“Anything?”

Jeremiah looked about. Little light crept down through the scattered holes above him. The effect created dim shafts that speared the pit. The one thing he could discern was how dusty the space was. His knees scratched against the rough stone of the wall and every time he placed his hands to steady his descent, he could feel a thin film stick to his skin.

“Lower!”

The taunt rope suddenly slackened, sending him on a short, gut-wrenching plummet before it stabilized and Jeremiah breathed a sigh of relief that he still wasn’t dead.

Course, he was thankful that Keirn thought of lowering him down with the rope instead of blindly jumping off like he imagined. And given the distance he’d already descended, he knew he’d saved himself some serious injury at the very least. But the depth of the pit was much deeper than he first anticipated and he waited for his eyes to adjust to the even dimmer lightning before calling to be dropped even lower.

This entire line of thinking, however, seemed pretty counter-intuitive to Jeremiah. They wanted to go higher to escape, not deeper.

“Lower!”

In the darkness, something seemed to form. He squinted, hoping it was the floor.

“Could I get some more light?”

“What?”

“LIGHT!”

There was the sound of scuffling above and Jeremiah waited, dangling slowly in the air and wondering how long this rope could hold his weight. Then, the walls seemed to be washed in dry orange before he looked up to see a torch plummeting straight for him. He cried, kicking from the wall as the burning wood tumbled by in a flash of heat. He watched it drop, clattering seemingly twenty feet below him.

“Anything?”

“Lower!”

Down and down he was dropped until he felt he was close enough. He then struggled with the tight knots about his waist. Slowly, he began to wiggle the rope loose of his confines until the rope slid from its loops and dropped him roughly on the ground. There was some more shuffling before a distant call echoed down.

“Are you dead?!”

“No!” Jeremiah groaned, as he rolled on his side and immediately regretted not having them lower him further. His chest hurt from where he’d landed but he looked around to gather his surroundings.

The torch still burned close by and he scooped it up, directing the flame towards the darkness.

Small piles of broken tiles littered the rough floor. As Jeremiah took a step, a cloud of dust and dirt exploded upwards and rolled out into the dark. He took his time examining the place, the light of the torch settling over a few tell-tale scattered bones that littered the floor.

However, from his brief inspection, he could not find a way out of the pit. He turned, making his way back to the rope when something caught his eye. Holding the torch above his head, he looked on in wonder at the expansive mural that had been carved into the pit wall.

Great men met upon a lavish field, brandishing swords, spears and bows in their naked hands. Two clear forces engaged each other in a devastating combat. On the one side, came an unimaginable beautiful people from the valleys and hills. Robes and capes fluttered from their lithe, muscular frames. Opposing them was a terrifying band of warriors with wicked weapons and iron helms on their heads. They seemed to swoop down from the very skies as if the clouds had borne them like great boats to this confrontation.

As Jeremiah studied the ancient artwork, a great clatter and shouting erupted above him. He turned, holding his torch to illuminate the shape of a figure quickly descending down the rope. At first he’d assumed that Keirn had grown tired of waiting and was surprised to see Amber dropping the last couple of feet to the floor.

“Where is it?!” she hissed, spinning around.

“Where’s what?”

There was more commotion above them and as Jeremiah turned to look, Amber lunged unexpectedly at him. For such a petite girl, she had a ferocious strength as she grabbed the torch and wrestled it from Jeremiah’s hands.

“Where’s the exit!” she yelled, waving the torch menacingly to keep Jeremiah at bay.

“I didn’t say there was one down here.”

“Where is it! Don’t try hiding it from me!”

She backed away from him, the torch waving madly in the darkness. She stumbled over a pile of debris, cursing in the darkness before scampering to her feet once more.

In the play between dark and light, she appeared different to him. The shadows seemed to harden the features of her face, turning that once round and soft visage into one of steeled malice. A frantic, almost maniacal, spirit seemed to possess her as she stumbled around. Was this the woman he had once loved? She seemed so remarkably changed from that sweet thing he’d once doted over.

Jeremiah turned from the mural, following slowly after her. Somewhere in the dark, he found his voice.

“I must know – why did you do it? Why did you leave me?”

“You all tried to kill me!” she hissed. “You’d leave me here to die!”

“No, not now. I mean before. Back at Galt.”

“You want to know why? You want to know the real reason!”

And Jeremiah had to pondered the proposition. He had often asked himself, alone in his bunk staring up at the rafters of his small house. He wondered if there was something he could have done. He wondered if he had offended her somehow. He wondered if there was no way for him to make things up with her.

He had feared a confrontation, almost terrified to know what reasons had torn them apart. But if he were to close that chapter of his heart, he had to know the truth.

“Tell me.”

The torch paused its examination of the walls for a secret door. Red hair turned, locking those vibrant eyes with his. For a brief moment, that enchanting smile spread across her lips. But that smile was only a vestige of something long dead. Instead, a wicked sneer quickly took hold.

“Have you looked at yourself recently? Please, Jeremiah, it was a fantasy. I am the daughter of the Gothar. I am a direct link to the divines. And what of you? You’re nothing more than some fat, ugly northern barbarian. I can have my pick of any man in the village and you think I’d settle for you?”

And she began to laugh.

But to Jeremiah, it was like some spell had been lifted. Whatever fear had clenched his heart seemed to release. The beauty of the girl seemed to melt away in that moment, driven back like so many shadows before the breaking dawn. All he saw then, in that dank pit, was what she truly was stripped of her fancy clothes and manicured features. Standing naked before him, she was little more than a repulsive, petulant child.

And it was Jeremiah’s turn to laugh.

The sound shook off the walls, reverberating through the small space to come echoing ferociously back upon her. It struck harder than any sword and she seemed to stumble back from its onslaught.

“Why are you laughing?” she demanded.

And Jeremiah found he couldn’t stop. It seemed so ludicrous that it was almost hard to believe it was even true. How could he have ever imagined being with this girl? How had he spent so many nights envisioning the rest of his life with her? He had stupidly looked towards those pegs and pretended to see her cloak dangling from them. It was like some cruel cosmic joke. If there were any gods, then they would certainly be devious tricksters. They were not these romantic visions etched into the walls.

“Stop laughing!”

