THE KIN WAR: Chapter 4
AN: It's been almost two months... but here it is. Chapter four, lets see how our little stargazer is doing on his own...
Please Read and Enjoy!
All was quiet.
The air was damp and musty. And these caves seemed colder then the main caves had been. It probably only felt this way because of the lack of light.
Only a few lost torches were lit. Luckily Skywise had good eyes, and, even without his wolfblood, he could see fairly well in the dark. Not as well as before... but it was sufficient.
The stargazer was safely hiding behind a coal cart, while catching his breath and listening for the slightest sound of trouble. When none came, he finally relaxed a little.
Sound traveled loud and far in these caves, so when trouble did arrive he would have plenty of time to make an escape... or so he hoped. He just needed a moment to catch his breath and examine the wound he had received from the battle.
He sat down, leaning against the cart. Gently, he pulled off his tunic, which was painfully clinging to the wound due to dried up blood.
He had been running until he couldn't go any further, and luckily, the caves had been deserted. He wondered if the trolls were still working underground. Nowdays, they seemed too occupied with raiding the human villages at night and even sometimes during the day. And that said a lot about a species that absolutely loathed the sun.
He finally had his tunic off and looked at his side; it was still bleeding a little, but not too much... He cringed when he probed the wound. It was a large gap, but probably not too deep. And besides hurting a lot and bleeding a bit, it didn't impede his ability to move.
He didn't have any water to wash it out and he didn't have any idea of how bad it really was. But he did know he had a better change of surviving this whole ordeal if he could keep the wound from being infected and keep it from bleeding. So he started to tear up his tunic in order to dress the wound. Hoping it would be enough.
When he was finally done, he started to feel a little nauseous. He closed his eyes for a bit to let the feeling pass. Trying not to fall asleep, he figured it was time to use his head again in trying to get back above ground.
He knew that the trolls had many exits, but they were probably all guarded. He also knew that the one exit that wasn't was the one near the Holt. But to get to that one, he would have to go back the way he came- which meant going through the main cave- which meant trolls... and lots of them. So going through the main caves wasn't an option. Maybe he could find another way back to that exit, through another set of tunnels? The High Ones knew that the trolls weren't ones to build systematically. They rather carved out too many tunnels then to little. So that might work... if he could find his way back to the exit instead of getting disorientated and starting to walk in circles.
Skywise smiled mischievously. That would probably happen to anyone else, but not to him. He picked up the rope around his neck. The lodestone spun slowly for a bit then stopped. One side pointing at the direction he came from and the other side pointing in the direction he was heading. This was his way to prevent going around in circles. He would have to find a way to get around the main caves and, truth to be told, he didn't have many certainties- just a few wild guesses. But then again, it was better than doing nothing.
A sudden sound made Skywise hold his breath. Voices- angry voices- and lots of them! The stargazer briefly considered staying hidden behind the coal cart, but quickly decided against it. There was a big chance that he would be discovered, and if that happened... he would be trapped like a rat. So he quickly got up on his feet and took a peek towards where the sound was coming from. He could already see shadows moving in the light of the torches. He'd had to hurry and at the same time be very careful not to make a sound...
Unfortunately, his luck ran out with the first step he took. He slipped! He swallowed the curse he wanted to make, but the loose stones probably made enough noise to betray him. And as if that wasn't bad enough, Skywise quickly discovered that it wasn't just a couple of loose rocks... The ground was slowly giving way! He panicked as he saw the ground breaking up into bits and pieces right below him and he desperately tried to grasp the coal cart. But the cart also was on unstable ground. Cold sweat broke out as he frantically tried to hold on to something solid. It didn't work and he fell, trying to save his life by pushing against the cart, which was almost falling on top of him. He couldn't believe he would die like this... what were the odds???
AN: Okay you ppl must hate me now... First Leetah and Ember... Now Skywise... Guess you think I'm killing off all the EQ characters eh???
(Hehe!)... Okay... I'll spare you and continue this cliffhanger. It was way to short for a chapter anyways...
He must have been out for a while, because when he opened his eyes, the ground had stopped shaking.
Skywise was drowsy and shook his head trying to clear it. That only resulted in a mild but annoying headache. "Where am I?" he whispered.
