Shattered (10 page)

~Into the Ruins~

Laura and Logan had been searching in the area around the towers for the better part of two hours when Laura hit her foot on a stone. They were surrounded by dense forest on al sides, limiting their viewing distance severely, which made it significantly more difficult to look for anything. Annoyed, and frustrated with their lack of progress, she kicked at the stone – and was surprised when it didn’t budge. She bent down to pick it up, brushing away the earth and grim that covered it. And surprised herself by finding nearly washed-out markings on it.

“Logan? Logan, I think I found something!”

Logan came over and peered over her. “What is it?”

“Markings. I can’t make them out, but they look a lot like the ones on the tower.”

“Hmm.” Logan bent down beside Laura to look at it himself. Then he nodded satisfactory. “You’re right. Nicely done.”

“What do you think it is?”

“I don’t know. But what I can tel you is that it’s not just some stone stuck in the ground. I think it’s a part of a much larger structure… like a buried statue.” He looked around. “And I bet there’d be another one close by.”

Laura watched as Logan examined the ground careful y, making his way forward on hands and knees to make sure he didn’t miss anything. Suddenly he looked up. “Found it.”

“Can you tel what the markings mean?”

Logan looked at the stone piece sticking out of the ground, and shook his head. “Unfortunately, no. It’s in the same script as was on the first tower.”

“So what now?”

“I think we’re getting closer to the sanctuary.”

“Are we real y going to go there?” Laura had been over this with him a hundred times in the last few hours, and he always seemed to get the upper hand.

“If it’s designed to keep humans away, how do you know there won’t be any… traps set, for me?”

Logan shook his head. “I told you, I’d notice them long before they can be sprung. And if it’s any kind of physical mechanism, it’d be long since eroded by time.”

“What about what I felt when I touched that tower?”

Logan waved it away. “I wouldn’t worry about it. That precise feeling was likely the last defense against human intrusion, anyway. It’s nothing physical, and nothing that can harm you.” He paused to smile at her. “But if you feel it again, let me know, and we’l leave this place.”

“But not before?”

“Not before.”

Laura sighed. There real y was no arguing with a vampire.

“Come on,” Logan said, pushing his way through the ferny undergrowth, “I have a feeling we’re on the right path.”

Laura fol owed him for maybe a hundred yards before they reached another clearing. This one, however, extended far to the left and right of them. The forest’s growth seemed to just stop abruptly. On the other side, about twenty grass-covered feet away, a large rock cliff stood covered with ivy. Lots of shrubbery and vines grew outward from there, but they did not reach the edge of the forest.

Laura started to walk forward, but found Logan’s arm pressed against her chest. “Wait,” he said, holding her back. “I can smel something.”

“What is it? Is it dangerous?”

“No, I don’t think so, but…” he trailed off, and walked to the other side, to the vertical slope. Conspicuously sniffing the air, he moved off to the left, coming closer to ivy-covered rock. Then he bent to the side, and ripped away a large bunch of fern with his hands. He stepped aside, smiling at Laura. Behind him, in the gap in vegetation he just created, was a smal opening, complete with a rotting wooden door.

“How did you find that?” Laura asked, walking up to him. She couldn’t have picked out the spot from any other along the face of the slope.

“The air smel ed different. Stale. It was coming from there.” He pointed at the opening.

“Do you think this is the place we were looking for?”

“It could be.” He thought for a minute. “I’m going to go check it out. You wait here. There’s no light inside, but I can see in the dark.”

He made to move the door out of his way, but the rotting wood col apsed as soon as he touched it. Shrugging, Logan bent down and went into the cave. Leaving Laura to wait by herself.

Laura sat down by the opening and waited. And waited, and waited. The sun started going down, and Laura was getting impatient. But she waited, and waited some more. Half an hour passed, and then another. What was taking Logan so long?

Soon, Laura’s thoughts turned dark. Logan was taking too long. What if something happened to him?

What if he didn’t return? What if there was a trap in there, and—

Her thoughts were interrupted when Logan

suddenly emerged. He had a triumphant smile on his face. “Come with me,” he said, extending Laura a hand. “You’re going to love it.”

Laura took Logan’s hand and fol owed him into the tunnel. It was dark inside, and the air smel ed damp. Stuffy, even.

