Dreamscape: Saving Alex (13 page)

“You knew them?”

“Some of them. Do you see the crest on their
shoulders? That’s the Great Oak. These were men of the rebellion.”

“What were they doing here?” I asked.

Arrow’s lips tightened. “The same thing we are.”

I stared at the men, trapped by a wrong step or
temptation, and the reality crushed me. The consequences here...

Failure led down one path—death.

I couldn’t stand it anymore. The walls of this
estate bore down on me. Nothing in here hinted at the fun I remembered from my
childhood. The simple maze of hallways and doors I had memorized over the years
had transformed into a labyrinth of death and terror. I had to get home before
I turned into one of them, defeated by a futile journey.

I gave the feathers on Arrow’s vest a quick tug
and nodded to the door at the far end of the room. “It’s time to go.”

“But what about them? We can’t just leave them
here. We have to get them out, give them a proper burial,” he protested.

My heart ached for him, it really did. If they
were my friends, I probably would’ve wanted the same thing. But they weren’t.
And the pressure on my shoulders told me time was running out.

“We can’t. Not right now. Once we’re out, we can
tell someone about it,” I said.

His eyes cut into me, and I knew he didn’t
understand. Sometimes the harshest news needed to be delivered quickly.

“I promise you’ll have a chance to make sure no
one else gets trapped in Marix’s manor, but for now, you need to trust me.”

He nodded and pulled his hood over his face. I
sighed as his eyes became unreachable. The more time we spent together, the
more similarities I found between us.

“It’ll be better once we leave here,” I said, but
the reassurance sounded hollow, even to me.

We hid in the darkness. Arrow followed close
behind me as I darted down hallways, going through one set of doors only to
pass into another room of promises. Each room looked the same as the last, bare
except for dragon weeds, painted doors, and burning torches. I knew it couldn’t
last much longer.

I had traversed these halls enough to know that
once one challenge was conquered, the next awaited. When we turned the corner
into a brightly illuminated hallway, I knew we’d found the next danger. I
stopped. Sometimes knowing what came next wasn’t an advantage.

“What is it?” Arrow asked, peeking around my
shoulders at the empty stone path, then searching my face.

“Our next challenge.” My voice shook. “I’ll need
some rope.”

He tightened his lips, looking like he wanted to
say something. His hands lingered on mine as he handed me the rough twine.

“Be careful,” he said.

I wished that were possible. Before I turned back
to face the bright corridor, I looked into Arrow’s eyes. “No matter what,
promise me you won’t let go.”

“I promise.”

I untied the belt from my thigh and wrapped it
around my waist, securing the rope through the belt loop and around my
shoulders in a harness. “You’ll need to hold me and be ready at any moment.
There won’t be any warning.” I handed him the rope and pulled away, testing his
grip.

His eyebrows furrowed in concern. “Warning for
what, exactly?”

“I told you this wouldn’t all be easy,” I snapped
and bit my lip. “Just make sure you’re holding on.”

Tears flooded my eyes, and I turned away before he
could see them or the depth of my vulnerability. Up to this point, I’d had control.
Now I had to let go. I blinked hard, wishing the tears away. Heroes didn’t cry.

The slight tug from the harness gave me security
as I started forward. The ground would give way at any moment. This hall
continued seamlessly, every cobblestone blending into the next as we wound out
of view.

Besides the shuffling of our boots and my shallow
breaths, an eerie silence filled the long hallway. I stepped tentatively,
testing my weight before fully moving forward. Each solid step surprised me.
Halfway down the hall, my fear let up a little. Soft cracks sounded as we
shuffled forward, but the ground held.

I stepped again and then stopped when I heard a
loud click. Sand disappeared around the cobblestone under my foot, plummeting
into darkness as soon as I jumped back. My eyes locked onto the black hole
inches away that had almost swallowed me.

Another click sounded, and the stone beneath me
dropped without warning.

My screams echoed off the rough walls of the
chasm, broken abruptly as the harness caught my fall.

