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"We just need to keep them from killing each other until I can get back," said Aein.
"Killing each other or leaving the stronghold," added Finn.
They stole through the dark hallways, listening for any sign of survivors. Thus far, anyone who still lived was successfully hiding, which was probably the reason why they were still alive.
"If only we could separate them," said Aein. "If we could somehow explain to each side to lock themselves away before they transformed."
Finn raised an eyebrow as he mulled over Aein's words. "That is not such a bad idea."
"But how?" asked Aein. She motioned to the stretch ahead of them. Doors were ripped from their hinges. The glass from the windows lay shattered on the floor. The tall, iron candelabras which usually lit the way lay knocked over on their side. Benches and furniture were smashed apart. And then there were the broken and mangled bodies which served as a warning to anyone who might venture out.
"I assume this keep has a dungeon?" he asked.
Aein nodded.
"Well, that sounds like as good a place as any to store people away."
Aein disagreed. "And how do you propose we get a gaggle of scared people through the stronghold and past a pack of rabid werewolves without getting them all killed?"
"You'll figure it out," he shrugged, flashing her a smile. He walked over to one of the doors. "I learned this from you," he said. He rapped gently three times. He paused and then rapped three more times before moving on to the next door.
Aein looked over her shoulder, her hands gripping her sword as she scanned the hallway. They walked half the length of the stronghold, knocking on every closed door before they finally heard a response.
"Is someone there?" a muffled voice shouted from the other side of the door.
"We have come to rescue you," said Finn.
"It is a trick!" someone shouted. "They'll turn as soon as you open it!"
There was the sound of a scramble, of something heavy being thrown. The voices became angry, but were hushed so that Aein and Finn could not hear exactly what was being said. There was a scuffle, a thud, and then the door opened a crack.
A crowd of people peered out at them. "Thank gods!" a woman wept as she opened the door wider. Desperate hands reached out and pulled Aein and Finn in. "We thought we had been abandoned!"
"There is a curse!" said an older male servant, clutching at Aein's tunic.
The same woman pulled on Finn's injured arm and cried, "It is true! Every day, for one minute at sunrise and sunset, I see those I love, but... but they are wolves!"
Aein could see he was ready to pass out from the pain, and she gently guided the woman away.
"Why do they run from us?" asked a balding advisor.
The voices piled on, one on top of the other as the entire room explained at once the horrors they had endured.
Finn raised his hands to silence them. "Please! Please! We are aware of the situation! We are here to help you."
"How?" spat a rotund man. "How do you propose to do that?"
"I have found a cure," explained Aein, her arm still around the woman's shoulders. "I just need you to stay alive long enough for me to bring it to you."
"And how do you suggest we keep alive while you soldiers go off, merrily as can be, and leave us to fend for ourselves?" said the man. He motioned to the twenty other people in the room. "In this stronghold of hundreds, there are just a few of us left."
"I know," said Aein. "I know! You must believe me... I know this is hard to hear, but you have been struck by the same curse, too. Yes, at sunset, those you love turn into wolves. But every morning at the dawn, you all transform into beasts, too, and you kill your most beloved. I need you to not just save yourselves, but to stop killing the wolves."
Gasps and disbelieving cries filled the room.
"What she says is true," said Finn. "I have been struck by this curse, too."
In one motion, the room shrank back from the two of them. Aein tried to restore order in the panic.
"He is no danger! He will not transform until the dawn! Just like you! What I need you to do is..." She tried to come up with the eloquence to explain her idea. "What I need you to do is lock yourselves in the cells in the dungeon."
"What?" blustered the man again. "You mean to make us sitting ducks? Nothing but caged chickens for those beasts to snack on whenever they please?"
"Please," said Aein, "listen to me. We will put you in the cell tonight with the keys. When you transform, you will be locked inside. I will stay awake to tell the others, the ones who transform with the sunset of our plan. I will stay and make sure they do not harm you. Once we have everyone separated, you can walk the castle safely during the times you are in human form. And then you only have to return to your cells before the sunrise and everyone will be safe."
