Escape From Riddler's Pass (4 page)

“See. I knew you'd be upset.”

“Well,
I'll
be upset if Captain Demetri and his men shoot arrows through us while we stand here talking,” Rae snapped. Clearly, she'd rather risk ghosts than stay still, doing nothing. “Come on.”

Although Silas led the way with the torch, Rae and Jesse had an easier time scrambling through the passageways, since both were nearly a head shorter than their leader.
I never thought I would be grateful to be short
, Jesse thought, as Silas bumped his head on a low outcropping for the third time.

Jesse had a hard time getting a good look at the cave, since he was forced to walk with a slight stoop, but there were signs that the tunnels had clearly once been home to a civilized people group. Here and there a torch was lashed to the wall, and the stone nearby was darkened from soot. Jesse spotted a threshing floor for wheat, and a broken piece of pottery. Once, he saw something like a well, but Silas wouldn't let him stop to examine it.

“We may need water if we run out of supplies,” Jesse pointed out.

“We have plenty in the packs,” Silas reminded him. “Now keep walking and stop talking.”

Jesse did stop talking, but for a different reason.
The packs
. He felt his back, just to make sure. The pack of supplies was not there. Jesse could see the pack in his mind, almost as if he were actually looking at it. It was laying beside the mouth of the cave.
That will be the first thing Captain Demetri sees when he and his men reach the cave
.

Ahead of him, Silas had stopped.
I have to tell him. But how?
Jesse could hardly picture Silas' reaction, but he was sure he would be furious.
And Rae, she'll be even more angry. Oh, why? Why did it have to be me?

Feeling like some ancient curse had turned his feet into the same stone that formed the cave walls, Jesse joined Silas and Rae. “Silas….”

“Shh,” he hissed, not looking back at him. Jesse glanced up to see that he and Rae were staring at something in the tunnel in front of them.

A light was glowing dimly from behind a large rock formation that nearly blocked the path.

“Maybe one of the Roarics forgot to blow out his torch,” Jesse said, half-jokingly. But the light flickered strangely, almost like it really was another torch.
Ghosts don't exist…do they?

“I'll look,” Rae volunteered, her hand lightly brushing against the hilt of her sword. “Maybe there's a hole that lets in light from the surface.”

“No,” Silas warned, drawing his bow. In his hurry, he hit his head on the ceiling for the fourth time. “Wait for us!” But Rae had already stepped forward, darting behind the rock.

In the next second, her scream echoed in the cave.

“Rae!” Silas and Jesse shouted together, taking the few steps to the formation in running leaps.

“Don't move,” a strange, deep voice commanded.

Jesse froze.
Captain Demetri?

But the person who stepped from behind the rocks—a torch in one hand and a spear, which he held to Rae's throat, in the other—looked nothing like the Patrol captain. He was a dwarf, one who barely came to Rae's shoulders, and he had a long, dark beard and fierce eyes. His clothes seemed to be nothing more than a collection of rags, wrapped around him and tied with a length of rope.

If he is a ghost, he doesn't look like I imagined one would
. The Roaric did look fierce and very annoyed by their presence, none of which was good for Rae, who seemed to be trying not to breathe.

“Please, take your spear away,” Silas said, slowly and calmly. He had also stopped at the Roaric's command. “We mean you no harm.”

The Roaric's eyes darted to the bow Silas held at the ready. Silas, understanding his meaning, dropped his weapon.

“Jesse,” Silas said, never looking away from Rae and the Roaric, “put down your sword.”

“Oh.” Since he had never used it, Jesse often forgot he carried a sword at all. He pulled it clumsily from his sheath and let it clatter to the ground.

“You,” the Roaric said, nodding at Jesse. “Take her sword.”

“You mean Rae's?” Jesse asked. He immediately felt foolish.
What other “hers” are there in this cave?
He practically had to pry Rae's fingers away from the hilt to get at it—her hands were frozen like the expression of fear on her face.

