Change in Darkness

Chapter three

Within the next few days I stayed close to Lucan. No whips touched his back and he never went without food. I made sure of it. I had even taken up more 'listening' with the boy. I taught him how to distinguish each of the spirits. I taught him what things to say and what not to say to the guards or Marius to stay alive. I knew he took it all in carefully, trying to remember each detail word for word. And when I could I taught him about herbs. When I found one in the field I'd show him and tell him of its properties. But something felt different on the fifth day since making my decision. When we were released for our outdoor time the others gathered quickly into their small circle just outside the guards hearing range.

They're planning something, I thought to myself with a frown. The clouds above us were dark, threatening to let out a downpour at any moment.

"Come, let's sit closer today. I don't want to be caught far away from the village if it starts storming." Lucan, his hand tightly clenching my fingers, nodded and followed me. I settled myself down a little bit away from the others, Lucan in front of me with his ever watching eyes glued to the sky. I chuckled and closed my eyes. I concentrated closely on the other prisoners, trying to hear their conversation. They all looked serious, like they were planning.

"Alright, it's settled. We'll leave tonight when the rain starts to fall." I heard Powle whisper to the others. His voice was nearly excited.

They have no idea what they are getting themselves into. I gave a shutter, my mind going back to our last trip as slaves. When Penn, a foolish man from Sarmatia, made plans for a rebellion. Most of our group was killed during that night. All that was left of us were Bega, Tate, Sigga, Dax and Eadrick along with me. After that a Roman officer by the name of Artorius Castus took us in, recognizing Bega and I as one of his knight's kin. I miss them. Even Arthur, not that I'd admit it right now.

"What if they catch you?" I blinked in confusion at the new voice. It was Guinevere. Her voice was almost too soft and rough for a woman's but that was probably because she refused to speak since she arrived here. But underneath that I could hear the strength and unease in her voice.

"What do you mean? Aren't you coming Guinevere?" So I wasn't the only one who thought that this break out was foolish. At least I now knew that the Woad and I thought similar.

"I'm not risking my life to escape here. If you two want to be my guest." I heard the flutter of clothing and from the corner of my eye I could see the woman stand up and walk over to the guard. A small smile tilted my lips, cracking the dry skin there.

"Wolf, you're bleeding again," Lucan quietly said, staring at me with confused eyes. A quick thought struck me. If they tried to escape, they'd try to take Lucan with them. That would be the end of him as well. I turned my body to face the boy and grasped his shoulders.

"Lucan listen to me. Something will happen tonight, something very bad. No matter what I want you to stay in your cage, don't leave with anyone. If someone tells you that you are free and to run, don't." The boy nodded slowly, but it was obvious that he didn't know why he was agreeing to this. I sighed and pulled the boy closer to me. "You're a good boy Lucan. I think you're mother taught you very well." His brown eyes lit up at the praise and he smiled.

"Thank you Wolf." I smiled again and pulled myself up onto my feet, the boy following.


Just as I predicted, the clatter of chains woke me from my sleep. Taking the beatings for both myself and Lucan had really taken a lot of energy from me. My grey eyes peered into the darkness, using the glow from the water as my light. Across from me Babbe was undoing the locks on Lucan's cage.

"What do you think you're doing?" I hissed, grabbing hold of the bars on my cage. The older woman looked over at my and smiled.

"We're getting out of here."

"You're going to kill yourselves and Lucan along with you! Put the locks back on and go back to your cage!" I could see her eyes were filled with both anger and confusion but I stared her down, willing her to let the lock drop. But of course, her being a stubborn Brit she turned away and started working on the metal again. "Babbe! Let them go!" I finally growled, slamming the palm of my hand against the iron locking me in.

A deep rumble started down in my throat and I knew instantly that this time the switch would be different. I felt in control of both myself and Wolf. The growl rose up and out of my throat, making the woman jump. She turned to me, eyes wide with fear, the lock dropped from her hands and clanged hard against the stone prison holding Lucan in. All of us jumped, a whimper coming from Wolf warned me. Powle came rushing back into the room, eyes seething with rage.

"They're coming! You've woken half the village with the racket you've made!" He barked, grabbing his mother's wrist and yanking her up to her feet. "We have to go now!"

