Selena's Daughter (The Prophecy) - Episode 15

See all episodes here »

It been weeks since Grace and Erica had their discussion with Diana. The past week had been hell for Grace, going through all sort of trainings, preparing for the battle. As the days passes she started developing new powers to add to the elements.

Erica on the other hand had been preparing as well.

One morning they had woken up to see everywhere was dark, soon it was gathered that it was Luciana doings. Ever since that day, they had been living in darkness, only the the giant clock that made them know if it was day or night.

They had all come up with a plan, their first plan was to kill the witch and the sorceress before dealing with Darken and the Dark Goddess.

Grace was being summoned by the high king to come to the throne room . When she got there she was surprised to see her twin, Diana and Lucus in there.

"Grace, your teachers had told me how impressive they are about you learning your elements quick, but, am afraid that we have to strike the witch and the sorceress before I take down Darken". The high king told Grace immediately she walked into the throne room.

"I don't understand you father".

"Well since your teachers had recommended that you are now good and can be able to control your elements, plus the new ones, I think it's time for we to strike our enemies".

Grace agreed and that had been few weeks ago and now with her training going smoothly she felt ready to face their enemies.

She had just came back from the training ground and was about entering her room when Erica came and told her she was being summoned by their father.

She went with Erica and when she got there she was surprise to see Queen Gwen. Diana was checking on her, Queen Gwen kinda look sick to her.

"What had happened to her?" Grace quickly asked.

"Luciana and the Witch"

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/selena-s-daughter-the-prophecy-1

. Diana responded.

"What did they do to her?"

"It could be best if the Queen tells you herself". Diana replied and turned to face Queen Gwen "Tell her what you told us".

"Luciana came into my Kingdom with the Witch and demanded I pledge my allegiance to Darken and the Dark Goddess which I bluntly reject and then she told me she will only give me one day to vacate my kingdom. I was surprised she didn't try her magic on me or my soldiers, Luciana said something about you facing her on the fortess of Essetir  outside Lot's kingdom, in her words 'To end things' then she turned into a raven and left soon the witch disappeared. But their hideous raven birds were left behind". Gwen spoke slowly coughing out a little bit before continuing, "After they had left one of my soldiers took his arrow and shot at one of the Ravens but the raven didn't die rather something strange happened".

"You never told us that part Gwen but never mind, what happened to the man who had shot the arrow?" The high king demanded.

"When he saw that his arrow couldn't penetrate the raven, he left to join the rest of my armies. I don't know how it happened but he was soon clutching his neck as if something was choking him, he fell down and died. I was there when some of my soldiers confirmed him dead, but as soon as we turned to leave the dead body, he stood up spread out his hands upwards and turned into a raven. The strangest thing of all is that whosoever or where ever the raven feathers touches dies".

They seems shocked.

"Am sorry I lost my kingdom", Queen Gwen said.

"That is okay at least you are here but what about your people, where you able to get them out of there as the witch had said?" The high king questioned.

Gwen nodded her head "Yes, my sons and soldiers took my people to the nearest mountain. I left them immediately to tell you what had happened".

"Grace, Erica get prepared. You are going to face the witch and the sorceress once and for all". The high king said.

Soon Erica and Grace left the throne room.

"What are you thinking?" Erica asked, the past few days had made the twins closer than before.

"I don't know, I just have this feeling that Mary will try all in her powers to separate us". Grace responded.

"Well she might, but we have faith in ourselves".

 As they all went to back into their different chambers Grace looked out from her room window  towards the fortress of Essetir, wondering what tomorrow would bring.

******************************

They were all up early the following day. Around mid-morning they rode out of the castle towards Essetir. 
The high king of Crescent's forces were ready and with Lucas leading them, they set out to meet with Mary and Luciana.

Lucas, Erica and Grace rode in front of the soldiers.
The darkness seemed heavier as they rode towards the fortress. They could not see far ahead, even with the torches the leading knights carried.
As they approached the standing stone Lucas told his men to wait. Lucas, Erica and Grace were to go the rest of the way on foot.
They could see the shadowy figures of an army stretching across the plain towards the fortress. As they approached the standing stone Mary appeared on the other side of it.

