Legends of Amacia Srandi: Last Bastion of the Caverias
Chapter 24: Unlocking Srandi

For a moment, Hannibal looked back and forth to each taloned foot of the Roc image, seeing the keyhole sockets on each claw. “I suspect the first step is using Okoto’s crystals,” he explained as Josephine, Nemesis, Anastasia, Leila, and Harry gathered around them. “This mechanism takes two keys turned simultaneously by those of royal blood to release the first lock. Does that sound right, Leila?”

“I think it does,” Leila said softly. “But I’m not going to swear to it. Memories of how the mechanism actually works is very slow to return. However, I will tell you what I just remembered. It’s important.”

“What’s that, Leila,” Hannibal asked, raising an eyebrow.

“As we were watching the door scan and identify Selina, I just remembered that Srandi houses the Weapons of the Caverias,” Leila stated emphatically. “Somewhere inside this fortress is the greatest stockpile of the most advanced weapons ever assembled to combat the Emperor and his minions. I wish I could tell you more about them, but I can’t right now. Those memories are still lost in the fog of my mind and I cannot access them yet.”

“That’s all right,” Hannibal replied with a warm smile, “But you’re right. That’s a very important detail we needed to hear. It’s good to know what we may encounter inside. Any stash of weapons that can help us take down the Emperor is always good news.”

“That it is,” Nemesis stated, “however, we can explore that later after we crack this door open. Do you have an idea of what the process is to do it?”

“Not exactly,” Hannibal admitted, “but I do have a general idea about it. I’m sure the first thing we need to do is insert these crystals into the sockets on the Roc’s talons and turn them at the same time. Here Selina, you take this one.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the two crystal necklaces, giving one to Selina.

“What do you want me to do with it?” Selina asked, looking at the crystal intently.

“Take it to the socket over there and push it in when I tell you,” Hannibal instructed, “Once the crystal is fully inserted, I want you to turn it counterclockwise until it stops. I will turn this one clockwise in the same manner. That should release the first lock on this door.”

“Got it, Hannibal,” Selina replied, instantly walking over to the socket on the Roc’s right talon. Ana followed her over and shadowed her.

Hannibal instantly walked to the left side where the main part of the mechanism was located around the Roc’s left taloned foot. Nemesis followed, shadowing Hannibal as he stepped up to the socket. “The rest of you might want to stand back, for I have no idea what’s going to happen here,” Hannibal ordered urgently, “I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

“Of course, milord,” Assad answered, “Come Miss Keleb, Miss Karac; let’s move back to a safe distance.”

“Call me Leila, Master Assad,” Leila declared as Josephine pulled her back to the perimeter where Tau and Enoch kept everyone in check.

“And you may call me Josephine,” Josephine stated as they fell into the line with Tau, Samantha, Enoch, and the rest of those who had stayed back initially. Sᴇaʀ*ᴄh the ꜰindNʘvel.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Of course,” Assad replied with a warm smile. “I’d be delighted to use your first names, but now we must be quiet and allow Beowulf and Miss Selina to work. We shouldn’t distract them now that they’re starting the process of opening the fortress.”

Everyone fell quiet as all eyes trained on Hannibal and Selina. Hannibal positioned his crystal necklace at the socket and called out, “Selina, are you in position to set the crystal?”

“Yes,” Selina answered, having her crystal necklace hovering over the socket, “On your mark, Hannibal.”

“On three, shove the crystal all the way into the slot, until it bottoms out,” Hannibal ordered, “One, two...three.” At three, he shoved his crystal key into the socket in front of him as Selina did the same. Using his telepathic link with Selina, he made sure to push his crystal in at the exact same speed Selina did. When both crystals bottomed out with an inch of crystal still protruding from the socket, a loud click echoed from the door, followed by a deep reverberating rumble that shook the bones of everyone watching. It caught both Hannibal and Selina off guard, causing them to jump back from the door a couple of steps in alarm. Nemesis and Ana likewise retreated, ready to protect Hannibal and Selina if needed. As they scanned the door urgently, the image outlines of the Roc and the drakens suddenly grew brighter with individual lines running from the drakens to the Roc suddenly becoming visible in the door’s surface.

