Something Extra - Hungry Heart - Ch. 13 (Patreon)

Chapter One  / Chapter Two  / Chapter Three  / Chapter Four  / Chapter Five  / Chapter Six / Chapter Seven / Chapter Eight / Chapter Nine / Chapter Ten  / Chapter Eleven / Chapter Twelve 

Chapter Thirteen – The Titan’s Eye

Varg exchanged one curt look with Duril, which let him know that they were both thinking the same thing. It would be best if the healer talked. His gentle heart would find a way.

“What is it about my mother?” Onyx struggled to sound royal and calm, but his anxious voice and a small tremor in his body weren’t helping with that impression.

“Your mother, Lord Onyx, she sends her love.”

“Yes, yes,” Onyx said hurriedly. “But what about meat? Did she send some with you?”

Despite the sad circumstances, Varg couldn’t suppress a smile. All that talk about meat reminded him of someone.

“We have some meat.” Duril searched his bag and took out a sizeable portion of steak they had preserved from the deer Varg had hunted.

Onyx’s nostrils flared, and his eyes shone. Duril placed the steak in front of him, as ceremoniously as he could. The young wolf grabbed it and began chewing loudly, while small growls and whines escaped his throat.

Varg offered Duril a reassuring smile as the lord of the land forgot all about table manners and devoured the offered meat. He was impatient to find out about Toru himself, but who knew how long it had been since Onyx had last tasted the sweet flavor of meat? They both remained silent, allowing the pup to have his meal.

Onyx seemed to remember that he had guests once his hunger faded. He used one paw to wipe his muzzle, as his eyes darted downward in what looked like embarrassment. “Where is she now?” he asked, the hunger in his heart quickly replacing the now satisfied one in his belly.

That one would require the soothing hand of time to grow bearable, as Varg knew.

“She is guarding the land,” Duril explained. “She told us to walk forward and meet with you.”

“When is she coming home?” Onyx’s voice was that of an innocent and wistful child.

Varg moved closer. As gentle as Duril was, they had to tell Onyx the truth.

“She didn’t say,” Duril replied.

Onyx straightened up. “What do you mean? She must come home!”

Varg put one hand on Duril’s shoulder. “Your mother guards the entrance to these lands because she wants to keep you safe.”

Onyx’s eyes darted to and fro. It wasn’t difficult to read what went through his head and what his heart felt even if the words weren’t spoken directly. “I should go to her, then. Take me to her.”

Duril intervened. “What do you remember of the last time you saw your mother, Lord Onyx?”

“She --” Onyx swallowed his words. “She went hunting with dad and the others.”

“When?”

Onyx looked like he fought to remember. “Some time ago. But why do you ask all of these questions? I don’t know you.”

Varg recognized the signs well. The pup was frightened. Still, they most probably didn’t have the luxury of time on their side. “Your mother told us about your titan’s eye. We need it to find our friend who came through here.”

“What friend?”

“A young man,” Duril explained. “We were told that the titan’s eye would help us see where he is.”

“I sent Zul with the tiger to hunt,” Onyx said. “They will be back soon.”

“We’re not talking about a tiger,” Duril contradicted.

Yes, they were, but the healer didn’t know. Varg cursed inwardly. It wasn’t the best moment for explanations.

Onyx surprised them by standing and assuming a defensive position. “You’re trying to steal my titan’s eye!” he accused.

“No, that’s not what we intend. We only want to use it so that it can show us where our friend is,” Duril explained in a patient voice.

Varg was about to blurt out the truth, when a thud silenced them. It came from the large doors behind them. An ominous sense of foreboding flooded his mind.

“What was that?” Onyx shouted. “Did you come to take my throne away from me?”

The thud was repeated, this time louder. Varg grabbed his sword and turned. Duril grabbed Onyx with his arm, which immediately made the pup squeal and thrash.

They really didn’t have time. Lady Amethyst could command the trees, but most probably didn’t have any power over the creatures of the night populating the dead citadel. Varg wished he were wrong, but he had a good idea as to the nature of what moved against the doors, growling like a wild animal.