"Well, look at you," Mary said looking at Grace, taking in the chain mail and the red tunic Grace was putting on.

"Hello to you, Mary," Grace said standing up straight.

"Its been a while slave, isn't it?" Mary asked mockery to Grace.

"Well I thought we are all here for a different reason than calling someone one names bitch". Erica replied for Grace.

Mary turned to look at Erica and smiled a little "Well I can see she brought some dead walking people with her". Mary said raising up her hands towards Erica, Grace quickly raised her hands ready for any attack, Mary smiled again and lowered her hands.

"What are your terms Mary?" Grace asked lowering her arm. She could feel a strange force coming from her, like an invisible hand pushing her away from her.

"Oh, I thought we could have a little chat first, you know, like old times," she said. 

"And you have changed a lot, this isn't the Mary I know back then in Eleanor". Grace said.

"Well sometimes such changes are necessary," Mary said dropping her voice. "Sacrifices have to be made when you fight for a just cause."

"What cause justifies such a high price?" Erica asked.

"One that you of all people should be helping me fight, Erica. To bring back the old religion and to allow those with sorcery their right to live free. To allow the Dark Goddess rule the world" Mary said looking at Erica as though she was stupid.

"You don't know what you are talking about witch". Erica said.

"You are more of a fool than I thought," Mary said scowling at her. 

"No I am not and will never be".

"Come and serve the Dark Goddess, she will make you more stronger than you can ever imagine. She will give you more gifts and we will use it to change the world". Mary said turning her attention back to Grace

"No, Mary, our gifts were given to us to serve others, not rule over them, the dark goddess has twisted your mind to serve her own purpose," Grace said.

"What would you know of the dark goddess?" Mary asked looking at Grace with disgust.

"I know she hates all of those with magic and uses people like you to make others hate and fear magic," Grace said quietly.

"You are wrong, what she hates is weakness and those without magic are weak," Mary said.

"Do you really believe that?" Erica asked looking at her.

"I am far more powerful than Grace will ever be," Mary said taking a step towards Grace. "The Crescent throne should be ours. We will rule everything."

"Being fit to rule has nothing to do with power and strength. It is about honour and courage, you have done nothing to good". Grace said.

"Surrender to me now or face the consequences," Mary said. "The consequences will be severe, Gwen will be begging me to kill her by the time I have finished."

"Mary there has to be a good side of you. This is not you". Grace said.

"That wasn't the answer I was expecting. Very well," she said lifting her hands and chanting quickly but Grace had been waiting for it and blocked her spell before it reached them.

"Don't do this Mary," Lucas said, "If you surrender now, no harm will come to you."

"I don't believe you," she said sending a ball of fire towards them.

"I'm sorry you feel like that," Grace said blocking the fireball so it fell harmlessly to the ground before reaching them.

"Very good," she said looking at Grace as she stepped in front of Lucas.

Mary raised her hands again to try a more powerful spell but Grace easily blocked it. She looked up at the black sky and screamed another spell, lightning flashed overhead. Grace directed the lightning to hit the standing stone where it left a black gash down its length. She tried again and this time Grace made it hit the ground in front of her, causing her to step back. She tried a different spell sending another ball of fire at her which Grace caught and threw it to the ground. Her instinct told her not to attack her, so she didn't, she just kept blocking everything she sent towards them.

"You cannot beat me Mary, we are on the same page. You fight for the Dark Goddess and I stand with the White Goddess, my mother". Grace said as thunder cracked in the sky above them.

She didn't reply but sent another fireball towards her which she defused as easily as the last. Lucas and Erica had been moving back behind Grace when Mary attacked. She tried to blast her backwards but she blocked it easily. Grace had just realised that she was distracting her when she saw a black shape out of the corner of her eye making straight for Erica.

"Get down," Grace yelled over the thunder.

Grace raised a shield between them and Mary, she turned just in time to see a huge black creature with wings try to grab Erica just before she ducked. Lucas ran towards Erica with his sword drawn and creature grabbed Lucas instead, flying off with him towards the fortress. Mary quickly disappeared.

