Shift (The Pandorma Adventures Book 1) (26 page)

Chapter 19

Ryan pushes ahead, I walk behind in the shape of a black leopard. Every time he looks at me with such intensity his eyes are saying something. In my room his eyes had said he wanted to kiss me. I wonder—I crash into Ryan’s rear, nearly knocking him onto an open pathway. I grab his shirt with my teeth and yank him back before he falls through.

“Sorry.”

My fur pricks with embarrassment. Of course I go and do something like that. Ryan’s mouth opens, his eyes dancing with a joke, but he never gets to say anything because a pack of animals gallop by. They are so close to the edge that if they move an inch closer they would trample us. We hold our breath but they pass us in seconds, not slowing their pace.

Urgency reflects in our eyes. We cross the path. All cautiousness gets left behind and we tear through the undergrowth. It won’t be long before an animal picks up our scent and follows it. We come to an edge of the mountain we’d been on. Beneath us the mountainside is covered in rocks. The only way down is to slide.

I leap down. I try to stay sideways but I trip and ungracefully tumble until I thrust my front legs out to keep myself from continuing to somersault. I leap over two larger rocks, clipping my paws. Bushes start to sprout here and there and I glimpse the bottom of the rocky hill. With one final bound I hit the bottom. My legs buckle and I continue rolling through the bushes. I finally stop when my middle slams into a tree trunk. The wind is knocked out of me and I screw my eyes shut.
Lissa.

Ignoring the slight sting where branches had scraped me and the ache in my side, I head back. When I reach the bottom of the rockslide I spot Ryan standing by a large boulder, his finger in his mouth. I jog over.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” he says around his finger. “That was kind of reckless. Jumping down like that.”

“Except I’m not the one hurt.”

“
Ahhh
.” Ryan shakes his finger. Specks of blood spatter the rocks around us. Ryan takes his finger and quickly wraps it in his shirt. But not before I see a gash.

“Come on.”

“But your finger—”

“Is fine. Now let’s go before we have bigger problems.”

Reluctantly I follow him.

“How much farther?”

“I don’t know. We don’t even know where we’re going.”

We’re leaning up against a rock face, breathing heavily from running—the fear of being discovered driving us mercilessly. Ryan slides down the rock then uses his shirt to wipe off the sweat sliding down his face. I sneak a peek at his finger. A gash runs along from the inside of his finger to just under his nail, which is somewhat bent.
That’s got to hurt.

“Ryan let me—” The bushes to the left rustle imperceptibly. Ryan doesn’t hear and I don’t think I would have either if I weren’t looking in that direction. I see the flick of a forked tongue seconds before a snake slinks out. Ryan hastens to his feet, sword drawn. I stand as well, but warily. I can sense the snake’s uncertainty at our intentions of being here.

When the snake doesn’t move, except for a flicker of tongue, Ryan raises his sword.

“Ryan wait.”

The snake slides farther out of the bush it’s hiding in. A boa. My heart starts beating faster. It's giant, the width of its body has to be around a foot or two. The snake glides around us once giving us ample room, yet it seems as if half its body is still hidden.

“You’re the ones they’ve put the alert out for,” he says, his voice slightly confused.

“Yes. We’re trying to reach the center—we’re here to help stop the war.”

“Lissa.
What are you doing?” Ryan asks in an angry murmur.

“I can take you there. But we must hurry,” he says. All confusion gone, urgency and a bit of hope flickers in his eyes.

“Like we’re really going to go with you. You’ll lead us straight into their hands. With about a hundred other guards surrounding us.” Ryan moves himself so he’s more in front of me.

“Ryan, we can trust him.”

“Are you kidding? Trust an enemy?” Ryan says disbelievingly.

“But he’s not an enemy.”

“She tells the truth. I am not here of my own accord and would gladly see the fall of Xavier and Medusa’s rule.”

Ryan folds his arms.

