Sword of Kings
Chapter 41 – Using the Back Door

by Bill W

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Legal Notice:
The following story contains descriptions of graphic sexual acts. 
The story is a work of fiction and has no basis in reality.
Don’t read this story if:
**You’re not 18 or over,    
**If it is illegal to read this type of material where you live,
**Or if you don’t want to read about gay/bi people in love or having sex.

The author retains copyright to this story.  Placing this story on a website or reproducing this story for distribution without the author’s permission is a violation of that copyright.  Legal action will be taken against violators.

I wish to extend my thank you to Emoe57 for his editorial assistance with this chapter.

E-mail responses to the stories, story suggestions, or other ‘constructive’ comments or advice may be sent to: bwstories8@aol.com.

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“You follow Qaim, but not too close,” the aignx announced.

“We can’t do that,” Rhys advised him. “We can’t see a thing in here. Give us a little more time for our eyes to adjust.”

“Wait,” ordered one of the dwarfs. “We have something that may help.” Quickly, they rummaged through their packs and extracted a few things. What they pulled out were a handful of small torches and some pieces of flint. Doenilio had suggested they include these items when they were back in Thorold, after their experience in the caverns in the Amber Mountains. That’s why each of them had included three small torches in their packs. Unfortunately, the ones Doenilio carried had been lost, but Quintain and Sedain still had the ones they carried. Both dwarfs had actually thought about using them on a few other occasions when the others wanted some light, but decided it best to keep them a secret and save them until now. Both dwarfs understood the torches would be essential once they entered the tunnels, so they refused to risk using them for other reasons.

While their friends waited to learn what Sedain and Quintain were up to, the dwarfs attempted to light the devices, which was not an easy task. Without being able to see what he was doing, Quintain struck the pieces of flint together, trying to ignite the first one. It took several clumsy attempts, but eventually it happened. Once that torch was ablaze, they lit the others off of it, which allowed an eerie glow to break through the all-consuming darkness. It wasn’t very long before they could investigate some of the area around them.

“We go now?” Qaim inquired.

“Not quite yet,” Quintain informed him. “I think it best if we take a short break and eat first. Then we can start out again.”

Qaim seemed to like that idea, so they quickly scrounged up a hasty meal and wolfed it down. There were several reasons for their haste. First of all, they didn’t have much to eat and, second, they were concerned about using up the torches for other than travel. Additionally, they were all anxious to finish their mission, seeing they were so close to their destination, and none of them were eager to tarry in one place for very long, since they were unsure as to what else might be lurking around.

As they began to stand up, Qaim asked his question once again. “We go now?” he wanted to know.

“Yes,” Rhys responded, slightly amused by the aignx’s child-like innocence. “We can go now.”

“Qaim go first, then you follow. Not too close,” their guide announced. “Qaim show you the way and make sure you no get hurt. Bad wizard has set many traps to keep others from getting to where he lives. Qaim undo traps and make it so you no get hurt. Qaim good guide.”

“Yes, you are,” Kieren told him, “and Beraut was right about you and your abilities. You just tell us what you want and we shall do it.”

Qaim nodded and then scurried forward, keeping close to the left wall as he went. He had only gone several meters down the corridor when he suddenly stopped. The others were still a few meters behind him, as a safety precaution. They felt it was best to keep him in sight, without getting close enough to become involved in what the aignx was doing. They watched Qaim carefully, as he crouched down on the pathway and ran his hands over the smooth, cold floor. It was quite obvious he was searching for something, but none of them knew for what. After many seconds, Qaim must have found what he was looking for and came back to where the others were waiting.

“Qaim need to borrow long stick,” he informed them, while pointing toward Rhys’ lance.

