Chapter 5
The suns rose slowly, bathing the land in a warm, peachy glow, but the Thief barely noticed. She had been walking on and off during the night, following the river and the tracks of the Orcs, with no way of knowing how far she'd gone.
In the Celestial Knight's Tower, she'd faced her worst nightmare: to be alone in an endless plain of nothingness. But this was worse, this was a million times worse. Her friends had been captured. Eric was asleep, perhaps forever. And Gail was…gone.
Numb, afraid and close to exhaustion, Sheila travelled with the hood of her Cloak up all the times and jumped at every unusual sound. But even through the panic and fear, she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened, reliving the events of the day, seeing the Harlequin topple over the edge, again and again.
How had the Orcs known where they were? Slowly, the question forced its way to the front of her mind. How had the Orcs known where they all were? It must have been a well-planned attack to catch Hank and the others. But how did they know?
Something clicked the back of her mind, and she suddenly remembered being back on the plateau. Eric was lying on the ground, and the Orcs were laughing. What had been said? What did the soldier say? 'Foolish, trusting Humans, betrayed by one of their own kind?'
She stopped walking abruptly, her eyes filling with tears. Could they have been betrayed? Obviously, none of her friends would have done such a thing, but what about the others: the Amazon and her friends? Could one of them have been that desperate?
Forcing herself to move once more, Sheila trudged onwards, now feeling a thousand times worse. The Thief didn't want to believe it, but there was only one explanation that made any sense.
She thought back to the confrontation on the plateau: The Orcs had known exactly where they were, they had called Gail and Eric by their titles, and they knew Gail carried a Mask. They were obviously expecting to find them, perhaps they had even been following them. Quickly, we have to meet the others! We are already late!
The truth dawned on Sheila. The Orcs knew exactly what to do, and where to attack. They must have been watching them for days. Venger must have known everything they'd done, Shadow Demon could easily have been spying on them!
Sometimes, she let herself remember what it was like to feel betrayed. That day, with the Cloud Bears, she had overheard Hank plotting with the Orcs. The pain and bitterness she'd felt had almost overwhelmed her. Only at the end, when Hank finally explained, could she start to understand.
Sheila hated that feeling, hated having her trust violated like that. And now, someone had done it again. One of the others HAD to be involved: But which one? Which one was wicked enough to do it?
The question hardened the determination inside her: She was going to rescue her friends; and she was going to find out exactly what had happened!
Not long after sunrise, the Thief stopped by the riverside. She nibbled on some scraps of food she'd salvaged from the campsite, even though she didn't feel hungry. There couldn't be any mistakes, and she had to keep her strength up. But there was no way to hide the fact she was exhausted. When was the last time she'd felt this tired? How was she going to help the others in this condition? But she didn't dare sleep, she was too afraid.
Sheila scooped some of the refreshing cold water over her face, washing away the grime and dried tears.
'So, what am I gonna do?' she said loudly, her voice sounding shrill after the long, silent night.
Her voice echoed away, then suddenly, over the sound of the bubbling water, there was a soft bleating noise. At first she thought she imagined it, but it happened again, then again.
Sheila's heart almost exploded with relief. Uni! The unicorn was free! She jumped up.
'UNI!' she shouted desperately, looking around. 'Uni, where are you!'
There was another short bleat, and a glint of white in the shadows on the other side of the river.
Without stopping to think it through properly, Sheila waded out into the river and started to swim. The current was strong, but she somehow managed to keep moving forward. About ten meters from the other side, she touched the riverbed again.
The unicorn started to prance around, pawing the ground when she saw Sheila so close, then rushed into the shallows in a haze of splashes and jumped into the Thief's arms. Sheila hugged Uni tightly, delight overriding her tiredness for the moment.
'Uni, what happened? How did you get here?' asked Sheila wading ashore, still holding the unicorn.
'Meurchs.'
'Orcs, huh?' suggested Sheila. Uni nodded, then waved her horn in front of Sheila's nose.
'You teleported across here, to get away?'
'Myeah,' replied Uni.
The Thief hugged the unicorn again, more to reassure herself that the she was real than to comfort her companion.
'Don't worry, Uni, we'll find a way to help the others. Somehow.'
