Legends of Amacia Rise of the Caverias

Six hours after her plunge into the chasm of Acheron and three and a half hours after being rescued from the ruined hell in the bottom of that abyss, Hanna, who had been asleep while the healer performed its marvelous work on her, suddenly awoke and rose up with a start. The healer had not yet finished with her, but had managed to heal her wounds to the point that she could manage. She jumped off the table and ran to the portal chamber, finding Elias, George, and Ben there. The sword of Thoth and the seal were sitting there waiting for her. While she remained unconscious in the healer, George and Ben rigged up a harness for the sword. They saw her run in and noticed she still didn’t look well. “What are you doing up?” Elias asked pointedly, with some concern. “Surely, the healer’s not finished with you yet. You look terrible.”

Hanna ran up and snatched the remote control for the portal out of the console saying, “I’ll be okay, Elias, but we have no more time. I have to get back to Enoch and we must find Muriel. The Emperor is moving. Look.” The hologram suddenly showed the western portions of the Plains of Blood, Myria, and the eastern portions of Elar. Before them, they saw two great armies merging into one. One came from the Plains of Blood and the other from Tartarus.

Elias was dumbstruck as they saw the army begin to merge in Myria.

“Holy Gods!” Ben exclaimed. “How many is it…tens of thousands?”

Hanna shook her head, saying, “No, hundreds of thousands. Look, Zarukar and Xenian divisions are linking up with the rest of the Emperor’s forces. We have no more time, my friends. I have to get back to Enoch.” The hologram disappeared as Hanna searched for the signal of the communicator she’d given to Enoch. In a matter of minutes, she narrowed it down and to a ten-foot radius. Using the hologram, Hanna decided upon opening the portal between the two big doors in the passage just away from Enoch’s signal. As she opened the portal, she wondered, saying, “Surely, the Lord is allowing this equipment to penetrate like it does. I surely didn’t expect to be rescued or be able to reach back into the core of the citadel like that.” Hanna removed the remote and handed it to Elias. “Stay alert,” she ordered. “We may need you at a moment’s notice.”

Elias nodded, saying, “Yes ma’am. I still think it’s not a good idea for you to go back before the healer is done with you. You obviously need more time in the healer.”

“I know, brother,” Hanna agreed. “I would let it finish its work, but as you saw, we have no more time. I have much work to do.” George held the sword, and Ben the seal and communicator. Hanna took the sword first, slinging it over her shoulder. “Thanks for the harness. It’ll make carrying this blade so much easier,” she said gratefully as she took the seal, and then the communicator, pocketing both. “Keep alert and ready,” she ordered them sternly. “Time is against us. Close the portal when I go through and wait for our signal.” Elias nodded and Hanna started through the portal, stopping for a moment just before stepping through it to say, “See you later.”

Hanna stepped into the passage and the portal snapped shut behind her. Suddenly, she realized that she hadn’t changed her clothes or armor. She still wore the same items she had on when she fought Baal, complete with the smell of charred leather, burned hair, and the unmistakable odor of sulfurous brimstone lingering on her charred clothes. She looked around the passage, seeing the torches, and off at a distance, the wooden doors. “I’ll bet this is going to be a surprise for them,” she murmured with a chuckle as she started walking to the door. She was still a bit weak and fatigued as she walked to the door. As she approached the door, she stopped at it because she heard wails and sobs coming from the other side...laments in song. Hanna listened for a few moments. The songs and wails moved her to tears. She composed herself, putting on a stern serious face and put both hands on the doors, pushing them open.

The doors clanged and Aeolus turned in a defensive posture, as well as some of the smaller drakens. Morpheus turned to face the intruder. None knew who it was as the doors pitched open, expecting the worst to come. Silence fell over the whole grotto as Hanna walked in with her face in a grim, solemn expression. Her appearance shocked everyone. Gasps of shock and terror issued forth from some of the hybrids and from some of Hanna’s team at her ghoulish look. She stopped and surveyed the scene thoughtfully. “Sorry I’m late, but I got kind of hung up back there,” she said in an apologetic tone.

A smile crossed Enoch’s face as he closed his eyes and lifted his head toward the ceiling, thanking the Almighty. Hunter cried out, “I knew it! I knew it! You can’t kill this cat! She is the One! Is there any doubt anymore? She IS the Last Caverias!”

Shock covered both Amelia and Elle’s face. Amelia rushed forward and threw herself on Hanna, embracing and kissing her like a long lost sibling back from the dead. She sobbed joyously as Hanna returned the embrace, saying, “Shhh. It’s all right. I’m okay.”

Harry walked up after Amelia moved aside and stood before Hanna. Tears of joy and relief were in his eyes. He literally trembled as he reached out to touch Hanna. “Go on bud; touch me. I’m no ghost,” Hanna urged him.

Harry cried out and bear-hugged Hanna, saying, “Oh, the Lord is so good! Don’t you ever do something like that again, Hanna! You scared the shit out of us. I thought we’d lost you.”

