The Sorcerer's Ring: Book 05 - A Vow of Glory (17 page)

"No
gates, no walls," Thor observed.

“I
guess they’re not afraid the slaves will run,” Reece said.

“Where
would they run to, in this godforsaken place?” Elden asked.

"They
don't need them," Conval said. "They're all chained together. They
couldn’t run if they tried.”

"Not
to mention the soldiers,” Conven said. “There are as many of them as there are slaves.”

“Plus,
they don't need walls to defend it," O’Connor said, "because nobody
would be stupid enough to attack. There are thousands of Empire here. And
nothing around this place for miles.”

"Why
would the thieves bring the Sword to this place?" Elden asked.

Thor
studied the ground, and saw the tracks heading in that direction.

"It
doesn't make sense,” Reece added.

Thor
shrugged.

"Like
the boy said, maybe it's a stop for them, on the road to somewhere else.”

As
one, they all set off on the trail towards the city, each of them tensing up,
hands on their scabbards.

"It
won't be long until we’re spotted," Reece said. "You see that crop of
rock there? We should head to it and stay close along its edge, in the shadows.
Otherwise they’ll see us.”

"But
the boy said not to go off the path," O'Connor said.

Reece
shrugged.

"We
won’t be
far
off the path. And I'd
rather take my chances with whatever's out there than with the Empire.”

Thor
could feel them all looking to him to make the final decision. He could see
both points of view, and it was not an easy call.

Finally,
he nodded back.

“The
path is a guaranteed death,” Thor said. “The rock is not. Let's go to the
rock.”

As
one, they all hurried off the path, sticking close to the huge outcropping of
rock so as not to be detected. They slowly approached the city. Hardly a hundred
yards away, they could begin to hear the cries and moans of the slaves, suffering
beneath the abuse of the Empire soldiers. The city was filled with the sound of
cracking whips, and of bursting flames, shooting up everywhere.

As
they neared, Thor saw metal structures built into the ground from which dangled
some sort of mining apparatus; the slaves, held by thick iron shackles, guided
them to massive holes, striking again and again into the ground. As they dug
deeper into the holes, flames shot up and into the structure.

"What
are they doing?" Conval asked.

"It
looks like they’re mining something," Elden said.

"But
what?”

They
all shrugged, at a loss.

Before
they could take another step, suddenly O'Connor screamed out—and they all stopped
and turned. Thor looked down and saw the long, bony hand of a beast shoot up
from the sand and grab O'Connor's calf. It wrapped its claws around him and yanked
O'Connor, dragging him down, sinking into the sand.

Thor was
first to react, stepping forward with his sword and slashing the creature's
wrist. There came a muted screeching noise, from somewhere beneath the sand,
and the creature’s arm slunk back down to the ground. But the hand, severed,
still clung to O’Connor's calf, screaming; Krohn, snarling, leapt forward and
bit it, and the hand let go and scurried across the sand, then dove down
beneath the surface, too.

The
boys looked at each other in wonder.

But
they had no time to figure it out, because suddenly, dozens of creatures’ arms
started popping out from the sand, all around them. Thor finally understood why
the boy told them not to veer from the path.

Thor
jumped out of the way as a hand shot out for his leg—he leapt over it and crushed
it with his boot. But then another surfaced and scratched his ankle.

"Run!"
Thor said. “Back to the path!”

As one
they all ran, slashing down with their swords, trying their best to avoid the
claws. Thor’s legs stung in pain as he was clawed and scratched incessantly.
Krohn snarled and jumped as he ran, snapping at the hands that emerged from the
sand.

They sprinted
for their lives, leaping more than running, and finally they made it back onto
the path, just steps outside the city.

They
all kept running, trying to enter the city quickly enough so as not to be seen.
Thor led them into the city and down a narrow alleyway between two buildings
where there seemed to be few Empire soldiers, and which was thronged with
slaves.

The
slaves stopped their work, the sound of their chisels slowing, and turned and
looked at them in wonder. Their eyes were wide open: clearly they had never seen
free people in these streets before.

"Who
are you?" asked one of them.

Thor
turned and saw a large man, face covered in dirt, leaning back on his pick,
surveying the group. Dozens of other slaves gathered.

"We've
come from the Ring," Thor said. "We are on a quest, to find something
that was stolen from us. We seek a dozen men, carrying a sword. We were told
they came to this city. Have you seen them?”

The
large slave shook his head.

"You
have made a grave mistake to come here,” he said in his low voice, as more and
more people gathered. “You will not leave alive. No one leaves alive. The Empire
troops are everywhere. There is no escape.”

"Free
us!" cried another slave.

“Yes,
free us!” cried another, holding up his chains, desperate. “Or we will alert
the guards to your presence!”

Thor
drew his sword, as did the others.

"You
will do no such thing,” Reece warned.

“We
will free you if you tell us where the men went with the Sword," Thor
said.

"We
have no fear of you," said the large slave, stepping forward, scowling
down at them. "Do you know what it is that we mine here? Fire!”

"Fire?"
Thor asked, puzzled.

The slave
turned with his pick, and struck the ground again and again. After several
seconds, a burst of flame shot into the air, and the large metal structure glowed
orange, absorbing the flames.

"These
are the fire mines," another slave said, stepping forward defiantly.
"One of the worst places you can be sent in the Empire. There is nothing
you or your swords can do to us which they have not done already. So now free
us. This is your last chance. If you do not, we will summon the guards!”

