Cyruslooked around, confused. Ungur raised her rifle toTier’s chest. A look of shocked understanding fell across the blonde yeti’sface.
“Youdid this?” she growled, “You betrayed us? You led us knowingly into this trap?”
“Youcannot help us,” Ungur snarled back, “You were onlygoing to get us killed. You were going to get my father killed!”
“Wecame all this way to help you,” Cyrus shouted, “We survived klops,trolls, those half-dead wendigo to help you. This is how you repay us?”
Cyrusfelt as if his guts had been ripped out. This was his village betraying him allover again.
“Analbino blodbad, here?” the queen seethed, “How?”
Edwardwas trapped between the queen’s index finger and thumb. She held him upsidedown like a helpless beetle.
“Thatis not all,” Ungur said, “There is a fourth in theirparty. He left my tent before I could lead him here. He’s somewhere out in themines, spying.”
“Anotheralveling?” the queen asked.
“No,”Ungur said, “He is the same size, but gray, withwebbed hands and glowing blue eyes.”
“Blueeyes?” the queen asked.
Sheseemed to turn inwards. Was she afraid, Cyrus thought? She refocused her gaze.
“Wheredo you come from?” the queen shouted into Cyrus’ face, “Did she send you? Didthe Warrior Witch send you?”
Cyrusstared wide-eyed at the queen’s silk mask. Then he looked to Edward, clawingand twisting helplessly in her grip. How should he answer?
“Youmay refuse to talk now,” the queen snarled, “But that will change. Take thesetwo to the dungeons. The spider stays with me.”
CouncilorAgulha picked himself up off the floor and brushedout his ragged brown robes. Then he reached into a pocket and withdrew awhistle. With all the breath he could manage, he sounded the instrument. Foursmaller water klops, armed with crossbows, cameshuffling through a passageway to the far left of the throne.
“CouncilorAgulha, what are your orders?” the first klops asked.
“Blindfoldthese two and take them to the dungeons for interrogation. Do not remove theirblindfolds, and do not harm them until ordered.”
“No!”Cyrus blurted, “Leave me alone.”
“Stopit,” Edward cried, “Let him go!”
Thefour klops held Cyrus down, wrestling him as they coveredhis eyes with a mildewed rag. How did the queen know so much?
“Whatare you going to do with Edward?” Cyrus shouted.
Hefelt himself being hauled off by the arms. He kicked and squirmed across thepolished floors.
“Cyrus,”Edward yelled.
“What’sgoing to happen to Edward?” Cyrus screamed.
Hefelt himself dragged down sharp steps, into the cool entrails of some dark hollow.Edwards' voice cried after him. Then a heavy door crashed shut, and Edward’svoice was heard no more.
Chapter 27
MORO
THE KLOPS DRAGGED CYRUS down an icy corridor. Theair was frigid. The sound of skittering rats echoed all around. Cyrus washauled through a doorway and down several stone steps. The klopsshuffled and whispered as they locked an iron shackle around his neck. Heshifted to find comfort. The klops pushed his backagainst a cold rock wall.
“Let me go!”Cyrus shouted.
He kicked atseveral large rodents scurrying across his legs. His surroundings sounded muffledand dense. Water dripped nearby. The klops’ footstepsreceded. Then a door crashed shut with a bang and a heavy clank.
“Let me go,you bastards,” Cyrus demanded.
He pulled athis cold chains. The manacle jangled against the metal anchors. He tried to geta sense of his surroundings. The room smelled of rock dust and rat droppings.
“They do nottake kindly to name calling,” a tired, yet kind voice said.
The wordsseemed to vibrate, similar to Fibian’s speech.
“What? Who’sthere?” Cyrus asked.
“My name isMoro. I am a prisoner, like you. But I have been down here for far, far toolong.”
Cyrus rippedthe blindfold from his eyes and looked about. A spike of adrenalin flushed hisbody. Was he back on the klappen island, within Rorroh’s torture chamber? He blinked and looked again. Theroom was not the same, but it was similar.
The klops had shackled Cyrus within an iron-barred cell. Chainsand pulleys dangled from the frozen walls. A single oil lamp burned on a wall,nearest the exit, supplying the room’s meager lighting.
“What is yourname?” the creature calling herself Moro asked.
“I’m Cyrus.Where are you?”
In thedarkness, a lean shape shifted before Cyrus. A single blue sphere began toglow.
“What inKingdom?” Cyrus gasped.
A dark gray formsat chained to the iron bars, across the cell. The creature was female, longand slender, similar to Fibian, yet her features weresofter, her edges more curved. She wore a leather eye patch over one eye. Theother glowed like the moon.
“A froskman…” Cyrus whispered.
She must have beenfreezing, for she was garbed in meager tattered gray rags.
“I am a froskman,” the creature said, “but how do you know thatname?”
“I- I’ve heardof your kind during my travels,” Cyrus said, wishing he had held his tongue.
“And where doyou come from?” Moro asked.
“An island,far away from here.”
“You must missyour home dearly,” she replied, “I know I do.”
Moro began toweep from her lone eye. She wiped her tears away with her webbed hand. Unlike Fibian, she had rather long eyelashes, and her lips werefuller. Even bald, wearing an eye patch, she was beautiful, Cyrus thought.
“How long haveyou been down here?” he asked.
“I am notentirely sure. It feels like years,” Moro said, “For centuries I was guardianof a creature called a hune. That is until the water klops captured me and took me prisoner.”
That made somesense, Cyrus thought. Like Fibian, it was her job towatch the second village of hune alves.Once Rorroh poisoned the alves,it was probably Moro’s duty to continue to monitor the hune.Did she still serve Rorroh?
“Where’s the hune now?” he asked, “Is it still alive?”
“You know ofsuch creatures?” Moro replied.
She studiedCyrus’ face.
“My people arestranded on the remains of one, because of a monster known as the Sea Zombie.”
“The WarriorWitch? Here?” Moro asked.
Her lone eyeblazed like a white star.
“No, nothere,” Cyrus said, trying to calm Moro’s terror, “The last time I saw her was awhile ago, on an island far from here.”
“How did youescape?”
“With the helpof my friend, Edward. He’s been captured by that queen. I need to get himback.”
“You and yourfriend alone were able to escape the Warrior Witch?”
Moro did notsound convinced.
“Barely, yes,”he lied.
“Have youheard of the alveling prophecy?” Moro asked, “Haveyou ever seen dragon’s blood?”
Cyrus slowlyshook his head no. Of course, she knew of
