Sir Rowan and the Camerian Conquest by Chuck Black

lantern and a shovel. He struggled to gain his feet but could barely manage to sit up.
    “You … you survived!” he said.
    “Obviously,” the woman said.
    “Are you real?” His voice quavered. “Or am I dreaming again?”
    Shadows danced off the woman’s face as she scrutinized him.
    “I am real,” she said carefully, “and you are not dreaming.”
    “They said nothing could stop the caterpillars. How did you …?”
    “I fell onto the white path that led here. They wouldn’t come onto the path. I think it is covered in salt. Perhaps that’s what kept them away.”
    The woman took a deep breath as if to shake the jitters from her. “It was quite ghastly, lying there for hours, hoping those nasty things wouldn’t eat me.” She made a disgusted face, then narrowed her eyes. “You said you were trapped, not chained,” she said. “Why are you here?”
    “Marauders killed my men and stole everything. They are … were holding me for ransom.”
    The woman raised a skeptical eyebrow.
    “I swear it is true,” Rowan said in desperation.
    After a moment of silent contemplation, she seemed to grow anxious. She looked behind her as if she might leave. Rowan held out his hand.
    “Please … please don’t leave me,” he pleaded. “They left me to die days ago—at least I think it was days. Please help me.”
    The woman settled a bit, looked at Rowan once more, and took a deep breath as if to accept the duty.
    “My name’s Mariah.”
    “I am Rowan … of Laos.”
    His name clearly meant nothing to her. She set the lantern down and cautiously approached Rowan, the shovel before her. When she saw his emaciated state, she relaxed her guard. Rowan stared at her as if she might disappear at any moment. When she hesitated, he broke his gaze and lifted the chains.
    “They are strong—too strong to break, I fear.”
    “Perhaps we can dig the stake out,” she offered.
    “I have tried to do that with my hands, but the ground was too hard. It is worth a try with the shovel.”
    Mariah set to the task. Rowan could offer no help. It wasn’t long before it became obvious that her digging was not working.
    Mariah swiped beads of sweat from her brow. “It’s impossible,” she said. She sat down, deep in thought. “At the entrance to the cavern there were things strewn about. Perhaps the keys to your locks are there.”
    She set the shovel against the wall and lifted the lantern. Rowan felt sick at the thought of being left in the dark again. She looked at him and seemed to read his thoughts.
    “I promise I will come back.”
    “Thank you, Mariah,” he said quietly.
    Mariah gave a quick grin and nodded, then disappeared into the outer cavern. Rowan waited anxiously until she appeared again.
    “Were there keys?” he asked.
    “No, but I found this.” She held up a long stake, similar to the one Rowan was chained to.
    “How will that help us?”
    Mariah inserted the tip of the free stake into the chain link closest to the ground and began to twist the link until it was bound upon itself. Then she used the stake as a lever, putting all of her weight on the other end. After two tries, the link snapped, and Rowan was free. He stayed sitting on the ground for a moment, wondering if he remembered how to stand erect. He slowly stood up, but his knees buckled. Mariah reached out to steady him.
    “Are you all right?” she asked.
    Rowan closed his eyes and nodded. “But I’m not sure that I can walk.”
    “Here, I’ll help you.” She positioned herself under his arm so that he could lean against her. Then, very slowly, they moved along the white salt path that led to the front of the cavern. Hundreds of moths circled above but did not come close enough to threaten them.
    They finally reached the cavern entrance. Rowan fell to his knees and turned his face upward to the blue sky. He blinked, nearly blinded by the late afternoon sun, but still rejoicing in his freedom. Mariah left him there and retrieved