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Post by Dr. Daniel Carter on Apr 11, 2005 12:35:21 GMT -5
The rhythmic sound of stone on metal was ringing through the house. Daniel sat in complete silence in the common room save for the scrapes of his whetstone against the blade of a climbing pick. Around him on the floor scattered here and there was all the gear he planned on taking with him to the Catacombs that lay far beneath them even know harboring their unknown horrors. Crystal eyes were fixed on the blade as small sparks shot out with every stroke of the whetstone. They were hot and passionate against the darkness of the room. Two hours until dawn. Two hours until departure. His mind was on other matters, and the pick was only a distraction for his outer conscious at the moment.
He knew what he needed to do; it would be doing it that would be so hard. He loved her. He was sure of that much. But… There was always a but, wasn’t there? He needed time and he knew it. He had a few more good adventures left in that 29 year old body and maybe Charlie had been a wakeup call at the he wasn’t quite ready to settle down and start that family his mother had always dreamed of. Somehow he knew Mum would understand. After all, after Daniel was conceived she had given up her whole career for James to continue his work. In its own way it was worth it, the rewards were unmatched… but Daniel always knew there wasn’t a day that went by that his mother didn’t regret leaving that life behind. Daniel didn’t want to live that way.
And maybe part of it was Raven. Was he really ready to give her up too? He liked to feel needed, and as long as he was under geas to help her there was nothing to take her away. Maybe he was just afraid she would be another Charlie. He didn’t know, but only time would sort that mess out.
And then there were the visions. Day in day out never knowing when his mind was going to go off half cocked with some crazy whirlwind of lights and sound that only he could see. He wondered if he was going insane. They came and went when they wanted now, he had even less control than when Halar was teaching him. If anything his ability to manipulate his power was dwindling not getting better. And the pain! Pain was there when it hadn’t been before, that constant presence of the dull achy throb in the side of his head was debilitating at best.
Leaning back on the couch he dropped the pick and the whetstone to the floor with a sigh and took off his glasses. One thing was for damn sure- no matter how much he loved Mari, he was not ready to get married.
With that conclusion solidly resounding in him he moved to his next order of business as he took up the navigational tools and packed them into one rucksack, then the canteens. The Catacombs… how could he even think of taking Raven down there? How could he even thinking of going down there? But then again, how could he not? Certain danger and chance of death versus what could be the greatest archaeological find of the century, what a predicament. There were many good reasons why people did not go into the Catacombs. If nothing else, they stank of death, and everyone knew they were haunted. Daniel, scientifically minded as he was, even found himself in fear of some of the rumors. How embarrassing.
And Raven needed help. The only think that could save her might be in that cave and Daniel couldn’t bear to let childish fears of the dark get in the way of him helping her find it. He picked up a coil of rope and started to wind it around his hand and elbow before attaching it to the side of the rucksack. It would be hard, and it would be dangerous, but they had no choice. He made a promise to Raven he wouldn’t soon break.
There was a grunt at the door as it swung open, a gangly red haired freckle faced late teens boy staggered in afterwards with what looked like a stack of books equal to him in weight. “Unngh… got those… journals you wanted… Dr. .. Carter…” The page let the books smack on the desk as he set them down. Daniel smiled and ran his hand over the leather-bound notebook that was cover to cover on the Tamil language. He would need these in the cave as well. “I’d really feel better if you weren’t going alone, Dr. C.” The page said, catching his breath and holding his side. Daniel looked up in surprise. “Why do you say that, Jake?” The professor chuckled a little bit and began to pack the books. “Because, that place is cursed, and if it’s only you and her… well I mean no offense Sir but… a little help couldn’t hurt, right?”<br> Daniel shook his head with a smile. Incorrigible lad, that’s what he had told Mum. Insistent on going along. “I told him he’s too damn young. No way am I risking the life of one of my best students on a personal chase for something that may or may not exist.” He said. Maggie closed her blue eyes and laughed at him. Puzzled, he looked to his mother in almost surprise. “What’s funny?” He asked, nearly demanded of her. “I seem to remember a fourteen year old boy who had the same kind of stubborn head on him, a boy who wouldn’t stop pestering his father to go on that excavation on the islands not too long ago.” Daniel could only manage to keep half his smile under wraps.