 "They have got Lucas, we must go and bring him out". Erica said as they went back to their horses and their soilders.

"Lucas is with them, we are going into the fortress. You will stay here and protect each other from her armies. Help is on the way". Erica told their army as they approached them.

They left them as they made their way into the fortress

*********************************

They rode their horses hard, circling the army to get nearer to the fortress. For once they were glad of the black sky, as it hid them from the enemy. As they got close to the fortress walls they let their horses go free.

They ran in single file, following the castle wall, looking for the postern gate. According to Armin there was a hidden gate in the southern wall. They soon found it, exactly where they expected it to be. It was locked but not manned and Grace was able to open it easily. They didn't expect to have any trouble getting into the fortress, they were sure Mary would make it easy for them. The gate opened out onto a small courtyard surrounded by high walls. In the far wall was another gate that was already open.

"Wait," Erica said as quietly as she could as they stepped into the courtyard. She used her mind's eye to see what was happening beyond the far gate.

She could see another small courtyard. It was a little bigger than the one they were in but still surrounded by high walls. In the wall to the right of the gate there was a raised portcullis that seemed to lead to a storage room of some kind. There were several carts and crates inside and in the far wall was a closed door. The wall opposite the open gate contained a large wooden door that was closed. To the left was a smaller wooden door that was open, inside the small room was a covered well.  Lucas stood in the middle of courtyard, surrounded by three of the strange winged creatures like the one that had carried him off. They were circling him but not attacking, Erica guessed they were waiting for the rescue party. Erica quietly told Grace what she had seen. They kept close to the wall as they approached the open gate. They could hear growling and snarling coming from up ahead.

"What are you waiting for?" they heard Lucas shout but they couldn't see him. They heard the sound of a sword hitting stone and another growl. Erica and Grace looked at each other understanding that Luciana was up to her old tricks. She had enchanted the statues around the fortress to attack them.

Grace and Erica walked through the open gate first, blasting two of the statues. Erica then got the other one and Lucas ran to meet them. More of the statues came crawling down the walls, jumping into the courtyard. They tore at them with their long claws. They attacked.

The creatures kept coming out the more Lucas seeing a passageway gave a signal to them and they rushed in shutting the door.

The passageway was narrow and dark, Grace went in front with a light in her hand. Every now and then they would pass a closed door. These doors were always on their left and they would move over to the right side of the passageway as they passed them. Up ahead they could see a flickering light, as they got closer they saw a torch on the wall ahead of them marking the end of the passage. They looked out into the corridor that held the torch. This one was much wider and lit with several torches at regular intervals. There were tapestries hanging from the walls and statues in alcoves. To the right of them the corridor ended in stone steps leading to the higher levels. To the left the corridor continued around the corner, they could hear voices coming from that direction, though they were too far away to hear who was talking.

They walked quietly in the direction they had heard the voices but now all was quiet. As they turned the corridor they saw more stairs leading up to another level. They climbed the steps finding themselves in a large antechamber. Beyond the two huge double doors in front of them was Mary. She sat on a huge throne in the centre of what could only be the throne room.

"Don't be shy, I've been waiting for you," Mary said as they stood in the antechamber at the top of the steps. They walked towards her until they were standing in front of her. There appeared to be no-one else in the room with her.

"Still think you can beat me Grace?" she asked with a smile. Then she vanished and appeared right behind Lucas with a dagger at his throat. Erica grabbed at her and she pushed Erica away, keeping hold of the dagger that was now drawing blood.

"Try that again and I'll rip his head off," she said as Erica got to her feet with her fist clenched.

"Let him go Mary," Grace said looking at her and not at Lucas.

"And if I do not, what will you do?"

"I will kill you".

"I would love to see you try".

Grace lift up her arms to sent the spell but as it rebounded back to Grace it also hit Lucas and Erica, sending them flying through the air. 

Lucas hit her head on the stone steps of the dais and Erica landed near the door. Grace was thrown back across the room and she heard Mary laugh as everything went black.

*****************************************

Grace woke up feeling sore and bruised, she wanted to sleep for just a little while longer. She felt someone shaking her,she thought it was Diana and tried to tell her she wasn't well enough to work, she had a headache and wanted to sleep.