“Come on Ryan,” I plead. If Ryan refuses I’ll have no choice but to stay with him. “We can’t get there fast enough by ourselves.”

“Alright. But
only
because I trust you. And if you try anything,” Ryan holds up his sword threateningly, “don’t think I won’t be ready.”

The boa slithers to the top of the rock face we’d been leaning on and loops himself around the trunk of a bush growing at the top, pulling it down. Part of the stone slides right; uncovering more rock, a thin stream skimming down the middle of the rock to a pool of mud beneath.

We both eagerly gulp down handfuls of the rich, cold water. When we are done drinking, the boa takes a cherry sized pebble that is lying just at the base of the stream and pushes it into a small cleft. There’s a muffled click, and then the rock parts into two pieces at the stream. The sides stop at three feet apart. When the left side comes to a halt there is a soft click and a tunnel is lit with flaming torches.

Ryan makes a noise in his throat and I turn to look at him. He is just as shocked as I am. The boa quickly slides in calling behind him, “The door closes in five minutes.”

Ryan and I hastily step in around the snake’s thick body, the stream dribbling water on us. The brightness of the tunnel dims when the door clamps shut again.

“So . . .” Ryan starts; then he stares at the boa pointedly.

“Ah. My name is Ruze.”

“Ruze, how long is the tunnel?”

“And where does it end? And will it take us where we need to be?” I add.

“This tunnel is only one branch of the many tunnels down here. The one we’re in won’t take us directly to the core. We’ll have to make a few exchanges, which poses a problem. You see, there’ll be others down here and you two explicitly stand out.”

“You couldn’t just say you’ve captured us?”

“No. That would cause other guards to join us. But I know there are a few lesser known and purposely unused tunnels. They should suffice.”

“Why aren’t they used as much?” Ryan asks suspiciously.

“Several are ‘private tunnels’ that only commanders and higher ups can use. Others were deemed dangerous because they could collapse any minute.”

Ryan’s face is grim, undecided. But he doesn’t say anything as we move on. The soft sand doesn’t allow for our footsteps to echo, which is good for us, but bad for detecting an enemy approach. I can tell that the boa is, despite Ryan’s reservations, doing his best to keep us safe. He’s risking his life.

We might as well get as much information as we can while the snake is with us.
Once we are out of these tunnels I have a feeling we’ll be without his guidance.

“Ruze, is there anything we should know?”

“About what?”

“Just tell us anything that’d be helpful in keeping us alive,” Ryan says stiffly.

Ruze stops in front of a bulging rock about four feet high. He pushes in the top and the rock moves aside. Ruze hurriedly slithers through. At first we wait for Ruze to go through but it doesn’t seem like he’ll end any time soon.

“We might as well go now. I have a feeling the rock will close before all of him gets in.”

I smile at Ryan’s half-hearted attempt to joke. I place my hands and knees on either side of Ruze’s thick body and crawl through, Ryan inches behind me. After ten or fifteen feet, the small tunnel opens up into a larger one.

“This is one of the marked off tunnels, it’ll be safer to talk here. I’ll start with where I’m leading you two. It’s at the heart of the mountains and in the heart of a mountain, beneath it as well. The mountain’s name is Reivax.”

“Xavier named the mountain after himself but spelled it backwards. Conceited but clever,” Ryan murmurs.

I look at him, surprised.
How did he figure that out?

“It's guarded, but not as well as the surrounding borders. Xavier’s gotten cocky and doesn’t anticipate attacks,” Ruze continues.

“Are both of them here now?” I ask.

“I know Xavier is, but Medusa—”

“Finish telling us about here first,” Ryan interrupts.

“Only one tunnel leads directly to the center, but you can’t take it. The place I’m taking you to is called Meltdown. Follow a load of metal being taken inside and you’ll be in Cultivation. When the load stops, hide behind the bins filled with finished products.” Ruze chuckles, “Don’t get in them or you might get cut fairly badly. There’s a stone staircase leading down, how you’ll get to it is your problem, but once you’re down; there will be many rooms. I don’t know them very well, but I do know that the head officers are frequently behind one with a rock-red door.”

