Return of the Crown (12 page)

“Did she give you any trouble?”

“Nah, she’s been passed out these past four
days. She only began stirring when we threw her in the cave.”

“There are no exits in this cave I
presume.”

Tilgey shifted his weight and clutched the
mirror, “Well now, it has a back entrance, but it’s sealed with
boulders. It took us three days to cover that exit. She can’t budge
those boulders, itty bitty thing that she is. ’Sides, she’s bound
hand and foot. She ain’t had nothing to eat neither. Well, just a
little broth last night, but she’ll be weaker than a new-born
lamb.”

“Stop babbling,” Zelera seethed, “and roll
away the boulder. I want to see her; I want to look upon her with
my own eyes.”

“Um, your highness, she was starting to stir.
What if she starts throwing magic at us?”

A jolting pain ripped through Tilgey’s heart,
doubling him over. It felt as if his heart was being squeezed in a
giant fist. “Who are you more afraid of? I told you my magic will
protect you. I want to look upon her, now!”

The screeching words resounded through his
head. “Cugh, Smuggit, get over here and roll away this stone,” he
gasped as the pain subsided. “Be careful in case the little
princess tries something funny.”

The two men put their backs against the huge
stone, pushing and straining. It rolled away revealing the wall of
boulders. A ghastly scream filled the air exploding the mirror;
shards of glass sprayed out.

Wide-eyed and pale Tilgey croaked, “To the
back of the cliffs, you idiots. If she escapes we’ll not live to
see another sunrise.”

Ravyn stumbled through the chilly dark
passage. Running her hand along the right wall, she felt her way
deeper into the mountain’s belly. Twice she found tunnels leading
off to the side, but the draft flowed at her straight on. At one
point the ceiling lowered down causing her to hunch over. It
narrowed further still until only a small gap remained. She pushed
her pack ahead of her. She got down on her belly inching along like
a caterpillar. Her arms reached ahead, scrabbling in the darkness
for something to pull on. It felt as though the walls were closing
in on her, the rocks swallowing her whole.

Frantic to move forward, she grasped the
rough rock and wriggled her way forward. Her hips caught the rock.
A plaintive cry escaped her lips. She closed her eyes, exhaling her
stress. Wiggling her right arm forward, she felt her hip scrape
along the wall an inch or so, then another. Her calm returned as
she dragged herself further through the tiny fissure. Those big
thugs could not follow her down this path.

The opening widened, and she resumed a
crouching stance. She placed her hand on the right wall once more,
pursuing the draft of air. The complete blackness softened to gray,
and she could make out the shape of the tunnel.

The twittering of birds reached her ears, and
she quickened her pace. Blue skies swam into view. She stopped
short, pebbles skittering and plinking against the rock as they
slipped off the end of her trail to fall straight down the cliff
face. Ravyn held tightly to the edge of the rocks, looking above
and below for a trail. A sheer rock wall gloated at her. She
clutched her pack devoid of rope. The rising hope she’d been
nurturing plummeted to rock bottom.

Looking down from the summit of the mountain,
Blade noticed three openings below him in the back of the rock
face. Which one led to Ravyn? He spotted a ledge some fifty feet
down that gave him access to a cave, and a short traverse would
lead him to a second cave if the first proved to be a dead end.

Noting the large handholds on the rock, he
decided to climb down rather than use his rope to rappel. He
grabbed onto the lip with his hands as he lowered his legs over the
edge. His toe found purchase on a modest nub. A vertical crack ran
down the rock. He jammed his fist into it, flexing his hand against
the rough granite to create a very safe hold. He brought his foot
over and slipped it into the crack as well, twisting until it
wedged securely. He descended rapidly to the ledge below by
cramming his hands and feet into the crack and then lowering
himself to the next level.

He peered into the cave at the base of the
ledge he stood on. It was shallow, a dead end. Movement to his left
caught his eye. Shimmering black hair fluttered in the breeze, a
pennant pointing to his goal. “Ravyn,” he cried!

Startled, Ravyn peered around the cliff wall
to see a man standing on a ledge twenty feet away.

“Stay back or I’ll, I’ll, jump!”

Blade smiled at her. “Ravyn, I’m Blade. Don’t
you remember me? I’d recognize you anywhere.”

