The trio walked steadily back along the corridor of cells. Some of the kruls they passed looked with renewed curiosity; others with barely concealed humor at Eltor’s mistake. Eventually, the trio reached the door that Mistake had forced to remain unlocked. She deftly retrieved her tool as Eltor herded the women through the door. They moved swiftly to the nearby stairwell to get out of the long corridor.
“What was that all about?” asked Mistake.
“I can only assume that prisoners are not allowed through the door that we were approaching,” shrugged Eltor.
“So the krul did not hear my words then?” asked Mistake.
“I do not think so,” replied Eltor. “If he did, he would have seized us. At least we got to see most of the cells. We only had a few more to go.”
“I saw the last cells,” offered MistyTrail. “There was no one our age in them. There was a strange elf in one of them, but he was older.”
“Caldal is my age,” Eltor replied dismissively. “I am sure there must be more cells running along the other side of the pyramid. We must find a way to get through that second door.”
“I doubt that door led to the other cells,” suggested Mistake. “I think it might have led to the center area of the pyramid where prisoners might be able to escape out the rear door. That is why the krul stopped us. Prisoners are probably allowed to come in that door, but never leave by it.”
“Then we must find another way across the pyramid,” Eltor sighed with nervous frustration.
“We passed a corridor on our way to this door,” stated Mistake. “There were screams coming from it. Perhaps it leads to the other side.”
“Let’s try it,” urged MistyTrail. “I do not care much for standing in this temple discussing what we should do. Let’s try the corridor and get out of here before the night slips away.”
“You are right,” nodded Eltor as he stuck his head into the corridor and checked for any stray people walking along it. “Let’s go.”
The trio slipped out of the stairwell and backtracked along the corridor to the intersection of another corridor. Screams no longer drifted through the air as they turned into the new corridor that ran across the center of the temple. The corridor was fairly short and ended in another locked door. Eltor looked through the window of the door and frowned.
“The corridor opens into a large room,” he reported as he peered through the window in the door. “I can see another door like this one in the distance, but there is much between us and it.”
“Do you see any people?” asked MistyTrail.
“None,” Eltor responded.
“I will unlock the door so we can have a look,” declared Mistake as she moved closer to work on the lock.
“You must not leave your tool this time,” Eltor said nervously. “We will need it for the door on the other side of the room.”
“Then I will not leave it,” nodded Mistake as a loud click came from the door lock. “Should we be prisoners again?”
“That worked the last time,” nodded Eltor. “Let’s try it again.”
Eltor held the door open as MistyTrail and Mistake walked through. He closed the door and immediately moved behind them and pushed them forward. The corridor was only a few paces long before it opened into a huge square room. When they entered the massive room they halted with horror stricken faces.
The entire perimeter of the room was lined with prisoners shackled to the walls. The prisoners sat lifelessly on the floor with one of their wrists chained to metal loops attached to the wall. There were over a hundred of them. At one end of the room was a huge altar. The altar and the floor around it were soaked in blood. Beyond the altar were two doorways with open doors. Eltor began scanning the faces of the prisoners while MistyTrail and Mistake stood horrified as they realized that the altar was used for human sacrifices. As Eltor moved to the right along the wall leading away from the altar, Mistake headed for the two doors beyond the altar. MistyTrail followed Eltor.
Mistake stuck her head through one of the open doorways. She was surprised to find a small kitchen. On the wall opposite her doorway was another door. She moved silently across the floor and peered through the window. A chill raced through her body as she saw rows of bunks with soldiers on them. She moved quickly away from the door before anyone saw her face in the window. Her eyes scanned the kitchen and she brightened somewhat when she saw long loaves of bread on a rack. She moved quickly to the rack and began filling her pack. A large wasooki on a spit hung over a roasting pit. She sliced off generous slabs of meat. When her pack was full, Mistake returned to the large room.
Eltor saw Mistake emerge from the kitchen and waved frantically at her. She moved swiftly, but silently, across the great room. Eltor was kneeling before one of the prisoners.