He had begged his father to go on that dig and James had finally relented. When one of the men was trapped and gangly little Daniel was the only one who could fit through the hole in the rocks to get him water and bandages while they dug him out, he had more than proved his usefulness. It was some way to start his career that was for sure. Maybe his mother was on to something. “Ok Jake, ok. You can come too, but do exactly as I say, alright?” Jake, a few years past fourteen and probably more knowledgeable than any other student in Ulsterian archaeology at the Academy gave the coolest wink he possibly could to hide his excitement. “You got it, Dr. C.” Daniel just shook his head again. “Good, now get down here and help me pack. We’ve only got til sunrise before we’re gone.”<br> Daniel faked excitement when most of him just felt tired. Preparations were always painstaking, but this time it wasn’t the gear that had taken him so long. It was the letter, folded and laying perfectly on the table just waiting for the woman it was destined for. In two hours he would be gone, and the house would stand empty, save Halar who would stay as asked in the front yard like a giant silver gargoyle, watching over the woman inside. Two hours and everything in their lives could change, and that’s why he left the letter for her.
Dearest Mari,
I must have written this letter dozens of times before I gave up trying to be heroic or poetic and simply wrote what I was thinking. By the time you get this, I will be gone. I am going, as promised, to the Catacombs with Raven. It is perhaps the only way to help her, and we are fighting an enemy that cannot be beaten, only outrun. The sand in the hourglass is already low, and running out by the second. If I don’t help her now, it may be too late for her forever.
There are some things I wanted to say to you in person that I must regretfully now put them here, just in case I never get the chance. Chief among them is, after much soul searching, I know that I still love you. I will probably always love you, which is perhaps more frightening to me than the dangers of any of my misadventures. I must also let you know that I am not ready to get married. I can’t say for sure one way or the other if it will ever happen. I can’t say for sure much of anything to you. My work in the field isn’t done yet, and with my other personal problems regarding my own insecurities and more physical developments with my ‘gift’ I feel like I am falling apart at the seams. It would be unfair to you to even suggest a bond between us until I have some foundation for myself to stand on first.
I don’t know what’s going to happen to us, Mari. I wish I did, but obviously I’m not meant to see everything. All I know is that we can make this work. I don’t know if it will or even if it’s supposed to. But I am willing to try; I just need time to restart. I want you to stay here while I’m gone; don’t let the house get lonely. I’ve asked Halar to stand watch in the yard so you’ll be safe.
I love you. Don’t ever doubt that, even if you have doubt in me.
Daniel Philo Carter
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Post by Raven on Apr 11, 2005 19:02:27 GMT -5
Ever since she had taken to the bedroom there had been silence from her. It was always better to remain quiet but this…this had been eerily so. For all intent and purpose she had been there the whole time, there had been no boos tipped from the shelves, there had been no papers scattered about the room, the window pane hadn’t been cracked and broken till she had been able to fly…<br> No she was fooling herself. The mess was plain to see and she felt so guilty stood among the chaos of her own doing. She’d seen and heard so much. Who was to notice just another bird taking wing or perching within the branches of a willow…<br>Stood in the centre of the bedroom, her hands clasped over her face, only peeking through the gaps in her fingers. Recalling what she had seen, what she had heard. She could still remember as clear as day. All she had been was just another black bird. Not seen, not regarded as anything other than she’d been. She wished she could be just as invisible now. Specially as she heard Daniel’s voice drifting through…the voice of another. The clatter of something heavy as it was dumped, no doubt with relief as it had been brought for their little trip.
She hadn’t missed the fear nor the apprehension in the house. How could she have? Even the words that drifted told of curses and ghosts. Did she have the right to put these strangers at risk? Strangers indeed…friends in some cases. Perhaps her question would have been more correct if she’d asked. Did she have the right to put Daniel at so much risk? He had a lady…a lover to remain for? How could she stand between that?
