Part 55 (1/2)
Her eyes strayed to Kendan's unconscious form. ”I am fine.”
He smiled at her lie and gave her hand a squeeze. ”You know I do not believe you. Why not tell me the truth?”
Her jaw clenched as she fought the waves of emotion cras.h.i.+ng over her. ”Because that would mean admitting it to myself.” She shook her head impatiently. ”We do not have time for this! We need to get going.”
L'iam nodded slowly. ”Should we wait for Ravi?”
Adesina was undecided on that point. ”We do not know how long it will take him to find the others.”
The thoughtful pause was interrupted by the faint echo of footsteps approaching. The two L'avan froze, staring at each other in apprehension.
A forceful knock sounded at the door.
She spun around, taking in her surroundings. Pools of blood collected on the stone floor, and there was no place to hide the bodies. There was no place for the two L'avan to hide either.
Unless...
Adesina grabbed L'iam and held him close, allowing her vyala to flare up and s.h.i.+eld them from the eyes of others. He wrapped his arms around her, adding his energy to hers.
The knock sounded again.
”Shar Kendan?” a deep voice called.
The door opened to reveal three s.h.i.+mat. The first was a burly man with bristly black hair and a thick beard. He was very clearly the leader of the trio, a.s.serting himself with his chest stuck out. Following close behind was a face that was all too familiar to Adesina.
Basha's eyes widened in surprise as she surveyed the scene before her. ”What happened here?”
The leader gestured to the third figure behind him, who was blocked from Adesina's view. ”Sound the alarm. There are intruders in the fortress.”
Basha shook her head stubbornly. ”That is impossible.”
The man gave her a scathing glare. ”Is it?”
She was immediately cowed. ”I just meant thata”
His harsh voice continued. ”Can you think of no one capable of breaking into the fortress?”
Understanding dawned in her eyes, and her voice came out in a hiss. ”Adesina!”
A shrill bell began to ring, alarming everyone of the presence of the intruders. The man and Basha retreated from the room and out into the hallway. He pointed to her commandingly as he walked away.
”You know what to do.”
Basha gave one curt nod and hurried in the opposite direction.
Even after they were left alone, the two L'avan stared at each other in disbelief. L'iam whispered in Adesina's ear, ”What are we going to do now?”
Chapter Forty-seven: The Dungeon.
Ravi burst through the door. ”Ma'eve!”
She quickly dropped the illusion that her vyala had been creating and stepped away from L'iam, who still had his arms wrapped around her.
”Here, Ravi.”
”We must go now!”
There was no argument from either L'avan. The three of them sprinted from the room and down the corridor towards the stairs that would take them to the lower levels.
The door was opened before they reached it, and a rather disheveled looking s.h.i.+mat appeared.
Adesina increased her speed and leapt into the air, kicking him squarely in the chest. He was thrown backward and head over heels down the spiraling stairs.
She landed on her feet and led the way downward without pause. The stairs were steep and treacherous, making speed difficult. They hopped over the crumpled form of the s.h.i.+mat that lay huddled against the door leading to the second level, and continued their descent to the dungeon.
The stone stairs between the second and third levels became damp and slick, making them even harder to maintain a quick pace. The torches were fewer, and the temperature dropped several degrees.
The door at the bottom of the stairs was hard to open. The hinges were rusted, making it screech horribly when forced to move. L'iam was prepared to rush onward, but Adesina placed a hand on his arm, bringing him to a halt.
They stepped into the dungeon, looking around cautiously.
The smell of refuse and decay met them in sickening waves, and the darkness seemed to dance fiendishly in various shades of black. The constant drip of brackish water echoed around the stone tomb until it was maddening.
Not a torch was to be seen, so Adesina created a small ball of light to rest in the palm of her hand. She took a few cautious steps forward, straining to see as much of her surroundings as possible.
A quick scan of the surrounding area, using her vyala, revealed that they were alone for the moment; but she used as little of her power as possible, not knowing if she would need it later.
Most of the cell doors stood open, like gaping mouths waiting to swallow them up. It was clear to Adesina that these dungeons were seldom used, which was understandable since the fortress was not a location that the s.h.i.+mat liked outsiders seeing, even as prisoners.
The dungeon consisted of three main corridors that were linked by four smaller hallways. Adesina began to systematically search each of these corridors, looking for the cells that were being used.
After a few minutes they came across a door that was locked. L'iam connected to his vyala and swept the room on the other side, searching for what was inside. With glowing eyes he nodded to her, indicating that the cell held a prisoner.
She flicked her fingers backward, and the small ball of energy she had been holding hopped up from her palm and remained floating in the air. With her hands free, she leaned down and began picking the lock.
It took only a few expert movement before she heard the telltale click. Adesina cupped the ball of energy again, bringing it forward. Then, drawing back the bolt, she pushed the door open.
Three figures lay huddled on the ground. The L'avan took a hesitant step forward.
”Me'shan?”
The slight scuff of a boot warned Adesina that someone was coming up behind them. She threw the ball of light into the air, where it hovered and grew brighter, then whipped around to see the hateful face of Basha.
Adesina immediately drew her Blood Sword, bringing it down as hard as she could. Basha blocked the a.s.sault with her own blade, grappling with the seventeen-year-old girl.
”Welcome home,” she hissed spitefully. ”Come to save your friends?”