"Wanna sleep," she said, trying to drift off again.

"You must wake up," said a voice by her ear. She didn't recognise the voice, it definitely wasn't Diana. Grace groaned and tried to sit up, then everything came flooding back.

"Erica?" Grace said opening her eyes. It wasn't Erica that was trying to wake her but an older man. He had long grey hair and his face was thin with dark circles under his eyes.

"Thank the gods you are awake," the man said moving away from her carefully.

"Who are you?" Grace asked sitting up slowly, she had a headache but she didn't think anything was broken. There was a horrible smell in the room and Grace gagged. She looked around the room they were in, it was similar in size to a cell. The walls were covered in a dull metal and there was a single door covered in the same material. There was a slight recess in the top half of the door and Grace guessed it could be opened from the outside. Above the door, high up on the wall, was a small window that let in a little light. Grace guessed the light was from a torch or a fire, it flickered, creating moving shadows around the walls. The room was at least three storeys high and the ceiling could not be seen in the flickering light.

"My name is Alain," the man said as he tried to make himself comfortable. "I know you are Grace."

"How do you know?" Grace asked trying to clear her head. 

"Mary brought you here about half an hour ago. She dragged you inside, told me she'd brought me a friend and that your name is Grace then she left."

"Hang on, you said your name is Alain, Sefa's uncle?" Grace asked looking at him again, she could only just see him in the dim light.

"You know Sefa?" Alain asked taking a sip of water from a large water skin.

"Yes, she came to Crescent with a message from Mary," Grace said touching the back of her head to see how badly she was hurt. Her head felt tender but there was no blood on her fingers.

"She made it," Alain said with a sigh. "Is she alright?"

"She's fine, Diana managed to remove the pain and reverse some of the enchantment," Grace said bringing her legs up to get ready to stand.  She looked down at Alain and noticed his leg was bent at a strange angle.

"I know it smells," Alain said looking at his leg. "There are also no proper toilet facilities just a hole in the floor."

"A hole?" Grace asked wondering if she could use it to escape. The thought of escaping through the sewer was not pleasant but better than nothing.

"You can't get out that way," Alain said as though he knew what Grace was thinking. He indicated the corner closest to him and Grace went to look. There was a small round hole in the ground, hardly big enough for her hand. There was a slight breeze coming through the hole and a horrible smell.

"It is cut into three feet of solid rock, and even if you could get through the rock there is a long drop and razor sharp rocks to break your fall. You can't escape from the cage, I should know, I built it," he said with a sigh.

"I'm sure I'll think of something," Grace said more to herself than Alain.

"The walls are four feet of solid stone, it would take months, even with a pick axe," Alain said looking at her.

"I don't have a pick axe, I'll have to manage with my bare hands," Grace said smiling at him, as she knelt beside him to examine his leg.

"There is nothing you can do," Alain said looking at his leg again. Grace held out her hand, making a light appear so she could see the damage better. She guessed a lot of the smell was coming from Alain's leg which was obviously infected. It was no longer bleeding but it was badly swollen and the area around the break was covered in yellow pus.
The leg was crooked and Alain would never walk again if it set like that. Grace put her hand out but didn't touch him hse could feel the heat radiating from the wound. She would have to clean it and reset it if they were to get out of there. Shee looked up at Alain to see him looking at her as though she had two heads and a tail.

"What's wrong?" Grace asked turning quickly to see if anything was behind her. There was nothing there but still Alain was looking at her with something like awe.

"You can't use magic in here," he said quietly.

"Sorry, what are you talking about?" Grace asked following Alain's gaze to the light in his hand.

"You can't use magic in the cage," Alain said again, a bit louder this time.

"Why not?" Grace asked, wondering if the old man was completely sane. She was obviously able to use magic, as the light she was holding proved that.

"The lead and the sunscind stones," Alain said glancing at the walls.

"The what?" Grace asked.

"I will tell you, but please if Mary returns, don't let her know you can use your magic," Alain said.

"Alright," Grace said, "but let me remove the infection from your leg. I can bandage it afterwards and Mary is unlikely to notice, the pain must be unbearable."

