The Immortal One

Chapter Five - The Light at the End of the Tunnel

The walk to the cave was long. Säyä had forgotten all about her fatigue, her exhaustion had melted away as the adrenaline flooded into her system. Three of the queen's daughters accompanied them on the journey. They moved with no sound, it was almost possible to forget that they were there - they were perfect predators. 

"She knew you...the queen I mean." Säyä hoped that speaking might make her feel more at ease. "You have been here before?"
"I have," he replied. "I met Aarykeh when she was a youngling, when her mother Rykaa was still queen of the Buukuu."
She knew that the beast-folk lived far longer than mankind, "How long ago was that?"
"Four hundred years ago." He spoke as if such a length of time was inconsequential. His nonchalance contrasted drastically with Säyä's wide-eyed wonder.
"Four...hundred...Will you tell me how old you are?"
"No," he answered in a tone that brokered no debate on the matter.
Säyä decided to change the subject of her inquiry.
"Why do they call you heartless?"
"I rescued Rykaa from spider slayers who had come to kill her. A spear pierced through my heart, and yet I rose again to finish the battle. That has been their name for me ever since."
Aetós told his brief tale without ever turning to face her, and maintained the pace that he had set.
She admitted to herself that she had not taken that title literally. After watching him offer those men up to be eaten alive...How could anyone with a Heart do such a thing?
I am no hero...
That is what he had told her. Perhaps this is part of what he meant.
"What are Hasalasa? Haslaasa? Whatever that word is. What kind of a name is that?"
"The beast-folk have their own tongue that is not rooted in either human or elfahs culture. The Haas'aas'aalaa are the serpent-folk, and they are very dangerous. You are to remain at my side at all times, and keep your totem held tightly to your breast."
Säyä had no qualms about heeding his words.
"I have only read of a few tribes of the beast-folk. The Dekaas are the half-dragons..." She knew that well. "Then there is the Shuunaan, the bird-folk, and the Haazdaa, the sharks of the sea. I also heard that there is a tribe of mantis people somewhere on the island of Hiikae-Järä. How many are there?"
"Dozens that are known, countless more that remain concealed from all. None of them are to be trifled with, their kind are strong and rightfully wary of mankind. They have been feared and hunted for years - over many generations, slayers and soldiers drove them from their homes, and cut down their forests. They used to call all of Lekäriiä home, and now they are mostly confined to the island of Aasuulyor off the coast. Some fled to Teldiir, like the Buukuu and the Haas'aas'aalaa. Others secluded themselves elsewhere. All beast-folk are mistrustful of your kind, as they should be."
"My kind?" Säyä had picked up on his choice of words. "Are you not of my kind as well?"
Aetós stopped, turned to her, and shook his head, "Not anymore."

The standing stone was engraved with symbols. It was clear that they had reached their destination. Aarykeh's daughter blew upon a horn made from hollowed out bones, and the serpents were upon them in moments.
"Three little spiderlingsss, wander far from home." Their voices were breathy and they emphasized the 's' sound as they spoke.
"Little spiderlingsss should know better than to ssstep where they do not belong."
Säyä stood completely still as they slithered between the five of them. She saw no sign of the features of men, by all rights they were snakes...albeit talking snakes.
"Tell usss, why do you come to this place?"
Säyä felt their words lulling her, hypnotically relaxing her.
Aetós held up his totem. "We are here to pass through your tunnels to the other side, to escape those that pursue us. Any that dare follow after us are yours to hunt. We bring you an offering as well."
The Buukuu relinquished their charges, two of the mercenaries, gift wrapped.
A pale white snake emerged from the cave, he was larger than the others. The Haas'aas'aalaa made way for this one as he slithered up to Aetós and rose so that he was twice as tall.
Is this the leader? The strongest rule among the beast-folk - he looks big enough.
"What have thessse mortalsss done, for Aarykeh to grant them protection?"
The spiderlings were each capable warriors in their own right, but they knew better than to challenge the authority of the king of the serpents.
The Buukuu proclaimed, "This man is no mortal. The heartless one is deserving of our mother's respect."
"The heartlessss one?" The pale snake drew near to get a better look at him. "Yet a mortal travelsss with him. What isss she to you?"
"She is my companion, and carries a totem of her own. Lord Oryshahn - the two of us, and our mounts, ask to cross through your lands in order to reach the coast."
Oryshahn's eyes fell upon Säyä, but she could not hold his gaze and so she looked away.
"I wasss told talesss of the heartlessss one from old Saaraas. He ssspoke of hisss unparalleled ssskill asss a warrior. Are you he? The one that challenged the king of sssnakes and lived?"
"I am."
"Then why not show me your power? Reveal to usss the ssstrength that wasss worthy of my sssire's ressspect."
Aetós stepped forward and their Wills clashed intensely. The serpents felt the strength of his conviction, and could see the ages of skill that sculpted his every movement. The controlled fury in his eyes was like a volcanic hurricane, and when the walls were taken away you could feel the storm raging within him. It was a torrent that could be unleashed at any moment.
Oryshahn hesitated for the briefest of moments, startled by what he saw and felt. It was enough for Aetós to take the upper hand. The energy shifted, and everyone knew it.
"I - am - He."
The king of serpents believed him.
"Then - by way of the truce that we have with the Buukuu, you are hereby granted sssafe passsage through our landsss. However..should you ever return, you will bring an offering worthy of the Haas'aas'aalaa, or you will know pain for an age."
Aetós nodded in agreement. The daughters of Aarykeh bowed to Aetós, bidding him farewell, and then set off to return to the 'widow's nest.'
Säyä kept one arm firmly around her totem, and held Aetós' wrist with the other.
"No harm will come to you." He assured her. She felt as if no one could stand against these creatures and live, and yet, his certainty moved her. She remembered the speed in which he had drawn his sword, and the destruction that he unleashed with such a simple action - and remembered who it was that she had at her side. The mighty Immortal One.

The tunnels were more spacious than she would have imagined. Säyä got the impression that there were far more of their kind that she had thought. The Haas'aas'aalaa made certain that the way before them was clear, so as not to betray their numbers. Their path was lit by the phosphorescent glow of mushrooms and moss that grew along the walls, and the ethereal glow of crystals above their heads. The stones formed clusters that seemed to go on and on in every direction. The cave network was comprised of tunnels beyond counting that twisted and curved as far as the eye could see.
Säyä was struck by the energy that flowed through them, it filled her with a sense of empowerment and passion. The boost was enough to keep her moving. She had never traveled so far so quickly in her life. She was pushing herself to her very limit.
Oryshahn had sent seven of his hunters to escort them, and then disappeared into one of the many pathways. She was glad, his presence was hard to bear.
Hours passed before they reached the end of the network. The sunlight streaming in from the cave's opening was to Säyä's great relief.
"Our agreement is concluded, be gone." They ordered.
Neither of them objected. They left the lands of the beast-folk behind, and emerged to the smell of ocean and air and the sound of birds.
"You have faced peril, and done well. The worst is over now."
She nodded gratefully. All at once her fatigue caught up with her. She swooned and fell as sleep claimed her.