He could see some light coming from above him. It looked about ten meters high. He could also hear the noise of trolls who had gathered above him. Skywise was suddenly alert, though it hurt. The trolls would investigate what had happened, so he had to get out of there quickly. He hadn't been out long, so there was still a chance. He tried to get away, but noticed that besides the awful, jagged rocks he was lying on, he also had part of the weight of the coal cart leaning on him. Every movement hurt... but at least he still was pretty much in one piece. Forgetting all caution, he started to push the coal cart off of him. It took a few good pushes and a little bit of sweat, but eventually it fell on its side, releasing his leg with a loud clang. The trolls were suddenly quiet and one of them demanded a torch to see what happened.
Skywise didn't wait for that but scurried to the sides of the hole he'd fallen into and started to feel around for a way out. Luckily it seemed that Skywise had just landed in another set of tunnels and he was quickly making his way away from the opening.
Tam.... He tried sending. He really needed his soulbrother right now... His nerves were wrecked, he ached all over, he was cold and... well... He was scared.
But either the rocks seemed to thick or the distance too far. He didn't receive the comfort he was looking for.
"Puckernuts..." he cursed as he moved further away. He didn't really know what direction he was headed, just that he had to get out of there. He never had liked caves, not since he got caught in one and almost died in it. And he felt more than a little shaken by this. Cutter had helped him get over his claustrophobic fears before, but this just made it all come right back. He knew it was the coldest way to die.
The stargazer suddenly stopped when he saw lights up ahead. Uncertain what to do, he backed up... Up against a wall! His heart skipped a beat. That was impossible! He turned around and felt the rock wall behind him. It couldn't be, he had just passed through here... Skywise tried to think. But nothing rational came to mind. He felt his way around and quickly realized that there was only one way to go. Towards the light...
Given no other options Skywise did so, but very carefully.
When he first saw what he saw, it all made sense. A rockshaper!
The pale, tall elf was sitting on some kind of pedestal and was looking directly at the stargazer. Skywise felt intimidated, yet relieved. No trolls... An elf. "Who... Who are you?" He asked.
The rockshaper shifted a bit from where he was sitting. He was looking down on Skywise and it probably made him feel very secure and powerful.
He didn't speak, and Skywise felt an urge to break the silence.
"Eh... I'm Skywise... I was separated from my tribe... Were you a friend of Ekuar?"
Again, silence... But Skywise already knew the answer: it was no. Ekuar had a small frame, as did his friends from way back then. This elf looked more like the elves from the blue mountain.
The rockshaper smiled... "No..." His voice was slow and raspy. "I... Am... PILAR..." He turned his back toward the stargazer.
"I... Came from.... BLUE MOUNTAIN... Yes... Blue Mountain... The chosen Eight... Willowill used me... As the trolls are using me now.... " His voice died away.
Skywise was mystified. Clearly this elf was more than a little disturbed. But Skywise also felt compassion toward the old shaper. He slowly approached the pedestal...
Pilar's eyes flew wide open as he swirled around on his pedestal. STAY BACK!!! He sent. Suddenly the ground beneath Skywise's feet started to tremble. Skywise feared he was in for another fall, but it was even worse. A huge stone hand came from under him, lifted him up in the air, and threw him on the ground a couple feet further from the pedestal.
The wind knocked out of him, Skywise gasped for breath and tried to get back on his feet. But the hand quickly covered him, making him unable to move. Skywise struggled- but to no avail, as the stone settled in around him. Let me GO!!! He mind-screamed.
Pilar snorted. As his courage grew, he reformed his rock-pedestal closer to his prisoner. He smiled, looking at his handiwork, and marveled at the fear that was now beaming from the gray eyes of the silver-haired elf.
"Not so tough now, eh?" He whispered...
Next chapter: Cutter and his fighters return upworld. What will he find? And will he be able to cope with it?
AN: Okay normally I'd plead and beg for reviews, but this time I'd like you people to go and review a severely underrated story here at (an elfquest fic of course). This fanfic has only three reviews, but it's great and has a lot of potential.
Now I'd like you people to all go read her story and review it (positive OR negative and positive. Not just negative, that's cruel!) and maybe, just maybe she'll be inspired to continue this story. So what do you say? Want to do a good dead? Review it now!
It's: The Lodestones: When Opposites Attract by Sitrine Topaz
;) V.