Going Feet First Ch. 04

Giving a sorrowful sigh, Misn turned to a warrior beside Hector's cage and ordered, "Take him to the healers... then return him and what few of his men who can walk to their lands."

"Yes, Elder," the warrior responded, moving with two other warriors to open Hector's cage and take him by the scruff of the neck. They dragged him out from the iron enclosure and across the table toward the door, the king bleeding and crying the entire time.

"Remember what I said, Hector," Michael growled. "Break my rules, your tribe will die."

The door to the Elder's hall shut behind the departing king and his escorts, leaving the counsel alone with Farok. Feeling the eyes of everyone upon him, Michael returned to his seat, noticing how Mila slid slightly away. He turned to her only to see fear in her eyes.

"Mila..."

"What in Necela's name was that?!" she blurted with a trembling voice.

He sighed, "Look, I know it seemed wrong, but I was making sure the Ra'zorlichs would never come back to harm us. If their king is scared of me and what I'll do to him, he won't ever come out of his hole again. I was did that to keep you safe. To keep everyone safe."

Thoughts started moving through the tracker's mind as he took her hands in his, remaining eye locked with her and not backing down from his position.

"It's hard to tell with Hector, if such a thing will deter him," Farok interrupted. "His pride is as limitless as the stars. But with these events... and having felt your wrath twice... hmm, he may finally have been put in his place. He is just a brat after all."

"Can we return to what we came here to decide in the first place?" Hail grumbled. "Unless we have all suddenly become friends with this Ra'zorlich."

Misn and Akal nodded in agreement, the Elder yawning as he said, "Yes, it is late and we have wasted much time. So in the interest of sleep, I put forth the motion of granting... *yawn* mercy to Farok, here. Perhaps allowing this war-leader into our tribe."

"What?!" was the unanimous outcry from Sayn, Michael, and Hail.

Misn nodded. "You have seen his skill with swords... and he is a former leader of Ra'zorlichs. He can train our own, give us Ra'zorlich knowledge."

The idea brought an appreciative smile to Farok's face as the tension relaxed from his shoulders, but neither Sayn nor Hail bought into the proposal. For a moment, Michael seemed to debate it, bouncing the idea around in his mind as he thought back to their meeting at the crash site.

Crossing his arms with a non-too-friendly sneer on his face, Sayn seemed to deliberate on something as well. His eyes narrowed at Farok, his teeth clenching along with his fists. He was the Willher Warrior Leader, the fighters here were his to train, and his to command. Before any other had the chance to add anything further, he abruptly spoke up.

"The second Ra'zorlich assassin still lives."

Farok's eyes went wide, his claws erupting from his fists as he turned toward Sayn. Michael nearly fell from his chair as he spun to face Sayn. His attention, along with all the focus of the entire room immediately shifted from the Elder to the Warrior leader.

"One is alive?! Which one?!" Farok snapped.

"The one with the long braided hair," Sayn answered. "When a great fireball erupted in the forest from a trap set by Michael, a single assassin was pulled from the flames. The other human, Galen, he was given possession of her. I assume he sentenced her to servitude because she was spotted leaving with him and his Elf when they departed two days ago."

"Where is Galen?!" Farok snapped, his voice wavering.

"He went west, to Redding."

Mila was translating for Michael when Lady Teak turned in her seat to face Sayn beside her, claws poking out from her jeweled hands. "When were you going to tell us, Warrior Leader? Or were you going to tell us?"

Shrugging and shifting in his seat, Sayn answered, "It seemed to be nothing worth mentioning to any of us, as she was not ours to judge. But it does not seem so any more."

"Why is that? Because you wish not for this new war-leader to impede upon your authority?" Misn probed.

"Because he has interests elsewhere, Elder. Besides, my men would slit his throat in his sleep for what his tribe has done."

"Then let me go!" Farok roared. "If Petra is alive, then I must find her. You will find me much less accepting to your handling if I am denied this."

Misn quickly checked the other faces in the room, each of the leaders trading hostile looks with Sayn before giving the Elder a nod. Before the Elder could say anything though, Mila finished translating for Michael, and the Sergeant pounded his fist on the table while standing up, his glare primed and locked on the former Hunt Commander.