"This is the most ridiculous idea I have ever heard! You should be out there killing those beasts!"
"I just need your cooperation until I can return—"
Another woman pushed forward. Her face was wrinkled and her hair was gray. She pointed her finger at Aein. "You say you know of a cure?"
Aein nodded. "There are some berries in the swamp—"
"That's a two-week ride away!" said the man, causing another uproar.
"I have made it in a week," said Aein. "On a fast horse with little to carry, I can get there and get back swiftly. But I must have your help."
"I say we listen to the warrior," the woman said. "She's stayed alive long enough."
"But what about those creatures?" asked the rotund man.
"Those creatures are your loved ones," reminded Finn. "Every one that we kill is someone you care about that can never be brought back again."
There was a murmur that ran through the group.
"We must discuss this," the older woman said, turning away from Finn and Aein. The twenty people huddled together in hushed, but animated conversation.
At any other time, thought Aein, she would have just commanded them to go. She would have wielded the power of the warrior to make them do what she wanted them to do. But those days were done. She needed their cooperation.
Finally, the woman turned back. "We'll do it. But you must lock this soldier you say is infected in with us. We'll not have him running around if this is all some joke. He is our hostage and if you play us for fools, his life is forfeit."
Aein looked at Finn, thinking she was going to have to convince him to go along, but he readily accepted their offer. "No one is safe with me on the loose," he said. "I gladly join you."
The old woman nodded. "Very well. Lead us down to the dungeon. Put us wherever you would have us."
Aein cracked open the door and looked down the hallway. It appeared to be deserted. She did not understand why the wolves had not attacked yet. There had been only one in the kitchen and the few sounds that they heard in the halls. Had they all escaped while in human form? She shivered thinking about what might be waiting for her as she went into the swamps to retrieve the berries.
She edged her way along the wall, motioning for the people to follow her. Down into the bowels of the stronghold they went, the feet of twenty people trying to be quiet on the echoing flagstones. Aein had never realized how much the sound carried until experiencing the silence of the usually humming fortress. She took the lead as Finn brought up the rear.
There was a noise ahead of her. She held up her hand, indicating everyone should stop. That was all the warning they had as a pack of five wolves came running around the corner at them.
In an instant, the hallway was thrown into chaos. Screams pierced the air. Aein and Finn fought off the beasts as best they could, trying to buy time for the people they had sworn they would protect.
They got to the stairwell and managed to shut the door behind them. The door took a beating as the beasts kept throwing themselves against the wood.
"Hurry!" Finn shouted, waving at the crew to move. Screaming, they tore into the dungeon. She found an empty barred room.
"Where are the keys?" she shouted at Finn.
Instantly the entire room was looking for the ring. The body of a dead jailor lay beside the table. Aein pushed him over and looked on his belt. There they were! Her fingers fumbled with the man's buckle.
"Hurry, woman!" the older man yelled at her.
Her hands were so slick from blood and sweat, they couldn't grab the leather. The sound of the werewolves was coming down the hall. They would be here any minute.
She finally got the ring off. Shaking, she put the key in the lock, turned it, and heard the click as it released. She swung the door open and everyone climbed inside. Finn was the last one in and made it just as the first werewolf leaped into the room. The monster sprang at the jail door and it closed beneath the force of his body with a loud clang. Though he swiped at them with his paws, all twenty-two people were able to push themselves against the back wall of the cell, safe from harm.
"We made it," said Finn, shock and disbelief in his voice. A cheer rang out from the people around them. Finn grabbed Aein in a fierce hug and planted a kiss upon her forehead. "We made it!"
She was so exhausted and his arms felt so good. "We made it," she repeated back as she leaned against him. Her knees buckled, suddenly unable to continue on. "We made it..."
Finn took her weight and lowered her to the floor. "Sleep," he said. "We're safe. These bars are too strong for any beast to break. Sleep and I will wake you at sunrise."
He rested her head against his shoulder, and she did not fight. She was asleep by her second blink, feeling safe for the first time since the entire nightmare began.