Tara The Great [Nuworld 2] (9 page)

that spot now, we are.”

Tara forced herself to remember everything she had been told since the clan

returned from the eastern mountain range. She needed to focus on their mission, not on

the pain from her injuries. Staying focused seemed to subdue the pain. “I never had

time to read Patha’s briefing from the clan’s visit with the cave people. But if the clan

visited the eastern mountain range, why are we entering the northern mountain

range?”

“While the clan spent time with the cave people living in the eastern mountain

range, Patha received transmissions from another group in these mountains.” Darius

didn’t look up from his landlink.

“Did he hear disturbing news?” Tara stared at the top of Darius’ head.

“We believe they’ve invented a type of weapon, yes.”

“What type of weapon?”

“We’re not positive. So far, information is hearsay. We’ve heard it’s some type of

gas that can kill entire cities at once, it is.” Darius met her gaze. “What we need to

determine is why they would want to create such a weapon, if it does, in fact, exist.”

Tara began reconfiguring her small handheld landlink. “What do you know about

this entry location?”

“There’s a hidden panel of sorts. We’ll have to look for it, we will.” He stood and

moved toward her. “Tara,” he said softly, and his hands touched her shoulders.

“We’ve got work to do.” She shot him an icy glare, then looked away from his dark

gray eyes quickly. They only made her think of her children…and that other child. Her

hands began shaking as she reconfigured her landlink so she could search through the

iron in the rock.

Darius stood over her; his closeness rattled her nerves. But dwelling on Darius only

brought her pain, which fogged her thinking, and she wouldn’t allow that. She couldn’t

allow that. The man would not break her heart again. So she said nothing about his

close proximity and ran the scanning programs loaded on her landlink. If there was

trouble among these cave people, she would do her best to determine the problem, then

report back to Patha.

“It’s hollow behind that rock over there,” she said, breaking the weighted silence.

Darius moved the rather large rock himself. It must have been hollow, because it

shifted with ease.

A long hallway, filled with shadows, appeared before them. It was wide enough

that several people could walk side-by-side, and tall enough that even Darius didn’t

need to duck when he entered. Tara could smell the dirt around them when she

entered, and touched the tunnel wall to confirm that packed dirt had been painted with

some kind of sealant, more than likely to keep roots at bay.

Tara entered while Darius moved the rock, concealing the entry way once again,

and leaving them in the dark. Using the beam he’d brought, Darius flashed light along

the walls and floor while they walked.

Their footsteps echoed in the passageway as they walked in the damp darkness

toward a light ahead. After several minutes, they reached the end of the tunnel and the

light source.

Tara stood stunned at the sight before her.

They looked out into a cavern large enough to hold a city. In fact, it was a city. An

underground city.

Roads lined with buildings several stories high, trees and bushes, all created the

scene in front of them. Tara looked at the busy street, then beyond it, at the different-

sized buildings with outside stairwells and many windows.

The size of the cavern impressed Tara even more than the thriving city within it.

She couldn’t see to the other end, but she could tell that buildings ran along several

roads, at least.

The height of the cave overwhelmed her. Crystallized rock made up the roof of the

community, and even buildings several stories tall did not come close to touching it.

Tall white lamps lit the streets and appeared to be the source of light. Although

everything was illuminated, the light couldn’t compete with sunlight. The community

appeared to be in a permanent stage of twilight. Moss replaced grass and the trees were

spongy, looking more like large mushrooms.

Then there were the people, so many of them that Tara and Darius weren’t even

noticed in the teeming throng. Tara observed that everyone walked as if late to an

appointment. There were no greetings of familiarity as people passed each other.

Instead, most focused on the ground and amazingly didn’t run into each other. The

town seemed to be set in high speed.

All of this Tara took in within a matter of minutes. She had entered enough new

societies to look for the ways of the people so she could assimilate. Glancing at Darius,

she noticed he observed the people around him as well. She wondered how he reacted

to this new community, having never been out of Gothman. The man, as always, wore a

neutral expression, until he looked down and noticed her watching him. His gray eyes

warmed, and she looked back toward the crowd.

“Come on,” he whispered into her ear. He guided her through the crowd so her

injured arm was next to his body. “Over here.”

They moved along a path of flat, rock-shaped clay, and Darius quickly matched the

hurried pace of the townspeople, keeping a firm hold on Tara as he maneuvered them

down the street. They crossed an intersection, and Tara noticed tables set along the

edges of the path. People huddled around the tables, and bartering filled the air.