As they walked, her eyes kept trying to adjust to the darkness. But once she was a good hundred feet from the entrance, everything was pitch black. Her only guide was Logan’s grip on her hand, and the sound of his footsteps against the stone.

Her eyes may have been tied shut for as much as she could see. But, she kept walking. Laura thought the tunnel sloped down, but perhaps that was only her imagination. More than once, she stumbled over a rock, but Logan caught her gently every time.

They had walked for what must have been at least two hours, when Laura’s eyes slowly started to see past the dark. Dark shapes started revealing themselves around her, rocks and chipped boulders on al sides. She thought it was the better of her imagination getting to her, when suddenly a pale light appeared far in the distance, at the very end of the tunnel.

“Do you see that?” she asked Logan.

“Of course. That’s where we’re going.”

As they got closer, Laura realized it was the exit of the tunnel. And when they walked right up to it, Laura’s jaw dropped.

Below her lay an epic cavern. The tunnel exited onto a ledge above it, which connected to a set of crudely carved stairs that led down. There, an enormous opening at least the size of a footbal field had been carved in the rock. Cracks in the ceiling provided enough light to see nearly everything. Laura noticed the gurgle of flowing water, and looked down. Directly under the ledge ran a smal river – more of a creek, real y – that fed into a clear pool off to the side. And right beside the pool lay beautiful crystal ized boulders.

“What is this place?” Laura asked, her voice echoing across the chamber.

“This,” Logan replied grandly, “is the sanctuary. Come. I’l lead you down.”

Laura took his hand and he walked her down the steps, which curled around the outside wal of the enclave. Looking around, Laura realized the steps did not only lead down, but also
up
on the other side –

to another ledge above the one they were descending from.

“Hold on,” Logan said when they got to the bottom,

“I think I see something.” He let her go, and walked over to a side wal . He did something with his hands, and suddenly a smal flame appeared in front of him. It flared to life, growing much larger. Laura saw that it came from a the top of a thick wooden club.

“A torch,” Logan laughed. “And it stil has tar on it!”

The flickering fire cast shadows that danced across his face and the surrounding rocks. He picked it up from the wal , and carried it over to her.

“Are there more?” Laura asked. Logan looked around before nodding happily. “Yes, there are. Al along the wal s! I’l be right back.”

Laura felt a gush of wind as Logan moved away from her with impossible speed. It was the first time she’d actual y seen him make use of his enhanced physical abilities. She fol owed the trail of light from his torch as he ran al the way around the vast chamber, stopping only momentarily to light the other torches along the wal . When he got back to her, only a few seconds later, al the torches were emitting light, providing her eyes and the chamber with muchneeded luminance.

“There,” he said in a satisfied manner, “that should be much better for you, no?”

“It is, thank you. How fast you moved… that was amazing.”

He laughed. “Sometimes I forget you’re only human.”

Laura stuck her tongue out at him in reply.

“I saw something that might be interesting,” he said, ignoring her taunt completely. “Come, I’l show you.”

Again, Laura fol owed him as he led her across uneven ground to the center of the chamber. From there, a smal pathway was carved in the rock that ran directly underneath the entrance ledge above. They took it, and as they came closer, Laura saw that the far wal had been polished smooth, and shone with a slight green luster. The river ran along the wal , making it impossible to reach. But they could get close enough for Laura to realize that there were symbols carved into the stone.

“It’s a mixture of the two scripts on the towers outside,” Logan told her. “The vampire one, and the other one, written interchangeably. Whoever made this was fluid in both tongues.”

“Do you know what it says?”

“I think they’re directions.” He paused to study the lettering. “This cave extends much deeper, I believe. It says… that there are tunnels. Crisscrossing far into the depths of the earth. There’s a warning… a warning to ‘take the Proper path’. But… I don’t think it says what that is.”

“What else?”

“Oh! It says here there’s another level.” He looked up above. “Yes, I think I see it.”

“What’s up there?”

“We won’t know unless we check, wil we?” He set off back towards the stairs.

“Logan, wait.” He paused, turning to look at Laura.

“You’re not planning on taking the tunnels deeper in, are you?”

“I don’t know yet,” he said thoughtful y. “If we keep going through the forest, we’l be more vulnerable for attack. But if these tunnels can lead us through the mountains… wel , if we get that far, we’d almost be scot free.”

“What if we get lost?” she asked worriedly. “At least outside we know where we’re going.”

