“The priest said ‘Death! Much death at the hands of his followers’. I don’t think we have much choice.” James hurries back to the junction and again takes the right.
He follows the hallway and comes to a set of stairs leading up. Taking them two at a time, he reaches the top and enters the hallway at a run. The hallway is constructed better than the ones below. It has worked stone for sides as well as frescoes and tapestries.
Rushing down the corridor, he comes to a door in the right wall. Upon the door is a faded picture of a diamond. He pulls out the key and finds the diamond on the door is a direct match to the one on the key. Placing the key in the lock, he turns it and opens the door.
The room on the other side is octagonal, with upraised sarcophagi upon the other seven sides of the room. Upon each is emblazoned the Star of Morcyth.
“This must be the room of stars,” he announces. Turning to Jiron, he says, “Keep watch here and if anyone comes, let me know.”
“You got it,” he says drawing his knives.
“Come with me,” he says to Miko as he drags him through the door and into the room.
The medallion on his chest begins to glow once more, the Stars on the sarcophagi begin to glow as well. The glowing of the Stars reveals that another Star has been engraved upon the center of the chamber floor.
James grabs Miko and they move to the center of the room.
“Why do I have to be here?” Miko asks as they approach the center of the Star.
“Quiet,” James tells him. Upon reaching the center, he takes the medallion and holds it up high. A high pitched note begins to be heard coming from all around. It grows steadily louder and louder.
Jiron is now bathed in the light coming from the Stars as he stands out in the corridor, watching in awe at what’s transpiring within the room.
Suddenly the note stops and all is silent, then the sarcophagi doors begin to open. When the doors are fully open, a warrior steps out of each and comes toward James. Each is heavily armored, bearing a longsword and a shield. The shield is embossed with the Star of Morcyth.
All but one stops when they come to within three feet of where he stands. Miko quakes in fear as the largest of the seven comes even closer. This warrior stops a scant foot and a half from them.
“That the Star should shine here once more is dire indeed,” the warrior says.
“One has come who serves he that should not be named,” James replies, hoping to get it right.
“Yes,” the warrior says. “I can feel his presence as he approaches. The Fire is no longer safe here.”
“I must retrieve it,” James says.
Shaking his head, the warrior says, “Only a son of this world may touch it. All others must surely perish.”
“But…” James begins to say.
Then the warrior raises one of his hands and points at Miko. “He must be the one,” he says to Miko’s horror.
Miko backs away and says, “N…n…no way.”
“James!” he hears Jiron call from the corridor. “You better hurry!” Then the clash of battle can be heard as Jiron engages with the enemy.
“Miko, you have no choice!” James says. “We can’t let it fall to Abula-Mazki!”
Suddenly they hear a grinding sound as the back of one of the sarcophagi begins sliding into the floor. The circle of warriors part, creating a way for Miko to move toward the passage revealed behind it. “Go,” the warrior says, “therein lies the Fire.”
“We’ll go together,” James says as he takes Miko by the hand.
From the corridor, they continue to hear Jiron fighting. Miko looks to James, the fear evident in his eyes as he slowly nods his head. Together they walk to the revealed passage and pass through the sarcophagus.
The passage only goes ten feet before opening up to a small room. A three foot pedestal sits in the middle of the room and upon it is a red ruby, easily the biggest ruby James had ever heard of. It has to be at least three inches in diameter. Coming closer to it, they can see light moving within it, like the flickering of a flame.
Miko looks to James and says, “What do I do?”
“I’m not sure,” he admits.
Miko comes closer to the Fire and hesitantly reaches his hand out to it. When nothing happens, he picks it up.
James studies his friend, worried, but doesn’t see anything happening to him.
Miko closes his hand around it and turns back to James, “It’s cool to the touch.”
“Put it in your pouch and let’s go!” he says.
Miko does as he says and they return to the Star room. The lead warrior says, “Go and protect the fire.”
“We shall,” says James. As he makes to leave, the warriors rush past him and out the door, engaging the enemy.
At the door, Jiron almost runs into them, both of them coming to a quick stop. “Who are those guys?” he asks him.
“Not really sure,” James says. He looks down the corridor and sees them fighting most effectively against the soldiers. “Let’s get out of here while we can.” One more glance back at the fighting and he sees the warriors have mowed through the soldiers like a scythe through wheat.
They begin running down the corridor in the opposite direction when James suddenly feels an intense prickling sensation. Abula-Mazki!
A feeling of evil and revulsion rolls over them like a wave. James is almost reduced to vomiting from the feeling of it.
“What was that?” Jiron asks.
“I’m not sure,” James replies once he’s regained control of his stomach again.
From up ahead, they hear movement. Holding the orb up, its light reveals a corpse shuffling around the corner ahead of them, others following behind. “He’s raised the dead against us!” James cries out.
“James!” hollers Jiron. “The Star!”
Holding the Star of Morcyth high, the light again comes from it. The dead only shy away from it, it slows them down but fails to stop them entirely.
“It’s not working!” shouts Miko when he fails to see the dead dissolve like the torsos had.
“The magic of Abula-Mazki must be sustaining them,” replies James. Turning to Jiron, he says, “Only one thing to do.”
Nodding his head, Jiron moves to the fore where he begins laying into them. Hits that would normally drop a living man have minimal effect upon these.
“Don’t try to kill them,” advises James, “they’re already dead. Try to disable so we can get by them.” He sees Jiron nod as his tactics suddenly change.
One of the dead is wielding a sword and Jiron easily takes it from him. Then he uses the sword in one hand and a knife in the other as he begins cutting off limbs from the dead.
Miko suddenly cries out as a hand that had been severed from a corpse grabs his foot. Screaming, he kicks out with his other foot and knocks it away. In revulsion he sees the hand still moving, as it begins pulling itself across the floor toward them with its fingers.
“Come on!” he hears James yell. Turning back toward him, he sees that the last corpse has been sectioned and the way is clear. He hurries past the moving pieces of the dead that try to grab him as he passes, and joins James and Jiron.
They make a break down the corridor and come to another junction. The orb’s light shows shambling shapes coming from the right so they turn and go to the left.
Running down the corridor, they follow it for twenty feet before it turns sharply to the right. Around the corner, they come to a flight of stairs. Without pausing they race up them, taking them two at a time.
When they reach the top, they find themselves to be in an old cellar, perhaps of a temple of some kind. The ceiling has collapsed in several spots and it’s difficult to make it through to the doorway on the far side.
They’re going to have to dig out some of the rubble in order to squeeze through. “Guard the door!” James yells to Jiron as he and Miko begin clearing the way.
“Hurry up man!” Jiron hollers over to them. A corpse comes into view at the bottom of the stairs and begins to climb up. Many more follow.