Chapter 24: The Last Golden Rose
A cool breeze blew from the tunnel as Mith and Ludus entered. Their feet hit the cool wet ground as the noise echoed through the cavernous depths. The light from the outside penetrated only several yards in. Everything beyond that was completely black. The ground they stood on was not entirely flat; several stalagmites grew up from the floor. Above them stalactites hung to the ceiling. Also on the ground were two long, thick pieces of wood. Near the top were metal fans pointing upward. Ludus picked one up and a flame suddenly erupted to life at the top. Once the flame was lit the tunnel entrance shrank to nothing. Mith let out a gasp and quickly picked up the other stick. Hers lit up also. The torches only lit a few feet in each direction, so the journey would have to be made slowly. Dripping could be heard all around along with the far off clack clack of their echoing footsteps.
Ludus wasted no time in started forward. Mith came slowly behind. They both waved their torches in all directions as they walked to make sure they saw everything on their way. The tunnel was about ten feet wide while the ceiling stayed at about seven feet high. The floor had many stalagmites and required the fourteen year olds to swerve this way and that to avoid them.
Drip . . . Drip . . . Drip . . . Clack . . . Clack. . .
The floor started into a slight angle downward. Occasionally one would stop, seeing something strange in the fire light. Most times it was just a shadow or their eyes playing tricks on them. Following the shock they continued downward. The temperature had warmed up now and it was quite comfortable, for a tunnel inside of a mountain.
Calmness was felt all around. Neither person felt much like talking. Their concentration rested on finding the hurdles that Zing had mentioned as well as finding the rose. Ludus wished he had asked how long the tunnel was, although he doubted that Zing would have even known. Both of them were really getting tired now. The day was only just now getting into the late afternoon and they already had a long trek up a mountain. They breathed deeply wishing that they had water. Shortly after thinking of water a large rock basin was found filled with water. Mith wondered if that is where the dripping came from, but she did not see any water dripping into the basin. Ludus put his hand in the water to test it; it seemed alright so he drank some. It was really good water, the best he had had in a long time. Mith saw and came over to have a drink. She also thought it was exceptional tasting. When they were full of water they continued. Their bodies felt better after the water break, but they were still tired.
“Hey Lu.” Mith whispered after a long while of walking.
“What’s up?”
“What do you think the rose looks like?”
“Oh, I don’t know, but I hope it’s easy to spot. I kinda imagined it shining really bright.”
“Yeah, that’s what I imagined too. Maybe it’s in a whole area made just for it. You know, not just sitting on the ground or something like that.”
Drip . . . Drip . . . Drip . . . Clack . . . Clack . . .
“I guess we’ll have to grab it together, to make sure none of us get frozen.”
Mith nodded. “That’s a good idea.”
The conversation fell apart and they walked on in silence. Ludus held his torch as far in front of him as he could. Mith kept looking behind her. She had a strange sensation that someone was watching her, but then again she got that most places. Ludus also felt that he was being watched, but he was used to it now. Ever since he first arrived in the palace he felt as though he was being watched all the time. Ludus tried again at a conversation.
“So what’s the first thing you are going to do when we get back home and everything is alright?”
Mith liked the new optimistic Ludus. She smiled and answered. “First I want to have a day with my dad. I think that would be nice. Then I want to hang out with some of the other kids in town.” She had pushed the incident at the entrance to the tunnel from her mind, she now felt much happier.
“That sounds nice. First thing I want to do is ask Maows why he and the other elders lied to us for so long. And then I want to tell our story to the youngins and see the look on their faces as I tell it. I’ll bet it is the same look we had on our faces when Mitchum told us about Memoria and the founders.”
Drip . . . Drip . . . Drip . . . Clack . . . Clack . . .
“I am sure Maows has been asked that question many times. The thing I want to know is how they kept this much stuff secret. You’d think someone coming back would have told us something.”
“It’s the idea of knowing something someone else doesn’t, old Mith. When the other fourteen year olds came back they felt like adults and didn’t want to be associated with those who know so much less. At least that’s how I see it.”
The tunnel curved to the right as the floor dropped slightly.
“Well, perhaps you’re right. Hey, you know what? We have been on a trip that blows any other out of the water.”
Ludus laughed a little nervously. “Right-O, just imagine what the fifteen and sixteen year olds are gonna say when we tell them about this. They probably won’t even believe us.”
“They will have to when we get escorted home by Mitchum and possibly even the king and queen.”
“If Maows even lets them in.”
“Exactly, but he should.”