Rhys hesitated before parting with his weapon, but only momentarily. He gave it up after he realized there must be a good reason for the aignx to ask to borrow it now, since Qaim had shown no interest in their weapons before. Willingly, he held his lance out to their furry little guide. Qaim quickly snatched it from his hand and scurried back down the corridor, until he reached the spot where he had stood before. Once again, he located whatever it was he was looking for, before backing up and lying down on the floor. Carefully, he reached the lance out as far as he could in front of him and then waved it up and down. The others were curious as to what he was trying to accomplish, but it didn’t take long before they had their answer. They all jumped and gasped when a collection of sharp metal rods shot out from both walls, knocking the lance from Qaim’s hand and sending it clattering to the ground. At last they understood what he had been up to. Qaim had obviously located and snapped a tripwire, activating the potentially deadly trap.

Once they regained their composure, Qaim assured them everything was safe, but the others were still a little shaken by what they had just witnessed. Cautiously, they made their way forward, to inspect the device, and discovered the pointed metal poles were arranged in an overlapping pattern. The rods also extended for a couple of meters, both before and after the tripwire, so they would skewer a whole group of people, even if the first of them had failed to break the line. That’s why Qaim needed Rhys’ lance, to reach it. This only reinforced their notion of how dangerous traveling along this passageway could be.

Garreth had actually wet his breeches slightly, when the contraption sprung, and now realized he had just done it again. This time, however, it was because he considered what would have happened to him, if he’d been in the area of the bars when that device went off. Suddenly, he was extremely thankful Qaim had been there to protect them.

“Now what do we do?” Rhys asked, while looking at the obstacle that blocked their way.

“We crawl,” Qaim replied simply, pointing toward a small gap near the lowest bars. Instantly, all eyes focused at the bottom section of the contraption. That’s when they noticed the opening. After the first row of bars, which was about fifteen centimeters off of the floor, the next set of rods didn’t jut out for another thirty to forty centimeters above that.

“That will be all right for most of us,” Sedain commented, while eyeing Turquinine, “but I question if it will be enough room for some of the others. Is there an alternative plan?”

“No. Only way,” Qaim responded dryly.

“Thou needs not worry about mine problems,” the knight informed them. “I shalt go last and thou canst leave me behind shouldst I fail.”

“We shall not leave you,” Kieren responded immediately, and emphatically, “and we will see that you make it through with the rest of us. If Qaim says this is the only way, then we shall follow him, but we won’t leave anyone behind.” Everyone else nodded in agreement, although some were not as quick to do so as the others. Regardless of the immediacy of their responses, they all understood Kieren’s feelings.

“Do you think it will be safe?” Hadwin wondered aloud, which caused some of the others to turn in his direction. When he realized all eyes were focused on him, he suddenly felt the need to explain himself further. “I mean, do you think there might be a second trigger or another trap set to prevent someone from crawling through there, as we intend to do?”

“No, no more traps here,” Qaim answered, convincingly. “We crawl through opening and go on until Qaim find another trap.”

Nearly everyone began to take furtive, sidelong glances at each other, to gage their reaction to Qaim’s pronouncement. However, none of them were ready to disagree or question their guide again. Beraut had assured them that the aignx knew what he was doing and had all the necessary requisites to get them through this safely, so they just had to trust in Beraut’s wisdom and Qaim’s magical abilities to see them through. Even though some of them were not quite sure about this, Kieren didn’t seem to struggle with the same doubts his companions were currently facing.

“Follow me. We go now,” the aignx announced, not giving anyone a chance to argue with him.

“No!” Rhys commanded, emphatically. “I shall go first, and if I cross successfully, then the rest of you will follow after me.” He saw some of them give him a strange look, but before anyone could protest, he continued his statement. “I will not be dissuaded, so save your energy and words of protest. I shall go first, then the aignx, and then the rest of you can follow. Turquinine may go last, if that’s what he wishes, but I shall be the first to venture across this barrier.”