The self righteousness of her indignation only made Jeremiah laugh even harder. His whole body shook from it that he could feel his sides begin to hurt as if they were about to split. Even if he wanted he didn’t think he could stop himself now. And as his voice rose, so did hers.

She let out an ear piercing scream, dropping the torch as his laughs seemed to pin her in from all sides. She raised her hands to her ears in an attempt to block it out. But from the darkness it felt like an entire chorus of people had come to mock and ridicule her.

“Stop it! STOP! IT!” she shouted. “I’m the daughter of the Gothar! Shut UP! I demand you shut up!”

She flung herself at him, but she was nothing. Her fists were little more than feeble taps like raindrops throwing themselves uselessly against the mountains. She tried to dig her nails in, to cut at the laughter and crush it in her fingers. Jeremiah merely lifted his arms to deflect her assault away.

“I’m the important one! Shut up! She’s just some ugly little daughter of some filthy whore!”

She screamed at her phantoms, retreating back until she pressed up against the wall. Frightened, she clutched at her ears, trying in vain to block out the unending mockery crashing upon her.

“I’m not crazy! I’m not! These visions – they are of the divine! A gift!”

But still the laughter and rejection assaulted her from all sides.

“There’s nothing wrong with me. Nothing! It’s the others that are wicked! It’s the others we must be wary of! She brought this upon us. Not I!”

In the darkness, Jeremiah could see tears begin to trickle down her cheeks as Amber’s inner demons seemed to consume her in the shadows. She huddled and shook by herself – abandoned by those that had been near. As Jeremiah slowly calmed and gathered his senses, the girl he’d loved seemed to lose herself completely in the dark.

A rumble and crumble of tiles signalled movement from above. Minutes seemed to pass in the dark and Jeremiah move to the torch barely burning at Amber’s feet. He gently breathed upon the flames, slowly building them into a brightening glow once more. The girl flinched before the flames, crawling away from the revealing light as if it burned at her very skin. He turned towards the hole and dangling rope, watching a dark lump slowly inching its way down. A scramble behind him caused him to turn and he saw, wordlessly, the retreating back of the priestess as she fled into the shadows.

Jeremiah waited as the others slowly made the descent into the pit. Kait took the longest, having to slide her numerous bags down first before committing herself to the climb.

“Where’d the strumpet get off to?” Keirn asked, approaching Jeremiah’s side.

“She ran off. Don’t know where. What happened up there?”

“Took a good swing at Keirn!” Derrek announced happily. “Looked like she was going for the eyes then she hurried down after you.”

“Why’d she do that.”

“Keirn was threatening to throw her after you since you were taking so long,” Aliessa sighed. She gave a brief shout as another of Kait’s bags clattered behind them. Somewhere amongst her folds a frightened bird gave a chirp.

“Are you okay?” Keirn asked. “You look… different.”

“Different?”

“Odd. I don’t know. You didn’t kill her did you?”

Keirn looked at the scattered bones on the ground.

Jeremiah only shook his head.

“We talked before she left. Cleared some things up.”

“You know she’s crazy right?” Keirn asked.

“As a jaybird.”

“Good because some of the things she’s said…” Keirn shook his head. “Nevermind. I’m sure Kait will be glad we never have to hear from her again.”

A shocked shout drew their attention back to the rope and they found Kait struggling to extract herself from the pile of bags. Keirn hurried to her side, chiding her as he fished her out from among her things. She looked back up the way they came, giving the rope a soft tug.

“We’re not going to leave this behind, are we?” she asked.

“Unless you plan on climbing up and fetching it, it’s probably best to leave it.”

“What is this, anyway?” Aliessa asked, stepping to Jeremiah’s side and taking a look at the murals over the walls.

“Ah, see! I knew this was the way to go,” Derrek said. “That’s why the answer was ‘exit.’”

“Dear, you’re not making sense.”

“It’s simple, the floor above us was a trap.”

“Really, you think?” Keirn said.

“But the solution itself was a false lead. See, if we’d successfully crossed and gone out the door, it would have sealed anyway. And from the looks of the cables overhead, the final corridor has already been coated in a flammable grease. Had we arrived through that exit, we’d have been roasted like a boar.”

“He’s not actually being serious, is he?” Kait whispered.

“This way should do it!” Derrek announced, heading into the darkness after plucking the torch from Jeremiah’s hands.

“Just get your bags,” Keirn said. He stepped to Jeremiah’s side as they formed rank. He pulled the long rod from his sleeves, admiring it in the light of Jeremiah’s torch. “At least we still have this to show for our troubles.”

“Seems rather fortunate that she found it before we did,” Jeremiah said.

“Not really. This isn’t the first time that Mai-” Keirn stopped mid-sentence, looking quickly at Jeremiah.

The dark man scowled.

“What was that?”

“Quite a little puzzle, that. I guess we’ll never know for sure.”

“You knew she would be here!” Jeremiah cried, grabbing his friend by the wrist before he could sneak off.

Keirn shook his head.

“I didn’t know she’d be here. But I won’t say it was a surprise. And you seemed so excited when we first bumped into her that I wasn’t going to bring it up. Then there was the whole issue of the creature chasing her and then getting stuck in all those traps and it… just never seemed like the right time to mention it.”

“So this whole damnable adventure had been a trap from the start!”

“This way!” Derrek called, waving the group towards a darkened passage. As the torch drew closer it revealed a set of stairs leading up.

“Look, it’s not my fault that we’re mortal enemies with a woman who has seemingly unending underworld connections.”

“We agreed we wouldn’t deal with that witch again!” Jeremiah cried. Keirn hissed at him.

“Look, the others don’t know and I don’t see why they have to.”

“I’m not keeping your lies now! I can’t believe I agreed to all of this.”

“You agreed because you know you’re needed. Without you, who would be our moral compass?”

“But you don’t ever listen to me!”

“That’s not true. We didn’t throw the tart down the pit and now we’re all better people for it.”

Jeremiah sighed. But perhaps his friend did have a point. Deep down he didn’t really think they would throw her in but maybe that’s because they knew he would intervene. Perhaps it wasn’t the strangers that needed to look up to him at all.

“Oh, before I forget, we packed these up for you,” Keirn said. He held out Jeremiah’s scabbard. “But I thought it might be wise to at least give this to you for now. Who knows what else we’ll come across.”

