A Banner Torn (Book 1 Complete)

Kaelid:

He felt the change in the air as they moved deeper into the mine. The tunnel narrowed slightly, forcing Brannic to hunch his massive frame even more. The dragonkin's scales scraped occasionally against the rough stone walls, sending small showers of dust drifting down. The blue glow from their crystals cast strange, shifting shadows that seemed to dance along the walls with each step.

The pulsing vibration beneath his feet had become a constant presence, a rhythmic thrumming that he could feel through his boots. It was oddly comforting, like the heartbeat of some enormous creature cradling them within its body. He unconsciously timed his steps to match the pulse, and noticed Rannek doing the same beside him.

"The copper sigils should be visible on the right side of the tunnel," Brannic explained, his voice echoing slightly in the confined space. "They mark the sections that need clearing."

He squinted ahead, trying to make out details in the gloom beyond the range of their crystal lights. For a moment, he thought he saw something, a faint outline of the tunnel continuing much farther than should have been visible in the darkness. He blinked, and the impression vanished, leaving only the blue-lit stone a few paces ahead.

"There," Rannek said suddenly, pointing to a small copper symbol embedded in the wall. It resembled a stylized pickaxe crossed with what might have been a crystal formation.

He nodding approvingly. "Good eyes. This marks the first section." He turned to face them both. "From here, I want you to take the lead. Proceed carefully, stay alert. I'll be right behind you."

He exchanged a nervous glance with Rannek. This was it, their first real test. Rannek gave him a small nod of encouragement, and together they moved forward, past the copper sigil and into the marked section.

The tunnel continued for several dozen paces before opening into a wider chamber. Stalactites hung from the ceiling like stone teeth, while corresponding stalagmites rose from the floor. In places, they had joined to form columns that seemed to support the weight of the mountain above. Small pools of water dotted the floor, reflecting their crystal lights in rippling blue patterns.

"Beautiful," his voice hushed in reverence.

"The Petrakahrn call these formation chambers," the dragonkin said from behind them. "They leave them largely untouched out of respect for the stone's natural artistry."

As they moved further into the chamber, he noticed something odd. The pulse that had been so steady through the tunnel seemed to change here, not in rhythm but in how he perceived it. Each beat sent a faint wash of color across his vision, like blue ripples spreading outward from a central point. He blinked rapidly, wondering if it was a trick of the crystal light.

"Do you see that?" he asked Rannek quietly.

"See what?" his friend replied, scanning the chamber.

"The colors, when the pulse hits."

Rannek looked at him strangely. "What colors?"

Before he could explain, a skittering sound drew their attention to the far side of the chamber. Something was moving among the stalagmites, something small and quick.

"Get ready," Brannic murmured, his voice low but carrying clearly to their ears. "Remember your training."

Kaelid gripped his knife tightly, his heart suddenly pounding in his chest. Beside him, Rannek had adopted a defensive stance, knees slightly bent, weight balanced evenly on both feet.

From between two columns emerged a creature about the size of a large rat, but clearly reptilian in nature. Its scales were a dull gray-green that blended with the stone, and its eyes gleamed yellow in the crystal light. A forked tongue flicked out, tasting the air. Then another appeared beside it, and a third, until a small group of the lizards had gathered, watching the intruders with predatory interest.

"Cave lizards, they chew through support timbers and weaken tunnel structures. They consider them pests."

As if responding to his voice, the lizards began to advance, moving with surprising speed across the chamber floor. Their claws clicked against the stone in a counterpoint to the mine's steady pulse.

"Remember," the Dragonkin instructed calmly from behind them, "they hunt in packs and try to surround their prey. Don't let them get behind you."

Kaelid and Rannek moved instinctively to stand back-to-back, a defensive position they had practiced countless times with Curio. The lizards circled them, hissing softly, yellow eyes unblinking.

The first attack came without warning. One of the larger lizards darted forward, jaws snapping at his leg. He reacted instantly, stepping aside and bringing his knife down in a swift arc. The blade caught the creature across its back, drawing a line of dark blood. The lizard shrieked and retreated, but two more immediately took its place.