The others immediately understood why he wanted to do this. He was volunteering to assume the risk, just in case Qaim was mistaken. No one was willing to argue with him and readily accepted his decision. This was primarily due to the fact he’d had a similar offer rejected when they were testing the land bridge. At that time, he had been forced to defer to Turquinine and allow him to make the first crossing, after the dwarf. However, it was obvious he wasn’t about to defer to anyone this time.

Having reached an unspoken agreement, they turned back toward the sprung trap. However, when they did so, they discovered the aignx was already slithering his way through the gap. Evidently, he was more a creature of action, than of words, so he was halfway across the obstacle by the time they were ready to move. A few seconds later, the aignx was standing on the other side, urging the others to join him. Rhys rolled his eyes, indicating his dissatisfaction with Qaim’s actions, before he took his turn to crawl through the barrier.

Rhys did find the opening a little snug, but still made it across quite easily. He also took the opportunity to stop for a moment along the way, so he could retrieve his lance. As soon as he was on the other side and back on his feet, he immediately urged the others to follow. He watched their progress intently, as they clambered through the bars, until it was finally Turquinine’s turn to go. The large knight did encounter some problems during his attempt. He found very little wiggle room for his huge frame and occasionally he discovered his body wedged uncomfortably between the metal rods. When that happened, he would grab one of the other bars and use it for leverage, so he could force his body through the undersized space. Even though it was not easy, he made it to the other side and they were all together again.

Qaim seemed anxious to continue on and did not give them a chance to savor their success. He immediately let it be known it was time to move along. “Follow Qaim,” he urged. “We go now.”

As soon as he made his announcement, Qaim started down the corridor, so the others followed cautiously behind. They hadn’t gone very far before their guide once again signaled them to halt. After they came to a stop, the aignx urged them to place themselves tightly against the wall. As they stood with their backs pressed against the cold stone, Qaim slid his foot forward, until it tripped another catch wire, which extended almost invisibly across the path. Everyone held his breath as the aignx did this, wondering what was going to happen next. They didn’t have long to wait to find out.

Within a second, a ‘swooshing’ sound filled the tunnel and a menacing log pendulum swung by, exuding such force that it nearly sucked them into its wake. If that happened, it would have placed them in grave danger when the battering ram swung back in the opposite direction, because it would still have enough momentum to splatter them all over the corridor. The larger warriors instinctively placed their arms across the chests of the teens, in a reflexive, precautionary measure to prevent this from happening. Everyone held his breath when the device swung back again, with nearly equal force. Their eyes were bulging out in awe, as they contemplated how they might have been killed, if Qaim had not been with them. It was only because of the aignx’s special abilities that they were once again free from harm.

They remained against the wall, still trying to force their bodies to melt into the hard surface, as the deadly pendulum continued to swing back and forth in front of them. Each time it passed, it was with a little less force than the time before, and they were all greatly relieved when it finally came to a complete stop. The members of the party were still visibly shaken by this near miss and the boys were quite queasy, thinking about what that ramrod would have done to them, if Qaim hadn’t forewarned them. For some unexplained reason, Kieren and Garreth cautiously lifted an arm and reached out to touch the huge weapon, as if compelled by some invisible force. They weren’t sure why they were doing this, but they felt they needed to feel it, in order to verify how dangerous it truly was. Once they examined its texture and mass, their curiosity was sated and they were ready to go on.

Qaim made what sounded to be an urgent request for them to follow him again and everyone obeyed, immediately and without question. After what he had done since he took charge earlier in the day, they trusted him implicitly. They did, however, keep their distance behind him, wondering what type of trap would be waiting for them next. As they made their way down the darkened corridor, Kieren was noticing that he was quite weary, from having spent so much physical and emotional energy along the way. That caused him to wonder when they would be stopping to rest for the night. Kieren had no idea how far these tunnels stretched or even exactly where they would take them. Did these corridors go in a straight line to the fortress or did they wind like a serpent, between the rear door and the sorcerer’s lair? Was this going to be a short walk or would they have to cover many leagues before they reached their destination? He was about to ask one of the dwarfs how much longer they were planning to travel today, when the aignx signaled them that he had located another device.

