Chamber of Destinies
Chapter 3
The Old One handed me a cup of tea when I woke up and insisted from now on I write down everything I dream during the night – before I do anything else – then she walked to the far side of the open area and began mumbling to herself. When I put down the quill and closed my journal she handed me a plate of hot food. “I need to go on ahead a short distance and prepare things; when you have finished eating you should bathe and wash your hair in the pool. Put on the clothes that are laying beside it then wait. A Glowing Salamander will come to lead the way when it is time for you to follow. Do not bring anything with you except your writing materials and these saddlebags. Do you understand?’ I nodded, not trusting my voice as she turned to leave. “Good,” she said catching the reins of the Carrier beast that was packed and waiting. She walked away and I was alone. I examined the contents of the saddlebags while I waited. Besides three totally different and unique outfits there was a shoulder pouch filled with herbs and bottles of perfumes, a brush and mirror of silver, a bag that contained what I knew was makeup and an assortment of dried foods. There was also a beautiful old leather bound book with ‘Record of The Guardians’ burnt into the cover and two beautifully matched knives with silver and mahogany carved handles. I put the knives into my belt and placed my journal in the bag with the other things leaving the makeup and brush out to use. The Salamander lit the passageway ahead of me as I carefully followed it along a narrow ledge. After about an hour it stopped and waited for me to catch up before turning to the left and disappearing into the wall leaving me in total darkness for a few minutes while I waited for my eyes to adjust. I noticed a faint light coming from a small crack that ran up the wall. Feeling around until my hands found a leaver I pulled it out; the wall opened. Just as I stepped through the passageway disappeared behind me. I am in a large room like chamber with strange writings carved everywhere. A round table with benches sits in the center of the room and holds plates of wonderful smelling foods, bottles of wine, water and juice. Against one wall is a huge bed and on the opposite side of the chamber is a small bubbling pool partially hidden by an outcropping of rock. There are shelves carved into the rock that hold manuscripts, books, and everything I could need; all the comforts of home. The only thing missing is a way out. I explore for a while then eat and drink some of the tea that had been left on the table – it is still hot and very delicious. Exhausted I climb into the soft bed and dream. ****************************************************************************** We have set up camp at the very edge of the Dukes territory inside a small cave. From here we can intercept any outgoing enemy patrols and get away quickly before attracting attention. We figure we have maybe a week at the most before we need to relocate so we don’t get comfortable. We sleep in shifts; four of us are always on patrol (two on the ground and two in the air) while two sleep and one stands guard at the entrance to the cave Xanderay and I are in the air flying low above the forest when we see movement off to the left. Doubling back we confirm seven or eight snipers creeping towards the cave. Manioc and A-Naku who are hunting from the ground are directly in their path. She telepathically relays a message to those in the cave before we land silently in the trees above our companions and shimmy down to join them. We move towards the enemy and intercept them, the battle is fierce as we fight to hold our ground until the others arrive. When they arrived Dee-anna-nu took position behind a fallen tree and began sending arrows at anything that moved while the rest of us fight hand to hand. Manioc pulled his sword from the stomach of a soldier and with one swing took its head just as an arrows fly from a nearby tree. He falls; Dee-anna-nu seeing a movement out of the corner of her eye turned and loosed an arrow followed quickly by another; we heard a scream as something unseen fell to the ground. Mantra finished stitching and bandaging Manioc’s wounds, he has lost a lot of blood and is very weak and delirious. Thaddious took a spear in his shoulder and has lost the use of his sword arm but the rest of us seem to be okay. Kardanis and Dee-anna-nu have returned with the animals. They’d followed the blood trail that started at the point where we’d heard something fall and led into the trees to end in a blood pool under a huge oak, there they discovered a body leaning against its trunk. We ride as quickly as possible towards The Deep Ravine with our wounded companions and the body of the strange creature Kardanis and Dee-anna-nu found. “So, are you telling me they’re like some kind of chameleons or something; they can just fade into a background so they’re virtually invisible?” “No, I don’t think they can change their outer appearance back and forth. It’s more like a camouflage they’ve learned to exploit by remaining perfectly still for long periods of time. In a wooded setting they’d be unnoticeable unless you were actually looking for them and even then it would take a sharp eye,” replied Mantra looking at the covered body draped over the animal she was leading then back to Kardanis. “Maybe, but