We•Will•Rise

Chapter Seventeen

The mouth of the black cave is bigger up close, stretching open like a yawning beast. We dismount the horses at the edge of the opening, tying them up against the posts to our left, remnants of a time when the Sanctum was a common place to be, even a second home to some. Now it's almost abandoned and the path overgrown, hardly used by the same mortals that used to bow and pray at the feet of the Gods.
My nerves make me shaky and my teeth chatter, but I'm thankful that inside the cave the temperature dropped several degrees colder than outside so I can blame it on that. Nikolai though, ever observant, must see it in my eyes or possibly the tension that coats my muscles. "It's going to be alright," he says, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. "You'll get the answers you need." I simply nod in return, too unsure of my voice to speak.
"This place gives me the creeps," Torin says with a shudder, walking over to us as he examines the cave in distaste.
Ricket scolds him. "You know this is supposed to be a place of worship, a home of the Gods. It isn't supposed to creep you out."
"Well," Torin snorts, crossing his arms over his chest, "You would think the home of the Gods would seem more welcoming."
"They aren't trying to be welcoming, they are deadly and unforgiving deities with no mercy. They aren't going to hang up beautiful paintings and have comfortable, cushioned chairs, mate," Captain Xanvier says, his clanking chains echoing off of the cavern walls as he is helped off the buggy by Garreth and Orian. His crew mates are next, stretching their skinny limbs as they adjust to not being cooped up on the carriage. Torin mumbles something rude under his breath about the pirate as we all walk deeper into the cavern, leaving behind the light as we go.
It's as much of not as much of a sight on the inside as it is on the outside. Ancient torches line the cave's rocky walls, each spread a short two feet away from each other and the tops engulfed in an orange, burning flame. They're the only source of light as we get further into the channel. Here, the sun's rays can't reach us, almost like the creeping darkness swallows them whole. What little light we have highlights gleaming black gems—Grimstone, I realize with a start—that make up the walls of the cave, the shiny gemstone surfaces glinting like dark diamonds in the firelight. The sounds of running water echoes through the blackness, joined in by the patting of tiny paws scurrying across the ground at our feet. I bite my lip and refuse to look down, or even up at the restless noises of whatever hangs on the cave's ceiling. Bats and rats, if I had to guess. Both equally as disturbing. The noises seem to amplify and echo off of the wide cavern walls when we reach the inner portion of the cave—an open space lit by a single fire at its center—and I'm surprised to find it empty. A frown wrinkles my features. I'm not sure what I expected, but it was definitely something more than nothing.
"It's huge." Garreth gapes, and I follow his wide-eyed stare up to the top of the cavern. Above us, hundreds of sharpened stalactites hang down like threatening spears and Grimstone gems twinkle from the fire like stars in the night sky. Bats hang from the shining ceiling and water falls from the points of the stalactites causing a melodic drip, drip, drip onto the rocky ground. It's a mesmerizing sight, even the bats fitting into the grand picture of the Ingrav Sanctum and it's mythical essence.
"Alaya Freye Maltrov," a voice like crunching autumn leaves echoes across the walls. I stiffen at the use of my full name, my back going ram-rod straight. "So pleased you have made it here to see usss." The disembodied voice hisses, suddenly sounding as if it's right behind me. I whirl. . . Only to face nothing. A cackling laugh like a cawing crow bounces around the cavern. Our little group seems to tighten as everyone scoots closer together, heads swiveling in every direction to find the source of the voice. Nikolai's hand goes to the hilt of his sword, my own fingers itching to remove my dagger from under my sleeve. But I keep myself still, tense and waiting for the owner of the voice to show itself.
"Such a young girl, such a big burden," another voice, this one like shifting sand, sounds like it's coming from my left, right beside Garreth who pales at the sudden closeness of it. "Will it be her savior or her end?"
"Where are you?" I ask, my voice booming in the sudden silence, so normal and small and young compared to the others.
"We're looking right at you, little Goddess." And then suddenly I'm staring into the hollow eyes of a thin face inches from my own. A piercing scream bubbles from my mouth and I bounce back on my heels, nearly falling on my butt if it not for Nikolai who steadies me, yanking my body behind his own. Another cackling laugh from the decrepit creature. It looks like Death itself in a decaying body. Long, patchy white hair frames an emaciated face with pitch black holes for eyes and two slits for a nose. The creature's mouth is a thin, ragged line that's turned up in a smile, showing yellowed canine teeth that glow grossly against the dark charcoal color of its leathery skin. It wears a tattered black robe that hides its figure underneath, but one skeletal, clawed hand sticks out from the fabric, resting on the top of a golden cane.
"Not what you expected, is it?" a third, oddly musical, voice croons. Two more robed things appear from thin air. As in nothing one second and then them the next. There's three of them, just like legend goes, one standing directly in front of Nikolai and the other two standing across the fire, their blank, eyeless sockets highlighted by the flames.