They waited quietly, although they backed away from their guide and gave him plenty of room to operate. After feeling around the walls and floor for a short time, Qaim asked Rhys if he could borrow his lance again. This time, the warrior immediately thrust his weapon into the aignx’s waiting hand. Qaim took it, spun around and moved into position, so he could set off the next device. The aignx reached his arm out as far as he could and then repeatedly banged the tip of the lance against the ground. Finally, he sprung the triggering mechanism and, suddenly, the floor of the tunnel in front of them dropped out of sight. They gasped in horror as the roadway crashed into a chasm, which extended far below the level they were at now.

Qaim seemed a bit surprised by how large an area had been affected and struggled to keep his balance, while trying to maintain his grip on Rhys’ lance. The weight of the weapon was dragging him toward the gap and it looked as if he would have to either drop it or risk falling into opening too. Before the aignx could react, though, Sedain and Quintain raced past Kieren and grabbed a hold of Qaim, barely keeping him from tumbling into the void. Qaim was so startled; he couldn’t even open his mouth to thank them after the fact.

Once everything had settled down again, the dwarfs released their grip on their guide and then crept forward, so they could inspect what had happened. Cautiously, they made their way to the edge of the missing walkway and held their torches out over it, so they could assess the damage. No one else was brave enough to join them and stayed back out of the way, allowing Sedain and Quintain to work without interruption. After they had investigated the missing walkway thoroughly, they looked around to see if they could discover a way around this new obstacle. After several minutes of discussion between themselves, they returned to the others, to explain their options.

“The gap caused by this latest booby-trap is considerable and it extends from wall to wall,” Quintain told them. “We can see no way around it.” The others signed audibly, upon hearing this news, but quickly turned their attention back to the dwarf, as he started to speak again. “We do not have sufficient light to see how deep the crevice is, but we can tell it is deep enough to prove deadly, should anyone fall into it.”

“Have you any suggestions about how we might cross it?” Alaric asked, thinking Quintain had finished his comments. “Would it be possible for us to leap over it or could we bridge it in some way?”

“The distance is too great to jump across,” Quintain responded, “and we don’t have the tools or the supplies necessary to build a structure over it. It will take a great deal more investigation before we can discover if there are any other options.”

“Do any of you have any ideas about what we might do next?” Sedain asked the rest of them.

“I don’t think so,” Alaric told him, frankly, after looking around at the others. “You two have more experience with such things than we do, so we will leave it for you to determine what possibilities we have. I do think it might be best if we just rested here for the night and considered the problem again tomorrow. We might see things differently after our strength has been restored and we’ve had a chance to sleep on it.” There were some nods of agreement, before someone questioned the wisdom of remaining where they were.

“Do you think this place is safe?” Garreth wondered. “I mean, aren’t we in the Dark Lord’s dungeons?”

“We’re not exactly in his dungeons,” Alaric responded, “but it’s probably safer here, than any place else we might find. We know for certain there’s nothing behind us, and if anyone is in front of us, they would have just as much trouble getting to us, as we would have getting to them.”

The others readily concurred with most of his logic, although they still recommended posting a guard, just to be on the safe side. After agreeing on that condition, they moved about thirty meters away from the gaping hole. That would reduce the risk that someone might accidentally stumble or roll into the chasm and it would also give them an additional buffer, if anything else were to happen. Hurriedly, everyone unpacked their bedrolls and prepared to settle in. They were looking forward to finally getting some rest, even if it was on this hard surface. Once they had arranged their sleeping gear and agreed upon a guard schedule, they grabbed a quick bite to eat, before lying down.

Kieren sensed that Garreth was apprehensive about spending the night in the tunnels, so he thought a diversion was necessary to keep his friend’s mind from darker thoughts. It didn’t take him long to formulate a crude plan, which he then put into action. “Did you realize that we’re nearly done with this mission and soon it will be over?” he told his friend. “We’ve almost reached Treblanc and all I have left to do is find the Sword and confront Madumda with it. In a few days, this should all be behind us and we should be on our way home to our families.”

