The man woke up and had a look around the cave. A ruby glow was touching his fatigued visage. Black as tar stalactites and stalagmites, sometimes even stalagnates, were slitting feeble light like persistently sharp gavelocks. He leant his hand against one of the multiple rocks and stood on his weak legs. From time to time he was stumbling, but he found the cave’s opening and surveyed his surroundings.
At the foot of the hill was abounding in omnifarious stones. In lieu of trees there were lithoid columns with sharp summits. Pristine water droplets slowly fell from the petrean ceiling, like rain from a scarlet sky. A darkling fortress was looming afar. It’s four towers were almost the height of the cave, and its wall slightly lower yet thicker than a house.
The man gave a sigh of relief. He had been roaming around this sanguine wilderness for what felt like an eternity. As the days wore on he was becoming increasingly debilitated and his energy was draining unimaginably fast. Even the longest rest periods could not help him to regain his strength. Hunger was clenching his maw by iron fist, thirst was impeding his journey. After two days, being on the edge of life and death, he stumbled upon a curious building of this nether world.
The man started carefully clambering down the hillside. Only the sound of falling rocks pierced the eerie silence. Once under the shadow of the hill, he slowly drew towards the mysterious fortress. Only at that moment did he realise that the castle was farther than he had first believed. Thus, he trudged on, leaving his footprints in the previously undisturbed maroon sand. The ruby light, having no particular source, was illuminating his surroundings, striking fear into even the bravest of hearts. He had completely lost all sense of time, and despite his weariness he managed to wend his way to the fortress’s gate. He faltered.
There was no fosse, which would protect the castle, but still standing strong was the wrought iron portcullis forged many years ago. The building seemed to be deserted, but he could feel the presence of someone or something both powerful and dangerous. The man took a deep breath and entered the gloomy castle.
Everywhere was reigning deaf silence, which was disturbed only by his footsteps. He looked around. He noticed that the main building was made up of ruby red brick. Farther, across from where he had entered, was standing an enormous building with a window which reached from floor to ceiling, with a view of the gate.
The man strided over to an ornately decorated archway and proceeded through it. On the other side, proudly stood a gold column, which caught his gaze as he approached. On either side were steep, broad stairs leading off to a landing above him. Curious, he started climbing them. When he reached the top, immediately he walked to the entryway ahead of him, this time sans precious metal and cloaked in darkness.
Despite the oppressive gloom, the man found the correct way. He came to the conclusion that he was inside of the fortress’ wall. After a short walk he saw a torch’s light, which emboldened him to go farther. Despite this boldness, on his worthy heart fell a shadow of fear. The truth was that this yonder brightness signalled someone’s presence, perhaps even that of the master of this castle, who could choose to permanently end his suffering for his trespassing.
For this reason, he decided to tread lightly. After a few minutes he reached the odd landing. It was located in the square room, which had no floor, but a winding spiral staircase, leading up as well as down. The man chose to continue upwards and quickly arrived at the top of the tower. He was somewhat sheltered by the battlements atop the tower. Striking views of the dale were his reward for all his efforts. The red sand extended to the horizon like an infinite sea, strewn with multiple caves and boulders, which from this remoteness resembled only smaller and bigger black dots. Single blades of grass loomed in the way of the distant petrean columns, outstanding from other rocky forms. The man could have spent hours there observing his surroundings, but he needed to find help, in order to break away from death’s embrace. He slowly clambered back down the stairs to emerge on the castle wall.
He was lumbering along, looking for any sign of life. When he was midway to another tower, he shuddered suddenly. He started feeling vast dismay. He sensed that someone was observing him, but he could not see anybody. He called out. Nobody answered him. He did it a second time and waited anxiously.
Suddenly he heard quick, light footsteps behind him. He turned around. A hooded warrior in grey raiment appeared from nowhere and took a swing at him with his spear. If the man had not recoiled in time, he would have been cut in half. The warrior froze for a while, in the same position in which he had landed. In the hood was only darkness and dread. The wanderer put his hands up as if to surrender, but the mysterious being attacked again. The man stood back a second time. A silver swath scintillated in front of his face and the speartip hit the wall, piercing it’s stony exterior. The warrior, irritated by this ensuing situation, proceeded to deftly swing his spear in deadly strokes, the man, despite inanition, was efficiently dodging them and retreating simultaneously.
