Ashrak nodded and in the pair rode in silence a while before Ashrak cleared his throat, getting the small man’s attention again. “How much farther do you think we have to go before we get to this Akka place?” Nilesh had continued to read through the book looking at maps and trying to decipher the strange, rambling text that was crammed throughout the pages.
Nilesh didn’t pull the book out but instead opened a map case and partially unrolled the contents. He had become quite adept at both reading and studying in the saddle. “I think we’re right here,” he said as he pointed at a spot on the map. It should be several more days until we reach the turn off from the road. Or at least where we will be leaving the road. There don’t seem to be any roads into our out of this place called Akka.”
“No roads, eh?” Ashrak asked. “Sounds delightful. It shouldn’t be too bad, right? It’s not like there are a bunch of trees or thick brush to keep us from riding right on through.”
Nilesh gave Ashrak a pained look. “That’s what I thought, too,” he said. “I asked Daka about it, and he laughed at me. He said the whole area is a broken wasteland full of crevices, canyons, boulders, and creatures that will gleefully eat us. He seemed certain we would be able to find our way through, but he didn’t think it would be easy.”
Ashrak grimaced before Chari rode up alongside them and peeked out from under her day shade. “What are you two talking about?”
Ashrak looked over and sighed. “We were just discussing traveling through Akka. I was hoping it would be fairly easy, but sounds like it’s going to be a nightmare.”
Chari just rolled her eyes and reached over, smacking Ashrak on the arm. “And why are you surprised? Has anything been easy lately? You shouldn’t set yourself up for disappointment, Ashrak.”
“True,” Ashrak said and rubbed his arm lightly. “While that would probably help me get through each day, I should probably just plan on being attacked each morning by some ravenous, silver-eyed monster. That way when it doesn’t happen, I’ll be ahead of the game.”
“Silver-eyed monster?” Chari asked as she narrowed her silver eyes. “You would be lucky to be attacked by a silver-eyed monster, but I can assure you, you won’t be attacked by one tonight.” She sniffed and then kicked her dancer into a faster pace, leaving Ashrak and Nilesh behind.
Nilesh gave Ashrak an uncertain look. “Was that really wise?” He asked slowly.
Ashrak let Chari get far enough ahead before he turned and answered the small man. “Yes and no,” he said with a shrug. “Truthfully, it’s fun to pick on each other now and again. If I don’t give her openings to do so, then she will make them and trust me, they’ll sting far more.”
“You two are strange,” Nilesh finally said. “I’ve never heard of couples making up arguments on purpose before.”
“Have you ever had a girlfriend, Nilesh?” Ashrak asked with his eyebrow raised.
For the briefest of moments, Ashrak saw Nilesh’s eyes dart toward his sister before looking down at his saddle and shaking his head. “No,” he said slowly. “It’s almost impossible to meet someone in my line of work.”
Ashrak paused and decided not to make a big deal of it. Clearly, Ellian already had someone in her life for which she was madly in love. He just hoped Nilesh kept his thoughts to himself about it. Neither Ellian nor Fallon seemed to be the reasonable type, and he’d hate to see his sister go after Nilesh with the dagger again.
Chapter 16
The trip to Akka took several days longer than expected due to having to dodge the ever-growing number of scouts and soldiers. It was clear that Count Stavix’s men were slowly being dominated by General Rhendu’s soldiers though not without cost. However, they seemed to be only interested in moving through the areas they won rather than staying.
Despite being so intent on one another, both sides were giving no quarter to neutral parties or travelers. They had come upon several bodies mutilated in the sun, but as time passed, they were growing fewer and fewer as the people of Brun begin to avoid the open roads altogether. Ashrak wondered how many small villages and towns were slowly being starved of trade now that it was not safe to travel for anyone.
It was a perfect example of what was wrong in Brun. The great lords and even the Army were supposed to defend and protect, but instead, they were the greatest danger. The other thing that worried Ashrak was they had been seen several times by scouts and small parties of soldiers. On more than a few occasions, they had had to run and hide from several larger bands of soldiers that had been alerted to their presence. It was only through the skill of Ellian and her bandits that they were able to escape and hide.
Despite the difficulty, they were now sitting on their dancers and looking out over the broken land that led into Akka. The land was fairly clear of obstructions for the first kilometer though they could see the ground quickly became more treacherous to cross. It transitioned from sand and the occasional boulders to broken sandstone, crevices, hills filled with jagged stone, and meandering valleys. It was perhaps one of the most uninviting landscapes that Ashrak had ever seen and they were headed directly into it.
“Cheer up, everyone,” Daka grinned. “It’s not like you can see the worst threats from here. I guarantee you that the sinkholes and predators will not let you see them coming. If anyone needs me to hold their hand just let me know.”
Ellian rolled her eyes and shook her head while the rest of them gave him a wary look. “Just what kind of predators will be out there?” Nilesh asked.