That comment brought a slight grin to Garreth’s face, so Kieren decided to continue. “It’s been a very long time since I have seen my parents and I’m looking forward to going home again. I have so much I want to say to my mother and father and there are so many things I want to do when I get back that I can hardly wait.”

“It’s not going to be the same without Romaric,” Garreth replied, his face suddenly cloaked in sadness. “What are we going to tell his parents?” This discussion had definitely taken an unexpected turn and Kieren didn’t like where it was headed, so he thought it might be best to sidestep the issue.

“We’ll deal with that when the time comes,” he told Garreth, “but we’ll still enjoy each other’s company.”

“Will we?” Garreth asked, almost in tears. “Or will we think of him every time we see each other?” Kieren felt as if he had been backed into a corner and had to respond.

“We might for a while,” he explained, “but eventually we’ll be able to put it behind us…”

Kieren wasn’t even able to finish his comment before Garreth jumped to his feet, stood menacingly in front of him and began to shout. “I won’t ever forget him!” he screamed. “Not ever. I don’t care if it’s a hundred years from now. I’ll never forget Romaric!” Although somewhat dumbfounded by his friend’s reaction, Kieren tried to think of the best way to respond, as everyone else turned to see what the commotion was about.

“I don’t want you too and I won’t either,” Kieren exclaimed, while getting to his feet, so he could stand next to Garreth. “That’s not what I was trying to say. I just meant the pain of losing him won’t be as bad as the years pass. I’ll remember and love Romaric until the day I die, and I know you will too.” At this point Kieren wrapped his arms around Garreth and pulled him against his own body, so that the shorter boy’s head was pressed into his chest. The elf was sobbing freely now, as he was once again forced to deal with this painful loss.

The warriors were watching the two of them closely, since their attention had been drawn to them after Garreth’s outburst. However, seeing the boys had lowered their voices, the others decided it would be best to let them work this out by themselves. Their protectors did take a quick scan of the area around them, just in case Garreth’s forceful reaction had attracted unwanted attention, but were relieved when nothing more resulted from his flare-up.

Once Garreth had sufficiently calmed down, Kieren led him over to his sleeping area and helped him get under the blankets. Once his friend was settled in, Kieren laid beside him, until Garreth fell asleep, but that took awhile. During that time, Kieren reflected upon how badly things had worked out. None of it had gone as he’d hoped, except that he was able to distract Garreth from worrying about where they were. After he was sure his friend was deep in slumber, Kieren looked around, to see how the others were holding up.

As he was doing this, Kieren noticed another potential problem. When he came across Qaim, he could tell by the aignx’s body posture that something was troubling him also. Kieren had no idea what it might be, but felt he should try to find out what was wrong. After thinking about how he should proceed, Kieren concluded it would be best to confront the aignx directly.

“What’s wrong, Qaim? You look sad,” Kieren began, causing their guide to look in his direction. However, that didn’t help him much. Kieren still didn’t have a clue about what the aignx was thinking. It was just that Qaim’s body language still indicated something was not quite right. After many seconds of silence, Qaim finally responded.

“What happen to Qaim after?” he asked, directly.

“You mean after we find the Sword and get rid of Madumda?” Kieren countered, trying to make sure that’s what the aignx meant.

“Yes,” Qaim answered, simply.

“You’ll be able to go home again,” Kieren told him, thinking that would comfort the aignx. However, he was surprised to see Qaim’s body stiffen, as he prepared to reply.

“Qaim’s only home in woods where beasties live,” he responded, in a very sorrowful voice.