The ears were wet on her cheeks as she busied herself picking up papers and books. Sneaking about the room as though she were some sort of ‘Sneak-thief’ – She really hadn’t meant to but…the animal within, the instinct to panic and flee had been so strong. The spiritual presence…she’d never felt anything like it and the Raven had, had to fly…and fly she had.
Once the room resembled something like it had when she had first entered…unfortunately there was nothing to be done for the broken pane of glass in the window but she was sure Daniel would understand. He had so far, he’d been good to her, listened to her and been there for her. The first person in a long time to actually see past her curse…or had he?
She was not packed and ready to go when she appeared on the stair. She wore the dress Daniel had picked for her, and given to her that day at the infirmary…but the rest, was once again a worried mesh of Raven. “Daniel?” she called softly…but before he could answer her she said what weighed so heavily on her mind. Her heart didn’t matter. “I cant go. We cant go” it was for him she said it. There were things that needed dealing with and…for him. For a true friend she was prepared to remain and let her curse run its course. Time was short and there was no one as aware of it as herself. She knew she didn’t have long.
With that said she turned and ran back up the stairs, back to the safety of the bedroom she had been loaned…but for how long. How long before Daniel would ask her to leave, so he could make a life with Amariette. Perhaps it were better that she just accept…<br>
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Post by Dr. Daniel Carter on Apr 20, 2005 11:12:16 GMT -5
The leather felt good beneath his hand. It was something of s comfort, a constant. Not matter how upside down his life was turned he could always retreat to the journals that lined the bookshelves and walls and floors of his home. Some were personal journals, some were dated from the digs he had been on. The ones he was looking at now were the notes on what he considered to date to be his life’s single greatest accomplishment; three years ago he had stayed in the desert for six months, day in, day out with a crack team of linguists unraveling the secrets of the Tamil language.
It was so beautiful. The letters all linked together in such a fluid way, the script was stunning. It was so easy to write in and even the grammatical structure was astoundingly poetic. Just the way the sentences were constructed reflected a culture that simply loved life til the end. It was probably their undoing, in Daniel’s opinion, but that did not stop his infatuation with their language. He had even gone so far as to start writing his grocery lists in it until he realized he kept forgetting to buy certain items because he didn’t know the words in Tamil. He opened one of the books and ran his hand over the ink on the page. It still smelled like the desert. It ran all over the parchment, up and down, left to right and right to left. Such a complicated and lovely script. It was history in his hands.
Jake only gave up an amused smile. It was clear that from whatever other rumors there were about his professor, the man’s true passion would always be for his work. Little else was said between them. Daniel had hardly even been surprised to find that Jake had brought his own rucksack to pack and a few of his own personal effects. Apparently the boy truly wasn’t planning on taking no for an answer this time. The rest of the hours were spent in silence as each prepared for the dawn in the gray light of morning. They were solemn and slightly afraid, that much was true, but both archaeologists were also holding back their excitement at the prospect of traipsing around uncharted territory, no matter what pitfalls lay waiting beneath them.
