A Rule of Queens

CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

Reece opened his eyes slowly, feeling groggy from the red vapor drifting in and out of this place, and he looked around in the darkness of the cave. He realized he had fallen asleep, still sitting up with his back to the cave wall; before him he saw the small glowing fire emerging from the stone floor, and he wondered how long they had slept here.

Reece looked about and saw Thorgrin, Matus, Conven, O’Connor, Elden, and Indra all spread out around him, all still lying by the fire. Gently, he leaned over and prodded them, and they woke slowly, one at a time.

Reece’s head felt like it weighed a million pounds as he struggled to his hands and knees, then to his feet. He felt as if he’d slept a hundred years. He turned and peered into the blackness as he heard a soft moaning noise, echoing off the walls, but he could not tell where it was coming from. He felt as if he had been down here, in this land of the dead, forever, as if he’d been down here longer than he’d been alive.

Yet Reece had no regrets. He was by his brother’s side, and there was no place else he’d rather be. Thor was his best friend, and Reece drew strength from Thor’s refusal to back down from a challenge, from his determination to find and rescue his son. He would follow him to the very bowels of hell

It had not been long since Reece had been there himself, to that place of suffering, of grieving over a loved one. He lived with his loss of Selese every day, and he understood what Thorgrin was going through. It was the strangest thing; being down here, Reece felt closer to Selese than ever, felt a strange sense of peace. As he thought of it, he remembered he had been awakened by a dream of her. He could still see her face, smiling at him, waking him.

Another moan rose up from somewhere in the blackness, and Reece turned and tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword, as did the others, all of them on edge. As one, they all began to walk, silently marching on, led by Thorgrin. Reece was famished, feeling a tremendous hunger he could never quell, as if he had not eaten in a million years.

“How long have we slept?” O’Connor asked as they walked.

They all looked at each other, wondering.

“I feel as if I have aged,” Elden said.

“You look as if you have,” Conven said.

Reece flexed his arms and hands and legs. They felt stiff, as if he hadn’t moved in a very long time.

“We must not stop moving,” Thorgrin said. “Not ever again.”

Together they marched into the blackness, Thor leading the way, Reece by his side, all of them squinting into the dim light of the fires as they weaved in and out of the tunnels. A bat flew by his head, then another and another, and Reece ducked and looked up at the ceiling, and he saw glowing eyes of all different colors, exotic creatures hanging upside down from the ceiling, some on the walls.

Reece tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword, bracing himself for an attack, having a sinking feeling.

As they continued walking, the narrow cave opened, widening into a large circular clearing, perhaps fifty feet in diameter. Before them lay a series of tunnels, caves extending in each direction. The clearing was well lit, fires all around, and Reece was surprised to see it open up like this, to see all the forks in the road.

He was even more surprised, though, at the sight before him.

Reece fell to his knees, overwhelmed, nearly collapsing, as he saw, but a few feet away, his love.

Selese.

Reece, eyes welling with tears, watched in awe as Selese stepped forward and reached out for him. She held his hands, her skin so smooth, smiling down sweetly at him, her eyes shining with love, just as he’d remembered. Gently, she pulled him to his feet.

“Selese?” he said, afraid to believe it, his voice hardly rising above a whisper.

“It is I, my love,” she answered.

Reece wept as he hugged her and she hugged him back, each holding the other tight. He was amazed to be able to hold her again, that she was really in his arms. He was overwhelmed at the feel of her, the smell of her, the way she fit in his arms, just as he’d remembered. It was really her. Selese.

Even more so, she didn’t hate him. On the contrary, she seemed to still have the same love for him as when he’d last seen her.

Reece wept, overwhelmed, never having had such feelings in his life. He felt tremendous guilt for what he’d done, all brought back, fresh again. Yet he also felt love and appreciation for getting a second chance.

“I have thought of you every day since I last laid eyes upon you,” he said.

“And I you,” Selese said.

Reece leaned back and looked at her, their eyes locking, and she looking even more beautiful than the last time he had seen her.

Reece spotted something on her arm, and he looked down and saw a lily pad sticking to her sleeve. He peeled it off, confused; it was wet.

“What is this?” Reece asked.

“A lily, my love,” she said softly. “From the Lake of Sorrows. From the day I drowned. In the land of the spirits, our methods of death cling to us, especially if self-inflicted. They remind us of how we died. Otherwise, sometimes it is hard to forget.”

Reece felt a fresh rush of guilt and sorrow.

“I’m so sorry,” he said. “I’ve asked for your forgiveness every day since you died. Now I can ask you in person. Will you forgive me?”

Selese looked at him for a long time.

“I have heard your words, my love. I saw the candle that you lit, that you sent down the mountain. I have been with you. Every moment, I have been with you.”

