CHAPTER 37: THE DUNGEON

(Amaia)

"What have you done to anger Master Alnilam to the extent that he has put you on dungeon duty?" Yanna asks as she guides me along the stone corridors holding a huge lantern.

"Stole his special herbal shampoo," I nonchalantly answer. My mind is too occupied with what happened between us just a while ago. I balance the broom and the soapy water filled bucket she handed me earlier.

She sharply turns her head and gives me a quizzical look, trying to understand if I am joking or being serious.

"Don’t challenge him, girl. He can literally make your life very difficult."

"As if he hasn’t already." I want to retort but hold my tongue.

We arrive near a barricaded iron door. The thick metal chains are intertwined only to be locked with a heavy steel lock that has to be the size of my hand.

She extracts a long silver key from the pocket of her uniform, picking up the giant lock she inserts the key inside and twists.

It clinks and opens. Removing it, she let the chains slide out and open the double-barred door.

It shrieks on its hinges as if it hasn’t been oiled in a long time, revealing a stone staircase that seems to descend into a dark abyss.

What do they keep down there? Monsters? Feral werewolves? Enemies of the state of Orion?

"Come girl!" She ushers me forward.

Taking a deep breath, I try to control my emotions and follow her. My heart increases its pace as we descend.

The air becomes chillier with each step and I feel a shiver going through my body. There is something very ominous about this place. My sixth sense screams in my head, warning me that awful things have taken place in this dungeon.

"Who is kept here?" I ask the lady.

"Currently, no one but they used to keep traitors here. It has been gathering filth and dust so it’s going to be your duty to clean it."

Alone? I will have to spend three days alone in this place. The very thought locks my limbs with fear but I try not to show it. I am going to be brave and get through this.

Alnilam has a cold heart but he can’t break me.

The stairs end and we land on an uneven stone floor. The strong stench of piss and dampness hits me and I pinch my nostrils shut.

It’s pitch dark down here without a single ray of light coming from any crevice.

I glance around to find that there are no windows, just mind-numbing darkness. The only source of light is the lantern that the old lady, Yanna, is holding.

The dungeon stretches as far as the light reaches and I know even beyond it. On both sides, there are cells barricaded by thick iron bars.

"Here, I leave you. There is a tap on the far corner, and you can get water for cleaning and drinking from there. Reserve the fuel in this lantern because you won’t get more until the next day." She hands the lantern to me from the thin metal handle.

It means while sleeping I would need to turn it off from the round knob. "And I will bring you food once a day. You need to clean all these cells in the next three days."

She tells me my duties, also hands me a matchbox and departs.

Her shadow lingers for a while, her shoes make low scraping sounds on the steps, which become fainter and fainter until they disappear. I hear the rustling of chains and the lock being set in place and then silence.

I am not very fond of darkness but I don’t hate it. Having spent enough time training even in the darkest of nights. But it’s the loneliness that clutches at my heart. At heart, I have always been a romantic, seeking friendships and love from my mate.

No one really cared to become my friend at the pack because, for them, I was just a wolfless human girl. I couldn’t run with them under the full moon, attend training sessions when they fought in their wolf forms. Hence, the reason Tarian wasn’t very fond of me.

But here I have already found a friend, a pet and mates. My mates don’t care for me yet, I will keep trying to win them over.

Alnilam is tough, but deep inside, he wishes for a mate, even now when he has a chosen one. They care about the mate bond and all this punishment is because they believe I deserted mine.

Werewolves are possessive like that, and the mate bond is usually revered above everything, especially for those who don’t find their mates. They crave it like a life saving drug.

Pushing my thoughts away I get to work. The first thing I do is inspect the walls using the yellow flickering light of the lantern. The round glass of the lantern is muddy and greasy. It seems this old piece hasn’t been cleaned in a while. Later I will have to remove the glass and clean it. Since there is hardly any draft, I know the flame won’t go off.

I find a nail protruding out of the walls. Bloody chains hang from it which makes my blood freeze and I halt in my steps. What kind of hellish place is this? Do they torture people in these dungeons too?

Well, Yanna did mention traitors so this is pretty obvious.

I yank the chains off the nail and they crumble to the ground with clinking sounds, disturbing the eerie peace of this place.

Hanging the lantern on the wall, I ensure it won’t fall before retreating. Then I glance around and start from the nearby cell which is flooded with the lantern’s stable light.

Firstly, I need to create a clean spot to sleep and then I can continue cleaning the rest of the cells.

This one has less stench or maybe the receptive cells which detect the smell are already burnt from the horrible stench.

Whatever, I pull my sleeves up, tighten my ponytail and remove the outer coat. Folding it I place it aside on an elevated stone and get to work.