The sound reverberated through the room, making his hair stand on end. Behind him, Duril was struggling to subdue Onyx, sensing the danger just as much as he was.

The animal sounds behind the door grew louder and louder. Varg let go of his sword and shifted into his wolf form.

“You’re a wolfshifter!” Onyx yelled, in what sounded like wonder and admiration.

At least now Duril would have an easier time of dealing with the young wolf.

“Yes, so take a good look at this, pup,” Varg said as he turned to stare at Onyx. “You have much to learn.”

Onyx definitely looked anything but royal as he hung from Duril’s only whole arm. Yet, he still dared to snarl at the adult shifter.

Varg shook his head. He would deal with that attitude later. The doors blasted open and a monstrous apparition rushed into the room. Its black body was covered in scales and the lights from the torches flicked over them only to die as if swallowed by darkness. It looked like a giant snake, but it had limbs that ended in curled claws that scraped against the marble floors. Its head went up to the ceiling, and its mouth went from one side of its head to the other. Behind its neck sprouted leathery wings. The creature opened its mouth, extending a tongue with the stink and color of tar.

“Take the boy and hide, Duril!” Varg shouted.

They were trapped in there, but Varg hoped that the healer would be able to take cover behind the large throne at least. He didn’t look to see if they had the time to get out of harm’s way. He jumped and tried to bite the creature’s neck, but his fangs slid over the tough scales.

The creature didn’t appear bothered by his attack at all. It raised one of its feet and swatted Varg off it like he was a fly annoying a cow in a field. Varg managed to avoid the claws at the last moment as they descended to crush him.

***

Duril watched the scene in front of him, his heart in his throat. Varg, as large and majestic a wolf as he was, didn’t look like he could stand a chance against that creature. He could hear Onyx’s teeth chattering. He had released the wolf from his arm, surprised by the vicious attack of the strange creature now fighting Varg.

They couldn’t be that useless. The feeling of powerlessness threatening to engulf him was hard to bear. He closed his hand into a fist.

“Lord Onyx,” he said in a commanding voice that he didn’t recognize as his own. “Is there a way out of this room, besides the one we came through?”

The young wolf seemed to have a hard time talking. Duril suspected that he had never seen a creature like that in his life. After all, Duril hadn’t seen that sort of thing either, and never heard anyone else mention such a foul apparition, either.

“Onyx,” he repeated, this time louder and harsher. “A way out. Is there one?”

“Under --” Onyx stopped, his chest heaving, “under the throne. There’s a secret passage.”

“We’ll have to grab my friend and leave,” Duril said. The urgency in his voice betrayed how scared he was, but he hoped the young wolf was too frightened himself to notice.

They were watching the battle from behind the throne where they had taken cover.

“We cannot get close to that thing,” Onyx babbled. “It will kill us.”

Duril understood Onyx’s life. He understood it well. But tonight, he needed to grow up, and start to depend on himself. “Lord Onyx, are you a wolf or not? Since when are wolves cowards?”

Onyx’s teeth were still chattering. On the marble floor, Varg seemed to be playing some strange game of tag with the creature. Duril knew what was going on; he had observed Varg trying to bite the thing, but to no avail. Tiring it out seemed a strategy with meagre chances of success. It was as if the creature had armor instead of skin. Getting through it was impossible. The way things went, Varg would tire himself out, and not the other way around.

“I’m not a coward,” Onyx protested feebly. “But I cannot move the throne on my own. I’m … like this. I cannot shift.”

Duril put his hand on Onyx’s head, and the eyes of a puppy stared back at him. “I’ll help. And you can do more than you think.”

Such were words he had longed to hear all his life, but there had been no one to say them to him. Until now. The one who gave him confidence in his own powers and strengthened his belief that he was more than just a crippled half-orc fought for his life a stone’s throw away from him. And that gave him the strength he needed to save Varg.

“Let’s move the throne first. Is it possible for that creature to come crawling through the passage and follow us?”

“I, I don’t think so,” Onyx stammered.

“All right. Let’s do this,” Duril said with determination.

Each time the creature’s fangs and claws clashed against the floor, missing Varg one more time, put the fear of everything holy into his bones. They needed to hurry.

