Chapter Forty-Five

Raphael was never allowed to walk on his own, constantly shoved forwards, at times to the side, once to his knees. He was growing irritated and voiced it several times, which always resulted in another push.

He smelt the dust in the hallways but felt the damp air the further they walked. Being blind for the duration of the walk, he could hear water, at first faintly, but gradually it grew louder. It made his skin crawl.

The path became steeper, and the young thief broke a sweat after a few minutes of walking. Soon he was forced to stop and, without warning, was gagged, a knotted cloth forced into his mouth and tied firmly behind his head. In reaction, he retched, his body unable to cough up the gag. Someone clutched his hair and forced him to stand straight, his fedora slipping off his head.

He grunted, attempting to say, "Can someone get my hat?" but instead, it came out as an incomprehensible noise. Someone struck the back of his head, demanding he is silent.

"We're almost there, and it would be in your best interest to be silent."

Not that I have much choice, Raphael thought as he continued following their heavy footsteps.

The sound of running water became louder- crashing water- barely muffling the sound of someone speaking. Raphael heard small phrases but was unable to discern a single accent from them. His feet became sluggish as a panic festered in his chest; he tried to swallow it down, not keen on having a vomit flavoured gag.

There was a sudden squeal, followed by an ugly sound of metal on metal. Raphael recognised the sound. "Maria!" he attempted to yell. He tried to run towards the sound when the ground disappeared beneath him. No one had lifted him off the ground or kicked his feet out from under him. The floor vanished from his feet. His stomach lurched from the sudden fall; the sickening feeling lingered even when someone caught Raphael's shoulders. They threw him back onto the ground, allowing him a moment of respite before being forced to his feet to continue up the narrow pathway.

He felt the ground level out, to which the knights forced him to kneel with a strong kick on the back of his knees. His knees ached when he collapsed to the ground.

"Raphael…" Maria's voice was soft.

He was struck in the back, forcing him on his stomach. His head ricocheted off the ground, stunning him for a few moments.

"Don't hurt him!"

Raphael grunted as he managed to sit up without his arms. He wanted to aid his nose, partially convinced he broke it.

The blindfold was lifted from his eyes. Despite the small amount of light, he squinted, blinking away the blurriness caused by the cloth. Raphael barely recognised the man before him, his face was familiar, but he couldn't put a name to it. However, his eyes were distinct; bright orange.

Raphael bit down on the gag to keep from trying to swear at him. "I'm gonna take the gag off you," Sir Lucian informed, "But don't be ridiculous. You are deep underground in a catacomb. No one can hear you."

Raphael relaxed his jaw as the knight pushed the gag out of his mouth and let it hang around his neck. He coughed, stretching out his jaw and biting down on his teeth. "Better?"

Raphael sighed and forced a smile, "Tremendously."

Sir Lucian returned the forced smile and stood up straight. Raphael looked around the platform, noticing the dozens of knights set in straight lines and staring in awe at the waterfall a hundred meters from them. Looking from the background to the foreground, he saw the grand throne which Maria was restrained to. His fright was replaced by confusion, almost fascination, at the sight of it. "You guys have been busy…" he absently said as he noticed the man-made look of the platform. He narrowed his eyes when he saw another chair with a woman tied to it; realising who it was, he scoffed in amusement. "Oh my word, you kidnapped the Queen."

Queen Elizabeth had been blindfolded and gagged like him, except she had been given the luxury of a chair.

"Of course." Sir Lucian approached her and ripped the blindfold off the older woman. Upon seeing him, she became agitated again, and, despite her muffled speech, Raphael could assume what she wanted to say to him by the snarl on her face and the hatred in her eyes. "Wouldn't be a family reunion without the whole family, right?"

Queen Elizabeth's glare hardened but softened when she looked to Maria. Raphael followed her stare and saw Maria seemed quite distressed. But what he noticed more than anything was, "Where's Anita?"