“Daniel?” The voice caused him to look up from the notes he was studying. Poor Raven, she should have been asleep. But she looked so demure, and wearing the dress he had bought her. It made him smile- a small and tired smile, but a smile never the less. “What do you need, Raven?” He asked quietly so as not to disturb Jake’s studying, though the student was already eaves dropping. When she announced her intentions the smile fell from Daniel’s face. Watching her go he stood despite the dizziness that came with standing and mumbled to Jake, “Please excuse me for a moment.”<br> He stood in the doorway of the bedroom and looked in with a sigh. Not that it much mattered that the room was rearranged or that the window was broken. Raven was right, he didn’t care, and he understood. Putting his hands in the pockets of his khakis he walked in and sat down on the bed beside her. She was trying not to look at him and he could only manage a weak half smile. “Hey.” He said. No response from her. What was it, Raven? Was it shame, was it fear? What was she afraid of exactly? He could have gone off on a tangent, a lecture hall caliber soliloquy if he wanted to. But it wasn’t necessary. Reaching an arm around her he hugged her, laid a kiss on her temple. “Don’t worry, Raven. We’ll find it. I promise.” Was all he said to her. “We’ll be ready in twenty minutes.”<br> And he left the room. Whether she wanted to go or not, in twenty minutes he and Jake would be going down that cave in the ground and he was going to keep his promise to her because that’s what it meant when you got the word of a Carter. “Almost done Jake?” He asked as he picked up the rucksack and felt the weight. Jake nodded and hooked the knife he was playing with onto his belt. “Just got done now Dr. C. Where’s your partner?” Daniel shook his head. “She’ll be ready in a few minutes. Go tell Halar we’re ready to leave.” Jake looked a little nervous. The dragon was an acquired taste. But Jake left anyhow.
Daniel sat down on the couch to wait.
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Post by Raven on Apr 21, 2005 11:50:06 GMT -5
There was no hiding the fact she was terrified. Not only of venturing down into the catacombs to find the cure, the eventually find an end to the curse she had lived with for so long. But of the life she’d be left with once it was all over, there was Daniel too…and the young man that seemed to be going with them…the agony was almost too much. What was she supposed to do?
She hardly even registered the fact that Daniel had been in to see her, but the place his lips had touched, if only briefly as he had offered reassurance still lingered upon her temple. Trembling fingers came to touch the place he had kissed, only she pushed the strands of hair in the way behind her ear before she snapped from her thoughts and rose quickly to follow after Daniel. She’d heard Jake leave…the voices that had drifted up to her and she was al too aware that Daniel had said they would leave in twenty minutes.
There was no going back was there? How she kept it together she didn’t know but Daniel was her priority. Slipping around the door frame, to see him sitting on the couch waiting for her she wasted no time in trying to tell him “You should have called it off Daniel. You should have seen the doctor” she was deadly serious. Only glancing back as she heard the low tones of Halar as Jake and the dragon spoke…it was obvious to her that Daniel wanted to keep his secret but she knew. Surging into the room then, To throw herself to her knees on the floor before Daniel, reaching out to take a hold of his hands before he could protest. “Please Daniel. You’re the only friend I have. I don’t want to lose you” she paused for breath, only blinking away the warm fluid that stung her eyes. She couldn’t lose him. Not now, he was and had been the only person in a long time that had given her the time of day, offered to help, he understood…<br> However, she didn’t get the chance to say any more. Jake was coming back and she rose to her feet and fussed with the creases in her dress a moment…long before his step was heard on the porch. At least now Daniel knew that she knew. A sideways glance given before she reached to gather up something that was packed up and ready go. It was more than clear that they were going and that was that.
An end to bring a new beginning. Apprehension and excitement all rolled into a bundle of Raven nerves. Breaths were taken carefully and focus remained upon Daniel.
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Post by Dr. Daniel Carter on Apr 21, 2005 12:24:02 GMT -5
Daniel was more than a little confused. As she took his hands and knelt before him he furrowed his brow. A few pieces of hair loosed themselves to fall and frame his face, but other than that his looks betrayed how tired and sore he really felt in his head. "What are you talking about Raven, what doctor?" Perhaps it was a little too much to handle for her, going to the Catacombs, counting against the clock... maybe this was her way of trying to keep him from harm, making up appointments that would delay their departure. "Raven... I'm fine. And you're going to be fine."
But she didn't get a chance to finish as Jake walked back in. The freckle faced student looked a little shaken. Daniel gave him a smile and looked back to Raven, tugging on her to get up and stand. No woman in his house ever had a place at his feet. "Have a bit of a rough time with Halar, Jacob?" The boy nodded a little. "He made me practice my draconic." He looked a little sheepish. Apparently Jake hadn't been keeping too fresh on that.
