Entry #265210, added on 01-23-04 @ 8:29 pm EST
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| Descent into the Pass | Entry #265210 |
“How do you suppose we get in?” Landon said as he circled the rock for the third time. There were no doors or openings, and both he and Rugo had run their hands over the surface to check for secret finger holes. The only part left overlooked was the top, which was out of all their reach by ten or more feet.
Cerine’s eyes lit up. “I have an idea. Rugo, let me get up onto your shoulders.”
“What? Are you kidding me?” He thought for a moment. “I think I know what you mean now.” Crouching down, Rugo allowed Cerine to climb piggy-back onto his shoulders, and then each in turn rose to a standing position up against the side of the rock.
Landon giggled. They looked like the acrobatic nomads he had seen performing as they would pass through town.
“Landon,” Cerine instructed, “you are small enough. Climb up our backs and up onto the top of the rock.”
What sounded like a simple task was more difficult for Landon than he had thought. He used Rugo’s arms and shoulders as footholds until he reached Cerine. Afraid to pull her away from the rock, Landon missed grabbing her shoulder, and slipped. To catch himself, he grabbed a handful of her long hair. Cerine screamed and remained as close to the rock as she could, fighting back the urge to throw Landon off of her.
Once he made it to the top, he grabbed Cerine’s hands and pulled her up with him. Then they were left with the biggest problem: getting Rugo up with them. Even with leaning over the edge, it was too high to reach Rugo’s outstretched hands.
Landon had an idea. He unbuckled the belt that came with the new clothes and lowered it down so Rugo could reach it. Cerine wrapped her arms tightly around Landon’s waist to brace him as Rugo pulled himself up. Rugo used the rough, grainy surface to walk up the side as he pulled on the belt.
Atop the rock there was no clearly visible entrance, but looking closer Landon noticed four small holes in the direct center. He kneeled by one of the holes, putting his eye up to it to peer inside, but saw nothing. A soft current of air blew on his face. Rugo felt the same against his hand as he traced around the rim of the hole with his finger. It was just big enough to slide his finger inside to the first knuckle.
Suddenly the other three holes made a whistling sound, and stopped when Rugo withdrew his finger. Landon repeated the experiment on another hole, and like the first, the other remaining holes whistled, but at a much higher pitch. Cerine did the same on another hole, and the sound this time was deeper, like blowing across the rim of a bottle.
Rugo stood up. “I think these sounds are some sort of code that opens a secret door.” His eyes shifted from hole to hole, wondering what sequence would unlock the entrance to the Forbidden Pass. They could try random patterns until the right one was found, but that could take forever. Knowing that Lamnos was a mage, he must have put some logic into it, but not something that was too easy.
Again using the location of the sun, Rugo determined the holes were situated in the four cardinal directions. All he needed to figure out next was the combination of directions that would open the entrance to the Pass. Then he remembered something he had noticed when looking at the map earlier. He looked at it again, and the pointer where it showed which direction was north stood out in a new light. The letters that stood for each direction had a number of red circles around it: one for south, two for east, three around the W for west, and the N that stood for north was surrounded by four circles.
In turn, Rugo inserted his finger into the corresponding holes as the map indicated—south, east, west and then north. The melodic progression of the whistles as Rugo followed the pattern was pleasing to the ears, and it repeated several times as four cracks formed in the rock to connect each of the holes. The square tile that had formed as a result lowered, revealing the entrance.
Cerine patted Rugo on the back. “I knew you’d solve the puzzle.” Landon agreed with a smile and a nod.
Rugo humbly shrugged it off, turning his attention to the hole in the rock. “I wonder how deep it goes.” He stared down into the hole. Footholds were cut into one of the sides for as far as he could see, but the rest was in darkness. He wished they had gotten some oil and torches back at the inn in Amarest. At that moment, his ring began to glow, the gem giving off a beam of light. Rugo wondered how a dark-colored stone could produce such a light, but he didn’t question it. He pointed the ring down the shaft and saw that it descended much deeper than ground level, and well beyond the distance of the beam.
It was decided that Rugo would be the first to climb down into the hole, as he had the light source. Landon followed after him, and Cerine went last to watch behind them in case they would be followed. The descent wasn’t too difficult, except for a few places where the footholds had worn away and Rugo’s foot slipped. Fortunately the shaft was narrow enough that he was able to catch himself by extending his legs outward.
Once at the bottom, Rugo pointed the ring upward to allow his friends to see their way down. They looked down at him with wide eyes, slowly climbing down along the footholds until they reached the short drop to the floor. As they regrouped, he saw that there was only one corridor that extended from the small circular room where they stood.
The room was rather nondescript, with bare walls and no light source in sight. Looking closer, he noticed the walls were shiny and slick in appearance. He ran his finger along the surface of the wall, feeling it to be slimy, and shivered at the touch. He couldn’t tell whether it was simply moss or something that some creature that dwelled in this passage would have left behind. A thick, musty stench hung about in the room, mixing with the smell of death emanating from the corridor.
Rugo’s heart thumped in his chest. He never thought he would make it this far, actually standing in the Forbidden Pass about to head further into its depths. It would make a great story to tell back home, if anyone would believe it. At least he had his two friends with him to back up his story. He slowly stepped up to the beginning of the corridor, holding out his ring to shine its light down into it. In his other hand he held his sword, just in case some foul creature would be guarding the passage. Both Cerine and Landon armed themselves as well, Cerine keeping to the rear again for defense.
There came a sound of faint tapping not too far ahead, but just out of the beam of the light. It sounded like stone striking against stone. Rugo moved closer, trying to see what it was ahead, but the figure dropped whatever it was holding and slinked against the wall, keeping out of the light. Whenever he picked up speed, it did the same. Rugo kept running, not wanting to let it get away.
“Oof!”
Rugo’s hopes were answered as he heard something fall in front of him. They hadn’t been able to see what was running away from them but now the light revealed it as a small person who had tripped over something in the tunnel and now lay in a lump at Rugo’s feet. “I’m not going to hurt you. Why were you running from me?” He helped the man to his feet and nearly fell over himself once he recognized him. “Taan!?”
Taan’s surprise was just as great upon hearing Rugo’s voice. He stopped shaking and looked at the trio as the fear drained from him. “I wish you hadn’t found me here.”
“I thought you said you couldn’t come here. What are you doing?” Cerine stepped forward, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Taan was surprised to find that even as young as she was, he considered her someone to be reckoned with when it came to protecting her friends.
“Felraic left town suddenly and I think he was on his way to the Pass.” He looked around and lowered his voice. “I don’t know if he was supposed to meet Lamnos here, but if I’m found, they’ll have my head!”
Rugo shook his head and stared long at hard at him. “That doesn’t explain what you are doing here.”
“I knew you would be coming, so I took a shortcut after I watched you leave the inn.” Rugo exchanged glances with both Landon and Cerine. “I wanted to create a diversion in case either of them showed up. Only my light went out, and got lost in the darkness. When I saw you coming, I ran because I though you were Felraic.” Taan’s eyes shifted nervously up and down each direction of the corridor, as if something were coming for them. |
© Copyright 2004 Mark C Bradley (UN: auric at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Mark C Bradley has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.
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