Chapter 17

Claustrophobia was nothing that Aubrey hadn’t known before in her life, waking up in a coffin put a lot of things into perspective. Thus while the walls were brushing her elbows with each step and the roof was only a foot or so above her head, Aubrey couldn’t find it in herself to resort to a full scale panic attack like a certain Greek before her. The great heaving mass of muscle had drawn in on his self, the low roof causing him to duck his head to avoid a concussion. Added to that, his erratic breathing and hurried footsteps drew attention to his obvious unease at the current situation. Aubrey would have laughed if she didn’t think it would anger him and probably scare herself out of her shoes.

“Are we nearly there yet, traitorous woman?” Patroklus snarled though the effect was lessened by the tremble in his voice.

“I don’t know, I’ve never been in these tunnels before but I think there is still a long way to go yet.” I finished the words with a prod in his back with the tip of the sword to urge him forwards.

It took over an hour for Aubrey and Patroklus to reach a seemingly dead end in the tunnel. The incessant whining from the male counterpart during the entire walk had caused a migraine to form behind her eyes so that it stabbed through her skull with each syllable that passed through his lips. And it only got worse when he ground to a halt, his eyes on the stretch of wall a few feet away.

“There’s no way, you brought me here for nothing.”

Aubrey ground her teeth together at the petulant tone before she urged him forwards with the tip of the blade biting into his skin as a silent warning. He paused at the end of the corridor so that his toes were touching the cold stone of the walls and then threw a glare over his shoulder at the petite red head as if to say ‘now what?’

The space was lit by nothing but a solitary torch on the wall. For a moment, a silence cut through the air as the pair stared at the wall glumly. But then with a jerk, Aubrey eyed the torch hanging from its bracket and raised a brow.

Surely not, she thought to herself with nothing but incredulity, it couldn’t possibly be like some Indiana Jones adventure could it?

Pushing past the grouching man before her, the Atlantian stretched out her ghostly hand and wrapped it around the torch bracket. For a moment, she only relished the intense heat burning into the back of her hand while causing her alabaster skin to glow as if lit with its own fire. And then finally, she tugged.

A shuddering crunch ran through the enclosed space and the earth beneath their feet rumbled like a grouching giant waking from its rest. A groan issued forth and then as crumbles of dust and small rock tumbled from the ceiling, a small section of the wall gave way. Immediately the pair stepped forwards and peered into the room beyond to see that they were in the armoury.

In the dim torchlight, swords glinted, and scores of shields stood along the walls like silent sentinels just waiting to be called into duty. Patroklus made a move to grasp the nearest sword, the muscles bunching in his arms a second before he lunged but Aubrey despite her small stature, quickly bested the man and had him on the floor with the sword biting at his throat.

“Think about doing that again, and I will scream so loud that the guards will arrive and you will have nowhere to run.”

The threat was received with a rapid series of nods before she actually removed the blade from where it bit into his flesh and then placed it upon the rack with all of the other blades.

“I won’t need this.” She murmured before sending a scowl at a rather confused Patroklus. “It would look suspicious for a young woman to be wandering around with a blade. Not come with me or I’ll leave you to the mercy of the patrol.”

Without giving him a chance to reply, Aubrey wrapped her hands around his arm and tugged his protesting form into a hallway. Thankfully the space was wider and the builders of the great city of Troy had been kind enough to give the citizens enough room to walk around with their head held high.  Almost immediately the pair was drawn into the rush of people flooding through the halls trying to get somewhere or other.  

“Go with the tide, I need to find Tiberius but there is no telling where he will even be.” Aubrey whispered under her breath as she trailed behind a group of three young women, all of which were oblivious to their presence as they were too busy giggling amongst themselves.

It felt like forever that they moved in the wake of the women but the three of them eventually turned off into what could only be a small temple if the smell of incense and the aura of tranquillity were anything to go by. Instead of following them in which would have been a little suspicious, the two of them followed the corridor as it winded to and fro, until the tantalisingly luscious scent of cooked meat and the gentle lull of sleepy chatter drew their feet towards the dining hall.