"What about the boy?" Babbe asked, her eyes flittering between her son and Lucan's cage.

"Leave him; he'll just slow us down anyways." He pulled on her arm, dragging her to the door.

"Lucan," I hissed loud enough for the boy to hear. "Cover your ears. Quickly."

Just in that second the door slammed open, making each cage shutter with the vibrations. I winced and covered my own ears, curling up in the back corner of my cell. But of course, flesh can't block out the sounds of screams. Or the sound of metal cutting through human skin. And the sound of dead bodies dropping to the ground. I could feel Wolf inside of me, whimpering and pacing back and forth within her own cage. We wanted to go to the boy, to protect him from the dirty, blood stained hands of the Romans. We would all be beat now. I wouldn't be able to help Guinevere or Lucan or even myself.

And I had been right. By morning the next day I had bruises and cuts decorating my body. More than I've ever had. I could feel blood seeping into my dirty old cloths and sticking to my skin. The cut along my cheek stung and bled, leaving a line of stickiness across the right side of my face. The same was along my arms and legs. Nothing felt clean anymore. I could hear the cries of both Guinevere and Lucan when they were taken. Lucan came back with a limp arm and bruises along his face. Thank the Goddess that they showed a bit of mercy to the child. But Guinevere came back, holding her hand to her chest, cuts along the back of her clothes.

"I hope you three have learnt your lesson. No one can run from a Roman. You three will die here for your sins against God and the Church." I faintly heard the voice of Jeffery whisper into the darkness of our room. The room we would never escape. We would die because we did rat out the others, because they tried to free us, because we were different from the Christians.

"Wolf, have you leant your lesson?" Jeffery teased from the safety beyond the iron bars. I lifted my head slightly from its place against your arms and glared at him, feeding my angry into that single icy look. I watched him shutter and move on with a faint sense of victory in my heart. Even bruised and weak I could still make a man fear for his life.

I listened to him leave, than the door clang shut behind him. The monks had been stationed down here with us, to make sure there were no more attempted escapes. Now, our peaceful silence was filled with the whispers of men and their worshiping to a fake God.

Maybe if I claw my ears off I can finally be rid of it, I thought to myself. With them here I couldn't make sure the others were okay. I shifted slightly but whimpered at the streaks of pain across my body. I couldn't remember the last time I felt like this. Maybe during training back in Rome. But no, back then I was never this cut up. If only I could get my hands on some Balsam Fir. It would numb the pain and speed healing.

A tinkling laugh drew my attention away from the pain inside of me. I looked up and around my cage, trying to find the source of the sound.

It definitely didn't come from any of the monks, I thought with a slight smirk. But when it sounded again I nearly cursed myself for my own stupidity. Once of the earth spirits. They had found a way to join Lucan and I down underneath their fair surface.

"Give it time Ailith of Sarmatia. Have you never heard the saying 'good things come to those who wait'?" the laugh sounded again before fading out. I shuttered and curled up tighter.


I'm guessing it was midday when I heard a new sound past the quiet drone of the monks. Stone clanging slamming stand stone just outside the door leading outside. The monks didn't stop; they knew what was happening outside our underground prison. I pressed myself farther back, closer to the thicker shadows, where the light of the water didn't reach. They were locking us inside the earth. They were burying us and leaving. They were going to punish us until our last breaths.

"Lucan," I whispered as quietly as I could, "Lucan, are you alright?"

I heard a shift against the other cages. I must have woken Guinevere from her sleep. "Y-Yes, I'm okay. My arm hurts though." I winced and braced my back against the stone.

"When you move it or when apply pressure at all?"

"Both," he whispered faintly, and I could hear tears welding in his voice. "Wolf, we're going to die here aren't we? Like Powle and Babbe."

I sucked in a breath and closed my eyes, pressing my palms against my forehead. "No we aren't Lucan. My people will come for me soon. They will free us." It wasn't me who spoke. Guinevere's voice had strengthened a bit since yesterday.

"The Woads?" Lucan asked, but the teary voice was still there.