Sheila rested in the sunshine for a long time with Uni snuggled into her. The unicorn happily ate a little of the now-sodden food, as Sheila tried to think about what to do next, as the thought of swimming back across the river was not appealing now she had dried off. When Uni had finished, Sheila said:
'C'mon, let's see if there's an easier way further down.'
'Myeah.'
Sheila smiled, and ruffled the unicorn's mane. At least Uni was with her.
They walked on for a short while, slowly. The Thief kept an eye on the river, but it was still flowing just as fast. At times they left the riverside, as Sheila preferred the safety of the trees. But they couldn't stray far. The tracks of the Orcs on the other side were still visible.
The initial relief of finding Uni was gone, and the Thief was still faced with the cold, harsh truth. How was she going to help her friends, even with the unicorn's help? Her spirits started to dip again.
What was she going to do? The tiredness was starting to play tricks on her mind. She found it difficult to concentrate, all she could think about were the other group. Foolish, trusting Humans, betrayed by one of their own kind…
After about half an hour of walking, Uni suddenly raced forward, back down to the river's edge and started capering around one of the big rocks by the river. The Thief followed warily, her footsteps crunching on the pebbles.
As Sheila drew closer, she realised Uni wasn't pawing a rock, that was a body, a person. For a few seconds she froze, feeling sick, but then it groaned. It was alive! Rushing up, she pulled the person gently over.
She gasped.
It was Gail; Gail had survived.
Her dark hair was plastered over her face and she looked almost blue-white. Sheila remembered the Harlequin's short fight against the Orcs on the plateau, and looked down. Gail's sleeve was torn, and her arm was already starting to bruise, but there didn't seem to be anything broken.
The girl flinched as Sheila touched her, and groaned again.
'Sh…ei…la?' said Gail weakly, her eyes half-open.
The Thief smiled, but inside she was consumed with revulsion and anger. Betrayed by one of their own kind. That terrible, painful feeling was there again, just like when she'd overheard Hank and the Orcs. It made her feel ill.
The Harlequin was as likely to be the guilty one as any of the new group! The fall from the cliff could have been planned, or an evil twist of fate. Or it could have been one, big set-up. Betrayed by one of their own kind…
'H-Hi Gail,' Sheila managed to say, struggling to find anything to say. 'What happened?'
The Harlequin pushed herself upright very slowly, holding her head. She took a few, slow breaths before starting to speak.
'I think I fell of a cliff,' she replied slowly. 'Alison's going to freak when she finds out! I think there were Orcs and…'
Her eyes suddenly widened, presumably as she remembered what had been happening on the cliff in the first place.
'Eric!' she demanded. 'What's happened to him? Where is he? And the others?'
'The Orcs got them, all of them,' said Sheila bluntly. 'Only Uni and I escaped.'
Gail frowned, rubbing her head.
'Oh.'
'Is that all you have to say?' asked Sheila in surprise. Gail seemed to be taking this very calmly! Too calmly! The revulsion inside her grew worse.
Gail shook her head, then looked worried
'I'm going to be sick.'
Turning away, the Harlequin coughed up a few mouthfuls of water. Uni brayed in distaste and Gail turned back, wiping her mouth with her sleeve.
'Mustn't shake my head,' she said quietly.
The Thief waited with a strange sense of detachment as Gail recovered. The knowledge that they'd been betrayed over-rode her natural compassion. Under any other circumstances, Sheila would have been the first one to rush to the aid of an injured person. It went against every single principal she had, but she couldn't bring herself to help. And all the time, the Orc-voices in her head grew louder: Foolish, trusting Humans… Foolish, trusting Humans… Foolish, trusting Humans…
Sheila was going to say exactly what she was thinking, to tell Gail that someone had betrayed them, but she didn't. What if Gail HAD been the one? How would she react? They had almost never spoken to each other, and the Harlequin had hidden her blossoming relationship with Eric from all of them.
Sheila's heart sped up. Yes, Gail could act. She was the Harlequin, ready to change into whoever was needed. How had she described herself? The wise Fool: The dual nature of honesty: Quicksilver and Steel. She hid her true face behind the Mask. And not even her own sister though very highly of her. Could she be the one?