"Alright," Alain replied, the pain wasn't so bad as long as he didn't move but the slightest movement was agony. Grace put her free hand over Alain's leg and her eyes flashed gold. Alain felt the swelling start to go down.

"Is that better?" Grace asked tearing a long strip of cloth from her tunic.

"A lot better thank you," Alain said, he was able to move a little now, to make himself comfortable, without his leg feeling like it was on fire. It still hurt but nothing like it had before. Grace wrapped the makeshift bandage around the open wound carefully. Then sat next to him to hear his story, she let the light go out in case Mary appeared.

Alain quickly told Grace how he had helped Lot to build the room they were in. Lot had not wanted to suffer in the hands of any sorceress or sorcerer, he had ordered the cage to be built to trap any sorcerer that may try to harm him. He explained the nature of the sunscind stone and how it made any spell rebound onto the person who had cast it. The cage had sunscind stones imbedded in the walls at regular intervals, so magic could not be used to escape. Any spell that was cast would just rebound against the user. He told Grace that Lot used to wear a polished stone in an amulet and that Mary now had it. Grace had seen a stone bound in leather that Mary wore around her neck, she had thought it was for decoration. At least now she knew why her spell had rebounded, she would have to get that stone somehow.

Alain went on to tell her the lead covering the walls reinforced the security of the cage, stopping magic from passing through from the outside. A sorcerer trapped inside could not draw on the power of the earth, once any magic they had within them was used, they would then be powerless.

"You shouldn't have been able to hold that light for more than a couple of minutes in here," Alain said looking at her closely. Grace sighed and now she knew why she couldn't hit Mary.

"Mary didn't properly introduce me did she?" she asked with a smile. "I am Grace, Selena's Daughter".

"You are Grace of the prophecy?" Alain asked staring at Grace.

"I am and I've got to get out of here to find my Twin and Lucas," Grace said looking at Alain. "Any ideas on how I can get out of here?" she asked standing up again and looking around the room.

"As I told you the cage was designed so no-one could escape," Alain said.

"Well I'm not no-one," Grace said, "So any ideas?"

"Do you have anything sharp on you?" Alain asked looking at Grace's, hoping to see a dagger. Grace sat back down and lifted her tunic dress up, revealing a small dagger strapped to her leg. She remembered telling Lucas it was completely unnecessary but she was glad Lucas had insisted.

"Will this do?" Grace asked.

"The wall behind me leads directly into my workroom," Alain said looking behind him. "The walls really are four feet wide but as you said you don't need a pick axe. If you can remove the lead then you will see the sunscind stones and you can remove enough of them to blast a hole in the wall. No other sorceress would have that power after being in here for more than ten minutes. I will replace the lead once you have gone and feign ignorance if Mary arrives, it should give you a head start."

Grace started to cut through the lead where it joined the floor, the lead was soft but thick and it would take a while. She tried warming the dagger to help her but it created nasty fumes so she gave up. While she worked Alain told her how to get to the dungeons from his workroom.
She had sliced through a large enough area near the floor and was just starting on the first cut in the wall when they heard noises outside the door. Grace quickly slipped the dagger  beneath her tunic and sat on the floor next to Alain. Alain closed his eyes and put his head on Grace's shoulder, hoping Mary would think he was sleeping. He did a lot of sleeping, so hopefully she wouldn't think it strange. Grace understood what he was doing and silently thanked him. The window in the door opened and Mary looked in through the opening.

"Ah, Grace, I'm glad to see you are awake," Mary said smiling at her.

"What have you done with Erica and Lucas?" Grace asked looking up at her.

"None of your business, it's you I want to talk to," Mary said looking at her ripped tunic and the bandage on Alain's knee. "I see you've made a friend already."

Grace got to her feet, carefully holding onto Alain's shoulders, then lying him down gently to cover the marks in the wall.

"How could you do that to another human being?" Grace asked looking at Alain then straightening her tunic as she got to her feet.

"He would have put me in here if I had not stopped him," Morgana said dismissively. "You were asking about Erica and Lucas."

"If you have hurt them....." Grace said.