Jeremiah took the sword. They paused at the top of the stairs as he handed the torch to Keirn then wrapped the leather thong around his waist. The metal of the scabbard slapped against his unarmoured side and to feel the blade against him without his armour on was a strange sensation. But he patted the handle, its presence somehow easing his mind.

“We really need to get you something new,” Keirn said.

“This is just fine.”

“No, look. The reward for this little beauty is quite high. And now that she-who-we-don’t-speak-of has to pay all of us for retrieving it instead of just the little tart, we’ll have plenty enough coin to get you something a little more respectable. Something a bit more knightly.”

“It’s fine,” Jeremiah said. “It’s really not important how it looks but what I do with it that matters.”

And Keirn regarded him curiously as the girls pressed by to continue on after Derrek.

“I’m… glad to hear it. But I insist we get you something. At the very least, let’s get that awful armour of yours repaired.”

“Fine but I’m not sure how comfortable I am with giving her some ancient powerful relic.”

Keirn turned the rod over in his hands. He looked down the corridor to make sure the girls were out of earshot before looking back at Jeremiah.

“Look, if the ancient murals are anything to go by I don’t think her abuse of this artefact is really going to be an issue. From what I can gather it’s for…” Keirn paused as he tried to think of some tact. “Let’s just say its powers are for personal use.”

Jeremiah shook his head.

“Now you’re joking.”

Keirn smiled.

“Buddy, you’ve been missing out a lot by skipping temple. Come on, let’s get out of this dusty place and I can tell you more. Who knows, the gods may not be as bad as you think.”

They hurried down the corridor to catch up with their compatriots. However, as they approached, they found the others standing before a great iron door. The girls were watching Derrek expectantly as the young man pulled anxiously on the bars.

At the sound of their approach, all three turned around and began shouting. But as Jeremiah stepped into the room, he felt the floor shift slightly. A pressure plate slide beneath his weight and before they could react, a crash of metal sounded behind them. They turned to see a second metal gate had sealed them in.

“Turns out I was wrong,” Derrek muttered. “Seems like it was a trap all along.”

A rumble in the distance caused each member to turn with concern to the other. Jeremiah looked at Keirn.

“I still hate temples.”

“Come with me.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Why should I?!”

Jeremiah stabbed the crackling logs within the fire pit. A swirl of embers twisted upwards, dancing briefly like small fireflies before burning their little bodies out in a bright flash of light and heat.

Jeremiah lifted the lid of the pot suspended over flames. The fresh squash was beginning to cook nicely and the heady scent of herbs filled his nostrils. He stirred the mashed vegetable with a long ladle, hopeful to not burn it to the bottom this time.

Keirn sat at the table, still dressed in his travelling garb. The shadows from the fire played across his eager face, ringing an almost hungry expression in his eyes. But it was not food that his friend sought. There was something else behind his sudden return and Jeremiah was suspicious of some further play behind his request.

“I have to wonder over your insistence in remaining here,” Keirn said, thrumming his fingers against the table. “It must be awfully lonely now.”

Jeremiah turned towards the pegs by the front entrance. Most lay empty now. His brothers and sister had long since moved out, having met spouses of their own and having houses of their own to tend. The only cloak that didn’t belong to him had remained unmoved upon its peg for quite some time now. And yet, even though its owner was never coming back to claim it, Jeremiah couldn’t find the motivation to throw it away.

And it wasn’t particularly out of some grander fondness for his mother. He liked her well enough, but to him she had been a bit of a tyrant. The youngest of four and the third brother to boot, he offered little to the household and his lineage other than another mouth to feed long after his mother cared for rearing young.

At least, young at his age. She was far fonder of babies than children and the moment his brothers started having some, any positive attention Jeremiah hoped he could still get was quickly transferred to them.

But despite her growing neglect of her own child, Jeremiah still remained in her home even after her very health began to leave. And when the gods came to claim what was left of her, that cloak remained. Jeremiah had such plans for it, but any time he took it from its hook the empty void it left just came to reinforce how quiet the house had become.

“I have plenty here,” he said, stubbornly stoking the fire. “Master Beadell says that my training has been coming along really well lately.”

“Master Beadell is old and senile. The old fart is lucky if he can remember which foot to properly put in his slippers.”

“All the more reason for me to tend the apothecary. And maybe in a few years he’ll name me…”

“Name you what? His successor? He keeps forgetting his wife is dead! I’m pretty certain that place is going to his son and no matter how many years you put in it won’t change that fact.”

“Look, not all of us can just abandon everything we know to wander off into the horizon on some silly sense of adventure. Some of us have people we care about. And people that care about us!”

“I know you and Amber are through,” Keirn said flatly.

“What? But how-”

“Well she’s hardly here tending to your hearth,” Keirn said, pointing at the pot now giving off a steady stream of blackened smoke. Jeremiah cried out, leaping to the flames and dragging the smoking pot away between a pair of large iron tongs. “Also, I saw her earlier with Cairen behind the temple in a most… how do you say… un-priestess like fashion. That girl does seem to have quite a fire in her, though. She should really have worshipped a Vanir.”

Jeremiah dropped the pot on the table, cursing as he quickly removed the lid. He wetting his scorched fingers as he surveyed the damage. Keirn leaned forward, pulling the nape of his cloak out of the way as he inspected the contents.

“Don’t worry, I prefer meat anyway. And it’s not like we could have bundled that up to go.”

“I’m not leaving.”

“Why not!”

“Have you not listened to a word I’ve been saying?!”

Keirn waved his hand.

“Those are just lingering doubts. Everyone has them. Come, it’ll be exciting!”

“I can’t leave the house unattended.”

“Sure you can. Just inform my mother. She’ll keep an eye on it. It’s not like she has anything better to do.”

Jeremiah shook his head at his friend’s blatant disregard for anyone’s feelings.

“There’s nothing for me out there. Everything I want is here, in this village. I still don’t see why you need anyone to go with you. Or why you left the Academy in the first place.”

“The student life isn’t for me,” Keirn dismissed. He leaned forward. “Look, Jere, I need you. I need you to do this for me.”

“Why?”