'We're well behind the others,' said Sheila at last. 'We might not even be able to find them.'
Gail nodded gently, as if her head might fall off.
'We need more info,' she said.
'Where's Dungeonmaster?' said Sheila looking around sadly. 'He must know we need him.'
Gail looked embarrassed and said:
'Sorry, Sheila, but he's not going to show with me around.'
'Why!' demanded the Thief.
'He and my friends had a, um, disagreement,' she said, biting her bottom lip and looking very uncomfortable. 'Dungeonmaster won't help us. We're on our own.'
Sheila paused, and was suddenly surprised to find that being on her own had been so much better than being with one of them!
'Then we should get moving,' said the Thief, patting the anxious unicorn. 'Are you ready.'
'Are you?' replied Gail. 'You look terrible!'
Sheila bristled with annoyance. This! From someone who looked like she'd spend the night in a washing machine!
'I'm fine,' said Sheila shortly. 'Let's go!'
The other girl slowly stood up. She was unsteady on her feet and looked like she was going to be sick again. Again, Sheila wanted to help, take her arm maybe and help her across the stones, but the memory of the empty camp turned her compassion cold. She watched as Gail started to pick her way over the pebbles.
'Myeah?' said Uni, looking from one girl to another. Sheila patted the unicorn again.
'Let's go, Uni.'
'Myeah,' was the sad reply.
They walked slowly on for a few more hours, neither saying more than a few words at a time. The silence wasn't companionable, but that didn't appear to bother the Harlequin, who seemed detached from the situation and content to ignore the Thief. It didn't bother Sheila either, and she watched Gail constantly.
The surprise at finding the other girl had worn off, and Sheila was now wondering how Gail had managed to survive. It was not like she'd just gone for a quick swim. She'd fallen off a cliff and been washed who knows how many miles downstream. Could you really survive anything like that? Was this all a ploy just to get the Cloak?
She silently wished that Dungeonmaster would appear. She needed help, and even one of his riddles would be preferable to Gail's company. But the old man had only told them to get the Orchid and "Take it to the City of Recadia. Then you all shall see your home." That didn't help her at all!
Sheila also wished one of her real friends were here, particularly Hank. He would have known what to do. He would have had the courage to confront Gail, and demand an explanation!
It was strange. Even after all that the Ranger had put her through, ignoring her, flirting with the Amazon, Sheila still thought of him first. He was their leader, he was the one they all trusted. She had never truly realised before how had it must be for him, being relied on by so many people; always being the responsible one, always being in control.
She sighed. Before the Temple of Love, they had an unspoken agreement. Hank cared about her, he might even have loved her, but getting involved was just too dangerous here in the Realm. Was it any wonder he had withdrawn after that amazing kiss in the Temple? Had she expected too much of him?
The suns were almost directly overhead and Sheila had long since stopped paying attention to the scenery. She tried to concentrate on her friends, on a plan, on anything, but she was getting more and more exhausted by the minute, and all the time Orc voices were singing in her head: Betrayed! Betrayed! Betrayed!
In front of her, Gail suddenly stopped and looked towards the mountains on the other side of the river.
'And here I was, wondering where they could be!' murmured the Harlequin.
Sheila looked as well. Poking out from behind the mountain's edge was a huge, grey castle with two, long spires. It was perched right on the edge of the mountain, and looked down on a large, makeshift Orc-town, complete with battalions of Orcs all milling about. And just in front of the town was a narrow bridge across the river.
Neither girl waited to look at the town or castle more carefully, as both dashed for the cover of some trees. As they caught their breath, Sheila realised the Harlequin was watching her expectantly. The Thief had nothing to say, not because she didn't have any ideas, but she was too busy wondering how the other girl would react. The silence stretched out unbearably, but Gail gave in first.
'Do you have any suggestions?' she said.
Sheila shrugged warily. What would Gail do next?
'What do you think we should do?' asked the Thief.
Gail seemed uneasy with the question.
'I don't know. We need to find out what we're dealing with. And some supplies.'
Sheila raised her eyebrows, surprised.
'Supplies?'
Gail nodded gently.