Hanna hugged and patted him on the back, saying, “Me too, bud; I don’t plan to ever do something like that again if I can help it. It scared me out of my wits.”

Aeolus watched the whole episode of Hanna returning from the dead with great interest and astonishment, bringing about a new respect for her. Morpheus walked up, facing Hanna. He remained unsure that Hanna wasn’t some ghost or demon. “Go on, Morpheus; handle me. I am alive just like you, just a little crispy around the edges,” Hanna said pleasantly.

Morpheus touched her with great awe and respect, noting the burned and charred condition of her clothes and armor as well as the singed nature of her hair and skin. “I don’t believe it!” he breathed. “No one escapes the abyss, much less survives the Beast of Fire. By what strange magic did you survive? Surely, your magic is as strong as the Emperor’s to have survived that fall.”

Hanna looked him in the eye, saying, “There is no magic involved here, Morpheus. I am a servant of the living God…the Almighty Ancient of Days. It is literally in His power, not mine that I stand here before you. I shall tell you all about it if you will do one thing for me?”

“Anything, milady,” Morpheus immediately responded.

“I heard crying and laments when I came to the door,” Hanna stated, “presumably for me because you all thought me dead. If you will change you laments to songs and praises to the Almighty Ancient of Days, I shall tell you my harrowing tale of the abyss.”

“Absolutely! Surely, your resurrection is cause for celebration,” Morpheus cried happily. “We were making a feast to honor you in death. But let’s turn it around and make it a feast to honor your miraculous escape from the abyss. Come, eat meat with us and we’ll talk.”

Hanna smiled, saying, “Lead on, my friend.” Morpheus led Hanna over to where they were eating. As Hanna passed by Aeolus, she nodded to the ancient draken. Aeolus grinned slightly and nodded back. Morpheus’ people along with the young drakens looked on Hanna with awe as she sat down and ate. The variety of food set before Hanna astounded her. A huge boar hung on a spit over the coals of a dying fire with parts of it already carved and served. Cauldrons of soups containing many strange vegetables dangled in others. Breads lay sitting on a table along with drink. Morpheus personally served Hanna, giving her a generous portion of roast boar, vegetables, and bread along with a large cup of ale. Hanna smiled and sampled the food, finding it very tasty and satisfying. “It’s good. Thank you all,” she said as she sat at the main table where the people ate.

Some of the hybrids ate alongside of Hanna as they all gathered around her to hear her tale. It relieved Morpheus to see Hanna liked the food presented to her. Once Hanna cleaned her plate and pushed it back, everyone became very quiet.

Hanna took a swallow from her mug of ale as she looked around. “Looks like you’re waiting for me to say something,” she mused with a smile. “Very well; the Beast of Fire as you call it is a Belrock: an Old One...a demon of the ancient world. That particular demon was named Baal and has been my enemy from my youth. How he manifested physically in his true form on this plane of existence baffles me. Nevertheless, I have faced Baal one time before and fought him to a stalemate.” Turning to Morpheus, she said, “You saw what happened. Elle presumed me under a spell or something. That wasn’t the case. The time had come for me to deal with the Baal, so I stood my ground. Morpheus saw the battle on the bridge. For the life of me, I don’t know how I created that icy blast with the sword or moved that fast. Something is happening to me that I don’t truly comprehend. Anyway, the beast sucker-punched me after my last assault and knocked me into the abyss, and then jumped in after me.

“Through fire and darkness did we war in free-fall until, at last, in the very heart of the abyss did I find Baal’s weakness and smote his ruin on the isle of the Devourers in the heart of the abyss. Together, we came crashing to the cursed island of the Devourers. I dove off Baal’s burning carcass after hewing its head off just before it crashed onto that island, blasting a sizeable crater and spreading its flesh in fiery chunks all over the area where it landed. I hit so hard upon landing I passed out. I don’t know how long I was out.” She looked directly at Morpheus, saying sternly, “You have no idea of what horrors lies in the pit beyond those doors. There are some things man should never see. I saw the home of the Devourers and their leader. When we fell into the great cavern of the Devourers at the very heart of the chasm, the Devourers saw me slay the Baal and feared me, taking me to their temple where their leader waited. I noticed something strange about the Devourers. I believe they may have once been men for I saw the glimmer of human intelligence in the center set of eyes of the one that led me to the temple. But be sure, they are a construct of the purest evil from an ancient darkness far older than humanity. In the temple, I faced not one but two more physical manifestations of the Old Ones like the Baal. It was the Devourer’s leader and Dagos. Dagos I knew from experience, but the Devourer was a new entity to me. The Devourer set a challenge before me.”

