Page 65 of Forsaken Secrets

24

Kaiya

We stumbled into a large stone room that reeked of chemicals and rancid water. Lynk stood directly in front of me, staring at an open door to our right. Beyond him was a wide pool and a tall stack of wooden crates marked "Fragile". The far wall was lined with cages and tall cells. Some stretched from the floor to the ceiling, while others were smaller and carved into the stone walls.

The lyphos lamps flickered, casting eerie shadows around the room, but the strange body mage was nowhere to be seen.

"Did he escape?" I asked.

Lynk nodded and walked stiffly towards the open entryway, closing the metal door there and moving a large stone to block it. "Move fast," he said. "We need to get out of here before he comes back."

I looked around. Could the missing item be in here somewhere? Or had those mages already done something with it?

"Is that a submersible?" whispered Eli from just behind me, motioning to a metal object sticking above the pool's water.

I shrugged. If so, it would mean the pool lead to the ocean, and what a convenient way that was to get items in and out of this facility undetected.

A quiet whimper near the cages drew my attention.

Oh gods. Were there actual animals inside?

I raced over, stepping behind the wall of crates to see a metal table with strange equipment protruding from every edge. Atop it lay an adolescent vrytra, their vibrant silver scales marred with a blue sticky liquid. One brilliant blue eye met mine, swirling frantically.

Was this the "whelp" the mages had been discussing?

I stepped closer, examining a set of gashes across their body. To their left was a small frill shaped fin, the same color as the creature's body.

I gagged, imagining how it would have hurt to be removed.

Who would do something like this? I wanted to go back and stab the rod into that mage's calf again, then somewhere more tender … like his cock!

His death had been too damn fast.

"I need help over here!" I yelled, reaching my hand out to the vrytra.

A loud clanging sound reverberated through the room and I froze, hand just inches from touching them.

"Kaiya. Turn around slowly. Very slowly," hissed Eli. "I'd prefer not to make the large vrytra in that cage any more angry than she already is."

Carefully, I turned to see what he was talking about. The creature in the left-most cage thrashed their tail wildly against the bars. I'd been so focused on the young one that I'd completely missed her.

Even from this distance, I could see the scars and lacerations along the entire tail where spikes protruded from every other vrytra I'd seen. Had they removed her spikes?

"That mage will have told his people that we're here by now," said Lynk, walking to my side. "We need to get moving."

I looked between the two vrytra, helpless and at the will of those twisted mages.

We couldn't just leave them here!

I crossed my arms across my chest, staring Lynk down. "You may go, but I’ll be staying. They need my help help.”

He grimaced. "Gods be damned." Taking a steadying breath, he looked to Eli. "Well, kid. Are you ready to show off a little?"

Eli nodded, his face tense. Then he closed his eyes, and I felt something pop behind my ears …

"NOOOOO!"The scream reverberated in my skull as though it were a drum and the voice a mallet. "NO MORE!!!"

I dropped to my knees, my hands pressing into my ears to drown out the sound.

The sound was IN my head, though, so it made no difference.

My mind ached with the pressure.

Desperately, I turned towards the cage.

Eli stood between me and the adult vrytra, arms outstretched and eyes closed.

What was he doing?

---