“You okay over there, Selina,” Hannibal called out urgently as he felt her alarm.

“As good as can be expected,” Selina chided darkly, “I thought that thing was going to blow up in my face for a second. Thank God it didn’t. Is it supposed to do that?”

“I have no idea,” Hannibal admitted stepping back up to the crystal sitting in the socket in front of him, which was now glowing brightly. “This is a first on me. I’ve never even attempted unlocking something this complex before. However, it seems I was right about the crystals being the keys to this place. Look at them glowing like light bulbs. If they weren’t the keys, they wouldn’t have done that.” He carefully reached out and let his palm hover close to the glowing crystal, finding it lukewarm, not scorching as its glowing form suggested. “What do you make of that,” he called out, “With the way this thing is glowing, you’d expect it scorching hot, but it’s barely warm to the touch; very strange. Selina, check your crystal before you touch it to see if it’s cool like this one. I don’t want you to get burned if it’s as hot as it looks.”

Selina placed her palm just above the crystal without touching it, barely feeling any heat from it. “This one is just like yours, Hannibal,” she reported. “I can barely feel any heat from it at all. Does that mean we can touch it?”

Hannibal touched his crystal with no ill effects. “Yes, it’s safe to touch it,” he replied. “I guess the next thing is to try to rotate it. See if your crystal will rotate clockwise and I’ll see if mine will turn counterclockwise. Don’t force it. It if feels solid and won’t turn that direction, we’ll know which way to turn it.”

Selina grabbed her crystal firmly and gently tried turning it clockwise, finding the mechanism not giving at all. “This one won’t turn clockwise, Hannibal,” she stated. “It feels completely solid.”

“Same here,” Hannibal agreed, “Mine won’t turn counterclockwise either. I guess that confirms what I thought about these keys. Okay Selina; on my mark we’ll turn our keys together the other way until they stop. Ready?”

“Whenever you are,” Selina stated.

“Okay; now Selina,” Hannibal called out; turning his key clockwise while Selina turned her key counterclockwise at the same instant. Everyone heard a deep grating from the door as the keys turned three-quarters of a turn before stopping. When the keys stopped, another loud bang reverberated from the door and the crystals sank farther into the sockets until only a half-inch of the crystals remained above the plane of the door. Again, the reverberating bang caused Hannibal and Selina to step back quickly in a startled fashion. A deep metallic grating growl rose from the door as the outlines of the various bas-reliefs brightened again. Within moments, the grating growl began to shake the door and the platform directly in front of it noticeably. This caused the rest of the team to retreat to the steps, unsure of the safety of being so close to the ancient door. Those moving around the extended courtyard stopped what they were doing and stared in fearful wonder at the colossal door that now glowed and roared like a beast awakening from a deep slumber.

“Hannibal,” Selina whined fearfully while staring at the door, “What now?”

“Keep your cool, Selina,” Hannibal replied soberly, “I think what we’re seeing is the first level of the locking mechanism releasing and engaging the rest of the mechanism. Just relax and don’t panic. Srandi will not hurt us. It wants to be opened and released from its lockdown. You felt as I did.”

“I know,” Selina said, “But it still doesn’t make this any easier.” As she spoke, the loud grating rumble and trembling of everything quieted down. The shaking ceased, though the door now had an audible soft hum emanating from it. “Hannibal, can you hear it?” Selina asked.

“I can,” Hannibal stated as his courage rose again. “The first level of the lock must has been successfully activated and released. The hum we’re hearing is the rest of the machinery here powering up to release the other locks on this thing.”

“Is there anything else you need me to do now that Okoto’s crystals have been used?” Selina asked.

