Chapter 13: Revelations

  "Up, little one!" Magba's raspy voice echoes from somewhere in the tunnels.

  I suppress a groan, still tired and sore. Certainly just a few hours have passed. "Coming, old hag."

  As I rise, I notice something unusual. Magba seems agitated. She paces the cavern, her blind eyes darting back and forth as if looking for invisible enemies. Her wrinkled scales twitch with nervous energy.

  "Something wrong?" I ask, instantly alert. In this world, any deviation from routine usually means danger.

  Magba cocks her head, listening to something beyond my perception. "We will have visitor soon. You hide."

  "Hide? Why would I…"

  She cuts me off with a sharp gesture. "No questions! Go to small tunnel. Stay until I call."

  I hesitate, torn between curiosity and caution. After the days I've spent with Magba, she's never shown fear. Annoyed? Certainly. Sadistic? Absolutely. But never this tense, never this... concerned.

  As if sensing my reluctance, she hisses, "Go! Not safe for you to be seen yet."

  That's all the warning I need. I retreat to the narrow tunnel she indicated, squeezing my evolved form into a crevice that wouldn’t have been spacious even for my earlier Lizardling self. The rough stone presses against my scales as I position myself. I should head deeper, but curiosity triumphs over fear as I stay close enough to still stealthily observe the room.

  Minutes pass in silence, broken only by the distant drip of water and Magba's restless movements. Then, a new sound, careful footsteps approaching from the main entrance.

  The visitor's silhouette appears first, visible only by the dim glow of the fungi near the entrance, but it is certainly a Lizardman. As he comes closer, his distinctive posture makes me recognize him immediately.

  Shokar.

  _____________________________________________________________________________________

  My muscles tense instinctively. The last time I saw him was at the gladiatorial pit, where he led me to being torn apart by my fellow Lizardlings. Yet according to Magba, he was also the one who saved me from the piranha-filled moat.

  "Old Magba," Shokar greets, his voice carrying the distinctive subservience I remember from his interactions with the Red Frog. "I am glad you are well."

  "Save empty words, Shokar," Magba responds curtly. "What news brings you, sneaking to my cave?"

  Shokar glances around nervously, his nostrils flaring. I press deeper into my hiding spot, aware that my scent might betray me.

  "Lord Vex'mor grows suspicious," Shokar says, lowering his voice. "His scouts reported unusual activity near your territory. Various creature corpses. Signs of something strong living here."

  “Must be getting old then, always hid my tracks well.” she replies with a wandering gaze. “Maybe should have gone deeper in the caves.”

  "We both know this is not the problem… and going deep is too dangerous." Shokar moves closer, dropping his voice further. “The missing Lizardling. You are feeding him. Training him.”

  Magba's expression hardens, her blind eyes narrowing to slits. "And if I am? Why would that bloated shhhsh toad you serve be searching for him when all have seen him die?"

  “I am not sure, but he's sending hunters to search the caves. Starting tomorrow.”

  My blood runs cold. Even with my evolved strength, I doubt I could face a trained Frogman hunter, much less many of them.

  Magba remains silent for a long moment, her wrinkled face betraying nothing. "How many hunters?" she finally asks, her voice a low growl.

  "Six. Maybe more," Shokar replies, his tail twitching anxiously. "They have orders to bring back anything unusual. Dead or alive."

  Magba clicks her tongue against her teeth, a gesture of frustration I've come to recognize. "That sshssh toad overreaches. These caves were mine long before those shshhhs claimed our village."

  Shokar produces a small bundle wrapped in leaves. "Brought medicine herbs. Supplies from village. And this…" He hands her what appears to be a piece of cloth.

  Magba's claws trace the fabric with surprising gentleness. "Worker's garb. Clever..."

  "If the lizardling wears this, might pass as regular servant in village. Frogs won't look twice at another worker."

  My ears perk up at this. Is Shokar offering an escape route directly at the belly of the beast? But why would he help me?

  "Why risk bringing him to village?" Magba asks, echoing my thoughts. "Safer in deeper caves."

  Shokar shakes his head. "Hunters will search every tunnel. They have tracking beasts. The village is last place they'll look, hiding in plain sight."

  Magba falls silent, considering. Finally, she nods. "When?"

  "Now. Tonight. Before dawn at latest." Shokar glances toward the exit. "Lord Vex'mor leaves for a week. Goes to meet with other Alphas. Best chance."

  "No. Little one not ready yet," Magba argues. "His training is not near complete."

  "Ready or not, he dies if found here." Shokar's tail twitches anxiously. "I must return before absence is noted. Bring him to the south entrance at midnight. I will wait."

  If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  With that Shokar finally departs, leaving Magba alone in the cavern, her blind eyes staring into the void. Once the sound of his footsteps fades, I emerge from my hiding spot.

  "Too early for you to sneak up on anyone, little one," she says as a matter of fact.

  I approach cautiously. "Can we trust him?"

  Magba tilts her head, considering. "Shokar is loyal to our kind… in his way."

  "He serves that shhhsh Red Frog."

  "To survive, yes." She turns to face me. "Sometimes to fight directly is to die pointlessly. Shokar fights differently."

  I think about this. The submissive Lizardman who called the Red Frog "master" is secretly working against him? It seems unlikely, yet he did save me from certain death in the moat.

  "Why would he help me?" I press. "What am I to him?"

  Magba's wrinkled face curves into a rare genuine smile. “Hope, perhaps. Like you are to me…” But then she pauses, her claws tapping thoughtfully. “He is also your father.”

  “Wait, wait, wait… WHAT!?” I stagger backward, nearly losing my balance. “Why did you not tell me this from the start you old shhhsh”.

  “...the same, all of them …” She mumbles something but I am not finished with my questions.

