“Adriana,” he said, rushing over to her crumpled, broken body.
“We’ll cover you,” one of the Emvola warriors said, seemingly in answer to the rattles of what sounded like hundreds of snakekin converging on the Crystal Chamber.
“Do what you want do, dungeon lord. I saving own hide,” Orbon said, lumbering past all of them.
He couldn’t blame the man. He’d gotten all of them into this situation. How could he ask any to lay down their lives?
Scooping Adriana into his arms, Keaton looked back at the dungeon lady long enough to see the horror scene that was the massive snakekin smearing her tail through a vast pool of blood as her wounds healed themselves. Forcing himself to look away, Keaton ran for the entrance where Cassia was waiting.
“Once we make it into the passage, call your warriors back,” he instructed, slipping inside at Cassia’s frantic gesturing.
She didn’t answer, lingering outside the passage for only a moment before she followed Keaton.
“What are you doing?!” He tried to push his way past her, to call out, “You two, let’s go! Just leave it!”
“You will not dishonor my warriors by ordering them to give up their chance at a valiant death protecting their leader,” Cassia growled. “This is their duty. Their destiny. And we will all die if they don’t make this sacrifice.”
He stood for a moment, slack-jawed, helpless as he looked past her.
“Go!” she shouted, practically shoving him.
This time, Keaton listened.
Adrenaline carried him through the winding passages. It even allowed him to sidestep the snakekin who tried to block their exit. But by the time Cassia ran her halberd through the second one’s skull, Keaton was almost out.
The only thing that kept him going at that point was sheer determination. That and a healthy dose of guilt that made itself apparent every time he looked down at Adriana, her body limp and lifeless in his arms.
“Please don’t die,” he whispered imploringly, grateful for the blistering heat that scalded his face as they surfaced from the crypt.
“What happened?” Vrishta exclaimed, reaching for her pouch.
“No time to explain, and no time to heal just yet. We need to get somewhere safe.” Cassia looked behind them, a stricken expression on her features. “We need to get back to The Labyrinth.”
“Here, I have a potion that will sssstabilize her for now,” Vrishta said, uncorking a vial.
Keaton obliged, laying Adriana down on the cart they’d initially brought for supplies. The younger of the two male snakekin helped hold her mouth open as Vrishta poured the potion down her throat. Already her color looked better, the pallor of her skin no longer matching her scales.
“Is everyone prepared to push on through the night if it comes to that?” Cassia asked, grabbing hold of the cart, obviously intending to pull.
“I’ll help you,” Keaton said, ignoring the way his head swam as he tried to step toward his lieutenant.
“Conserve your strength.” Her tone was as severe as ever, but it softened after a moment as she added, “Stop punishing yourself. We all knew the risks. You didn’t order us to do this, we joined you.”
Keaton looked away from her, that guilt sinking in his stomach like the heaviest stone. If nothing else, they needed him to keep it together so that everyone — or everyone who was left, anyway — could make it back to The Labyrinth safely. If he threw himself a pity party, he was just damning the lot of them, throwing their lives away with even less care than he’d shown before.
“Let’s go, then. Everyone keep pace.”
The trip back to The Labyrinth was uneventful, and yet Keaton felt on edge the entire time. He kept looking to Adriana, trying to see if there was any change in her. Vrishta walked alongside the cart, monitoring her condition, and every now and again she’d catch Keaton’s eyes and shake her head. It was clear they wouldn’t know anything more until they returned, but even then, Keaton had no idea what to do.
So he went about it the way he always did with things he didn’t understand: He made it up as he went.
“Orbon, see if your people have any healing supplies. Herbs, poultices, maybe even a potion or two.”
“Maybe herb. No potion,” Orbon said with a shudder. “Potions give bad dreams; bad dreams turn into bad life.”
He didn’t have time to philosophize about the nature of nightmares with the hobgoblin, so Keaton just thanked him and moved on.
“Vrishta, I’m going to get a workstation built for you as quickly as I can. We’ll turn one of the empty chambers into a lab, but for now I need you to see if you can make anything from our gathered materials.”
“Of courssse, massster.”
“I’ll send the drones out looking for anything that might help, and the goblins can help build.” He turned to Cassia then, a stab of guilt winding through him. “Can you and your warriors post up throughout The Labyrinth and a little ways around it, just in case anything follows us from The Labyrinth?”
“Yes, we will keep the perimeter secure. Focus on Adriana.”
Her gaze softened as she looked over her shoulder at the dragonkin. For all their squabbles, for all the rivalry that had been brewing, it seemed Cassia didn’t actually hate her.
She might hate me now, though.
He’d have to apologize when there was time for it. Right now it would be rushed and distracted, and her warriors deserved better than that.
Cassia gave him a nod, then hoisted the arms of the cart for one last push into the dungeon proper. The only minions without jobs were the father and son blacksmith, and technically…
“Shit, I’ll need to make you all minions first. Let’s go take care of that. Then Yurgetse, Ankhaga, unless you know anything about healing, I think your time’s best served making armor for everyone. Once the goblins are done building a workstation for Vrishta, I’ll have them help you get the forge up to snuff.”
“That ssssounds agreeable, Lord Keaton,” the older one said, finally using his correct title.
Keaton followed Cassia, taking everyone through the corridors and passageways to reach the Crystal Chamber.
“I would advise keeping her as close to the crystal as you can,” Cassia said. “She’ll draw strength from it.”
So saying, the Emvola gently rested the cart, then departed the chamber, calling for her remaining warriors.
“Orbon, go fetch a pallet and bring it in here so I can lay her down.”
Keaton lifted the dragonkin into his arms, ducking his head down and putting his ear near her mouth. He felt and heard her breathing still, but it was very, very weak. As soon as the pallet was brought in, he gently laid her upon it, then went to interface with the crystal, beckoning the three snakekin to join him.
The Labyrinth has gained new minions.
The Labyrinth has acquired the allegiance of:
2 snakekin blacksmiths
1 snakekin herbalist
“Okay, you three are officially minions of The Labyrinth now. You’re under my protection, and if something is going on here that you don’t like — if anything we do ever makes you think of your old dungeon — let me know. Got it?”
All three nodded, their tongues flicking out. With that covered, Keaton sent Vrishta to oversee the construction of her workstation, then advised the two blacksmiths to get started, as well.
Everyone cleared out for their tasks, leaving Keaton alone with Adriana and the occasional drone who skittered through en route to somewhere else. He knelt beside the pallet, his hand cradling her face, fingers brushing back wayward strands of hair. She looked so frail, just moments from slipping away forever. It chilled him to the bone, and Keaton felt that surge of helplessness once more.