Mith suddenly stopped. Ludus was looking at her when she did and saw the alarm on her face. He turned slowly to see what she saw, afraid to look. When he saw it he almost dropped his torch.
A man stood before them in the tunnel. At least it looked like a man. He seemed to be different than any person they had ever seen before. He wore long green robes of impeccable quality. The shade of green was picked out by Mith immediately. It was the exact same shade as the green in the palace, the green that looked like somebody had thrown it up. The man was only slightly taller than Mith and Ludus, and was rather large. He looked past them as if not seeing them at all. The strangest part of all was that he flickered just as the flames did. He spoke with an accent that they could not place. It was similar to their own, but stronger and different.
“Good day.” The man called out as if speaking to someone far away. “My name is Lwid. You may have heard of me. I trust that you have been chosen by the royalty of Parli and are here to take the symbol. Whatever the reason may be I ask that you rethink your plan. The rose was put in its spot not to protect it but to protect you. The magic inside the rose is stronger than can be imagined. Trust me, it was once in me. But if you still must take the rose I ask you to be careful. I have placed several obstacles in the way of you finding it. Only truly strong beings can take it.” Lwid gave a strange nod. “But seeing as you were sent by the royalty, you must be that person. And I should probably tell you, I’ve been said to have a very strange sense of humor. Good luck.”
Ludus turned to Mith with a look of surprise. He then turned back to Lwid. “Are you really here?”
Lwid did not answer. Mith went around to the side of him and waved for Ludus to come over. He did and saw that Lwid was flat, only an image. Slowly he moved his hand toward the image but Mith caught his arm and brought it back down. The image flickered and disappeared. There was no sign that it had ever been there. Ludus felt good that he had just met one of the original lords and ladies, even if he was just an image.
From that point on the two of them strode very carefully. Not knowing when and where the obstacles would be was perhaps scarier than the obstacles themselves could ever be. They took one step at a time, making sure their foot was securely flat on the ground before moving the other one. With each step they expected something to happen, perhaps a rumble or a noise to warn them that something was about to occur. Ludus ran the last part of the message in his head over and over again. He was not sure what Lwid having a strange sense of humor had to do with anything.
The tunnel’s floor turned a much steeper angle. The kids had to watch out to make sure they did not slide down into the darkness. They lay back
and used one hand to steady themselves while the other held the torch. The steepness grew more and more until they felt like they were practically climbing down a wall. Finally the floor leveled out once more and they stood up. The first thing Ludus noticed was that the stalactites and stalagmites were gone. The rocky and uneven floor was replaced by smooth brown stone. Ludus knew this to mean that the obstacles must be starting soon. He took several steps carefully, looking back to see Mith doing the same.
After several minutes Ludus saw something strange. He had waved his torch in the direction of the left wall and saw a green stone embedded in the wall. The appearance of a green stone was strange to him so he got a closer look. For a moment he forgot about the obstacles and neared the stone. The light from the flame shone off the stone’s glossy surface. Ludus could see himself in the rock. His hair appeared matted down on his forehead from sweat. The temperature had risen since the floor dropped down. His finger moved slowly toward the shiny stone. Mith noticed what he was doing and called to him. Ludus did not notice, his finger moved ever closer. Mith called again but realized it was useless. She started towards him. Ludus’s finger was now only an inch from the stone. All of a sudden a large ghostly face appeared over the rock. It laughed heartily in the second that it was visible.
Ludus launched himself back and fell to the floor. His torch immediately went out upon hitting the ground. He breathed heavily and looked back up to where the face had been. The stone was now gone.
“F-f-f-face.” Ludus stammered.
“I saw it. It was probably one of the obstacles. Now we only have half of the light we had before.”
Ludus picked up the torch but it did not come back to life with fire. He tapped it on the ground, and then tried pounding it on the ground; he then tried to light it with Mith’s. Nothing worked, he had dropped the torch and now it was useless.
“Sorry.” Ludus sighed gloomily.
“Don’t apologize to me. It’s alright; I probably would have done the same thing.”
“No, you wouldn’t have. Only I would have done something so stupid.”
“Don’t say that. We need to keep going.”
Ludus was glad to hear that Mith wanted to keep going and followed closely behind her. The difference in light was clearly visible. Now they could only see about five feet in front of them. He felt ashamed and was happy to be bringing up the rear so Mith could not see him. Mith liked leading; she no longer felt the strange feeling that she was being watched from behind. She walked much faster than Ludus. Every now and then Ludus would make a small noise when he thought she took a step too quickly. He did not want the same thing to happen to her.
