Chapter 10: Blue Sorrow - Part III.

While Doc was so nicely distracted, I noticed the knife that had fallen off him sometime during our tirade of a conversation. I dove for it, hitting the ground hard but with success. The changeling stared with wonder at my glorious feat of acrobatics. That is, until he noticed what I now had in my hands.

Immediately leaping from the table, he tried to pounce at me only to receive a foot of hard steel into his side where it lodged firmly into his carapace. With a piercing scream, he tore with his hooves at the wounded side as he landed next to me, thrashing and yelling, blue blood sprinkling everywhere.

Trying to get away from him, I rolled under the table, incidentally bumping the broken crystal lantern with my back. For a moment, my heart stopped beating as I realized what pressed against my back, but when nothing happened, I immediately rolled back a little before turning around and getting on my hands and knees which was as much as I could do under such a low table. Then I slowly stepped over the lantern before rolling from underneath the table on the other side, getting the precious piece of metal between me and the raging changeling.

I’d be damned if this wouldn’t attract some attention. Quickly looking around for any other weapon, I noticed the still standing cub by the door, looking at us frightened. I felt sorry for him, and in the momentary chaos waved at him awkwardly.

“Weapon, weapon, weapon,” Muttering under my breath, my eyes searched, but the nearest possibility of a weapon were the racks at the end of the room.

However, before I could even try to get there, there was a loud crack followed by utter silence. That was even more terrifying than an enraged creature with shapeshifting powers. Slowly, I turned my head toward the changeling, my mind conjuring images of beasts that could be waiting for me to turn around before pouncing.

But it was none of those things. Over the changeling, claws firmly grasping the shapeshifter’s head, stood a gryphon the color of deep sea, his face set into a grim expression of determination, eyes hard and brows furrowed.

He didn’t look sleepy, he didn’t look weary, and he sure as all hell he didn’t look sick nor guilty over the fact he’s just killed another sapient being.

“Hello botě katy,” he hissed through clenched beak, looking down at the changeling but feeling it was addressed at me.

“Uh, you too I guess,” I answered as he let go of the changeling’s head, his body slumping to the ground. He's not going anywhere anymore, I winced at the treatment of the now less-than-alive Doc. Dunno what it was, but I actually felt a little bad about his death.

Then the gryphon finally looked at me, and we sort of stared at each other for a long moment, neither of us blinking.

Then came the whimper. Both of our heads snapped toward the little cub by the door. He was now huddled into a bundle in the corner by one bed, arms hugging legs close to his chest. Poor kid was a pitifully sad sight to behold, and it made my heart ache.

There was some commotion going on behind the door. Immediately, I started for the racks and drawers in the back of the room and started ravaging through them looking for some kind of weapon. Seeing out of the corner of my eye, the gryphon was yanking the knife out of the dead changeling.

What I found was much more than I had hoped for

In the lowest and longest drawer lay what looked like a well cared for sword. It wasn’t anything impressive; a plain wooden sheath with cold metal grip sticking out, but right here and now was the greatest find of the century. It raised a few questions why would such a sword be tucked away in the back of some clutter-filled drawer. Probably in case of emergency.

And this was one hell of an emergency.

I got up from my knees, the heavy thing held in both of my hands. I took the grip with my right hand and pulled the sword free of its sheath. The blade itself was chipped and scratched in many places, but sharpened to impossible thinness nonetheless. It would do its job, and it would do it well.

I was giving it a few practice swings – more for show than actual practicing – when the blade hit something above me with a loud chiming noise. Looking up, above me was draped from the ceiling another crystal lamp, and before I knew it, I was smiling like a madman.

“Fiah’ in da’ hole!”

“What?”

I didn’t give him the chance to say anything else as I threw the… modified lamp into the hallway and among some surprised armored dogs. Of course that’s what I imagined as I shut the door with excessive force and jumped behind one of the now unoccupied beds.