Sir Lucian thought for a moment, his accent changing. "That little girl? She should be on her way, I'm pretty sure."

The Queen attempted to speak but was still unable to.

"What did you do to her?" Raphael spat, he attempted to stand, but he was pushed back down.

"Nothing," he assured with the wave of his arm. The connecting armour between his elbow and arm creaked; it annoyed him enough for him to try and fix it.

Raphael gritted his teeth as he looked at Maria. Her face was scrunched into a wince as she attempted to pull her hands through the bars, but her knuckles were too big. She stopped and caught Raphael's eyes. "Are you okay?" he mouthed.

Maria managed a slight nod, but her glassy eyes were terrified.

Sir Lucian stepped in front of Raphael's eyes and folded his arms. "Now, I need something from you," he informed, his accent turning into one Raphael recalled.

He widened his eyes, "Mr Durand?"

Sir Lucian made a belly laugh and nodded, "You catch on fast, thief. Now, where's the King's ring?"

Raphael narrowed his eyes and stayed silent. Exasperated, Sir Lucian rolled his eyes, "Please understand you are disposable. The only reason you're even still alive right now is that that girl up there cares," he informed, gesturing to Maria. "And unless you cooperate, I'll be sure to pay a visit to your little friend down in the dungeon." He hummed, thinking about what he said before clarifying, "Actually, no, I won't. I'll make sure no one does. Ever. She'll be locked in the catacomb dungeons without anyone knowing she's down here."

Raphael gritted his teeth and sighed as he looked to the ground. "It's in my jacket pocket. My right one." He lifted his head, "I'm cooperating, Sir Lucian. We all are. We don't need to go about making threats. Please don't hurt them."

Mr Durand smirked as he kneeled and fished around Raphael's pockets. He pulled out the jade ring but also got a hold of the coin from Raphael's Father. "What's this?" he asked.

"A keepsake." Raphael simply stated.

Examining it, the knight didn't return the coin. He walked away with it, flicking it in the air as he approached Maria again. "Try not to look so sad, my dear. You're about to be part of history!"

Maria shook her head, unable to speak.

Raphael wanted to demand the coin back but bit his tongue. It took every cell in his body not to yell out to the Unknown Royal to leave Maria alone, but again, he bit his tongue.

He watched Sir Lucian slip the ring onto her finger, despite her objections, and snap a finger at the other knights to pass him the other bits of jewellery. Raphael looked to Her Highness, "Your Majesty, are you okay?" he asked as respectfully as possible.

She was dressed in an exquisite dress, fine sapphire silk and silvery stitching and patterns. But her hair was wispy, and she looked as if she hadn't slept in some time. How long have they had her for?

Despite her exhaustive expression, her eyes had a fire behind them; anger, outrage, and a hint of disgust. She nodded to him, her eyes locked on Maria.

"Can you move?" Raphael asked, looking over to the knights behind him, but they were fixated on Maria and Sir Lucian/Durand.

The Queen attempted moving, but her hands were tied to the chair. She shook her head.

Sir Lucian stepped away from Maria, standing before the throne steps and smiling. "Put the pendent on her," he instructed.

The knight who had the pendent approached the throne and leaned forwards to place it over her. She seemed frightened, "Get away from me…" she begged, pressing her body against the throne. The knight ignored her.

She made a swift kick to the knight, allowing him to stumble back and fall over. His armour made a loud clatter against the ground, and the pendant was sent flying. It rolled along the ground, and the chain dangled over the edge of the platform. Everyone held their breath when it came to a stop so close to the edge of the platform, all except for Sir Lucian, who approached the pendent calmly and scooped it up.

As he approached the throne again, the knight who had been hit stood straight, Raphael unable to see his face past the shadows in the helmet, but from his trembling arms, he assumed he was nervous.

