Desolation (Dragonlands Book 4) (15 page)

Tressa squinted at the monstrous statue in the dark cavern. "Is Fi alive?" she whispered to Donovan.

He held up a hand, quieting her, and cocked his ear toward the center of the cavern. Tressa followed suit, listening for something other than the breathing of her companions. She heard nothing. Not even a scrabble of pebbles on the rocky floor.

It was perfect. They could save Fi and get out as quickly as they'd come. Hopefully there would be no more attacks like the one that took Kadrin. Tressa pushed aside her distress over his death. There would be time to process it later. Time to make apologies. Attempt to make amends. Right now the only thing that mattered was Fi.

Tressa took a hesitant step forward only to run into Donovan's outstretched arm.

No.
His lips formed the word. His eyes carried a dire warning. He cautiously stepped forward, his sword at the ready.

Tressa itched to follow Donovan, or even sprint past him, but she knew he was testing the cavern. He was acting as bait for anything that might be out there waiting for them.

One careful step after another brought him closer to Fi. When he reached her, he laid a hand on her throat. Tressa gulped, waiting for a sign that Fi still breathed. That her friend wasn't lying there dead. That she hadn't wasted Kadrin's life coming to this forsaken place.

Donovan looked at Tressa. The smallest smile cracked at his cheeks as he gave her a nod.

Fi was alive! Alive! Tressa's heart skipped a beat.

Donovan slid his arms under Fi and lifted her carefully from the stone beast. Fi's head lolled against Donovan's shoulder, her eyes closed. He didn’t appear strained under the weight of Fi’s limp body.

He hurried back to the group. "This is too easy." Donovan looked behind him. "Something isn't right."

"Who cares?" Hildie said. "Let's get out of here before they realize we're here."

"That's the puzzling part," Accore said as they moved back toward the tunnel. "They know we're here. Kadrin’s death tells us that much. They are planning something, to be sure."

"Hurry," Donovan hissed over his shoulder at us.

Before he could enter the tunnel, a loud rumbling shook the cavern. Rocks fell in front of the passageway. Within moments the opening was covered with debris. Accore and Hildie clawed at them but couldn't manage to remove even one.

"They're too heavy," Accore said with a grunt. "We need to find another way out. Suggestions?"

Everyone looked to Donovan.

"I don't know," he said. "Perhaps—"

The room went black with an unearthly darkness. Silence descended on the cavern. The party stood tense, shoulder-to-shoulder.

"I don't like this." Fregar's voice trembled.

Tressa held out a hand in the darkness. She moved it closer to her face, dismayed to realize she couldn't see it at all, even when her palm touched her nose. Her skin tingled. This felt all too familiar. She'd been trapped in the fog outside of Hutton's Bridge. It was so thick she couldn't see a thing in front of her. Only then she'd discovered her little owl friend Nerak gave her magic that allowed her to see.

It was her first introduction to the magical world she lived in. How she wished Nerak was with her now. Or Bastian. He'd been so calm in the fog, so sure that they'd find Connor and their way out. Tressa missed him more than she could express. There hadn't even been time to grieve Bastian, much less come to terms with how empty her heart felt without him.

"Stay together," Donovan said, yanking Tressa back to the present. "We should not be separated."

"Without light to guide us, or even knowing a way out, how do we know where to go?" Onva asked. Her voice wavered. "Wouldn't it be better to just stay here until the light returns?"

"There are no guarantees it will," Hildie said. "We must move. If we stay..."

"The shades will find us," Accore finished.

"On my word we all move together," Donovan said. "While I was picking up Fi, I saw another opening behind the statue. We'll head toward that. Now!"

The group took an awkward step forward. As shoulders bumped and feet tangled, Tressa wished she had vines she could fashion into a long rope. When she and Bastian were trapped in the fog that was the only way they were able to tether themselves together. There was no fear of being left alone after that.

They took another step and another until they were walking less awkwardly. After a long stretch of silence and dozens of steps, Donovan ordered them to a stop.

"I can feel the statue," he said. "We need to move around to the right of it. Who is on the end?"

"I am," Tressa said. Her shoulder only touched Onva's.

"Reach out until you can feel the statue," Donovan said. "I want your hand on it at all times. Do not let go until I say."

Tressa fumbled in the air, her fingers wiggling, searching for something solid. Finally she brushed the cool stone of the statue. "I've got it.”