Daka shrugged. “Helgren, Feloxin, maybe even a sand lurker though it will be easy to see all the bones around its lair. Feloxin and Helgren are both pack hunters and even occasionally work together. There may be worse things in there, but I hope not. We’ve got about a hundred kilometers of wilderness to travel through. Hopefully, nothing nasty picks up our trail though we need to stay on guard.”
“What could be worse than Helgren?” Nilesh asked with a grimace.
“A Gulgathorp Biter would be worse,” Ellian answered as she kicked her dancer into movement. “They are large, spikey lizards that bury themselves in the sand to hide. They love rough terrain so they can ambush their prey and get a poisonous bite into them. They don’t go fast, but most things don’t live long once they are bitten. This is the perfect terrain for them. Red Trenadon also sometimes fly this way though they usually like flatter areas so they can swoop down more easily. They also hunt in packs, or flocks if you prefer that. Usually not more than three or four at a time.”
“I’ve seen a Gulgathorp Biter before, but I’ve never seen a Trenadon,” Ashrak commented. “I’ve heard they’re big.”
“Oh yes, they’re big all right,” Daka answered. “Not big enough to carry off a dancer, but the rider wouldn’t be so lucky, except for me. I’d probably give one a difficult time lifting my exquisite mass off of the ground. Fortunately, they are high flyers so we should have plenty of opportunities to see them from far enough away to avoid them.”
“You realize that the entrance to this Temple is probably long buried, right?” Ellian said. “It doesn’t take long for things to disappear out here. What happens if we can’t find it?”
“Then we go to the next ruin,” Ashrak answered grimly.
Ellian grunted and didn’t answer, focusing instead on finding a trail in front of them. It was slow going and hot. They had stopped off at a hidden watering hole and filled their water caskets and skins and had even managed to trade for some food from some frightened locals a few days ago so they were a set as they could be. Still, the difficult terrain began to take its toll.
On the third day, an attack by a group of Feloxin happened to one of their scouts and his dancer. He managed to get away but not before his mount had been injured and was leaving a blood trail all the way back to their small party. They could hear the odd hooting calls of a large group of the scavengers as they called back and forth to each other on their back trail. It effectively blinded them since they could no longer send ou
t scouts. What was worse was how badly being hunted began to wear on their nerves.
“I wish I could go out and kill a few of them,” Chari said as she sneered up at one of the ridges where some of the creatures had made an appearance. They were a mammalian species that sported a variety of fur colors from reds, browns, blacks, and dark tans and their six, graceful legs sported stubby claws. However, it was their mouth full of several rows of teeth that was their main weapon. A nervous animal, they were nevertheless considered highly dangerous because they were not afraid of stalking humans.
“That’s exactly what they would want you to do,” Fallon said softly. It had taken the tall, lithe woman a long time even to begin to warm up to them and she still only spoke rarely. “They would lure you out and then attack from the sides and behind. Then they would play with you for a while. Sometimes for an hour or more.”
“That’s terrible,” Chari said.
“Yes,” Fallon replied. “Almost as bad as what humans would do.”
“Wait, do you hear that?” Ellian said she tilted her head to listen.
They all stopped their mounts and far in the distance he could hear a strange, hollow call echo through the canyons. It was not a human sound and it rose and fell slowly in the distance. They listened to the call for several minutes before Daka cursed under his breath. “Dammit, is that what I think it is?” The big man said to Ellian.
Ellian looked grimly at Daka and nodded. “That sounded like a Ridgeclaw.”
“A Ridgeclaw?” Chari asked with worry lacing her voice. “I don’t remember you mentioning one of those before.”
Ellian turned and looked grimly at Chari. “That’s because we all hoped would never run into one of those damn things. Ever. They’re nasty and huge, and once they have a scent they don’t give up. I’ve not heard of one in a decade so thought they’d all been hunted out of this area. We’ve got to pick up the pace. Our only hope is to outrun that damn thing or that it goes after the Feloxin.”
“Fat chance of that,” Daka said. “I can already hear them running.”
Ellian nodded and kicked her dancer, making the lizard begin moving forward at a higher speed than what they’d been doing before. The rest of the party followed as Ashrak pulled up next to his sister and called over to her. “What about crevices or holes?”
“I’d rather die in a hole than in a Ridgeclaw’s stomach,” Ellian answered.
The next several hours were terrible. They were running as fast as they could, but it was clear that the Ridgeclaw was catching up to them. Their mounts also became more difficult to control as the strange cries from the creature grew closer.
Finally, they caught sight of the creature behind them and understood how it was catching up to them. Because of its size, it could not fit into some of the trails they were forced to take that were winding in and out of the rocky terrain. However, its powerful legs were easily able to send it bounding over large boulders and jumping over difficult terrain far easier than they could. What was most terrifying was its massive, toothed maw. Every once in a while it would stop and let out its bone chilling cry. When it did so, its mouth would open impossibly wide.
“How can something that large live in the desert?” Chari yelled out as she looked back over her shoulder.
