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Dave woke up next to Arlana just before dawn. His eyes were gummy, his mouth dry. Arlana looked so peaceful and beautiful lying beside him. Her skin was chocolate brown and her long blond braid trailed down her blanket.
Instead of feeling the pleasure he usually felt when he saw her sleeping, Dave could feel himself grow angry. The warmth, the affection, the love that they had shared since they had been married seemed so far off now that they were on the trail together. It was all danger, hiding, enemies, and huddling together as a group. There was no privacy. There was no time for him and Arlana to be alone. It was a tacitly-accepted group rule that no one must wander off. All had to stay together to remain alive.
I know it’s all just part of being a Ranger and being on adventures. But I still don’t have to like it.
What particularly irked him—Arlana didn’t seem to mind or care that they had no time together. It was as if she expected the distance and the separation and took it in stride. Did she actually welcome it?
Dave quietly rose, strapped on his sword and his long knife. Picking up his crossbow and quiver, he headed back to the game trail. No one else was up. Thomas who was on sentry duty, had fallen asleep. They had camped in a rocky bay that cut into the north hill of the gentle valley they were following. Now Dave followed the game trail to the escarpment. The valley bent southeast and ended at a rocky shelf maybe two hundred meters across. The sun was not up yet but soon would be. Dave picked his way across the rocky shelf which was rent with cracks and pits. Beyond was a well-trodden path and then sky.
He looked up and down the path. He was in a shallow dip, so he could only see the trail two hundred meters in both directions where it crested a rise. Dave walked to the edge of the escarpment and caught his breath. The steep-sided cliff descended vertically five hundred meters. To his right the stream they had been following plunged over the edge and disappeared into spray before it cascaded halfway down. Looking straight down, he could see that the bottom of the cliff had a fringe of broken rock shards. Beyond that were large trees and a dense wood with a four-meter-wide watercourse winding through it. The heavily-wooded terrace was three kilometers wide. Beyond that edge, Dave saw nothing but sky. He was so high up, that he could see a second set of clouds in the distance perhaps one to two thousand meters below him.
The bottom of this huge canyon has its own weather system.
Just then, his acute hearing picked up harsh voices and the jingle of armor. Quickly, Dave moved into the deep shadow of a shallow crack, concentrated to make his skin as dark as possible, and waited.
He saw a troop of twenty-five men marching along the path from what he thought was the direction of Seth. Along with them were another twenty-five men in chains. The soldiers were cursing and laughing, the prisoners, sullen. Dave watched as just opposite him, on the path, the lead soldier stepped aside and looked over the edge to the first terrace, then, after everyone else had passed, rejoined the end of the column.
Dave waited until the troop has disappeared over the second rise, and then carefully picked his way back across the broken rock of the shelf to the shallow valley. He raced back to camp.
The others were just waking up when Dave arrived, out of breath. He saw alarm in Linder’s face. “Dave what’s up?”
Dave held up his hand, and took a few more deep breaths. “Soldiers ... on the path ... walking southeast ... twenty-five ... with prisoners.”
“Did they see you?” asked Linder.
Dave shook his head.
Tandor had heard every word. “Seth sends regular patrols along the cliff edge to watch for Rebels on the first terrace. We must not be seen.”
“What about the prisoners?” asked Linder.
“I don’t know,” said Tandor. “Patrols normally take captured Rebels back to Seth. From what Dave described, this group is being moved somewhere else. I don’t know why.”
Linder sent Hanomer and Arlana to scout out the path, while everyone else broke camp. When the rest of the band reached the rocky shelf, Arlana and Hanomer returned. Arlana had found a rise that allowed her to see several kilometers northwest in the direction of Seth. It was deserted.
“Friend Linder, the band Dave saw is still moving away from us along the edge. We are safe for now.”
Linder led the group across the rocky ledge to the path and walked out onto a spur of rock, almost like a diving platform. He looked down. “Whew,” said Linder, “you weren’t kidding, Al. This is huge. It makes the Grand Canyon look like a ditch.”
Tandor joined Linder. “This is the edge of Sheol,” said Tandor, “my childhood home. It is too dangerous to head down now to the first terrace. We are not in the best place for the descent. We have to follow those soldiers carefully.”
Hanomer set off ahead of them, keeping an eye on the soldiers in case their patrol carried them back to Seth by the same route. Tandor led the rest of the group southeast along the cliff edge until he came to a section of the cliff that was riddled with cracks and ledges. Dave recalled Hanomer.
Tandor led the descent, picking a zig zag trail. He stopped frequently, as if trying to remember where he should head next. The climb down to the first terrace was gruelling, often requiring rope work.
The going was hardest for Thomas since he had never had to attempt rock work of this difficulty before. Dave saw Al stay to help him at first, but when Hanomer came back from his lookout post, he took over. Hanomer stuck close to Thomas and lowered a rope for him, coaching him at every step. When Thomas had reached a safe ledge, Hanomer used his third hand to scamper down even the most treacherous rock face, spider-like, to join him. Then the process began all over again.