Daniel rose to his feet and picked up the large rucksack, shouldering it with some strain. His head felt strange and for a brief moment his hand reached out for the wall for something to stablize himself with. A wave of nausea washed over him and his eyes fluttered, but then he shook it off. He must have been more tired than he thought he was. No matter, he would soon be awake enough once they got in the caves. "Ready Jake?" He asked his protege in training. Jake already had his rucksack shouldered. "Ready Dr. C." Daniel gave a smile.
Looking to Raven blue eyes trailed over her face, worried. "Let's go, Raven." He said, reaching down to her hand, giving it a squeeze. If Raven needed anything right now, she needed support. She needed a rock to cling to and someone to be strong enough to take her through all this. Daniel had been on just under a hundred of these digs before, he'd been captured by natives, taken hostage, beaten, worshipped as a god, stuck in a cave in, and awarded a peace prize for diplomatic relations. No matter where he went he was always going to be in some kind of danger. So he would be her rock.
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Post by Raven on Apr 24, 2005 15:02:15 GMT -5
The way he looked at her and took her hands, told her that they’d both be fine only caused her to think that he must have thought she as going insane. She was far from insane and her frown mirrored his. – Jake coming back into the house looking flustered and embarrassed took their attention if only to swap idle chat. Were they ready to go? Hell no! She wasn’t ready by a long shot but her silence was kept. For the sake of appearances she offered a weak smile as Jake said Halar made him practice Draconic…although she had only met the Dragon briefly she could imagine.
Her sights were firmly set on Daniel…Jake was left to do whatever it was that needed doing. She’d not missed the way Daniel had reached to steady himself and yet she said noting still. Fidgeting with the pack she’d picked up herself, stepping in closer to Daniel, taking a hold of his hand as he reached for hers. Only she didn’t budge an inch till she was ready to, till Jake was stepping over the porch and away. Then did she make her move.
Catching up to Daniel, a hurried pace that only sought to have her jar him u against the wall in the hallway, there wasn’t much room, not really, not for two people with loaded packs on their backs but she wasn’t moving. This was something else. This was something that needed to be done and she was far from the demure Raven he had seen previously. Desperate measures called for desperate means. There were no smiles as she pressed in close. Firmly intent to make sure Daniel couldn’t move for the moment…that was all she needed.
Gentle fingers reached up till she stroked the length of his cheek though her fingertips would not feel like fingers. The feather light touch smooth and soothing, silken and soft…her gaze so intent so dark was far from that of a human. “I smell it in you Daniel” rising on her toes…leaning closer still so her nose was only a breath from his face…she breathed in, she was sniffing, just as an animal would, closing her eyes for only a moment, grey lids flickered in pace of those of delicate human lids…<br>“Do you know what they would do to you?” yes perhaps she had gone insane. “They’d not think twice of preying on that sickness, they’d cast you out, they’d pluck away at your feathers, they’d peck at your flesh till you bled, till you could take no more and succumbed to the strong” she paused then and opened her eyes so Daniel could see she meant every word. She knew he was strong but how much more could he take? “Its in here Daniel” with that she tapped so gently with that feather light touch at his temple. “And I wont lose you to that” with that she turned away so swiftly. She really could have been a startled bird taking flight…Had it really happened at all?
Only a step taken outside onto the porch she was nothing but Raven. Clearing her throat, fidgeting as she tried so hard not to. The concern etched deeply within her facial features, the worry, the want to say so much more. She’s already told him that she didn’t want to go, and that she needed him. He really was her only friend…but it was more than clear, he’d made it more than clear that they were leaving, and leaving now. She merely looked away toward where Jake waited for them to catch up and she said nothing more.
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Post by Dr. Daniel Carter on May 13, 2005 8:02:21 GMT -5
It gave him something to think about on the ride to the ruins. Though Raven was seated next to him in the carriage the young doctor seemed thoroughly disinterested in conversation, however it was always hard to tell if there was something on his mind or if he was simply far away in the depths of thought on something completely unrelated to his mood. What was running through his head today was Raven's speech. What did she mean she did not want to lose that, and what did she mean there was something in his head? Eyes dropped closed and succumbed for a few moments to the dizziness swirling in his mind.