Drip . . . Drip . . . Drip . . . Clack . . . Clack . . .
The ground changed color again. This time it was a yellow stone. It looked as though the floor now had a brick pattern. The walls still looked the same as when they had entered the tunnel. Ludus opened his mouth wide and moved his jaw around trying to combat the feeling that his ears were fogged. He had no idea how far they were now into the mountain, but he figured they were over half way.
“Hey, Mith, be careful where you step.”
“I know, Lu, don’t worry.”
“Alright, but we don’t know what the next obstacle is.”
“That’s fine, it will come up and we’ll get through it. We have to.”
“Sounds good, I’ll be right behind you the whole time.”
“How brave.”
“You’ll be brave for the both of us.”
The sound of the echo changed pitch on the new floor. It seemed to be denser. The noise kept Ludus on guard. He continued to look about in all directions. The darkness all around pressed in on the light, as if it wanted to extinguish its brilliance and make the tunnel completely dark once again. The fire crackled and spit. The dripping continued, louder this time. With each step it continued to get louder. Added to the dripping was the sound of running water. Quiet at first, but just as the dripping it grew with each step.
Both were anxious, both tired, neither wanted to quit. Each time they thought of resting the idea of their frozen families and friends came to mind. That created an extra force that pushed them onward into the darkness. Both were on the lookout for anything that might be the next obstacle. When it did come there was not much time to do anything about it.
Another person became visible in the fire’s light, then another person, standing right next to the first. Mith and Ludus were only a little shocked when they saw the people. At first they thought they had come to a giant mirror. In the fire light appeared a second Mith and Ludus. The second set looked exactly as the first, the same clothes and the same expressions. The only difference was that the original pair had a torch between them, the new pair did not. Ludus stared at his double, watching him carefully. Mith did the same with her own double. She was surprised to see how dirty her double appeared, hoping she did not look the same.
“My name is Ludus.” The new Ludus said mechanically.
The real Ludus nodded slowly. “As am I.”
“Negative, I am the real Ludus.”
“Alright, you are the real Ludus.”
The other Ludus then walked past the real Ludus and out of sight. The other Mith looked to the real Mith.
“My name is Mith.”
“Sure, whatever.”
The other Mith then walked past the Real Mith and out of sight. The real kids looked to each other.
“What a strange obstacle.” Mith sighed, happy it was not harder. They started walking once again in the direction of the water.
“Maybe Lwid thought we would fight them or something.”
“Guess we outsmarted him.” Mith stated.
The floor changed colors once more. This time it was a deep purple with a very clear brick pattern. The echoes of the footsteps changed once again. This time the floor seemed very thin. Ludus was more confident now and walked with ease and quickness. He imagined the battle going on outside. He wondered how Mitchum was doing; he was probably there by now fighting in the fray. Ludus did not know how a battle would look. The version he saw in his head had a lot of wrestling on the ground and strength contests to determine the winner. Mith saw the battle as slightly closer to what it actually was. In her mind it contained the throwing of rocks and shouts of whose rocks were better. Both had it wrong, but their minds were more at ease with their versions.
A rumble was heard from somewhere below them. They looked at each other, horrified. They had only one idea as to what that sound was. Something cracked behind them. They looked back but could not see anything due to the oppressive darkness. The rumbling had grown very loud, and it continued to grow. Instinctively they started to jog into the dark, looking behind them as they did. And then they saw it. The floor was crumbling into an abyss beneath them. They started into a full sprint. Ludus found it hard to take his eyes away and was far behind Mith when he started running. The crumbling floor chased them down. It was gaining on Ludus very quickly. He could barely see where he was going. The torch was being thrust around by Mith as she ran. Ludus could see her up ahead and traveled in that direction.
He ran on the edge. Ludus could feel the floor starting its fall beneath him. Miraculously he stayed upright as his feet moved across bricks that were falling as he ran across them. The light stopped moving in front of him. Mith must have found the end. Right as Ludus was about to reach Mith, who stood on the original tunnel floor, he fell with the bricks. He caught onto the edge of the rocky ledge and hung on for his life. Mith kneeled down to help him but could not get him back up with the torch in her hand.
“Help me.” Ludus yelled. He could feel his hands slipping.
“I’m trying.” Mith yelled back. She pulled on his arm but it was no good. She looked from the torch to Ludus and made her decision. She dropped the torch, which went out, and pulled Ludus up with both hands. Slowly he made it back onto the even ground.