I’ll sure feel better when we reach home and turn that thing over to the Magi and Alchemists,” he answered spurring his Leeper to gallop on ahead. “Yes, we definitely could use a live one to study though,” Mantra mumbled to herself as he rode off. When we stop to rest the mounts I check my husband’s wounds. “Perhaps this will help ease his breathing” said a voice behind me as a puff of grey smoke materializes and Nambra steps out. ***************************************************************************** When we reached The Fortress the Magi examined Manioc and Thaddious while the rest of us waited. “I’m sorry Princess but your husband’s fate is in the hands of the Goddess.” Said Sarcaucis handing me a cup of strong liquor when they’d finished their work. “The poison the arrows were soaked in is unknown to us and we have no antidote; his wounds were so extensive that it spread through his entire body in a matter of mere minutes. I’m afraid he was probably beyond our means of saving him by the time you were able to remove the arrows. The fact that Mantra recognized the symptoms of poisoning and used magic to stabilize and keep him immobile is probably the only reason he is still alive,” added Zoa. She grabbed me as I swooned and collapsed. When I come to I am in our room and Mantra is sitting in a rocker beside my bed. “Welcome back, My Lady. We were beginning to fear you would not wake in time to see your husband before he crosses over.” “Take me to him” I said rising quickly and managing maybe two steps before my legs buckled under me. I have been at Manioc’s side since yesterday when they wheeled me into his room and now the time has come. The others have been called and are there too, even Thaddious who suffers from total paralysis in his sword arm as well as other health problems – all contributable directly to the poison according to The Magi. “Take care of her” Manic says taking my hand as he struggles to speak to those who stand around me. His final words to me are “I’ll find you wherever you are.” I sip some tea while I finish re-reading what I’d written that morning before turning my attention to the food that has again magically appeared on the silver trays sometime during the night. Time is irrelevant here; if it were not for the hour glass in the center of the table beside the bowl of pebbles I wouldn’t have any idea how long I’d been here. I spend most of my time eating, sleeping, or writing; sometimes I try to decipher the ‘Book of Records’ the Old One left or read one of the books from a shelf on the wall. Only the fact that the glass will soon need turning again tells me another day is almost over and that I have been here in this chamber almost fourteen days. I bathe in the pool and lie down to sleep some more. I am very ill; the Alchemists and the Magi say I have been poisoned from extended exposure to my husband’s blood and other fluids while caring for him. The others who came in contact with the poison are also affected to various degrees; Kardanis and Dee-anna-nu who were in direct contact with the dead body, A-Naku who pulled the spear from Thaddeus’s shoulder and applied pressure to the wound until Mantra could care for him, and Mantra herself who tended their wounds. Only Xanderay did not become ill. Using the blood of the dead creature the Alchemists managed to concoct an antidote the others have almost totally recovered already. Even Thaddeus seems much better though the Magi say he will probably never regain the full use of his arm. Only I remain ill. The last thing I remember before sinking back into oblivion is someone saying I should recover too – ‘This time’. After nearly a month the Council of the Wise has deemed me well enough to accept the duties of a Ruler. They have again forbidden me to return to the fight and I’ve disobeyed once again. We travel disguised as part of a small Gypsy caravan camped outside the gates of Woodworm, the capital and largest city of Megalothia waiting for sunrise when the gates open. A large part of the population here bares some sort of allegiance to the Duke or even the Dark Lord himself and to be discovered would mean a slow and painful death for all of us. Once inside we blend in with the crowd in the market area and scout the city. Our objective is to gather information and carry it back to those planning an attack on the city in the upcoming weeks. We all know the dangers and are ready to give up our own lives to avoid being captured. We regroup at sundown and leave the city with the Gypsies, returning to the encampment only long enough to gather our things and depart but before we get more than three kilometers away the encampment is attacked. All are slain. We spur our mounts to a dead run without looking back, the Duke’s men hard at our heels. When the attack comes it’s from in front of us not behind– we have been driven into an ambush, Mantra grabs the reins of my mount and gallops fast towards the cover of the forest as the others try to buy us time to get away but she is hit. By the time we are hidden I can feel the glamour she’d put on me slipping; she is dying and with her the spell. “Go quickly,” she gasps pointing a finger weakly to an area between two trees; I see an opening appear and I run. “There she is, Get her.” I hear someone shout. I feel a burning pain in my side as I dive through. The opening closes behind me.
