Chapter 36. Deception

ister Lemony squinted as sunlight seeped through the high windows of the barracks at Zu Heltzer and struck her face painfully.  It was the fourth day of their expedition and Twisted Lu had declared it a time for resting.  No one had roused her after her evening’s excesses, and judging by the angle of the sun and the quiet, she was alone.

Her throat ached for water and her mouth felt like it was full of drying lacquer.  Her head pounded as if someone were driving a stiletto between her eyes.  She staggered to her feet and nearly fell over as she flopped from the lower bunk.  She pressed her hands to her ears and muttered a prayer but her throat was much too dry and her head blared with pain.

“Liang Meng,” Twisted Lu said coldly, “How nice of you to get out of bed.”

“Elephant trousers,” she muttered.

“You disgust me, half breed,” Mai Ling snapped, “I didn’t know Dwayna was tolerant of drunkards.”

“I certainly do not approve,” Twisted Lu growled.

“Could I have some water, please?” Lemony mumbled, surrendering in her losing battle with Canthan and choosing a language that did not require delicate inflection while she was barely able to control her tongue.

“I’ll give you water when I’m done with you,” Twisted Lu hissed.

“Could I have it before?” Lemony croaked, “I doubt I can focus on anything until then and I don’t want to be disrespectful.”

“You honestly haven’t a clue,” Mai Ling sneered, “Nitaje said she was scared of small spaces.”

“Really?” Twisted Lu mused.

“Whimpered like a baby all the way to Cantha from Lion’s Arch,” Mai Ling replied, her eyes narrowing cruelly, “I should like to see that.”

Lemony leaned blearily against a wall, knowing she should be alarmed but unable to rouse the appropriate parts of her mind or body to do the job.  She watched as the big cedar chest that Twisted Lu traveled with was emptied, recognizing Pendaran’s mink cloak, chakram, mask and cane as the necromancer set them aside with the ritualist’s other things.

“Is Pen dead?” she asked, shuddering as she recalled his terrible screams of pain.

“Probably not yet,” Mai Ling replied with a vile laugh, “Give him another week or two.”

Twisted Lu snorted cruelly.

“Starvation was too good for him.  Kiku should have quartered him,” the ritualist said with a grin as if savoring the thought.

“Is he still in the guild hall?” Lemony asked bluntly while they were in the mood to gloat over their deeds.

“Oh dear no,” Mai Ling laughed, “He’s down in the sewers with the other filth.  Pity he was out cold while they bricked him in.  He was a very talented screamer.”

“You’re horrible people and I wish you’d do humanity a favor and die,” Lemony croaked, her stomach doing a flip of disgust at the thought of the poor man trapped in the dark beneath the great city.

“It’s only what he deserved,” Twisted Lu laughed, “If it had been my choice I’d have cut a few bits off first.”

“How could you put him right under the nose of the gods?” Lemony moaned, a part of her mind seeking answers while the rest of it cursed at her and her excesses.

Mai Ling snorted derisively, pulling the last of the bundles from the bottom of the chest.

“I hope his rotting corpse makes a big stink for them and their avatars.”

“Get in,” Twisted Lu snapped, gesturing to the box.

“I think not,” Lemony replied, the stupor of her headache lifting slightly so that fear could to claw to the surface.  When Lemony drooped to her knees, Mai Ling grumbled and stalked forth to grasp her collar, hauling her toward the cedar chest.

“In,” Twisted Lu growled, “Or I’ll have you beaten senseless.”

“Just don’t put anything on top of me,” Lemony whimpered, shuddering demonstratively away from Pendaran’s cloak.  Mai Ling snarled with glee as Lemony climbed over the edge of the box, trembling as fear took hold of her.  She closed her eyes, focusing on the sharp stabbing pain between her eyes, pulling away from the raw terror of the tiny space.  The lid was still up.  She wasn’t trapped yet.

Twisted Lu grew impatient and pushed her down until she lay curled within it, the sides of the box pressing in around her.  Then, with a cruel laugh, Mai Ling dropped the mink cloak on top of Lemony and the lid slammed shut, enveloping her in darkness and an overwhelming odor of cedar.  Lemony swallowed as tears rose instantly to her clenched eyes and bile gathered in her throat. 

Oh gods.  Focus on the pain.  Pain means you’re alive.  Now grab the cloak and find the pockets.  Pendaran stashed stuff in them.  Search for them.  But it’s so dark and I’m going to die in here.  So dark and I can’t escape.  I can’t breathe.  Cloak.  Get it.  Pockets. Find them.  I can’t breathe.  I’ll die in here.  Let me out.  Please, I don’t want to die in here.  Pockets.  Find them before you pass out.  They won’t kill you.  You can’t scream like that if you can’t breathe.  Coin.  Found the coin.  Idiot wouldn’t teach me how to flip it on my knuckles.  Key.  Wonder what it’s for.  Oh gods, I can’t breathe.  Too hot.  I can’t move.  Stop screaming and they’ll let you out.  Oh, a ring.  Wonder if it’s pretty? I’m going to die, I can’t breathe.  Ugh, a dirty kerchief.  Crusted with snot.  I’m going to die in here.  I’ll find you Pen, don’t worry. Oh gods, let me out.  Put the things in your shirt now, you’re passing out.  I’m dying.

Lemony recovered a short time later with her head on Huan Yue’s lap.  The woman was flushed with rage, but when Lemony gazed up into her face, she sighed with relief and immediately brought a bowl of water to her lips.

“That was completely unnecessary,” Huan Yue said coldly to Twisted Lu as Lemony choked in her enthusiasm to slake her thirst.

“Mend ailment?” she pleaded groggily.  Huan Yue frowned but set the bowl aside, then placed her hands upon Lemony’s temples and prayed over her.  Thank the gods, the head ache lifted but the thirst continued.  Huan Yue retrieved the bowl and helped Lemony hold it to her lips as she drank deeply of it.

“She’ll recover,” the ritualist shouted angrily, “Remember your place.”

“I believe the message I brought you is from Kiku,” Huan Yue replied.  If she were cowed by Twisted Lu, she hid it well

“She’s right,” Mai Ling said as she picked up the tightly rolled scroll and gazed upon the seal.  Without further ado, the necromancer broke it and began to unroll the paper.

“What does it say?” Twisted Lu demanded.

“If you took that stupid blindfold off you could read it yourself,” Mai Ling grumbled, ”We are to return home immediately and make sure that Liang Meng is unharmed and in good condition. Oh, and if she is not in good condition, Kiku will discipline you herself.  The usual.”

Lemony observed with some satisfaction that Twisted Lu was disconcerted.

“The Crystal Palm are coming for a visit,” Mai Ling said as her eyes continued to scan the document, “Guild meeting.  We’d better get the monk some new clothes and a hair cut.”

“When is the meeting?”

“Tomorrow morning.  The Crystal Palm are showing up at noon.”

“Damn them,” Twisted Lu spat.

“Nitaje has been removed from the guild,” Mai Ling continued, “I think the boss is on a rampage.  They finally managed to find the secret dwelling place of the Black Scorpion Brotherhood.”

“Where are the others?” Twisted Lu demanded of Huan Yue.

“In Zu Heltzer,” the woman replied, setting the empty bowl aside.  Lemony thanked her and sat up.

“Gather them,” Twisted Lu said brusquely, “We leave now, that way we’ll reach the guild hall by midnight.”