“And if the sky craft comes back, and you aren't in control of it?” The trader leaned forward, skepticism in every line.
“Then we're dead or couldn't risk jumping them, and you have to either wait for us to come back, or make a new plan.” Garek was blunt.
The trader blinked. “You think they aren't going to ask some hard questions of us if they have to kill you out there?”
Garek said nothing for a beat. “Most likely they will. If you think there is such a thing as a risk free escape plan, you're living in a different world to me.”
“Particularly,” Taya kept her voice low, “as the ones taking the most risk in this plan are Garek and Aidan. Or would you like to wait at the tower and try to take the sky raiders instead?”
Luci shook her head, looked sidelong at her companion. “It's just the first time we've heard the details. We're trying to come to grips, that's all.” She put a hand on the trader's shoulder. “Zek lost two friends in the raid, they jumped off the pass rather than be taken, and none of us want to see more deaths.”
“What do you think is going to happen when they've got enough shadow ore?” Quardi asked. “You think they're going to bother taking us back home?”
Zek looked at his feet. “No. Forgive me. I didn't mean to suggest that some of us should carry no risk. We're all at risk, just being here. And what frightens me more than the sky raiders realizing we're trying to escape and harming us is the thought of what will happen when they leave us here. Because then, my prediction is that we'll be killing each other, near the end. Just to survive.”
It was something that had crossed Taya's mind, too. In her imagination, the end was as ugly as could be.
“What happens if they send one of the small sky craft?” Pilar asked. “There won't be room for enough people on that.”
“If that happens, we'll have to take it down and wait for them to wonder why it hasn't come back up, or isn't answering, or whatever the protocol is, and send another one down, until we get a transporter.” Kas looked around the assembled group, and Taya decided he looked better than he had since he'd arrived.
It was as if a firm plan had brought the old Kas back.
“What if all this works?” Luci asked. “What if we do get two transporters. What then?”
“We head straight for Barit.” Garek's hand curled a little tighter around her shoulder. “Either they have some way of knowing where their transporters are, or not, but I'd suggest we assume they can track them in some way, like they track you down the mines.”
“So, they'll come after us.” Quardi nodded.
“And?” Zek leaned forward, elbows on knees.
“And, they don't have any transporters to spare. And they need you to work the mine. They won't risk damaging their equipment or their workforce. If they do, they'll have to start over, and my guess is they are far enough away from their home world, they can't afford to do that.”
“That makes sense.” Kas nodded. “So what do you think they'll do?”
“I don't know.” Garek shrugged. “I just don't know.”
“It doesn't matter. How can we know everything, plan for everything?” Taya asked. “The alternative is certain death. We have to take the chance.”
Luci nodded, and after a moment, so did Zek. The rest were already in agreement on this, and she felt her heart give a little skip.
This was happening.
They were going to get out of here.
Later that night, naked and lying draped over Garek, Taya stroked a hand down his chest.
“You didn't say it at the meeting, but you do have an idea of what they'll do when they realize we're gone, don't you?”
She lifted her face up as he looked down, and their gazes locked.
He gave a nod.
“They'll come after us, won't they? They'll follow us down to Barit and they'll try to take us back.”
His arms closed tight around her. “I will never let that happen.”
“I have a way that might stop them.” She'd been thinking about it ever since she'd seen how far they'd put the shadow ore from the transporters. “For it to work, we'll have to be on the ground already so it doesn't affect the transporters.”
“You're talking about the shadow ore?”
“Yes.” She rested her head more comfortably against his chest. “If your father can smelt more ore into long, spear shapes, that would be good. I could aim them better, that way.”
“You think you could pierce the shell of their craft?” His fingers tangled in her hair.
She shrugged. “From what I've seen it do so far, yes. What do we have to lose, anyway?”
He gave a hum of agreement. “We'll need more ore, then. What you and Min brought back from the caves won't be enough for an offensive. And you need some for yourself, for later.”
She hugged him closer. “There's a lot piled outside the mine entrance. We need to see if anything masks its effect, otherwise we can't risk putting it in the transporters.”
“It'll be risky to test,” Garek said.
He was right. If they did it before the escape attempt, and it didn't work, they would be found out. And if they tested it after they got the transporter for themselves, and it didn't work, they could destroy the transporter, their only way off Shadow.
“Don't worry about it now.” Garek smoothed a hand down her back. “We'll find a way.”
And they would, she thought as she drifted off to sleep. They really had nothing to lose.
Chapter 35
Taya chose a piece of shadow ore from the pile by the rock face deep in the mine that was small enough to hold in her fist and fit in her pocket, but at least five times bigger than the small piece Min had brought in the transporter and which she'd worn to and from the mine in her headband ever since.
There was a growing pile of pieces too small to be worth carrying out set to one side, and she was spoilt for choice.
More than one of the men working the seam knew what she was planning and gave her a nod.
Kas simply put down his pick, wiped his face with the shirt he'd tucked into the waistband of his pants, and touched her cheek with calloused fingers. “Be careful.”