Nothing could be seen. Mit
h and Ludus lay on the rocky ground breathing hard. The darkness pressed in on their eyes. All they could tell was that they were on the edge of a cliff, and that they were near each other. Nothing else was certain. Slowly they sat up.
“Thanks . . . I owe ya one.”
“You already helped me out.”
Ludus gasped. “Hey, you see that?”
“What?”
“That.” Ludus pointed and then realized Mith couldn’t see his hand. “There, up ahead. That light.”
Mith looked. Sure enough there was a small light some one hundred yards away. It was very small but it cut through the darkness easily. She stood up and stepped in its direction. Ludus followed. Something about that light was deeply interesting to them. They both thought the same thing but kept it to themselves for fear they were wrong. Carefully they walked towards it, hands out with a foot making sure there was actually ground beneath them. As they got closer they saw that what the light came from was a small object. Excitement filled them as they walked a little faster. When they were only twenty yards away more light came. It was as if someone slowly lit candles all around them. Their environment showed itself in this new light.
Together they were standing on the edge of a room inside the tunnel. The cavernous walls and ceilings did not change. What changed was the floor once again. But this time instead of brick it was grassy. It was as if they were standing in a small meadow inside the mountain. Water flowed in a canal cut in the center of the grassy floor. Short walls with large chunks missing were seen here and there around the room. The remains of columns stood in various places. The rest of the columns were nowhere to be seen, making Mith and Ludus feel that the ruin design was done purposefully. In the center of the grassy area was a neatly cut stone. Writing was on the stone, but Mith and Ludus did not even notice at first. Their eyes were glued to what sat on the stone. Atop of a golden saucer floated a golden rose. The last golden rose. A silver mist swirled and circled around it.
The greatest feelings erupted from the tired young travelers. Ludus lifted his arms in celebration while Mith jumped around. They laughed, they shouted, they almost cried. Ludus gave Mith a giant hug and they jumped around together. When he let go they saw something that dampened their spirits. The other Mith and Ludus had appeared right next to the rose. They had not been their only a moment before. Ludus took a step forward. The other kids swiftly moved their arms up to where their hands were both around the rose. Ludus stopped; hands up for them to halt.
“Okay, I stopped. What is it that you want?”
“We are the real Mith and Ludus.” They said in unison. “We will take the rose to help stop danger.”
“No, we are the real Mith and Ludus.” Mith said slowly.
The other ones shook their heads. “No, you said that we were.”
“We did, but we did not know what to say. You see we really—”
“You lied?” The fake pair asked.
“Well, no, we just did not know what to say.” Mith tried to explain.
“You lied?”
“No, no, we did not.”
“You lied?”
“Yes, we lied.” Ludus suddenly shouted.
The other Mith and Ludus slowly took their hands away from the rose. Everything stayed the same for a moment.
“You tell the truth.” They said as they turned around and walked away. They disappeared through the wall on the far side of the room.
Ludus sighed again and hunched down. “You see, you just need to know what to say.”
“How did you know that would work?”
“What you were doing wasn’t so I tried my own way.”
“Lucky gamble.”
“I call it knowing what to do.”
“Whatever, let’s do this.” Mith stepped into the grassy area heading for the rose.
“Wait.” Ludus called to her.
“What is it?”
“Look where we are. We are in the chamber of a golden rose.”
“And we need to pick it up so come down here.”
“Only a few days ago we only knew the stories that Maows told us. Remember those?”
“Yes I do, now come on.”
Ludus waited just for an instant. He wanted to take in the sight and the feeling he felt at that moment. Then he rushed down to where Mith was. After jumping over the water they were right in front of the rose. The light it emitted was incredible. It was so bright for something so small. Ludus put his hand close to it and felt a warm radiation from it. Mith put her hand up to it as well.
“Do you think everything is going as planned?”
Ludus smiled nervously. “I sure hope so. The only way to find out though is to take the rose.”
“Ready? This is it. One . . . Two . . . Three . . .”
Their hands clasped around the rose. Ludus grabbed the stem while Mith grabbed the bulb. Together they carefully moved the rose from over the golden saucer it hovered over. Nothing changed until the rose was completely removed from above the saucer. As soon as the stem crossed over the ground everything changed. The silvery mist vanished and the entire tunnel groaned. Wind blew all around and Ludus was considering putting the rose back until he saw Mith’s face. She was so determined to hold onto the bulb of the rose while the wind blew. The wind died down, nothing else had changed.