"Yes, when they come to rescue me I will take the both of you with me." My hands came away from my face as I stared out of my cage. A life with the people I used to fight against. What would that be like? And to live and fight in a place with fellow Pagans who wanted nothing but to be free.

"I think that would be nice." I whispered, relaxing somewhat against the stone walls. "Guinevere, how is your hand?"

"It hurts to move my fingers. I think they pulled them out of place." I heaved a sigh and nodded to myself.

"When we get out of this I will try my best to heal you both." I said, my fingers tracing the slices along my legs. "I was a Healer and a warrior before this." I told them. I heard a sharp intake of breath from the other woman and smirked slightly.

My smirk fell away when the sounds of stone against stone stopped, the sounds of drums filling it's place. And then all sounds outside where cut off by a powerful 'thwack!' I jumped, hissing when my back scrapped against my wall. The sounds hit again. It sounded like metal against stone now. Like, someone was trying to get into the prison. The monks chanted louder, drowning out the sounds of freedom.

"Guinevere you're people work fast." I chuckled and crawled back to the iron bars at the front of my cage. Once the metal sound was finished a 'thump' replaced it. Someone was definitely trying to get in. Relief swam through me. The door bust open and silence ran down on the three of us. I could hear the monks going on and on, but also the sounds of armour clinking.

"Those aren't my people," Guinevere whispered before going silent again. My eyes narrowed as I pushed myself back into the shadows again.

All this moving had probably opened up my wounds again, I thought with an inward sigh. Voices got louder and I could have sworn that some sounded familiar to me. I curled up in a tighter ball, protecting myself from the unfamiliar sounds. Torch light filled the prison room and I could hear a soft whimper escape Lucan. I tried to drown out the voices with my hands. Cupping them over my ears and imagining different sounds instead. The waterfall back in Sarmatia. The sounds of hooves hitting the ground. But when I felt fire light touch my face I knew I couldn't hit.

"How dare you set foot in this holy place?" One of the monks hissed before a sword was unsheathed and another body dropped onto the floor. I cringed. Who would have thought that the mighty Wolf would be afraid of death? She, who slayed man after man.

"That there was a man of God."

"Not my God."

Another voice called out from somewhere, "this one is dead too."

"From the smell of this place they are all dead. And you, you even move and you'll join him."

Another clang echoed as someone opened all the holes across from my cage. "Arthur!" So they found Lucan. Wait. That name, Arthur, Arthur Castus? "You must not fear me," The voice said again.

A moment of quiet passed while more cages were opened. "Wolf?" Lucan's quiet voice whispered. I opened my eyes and peering out into the main room and smiled faintly at the boy crouched by my cage.

"Hello Lucan, nice to see you again," I whispered.

"Get up, these people will help us." I allowed my hands to fall away from my ears again as I looked Lucan in the eye, his wariness showing easily to me.

"Have they found Guinevere yet?" He looked down the row of cages and nodded.

"Arthur, the boy found another one." My eyes widened when I heard the voice. It sounded far too familiar with my hands down and away from my ears. Maybe it was the Romans playing tricks on us.

Oh Goddess I hope not.

"What is her name?" This voice was deep and kind even though it sent a shiver down my spine. Lucan looked up and inched away from the legs in my view.

"W-Wolf." I felt pity for Lucan, being so young and so afraid and in such pain and yet still doing his best to make sure I got out.

Lucan was moved out of my range of eye sight and another face was replaced with it. A very. Very familiar face. One with blue eyes burning with anger and pity. A strong jaw covered with a light beard. And long, wavy golden hair with braids worked into random places. I felt tears rise up in my wide eyes as his own stared into mine.

"Ailith?"


All of the knights belong to the wonderful creators of King Arthur. Ailith is mine though, you can't have her!

Okay guys! It's almost the end of Winter Break and I really hope you like this chapter. Writing has been my coping agent. I may not be able to get many chapters out right away this January because well, to put it simply my grandpa passed away on January 4th. I don't know when the funeral will be but I'm trying to stay strong. Writing will be my way out of those thoughts about him.

I hope you all liked this chapter and sorry for the cliff hanger XD

Thanks for your support for my stories and I hope I will continue to have that this year.

Review for me! Love ya!