“I...don’t think so,” Hannibal said hesitantly as he placed the flat of his hand against the door near where the large disk indentation sat, feeling the door vibrating ever so softly. “But stay close by just in case, princess. Geeze...I can feel this thing actually vibrating now. It’s vibrating at the same frequency as the hum we’re hearing. Come over here and feel it, Selina. It’s amazing.”

Selina quickly approached with Ana shadowing her. Placing her hand on the door next to Hannibal’s hand, Selina breathed in awe, “You’re right. Maybe the hum we’re hearing is actually coming from this vibration.”

“Could be,” Hannibal replied, lifting his hand from the door as Selina removed her hand. “I can now really sense the machinery of this door powering up. It seems those crystals were indeed the ignition keys to this device.”

“I would have to agree,” Selina concurred, “but this has to be the most sophisticated lock in existence. You’re sure you know what you’re doing, Hannibal?”

Hannibal shook his head, saying, “To be honest, no; I’m literally doing this by instinct and its very disconcerting. I seem to know this mechanism intimately, but I have no conscious memory of it. I’m just going to have to trust the Lord will show me how to open it safely.”

Selina put her hand on Hannibal’s shoulder and looked him in the eye, saying, “Then do what you have to, my prince. Follow your instincts and open this magnificent edifice so we may have shelter.” With that, she gave him a quick kiss on the lips, which always brought a smile to his lips and joy in his heart.

“Right,” Hannibal replied with a sober smile, “You and Ana may want to stand back while I do this. You may want to give me a bit of space too, Nemesis. If this thing goes haywire, I don’t want anyone else getting caught in it.”

“You will open it safely,” Nemesis growled confidently, “We have faith the Almighty will show you how to open this god-machine without it destroying you. After all, you are the unmitigated master of the ancient machinery and the Last Caverias. I’ve seen you time and again safely activate and utilize machines that have not seen use since the 1st Age. Go on. Finish the job and open this fortress for us so we can properly recon and secure it. It’s your destiny. Come, Miss Selina, Ana...let’s give Hannibal some space to work.” With that, he, Selina and Ana retreated back twenty feet and stopped. It was far enough where they felt safe, but close enough to snatch Hannibal from peril should the unthinkable occur.

When Hannibal saw they’d moved back, he stepped up to the indentations and the handprint scanner. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the Caverias Seal and looked at it with surprise, seeing it glowing prominently with eerie warmth emanating from it. A wry smile cracked his lips. “You really want to be opened, don’t you, Srandi,” he whispered. “Okay, let’s take the shackles off you and let you breathe the free air once again.”

Hannibal placed the Caverias Seal into the large indentation in the Roc’s taloned palm. It fit perfectly; snapping in with an audible click followed by yet another deep bang from the door that was much louder than the others were. The Seal started shining as if it had just come out of the forge as a deep grating growl rose from beneath the Seal. Hannibal’s expression opened in surprise at the way the Seal reacted to the door. “Whoa,” he breathed, “Impressive.” Just then, he noticed the little disk where the signet socket sat had lit up. Half a second later, he noticed the handprint scanner’s scanning surface glowing likewise. “Ah...I see now,” Hannibal crowed softly. “I’m to use the ring and hand scanner in tandem; very clever.” He looked over his shoulder at his team gathered at the top of the stairs leading down to the main part of the courtyard, calling out with a wicked smile, “You guys had better be ready for this. I’m sure this is going to be good.”

“Be careful, Hannibal,” Selina called out in a worried tone. “You’ve never dealt with a machine of this power or complexity before.”

“I’m well aware of that fact,” Hannibal replied with a wink. “It’ll be okay, after all, I am the Last Caverias and Srandi is the last bastion of the Caverias line. It’s practically begging to be opened now.”

“You have embraced your destiny, Beowulf,” Assad declared emphatically. “Now you must face it. Open the last bastion of the Caverias and find the answers you have search for all your life.”