Onyx instructed him briefly on how to push against the throne to make it move. It looked like it required the work of at least two people, but Duril was thankful for the orcish blood in his veins. He braced himself against the throne and pushed with his shoulder. It was difficult, but not impossible, and the throne began to move. Next to him Onyx was doing his best, pushing with his front paws against it, too.

“We’re doing it,” he encouraged the young wolf.

He prayed silently for Varg to hang on. Until they reached the secret passage, there was no need to draw the creature’s attention to what they were doing. At the same time, Varg could be running out of time and energy. One wrong move, and those vicious claws and fangs would slash right through him.

A dark hole appeared under his feet as, finally, they managed to push the throne out of the way.

“Varg,” he shouted.

“What? I’m kind of busy!” the wolfshifter shouted back.

Maintaining a sense of humor was a good thing, under the circumstances.

“We need to get out of here! There’s a secret passage!”

They had to yell as loud as they could, to make themselves heard over the inhuman growls of the creature.

The thing turned toward him and Onyx, suddenly aware of the presence of easier prey in the room. Duril met its eyes, and his blood turned into curdled milk in his veins. There was evil in those bottomless pits, the kind that could make a strong person lose their bearings. The creature moved toward them slowly and opened its mouth. Thick saliva poured out and fell to the floor, hissing as it scarred the marble and making thin fumes rise. Duril didn’t need a book on poisonous snakes to know what it would mean if the thing just slobbered over them by accident or on purpose.

Without hesitating, he pushed Onyx toward the hole in the floor. “Go!”

The plan forming in his head was simple. Onyx would go first, and Varg would follow. The former couldn’t even think of outrunning the creature, and Varg was tired. That left only him to distract the evil thing.

To his surprise, Onyx glued himself to his leg. “I’m not leaving without you!”

“Varg, you see the opening in the ground, right?” Duril shouted, without breaking eye contact with the creature.

“I see it!”

“Then take Onyx and go! I’ll try to stall this thing and then I’ll follow!”

The creature dashed forward, but Duril was prepared for that. He was no fighter, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t run when necessary. While searching for wild herbs in the forests surrounding Whitekeep, he had developed the skill quite well. Despite never having faced such a foul creature, he was ready for it.

He tumbled to one side and then started running. The ceiling of the throne room was supported by tall colonnades, and Duril zigzagged through them. The creature rushed after him.

“Duril!” Varg shouted after him.

“I’m all right, I got this! Just go with the boy!”

He could not afford to stop and see if Varg took his advice. He could feel the creature’s disgusting breath as if it were mere inches from him. He tumbled, stumbled, and rolled while moving as fast as he could, while lulling the creature into believing he was some stupid, easy prey.

With each corner he took, he waited for his plan to work. The creature growled, increasing its speed, but Duril continued his zigzagging, hoping that it wouldn’t take long until his strategy would bear fruit.

A last growl from the creature turned into a surprised screech. Duril shot one look over his shoulder and found the snake twisted around the colonnades, tied up in a knot. It would probably take it only a little time to set itself free, so the moment of surprise had to be used.

Duril dashed toward the hole beneath the throne and managed at the last second to jump over the creature’s scaly tail that slashed toward him to bar his escape. Praying that the fall wouldn’t end with the crunch of his breaking leg, he jumped through the opening.

He closed his eyes and braced for the impact. Hopefully, Varg and Onyx were already safe.

His body, however, didn’t meet a hard floor. Instead, he landed in …

… what seemed to be Varg’s open arms.

Their eyes met for a split second, but no words were exchanged. Another inhuman growl from above let them know that the creature was not happy with having its prey disappear from view like that.

Varg moved himself and Duril just in time as blobs of saliva fell from above causing more foul mist to rise from the floor.

He didn’t protest as he was put down and followed Varg who walked in front. Ahead of them, Onyx was on the move. “Come with me, come with me, it cannot get us here!”

“Do you mind telling me where you learned to run like that?” Varg asked.

“You stayed and watched?”

“I had to convince Onyx that no harm would come to you. I had to convince myself of that, too.”