“Well… because… because…” Keirn looked about the small room for some answer. But there was nothing in the humble dwelling to assist him. A simple hearth filled the space between the larder and the large table. A small cleaning basin was set to the side and was surrounded by various drying herbs cultivated from the tiny garden in the back. Across from them lay Jeremiah’s apothecary supplies – the tools and containers he’d been stocking up with his pay from the rare peddler that stopped in the village. Finally, a large straw bed lay before the stairs that descended into the small cellar where most of the food and wine was stored.

“Haven’t you always wanted more. More than this?”

Jeremiah lifted a careful amount of squash to his lips, testing to see if any of it was salvageable.

“No.”

“Not even once? Never have you woken from your sleep and turned over to see the separator between you and your mother’s bed thinking that there was more to life than this useless little village and its useless little routines? What life really remains for you here: one of endlessly toiling at a business that will never be yours, waiting for some lovely maiden to walk by to come and warm your bed in the hopes that perhaps in her arms you’ll find some solace that lets you sleep?”

“Why do you even care!” Jeremiah shouted, tossing the ladle angrily towards the water basin. He thundered to his feet, stomping back to the hearth and upending the contents of the pot into the fire.

“Because… unlike this unsympathetic village… I need you.”

Jeremiah turned towards the other man.

“You having a laugh?”

“No, I mean it.” Keirn’s voice grew soft – almost vulnerable. “I can’t do this on my own.”

“Why not?”

“At the Academy, we were taught to recognize the limits of ourselves. I know I can be a little… brisk and that sometimes my actions may need a more moderating hand. I’m no valiant knight, Jeremiah. But you, however – you are.”

He looked up at his friend, the flames reflecting brightly in his eyes.

“You care and that is a powerful thing. People see that in you and that can be a great strength. With a little refinement and a little direction you can be the very thing people look up to. The person people turn to when in need. A kind face whose honour holds him to a higher calling than the petty schemes of the rest of us rabble.”

Something stirred within him at those words.

“You really think so?”

Keirn nodded.

“Of all the village it was you who spoke to me in the glade. All the other children were content with calling me names or throwing rocks at my head. Adults turned a blind eye or sneered when I passed. But not you – you sought me out even after I mocked you and turned you away. Day after day you came, sitting on that rock despite what I did. Even when I sought further refuge, you came and you waited.”

Jeremiah felt his face flush at the memory.

“How did you know?”

“Because I didn’t leave. I stayed in the trees. I… wanted to know if you’d still come even if I had left.”

Keirn stood, crossing the room and resting a hand on Jeremiah’s shoulder.

“I need you Jere, because you’re the only friend I have in this rotted village or anywhere else. Come with me and leave this empty place behind.”

That night, Jeremiah went into the basement. Behind barrels of stored cheeses and pickled vegetables was one particular chest. It was covered in dust and cobwebs, abandoned in the darkest spot. Abandoned but not forgotten. Jeremiah fiddled with the rusty latch, finally opening the lid with a terrific groan.

Inside lay an old sword and a suit of worn armour. Jeremiah stared at those treasures of a man he’d never remembered. A man his mother refused to speak of and whose last belongings his siblings shun. Jeremiah took that suit and sword back upstairs and spent the rest of the evening checking the straps and latches and polishing the metal.

The next morning he greeted his friend, shifting uncomfortably beneath the unfamiliar weight of the strange metal suit and shouldering a bag filled with what little belongings he couldn’t leave behind.

But even from the start, Keirn hadn’t been truthful. They met a strange bard shortly after: a resident of one of the further villages. Shortly after that, a woman with familiar brown hair and even more familiar features came running after them down the dirt trails.

Amber gave the rod a gentle shake. In the dim torchlight, it glowed golden and twinkled from the priceless gems inserted in its tip. It was almost three feet in length and slender in girth. But it looked undeniably valuable – a relic from a bygone era and almost forgotten by all save the most devious.

“What shall it be then? Should I just let this slip and fall into the empty void much like our relationship?”

“I can’t believe you’ve had that all this time,” Jeremiah said. “We’ve been risking our lives searching this forsaken place and you’ve just been quietly carrying it in your pack. How typical.”

“Please, you’re nothing more than common grave robbers,” Amber scoffed. “This place is sacred to one of the blessed Vanir. I’ve been sent on a holy intervention to preserve its purity.”

“You’re one to talk about divine sanctity!”

Amber shook her head.

“I knew it was a mistake coming. I should have left you all to be buried here with your misplaced greed and heresy. I thought maybe we could rekindle that which was lost. But it’s clear to me what you are and what you’ve always been – selfish, self-loathing denouncer of the gods.”

“Gods damn clerics. Will someone just shoot her already?!” Keirn cried.

Jeremiah felt a pang strike his heart. This is not what he had envisioned. This is not how he saw his life unfolding. He was meant for simpler things: a small farmstead and apothecary in town, a roasting pheasant over a fire spit and a loving wife to return home to in the evening. Even with her face contorted in anger and spite, he couldn’t help but see that first beauty that had made his mind blank and heart stop.

With great reluctance, he drew his longsword and pointed it towards the woman.

“Drop it or I’ll drop you.”

Amber laughed. It was a shrill sound devoid of any mirth.

“And now the coward finds his spine? Spare me the dramatics, Jeremiah, you were never good at them.”

“I’m not the same man you left.”

Curiosity coloured her features as she re-appraised the armoured man. For but a moment, Jeremiah considered whether he was capable of running her through. It shouldn’t be difficult. She had only the barest of leather protection padding her simple travelling clothes. And it wasn’t like she would be trained in the use of her walking stick to defend herself. No, she was the daughter of a priest with little knowledge than some outdated religiosity and the most effective methods for gutting a man’s heart.

She took a step back, her boots pressing slowly against the tile behind her.

“Then go ahead, love, show me how much you’ve changed. Run me through on your blade. Let my blood stain your hands and this temple. Leave my body as some forgotten sacrifice to this nameless deity!”

She leaped from tile to tile, picking her safe path across the board. Jeremiah just watched her go, watched the bob of her fiery hair as it trailed behind the priceless artefact they were tasked with salvaging. Only three columns from the end, she turned back to smile wickedly at his frozen advance.

“You see, you may put on armour and play a warrior but you’re still that lost silly boy from the glade. A sword doesn’t make you a soldier. A codpiece doesn’t make you a man.”

