Chapter 12—Wasteland of Blood & Tears
Claire
When Claire began to see shapes on the horizon, she was overjoyed that they would be stopping soon, until she realized what they were – tombstones.
Was he serious?!
"Myrnin, why are we walking toward a cemetery?!"
"It's where we will be spending the day underground," he replied.
"Oh hell no, we're not!" she fired back determinedly. She wanted to rest more than anything, but cozying up to dead people was not what she had in mind.
"Claire, we don't have a choice. We can't make it to the city before the sun comes up and we need supplies," he explained shortly.
Supplies?!... In a graveyard?!
"And you're planning to gather what supplies in a graveyard – corpses?! News flash, they don't have any blood left!" she hissed.
"Don't be absurd," he snapped. "Just keep up."
When they made it to the graveyard, Claire couldn't help but be morbidly fascinated. She had never seen tombstones like these. They were huge and ornate. It looked like a city with all of the mausoleums and crypts. Myrnin made his way to a lowly little angel statue and stopped. He lifted the angel and carefully set it aside, and then began digging under it.
"What the hell are you doing?" she whispered.
"Why are you whispering?" He looked at her quizzically.
"I don't know! Just respecting the dead," she snapped. "Clearly not what you are doing. Is there a particular body you missed and needed to get reacquainted with before we get underground?"
Myrnin ignored her and stuck his arm down in the unearthed soil. She saw him twist and shove some unseen object. And then he meticulously put the dirt and angel back in place with no evidence of it ever being disturbed. "Come on," he told her curtly.
They walked to an intimidating mausoleum and he turned an impressive looking handle, before pushing the concrete door open. "They just leave them unlocked?" Claire asked in surprise.
"No, the locking mechanism is under the angel. It's placed far enough away that people don't make the connection. As we go in, you need to do exactly as I instruct, do you understand?"
Claire rolled her eyes in annoyance at his continued bossiness, but then reluctantly nodded, "Why?"
"Because there are some particularly nasty 'deterrents' in place," he replied matter-of-factly.
"You mean like 'booby traps'?" Claire's eyes widened. "They really did that back then? I mean now."
"Yes. Wait here until I turn the ventilation system on," Myrnin said as he disappeared into the dark.
A ventilation system? Of course there's a ventilation system. Why in the hell wouldn't there be? Claire thought as she planted herself on the ground to wait.
Myrnin returned quickly, holding a small torch. "Come on."
"What is the name of this place?" she whispered, feeling strange as the dark shadows jumped and danced from the torch.
"It's called, Dir diffaith o Gwaed a Dagrau, which translated means, Wasteland of Blood and Tears."
"Oh," she breathed.
They traveled for longer than she felt possible. Claire found she was completely lost as multiple passageways veered off in many directions and he turned multiple times. She was shocked they were actually still walking. "How far does this go?"
"Not far now. Turn to the side and press your back against the wall as you follow me." He had moved to the same position, so she slid against the wall and took side-steps as she followed. She was desperately hoping nothing critter-crawly landed in her hair.
"Why are we ignoring the wide pathway?" she whispered.
"The floor would tip in multiple patches, and you would not appreciate landing on the stakes below."
Claire shivered...booby traps.
They came to a solid wall, clearly looking like a dead end. Claire looked around in confusion. Myrnin turned to the wall to focus and a portal materialized. Claire grabbed his arm, "Wait! I thought you said we couldn't use them."
"It's quite all right, love, this is not a time portal." He extinguished the torch, and then took her hand.
As they emerged out of the portal into darkness, Myrnin squeezed her hand, "Wait here for a minute."
Claire stood shivering in the dark, not because she was cold, but the eerie feeling of being left in utter blackness was beginning to cause her to panic. "Myrnin?!" she whispered. In response she saw a flash of light and then the entire interior lit up in an intricate torch lighting system.
Claire inhaled sharply as she looked around, stunned at the beauty and richness. They appeared to be standing in a courtyard of some sort, with adjoining rooms and paths leading out of sight. The walls were no longer plain, but covered in richly colored tile patterns. She reached out tentatively and touched her fingertips to the wall, taking in the texture. The tile continued all of the way to cover the arched ceiling in a mosaic so complicated and stunning, Claire thought she might cry at the beauty of it.
In the middle of the room, there was a grand table and seating for probably twenty. Claire's eyes followed behind the table and saw intricately carved gold containers with riches – gold and silver coins. Jewelry in the colors of the rainbow – spilling out over the edges. Myrnin watched her intently. She turned to him with her eyes glistening. "Where are we?" She asked just above a whisper.
"Lloches Heddwch. I had it built about fifty years ago, for a time such as this."
"You had it built?!"
He nodded. "It means Refuge of Peace – a place to hide and grow strong, if needed. Come." Myrnin took her hand and led her to an interior room. In shock she realized it was a bedroom complete with a bed. She walked over to touch the linens gingerly, "But how does it stay preserved after all of this time?"
"When we leave, I will reverse the ventilation which removes all of the air, sealing it tight against the elements. It's okay, lay down, you look exhausted."
Suddenly Claire felt like she could sleep for a thousand years and climbed gratefully onto the soft surface, marveling at the feel of it.
Myrnin looked at her with gentle eyes and turned to leave.
"Wait! Please don't leave me," she whispered. Claire couldn't imagine being alone in this strangely wonderful place.
He stopped and sat down in a chair close to the bed. Claire couldn't hold her eyes open anymore and drifted off.
YOU ARE READING
The Stars Lie {Myrnin, Morganville Vampires}
Fanfiction"Most intriguing. You obviously know who - and what - I am, but you don't run." He leaned toward her and felt her body react. "Quite the opposite in fact," he murmured as he kissed her neck. Claire felt a shockwave of desire for him. She wasn't su...