“Well, let’s say that this is not the first time I’ve been chased by wild animals. Since I cannot fight very well, I opted for developing other skills.”

“Good thinking, and it has just saved us from a tight spot.”

They walked quickly down a long and narrow corridor. The light of the moon filtered through tall windows, and outside the humming of war could be heard. That foul creature wasn’t on its own, apparently.

“What do you think is going on outside?” he asked and shivered, incapable of pretending to be all right at this point. The growls from the thing they had barely escaped followed them, although they grew fainter and fainter.

Onyx opened a door at the end of the corridor. “Come, hurry, we’re safe here!”

Duril was afraid their reprieve wouldn’t be long-lived. The strange noises coming from outside were making him shake. Varg put one arm around his shoulders and he was thankful for it. The little warmth lent to him this way reassured him that, this time, he wasn’t alone.

They rushed into the room and stopped dead in their tracks. Right in the middle, above a golden pedestal, a humongous eye was levitating. It glowed and the blue light coming from within it gave the room a preternatural feel.

Duril walked closer, fascinated by the eye.

“Don’t look straight at it if your heart is not pure,” Onyx said, but it sounded as if he repeated a phrase that had been told to him before.

“Too late,” Varg commented, and the humor in his voice was unmistakable. “You should have warned us before entering.”

If there was one person able to sustain the morale of their little group, it had to be Varg.

“I had to make sure that you were good people,” Onyx replied.

That was good thinking for his age, Duril thought. Seeing how he hadn’t had anyone around him to teach him the ways of the world for hundreds of years, it meant that the little lord of the land had a good head on his shoulders.

Duril approached the eye and began examining it from all sides. Then he noticed that about a quarter of it was covered in a dense black slime. “Has it always been like this?”

“Don’t touch that,” Onyx warned him. “I don’t know. Dad told me and Zul about this secret room before he left for good. And then the eye was like this.”

“How do we ask the eye about our friend?”

There might be an army of darkness gathering around the castle, but that didn’t mean that they would forget their quest of finding Toru. Duril didn’t want to think that some of the evil outside might have already gotten to him. Toru was strong and clever; he had to be alive or else Duril knew his heart would have told him.

“You look right into it,” Onyx explain. “And you think hard of the one you want to see.”

Duril felt Varg moving to join him. They were both impatient to see Toru again. They stared into the eye.

At first, nothing happened. But then, a picture began forming in front of their eyes. Duril stood back and frowned. What the eye showed them was strange.

What he could see, lying on the ground in what looked like a cave of sorts lit only by embers crisscrossing the walls, was not what he had asked for. Two animals lay side by side, seemingly deep in slumber. A tiger, with a beautiful heavy coat, and a white rabbit.

He sighed. He couldn’t make sense of what he was seeing. “We don’t see our friend.”

Onyx joined them. “What do you mean? That’s him,” he pointed. “And that’s Zul.” He stopped for a moment. “Why aren’t they moving?”

Duril looked at Varg. Could it be that Onyx could no longer tell reality from the tricks of an evil mind? Or could it be that Toru had already fallen victim to some treachery?

“Are they dead?” Onyx asked, more and more alarmed.

“I think they are breathing,” Varg replied as he looked more closely. “We need to save them.”

“Zul,” Onyx called for his servant, as he stood as close as he could to the titan’s eye. “Zul, wake up!”

“Are you sure that is him?” Duril asked. “We don’t see our friend there.”

Varg looked down at the floor and then up at him. “Yes, we do. He’s right there.”

Duril took a moment to struggle with understanding what Varg meant. “Has he fallen prey to some magic, then?”

Varg ran one hand over his eyes.

It took Duril little to recall the few strange things he had noticed about Toru, his incredible healing rate, the striped tattoos on his back, his penchant for fighting powerful creatures and escaping all sorts of dangerous situations. “Is he a tigershifter?” he whispered.

Varg nodded and looked guilty. “That he is.”

Duril blinked a couple of times. But why hadn’t Toru let him know that while Varg had known all along? He looked away. They were shapeshifters, unlike him. There was a bond between them he couldn’t share. Toru must have thought that he couldn’t trust him.

