Libertatem's Story Thread

Her hand tightened around the longsword handle. “We should report this.” Something felt very wrong with this place. There weren’t supposed to be any ruins this far into the forest. Even the plant life refused to go inside. The moss and vegetation stopped at the entrance, the old stone clean just inches inside.

“And we will… after we know what we’ve found.” Cera tapped her on the back with the side of her bow. “I think we can handle a little a few monsters.”

“It’s not the monsters I’m worried about.” Aileen turned to look at her friend. “This place is evil.”

Cera rolled her eyes. “Here we go again.” The younger elf walked past her, her fingers grazing her arm lightly as she moved. “I’m going in. Stay here or go back if you want.”

She should go back and warn the clan leader. They could send an entire unit to explore the ruin. Cera would never go back with her without satisfying her curiosity. If she let the chief’s youngest daughter die alone in the ruin they would call her a murderer. “I’m not going to let you go in alone.” Aileen took one step into the doorway. Nothing happened.

Cera laughed. “See? Nothing to be afraid of.” Her friend hooked their arms together and leaned into her. “I’ll protect you,” the princess cooed into her ear.

“I’m not afraid,” Aileen barked with a confidence that she didn’t truly have. “I just have a bad feeling.”

They walked into the crypt and took their first step down the dark stairway. Cera turned her head, smirking ear-to-ear. “The great Aileen, best warrior in the clan, scared of a few old rocks and spiders.”

“If you say that I’m scared one more time I’ll bury you in this tomb.”

Cera spun around and walked backwards down into the crypt. “Ooo! There she is. My fearless protector has returned to me.” She spun around and skipped down the remainder of the steps.

Aileen sighed. Why she had accepted the honor of being the princess’s bodyguard was something she wondered about daily. “Your father should find someone else to deal with you.”

Cera nocked an arrow in her bow and raised it, ready to clear the next room. “How many times have I heard that line?” The girl looked up at her in a rare, serious moment. “I have never forced you to on one of my adventures. You always come willingly.” She laughed as she realized the double meaning of her words. “Take that whichever way you like.”

Aileen drew her sword and readied herself. The first room’s ceiling was covered in web. A hair spider clung to the corner, glaring at them with its bright red eyes. The girl was careless. Cera stepped into the doorway, raised her bow and loosed an arrow, hitting the spider in its abdomen. It lunged and Cera spun, striking its head with her bow. She drew her dagger and plunged it into the beast’s skull, its screeching filling the room.

Aileen ran past her friend as she reloaded and raised her longsword. A second spider scurried across the floor. She swung, cleaving its head off with one stroke. The remainder of the spider flipped on its back, its legs curling into a ball. The severed head’s mouth opened and closed one last time.

Cera lowered her bow, groaning with disappointment. “Is that it?”

“That screech will attract more of them. We should move.”

“If there even are more. Look at the webs,” she said pointing to the ceiling. “I bet there aren’t more than a dozen spiders here.” Cera had been right. The fear she had felt when arriving at the crypt faded after each empty room they cleared. Not even so much as a rat was dwelling in the dark passageways. “It’s too bad, I was almost certain there would be something down here.”

“There isn’t anything here. It’s not even as big as I thought it would be.” Aileen sheathed her sword. “We should go back now.”

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