“This is Caldal,” whispered Eltor as Mistake arrived. “Unlock his manacle.”
The prisoner looked up at Mistake and offered a weak smile. His face was drawn, and his clothes were shredded and bloodstained. Mistake moved to the manacle and extracted her tool from her belt. Caldal’s wrist was bloody and raw, and he twitched painfully as Mistake worked on the lock. She bit her lip as she tried to minimize the movement of the manacle.
MistyTrail knelt beside Caldal and began casting a healing spell on Caldal’s right leg. The leg was entirely bare and showed the signs of a recent whipping. The flesh was raw with numerous lash marks that were swelled with blood still trickling out of them. Caldal groaned softly and his arm fell as Mistake succeeded in removing the manacle.
“Will he be able to move on his own?” Mistake whispered.
“Give me some time,” MistyTrail replied tersely. “I am doing what I can.”
Mistake nodded and her eyes scanned the room and landed on the open doorway that she had not yet explored.
“Do what you can for him,” Mistake whispered. “I am going to search for some clothes or weapons for him.”
Before Eltor could object, Mistake began moving swiftly across the room. She moved in an arc across the room to avoid the bloodstained floor near the altar. She approached the unexplored doorway with caution. She peeked her head into the room. The room was long and held half a dozen long tables. At the far end of the room two people sat talking softly with plates of food before them. Mistake was not sure who the colorfully dressed woman was, but she recognized the man. She had seen his face in Khadoratung driving a caravan of wagons. He had been with the same man who had accompanied the hooded magician in the Wine Press Inn. She had figured out much later that he was the mage that everyone had been talking about. He was Aakuta, the dark mage. She inhaled deeply and pulled her head from the room.
Aakuta and Lady Mystic looked up as they heard Mistake inhale deeply. They saw her face for only a fraction of a second, but that was long enough to identify her as an elf. Lady Mystic immediately rose to her feet, her eyes twinkling with excitement. Aakuta rose and quickly followed Lady Mystic to the doorway as he pulled his hood over his head.
Mistake raced across the room to where Eltor and MistyTrail were helping Caldal to his feet.
“We must leave now,” she urged. “There are people here. Hurry.”
MistyTrail stared across the room and saw the two distant figures in the doorway. She knew that they were two far away to kill with a thrown knife.
“Stop!” shouted Lady Mystic with a voice of authority as her arm rose menacingly.
Eltor threw Caldal over his shoulder and raced for the door they had used to enter the room. Mistake dashed past him to unlock the door. MistyTrail was torn between running with her friends or trying to kill the two people with a fireball. She gauged her chances of killing them both to be rather low. She raced after her friends.
Suddenly a door slammed open in the kitchen and loud voices shouted orders. MistyTrail heard the clanging of swords hitting stone and the trampling of many feet. She saw a fiery streak from the corner of her eye and dove to the floor as a fireball flew over her head.
Suddenly, a cl
oud of fog surrounded MistyTrail. She rose to her feet and raced forward, hoping that she would find the short corridor that led to the exit. She heard the shouts of the soldiers as they filed into the room. A loud click echoed nearby, and MistyTrail ran with her hands before her face. She felt the corner of the wall and moved into the short corridor. The fog thinned, and she saw Mistake pushing the door open and Eltor racing through it. She quickly followed her friends.
Caldal was muttering incoherently. The only words that MistyTrail could understand as she raced past Eltor was something about a chamber of horror. She pushed the thought from her mind as she reached the next intersection. She quickly checked both ways before turning to the right and running towards the next stairwell. She wondered if they would reach the library before the soldiers caught them.
* * *
Back in the chamber of horrors, the soldiers milled about in confusion. Lady Mystic turned and scowled at Aakuta.
“Why did you do that?” she said with anger in her voice. “I could have fried the last one easily if you had not jostled my arm. And where did that fog come from? Were you deliberately trying to help them escape?”