Immediately, Kieren wondered how he could have been so dumb. He should have seen that coming. Why hadn’t he sensed what was causing the aignx’s uneasiness? Qaim’s reaction was probably in response to his overhearing Kieren’s conversation with Garreth. Hearing what they said had forced the aignx to acknowledge that he had nowhere to go once this mission was over. Kieren could hardly imagine what it must be like to have no place or no one to go back to. No wonder Qaim was depressed.

“Don’t worry, my friend,” Kieren assured him, “you shall not have to be alone ever again, unless that is what you want. You have done so much for us that I would be happy to take you home with me. You won’t have to go back to Briarwood. I shall make sure that you have a place to live and all your needs are provided for.”

“You will take care of Qaim?” the aignx asked, with a touch of wonder in his voice.

“Yes, for as long as you live,” Kieren confirmed, reinforcing his answer by sporting a big grin.

“Young master very kind. Qaim like young master. Qaim thank you. Qaim no forget.”

“It’s the least I can do,” Kieren responded, still smiling broadly. “Don’t worry any more, for I shall take care of everything, but for now we should get some rest. Why don’t you sleep over here, by me? You can share my blankets, if you’d like.”

Kieren couldn’t tell if his guide smiled or made any facial acknowledgement of his offer, but Qaim did follow him to his bedding. Once Kieren slipped under his covers, Qaim curled up on top of the excess portion of the blankets. For the remainder of the evening, the aignx stayed on one side of Kieren, while Garreth slept on the other.

The night proved uneventful and ended when the final guard went around rousing every member of the party from their slumber. They did not rise rapidly, and some of them even tried to catch a few extra winks before they had to get up, but eventually they shook themselves back to life and began their day. At this point, Kieren wondered what time it was, seeing there was no way to tell the hour where they were. The guards had merely guessed at the passage of time to figure out when their duty ended, such as when the last person on watch was supposed to get everyone else up. This led to Kieren’s next set of questions. He wondered how long they had been within these tunnels and how much longer it would take them to get to the main part of the fortress, but he left these queries unasked, for now.

The dwarfs seemed energized by being underground again and appeared to be filled with a new sense of purpose and urgency. Although everyone rushed through their morning preparations, eating quickly and getting everything packed away, the dwarfs also used their extra time to slip away to examine the gaping hole in greater detail. Sedain and Quintain held their torches out over the void, in an attempt to see if they might spot something they had missed the previous evening. To their surprise, they did discover a small oversight. They quickly put their heads together and discussed the possibilities this might afford them and then came up with a plan of action. Once they were satisfied with their efforts, they explained their idea to their friends.

“We have discovered a narrow ledge,” Quintain told them, “where the floor used to join the wall. It is not wide enough to walk across, but we believe it will provide us with enough of a foothold so we can make our way to the other side. I shall go first and chisel handholds into the wall, so the rest of you will have something to grip onto. It will help you steady yourselves, as you cross the expanse. We shall do this one at a time, taking as many precautions as we can to protect each other.”

When Quintain finished speaking, he tied two different ropes around his waist. These were the same ropes they had used to cross the land bridge and in their attempted rescue of Romaric. Once he had fastened them securely about himself, he told the others to grab hold of the other ends. He wanted them to be ready to keep him from falling to the bottom of the pit, in case he lost his balance as he tried to chisel the handholds into the rocky wall. Slowly, he moved out along the ledge, feeling his way as he went, with the others giving him enough slack to keep going.

Every so often he would stop, chip another handgrip out of the solid rock and then use that to steady himself, while he reached out to hollow out the next area. After many minutes of this arduous labor and a couple of scary instances where he nearly fell, he finally made it to the other side. Once he was on the rocky pathway again, he quickly untied the ropes from around his waist and let the others pull them back, so they could secure them to the next traveler. Sedain went after his brother, followed by Hadwin. Everyone felt those two had the most experience with this type of activity and it would give the others a chance to study what they did, so they would have something to imitate.