“Let’s just check the upper level out first, and then decide. At any rate, this is as safe a place as any to spend the night, even if we don’t take the tunnels tomorrow.”

“Fine.” Laura didn’t want to pout, but she just didn’t feel comfortable here beneath the earth. And the prospect of going deeper in, without knowing how long the journey might take, didn’t sit wel with her either.

She fol owed Logan up the chipped rock stairs. Past the ledge where they entered, and higher up. The light from the bottom pit sent large shadows flickering against the wal s.

They reached the highest level. It was another ledge, jutting out from the side of the rock, and built to overlook the entrance. Rocks that looked an awful lot like tombstones sat in neat horizontal rows.

Logan took a step forward, and stopped. “Wait.”

He paused, holding Laura back. “Do you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

Logan shifted his weight in response, and Laura thought she heard a tiny echo of crumbling stone. She wouldn’t have picked it out if she wasn’t actively searching for it.

“The structure’s weak here,” Logan said. He bent down to one knee to examine the ground. “There are cracks in the stone. I don’t think it’s very stable.”

“Should we go back?”

“Not yet. You stay back. I want to see what these stones are.”

“Be careful,” Laura urged.

“Don’t worry.” Even in the dim light, Laura saw him flash his teeth in a grin. “I’m very agile, remember?”

“Of course,” she said drily. Like he needed to remind her.

Laura watched as Logan picked his way across. He went from stone to stone in the first row, analyzing each one careful y. The last one stood at the very end of the ledge, almost like a baluster. Logan placed a hand on it to support himself as he leaned closer, and it shifted uncomfortably. Logan jerked back, hissing.

“What is it?” Laura asked.

“I nearly fel .” He barked a laugh. “You distracted me.”

“
Me
?” Laura was incredulous. “I didn’t even do anything!”

“I felt your eye on me,” he said.

“I’l be sure not to do that anymore,” Laura answered laconical y. Suddenly the ground groaned, and Laura flinched as the sound of rubble crashing down reached her ears. The last tombstone was stil there, but it now leaned over the edge precariously.

“Looks like we disturbed some of the rock beneath us,” Logan said as he gingerly picked his way back to her. “There’s nothing up here to see. We should get back down to where we at least know the ground is stable”

Laura sighed in relief. The whole situation had her on edge.

She turned around, and started walking down, when suddenly Logan was on her, pressing her against the wal .

“What are you doing?” she tried to say, but it jumbled as Logan placed his hand over her mouth.

“Sshh!” he hissed to her. “Someone’s coming.” He released his grip on her mouth.

“What?” Laura whispered urgently. “Who?”

“I don’t know. Stay here, and don’t move.” And just like that, he was gone, a blur streaking down the stairs.

~A Fighting Chance~

Laura’s breath caught as her ears picked up on the noise. She could hear footsteps coming, too. Careful y, she inched closer to the edge of the stairs. She could see Logan, standing in front of the entrance below, with his shoulders stiff.

The footsteps were coming from the same tunnel Logan and Laura had come from. They echoed loudly across the chamber, amplified by the hol ow space of the cave. Whoever was coming wasn’t afraid of alerting them to their presence.

“Wel , wel , wel ,” a voice boomed through the air. Laura instantly recognized its source: it was the voice of the vampire who had held her captive before.

“Look who we have here.”

Laura moved back from the ledge. Her heart was pounding fast with fear. How had he tracked them so quickly? Logan had said they were
days
ahead of any pursuers!

“You shouldn’t be here.” Logan’s voice was grave. A wild laugh answered from below.

“
I
shouldn’t be here? You
dare
tel me what to do?

You are an outcast, forever damned for having committed treason against the
Vassiz
. You have forsaken your race, broken the ancient doctrine that binds us to who we are. You have spat on everything you have been gifted. And for what? A
human
?”

“Leave now,” Logan warned. “You saw what I did to your friend.”

“Oh, I don’t think I wil be going anywhere. Vladimir was a fool, and he paid the price for his ineptitude. He took you lightly. I won’t be making the same mistake. When I deliver you and your human to the elders, al their glory shal come upon me. I wil be exalted as the one who delivered the rogue to them, and take my place amongst the most revered of al our kind.”

Laura couldn’t see anything. She couldn’t take the unknowing, the uncertainty of what was happening below her. Summoning al her courage, she dropped to her bel y and crawled to the edge. Peeking over, she saw that Logan stil hadn’t moved. And she saw the other vampire’s shape right at the entrance.

