"Pride Vs. Humility"

  A thousand steps. Micah had assumed it would be a walk in the park, until it wasn’t. It was one thing to climb up a tower— he had climbed many in his life— but when you have a million voices in your head, some screaming, others crying, it gets to a man. Even worse, he had no idea who these voices had belonged to. Micah waved over at Ruth, she and Cain had been resting in a small hall nearby, an onyx door was just before them.

  “Bad news, we have to wait until sunrise for the door to open again.” Cain said.

  “What? Why can’t the door be opened? We do not have enough time to waste.” Nicodemus placed his hands on the door and tried to push it open, “Stop.” Cain commanded. Micah just watched as Nicodemus slammed his body into the door. He had never seen him this impatient before. Micah frowned “Demus, stop it. You will only—STOP!” Micah rushed over and put himself in front of the door. Nicodemus rushed and slammed his body right on Micah’s.

  Cain ran up and grabbed Nicodemus’ arms. “What has gotten in to you?” Nicodemus’ breaths were heavy. His hair had fallen over his face. Micah lifted his chin. Chartreuse eyes pierced through him.

  “I’m afraid the tower is having an effect on him.” Cain muttered. Nicodemus struggled to release himself from Cain’s grasp. Micah had never seen him react this way. It looked as if he was not able to hear them. Unsure of what to do, Micah looked over to Ruth, she hurried over and dug inside her bag.

  “Help me feed him another pill.” Ruth ordered.

  “Would that even be a wise choice?”

  “What else can we do? We cannot talk sense into him, I doubt he can even hear us. Just hold on to him.”

  Nicodemus had become belligerent and hard to hold back. Micah had previously admired how sturdy Nicodemus was. Now, he wished he wasn’t. He pulled himself back into a wall holding Nicodemus forward. His right leg intertwined between the other’s legs, and he pulled him down to the floor along with himself. Micah felt a sharp pain on his tail bone once he hit the floor. Nicodemus attempted to struggle out of his grasp, muttering under his breath to release him. Micah wrapped his left leg around Nicodemus’ pelvis and locked him down. Cain and Ruth then approached them. Cain held on to Nicodemus’ face, squeezing his cheeks, while Ruth placed the small pill in his mouth shoving her finger almost down his throat. She poured in some water after causing Nicodemus to begin to choke. Ruth and Cain stepped aside. Micah did not want to let him go just yet. He wrapped his arms and legs around him until Nicodemus’ breaths were stable. Cain glanced at him and moved some if his hair out of the way. “You can let me go.” Nicodemus opened his arms and unlocked himself from Micah’s grasp.

  “Promise to not kill us?” He teased.

  “Leave me alone.” He got up and rubbed his back, Nicodemus glanced at the three of them before sitting as far away as possible. Micah felt at fault for putting Nicodemus in a vulnerable state.

  “Your Majesty…”

  “Ruth, I said, Leave me alone. My head hurts. Wake me up when the door opens.”

  Micah did not move from where he was. The sat away from Nicodemus and stayed silent. Ruth had fallen asleep, Cain seemed to be in his own head at the moment. He peeked around the corner trying to spot Nicodemus, who was also asleep. ‘Demus, please don’t be mad at me when you wake up.’ Micah felt selfish for thinking that. He knew holding him down as he did wasn’t the best way to go about it. He turned back and closed his eyes. Thinking up an apology wouldn’t do him any good now.

  Ruth shook Micah awake. The onyx doors were wide open. A hooded figure in red stood at the entrance. The four of them walked forward. Cain extended his arm and thick golden cuffs, chained to weighted balls were placed around his wrists. He fell forward by their weight. Micah’s heart dropped. He knew the feeling of being cuffed too well. Ruth followed after, her cuffs were thinner and did not seem to weigh her down as much, the metal weights were small and she seemed to be able to carry them just fine. Micah was next. He reached out and one golden cuffs was placed on his right arm. Awaiting the weight, he stood still, with his arms extended. “Next.” The hooded figure called out. Nicodemus pushed Micah aside. Nicodemus’ arms flopped forward from the weight. He grunted before lifting his arms up again. Micah had not been paying attention to anything that was said. He broke out of a trance once they called his name to walk forward.

  Inside the lights were dim. Marble statues of men and women frozen in time were scattered in front of them. All headed the same direction, but not one was on the steps. Cain led the way to the stone stairs, they were worn down and steep. He climbed a few, almost losing his balance. Ruth pushed him forward from falling on top of her. He smiled a thank you and kept going. Micah decided it was best to stay behind Nicodemus for now. He waited for the other to begin his climb. The doors slammed behind them, Micah looked back as the marble cracked and a clay like substance came forth, the men and women begin to move. Although they were slow, the sound that escaped from them was eery. Between the cracks of marble, clicks and groans filled the room.