After I had managed to find the sword and think of my devious plan, the gryphon had gone and tried to wake everyone up. Some had woken up, some hadn’t and those we had to move into the far back corner. No one had paid the terrified kid in the corner much attention.

The gryphon was doing the talking of course. Hell, in the chaos that ensued from all of this moving about, no one really paid much attention to me either. Yeah, I was unknown and stuff, but I guess they had better things to worry about since I appeared to be on their side. Which I am.

While they were moving some of the last patients, my mind turned toward the lamp. Gently I moved to the door with it, and with the back of the hilt of my sword, I shattered the thin glass on one side of the lantern so that I would get access to the crystal and its pedestal.

With as much precision as my shaking hands would let me, and without actually touching the crystal itself, I started bending the thin metal claws that held the crystal firmly in place on the pedestal. Not wanting to remove the crystal completely, I bent and “accidently” broke only the two claw-like strips closest to me, leaving the other two intact. That meant that the crystal itself was still quite firmly in place so it wouldn’t topple to the side and out, but would go flying the moment anything shook with it strongly.

Basically, if what the changeling had told me was true, I just made a bomb. All I had to do was throw it or clumsily drop it at my feet and it would go boom.

I was just finishing with my bomb when a lot of the diamond dog’s barking speech came from somewhere far, but was gradually getting louder and closer.

Now or never, I thought and proceed with my plan.

I won’t lie that actually throwing it was harder than I make it out to be. They were still sapient, intelligent beings, with feelings and- fuck it, they’re slavers. I should blow them up a thousand times for that atrocity.

A great booming sounded through the air and through the rock itself. The bed I was hiding behind shook. There was a lot of screaming, though faint and overshadowed by the sound of explosion as it tore down the door to our room. It splintered into several pieces that went flying across the room, but none far enough to be any danger to the gryphons and a single pony. Through the opening spilled bluish fire and it reached for the ceiling, rolling in waves like ocean upon a shore, before vanishing into nothingness.

The heat washed over me like a damn hot blanket, but not enough to burn me.

However, it wasn’t over. With the heat came another… force, for lack of a better word. This force wasn’t anything I’d ever felt before. It didn’t roll in a wave like heat, it didn’t push me like a shockwave. No, it came to me, and then through me; an intangible force of energy like nothing I’ve ever experienced.

Only then was it truly over.

I felt but a small tinge of regret about killing them that was again dispelled by the thought of slavery. The thought of how they possibly tortured the children – even if Doc claimed otherwise – made my blood boil. Anything pertaining violence towards children made my blood boil. I’ve felt like this since my lil’ brother came to be. I guess I just became overprotective of him after finally not being a single child. It could get lonely, you know.

Anyway, after the heat passed, I finally peaked out from behind the bed to take a look around. The prisoners were terrified, the navy gryphon stared at me dumbfounded, and where maybe half a dozen dogs had stood only charred remnants plastered all over the hallway remained. The smell of it all hit me not a second later.

Hmm, smelled just like KFC.

Jumping behind the bed reminded me how sore my body really was, and now it screamed for attention, demanding a rest which I couldn’t afford. Picking myself off the floor with the sword I had lain close by in my right hand, I drew it out of its scabbard. Slowly, lightly, I trod to the open doorway with the sword raised slightly in front of me.

Taking a more careful look into the hallway, it indeed confirmed that everyone was fried and as of now existed in multiple places at once, especially in the area of the closest walls, which now reminded me of a decade uncleaned chimney.

There were also some stones, the roof and walls having collapsed a little at the place of explosion, but nothing heavy and nothing that would obscure the way.

I turned back to the patients behind me. Some stared at me, some at the blown doorway, with mixed reactions of fear, awe, and confusion. I nodded to them, they let their breaths out and started whispering amongst themselves. The blue gryphon, however, approached me near the doorway.