"If you have any intention of laying a hand on Galen, I'll kill you, Farok."

The golden Neko turned to him, shaking his head as he answered. "If he has done Petra no harm, then I harbor no ill will. I wish only to find her and know she is safe."

The two men locked stares for a second, reading and gauging each other's every move. In this exchange Michael felt secure with what he saw in the Neko's orange eyes. He couldn't detect any sort of lie, only the desperate, pleading look that Farok nearly kept hidden within his features. Finally, the Soldier sighed.

"When you find Galen, tell him I said everything's 10-4 and I'm in the fold," he said, sitting back down. "It'll probably keep him from shooting you."

"If that is all, then you are free to go, Farok," Misn declared. "Goodbye, and good luck."

.....................

There were plenty of weird and unusual things Galen had seen in his life, especially during his short time on Raska. But even with his new experiences with the paranormal, he never expected anything like to which the Drow exposed him. Not all the sci-fi or fantasy he had read, nor his experiences with this new world, not even sneaking in to a movie theatre when he was a kid to see the movie "Tarantula" could not prepare him for what he did now.

For right now he found himself riding upon the back of a real, live, giant spider.

Dreek, in her casual Commandant attire, handled the reins of the massive, tank-sized arachnid; she sat easily on the joint between its head and body while Galen awkwardly rode atop its back. The coarse hair of the over-sized tarantula brushed creepily against the Private's legs, the clicking coming from its mandibles rattling his nerves as it walked across the open expanse of the underground cavern between the districts of the Drow city of Faerssune.

To either side of them rode the Commandant's aids, Keetle and another Drow to whom Galen was introduced, who had a long, tongue twister of a name he couldn't pronounce. He had taken to simply calling her Felyn, just as Dreek and Keetle did.

Both the subordinate Drows were mounted upon riding lizards: scaled beasts with wide-splayed legs and low-riding bodies. Metal plating covered the beasts' heads, necks, and bellies, though the armor was purposely spread out as to not restrict their movements in any way. Barbs the size of one's arm lined both sides of either beasts' tails, causing the odd spark to arise whenever the steel additions brushed against the floor.

The aids themselves were both wearing their combat gear: black jackets over yellow, metal plate armor that fit snug against their bodies. Where plate was too restrictive, mail was used to fill in the gap, primarily along joints and sides of the body. Across their waists were girdles strewn with pouches and the sheaths to their weapons. Secured to the back of their saddles were some additional supplies and gear, as well as the heavy cloaks that they had worn upon the surface.

Ahead, in the wall of the cavern, was a small house made of black stone glowing with some form of mystical purple inlay. Far above the home, in the ceiling of the cavern, was an upside-down dome structure descending several stories with rows of windows circling around it at every level. Within that building was a presence that made the arcane energy in Galen's body start to run wild, until the glow that had been contained to his left arm had spread to the area around his heart and the end of his vine tattoo.

"What is that place?" he wondered aloud.

"That is the Wizard's Overlook," Dreek answered. "Normally the wizards are in a tower, but this place was already built when this cavern was discovered."

"Huh. How many wizards are up there, approximately? That don't seem to be whole lot of real estate."

"More than a handful, less than a hundred," the Commandant stated. "There are still enough there to provide the services we require."

For a moment, Galen pondered what job the wizards would have aside from practicing magic or studying new discoveries such as his weapons. That reversed dome held onto his attention up until Dreek pulled back on the reins of her spider. The arachnid came to a stop, lowering its body down for its riders to easily dismount in front of the house in the cave wall. Keetle and Felyn rode up a second after, and the entire group dismounted at once.

As the group approached the house, the front door opened up to a young Drow, a male, to Galen's surprise. First thing the soldier took in was the male Drow's body size, being noticeably smaller than his female counterparts. There was no recognizable brawn under his light grey uniform, only the frail look of his body and submissive hunch to his posture. His neatly cut white hair glimmered in the cyan light of the cavern's central pillar, and his dark red eyes were immediately drawn to the surfacer behind the approaching females.