She turned towards the exit, pumped her arms, and leaped the last few rows. She fell short of her target, landing heavily against a pair of runes that crumbled immediately beneath her weight. She scrambled for the ledge, the rod slipping from her hands and rolling across the floor with a clear ringing tingle. She pulled herself up the ledge, brushed dirt off her clothes and retrieved the rod.

She turned back to the company, giving them a soft wave as she moved towards the exit.

“Do pass on my regards to Alfather. However long that may take for you to run out of food. Or for our friend to come through the door.”

The pounding on the lowered door reminded them of the company that awaited them in the dark. The company that had only begun stalking them when they ran into the fiery priestess. Amber bent to crawl through the gap on the other side, but as she extended her arm to scramble through Keirn gave a great shout and released the stone in his grasp.

The door smashed to the floor, a great clatter indicating the hidden lock slid into place. The pulleys and chords overhead shifted and groaned as the change in position was transferred across the room. Amber cried, looking up at the network of balances before trying to squeeze through as quickly as she could. After a few seconds of realizing she wouldn’t make it in time, she pulled herself quickly back as the exit slammed before her face.

“What did you do that for!” Aliessa cried. “Now we’ll be trapped!”

Keirn glared at the other woman, his face flushed a deep red as he gripped his knees panting for breath.

“If we’re… going to die… then she’s going with us.”

Amber drew to her feet across the room.

“Figs for cods! Have you any idea what you’ve done, you muck sucker?!”

Kait raised her brows.

“Quite the mouth on the priest’s daughter,” she muttered. “Honestly, Jere, I have no idea what you saw in her.”

Jeremiah sheathed his sword.

“It matters not. What’s done is done.”

He watched Amber slap the rob against her palm to remind them she still held the artefact. But Jeremiah knew it was an empty display of rebellion. There was nothing to be done about it for the moment.

Derrek gave a spurt and spasm on the floor. Aliessa stirred, holding his golden head gentle as he slowly lifted himself to his elbows with a cough. He looked curiously around the room before turning to Keirn.

“The door’s closed.”

“We had some… complications while you were out.”

Derrek struggled to his feet, Aliessa helping as best she could. He leaned heavily upon her as he looked over the tiled board from this new perspective. His eyes settled on Amber and he gave a crooked smile.

“Oh good, you’re still here. Keirn would have been so mad if you’d left with the rod.”

“You know she had it?!” Aliessa exclaimed.

“Of course. It’s the only reason she came here.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?!”

“I thought the rest of you knew.”

Derrek blinked at them. Jeremiah sighed, shifting his feet beneath a clattering of metal rings.

“Can we just get me across this damn thing?”

“No point now with the doors closed,” Derrek said, pointing to the pulleys above them. “The counterweights are situated in small alcoves in the adjoining rooms. You can see the holes where the chords diverge there and there. Without someone to displace the weight on the other side there isn’t anyway to open them.”

“Can’t we just lift them?” Keirn asked.

Derrek shook his head.

“They’re weighted down to prevent precisely that. You’ll notice there are no handles or locks on these doors. Rudimentary precautions probably installed to safeguard against temple thieves.”

“So… us,” Kait said.

“More of the temple-temple kind. What with the war between the two divines, some clergy turned to their own number to steal into rival temples and snatch their holy relics. Helped shift the balance usually in favour of the Aenis since the Vanis were so unlikely to take such actions. Or so they say.”

“Whole bunch of nonsense,” Jeremiah grumbled. “And now we’re all going to starve to death because of some foolish belief in sky wizards?”

“At the very least it seems pragmatic,” Kait said. “I mean, it stopped us from stealing.”

“Which brings us back to the original problem. Any idea how we can get out of this, Derrek?”

The bard looked at the sorcerer while he considered his words.

“I suppose we could wait for whatever is still prowling these corridors to smash down the door.”

The pounding had subsided for the moment, but Jeremiah wasn’t a fan of facing some fantastic beast with the strength to tear through the thick stone containing them inside. Especially given the limited terrain they were offered with the tiled floor taking up much of the room.

Not to mention the large holes now spread across its surface because of their attempt to cross.

“Honey, you can’t think of anything else?” Aliessa asked.

“Well, there is one other option we haven’t considered.”

“What’s that?”

“We jump down the hole.”

Keirn laughed. Then abruptly stopped.

“You’re serious?”

“It has to go somewhere.”

“But what if it’s a deadly pit filled with sharp spikes!” Kait cried.

“I guess we can wait then,” Jeremiah said. “Who shall start splitting the rations.”

Keirn sighed.

“Fine but we throw her down first.”

Keirn pointed across the room at Amber.

“No! I won’t do it!” Amber screamed

“This isn’t a negotiation.”

Amber held the rod out over the hole.

“I’ll drop it!”

“Then you can pick it up again when you land,” Keirn said. He took the tiles slowly, trying desperately to remember which ones were safe from the earlier crossings. As he got near Jeremiah, the other man couldn’t help but speak.

“I don’t think this is a really good idea,” he whispered.

“Are you volunteering?”

“What if she dies?”

“Then we know it’s not a valid route. Gods, you two were just shouting how much you hate each other a moment ago.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t mean that I wanted to see her dead!”

“Can we possibly put this to vote?” Aliessa called.

“Oh, good idea. All for?” Derrek asked, immediately shooting up his hand. The woman at his side gave him a horrifying look.

“I, personally, am not comfortable with this,” Kait said from her tile.

“Do you have a better course?”

“No, I just wanted to say my part.”

“What is this?!” Amber cried as the last objections were raised. Keirn continued his approach and she stumbled back. “You can’t be serious about this!”

“Don’t struggle, you’ll only make it worse.”

“I knew you were trouble!” Amber shouted. “The moment that whore of your mother came to the village, we knew you were no good. My father was right, only rot grows from spoilt earth! The whole lot of you should have been strung up in the town centre for the crows and maggots!”

“You know what, I’d like to change my vote,” Kait said.

Keirn paused before the last three rows, readying his jump. Amber raised her staff, pointing it aggressively towards the sorcerer. Undaunted, he jumped the distance, landing upon the other side. Amber gave a great shout as she charged forward. Keirn merely crooked his lips before side stepping her clumsy lunge, grabbing her stick and knocking her to the ground.

She coughed up some of the ancient dust, rolling on her back and glaring up at him.