He stared at me intensely with a thoughtful expression as if he didn’t know what to make of me. That’s alright, I thought, I don’t really know what to make of me either. I gave him a neutral look. When our eyes locked, we engaged in a silent staring contest. After a few seconds he looked away, down the corridor, before scrunching his beak, grimacing in disgust as he breathed in the smell and took in the sights.

Then, with a flick of his dark head plumage – which was something like hair – he turned around, walking back to the patients to check up on them. They were now in all kinds of distress, some moaning with new-found pain, some just passively nodding off.

There was no help to be found here, and there would be no help found in loitering, so I left them behind as I walked into the black, charred remnants crunching beneath my boots.

Not long after, I came upon the first T section; one hallway went straight, the other turned left. The one going left was the only one I didn’t know anything about. The other corridors led to the clinic, the prison or the main hall. So, my curiosity getting the better of me, I walked left, soon coming upon another door.

However, there was something special about this door. Unlike the others, this one was carefully crafted and studded with steel plates. And, in contrast to the other doors separating rooms from corridors, this one had a large keyhole in it.

Naturally, I tried the door handle, but it wouldn’t budge. Trying a few more times without success, I left the door behind with some reluctance. There was something really important about them, and it irritated me for some reason.

Now that I had the time to look around, I started to appreciate my surroundings. Though no doubt dug with the hands of slaves, the cavernous hallways made for an exciting place, the stone smoothed into perfection, yet still giving off the vibe of an underground hideout. The plays of sparse, flickering lightning of a few torches here and there played shadow games over the walls, making me see things though there there were none. I didn’t feel the need to jump at every flicker, for I knew there wasn’t enough space to hide in the narrow passages and its shadows.

All in all, an amazing atmosphere was achieved.

When the next split in hallways came, another dog finally appeared. He came running from behind a turn – silent on his paws – just as I was nearing it, nearly piercing himself on my sword. That would’ve worked for him if I didn’t lunge with the sword forward on instinctive reaction, pinning him in the chest where his heart was.

He gave a squeal of surprise before dropping dead on the floor while his weapon, a narrow blade of dark metal, clattered noisily on the rock floor. My sword dropped with him, still sticking out of his chest. For a second I stood there frozen, gripped in shock. It was pure luck that I hadn’t been standing a little closer, otherwise I would’ve been the one pinned on a weapon. His weapon.

I need to be damn more careful, I reprimanded myself, before pulling my sword out of his chest. It took some effort. The blade got stuck between ribs protecting the heart. As the sword got unstuck, a steady stream of blood gushed out of the wound. For a second, staring at the gushing liquid of life in wonder flashed me a memory of the first diamond dog I had killed. Despite the fact that the first had been a slaver most likely too, there was something powerful and unforgettable about the act. The first act of murder.

I stepped over his corpse, moving along the wall  as silently as I could. Before crossing, I peeped over the intersection to make sure no other dog was there, and as I peered, the noises of fighting got louder. I could see silhouettes moving, their shadows falling into the space behind the throne.

Ignoring that, I moved forward with a quick step toward the prison. If there was a fight going on, the prisoners could be in grave danger, especially the children.

We couldn’t have that, now could we?

There was some commotion going on behind the door to the prison, but I stopped myself from barging in. Instead, I slowly creeped over to the door handle, before subtly opening the door and peering inside.

There were three gryphons there, armed with various makeshift weaponry that could be found lying around, one of them opening the prison cells with a ring of keys. I recognized that one as a prisoner from the group of slaves I had freed. Opening the door fully, I let my presence be known.

The other two gryphons that were overlooking the cells, talking in hushed voices, jumped up with their weapons ready to strike. They let out ferocious growls, faces scrunched up with fury, eyes promising brutal death.

However, before they could do anything, the third gryphon got in their way, shaking his head while talking quickly. The two gryphons seemed to cool down a little. Not much, but at least enough to not have them try to stab me.