She nodded, found a bigger piece that was worth carrying out and made her way through the twists and turns of the tunnel.
When they'd first been sent to the mine, they'd avoided the screen that showed them as nothing more than blobs of colorful light, but they'd gotten used to it, and their path from the deposit site where they dropped the ore to the entrance of the mine had gotten closer and closer to the gently humming black box with the massive screen perched on top. It was the quicker route.
When Taya had outlined her idea at breakfast, asking for suggestions on what to test the ore with, Noor had pointed out that the screen went fuzzy when they walked past with the shadow ore, but didn't when they were coming back from the deposit site empty-handed to get the next load.
No one else had noticed this, and Noor had looked both surprised and pleased at the praise as everyone realized the importance of it.
They'd drawn more people into the scheme, some from Pan Nuk, some from the Harven village, all to keep watch at the right time to see if the screen was affected when Taya walked past it with the ore or not.
To test if the small piece even had the power to affect the screen, Taya deposited the big rock, and then walked past the screen with the rock in her hand.
She didn't dare look up to see the effect. She'd simply kept her head down and walked back into the mine.
When she got deep enough down the passage, she slowed so Noor could catch up with her. Noor gave her a nod.
“Not as much as the rocks we bring up, but a definite wobble,” she said.
The next time, she put it in the pocket of her jacket. Because, wouldn't it be handy if the soft fibers of the dar bush, from which most of the clothes on Barit were made, worked?
But Noor gave a quick shake of her head. “It wobbled again.”
/> The next time she stood by the rock face to fetch another rock, she wrapped the small rock in silk.
She'd gone through all the different fabrics they had access to by the afternoon, with no success. Every time she caught Min and Luci's eye as they passed one another, it felt depressing to see them shake their head.
“It would have been more surprising if one of them had worked,” Noor consoled her as they stood outside beside the long trestle table with its jugs of water and assortment of mugs.
Taya had a roughly crafted wooden mug in her hand, and she held it up, thoughtfully.
Noor narrowed her eyes. “I see where your mind's going, but how are you going to carry a cup past the screen without attracting attention?”
“I don't know.” Taya swallowed the last of the water, looked at what she had available on the long, rough wooden plank. There were numerous wooden cups, some very basic, like the one in her hand, others ornately carved. Some were worn and cracked with age, others looked as if the sky raiders had stolen them straight out of the carpenter's shop.
There were silver cups, too, most of them tarnished by use and lack of polish. There was also cosil, the bronze colored alloy used for most tavern tankards.
She didn't want to try the silver and cosil, because even if they did work, there was hardly an abundance of either in the camp.
She thought through her options.
The guard stood between the table and the mine entrance, the swiveling head of the machine he was in turning at regular intervals. When it swung toward the mine entrance, Taya dropped the rock into her empty mug. She poured water into it, then poured water into two more empty mugs and balanced them awkwardly in her hands.
“Watch the screen,” she said to Noor. She heard her friend hiss with frustration behind her, but she'd already turned away and started walking.
She angled toward three of the men who'd come out from working the seam for a short break. They stood in the sun and breathed the clear air.
She didn't know any of them well, they were from the Harven village, but Luci would have told them what Taya was doing today, most likely, and even if she hadn't, they knew there were plans in play for escape. They'd cooperate. She hoped.
She walked deliberately past the screen, forcing herself to keep her gaze on the men, and then hailed them with a smile.
“You look thirsty.”
She could sense the guard's interest, saw his head swing in her direction. He couldn't see her face, only those of the men, all three of whom were blinking at her in surprise.
“Play along.” She mouthed the words, hoping they were quick enough to catch on.
“Thank you, Taya. Most welcome.” A man who Taya thought might be named Pete, held out a hand to accept the cup.
“There's a piece of shadow ore in there,” she murmured to him as she handed it over. “Drink up and pretend there isn't.”
She handed the other cups over to the remaining two. “You're the lucky ones. Water only.” She sent them a tiny smile.
They seemed a little stiff at first, not as natural as she'd have liked, but they did well enough.
Pete drained the cup and then coughed a little.
“Went down the wrong way,” he gasped.
“Bit of grit on the ore?” she asked so quietly she didn't think even he could hear her, but his gaze caught hers and she could see he was laughing.
“Felt bigger than a piece of grit, but never mind. I'm happy to sacrifice for the cause.” The murmur was low and then he went absolutely silent.
Taya turned, found the guard had walked right up behind them.
“Break is over.” He spoke in a monotone, but Taya thought she could sense suspicion.
Hopefully it was all in her head.
She gave a meek nod, took the cups and walked back to the table as the men turned back to the mine.
Just in case Noor hadn't gotten it the first time, she made sure she walked directly under the screen.
“Stop.”
The guard's order made her freeze.
Her back was still to him, and she tipped the cup with the ore in it, so the pebble fell to the ground.
It glinted, clean from the water. Far too clean.