Hanna rose and unslung the sword, pulling it out and laying it on the table. It clunked as she laid it down. Gasps of astonishment rose from the group as she sat the sword down, and then pulled out the seal, sitting it down on the table too. “These items were sitting on a pedestal in the temple,” Hanna reported. “The Devourer challenged me, saying that I could leave his island with both of these items if I defeated Dagos. I knew he was lying, but took the challenge anyhow. I fought with Dagos and smote his ruin under a pillar I hewed with the Sword of Ezra Karac, and then attacked the Devourer before he could come after me.” Hanna paused for a moment, becoming very subdued in her manner and speech. “As I said earlier, something is happening to me that I truly don’t understand,” she admitted softly with a hint of fear in her voice. “Somehow, I’m now able to unleash incredible, and if I may be so bold as to say, magical power by instinct; power that no man should ever be allowed to control.

“It has happened several times since I came to this savage land. When a regiment of the Emperor’s 8th Division ambushed us outside Solomon’s Passage, I blew a man to pieces with a look. I was in a particularly bad berserker rage at the time and heard Harry shout a warning to me about someone attacking while my back was turned.” Hanna again paused and shuddered visibly. “I looked at the guy as he charged and felt a strange electrical surge throughout my body as I cursed him. The poor doomed soul exploded as if I’d stuck a grenade inside his belly,” she murmured. “I hadn’t killed in that manner in almost thirty cycles...not since the time I was a master wizard of the Black Arts like the Emperor.”

“You were a dark wizard?” Morpheus asked with great concern.

“To my everlasting shame and torment, yes,” Hanna admitted. “But the Ancient of Days had other plans for me and dragged my soul out of that darkness, which I thank Him for every second of every day.”

“Miss Beowulf is no longer a dark wizard tied to the infernal powers, Morpheus,” Aeolus declared. “She is a child of the Light. I have seen her mind and know she speaks the truth.”

“Is this true?” Morpheus asked bluntly.

“It is,” Hanna stated bluntly. “I endured great pain and torment when the Almighty pulled me from that Darkness and purged my body, mind, and soul of those demons. Even now, I bear the physical and mental scars of that purging on my person. Even the Emperor’s mutation of me couldn’t erase those scars. That’s why I’m so concerned about this emerging ability I seem to have. I’m exercising these strange powers not by will, as I did as a wizard, but by sheer instinct as if I already knew how to use them. It troubles me greatly that I’m doing things like this by instinct.”

“Hmmm,” Morpheus murmured, intrigued by Hanna’s admission, “...interesting. If you’re not calling on the Dark Powers to do this, then something else in allowing you access to these powers. Was the incident outside Solomon’s Passage the only time this happened?”

“No,” Hanna stated glumly. “It happened again just outside of Arionath when Zebek and his Zarukar cohorts ambushed us. I don’t rightly remember everything that happened that time, but from what my friends told me, my berserker rage really got out of control in that battle. Apparently, at the end of that fight, those beast-men swarmed me and I went off like a bomb, literally. I incinerated every Zarukar within thirty feet of me and flattened everything else within 300 feet. I don’t even remember doing it, just coming to my senses standing in the midst of a field of charred Zarukar body parts with my clothes and hair smoking. The closest thing I can compare the aftermath to is the Firewall spell I knew as a wizard.”

Aeolus raised his draken eyebrow at Hanna’s account. “It seems you’ve tapped into a power you never knew you had,” Aeolus stated. “Are there any more of these incidents?”

“Yes, several,” Hanna stated. “One happened when Selina and I were captured. I used a firewall/inferno combination when Hades caught us in Cush. I wiped out at least sixty in that blast. I found out then that when these powers are triggered, it saps my rage and strength tremendously.” Morpheus’ eyebrow rose, as did Enoch’s expression. “It also happened several times when I fought for my life and soul in the Black Fortress’ Arena,” she stated grimly. “I did things there and used power I never believed I had. One time, I actually caused the ground to rise up and impale a tarok the Emperor sent in to kill me and the guards who hadn’t been able to take me down. I still don’t know how I survived the Arena. The last time these strange, terrifying powers triggered was out there in the chasm. Morpheus saw me use an ice attack on Baal.”

“I did,” Morpheus reported. “It was the most powerful elemental attack I’ve ever seen. And the way you moved so fast is astounding. You definitely have accessed the powers of the Elemental Earth as they did in the 1st Age. How is this possible?”

Hanna shook her head solemnly. “I wish I knew,” she admitted. “All of this started when I was smitten by the Teacher of Tiamat and survived. Since then, I feel like something is growing inside me, taking me over bit by bit. I’m not at all sure what I am any more, especially since the Emperor mutated me. But anyway, the last time I utilized this strange power was when I took on the leader of the Devourers on his island. Before he could get off that throne, I stabbed the floor with Ezra’s sword and something in me sent a powerful shockwave from the sword through the temple floor and exploded the throne as he rushed me. The blast was so potent I had to take shelter behind the pillar that I dropped on Dagos. The Devourer took some major shrapnel from the throne. I remember him saying that I’d surprised him with what he called my elemental power and that he’d not make that mistake again. When he charged, I threw Ezra’s sword at his oversized head. He dodged the throw, but it wasn’t a complete miss. The sword knocked off the boney protrusion on the right side of his head, stunning him and upsetting his equilibrium. It got stuck in another pillar behind him after that throw. I tried to get Ezra’s sword back, but was unable to retrieve it. Therefore, I snatched up Thoth’s sword here and cut down another pillar with it, throwing the pillar on the monster as he staggered towards me. It pinned him down, but didn’t finish him so I lopped his head off. I know better than to leave powerful enemies like that in one piece.” Everyone remained rapt with awe as she told the tale.