Darius slowed and Tara watched the activity in the market area. Men, women, and

children walked from table to table, intent on their purchases. Owners of merchandise

called out their specials, making the street a noisy, chaotic scene.

Darius escorted her to a table in the middle of the commotion. “I would like yellow

silk, like the sun, can you do that?” He faced a man who stood behind a booth, which

was piled high with folded material.

“It will cost you.”

“I have gold.”

The man looked at Darius and Tara for a minute, then almost whispered, “Come

back at half break, and I’ll show you the silk I have.”

Darius nodded, and he and Tara returned to the crowded path. They walked slowly

through the market place, looking at the different booths. While they recognized bags of

rooted vegetables and fish from the surface, most of the food products were unfamiliar.

Clay bowls and pots painted with bright colors adorned one booth. Another had

ready-made clothing for men, women, and children. All were dyed with bright colors

and in a variety of fashions. Tara noticed that under the brown capes, all the cave

people wore colorful clothing.

A loud siren sounded and Tara looked around quickly.

“Half break.” Darius’ breath was hot against her ear.

The man at the booth looked up when they returned and said, “I can show you that

silk now.”

He led the two along the street and entered one of the buildings. Inside, they

climbed stairs to the third floor and walked silently down a dimly lit hallway.

After hiking up the mountain and now the stairs, Tara’s injuries throbbed,

threatening to consume her focus. She managed to keep pace with the others, not

wanting to draw attention to her injuries and cause unwarranted questions from this

man they followed.

He placed his palm against a flat disc on one of the doors. After a minute, it beeped

and the door slid silently into the wall.

Tara studied the flat disc for a second as she walked past it, seeing only a round

dark glass plate secured on the wall. Possibly, these people maintained security by

using handprints to verify identity. That might make it hard to travel without one of the

denizens, she reasoned. The thought of having to rely on someone else when a ready

escape might be needed didn’t sit well with her.

Tara followed the two men into the room, and realized it appeared to be more like

personal housing. Simple, plain furniture was adorned by the bright colors of a blanket

tossed over a couch along the wall. Pictures hung on one of the walls, and Tara

recognized the man with them in several of the poses. The door slid silently behind the

three of them, and Tara wondered if the man’s hand offered the only means of opening

it again. She suddenly felt trapped.

“Pee-coo?” a woman’s voice spoke from an adjoining room of the small apartment.

“Pee-coo-mee, come here. We have company.”

A young woman with pale skin and sandy hair came around the corner and stood

before them. She was petite, almost frail, and wore a loose-fitting, bright pink dress that

modestly displayed her attractive body.

“This is my mate, Pee-coo-mee. She handles all the books. I’m no good with

numbers. I sell the material. Oh my, where are my manners? Let me take your robes

and please join us for half break.”

Darius pulled off his robe and handed it to Pee-coo. Tara followed his lead.

“Oh my,” Pee-coo said again when Tara took off her cloak. He smiled, showing

several black holes where teeth once had been, and his pasty skin turned pink around

his cheeks and ears. He scratched sandy hair of identical texture as his wife’s and

cocked his head as he stared at Tara. Then after glancing at Darius, he turned and

looked at his mate.

“What my mate means to say.” Pee-coo-mee walked over and slid her arm through

his, discreetly elbowing him. “We were expecting two men.”

She smiled quickly at Tara. “You’re most welcome. What we have studied of

Gothman…I mean, we were under the impression that Gothman women, well, that they

stayed home.”

“I’m not Gothman.” Tara returned the smile.

“Oh my.” Pee-coo suddenly looked very nervous and wrapped his arm around Pee-

coo-mee.

“Now I’ve forgotten my manners.” Darius sounded so pleasant that Tara looked up

at him quickly. He affected a gentle smile that she was sure she’d never seen before. “I

am Soray, and this is Kara. She’s a Runner.”

“Are you mated?” Pee-coo asked politely.

Darius looked down at Tara affectionately but she avoided his glance. “Yes, we

are.” And he gallantly wrapped his arms around Tara’s shoulders.

“Now this might work out nicer than we anticipated.” Pee-coo smiled at Pee-coo-

mee. “We always like working with mates. Everything is so much more thought

through. Don’t you agree?”