Oh shit…
Stumbling back as my stomach heaved, I purged my stomach contents on the floor of the vaults, feeling mortified that Kull watched. He bravely rubbed my back until I finished. I backed away with him at my side.
“I want to leave,” I breathed. “I don’t think I can be down here any longer.”
“I understand.”
We walked away from the rows of tables, back past the deep pit with the thousands of trapped corpses, past the original pod I’d seen first, but instead of turning toward the door we’d entered through, Kull tugged me to a door opposite where we’d entered.
“This way should lead us under the tower.”
When we rounded toward the door, voices came from up ahead.
Kull and I hid behind one of the pillars. Several guards entered the vaults, and two of them, a man and a woman carrying long pikes, neared our hiding spot. I caught some of their conversation.
“…find them down here, but it’s useless. I heard the stone was being tampered with…”
“Tampered with?”
“Yes.”
“But… why would anyone do such a thing?”
The guards continued on their way, and I turned to Kull. “Heidel and Maveryck must be close to removing the stone.”
“Yes, and if that’s so, then we’ve got to get to the sword while we can.”
We crept away from the pillar and made it to a door opposite where we’d entered. The shadowy opening was clouded with magic—the same sort of unicorn magic I’d felt in the other doorway, as well as in the mirror leading to where Jeven kept the sword.
As we halted near the rusted metal door, Kull reached for it, and I felt the magic igniting inside. I reached out and grabbed his hand.
“There’s magic in it,” I said. “Let me.”
I faced the door, feeling a spell, but it wasn’t meant to keep us out… It was meant for someone or something else.
“This spell…” I whispered. “I think it’s meant to keep the Regaymor inside this room. Kull, it’s powered by the unicorn’s stone. If Heidel and Maveryck take the stone, then all those corpses will break free of their tombs, escape, and…”
“…and kill us all,” Kull finished.
“Yes.”
The floor shuddered under our feet. Another tremor followed, causing pebbles to dislodge from the ceiling and fall to the ground. The magic in the door flickered, and then faded completely.
“They must’ve taken the stone,” I whispered.
The room shook more violently, causing one of the stalagmites to fracture and crash to the ground behind us. Screams echoed across the cavern. Guards barked orders as others shouted.
Lodged in a wall near us was a single oval-shaped tomb. The corpse inside stopped moving as the purple light diminished, but its robes transformed. Black tattered cloth replaced the corpse’s clothing. What remained of its skin and muscle tissue disappeared, leaving behind only a skeleton. The corpse flexed its fingers, the tips ended in pointed claws, and then it lifted its head. Red, pinprick eyes met mine.
A cold chill ran down my spine.
I backed away, fear making my heart beat wildly.
“Run,” Kull hissed. “Go now.”
We backed toward the door. I attempted to fling it open, but the knob wouldn’t budge when I attempted to turn it. Behind us, the sound of shattering glass echoed as the Regaymor escaped its tomb.
Chapter 12
Kull unsheathed his blade as we faced the broken tomb, but his weapon would do no good against the wispy black phantom approaching us. Frantic screams echoed from the other side of the cavern as more Regaymor broke free from their tombs.
I calmed my mind as I readied a spell, using my power to draw black magic from the stones surrounding me. I blasted out with my magic. Blinding light burst from my hands and hit the phantom in the chest, giving Kull enough time to break the door open.
The Regaymor let out a shrill wail as we escaped. I blasted out another burst of magic, repelling it long enough to escape into the tunnels. The sounds of our booted feet echoed through the corridors as we ran from the tombs. Gray stones blurred in my vision as we reached a cross-section.
“Which way?” Kull asked, breathing heavily.
I concentrated on remembering the path I’d taken with Jeven, which was hard to do as the screams of Regaymor filled the cavern behind us, growing closer.
“This way,” I said, pointing to the hallway on our left. As we ran down the hall, the floor rumbled under our feet. Dust stirred as we descended the stairs and made it to the hallway with the mirrors.
“That one,” I said, pointing to the mirror at the end of the hall. We sprinted to it when the floor shook violently, sending several mirrors to the ground where they smashed to pieces.
The oval-shaped mirror with the golden frame hung on the wall at the hallway’s end. We dashed toward it as the tremors increased, sending more mirrors smashing to the ground. Shards splintered. Some of the shattered pieces cut into my skin. Glass crunched beneath our boots as we stopped to stand before the mirror.
“There was a spell protecting it,” I shouted over the rumbling, “but with the unicorn’s stone missing, we should be able to get through.”
I approached the mirror and placed my hand on the glass. It trembled, but didn’t fall as its smooth surface chilled my fingers. I focused on opening the gateway. Magic swirled inside the glass, its spell taking shape as I felt the power working through me.
“Take my hand,” I yelled to Kull as the magic grew brighter. He clenched my fingers tightly as the magic engulfed us, giving me the same sensation I’d felt with Jeven—of the breath being sucked from my body and the floor disappearing from underneath my feet.
As the magic faded, I felt the floor form beneath my feet. Kull and I stood in the blank white room with no walls and no floor—nothing but a