“It was then that the Almighty had me check my pocket and I found this,” Hanna said as she removed the communicator and held it up for all to see. “I had plum forgotten about this thing. With this little device, I summoned the aid of my friends in the Red Tower.” Once again, gasps of astonishment issued forth at the mention of the Red Tower. “They manned the portal generator and opened the portal, allowing me to escape as the island started sinking into the molten rock that surrounded it. It’s an absolute miracle that this thing even was able to make contact with the Tower from that abyss. I thank the Lord God Almighty Ancient of Days for my deliverance from that hell,” she continued in a humbled tone everyone noticed. “Once at the Red Tower, I made use of their healing machines for about three hours, healing my wounds. Just about an hour ago, the Almighty drove me from the healing machine, even though it wasn’t finished with me and I came back here. Fortunately, we were able to make contact with the communications device that I gave to Enoch before we came here. And from there, you know the rest.” Silence reigned for several minutes as Hanna finished off her ale, saying, “This drink is good.”

Aeolus spoke first after a few moments of silence. “Surely the Ancient of Days drives you forth, Miss Beowulf,” he declared. “Moreover, it seems He has armed you appropriately to deal with what faces you. The power you fear is an elemental power few humans have ever been able to harness without the assistance of the Dark Powers. Yet, it seems, from your accounts, that you are accessing this power by instinct when you are in mortal danger.”

“I’ve noticed that too,” Hanna agreed. “What can you tell me about these so-called elemental powers?”

“Not much, I’m afraid,” Aeolus admitted. “What I do know is that these elemental powers are not magic, as you mistakenly believe, but a long-lost fighting skill of the 1st Age. It’s a deep, intimate understanding of our elemental world that allows you to manipulate it at will through those elements, whether it be fire, ice, water, earth, electricity, or even life itself. When the Ancient of Days created all things, He wove all the elements of creation together to create the physical world and reality as we know it. Anyone who can control the elements can affect the world in tremendous ways for either good or evil. Very few beings in this universe have ever been able to master the elements of creation. Some of my kind could do it. I also remember a species kin to us drakens called the Drakenites, who managed to master elemental power in order to help us keep the balance between the Darkness and Light in this universe. Since I haven’t seen a Drakenite since my capture, I cannot say for certain that they still exist. But one thing I do know is the Drakenites were formidable because of both their elemental prowess and technological skills. I heard from new prisoners sent here by the Cadre that the Drakenites became a powerful ally of Thoth and his son, Beowulf, who was said to have been one of a handful of humans to have ever mastered the Drakenite’s elemental prowess and skill.” Hanna’s eyebrow rose at the statement.

Aeolus paused, looking Hanna in the eye, seeing Thoth’s son in Hanna’s features. “As I listened to you speaking about these incidents where you used these skills, my memory stirs,” the ancient draken said softly. “I remember how the Drakenites used their elemental abilities, and what you describe is eerily reminiscent of the way the Drakenites exercised those powers. It’s so similar that I’m actually tempted to think that you have somehow learned the Drakenite elemental ability. I don’t know how it’s possible for you to have learned it, but your descriptions are those of someone utilizing the Drakenite elemental powers. It’s both astounding and puzzling.” A troubled sigh escaped from Hanna’s lips.

“Whoa,” Hunter breathed. “That’s wild.”

“It is, son of Enoch,” Aeolus agreed. “Miss Beowulf here is very special; much more special than any of us realize, including her. As Morpheus said, no one escapes the chasm and surely, no one has ever survived an encounter with the Beast of Fire, much less the leader of the Devourers on his own island where the cursed gateway to the dark dimensions lay. Many have searched for that blade and all have failed, destroyed by the very beasts that Hanna tangled with. I remember when the Emperor had his Cadre bury that blade and amulet in the abyss out there and set those Old Ones to guard it. The Emperor feared both of those items greatly because of what they could unlock. That’s why he had his Cadre put them there. That’s why he had us locked in here as well.”

Hanna rose and faced the great draken, saying, “Thank you for giving me at least a partial explanation of these frightening powers I’m tapping into. And you’re right in saying that I might not know how special I am. I never wanted to be special or wield strange magical or elemental power as you call it. All I ever wanted was to know the truth and live in peace with that truth, but alas, I seldom get what I want. If I could give up this power and walk away from this without anyone dying, I would in an instant.” She paused, searching Aeolus’ huge draken face. “However, at this point I cannot,” she stated grimly. “My conscience won’t allow it, and neither will my God. It seems I’ve become His tool, His weapon in dealing with the Darkness of Amacia. I cannot leave the good people of this savage land to die and have their souls claimed by the Darkness that seeks to escape this pit. Therefore, I stay and fight the good fight as all soldiers do. My only wish is that I find my peace before the Lord finally takes me home.”