“Know that the gods will thrice curse you for your transgressions!”

“Says the girl who snatched the holy relic,” Keirn said. “Speaking of which, want to hand it over before you’re sent in. I’d hate for it to break and the entire point of this stupid adventure ruined.”

“Never!” she spat.

Keirn shrugged and merely whacked her with her stick. She cried out but refused his demands. So he struck her again and again. This continued for a bit, with Keirn pausing after every strike to ask for the relic but Amber refused to acquiesce. After enough beating, however, she eventually cried out.

“Fine, fine! I can’t believe you all just stood there,” she hissed, struggling to her hands and knees. “In my mind, you’re all culpable for this.”

“Yeah, yeah, save your sacred indignation for a captive parish. The rod please.”

Keirn held out his hand. Amber’s face contorted into a horrible mask of fury and malice. Keirn just waited and she finally slapped the rod into his outstretched palm.

“I hope you’re happy.”

“Not yet,” he said as he began prodding her with the butt of the staff towards the pit.

“Know that if I die, my god will strike you down for your impertinence.”

“Amber, dear, you’ve been wagging that threat for as long as I can remember. If I was going to be punished, it would have been a long time ago. Not quit stalling and jump into this dark and potentially lethal pit.”

She stood at the edge of the broken tiles, looking into the gloom. Her hands fidgeted, clearly anxious about the possibly inglorious end that faced her. She looked to each gathered face, quietly pleading for someone to take her side or stand in defence. Aliessa merely turned to the ground. Derrek seemed honestly curious about the outcome of their little test. Kait glowered back at the other woman.

Thus, it was with a heavy sigh that Jeremiah finally stepped forward.

“Alright, you’ve had your fun. But this can’t continue.”

Keirn rolled his eyes.

“You can spare your conscience, she was going to leave us all for dead.”

Jeremiah frowned.

“That’s not how morality works. It doesn’t bend to whatever is convenient to you. It’s wrong to force her down the pit and I won’t let you.”

“So what then? Should we send you instead.”

“Yes.”

Keirn laughed then stopped abruptly.

“Oh, you’re serious. Was there some sort of crazy draught that I missed this morning?”

“Of course I am serious! You’re not forcing her down there.”

“Aren’t things over between you two?” Derrek called from across the room. “Might as well just dump her!”

Aliessa slapped his arm.

“There will be no dumping!” Jeremiah cried. “If we’re so determined to have someone go down, than I will be the one.”

Silence fell between everyone gathered as Jeremiah looked to each challenging them to contradict him. Keirn merely shrugged.

“Fine but I really think this would have been best for you – you know, emotionally and what not.”

He removed the staff from the small of Amber’s back and the girl waved her arm angrily at the retreating stick. She brushed her clothes and stepped back from the pit making sure to fire one last withering look at Keirn.

Jeremiah made his way slowly to the other side, pausing before the jump over the last three rows. Amber sheepishly stood across from him, looking down at her hands in what he could only assume was a mix of awkwardness and shame.

“Look… you really didn’t have to step in on my behalf. I do appre-”

“Stow it,” Jeremiah said. “I’ve had your maiden act before. This isn’t for you.”

Amber sneered and shook her head.

“Of course it isn’t!”

She stomped off to a corner to hunker down and sulk. Keirn took her place, holding the staff out for Jeremiah. Jeremiah stretched, taking a hold of the opposite end. He then jumped forward, clutching the staff tightly as the other man pulled him forward. His feet struck the tiles, each crumbling beneath him, but the momentum generated by the two brought him tumbling to the other side.

“Thanks.”

“I still think we should toss her.”

“I’ll pretend that’s out of some misplaced concern for my well-being.”

“Also, she’s a thrice cursed brat.”

Jeremiah stood to his feet, brushing dirt from his hands and carefully approaching the edge. Not many of the tiles were broken on this side and it seemed the pit just yawned down into endless nothingness. A soft cloud of dust rose from Jeremiah’s hurried crossing to the other side. He poked at one of the nearby tiles, listening as the pieces tinkled as they fell through the gloom. He counted the seconds, straining his ears for the telltale sound of them striking something underneath.

“Second thoughts?”

“All the time.”

He poked at a few more tiles, widening the hole for him to fall down.

“Look, if we’re going to go through with this foolishness, we can at least not be stupid about it. Take off your armour.”

“What are you on about?”

“Trying to not get you killed,” Keirn said turning to his sister. “Kait! Toss me your rope!”

She sighed as she stood and began the acrobatic technique of searching her numerous bags without falling from her square. While she was busy with that, Keirn lent a hand in unbuckling the straps keeping plates of Jeremiah’s armour on.

“This is looking in pretty rough shape.”

“We haven’t really had the chance to fix it. Or buy a new one.”

Keirn held up one piece with a clear cut run right through it.

“Does this even protect you anymore.”

“It’s not always about protection,” Jeremiah replied, snatching it from his hands and placing it gently on the ground next to its kin. He looked at the makeshift suit spread before him. “Sometimes, it’s just about the image that you portray.”

“Oh really?” Keirn asked motioning for Jeremiah to lift his arms as he helped slide the thick chain shirt off. “And what image are you looking for? Hedge knight?”

Jeremiah didn’t respond.

“Truly? But you… you are…”

“Am what?!” Jeremiah growled.

Keirn backed off.

“You were just so reluctant to leave, I guess. I don’t know. I always assumed you were resentful that I dragged you from your home. That I convinced you to leave everything you enjoyed for this dung heap of a life wandering aimlessly from town to town.”

Jeremiah opened his mouth to protest. He tried to force out the denial of his friend’s words but nothing seemed to come. Instead, he just unstrapped his scabbard and placed his sword at the foot of his equipment.

“Here it is!” Kait called, tossing the snaking rope towards the men.

“Well, let’s get you ready then,” Keirn said, motioning for Jeremiah to lift his arms as he tossed the rope about his chest.

The resounding crash broke the dampening silence. Anxious breaths drew as the others watched helplessly while their friend tumbled forward. Fingers splayed out and arms waving madly, Jeremiah grasped frantically for some handhold to halt his descent. The floor beneath his feet crumbled like dry autumn mud shaken loosely from a farmer’s boot. His body slammed against the tile before him and his dark fingertips dug tightly into its ridge. With feet dangling helplessly beneath, Jeremiah breathed a sigh of relief as he noticed he was now hugging a large embossed tile with a symbol that vaguely resembled a stylish Fe rune.