There was a bit of wonder to his expression at the sight of the human in their wake, and then confusion as that human gave him a polite nod. His eyes then immediately darted to the ground as Dreek moved through the door into his tiny house. She showed neither pleasure nor disdain for the simple home, decorated with only the most basic furnishings, she simply waltzed right to the middle of the room and turned toward the male by the door.

"Welcome, Commandant," he greeted, bowing low.

"Nymer, is the lift ready?" she questioned.

"Yes, madam," he answered, standing up straight while his eyes remained to the floor. As both of Dreek's aids and Galen entered the room, Nymer moved over to the wall opposite the door and waved his hand over the stone. At first nothing occurred, but right when Galen was about to voice his curiosity, the wall slid silently aside to reveal a whole new chamber.

The room uncovered had a perfect circular shape several yards across, with a glowing, purple, crystalline platform in the middle wide enough for five people to stand comfortably. With the hint of a smile upon her face, Dreek stepped forward onto the platform with Keetle, Felyn, and Galen. Nymer kept his head down, only looking up once to meet Galen's eyes just before the wall slid shut.

The male Drow felt the arcane energy around him shift as the platform began to lift upward, carrying its passengers up the long tube to the entryway of the Overlook above. What business they had up there was of no business of his and thus shouldn't hold any of his attention.

One thing the young wizard could not get off his mind, however, was that human. Magic bled off his body like water from a fountain; his expression and body language indicated no disgust or hatred toward the Drow, and he followed Dreek like a pet even without binds on his wrists.

Previous surfacers had to have been brought to the Wizards Overlook for changes to be made before they would show such behaviour. They had to be broken, manipulated, put through a painstaking process that rarely left a being fit to fight. Nymer began to wonder if the Sun-Kissed devised a method of their own to attempt the process, or if Dreek had finally found the one she was looking for...

...

The lift underneath Galen's feet moved quickly and silently up its shaft toward a platform at the top. On either side of him stood Keetle and Felyn, with Dreek in front facing him, bearing an analytical look upon her face. In the purple light coming off the floor of the lift, Galen could mostly catch all the subtle movements in her violet eyes as they continually examined him.

Half-way through the ride, Dreek began speaking with her aids in Drow, and twice did she and Keetle turn to Felyn, who couldn't seem to turn to face the private or rightly look him in the eye. In fact, several times she seemed to block him from her vision with the bangs of her long, pony-tailed hair whenever he glanced in her direction. And the more her Commandant spoke, the more she shifted uncomfortably in her stance.

Upon one comment made by Dreek, Felyn actually flustered, turning her head further away from Galen while muttering something back at her superior. In response, Dreek chuckled while Keetle began to stare daggers into the soldier. He could have sworn the Drow was about to strike at him, only for her to suddenly snap her attention forward.

"What's their problem? What's so funny?" Galen asked as the Commandant composed herself.

Felyn immediately spoke out in Drow, her voice firm, yet pleading. After a moment's pause, Dreek nodded and turned to Galen.

"Nothing of your interest at the moment, Lince'sa. Perhaps another time."

The Private paused a moment as Keetle shot a glare at Dreek, only for her Commandant to send a single look back at her that sent her eyes to the floor. There was a conflict here, and Galen was sure of it. How Felyn avoided his eyes and Keetle only seemed to grow angrier by the second, all while Dreek clearly showed amusement, he was in the middle of something that he didn't want to see erupt.

"What's 'lince'sa' mean?" the Private inquired, trying to break the tension.

The look on Keetle's face vanished a moment as she glanced toward Galen, something Felyn nearly did before she quickly turned away. With little care to her tone and a nonchalant air about her, Dreek answered, "My new name for you, one with which only the Commandants will address you."

Before Galen had a chance to ask further questions, the lift began to slow down, stopping at a platform at the top of the shaft with a tunnel that led into the darkness. There were no torches, no candles, not one source of light to allow the Private to see. At that moment, he began to wonder if there was any way for him to gain the Drow's ability to see in the dark. He had been given Avien eyes, why not Drow vision?

Sighing at his handicap in the underground, Galen empowered the magic in his left hand to bring it to a white glow and illuminate the area around him. He followed when the Commandant turned and started into the tunnel, trying to ignore the intense looks he received from the two aids behind his back.

