Born of Shadow - Book 1 (complete)

Chapter 53

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Liam rubbed his cramped legs. He’d been crouched behind the boulder for over an hour now, waiting for the shadow creature to leave and trying to ignore the ghastly corpse in the cell next to him. The dragon stirred at one point and stretched its neck and wings. He hoped it would leave, but that hope soon faded as it lay back down.

The others had to be frantic by now. He’d promised them he’d be in and out, but he hadn’t anticipated wax handcuffs and the hive of horrors. If the dragon weren’t sitting there blocking the entrance, Liam might have come to the conclusion it had all been the delusions of a fatigued mind. He still could hardly believe he’d seen a shadow dragon being created.  

His eyes followed the winding path that disappeared into darkness. He wondered what lay beyond the darkness. More shadow creatures, probably, that and the beautiful but deadly woman who created them. He couldn’t be sure what was up there, but he couldn’t just sit here forever. Besides, there might be another way to escape from the top. And even if there was no escape, he would know if they were too late to save Kami’s Neina if he saw her in one of these terrible cells. For a moment he imagined having to tell Kami her Neina was dead and felt ill. He refused to retain the thought. He would find her grandmother alive.   

Liam stood up slowly, leaning against the boulder to support his weight. His legs had half fallen asleep. He quietly shook them and formed his plan. He’d stick to the shadows and hope the creature didn’t notice him. If the thing started chasing him, he could try to stop it with the laser saber, but he wasn’t sure he would be able to defeat a beast that size alone.

He began his ascent, clinging to the shadows and keeping a wary eye on the beast while checking out the corpses on his right. After looking back several times, he became satisfied that the shadow creature wasn’t going anywhere, and he focused his attention on finding the prisoners. 

The bodies in the cells were revolting. They reminded Liam of the dead frogs in jars of formaldehyde his class had dissected in high school, only it was a hundred times worse because these were people, after all. The only thing he found more disturbing than seeing them imprisoned this way was that after he’d passed about twenty or thirty, he’d become so desensitized to them that he couldn’t feel the horror as strong. It was just another body.

He continued his ascent around the wax lake, until at last he neared the end of the cells. Based on the picture he’d seen, Kami’s Neina was not among the dead. He supposed he ought to feel relieved, but there were other ways to dispose of bodies, so it wasn’t like he could be sure she was still alive. He wouldn’t put anything past this woman who had so casually and callously fed the beast. One curious thing he noticed was the higher and higher he climbed, the more well-preserved the bodies became, as if they were fresher, or more recently encased in wax.

Now that he had reached the top, he saw that the pathway extended down a tunnel. A light at the end illuminated his steps, and he peered around the corner to see a large cavern lit by more torches. The torch near Liam’s head sputtered and hissed as it burned the tar. The room was sparse, save for a few chairs and a single glass hexagonal cell filled with the milky wax. He rubbed his hand against the roughly textured wall, brought it to his nose, and sniffed. He smelled the same sweet nectar smell. 

Liam heard the jangling of keys and footfalls. Panicked, he looked around. There were only two entrances into the room, the one he’d come in and the one the noise was coming from. He could go back the way he came, but then he would be in the open if he tried to hide along the path. The closest place he could hide behind was several tiers back. That was too far to make a run for it. He scanned the room quickly and noticed a ledge. Maybe if he squeezed under that, it would work. He dove under the ledge just as two men walked into the room. He could only see their feet and legs up to the knees. They wore combat boots and black pants. 

He scrambled back further in the corner and bumped into something soft. Nearly jumping out of his skin, he turned to see what it was. He felt a small hand cover his mouth.

“Shhhh,” a girl’s voice whispered softly in his ear. 

“She can’t have gone far,” one of the men said in a low, raspy Arabic. They left the room. Liam sagged against the wall. If he’d gone the other direction, it would already be over. It didn’t bode well that this girl clearly had escaped. They would be back to search this room, probably soon.

“Is there another way out?” he whispered in Arabic.

“No. It’s just the dungeons back there. There’s a locked door, but not even the guards have that key. Only that woman.”

“The dungeons! Is there a woman named Layla Hassri in there.”

“There is a woman they call Layla,” the girl whispered. “I don’t know any other name.”

 “Is she alive?”

“For now.”

“What do you mean for now?” 

“She’s with the other group, the workers. The rest of us are to be fed to the machine.”

 “Who are the rest of you?” Liam asked.

“We are not strong enough to dig.”

“Fed to the machine? What does that mean?” 

Before she could say anything, they heard a chilling howl. 

He knew that sound. The vivid image of the corpse being eaten flashed through his mind. He could hear the pounding paws of a shadowy beast. It burst into the room, snarling and quivering, its pointed fangs dripping with drool. 

“Get behind me,” the girl whispered. “They don’t know you’re here.” 

“I can’t…”

The girl, who was surprisingly strong for her size, scooted in front of Liam. A moment later, the beast snapped his jaws around her foot and dragged her out. He reached for the girl’s fingers, but they slipped through his. He watched helplessly, her wide brown eyes pleading with him to help her, her screams reverberating through the cave. She couldn’t be more than seven or eight.    

“I thought so,” one of the men said, reentering the room. He crouched down, grabbed a fistful of dress and hauled her up. She struggled against the man, and he slapped her across the face.

“That’ll teach you to bite me,” he said. He was wearing a police uniform exactly like the ones Liam had seen in Alexandria. The creature refused to let go of her foot. The officer shook the girl, but it still hung on.

“I don’t think so. You’ve already filled your quota. Omar, get this greedy devil out of here.”

The man drew out a whip identical to the one the woman had been wearing. The green strands of energy hissed and popped. He cracked it against the beast’s back. The creature yowled and arched its back, dropping the bloodied, mangled foot. 

Then it growled and lunged at Liam. He pressed himself tightly into the corner. 

“Stupid beast,” the guard said. “We already found her." 

The whip cracked again, and the creature howled. The guard cracked it over and over, until the creature was completely subdued and meekly followed the second guard out. 

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This dedication goes out to a fabulous reader @katerinafot! Since I deal a lot in mythology, I think it's so cool she hails from Greece. :) I so appreciate her consistent reading and support of Born of Shadow. You can check out her writing by clicking in the dedication link above. Thanks @katerinafot!