Chapter 5: Tested

The spiral staircase that led up from the dungeon felt even more suffocating than the gravity spell. The hallways were just wide enough for the two knights to walk Rebecka through without trouble, but narrow enough that she had no way to get around them to escape. At least they had long spaces in front and behind her that she could focus on. Still, the small spaces bothered Rebecka enough to make her chest tight. She chose to focus on what might be above her and where she was going.

The winding hallways leading from the dungeon were out of the way of any areas a noble might frequent; the air in them humid and musty. Light sources emitting a warm yellow light were recessed into either side of the stone walls near the ceiling every few yards. It wasn't the sort of place Rebecka could imagine anyone of status visiting. These were halls meant for security, maintenance, and whatever other servants worked in the building.

At least, she assumed it was a building.

Dungeons were normally in the basements of castles or other large buildings. At least, in any documentaries or fiction she'd seen. Based on how far she'd been made to walk it had to be a rather large structure.

The guards brought her to a heavy set of wooden doors with iron studded hinges. They led into a carpeted hallway that made her breathe a sigh of relief thanks to its grand size.

This is where the royalty walks, she thought to herself as she was spurred forward by her two guards.

Floral scents wafted from meticulously maintained flower arrangements in beautiful vases on decorative side tables lining the space. Everything was brightly lit and brightly colored. Rebecka looked up and found the source of light in the hallway to be chandeliers that hung from the high vaulted ceilings of the hallway. She didn't smell any smoke, nor see any signs of wax on the floor. The light was brighter than she expected from candles, as well.

More magic? She wondered as the guards pushed her forward.

Eventually, they reached a set of huge oak doors guarded by two of the armored giants and two normal sized people in armor. The guards with her exchanged pleasantries with those at the door. After a little talking the larger people stepped aside so the smaller pair of guards with them could open the doors. The two with Rebecka then pushed her into a great hall, the main room of the palace. It was so grand and ornate that it reminded her of a cathedral.

"Holy shit," she breathed.

The guard on her left shoved her in the shoulder, right where her wound was and barked something at her.

"Yeah, yeah, fine. I'll stare in awe later," she muttered.

They guided her to a row of carpets and cushions that sat on the near side of a long wooden table that blocked off most of the room from a raised platform and throne in the back. Then, the guards forced her to kneel, holding her arms behind her back uncomfortably. She did her best not to wince as she felt the buckshot shrapnel in her left shoulder grind against her muscles.

I'll find a way to kick your ass later, she thought.

Ahead of her, Rebecka spied her go-bag on the table, many of its contents removed and spread out. The bag of rice and canned food were not visible but her axes laid next to Thor, her shotgun.

There you are.

Movement beyond the table caught her eye. A figure, clad in a cloak and leather armor stood with a massive and ornate double bladed axe before him...and a crown resting on long braided black hair. He looked over at her with dark attentive eyes, sizing her up as his long dark ears twitching slightly at the sides of his head.

"An elf?" She asked.

The guard to her left said something before twisting her arm, forcing her to bow from the pain.

Note to self: stop talking.

"Hey, what the fuck did I ever do to you guys?" A voice asked hotly from behind her. "Ow, shit man. Lay off me."

Rebecka managed to turn her head to her left just as the skinhead from the biker gang, the one Quincey had knocked out with a punch the last time she saw him, was forced to kneel next to her. Two guards held his arms behind him. She managed not to laugh. He caught sight of her however.

"You, bitch, what are you doing here? They get you too?"

She kept her mouth shut to stifle a laugh.

"What the fuck are we doing here? Hey, you! Asshole with the crown, what the fuck are we doing here?" The gang member asked. His guards replied by both twisting his arms, hard, pushing him into a deep bow. "Ahhh! Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Let me go, please let me go, I'll do anything," he begged.

Rebecka rolled her eyes.

Behind her there was some shuffling and more voices as several people entered the audience room. She immediately recognized Quincey's voice as he did his best to sooth someone.

"It's gonna be okay. We're gonna be fine. You're gonna be fine, man. Just stay with me, okay?"

"Hurts," Steve replied.

Quincey and Steve were forced to kneel a couple cushions away from the cowering gang member. It was hard for her to see with the jerk in the way but it looked like Steve's right hand was bandaged and bloody. His guards were far more gentle with him, at least.

"Steve!" She shouted.

Her guards were not happy about the outburst and the one to her left pressed a thumb into her shoulder wound. She sucked in air through her teeth and bowed her head.

If I get the chance I'm taking your arm, she thought to herself.