"You'll do what? Even the most powerful sorceress the prophecy had spoken of, is powerless in the cage," she said laughing, but she still stood back as Grace walked towards her.

"Princess Mary why are you fighting a loose battle, why are you doing this?" She asked.

"To rule the world with the Dark Goddess. Just think Grace, of what we could achieve if we were to join forces," she said smiling at her.

"I will never join with you Mary," Grace said looking at her with pity. "What happened to you Mary, you used to be so kind and compassionate even when you are not directing it to me, what had happened to you Mary?"

"I was weak, I see that now, being kind is for fools Grace," she said with a grimace.

"What do you want?" she asked looking at her with sadness. The Mary she had once known was long gone, devoured by her hatred and twisted by her desires.

"You know what I want. I want every soul to bow down to Darken and the Dark Goddess," she said.

"And after that?" Grace asked.

"Then those with magic will take their rightful place and we will unite the kingdoms under the power of the old religion," she said. "With our joined power we can unite the whole Kingdoms and no force on earth could stop us."

"I have no desire to rule, magic is a gift and it should not be used for our own ends, even my Twin won't agree to it" Grace said moving closer to the window.

"You really think Erica won't agree?" she asked.

"I know she won't. She loves the ways of the White Goddess more than you think" she replied.

"Oh really? Well let see how she will believe me and join forces with me when I tell her how you had insulted your White Goddess," Mary said starting to close the window.

"She will not believe you," Grace said.

"The top of the cage is a trapdoor set in the floor of the throne room. When I tell Erica what you have done and create a magic showing how you had cuss the White Goddess, you will hear every word. You will see how quickly she curse your very existence," she said slamming the window closed.

Grace stood by the door and put her hands over her face and sighed. She just hoped Erica wouldn't believe a word the Witch will tell her. She turned quickly to see Alain trying to sit up. She went to his side and helped him to sit upright. She grabbed her dagger and started to work on the lead. She had to get out of there fast.

*************************************

Erica and Lucas woke at the same time to find themselves in a small cell. The walls were of stone, with no windows, so they guessed they were below ground level. The door was made of wood but the top half consisted of metal bars. Inside the cell were two straw filled mattresses along each wall. Each mattress was covered with a thin sheet and blanket. Just outside their door was a torch, it gave them a little light but they couldn't reach it. Neither of them was badly hurt, Lucas had a small cut just above his eyebrow where he had hit the steps and another on his neck where Mary had cut him. Their swords had been taken and Lucas groaned at the thought of Mary wielding his sword.

"What the hell happened?" Erica asked as she tried to sit up, her hand was still clenched into a fist and her fingers hurt as she tried to open her hand.

"It was Grace's magic that knocked us flying," Lucas said, .

"Yeah, but she meant to hit Mary. She must have used some kind of reversing spell that Grace wasn't aware of". Erica said.

"So what now?" Lucas asked getting up and putting his hand on the wall to steady himself.

"Let's see if we can get out of here," Erica said.

 Half an hour later Erica sat down on the one of the beds as Lucas kicked the door, unfortunately for them the door was made with strong magic. They had tried everything they could think of and they were no closer to getting out. Lucas turned to give the door another kick when they heard Mary's voice coming towards them.

"Temper, temper dear Lucas," she said as she stood in front of the cell.

"Where is Grace?" Erica asked getting up from the bed to face Mary.

"Grace is fine, I will take you to her but first we should have a little chat," she said as the guards unlocked the door. "Sorry Lucas you will have to stay here." Two guards pushed Lucas back into the cell and two more grabbed Erica.

Lucas struggled against their grip but they were armed and they both held their swords to his chest, there was nothing he could do. He watched helplessly as Erica was dragged behind Mary the two guards holding him released him and pushed him back against the wall. Then they left the cell locking the door behind them. Lucas kicked the door again, then yelled. He was supposed to be strength yet he couldn't even get out of a tiny cell.