Aeolus rumbled at Hanna declaration. “The Ancient of Days has certainly chosen well in you, Miss Beowulf,” he announced. “Your light is now stronger than the darkness that took you in your early life. I haven’t seen such strength and faith since the 1st Age. It gives my old draken heart hope and has restored my faith in the Ancient of Days.”

Hanna smiled and touched Aeolus on the snout. “And you’ve restored mine, my friend,” she chimed. “I had no idea drakens could be so noble and good. Moreover, I can tell you’re much older and wiser than Argus. Your presence and the presence of your family and friends here in this place is truly a marvel in this dismal darkness.”

Aeolus’ expression rose in shock crying, “Impossible! I thought we were the last of our kind.”

Hanna smiled, saying, “No, my great draken. You are not alone. Argus is the guardian of Arionath and believed that he too was the last draken. He is also my friend and ally. It was he who took us to the Red Tower when I begged his help.”

Aeolus was flabbergasted, calling out, “Do you hear that, children! We are not the last of our kind.” A rumble of shock and excitement raced through the assembly of young drakens. Hanna heard the rumble of another large draken approaching. She looked and saw another draken only half the size of Aeolus, but just as large as Argus. Immediately, Hanna knew that the new draken was a female.

“Can it be?” the female draken said as she lumbered up beside Aeolus. “Do my eyes and ears cheat me? Is this the mighty mutated Beowulf standing in our midst? Does she say that my brother lives?”

Hanna looked at both of them and said, “See for yourself, great lady. I speak nothing but the truth. If you are anything like Argus, you will be able to see for yourself telepathically.”

In an instant, the female draken touched Hanna’s mind telepathically and was totally astonished at the power of it along with the hideous horror and terror Hanna had endured at the hands of the Emperor. She immediately found the truth of Hanna’s words. “It’s true! Oh, glory be,” she cried, “my brother lives!”

“Be of good cheer, Tethys,” Hanna told her. “He is very much alive and a dear friend to me.”

Her face, as well as Aeolus and Morpheus’ faces opened with surprise. “How did you know her name?” Morpheus asked in amazement.

Hanna chuckled, saying, “It’s a gift. I have a telepathic gift unlike unto any other man or woman on the face of the Earth. It was given to me by the Lord God and binds me to my wife Selina, whom, I regret to say is still a prisoner in the Black Fortress of Amacia. Strangely enough, since the Emperor mutated me into what you see here, that telepathic power has jumped fifty fold in a matter of weeks. I’m not sure he realized that would happen when he had me mutated, otherwise he would not have done it.”

Aeolus suddenly remembered why Hanna had come, saying, “Morpheus, now that Miss Beowulf has told us of her miraculous escape from the pit, I believe that we need to tell her about us, and then take her to see Muriel. She has very little time to waste.”

Hanna’s face steeled at the comment, taking on a sober, stern look. “You are so right,” she said. “That is why I came when I did rather than let the healer finish healing me. Time is against me.”

Morpheus nodded soberly and said, “Very well. You have shared with us. Now, we will tell you our story.”

Hanna and her team listened intently as Morpheus began to speak. “You no doubt saw the inscription on the doors that led to the grotto where we first met,” he said. Hanna nodded and Morpheus continued, “Well then, let me take you back to the time of the coup when the Emperor took the throne of Amacia for his own. As you no doubt have learned, Thoth and Ariel were the rightful rulers of Amacia. They had seven children: three boys and four girls.”

Hanna’s hand instantly went to the locket. She removed it from her neck and opened it, looking at the picture with a sad, long look. “Yes, I know,” she said as she looked at the locket.

Morpheus saw it and asked, “May I see that for a moment?”

Hanna handed the locket to Morpheus and she saw Morpheus sigh deeply as he looked at the picture. “Where did you get this?” he asked.

“When I returned to Acheron with my newly-found family from the Red Tower, I was resisting what you would call my destiny. Everyone but me saw I was the rightful heir to the Caverias line; what Hunter calls the Last Caverias. I was resisting it, but when we got there, everyone bowed to me, even the Nemesis from Amacia, who was responsible for my escape from the Arena. When he bowed and saluted me as queen, I succumbed to it, crying to my God for a sign to prove that I was to be queen. To my utter surprise and everyone else’s, a giant caronadon much bigger than all the rest appeared. It looked exactly like this.” Hanna said, holding up the amulet with the Caverias seal on it. “I was told that it was the Roc: the Caverias’ symbol and totem. The Roc flew in and dropped a small container in my hand that held this locket and this ring.” He took the ring off and held it up for all to see. “It was that one incident that proved to me that I am supposed to be queen, king…whatever. To be perfectly frank with you, it’s a position that I never wanted, just like this new elemental power that’s emerging in me,” she said, putting the ring back on her finger.