  “And If he is my father, where is my mother?” I ask with another

  “Not important now. Only focus is growing strong.” There are signs of a barely contained rage showing in her expression as she hobbles to a small alcove and begins gathering various items into a rough sack.

  "No training today. Must prepare you for village. Different dangers there. Different rules."

  “Wait, I really need some explanations here.” I interject still desperate for some answers.

  "Not now, little one." she replies firmly, but there is also a hint of sadness.

  "I need to know about my parents," I insist, following her around the cavern. "If Shokar is my father, that means…"

  "Means you hatched from egg, like all lizardfolk," she snaps, shoving a small pouch of dried herbs into my hands. "Chew these. Make scent different. Hide your unique smell from toads."

  I reluctantly take the pouch but don't open it. "You're avoiding my questions."

  Magba stops her frantic packing and turns to face me, her blind eyes somehow finding mine with uncanny precision. For a moment, I think she might finally relent.

  Instead, she sighs. "Village dangerous for you. Must learn quickly." She taps a gnarled claw against my chest. "And must always follow rules.” Her blind eyes bore into mine as she raises three twisted fingers.

  "First rule: Never look Frogman in eye. Direct gaze is challenge. Challenge means punishment. Slaves keep eyes down, always down."

  She raises a second finger, her claw gleaming in the dim light.

  "Second rule: Never speak unless commanded. Your only answer 'Yes, master' and 'No, master.' Even then, speak quiet, speak quick. Slaves who talk too much lose their tongues."

  The third finger rises, trembling with the weight of her warning.

  "Third rule, most important of all. Attract no attention. You are shadow that works. Invisible. Forgettable. The moment Frogman notices you exist, you become entertainment. And you saw how they like entertainment" She shudders. "Better to kill you here in cave."

  Her eyes narrow as she grabs my regrown arm. She strengthens her grip, until her long nails draw blood. "And we need to hide your gift. If cut, act hurt. If wounded, don't let them see how fast you heal. There you are prey, so act like one."

  "I'm not prey," I object, bristling at the word. “And you're seriously considering this? Sending me directly to the enemy territory?"

  A humorless chuckle escapes her throat. "All lizardfolk are prey in village. Even Shokar. Difference is knowing it. And Hunters will find you here, can’t protect you alone. They would kill you or worse, take you to red toad for special attention."

  A shudder runs through me at the memory of the Red Frog's cruel eyes studying me. I had all my fair share of "special attention" and I want no more part of it.

  The conversation clearly over, Magba returns to her preparations. I retreat to a corner of the cavern, chewing the bitter herbs she gave me while my mind races with questions. The revelation about Shokar being my father changes everything and nothing.

  I still don't know why I was reborn in this world and if there are others like me… like Ksh’zar. Why were we able to regenerate when others can't? And what fate befell my mother?

  As the hours pass, Magba instructs me in the ways of the village. How to move, how to speak, even how to breathe differently. By nightfall, I've practiced walking with a subservient hunch that makes my spine ache and memorized a dozen phrases of appropriate responses to Frogman commands.

  "It’s time," Magba announces as the distant dripping water marks what must be near midnight. She hands me the rough garment Shokar brought, a sleeveless tunic made of coarse fabric that chafes against my scales.

  I pull it on, grimacing at the unfamiliar sensation. "So uncomfortable."

  "Discomfort keeps you alert," she replies, then hesitates. Something in her demeanor shifts. For the first time since I've known her, Magba seems uncertain. "Little one," she begins, her voice softer than I've ever heard it, "village different kind of fight. One you have not trained for yet, but you must succeed."

  "What if I'm discovered?"

  Her expression darkens. "Run. Hide. Find Shokar if possible."

  "And if that fails?"

  "Then die fighting," she says simply. "Better than alternative."

  "I'll survive," I assure her with more confidence than I feel.

  She shakes her head slowly. "Survival not enough. Must grow. Must evolve." Her clawed hand reaches out, hovering near my face but not touching. "For now, just be on guard and learn what you can. Soon chance will appear."

  Before I can press for clarification, she turns away. "Come. Shokar waits."

  The journey through the tunnels is silent and tense. We take paths I've never traveled during our hunting expeditions, descending briefly before climbing toward what she calls the south entrance. Despite the danger, a thrill of anticipation runs through me. After weeks in dark caves, I'm finally returning to the surface world.

  As we near our destination, Magba suddenly stops. She turns to face me, her ancient face solemn in the dim light of the phosphorescent fungi.

  She presses a small pouch into my hands. "Use this paste to cover wounds. It will slow your healing, make it appear normal. Better to suffer pain than reveal your true nature."

  "And remember teachings," she says gruffly. "Stay alive. Grow stronger. Will see you again when time is right."

  "I will," I promise. "And thank you… for everything."

  She scoffs, but I detect a hint of emotion beneath her crusty exterior. "Go now. Follow this tunnel to south exit. Shokar waits."

  I hesitate, suddenly reluctant to leave the safety of the cave despite its hardships. "Will you be safe? If they're sweeping all the tunnels..."

  "Old Magba survived fall of empire," she snorts dismissively. "Few Frogman hunters are no problem."

  With a final nod, I turn toward the indicated tunnel. I walk a fair distance until her voice follows me one last time, not as sound, but again as a projection, a whisper inside my mind:

  "Never forget what you truly are, little one…”

  “Neither mere Lizardman nor human who once was, but two worlds made one..."

  I pause completely stunned and when I glance back, she has already disappeared into the shadows of her cave.

  “What the shhsh!?”

  Swallowing the lump in my throat and as lost as I ever could be with these revelations, I continue forward into the dark tunnel that will lead me to Shokar and the even more dangerous world above.