"Can you at least gimme a clue about what 'lince'sa' means?" he asked.

"It is what you are in my presence," Dreek answered.

"Yeah, but what does the word mean in my language?"

Though Galen couldn't see it, Dreek was holding back a chuckle. "You will find out, maybe. For now, we should make haste; your weapons should be on the first floor of the Overlook and I wish to start grooming you as soon as possible."

"Groomin' me?"

"And testing your strengths, your weaknesses, doing what we need to so you will be useful when we go to Redding."

"In two weeks," he finished.

"In two weeks."

That's cutting it close for Celia, Galen grumbled mentally. If she's not pregnant and Pretayus finds out... Fuck, don't think about it... you'll just piss yourself off, and you gotta keep your cool.

The group came to a large room at the end of the tunnel, where a lone, mature-looking Drow male in purple, ornate robes sat at a large desk in the middle of the floor. He was dozing off as he read from one document and scribbled something onto another in the candle light, yawning deeply before dragging on in his work.

Behind him, in the wall opposite the tunnel, was a pair of large, double, iron doors inlayed with that glowing cyan metal. In each of the room corners there were Drow females in full steel armor and open faced helms guarding over either the male, or the doors. From what Galen knew of Drow society, it was likely the latter.

When Dreek came into the room, the guards all snapped to a more attentive stance. In a very drowsy manner, the wizard at the desk looked up from his papers and seemed to liven up a fair bit at the sight of the Sun-Kissed. Taking in a deep breath he set his quill aside and stood from his chair. Dreek motioned for her followers to stop as she continued to walk ahead to meet the wizard.

"What is your reasoning, human?"

Galen's eyebrows rose up as he turned toward Felyn, who stood with a hard look to her thoughtful face while still mostly looking away. The soldier paused for a few seconds as he caught the corner of her eye, an icy feeling greeting him as her very presence forced a pit of fear into his belly.

With some of the fingers in his left hand twitching, he responded, "whatcha mean?"

The aid kept her eyes forward, not even turning toward him in the slightest. "Why aren't you cursing at us? Spitting insults while attacking? Why bring danger upon yourself to save an outnumbered Drow squad though your kind hates us so much? Why are you choosing to be docile?"

"Full of questions, are ya?" Galen asked, crossing his arms. She was probably at the river, one of the girls I saved from the Redding cavalrymen.

Felyn's eyes narrowed, "I am merely curious about the first human who risked his neck for us, to know if I need sleep with an extra knife under my pillow."

Giving an indifferent shrug, he answered in a low voice, "To satisfy your curiosity, I'll tell you I'm ain't from this world. I don't know much about Drow, or why everyone hates you. I never hated someone without bein' given a good reason to, and though I've gotten some bad feelings from some of your sisters, and some bad experiences, in comparison to them fuckers from Reddin', you've been treatin' me pretty good."

Felyn's expression perked up, and she nearly glanced his way, but she then stopped herself and turned back to the wall. Despite this, Galen continued.

"So long as you ladies continue to treat me nice, I'll do my damned best to help you any way I can."

When the Private had finished, Keetle turned away from him with a roll of her eyes and a sneer to her face. Felyn, however, turned to him, her blood-red eyes dilating and widening the instant they met with Galen's.

The Soldier suddenly felt something rooting around his body, scrambling about his head and burrowing into his heart. As the air escaped his lungs, that feeling went twirling down into his gut like a hurricane of razor blades. It was pulling and churning things inside him he couldn't rightly explain in any way other than a rollercoaster of every feeling he knew.

Joy, despair, love, hate, all of it and more kept changing in his chest. Turning from one thing to another so fast he could feel his stomach curl and threaten to uproot. What is happening to me?!

Then without warning the image of Pretayus filled his mind, a screaming Celia in the slaver's arms as they lay surrounded in by the bodies of his fellow paratroopers. Pain stabbed through Galen's soul, and the locks he had set upon himself started coming undone.

Everything he had pent up over the past few days, all the anger, the pain, and guilt he had held inside was let loose all at once. His stomach constricted, his lungs turned to iron while tears flooded his eyes. He collapsed on his knees, both his hands clawing at his chest as his agony squeezed down around his throat.