Hadwin did find it much more difficult than the dwarfs, mostly because of his size. Only his toes and the balls of his feet would fit on that narrow ledge, which didn’t give him much support for his larger frame. He also found the handholds too close together and not nearly high enough for his tastes, which added to his problems. It was awkward and uncomfortable for him as he crossed, but he finally made it to the other side and quickly undid his safety harnesses. Once he joined the dwarfs, he expressed his concern that Turquinine and Rhys would find it even more difficult than he had and wondered if they’d be able to make it. The dwarfs advised him that the others would just have to try their best, as there was no alternative way to get them across the chasm.

They also made another change at this point. Seeing they now had three warriors on the opposite side of the gap, they kept an end of one of the ropes on that side. That way, the next person to cross would be anchored from both sides and they decided that should be Kieren. He made it across quite handily, as his youth, agility and light weight seemed to be a major advantage for him. Once he had reached the other side, the warriors discovered they had a problem. Somehow, they had to get one end of the second rope back to those remaining to cross.

They thought about using the arrow and string again, but decided that wouldn’t be practical here. There was no place the arrow could anchor itself and prevent the weight of the rope from dragging it into the chasm. Not only that, but they certainly didn’t want anyone chasing after it and possibly falling into the pit, while trying to save it. Hadwin suggested the gap was narrow enough for him to throw the rope back to the others, as long as he had something to weigh the end down with, to help carry it across the expanse.

The dwarfs suggested finding a large rock to use, but Hadwin pointed out it would probably make a thud when it landed. He was worried that noise might alert someone farther up the tunnel of their presence; especially with the many times they would have to repeat the process. That’s when Kieren came to the rescue. He offered his old boots, which he still carried in his pack. He told them they could tie the end of the rope around them, as the boots would be heavy enough to carry the rope across the gap, but they were also soft enough so they wouldn’t make much noise when they landed. The warriors found this option acceptable, so that’s what they did. The person crossing would carry the boots back in his pack, so they could be used again.

Hadwin quickly tied the rope around the boots and tossed it across the gap on his first attempt. Once the others had it, they chose the big Mitikuan to take his turn next. Turquinine found the crossing very difficult and there were some very nervous moments, as he made his way from one side to the other. More than once, one of his feet would slip off the narrow shelf, because only his toes and a small portion of his foot would fit on it. When this happened, everyone would gasp and hold their breath, until he had both feet back where they were supposed to be. The Mitikuans difficulties also caused them to wonder if they made a mistake by having him anchored on both sides of the breach. If he fell, would they be able to save him or would they have to let him fall, losing both him AND the ropes they needed? When he finally made it to the other side, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. This meant that only Garreth, Rhys, Qaim and Alaric were left to follow.

Everyone decided Garreth should go next and, like Kieren, he didn’t have any problems. They were going to have Qaim go next, and then Rhys, but once again Qaim’s problems with the ropes made them change their plans.

“Damn! You’d think we’d remember about that by now,” Rhys cursed aloud, wondering why none of them had foreseen this dilemma. “Look, I’ll take Qaim on my back,” he suddenly announced, confident this would solve their problem.

“No,” Alaric responded. “You might drop him on the way over and we’ll need him to lead us, once we’re on the other side.” Rhys shook his head and waved his hand back and forth in front of his body, to silence the elf.

“I’ve figured that out too,” he quickly retorted. “I’ll tie the ropes around myself and then you can help me use one of the blankets to secure Qaim to my back. That way, we can both cross and still maintain the needed safety factor.” The elf thought about this momentarily, before answering.

“Well, I suppose that might work,” Alaric agreed, grudgingly. “All right, we’ll do it, but let me help you get ready.”

Qaim was about to object when Rhys held up his hand to stop him, letting him know they would not listen to any of his protests. “My friend, we have sorely misjudged you in the past, yet you have continued to prove your worth. We don’t have any other option, because we can’t risk you crossing without using the ropes. This is the least I can do to make amends for my earlier shoddy treatment of you.”