But that didn’t matter. They had to find a way to him and save him. Toru was still his dear friend. “How do we get to them?” he asked in a neutral voice.

Onyx began fretting and circling the eye. “It doesn’t want to tell me,” he complained. “The way there must be intentionally hidden.”

Varg came closer and whispered, “I’m sorry you had to learn about it like this. I believe Toru wanted to tell you this on his own terms.”

“It’s all right,” he said back, trying to sound as indifferent as possible. “He doesn’t have to tell me.”

Varg sighed. “Yes, he does.”

“We barely know each other.”

“Enough to have you embark on a dangerous journey and get chased by creatures of the night,” Varg pointed out with a small smile.

“You’re right,” Duril acquiesced. “We know each other well enough for that.”

“You two will have your chance to talk things through,” Varg promised. “Now all we need to do is figure out a way to get to him, right? Onyx, do you recognize this place? Where are they?”

Onyx looked and looked. Once in a while, there was a flicker of recognition in his eyes and each time, it died. “I cannot remember,” he complained.

Duril looked around. The walls were covered in books. “Is there a map of the lands in here?”

“There should be,” Onyx said eagerly. He deflated. “But I don’t remember where it is, either.”

“Then let’s start searching,” Duril said. “Varg, would you watch over Toru and Zul while we’re looking for a map?”

“Sure. But don’t you think I can help with the search?”

Duril threw an uneasy look toward the tiger and the rabbit, mere flickers of the light reflected in the titan’s eye. “Someone has to watch over them.”

Varg didn’t insist. They could understand each other without saying many words. If anything were to happen to them, it was better for Onyx not to see. After all, that rabbit was the last person he had remaining to him on the face of the earth who could be considered part of his family. The way the young wolf called his name made it clear that Zul was precious to him.

The other reason was more personal. He also couldn’t bear to look if anything bad happened to Toru. He was a coward in that respect and depended on Varg to undertake that difficult task.

“We need to find the map,” he said with determination as he scanned the walls covered in books.

***

The ground underneath their bodies throbbed. Toru tried to open his eyes, but that task appeared impossible. His eyelids were heavy, as if they had turned into lead. He tried to speak, but his mouth remained clenched. All he felt, all he knew, was that Zul was next to him. He could hear his breathing, which meant they were both still alive.

“Tiger,” a cavernous voice hissed.

Toru made an attempt to move one paw, but his entire body was paralyzed, gripped by the same ominous force keeping his tongue from talking and his eyes from opening.

“Welcome to my lair,” the voice continued.

What was that voice? Where were they? Toru fought against the mist covering his thoughts. He had grabbed Zul and run, but why?

As if the strange voice could hear his thought, it hissed again. “Lord Opal is a rather handy tool.” Malevolent glee was easy to spot in how those words were uttered.

A spark of a thought lit his mind for a split second. He and Zul had left to hunt, but they couldn’t find any creature at all, let alone one that would count as food. And then, they had been engulfed by the mist of a perilous swamp, where their minds had gotten all foggy and forgetful. After that, Zul had told him a story from a long time ago –

He remembered all that. And Lord Opal, whatever shape and form he was in now, was twisted into a henchman for this evil voice.

“You will do nicely, but I want more,” the voice spoke again. “You and that useless rabbit will lure the wolfshifters here.”

Wolfshifters? There was only Onyx left in the entire citadel, as far as he knew. Could it be that there were others?

“For that, of course, I need to show them that you are still alive.”

The grip on his muscles loosened, and Toru finally managed to open his eyes. He jumped to his feet, and so did Zul, at the same time. He tried to speak, but the only sounds leaving his mouth were growls.

The rabbit stared at him, and he appeared to have fallen prey to the same affliction. The sounds he made were nothing but squeals. They had both been stripped of the power to talk.

“I put a plan in motion,” the voice said. “Your friends are hard at work, struggling to find a way here. And my army will push them here, while they believe that they will be your saviors.”