  A prayer was heard coming from their lips. Some wept, others sang, Micah felt his body go hot and heavy, he had not noticed that he himself walked like those around him. Slow, and crouching, he carried their pride on his back. After a while, he straightened himself up, throwing his shoulders back and his chest out. Those behind him could not walk on the steps, they touched the stone but as if there was a gate they could only watch them climb. Micah did not know whether he felt grateful or pitiful for this.

  Nicodemus was never good at hiding pain either. Micah could tell he was tired, he reached for the edge of his shirt and pulled lightly “Demus, let me help.”

  “No.” He snapped back. Micah raised an eyebrow. He was being stubborn, he reached out to grab Nicodemus’ hand. What he did not expect was how heavy his arm was. Nicodemus had carried these stones up a hundred steps so far, not only had they climbed steep and tall stairs but with that added weight it was understandable to see how uncomfortable he was. “Please, let me carry one. Mine doesn’t weight much.” He felt Nicodemus pull his arm forward.

  “Why do you insist on being a bother?” Nicodemus said in a low whisper, it was enough for Micah to hear but no one else.

  “Why are you being stubborn?”

  “Micah, it’s fine. I can carry these on my own—” Nicodemus missed a step and almost tumbled forward. Micah reached out, grabbing him by the waist, as the two of them tried to catch their breaths, gasping for air. They were high enough that if they did fall, it would cause some damage. “Fine, I give in.” Nicodemus said.

  Micah smiled into Nicodemus’ neck before helping him up. “Thank you.”

  “That’s my line…”

  “You’re not one to say it, your majesty.”

  Micah had tried to remove the cuff at first, which did not work. Then he settled for just carrying the weight in his arms. The chains were long enough to give them both space to comfortably climb. He still could hear the whines of others, which only added more dread to the entire situation. Nicodemus on the other hand was relived even if it was only half the weight. That was enough for Micah, he still wondered why he had no weight to carry, but being able to help like this was as more than enough. Micah glanced over at Nicodemus a few more times. Their wrists had stopped bleeding and scabbed over. He observed the statues and people below. Perhaps his eyes had played a trick on him, but Micah swore he caught sight of a black serpent.

  “Demus, look over there. I think we have company.” He pointed below.

  “I don’t see anything. Maybe you’re just tired. We can take a break once we reach the next floor.”

  Micah knew that his eyes were not playing with him. He wasn’t super tired, and he also never hallucinated. Scanning down again he tried to find the snake. A black shadowy figure walked in between the moving clay and marble. Its steps were swift and elegant. He blinked a few times, almost tripping. Nicodemus called out to Micah “Hey, there is nothing. Just statues. Micah let me carry the weight alone, I am afraid we’ll fall.”

  “Demus, I swear I saw something.”

  “I was looking along with you. There is nothing.” Nicodemus turned to him and caressed his cheek. “Should we rest for a minute?”

  Micah sighed and shook his head, Ruth and Cain were always ahead. They needed to catch up. Nicodemus nodded in agreement and they began to climb once more.

  ‘Micah.’

  Micah tried to keep his eyes forward or on Nicodemus. His heart started racing. He did not want to look over at the figure, however, his name was called once again and again, and again, louder with each passing second. He caved in and glanced down, and this time the figure was watching him. He wore a black round hat with a veil, his eyes were sharp green and skin pale as snow. He wore a similar black alb and crimson cincture band around his waist, similar to those of the Cardinals back at home. The only difference was, they never wore black.

  The black cardinal kept his eyes on him, a smile on his face and his hands both bloody with chains. Micah stared back. “Even though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For you are with me; your rod, your staff they comfort me.” He said in a low whisper. The figure began to laugh, and kept his eyes on Micah. Nicodemus pulled forward,

  “Hey, what’s going on? You whispered something.”

  “Just a prayer. I am alright now.” he smiled. Micah did not want to talk about it further. Nicodemus looked at him with a worried expression.

  “We are almost at the exit. Let’s focus on that.” Micah tried his best to hide his worry. Nicodemus did not seem convinced. He reached to take the weight from Micah.

  “No! Demus, it’s okay. I thought I saw someone I knew.”

  “Oh, do you think it’s them?”

  “No. The lights and whines are just messing with my head.” Micah smiled and pushed Nicodemus up the steps. Nicodemus sighed and continued his climb.

