Obsidian Ridge - Jess Lebow [51]
The Claw bowed. "I will get her back. I give you my word."
"I know you will," said the king, his heart heavy for the news h still had to deliver. "But son, I'm afraid that"-he pointed to the magical portal disk-"is all the help I can give you. If you fail, I will have no choice but to turn you over to the underworld."
The Claw nodded his understanding.
"There is still the matter of the Obsidian Ridge, and I have a responsibility to this kingdom."
"Yes, my lord."
"I can give you enough time to leave the palace-to get to the Cellar. But then I must give the Magistrates the order." "The order?"
"Yes." The king steeled himself. "I will tell the Matron that she has a deal. That I will turn you over to her as soon as I can hunt you down. If she has as much reach into the palace as I suspect, then she will know if I'm telling her the truth. So I will send the Magistrates out, looking for you. You will be a hunted man, but if you are quick, you will be out of this realm and inside the Cellar before I give the command."
"I do not understand," said the Claw. "Why accept the deal if I can get the princess back?"
"Because I do not trust the Matron, but I have no choice but to accept her offer for help. While you are searching for Mariko, I can be putting together plans to fight Xeries-with the help of the underworld. If all goes well, you will retrieve my daughter while we fight off the Obsidian Ridge."
The Claw nodded. "I see. Thank you, my lord. I will not fail."
"Good luck, son. Good luck."
Without looking back, King Korox Morkann left his private reading room, closing the door behind him. Crossing through the circle of pillars, he sat down on his throne and waved over a junior scribe.
A young man of no more than eighteen years scampered over, his arms full of parchment, a quill and ink gripped in his hands.
"Take this down." The king cleared his throat. "By official decree, I, Korox Morkann, King of Erlkazar, do hereby order the Magistrates of my realm to find and capture the man known as the Claw. He is to be returned to me alive and with all haste." The king paused. "Use all force necessary to retrieve this man. Spare no expense. The fate of Erlkazar depends on it."
Korox nodded. "Have that posted on all barracks and delivered to the commanders of each unit."
The young man looked up from his writing, his eyes wide. He swallowed hard, then nodded, shuffling off to do as he was told.
Korox slumped back in his throne.
+++++
The Claw stood in the king's private reading room. This was the first time he'd been here alone, and the room, although small and packed with furniture, felt very empty.
He turned the magical, colored disk over in his hand. He wasn't sure he wanted to find out what was on the other side. The Cellar, from all accounts, was a terrible place. But that wasn't what bothered him.
It was the princess. She'd been missing for three days now. If she'd been in the Cellar all that time, there's no telling what sort of foul evil had befallen her.
The Claw wasn't frightened by much, not even the thought of his own death. But finding the woman he loved torn to shreds on the floor of the Cellar would be more than he could handle.
He placed the disk on the floor and readied himself. There was only one way to find out if she was still alive. And the faster he got there, the more likely he could save her. Giving the disk a spin, he watched the colors blur and melt into one another. They lifted off the surface, seemingly knitting together in midair.
A shimmering portal formed beside the disk. It swirled, a giant replica of the spinning trinket, suspended over the ground by nothing at all. Picking up the disk, the Claw stepped through the portal-out of the palace and into the Cellar.
As soon as both feet touched the ground, the portal winked out of existence behind him. The chamber he had entered was completely dark. It smelled damp and musty, like the mineral caves under the ruins of Castle Trinity, and the only sound was of dripping water, somewhere off in the distance.
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