“Help them escape?” echoed Aakuta. “Why would I care what happens to some elves? As for jostling your arm, I apologize. I am used to working alone. I must learn to anticipate the actions of others.”
Aakuta’s face slowly transformed into a mischievous smile as he gazed into Lady Mystic’s frustrated eyes.
“Now that they appear to have a head start,” offered the dark mage, “perhaps their attempts to escape may prove to be enjoyable.”
Lady Mystic’s face turned from anger to contemplation.
“What fun can we have with them escaping?” she asked.
“I am not sure,” admitted Aakuta, “but it has to be more interesting than watching a simple thrashing by the soldiers. I suppose that the city will be crawling with soldiers vying to be the ones to find the escapees. How long before the alarm is issued?”
“It should be issued right now,” answered Lady Mystic with a hint of mischievousness in her voice, “but I wonder. Sounding the alarm now would merely transfer their capture to the streets instead of the temple. If we wait a short while, the kruls will get into the act. Have you ever seen what a krul does when it captures an escapee?”
“No,” smiled Aakuta. “I have never had that pleasure. What do they do?”
“Well,” Lady Mystic said excitedly, “if it is a single krul, the elves will be eaten alive, but if there is more than one krul, they will fight over them. Sometimes the prisoners are literally torn apart. It would be interesting to show you such a demonstration.”
“How long do we wait before issuing the alarm?” asked Aakuta.
“We don’t issue one,” smiled Lady Mystic. “There is no chance of them getting off the island. We will let the soldiers discover the missing elf. Whenever they finally notice, we will learn of it. Then we must wait until the kruls have picked up the scent. You will enjoy this, Aakuta.”
Chapter 19
Rebellion
MistyTrail raced along the corridor to the still-open door of the library. She ran across the room and opened the shutters to the balcony. The door creaked loudly when Eltor hit it as he carried Caldal into the room. Mistake followed and noisily closed the door and locked it. MistyTrail gazed down at the city streets before tossing the rope over the railing of the balcony. Once again the moon was hidden behind the clouds. She grabbed the rope with both hands and stepped over the railing.
“When I get down,” MistyTrail instructed Eltor, “pull the rope up, and tie it around Caldal. Lower him to me and then you two can join us.”
Eltor nodded to MistyTrail as she lowered herself.
“I wonder why the alarm has not sounded yet,” Eltor said to Mistake as she arrived on the balcony. “I am sure that they saw us.”
“I don’t know,” frowned Mistake. “I agree that they saw us. In fact, the man is someone I recognize from Khadora. His name is Aakuta. Seeing him here makes me wonder how many of Vand’s people have already infiltrated Khadora and Fakara.”
“Pull up the rope,” Eltor instructed Mistake when he saw MistyTrail hit the ground. “Do you think he recognized you?” he asked as Mistake started pulling up the rope.
“I do not know,” Mistake answered, “but it would not matter if he did. He does not know who I am. In fact, he mistook me for someone else the first time I met him. I must alert Emperor Marak when we get back.”
“Get back?” echoed Eltor. “Do you really think we can get off this island? Caldal and I ended up where we did because we got caught trying to escape. We were very fortunate to get caught by humans instead of kruls. I have heard nasty stories about what happens to those caught by the kruls.”
“We will get off this island,” Mistake declared adamantly as she tied the rope around Caldal. “I will not spend the rest of my life here. I would rather be dead.”
“You may get that wish,” frowned Eltor as he helped Mistake lower Caldal’s body. “Besides, if we do get off this island, we will be returning to Elvangar. We have no idea where your homeland is located. At least we know where the land of the elves is located from here.”
“I don’t care where we go,” admitted Mistake, “as long as it is far away from here. We will argue about it later.”
“There is nothing to argue about,” retorted Eltor as MistyTrail caught Caldal’s body and untied the rope. “You can go next. What will we do with the rope?”
