by Cherry » Thu Dec 26, 2013 4:44 pm
A short, wiry girl of 16 leaned up against a wooden beam. The smell of sweat, smoke, and cider filled the shady bar she was in.
But Heather Crock wasn't there for the same reason everyone else was. She was looking for something. Something so important that her father lost his life looking for it.
Heather walked across the sticky floor and sat down at a bar stool. Next to her a muscular man, who other than the watermelon sized muscles on his arms, looked like any other normal person.
"Berkley. Just the man I was looking for." She said.
He turned and his dark brown eyes widened. "Heather? Little miss Heather Crock? You've grown up."
She smiled impatiently. "I need your help. You see, I've heard you've gotten information on the Kitoe Key."
"I have, but I'm not going to tell you." She glared at him. "Your dad died because he was searching for it. You know he was the best at what he did. I know because I was right there along with him for most of it. Said he needed a partner."
"I can hold my own just fine. Watch." She got up, reached her hand into her leather jacket's pocket, and pulled out a short knife.
Some customers were throwing darts at a bullseye. A few missed terribly.
Heather sent the knife through the air. It landed on the edge of the bullseye.
"See?" She asked smugly.
"Think you can protect yourself with some pin the tail on the donkey? You need more protection than that. I offer you my services." Berkeley extended his hand.
"Alright. You're hired. You'll be paid if we manage to pull it off." She took his hand and shook it. "Now, about the Kitoe Key?"
-A Day Later-
"Heather, get up." Berkeley said, shaking the sleeping girl's shoulder.
She sat up quickly. Her head hit the top of her tent, and the force of it pulled the stakes from the ground.
The tent billowed down on them.
"What do you want?" Heather asked grumpily. She crawled out of the tent.
"You've overslept. I kept thinking you'd come out, but we need to keep moving." He answered. "Fire's going, made coffee, and packed up my things. You'd better, too."
Heather nodded, feeling embarrassed about the tent mishap.
She re-entered the tent and started on changing her clothes.
"I don't know how people can do this." She mumbled. She could hardly move in the tight space.
Finally she emerged in brown leggings and a simple green tunic.
She are breakfast quickly, skipping the coffee. It was too strong for her taste.
After folding the tent, the two set off.
"Where exactly are we going?" She asked.
"To Paragon Gorge. I heard there was a sort of building there where that Joseph Masters fellow stuck the key."
"Was he my dad's competition?" Heather squinted into the distance, trying to see if any high ground was nearby.
"That's him. There were legends that it unlocked some room in a crypt that was filled with gold, weapons, jewels." Berkeley said. "We'd know if Masters got to the crypt since the weapons were said to be unlike any made at that time."
"Is it close?" Heather asked.
"Only half a day of walking, at least that's what most people say."
"Oh. We'll take a few breaks, right?"
"Of course. Just not now." He said, smiling.
"I wasn't asking for one." She replied. She tucked a strand of her long brown hair into her ponytail.
"We're lucky the weather is so good for December." Her partner said.
"We're right near the equator. Of course it's good weather."
"Right. I forgot... That." He unconvincingly said.
She ignored him and kept walking.
Hours later, the hot sun beat down on them. Heather was convinced she was at least two shades darker from being in the sun that long.
"We can take a break now." Berkeley said, sitting down on a rock.
"Good." Heather sighed, fixing her hair again. She reached into her pack to pull out a paper fan. Berkeley laughed.
"I see your mother taught you to be proper." He wiped his dusty hands on his pants. "But your father taught you to go on adventures. And those don't require flappin' prissy paper fans."
"They might." She said defiantly, though shoved it back in her bag.
Berkeley drank from his canteen. He offered it to Heather but she refused.
"I have my own, see?"
"You can't afford to be picky while adventuring." He said good-naturedly.
She smiled and ducked her head.
They sat and talked about adventures he and her father went on.
"Once we stayed at a boarding house while we made our way back from finding some old cave, and there was this waitress who kept watching me, at least that's what Parker -your old man- told me. So I went up and said hello, and sometime soon we might get hitched. This was a few years ago." He said.
"That's nice. Does she think your job is exciting?"
"We don't get paid, you know. Except if we sell whatever we got or we were hired. But she does think it sounds exciting."
