“Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.” ― Mary Shelley
Kyle regained his consciousness after traveling a great distance draped over the steed. His head throbbed and his belly ached as he was tossed in cadence with the uneven trail that the beasts traveled along. He attempted to get a sense of his surroundings but he found that his vision was impaired by diplopia. Slung over the steed he found that he could only see the ground. He kept his eyes tightly closed enduring the discomfort the rough ride created for head and body. Before shutting his eyes he was aware that the bright sunlight that greeted him when he appeared from the cave was replaced by a sudden and dramatic darkness.
He became aware that the air around him had grown dank. He thought that he could no longer tolerate the brutal ride, but he did. Eventually the beasts stopped. Kyle was roughly pulled from the steed by a pantar. He felt nauseated as he staggered on his feet. The pantars forced Kyle through the dark hallways of a long cavern. Irregularly placed crude stone sconces provided some light for Kyle to see. His vision began to return in the darkened cavern. As he was hurried along Kyle thought that he detected eyes lurking in the shadows. Reptiles indeed were hiding in the gloom of the cavern, but they recoiled when they saw the approaching pantars. The hallway turned sharply. Kyle saw one of the pantars jab its spear at a creature in the shadowed corner. As they passed Kyle saw a bloodied head of an enormous snake withdraw from the light. His heart skipped even faster. The pantars were deliberate in their pace nearly dragging Kyle along with them. Kyle saw a growing light ahead of him. The pantars guided Kyle to a hub in the cavern where several blocked entrances were located.
The pantars led their captive from a corridor adjacent to the hub into a large cavern. In the center of the cavern was an enormous primitive rock fireplace that nearly rose to the roof of the cavern. Along the walls of the cavern were stone sconces similar to those that Kyle observed in the hallways. The cavern appeared to be under construction as various animals, under the surveying watch of the pantars, labored to drag large square black stones into position where they were hoisted on top of each other forming a wall within the monstrous cavern. Kyle’s expression of disbelief and wonder were understandable as the assembly of creatures resembled species that he had never seen or only seen in picture books. Several enormous armadillo-like creatures called glyptodons dragged the heaping stones. In another area of the cavern were a herd of camelots. Nearest to Kyle was a giant ground sloth who the pantars prodded with their spears forcing the lethargic creature to hoist the large stones that the other animals labored to drag to the escalating wall. Kyle’s attention was suddenly commanded by an ominous creature seated beyond the fireplace on a staging of broad flat stones. Kyle gulped as he determined that the large ebony beast was staring at him. The creature that captivated Kyle’s attention appeared to be in command of all the activity in the cavern. Kyle had spotted the dark master, Cato.
Cato sat on a square stone highbacked seat that resembled a throne. His long thick fingers clutched the corner of the armrests when he spotted Kyle. Cato was darkened black from foot to head. His waist, shoulders, arms, neck and head were thick and muscular. His head bore the shape of a large lizard. As Cato observed Kyle being led to him his crimson tongue unfurled from his mouth excitedly. His dark beady eyes narrowed further as he leaned towards the child. He sniffed the dank cavern closing his eyes as if enhancing his sense of smell. “Yesss, Yesss,” he exclaimed delighted with his inspection of the prisoner. The pantars dragged Kyle to the base of the stone stage where Cato’s throne was constructed. They brutally pushed the child forward as the force caused Kyle to stumble landing roughly on his bare knees. The pain wrenched through him. Still he looked Cato in the eyes. Cato rose from his chair and strode intimidatingly to the kneeling child. He leaned into Kyle’s face unfurling his forked tongue just so it reached Kyle’s face. Kyle withdrew his head slightly feeling the piercing point of the pantar’s spear in his back.
