CAIUS: Crown of Threads and Shadows

The tunnel twisted through the mountain like the buried remains of an ancient road.

Sereth moved quickly through the darkness, one hand gripping Caius’s arm as they climbed higher. The sounds of the battle had faded behind them, but the danger had not.

Caius could still hear them. The orcs were following.

Their voices echoed through the passages, growing louder whenever the tunnel narrowed. They had discovered the hidden entrance and were pursuing them through the underground passages beneath Castle Precipice.

Caius stumbled over a loose stone but caught himself against the wall. ”How far?”

”Keep moving.” Sereth did not slow down.

Caius looked behind them. Torchlight flickered in the distance.

”They’re close.”

”I know.”

The tunnel eventually began to rise, and the air became colder. Caius could smell the mountain wind ahead; they were approaching an exit.

Sereth pushed through a narrow opening between two enormous rocks, and the two emerged onto a steep mountainside.

Caius stopped. Below them lay the valley. Castle Precipice was visible in the distance, smoke rising from the fortress. The walls were covered in movement as orcs had already entered the castle grounds, and the banners of the horde flew above the battlements.

Caius stared at it. His home was gone.

Then something else caught his attention. Far across the valley, beyond the castle and on a higher ridge, stood another army. Thousands of soldiers had gathered there.

Their banners were unmistakable: the kingdom’s army.

Caius stared at them in disbelief. They had arrived, but they had not come to help. They had simply watched.

The army remained on the ridge, observing the destruction of Castle Precipice from a safe distance. Their ranks were organized, their standards raised, and their soldiers fully armed. They had been close enough to see the battle, close enough to know what was happening, yet they had done nothing.

Caius felt his chest tighten. His father had requested reinforcements again and again, but the answer had always been the same: the army was needed elsewhere.

But now they were here. They had been here while Castle Precipice fought alone.

Caius clenched his fists as his father’s face appeared in his mind. Cullum could have survived if that army had come. If even a portion of those soldiers had marched to the castle, the outcome might have been different. His father might still be alive, the Macrae soldiers might still be alive, and the people of Castle Precipice might still have their homes.

Caius stared at the distant army. ”They could have saved us.”

Sereth said nothing.

”They were here.” His voice shook. ”They were watching.”

Sereth looked toward the distant soldiers.

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Caius’s eyes burned with anger. ”My father would still be alive.”

Sereth finally looked at him.

Caius clenched his jaw. ”Someday, I will demand an answer.” The words came quietly, but there was no uncertainty in them. ”I will find out why they stood there.”

Sereth looked back toward the tunnel as the sound of pursuit reached them. ”We can ask them later.”

Caius turned. The orcs were emerging from the tunnel. There were several of them now, climbing over the rocks and following the trail. They spotted Caius and Sereth immediately.

”THERE!” The orcs shouted.

Sereth grabbed Caius. ”Run.”

They moved along the mountain path. The terrain became steeper as they climbed toward the edge of the Abyss.

Caius looked ahead. The ground eventually disappeared into a vast darkness. The Abyss stretched between the mountains, its depths impossible to see from above. Mist drifted through the opening, and the faint sound of rushing water rose from somewhere far below.

Sereth stopped, and Caius nearly collided with him. ”Why are you stopping?”

Sereth looked toward the Abyss, then looked behind them. The orcs were getting closer. Caius saw several emerge from the rocks; they were almost upon them.

Sereth turned toward Caius. ”Do you know how to swim?”

Caius looked down. The darkness beneath them seemed endless. He could hear water far below, but he could not see it. He swallowed. ”Not in the dark.”

Sereth stared at him for a moment. Then he grabbed Caius.

Caius barely had time to react. ”Wait!”

Sereth threw him into the Abyss.

Caius screamed as the ground vanished beneath him. The darkness swallowed him, and then Sereth jumped after him.

The orcs reached the edge moments later and stopped. The first orc looked down into the Abyss: nothing, only darkness.

The creature took a step backward as another orc approached and looked over the edge. ”Did they fall?”

The first orc shook his head. ”No one survives that.”

They stared into the depths. Even the orcs did not dare descend into the Abyss. The darkness below was ancient and vast, and the sound of water coming from its depths made the warriors uneasy.

One of them finally turned away. ”We report to the warlord.”

The others followed, leaving the Abyss behind.

Back at Castle Precipice, the great courtyard had become a field of corpses. The surviving orcs gathered around their wounded warlord.

Krag’gath sat against a broken stone wall while Morga worked over him. The shaman pressed one hand against his face while dark green mana flowed from her fingers into the wound. Normally, such magic could close wounds quickly, but this wound was different. The black energy left behind by Caius’s arrow remained embedded inside the warlord, spreading slowly through the damaged flesh. Wherever the dark energy touched, the tissue began to decay.

Morga’s expression became increasingly troubled. ”I cannot cleanse it.”

Krag’gath growled, ”Then heal it.”

”I am healing it.” The shaman forced more mana into the wound.

The flesh began to close, but then the black energy spread again. The newly healed tissue darkened and began to rot.

Krag’gath slammed his fist against the ground. ”That boy.”

Morga stared at the wound. ”I have never seen magic like this.”

Krag’gath’s remaining eye narrowed. ”Find him.”

The orc warriors approached. ”My warlord.”

Krag’gath turned. ”What?”

”The boy escaped into the Abyss.”

Krag’gath stared at him. ”You let him escape?”

”We followed them, but they jumped into the darkness.”

The warlord’s expression hardened. He looked toward Morga. ”Can he survive?”

The shaman remained silent. ”I do not know.”

Krag’gath’s hand moved toward his wounded eye as pain spread through him. The black energy continued eating away at the flesh, and his face twisted with hatred. ”Find him.”

”We searched the tunnels.”

”Then search the mountains.”

Morga looked toward the castle walls. ”The human army has arrived.”

Krag’gath turned. Far beyond the ruined castle, the banners of the kingdom’s army had begun moving into the valley. The orc scouts had already reported their approach.

The horde had achieved its objective: Castle Precipice had fallen. There was no reason to remain.

Krag’gath gave the order. ”Withdraw.”

The orcs began abandoning the castle. The wounded were carried away, while the surviving warriors gathered their weapons and equipment. The siege machine was pulled back from the ruined gate, and the horde began moving toward the mountain passes.

By the time the human army finally entered the valley, the orcs were already retreating. The soldiers marched toward the ruins of Castle Precipice, but they arrived too late.

The castle was silent. Its gates were broken, its walls were damaged, and bodies covered the courtyard. The Macrae banner had fallen.

The kingdom’s army had come, but there was no one left to save.

Far above the valley, deep within the Abyss, the sound of rushing water echoed through the darkness. Caius Macrae was gone, and no one knew whether he was alive.