The Catacombs were far more foreboding than he had made them out to be. There was a crunch of gravel and dirt beneath the thick soles of leather boots as Daniel got down from the carraige and offered Raven a hand. Jake was already shouldering one of the larger packs and checking the equipment. The driver looked nervous. "You sure you'll be a'right Sir? I dinnae think maybe you and the lady should go down there." He tried to protest to his employer as politely as possible. "Don't worry about us." Daniel said as he shouldered his own pack and tied the strap securely around his chest and checked his belt. "I do this all the time."
When the gear was checked and everything was in its place, Daniel gave a nod to the driver who more than readily clicked to the horses and started off. It was a particularly foggy morning, and soon the carriage was out of sight and into the mist. It was only them and the cave mouth now. Jake shifted uncomfortably, but said nothing. Even through the silence, however, Daniel could almost hear the words of doubt he was thinking. "It's just superstition, Jake. It's a cave. There's bats, there's mice,and there's a long lost trove of important historical significance. Nothing else." Jake nodded and tried to keep up with Daniel's rock solid historical view of the situation.
The cave mouth was small, but no so much that with the packs they couldn't slip through. Certainly not big enough for a deer or a bear or other animals that might make home in such a place. Daniel tied a rope around his waist and offered the other end to Jake so he could secure Raven with it and then slipped through the hole. One, two, three. It took some adjusting, but they all got through onto what appeared to be a small stone landing. Daniel stooped down and picked up the torch he had dropped, and using a sulfer tipped match, lit the rag on the end of the stick. There in the faint orange torchlight they saw winding down below them a staircase so steep at first it looked like it could have been a sheer drop. Daniel wet his lips with his tongue and peered over the edge. The stairs were weary, and made of very old stone, probably carved right into the rock face and crumbling with age and water erosion.
Kicking a small rock from the side of the steps he listened to the clatter until finally it fell against the stony ground below, though the darkness was so thick the could not tell that there even was a bottom to it. "How far you think it is?" Jake whispered, trying not to get too close to the edge. Daniel frowned, the aire of seriousness and academic fortitude never wavering. "Two hundred meters, give or take." He said, before heading for the stairs. Jake swallowed hard and followed suit.
The descent down was slow. The stairs were slick and felt almost alkaline, covered in some kind of lichens that were able to grow in such little light. "Watch your step." The intrepid archaeologist called as he began his way down. Feeling around the rock crevaces was hard in the dark, and Daniel held the torch as high as he could to help the others behind him. Jake let Raven go first to keep her in the middle of the group should something happen. Except the grinding of granite and the echos of footsteps, they were all silent after Daniel spoke, but the warning was not heeded closely enough. Jake stepped gingerly down the stairs, feeling his way along the rocks as best he could. But there was no awy to see the slippery patch of mold he stepped on. There was a yelp and a grating sound as Jake disappeared over the side of the stairs. "Heeelp!" Came a cry from over the side, and Daniel whipped his head around to see only Raven, and the other end of the rope lying in a coil on the ground. "Jake?" He called anxiously. "Here Dr. C! Help!" The answer came. Daniel looked up at Raven and shoved the torch in her hand, pushing her back against the wall as he moved up the stairs past her to the last place he ahd seen Jake.
The student was hanging onto the stairs with his hands, dangling above the deep blackness below. "Pull me up... please..." the boy pleaded, his fingers turning white from the strain. Dropping to his knees Daniel tried to put his center of gravity over the support of the stairs as he reached out towards Jake's hand. With a grip that was stronget then it looked he grabbed the boy around the forearms. "You have to let go, Jake, I've got you." Jake was sweating, almost crying, and gripping the stairs even harder. "I can't Dr. C. I can't let go..." Daniel tightened his hands around Jake's forearms and took a more authoritative tone of voice than Raven had probably ever heard from him. "You have to trust me, Jake. Let go." Closing his eyes and swallowing hard Jake released the wall. Daniel slumped forwards and grunted with the strain as he took the full weight of Jake's body below him. "Don't let go Dr.C... please don't let go..." he was almost chanting it like a mantra.