'So we'll have to be ultra-careful. The Orcs and Venger will be expecting something.' She glanced at Sheila. 'You didn't say, but I assume that the others were taken by surprise, like we…um… like I was. Did you see what happened to them?'
Sheila shook her head, thinking that Gail had not been as detached as she'd thought. This could mean anything; she could be plotting something…
'Well,' continued the Harlequin, 'it seems a safe bet that Venger will be looking for the missing weapons. He won't make it easy to get in.' She pulled a branch down to take another look at the town. 'At the ravine, before I fell, they used my title. They seemed to be expecting me. That means they must have been spying on us, at least since we left Recadia.' She turned to look at Sheila, and there was a slight frown on her face.
Sheila nodded, feeling her heart speed up again. This was not how she'd thought the conversation would go.
'Yes, I think so as well,' she said, not wanting Gail to think that she hadn't thought of that too.
'We'll have to be very careful, what ever we do. But we can't decide until we've seen the town from close up.' The Harlequin waited again for Sheila to say something. Uni looked between the two girls anxiously, sensing the distrust.
'But I need to go and get some supplies,' said Gail eventually.
Sheila didn't move, her paranoia suddenly as acute as before. Why did Gail volunteer to go? Betrayed by one of their own kind…
'I should see if there's any painkillers in there,' added the Harlequin with a sigh. 'My arm is killing me. What I wouldn't give for a Boots right now!'
Sheila frowned, unsure what she meant, and unwilling to ask.
'Why don't I go?' she said. 'I am invisible! No one will see me!'
Gail shrugged.
'You don't look like you can make it. I have to go, you don't. Besides I know what I'm looking for!'
Sheila frowned, unable to deny the logic in the argument. She was exhausted, she was sore, but could she trust Gail? Did she have any choice? I wish Hank was here, she thought. He would know what to do.
'Oh, OK,' Sheila said eventually. She couldn't fight the tiredness any more. She was of no use to the others if she collapsed.
Gail pulled her Mask on, and instantly changed into a huge Orc with big, yellow tusks. Uni backed away under a bush.
'Right! I hope I won't be long,' said the Orc.
It turned away, and strode towards the bridge, head held high. Sheila watched until the Orc had crossed the bridge and disappeared into the town. Then she looked at Uni.
'Was I right, to trust her?'
'Meeh,' replied the unicorn brusquely, planting herself next to Sheila like a guard dog, the pink eyes gazing unblinkingly at the Orc village.
Sheila smiled.
'Thanks, Uni!' said the Thief, suddenly overcome with the desire for sleep. She snuggled down under her Cloak, and was asleep in a minute, despite the danger, trusting the unicorn to wake her if there was any trouble.
There were screams in her nightmares as she slept: The sky was filled with light and the wind howled around her as she stood beside a portal, high on a hillside, one that they had struggled to find. She waited in front of it, looking back to her home-world with a hopeless longing.
Then suddenly, it shattered in front of her sending a cloud of sparkling dust high up into the sky. A towering pillar of light was there, the Body of the True Evil. It spoke, with Venger's voice, saying:
Foolish, trusting Human, betrayed by one of your own kind? Foolish, desperate Human, alone, and at my mercy!
Behind her, she heard the tortured screams of her friends, all calling out for her help. They were doomed without her: Bobby… Hank… Eric…
The Thief woke with a start, panic washing all over her like she was going to drown in it. She looked round in alarm. It was late afternoon and very quiet. Uni was still awake beside her. The Thief had expected the Harlequin to be back by the time she woke. But Gail wasn't there.
Sheila spent the following few hours brooding. Could this get any worse? Her friends had been captured by Venger, and all she had for help was that capricious Harlequin! Could she have picked anyone less reliable, less useful? From what her sister had said, Gail seemed to cause almost as much trouble as Eric. Besides, could she be trusted?
Had she made a terrible mistake in trusting the Harlequin at all? More than once, Sheila wondered if Gail would actually come back. After all, why would the Harlequin return? She had the perfect disguise, she could be anyone. Why would she come back? Foolish, trusting humans, betrayed by one of their own kind.
The day dragged on.
Sheila had eaten all the provisions she had. Uni was worried too, and spent the day close by, constantly begging for attention. It was a big comfort having the unicorn to look after. At least she could trust Uni.