A jolt ran through my body as I swung into the
wall, feeling the breath knocked out of me. I hung suspended over a dark void,
staring into nothing. The rough edges of broken stones scratched my palms. I
grasped at them, stopping my body from bouncing off the wall again.

Arrow leaned precariously over the hole, his jaw
clenched and brow furrowed as he tried to balance. A drop of sweat rolled down
his face, and his arms shook under the strain of holding onto me.

I wasn’t sure if the fluttering in my stomach was
from butterflies or a reaction to my fall. Arrow had literally saved me, more
than once now. And what twisted my stomach more was that this time I had
trusted him to do it.

Once I stopped swinging, I stretched my arms and
legs out, pressing against the outer sides of the pit and holding my position.
My legs buckled beneath me, threatening to give way. Slowing my heart took
longer than I’d anticipated. I looked up to see Arrow watching me. The small
lines crowding his forehead looked out of place, and in that instant, my
determination returned. I had to remind him that I was his hero.

“This is going to sound strange,” I yelled up at
him.

“I have a feeling nothing you say will surprise me
anymore.”

“You need to let me go,” I said.

“What? No!”

His desire to protect me warmed me. “Don’t worry,
I’m not going to fall. But you have to let go so I can climb down.”

He looked past me into the pit and raised his
eyebrows. “We have to go down there?”

“Do you trust me?” I asked.

“Well, yes, but…” he stammered, tightening his
grip on the rope.

“But nothing. Unless you want to fight legions of
armed men, this is the way we have to go. It’s the secret passageway. We’ll get
there so much quicker… and safer. Now let go so I can climb down before I lose
my strength.” I nodded towards my shaking legs.

He looked at my legs and let go. The tug at my
waist released, and my weight sunk my feet more firmly against the walls.

“While you’re up there,” I yelled, “throw down a
torch so I can see the way.”

He leaned over the opening, flickering flames in
one hand. The thought of descending into a raging fire flashed through my mind.
“Wait! On second thought, drop some of that luminance powder instead.”

He disappeared for a moment and then sprinkled the
powder around me. Golden flakes glittered as they descended like snow. No, not
like snow; like the golden pixels that had transported me here. I shook off a
couple of flakes as they landed on my legs, just in case.

“Arrow, does this powder do anything besides
create light?” I asked.

He thought in silence for a moment. “I don’t think
so. Why?”

“No reason,” I said, starting to lower myself
towards the ground. How would I begin to explain being eaten by light pixels
and transported here?

“Are you sure this is the only way?” he asked,
brushing his hair out of his eyes as he peeked over the edge.

“No, Arrow, it’s not, I just enjoy getting stuck
in pits.” I rolled my eyes. “Yes, it’s the only way I know how to get through
alive. Now, get down here.” I shook under the strain on my legs and the burn of
the rocks digging into my palms. The narrow chasm seemed to stretch as I
descended. He smiled weakly before lowering himself into the pit.

“I’m right behind you,” he grunted.

Arrow had an easier time, resting his back against
one wall and his feet on the far side. “This is terrifying,” he muttered under
his breath.

I glanced up and saw his hand shake as he wiped
away his hair from his eyes. His wide-eyed, pale face surprised me.

“Are you really afraid?” I asked.

“A little,” he said, sliding down an inch. “Why
are you laughing?” he asked, skidding down further.

“I’m sorry,” I said, stifling a chuckle. “I’ve
just never seen you afraid.”

“You’ve never seen me in tight spaces before
either,” he said. “I prefer the expanse of the forest to this…this…pit.” Sweat
beaded on his face as he looked down beyond me.

“Ah, well, you introduced me to the Pits of
Wonder, I wanted to return the favor.” I hid a smile as I lowered myself
another couple of feet. My arms shook with pain. I cursed the fact that, even
though he trembled with fear, his arms displayed hardly any exertion.

“Thanks for the wonderful gift, Goldy. I’ll
remember that once we get out of here. Remember, there’s still much more of
Lockhorn you haven’t seen. I know all its treasures.”

“I bet you do.”

“I’ll show them to you if we get out.”