"Good," Donovan said. "Now I'm going to lead the group around the statue. I'll rely on my memory to point us in the right direction."

Tressa kept her hand on the stone as she felt Onva move, her shoulder rotating to a new angle. Tressa moved forward a few tiny steps, keeping herself attached to both Onva and the stone as her fingers grazed the surface.

From far away, the stone had appeared a smooth onyx. Now Tressa could feel the tiny variations in the stone, and her fingertips dipped into the divots created during the sculpting. She wondered who had built this catacomb and how long it had taken them to sculpt this giant beast from stone. Had they been able to fill the catacomb before the shades took it over? Were there people aboveground who wanted to be buried with their ancestors, but couldn't because of the evil that had befallen it?

"Not far now," Donovan said. "Everyone put a hand on the shoulder of the person next to you. We're going to stretch farther out toward the wall. I want Tressa to stay by the statue so we always know where we are in the room."

Tressa stood still, feeling Onva shift ever so slightly to the side until Tressa's shoulder touched Onva's back. Tressa reached out with her right hand, placing it on Onva's shoulder as Onva slowly walked away from her.

"Don't go much farther." Tressa's fingertips grazed Onva's back as she moved. Tressa stretched her arms as far as they could go, one fingertip on the statue, the other on Onva's warm flesh. "I almost can't reach you!"

"We're close to the wall," Donovan said. "I'm sure of it. Will you be okay if we move forward a few steps, Tressa? We’ll turn around and come back for you."

Tressa wanted to scream and tell them no. She didn't want to be left alone next to the statue wondering if they'd ever make their way back to her. Then she thought of Fi. This was all for her, and if this was another sacrifice she needed to make for her friend, then she'd do it.

"Go ahead," Tressa said. She felt Onva slip away. She pushed down the panic gathering in her throat. It would be okay. They weren't going far. She wasn't alone.

Tressa backed toward the statue, her entire palm resting on it now. Strangely, the cool stone seemed to warm up under her hand. She flushed with anxiety. She continued to reassure herself as the cool gave way to a warmth, not unlike the heat of another person.

When the stone moved, Tressa let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Tressa sprinted into the darkness, bumping into someone and knocking them down. She landed on top of the person, her arm smacking the floor.

"What is your problem?" Onva asked, sprawled underneath her.

Tressa rolled off of Onva, out of breath. "The statue. It moved.”

"Are the two of you okay?" Accore asked somewhere ahead of them. "Why did you scream, Tressa?"

"The statue got warm. Then it moved." She insisted through gritted teeth, knowing how ridiculous it sounded now. Of course it hadn't. Statues didn't move. It was carved of stone. She'd touched it with her own sweaty, nervous hands. That was why it felt like it moved.

"Link up and stay together," Donovan said. "Fregar still has my shoulder. Accore, do you have Fregar's?"

"I do now," he said. "Onva has mine. Now let's keep moving."

"No, I don't," Onva said.

"Don't what?" Accore asked.

"I'm not touching you," she said.

"Tressa? Hildie?" Donovan asked nervously.

A grunt and moan were followed by a loud thud. The tangy scent of copper spread through the air.

"Accore?" Onva said.

They all waited, but there was no answer.

"He's not touching my shoulder anymore," Fregar cried. "Where did he go? Who was touching him?"

"The shades will not let us go easily," Donovan said. "Now, we move."

"But Accore..." Hildie said.

"If he does not answer, he is gone," Donovan said. "Like Kadrin. Onva, put your hand on Hilde's shoulder. Tressa's yours goes on Onva's. Fregar, stay with me. Let us continue."

A light flashed in the cavern. Then another and another until all of the torches were lit again. Tressa blinked, seeing Accore's dead body on the floor. Then she looked back at where the statue was. Or had been.

"Donovan, the statue is gone," Tressa said, choking back fear. Again, she remembered how the stone had warmed beneath her hand. Could the statue truly have come to life? It didn’t seem possible. She’d seen many strange beasts since leaving Hutton’s Bridge, but nothing to compare with living stone. That was more powerful magic than any she’d encountered.

Donovan turned around, Fi still limp in his arms. His eyes grew wide. "We must move." He continued forward, this time running as best as he could without jostling Fi.

Tressa and the others followed. He was right. There was an opening ahead of them. She prayed it led aboveground and to freedom.

