Chapter 26 - Maiden in the Catacombs

"Nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, now we turn left…"

Alexa inhaled the air, sensing it moist, earthy and smelling of mold and wet straw. The sounds confused her, but then Magnus caught her wrist again, guiding her into a place she soon imagined to be a long, downward corridor that smelled of all this and also lime. The stagnant air soon became thick in her lungs, and the resinous smoke from the torch the Prince carried made her breath short. The maiden realized that Magnus was trying to keep up a quick pace, and that he was navigating the tunnel with familiarity.

She heard dripping noises, which increased as they descended, and the air grew fresher, and once again he released her, this time to open a railing, the sound of pulleys and metal chains. Now Alexa imagined that they were walking on a bridge in a pluvial water gallery, listening to the sounds of running water, and shrieking screeches of rodents fleeing the path of humans.

It was horrible to go blind, her heart pounding with every step she took, and her free hand soon went for the blindfold, but Magnus was alert,

"Should I really tie your hands?"

Alexa could of course not allow this, her balance would be affected, and she would be stumbling all her way ahead.

"Is that a long way off?" she asked, changing the subject and giving up her cheating plans.

"Not. Just shut up from now on and just speak again when I tell you."

It was a strange order, and the maiden tried to figure out why, but as they turned away from the underground gallery to a new corridor, she realized that the reason was just the weirdest of them. She had been in catacombs before, and the smell of this corridor was similar. The crackling, the scent of old bones and a subtle rot, mixed with incense and the smells of gases accumulated and impregnated in the porous minerals of the walls...

Also, the lead-dense energy of the forgotten ages seemed to almost retard her passage. She sensed being watched from afar by the Lost Ones who could no longer be rescued. Their names forgotten by everyone and themselves, and their insanity even prevented them to identify themselves as once humans. Decrepit fragments with no identity at all.

She didn't like being there. But something has changed. After a sharp turn, she felt the chilling pulse of something strange and new to her.

Something dead and paradoxally throbbing alive vibrated not far from where they were. She felt it in the soles of her feet, felt it in her heart. Something scarily pulsating. Her throat went dry, and Alexa grabbed the Prince's arm in front of her with both bandaged hands. The man stopped, and turned to her, encircling the maiden's wrists with his callous hands and holding her trembling body. Maybe he had thought she had tripped.

It was then that Alexa felt the cold breeze envelop her, and felt the imposing presence of one of them, very near.

One of the Ghost Queens.

Alexa almost screamed, the Light Bearer wanted to see her face to face, but she couldn't! Who was she, from the two Queens?

Magnus was still, motionless indeed, and Alexa cursed being blindfolded, as she couldn't see anything, just feel the Shade a few feet away, emanating her morbid powerful aura of dread. Alexa bit her lips when she felt the delicate and eerie touch of light and gentle fingers. Semi ethereal Shades kind of caressing her face and touching her clothes and hair.

'Not! Don't touch me! ' she wanted to scream, but she wasn't willing to provoke the dominant presence. Why was Magnus motionless? Is he seeing it? Feeling it? Or doesn't he even realize...?'

"Your Highness… What is going on? Why did you stop?!" disobeying the explicit order seemed the smartest thing to do. She tried to release her arms from his strong hands, but he wouldn't allow it.

He didn't answer, but she realized he twisted his body forward again.

To face the Queen, perhaps?

How she wanted to see what was going on!

A sharp tension, like the upwardly high-pitched sound of a rebec, intensified aggressively. Alexa felt her body hair prickle in anticipation, but nothing could she do, with her arms stuck and without seeing.

"Magnus…" she begged for an answer.

As suddenly as it appeared, the Queen's presence faded, as did the other minor Shades.

What was happening? Alexa did not know.

"What happened? What was that? "

The pressure on her wrists loosened, and the Saxon Prince gave her a slight tug to keep her walking, without answering her. The maiden quickened her pace, feeling her body strange and heavy. The touch of the Shades as always seemed to take some of one's vital essence away.

After a few minutes at a fast pace, which Alexa could barely keep up, she finally began to feel the more breathable air again, and soon she heard something heavy being dragged. They crossed a courtyard, climbed stairs, and after a door opened, he said,

"Count to twenty aloud, and take off the blindfold after that. Then head right until you find your ward."

Blatantly, the Prince blew a peck on her cheek, whispering, "Sleep well."

She noticed him walking away, but couldn't stand it and took the blindfold well before she started counting. She only saw his back coming down a staircase in the semi darkness of the castle corridor. But taking the blindfold off after so long and so many turns made her a little dizzy, and she leaned against the wall, breathing fresh air with lust.

He didn't allow her to see… 'What did he see back there? Did the Ghost Queen show herself to him? ' It was strange to think that he could have done that to protect her, if he had done so. 'For that, he would have to know what to expect, wouldn't he?'

Tonight's adventure had had so many twists and Alexa decidedly felt the weight of tiredness over her body. She followed the directions indicated by the Prince, groping the walls to find her way to the ward where she was staying.

As soon as the Greek maiden got close to the ward and was hiding behind a column, assessing whether she would be seen by the guards at their posts, she was pulled violently by the arm, then immediately by the ear.

"Hfmmm!" she herself covered her mouth as she realized that Blue Eyes was the one pulling her ear so hard.

The Florentine priest pulled her out by the ear as she tried to free herself without a sound.

He opened a door, and upon entering, Father Agnello asked, rather annoyed,

"Where and who were you with, Lady Saskia?"

Alexa stared at him with huge eyes.