Sir Lucian stood by the man, taking out his sword and struck the knight on the side of the helmet with the butt of the blade. The metal sound on leather was an ugly clash that bounced around the catacomb, eventually drowning out from the waterfall. However, the sound of the body dropping lingered and banished the humidity Raphael felt, replacing it with a sudden chill.

Sir Lucian didn't think twice about it as he untangled the chain and looked back to Maria. "You, Your Highness, need to cooperate too."

Maria sniffed, shaking her head, "I'm not…"

Sir Lucian held a hand up and hushed her, causing Raphael to puff out his cheeks. "Don't make me give you a speech about cooperating, Maria," he said, stepping over the knight and going up the steps toward her, "Because in the end, we both know I could just do this."

There was a muffled noise. Raphael looked and saw Anita, one of the guards holding her off the ground like a doll with an arm around her throat. She clawed at their armour, but her little hands barely scratched it.

Anger rose in Raphael as he stood up, ready to charge at the knight for touching her. But the cold metal against his neck made him froze him to the spot as one of the knights pressed down harder against his throat.

"We've shed blood before. It's not a big deal to shed some more." Sir Lucian seemed pleased at Raphael's reaction as he was slowly forced to kneel back down, an eye constantly on Anita, who looked to him fearfully.

Sir Lucian's statement rocked Raphael more than he wished. If his father was part of this organisation, did he spill blood? Was he a murderer? A kidnapper? And if he wasn't, did he aid them? And in what ways?

Raphael gulped when his throat started to sting.

Maria seemed mid-hyperventilating as she shook her head. "Stop… please stop… I'll cooperate. Just don't hurt them."

In the corner of his eye, he saw the Queen had two swords aimed at her back.

"Excellent." Sir Lucian snapped his fingers, and all weapons dropped, including Anita. She scrambled over to Raphael, her arms bound behind her back too.

"Raphael!" She sobbed, pressing her face against her neck.

Her touch left him breathless as he rested his cheek against the top of her head, noticing the uneven locks of her hair. "Thank God you're alright," he breathed.

Ignoring the reunion, Sir Lucian placed the necklace gently over Maria's head. Once it rested, Raphael watched the ring and necklace glow, but unlike before, they didn't dim. They remained at the same level of intensity.

One of the other knights approached cautiously, an elegant crown which blazed a similar jade in his hands. Raphael watched the colour drain from Maria's face as Sir Lucian took the crown into his own hands. As the crown rested on her head, Maria whimpered, screwing her eyes closed.

The Royal headpiece fit like a glove.

One of the jewels in the centre started shimmering. And altogether, the jewels became blinding as they exploded outwards in light.

Sir Lucian shaded his eyes as he backed away from the throne. Raphael winced, attempting to block the light from Anita.

Gradually, the light dimmed. All the knights murmured indistinctly to one another, none of them knowing what to expect either. When the light faded, Maria still sat there, albeit wary. In fact, she looked ill. She started to retch, unable to suppress her gagging before leaning as far over the side of the throne and vomiting. This gained some grunts of disgust from the knights.

Out of what Raphael assumed to be sympathy, Sir Lucian unclipped the restraints on Maria, allowing her to stumble from the throne to the ground as she continued hacking.

"What're they doing to her, Ann?" Raphael whispered.

"It's the jewellery," Anita replied, still leaning heavily on his shoulder. She seemed close to tears. "I was right. They were hexed by witches, but I don't know what they do."

Raphael watched Sir Lucian be given a violin from one of the other knights and frowned. Is that Maria's? He recalled how they had left it at the church when they fled. They had returned and found it.

"Such a strange thing, isn't it? Heritage, I mean." Sir Lucian stood by Maria as she continued to cough. Much to Raphael's anger, she brushed aside some of her hair almost caringly. "Amazing how strong a pull it can have on people." He thrust the instrument into Maria's chest. She seemed groggy as her fingers ran over the smooth wood, her eyes narrowing as if she didn't recognise what she held. "Play for us, Your Highness."