“You go down next,” Mistake said. “I know a trick that will let us take the rope with us. To leave it here would be an error. We made need it again.”
Eltor nodded and climbed over the railing. He soon disappeared below the balcony. Mistake leaned over the railing and watched his progress. As soon as he reached the ground, Mistake untied the rope from the railing. She climbed over the railing and held on with one hand while she wrapped the rope around a pillar of the railing. She let her legs dangle and snared the rope between her feet. She positioned the rope so that the tension on it was the only thing stopping it from unraveling. As she allowed her feet to slowly slide down the rope, her hands moved down the pillars of the railing until she could let go and grab the rope.
Mistake moved slowly down the rope knowing that as soon as the tension was lessened the rope would unwind from the pillar and fall to the ground. She was careful not to cause any sudden movements. When she reached the ground, she grabbed the rope and swayed it side to side. She grinned as she dashed out of the way of the falling rope.
MistyTrail had already carried Caldal across the open area and was waiting next to a building. Mistake motioned for Eltor to leave while she coiled the rope. When she had it coiled, she threw it over her head and worked her arm through the loop. By the time Mistake managed to get across the open area, Eltor had taken Caldal’s body and carried it over his shoulder. MistyTrail had already raced to the next intersection. She waved to her friends and urged them to hurry.
MistyTrail continued to lead the group through the city. She retraced their path of entry without running into the roving patrol. Together they dashed across the open area that separated the city from the forest. As soon as they entered the trees, the moon shone down brightly.
“Praise Kaltara!” MistyTrail said as she gazed up through the trees at the sky. “He must be watching over us.”
“Kaltara should destroy this evil island,” replied Eltor.
“Should we stop and tend to Caldal?” asked Mistake.
“Not here,” Eltor shook his head. “We must head back up the mountain. The kruls will be out in this forest in force as soon as the alarm is sounded. Even on the mountain they may find us.”
“Then we should return to the cave we found,” declared Mistake. “Caldal is in no condition to escape. Can you heal him, MistyTrail?”
“I will try,” promised the Sakovan, “but what will we do for food? There is nothing to eat on the mountain.”
“I
have plenty of food,” grinned Mistake. “Let’s move while it is still night.”
* * *
The Star of Sakova walked into the schoolhouse in Alamar. The students in the common room all nodded in reverence as she entered. She smiled briefly at them and strode through the corridor to the dining room. Temiker, Ukaro, and LifeTender were just finishing up a meal. She nodded politely and sat down. Temiker immediately rose and went to the kitchen. He returned with a cup of tea and a bowl of stew.
“How did your trip go?” asked Temiker.
“It went very well,” answered Lyra as she sipped the hot tea. “Duran and Zaramilden are now part of the Sakova.”
“Wonderful,” gasped LifeTender. “How did you do it?”
“It was surprisingly easy,” shrugged Lyra. “They were forgotten parts of Omunga. There will not be any other easy portions of Omunga to switch sides. We are going to have to fight for the rest of the country. Did you pass on my instructions to StarCity?”
“I did,” nodded LifeTender. “The Sakovans are now prepared to attack the Omungan invaders. I suspect that HawkShadow already is. He never cared much for the policy of scaring people. He would prefer to kill any trespassers.”
“He will now get his chance,” frowned Lyra. “I fear that many good people are going to die before all of this is over.”
“Kill only those who threaten you,” advised Ukaro. “The Omungan soldiers will be needed for what is to come.”
“I understand,” Lyra replied as she sampled the stew. “We will use whatever reason we can to get Omungans to switch sides. Any word from StarWind?” she asked LifeTender.
“None,” answered the Sakovan healing mage. “She should be in Campanil by now. She left Alamar at the same time that you did.”
The room lapsed into silence as Lyra ate her stew. Ukaro rose and walked into Temiker’s office. He returned a moment later with a golden stalk of watula. He slid it across the table to Lyra.
“That is from a field just outside the walls of the city,” smiled the Chula shaman.
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