I step from around Nikolai as the third creature ambles to meet the others, sparing a devious smile in Captain Xanvier's direction. "You're the Moreki," I say, my voice coming out surprisingly steady for the anxiety that wraps a cold fist around my chest.
"The Moreki, the Harbingers, the Seers, the Sightful, whichever you wish to go with," the one with a musical voice waves me off with a skeletal hand, "They all basically mean the same thing."
"I've come—"
"We know why you've come, little girl," the voice of shifting sands says, "You need wisdom, insight to your gift. And we have just that for you, child. But I'm afraid all knowledge comes with a price." The Moreki holds up a finger and wags it in the air. I dig into my pack and pull out a few coins. But before I can get a word out, they all laugh. "Your human money is worthless here and the price to pay is steeper than what you can find in your pockets."
"I'll pay anything," I say, starting to step forward when a calloused hand grips my elbow. I turn to see Nikolai shake his head in warning, but I shove him off and look back at the Moreki who watch me with those depthless eyes and emotionless expressions. "What do I need to pay you for an exchange of information?"
"You will not pay us, but the Gods. Your payment will be in sacrifice, the greatest gift of all."
"What kind of sacrifice?" Nikolai asks in a deadly tone, taking a step forward.
"The sacrifice of one's inner self,  a crack in your very being. You will know when the time is upon you. Do you accept this, little Goddess? Do you accept the sacrifice to the Gods?" The Moreki in the center says, and I know, even without eyes to tell, that it's looking dead at me. So is everyone else, their eyes burning a hole in my back and the side of my face. What other choice did I have? I came here for answers, for a way to defeat the vamphir, and even if I didn't quite understand the sacrificing deal, I couldn't bring myself to say no, no matter how much it scared me. This is for everyone, for the people and for my friends, it doesn't matter what I must pay. So, I release a breath and straighten my spine, looking dead at the Moreki, ignoring Nikolai's warning glare.
"I accept." The silence that follows is almost painful. The Moreki stare with sightless gazes and then all three spit into the fire, the flames shooting into the air, licking the cavern ceiling and tinting into a vivid green.
"It is sealed. You may ask your questions," one of them says, waving me on to speak.
"Why does my touch kill the vamphir?" I ask first, clenching and unclenching my fists in nervousness.
The Moreki with the most tattered looking robe walks around the fire, staring at me from across the flames as it pulls something out from underneath its robe. An eye, I realize with a twist in my stomach. A single, blue human eye.  One of the men gag from beside me as I take a hesitant step back, unable to mask the disgust on my face. "Come, child, let the eye tell you stories untold."
The spirits warning rings in my head. Beware the eye for it will look into your soul. This has to be the eye they were talking about. I stand my ground. "I asked you a question."
"This is your answer," the Moreki says, lifting the eye and waving me forward. I glance at Nikolai, at Garreth and the rest of them to gauge their reaction. They all stare with the same unsure expression, looking from me to the eye. I take a deep breath. How badly I wanted the answer is what it boils down to, not my fear or disgust. And I already swore a sacrifice. . . So I leave my safe spot beside Nikolai and walk slowly over to the Moreki holding the eye, keeping my gaze locked on its face. It hands me the eye as I reach it, opening my palm with a leathery hand and dropping the eye into it. I nearly gag, swallowing hard past the bile in my throat as I hold the moist ball in my fingers. Then the iris moves across the whites of the eye, looking up to meet my own. I gasp as something dark and primal presses against my mind, a thick presence that brushes against my consciousness and rifles through my thoughts. Instinctively I try to shove a wall up against it, but the barrier crumbles against the presence before it can do any good.
"Alaya Maltrov," calls the thing in my head, the voice, masculine, deep and more ancient sounding than the Lands itself, reverberating through my mind like a booming echo. "You seek answers against the creatures of the Mist that wish your demise. Your power allows you to kill the vamphir with your very touch, a touch that can both take and give. The vamphir's dark souls are a beacon for your gift, one that transforms your warmth to ice and destroys the very strands of immortality that hold the being together. But beware, for the vamphirs bow to a king of darkness, and his death alone is the only thing that can put an end to the vamphirs, or should the mortal world burn. The end for a race is coming, an inevitable demise that has been written in the stars because all kingdoms come and go, all Gods are worshipped and forgotten, but one thing is certain and that is Death and where there is Death there is an end and a new beginning."
And then the feeling in my head is gone, vanished like it was never there before I can do anything to stop it. The eye suddenly feels incredibly heavy in my hand and I give it back to one of the Moreki, all of them watching me with their empty holes. "Did you get the answers you seek?"
