The ceiling bared down on Elias, and he felt the walls closing in on him. He tried not to think about how each step took him further away from the open air, from daylight, from safety. His heart pounded as The Lady’s song replayed in his mind: 'Spread it, spread it on soft warm bread.'

  Elias gripped the bag straps tight as anxiety surged through him. From the corner of his eye, the walls shifted. Elias whipped his head towards the wall but it was only dancing shadows from Master Seth’s light.

  He sighed and shook his head. Calm down, Elias. It’s just your mind playing tricks on you. He tried to take a deep breath then coughed—the air was dusty, stale, and warm.

  Maybe trying some paces will help, Elias thought, and he clumsily drew a sigil with his left hand. “Lux meridania.” A ball of light formed in his hand and he tried to focus on it, counting his steps under his breath. The rising panic ebbed, and his shoulders relaxed.

  As he walked, Elias glanced at his bandaged hand—it stung a little and he noticed a thin line of black creeping past the bandage. His light flickered for a moment from the pain and he frowned. Odd, Master Seth must’ve missed a spot.

  “You still doing okay?”

  Elias looked up from the white-blue light to Master Seth, who shifted Gloria on his back before looking over at Elias with a worried look.

  Elias nodded. “I’m doing my best, sir.”

  “Good.” Master Seth returned the nod then looked around him. “It’s warmer down here. I’m glad for that at least.”

  Elias didn’t follow Master Seth’s gaze; he kept his eyes on the little orb. “It is, sir. It’s nice.”

  Scritch scritch.

  Elias halted. What was that? He looked up and peered down the tunnel.

  “What’s wrong?” Master Seth froze, and his voice hardened.

  “I thought I heard something,” Elias whispered. “It sounded like something scratching against the stone.” He looked back at Master Seth. “Did you hear it?”

  Master Seth slowly shook his head. “No,” he whispered back. “But I was talking.” He frowned, peering down the tunnel, then glanced back at Elias and put a finger to his lips before cocking an ear towards the hall.

  Elias followed suit and closed his eyes to focus. His breathing felt loud, and his racing heart roared in his ears, but after a long moment, he heard it—

  Scritch, scritch.

  Elias opened his eyes and fearfully looked back at Master Seth. He wasn’t making it up! He heard something! And now it was closer!

  Master Seth’s jaw trembled, but his face was steady. “Get behind me, Elias,” he whispered. “I’m going to send my light down the hall. Hopefully, we’ll be able to see what’s down there before it sees us.”

  Elias swallowed and stepped beside Master Seth. What could be out there? he wondered as Master Seth slowly sent his light floating down the tunnel.

  “Elias,” Master Seth hissed. “Get behind me.”

  “I’m…” Elias swallowed. “I’m fine right here, sir.”

  “I don’t care,” Master Seth retorted. “If things go south, I need you to take Gloria and get out of here.”

  The light crept down the tunnel and Elias tried to see if he could spy whatever was making the noise.

  “Elias!” Master Seth hissed.

  Before Elias could obey, a sound like a sharp deep chime rang out, and something slick and grey-white shot at Master Seth’s light. Elias and Master Seth yelped and both lights winked out.

  Scritch, scritch, scritch.

  Elias shook—the sound was getting closer! It sounds big! The darkness was oppressive and his breathing quickened. He felt hemmed in. Trapped! I’m stuck!

  Scritch, scritch, scritch

  “Elias!” Master Seth cried. “Get behind me!” Elias saw a few glowing sigils being drawn in the air. “Lux meridania!”

  Scritch, scritch, scritch.

  There was a burst of bright light. Elias shielded his eyes from the sudden light and blinked. There was a loud piercing hiss and Elias looked up to see a huge blue-grey spider. His body went numb and he froze, staring at the terrifying creature. Eight long legs stretched out from its hairy body, its pincers chittered as the spider's six black eyes darted from Master Seth to Elias.

  Elias trembled as it turned its head to him. He stared at his reflection in the huge eyes, barely able to hear the beast's hissing, before lunged it for him with its huge pincers.

  Someone called his name. Before he could respond, he was tackled to the ground and the spider’s pincers closed around empty air. Elias gasped as the air was knocked out of him. He blinked and looked up into Master Seth's face and on the ground beside them was Gloria.

  “What the hell were you thinking?” Master Seth cried, scowling into the boy’s face. “You were almost killed!”

