Philippa opened her eyes to see a rock ceiling above her glowing in orange light. She squinted her eyes, not sure if what she saw was an illusion or not. Her stomach screamed in agony, and her head felt like someone had continuously banged it against a wall. In short, she felt horrible.
Turning her head, she saw she was on a bed with dark sheets. Beyond the light, she saw a shadow moving quickly about the chamber as if in search of something. She tried to speak, only to remember she couldn't. She tried to move, but her body felt like a weight was pressing her down. Not even her fingers would move. Opening her mouth, she called out for the person to help her, to tell her what was going on. But no sound came. Her eyes drooped once more, and she fell into another deep slumber.
Bardulf was trying to find a way to contact someone so they could help, but Serrill had done his job well. There were only doctor's supplies in the ruins. Nothing more. Every now and then, he'd check on Philippa, only to find she was in the same state as before. Her breathing was possible more even than before, but that was most likely wishful thinking on his part. He was lost for any way of getting out and saving his mate from a slow painful death. Bardulf didn't care if he lived, but Philippa had to live. She was the one who had to survive.
Finally, after hours of finding nothing, he went back to the blood-soaked bed and pulled Philippa into his arms, feeling her cool skin and soft hair. He had stitched her up the best he could, but it looked like a child's work. Bardulf rested his forehead against hers and let one tear drop onto her cheek. "I will get us out of here," he hissed, knowing she couldn't hear him, but imagining she could.
Bardulf ripped all the dirty sheets off the bed and found clean blankets nearby. He curled up with Philippa in his arms and fell asleep. He woke once to her thrashing about. But it ended within minutes and she fell back into a deep sleep. Bardulf held her tighter then, whispering soothing words into her ears. She didn't wake again.
The next morning, Bardulf covered Philippa in blankets. He didn't want any dust entering her airways and her choking. When he felt she was safe from that harm, he went into the corridor they had entered through and began to dig with his bare hands. There were no tools he could use that would be strong enough to break some of the bigger chunks of rock, so he had to rely on his own strength and determination. By the time he had removed a large amount of rubble, it was dark again. He was covered in dirt and sweat, yet when he looked back to the entrance, he sighed. It didn't seem like he was any closer to the surface than he was this morning. He went back to the chamber and fell asleep, holding Philippa as close as he could.
Above them, in deep snow and heavy garments, Flik and Seth were also digging. They were frantic to get to their king and Luna. Unlike Bardulf though, there were people helping them, even Ysmay who was told that the ruins caved in and her father was the only one who made it out. She was not told however, that it was her father that created this mess.
Flik and Seth halted their assault on the rocks and told everyone to get some rest. Together, they went to a tipi and fell into their cots, exhausted and hope slowly dwindling. They knew their leaders only had a limited amount of time if they were stuck in the ruins without food or water, much less air. They only slept for an hour before going back out and starting again, this time, in an all-out snowstorm.
Days passed as they worked hard to save the two buried in the ground alive. Nothing would make them stop digging, not even the menacing crack of ice that seemed to be forming on the outskirts of the village. Both Flik and Seth knew what would happen if the ice broke completely and the water came rushing through. Frantic more by the thought, they called on everyone nearby to help.
Within the ruins, Bardulf had stopped digging due to his lack of energy. He hadn't eaten since the morning they entered the ruins. His breathing had become harsh and painful. It took all his strength not to curl up and let nature caress him into slumber forever. He now stayed on the bed with Philippa, wiping beads of sweat and specks of dirt off her face. Even though he felt invasive, he also changed her bloody clothes and into a dress of warm fur, then into multiple blankets. She hadn't had another seizure type break down, but he could tell she was fading more by the minute. Her skin was pale, and her chest barely rose and fell. The only thing that told him she was alive was the way she weakly clung to him in her sleep and the violent shivers that racked her body.
Finally, on the seventh night of being inside the ruins, he gave up. He didn't get out of bed; he didn't open his eyes. The only thing he did was listen to the deafening silence around him and feel the weak grip on his shirt loosen just slightly. Philippa had lasted longer than he had ever hoped for. He knew she was fighting the poison within her system, yet it was going to be for nothing if they stayed trapped in here.
