Haladras

Fourteen

Skylar crouched on the ground, peering out from behind a large boulder to spy on the road. To his relief, he found a steady stream of soldiers still flowing from the tunnel's mouth. He was much closer to the figures than before. The gray shapes of foot soldiers intermixed with artillery transports were easier to distinguish now.

A thin mist had risen, blanketing the black earth, giving the soldiers the appearance of floating above the ground. Not a word did they speak as they marched relentlessly onward, their shadowy forms fading into the night.

Skylar forced himself to think clearly and ignore the eeriness of the scene. He knew that at any moment the stream of soldiers could end and his opportunity would be lost. As silent as a shadow, he moved closer to the tunnel's entrance, skulking from boulder to boulder. The sounds of the soldiers' march grew louder. A narrow ditch ran alongside the road. Dropping to all fours, Skylar left the protection of the boulders and crawled quickly into the ditch. He waited.

He knew he would have but one chance. There was no room for hesitation or mistake.

The feet of soldiers passed by just above his head. So close he could have reached up and grabbed at their ankles. They continued to stream from the tunnel. Had he missed his opportunity? He began to fear that his plan had failed scarcely before it began.

Then he saw it. The oversized wheels of on an artillery transport rolled out from the tunnel's mouth, moving with exaggerated slowness.

"Almost there," whispered Skylar. "Almost there."

As soon as the front wheel passed by Skylar's head, he pitched himself laterally from the ditch onto the road and rolled beneath the transport just in time to avoid getting crushed by the back wheel. Groping frantically in the dark, Skylar searched for something to hold onto on the undercarriage of the vehicle before it passed over him. It seemed to be moving swifter now. He thrust out his hands, heedless of the scrapes and bruises he was inflicting on them. At last, near the rear of the vehicle, he felt an opening to a rectangular cavity with a narrow ledge running along all four sides. With some effort, he squeezed himself into the cramped space. Skylar exhaled a sigh of relief. He had made it.

The artillery vehicle rumbled along. If he had not been so uncomfortably packed into that steel cavity, Skylar might have fallen asleep. Tired as he was, the rhythmic sounds of the vehicle's engine and the crunch of gravel under its wheels were lulling. Occasionally, however, the wheels would hit a hole in the road, jolting the vehicle, and send Skylar's head banging against the steel walls, knocking any sleep out of him.

After an interminable length of time, Skylar sensed that they were drawing near the city. The sounds of gravel were replaced by a humming, and the ride became smoother. They were driving on stone. The hint of amber lights began to reflect off the gray stone and find its way to his green eyes. They were coming into Dura Cragis.

Soon, Skylar felt the vehicle turn. Fewer lights illuminated the stone streets now. And the sounds of soldiers' boots marching on the hard stone grew fainter.

The soldiers must be heading in a different direction. He continued to listen, straining his ears to make sense of every noise he heard. No, he was sure. The soldiers were moving away, or the vehicle was moving away from them.

When the vehicle finally stopped for a moment, Skylar ventured to poke his head out from his hiding spot. Seeing no boots standing near, he let himself down onto the street, crawled to the edge of the vehicle, made one final glance around, then dashed into the shadows of an alleyway.

Cautiously, Skylar navigated through the streets, keeping to the shadows and alleyways as much as possible. He found the streets mostly deserted as he moved deeper into the city. Occasionally, a stray clump of soldiers, or a wary townsman hurrying timidly along would pass him, but that was all. Skylar shivered as he made his way, though not from cold. Fear permeated the air. Just as he had felt it in the streets of Amrahdel.