  Elias blinked and noticed the spider turn and skitter towards them. “Master! It’s coming!”

  Master Seth rolled back and sprang to his feet. He drew another sigil. “Clypeus fidei!” A shimmering shield enclosed the three of them, just as the spider lunged into the shield.

  Master Seth grunted, then looked over his shoulder at Elias. “Get up!” he commanded. “We need something to fight back. What do we have?”

  The spider beat on the shield and tried to smash it with its long hairy legs. Elias shook, frozen in place. A leg smashed into the shield again forming a small crack. The spider shrieked, then skittered around trying to figure out the best angle to break it.

  “Damn it, Elias!” Master Seth cried. “Focus! What do we have?”

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  Elias snapped back to himself. What do we have? He pulled his bags off and dug through them. His hand passed over flint and steel, scraps of fabric, and a bottle of alcohol. We can’t fight with this! Elias began to panic, then he blinked and stared at the glass flask as an idea came to him.

  “Stop messing with the wick, Elias.” Father Verdas’s voice echoed in his mind. He looked between the fabric and glass flask. A childhood memory flashed into his mind—a broken oil lamp shattered on the stone floor; he could still remember how the flames spread across the oil before Brother Stephen could put it out. Could I—?

  There was a loud crack above him. Elias looked up and saw the spider pull back a leg from the shield, a crack was beginning to spread down the shield and Master Seth trembled, struggling to hold up the shield. “Elias!" he called. "What are you doing?”

  “I’ve got an idea, sir!” Elias grabbed the fabric and the glass flask. He ripped the stopper off and the tunnel reeked of strong liquor. He soaked a wad of cloth strips in the vile-smelling liquid then left a few inches of fabric trailing out of the bottle.

  “Hurry...”

  "Almost there, sir!" He pulled out the flint and steel, then quickly glanced up. His eyes widened and he gasped. There were so many cracks forming in the shield, that it looked like it was going to shatter at any moment.

  He picked up the flint and steel. Oh please work! He prayed. Before he could strike them together, there was a sound like shattering glass. Elias looked up—Master Seth’s shield shattered and he dropped to his knees. Master Seth groaned and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. Just before his light winked out, the spider lunged forward and snatched Master Seth in its pincers.

  “No!” Elias screamed, then the lights went out.

  In the darkness, Elias heard a wet squelching sound and he shuddered. Hurry Elias! Before Master Seth becomes a webbed mummy!

  He fumbled the flint and steel as he tried to draw a sigil in the air. “Lux...Lux meridania!” he cried. Pain flared in his hand and he dropped the tools on the stony ground. The completed sigil pulsed, then faded, just as light burst into existence, starling the spider. It dropped a mummified bundle of webs and turned to face Elias. Its eyes glittered in the white-blue light and hissed as slowly stalked towards him.

  Elias trembled as the spider ticced towards him. Fire...I need fire! He glanced at the flint and steel on the ground--it was too far now. Wait! What was that spell Master Seth always cast? Without thinking, Elias dropped his ball of light onto the ground next to him and tried to remember the sigil. Come on...come on... Glowing lines formed in the air before him as he hastily drew it as best he could and tried to focus on the soaked fabric. “Pars Dolo!”

  The sigil faded and his light winked out with it, leaving Elias in darkness.

  Then there was a burst of flames. Elias blinked away the sudden light in his hands and stared, enamored by the flickering golden flames. The spider halted, then skittered back a few steps. It grabbed mummified cocoon and tried to flee with it.

  Boldness surged through the boy and his eyes flicked to the retreating spider. He leaped to his feet and cocked his arm back. “Leave Master Seth alone!” he cried. Then he hurled the glass bottle as hard as he could. It sailed through the air and smashed onto the spider's back. The glass shattered and fire erupted, lighting up the cave in a brilliant golden blaze.

  The spider screeched and dropped the webbed cocoon. It clawed at the flames licking hungrily at the oily hair on its body, but it only suceeded in catching its legs on fire. The spider squealed and fled back down the tunnel from where it came, vainly crashing into the walls, trying to put out the growing fire until it vanished beyond Elias’s sight.

  Elias panted and recast his light spell. The rays of light shined on a cocoon of webs, lying on the floor. “Master Seth!” he cried and ran to Master Seth’s side. He ripped away webs from Master Seth’s face; his face was pale in the light and his eyes were glassy and vacant.