“Who are you?” Jesse asked, still not convinced the Roaric in front of him,
for that must be what he is,
was not a ghost.

“My name is Bern, of the hunter clan,” he replied tersely. “And you are my prisoners. You will follow me.”

He yanked Rae forward, still holding his spear close to her.

“Where are we going?” Jesse ventured. Silas glared at him, clearly not wanting him to irritate their captor.

Bern looked at him in disbelief, as if it should be obvious. “To New Urad, of course.”

 

Tunnels cut through the dark stone of the cave like a maze. It reminded Jesse, strangely, of the lair of a giant worm, burrowing deep into the ground.
We would have been able to lose Captain Demetri and the Patrol easily down here
, he thought.

As he watched Bern the Roaric march Rae forward at the end of his spear, Jesse decided it was better to be in his hands than in the captain's.
Maybe he'll let us go when he discovers we were only taking shelter in the cave.

As they stooped through another fork in the tunnel, Jesse asked, “Where do all these tunnels lead?”

Bern did not look back at him. “Many places. Wine-presses. Grain storage. Wells. Blacksmiths. Weavers. Most of them abandoned now.”

“But so many tunnels?”

“All of the Deep Mines are like this,” Bern said. “That is what I have heard. I have never traveled from this cave.”

Although his words were clipped and gruff, he seemed perfectly willing to talk to his captives.
Almost as if he hasn't had anyone to talk to for a while.

The thought had occurred to Jesse that Bern might be the lone survivor of the massacre Silas had talked about, or perhaps one of a few.
The Patrol couldn't have killed everyone, not with so many places to run.

Again, he wondered what the Roarics had done to deserve such a harsh punishment. “Some kind of treason,” Silas had said. That explanation did not predict good things for them.
If the Roarics rebelled against the king, how will they treat members of the Youth Guard, the king's special fighting force?

The more they walked, the more convinced Jesse was that Bern wouldn't need to hold Rae hostage.
We would never be able to find our way back anyway
.

After they passed an archway carved with strange symbols, Jesse notice a kind of path, marked with glowing stones. He stooped to look at one of them. Gray stone with white flecks. “Silas,” he said, excitedly, “this is the same rock your Rebellion stone was made of!”

Silas just pulled him up. “Come on,” he hissed. “He'll think you're trying to run away!”

“I just wanted to….”

“Rae could be hurt because of your foolish dawdling!” Silas shoved him forward, making Jesse scrape his head on the rock.

“What are these stones?” Jesse asked, hoping Bern would know the answer.

This time, Bern stopped and glanced back at Jesse. “You Above-grounders ask many questions.”

“Not all of us,” Silas said dryly.

“We in New Urad rarely ask questions,” Bern said. Jesse didn't think Bern was being critical; he was simply stating a fact.

“We used to mine these stones for the king before the Fall,” he continued. “In New Urad, they are the only light at all.”

Jesse frowned.
Imagine living life in a stone prison, with only glowing rocks for light
.

He knew he would hate it. It was hard enough for him to walk in the near-darkness of the cave, and he had only been there for one day.
The problem
is not being able to see where I'm going
, Jesse decided.
I don't like stepping out into the dark.

All of a sudden, Rae gasped, and Jesse jerked his head up. But Bern hadn't brought the spear closer to her. She had merely stepped through another archway, this one twice as large as the first.

Silas and Jesse followed, and Jesse stretched, grateful to be able to stand up straight.

Then he looked around, and almost gasped too. Here, the narrow tunnel exploded into a huge cavern, high enough to allow six Patrol members to stand on each others' shoulders, and large enough to fit….

A small village
. “This must be Urad,” Jesse said in awe.

“Yes,” Bern agreed. “The ruins of it.” Perhaps because they had no weapons, or perhaps because they made no move to run back the way they came, Bern lowered his spear and let them gape at their surroundings.

