Chapter 733: "Welcome Home, Kelda"

Chapter 733: "Welcome Home, Kelda"

Four crimson eyes watched Alex, burning from two snarling faces carved of slate-grey stone.

All else lay in blackness; the vicious expressions were all he could see under the light of glowing red eyes flickering like embers. A chilling memory returned.

One of fire, danger and death.

One of lines of flame streaking across stone, the scent of burning monsters, and the sound of bursting exoskeletons.

Alex remembered a skinny young manwhod left his job as a simple bakers assistantclutching his family to his chest as rays of fire-magic erupted in an inferno behind them.

He recalled heat radiating all around.

And he knew exactly what he was looking at.

The goddess statues.

Their faces were the mirror of the goddess statues in the Cave of the Traveller, complete with fire gems inset in their eye sockets. The same statues had guarded Hannahs temple, unleashing fire-beams on anyone attempting to cross the temple floor.

Those statues were once the deadliest things Alex had ever encountered in Thameland.

The two statues had also been shattered when hed manipulated them into firing on each other, but the four gems had survived. One, theyd used to save their lives in their fight with the hive-queen, but theyd kept the other three, and nearly a year later, had put them to good use.

He and Selina had used them for Claygon, setting two in the palm of the golems upper hands and the third in his forehead, serving him as weapons, just as they had for Hannahs goddess statues.

Yet, somehow, the two statues were now before him, intact, identical red gems glowing in their eye sockets, ready to burn intruders to ashes. His mind couldnt grasp it.

How are they back? he wondered, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. And how did we end up back in the Cave of the Traveller? And how

Something moved beside him. What's going on? Where are we? Bjorgrunds voice echoed in the dark.

Stone ground on stone.

The statues shifted.

Dont move! Alex hissed.

The young giant froze.

The statues froze in place.

What's happening? Birger asked, strain in his voice. What are those terrible faces?

I think they're a trap. The young wizard was still, his gaze fixed on the statues eyes. His heart pounded; he was poised, tense, waiting for the whoom sound of fire-gems gathering power, followed by the whoosh of their killing flame. Ive seen a trap like this before.

When? How? Bjorgrund asked.

In Hannah's cave, back in Thameland, he said in grim tones. She had a pair of statues guarding her sanctum that looked exactly like those, they also had fire-gems for eyes that fried anything trying to cross the floor. He glanced down in the darkness, but could see nothing. When someone or something stepped on a particular floor tile, the statues would turn and fire on them, killing them instantly. But, this is strange, I made those statues destroy each other.

Then, how are they in front of us? Birger asked.

Alex frowned, then his eyes went wide. By the Traveller, I thought we were back in the Cave of the Travellerthough, it wasn't nearly this dark in there. There was a doorway to a clear blue sky that provided light and fresh air. This place is different; I think were in Keldas sanctum, not Hannahs. They were really close friends; so it makes sense that theyd set up similar traps to defend their homes.

He reached out with the Travellers power, sensing for her energy.

It slammed into him from all sides.

He was encircled in her power, blazing from every direction. If it could be light, it would be blinding. If it could be sound, it would be deafening.

This place is awash with her power, the young wizard was awestruck.

It seems we found it? Birger asked, excitement growing in his voice. If it

Searing light erupted in the goddess eyes, blazing like fire. The Travellers power surged, stirring like a great beast coming to life, reacting to the energy within Alexs soul.

Somethings happening! he cried.

Alex paused, some of his glee fading. Not quite yet He looked at the word-etched wall. I want to see Keldas lab first. When we find thatand her notesthats when Ill tell them. Weve had enough disappointment over these past months: Im not giving them hope yet until Im sure this place has what were looking for.

Then lets get on with it! Birger nodded to the wall. What're all those words up there? Theyre written in a tongue I've never seen before.

Alex squinted at the characters etched in Hannah's secret language. Ohoh.

Can you read it? Birger asked.