  Ruth waved at them, her eyes looked tired and she carried a weight that belonged to Cain. Micah knew she probably put up a fight in order to help. Once they reached the base floor together, Ruth and Micah pushed the door open. There before them, stood another ghost in a red hood. They reached out and unlocked the cuffs, Micah watched as they disintegrated like dust before them. The four felt a burning sensation on their wrist as the scabbed over wound faded into nothing but a small scar. They had six more floors to go.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  In a husky voice, the ghost had asked them to follow closely behind. They would lead them to the next level. Micah felt lighter, the same feeling as a warm shower or fresh out of confession. He noticed that Nicodemus also seemed relieved. He circled his shoulders and stretched his back. He was not ready to experience more.

  “We passed the circle of pride. The weight we carried was the equivalent of the pride one carries in their soul.” Cain explained. “The next level is envy. We as humans tend to view things as earthly matters. Envy can be as simple as wanting something someone else has, or viewing a done deed as a loss. The soul will be weighted accordingly, if there is more gratitude, you will have better vision. If your heart is envious, you will walk this level blind.”

  .        .         .

  “Envy Vs. Generosity”

  Cain rubbed his eyelids before stepping through the door. Stretching out his hand, as if telling the others to wait their turn, a wince escaped his lips before he turned around fully. Cain always had bright, honey like eyes, now they were fogged over. "Use your other four senses. Their usefulness will increase on this level. If anyone can see even the slightest you will lead the way. Take your time, it will hurt."

  Better now than later, Micah took second lead. Once through the door he felt nothing and guided Cain to a wall. It was too early to feel relief, and before he opened his mouth, a bright white light had stuck his vision. Raising his hands to seek cover did not work. Feeling dizzy and light headed, Micah shielded his face and tightly shut his eyes. If he didn’t know better, clawing them out there and then would have been the only way to stop the pain. They burned enough that the pain had spread past his cheeks. Screams and cries of his friends echoed in the room. Micah knew perfectly what they felt. It would be easy to lose his mind due to the agonizing torture. Slamming his hands on the ground he forced his eyes open. Sweat dripped down his forehead. He watched as the drops spread on the ground.

  He abruptly turned to find Ruth and Nicodemus. Leveraging himself up suddenly had caused him to almost trip on his own legs. Cursing softly, he was still grateful to see them.

  “Demus, Ruth!"

  “It hurts, it hurts, it hurts so much.” Ruth said, removing her hands from her face and feeling around the hard stone floor. Tears flooded her eyes as she caught on to Micah’s boots and grazed her hands upward. Micah took a step back, her eyes were white and swollen from crying. Micah grabbed her face and gently caressed his thumb over her eyelids, wishing to take some of the pain she felt.

  “I am here. You’re alright,” Micah lifted her until she was able to stand on her own two feet, Micah had called out to Cain. Ruth had made contact with his arm and was guided close to a wall. Cain began to sooth her, the best he could. After confirming her well-being, Nicodemus became his main priority. The doors had yet to be closed, they needed to move fast. Nicodemus raised his head, his right ear faced Micah. He must have been listening to his footsteps, Micah assumed. Nicodemus was sharp with his senses. Tapping his back, he reassured the other of safety.

  “You can see?” Nicodemus asked, sliding his hand forward, and taking a hold of Micah’s boot. Clinging onto Micah until he was back on his feet. Nicodemus' head was turned downward, and his hands traveled to Micahs arms, shoulders, chest and lastly, he tugged feeling Micah’s loose curls. “Is Ruth alright? I couldn’t find her, please tell me she’s alright!”

  “Demus, she’s fine. I can see.” Micah stated, trying to get a glimpse of Nicodemus’ face, as the other turned it more and more out of sight. Nicodemus' eyes were no different than those of Ruth and Cain now.

  Clashing from the steel doors startled them both, the room shone bright instantaneously and Micah's vision was blurry again, his pupils shrunk and adjusted to the light after a few seconds of furiously blinking them “Get us out of here.” Nicodemus demanded. "Find the steps. Before they begin to move.” Micah nodded in silence, realizing a bit too late that words would actually be needed now. Nicodemus almost missed a step when Micah had suddenly pulled him by the hand.

  "What does this room look like?" Cain asked.

  "Bright. The steps are granite. I will not lie, this hurts my eyes. However, we have to get moving. They are starting to move." Micah had refused to let Nicodemus go, and grabbed Ruth’s wrist. "Cain hold on to Ruth. Once I can get everyone on the stairs, climbing should be a piece of cake."

  White light filled the entire room. Squinting his eyes as he guided them, Micah did not know if he preferred the dark lantern-lit floors or the one where he could clearly see every statue and their details. Once they began to crack and move around they were terrifying up close. Some moved their faces first, others legs or arms. He was reminded of how bugs move once they were squished yet still had some life in them. He hated that comparison enough to shake it out of his head.