Reece embraced Selese, crying over her shoulder as he held her tight, determined to never, ever let her go again, even if that meant he could not leave this place,.

“Yes,” she whispered, into his ear. “I forgive you. I still love you. I always have.”

Thorgrin stood beside his best friend Reece, overcome with emotion himself as he watched Reece’s tearful reunion with her. He backed away with the others, all of them trying to give them their privacy. Thorgrin had never expected this. He had only expected ghouls and demons and foes; he had not anticipated loved ones. This land, this place of the dead, was so mysterious to him.

Thor barely had grasped the concept when suddenly, out of one of the many tunnels leading from this clearing, there emerged another person, a man Thor knew well. He marched out and stood there proudly, facing the group, and Thor’s heart pounded as he saw who it was.

“My brothers,” the man said softly, standing there grinning, the shining sword in his belt, just as Thor had last seen him. Thor was amazed. Here he was again, in the flesh, the beloved member of their group:

Conval.

Conven suddenly gasped and rushed forward.

“My brother!” he yelled.

The two brothers embraced, meeting with a great clang, each clasping the other’s armor, neither letting the other go. Conven wept as he embraced his long-lost brother, laughing and crying at the same time, and Thor saw his face, for the first time in moons, filled with joy. Conven was more exuberant than Thor had seen him since his brother died. The old Conven, filled with life, was back with them once again.

Thor, too, stepped forward and embraced Conval, his old Legion brother, the man who had taken a blow for him and had saved his life. Reece, Elden, Indra, O’Connor, and Matus each stepped up and embraced him, too.

“I knew I would see you all again one day,” Conval said. “I just did not think it would be so soon!”

Thor clasped Conval’s arm and looked him in the eye.

“You died for me,” Thorgrin said. “I shall never forget that. I owe you a great debt.”

“You owe me nothing,” Conval said. “Watching you has been repayment enough. I’ve been watching all of you. Again and again, you’ve acted with valor. With honor. You’ve made me proud. You’ve made my death worth it.”

“Is it true?” Conven said, examining his brother, clasping his shoulder, still in shock. “Is it really you?”

Conval nodded back.

“You were not supposed to see me for many years now,” Conval said. “But you chose to enter this land. It is a choice from which I could not deter you. So welcome to my home, my brothers. It’s bit damp and gloomy, I’m afraid.”

Conven broke into laughter, as did the rest of them, and for the first time since entering this place, Thor felt a momentary relief from the tension they had felt every step of the way.

Thor was about to ask Conval more about this place—when suddenly out of another tunnel, there emerged another man.

Thor could hardly believe it. Approaching him was a man who had once meant the world to him. A man he had respected more than any other man. A man he was certain he would never see again.

Standing there was King MacGil.

A wound in his chest where his son’s dagger had stabbed him, he stood there proudly, smiling down on them all through his long beard, a smile Thor remembered fondly.

“My King,” Thor said, bowing his head and taking a knee, as did the others.

King MacGil shook his head and stepped forward, grabbing Thor’s arm and helping him up.

“Rise,” he said, his voice booming, the familiar voice that Thor remembered. “All of you, rise. You can stand now. I am your King no longer. Death equals out us all.”

Reece rushed forward and hugged his father, and the King embraced him back.

“My son,” King MacGil said. “I should have kept you closer. Much closer than Gareth. I underestimated you because of your age. It is a mistake I would never make again if I had the chance.”

King MacGil turned to Thor and clasped his shoulder.

“You’ve made us all proud,” he said to Thor. “You have bestowed valor upon all of us. For you, we live on. We live on now through you.”

Thor embraced the King, as he embraced Thor back.

“And what of my son?” Thor asked him, leaning back. “Is Guwayne with you?”

Thor was afraid to ask the question, afraid for the answer.

MacGil looked down.

“That is not a question for me to answer,” he said. “You must ask the King himself.”

Thor looked back, confused.

“The King?” Thor asked.

MacGil nodded.

“All roads here lead to one place. If you are looking for someone here, nothing passes through here without passing through the hands of the King of the Dead.”

Thor looked back in wonder.

“I’ve come to lead you,” MacGil said. “One former King can introduce another. If he does not like your petition, he will kill you. You can turn around now, and I can help you find a way out. Or you can march forward and meet him. But the risk is great.”

Thor looked at the others, and they all looked back at him in agreement, determination in their eyes.

“We have come all this way,” Thor said, “and there is no turning back. Let us meet this King.”

King MacGil nodded, approval in his eyes.

“I expected no less,” he said.

King MacGil turned and they followed him down a new tunnel, into a deeper and deeper blackness, and Thor braced himself, gripping his sword tight, sensing that this next encounter would determine his life to come.