"Nice great hall," the gruff voice from her neighbor in the dungeon said loudly. "What are you going to do? Huh? You don't even know what I'm saying anyway. Yeah, I'm walking forward."

Rebecka looked up just in time to see a truly massive figure forced to kneel next to the skinhead. The gang member became another shade of pale as he looked up in horror at the stranger.

They were not human.

"Dreki," Rebecka mouthed silently.

Her old neighbor was easily seven feet tall, wearing a black and red hooded sweatshirt that strained over broad muscles. The guards escorting them were both giants as well, holding each arm backwards to keep the dragon person restrained. Four black horns curved out of wild red hair at the top of their head and interlocked like their own crown. Their face was shaped like a crocodile and their scales were pale gold with white on the bottom of their chin and jaw that lead downwards. Rebecka had never seen someone so stunning.

"That's why you knew about magic," she said. Her left guard twisted her arm again, which made her laugh through the pain. "I think you almost got it twisted off, buddy."

The man with the giant axe said something loudly which caused voices behind Rebecka to shout in unison. The guards holding her and the others were not the only ones in the room. No, there had to be a large number of soldiers in the room for that much racket.

"Naemnae," the man with the axe said as he pointed the head of his weapon toward Steve.

"St-Steve Tsuchimoto," he replied weakly.

The man with the axe did the same thing, pointing toward Quincey. "Naemnae."

"Uh, name?"

The man with the crown and axe nodded. "Naemnae."

"Quincey Allen."

He pointed at the dragon next. "Naemnae, dreki."

"Sigyn. Hon ok hennar," the dragon person replied with a snort.

Next, he pointed at the gang member. "Naemnae."

"Martin Aaron," he replied while weeping.

"Naemnae," the man with the axe said to Rebecka.

"I don't tell my name to someone threatening me with a blade," Rebecka sneered back.

The guard to her left twisted her arm hard enough to pop it out of socket. Rebecka's vision swam from the agony as something tore in her arm. The man with the axe said something she couldn't make out but it made the guard stop. She couldn't track where anyone was for a few moments and when she finally could the man with the axe was on the side of the table nearest them pointing to items that were spread out. The dragon replying with names of every object he pointed to.

"Menstrual pad. Flashlight. Cooking pot. Water bottle. Shotgun."

"That's...my shit...," Rebecka said weakly.

"You went back for your fucking shotgun?" Quincey asked hotly.

"Got the first aid kit...for you," Rebecka replied.

"Best to stay quiet now," Sigyn, the dragon warned.

"Sylence!" The man with the axe ordered.

Rebecka lost track of things again due to the pain in her left arm. Suddenly the man with the axe was standing in front of Steve. Time must have passed, however as the things on the table had moved. A small red spider crawled across the table cloth in front of her.

"He says he's going to test us all with the 'Blade of Generations,'" Sigyn explained.

Rebecka watched as the man with the crown pressed the flat side of one of the axe heads against Steve's forehead and held it there. After a moment nothing happened and he backed away before moving on to Quincey to do the same thing. Again, nothing happened. Next he reached the dragon person and had to reach up to touch the blade to their muzzle. Nothing happened.

There was murmuring behind her as people began to whisper to one another. Rebecka couldn't understand any of it, though. She kept her eyes on the man with the crown and giant bronze and steel looking axe as he pressed it against the weeping skinhead's scalp. He held it there a moment and then moved to pull it away, but the blade refused to budge. The man holding it moved his hands lower on the shaft, farther from the gang member.

"What...what," Martin, began to ask through racking sobs.

The guards holding his arms released him and took several steps back. Even the guards holding her moved a bit to their right, to give the man with the axe and skinhead a little more room.

The hel is going on? She wondered.

The sound of bones breaking is unmistakable. Rebecka had heard it plenty of times in her life. She recognized the noise as the man's skull cracked open like an egg just before his skin split as hundreds of thin bronze colored metal cables erupted from his body. They methodically changed direction to surround he man's trembling body. A wet crunch echoed through the great hall as Martin Aaron was crushed.

Oh my gods.

The tendrils compressed in on themselves, twisting and turning, as they drew back into the head of the axe. The only remaining sign of the gang member who had knelt on the cushion next to Rebecka was a minor blood stain.

The man with the axe said something and the dragon person translated. "The King says, 'The others passed the test and were found to be worthy but that man failed.'"

He moved to stand in front of Rebecka, axe in hand and said something else.

"Now it is your turn to be tested," the dragon echoed.