The suns had just set when the Thief saw a lone figure walking heavily through the evening shadows towards the hiding place. She flicked up her hood, and Uni scampered under a bush.
It was Gail, not bothering to use a disguise. The closer the Harlequin got to the camp, the more worried Sheila got. All sorts of different and increasingly unpleasant scenarios played through the Thief's mind, and she kept her Cloak on. Her heart was beating so fast and loud that she was sure Gail would hear.
The Harlequin found the makeshift camp, with no Sheila, and looked around confused. She slumped down to wait. The Thief waited for a few seconds before she moved, trying to keep her composure. Shouting at Gail was only going to attract more attention.
'Where have you been!' demanded Sheila, pulling back the Cloak and stepping forward. 'What's happening?'
Gail jumped when Sheila appeared, but didn't answer. The Thief had the urge to shout at the other girl, but the Harlequin looked ashen, much more than when she'd left, and Sheila kept quiet. After all, Gail had fallen from a cliff the day before. She was entitled to be a little off.
'What happened?' she asked again, more gently. 'Where are they?'
Gail looked down and put her head in her hands. Her breathing was low and rough, as if talking was difficult. Uni crept out from under the bush, her head held low, and cuddled up to Sheila.
'C'mon, what happened?' said the Thief, sitting down. 'Start at the beginning.'
'It took me hours and hours to search the town,' said Gail slowly. 'They didn't have the usual sections, and I couldn't find the medic's tent anywhere. I did eventually find some stuff from Paul's Pack in one of the barracks, and used one of the potions he'd collected. The Orcs didn't seem to want them.'
'The barracks? You actually went in there?'
The Harlequin smiled at Sheila's surprise.
'You would be amazed what you can do when you look like an Orc. They don't ask for passwords! But it all took much, much longer than I thought, the town is stuffed full of guards.'
'Why? Why so many?'
The Harlequin gave her a look that said I-know-something-you-don't-know. Sheila gulped, her mouth dry. This couldn't be good!
'But, then I heard that Venger had summoned the whole garrison to the main square. It would have looked odd, just wandering off, so I went too. Venger announced to all the Orcs that you, the Thief, were to be captured at any cost. He's recalled the whole of his army. They'll be here in days!'
Sheila didn't know what to say. The whole of Venger's army, just to look for her! Should she be flattered?
'What about you?'
The Harlequin shrugged.
'He must think I died, he didn't mention me at all.'
'How can you be sure?' asked Sheila anxiously.
There was a faint look of distaste on Gail's lips as she replied.
'I can't be. But I did see the head of the Orc who knocked me off the cliff on a pike beside the square. Fitting punishment for loosing a weapon, don't you think?'
'Ew!' said Sheila, recoiling. 'That's gross!'
'Anyway Venger was looking incredibly pleased with himself,' continued the Harlequin. 'He boasted about capturing the rest of Dungeonmaster's pupils. They are locked in the castle and the weapons are on display in the front hall. And, as final proof, one of the prisoners was to be put to "eternal torment" as a warning to all who defy him!' Gail gave an angry, twisted smile.
Sheila looked at the other girl, stunned. Venger was being vindictive now.
'Who?' she whispered, suddenly feeling faint. This was the last straw…
'Eternal torment…' said Gail quietly. Sheila's heart was thumping again. Please don't be Hank, please don't be Bobby.
Gail looked at her, her face expressionless.
'It's Eric. I saw him. He was still unconscious. They put him in a glass coffin and Venger, he cast a spell on it so no one using magic can come near.'
Sheila was caught between relief and guilt, knowing that she was the one who had caused the Cavalier's unconsciousness in the first place. The Harlequin seemed close to tears. Sheila was desperate to know more, but Gail had difficultly speaking. She took another shaky breath in, and her voice wavered as she added:
'Then Venger said, "And in this tomb, he will waste away, leaving a skeleton encased in armour. His pure soul will remain imprisoned within, subjected to a living Hell for all eternity".'
Gail stopped. She was shivering and looked as though she was going to be sick again.