“Yes,” Hannibal answered resolutely, “Time for me to find my answers. Everyone should be ready for this for I do not know what will happen when I finish unlocking this thing.” Before anyone could say anything further, Hannibal turned back to the glowing mechanism in front of him with grim determination. Placing his left hand on the sensor pad and ramming the signet into the small ring socket at the same time, he said bluntly, “No more procrastinating; time to face my fear and embrace my destiny.” With a silent prayer, he pushed hard against the ring socket and disk. An audible click rang out as the signet settled in its socket and then gave way slightly as he felt the disk retreat from his pressure. Hannibal’s eyebrow rose at the movement for it made him surmise the disk was spring-loaded somehow. At the same time, the hand scanner glowed brightly, holding his left hand firmly against the scanning surface making his hand tingle. When the ring socket and disk stopped retreating from his pressure, Hannibal instinctively twisted his wrist clockwise. At first, it didn’t move. However, as he increased the rotational pressure on the ring, it finally moved. The ring and disk it was embedded in began to turn with a deep grating sound echoing loudly from the mechanism that spread across the entire door.

When Hannibal rotated the ring a quarter of a turn, it stopped and the socket disk banged loud as a high-powered rifle going off, sinking an inch farther into the door. The sound reverberated around the courtyard as if it had become an echo chamber. At the same time, the Caverias Seal sank a full inch into its socket and began to turn slowly counterclockwise. The Roc image on the main door suddenly shined with a soft silvery light as the threshold hum of the door became obvious to everyone. After the Seal rotated counterclockwise for ten seconds, it suddenly stopped and everything became eerily still. The giant Roc image continued to glow, but the hum ceased completely. A smile again crept over Hannibal’s lips as he suddenly became aware of the inner mechanism of the machine through his telepathic abilities. “Ah, so that’s how you work,” he whispered, suddenly twisting his ring in the reverse direction. Again, the disk grated and the hum from the door increased to audible levels as it moved a third of a rotation until stopping with a bang. The Roc image’s eyes flashed brightly and a path lit up to four of the twelve individual draken images evenly spread out around the central Roc image. The moment the light paths reached the individual draken images, they lit up enhancing their attributes, especially the color and form.

Upon seeing the draken images light up Hannibal crowed in exhilaration, “Yes, YES; I see! Show me your secrets Srandi! Open for daddy.” He again twisted his fist clockwise and the disk moved half a turn before stopping with yet another thunderous bang that shook the courtyard. After that bang, the Caverias Seal started rotated clockwise for fifteen seconds. Hannibal quickly looked up at the image, seeing the Roc’s crystal eyes flash like a strobe and lighting the path to the four more of the draken images, which lit up like the first four. A deep mechanical rumble started to echo from the door. Once the second set of drakens lit up, the door went silent again, as if waiting for the next phase of the unlocking process.

When the door went ominously silent after the second set of drakens lit up, Hannibal felt an icy chill race down his spine and his exhilaration dulled as a feeling of dark peril filled his mind. “Oh boy, here we go,” he whispered as his countenance fell, “Too late to back out now. Let’s finish this. Come on, Srandi; please open for me.” With a hard fearful swallow, he rotated his fist and the signet counterclockwise one last time...this time moving two-thirds of a rotation before stopping with a thunderous bang from the door so loud it resembled an artillery strike. It was so intense those watching had to hold their ears to stop the noise. One more time, the Caverias Seal rotated counterclockwise for twenty seconds before stopping. Immediately after the bang, the door rumbled like thunder as the ancient tumblers of the locking mechanism became fully activated. The Roc image itself suddenly blazed in blinding radiance for a few seconds, temporarily blinding those who weren’t able to shield their eyes quickly enough. When the brilliance of the silvery Roc image diminished to a tolerable level, everyone saw the last four individual draken images were glowing like the other eight draken images. Only then did Hannibal notice the eyes of the draken images were glowing brightly like the Roc’s eyes. He stared in muted astonishment, completely flabbergasted by what the ancient machine was doing. When the deep volcanic rumble reverberating loudly from the door suddenly stopped, he shook off his amazement and realized it was waiting for something.