Pulling up with a groan Jake's body slowly began to appear over the rocks. With one big heave Daniel was able to pull him onto the stairs as Jake kicked and scratched at the stone face to get up against the wall. Both men now sat panting and uneasy against the cut away, with Jake sweating and so terrified he was white. Daniel took off his glasses and let his arm drape over his knees so his head could rest there. Jake let his head fall back against the rocks. "I told you to watch your step." Daniel said, almost in a joking way. Jake looked at him stupified for a moment and then smiled and began to laugh. Perhaps it was the delerium from his brush with death, perhaps it was the tone in Daniel's voice, but he began to laugh. Daniel cracked a small smile and looked over at Raven. "We're ok."
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Post by Raven on May 17, 2005 7:05:39 GMT -5
There was only silence as she sat by Daniel in the carriage that took them from the house she had found some semblance of safety within. Distant and worried she was the image of demure. Her ands clasped in her lap till her knuckled bloomed white with the tensions. The effort to remain just as she was. She didn’t say a word. Not one single word. Looking out of the small window as the landscape scrolled by, she was as if in a dream. Perhaps she should have been. Somewhere else, somewhere far, far away from here, another time, another place. Instead she was here, on her way to a place even Daniel made light of, hiding the-real- fears he himself had of the place. How could she have let Daniel and Jake go ahead with this? She’d tried to tell him but it had been taken out of her hands. The locket at her throat…this was the cause. Fingers eventually found the broken locket and it was teased for a moment or two before she folded her arms. If only she hadn’t been cursed, if only she’d lost it. She could throw it away and then they wouldn’t have to go.
However, it wasn’t as though she could say anything at this stage in the grand scheme of things. They were already unloading the bits they’d be taking with them. The warning and the concern from the driver wasn’t even heard…the mouth of the cave, as small as it was held her attention in a vice like grip. Daniels reassurances for Jake…were laughable but she did not begin with the hysterics. The rope was secured about her and she merely nodded. Fingers curled about the rope closest to her and she gripped for all she was worth. And still there wasn’t the choice to run. Feathers well and truly fluffed. The fine hairs on the back of her neck must have stood rigid, the gooseflesh on her arms, and thighs. Terror came in may different forms and this she felt as only the beginning.
Still she hadn’t uttered a word. In silence she did what was needed, a hand or pair of hand offered as and when. She was already on her way. Every step was or at least seemed like an automated movement., but she was very aware of where and how she placed her feet. She’d only needed a glance over the edge to see the stairway they had to take swallowed by the shadow. What lay in wait for them down there? Her imagination ran amok…and rightly so.
The scuffle was heard behind her but she had felt no pull on the rope. Where was Jake? There wasn’t the time to think, only strangle the cry that eeked its way to her throat. She could hear him…and Daniel was surging past her, pinning her back against the wall at her back to rescue the lad. Why the hell had he untied the rope?
Never had she felt so utterly useless. Merely crouching low to shift her centre of gravity. The last thing she needed was to se them both go over the edge. The rope tied to her was gripped tighter than she had ever thought possible, already her hands were cold, the lack of circulation was barely noticed…so often the tips of her fingers had become those raven hued feathers…god forbid that happen here…they’d never find her in this light…what light?
“This is a mistake!” she finally managed to whisper as Daniel and Jake began to laugh. ‘We’re ok’ he told her. That was a lie, it hadn’t even started yet had it? They were alive and that was about the sum of it all. There was still some semblance of relief though. Daniel had saved Jake…and they were ok as he had said. Jake’s laughter…be it from hysteria, relief or just gratitude brought a smile, as fleeting as it may have been, it had been there. There wasn’t the need to tell Daniel how much she disliked it. How hard she tried to keep the raven subdued…it was all over her. All anyone had to do was see…perhaps in another light, another time and place. Somewhere far, far away.
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