  "Help. Me." Time had warped as a woman's clay hands reached out to Micah, almost grabbing his face. It was all sudden and his reaction time was slowed down. A sharp and high-pitched crack was heard. Nicodemus had stepped in front of him pulling the arm and throwing it across the room. Her screams echoed loudly, forcing them to cover their ears. In the blink of an eye, pieces of marble and clumps of clay flew all over. She was destroyed into a million pieces, Nicodemus set his foot down. Still blinded, he turned around to face Micah. "Why did you not react to her?"

  "???" Micahs body felt warm and questions flooded his brain.

  "What did he do?" Ruth asked.

  "Just kicked a woman?" He responded.

  "It is alright, she's not dead. We have to start climbing. If any of those creatures grab you, they will not let go." Cain said "Thank His Majesty for saving us."

  Micah took a deep breath and pulled them along, both irritated and impressed by Nicodemus' reaction time. He was clearly blind, nevertheless, his accuracy and timing was immaculate. Nicodemus was highly trained in martial arts, this was no new news to Micah. They had bonded over it multiple times and even sparred in the old prison room, but seeing it in person sent a shock of clarity to him. Nicodemus truly holds back much of his strength.

  The stairs were right around the corner, Micah had shepherded them with much urgency and just wanted to start climbing. Cain felt around taking a hold of the wall. "Ruth, Nicodemus, hold the wall. It is safe. Micah you stay behind us and let us know if we must take a sharp turn."

  "Sure, Captain." Micah said.

  "You can let go of my hand." Nicodemus suggested.

  Micah had forgotten he was still holding onto him. "Right." He let go.

  Cain grazed his hand across the wall, taking careful footsteps. Micah looked around keeping guard. These walls had engravings along them. The images were deteriorating, however, he could make out some of the art. Micah took his time studying the wall.

  A pack of wolves, a flock of sheep. The sun and moon, and the eleven stars that bowed at him. Micah knew this story. He checked first making sure the others were safe and the coast was clear before looking back at the walls. Pharaoh and his queen, the dungeon and three prisoners. Micah had stood still finding the missing pieces. He was upset when the wall went flat. Accidentally bumping into Nicodemus, Micah returned back to reality.

  "Watch it!" Nicodemus snapped.

  "Sorry."

  "You are distracted. Your steps are also odd. What do you see?"

  "There are petroglyphs on the wall. They are telling the story of Joseph." Micah took a hold of Nicodemus' hand and pressed it on pharaoh. "This is the part where he calls for Joseph to interpret his dream. Seven years of abundance, followed by seven years of famine."

  "Is that what the story is? I could never make it out." Cain said.

  "Yes, the last floor also had carvings. However, I could not make anything out. This one is better preserved." They had stopped moving and felt long the walls. Micah still guided Nicodemus' hand. "These are his brothers. They came to ask for rations. Joseph was pretty upset when they mentioned a new brother, especially after the way they had treated him. Overall the story teaches you to be grateful, and show gratitude for what you have. Envy does not take the soul far."

  "I am very thankful for being an only child." Nicodemus joked.

  "You would be the one selling your brother for silver." Micah laughed, "I am an only child too, Both my parents are adoptive, I am not blood related to either. Ruth do you have siblings?"

  "No, only child as well." she replied. Ruth had sat down on the stairs next to Cain. Micah was about to ask Cain the same question, but an awkward silence filled the space.

  "Go on...Ask me." Cain smiled.

  "No." Micah was glad no one could see how red his face was.

  Nicodemus broke out in laughter, "Well, you're an only child now."

  "Should have been from the beginning. However, let’s waste no more time." Cain helped Ruth up, Micah turned them back and guided them up the stairs again.

  The exit was so close now, Micah let them know they would soon be leaving. His legs were cramping horribly. He knew they had one more floor left until the sun set. Time wasn't easy to keep in a tower with no windows or clocks. To make things worse, he was hungry. Sprinting up the last few steps Micah held them back before they clashed into a white hooded ghost.

  "Wait! We are at the door." Micah walked in front, he felt cold air on his face before the ghost turned to face Nicodemus. Its arm extended forward and touched his forehead. A golden light appeared and Nicodemus eyes had shifted back to their original color. He squinted due to the bright light and blinked his vision back. Micah rushed to him and cupped his face, making sure there was no damage done to him.

  "Hi." Nicodemus smiled.

  "Hi. Is your vision back to normal?"

  "I would not know, you're too close. However, I can see you perfectly fine. Did you always have a mole on your neck?"

  "Yeah, Ah! Let me back up." Micah let Nicodemus go, and gave him his personal space back. Cain and Ruth both quickly turned their head to the side once Micah looked over. As expected the sharp pain on their wrist returned, and five cuts were left.