Hannibal puzzled for a few moments over what the machine wanted. When he could not discover the answer, the still small voice of the Almighty whispered in his ear to speak to the door. “Ah, right,” Hannibal murmured with a nod, “It needs the security code.” Without giving any thought of what he needed to say, Hannibal called out in a loud voice by instinct, “Caverias eloi singh septa Karac undar eli oriac undar.” Once again, the door started rumbling again and the Caverias Seal started spinning clockwise with great speed inside its socket, shining with unearthly brilliance. The rumbling door started to shake the courtyard itself, once again causing those out away from the keep to stop and stare in great fear. After twenty seconds, the Caverias Seal suddenly stopped spinning and flashed repeatedly like a warning beacon. The rumbling and shaking ceased and an ominous eerie silence fell over the courtyard.

A low sizzling sound began to rise from the door and Hannibal felt the scanner pad release his left hand from its grip. Without fully knowing what he was doing, he curled his fingers as if to grip a baseball and pressed his fingers to the scanner pad. The glowing scanner pad seemingly turned gelatinous, forming around Hannibal’s fingers as he pressed them into the mechanism until his palm touched the pad’s surface. The sizzling suddenly stopped and the door began to hum loudly in an electrical manner. While his team watched in fearful awe, Hannibal bellowed with supernatural volume and authority, “Tiara deta Thoth eli undar heilios fltagn Roc carinea undar!”

Once the echo of Hannibal’s voice faded away, the entire keep rumbled, shaking everything so violently dust and small pebbles started falling from everything. The runes on the arch support stones and the Roc image on the keystone blazed like the sun while the entire main door lit up with a blinding radiance for several seconds. A growling moan rose from deep within the door as the brilliance subsided. The scanner pad immediately pushed Hannibal’s finger out of its shining gelatinous body, smoothing out and becoming solid once again. At the same time, Hannibal felt the ring socket disk rotate by itself and push out fully with a click. He quickly removed the signet from the disk socket while watching the Caverias Seal spinning like a top in its socket. A thunderous bang drew Hannibal’s attention to the Roc image. His eyes grew wide and he staggered back in numbed astonishment when he saw the Roc’s wings abruptly slide vertically in the plane of the door’s surface, each wing moving up seven feet as if the Roc were spreading its wings. Its crystal eyes started shining like the sun and a birdlike shriek sang for three seconds from the door as if the image were truly alive. The shriek was so loud it hurt the ears of everyone watching. After the Roc’s shriek faded away, a thundering chorus of draken roars rose from the images of the drakens surrounding the Roc, lasting for another three seconds. The animalistic shrieks and roars struck dread into all present except for Hannibal, Selina, and Leila.

As the draken roars faded away, a truly thunderous, bone-shaking bang again rose from the door, followed by a deep grinding noise. The Caverias Seal stopped spinning at that moment with a loud click. In moments, the blazing glow of the Seal vanished as the machine pushed it out of its socket so violently it flew through the air. Hannibal instantly snatched it from the air, pocketing it quickly as he saw the crystal key turn in its socket and pop out far enough to comfortably take. Realizing he’d successfully finished the unlocking protocol for the door, Hannibal quickly snatched the crystal from the socket in front of him as the rumbling roar and shaking of the door physically shook the very stone beneath his feet. Darting to the second key, he retrieved it and quickly backed away, seeing the talons of the Roc’s feet suddenly close, concealing the Seal and Ring sockets along with the handprint scanner. As he backed away with a look of unmitigated fearful awe, the Roc and draken images, along with all the light paths on the door went dark. The Roc’s crystal eyes closed and one last deep deafening bang rose from the door. In moments, a purely deep mechanical growl of turning ancient gears rose from the door. Ten seconds after the growl rose, the door began to move, rising vertically into the wall above it. A violent hiss issued from the door as the seal it made broke. A gust of fetid, stale ancient death issue forth from the growing gap, raising a cloud of dust as it poured forth from the ancient fortress. It truly smelled of an eons-old charnel tomb opening so horrendous the smell was.

