Chapter 10

 

 

Ben slowly woke from a deep darkness. The first thing he became aware of was a terrible ache in his skull. The next was a feeling of motion beneath him. He managed to open his eyes and felt his stomach heave as he looked out over a landscape far below him.

 

He found himself strapped securely to the back of a Roc flying high above the ground. He managed to turn to his head and saw someone seated in the bird’s saddle, a man dressed in some kind of black uniform.

 

His mind whirled at what had happened. He had obviously been kidnapped by the slavers. He remembered seeing a Roc on the ledge just before he’d been hit by something. Had they taken Mia as well he wondered? He though they must have and turned his head to see if he could see her.

 

Almost straight away he saw another Roc flying a short distance away and her figure strapped across it. She was awake, staring right at him and the look in her eyes told him the fear that she felt. But she also looked relieved that he was all right and managed a bleak smile at him.

 

Fear swept through him at what they both faced, being slaves to work in the mines Mia had mentioned. He suddenly felt dizzy and thought whoever had hit him had done a thorough job as his head was throbbing badly. Then he blacked out again.

 

He woke again to someone shaking him and he opened his eyes to find they had landed. It was night and a figure was kneeling in front of him. A cup of water was placed roughly against his lips. He drank greedily, some of the water dribbling down his chin. He was unable to hold the cup as he was securely tied, his hands behind his back and ankles together.

 

His head still hurt and he wondered whether he had concussion. He hoped it wasn’t too serious as it could be serious if it wasn’t treated. There was a fire burning a short distance away and he could see shadowy figures gathered about it.

 

They were discussing he and Mia and listening he discovered that they had only been found by chance. One of the slavers had landed on the ledge to rest his Roc and had seen Ben emerge from the cave. He kicked himself mentally, despair rushing over him at his stupidity. He should have been more cautious when he had woken up!

 

He looked around for Mia and found lying on the ground a short distance away, tied up as well. She seemed asleep and he hung his head in dejection at their predicament. It looked like the bad luck that seemed to follow him around had come back to bite him.

 

Then he suddenly thought of the Silvyn and whether it had been discovered. It had been in his jeans pocket and twisting about to see if he could feel it, found it gone. One of the slavers must have taken it he thought.

 

He hoped that whoever had had just taken it as a souvenir. He didn’t want them asking about it as they were the type who would not take lying very well. Vaguely he remembered that Mr Wallace’s letter had said that the Silvyn would return to him if it was taken away. But he was too groggy to think of how that might happen. He only knew that it was his only way of leaving this world.

 

He was suddenly quite scared. There would be no rescue of either of them and a feeling of doom came over him. He felt dizzy again and passed out once more.

 

* * *

 

When he woke again he was back on the Roc and it was daylight. He lifted his head and saw they were approaching a large citadel on top of a high hill. Below him was a large town gathered about a small bay and an ocean disappearing into the distance. He could see small boats with sails dotted about the bay and tied up at wharfs.

 

The Roc banked steeply and Ben felt the blood rush to his head, almost making him pass out again. Then the bird came into land on a high platform inside the grounds of the citadel.

 

More slavers were waiting, or guards he thought as these were wearing red uniforms. He was untied from the Roc and put onto his feet. He swayed unsteadily, not used to standing for some time. He could barely lift his head he was that exhausted from the ordeal.

 

‘Stand up!’ barked a voice and someone gave him a thump on his back from behind.

 

That almost toppled him over until someone else grabbed him to keep him upright.

 

‘You hit him too hard, Belkor,’ said the soldier who had a hold of him. ‘He’s got a cut on his head and a bump too big to swallow. You’ll kill someone one day.’

 

The other soldier, the one that had captured him Ben thought just growled in answer. Then he was marched across the platform to some stairs. He managed to look around, eying the guard escorting him who just glared at him. Then Mia was suddenly beside him and he started at the state of her face.

 

She had a black eye and there were cuts on her face.

 

‘Are you all right, Ben?’ she asked.

 

He nodded.

 

‘I guess,’ he said. ‘Sorry I got us captured. I left the cave without thinking.’

 

‘No talking!’ said the guard escorting her.

 

A sense of rage suddenly overcame Ben and he felt like lashing out at the man. He was certainly close enough to kick. But the sudden look in Mia’s eyes said not to and he swallowed his anger… just.

 

They were taken down the stairs and into a building. They were taken down a long corridor to a spiralling staircase and they passed down it. Several levels went by and then they were taken down another corridor to what looked like a guard room.