Al was glad that Thomas and Hanomer had become friends. There was no one better to keep Thomas safe on this climb.
Dave and Arlana were second in line after Tandor when Dave saw a small, winged shape off in the distance well past the edge of the first terrace.
“Tandor,” said Dave, “could dragons make it up this high?”
“No, what do you see Dave?”
Dave pointed. Tandor shaded his eyes. “I don’t see anything. What does it look like?”
“I see it too,” said Arlana. “It’s far away.”
“It looks to me like a giant bat, with skin stretched over bone. It has a long neck and tail. The tail has something on the end.”
“I think,” said Tandor, “it’s a vul. It’s smaller and lighter than even a small dragon, and roosts on the terraces off the Mutandi Highlands where it was first created. They are carnivorous and dangerous and they sometimes roam far looking for prey. Where is it heading?”
“Your description fits. It’s dipped below the far edge of the first terrace.”
“It hunts for animals trapped on the side of the cliff.”
“You mean like us?” asked Dave.
“Yes. We’re close to the bottom. If we can reach the trees, we’ll be much less vulnerable.”
Linder had overheard the conversation. “Okay, let’s get moving. Thomas and Hanomer, stay close. I don’t want you exposed on the cliff side.”
Tandor and Linder started down the last one hundred meters. Reaching a ledge, they waved for the others to follow. Dave and Arlana were halfway there when Arlana glanced up, grabbed Dave’s arm and whispered “The vul.”
Dave saw the vul climb above the far edge of the first terrace. Its reptile-like body was the size of a horse. It had a long, thick, snake-like neck ending with a blunt head and a mouth filled with teeth. Its thick tail ended in a cluster of spikes.
The vul climbed for height. Dave and Arlana froze. A rock clattered below and the vul changed course.
Dave and Arlana both shouted a warning. The vul turned and dove straight toward them. Dave pushed Arlana into a depression in the cliff, sought a firm purchase for his feet and pulled out Gram.
The vul let out a cry, which was echoed by a second vul rising above the first terrace cliff edge. The first vul banked its six-meter wings along the cliff toward Dave, its clawed feet almost scraping the cliff wall ready for the snatch. Dave hoped his feet would stay firm as he timed his sword stroke. He heard a thunk as Arlana unleashed an arrow into the scaled body of the vul. The vul swerved slightly and then headed straight for Dave.
Dave swung with all his might. Gram cut through both legs, shearing off one claw and most of the other leg. The severed appendage flew off, hitting Dave in the head and chest, and covering him with gore. He heard the spiked tail scape the rock above his head. Then everything went black.
Going limp, Dave dropped Gram and began to teeter over the edge. Arlana lunged and grabbed his belt. She heard Dave’s sword carom off the cliff face and bounce on the rocks below. Dave hung limply.
“Dave you have to help me! I can’t hold you.”
Arlana looked up and saw the second vul coming toward her. Holding on, she steeled herself.
Just then a gunshot rang out. The vul’s head jerked and went limp. Its body passed over Arlana and Dave, and crashed into the cliff face. It tumbled twice and plunged into the woods, almost on top of the first vul carcass. Arlana looked further up the cliff and saw Thomas with his rifle.
Al reached her just as Dave regained consciousness.
“What happened?” Dave asked.
“You killed the vul,” said Arlana, “and part of it hit you. You could have been killed.”
“I killed the vul?” Dave had a smug grin on his face. Suddenly his expression changed. “Where’s Gram?”
“It fell down the cliff to the rocks.”
They started down. Al wanted to lower Dave by rope, but Dave insisted he was fine.
They made it the rest of the way to the first terrace without incident. Dave found Gram. The hilt was dented, but the blade was unmarred.
Worried that the rifle shot would attract a patrol, Tandor led the party into the deepest part of the forest without delay and crossed to the cliff edge leading to the second terrace. A bow shot from five hundred meters up could travel a long way, but here they were safe. They called a brief halt. Dave washed the blood off his clothes and said he was fine to continue so they spent the rest of the day walking northwest staying under the cover of trees. When they crossed the third meadow, Arlana peered apprehensively at the path at the top of the escarpment. A group of soldiers was watching them. One tried a bow shot, but it fell far short.
“It’s too late for them to come down to pursue us,” said Tandor. “Still it would be best if we disappeared.” They spent that night under cover in a dense thicket.
Arlana passed a restless night, wondering if Dave had any lasting injuries and dreading the sound of soldiers beating the undergrowth for their campsite.