Beside him, Rannek was dealing with his own attackers, his movements fluid and precise. He caught one lizard with a kick that sent it tumbling across the stone floor, then slashed at another that had leaped for his arm.

Strangely, he felt calm, even as danger closed in around him. The world seemed to slow around him, each movement of the lizards telegraphed slightly before it happened. When one lunged for his ankle, he found his foot already moving out of the way, as if his body had anticipated the attack a fraction of a second before his mind registered it.

Another lizard sprang from a nearby stalagmite, aiming for his face. Without conscious thought, Kaelid ducked, feeling the creature's claws whisper through the air where his head had been. His knife found the lizard's underbelly as it passed overhead, and it fell to the ground with a final hiss.

The remaining lizards, seeing their companions defeated, scattered into the shadows of the chamber, disappearing into cracks and crevices in the walls.

He stood breathing heavily, adrenaline still coursing through his veins. He turned to check on Rannek, who appeared equally winded but unharmed.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

"Well done," Brannic rumbled from where he had been observing. "You handled yourselves better than I expected."

"Did you see that last one?" Rannek asked him excitedly. "It came right at your head!"

"I don't know how I dodged it," he admitted, looking down at the dead lizard. "I just... knew it was coming somehow."

The large man's slitted eyes narrowed slightly at this, but he made no comment. Instead, he gestured toward a tunnel leading out of the far side of the chamber. "The marked section continues that way. Let's proceed."

As they moved on, he found himself replaying the encounter in his mind. How had he known exactly when and where the lizards would strike? It wasn't just training or instinct. It was as if he had glimpsed the movements an instant before they occurred, like seeing the shadow of an action before the action itself.

The next tunnel was narrower than the first, forcing them to proceed in single file. Brannic took up the rear, his bulk nearly filling the passage. The walls here were lined with copper ore, rich veins of the metal glinting in their crystal light. Wooden supports appeared at regular intervals, many showing signs of damage from the lizards' teeth.

"The Petrakahrn reinforce these sections frequently," Brannic explained as they passed a freshly replaced beam. "The lizards are drawn to the sap in the wood."

The pulse beat continued beneath their feet, and with each throb, he experienced that strange wash of color across his vision. It was becoming more pronounced now, a definite blue-green ripple that expanded outward with each beat. He wondered if it had something to do with the crystal shard he had absorbed from Curio, but didn't voice the thought.

After several minutes of walking, the tunnel began to slope more steeply downward. The air grew noticeably cooler and damper, with moisture beading on the stone walls. The pulse beat strengthened, no longer just felt through their feet but resonating in their chests.

"We're approaching a major junction, stay alert. The deeper sections attract different kinds of vermin."

The tunnel eventually opened into another large chamber, this one clearly artificial. The walls were smooth and precisely carved, with geometric patterns etched into the stone. Several tunnels branched off in different directions, each marked with different Petrakahrn symbols. In the center of the chamber stood a large crystalline formation that pulsed with light in perfect synchronization with the beat they had been following.

"A pulse node," Brannic said, gesturing to the crystal. "The Petrakahrn use these to amplify and distribute the synchronization beat throughout the mine."

Kaelid approached the crystal cautiously, fascinated by its rhythmic glow. Each pulse sent a stronger wave of color washing across his vision, blue-green ripples that momentarily transformed the chamber into an underwater scene. He glanced at Rannek to see if his friend was experiencing the same phenomenon, but Rannek seemed focused on examining the symbols on the walls.

"Which way now?" Rannek asked, looking at the multiple tunnels.

Extending a clawed finger, the smith pointed to one marked with a copper sigil similar to the one they had seen earlier. "That's our next section to clear."

As they approached the indicated tunnel, a strange sound reached their ears, a soft, squelching noise unlike anything they had heard before. Brannic held up a hand, signaling them to stop.

"Walking fungus," he whispered, his nostrils flaring. "I can smell them. They're dangerous if they touch your skin. Their spores can cause hallucinations and fever."