“Indeed. There aren’t very many people who would admit that. Humans have a terminal desire to rule over their fellow humans. They fight and war to achieve the power and position as king or queen, but you resist it. It’s strange for a woman to say that in your circumstances,” Morpheus stated plainly, handing the locket back to Hanna. “You are a bit of an enigma, Miss Beowulf.”

“Please, call me Hanna,” Hanna intruded, “at least until I reverse this mutation.”

“So be it, Miss Hanna,” Morpheus declared. “You shall be known as Hanna to us until you find the means to reverse your condition. Well, back to what I was saying. Thoth and Ariel had seven children. One of them escaped the coup because she married the son of a crazy prophet who said the world was going to be destroyed by a deluge.” Hanna nodded with a knowing smile as Morpheus continued, “Her name was Cleo. She was spared great harm when the coup occurred because she was not physically present in the palace. The Emperor struck swiftly and brutally. Thoth managed to escape with one of his sons…his first-born named Beowulf. Ariel and the others were captured.

“The Emperor wanted Ariel for himself so he kept her locked away in the tower. However, he saw the two boys and three girls as a threat to him, so he handed them over to the Cadre to be disposed of. One by one, the Cadre tortured them in their heinous wicked experiments in the very fortress above us. They did the vilest of abominations to them, altering their genetic structures in unfathomable ways. But Thoth’s children were strong of mind and will, refusing to be overcome by the tortures. When the Emperor found out they could not be broken, he commanded the Cadre to seal them up in this cavern with the Devourers he’d set to guard that sword and seal, thinking the Devourers would solve his problem of the heirs. He was correct to a point. Slowly, the Devourers lived up to their name, picking off all but two of the siblings. They eventually found out that light was the bane of the Devourers, too late for three of their siblings though. Thus, they found sanctuary from the devourers in this very grotto. Over time, many of the Cadre’s failed experiments were condemned to this place, as they were. For some time, there was a steady stream of people condemned to these depths…failed Cadre experiments. Then, one day there were no more people banished to this outer darkness. The only way we know what happened was one of the Cadre wizards came in here in a panic, saying that the Chimera was loose and slaughtering everyone. He then went mad and jumped into the chasm to his doom.”

Hanna nodded, asking, “So what you are telling me is what, oral accounts from long ago told by your father’s, father’s father and so on?”

Morpheus nodded, saying, “Yes. This account has been passed down by word of mouth without change from the time of the beginning.”

Hanna rubbed the side of her face, saying, “So what you’re telling us is that you’re descended from Thoth and Ariel as well.”

Morpheus nodded, saying, “You might say that, though the line has been so polluted that it is virtually impossible to tell it. Between the genetic manipulations of the Cadre and the lack of suitable mates, our ancestors had to make due the best they could. As you can see, we have a strange assortment because of it.”

“Indeed,” Hanna agreed, “But it’s not a totally bad thing. You survived despite the Emperor’s wish to see you all dead.”

“That’s true,” Morpheus stated.

Hanna sat there in silence for a few moments as a troubled look came across her face. “What troubles you, Hanna?” Aeolus asked.

“It’s Josephine,” Hanna stated. “You only know part of my story. I haven’t shared what happened with my capture.”

“And you don’t need to share it,” Tethys called out. “It’s heinous and barbaric what the Emperor did to you and I know it reopens that wound every time you speak of it. You must let it heal.”

Morpheus touched Hanna on the hand. “You don’t have to open that wound again for us. We all know the horrors and torment the Emperor can inflict.”

“But you don’t seem to understand,” Hanna stated, “In the midst of that hell, I discovered something supremely important. The machine that the Emperor used to torture us is a cybernetic organism that I’m sure is the entity responsible for my mutation. After I was….”

“You don’t need to tell the story again,” Amelia insisted, “It’s too gruesome and always causes you great pain and grief.”

“I have to tell this part of it,” Hanna insisted. “They must know this part in order to understand about Josephine.”

“Then take your time,” Aeolus rumbled. “We will not condemn or mock your pain.”

“I appreciate that,” Hanna said. “Anyway, as part of my punishment for defying the Emperor, he had my mind transferred into a clone woman, which he…shall I say put through the most heinous of torments.”

Gasps escaped the lips of all of Morpheus’s people. Rumbles of anger rose from the younger drakens who heard. “Go on,” Morpheus stated softly, holding Hanna’s hand.

Hanna paled significantly and trembled as she murmured, “You have no idea of what it’s like to be a man trapped inside a woman’s body while it’s being tortured physically, mentally, and sexually. It’s a nightmare that continually haunts me. But somehow, I withstood everything he threw at me. When he realized I could not be broken by his normal methods, he pulled out his big guns and turned that clone I was trapped into one of his living dolls.” Tears burst forth as Hanna cried, “That villainous prick had me locked down on a table in stocks spread-eagle and viciously raped and choked me until I was almost dead!” Amelia put her arm around Hanna in support as murmurs of rage against the Emperor raced through the crowd. Aeolus frowned deeply as Hanna sobbed, reliving the terror.

“What happened next?” Morpheus whispered, stroking her hand gently in emotional support.