__________
The next morning Tandor searched for a way down to the second terrace to get out from under the watchful eye of the patrols. After a morning of hunting, he found what he was looking for. To Dave, standing on the edge of the second cliff, the second terrace looked very much like the first: a five-hundred-meter cliff and a shelf about three kilometers across, all covered with bountiful vegetation, water courses, and meadows.
“How many terraces are there?” asked Dave.
“The Rebels think there are twelve terraces,” said Tandor, “but no one in recent memory has gone down that far and returned.”
Pointing to the scarred cliff in front of them, Tandor continued, “This not be the easiest way down, but the patrols always take the easiest way. For us this is the safest way.”
The climb down looked worse than it was. Often, they came across a hidden ledge or a crack in the cliff face that made the descent easier. Thomas was climbing more on his own than he had the previous day.
They were almost all of the way down. Below them they could see a lake that came right up to the cliff edge. Dave was following Thomas, when Thomas came to a round opening in the side of the cliff like a three-meter drain pipe with a pile of pebbles like a frozen stream of water cascading from the pipe mouth to the lake.
Thomas stepped onto the pebble-scree to traverse it. Dave shouted, but too late. As soon as Thomas had planted his foot on the stones, the whole tongue of pebbles began to slide. Thomas lurched back and landed on his rear end. With increasing speed, the mass of pebbles raced toward the lake with Thomas on top, his hands digging into the pebbles for balance. With a huge splash, he disappeared below the water along with an avalanche of stones.
The others rushed down to the lake shore. Thomas was already climbing out.
“Are you alright?” asked Al.
Thomas nodded sheepishly. Al helped him take inventory; he had lost his rifle. They dove for it, to no avail. It was either buried under pebbles or had been dragged into very deep water.
Making camp, they built a fire in order to prepare a hot meal and dry their clothes. When they were all fed and dry, Tandor was the first to speak.
“We should get moving again,” he said.
“Where are we going next?” asked Linder.
“The Rebels know of many hiding places here on the second terrace. About half an hour from here is a cavern I used to use as a hiding place. I want to leave you there while I scout out Seth.”
“You plan on leaving us?”
“Seth lost many slaves in the Necroan attack. I think Bigelow will order a raid here to the terraces to capture Rebels to replace what he lost. We don’t want to camp out in the open if the soldiers come. I also want to wait by the gate to see the soldiers leave so that I know how to time our return so as not to arouse suspicion.”
At the cavern, Tandor led them to a narrow, hard-to-see entrance on the side of the cliff near the rock fall at the bottom. The inside of the space was covered with bat dung. However, further in, the narrow passage opened up into gallery after gallery of chambers. Tandor seemed to know his way, and led them back and up to a small cave, that opened out onto the sheer wall of the cliff.
“We’re a long way into this cavern,” said Al. “Are we going to have to retrace our steps to get out?
“Possibly,” said Tandor. “You will be staying here for a time, so you have to be safe. Sometimes the Sethian patrols have trackers with them—vicious, smart wogogs that weigh as much as three men, with fangs the length of my little finger. The wogogs hate the bat dung and won’t follow you this far into the cavern. My countrymen won’t come in this far either. But stay near the lower entrance. If they found you, they might kill you thinking you were a Sethian patrol. In case of trouble, you can escape in single file out of this upper gallery.”
Al looked anxious. “Can’t we go with you, Tandor? Every hour may be critical to the safety of my wife and son.”
“It is easier for one person to hide than a group. I’ll wear soldier’s garb. If I’m spotted, I may be able to talk my way out of it. Haste will make you walk straight into slavery or death. Dead, you will be of little help to your wife and son. Be patient. I promise you that I will do my best to get you into Seth as quickly and safely as possible.”
Tandor seemed to have taken control of things and everyone went along with it, at least for the moment, even if grudgingly. “Can’t change horses in mid-river,” Al heard Dave mutter to himself. But there was no other choice. Since they had trusted Tandor with getting them into Seth, they had to follow his advice and time table.
Tandor set them to work, setting up camp, organizing a hunting schedule, and cleaning their Sethian armor and the slaves’ garb that they had procured from the mine.
“I’m leaving now,” said Tandor. “I’ll be back as soon as possible. Be ready to leave on a moment’s notice. When we go, there will be two guards and a captain in our party. The rest will be dressed as slaves. Understood?”
Everyone assented.
__________
Dave was asleep, but Arlana was awake, troubled. Climbing to the upper exit of the cavern, she sat on the cliff edge with her pack. The sky had cleared and she could see the stars. The moon was in the west, almost at first quarter. She opened her pack and took out a black swamp oak acorn. Invoking the aid of the Creator, she whispered an oath in the Ancient Tongue, “Kree ah na koo.”
This is the first secret I have kept from my husband, she thought. I have broken the laws of my land by planting the twin of this acorn in our water meadow on our side of the Barrier Mountains. I could endanger my people. But what else can I do? I can’t just leave us trapped here. I will only plant this one if there is no other way to get home.