Thor
stood there, wavering.

"Don’t
do it," Elden said.

“If
you free them,” Reece said, “they will start a commotion, and it will give us
away.”

"Free
us!" screamed the group of slaves, louder and louder.

Thor and
the others looked nervously about, and in the distance he saw several guards
turn their way.

"GUARDS!"
screamed a slave.

“GUARDS!”
the others echoed.

“Run!"
Thor said, not wanting a confrontation. "This way!”

They
all ran down an alleyway, twisting and turning their way deeper into Slave City,
past rows of slaves, all of whom stopped and looked as they went. Thor checked
back over his shoulder, and his stomach dropped at what he saw: dozens of Empire
troops bore down on them.

A horn
sounded, and dozens more troops joined them, pouring in from all directions.

They
were quickly surrounded, soldiers charging them from all directions, and there was
nowhere to go.

"Over
here!" came a voice.

Thor
turned and saw a single slave girl, chained to a post, gesturing wildly towards
them. With long, wild black hair, and a pretty face covered in dirt, she had
desperate, flashing black eyes. She lifted a huge metal trap door into the
earth, and gestured for them to run towards her.

"Inside,
quickly!" she yelled. "I will hide you!”

Thor
looked at the others, who were skeptical; but then they turned and saw all the
troops bearing down on them, and realized they didn't have much choice. He didn't
want to enter into a battle with thousands of Empire troops, and certainly not
here, in these close quarters, and in a place he did not know. He would have to
trust her.

Thor
nodded and the others all turned and raced with him for the open compartment, diving
in head-first, Krohn diving in beside him. Thor dove into the shallow hole in
the earth, the others diving on top of him, all sandwiched in like sardines,
and the girl slammed the lid down on top of them—making their world blackness.

Krohn
nestled up against Thor, and it was hard to breathe in here. Thor’s heart
pounded and he could not help but wonder if they were being set up, if it was all
a trap. He wondered if maybe it had been stupid to dive down here, to trust
her.

The sounds
above them became muffled, and Thor heard the girl stand on the metal lid, and then
heard the footsteps of dozens of soldiers running past. After several seconds,
the ground above became quiet, and the girl lifted the compartment.

The metal
door opened slowly, harsh light pouring in, and Thor saw the girl’s face,
gesturing quickly for them to get up. They all scrambled out and she led them
to the shadows of a wall, standing beside them, her wrists shackled in heavy
iron chains.

"Free
me," she said, her eyes wild, desperate. “Cut my shackles!”

Thor examined
her: she was tall and broad and bony, nearly as tall as Elden, with plain
features, and large black eyes. She was covered in dirt, and had a wild, crazed
look to her, and a toughness that Thor rarely saw in a girl. She also had a bit
of a shady, wily look, and Thor didn't feel as if they could entirely trust
her. She was clearly a survivor.

"And
why should we?" Elden asked firmly, stepping close to her.

She
looked up at Elden, examining him, and he looked closely at her, too.

"Because
I will lead you out of here!” she said. “No one else knows this city as I. If
you don't follow me, you will certainly be caught and enslaved by these guards.
But I know a way out. There isn’t much time. Do you want to trust me?”

Thor
shook his head.

“We
appreciate your offer, but we didn’t come to this city to run away,” he said.
“We came to find a sword, and the group of men bearing it.”

“I
know where they went,” she said.

They
all looked at her, wide-eyed.

“And
how would you know that?” Conval asked.

“Because
they are thieves,” she said. “And so am I. Thieves always know where each other
go.”

The
boys all looked at each other, surprised by her candor.

“I can
lead you on their trail,” she added. “It leads out of the city. They are not
here.”

Elden
narrowed his eyes, distrustful.

"Why
don’t you just tell us how to go and we’ll be on our way," Elden said.

Thor
could see something he hadn’t seen before in Elden’s expression; he seemed more
than merely curious. He seemed interested in this girl.

She
shook her head.

“That’s
not the deal,” she said. “Either I go with you, or not at all.”

“Why
do you want to come with us?” he asked.

“I
want to leave here, too,” she said, “and this is my chance.”

"And
how can we trust you—a thief?” Reece chimed in.

“You
can’t,” she answered. “But you have to trust someone. Free me now!” she
demanded, looking both ways down the alley as a guard ran past, “or else, I
will be content to just watch you die here!”

Elden
looked at her long and hard.

"I
say we free her," Elden said.

"And
trust our lives in the hands of this slave girl?" O'Connor called out.
“This thief? She could be leading us to a trap.”

“She
might have no idea where the Sword is,” Conval added.

"What
choice do we have?" Reece asked.

They
all looked to Thor.

Thor
cleared his throat.

“The
way I see it,” Thor said, “she saved our lives once already. She didn’t have
to. We need to find the Sword, and she says she knows where it is. That’s
better than what we have now, which is nothing. Thief or not, slave or not, I
say we trust her.”

Thor
stepped forward, close to her, and raised his sword.

“If
you lead us to safety, and on the trail of the thieves,” Thor said, “I promise
to protect you. If you betray us, I promise I will kill you.”

"I
don't need your protection,” she sneered, defiant. “Now stop talking and get me
out of here!”

Elden stepped
forward, raised his sword and brought it down in a single clean stroke. With a
decisive clink, he severed her chain.

"Follow
me!" she said, not wasting a beat as she took off at a sprint, twisting
and turning down the narrow alleyways of the city.