The morning turned to afternoon. The sun beat down heavy on the sand, creating distorted images of trees and other objects. Sahar reached up and wiped away the sweat that was beading on her brow. She looked out ahead, but there was nothing in sight. Still, she sensed they were getting closer.
While traveling, Damis noticed Sahar glancing over at Xerxes more often than normal. He smiled to himself. Despite only knowing Sahar for a few days, he felt a connection to her, like they had been friends forever. His thoughts wandered to that of Amira. He regretted the last way they had been together. He wished he could just tell Amira how he felt. Yet she was a princess and he was but a humble servant in the palace.
Damis looked over at Xerxes, who was riding tall on his horse. Damis was seated uncomfortably on the camel, whose gaits were uneven and very rocky. Now Damis knew there was no chance between him and Amira. She had been promised to Xerxes. She seemed to like you. But she didn't tell you about Xerxes, did she? Damis laughed bitterly to himself and Sahar looked over.
"I think we are getting close." she said, her voice quiet. Xerxes remained unaware of them speaking. Damis nodded.
Xerxes looked up suddenly and studied the horizon. "Are those pillars?" he asked innocently. Sahar glanced at him before following his gaze. A pair of stone pillars stood out against the horizon, great monsters rising from the earth. Sahar smiled and felt a sudden urge to kiss Xerxes, which she quickly suppressed scolding herself.
The sun was nearly gone from the sky when the three of them actually reached the pillars. They unloaded the pack horse and had a quiet meal. Sahar sat closer to Xerxes than normal, and Xerxes remained oblivious to this. Damis watched with a sad smile on his lips, thinking of Amira.
The sky grew dark and the moon raised slowly, a half orb hanging in the sky. Dark clouds scuttled across the front of the moon, completely obscuring its light. Damis watched the sky, leaning against one of the stone pillars. He moved his hand over the surface, feeling the intricate carvings that decorated the entire face of the stone. He looked closer and in the light of the small fire they had light, could make out the carvings of wolves and women. Between the two pillars sat the flat circular stone that Sahar had described from her dream.
Xerxes observed Damis closely, watching as he studied the stone pillar. Xerxes was suddenly aware of the closeness of Sahar and felt a sudden yearning. He may not be the cleverest of men, but he was not as dumb as most people thought. A sudden yearning overcame him and he resisted the urge to put an arm around Sahar's waist as she dozed on his shoulder. He was betrothed, to someone he had never met, but all the same betrothed.
Xerxes watched the moon peak out from behind the clouds, a silver stream of moonlight cascading down to earth. Damis noticed it too and gave a quiet shout. Sahar woke suddenly and looked over at Xerxes. Her face grew pink and she stood quickly and hurried over to Damis.
"Look!" he whispered. Xerxes followed Sahar and looked over at the flat stone. The moonbeam hit the dead center of the stone, the silver light looking as though it was simply an extension of the stone.
Sahar shook her head. "That's it! That was all that was in my dream." The three stood together for a few moments, holding their breath, waiting for the ground to open and stairs to appear. For several long moments they waited and finally Sahar sighed sadly.
"Something is missing." she murmured and sank to the sand in defeat. Damis stared at the stone, the moonbeam still hitting the center. He glanced up at the sky and saw the clouds begin to make their way back across the surface of the moon.
"We can't give up just yet." Damis said encouragingly. He walked over to the rock, his face now bathed in moonlight. Sahar watched silently as Damis searched the face of the rock, looking for a door or a knob that would open to the staircase described in Sahar's dream.
"Maybe this is the wrong place?" Xerxes commented in an annoyed tone. Sahar glared at him and he looked away, grumbling to himself. Laheeb was still in his lamp and thus was not able to comment on the problem, and no one cared to take him out.
Damis moved his hand over the smooth surface of the stone, its grey surface have a texture like smooth marble. He guided his hands over the stone, searching intently with his eyes. His hand hit a crevice and Damis leaned forward to look closer. It was in fact not a crevice but a small indent, like someone had pressed something into the rock while it was malleable. The indent was about the size of the tip of Damis's finger and he traced the edge trying to discern what it was. His ring glittered in the light, the small ruby eyes glinting mysteriously.
Damis looked down at his ring and slid it off his finger. He held it up the light, observing its shape and the position of the wolf's head. Sahar padded over and looked over Damis's shoulder at the ring.
"Beautiful ring." she commented quietly. Damis nodded.
"My mother left me with it, when I was young. It was all I had when they found me by the palace door." He said sadly. Sahar nodded sympathetically. Damis slowly lowered the ring and looked once more at the indent in the stone. Sahar noticed it too. The light was getting dimmer as the clouds draped across the moon, obstructing its light.