  No, no, no! Please don’t be dead! Elias reached his fingers onto Master Seth’s neck to feel for a pulse. He found it, but it was slow and weak. Elias tore at the webs until he reached Master Seth’s swollen right arm. On his shoulder were two bite marks. Elias’s eyes widened with fear—Master Seth had been poisoned!

  The orb of light flickered violently as Elias frantically scrambled over to their supplies. He feverishly dug through the medicine bag, struggling to keep enough focus on his light. Come on! he thought, rifling through. There has to be something in here that could help! All he could find was some honey, dried herbs, a little waterskin, and…soap?

  “Soap?” he growled, gripping the bar in irritation. “Why is there soap in here?”

  He threw the bar back into the bag and dragged both bags over to Master Seth. He poured a little water on a scrap of fabric and started cleaning the wound as best he could.

  What do I do? he thought, glancing at Master Seth’s blank face. This won’t take care of the venom. He cleaned the wound some more and a memory flickered to him—something he’d read in a book once. Someone had been poisoned and the hero did something. What was it? Did they suck the venom out or do something else?

  Elias stared at the wound, his hand shaking. “I don’t know!” he cried. He looked from Gloria’s still body to Master Seth’s. “I’m just a kid—I can’t do this alone!”

  Master Seth let out a shallow shuddering breath.

  Elias stopped thinking and his light dimmed. He dropped down to Master Seth’s arm, clamped his mouth around his arm and started sucking. I really hope this works, he thought squeezing his eyes shut. The blood and venom tasted funny—bitter and metallic. Elias made a face and spat it out. His stomach churned and nausea rose, but he forced it down and continued sucking at Master Seth’s wound, spitting out the venom. I’m not going to lose you, Master!

  Elias continued until the bitter taste faded, then he sat back and studied Master Seth’s face; he had a bit more color now and his breathing began to deepen.

  Relief overwhelmed Elias, as did nausea—he couldn’t hold it back anymore! He turned away from Master Seth and vomited on the floor. His light vanished again, and Elias gagged and spat in the dark, trying to get the taste out of his mouth. So gross!

  He desperately reached for the waterskin and swished water in his mouth, before spitting it out. It’s not enough! He fumbled around through the bags next to him until he found the soap, then washed out his mouth. He stuck out his tongue at the taste. Better than the taste of the venom.

  Elias wearily drew a sigil. "Lux meridania..." The white-blue light returned. He tucked the light under his arm, then rose and dragged Gloria over beside Master Seth to keep them warm. Once he was satisfied that they were comfortable, he plopped down beside Master Seth and leaned against the stone wall sighing in exhaustion. I wanna go home. He closed his eyes and thought of Westfjord. Hopefully, spring would return soon; the fjord was beautiful this time of year.

  Behind his eyes, he saw the carved image of The Lady, and her words whispered in his ears, ‘You didn’t leave because you were bored—you ran away, hoping to escape from his frown.’

  Elias frowned and tried to push the image away, but her words lingered in his mind: ‘That’s what you really want—to finally meet his expectations.’

  She’s right, he thought, opening his eyes and staring at his bandaged hand. That is why I left.

  But a little bubble of hope rose. But I defeated her. Surely that’ll change things! Elias grimaced and looked away from his hand, hope dying out as quickly as it had come. Why should it? Father Verdas will probably just find some other reason that I haven’t measured up. He sat back and played with his light orb. He always does…

  Master Seth sighed in his sleep. Elias glanced over at him and Gloria and studied them for a long time. Do I need to go back to him? He looked at the ball of light in his left hand. Maybe he didn’t have to. I wouldn’t be breaking any promises, he thought, toying with the orb. I haven’t taken any vows. He flicked his eyes towards Master Seth and Gloria again. I could… I could stay with them.

  Elias’s face brightened. Yes, it was perfect! We could stay together! He beamed. Master Seth said they didn’t have a home anymore. Perhaps we could find one in Westfjord! We could live together! He glanced at Gloria and grinned mischievously. Maybe Master Seth would marry a certain someone...

  Then Father Verdas’s face flashed into his mind and his smile faltered for a moment. But he'd still be there. Elias shook his head and pushed the old man’s face from his mind. But as long as he’s not breathing down my neck, I think I can live in the same town as him. I...I might even be able to worship near him...maybe.

  The boy nodded to himself and sagged against the wall. It was a small dream, but it was his dream. And I’m happy with that.