Toru began pacing the ground, growling. They were in a sinkhole, and above them, there was no visible ceiling, yet no light of the moon reached them, either. He ran to and fro, searching for a way out. Zul hopped around him, as helpless as he was. The embers in the walls glowed, and just getting close to them let him know they were incandescent like lava.

“The wolfshifters will be so tasty,” the voice commented. “My power will grow so much. I will spit out the orc, of course.”

The orc? Toru stopped. Could it be that the voice was talking about Duril? He remembered now, he remembered everything clearly. He let out a long growl.

“Do that all you want, tiger. You won’t ever speak as a human again. Your suffering will be short-lived, once they are here. Thus far, your friends have proved a small nuisance, managing to elude my little hatchlings. But if they cannot be caught, they will be chased here. For now, the way you suffer feels delicious. And so does their yearning to find you. They are seeing you now, hoping for a reunion. I will grant you that,” the voice sang, suddenly drunken with malice.

If Duril was there, that meant that Varg had to be, too. Toru began growling, without stopping, while swinging his head. He needed to warn them, somehow. Maybe the voice was lying, but if they were watching, through some sort of magic, he had to let them know to stay away from that well of evil.

***

“How are you doing over there?” Varg asked, while anxiously taking in the scene shown by the eye.

Toru and Zul had gotten to their feet, which had been a relief. He had wanted to let Duril and Onyx know, but the reprieve had been short-lived. Soon enough, both the tiger and the rabbit had started to pace the enclosure in which they appeared to be trapped, seemingly prey to fear. There was something there, Varg could tell, something evil, but on this side, they couldn’t see or hear it.

Who knew what tortures the evil was using to torment Toru, right now? He seemed to be in one piece, but Varg had seen enough to know that other cruel punishments were at work in that cursed place.

“We have yet to find the map,” Duril said. “We are working as fast as we can.”

The anxiety in Duril’s voice matched his own. Inside the eye, Toru and Zul moved frantically in circles, while they appeared to be growling and howling. Varg observed without saying another word. There were stones glowing like embers inside the walls of that place. What was their source?

The ground underneath Toru’s feet sparked, and the tigershifter jumped. Varg pursed his lips, his entire body reacting in sympathy. The evil there was at work, without a doubt. Soon, both the tiger and the rabbit were jumping around, in what looked like an attempt to keep their paws off the ground.

He stole a glance at Duril and Onyx. The little pup was doing all he could, climbing on a ladder, and bringing Duril dusty tomes from the highest shelves, but it looked like there were thousands of books in there, and they could go through them for the entire night and even for days more without finding what they needed.

He began to move around the eye, searching for an angle that could show them the scene of the enclosure in which Toru and Zul were entrapped in a different light. Onyx had said something about the road being hidden –

Varg stopped in front of the part of the eye covered in that strange slime. Something of its murky appearance reminded him of something else.

“This is interesting,” Duril said, interrupting the train of his thoughts.

The healer took a small collar out of a wooden box.

“What is that?”

“It appears to be a gift for Lord Onyx. He should have received it on his twelve birthday.”

“Is it mine?” Onyx asked. “Who is it from?”

“Your parents,” Duril replied. “But it looks like there’s something missing. Here,” he pointed at the empty metal circle hanging from the collar, “I suppose it was meant to come with a gemstone of some kind.”

Varg was intrigued as much as Duril. It could be just a simple gift, but the collar looked too simple to be a vanity object.

“Oh, no, what is happening to them?” Onyx shouted.

Varg looked at the same time as Duril. Toru and Zul had to jump over small jets of fire shooting from the ground.

“We’re running out of time,” Duril whispered. “Whatever is going on there, it’s trying to get them killed.”

“Killed? Will Zul die?” Onyx asked, the desperation in his young voice echoing theirs.

Varg jolted as he remembered what the dark slime reminded him of. With steady hands, he removed Agatha’s vial from his pouch.

Duril was trying to soothe Onyx with gentle words. Those were good to hear, always, but, sometimes, a witch’s potion was just what was needed.

He poured the contents of the vial over the eye and suddenly the forests surrounding the citadel opened in front of their eyes. A road marked by embers lit the way toward the place holding Toru and Zul prisoners.

TBC

Next chapter