14 Chapter 14: The Lair

Chapter 14: The Lair

Andrew O'Kelley

andrewokelley.com

With my heart beating a million miles an hour, I willed myself to look down the tunnel that led out of the basement and braced myself against the opening, feeling the damp earth underneath my fingers. Something dug this. Was it the Hagraven? I thought as I saw the dangling roots growing through the roof of the tunnel and on the walls.

If not for the pale light and the little bit of light the Wisp gave off, it would have been impossible to see. But sight is only one sense, even with my vision diminished, I never lost track of where the Hagraven was. The monsters foul smell wafted on the air with a slow breeze that moved through the tunnel. A smell of rotted flesh, unwashed body, and the unnatural.

From down the tunnel I could see light flickering from candles and hear a terrible, bestial voice speaking in low tones, chanting in a language I didn’t recognize. The Hagraven, but who or what is it talking to? I wonder while gripping the ax firmly in my and while crouching low to sneak down the tunnel, not wanting to dislodge loose rock in the wall or tear down any clumps of dirt by pulling out roots on accident.

Creeping slowly, I had to be careful to not splash any of the muddy water in the tunnel or cause any other noise that might alert the Hagraven that I was coming. As Fel said, I only had once chance at this.

It might not have mattered, but I made a sign of the cross as the end of the tunnel approached and opened up into a smaller area. A cave no bigger than my bedroom back in the apartment I shared with my mom.

My arms broke out in gooseflesh as I saw the Hagraven. A terrible monster with wings of black and grey feathers, though they weren’t the sleek feathers I was used to seeing, but rather dim and diseased looking. The Hagraven was bent over, its legs and talons dug into the dirt behind it and its wings folded forward in what I was pretty sure was worship.

The monster was prostrating itself before a profane altar as candles burned in holders of bone. As the chanting grew higher, I realized the Hagraven was holding a collecting bowl in its hands, a bowl that radiated dark energy. A light began to fill the cave as a ritual circle appeared beneath the Hagraven, I didn’t recognize the symbol, but I knew by the way the chanting continued, getting louder and louder, whatever it was in the process of doing was almost finished, and with it my chance to kill the Hagraven was getting smaller.

As quiet as I could, as light on my feet as I could be, I snuck forward. Thinking again about what Fel had told me, You’ll have a small window to kill it. Only a blow to the neck would be enough to defeat it, I needed to cripple it first. As I neared, the Hagraven’s body began to tense instinctively. Raising the ax in my hand, I brought it down in as savage as a blow as I can manage. I wasn’t aiming for the monster’s head, but as Fel said, to cripple it.

The cave echoed with a terrible screeching as the Hagraven caught my reflection in the candle flames and rolled over to evade me. But my decision had been the correct one. The monster tried to protect its neck, but my ax wasn’t aiming there. Instead the weapon tore into the monsters shoulder, crippling the arm and rendering it useless.

Crippled does not mean useless Christopher, cautioned Fel sternly. The Hagraven is still dangerous.

I knew it was true as the monster jumped up and thrust forward with its good arm with a speed I couldn’t match and tore open my side. Leaving a bloody though shallow gash that I hoped was just a flesh wound, though I suspected as long as I lived through the encounter it would heal shortly after. But in the heat of the moment I didn't have the luxury of showing too much concern about the future, I was more grounded in the present trying to survive.

Another Taloned attack tried to tear into me as the monster followed up its first attack with another. I barely dodged out of the way as it tried to kick out its talons and rake me with them. Something in that moment stood out to me, the Hagraven was off balance. Even as I moved out the way to evade, I tried to position myself better and counter attacked. Jumping forward in counterattack as I swung the ax down and caught the monster in its collarbone.

It was quick to react and I suffered for it as talons raked my face and my vision turned red as blood bled freely getting into my eyes. I didn’t fight it or try to wrest the hand ax free. Instead, I backpaddled away from it, watching as the monster tried unsuccessful to remove the ax and stop the bleeding and slumped over, stunned.

The fight wasn’t over. I needed to do more, and at Fel’s urging I grabbed a rock from the tunnel and approached the fallen Hagraven. I moved in, careful to avoid any follow up from the monster, fully aware of the dangerous it represented to me as I moved to straddle the body and hoisted the rock in the air, ready to end it all.

Something changed in the cave, something I felt before seeing as I realized I smelled the scent of smoke. A small fire had appeared underneath me as the Hagraven started to mumble and the ritual circle began to glow.

Christopher, you have to stop it now. Fel commanded as the fire spread beneath my feet, starting to burn. It’s a spell.

Knowing that Fel was right I didn’t hesitate and brought the rock down with a dull thud into the monster’s skull as bits of bone broke and collapsed in on itself. But though the chanting stopped, whatever spell the dead monster had started remained in motion. Having no choice, I wasted no time in running away from the glowing circle.

The entire room lit up in a fierce light that blinded me temporally even though my back was turned. For a brief second, a wall of Hellfire had descended unto the ritual circle, something that I knew without doubt would have left me dead and my body charred into ashes.

For reasons I didn’t understand or know, the Hagraven’ss body remained, though the atmosphere of the cave seemed to have changed. The candles in the room no longer shone with a crimson red but had changed to a pale yellow. The monsters body began to change, the wounds I had inflicted on it healing as the wings disappeared back into the body and the talons disappeared. Within moments I saw the body of the young girl that I’d seen in the illusion of the kitchen. For a brief moment I thought I could hear a whisper on the wind. Thank you for freeing me.

The body collapsed into dusk, and all that was left behind was a mask bearing a resemblance to the Hagraven. Do not touch that Christopher. It’s cursed. Fel pleaded, but despite the Wisp’s protesting, I bent over and picked it up.

The mouth on the mouth opened, and the voice of some horrible otherworldly being spoke through it. “Do you wish to accept the power of the Witch of the Wastes?” I knew then what had likely happened to the girl. She had said yes and lost herself. I threw the mask down in disgust. Enraged, I overturned the alter and threw down the candles, lighting everything I could in the room on fire. I didn’t want to leave any trace of this behind.

!Alert!

Your cold score has been reset

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!Alert!

You are hungry. You must eat soon or you will stop healing.

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