“When we get out.”

“Hopefully sooner than later,” he said. “How deep
is this pit, anyway?”

“Not much further,” I said, glimpsing a glint of
metal below me. “Not far at all.”

Sweat dripped off my face. Now that I saw the
spikes, time quickened. Every twitch of my fingers and slip of my feet created
a new sensation of imminent death. One mistake meant game over in an instant.
My palms slickened and my legs wavered, but eventually I made it to the bottom.
The exit, a small opening in the side of the wall, lay right above the spikes.
If I didn’t aim my body correctly, I’d be impaled.

I pushed off, diving through the small opening and
landing in a heap on the hard stones. Curled into a ball, I shook, heaving,
letting the emotions overflow. Being face-to-face with death yet again was too
much. Dark spots marked the stones where my tears fell, and next to them I saw
imprints from the fresh wounds along my palms and knees. I convulsed on the
floor, trying to convince myself I’d be fine.

I didn’t hear Arrow until he wrapped his arms
around my shoulders. I melted into him. My head found its match in the curve of
his neck, and my arms wound a path around him. His warmth surrounded me, and
the slow beat of his heart calmed mine. We sat entwined, silent. His hands
rolled over my back. Greed overwhelmed me.

I grabbed fistfuls of his sleeves, not caring
about the dust that covered us or the thought that I might stain his shirt. I
didn’t care about anything. Every rational thought disappeared from my mind. At
that moment, all I cared about was being alive.

Arrow responded. His hands turned more forceful,
pressing me closer to his chest. His eyes swept over me, a wild range of
emotions flickering across his face—fear, relief, confusion. I rose to my
knees, meeting his gaze with my own. He leaned forward, his lips parting, but
my inexperience wormed its way through my desire, and I hesitated a moment too
long.

Arrow pulled back.

“We better go,” I said, even though I didn’t mean
it. I bit my cheek and brushed the dust off my palms.

“Of course,” he said, tightening his lips and
pulling his sleeves straight.

Nothing I said could make what had just happened
better. The last thing I wanted to do was admit that I hadn’t kissed anyone
before. He had already accused me of being little more than a child when we
met. Besides, it couldn’t work out. We were too different. And he wasn’t even
real.

I had my own mission that went beyond stealing
these papers or aiding the rebellion. I couldn’t forget where I needed to go.
Why was it so hard to remember sometimes?

“Where do we go next?” he asked as if nothing had
happened.

“What? Oh, uh, wait here,” I said, running ahead
to the doorway at the opposite end of the hall. Part of me still reeled from
the adrenaline and our near-kiss, but most of me appreciated the distance from
him. Right now, I needed to focus. I could almost touch the token at the end of
the level.

Sharp staccato beats echoed from the next room. I
ducked back behind the doorway’s opening and caught my breath. If we could get
through these next few rooms, we’d be at the baron’s chamber. I inhaled deeply
and peeked around the corner.

The opulence of the room overwhelmed me. The
minimalism we had seen throughout the estate seemed out of place in comparison
with this extravagance. Marble pillars lined the outer edge of the room.
Cascading from the ceiling in a scalloped pattern, crimson velvet drapes
covered the walls like flames. The edges swirled with the breeze. Perfectly
framed within the window, the crescent moon winked, appearing and then
disappearing behind a steady line of guards marching in formation.

Their movements shook the ground. Dark, plated
armor covered their bodies, and chains and leather masked their faces. Spiked helmets
crowned their heads. What was I thinking? I knew I wasn’t the hero. I was a
girl who freaked out over a bird! The guards would crush me without a second
thought. This was insane.

“What do you think?” Arrow whispered from behind
me.

“What are you doing here?” I asked. “I thought you
were waiting until I had a plan.”

He shrugged and peeked around me. “You were taking
too long. How many are there?”

“More than I’d like. I don’t know if this is such
a great idea anymore.”

“Ah, Alex, stop worrying. We’ll be fine. I know
you can get us in without too much fuss.” He lifted his fingers and marked the
air as he counted the lines of guards. I wished I felt half as confident as he
did.

