The Bard of Xalir (Complete!)/The Archer of Adelbern (Complete)/Book 3 (Coming Soon)

Chapter 26: Below the Castle



Gunner was being kept in the royal dungeon, deep inside a cave system under the main castle. It was discovered soon after construction on the castle began. Rather than dig a whole new section for the dungeon, they decided to save time and money and use the existing cave. Only important political figures, or criminals with life charges, were placed there. You had to be sentenced by the king himself to wind up inside.

So why was Gunner there?

As far as I knew, individuals placed in the royal dungeon were publicly known. The king would normally announce the arrival of a new prisoner and why they were being sentenced. This was a tradition passed down through the generations. Yet, as far as I could tell, Gunner received no such announcement. Another sign of Trafford's deep-rooted corruption.

Zadona peeked around the corner, her elvish eyes suited to the darkness. There was no moonlight to guide us, only dim light from windows high above the street. She mimicked an owl's cry, a sign to move. Beth and I snuck forward. Once we were close enough to touch Zadona, she ran ahead to check the next corner.

It was slow going, but I was glad Zadona was being so vigilant. When it came to my own life, I had little to no problem risking my life for others. But when it came to Beth, I wanted her to be as safe as possible. Were it up to me, I would have preferred she stay in Xalir. Unfortunately, it was far too late for that.

After an hour of sneaking through the streets, we found ourselves at the gates to the castle. A few guards were standing outside. They were dressed in chainmail with elegant helmets made of steel. Due to the covered helmet they were wearing, I couldn't see where they were looking. I gulped as I stared at the swords attached to their hips.

"Do you remember when we used to steal peaches out of Dad's orchard?" asked Zadona. She spoke in a whisper, the wind blowing it away from the guards' ears toward ours.

"Is now really the time?" I asked.

"I remember," said Beth.

Zadona turned to speak to Beth directly. "Remember that song Norman taught us? The one to cover our footsteps?"

"I do," said Beth.

"Sing it for us, you'll be walking behind me. Norman, you'll be keeping us hidden. I trust you're good enough with your illusions for that?"

"Can't we try this another night? We should make a real plan," I said, watching the guards. One of them yawned, their hand unconsciously going to their sword.

"Gunner will be fighting in the arena soon. Before the fight, they'll want to move him closer. Tonight is the only night we can do this."

"Surely at least tomorrow will be fine?"

Zadona shook her head. "Too much light. It has to be tonight. Can you do this?"

I took a deep breath. Though I was feeling nervous, I had to believe that I was good enough. No, I was good enough. "I can."

"On the count of three, you both start and follow me. Stay close. Three. Two. One."

Beth began to sing. Her voice never reached the guards, nor did it reach my ears. Her mouth opened and closed like she was signing, yet nothing came out of it. While she sang, I played my new mandolin, imagining the sound cloaking us in a protective fog. If someone was watching us, it would have seemed like we had disappeared.

We crept to the back of the castle. There was a small wall that we leapt over, leading to the queen's garden. Besides a few hedges, it was too dark to make out any details. A shame, I would have liked to explore. Perhaps once all this was done. Zadona led us through the garden to an unsuspecting wooden door. Inside was a staircase leading down into the depths.

It took us more than five minutes to reach the bottom of the stairs. Not because we were going slow, but because the royal dungeon was that far underground. Thank the gods we didn't pass anyone on the way. If we had, we would have had to back up all the way to the top or take them out. The stairs were too narrow to pass them easily.

There were no cells at the bottom of the stairs. Instead, the stairs ended at the entrance to the cave system. The stark contrast between the carved stairwell and the natural cave wall was frightening. Like leaving the world of the living and entering Hades. It became hard to breathe.

Zadona didn't stop. She continued into the darkness of the chthonic cave, now immersed in shadow. I wanted to follow her, but my legs wouldn't move. Beth gently pushed me forward, but I stayed still. My breath quickened, my heart pounded in my chest. Echoing from deeper inside the cavern, was a faint whistling sound.

He was here.

"Norman?" whispered Beth. She stepped in front of me. It was so dark I couldn't see her face. I could only feel her presence. "Are you okay?"

Gripping the leather strap of my new mandolin—which really needed a good name—I answered, "Yeah. I'll be fine."

After taking a deep breath, I went deeper into the cave. There was a faint glow that seemed to grow brighter the deeper we got. Eventually, I could make out Zadona and Beth. They crouched behind a corner, staring at something on the other side. I snuck up behind them and peeked over their heads.