Erica managed to get her feet under her, so she could walk instead of being dragged. The guards did not let go of her arms though and held her in a death grip as they followed Mary. They came to a narrow flight of stairs where only one guard could keep hold of her. With Mary just in front of her, and the other guard behind her, Erica knew it was useless to try anything. At the top of the stairs the guard behind her came forward and gripped her arm once more. They walked along several corridors. They came to another flight of stairs but this time there was plenty of room for the guards to stay at his side. At the top of the stairs there were large double doors. Mary said something and the doors opened. Arthur recognised the throne room immediately but they had come from a different direction this time.

On the throne sat Luciana. She looked around the room but there was no-one else. 

"Princess Erica nice of you to join us," Luciana said. "I don't think we have been properly introduced. I am Queen Lily and the sorceress Luciana."

"Where is Grace?" Erica asked as the guards made her stand in front of the king.

Mary went to stand at Luciana's side and dismissed the guards. "All in good time Erica, but I told you first we need to talk," she said sitting on a chair by the side of the throne.

"Then talk," Erica said looking at her and rubbing her arms where the guards had held her.

Mary leaned forward in her chair watching her closely. "I'm not sure how to tell you this, but Grace insulted your White Goddess and even cuss you",she said quietly.

"What are you talking about?" Erica asked staring at her.

She stood and picked up the chair she had been sitting on and placed it in front of the throne. "Here I think you had better sit down," she said. Erica looked at her and shrugged, then sat on the chair.

Luciana removed her gloves placing them on the arm of the chair. "I have spoken to Grace and she insulted your kingdom and mocked you not having powers like hers". She said.

Erica laughed at her and shook her head. "Is that it?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" Mary asked looking at her with a frown.

"You just expect me to believe you?" Erica asked still laughing.

Luciana stood up and stepped down from the throne."Is it really so surprising, after all what she said is the truth". Luciana said.

"My poor, dear Erica, you really don't know Grace at all, do you?" Mary asked.

"My dear Mary" Erica said mimicking her use of the endearment. "I know Grace more than you think".

"Well, you see Grace had agreed to join forces with me to defeat you and your stupid White Goddess". Mary said.

"Where is Grace I need to hear it from her. Where is she?" Erica asked slowly, not taking her eyes from Mary.

Luciana stood up from her throne and went to meet Erica, her magic keeping Erica from getting up from the chair. "Didn't you heard what Mary said, Grace insulted your Goddess and join forces with us".

"Grace would never betray us," Erica said quietly.

"Shut up, just shut up," Mary yelled, pacing again.

"Grace will never betray us" Erica said again, smiling.

As she did so she felt the floor beneath her move. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion after that. Erica felt herself falling, then she was slowing down, the chair continued and she heard it smash on the floor below her. She straightened her legs, getting ready to hit the floor. She felt someone reach out to her but it was too dark to see anything.

She heard Mary screaming in the room above her. "If you have such faith in your twin, then you can die with her." Erica saw the trapdoor starting to close as her feet gently hit the floor.

They left them there.

Erica then saw a light appear and looked up to see Grace standing in front of her, with a big grin on her face.

"Are you alright?" She asked looking at Erica.

"Grace", She said pulling her into a hug, the light went out as Grace hugged her back. "I'm fine what about you?"

"I'm fine, where's Lucas?" She asked as she stood back to make the light again but she kept one hand on Erica's shoulder. Grace used magic to push the remains of the chair to the side of the room.

"As far as I know he's in a cell in the dungeons," Erica said looking around the room. "You were right, she tried to make me believe you had betrayed us."

"I heard, she told me you would believe her but I knew you wouldn't," Grace said grinning at her.

Erica blinking as her eyes adjusted to the dark. She realised that although it was dark in the room, she could see well enough by the light coming in through an opening above the door. Erica noticed the man propped up against the wall for the first time. She also noticed a faint smell of decay and saw the bandage around the man's leg.

"Alain, I'd like you to meet Erica my twin," Grace said picking her dagger up from the floor, where she had dropped it to slow Erica's fall. "Erica this is Sefa's uncle Alain."

"Nice to meet you,," Alain said, "I apologise for not getting up."

"Nice to meet you, Alain," Erica said.