He revealed some sheet music that Raphael couldn't read. And it seemed Maria couldn't either as she took the paper and attempted to focus on it. "Perhaps you remember it," Sir Lucian said, "After all, you did play it at the ball."

That haunting melody came to mind, the chills it sent down Raphael's back, the strange mixture of dread and serenity. At the song's mention, the Queen became anxious, attempting to speak but still unable to due to the gag.

"What's wrong with her?" Anita breathed, her focus still on the groggy Maria, "She looks drunk."

Raphael didn't think Maria was drunk, having yet to see her take a drink of anything since his arrival. But everything about her glowed in a sickly manner. Her skin seemed paler while every prominent jewel continued to throb in the same rhythm like a heartbeat.

"I think the voodoo is making her disoriented…" Raphael concluded. He managed to rest a hand against Anita, "Listen to me carefully." He started tapping with deliberate motions on Anita's skin. Morse Code.

Maria blinked more, and a hand pressed against her temple. She looked as if she may vomit again.

"I don't think… I don't think I can…" Maria swallowed hard as her breathing laboured.

"Perhaps some encouragement?" Sir Lucian unsheathed his sword.

As if by signal, the blade returned to Raphael and the other hostages, only this time Anita was ripped away from him, and he lost his temper. "Let her go!" Ignoring the swords, he charged at the knight who grabbed her and barged him off his feet. Raphael was met violent strikes to his back, forcing him to the ground to have the point of the sword pressing against his upper back.

The rock was cold against his face and smelt of dirt as he was forced to lie there.

"That's enough!" Maria demanded. She, too, pushed past Sir Lucian's sword to grab the edge around the neck of his armour and yank his head down to her size. "Either you stop these threats, or I throw myself off this podium, and you'll never get your jewels back."

Her threat was met with stunned silence, with even Lucian showing a moment of astonishment, but he detached her hand from his suit and said, "Very well." With the wave of his sword, Raphael felt the pressure lift from his back and sit up. Anita ran to his side again, unable to suppress her tears.

He took a glance over his shoulder and noticed the knight hadn't put his sword away, simply aimed it at his back.

Maria sighed as she picked up the sheet music she had dropped. Still looking confused, she scanned the music sheet one more time, her lips parting and closing as she read it.

But she's already played this… Raphael mused. Why was it taking her so long to play?

Maria seemed satisfied as she dropped it and rested the bow on the strings. She took in a long breath and made one solid sound that overpowered the waterfall. She stopped after the first note and frowned, dropping the bow to tune the violin. Sir Lucian frowned, "Problem?"

Maria blinked; swallowing hard, she replied, "The violin doesn't sound right."

"It sounds fine," he snapped, snatching it from her.

"I've played that instrument for almost ten years. I know what it's supposed to sound like and what the music is supposed to sound like. It sounds wrong." Her voice hardened, almost like she was annoyed.

Raphael knew she was lying.

"And if you don't mind, I want to fix it! Maybe loosen the strings." She snatched it back and glared at Raphael in passing as she adjusted the strings.

Raphael took a glance at the man behind him and slowly shuffled back, inching closer to him as Sir Lucian snapped, "Play!"

Startled, Maria started playing. The song prompted the glow of the jewellery again, but instead of simply gleaming, it sapped light from everything. Naked flames went out from a sudden wind, stealing all light until Maria was the only source of light. The jade colour reflected the Unknown Royals' shiny armour, forcing the whole cave to go green. At first apprehensive, even Maria disappeared into the music of the haunting song, seemingly unaware of what the jewellery was doing to her.

The song seemed to last forever. No one dared speak or move out of strange awe or perhaps an unknown obligation.

The last three notes hummed a finale and prompted the jade glow to intensify until Maria wasn't recognisable. When the previous note disappeared into the air, the light expanded from her and relit the torches, everything was the same except for Maria, who now laid motionless where she once stood.