Serving girls walked between tables with trays of fresh fruit or with jugs full of wine and water. At the head of the hall, raised above all of the others sat the royal family of Troy, Hector and his wife as well as the rumoured cause of the entire war Paris and the radiant Helen. Aubrey had the insane urge to claw the beautiful blondes face before pushing down the unhealthy jealousy of the woman who would be long dead by the time she was even born.

Shaking off the thought, Aubrey continued perusing through the tables looking for that familiar face or at least a face of someone that would help her get home. But her fellow Atlantian’s didn’t seem to be anywhere within sight.

“What’s you plan now?” Patroklus whispered into his companion’s ear only for her to yelp and spin around.

However, when she noted their proximity, Aubrey quickly backpedalled creating a gap between them. But disaster was quick to strike and every eye in the room was drawn to the wine soaked women now sprawled out on the floor. Spluttering and coughing, the Atlantian tried to disentangle herself from the dainty figure beneath her but the wine had soaked the floors beneath them causing the surface to become slick. Thus any attempt to find purchase and rise to her feet only resulted in her crashing back onto the groaning body beneath her.

“I am so sorry.” Aubrey whispered frantically as she held her hand out to Patroklus to aid her from her position on the floor.

However, when her gaze frowned at her still empty outstretched hand, she noted with a lips pulled taught in silent fury that the spot he had been standing in before was now empty. Her eyes quickly scanned the room but quickly became distracted as others advanced on the sodden pair to try and assist the women from the floor. Yet, almost in unison, the men paused when they looked upon the woman with hair of fire. Their eyes perused the rest of her and took in that she was dressed differently and was definitely not a woman of the royal household before their entire demeanour changed.

 Quickly the guards withdrew their swords on their approach and within seconds she found herself surrounded and at the mercy of several blades. Holding her hands up in a placating manner, Aubrey offered them a shaky smile as she tried to reassure the men before her that she was harmless.

However, these men were not so trusting as some and Aubrey soon felt the pinch as the blades dug into her skin. Yet as Hector, his brother Paris and the ruler of Troy approached, she noted that each of them stiffened when their eyes fell upon the hands of the captive. Or more specifically the marking on her palm that looked as it was alive with the rippling colours that moved through the symbol.

“Release her now.” A strong unwavering voice commanded in a whisper that brought goosebumps onto the young woman’s arms and brokered no arguments from his guards.

A swish of fabric floated through the thick silence that hung about the room like a suffocating cloth. Aubrey had trained her gaze on the floor in anticipation for whatever was to come and even winced when sandaled feet appeared within her line of vision. Thus, it was no surprise that she startled when a hand tilted her face up so that her gaze would meet the wizened eyes of an old and but kind leader whose white hair bespoke of his many years and trials upon the earth.

“I believe my dear, that you are a long way from home.” His free hand took her marked hand in his and then he allowed his thumb to skim over the marking. A strange rush of energy coursed through the red head so that her head was thrown back and she cried out in a mixture of pain and awe. The reaction was bizarre but she didn’t hand a clue how he triggered it.

Then again, she reminded herself, there are so many things about this that I do not understand.

 “And if rumours are to be correct, you should be dead and returned to the gods by now.” He continued which immediately started the murmuring within their audience.

“I was dead, and now I am alive.” Aubrey spoke loudly and clearly causing more shocked whispers from the other diners but the ex-librarian ignored all of them as she stared hard at the face that knew so much. “However the real question is why you know so much about me. You know what I am.” The statement was bold even for her, the little studious girl who was being forced out of her shell due to the new and bewildering situations but the man before her didn’t even blink.

“You are one of a race many thought dead...” He paused which caused everyone listening to their conversation to hold their breaths in anticipation. “...Atlantian.”

Sorry its crap. I'm really struggling to get back into writing after such a long time away from it. I will probably change this when I actually get around to editing which at the rate I'm going will be about two years from now lol Either way, I hope to get another chapter up soon and not take over a month to do it lol