, when from the blinding darkness, a dim light appeared. Ella almost crashed into Aedion's back, who'd gone still. Silently, he held a hand up, the outline just visible.

Steps unnaturally still, they followed the source of light, until they reached what appeared to be a chamber carved into the mines. It took a moment for Ella to blink, eyes sore from the darkness.

The area, far larger than the passage they'd come from, seemed to be a roughly carved gallery held up by several massive pillars. A few empty trolleys littered the dusty ground, as well as some discarded tools. Several passages shot off from the space, equally as pitch black as the one they'd come from.

"Someone was here recently," Aedion said, eyeing a couple of rusty oil lamps hanging from the stone walls.

It was worse than the dark, in a sense. Being out in a lit, open area. The feeling that they were being observed from some dark, unseen corner. Ella swivelled, gaze darting to the open passages, wondering if at any moment someone—something—would come rushing out.

"Which way do we go?" she asked, rubbing a hand down her arm. Her coat was damp from the snow, and bizarrely, it seemed it was even colder down here. As if with every step downwards, the temperature dropped.

Gidden walked around in a circle, brow furrowed. Five tunnels shot off from the main area, one of them being the one they came from. He dropped to his haunches and took off his gloves, planting both his palms on the ground.

His eyes fell shut, a deep wrinkle forming between his brows, his features deeply puckered in the dim, flickering shadows. His fingers clawed into the earth, mouth twisting, nose flaring. His shoulders bunched, and even in the dimness, it was clear he was shaking.

Ella stepped close and helped him up, his frame swaying slightly. "There," he grunted, chin pointed at one of the dark tunnels. "I couldn't see all the way, but it's through there."

Wordlessly, Aedion tossed him a canteen, which Gidden caught and gulped down quickly.  "Don't waste your energy," Aedion said blandly. "We'll need it for later." Gidden grunted something noncommittal in response.

"How far are we from the source?" Ella asked, peering up at the ceiling of the cave, dark and shadowed. The horses had pawed at the ground incessantly, likely right above the marked spot.

"Couldn't see all the way," Gidden repeated morosely, fist tightening around the canteen. "Too much magic draining. But it's not far. It's..." he frowned, trying to find the term. "It feels like a large chamber. A very, very large one."

Ella's brows raised. She knew next to nothing about mines, but this one seemed more like a large, underground house full of hallways, rather than a conventional mine.