"I believe so." I nod, though the gesture makes me feel even more sick to my stomach. I wrap my arms around my belly and step back from the fire, a shiver crawling its way down my spine that has nothing to do with the cold. A king of darkness? The end of a race? This is not what I expected. Then again, I don't know what exactly I did expect. "But there's one more thing," I begin, taking a deep breath to settle my uneasy stomach. "We need to mine the Grimstone."
    The Moreki in the center extends its arms wide, the tattered robe widening like black wings. "The Grimstone is a heavy gem with protective charms, one of the only weaknesses against the vamphir. Mine it you may."
    I try not to look too relieved, but I can feel some of the heat return back to my face. "Thank you," I say, bowing slightly before walking back to Nikolai and the others. Nikolai watches me with a frown, his arms crossed over his chest while Garreth and the other Sultans look mighty uncomfortable, all varying shades of pale. Captain Xanvier and his crew manage to look bored, as if the survival of the human race doesn't pertain to them.
    "Little lion," one of the Moreki calls, making me go stiff at the use of the nickname my father gave me, "Such a fitting name for a girl that will carry a burden like a sword." The Moreki cackles and as I turn around, they disappear into the air. Again, one second there, the next gone. I rub my eyes with the heels of my hands and shake my head, continuing my walk back to the others.
    "What did you find out?" Nikolai asks, and though his voice is gentle, I can hear the strain behind it. I frown at him.
    "There's a king over the vamphirs, and to kill them all we have to kill him," I say, unable to get that major detail out of my mind. How could creatures like that have a king? What was this king like, more human or beast? And is it true, that the death of this king can end all of the vamphirs? If so, that's who we need to find, who we need to kill.
    "A king?" He raises an eyebrow, "Did they say how to find this king?"
    "No, that part was conveniently left out," I sigh, suddenly exhausted and in need of a warm bed, not just a thin tent. I look to Garreth and the others. "Let's get the tools, start mining now."
    "Alright, pirates, your moment of glory is upon you," Torin says, clapping Captain Xanvier on the shoulder. The Captain gives him a deadly glare as we all head back to the horses and the buggy at the opening of the cave. There, the sun gleams across the pasture of yellow grass, sitting high in the sky to signify noon. I walk to stand at the edge of the yawning mouth as Orian, Ricket and the pirates climb onto the buggy and start pulling out bags of tools, chucking them over their shoulders. Nikolai and Garreth follow as I stare out into the field.
    "So what exactly were you told?" Garreth asks, making me look at him, a frown etched onto my face. I repeat the important details of what the eye told me and when I'm finished, Garreth looks two shades paler. "They have a king?"
    "Apparently so," I nod, scratching absently at my cheek. "And to kill him means to end the war."
    "Someone has to find this king then," Garreth says, his arms across his chest, "end the war before it even starts."
    "There's also the matter of the Queen. . ." I say, my words nearly coming out like a whine. Gods, I sound pathetic. I take a deep breath and straighten my slouched shoulders, "Our first matter of business is getting back to the capital, make sure our friends don't have a noose around their neck. Then we will worry about some dark king." I say, leaving them and turning to walk over to the other Sultans and the pirates where they wait by the buggy with the tools against their backs. "Have you got it from here?"
    "Of course, we can handle a trio of pirates, right, Ricket?" Torin says, nudging the red-head. Ricket rolls his eyes but nods.
    "You guys head back to the capital before the sun sets, we've got this." Ricket places a hand on my shoulder, the touch brief before he pulls back, his eyes going to something over my shoulder. I crane my neck to see Nikolai standing behind me, his arms crossed over his chest.
I turn back to the Sultans and give a half-hearted smile. "We'll see you guys in about a week, no longer, okay?"
"Yes, madam," Edmund speaks this time, saluting me. My smile widens and I shake my head as Garreth stretches an arm across Torin's shoulder.
"We'll be out of here in a week, no need to worry. And the pirates won't give us any trouble, not if they want our part of the bargain fulfilled. Right?" Garreth looks pointedly at the pirate crew and all three of them smile, though it reminds me of snarling dogs.
"We'll be of no trouble," Tig promises, his cuffs clanking together as he shifts on his feet. "Don't much like being in this cave, why prolong it."
"It gives me the creeps," Tomsin adds with a shudder.
Captain Xanvier rolls his eyes. "Bunch of pansies, you lot," he mumbles, "It's just a cave."
The three of them start to argue and I shake my head, turning back to Garreth and the Sultans. "Good luck dealing with that."
"We'll be fine," Orian reassures, readjusting the bag over his shoulder. "You go before you have to trek through the Weeping Wood in the dark."
A shudder creeps down my spine at the thought. "Right, see you all back at the capital." They all say their goodbyes before I give a single wave and Nikolai and I walk back to our horses, him boosting me onto mine before climbing into his own saddle. We head out of the cave and into the Weeping Wood without a single look back.