"Do you think we ought to get moving now?" Heather asked.
"Yes. We still have some ways to go."
They walked for miles, until finally reaching the Paragon Gorge.
"Here it is." Berkeley said.
Inside the gorge, a tall, intricate building stood in the middle of the valley.
"What is this place?" Heather asked.
"Formerly it was a library, but now it's my headquarters. And your resting place." A deep voice boomed from just inside the doorway.
"Masters! Come out!" Berkeley pulled out a gun from his pocket.
"Oh, I don't need to." Masters called.
There was a snapping sound and the ground opened up underneath Berkeley.
"Who is this?" Masters asked.
"I'm Parker Crock's daughter." She said, hoping he would feel shame at killing a man with a family.
"Heather. That's right. He spoke of you before. I know you've come to stop me, but it's too late. I've found the door the key opens already. My son is there now."
"You get your son to do your dirty work for you?"
"No. I'm here for any fights. He's just opening the door." He said cooly. He bent down and opened something.
Out slithered a huge tangle of, by the looks of it, poisonous snakes.
A huge wall slammed down to block the way out.
"You've been busy." Heather said, eyeing the traps.
"Of course. I wanted extra security. Some traps are extremely slow acting, enough so that I have enough time to just send anyone to the authorities, since they are stealing my property after all."
The snakes had finally reached her, and Heather wondered how he planned to actually hurt her with them.
The ground shook and another pit opened up underneath her feet.
She slid down a chute of some sort at a dizzying speed.
The air was damp and warm. Too warm, Heather felt.
Strange cries filled the air, and Heather hoped they were bats.
She stood up, feeling around to find a way out.
A hand touched her arm and she jumped.
The other person seemed as surprised as she was, if there was a indication from the breath they quickly let out.
"Who's there?" Their voice was deep, but young sounding.
Maybe he won't know for sure that I'm here. I'll just stay quiet. Heather thought.
"I know you're there. Come out."
She didn't move.
He reached out and touched her again.
"Come on," he said.
She sighed and stepped closer to him. She was caught anyway.
"I wasn't expecting a girl. My father said thieves might come after me, but I didn't expect a lady. But if you were a thief you wouldn't be a lady, since that's a compliment."
He didn't sound like someone doing much harm to her.
"I'm not a thief, and you don't seem like a scoundrel." Heather replied.
"Then what are you? And why would you think that?" He asked, almost sounding offended.
Knowing she wasn't in a spot to lie -Masters would just tell him who she really was- she said, "I'm Parker Crock the adventurer's daughter. I'm guessing you're Masters's son. Your father was my father's rival, and then enemy when he stole the Key."
"Stole? He said he bought it! He said it would make us rich if I found the tunnel to some crypt with a gold filled room somewhere."
"He lied. It was at a university being studied. He intercepted it because he was allowed access since he's a history professor." Heather said.
"How can I really believe you? I don't even know your name."
"How do you think I got here? I couldn't have gotten past him. He put me in some faulty, slow acting trap. Luckily I didn't come in right." She replied. "Oh, and my name is Heather."
"I suppose I can believe you for now. Call me Luke." He said.
"Thank you. What do we do now?" She asked. She had no idea how to get out.
"I can't go looking for the tunnels since I have you. You could be lying, and even if you weren't, my father wouldn't think it was safe."
"You mean safe for your fortune?" Heather asked.
"Well, yes. I wouldn't go to such lengths as he does, but he has good reason for wanting the money." Luke said sadly. "He wants to start a school."
"No, he wants the money, and all the weapons inside the place. He wants to be able to fund the war he'll start to make him rule over everyone." Heather answered hotly.
"How do you know that?" He asked, unconvinced.
"Our fathers knew each other, remember?"
He didn't respond, he just nodded.
They walked down a long stretch of darkness.
"Where are we going?" Heather asked.
"Back outside. I'll make sure my dad will take you back home safely."
"But--"
"I know you think he's a bad guy, but I've lived with him all these years. I know more about him than you do. Trust me, he won't be hurting anyone."
"I came here with someone. Berkeley, my partner. He's likely to be down here as well. He got in a trap too." Heather said.
"Heather?" A weak voice asked.