For an instant, Sheila thought back to the previous night, standing against the cliff wall, watching Eric and Gail kiss so passionately. She wanted to hug Gail, and tell her it would be OK, but she didn't. Nothing could take away the nasty Orc voices: Foolish, trusting Humans, betrayed by one of their own kind. Was any of this even real? It didn't sound real, it couldn't be real.
'I-I-I don't believe you!' said Sheila, 'Not even Venger would stoop that low. He wouldn't dare!'
Gail looked up at her sharply, surprise and shock on her face.
'Don't you get it? It's a trap! No one using magic can get with in ten feet of him!
Venger is expecting you, Sheila. And it's heaving with Orcs. Venger's brought battalions from all over the Realm. The whole Orc army will be here in days!'
The Thief stared at Gail, her head spinning. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. The Harlequin had gotten it wrong.
'P-Perhaps I should look,' said Sheila, moving to stand. Gail grabbed her arm.
'Venger wants you,' she said firmly. 'That whole farce with Eric was for your benefit, Sheila!'
Sheila pulled her arm away, scowling at the Harlequin. There was a cold silence, as the girls glared at each other in the failing light.
'I didn't think you were stupid,' Gail said suddenly. 'Venger wants you to go to the town, because that's where he's set his trap! With Eric as the bait!' The Harlequin glared at Sheila.
'Why don't you believe me?' she asked. 'Venger wants you, and not just your weapons! You. The six of you. He wants you were you can't hurt him.'
Sheila frowned, still thinking about Orc voices and not paying attention to what Gail was saying.
'W-What do you mean?'
'You six are all that he thinks about!' There was a resentful tone in Gail's voice as she spoke that frightened Sheila. 'He never bothered about me, or my friends! He didn't go racing all over the Realm trying to steal OUR weapons! It must have taken him time to figure it out, but he wants you, specifically!'
The bitterness in Gail tone was clear this time. Sheila couldn't form a coherent thought. She was shaking.
'I don't…'
A snarl formed on Gail's top lip and her eyes narrowed.
'You are Dungeonmaster's STAR pupils,' she said angrily. 'The Young Ones from Earth, the Pure at Heart! Venger wants you where he can keep an eye on you! You are just to stupid to figure it out for yourself!' Gail was suddenly standing, looking down on Sheila. 'I wish we had never heard of you!'
Under the circumstances, Sheila couldn't resist a small taunt. She stood up to face the Harlequin, anger overwhelming her fear for the moment.
'Even Eric?' she asked with a sarcastic smile.
Gail froze, but she blushed.
'W-what do you mean by that?' Her voice was quiet, and she stared at the Thief.
'I saw you together, by the ravine!' said Sheila, pleased that the question had had the desired effect. The Harlequin didn't say a word. The Thief felt a rush of satisfaction, and pressed home her advantage.
'I saw you kissing him on the cliff! You didn't seem too unhappy then!' Gail didn't reply but turned paler as Sheila continued. 'And you were together while the rest of us were in Recadia!'
This time, the Harlequin looked genuinely unnerved, and Sheila knew she'd guessed right. Then suddenly, Gail glared at her, and the Thief took an unsteady step back. This girl, jealous, afraid, alone, not even her own sister considered her trustworthy! Could she be trusted now? What would she do?
Uni gave a tiny, frightened whine and Gail glanced down.
'What do you know about unicorns?' she asked.
Sheila stared at her companion, alarmed equally by the sudden change of topic as the calm in Gail's voice. She waited a long time before answering.
'They are good creatures,' said the Thief slowly. 'They don't like evil, and hate Venger!'
It was a stupid question. Was Gail just playing for time? Were the Orcs closing in on her at this very moment? Sheila almost reached up to her hood. Foolish, trusting Humans…
Gail looked at Uni, who kept well out of reach.
'Why do you think she's has stayed with you?'
Sheila knew there was a look of confusion on her face. Gail wasn't making any sense.
'She's Bobby's pet.'
The Harlequin gave a harsh laugh.
'Unicorns love purity,' she said, 'and won't tolerate anything less. Eric told me about Kelek, and his horn collection. You all rode unicorns to escape! You went to their Valley! They would let us within miles of them!'
'You met the unicorns from the Valley?' said Sheila in surprise.