Hanna composed herself and whimpered, “After he had his fill of me, the machine he called his pet, whom I came to know as Josephine, cut my arms off just above the elbows and my legs off just above the knees all at once with red-hot blades that were attached to the stocks and I was mounted like a trophy. That’s what he called me: his trophy. Then if that wasn’t bad enough, he had his pet show me the kitchen where he has people rendered alive into food stuffs.” Hanna broke down and wept for several moments as the crowd reacted again with utter disgust and hatred for the Emperor. Upon calming down some, Hanna added, “I no longer fear hell because I have been there. It was after this doll making that the machine, which so insidiously tortured me and everyone else in that place treated the clone body I was in. It was while I was hanging on that table that I found out about Josephine. She treated me as gently as a mother would a wounded child. While she tried to ease my pain, I found out that my telepathic prowess wasn’t necessarily connected to my physical body. I reached out telepathically as that huge machine eye hovered over me as it used its mechanized tentacles to feed and treat me. Deep inside the machine’s matrix is a woman named Josephine, who’s completely merged with that diabolical machine and forced by the Emperor’s programming to torment anyone he wishes. I am 95% sure that this Josephine was the wife of the original Emperor, Bolthor Sai Keleb.” Aeolus’ face exhibited great surprise as gasps of astonishment raced through the crowd. “She wants nothing but to be free of that infernal apparatus that has imprisoned her for all this time,” Hanna reported softly.

“What happened when you discovered her name?” Morpheus asked with great interest.

Hanna had become much calmer by now and she replied, “When I called her by name, something happened. I’m not sure what, but Josephine remembered who she was and said her programming matrix was becoming corrupted, making her more independent of the Emperor. This corruption of her program she was able to hide from the Emperor as she talked him into returning me to my real body…this one before it was mutated. She was the one that did the mind transfer into the clone, and apparently put me back where I belonged. I woke up restrained inside some kind of apparatus in my own body. The exhaustion of my ordeal caused me to black out shortly after I woke in the machine. When I woke the second time, I was like this, tied down to a table in a lab where the Emperor took great delight in proving to me that I was a woman forever, making good on a threat he made to me earlier. When I eventually escaped from the Arena with Nemesis and Magnus’ help, I was brought back to Acheron where I didn’t wake up for two weeks. It was at that time that I began to receive psychic dreams from Enoch and his wife Kida, bidding me to come to Antilla. After waking up and becoming well enough to travel, I begged Argus to take Nathanael and me to Enoch in Antilla. Once there, I finally received the proper treatment I needed to get over what the Emperor did to me. It was while in the healing machine at the Red Tower that Enoch and Nathanael explored the possibility of reversing my mutation. They said that the mutation I endured was much more sophisticated and complete than what the Cadre would do. Isn’t that right, Enoch?”

“It is,” Enoch replied, impressed at how Hanna was able to tell the tale of her torture in Amacia without completely breaking down emotionally. “We searched her body with the machine down to the genetic level looking for evidence of the genetic and surgical alterations the Emperor told Hanna she received. We found no evidence of surgical alteration, but we did find hundreds of microscopic puncture marks all over her body and tiny scars at the cellular level where some cybernetic nano-parasite had been introduced and completely restructured her down to the genetic level. It was done with such precision that it’s like Hanna has always been a woman, but that’s not true. The sophistication of this mutation is nothing like what the Cadre does, which is much sloppier. Moreover, they like to mutate people while they are still awake as a means of torture. Hanna swears she was not aware of anything until she woke in this condition.”

“Interesting,” Aeolus rumbled softly.

“When I became aware of this level of the mutation,” Hanna stated, “and of the fact that I have several different strands of alien DNA in my genetic code, including Lynxian code, along with a complete extra chromosome pair, I figured something else was responsible for the mutation. After mulling over it for a while, it suddenly occurred to me that Josephine might have performed my mutation. If she did do the mutation, and her matrix is corrupting because of her rediscovering her identity, allowing her more autonomy from the Emperor, then she may be able to reverse this mutation. That’s why when you were talking about your history, Morpheus, I suddenly thought about Josephine. Is there anything you remember about the wife of Bolthor Sai Keleb?”

“I remember her,” Aeolus replied, “from the time before the coup. She was a beautiful, fair-haired woman with almond eyes and a gentle complexion. Josephine was very compassionate and loving towards all of her family and friends, especially towards Bolthor. To her, he was her entire universe. She loved him so much, but he betrayed her as he betrayed us. His thirst for power caused him to delve into the Black Arts and into the mythos of the Old Ones and Etherians.”

Hanna’s eyebrow rose with surprise as Aeolus continued, “Bolthor turned from a kind gentle man who always looked out for those less fortunate than himself into a sadistic, brutal, power-mad maniac who wreaked havoc on all he saw in his thirst for domination. The beautiful, gentle Josephine disappeared shortly after Bolthor turned to the Darkness, just before he launched his attack on the Caverias line. I never knew what happened to her.”