He peered into the tunnel, straining to see in the dim light. At first, he saw nothing beyond the usual stone walls. Then, as he concentrated, the darkness seemed to recede slightly, details emerging that should have been invisible at that distance. He could make out movement about twenty paces in, shambling forms that glistened wetly in what little light reached them.

"I can see them," he said softly. "About twenty paces in. Three... no, four of them."

Brannic looked at him sharply. "You can see that far in this light?"

He blinked, suddenly uncertain. "I... I think so? They're like walking mushrooms, with caps on top and sort of... legs underneath?"

"That's an accurate description," his voice carefully neutral. "But they're well beyond the range of our crystal lights."

Rannek was looking at him with a mixture of confusion and concern. "I can't see anything past the first ten paces or so."

He felt a flutter of unease in his stomach. How was he seeing things he shouldn't be able to see? Was something wrong with him?

Brannic seemed to sense his distress. "We'll discuss this later," he said quietly. "For now, let's use this advantage. Tell us when they move closer."

Grateful for the reprieve, Kaelid focused again on the distant fungus creatures. They were indeed shaped like mushrooms, with broad caps atop slender stalks that had somehow evolved into leg-like appendages. They moved slowly, leaving glistening trails on the stone floor.

"They're coming this way," he reported. "Still moving slowly."

"Walking fungus are not aggressive, but they're territorial. They'll try to engulf anything that enters their space. We need to eliminate them before they can release their spores."

He reached into his pack and withdrew three cloths, handing one to each boy and keeping the third. "Wrap these around your lower face. They'll filter out any spores that might be released."

After securing the masks, Brannic continued with his instructions. "These creatures are vulnerable to fire and sharp edges. Cut them cleanly and avoid the fluid they release. It can burn skin and cause temporary blindness."

He gripped his knife, trying to still the trembling in his hands. These creatures sounded far more dangerous than the lizards.

"They're about fifteen paces away now," he informed the others, his voice muffled by the cloth.

"We'll wait until they're within range of all our vision, then attack together. Rannek, you take the leftmost one. Kaelid, the right. I'll handle the two in the center."

They waited in tense silence as the fungus creatures shambled closer. Soon, they came within range of the crystal lights, their pale, glistening bodies now visible to all three hunters. Their caps were a sickly white color mottled with purple spots, and they swayed slightly as they moved, as if struggling to maintain balance on their makeshift legs.

"Now," Brannic commanded, and they surged forward as one.

He darted toward his assigned target, knife held low as Curio had taught him. The fungus creature seemed to sense his approach, turning its cap toward him though it had no visible eyes. It raised what might have been arms, appendages dripping with viscous fluid.

Again, He experienced that strange prescience, a sense of knowing exactly where the creature would move before it did. When a glob of fluid shot toward him, he was already sidestepping, feeling it spatter harmlessly against the stone floor where he had been standing. The stone hissed and bubbled where the fluid touched it.

He circled the creature warily, looking for an opening. The fungus rotated to track him, its movements synchronized perfectly with the pulse beat of the mine. He realized he could use this to his advantage. If the creature could only move in time with the pulse...

He waited for the next beat, then darted forward in the brief interval between pulses. His knife slashed across what passed for the creature's midsection, cutting deeply into the fibrous stalk. A thick, milky fluid oozed from the wound, but he was already moving away, avoiding the dangerous substance.

The fungus creature tottered, its balance compromised. With the next pulse beat, it tried to turn toward him again, but the damaged stalk couldn't support the movement. It toppled sideways, cap hitting the stone floor with a wet smack. he moved in quickly to deliver a final strike, severing the stalk completely.

He looked up to see how the others were faring. Rannek had dispatched his target with similar efficiency, while Brannic had already finished both of his, the remains oozing across the stone.

He nodded, noting how Kaelid had timed his attack between pulse beats. "Well reasoned, you observed their limitation and exploited it."

He felt a surge of pride at the praise. "They could only move with the pulse," he explained. "Once I saw the pattern, it was easy to predict."

"The Petrakahrn call them 'Pulse-Bound,'" the dragonkin said, carefully wiping his blade clean on a spare cloth. "They evolved in the mines, adapting to the synchronization beat. It gives them structure but also makes them predictable."