A second glance showed the extent of Urad's destruction. As if they had been thrown about at random, piles of the glowing rocks illuminated the sad remains of charred buildings, broken pottery, and scattered straw.

“No one from Above-ground has seen this place since the Fall,” Bern said softly, almost as if he might disturb some sacred relics.

Rae ran over to one of the homes, picking up a half-burnt piece of wood. She studied it for a second. “Black pine,” she said. “From the forests of District Three.” Her voice sounded almost wistful, and Jesse suddenly realized she missed her home as much as he missed his.

“Come back,” Bern said, sounding a bit unsure, as if he was afraid Rae would run off.

“I'll stay behind,” Jesse volunteered.
Bern must know more of the story than Silas did
.

Bern nodded at Rae and Silas, and Jesse sat down beside the archway, leaning against the cold stone. Bern remained standing, spear at the ready and eyes fixed straight ahead.

Jesse took the time to get a good look at their captor. His face was normal, except for the eyes, which were buried in wrinkles. He looked like a person used to squinting in the dark. Although the rags he wore were torn and frayed, they were clean, as was Bern himself. Somehow, Jesse had pictured the Roarics as being filthy, rough cave dwellers, but Bern's face was washed, his beard neatly trimmed, and his boots shined.
He probably looks better than we do
.

Jesse decided to break the silence. “This ‘Fall' you talk about,” he began, “when did it happen?”

“A long time ago,” Bern replied, still staring at the city.

He didn't volunteer any more information, so Jesse continued, “What happened here, Bern? Who destroyed Urad?”

There was a pause. “I cannot say,” he replied. “When we get to New Urad, you may ask the History Keeper. That is his burden to bear.”

The History Keeper?
Jesse shook his head.
That means there is at least one other survivor, probably more.

“We must continue to the mines,” Bern called. Once Silas and Rae rejoined them, he led them to the opposite side of the cavern.

Jesse felt strange walking through the city ruins. He saw shards of shattered glass, burned furniture, pieces of stone and wood and pottery.
It's like walking on broken fragments of lives.

One thing he didn't see were the remains of victims of the Fall. “Why aren't there any bones?” Jesse asked.

Immediately, Bern stopped in the path. “They were buried,” he said, his voice sounding distant and without emotion. “After the chaos had died down, the survivors came up and buried them, laying them in crypts in the deepest parts of the mines.”

Jesse shivered and hoped they wouldn't go to those tunnels. He didn't want to be greeted by Roaric skeletons staring out at him from the dark.

Bern turned to face him, slowing down a little and letting his spear drop. For the first time, Jesse saw emotion in his deep, squinting eyes: pain. “There were so many who died.…”

Then, Bern gave an abrupt shake of his head, and his eyes again became blank. He began to walk again, this time faster. “But it is not my burden to bear. It happened long ago. It does not matter now.”

One thing is sure,
Jesse decided as he stepped over a pile of rubble,
I will have many questions to ask this History Keeper
.

Bern stopped as they were almost to the edge of the ruins, tilting his head back where they came. “I hear voices,” he said simply.

Though he heard nothing, Jesse's eyes widened.
Captain Demetri. It has to be.

“There are others,” Jesse said hurriedly, his words slurring together. “Other humans. Evil ones. They're following us.”

Bern just grunted and held his spear high, toward Rae again. “No, you fool,” Rae snapped. “This is no rescue party–they wouldn't care if you threatened me.”

“They've come to kill us,” Jesse said, “and then they'll kill you too.”

That, at least, Bern understood. “To the mines,” he said, hurrying as fast as his short legs would take him through a second, smaller archway. This one was made of the same glowing stone that lined the tunnels.

Jesse followed, but Silas pulled the dwarf back. “We cannot run from them,” he said firmly. “They will not stop until they find us, even if they have to search these caverns for days.”

“And if you try to give us up to them, we'll tell them about you and your people,” Silas said. “They are Patrol.”