A jolt ran through the ruins and Bardulf briefly opened his eyes, seeing dust rain down and heard something crash to the ground. A moment passed and he repositioned himself so that both he and Philippa were covered by the blankets and he was protecting her the best he could. He closed his eyes with a sigh, once again silence reigned.
Bardulf was almost asleep when a longer, much more powerful jolt made larger pieces of the ceiling fall around them. He had enough strength to roll both he and his mate out of the way of a large boulder before sitting up and glancing around. In the distance, he heard something like buzzing. He didn't care all that much since there wasn't anywhere to go, but he didn't relax.
Beside him, Philippa coughed from the dust. Bardulf pulled her into his lap and held her close. They both stank of rotting corpses, but he didn't notice it.
A light, different from the lingering candlelight from behind him, appeared from one of the corridors. He narrowed his eyes and held his mate tighter, willing to run and save her from harm if it came down to it. The light got brighter and soon a shadow followed it. The shadow was of a silhouette of a male with broad shoulders. Just when Bardulf was ready to leap into action, he heard his name.
"Bardulf!"
His eyes widened in shock and disbelief.
"Bardulf! Luna!"
"Flik!" he called out, hope rising in his bones.
The sound of feet became loud and rushed. Philippa shifted in his arms, but Bardulf didn't let her go. Soon enough, Flik's figure came into view along with several other people, including Seth. "Thank the Goddess!" Flik exclaimed as he ran towards them. He set his torch down and handed Bardulf a canteen of water. "We were losing hope you'd still be alive."
The king drank deeply then held the mouth of the canteen to Philippa's lips, pouring a little in. To his relief, she swallowed and accepted more. "Get her to the castle to see the doctor!" he growled and shoved Philippa towards his friend. "She's been poisoned and hasn't awoken since we got here."
Flik took the fragile woman into his arms but hesitated on leaving. He didn't want to leave his king here without knowing he was following. "Sir—"
"Go!" Bardulf growled, pushing him away. "I will see you there!"
Flik glanced at Seth who nodded his assurance that he would escort the king safely back, then stood up with his Luna in his arms. "Good to see you," he said.
Bardulf gave him a tired smile. "You too."
With that, Flik ran into the corridor and up onto the ground. He proceeded to his reindeer where he held Philippa close as he urged the beast towards the castle.
Seth knelt and helped his king to his feet. "What happened?" he asked as they began to walk after Flik.
"Serrill poisoned her!" he croaked and glared at the chamber. "He left her bleeding out, then caved in the entrances. I'm going to kill him!"
But the king wasn't able to do anything now since he nearly did a face plant while taking his first step. Seth motioned for another man to help him haul the king back into the sun and snow. "You need to get checked first," he said and was given a glare in return. "You can hardly stand. You're no match for Serrill without proper food, water, rest, and weapons."
"If she dies," Bardulf hissed out as they stepped into the snow, "I will rip him open with my bare hands and scatter the limbs over the land, so he is unidentifiable."
Seth sighed and finally set his king up against the awaiting reindeer. "Get on, then when you have a clear head, we will find him."
Bardulf obeyed, even though Seth had no right telling him what to do. The man got on behind him and took the reins. They hurried to the castle while behind them, in the shadow of a large boulder that made up the ruins, Serrill watched with rage and hatred. It didn't last though as he suddenly fell to his knees and a black cloud came out of his mouth, nose, eyes, and ears. The black cloud swarmed after the reindeer and left the man in a pool of his own blood.
Later when someone saw him, they first thought he was dead. The person flipped Serrill over and listened to his heart. It was still beating slightly, just barely audible in the silent environment. Then something grabbed his ankle and he saw Serrill's eyes had opened. They were bloodshot and full of fear. Serrill said, "Warn the King. Protect the Luna."
"What?" the man said, afraid Serrill had gone mad.
"My pocket!" Serrill gasped. "Give the King."
The man reached inside Serrill's pockets and pulled out a vile of light blue liquid. "What is it?" he asked the dying man.
Serrill shook his head. "Give to king. From me. I'm sorry." With those final words, Serrill went silent and didn't move again.