A piercing screech echoed throughout the room. Tressa covered hear ears. The floor was mottled with a mess of dark shadows. They writhed, melding into each other, then breaking apart again.

"Run!" Tressa screamed, bolting past Donovan and into the opening.

The three other women raced ahead, followed by Donovan, carrying Fi. Tressa brought up the rear, frantically looking behind her for evidence of a shade.

"How do they kill?" Tressa asked Donovan, panting.

"They absorb your life force and you disappear into nothing. It is what happened to Kadrin and Accore." Donovan adjusted Fi in his arms.

"Why not Fi?" Tressa asked. "Why was she different?"

"I don't know," Donovan admitted. "For now, we run."

She did as he said, following the group as they ascended higher into the catacombs. Tressa refused to look over the edge of the path as it dropped off into the void. Pebbles fell over the side with each footfall, but she never heard them make a noise when they hit bottom.
If they hit bottom
, she thought with a shudder.

Someone screamed up ahead. Tressa tried to see who it was. Unfortunately, the tunnel was too narrow and they were too far ahead. "Are you okay?" she called.

"Fregar!" Onva shouted. "Where are you?"

"No, not another," Tressa said, hopelessly. "No more."

"Concentrate on getting out of here," Donovan said. "Don't let their disappearances stop you."

"But what if they're down there somewhere, and we can rescue them just like we did Fi?" Tressa asked. "We can't leave anyone behind."

"Fi did not scream when she was taken," Donovan said. "The others did. That is the only reason I felt she might be alive. The shades are not kind when they suck the life from a human. The pain is excruciating." Donovan wheezed, his shoulders sagging.

Fi was a small woman and light, but carrying her for so long was wearing on Donovan. Yet his legs showed no sign of flagging. Every step was as solid as the last.

"How did you survive this in the past?" Tressa asked.

"I have no idea," Donovan said. He hefted Fi in his arms and picked up his speed. "No more talking."

Tressa obeyed. Hildie and Onva had pulled so far ahead of them that Tressa couldn't see them anymore. Only the scrabble of their feet told her they were still alive.

Finally they arrived in a chamber filled with burial graves. Donovan stopped for a moment, resting his back against the wall. "I need to take a breath." He locked eyes with Tressa. "We will make it out of here alive."

She nodded. Tressa considered herself brave, but how could she fight something that had no form? Even Donovan didn't know how to defeat them. He only knew to outrun them.

A cracking noise came from one of the holes. Bony fingers snaked out, reaching toward Tressa. She leapt backward and pointed.

Donovan's eyes grew large. His jaw dropped. "Holy shite!" He took off running, Tressa close on his heels.

They didn't stop again until they reached open air. The morning sunlight beckoned to them outside. Onva and Hildie had their arms around each other, tears streaming down their faces.

"We were about to leave without you," Hildie said. "We thought you didn't make it."

"Well, we did," Donovan said. "Let's get back to the horses and the tent. Once we're inside, we'll be safe and we can rest."

Hildie offered her strong arms to Donovan. He nodded and placed Fi carefully in Hildie's arms.

Tressa embraced Onva. "I'm so sorry about Fregar."

Onva shrugged her off. "Don't talk to me about my sister. Never speak her name. It is not yours to claim."

"I'm sorry," Tressa said.

"No. We saved your friend, didn't we? She is alive?" Onva's voice dripped with venom. "We exchanged the lives of Kadrin, Accore, and Fregar for hers. It better be worth it."

As Tressa looked over her shoulder at the entrance to the catacombs, she admitted to herself for the first time how selfish the mission had been. She hung back, letting the others walk ahead. She needed a moment to let the tears fall. Three good people were gone. For what? To follow Tressa's whims?

No, of course not. She’d done it for Fi. For the Dragonlands, who needed her friend.

As she slowed down, she realized how much her body ached. They'd spent the whole time either running or scared stiff, and based on the rising sun, they'd taken the entire night. She had barely slept the night before. She'd only forced a few bites of food down her stomach. All she wanted now was to collapse in the tent.

She looked back toward the entrance to the catacombs. Tressa said a silent word of thanks to the three who had perished in her service. They’d given the ultimate sacrifice to save a woman they didn’t know. That was true heroism. It was humbling.

Something moved in the shadow of the entrance. Tressa blinked, sure the morning sun was playing tricks on her. Then the entrance exploded as the statue from the cavern burst toward her, running at full speed.