Page 40 of Bewitched

“She’s stealing the crystal key!” The god’s voice boomed, shaking the land. A bright light lit up in the dark sky.

“Please, listen,” said Rhys. “Medea came through a portal by accident from another land. She needs to get back there with her sister and the dragon. We were told by the elven sage that we needed the crystal key in order to do that.” Rhys knelt down on one knee, not able to look up at the sky now, since it was shining so brightly.

“The elven sage?” asked the god.

“Aye, that’s the one,” Rhys confirmed the information.

“Hmph! Elric is not to be trusted,” warned Zoroct. “Neither is the witch. And like I said, the girl will pay for what she’s done.”

“Nay, please,” begged Rhys, hoping to change the god’s mind. He lifted his hand in front of his face to keep from being blinded. “If we don’t have the crystal key, then how are we going to open the portal to send them home?”

“I will grant you the key, but only because I don’t like strangers in Mura, and I want them gone,” boomed Zoroct’s voice once again. Rhys still didn’t see the god at all, just the bright light. “When the crystal glows, you will have the power to open the portal. However, it will only open one portal – the one that leads to the witch’s land. No others.”

Rhys wasn’t aware of any other portals at this time. He wanted to ask Zoroct about it, but decided to wait. Right now, his first concern was to find and help Medea. “Thank you, god of power, oh mighty Zoroct,” said Rhys, trying to sound humble.

“Heed my warning, Rhys Blackseed. The girl who takes what she wants without asking is only trouble. There is a horrible darkness inside her that she cannot control. She has set things in motion, and soon she will pay for her greedy mistake. She will pay dearly, and will wish she hadn’t tried to deceive the gods.”

Thunder boomed, shaking the hills. Winds whipped around Darium, and lightning flashed in the sky. Then, the radiant light above him disappeared, and all was silent once again.

“She will pay dearly?” he repeated, realizing that Medea was about to be punished by the gods. The thought horrified him. “Nay. Medea,” cried Rhys, rushing into the pyramid, knowing that he had to help her somehow.

“Medea?” he called out, walking forward where oil burned in a trough, and a dozen more burning torches lit up the inside of the pyramid. Another large stone statue of Zoroct sat atop a dais with five stairs leading up to it. Rhys half expected to find the girl lying dead in a puddle of blood. Instead, Medea was standing atop the dais, looking around at items that had been placed at the statue’s feet. “Medea. Come here,” he called out, his voice echoing off the stone walls. He looked up to the apex of the pyramid, swearing he saw eyes staring down at him. This place was chilling. He needed to get Medea out of here as fast as he could.

“Rhys? Isn’t this the ring I saw you wearing earlier?” She bent down and picked up his ring, holding it up for him to see. Somehow, the ring he’d given the guardian was now in here.

“Leave it there. Put it back,” he warned her, approaching the dais with his hand on the hilt of his sword as he continuously scanned the area for trouble. “It was my offering to get inside.”

“Bah! That’s ridiculous.” She inspected the ring, admiring it, blowing on the gemstone and shining it against her sleeve. “There was no need to give up something of such great value. After all, I entered without any silly offering. What does it matter?” She slipped his ring on to her finger.

“Put it back, Medea. Leave the ring here, and come with me. We need to go at once,” he said, holding out his arm and constantly scanning the area back and forth, not sure what was about to happen. “We need to get out of here, right now.”

“You really want me to leave the ring behind?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Hmmm,” she said, spinning the ring on her finger and kneeling down. “Just let me look at some more of these items that were left as offerings before we go.”

When she did nothing to join him, Rhys knew he would have to remove her by force. He rushed up the stairs and grabbed her hand, dragging her back down the stairs behind him.

“Wait, Rhys. Stop that! What’s your hurry?” she asked. “I haven’t located the crystal key yet. It might not even be here. Mayhap we should check another pyramid.”

“Nay. No more pyramids.” That’s the last thing Rhys wanted to do. If Medea transported into all three pyramids without giving an offering, she was sure to wind up dead. Mayhap even in The Dark Abyss for all eternity. He didn’t know what would happen to her, but neither did he want to hang around to find out.

“We’re going,” he commanded, taking a step and accidentally kicking something with his foot. It made a noise and went sliding across the floor. He looked down to see a crystal shard made into a pendant, attached to a necklace of chain. “The crystal key,” he said, sure it had been placed here for him to find by Zoroct.

“Oooo, it’s pretty,” said Medea, reaching out for it, but he got to it first.

“I’ll hold on to this,” he told her, snatching it up and slipping the chain over his head. The crystal rested against his chest, feeling warmer than he thought it would. When he looked down at it, he saw it glowing.

“Why is it glowing?” she asked, reaching out to touch it. When she did, it made a zapping sound, and she pulled her hand back, rubbing it. “That hurt!”

“Medea, we’re leaving. Now.” Rhys pulled her out the door and on to the wooden bridge. Before they could even cross it, everything around them started shaking. He heard a noise from the lake, and turned to look. Something large started to emerge from the dark water.

“Oh, look,” said Medea. “It is one of those sea serpents I saw in the water over by the gnome caves.”

“It most certainly is, and it is coming right for us. Run!” shouted Rhys.

Holding on to her hand, he ran over the bridge, dragging her along with him. The serpent shot through the water, rising up, getting ready to strike. Rhys released her hand and yanked his sword from his side, ready to fight. Medea stumbled and fell to her knees, not moving.