"Berkeley? Where are you? You sound hurt!" Heather called.
"I think you're a room ahead of me."
Heather hurried to the next "room" if you could call it that.
There was her partner, propped up against a crude rock wall.
"That is where I came in from." He pointed at a wall that had a small gap with sunshine peeking through.
"I'm so glad you're alright."
"Help me figure this out, would you?" Luke asked impatiently.
Heather walked over to help figure out how the chute Berkeley came down worked.
They dug dirt away from the cracks and managed to force it to swing the wrong way by breaking off the hinges.
Heather went back to her injured partner and helped him up. They crawled out the door.
"Great. Now we have to climb up this chute." Heather groaned.
Berkeley took a rope out of his pocket and fashioned it to be able to support them. He threw it, and in two tries it caught. "Let's get Masters." He said.
They took turns climbing up, though Berkeley had to have help for his hurt leg.
When they got above ground, Luke started straight to talk to his father.
"Is it true what these people say about you?" He asked.
"That I want to wage a war with the weapons I gain from finding the crypt? Yes."
"Why? And why tell me?"
"Because. I want power." He reached into his pocket. "I don't need you as part of the plan anymore, Lucas. That's why I told you."
"Father, I've never disappointed you!" Luke cried.
"True, but you have a caring heart. This was inevitable. You wouldn't like what I was doing, we'd fight..." He pressed a button and a cage closed around Heather and Berkeley. "But I'll win."
He walked over to his son and simply tied him up. Luke looked to be in shock and couldn't even move.
Heather's heart pounded hard as she watched. She couldn't do nothing.
Berkeley tensed and she guessed he was forming some kind of plan.
Luke sat unblinking in the ropes.
Masters turned his back on them. He pulled out a map and muttered to himself.
Heather watched incredulously as Luke wiggled in his ropes and then stepped out of them. He unlocked the cage with a key from his pocket.
"I did that Houdini trick." He said proudly. Heather decided she'd ask about it later.
They all stormed Masters.
He punched at Heather and she ducked, and returned a swing of her own. It connected, but it hardly seemed to faze him.
He swung at her again. He hit her shoulder and she staggered backward.
Berkeley snuck over to the cage and opened the door, then returned the fight, trying to steer Masters into the cage.
Heather noticed as she was getting up, her partner was letting Luke handle the fight.
She returned to the fight, only helping occasionally. It hurt too much to punch often.
One last punch from Luke, and they had Masters tied up and secured in the cage.
"We'll be back for you with the police." Heather called over her shoulder as they walked off. "But we have to warn you, it's a day's journey."
The next day Masters was detained, the key secured with Heather, and Berkeley was paid.
"I'm going to see my fiancé for Christmas week." Berkeley said. "I get to stay at the boarding house for a discount."
"I'm not sure where I'll stay." Luke told Heather.
"You can stay at the house. My mother won't mind, and we have a sleeping porch for you. No actual guest rooms though." Heather offered.
"Oh, that's very kind. If you're sure she won't mind then I'll take you up on your offer."
-A Week Later-
Music floated through the air. The den felt cozy with decorations, and smelled of baking cookies. The tree twinkled with lights, and Heather listened as Luke played the piano.
She sang along as it came to the chorus, and he sang too.
Mrs. Crock smiled as she watched the two of them together.
"When are you planning on going on another adventure?" She asked them.
"Oh, a few years from now. I've always wanted to take on father's job, but I'll let adventure find me, I won't go looking for it." Said Heather.
"Same for me." Luke added.
"I'm sure you two will find an adventure soon." Mrs. Crock said knowingly. She went back into the kitchen to check on the cookies.
"What does she mean?" Luke asked.
"She means marriage, obviously." Heather retorted.
"I see... The only thing I'll say on it right now, is that if it ever happened, I'd take your last name instead." Luke said.
"Why?"
"Because. I don't want to give my father a legacy as a Masters man. But the Crocks..." He smiled.
Heather laughed with him. "And that's far away, of course. Years."
Luke looked up and laughed some more as he saw mistletoe hanging overhead.
"You know the tradition." Mrs. Crock said.
"Mother." Heather's cheeks turned red.
And that's the end of one story, and the start of another.
