Pendragon - The Soldiers Of Halla Part 19

"No offense, mates," Spader added, "but I don't think we stand much chance with swinging sticks against that army."

We were stuck. There was no way we could fight our way in. I thought that maybe it was time to do a little shape-s.h.i.+fting, but that had to be a last resort. Besides, the idea of turning into a bird or smoke or anything other than Bobby Pendragon kind of creeped me out.

"What's that?" Spader asked.

I looked to the right of the sprawling fortress to see a small, stone building about thirty yards from the wall.

"It is the entrance to the underground tunnels," Loor answered.

I looked at Loor. She looked at me. We were on the same page.

"Does the tunnel end there?" I asked.

"No," she said thoughtfully. I could tell that her mind was racing to possibilities. "The transfer trains are housed beneath Mooraj."

"It will be guarded," I cautioned.

"But with fewer warriors than outside the walls."

"We won't know how many until we get there."

"But it is our best opportunity."

Spader had been looking back and forth between the two of us, trying to catch up. He finally couldn't take it anymore and blurted out, "Stop! What are we talking about here?"

"I think we have a way in," I answered.

We let the horses go. We didn't need them anymore, and even if we did, it would have been impossible to hide them. My aching b.u.t.t would have rebelled, anyway. So the horses were history. We crept through the valleys, doing our best to s.h.i.+eld ourselves from curious eyes. In no time we found ourselves a few yards from the stone hut.

"I see no guards," Loor commented.

"Wait," I said, and quickly ran for the hut. Once there, I pressed myself against the far side, away from Mooraj. No alarms sounded. No Ravinian jumped out and tried to beat my brains in. I glanced inside the darkened hut. It was empty. Why weren't there any guards here? I waved the others to come forward.

"I will go first," Loor whispered. "Wait for my call."

I didn't argue. If she wanted to take on the first guard, that was okay by me. Heck, she probably needed to get out a little aggression anyway. After learning what happened to her people, I had the feeling she would welcome a fight. Loor held her wooden stave out in front, ready to do some damage. A moment later she entered the dark stairway. The three of us waited and listened. Loor descended silently. If a Ravinian guard was down there, he wouldn't know what hit him. I kept expecting to hear the sounds of a fight. Instead, we heard a single word.

"Come," she called to us.

I went first, followed by Saangi and then Spader. I remembered the stairs. We had taken the small train from one of the tunnels deep within Rokador territory to this very spot. These were the stairs I climbed to get my first sight of Mooraj, the camp where Loor and Alder taught me to be a warrior. Their vicious lessons served me well more times than I could remember. With each step down the stairwell, my hopes grew that this might actually be our way into the Mooraj camp, and our meeting with the exiles. We climbed down to a landing, turned, and continued into the dark. There was barely enough light for me to make out Loor's form standing on the next landing a in a foot of water.

"I should have known," she announced, defeated. "The tunnel is flooded, just like all the rest of the tunnels."

Of course. When the pent-up rivers of Zadaa had let loose, the water raged through every tunnel the Rokador had created over generations. The pressure became too much, and their tunnel system collapsed like a house of cards, creating the ocean near Xhaxhu. Many tunnels remained, but most were flooded, like this one.

"I guess that's why they don't bother guarding this entrance," I declared.

"We have to find another way," Saangi announced.

"Hold on, now," Spader said. He stepped down into the water and scanned the area. "How far below us is the cross tunnel?"

"It is just below us," Loor answered. "Perhaps a few feet." "And this leads to an open area under the camp?" he asked.

"It is where they kept the transfer trains," Saangi said.

"Hobey," Spader exclaimed. "I can swim that."

"Impossible!" Loor blurted out. "No one can swim such a distance under the water."

Spader gave me a knowing look. I shrugged.

"I'm an aquaneer," he said with pride. "You may be a spiff warrior, but when it comes to playing in water, you're in my world."

"What if you make it?" I asked. "Then what?"

"Depends on what I find. If it turns out not too natty, I can lead you back myself, one at a time. Or maybe find a rope to pull you through quickly. Or it may be too far for any of that, but we won't know unless I get wet and give it a lookey loo."

Loor and Saangi frowned. They hated the idea.

I didn't.

"Do it," I said.

"There you go!" Spader declared and quickly pulled off his white Rokador clothing to reveal his dark swimskin. He gave a quick look to Loor and Saangi and saw how unsure they were. "No worries, mates. This is what I do."

They weren't convinced.

"If you get into trouble, you can always travel to another territory," I offered, then smiled. "Or I guess you could turn into a fish."

Spader laughed. "You forget, mate, I'm already a fish."