He heard another sound of footsteps and out of the corner of his eye he beheld an identical warrior in the distance, running to them like the wind, in order to strike a blow for his comrade. Luck was on the man’s side and, when his enemy did once more foin, he seized his spear and thrust the butt into his chest. The warrior fell on the castle courtyard. The traveller thus thought him dead, until he rose and began to run. The man swiftly headed for the tower once more and made his way down the stairs, spurred on only by fear.
He could hear the second warrior leaping down the stairs, in order to catch him. The man reached the exit leading to the square. He was so focused on his footing that he did not see the first warrior barring his path. As a result, they both rolled down the stairs to the bottom. When they were on the floor, he broke away from the steely grip of his combatant and ran to the wooden door, which he closed after him with a bang.
He heard one of the warriors drop down and help the second get up. A third and fourth subsequently arrived. The other warrior came running down the stairs to consult with their brothers in arms. They talked for a while, thereon one and all fell silent and started doing something, but they did not try to open the door.
The man decided not to wait for them, hence he hastily made his way down a torch-lit corridor when he encountered a forked path and after a short time had passed he decided to turn left. He started roving that way. He walked slowly, in order to conserve his strength. Every choice was elaborately deliberated on, until he suddenly heard the bone-chilling scream of something that could not be human. It echoed along the corridor as if he was in some horrific nightmare. Everywhence reverberated a strange tapping noise. Conscious of his mortality, he started making impulsive decisions, but fortune smiled upon him again. He somehow managed to avoid all boobytraps despite being unaware of their existence. An enticing scent entered his nostrils, but he resisted temptation and he was no fool. After running for some minutes, near to death from exhaustion, he beheld an exit.
From the open doors, was escaping a white light. The creature was in sight and the tapping sound quickened. The man felt its breath on his back. He ran as fast as he could, but his fatigue caught up with him and began slowing him down. He made it at the last moment. The man disappeared in the portal’s white light, where aid was waiting for him.
The monster rapidly drew to a halt. It was deathly afraid of these mysteriously glowing doors, hence it lost interest in chasing its prey. It slowly headed back to its cheerful nook located in the labyrinth’s heart. Its arthropod legs were rapping loudly on the stone floor and the echo resounded throughout the labyrinth.
The warriors lowered their gavelocks. The man had done it, he had escaped them. They keenly felt the loss of such a precious energy source being ripped from their claws where they could not follow. Twain warriors stood up from their knees and together with the others started slowly climbing the stairs, taking their spears, which bound them to existence. The Brothers went out to the courtyard, and into the building with the gold column. They walked past it and turned around. One of them touched the gold coat of arms of their house, which their prey had not beheld. The slab moved, revealing a spiral staircase leading down. They started climbing down in procession, there again the souterrain closed itself with a quiet rustle. In the end they got through to the room where they spent most of their existence.
It was a small room without torches, because the warriors did not need light. Instead, a tremendous crystal stood in the middle of the space. It was levitating over a gold mat. It had an irregular shape and its ruby glow illuminated the whole room. The Brothers stood abreast in front of it, chorusing in the primaeval language, which had been long forgotten by the world. The blood coloured stone shone for a second. For a while they were losing their invaluable energy, but then they felt its growth and the light ebbed away again. They felt the presence of another human arrive, which could provide them with the power essential to their existence.
The brothers, who had been humans at one point, surrounded the crystal and banged their spears on the lithoid floor. One and all suddenly became stony statues and were waiting. They had to wait until their new prey died or crossed the fortress’s threshold. But this person will die one day and the Cursed Brothers will still exist, whence they will not lose their spears nor will they lose all their power. But even then, from spectre they transform into mere, insignificant shadows roaming this eerie world, which for them is a prison.