I nodded thankfully at the gryphon with the keyring I… acquired earlier still firmly in his claws. He went back to opening the cells.

The children inside were terrified, huddled as far inside their cells as they could. Couldn’t blame them, though.

The one unconscious gryphon locked in the cell with some of the kids was still out.

Knowing the children were in safe hands – err, claws – I went back outside. Again, carefully peering around the corner, I checked whether it was safe or not. The fighting seemed to reach its pinnacle, now slowly dying down.

For all the bravado I felt after single-handedly killing so many of the slavers, it wouldn’t do me much good in a chaotic fight with many opponents. Yet, not doing anything would probably be worse. Contemplating what to do, I was interrupted as something slammed down the corridor where the clinic lay.

What was that?

The sound had an ominous feeling to it. In this place, at this time, with the ever looming presence of danger, my body and mind screamed at me to ignore the noise as if it never happened.

But I was stronger now.

Not a second later, my legs carried me through the hallway and to the clinic door, only checking to see if the corridor leading to the mysterious door was clean of any nasty surprises in the form of armed diamond dogs.

However, the clinic was still in pretty much the same. The navy gryphon looked at me as I entered, but only gave me a passing glance as he was checking up on some patient.

One thing was missing though. The small diamond dog.

There’s no way he could’ve escaped, I thought while looking at the spot where he had been.

He couldn’t have passed through me. Even distracted by the gryphons in the prison, the gryphons or me would’ve noticed something. That meant he was only at one possible place.

Turning around, I slowly crept to the mysterious, locked door. Well, not so locked anymore. I tried the door handle again, and the heavy thing swung open.

It felt like entering a different world. The cave itself was dark, gloomy, the air riddled with the despair of those who toiled away from the sun, away from hope, nothing but blue light of crystals leading them in this blind world. But the room beyond was the exact opposite. Lavish with a carpet, though obviously heavily used. A couch sat in one corner next to a king-sized bed with two pillows and a nice blanket folded upon the mattress. Furniture crafted to perfection, yet scratched with heavy use, dotted the room; a chair big enough for a gryphon to sit in tucked beneath a mahogany table with many drawers. A bookshelf with actual books. And a chandelier hanging from a high ceiling.

There was no doubt that this was the alpha’s room. Not really expecting such a grandiose sight, I foolishly stepped inside without first looking around.

That’s when the cub attacked. He came flying from around the corner where he hid behind a wardrobe. His form was not enough to topple me over, but I still stumbled, dropping my sword. The dog latched firmly onto my side, paws clutching my back and chest, scratching and trying to bite me. Though before he could do the latter, he already went flying back at the wardrobe, scratching me as I tore him off myself with both of my arms. “Fuck!” I yelled as pain laced through my back and chest where he grabbed me.

While not really all that strong, I did work out occasionally and a month of village life up in the gryphon mountain village had only positive effects on my body. But most of all, the kid was scrawny, more bone and hide on him than muscles. As such, he didn’t take the fall too good as he bounced off the wardrobe with a loud thud.

The now extremely vulnerable looking cub lay on the floor, whimpering. A sound so helpless and childlike that it broke my heart.

Oh shit.

“Dammit, kid, I didn’t mean-” I was at his side already, rolling him carefully over. There were three small gashes, one on his scalp, the other on his face. They trickled droplets of blood. It wasn’t anything serious, but still looked like all the world’s pain on his furry face.

“Sorry,” I muttered in Balderdash. His ears flicked at the word, but that was about that. After that he stopped moving. For a second my breath caught up in my chest, but as he inhaled, though shallowly, again, I sighed with relief. I carefully picked him up and put him on the kingside bed, but not doing much else.

Only then did I start to notice my own wounds. Four shallow cuts trailed from the middle of my chest all the way to my right side. I could only imagine the same thing was on my back.

This will leave scars.

And as I was looking, I noticed a silent figure standing in the doorway. He was standing there, red with blood, face laced with shock as he looked at the unconscious form near the bed. Then he noticed me.