The rhythmic beat of their march grew faster, but
it was still slow compared to my heart.

“There are only fifty at most.”

“Only fifty. You make that sound like it’s a good
thing!”

“Berkos has thousands. I’d say this is
manageable,” he said, leaning further in as the last of the guards marched to
the next hall.

How could I argue with that? “Okay, let’s go,
before they come back,” I whispered, pressing my back flat against the wall.
Arrow mirrored my position on the other side of the doorway.

“We won’t have much time,” he whispered. His gaze
followed the guards out of the room, and then turned back to me. “Where do we
need to go when we get in there?”

“It’s down there,” I said, focusing on the small
stone archway at the far end of the hall. Now if only we could get there
without incurring anyone’s attention.

Arrow didn’t wait. He jumped forward and
disappeared behind the first marble pillar. A moment later he appeared and
disappeared again behind the next. Something unexpected rose inside me—hope.
Maybe we could get through undetected.

I followed, pressing my hands against the smooth
surface of the marble as I slid from one column to the next. Cautious,
listening for footsteps but anxious to reach the end, we skipped ahead as fast
as we could.

Arrow had already passed into the next room when
the metallic beat began resounding from the far side of the chamber. I held my
breath and pressed my body against the pillar. Now that the guards had
returned, I would have to carefully swing around the pillars, moving just
enough to stay out of sight while they walked past.

My palms slid down the marble. The guards moved
down the center of the room. Red stamps covered the back of their armor,
marking their kills. In the game, these marks had been simple dots, pixels of
red. Here, they were figures, and I felt sick when I saw far too many small
images alongside the full-sized pictures. Some things were inexcusable in any
world. I simmered in silence.

Arrow waved me forward as soon as the path
cleared. He glared at the guards disappearing behind me.

“Let’s get out of this place,” I said, dragging
him behind me until the cloak of the stairwell’s darkness enveloped us. We ran
up the spiral stairs two at a time until we reached an ornately carved wooden
door. I covered my lips with one finger. We’d arrived. I fought to suppress my
rising relief.

A slit of light poured out into the stairway as I
pressed against the heavy door. It protested with a deep groan, scraping the
ground. We slunk through the small gap before the noise escalated. A pulsing
rush of excitement and anticipation gripped me. We’d made it.

Arrow crept past me, his steps smooth. He glided
from the doorway we had entered to another at the end of the foyer. Before he
disappeared into the darkness, he flashed a bright smile and a wink at me. I
waved him forward. I had done my part in getting us here. The rest, securing
the papers, depended on him. The quicker he grabbed those, the better. I wanted
nothing more to do with this place. It reeked of murder.

The quaint design of the entry room surprised me.
After the extremes of opulence and minimalism we’d seen, I didn’t expect modest
décor and an eye for artistry. Brief hints of luxury shone in the golden frames
and elegant figurines, but the room possessed a richness I didn’t anticipate.
Crisp, pristine furs lined the hand-carved benches sitting beneath each frame.
Intricate scenes of horned-bits and winged monsters hid within the spirals and
grains of the dark wood.

“Horned-bits,” I whispered with a giggle, noticing
the pointed antlers that were as big as the animal they belonged to. Arrow was
lucky only his arm had been impaled. Why would he have ever wanted one for a
pet? The thought of him brought me back to the present. Where was he? He’d had
more than enough time to grab the papers.

“Arrow?” I hissed, walking past the first few
paintings. Familiar faces from the statue room glared down at me. Both in stone
and in paint, the artist had captured the condescending sneer of the royals
perfectly. I peeked around the far doorway into darkness, but heard nothing.

“Arrow,” I whispered again as I stepped into the
pitch black, fumbling around in front of me. I was scared. More scared than I
could remember ever being before. We were so close to the end, and I just
wanted to get out of there. “Where are you?” I turned the corner.

Candles flickered in glass jars on either side of
the room. The baron’s private chambers. I slowed my approach to half-speed,
exaggerating my steps.