Fear clouded her features, and she looked
anxiously about for the other members of the bandit party.

Blade pulled a thick gold chain out from
underneath his shirt, “I’m still wearing your pendant, the
Unicorn.”

She touched the dragon hanging at her throat.
Searching the face of the man, she saw her friend in his green eyes
and her unicorn against his chest. “Blade, it is you! How did you
find me? Never mind, that. I managed to escape, and I don’t think I
can be followed down the passage I took.” She glanced down at her
dirt-streaked clothes, “But, how do I get to you?”

“I’ll come to you. Stay put!” Shouldering his
pack, he began traversing the slim ledge running between the two
caves.

Ravyn held her breath as Blade began edging
across the cliff wall. It looked impassable. But Blade’s hands
moved from crack to crack and nub to nub, denying gravity’s desire
to take effect. Never once did his feet slip from the tiny rim of
rock jutting out from the cliff face. He slid across the rock as if
he were water. Before she knew it, he was standing in front of her.
His arms wrapped around her, and they were both weeping with joy.
Tears sprang to her eyes, and Ravyn lost herself in the safety of
his arms.

Finally shaking herself free of his embrace,
Ravyn wiped at her tear-stained cheeks. Princesses do not cry. “We
have to get away; I don’t know if they realize I’m missing
yet.”

Blade surveyed their position. One path of
descent was easier, but it took them close to another cave. If that
cave were a passage through the mountain, it wouldn’t be safe. The
ledge they were standing on overhung the cliff below. Lying on his
stomach, he looked over the edge. Rising he winked at Ravyn. “I
have a plan.” Grabbing the lip of the cliff, he swung over the
edge, hanging for a moment. Then his hands slipped free, and he was
gone. Ravyn gasped, then heard, “Ravyn, there’s a large ledge here.
Swing over, and I’ll catch you.”

Ravyn wasn’t afraid of heights, but falling
into the unknown was a scary proposition. She hesitated a moment,
gulping in air and pushing her fear aside. Grasping the edge of the
rocks, her legs slid over the edge, and she dangled by her
arms.

“Okay, Ravyn, swing in and drop. I promise
I’ve got you.”

She flung her legs backwards, then as the
momentum pulled her forward she let go, her heart leaping out of
her chest. Strong arms wrapped protectively around her, and she
felt the firm rock ledge beneath her feet. She smiled up at
Blade.

Shouting erupted from the top of the cliffs.
“I believe they know I am missing,” Ravyn stated.

The rock face became sheerer below. Blade
could climb down, but he was a skilled climber. He appraised Ravyn,
scanning her slender frame and soft hands. The next ledge was about
eighty feet away.

Pulling a length of rope from his pack, he
tied it around a large piece of sturdy rock. He pulled against it
with all his body weight. It held. “Ravyn, you need to rappel down.
Do you know how?”

“I believe I can do anything now that you’re
here with me. We always made a great team back at the castle,
though the adventure is real this time.”

He handed her some soft calfskin gloves.
“Here, put these on. Then, put the rope between your legs. Good.
Now thread the rope around your left hip bringing it up across your
chest and over your right shoulder. Bring it behind your back, and
hold it with your left hand. That’ll be your brake. Place your
right hand on the rope above you. That helps you stay upright and
guides you. OK, that looks good. Now just lean out, feed the rope
through your hands, and walk down the cliff face. Just don’t let
go!”

She smiled; this was just like adventures of
old
.
Taking up the slack in the rope and exhaling her fear,
she stepped off the edge. The friction of the rope sizzled across
her thighs and hips. She descended quickly, using her left hand to
brake only once. Her knees buckled as she hit the ledge below, and
she landed in an untidy heap. Chagrined, she jumped up and dusted
herself off.

Blade untied the rope, tossing it down to
her. Another long vertical crack ran down the face, nearly reaching
the ledge. Blade lowered himself down the steep face wedging feet
and hands into the crack. The crack quit ten feet from the ledge.
Hanging from a fist jammed in the crack, Blade relaxed his hand. He
slipped from the crack and dropped, landing like a cat beside
Ravyn.