“They sent out a cal , you know,” the vampire continued. “The first such in hundreds of years.
All
of the
Vassiz
know what you have done, and they have united against you. The packs smel blood on the water. They’re coming for you. But once I’m done, they wil be too late.”

Laura could tel a fight was about to break out. One Logan might lose. And she couldn’t do anything about it. She hated feeling so helpless.
Being
so helpless.

“So, traitor, tel me, where is your human? Her scent is weak, but I know she is here.”

Logan growled. “You wil not have her.”

Wait. The tombstone! The one Logan had nearly dropped! She looked down, did a quick calculation in her head. The vampire… he was standing right below it! If she could just reach it, maybe push it forward…

“Oh?” The vampire laughed cruel y. “We have been through this before, have we not?”

“I have spared your life once,” Logan said. “This time, I might not be so kind.”

“No. This time, you won’t have the opportunity. Once I defeat you, I wil make you watch as I have my way with your human
bitch
. I wil make you watch her scream, make you watch her squirm under my touch, and you wil be helpless to interfere. Yes, I think I’l quite enjoy doing that. I haven’t taken a young girl like her in quite some time. The elders have asked for both of you, alive. They made no mention to the condition of your health.”

Laura crawled on hands and knees towards the last tombstone. She felt the earth shift underneath her with every motion she made, and prayed that nothing would col apse to alert the vampire to her presence.

“So be it,” Logan said. “If that is your choice, I am prepared to face you. Although I do not look forward to having the blood of two vampires on my hands.”

The other vampire laughed again. “You are weak, Logan. Your conscience is what holds you back from your true potential. A pity, what I wil have to do to you…”

Laura’s dress caught on a rock, and she pul ed it forward. Her breath caught at the sound of thread ripping.

“…you would have risen high in the ranks of the ancient blood…”

He hadn’t heard her. She was at the tombstone, now. It stood, balanced by a hair. She pushed it with both hands. It didn’t budge.

“…the elders would have taken you for one of their own…”

She was running out of time, and she knew it. How much longer would the vampire stand beneath her?

“One of their own?” Logan sounded shocked.

She backed up, and threw her weight against the stone. And felt it shift ever so slightly under her shoulder. Again, she backed up and thrust herself against the rock.

A loud crack sounded, and she felt the earth give way. She scrambled back.

“What was—” the vampire began, but cut off with an ear-piercing scream.

The stone broke off, and fel . Almost instantly an enormous crash sounded, and the scream broke off. Suddenly the earth below her began to move. The ledge was caving in, fal ing down. She had broken the entire structure!

She flung herself backwards as the stone

crumpled. Large cracks and fissures jerked their way unevenly towards her. One by one, large pieces of stone started to fal , creating a deafening roar as they hit the ground below.

Laura leapt to the side, to the safety of the stairs. She grabbed desperately at a the steps ground, and pul ed herself up just in time. The ledge behind her had ful y col apsed.

An eerie silence descended on the cave after the last stone had fal en. Laura was breathing hard. The drop must have been fifty, sixty feet, and if she had fal en… wel , she didn’t want to think about that. But she was safe, final y. She sat down against the wal . And before she knew it, Logan was at her side.

“You kil ed him,” he exclaimed in wonder. “Nobody has kil ed a vampire, certainly no human, since…

since the start of our recorded history! There’s
never
been a human responsible for a vampire death!”

“And now I’m just like you,” Laura said. “We’ve both got vampire blood on our hands.”

“So we do,” Logan laughed. He bent down to offer a hand, and she took it, rising up.

“Now what do we go?” Laura asked.

“After the elders discover this death, they’re going to double their efforts to catch us. Quadruple them. I fear we’l have al the clans in North America coming after us.”

“We can escape.” Laura’s voice took a newfound confidence. For the first time since discovering the true identity of her pursuers, she did not feel helpless. In fact, she felt better than that. She felt strong. “I know we can.”

“Glad to have you confidence,” Logan told her. “But it looks like what you did left us with little option of what to do next.”

“What do you mean?”

“The entrance,” Logan explained. “Everything col apsed right in front of it. Even with my strength, I don’t think I’l be able to move the rocks.”

“Do you mean…”

“Yes. We have to enter the tunnels.”