The atrocious smell burned eyes and made everyone gasp in horror from the smell of ancient death. Hannibal grimaced, holding his breath until the gust of moldering primordial death faded away. “Ugh,” he moaned, coughing and waving his hand to dissipate the foul stench, “What a horrid stench! I haven’t smelled anything this bad since I first explored Tiamat.” When he regained his composure, Hannibal looked back at the rising door and gawked in utter astonishment. “Holy God in Heaven,” he breathed, seeing the door appeared to be one solid piece of metal twelve feet thick as it rose slowly into the wall above it. “I can’t believe what I’m seeing here. This thing is truly a bulkhead blast door.” He walked backwards, keeping his eyes on the rising door hoping to see a full view of it. Stopping at twenty feet, he took in the entire view with awe. The runes and Roc icon on the arch stones continued to glow brightly as the door inexorably rose. When the metal door finished disappeared into the wall above it, another bang reverberated from the entrance. The runes and Roc icon on the arch stones flickered and went dark. A sound of grating stone emanated from the entrance arch, causing Hannibal to look. He saw massive stone slabs sliding into place, concealing the bulkhead door and its track. A grim satisfied look crossed his face as the last of the slabs completely concealed the security mechanism.

Finally, the same deep mechanized voice they heard from the bulkhead mechanism rumbled forth from the main entrance of the Keep, declaring, “Lockdown is lifted and access is granted to the King and his people. Welcome home, Lord Beowulf Caverias of the Silver Eyes.”

“Thank you, Srandi,” Hannibal replied softly, giving the fortress a salute with his fist over his heart. “Thank you.”

Silence reigned over the entire courtyard as they stared at the open entrance of the keep. Hannibal turned to the team and the crowd of workers in the extended courtyard with a satisfied but sober relieved expression. A smile slowly crept across his lips as he started to realize the magnitude of what just happened. “Thank you, Lord,” he whispered as Leila started clapping with the broadest smile he’d ever seen on her face. “Thank you for showing me how to open this last great refuge our people.” Leila’s applause spread and within a minute, a thunderous roar of applause and cheers rose from the people that lasted for a full two minutes.

Hannibal’s smile grew broader as he nodded to the crowd. Suddenly, he felt a familiar powerful presence from above, causing his smile to leave his face and look up while lifting his right hand in a wait gesture. The crowd quieted as a powerful birdlike shriek rose from the sky over their heads. The shriek was not mechanical, but the cry of a colossal bird of prey. As Hannibal scanned the sky above the courtyard, the Roc appeared from west, swooping in around the southern side of the Keep and circling five hundred feet over the courtyard. When the Roc appeared, gasps of amazement issue forth from the witnesses for most had never seen the Roc in person. Some of the workers actually dropped to their knees as it glided like a ghost, circling the courtyard. When it screeched again, Hannibal saw it looking directly at him. He locked eyes with it and waved to the magnificent avian predator, calling out loudly, “Ah, so this is where you roost, my friend. Thank you for checking in on us. We appreciate it.” The Roc chirped loudly in response to Hannibal and then flew away as fast as it had appeared.

Hannibal nodded with a warm smile, turning back to his team and the crowd of workers gathered behind them on the main floor of the courtyard. When he saw their astonishment, a softly chuckle escaped his lips as he walked to them. Seeing Leila’s muted astonishment, he answered the question in the front of her mind, saying, “Yes, Leila; that’s the Roc...the same Roc that has repeatedly come to my aid without being called. It appears Srandi is its home and he appeared after I opened the door, welcoming us. He obviously approves of us being here.”