He took a few more steps down until the water was up to his waist. He hyperventilated a few times to fill his lungs with oxygen, then started to dive into the water, but in the wrong direction.

"Wait!" Saangi called out.

Spader looked up at her and gave her a big smile. "Just wanted to see if you were payin' attention."

He turned in the other direction, jumped up, jackknifed, and dove into the dark. After one kick he was gone.

"He is an odd creature," Saangi growled. "But I like him."

I had to laugh. "Yeah, that's pretty much how I feel about him too. He's incredibly brave a and seriously crazy."

Loor had been oddly silent. She stared at the dark water, as if hypnotized.

"He'll be okay," I a.s.sured her.

"I believe he will," she said. "But you are forgetting something, Pendragon. I cannot swim." Oops.

"I swim but not very well," Saangi added.

"That's okay," I a.s.sured them. "I'm a good swimmer, and I don't think I could make it that whole way underwater."

"Then why are we attempting this?" Loor questioned.

"Because if anybody can find a way to get us through, it's Spader. If he thinks we can make it, we'll make it. If not, he won't risk it. Whatever he says, I'll trust him."

My a.s.surances didn't make them feel any better, but I was absolutely confident that Spader would give us an honest opinion. First he had to make it through himself. I was a little less confident about that, because he was swimming into the unknown. We waited for several minutes. I wondered how long Spader could hold his breath. Two minutes? Three? More? I could probably squeak out about a minute and a half, but no more. A lot less if I was swimming for my life. But Spader was a pro. I wouldn't have been surprised if he could lung-bust at least three minutes, even while swimming hard. But the tunnel was dark. He could be a few feet away from air and not know it. Or what if he hit his head? After ten minutes I was beginning to think it wasn't such a hot idea to have sent him into the unknown. After another five minutes I started looking over my shoulder, expecting him to walk down the stairs after having left this territory out of desperation, and returned where it was dry.

"What if he does not return?" Saangi asked.

I hadn't considered that possibility, but it was starting to look as if we should. Before I could turn my thoughts to Plan B, the dark water started to churn. Something was moving below. It didn't seem to be a swimmer, either. I felt the stairs shudder slightly. The others did too. We exchanged curious looks.

"I have no idea" was all I could say.

The water continued to churn. The rumbling grew slightly more intense, then stopped. Abruptly. We all looked down into the depths, not sure of what to expect, when Spader appeared. He swam up to us, broke the surface, and let out a loud "Whoooo!" of joy.

"It worked!" he shouted in victory. "Have to admit I wasn't so sure myself, but it did! It really worked!"

"What did?" I asked.

"It was just as you said, Loor. The tunnel led to a wide-open area, and I was able to surface. No troubles. It isn't even that far."

"It does not matter how far it is; we cannot swim," Loor cautioned.

"That's the beauty part!" Spader announced. "You don't have to. You're going to ride in style."

"Not following," I said, getting impatient.

"The trains, mates! They still run. I found the one that was on the track leading back here and figured out how the tricky thing works. That's what took me so long. Once I got the knack, I chugged the little trolley along the tracks back here. It's right down there, waiting for pa.s.sengers."

Loor, Saangi, and I looked at one another. I don't think any of us knew how to react. It seemed impossible, yet Spader was there to prove it.

"n.o.body has to swim, mates," he added. "All you have to do is hold your breath and hang on. You can do that, can't you?"

Loor and Saangi looked to me. I think they wanted me to confirm that Spader wasn't a nutjob.

"If Spader says it'll work, it'll work," I said with confidence.

"There we go!" he shouted. "All aboard!"

We all dropped our Rokador robes. They would be way too heavy underwater, not to mention the possibility of getting snagged on something. It was better to arrive alive and take our chances on the far side.

We then began the scary process of boarding the underwater train. I figured I could take care of myself, but it would be up to Spader to get Loor and Saangi on board. Loor bravely said that she would go first. I wasn't surprised. Going first meant she would have to hold her breath longer than her acolyte. As much as I trusted Spader, I was pretty nervous about this stunt. I couldn't imagine how scared Loor was. She had to battle a deep-seated fear of water. I'm guessing that it helped her to know that if things got scary, she could travel to another territory. But that wouldn't make the trip any less terrifying. And Saangi couldn't travel. There would be no turning back for her.

Spader took charge. "Relax. Don't fight. I'll get you there. I'll take Loor first, get her set, then make it back right quick for Saangi. Pendragon, you follow Saangi and me. The train cars are open. I'll put Loor behind the engine, then Saangi next. Pendragon you grab onto a car behind Saangi. Can you take my weapon?"

I nodded.

"Good. Then all you have to do is hold on. I'll make this a snappy-do. No worries."