A loud cry echoed out across the valley,
drawing their attention to the summit. A tall wiry man was waving
and shouting, pointing at them. The valley floor was still sixty
feet away.

Blade looked for a place to tie off the rope,
but the ledge offered up nothing. Ravyn placed a hand on his
shoulder, guiding him to the side of the ledge where a deep channel
ran all the way up the rocks. It was a couple feet wide.

"This looks sort of like a chimney. Can we
climb down it? Do you remember when we climbed the chimney at the
castle? We put our hands and feet on one wall with our back on the
opposite side. We inched up to the third floor. Boy did we get in
trouble for that when we tracked soot all over the castle. Can we
do that in reverse?”

Blade chuckled at the memory. “I believe we
could, Rav, Lady’s first,” he said bowing theatrically.

There was a little nub to put her feet
against on the opposite wall. She slid her back down and against
the wall, while pushing with her hands across the gap. The opposing
pressure made it very secure. She bent her right knee, bringing her
foot down below her bottom, and pushed her back down toward her
feet. She then slid her hands lower, the whole time pressing with
back and feet, and then she switched her legs. Again, she ground
her back down the wall. It was grueling tedious work. The steady
downward grind rubbed her back raw. The valley floor inched
closer.

Blade lowered himself into the slot,
beginning the slow descent as well. The chimney ran out about ten
feet from the ground. Ravyn grasped a notch in the rock, hanging by
her arms and letting her legs dangle. Dropping down, Ravyn’s ankle
twisted as she landed on the gravelly soil. She cried out in
pain.

Blade dropped down beside her and held out
his hand, helping her stand. “We need to get to those trees. That
skinny one is already halfway down the cliffs. And the other two
are surely heading for their horses.”

Sprinting across the open space between the
cliffs and the trees, Ravyn's ankle screamed at her with every
step. Biting her lip, she pressed on.

“The road is to the west; they will patrol
it. We should head north first and then angle west later.” Ravyn
nodded in agreement. “Follow in my footsteps, Rav; we don’t want to
leave a trail. Be careful not to brush against the bushes or scuff
the forest litter.”

Their pace slowed as they picked their way
through the dark woods. Occasionally Blade would run off to the
side, breaking branches and scuffing the leaves on the forest floor
to create false trails. They progressed deeper into the woods,
still undetected.

Blade set a furious pace, pushing further and
further into the woods. Stumbling to keep up, Ravyn ground her
teeth together, the pain flaring in her ankle. Determined not to
show weakness, she held the tears at bay as she continued limping
along.

Several hours later, Blade slowed down,
looking around the forest for a good place to rest. “I think we can
rest a spell. You must be exhausted,” Blade flashed a comforting
smile.

“I can keep going,” Ravyn said stubbornly,
though her ankle really hurt and her stomach was growling.

“If we don’t stop and rest now, that leg’s
going to stop us. Your limp is getting worse. Did you pack any
herbs or salves?” Blade gestured to Ravyn’s pack.

“No. I was never sick or injured on the
island where I lived. I didn’t even think to bring medicine. I
guess I didn’t plan very well,” she sighed, shoulders slumping.

The sun was slinking down, and darkness
closed in on them under the canopy of the tress. “We’ll make a camp
here. No fire, but I have some provisions. I’ll get some salve on
your ankle too. Magda gave me a special ointment that aids
healing.” He produced a little jar of green cream that gave off a
spicy scent.

“Who’s Magda?” Ravyn asked, jealousy creeping
into her thoughts on slinky feet.

“Oh, she’s one of Connor’s old friends. She
was the headmistress at the School of Light.” Blade smiled as he
sat down on the ground next to an old log.

“Oh, so she’s old?”

“Yeah, I’d guess she’s around Connor’s age.”
He cocked his head and stared into her eyes.

She blushed but smiled. His green eyes
sparkled and she turned her head to break their magnetic hold.

Ravyn closed her eyes, listening to the
sounds of the forest. Squirrels rustled through the leaves, and the
birds singing quieted as daylight disappeared. She settled on the
log as Blade dug into his pack.

“You look thirsty,” Blade said handing Ravyn
a waterskin along with some flat bread and cheese. “Now, take your
boot off so I can look at your ankle.”