“What are the chances Ryan will be spotted?”

“High. Unless you can find some way to disguise him. Senses around here don’t fall short,” Ruze warns. “These warriors are very, very well trained,” he says in a grave tone. “But, like I said, cocky.”

I stare into the snake’s dark eyes.
Cocky.
Use it to our advantage. He breaks the stare and continues on.

Up ahead a massive pile of dirt blocks the path. The top narrows to an opening less than a foot across. I look at Ryan. It’s going to be quite a squeeze for him.

“It’s the only way,” he says.

“I’ll go first. See if I can widen it out a bit for you.”

“Very funny.” Ryan sticks his sword in the sand and sits down. Again he wipes his face off. Dirt sticks to my skin as I wedge myself into the tight hole. When my hips refuse to budge I wiggle them around. I faintly hear an amused chuckle.

“Just wait until it’s your turn,” I huff.

There’s no response. I heave myself forward. Dirt crumbles around me as I become unstuck. I slither the rest of the way down the pile of dirt. Ryan’s boots shuffle on the other side. His sword flies through the hole and thuds to the ground a foot away, the bow and quiver follow. I look down at myself and sigh inwardly. If I look in a mirror right now it’d probably crack. I start rubbing off as much dirt as I can.

“Omph.”

I look up when I hear Ryan grunt. Ryan’s arms are stretched forward but his shoulders remain stuck. I laugh. I climb up the sand pile and crouch next to him.

“That’s got to be really uncomfortable.”

“You think?” Ryan’s voice is muffled because his head is forced down. He struggles fruitlessly for a few minutes before growling, “Are you going to help me or just sit there?”

“I suppose. Although I don’t know if I’ve gotten my full revenge yet.”

Ryan grumbles something and I laugh, then take his hands and pull. He doesn’t budge. “You’re bigger than you look.”

“Thanks.”

I drop his hands and start digging around him. After I’ve dug out a bit I stop and pull on him again.

“If you pull my arms out of my sockets you’ll have to put them back in.”

“Don’t be a baby,” I grunt. I feel him give a little and tug harder.

“Hold it! Stop!”

I drop his hands. “Now what?”

“My pants are coming off.”

I stifle a laugh. “Don’t you have a belt to keep them in place?”

Ryan squirms back a few inches then places his hands down on both sides and, with great effort, pulls himself out. Ryan clumsily somersaults down the hill. I slide down next to him. Ryan ruffles his hair and dirt flies out, sprinkling me. Ruze easily slithers through the hole and continues to lead us down the tunnel.

“I stop here,” Ruze murmurs. “Just go out this door then follow my directions.”

Ruze rapidly slithers away. I turn back and stare at the door.
Now or never.
I lightly touch the panel and it freely swings outward.

“Perhaps I should shift. Then if we get spotted we can at least have some excuse.”

Ryan nods in agreement.
Short faced bear.
I’m big enough so that I can provide at least some cover for Ryan. I nose the door open with my snout.

“Ready?”

“Always.”

Before us lay a valley type of clearing. The grass and plants growing are chopped up and the exposed dirt bares the prints of countless animals. Four mountain bases, two on the left and right, one behind and one in front, give the valley a synthetic appearance. Wheel marks score the ground in many worn pathways. Large carts carry masses of metal, the colors ranging from copper to silver. Draft horses or sauropods pull the burdensome load into the carved mouth of the back mountain.

Many animals trot back and forth in a hurried manner, as if they are afraid of punishment if they slow down even the tiniest bit. Sentries are posted on prearranged rocks on the mountain slopes. Their sharp gazes tell me they miss nothing.

I want to go back into the tunnel, but it’s too late. We’ve already been spotted.