As Grace continued to cut through the lead she told Erica what she knew. How she had removed the infection and why she couldn't help Alain anymore just yet. She explained all about the sunscind stones and how Mary had reversed her spell. As far as Mary knew, Grace was supposed to be powerless in the cage. Although she couldn't use magic against the walls, she didn't seem to realise she could use her magic inside the cage. Grace had let the chair fall, hoping that Mary would think Erica had fallen with it. She then told Erica how she planned to escape.

Grace had managed to cut three sides of the lead already. She stopped to flex her fingers which were sore from gripping the dagger.

"Where did you get the dagger?" Erica asked.

"Lucas made me wear it, strapped to my leg," Grace said grinning.

"They took Lucas's and mine but didn't think to search you," Erica said shaking her head.

"They probably thought I wouldn't bother, I don't usually need a weapon, am not the warrior" Grace said still flexing her fingers.

"Lucky for us you are not so arrogant," Erica said moving closer to the wall.

"Well, Lucas was insistent," Grace said with a grin.

"Here let me have a go for a bit," Erica said and Grace gladly gave her the dagger.  She stood up so she could sit in her place and stretched.

"Let's hope we can get out of here before she discovers what we are up to," Erica said, making quick work of the lead.

"The guards only bring me food once a day, in the morning," Alain said. "I doubt you will be missed for a few hours at least."

As Erica worked, Alain told them more about the layout of the castle. Armin had never visited the lower levels but Alain knew them well. Grace found it all a bit confusing, but Erica was able to create a reasonably clear plan in her head.  She had finished cutting the lead and was using the dagger to lever it away from the wall. Once she got a corner free she could get a grip with her hand. It came away from the wall much easier than she was expecting, causing him to fall backwards.

Grace put her hand out to steady Erica and they both looked at the wall. There was now a three foot, square section, of exposed white stone. They could see the rough orange stones embedded in it quite clearly in the dim light. Erica grabbed the dagger and started to dig them out. When she had finished Grace created the light again, to check the area was definitely clear of the stones. Erica picked up all the stones she had dug out and dropped them down the hole in the corner. 

Alain offered them some water and  they both accepted. They only drank enough to wet their dry mouths, as they weren't sure when Alain would get anymore. They were no longer going to leave Alain in the cage but hide him in his workshop. They all knew that once Mary realised they had escaped, she would kill Alain if she found him, but there was nothing else they could do, he was far too weak to go with them.

Grace took a deep breath, and then blasted the rock away, quickly slowing time around the stones as she did, so she could control the noise.  Erica watched as the stones hung in mid air, then slowly and quietly, fell to the ground.  She clapped Grace on the back and grinned at her. Grace grinned back then helped to move Alain closer to the opening. Grace climbed through the hole, which was a foot above the ground in the room behind the wall. She looked around and lit two candles, so they could see what they were doing.

She grabbed Alain's shoulders and they carefully lifted him into the room while Erica quickly climbed out. 

There was no point in trying to put the stone back in the wall, the hole would be discovered as soon as a guard looked into the room. They just had to hope Mary was too sure of herself to bother checking on them for a while.

"Let's go and rescue Lucas", Erica said walking to the door.

She unlocked the door and opened it a little, they stood still, straining their ears to hear any sound.

Read " The Quest " by the same author ( Ifeoma Isabella Okeke )

. When they were sure the way was clear, Erica opened the door and looked out into the corridor. Torches flickered on the wall outside the room but the corridor was empty. Following Alain's directions, they turned right towards the dungeons. Erica could use her mind's eye but it didn't work so well inside. She couldn't see through walls or doors but it came in handy for seeing around corners. The way was clear, it seemed Mary was so confident that they could not escape, she had left no guards in the dungeons, as far as they could tell.

They arrived at Lucas's cell and they both looked through the bars at Lucas, he was sitting on one of the beds with his head in his hands. Erica put her finger to her lips to tell him to be quiet as Grace whistled softly. Gwaine looked up and almost yelled until he realised Erica wanted him to be quiet. Erica moved away from the door as Grace broke the lock. Lucas ran to meet them and hugged them both.

"Thank the Moon Goddess that you two are okay". Lucas said.

"Now we need to find Mary", Grace said quietly  as they made their way out of dungeon.