The natural cave floor abruptly ended. Wooden planks were set into the floor, the walls lined with bricks. Metal doors lined the walls with lanterns set on the wall beside them. The hallway continued past our vision. A shrill whistle pierced the air. It was so loud I covered my ears.

Then it stopped. We all held our breath as we waited. Was it a guard? A prisoner that had heard us coming? There was no one in the hallway, and we would have been able to hear someone behind us, so I pressed forward. Zadona grabbed my arm.

"Norman, stop," she hissed quietly. But not quietly enough.

"Norman? Norman Benson?"

We heard laughter from further down the hall. Now that our cover was blown, I slid out of Zadona's grasp and walked toward the voice. I knew it well, for it belonged to Gunner, the Rebel King.

"Norman, wait!" exclaimed Beth.

"You're not supposed to be down here, Norman," said Gunner, his voice sounding weak.

I walked up to the metal door I assumed he was behind. "Neither are you."

He coughed. "I agree. We are both displaced."

Zadona and Beth moved closer, trying their best to stay silent. The whistling sound hadn't returned. Since I couldn't hear any of the other prisoners, I assumed it had been Gunner, and paid it no more attention. When they reached the door, Zadona pulled out a lockpick set and began opening the door.

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"What are you doing?" I asked.

She glared at me. "We're taking him with us."

"That wasn't part of the plan," said Beth, putting her hand on the door as if that would keep it closed.

"We can't stay down here and question him," said Zadona, glaring at the two of us.

"And who says I'll go with you," said Gunner. "How can I trust you?"

"Trust us?" I asked, balling my hands into fists. "How can we trust you?"

"I wasn't the one who betrayed you, Norman. Never once did I lie to you, or deceive you in any way. We were allies; or at least, that's what I thought."

"I was never on your side."

A loud sigh came from his side of the door. "Yes, I know that now."

The lock clicked as Zadona finished picking it. I immediately placed my hand on the door next to Beth's. "We're not taking him with us."

"He could be our key to defeating Trafford," said Zadona. "Set your fears aside and—"

"I'm not going," said Gunner. "If you want to make it out of here alive, you'll leave now. I'm sure the guards are already on their way."

"Not before you tell us everything you know about Trafford," I said, banging my fist on the door.

There was a brief moment of silence. "What's there to tell? He was a merchant I found on my travels. In exchange for working for him, he helped me. We became friends, but as I've quickly learned my concept of friendship differs from the rest of the world."

"How did you get here?" I asked.

"King Bagheera was approached with a simple offer. My life in exchange for an endless supply of food. I don't blame him for making that deal, I would too. As long as I am here, my people will not know hunger. I only hope that eventually, they won't have to rely on him any longer."

"So you can't escape without harming the other harska?" asked Beth.

"Precisely. I will remain in my cell until I am called," said Gunner.

"Does Trafford have any weaknesses?" asked Zadona. "Any deals he doesn't want to be made public? Any secrets he has?"

"I'm sure by now you know he has the monarchy working for him," said Gunner. "Beyond that, there is little else I can think of."

The whistling began again, but it wasn't coming from Gunner's cell. Panic spread through me like wildfire. I gently, but firmly, pushed Zadona and Beth out of the way and threw open the door. Gunner was sitting at the back of his cell, his tail curled around his waist. His fur was matted, his yellow eyes surrounded by dark circles and heavy bags.

"You should have run," he said. There was sadness in his voice. I had no pity for him.

I knelt in front of him and grabbed his shoulders. "Gunner, we need more. You have to know something. Anything!"

His tail curled and uncurled. He licked his teeth, the smell of fish heavy on his breath. When he looked up into my eyes, I saw a flash of the king I met so long ago. "Piopus. Your former master. He doesn't know."

Beth grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the cell. Zadona drew her bow—and in one quick motion—sent several arrows down the hall. The last thing I saw before I was pulled away from Gunner was that spark of pride fade away from his eyes. His last act as the Rebel King. I hated him, but I also hated seeing him fade away like that.

"Thank you," I yelled behind me. "You are the pride of your people!"

The whistling was deafening. It seemed to come from all sides, enveloping us in its shrill tone. I swung my mandolin around to my chest. Running my fingers across the strings, I tried to counter the sound. Countering it would cancel the noise only for a bit. I had to find the note they were playing and play the notes on either side of it. By playing them in a repeating pattern, I would be able to silence them.

Thank the gods they were only whistling one note, it was easy to counter it. Now that it was mostly silent, we could hear feet banging against the cavern floor. They were coming down the stairwell. There were brief grunts of pain as Zadona's arrows made contact.

She pointed down the hallway. "We'll find another way. Go!"