“That’s similar to the account we have,” Morpheus stated. “According to our accounts, when Bolthor lost his soul to the Dark Powers, he handed his wife over to his wicked Cadre of wizards who experimented on her in their early attempts at fusing machine and flesh. No one ever knew what happened to her and she was assumed lost to the Dark Hordes. Now, Hanna brings to us a tale of telepathic contact with Josephine’s lost soul being imprisoned in an insidious machine forced to commit atrocities for the Emperor’s pleasure. That would be in line with the type of person Bolthor became after being consumed by the Dark Powers. Unfortunately, a physical description of her has not been passed down through our line.”

“But Aeolus remembers her,” Hanna stated. “Surely, he remembers what she looks like.”

“I do,” Aeolus stated, “but that’s been so long ago.”

“I can show you what she looks like, Aeolus,” Hanna declared, “if you will permit me telepathic contact with you. The image I saw of her is burned into my mind forever. You could tell me if the Josephine I know is the same one you do.”

“I see no harm in that,” Aeolus stated. “You may proceed.”

Hanna slowly stood and walked over to Aeolus. She touched him on the side of his enormous face, making telepathic contact with him. Aeolus’ eyes grew wide as Hanna showed him the image of Josephine. “Is she the same person you remember?” Hanna asked.

“By the Elder gods of old,” Aeolus breathed, “It’s her. It’s Josephine Keleb. I am thunderstruck that she is still alive.”

Hanna broke contact with Aeolus and returned to her seat. “If you can call being trapped in a cybernetic hell for over twelve thousand cycles being alive, then yes, she is,” she stated grimly. “Thank you for confirming my suspicions, Aeolus. Josephine is a victim, just as the rest of us are. I promised her that if I escaped and returned for Selina, I’d free her. She’s been a prisoner for far too long in that mechanized hell.”

“I agree,” Aeolus stated. “She is a truly gentle soul that should have never been caught in that trap. She’s been a prisoner as long as Tethys and I have. I only hope her soul has not been corrupted by the evil she’s been forced to commit in the name of the Emperor.”

“I don’t think she has,” Hanna stated, “Otherwise she would not have been so gentle with us while the Emperor was absent.”

“I agree,” Enoch stated. “If she had been corrupted, she would have acted like the Emperor all the time. So...we have some idea of how Josephine became ensnared in this now. But what about Aeolus and Tethys; how did they get trapped in here?”

“Twelve thousand cycles ago, I was guardian of Amacia with allegiances to the Caverias line,” Aeolus answered. “When the Coup took place, Tethys and I were among the first victims. Bolthor lured us into a trap where he teleported here. Why he didn’t just slay us is a mystery. Maybe he believed that he couldn’t kill us. It was later on that I found out from some of the condemned sent here that the Emperor discovered that we drakens were mortal and could be killed with his great war machines. I spent many cycles trying to find a way out of here. I found the way but I could not get through it because of my size. The passage is too small. But enough about us; Hanna is seeking Muriel, and time is of the essence. It’s time to seek your answers, little sister of Caverias.”

Hanna rose, as did the rest of her team. “You are so right,” she chimed, being in a much better mood after the conversation shifted away from her time in Amacia.

“You can take only one other with you,” Morpheus stated. “Muriel will not see you if you bring a crowd. So choose, and choose wisely.”

Hanna didn’t have to think about it. “Elle will accompany me,” she said. “Now how do we get to Muriel?”

“Go to the far end of the grotto there,” Morpheus stated, pointing east. “There will be three passages. Take the one on the far left. Muriel is beyond the labyrinth. To reach her is two rights, three lefts, one right, two lefts, and then down the stairs to the doors. They’re locked with a riddle. She lies beyond the doors in the great unknown. Be careful and quiet, lest you wake the guardians. If you encounter the guardians, RUN.”

Hanna hung the locket around her neck, and then retrieved the seal, stowing it in what was left of her coat. She then sheathed the sword and slung it over her shoulder. Enoch came forward with the scepter and presented the glowing staff to Hanna, saying, “This belongs in your hands, little sister, not mine. Take it and may it light your way in the darkness of the great unknown.”

Hanna took it with a sober look, saying, “Thank you, brother. You all have great faith in me. I hope that this last little incident showed you that faith shouldn’t be put in a single man or woman, but in our God who pushes me forward.” She deliberately smacked the scepter on the floor and it flashed with the brilliance of the sun, lighting the whole cavern briefly like daytime. She could feel the power surging through the staff and knew there was ancient machinery close by because of it. Hanna searched the crowd of awed faces, and then said calmly, “I shall return. Come Elle; Muriel awaits us.” Hanna led her away in the direction Morpheus had stated, using the blazing crystal atop the scepter as a torch. It shined brilliantly, abundantly lighting their way.

As they walked away, Aeolus called out, “Do not let your light go out. This cavern is the only place where there is sufficient light to keep the Devourers away.”

Hanna called back, saying, “Thanks for the warning, my friend. I’ll try and keep that in mind.” Moments later, she and Elle entered the labyrinth.