"Will that…" Sahar began as Damis took the ring and pressed it into the indent on the rock. A great rumbling echoed from beneath them and quickly Sahar and Damis backed away. Xerxes came running forward and nearly fell on the sand as a great hole opened about the stone.
Sahar reached forward and grabbed Xerxes's arm, stabilizing him and then quickly dropped it and looked down at the ground. Xerxes scuffed his shoe in the sand and the three of them watched as the ground opened to reveal a set of stone stairs.
Damis looked over at Sahar and Xerxes, who were gaping at the stairs.
"Just like in my dream…" Sahar murmured to herself in awe. Xerxes was awestruck and did not say a word as he stood there. Damis went over to the horses and the camel which had been tethered to one of the great stone pillars. Sahar looked over as she came out of her reverie.
"Can we leave them here?" she asked. Damis shrugged and peered down the stairs.
"There seems to be a landing, we can leave them there, where they will be safe." he replied. Sahar nodded in agreement and went to help Damis with the animals.
Slowly they walked down the wide stone steps, going slowly for the four legged animals. After about 15 steps they reached a landing like Damis had said. They left the animals there, tethered to several stakes in the ground. Quickly they unloaded their things from the horses and slung them over their backs.
Cautiously they began down a second flight of stairs when a loud rumbling was heard again. Sahar looked up in time to see the great nigh sky disappear as the ground closed over them. They were now shrouded in complete darkness. Sahar reached out and felt a body.
"Damis?" she asked, her voice echoing slightly in the darkness.
"No! Xerxes!" came an indignant voice. Sahar withdrew her hand quickly.
"Sorry." she whispered. She felt someone walk up besides her.
"I think we should hold hands, so we don't loose each other." Damis said in a whisper. Sahar reached for his hand and felt Xerxes reach for hers. Suddenly torches flickered on, their flames castings dancing shadows on the grey floors and walls. Footsteps echoed ahead of the trio and Damis quickly pulled Sahar and Xerxes against the wall and they hid in a crevice that the light of the torches did not penetrate.
Voices were soon heard as the footsteps grew louder. There were two voices and both were male.
"She said she needs one more girl." one male said.
"She hasn't even told us what for, and she expects us to go searching for dancing maidens." the other replied bitterly.
"Well, she has the princess now; I thought that was all she needed." the first one said.
"No, she needs twelve dancing maidens including one princess, but without this last girl there are only eleven girls." the second voice replied.
The two men came into view, both cloaked in dark clothing with their faces hidden. Each wore a wolf ring on their hands that glittered in the light. Damis glanced down at his own ring which somehow still reflected the light. Quickly he hid it in the palm of his hand.
"Did you see that?' the footsteps stopped and the two men were within inches of the trio's hiding place. "That glitter of light?"
The other man looked about before rolling his eyes and snorting to himself. The first man looked over indignantly before muttering "Probably just a trick of the light." The two men continued up the stairs, their heavy boots making loud noises in the closed area.
"So where are we supposed to find this girl?" the first man asked.
"She said she was coming, perhaps we only have to wait." the second replied before their voices were lost in the rumbling of the ground opening up. The trio held their breath until they heard the rumbling once more, indicating that the two men had exited the passageway. Fortunately the torches remained lit, enabling the three of them to see the stairs.
Quickly they descended, trying to put as much distant between themselves and the two men in case the men turned around and returned. At the bottom of the last flight of steps was a large, ornately carved door. Damis ran his hands along the door, searching for a similar indent like the one on the rock. He found one and quickly pressed his ring into it.
The door opened silently and the three stepped forward into a forest of trees whose leaves glittered as brilliantly as diamonds. Damis reached up and brushed his hand against one of the branches, causing several of the leaves to fall to the floor with a gentle tinkling noise.
Sahar bent down and looked closely at the leaves. Xerxes picked one up and help it up in the light.
"Hey, these are diamonds!" he exclaimed.
My Reviewers:
lumiere's lover: yea i do too, kinda.woman are pretty hard to please. :-P
cokefizz-and-chocolate: thanks! hope you like this chapter too.
metaphorical: yea! i can die happy now. hehe jk.
sophianwin: thanks for your critques, they are very helpful. one note however: Amira and her mother are the only woman of royal blood of the other girls Dameer has in captivity. i think i will include some backstories, but most are not important enough to the plot.
monkeys-and-bananas76: im upating, updating, updating. hope this satisfies your desires temporarily at least.
ALSO A NOTE: I was waiting for a total of 50 reviews before i updated, cause i already had the chapter written, but because i luv u guys so much, i am updating earlier. so i better get a whole bunch of reviews for this chapter :does best to look imposing:
REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!