Page 95 of The Heir
What second way?Shad asked as he stopped, and listened—I assumed, for Keil’s melody.
The second way—to become a Soulless,I answered as he pulled me along with him to the left.
Oh, yes—someone uses a crystal and takes it from you. Those crystals that can remove souls are very rare, however, and are only found on Soul’s Island on Terra. Only a ruler from one of the Ancient Heir kingdoms can even step foot on the island, however. It is sacred ground to the Ancients.I kept one hand in Shad's and the other on the wall, needing his comforting touch.
We were silent for a few minutes as Shad kept navigating us. Just as I was letting terror interrupt my thoughts again, Shadstopped abruptly, placing a hand over my mouth, probably in case I might have gasped. We leaned against the wall as two guards walked past us. I tried to ignore a drip on my shoulder and something crawling on my arm as we stood there against the wall. The two guards who walked past us held small lamps, unlike the others, and my eyes ached as the light reached us. Shad looked at me with a playful smile as he made me crouch down beside a large boulder so that we wouldn’t be spotted. I could see his face in the lamplight, and I wondered why he looked so happy at that moment. He moved his gaze to my arm and picked up a large brown spider. I tried not to lose my breakfast as he tossed it across the cave floor, winking at me.
Are you okay?he asked in my mind and soul.
No! A huge spider almost just killed me,I growled into his mind and soul as Shad moved away from me.
That spider would not have killed you.He grabbed my hand, pulling me up from the ground. We quickly went in the direction from where the two men had come, weaving through a passage which did not break off in different directions. We could make out a light, a yellow glow in the distance as we walked through the tunnel. We finally made it to a wide opening and ducked back, checking out the space before proceeding forward. I shivered, realizing that without the constant movement of us walking and running through the tunnels, it had become increasingly cold.
Ice had formed on the ground and even above us, also around the spirals of jagged rocks which were above the room’s massive opening. Frozen icicles hung down from those massive rocks. The cavern was a large space with two other entrances, orexits, on the walls opposite of where we stood.I scanned the room; it was dimly lit by only a few lamps. But there—in a far corner—Ryker lay on his side, his shirt stripped off, and blood and cuts covered his entire face and body. Keil sat beside him, mumblingsomething that I could not decipher. Shad looked around the room and then signaled to me that it was safe to walk over to them. We walked to where Ryker and Keil were.
The room looked like a torture chamber from some horror movie, and I hated to think about not just what had been done to Ryker—but, perhaps, also to countless others in that space. Five old, rusted, metal shelves lined one wall and were full of odd shaped boxes and containers. Near those shelves stood a metal examination table, similar to ones found in hospitals. I thought I could hear the screams that must have been induced upon that table, echoing off of its shining surface, and the howls from the souls who had once lain there. I tried not to cry as I saw metal chains attached to the table, no doubt in order to force people to remain still while unspeakable things were done to them. I cringed, taking in a small operating room cart beside it, created for the very purpose of holding instruments for surgeries, surgeries meant for healing and saving lives, and I was sure, down there in that deep, dark, horrible cavern—they were used to hold devices that inflicted pain and agony upon their victims.
In the corner of the room where Ryker and Keil were held captive, walls rose up with more chains on them, and there was one large cage, a prison of some sort. It looked like a new addition, as its metal bars were shiny and clean, unlike every other piece of metal in that room; it was as if it had not yet held any prisoner within its clutches. I shuttered wondering who it was for.
I dropped to my knees as we reached Ryker’s side. He moaned, and I shushed him as I took out a thin towel from my backpack and started cleaning his face. He grabbed my wrist.
“You should not be here, Em,” he mumbled, spitting out blood onto the damp ground, his entire body trembling. I wanted to cry, but I knew it wasn’t the time for that. I was so happy to see him—and he was alive! I wondered how severe his injuries were,but they seemed to be mostly surface wounds, or so I hoped. I wrapped the towel around his shoulders and rubbed at his arms, attempting to create warmth for him, anyway that I could. It was so cold down there.
“Of course, I should be here—as if I cannot help to rescue people, too. Honestly, you boys are all so ridiculous,” I replied, slightly irritated.
“Emma, please. He will, he will—” he stopped speaking as his voice went hoarse.
“Please, Ry, don’t talk. We will take you back and get you all cleaned up and feeling better soon. I was so worried about you. I love you, Ry. I am so glad you are alive.” I looked into his blue-gray eyes, the only part of him which seemed untouched by the horrors of that cave, but they had seen enough horror to devastate anyone. I touched his cheek, and his hand came up to cover my own.
“It is so good to see you, Em. I didn’t think I would—”
“Shhh—I am here, and we will get you out of here; no one will hurt you anymore.” I caressed his arm. Feeling the coldness of his flesh made me sick—and angry. “Can someone tell me why, or better yethow,our secret weapon, that is our undefeatable-warrior-Keil was bested? I am not sure I buy into this ancient warrior thing.”
“I was not bested, and besides, Ryker isn’t an honorable cause anymore,” Keil spat.
“What does that mean? I thought you were fighting for me?” I questioned.
“Ryker can fill you in when he is feeling better, but I was chained up rather quickly, and we have been left here for hours. Ryker says their leader isCade,” I heard Keil speak but didn't take my eyes from Ryker, my worry for him outweighed my curiosity. Then, in my peripheral vision, I saw Shad stand quickly from where he was working to break Ryker’s bonds.
“Cade? Are you sure? How is that even possible?” Shad’s voice seemed dark and worried.
Ryker nodded, agreeing with Keil that someone named Cade was there.
Was Cade the one who killed my parents?I wondered. “Who is Cade? Did he—was he the one who caused my parents—did he cause the crash?” I gulped and looked at Shad.
“We should not have come,” Shad said, as he finished with the chains around Ryker’s ankles and moved to Keil, ignoring my question as he slipped his silver and black sword back into its sheath.
“Who is Cade?” I asked again in a whisper, that time irritated as I tried to prop Ryker up and then get him onto his feet. His head rested upon my shoulder, leaving bloody smears on my gray shirt.
“He is the prince who has been searching for your melody,” Keil answered, sadly.
“The Dark Prince? He's the one who killed my parents.” I looked in horror toward Shad, but he looked at Keil. I followed his gaze to Keil, who nodded.
“And, unfortunately, this is all a trap. We are not going to make it out of here alive.” As soon as the words left Keil’s mouth, an iron gate that seemed to appear out of nowhere slid over the opening where we had entered and another iron gate appeared across the room. We all looked, all three of us, and a feeling of dread pulsed through my bones. A trap. How did he know we were coming?What is he going to do with me? I felt sick.
From across the room, the only part of the cave not barred was a man. He appeared as if out of nowhere and walked over to us, four guards flanking him on either side. His face was dark, but as he came closer, with each step, I could see more and more of his features and realized that it washim. It was the man who Ryker had been searching for, the black-eyed, black-haired, crooked-nosed man from my nightmares and from the sketch Ryker had shown me.
“Welcome, welcome,” he said with a sick grin.