Gail nodded slowly, then looked at the Thief, her eyes blazing with jealousy.
'You are the ones Dungeonmaster constantly fawns over! You are the ones Venger fears! You are the Pure at Heart, fated to free the Realm of all evil!'
'Us?' said Sheila, 'But what makes you think…?'
'It's in Jamie's Book,' hissed Gail. 'It wasn't clear about "how", but it was certain about "who". Six young humans from Earth will free the Realm of all Evil. Six humans, pure of heart and sure of purpose.' She paused for effect. 'Six Heroes, united! Dungeonmaster's best pupils: the Ranger, the Barbarian, the Magician, the Thief, the Cavalier and the Acrobat.' She crossed her arms, taking care not to hurt her injured forearm. 'No Harlequin, no Amazon. No Mystic or Enchantress, or Rogue or Gladiator. Oh no, we can never be heroic enough to compete with you!'
Sheila's heart was pounding as if she'd just run a mile. She could barely take it all in. That was their fate, to free the Realm? Was that why they could never get home?
'But we didn't ask for this,' she said defensively. 'We don't want to be heroes.'
Gail snorted.
'Well, you are! And I still wish I'd never heard of you! We've had nothing but trouble since the moment we started looking for you!'
'Looking?' echoed Sheila, a chill creeping down her spine and Orc voices in her head getting louder. 'You came looking for us?'
'You think it was just by chance that we "happened" to be at the Grove when you were!' Gail laughed at Sheila's look of surprise. 'It was all part of the plan! The wonderful plan to get us all home without Dungeonmaster's help! Let's copy the Heroes! Let's be Heroes too! How difficult could it be?'
She turned and pointed back to the town, saying:
'And now we're seriously stuffed!'
This was too much to take in. The others, they had come looking for her and her friends, they had arrived at the Grove deliberately, was it a trick, even then? Sheila looked coldly at the other girl, all feelings of friendship slipping away. This was all one, big charade. None of them deserved to be anyone's friend!
Uni moved next to the Thief, her head low, also glaring balefully at the Harlequin. Suddenly, unable to stay next to Gail any longer, Sheila made as if to move.
'You're not going to look?' demanded the Harlequin. 'Have I missed something? You don't believe me, do you?' Sheila paused, just a fraction too long.
Gail flinched as if she'd been struck. Then she stepped right up to the Thief and caught her arm again. Sheila looked up. She had forgotten how tall Gail actually was.
'I don't LIKE being called a liar!' said the Harlequin with a snarl.
Sheila shook her head and yanked her arm away.
'I'm going to look for myself!'
'What is with you?' Gail hissed. 'We've already done this part! It's a trap! Venger wants you to make a mistake. Why do you think he's gone to so much trouble over Eric?' Her voice faltered when she said his name. 'We can't help him when he's guarded like that!'
Sheila stared at the other girl. She couldn't mean that! They couldn't stand back and do nothing!
'If we want to rescue all our friends,' the Harlequin said slowly, 'we have to leave him!'
'What!' said Sheila incredulously. 'Don't be dumb!'
'I saw it, Sheila! No one using magic can get within ten feet of that coffin! Venger said so!'
Sheila gave a humph of annoyance.
'You didn't check?'
Gail gave a sarcastic smile.
'I didn't feel like it, in front of about ten thousand Orcs!'
'But how can you sit there, when Eric is…is…' Sheila couldn't continue. 'I saw you together, don't you care about him at all?'
'Less than a day ago I should have drowned,' said Gail, her voice staring to break. 'And almost dying gives you a clearer perspective on a few things.'
The Thief could hardly believe her ears.
'You are an ice-cold bitch,' said Sheila with a sneer. 'You don't care about anyone but yourself!'
'And you're just being stupid!' replied Gail tearfully. 'It doesn't matter if I care or not, I know what I saw! Do you really think, that after all the effort Venger's gone to, he's going to let you waltz in there and set Eric free? That's the whole point of a trap, for goodness sake! We can't free him unless we get the others out first.'
'But…'
The snarl was back on Gail's lips.
'And how would you feel, if it was Hank,' she hissed, 'trapped in Venger's "eternal torment"?'