While I hesitated, Beth ran ahead. I quickly followed. Even though I didn't want to leave Zadona behind, I knew she could handle herself. She had so far. We reached a fork, with more empty hallways filled with cells on each side. Beth turned left, so I followed. Zadona wasn't far behind us, though she stopped every few feet to slow down the guards with her arrows.

We turned a few more times. It seemed like the royal dungeon was made of an endless maze of cells and empty hallways. Prisoners banged against their cell doors, begging us to help them. Even if I wanted to, there was no time. Our pursuers were right behind us. No matter how fast we ran, they got closer and closer.

Beth made one last turn. As I turned the corner to follow her, my heart stopped. A dead end. Zadona wasn't far behind me. "Let's turn back!" she yelled.

It was no use, we were trapped. Pointed spears blocked the way back, held by the royal guards. The insignia of the royal family was emblazoned on their gauntlets. Zadona dropped her bow, raising her hands above her head. Beth and I followed her example. What else could we do?

"Face the wall!" One of the guards yelled.

I had seen all of this before. Sneaking into a dangerous location, almost finding what we were looking for, and getting caught with nothing to show for it. No, I wasn't going to go through all that again. Not with Beth. Not with Zadona. Things were different now.

"Drop!" I shouted.

Without hesitation, Beth and Zadona dropped to the floor. I pointed the head of my mandolin at the crowd of guards. Gritting my teeth, I strummed all the strings at once. Electricity vibrated through the sacred wood. A bolt of lightning shot through the tip, crashing through the guards.

The lightning jumped from guard to guard, either knocking them to the wall or blasting them back. Grabbing Zadona and Beth's hands, I pulled them up and set them running past the disoriented guards. I picked up Zadona's bow and threw it to her. She caught it, and let loose a barrage of arrows into the few guards still standing.

I jumped over the fallen guards and ran after my companions. Since I stopped playing my counter song, the piercing whistle resumed. It vibrated in my ears, making it hard to think. If Beth or Zadona were affected, they made no sign of it. Zadona seemed as focused as ever, while Beth pointed out dangers either of us missed.

"Two more, left hall," said Beth. A spear grazed Beth's shoulder, cutting through her sleeve and drawing blood. Zadona loosed two more arrows. By my count, she had ten left.

What could we have done better? That's what I asked myself as we ran away from the royal guards. How could we have avoided this mess? Should I have gone alone? Gone at a different time? Asked Gunner fewer questions? The shrill whistle made it hard to think. I couldn't help but wonder if all of this was my fault.

"Norman, behind you!"

I only had a second to dodge out of the way as a spear went flying over my head. Even after my spell, the guards were in hot pursuit. There was only one thing I could do. One final desperation. Grabbing my mandolin, I began playing the song of strength. We needed to be faster. As long as we got out of the dungeon, we would be fine.

The extra speed helped. As we reached the stairwell leading out of the dungeon, the guards were far behind us. Zadona stopped and waved us forward, choosing to guard our ascent. I glanced at her quiver, three arrows left. Beth led the way, skipping over several steps as she seemed to jump up the stairs. Blood dripped down her arm at a nauseating rate.

After climbing a few stairs, I looked back to make sure Zadona was following us. She wasn't.

"Come on!" I yelled, reaching my hand toward her.

She shook her head. "I need to make sure—"

I grabbed her arm and pulled her up. "You're coming with us."

"Norman, I—"

Our eyes met. "No," I said. "You're coming with us."

I could see it in her eyes. Regret, confusion, panic, a desire to make up for the past, a desire to run away from it. Behind the fierce archer was the little girl waiting on her adopted family's doorstep. The girl who found two little thieves and turned them into friends. Who had left to become a hero, and found herself a villain.

Those emotions were washed away by determination. Zadona stepped up, moving past me on the stairs. "We better catch up."

Beth was barely visible in the distance, quickly disappearing into the shadows. "You first," I said, grinning.

Even with the song of strength, climbing the stairs was exhausting. There was no sign we were getting any closer to the top, nor any sign of our pursuers. At least the whistling was gone. All I could hear was the echo of the song in my ears and the sound of our feet scraping against the stairs.

"I'm sorry," grunted Zadona. "For all of it."

"Save it for the top," said Beth. She was breathing heavily and her face was pale.

A few minutes later, we burst out into the royal gardens. I wanted to collapse on the ground, but we were still in danger. Zadona quickly surveyed our surroundings, then helped us get over the wall back into the city. We moved quickly and carefully to avoid being in anyone's sight. Once it was safe, I healed Beth's shoulder.

There were no more dangers on the road back to the mansion.


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