Cato regarded the two pantars. “Yesss, you have done well. I am pleased. I am so pleased. This is not the only one though.” The pantars nervously looked at one another. “There is another of these creatures in the distant forest. Why haven’t your kind brought it to me as well?” Kyle was paralyzed with fear. He remained motionless caught between the fierce pantars and the beastly Dark Master. “Others have been sent out to capture the remaining sapient child. You need to return to the forest to lead the attack against the ancient tree. We will burn down that forest once and for all and destroy everything that lives or hides in it.” Kyle bowed his head and breathed deeply.
Kyle had nothing to compare Cato’s angry demeanor to. He recalled a sturdy father at one of his soccer games who angrily shouted obscenities at the officials. Kyle thought that the man was pitiful not intimidating like the beast who now studied him. Kyle considered Cato’s command to the pantars. The Dark Master mentioned that there was only one other child that roamed through the land. Had Whitney or Nathan failed to come through the waterfall? Had one of them perished? Kyle closed his watering eyes as he considered his cousins’ well-being for the first time.
Kyle spotted the meaty hand of Cato raise as he pointed his long finger at the child. The finger did not have nails like humans rather the sharp points of the fingers were like darts poised in his direction. “What do you think you are doing here?” Cato commanded through his slobbering speech. Kyle could not respond. Cato suddenly levied a brutal forceful backhand across the child’s face causing the boy to collapse on the cavern floor. Kyle again momentarily blacked out from the force of the blow. The pantars roughly raised his body from the ground. “What do you think you are doing here?”
Deliriously Kyle stammered, “I-I am just trying to get, to find my way back.”
Cato mocked him, “Trying to find your way back?” He laughed deeply and troublesomely. “You and the other one will provide me with entertainment, but you will never return from where Zeborg captured you.”
Kyle’s spirit was trampled by this announcement. He could not imagine sinking to a more perilous condition. His face throbbed with pain and his knees ached. From that powerless position desperation awakened. Kyle rose to his feet , determined he stared Cato in the eye. He felt the points of the Pantar’s spears prick his back. Cato waved his thick arm signaling the pantars to withdraw. “I don’t think those stupid bats are doing so well. I came though that cave by myself. There wasn’t anyone else with me.”
Cato smiled pleased at the sudden change in the child. “You’re all alone are you? We’ll see about that, soon enough.” He waved the pantars on to follow out his order. “Yes, it’s likely that the other one perished, but you were not alone. My minions have already reported that. The other one like you ran off after the imbecile interfered. Gurga paid for that I’m told. It’s the only thing he ever did that was worth something,” Cato looked away momentarily considering the fate of Shadow. “When the other one is brought to me, you will battle him here until one of you crushes the head of the other with a rock.” Cato stepped immediately in front of Kyle. His towering body lowered as he grabbed the child by his shoulders and raised him until Kyle’s fearful eyes met the Dark Master’s black orbs. “You just lied to me, don’t ever do that again.” Cato thrusted Kyle to the hard rock floor of the cavern where Kyle again lost consciousness. “Take him to the furthest most cell until I call for him again. Then go and lead the attack against the old tree and her forest.” One of the pantars picked Kyle up as the other led the way towards an entryway leading to the great cavern. Cato lingered for an instance before he stepped back out of the light retiring to his throne.
Kyle was carried unconscious along the dark maze of the caverns. The two pantars that had captured him moved deliberately pass one cavern opening after another. The lead pantar carried a torch to guide their way. They did not require the light however as they were well familiar with the passageway through the caves. Their footsteps echoed in the silent hallway. The cavern floor was damp as tiny streams of water passed through numerous cracks in the walls of the cave. In the deepest belly of the cavern the lead pantar placed his torch in a burrowed hole on a shelf of rock that jettisoned out of the wall. It then strained to move a large boulder from an opening that led to a small cavern. The pantars had to duck in order to pass through the opening. Once inside the pantar that had led the way took the torch from outside to light a similar torch positioned next to the opening of the cave. The pantar carrying Kyle roughly dropped him to the stone floor of the cave. They turned, withdrew from the cave and repositioned the large boulder in front of the opening.