Nodwin and the Pixie’s Curse - 10 - Prison
January 11, 2008 by Basil Munroe Godevenos
Prison
Nodwin opened his eyes, the grogginess of being knocked out slowly dropped away. He was in a windowless room. The walls and floor were made of dirt that had been hardened somehow. Maybe even by magic. It was smooth and he couldn’t even put a divot in it with his fingernail. The room was lit by a single glowing orb, certainly magical, that gave off a sickly pale white-green light, like a permanent after-image from a lightning strike. It made Nodwin slightly ill.
The door was sturdy, and was made of wood. The hinges were on the outside, apparently, and there was no apparatus for opening the door on Nodwin’s side at all. The furniture in the room consisted of a simple hammock hung across the breadth of the narrow room and a small bench with a hole in it - it’s use obvious. Nodwin could hear a trickle of water coming from the hole. He supposed there was some kind of stream beneath it to carry away the refuse.
Knowing all there was to know right then about his prison, Nodwin took stock of himself. He wasn’t hurt past having a headache from being bonked. His muscles were sore from the struggle. But both ailments would pass soon enough. More importantly, the Pixies had taken his shield and spear and his pack. He had no tools or supplies. He hoped they intended to keep him fed and watered.
They had left him his clothes, and, surprisingly, the Mancer’s stone. He still at least had the vessel to bring home his father. That was a blessing. He wondered why the Pixies had left it on him. They had been so thorough in removing everything else. Even his pockets had been utterly emptied. The stone was large - nearly as large as Nodwin’s fist - they couldn’t have missed it. Unless it was enchanted in some way.
The Mancer had told Nodwin that he could only bring Furlwid home in that stone; it must be special. Perhaps there were other things about the stone that the Mancer hadn’t mentioned. Like perhaps it was invisible to Pixies, or maybe it hurt them to touch it.
Nodwin lay in the hammock, contemplating his options for escape. The door would not budge. There were no other openings, apart from the toilet. He glanced at the toilet. Though he hadn’t used it yet, he could smell the air that wafted from the trickling stream beneath it. He set thought of it aside as a last resort.
Nodwin turned his thoughts to the stone around his neck. He felt sure that whatever had prevented the Pixies from taking it from him, that would be the key to his escape. He rolled the stone in his palms, feeling the weight of it, wondering.
Suddenly he heard the sound of footsteps and muffled voices through the door. Nodwin hastily popped the stone back under his shirt, not ready to make experiments with it yet, however anxious he was to learn why the Pixies had ignored it. He heard one of the voices shout something, and the footsteps quickened noticeably.
The door to his prison cell opened, but despite his expectations, it was not a Pixie that walked through.
