Karoy of the Second Sun Chapter 3
When Karoy woke, his first sensation was a pounding headache, the next a singing heat curling and charring his hair. When he opened his eyes, he found himself dangling by his ankles over a vast lake of fire. His wrists were bound behind his back. He twisted like a fish on a line, trying to right himself.
"Be careful Karoy of the Second Sun!" shouted Scoss' mocking voice above "I trust my men's loyalty completely, but their ropework leaves something to be desired."
Karoy went slack and let himself be hoisted upwards. He craned his neck to get a look at where he was headed, and saw a stone ledge jutting out of a pyramid that seemed to grow from the ceiling of this titanic cave. His eyes drifted briefly to a giant red centipede skittering on the roof, then back to the ledge where Scoss Under Scorched Skies stood gloating, his lizard-frilled cloak whipping in the swirling heat, a possessive hand gripping Ulirobi's shoulder as his flying dagger made slow orbits around her head. The two remaining masked assassins hoisted up Karoy's rope, one of them proudly wore Wyrmsplitter at their hip.
"I must say, your haleness has surprised me Karoy. When I saw you had survived my poison again, I decided there may still be some use for you."
Karoy's retort was cut off by his head dashing against the stone as the assassins unceremoniously hoisted him over the ledge. They untied the rope and darted away quickly. The berserker struggled slowly to his feet, his head spinning, the wound on his back burning. The tall man in the cloak pulled Ulirobi towards the ledge as Karoy righted himself. She was bound like Karoy, with the addition of three wraps of rope across her mouth -- Prudent given the last words she had spoken had called fire from the heavens. Even with wrists bound, Karoy figured he could kick the sorcerer over the edge. But he couldn't guarantee Ulirobi's safety, and he would probably die anyway. Scoss raised an eyebrow, daring Karoy to challenge his control of the situation.
The berserker turned away from the ledge. A wide, triangular doorway peaked ten yards overhead "I assume this is the famous inverted temple of Kystassi?"
"Exactly, my muscle-bound friend. The vault of the Sisters of Ash and Lamentations, home of sundry riches of the order, but most importantly, the Head of Saint Conjanji the Waymaker."
Karoy felt a sword point prod his back and he obediently stepped forward. He examined the runes carved on the inside of the doorway, spotting recessed squares of obsidian. As he crossed the threshold, the squares glimmered dimly and strips of flame roared down troughs that lined the interior walls, illuminating the peaked hexagonal room and the towering bronze statue of a woman with three faces and six arms, dressed in a grander version of Ulirobi's coned headdress and robe. Three passages branched off from the chamber.
Karoy turned to look at his captors. One of the assassins still held Wyrmsplitter to his back, the other reach to light a torch from the trough. Scoss guided Ulirobi through the doorway confidently.
"No rude surprises yet, though my research tells me there will be some yet. The ash priestesses are a devious lot, aren't they?" The sorcerer pinched the girl's cheek, drawing out an indignant squeak. "That's where you come in Karoy, you're my trap chicken. We take the leftmost path." Scoss laughed as his underling prodded the berserker forward, "Try to take as heavy of steps as possible."
Karoy shuffled obediently ahead, a plan forming in his mind. The corridor was narrow and peaked less than a foot over his head. In the flickering light of the torch, he spotted regular holes along the wall, noting that the occasional one glistened with a drip of oil. And then, when he was fifty paces down the corridor, he spotted the subtle obsidian squares at waist height. Karoy grinned, he'd been in dozens of temples, tombs and vaults, and he was thankful that the builders of this place hadn't deviated much from the usual playbook.
Suddenly, dramatically, Karoy tripped. He sprawled face-first, landing below the intangible tripwire. He quickly got to his feet on the other side. He turned to look back to where the others were cautiously following about ten paces back. He chuckled, "Sorry, I guess the poison made me clumsy. Then with a burst of sudden movement, he pulled at the ropes behind his back, praying to whoever the six-armed lady was in the next room that Scoss's assessment of his followers' ropework was accurate. The knots gave way and Karoy held up his hands before turning and running as fast as he could. Scoss shouted, and the two assassins gave chase. Karoy heard a familiar whistle approaching and when he felt the dagger dig into his shoulder, he whipped his hand back to hold it in place, screaming in pain as he came to the junction at the end of the corridor.
At that moment, a sharp hiss whipped down the passage as the assassins triggered the trap, followed by a click and a woosh as the fine mist of lamp oil was ignited. Around the corner, the heat was intense enough to curl Karoy's beard. The assassin carrying wyrmsplitter crawled out first, their robes burned away and their skin bubbling. Karoy stomped their head once and they stopped moving with a satisfying crunch. He snatched up his blade with a grimace as the heat from it branded his palm.
Ulirobi emerged from the flame next, her ropes burned away but her garments and body untouched. She wrapped her arms around him and he shouted in pain as she jostled the dagger.
"I thought it was a good plan up until now." she scolded, as he dragged her deeper into the complex.
Karoy only grunted as the poison worked its way into his blood, and the dagger struggled to free itself. Scoss still lived, so they had to keep moving.
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Listening to:
Reading: Arm of the Sphynx by Josiah Bancroft
Watching: Babylon 5, Season 1
Playing: