Island of Darkness (28 page)

“An excellent throw!” smiled Eltor as he looked at the dead rabbit with the knife protruding from it.

“I wonder if we dare a fire?” asked Mistake.

“A small one should be alright,” Eltor replied as MistyTrail retrieved the rabbit. We are close enough to the city and the mills that the smell of smoke will not arouse the kruls.”

“Let’s make it small and fast,” worried MistyTrail. “I do not want to draw attention to ourselves.”

The fire was small and lasted only as long as was needed to cook the meat. Still, it was dark by the time they were done eating. MistyTrail breathed a sigh of relief when the fire was extinguished and the smoke ceased to rise upward.

Eltor continued to lead through the dark forest. Within an hour they began to see glimpses of the city whenever the moon peeked through the clouds. A little while later, the screams started. Eerie, bone-chilling screams drifted lightly on the wind. Some of the screams were clearly human, but others defied description. The sounds tore through the three adventurers until they wanted to cover their ears, but they could not afford to be deaf so close to the city.

They reached the edge of the forest and halted. They gazed at the open area between the forest and the city with dread of having to cross it. Beyond the clear area the buildings and streets of the city were visible when the moon cooperated. The streets appeared deserted.

“Not many people out in the city,” commented Mistake. “At least that is in our favor.”

“Would you want to be out with the sounds of torture all around you?” quipped MistyTrail. “I would be hiding under my bed if I had one.”

“I am sure that the people of the city are used to the screams,” commented Eltor. “Still, they cannot enjoy hearing such things. I suspect the streets will be empty until morning.”

Mistake gazed at the towering pyramid as it rose above the rooftops. She swallowed hard as she realized what she had allowed herself to get into.

“Are we really going to try to get into that temple?” she asked anxiously.

“We must,” asserted Eltor. “Caldal is inside there somewhere. We must free him.”

“What if he is already dead?” countered Mistake. “We will be risking our lives for nothing. How long as he been in there?”

“About a week,” Eltor replied. “He was sent to the temple while I was sent to the mines.”

“In the Sakova,” retorted MistyTrail, “we would risk our lives even for the dead. Never leave a friend in the enemy’s hands.”

“I will go alone if I must,” added Eltor, “but I will not leave without Caldal if he is alive. I will turn back if he is dead, though. There is little chance of returning his body to Elvangar. Let’s get across this clearing while the moon is hidden.”

“You will not have to go alone,” promised MistyTrail as the trio slipped out of the forest and into the open field.

They moved swiftly across the open area and slid into the darkness of the city street. They kept close to the buildings as they moved silently along the street. They heard sounds of people moving about within the buildings, but every door was closed, and every window was shuttered. Not a soul stirred outside the buildings.

When Eltor reached the first intersection, he leaped back and hugged the building. He trembled slightly, and Mistake dropped to the street. She crawled forward and stuck her head around the corner to see what had frightened Eltor. A squad of soldiers was marching towards them just over a short block away. She knew that the trio could not retreat along the long block that they had just traversed by the time the soldiers marched the short block between them.

Mistake turned her head and frantically searched for a place to hide. There were no alleys or alcoves to hide in. She turned her head back towards the soldiers in time to see the column turning at the next intersection. She exhaled her held breath with relief. She stood up and signaled for the others to proceed. She looked quizzically at Eltor when he started leading them towards where the patrol had been.

“It makes sense to me that the patrol would not cover the same area again so quickly,” he said softly. “It is best to go where they have already been. Besides, this route will take us closer to the temple.”

Mistake and MistyTrail nodded and fell in behind Eltor. When they reached the next intersection, Eltor peeked around the corner and saw the squad marching away from them. He held up his hand for the two women to wait while he scooted across the intersection. MistyTrail ran across after Eltor had safely made it, and Mistake soon followed.

They wound their way through the city streets without further disturbances. Eventually, they reached the last buildings before the temple. They stopped and stared out at the open area surrounding the massive pyramid.

“I have heard that there are only two ways in,” whispered Eltor. “The rear entrance is for the slaves and those to be sacrificed. The front is for everybody else.”

“The front is definitely out,” MistyTrail responded. “It will be heavily guarded. They will not allow just anyone to walk in.”

“The same will be true for the rear,” shrugged Eltor. “They will not risk slaves escaping. We may have to bluff our way in.”

“How many elves are in good favor with Vand?” asked Mistake. “Is it believable that we might be people high up in Vand’s service?”

“No,” frowned Eltor. “All elves are considered the enemy of Vand. He would never have one loyal to him. We will have to disguise our ears.”

“I can create a fog,” offered MistyTrail, “but that may well alarm them.”

“That may be handy later,” Mistake shook her head, “but not to get in. We need to explore the inside of the pyramid without causing a disturbance getting in. There must be another entrance.”

“Just because we want one,” frowned Eltor, “doesn’t mean that we will get one.”

“I don’t know about that,” retorted MistyTrail. “I feel as if Kaltara is guiding us here for some reason. I feel strongly about it.”

“It is so odd to hear strangers talk about Kaltara so,” responded Eltor. “I am most intrigued to learn about your homeland.”

“Look,” Mistake said softly as she pointed to the side of the pyramid. “There are several balconies on the higher levels. Maybe we can scale the side of the building?”

“We would stick out easily when the moon shone on us,” frowned Eltor, “and that is if we were able to scale the pyramid. There is nothing to grab onto.”

“It feels right to me,” interjected MistyTrail. “There have to be cracks between the stones. We can use our knives to make handholds.”

“I did something similar in Fakara,” Mistake nodded with enthusiasm. “It was not near as high, but I had to get over a stockade wall. It can be done.”

“You two are crazy,” commented Eltor as he watched MistyTrail drop to her knees and close her eyes. “What are you doing?”

“She is praying,” replied Mistake. “Leave her alone. If Kaltara is really the god of the elves, perhaps you should be doing the same. Give me the rope. I am going to try to get to the lowest balcony and tie the rope to it. You two can then use the rope to climb up.”

Eltor frowned, but he took the coil of rope off his shoulder and passed it to Mistake. She looped it over her head and eased one arm through it. She gazed upward as a large cloud started to move across the face of the moon. As soon as the moon was obscured, Mistake bolted across the open area.

Mistake reached the bottom of the pyramid without detection. Two knives slid into Mistake’s hands as she stared at the alignment of the stone blocks. She reached up and shoved one knife into the crevice above her head. She pulled herself upward with one arm and stretched her free hand high above her. She could barely reach the next crack, but she grunted with effort and succeeded in embedding another knife in the higher crack. She transferred the weight of her body to her higher hand as she worked the lower dagger free.

Across the clear area, Eltor strained his eyes to watch Mistake. He bit his lower lip and shook his head as the petite woman pulled herself up the side of the pyramid.

“She must have incredible strength to do that,” Eltor remarked.

MistyTrail opened her eyes and stood. She gazed into the darkness and finally located Mistake. She smiled at her sister.

“Mistake is a remarkable person,” she said to Eltor. “She never falters once her mind is made up to do something. We should move across the clear area to the base of the pyramid while it is dark. I will use a fog to conceal us if it is necessary.”

Eltor nodded, and together they ran across the clear area. Eltor gazed upward and followed Mistake’s progress high above his head.

“You are both remarkable women,” commented Eltor. “If you are not both elves, I will eat this uniform after we escape.”

“I do not understand how that can be,” mused MistyTrail, “but I am beginning to believe it. I have spent years denying that elves exist, but you have proved me wrong on that count.”

Eltor pushed MistyTrail away and then jumped aside as he heard a clatter above his head. A second later a knife plunged into the ground between them. MistyTrail’s eyes rose with worry. She saw Mistake hanging from one hand high above them.

“She dropped one of her knives,” Eltor said with dread. “She will fall to her death when her arm become tired.”

MistyTrail sighed with relief as she watched Mistake move further up the wall. She bent down and picked up Mistake’s fallen knife.

“She carries plenty of knives,” explained MistyTrail. “She must be really tired.”

“I can’t imagine why,” Eltor replied sarcastically as he stared up into the darkness. “I would love to take the two of you to Elvangar.”

“I would like that,” smiled MistyTrail. “Right now, I just want to get off this island. I don’t care much where we go.”

“I agree,” replied Eltor. “After our escape attempt, I felt as if Caldal and I were bound to die on this island. Now I have hope.”

“Do not get your hopes too high,” warned MistyTrail. “We are not escaping this island right now. We are about to enter the most dangerous place on it. We may all die before this night is over.”

Suddenly, the air sang with the sound of a rope whistling through the air. Eltor and MistyTrail stepped swiftly away as the free end of the rope struck the ground. MistyTrail gazed at the small section of rope resting at her feet.

“If that balcony was a couple of paces higher the rope would have been too short,” remarked MistyTrail. “Kaltara is indeed watching over us. Climb the rope.”

“You go first,” Eltor offered gentlemanly.

“No,” MistyTrail shook her head. “We may still need to create a fog, and you cannot do that. Hurry up the rope while the moon is hidden.”

Eltor nodded and grabbed the rope with both hands. He pulled himself upward while MistyTrail waited at the base of the temple. She gazed upward as Eltor faded into the darkness. A few moments later the rope jiggled exaggeratedly, signaling that Eltor had made it safely. MistyTrail grabbed the rope and began climbing the side of the pyramid. The climb was long and arduous, and she began to appreciate the effort that Mistake had expended to reach the balcony.

As MistyTrail climbed over the railing of the balcony, Eltor began pulling up the rope and coiling it. Mistake was trying to peer through the closed shutters of the doorway that led into the temple. MistyTrail stepped alongside Mistake.

“Can you tell what is beyond the shutters?” MistyTrail whispered as she handed the fallen knife to her sister.

“No,” Mistake replied as the cloud passed away from the moon, “but we are going to find out. There is no turning back now. Your Kaltara has seen to that.”

MistyTrail smiled at her sister as Mistake sheathed her knife and pulled a thin strip of metal from her belt. Mistake worked the metal between the shutters. In just seconds the shutters swung open slightly. Mistake peered into the dark room and then turned to Eltor.

“Leave the rope tied to the balcony,” she said softly. “We may have to leave in a hurry. Just place the coil on the floor.”

Eltor nodded as knives suddenly appeared in the hands of the two sisters. He quietly placed the coil of rope on the floor and stepped closer to the two women. Mistake gently opened the large shutters.

The shutters on the balcony on the Temple of Vand opened quietly. The moonlight illuminated the nearer portions of the room. Mistake peered into the room before stepping into it. Eltor and MistyTrail followed her.

The room was large and obviously a library. Tall bookshelves lined each of the walls, and racks of scrolls were set in neat rows in the center of the floor. Near each of the corners of the room were desks and reading chairs. The room was unlit and empty.

Mistake moved silently to the doorway on the opposite side of the room from the balcony. She placed her ear against the door and listened for sounds of people beyond it. She heard nothing. MistyTrail moved alongside Mistake and tapped her. The Sakovan pointed to a sliver of flickering light passing through the small crack near the floor. Mistake nodded silently and pointed towards the side of the door. MistyTrail grabbed Eltor lightly by the arm and led him away from the door.

Mistake eased the door open a crack. She peered out into the torch-lit corridor. When she saw no people outside the room, she started to ease the door open wider. It creaked loudly. She held her breath for several seconds while she remained motionless. Trying anew to leave the room, Mistake edged the door open with excruciatingly slow movements. When she had the door opened wide enough to walk through, she stuck her head into the corridor and looked both ways. Seeing no one, she boldly stepped into the corridor. MistyTrail and Eltor immediately followed.

“Is there anywhere to hide while you close the door?” asked MistyTrail.

“Leave it open,” whispered Mistake. “It takes too long to close it. We would surely be detected.”

“Then we must close the shutters,” MistyTrail retorted. “Otherwise we will be telling everyone that someone has entered the temple. I will close them. Which way are you going?”

“We should go towards the rear,” interjected Eltor. “The front entrance appears to be a level higher than the rear. We need to go down two levels.”