Bern winced at the word. Clearly, he remembered something about the destruction of Urad.

“They will try to wipe you out again,” Silas continued. “Do you really think you can defend yourselves from them?”

Jesse began to feel nervous. Now, even he could hear shouts as the Patrol members found tunnels hidden in the shadows and called for others to join them. They were wasting precious seconds.

Silas must have known it too, because he spoke more quickly. “We have to block the tunnel somehow. Keep them from getting to us. It is the only way.”

Bern looked confused, glancing from Silas to the tunnel and back again. The voices got louder. “Yes,” he finally said. “Come.”

Bern led them into what Jesse guessed were the mines, although he didn't see the deep pits he imagined were a part of mines. There were, however, mangled pickaxes and other supplies scattered about, and a few large, overturned carts. Bern began picking through the rubble, muttering to himself.

“Stay here,” Bern said tersely. Jesse noticed he was no longer holding his spear. Instead, he clutched a small barrel in one hand and the torch in the other. Without another word, he ran back into the tunnel.

Jesse started to follow, but Silas shook his head. “Let him go. He seems to know what he's doing.”

Jesse wasn't so sure, but Silas seemed confident enough, so he didn't move. Rae paced the cave nervously, while Silas bent down and picked up Bern's spear. He tested the point carefully. “Silas….” Jesse warned.

“Do you want to give it back to him?” Silas pointed out. “He was threatening to kill Rae.”

“Just don't do anything foolish,” Jessie warned. Silas stiffened, but gave a slight nod.

A few seconds later, Bern came running back. “Under the Miner's Supply,” he shouted, pointing at a thick steel overhang jutting out of the stone wall. A few wooden boards attached to framework hung like a mouth full of broken teeth. The rest was ash and debris.
It's a building of some sort
, Jesse decided,
or at least, it was.

Only the roof, welded to the rock wall and held up by a few metal supports, was still intact. Bern threw his torch to the ground and stomped it out, then ran to one of the overturned carts, pulling it under the steel overhang.

“You,” Bern said, nodding at Silas, who was closest to him. “Help me!” He saw the spear in Silas' hand and froze, fear flickering in his squinty eyes. For a moment they stood there, looking at each other.

Then Silas threw down the spear and joined Bern at the cart. The strain on Silas' face indicated the carts were heavier than they appeared. Jesse dropped his own torch to run over and push. Rae was soon beside him.

“What did you do, Bern?” Jesse demanded as they shoved the cart under the overhang.

Bern just shook his head. He grunted and lifted one edge of the cart up, straining with effort. “Get under the cart.”

From his urgent tone, Jesse decided that now was not the time for questions. Silas fell to the ground on both knees, then scrambled over to the cart. Once underneath, he crouched and bore some of the weight on his shoulders. “Hurry,” he said, groaning.

Jesse let Rae go first, then crawled in after her, dragging his walking stick with him. Bern was last, and then Silas dropped the cart over them with one last grunt of effort.

With none of the glowing stones on the ground, it was pitch black under the cart. Rae's boot jutted into Jesse's back, and he could hear everyone breathing in the silence.
How long will the air last under here?

Then, suddenly, the entire cave seemed to shake with a violent explosion. The ground rumbled underneath them, and a roar echoed in the cavern. Someone—Bern, Jesse guessed—moaned loudly.

They had asked Bern for a cave-in, and he had given them one. Almost without thinking, Jesse shot his arms out, bracing them against the side of the cart.
As if that will help when hundreds of tons of rock come crashing down on us.

The entire world collapsed. At least that's what it sounded like from underneath the cart. Jesse imagined the noise he heard was what it would sound like if a thunderstorm rained rock. The ground kept trembling, not a steady, even trembling, but one with punctuated jerks from the impact of the falling boulders.

And yet, only a few rocks bounced off of the overturned cart, and those hit from the side. Bern was muttering something to himself, but Rae and Silas remained silent, hardly breathing.