“I didn’t want to believe what you said about the Roc,” Leila stated. “But I cannot deny my own eyes. The Rocs still exists in this world. Forgive me for not believing you.”

Hannibal touched Leila on the shoulder, leaning in and looking her in the eye. “There’s nothing to forgive,” he said warmly, “but I forgive you if it will make you feel better. Besides, I probably would have been just as skeptical if I’d been in your place. Now, shall we see what lies inside?”

“By all means,” Leila agreed, reaching up and briefly holding on to Hannibal’s hand with her hand. “Let’s see what Bolthor left us.”

Hannibal nodded solemnly, saying, “That’s why we’re here. Now that the door is open, the real work begins. Come on; let’s see what’s to see.”

“We’re right behind you, little brother,” Enoch declared. “Lead the way.”

Hannibal nodded and noticed the workers still staring at the open door to the keep in numbed amazement. Speaking to the crowd, Hannibal called out, “Thanks for the audience and the emotional support, but now we all must get back to work. You may continue with what you were doing before I opened the door. Keep up the good work everyone. With your help, we will have this place ship-shape in no time.” A rumble of approval rose from the workers, who immediately went back to work, leaving Hannibal’s exploratory team at the top of the stairs. Turning back to his team, he said, “Okay, let’s do this, but I strongly suggest you let me go first just in case some of the defense mechanisms are still active inside the fortress. Even though I was able to lift the lockdown, it doesn’t mean the internal defenses are shut off. They may still be active or even worse, malfunctioning. We’re going to have to tread very softly in there because we have no idea what kind of impromptu traps were set when the old Emperor sacked this place.”

“You expect trouble inside, don’t you?” Samantha surmised, hearing his serious tone and matching expression.

“When you’ve intruded on as many ancient temples and places as I have, you assume the worst,” Hannibal stated grimly. “There hasn’t been a single ancient tomb, temple, or fortress I’ve breeched that didn’t have sophisticated defensive mechanisms protecting what was in them. This mindset has kept me in one piece more times than I can count. Is the fortress still riddled with traps? I say yes, so we must watch our step very carefully when we go in.”

“Oh,” Samantha replied soberly, “I understand now. I’ll follow your lead. I don’t want to get tangled in some lethal trap.”

Hannibal smiled confidently, saying, “It’s going to be okay, Sam. All I’m saying is for everyone to keep their eyes open for anything strange. It’ll be a sure sign an impromptu trap.”

“That we will do,” Josephine called out, “I pray we haven’t bitten off more than we can chew.”

“That I cannot answer,” Hannibal stated, “We’ll just have to see. Now come on; let’s get to work.” Hannibal quickly hung Okoto’s crystal necklaces around his neck before fishing the Caverias Seal out of his pocket and hooking it back on its chain that still hung around his neck. “Harry, let me have the scepter before we go in,” he ordered while concealing the three items beneath his chainmail shirt.

“Sure thing,” Harry replied, holding it out, “But you should get those Draken Gauntlets to cover your hands again. You know how the scepter likes to suck the life from you when it has skin contact.”

“Right,” Hannibal answered with a grunt. “I forgot about that. Thanks for reminding me, bud.” In less than a second, he triggered the Gauntlets, opening them up to their full combat form, covering his hands and fingers with the protective leather and mail gloves. The Draken Gauntlets whirred and clunked softly as it expanded to its full operational form within two seconds.

“No problem,” Harry stated, smiling sardonically, “It’s why I’m here...to make sure you don’t forget such things.”

A wry twisted smile crept across Hannibal’s lips as he sensed Harry’s tease and heard his mildly sarcastic tone. “That you are,” he agreed, not biting on the sarcasm. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Taking the Scepter from Harry’s gloved hand, he glanced at its form briefly before heading towards the main entrance. “Come on, guys and gals; follow me. We have secrets to discover.” Harry and Selina instantly took up flanking positions beside Hannibal as the rest of the team quickly followed.

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