“They pretty much eat anything and everything they can catch,” Ashrak yelled back. “It’s why they’re hunted out of most of the civilized areas. No town or village would be safe with one around.”
Their group moved as fast as they could though the creature caught up to them as inevitably as the sun setting. They heard the first terrified scream from behind them as the Ridgeclaw jumped onto a ledge next to the last man in their group while one of its clawed hands scooped the man and his dancer up in one fluid motion. The man cried out only once before the massive jaws closed over him and his mount. Ashrak looked grimly over his shoulder hoping that perhaps the creature would stop once it had a meal, but it only paused for a moment to swallow. It didn’t take more than a few seconds.
“We’ve got to split up!” Ellian called out, looking over her shoulder with fear in her eyes. Even as she did so, the thing swiped at another of her men and missed due to its weight pulling several boulders away from the cliff it had clung to. Ellian threw one of her hands into the air and spun it around. As if expecting the signal, most of the bandits took off in different directions which confused the Ridgeclaw, causing it to stumble and skidded to a halt.
Ashrak, Chari, and Nilesh continued after Ellian. Daka and Fallon stayed by her side as well, and the six of them tore off into the night together. The Ridgeclaw only paused for a few moments while it processed the new tactic and then chose a direction, tearing off with one of its terrifying cries. Fortunately, it was not after them, but they heard the panicked yell of one of the bandits a short time later.
For the next half hour, they fled in terror, listening to the Ridgeclaw hunt down one bandit after the other. It was starting to turn dark by the time they heard the seventh man’s death and knew it was their turn.
“Over there!” Daka yelled and pointed to the entrance of a fairly narrow crevice. It looked large enough to allow their dancers in but was high, and the cliff faces almost came together at the top. It would make it extremely difficult for the Ridgeclaw to reach them unless it opened up further inside of the path. They quickly made for the opening though were forced to slow down in the narrow confines of the steep chasm even as they heard the Ridgeclaw reach the opening they had just entered. Instead of stopping, it climbed and began to pursue them from above.
It couldn’t reach them with its long arms, but it was raining down rocks and dirt upon their heads as it tried, stopping and clawing at the narrow crevice in hopes to make it wider. The worst part was how loud its hunting calls were as they echoed off of the rock walls around them.
Ashrak didn’t know how long they traveled in this nightmare scenario but his heart quailed as he saw a rock wall in front of them. For a moment, he thought they would be trapped, but when he expected his sister to stop because there was no further room to move forward, she disappeared instead. It wasn’t until he was right up to the wall that he realized there was a strange, low overhang covered the entrance to a cave.
He had to duck as his dancer followed the others inside, but once he passed within he could tell the cavern opened up the fading light of the sun behind. Wherever they were, it was large enough to get all of the dancers inside, and despite the desperate howls from the Ridgeclaw, they stopped. It was pitch black in front of them, and it would be foolish to move forward without light.
In answer to their unspoken plea, Nilesh quickly lit his lantern and held it up. Wherever they were, it continued down into the darkness. They all looked at each other and listened to the loud call from the Ridgeclaw and realized there was no choice. They couldn’t go back.
Chapter 17
Nilesh held the lantern up and looked down into the dark cavern that stretched in front of them, or at least as far as he could see. It was not far at all despite the best efforts of the mirrors in his lamp. Part of the problem was the tunnel that stretched before them was not small or narrow, so the light was swallowed even faster.
The small man turned to encourage them all to follow him, but when he did so, he saw the faces of some of his companions. He’d never seen tears or sadness on Ellian’s face before and it gave him pause. He watched in fascination for a moment as she held Fallon close to her. Daka stood next to them with his great head bowed.
Ashrak and Chari stood close, watching the three grieve for their lost comrades. Truth to tell, Nilesh was out of his element. He had been trained from a young age to accept death and loss as part of his job. He was an assassin and spy after all, and he didn’t usually see the aftermath of death. He lowered his lamp and spoke in a quiet voice to Ashrak and Chari. “I’m going to go scout ahead. We will need to move further into the cave or whatever it is. Otherwise, the Ridgeclaw will continue to howl. We need to rest.�
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Ashrak nodded, and Nilesh moved his dancer slowly forward. He was happy for the height of the passageway in front of them. It wasn’t even close to his head, and there was plenty of room on each side for the dancer to move easily over the soft sand. The lantern provided enough light for him to see, but it was good to know the dancer was at home in the cave as well. They normally lived close to caves or even dug their own, so the low light was not a problem for his mount.
As he traveled, Nilesh noted that the air stayed fresh and didn’t smell musty or stale. That was a good sign, and indicated there might be a passageway further ahead or even out of the cave complex wherever it might lead. He could even occasionally feel a slight breeze blowing into his face. Still, the passageway stretched ahead, and while it occasionally turned, for the most part, it stayed in a straight path east. At least he hoped it was the east, so he brought out his compass and verified the direction.
The Glimmer Steel Saga, Boxed Set, Books 1 - 4 Page 100