Qaim thought about the Akiktite’s words for a minute, before he replied. “Qaim let you carry him,” he surprisingly agreed.

Not giving the aignx time to change his mind, Rhys quickly bound himself with the two ropes, before hoisting Qaim onto his back. While Qaim held himself in position, with his arms wrapped securely around the Akiktite’s neck, Alaric pulled out a blanket and used it to secure Qaim into place. The elf fastened the blanket around the aignx’s back and bottom, before bringing the ends of the blanket up and under the warrior’s arms. The elf then drew the ends of the blanket behind his neck, before crisscrossing and tying them together, securely behind Rhys’ neck. The pair was now ready to make their attempt.

Cautiously, Rhys stretched out one of his feet, to test the ledge, and then he reached out and felt around for the first handhold. Once he located it, he was on his way. At one point, it looked like the additional weight of having Qaim on his back might cause him to lose his balance and topple backward, but Alaric’s quick thinking and speedy reaction was able to prevent that from happening. When he saw the Akiktite having difficulty, the elf pulled the rope tight and forced it against the wall, steadying the warrior long enough for him to get a better hold. Although slightly shaken, Rhys was able to keep going and both he and Qaim arrived safely on the other side.

After Hadwin tossed the rope back one final time, Alaric quickly tied both ropes around his body and started across. He was moving nicely along the narrow ledge and was more than halfway across when he reached out to grip the next handhold. As he latched on to it, he didn’t notice it was different from the others and wasn’t one of the places Quintain had chiseled out of the rock. As the elf slid his fingers into it and shifted his weight, the outcropping unexpectedly broke free. The sudden loss of support threw him off balance and he struggled to remain upright and find something else to grip. Try as he might, he could not locate anything to grab a hold of. His free arm began to flap wildly, almost as if he were trying to fly back into position, but that didn’t help. In fact, his efforts only worsened his plight, when the jerking motions caused his foot to slip off the ledge too, which sent him tumbling backward, into the gaping hole.

Although the others were startled by what happened, they reacted quickly and braced themselves for what was to come. They knew they would soon have to deal with the sudden jerk that would result, when the rope’s slack had been used up. They also understood Alaric’s body mass and rate of descent would dictate how badly this jolt would be, but there was no doubt it would be enough to either jerk the rope from their hands or drag them forward when it happened. Not only did they have to think about saving their friend, but they also had to worry about protecting themselves from being pulled in behind him. One thing was certain, however, and that was no matter how difficult the task would be, they would do their best to keep from losing Alaric too.

When the elf reached the end of his rope, the force of the jolt nearly ripped his lifeline right out of his friends’ hands. As they fought to maintain their grip, the friction of the rope sliding through their fingers ripped the skin from their palms and made their hands feel as if they were on fire. The lighter members of the party also felt their feet sliding out from under them, due to the force of the elf’s weight and the slipperiness of the floor. No matter how hard they tried, it was almost impossible for them to get enough traction to prevent this from happening. As they fought desperately to stop their momentum and retain their hold on the rope, they acknowledge privately that it was not looking good. Some of the warriors were almost ready to scream out an order for everyone to let the rope go, thinking it would be better to lose one than risk endangering them all, but something else happened first.

Qaim, who had not been holding onto the rope, due to his constant claims that it burned his skin, immediately recognized their frantic efforts to keep from losing Alaric. With lightning speed, the aignx pounced upon the line and wrapped his hands around it. Without thinking about his own well-being, he jerked back on it, providing what turned out to be the deciding effort. Once the rope was still and the worst was over, Quintain made his way to the edge of the chasm, to see how bad the situation was. Slowly, he picked up a torch and held it out over the gap, in an attempt to learn about the elf’s condition. When he realized the torch wasn’t generating enough light to make that possible, he called out in a hushed voice, hoping to get a reply.

“Alaric, are you all right?” he asked, but there was no response. Concerned, he tried again, but slightly louder this time. “Alaric, can you hear me?”