'H…Hank?' said Sheila, her heart pounding at the name. She would have died if it had been Hank trapped there.
'I've seen the way you watch him!' replied Gail. 'Which would you choose, Bobby or Hank?'
Sheila didn't want to reply. She didn't even want to think about it, it was too horrible.
'Come on!' persisted Gail, 'who's more important, Bobby or Hank! What would you do if it was Hank lying there, but Bobby needed you?'
'It's not the same!' managed Sheila.
'Alison is my sister!' shouted the Harlequin, making Uni back away undercover. 'I have to help her! I might be willing to sacrifice my freedom for Eric, but I can't sacrifice everyone else's as well! Can you?'
'I can't just leave him there!' retorted Sheila. This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be real. None of this could be real. Gail must be the one who betrayed them. She must be, she had to be.
'Oh, Sheila!' said Gail in exasperation. 'You're not listening! I saw Venger's trap! I don't understand, why don't you believe me?'
The Thief was suddenly very tired of being on the receiving end of all the shocks and the insults. She glared at the Harlequin.
'I overheard the Orcs talking. They said one of you betrayed us to Venger!'
Gail blinked.
'What?'
Sheila smiled, suddenly relieved to be letting the truth out, letting all the bitterness and anger out too.
'The exact words were: "Foolish, trusting Humans, betrayed by one of their own kind"! And it wasn't one of MY friends!'
That shut the Harlequin up. She blinked a few times, then frowned.
'You think it was me,' she said eventually. 'That's why you don't believe me! You think I've made all this up, as part of some evil plot? You don't trust me?'
'Do I have any reason to?' asked Sheila. 'You've lied to us, trying to trick us into helping you home. And you and Eric were carrying on behind everyone's back!'
'Hey, that's not fair! If you have been less obsessed with Hank, maybe you would have noticed!'
Sheila felt the anger bubbling inside her, cut by the comment about the Ranger.
'You haven't denied it!' she said. 'None of my friends would ever betray anyone like that! Can you say the same about yours?'
Gail pursed her lips tightly, then shook her head. There was an unnatural calm about the Harlequin now, as if all the anger had just evaporated. Sheila watched her with a mix of fear and pity. Just for a moment, she remembered how if felt when she thought Hank had turned evil and betrayed them all to Venger. It was not a nice feeling.
'You don't understand, Sheila,' said Gail quietly. 'We just wanted to get home, like you. It wasn't supposed to be like this! It was supposed to be easy!' She looked back at the Thief. 'You don't have any intention of trusting me, do you? You never have.'
'Eric trusted you, and he collapsed at the ravine edge!'
Gail stared at Sheila, a sudden look of shock on her face, and she stared for a number of seconds. Then her eyes narrowed.
'Why were you watching Eric and I?' she asked calmly.
The Thief was furious with herself, guilt and panic making her feel weak all over. She'd given herself away! Gail had guessed! How could she have been so careless? There was no point in pretending now, it was only going to make things worse. But the Thief still hesitated, unsure how Gail would react.
'I followed Hank up to the ravine,' said Sheila eventually. 'I thought he was going to meet Alison.' Gail said nothing and Sheila grew increasingly uncomfortable with the silence. Finally, she added, 'I tried to play a trick on Hank, for being such a jerk, so when he kissed Alison, she would faint and Hank would be to blame. I didn't know it was you. I-I'm sorry.'
An image came back to Sheila of Eric and Gail, holding each other close, kissing in the moonlight. Only a few minutes later, Eric had collapsed in her arms, then Gail had been knocked off a cliff and swept downstream, nearly drowning in the process. The Thief shuddered. What a terrible thing to do! She was no better that the one who betrayed the gang to Venger!
'Sorry doesn't even start to cover it!' growled Gail, her voice increasing in volume as she spoke. 'I get to have a boyfriend for one whole day, then someone comes along and…'
She stopped, breathing hard. For a few seconds, the Thief thought Gail would hit her, but instead the Harlequin deliberately turned away.
'It seems that neither of us are very trustworthy, doesn't it?' she said over her shoulder. 'I don't want to talk to you anymore.'
Gail walked off towards the river, leaving Uni and Sheila alone.
-End of Part 1-