Loor continued to stare at the water, psyching herself up. She clutched her wooden stave so hard I saw her knuckles go white. For a second I thought she wouldn't be able to overcome her fear and bring herself to dive into the dark.

Silly me.

Loor took two deep breaths and said, "Now!"

Spader didn't waste a second. He took Loor's hand and the two dropped down underwater. She did as she was told. She relaxed. At least, she relaxed her body. Her mind had to have been in hyperdrive. Spader kicked off from the stairs, pulling the warrior girl down. She trailed behind him, clutching her stave. A moment later they were gone.

I put my hand on Saangi's arm. "It's gonna be okay."

Saangi nodded quickly. I sensed she was just as scared as Loor. She stared down at the water. No more than twenty seconds had gone by when Spader popped his head back up.

"Snappy-do," he announced. "Next!"

Saangi held out her hand, took his, and dropped below the surface. It was my turn. I had been so worried about Loor and Saangi that I didn't think too much about how scary it was going to be for me, too. But there was no time to waste working up my nerve. I had to go right away. I held the two wooden staves in my left hand, against my body. I figured I'd need my stronger, right arm for pulling. After two deep breaths, I held the third and dove below. It was cold. That's what hit me first. It was dark, too. It wasn't easy to see underwater anyway, but the dark made it nearly impossible. I was really wis.h.i.+ng for an air globe from Cloral. Or at least goggles from home. Anything. All I could do was follow the vague shadow of Spader and Saangi as they swam in front of me.

The descent was quick. I had only been swimming for a few seconds when I saw the dark outline of the small train. I remembered it very well. It reminded me of the kind of small train you'd ride in an amus.e.m.e.nt park. There were three cars behind an engine. It had been used to transport the Rokador through the tunnels and to move equipment. Through the murky water I could see Loor clutching to a handrail in the first car. Spader was moving Saangi into position in the second car. I took my place in the third. Once Saangi was set, Spader took a quick look back to make sure I was with them. I gave him an "okay" sign. That's what scuba divers did on Second Earth. I a.s.sumed it was universal. It must have been, because Spader was satisfied and quickly shot forward for the engine. A second later the train lurched, and we were on our way.

The little train moved quickly, even though it was working against the water that surrounded us. It couldn't have been better. We were moving. My lungs felt good. I figured we'd be underwater for another thirty seconds or so.

That wasn't too bad. After about ten seconds I felt certain that we would make it with no trouble. I was wrong.

Without warning the train stopped dead. I looked ahead, wondering what had gone wrong. Had Spader hit the wrong switch and stopped us by accident? Was something in our way? I willed the train to move. Five seconds went by. Ten seconds. The realization hit that if we were able to move, we would have. Something had gone wrong. We were halfway between stops and going nowhere.

This had suddenly turned out to be a very bad idea.

Chapter 18.

My first instinct was to panic.

I kept hoping the little train would start moving again. For some reason that old kid's book came to mind. "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can." Well, in this case, the little engine couldn't. This was no fairy tale.

I felt a hand grab my shoulder. It was Spader. He motioned furiously for me to start swimming, then yanked me forward until I was next to Saangi. His intent was clear. I not only had to swim myself out of this, I was going to have to bring Saangi along with me. He left us and shot forward to go for Loor.

I dropped the two weapons. There was no way I could tow Saangi while holding them. I had to focus and stay calm. Saangi wasn't a Traveler. She didn't have the option of leaving the territory. Or being reborn. I had to get her to safety. My old junior lifeguard training kicked in, and I quickly flipped Saangi over and crossed my right arm over her chest and under her armpit. Focusing on saving her was a good thing. It kept my mind off the fact that I had to save myself, too. To her credit, she didn't panic or fight against me. Within seconds we were moving. But how much farther did we have to go? I figured that Spader knew, which is why he made the choice to go forward instead of back. That meant we were more than halfway there. I didn't know how long we had been holding our breaths. One minute maybe? That's a long time, especially when your heart is racing and you're burning oxygen. It didn't help that I had to pull Saangi along. It meant I couldn't go all that fast and had to burn even more oxygen. It wasn't like we had a choice.

It was hard to tell how far we had traveled. It was too dark and there was nothing to see but nothing. The cave walls had no detail, and it was all blurry anyway. I kept glancing forward to see Spader, but he was a better swimmer than I was, and he was soon out of sight. That's when I started to panic. My lungs were screaming. I kept pulling forward, but I couldn't tell how fast I was going. I glanced up, hoping to see light, but there was nothing but black. I wondered what it was going to feel like to die.

I felt a strong hand on my shoulder. Spader was back.