“Are you alright?” Aliessa called after everyone realized that Jeremiah was not, despite initial appearances, plummeting to his death.“FINE!” Jeremiah hissed between gritted teeth. His face was red from the exertion as he tried to pull his large frame from the small hole. The chain links of his shirt bit into his flesh as he pressed as much of his weight on the portion of himself not suspended in air.“Hold still, I’m coming,” Amber called.“No, don’t!”“Now is not the time for heroic machismo,” Amber sighed.Jeremiah jerked his body to the side, swinging one knee above the old clay tile. With better leverage he was able to roll uncomfortably on his back. There he lay, taking in slow, sweet breaths while waiting for his hammering heart to calm.“You know, you could have just waited. I would have helped you.”“I… didn’t…want to …can I have a moment, please?”

“So because of your stubbornness we should all wait on you?’“I just about died!”“Oh, and now that’s our fault?”“Please, people! I don’t think that this is really the time,” Keirn called.And he didn’t think he had to quantify that statement. The sorcerer stood by the peculiar cog-work door they’d passed through, holding tightly to a thick cord that kept a large, smoothed stone aloft. They had realized, just moments before it was too late, that the strange mechanism was connected to its twin on the far side of the room and set to trigger if they didn’t keep it suspended. So while the young man was tasked with keeping it open on his end, the rest of the group was trying desperately to get across the curious floor to stabilize the other.At this moment, only Amber was close to getting across and she had now retraced her steps to continue her argument. Kait was a third of the way, a few strides from Jeremiah’s near misstep. However, she refused to move any further without assurance that there was an actual safe path. In the interim, she had hunkered down for a long wait, somehow managing to sort through her packs to produce two needles and a ball of yarn despite being restricted to a three by three square of floor. Now she looked like a little princess on her throne of travel bags.Derrek had climbed one of the cracked pillars bordering the room. Perched upon its broken centre, he surveyed the rows of etched runes like a master strategist overlooking his army. Beneath his guidance, the group had managed to so far strand three of their number across the incomprehensible runes. The tiles were arranged in nine columns that covered most of the room making it impossible to skirt the puzzle. And the numerous holes along the edges of the room suggested others had tried.“Fine, let’s just get across this damn thing and get out of here,” Amber said. She turned, her red hair snapping like a vicious fire in her wake. Without a second glance back, she stomped across an Ur, Tyr and Eh rune before stopping and looking back at Derrek. “Where now minstrel?”Derrek leaned as far as he could over the broken marble lip. ‘I believe if Jeremiah takes the closest Rad then you should be able to proceed.’Jeremiah looked over the tiles around him and sighed once he spotted the elusive letter.

“I hate when you have to jump for them.”

Jeremiah wasn’t entirely sure how this puzzle worked. Derrek had gone on a long explanation that involved a fair knowledge of pressure plates, distribution of weight, leaded balances and an advanced grasp of machinery that no normal person would be expected to understand.

Needless to say, the rest of the group were putting their lives in Derrek’s hands. Jeremiah didn’t understand how the seemingly bottomless pit played in but his current grasp of the situation required the spelling of some bizarre ancient phrase so that they weren’t riddled with arrows from the walls, crushed by boulders in the ceiling or possibly both simultaneously.

“Stop complaining and just do it. You don’t see anyone else whining about their part.”

“Anyone else? So far I’ve been doing most of the work!” Jeremiah cried.

“Oh, is that why I’m further along then?”

“Derrek’s been giving you the easier path!”

“Everyone, QUIET!” Keirn shouted. The room drifted slowly back to its initial silence. It was easy to forget that this place served as a tomb, not only for the original worshippers but also the countless treasure hunters that had high hopes of obtaining golden statuettes, rubies the size of hams or whatever else drove the crazy fools into these dark caverns.

“What is it?” Kait anxiously called.

Keirn silenced his sister with an impatient wave of his hand. His biceps were bulging but he was more focused on peering out the doorway, eyes trying to pierce the encroaching darkness just beyond.

“Did you hear something?” Amber shouted.“Odd, I haven’t detected anything,” Aliessa said, gliding up to the other side of the door. A brown and orange tabby pranced just behind her. Its ears pricked as both pet and master rested at the edge of the door, the wizard holding her torch high overhead.‘What part of the word QUIET, do you people seem to struggle with?’ Keirn hissed. He leaned over, snatching the torch from Aliessa’s hands and pitched it quickly down the dusty hall. A few rats scattered, squealing indignantly as they scurried from the flaming stick’s tumbling cinders. The torch clattered against the floor, rolling a few extra feet before resting in a pool of inky nothingness.“I’m not getting that,” Aliessa whispered.Keirn ignored her as he shifted his weight to relax his tiring muscles. The aged pulleys groaned with the shift in direction. Everyone waited for a few minutes, each expecting a telltale scratch, clank, hiss, thump or thud to herald impending danger. They began to grow restless when nothing continued to happen.“Can we get on with this?” Amber commanded.Derrek looked over to Keirn, but when he didn’t receive any angry glares, he resumed his directing. Kait’s needle returned to their gentle click, click, clicking and Jeremiah and Amber continued their disgruntled silence.“Amber, if you can step to that Fe and Jeremiah if you could step to that Sigel…no wait!”Jeremiah shouted in surprise, falling backwards as the tile crumbled beneath his foot.‘Are you trying to kill me?!’

“Sorry. Does anyone remember the name of the ancient god who rides a boar?”

“Well it doesn’t have a Sigel!” Jeremiah shouted.

“We can see that,” Amber sighed.

“I thought this was supposed to be in some dead language anyway,” Kait said.

“It is.”

“Oh.”

“Freyar,” Keirn called.

“How do you remember that?”

“Am I the only one that’s been paying attention to the murals in this temple?!”

“Once you’ve seen one naked man drawing, you’ve seen them all,” Aliessa shrugged.

“Ah, of course. Jeremiah, if you could go to the Eh to your right then.”