Yes, it's a note from Kelda, Alex said. A pretty grim one. It says: Hannah, I wrote this message just for you and had my assistant, Xylas, enchant the wall so these words would only appear if I were to die. If youre reading this, I guess that means Im dead. If you find this message in time, then I ask that you find my assistants and get them out: it's very hard to get in and out of here without your power. Please, dont weep for me, Hannah. I was born a fighter. I was trained to be a fighter. I lived as a fighter, even though my god tried to take that away from me. If Im dead, then I died fighting the Mark. I died fighting., and for a warrior, there couldnt be a better death. I only ask that you leave my body here, in my laboratorythe battlefield where I challenged the Mark one last timeand let it be my tomb. Let your goddesses watch over me in death and let Uldarfaceless and ruinedstand witness to my final defiance. Hopefully, in death, my soul will be spared, and I will see you one day again in the afterworld. If not, then know that the greatest thing that ever happened in my life was meeting you and gaining your friendship. Live strong, my friend, live well, fight on.

Alex finished Keldas final words, letting them echo in the silence of the chamber. He lowered his head.

Bjorgrund lowered his as well. She sounded like a true warrior.

She was a great friend. Birger shook, battling tears, his voice breaking.

She was a Hero, Alex said.

But it's strange, right? If she had assistants with her, then shouldn't someone have known where her sanctum was? If they went out into the worldOh Bjorgrund paused. They didn't make it out of here, did they?

I don't think so, Alex said.

Ohso, how would we make it out of here? Bjorgrund looked around. I don't see any doors. Do you think there's hidden passages somewhere?

Hold on now. Birger pointed at the wall. Before we get ahead of ourselves, there's a lot of words on that wall, a lot more than what that note said..

Uh Alex started. Well, thats

What is it? the old giant asked.

Kelda wrote a bunch of insults to Uldar, Alex said slowly. A whole lot of insults to Uldar, enough to fill a small book.

Oh Birger said. I suppose you don't have to read all that, then.

No, wed be here for a while, Alex said. It's funnyhow she hid a note in the wallwhich was only meant to appear if she died.

He thought back to Uldars sanctum, to the emptiness of that space.

He often wondered if there was anything hidden there. Anything that theyd missed.

So how do we get out of here? Bjorgrund asked.

Im not sure, Alex said, feeling around with the Travellers power. Thats something were going to need to figure out. And fast. We also dont know if the church can track us here.

He looked around. There's something different about this place. It's like there's different pockets of Hannah's power around us. I think I know what Kelda meant by it's very hard to get in and out of here without Hannahs power.

His eyes drifted up. I think the only way to move around in here is with her power, or some other form of teleportation. I should be able to use those pockets like beacons, teleporting to them without seeing where they are beforehand. But get ready, I have no idea whatll be waiting for us.

The two giants took the young wizards hands, gripping them tightly as Alex reached for Hannah's power. Bjorgrund raised his axe. Energy flared within the wizard, then they were gone, reappearing in another large chamber, where the walls were honeycombed with hundreds of cells.Inside each hole was a thick, broad spearhead; ballista bolts waited, ready to launch at intruders.

Yet, none fired.

She didn't scrimp on security, Alex noted. It seems these traps are set to activate if they sense an intruder. Im glad they dont think were intruders. Come, let's keep going.

The young wizard and the two giants teleported from chamber to chamber, finding traps in every one. Everything from rusty saws to heavy axes were concealed in some, while the walls in others were partitioned, though Alex wasnt sure what these would do. One chamber had a ceiling that was filled with razor-sharp spikes.

Another had pockets of Hannahs energy concealed there, connected to poisonous lakes bubbling with acid, overflowing its banks, flooding the chamber when portals opened.

As they moved on, discovering room after room of deadly traps, an idea began forming in Alexs mind. An idea that might free him and his family from a constant menace forever.

But before that idea could fully form, the trio teleported to a chamber that was different, smaller, free of traps.

It was filled with complex equipment and eleven bodies were laid out in a row, entombed in coffins of clear glass.

In a glass casket in the centre of the ten others, was a young woman with bright red hair.

Kelda of Clan MacCallum, with her hands clasped across her breast, lay in peaceful repose.