“Yes?” She turned back to face him, scuffing her feet to make as much dust as she could.
He leaned over her, looking at the cups, then looked up at the screen.
“Do you have shadow ore on you?”
The words made her heart sink, because it meant the screen was fuzzy.
She held out her hands, smudged with dirt from carrying the rocks. “Just the dust.”
“No, something more.” The machine he sat inside made a few strange sounds, and he pointed to the ground. “That. There.”
She looked down, but she already knew he was pointing to the piece of ore she'd tipped out.
Thank goodness it looked dusty again.
She picked it up, held it out to him. “This?”
The guard made the machine take a step back.
“What's it doing there?”
Taya shrugged. “Perhaps it got caught in someone's clothing and fell out?” She took another step forward, as if trying to give it to him.
“Take it to the pile and get back to work,” he said.
She slipped it into her pocket and nodded. She put the mugs back and then walked casually past the the ore pile, tossed the rock into the heap.
When she got back into the tunnels, Noor was waiting for her at the seam where the men were working.
Kas dropped his pick, and Pete and his two friends moved closer to her so they could overhear.
“What happened?” Her brother looked a little sick.
“I tried to see if wood would mask the ore, took a cup of water to Pete with the ore inside.” She smiled over at him as he was making no effort to hide he was listening in anyway. “But it didn't work.”
“That's where you're wrong,” Noor said. “I don't understand it, but when you walked toward them, the screen stayed the same. It was only when you returned that it went fuzzy.”
“What was the difference?” Kas asked, and Taya leaned forward grabbed his face and gave him a smacking kiss on the cheek.
“The difference,” she said, “was that Pete drank the water.”
Chapter 36
“Water?” Quardi said as they discussed Taya's findings over dinner, and Garek could see his father was already thinking about what containers he could make.
Night had swept over the sky, and a wind cut through the camp like a honed blade, making everyone slow and jerky as they stumbled to the fire and huddled around its heat.
Anger and frustration that Taya, that all of them, had to work until they were exhausted hummed just under his skin. They were tired and had gone to clean themselves with slow, hunched steps, despite their excitement at their discovery.
As they discussed possible containers for the water, though, there was a new sense of urgency. After the talk last night, it was as if most of the camp had woken to the fact that escape was a tangible possibility.
“Wood isn't a long term solution, but it's the most abundant material,” Pilar said.
“It doesn't need to be long term. It shouldn't take more than two days to get to Barit. At the longest.” Garek shrugged.
There was silence.
“Why do you say that?” Kas asked.
“It took us half a day to get to the mother ship, and no more than half a day to get from the mother ship to Shadow.” Garek looked at Aidan for confirmation, and he nodded. “Most of our time was wasted. Looking for the mother ship, learning to fly the craft, and we spent a night in the mother ship before we left it. It could easily take us less than a day.”
“It took us . . . a week?” Garek didn't like the uncertainty in Taya's voice. “I thought it was a week.”
“I thought it was longer,” Noor said.
“Why would they have delayed?” Aidan asked, and Garek could see that was what was disturbing everyo
ne.
“Maybe they were seeing if we survived the white lightning.” It was Quardi who spoke. “There are only a hundred and fifty, maybe a hundred and sixty of us here, but there was talk long before we were taken of people being stolen by the sky raiders. I think they were calibrating their white lightning canons to debilitate but not kill.”
“You think those others were killed? That they were waiting to see if we didn't die before they bothered taking us to Shadow?” Noor's eyes were wide.
Quardi nodded. “Where are the other people, otherwise?”
Garek's arm tightened around Taya. Because his father was right. As a guard, he knew far more people than just those who were here had been taken. He'd been so happy to find Taya, he hadn't thought about it, but what else could have happened to them? It was just pure luck Taya had been in the group where they'd gotten the strength of their weapon right.
“Then we were the lucky ones.” Kas focused on the positive, shaking everyone out of their shock.
“Yes.” Quardi looked at Taya, and Garek knew his father was thinking the same thing he was. “And if it's just a day or two that we have to worry about, that means wood will work. Metal will, too.”
“We'll never get away with using the metal they give us for tools,” Pilar said, and Garek could hear the alarm in his voice. His father was sometimes reckless enough to try things like that.
“We don't want to tip our hand,” Kas cautioned, and Garek was grateful. Sometimes his father dug in, just because it was Garek who was doing the criticizing.
“Whatever we make, it has to be done carefully, so no water escapes.” Taya spoke quietly, but everyone listened. “They are . . .” she seemed to think about the word she wanted to use. “They are frightened by it, even though they seem desperate for as much of it as they can get. Which means if water leaks out, and exposes some of the ore while we're flying away, it could be catastrophic.”
“So no short cuts,” Min murmured, and everyone nodded.
“No short cuts.” Quardi shifted in his wheeled chair.
“I'll let the Kardanx know what we need, and Luci's group. They can start finding wooden planks.” Kas stood.
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