I nearly shat my pants as the alpha’s shock turned into the most horrifying expression of rage I had ever seen.

I was deeply and utterly fucked.

The alpha shot forward at inhuman speeds, shouldering me so hard I flew sideways at a wall upon which my frail form splattered and slid down onto the hard carpet. The dog took the wind out of my lungs. The impact left me dizzy and disoriented. New pains flared at so many places I started losing consciousness, almost falling into the obscurity of sleepful bliss. But I didn’t quite topple over the edge. The darkness didn’t overcome me, but let me float upon it like a calm ocean, leaving me drifting between sleep and wakefulness.

I cracked my eyes open just a bit. Unfocused, I rolled them over until they fell upon the blurry form of the alpha dog, his back to me as he looked at something.

The kid, I thought weakly.

A voice rang out, but no one heeded its calling.

The alpha turned to me, his face contorted in pain and rage. He stared at me, the intensity of it telling me everything he intended to do to me once he was done with whatever he was doing. Then he turned away from me.

The sword was surprisingly close to me. Perhaps another stroke of luck, perhaps deus ex machina, but it left me with an option. Kill or be killed, my mind screamed at me, my instincts joining soon after. There was nothing else, no other choice.

Slowly, I reached out toward the sword, hand touching the grip, grasping it. My hand felt numb around the weapon. My whole body felt numb. The pain was pushed so far back, such a distant echo it even might not have ever been.

The calling was stronger now, its desperation trickling through my muddled mind. The dog, in the corner of my eye, started shaking something, but after a small while stopped and stepped over behind the bed, and in the space between the couch and the bed, he opened a small door and swung it open.

Then he ran to the wardrobe, picking something out of it. Hurrying to the small form upon the bed, pulling something white over its head.

Paying that no mind – not like I could pay attention to anything happening around me in my current state – I slowly started hauling myself off the carpeted floor. Groaning and moaning somewhat, with the entirety of my left arm propping myself against the wall, I turned toward the alpha who was still too much distracted with the small form splayed across the bed.

One shuffling step after another. I slowly inched my way toward his exposed back in impossible silence. Swaying softly on my numb legs, both of my hands clasping the sword as tightly as I could, I might’ve looked like a drunken madman. But that didn’t cross my mind. Only the decision was in the forefront of all my thoughts.

There was a special bond between the alpha and the dog, and it would’ve taken a blind man or someone who’d never known love for their family to not recognize that bond. It was that of a father fearing for his son.

And then I stood close, so close… the decision now rang through my mind like the great bells of a thousand churches combined.

In that one fateful moment, I weighed the life of a father and his son to the uncertain life of a lost brother. Maybe you would decide without even thinking about it, maybe I would do the same, but in that muddled state of mind, in reach of the one that stood in my way like a wall with but one weakness exposed for but a short fraction of time… it was the hardest decision I’d ever made.

But the bells rang their song, and I listened and followed, for I was the one that had to sing with them. I rang them back at the mountain of gryphon village. The bells of hope and determination for my little brother...

The sword, heavier than ever, rose slowly in my fragile hands. The eyes focused on but one point at the back of this creature, this wall that was built with a weakness that I was to exploit.

The blade latched hungrily at the hide, the sinew, the muscle. It slashed, it tore, it ended what wasn’t meant to end.

The alpha weakly turned around as he started to fall.

One would think he would have heard me approaching with his supreme hearing. One would think he would have smelled me as I stood near him. One would think he would have seen me in the corner of his eyes.

But he did none of this, for his eyes were blurred with tears, his nose clogged with held-back sobs, his ears splayed backward in fright. All for the safety of his son.

A leader, fearless and powerful, one that ruled over an entire pack of feral creatures that respected nada but strength. Unshakeable, but for one weakness. Weakness that I dared to exploit.

The love of a parent for his child.