“Derrek, dear, do you have any idea what you’re doing?” Aliessa asked returning from her vigil and standing at the base of Derrek’s pillar.“Well, not really, but we’re doing pretty well so far,” Derrek casually replied. “Amber if you could take that second Fe.”Jeremiah frowned. It would be just like the bard to bumble them into even worse trouble. Jeremiah dropped to his knees, pressing on the adjoining tile with his hand.“Oh don’t be so ridiculous!” Amber shouted. “Just jump to the next letter!”“I’m so far the only one that’s almost died. Twice! What if he’s wrong? I won’t have anywhere to go from there.”“Oh, you make it sound as if it would be a big loss.”“It kind of would be!”“Well, I suppose if we’re talking about pure mass, then yes you would be a big loss.”“Look, I’ve put up with just about enough of your…”“My what?!” Amber shouted. “You think that this has been easy for me?”

“Well…yes.”

“Well, it hasn’t. It’s always been about you and I can’t stand it anymore.”

“About me? I gave you everything you’ve ever wanted. Whenever you needed me, I was always there for you!” Jeremiah yelled.

“Precisely! You were smothering me!”

“Smothering you?!”

“Exactly. You wouldn’t ever give me my own space. Sometimes I just wanted to spend some time alone. Was that too much to ask?”

“What about all that time you spent at the temple? Or with your friends?”

“I wasn’t alone then; I was with other people!”

“I can’t believe you are blaming this on me!”

“Well it is your fault!”

“I have a feeling we aren’t talking about the spelling anymore,” Kait muttered. Her needles kept their rhythmic clatter as she watched with anxious interest at the pair’s bickering. “Is this how Keirn and I sound?”“My fault! You refuse to take any responsibility! You’re too busy playing the poor victim!” Jeremiah screamed. He took a few steps towards her, despite the frantic calling from Derrek and Aliessa.“My fault, that’s rich. You never tended to my needs! You were so clingy and insecure that you never listened to what I wanted!”“What you waaaa…!” Jeremiah hollered as he stepped through another false tile.“Serves you right!” Amber shouted as Jeremiah scrambled to catch onto solid ground.“Hells! Can someone give me a hand?”“Oh, so now you want my help? Why don’t you do it on your own!”“Why don’t you cross this damned board on your own then if you’re so bloody independent!” Jeremiah grunted, scratching his fingers deep into the aged clay.“If I knew what I had to spell, I would. But here, why don’t I spell your path for you!” Amber shouted back. She stabbed at the tiles around her, “A S S H O L and over there is the Eh!”The thunder of the crumbling tiles beneath the jabs of her staff filled the air and drowned out the frantic calls from those gathered at the edge of the puzzling field. The shattered pieces tumbled wildly into the empty pit beneath.

“Well, let me show you yours! B I T … does anyone see a C?!”

“You broke it earlier,” Kait whispered.

“Oh, that’s just clever. You think you’re so damned smart don’t you!” Amber called. She threw her bag to her feet, scrounging around in it until she triumphantly pulled a long thin golden rod from within. She held it over the crevice she had just broken. “Why don’t you just admit that you never loved me – that you care more for this damned thing then you ever did for me.”

“This is why we discourage dating within the company,” Keirn growled. He pulled heavily on his chord, grunting as he dragged himself over to where Derrek had discarded his crossbow. Shouldering the heft of the stone’s weight over his shoulder, Keirn snatched up the weapon and began to leverage it towards the middle of the room.

“What are you doing?” Aliessa called.

“Ending this.”

“You can’t shoot her! She has the relic!”

“My aim isn’t that bad,” Keirn replied.

“No, Keirn, wait!” Derrek called as he began scrambling down the pillar. However, the loose marble gave out beneath his feet, and he tumbled the last ten feet before landing heavily upon his back. Aliessa gasped, rushing to her beloved’s side.

Keirn ignored his friend’s plight, steadying his aim as best he could while sweat beaded from the extra exertion of holding the stone at this new height. However, as the crossbow’s latch clicked, there was a more distinct echo that rang through the open door. Both Keirn and Jeremiah turned to the dark hallway and Jeremiah realized immediately the torch had gutted out.“By the gods!” Keirn shouted. The darkness seemed to quiver as the shadows gave birth to indistinct shapes. Keirn released his chord, the pulleys screeching as the rope ripped from his hands and the counterweight stone crashed loudly to the ground.There was a loud grinding as the stones shifted against each other and the entrance slab dropped from its raised alcove above. Before it smashed to the ground and locked into place, the sorcerer snatched another stone, lifting it as best he could and halting the door a mere foot from trapping them within.

Overhead, the complicated machinery ground and clanked as the exit shifted to match its twin’s position.“Admit it, Jeremiah, you never really cared for me!”“What are you, crazy?” Jeremiah called back.“ADMIT IT!”“Kait… don’t let… her drop it!” Keirn shouted.However, Kait sat paralyzed as the chaos ensued around her. Her fingers still held the yarn in mid stitch. She turned to her brother, who madly motioned towards the fallen crossbow with his reddening face. However, a ferocious pounding erupted from the other side of the door and the massive slab shook as some terrible force attempted to bash its way through.“Wha…what do you want me to do?” she asked.“Anything!” Keirn gritted. “Shoot her if you must!”“Oh… Oh! Oh no. No no no no no… I couldn’t.”“Aliessa!”

“Derrek … Derrek, honey, wake up!”

“Aliessa!”

The wizard ignored his calls and looked Derrek over for serious injury. Her feline paced up and down the length of his body, dainty nose sniffing gently at the delicate man sprawled awkwardly upon the ground. From the long sleeves of her short jacket emerged a brilliant snake that seemed to wrap lightly about the man’s wrist while flicking its tongue softly over his vein.

“KAAAIIITTTTT!”“Oh… Oh no. Oh no. Oh no,” she stammered, the yarn quivering within her hands.

“I can’t believe that I ever loved someone so … selfish… so vain!” Jeremiah shouted. “It’s clear to me now that you never cared for me like I did for you!”

“You are impossible!” Amber screamed, raising her voice to be heard over the banging upon the door. She still held the rod threateningly over the precipice. “Do you want me to drop this? Don’t think I won’t!”

“Then drop it! You have no power over me anymore!”“By the gods,” Keirn sighed. “We’re all going to die.”The rope to the counter weight began to snap from the strain.