 

‘Two more for the cells,’ said one of the guard’s to another seated at a desk.

 

The guard eyed the pair of them with cold indifference.

 

‘Put them in cell twenty and twenty one,’ he said.

 

Ben and Mia were taken down another corridor, its walls lined with closed cell doors of wood strapped with iron. They stopped at one, the guard opening it with a set of keys and shoving Mia inside. Then the next door along was opened and Ben was pushed inside the cell. He turned as the door was slammed shut and he was alone.

 

The cell was very small and dark. There was a single barred window high up one wall that Ben could barely touch with a finger. There was a bucket in one corner that smelt like a sewer, not much worse than the smell of cell itself.

 

Ben smelt pretty bad himself, having not washed for some days now. How long had the flight to Relmak taken he wondered? He had lost all track of time due to being unconscious for most of the journey. Mia had said that it was three days by Roc.

 

He tried the cell door, but found it very solid, its lock only accessible with a key from the other side. He then sat down on the cold, damp floor, a feeling of doom settling over him once again.

 

What on Earth was he to do now, he wondered? There would be no rescue for him he knew. He and Mia were now at the mercy of the slavers and they would soon be taken to the mines. And what would happen his gran if he didn’t return? What would Alex Runcin do with her if he never came back?

 

He leaned back against a wall, his head resting against it as he closed his eyes. He needed to think clearly he told himself. There must be something he could do.

 

But he must have dozed off, because the next thing he knew was a cold shiver passing through his skull. His eyes snapped open, suddenly feeling a whole lot better and there, hovering before him, was the Silvyn.

 

He reached up to the bump on the side of his head and found the cut almost healed, its bump only a small reminder. He grinned fiercely. The Silvyn had returned as Mr Wallace letter said it would. He could escape!.

 

His next thought was how. Mr Wallace’s letter had said it could open any lock. If that were true, he should be able to get out of his cell. But then what? He wouldn’t get far in the citadel without being discovered. Then he remembered that the Silvyn was supposed to be able to open a portal back to where he had first appeared in Tarken. All he had to do was will it to do so.

 

He closed his eyes and putting an image of the hill in his mind, willed a portal to open up to it. Almost instantly the Silvyn’s symbols glowed brightly, spinning rapidly around it. It then gave a sudden bright pulse and vanished as a shimmering portal appeared.

 

Ben quickly got to his feet and marched into it… and found himself back on the hill where he had met Mia.

 

‘Okay, so that worked,’ he said out loud as he turned to see the portal wink out and the Silvyn hovering in the air.

 

He willed a portal to open up again to the cell. It quickly did so and Ben stepped through… and was back in the cell. He grinned in delight. Now to rescue Mia, he thought and get out of here.

 

* * *

 

He waited till it grew dark outside. No guards appeared with either food or water or looking for the Silvyn. Ben thought they wouldn’t anyway. Whoever had taken it had either not noticed it was gone or thought it lost. There would be no reason to search him again.

 

He waited till he thought it was past midnight, then stepped up to the cell door. He put an ear against it to see if he could hear anything outside. There was only silence and he placed the Silvyn against the lock plate. He put a mental image of unlocking the door in his mind. The Silvyn gave a single silvered pulse and he heard the lock click.

 

He cautiously opened it and peered outside. The corridor was empty, full of shadows except for a dim pool of light further along from a single lantern. He slipped out the door and up to Mia’s cell. He opened it with the Silvyn as well and pulling the door open, stepped inside.

 

He found Mia asleep on the floor, barely visible in the moonlight coming through the window. He knelt beside her and gave her shake.

 

‘Mia!’ he said in an urgent whisper.

 

She woke with a start, scrambling backwards in fright. Then she recognised him and quickly  hugged him.

 

‘Ben! How have you escaped?’ she asked breathlessly.

 

‘With the Silvyn,’ he replied. ‘Come on. We’re getting out of here.’

 

‘I think they have Dale here as well!’ she said in a dismayed tone.

 

‘What! How?’

 

‘The slavers we saw were only part of a larger raiding band,’ she replied. ‘I heard them saying that they had taken another with you and I. It must be Dale.’

 

‘Do you know where he would be in here?’ Ben asked.

 

Mia shook her head.

 

‘He could be anywhere.’

 

‘Well, let’s you and I get out of here,’ he replied. ‘Then we can think of doing something for Dale.’

 

She grabbed his arm with a pleading grip.

 

‘Promise me you’ll help free him,’ she said.

 

Even though it was dark Ben could see the fear for her brother shining in her eyes.

 

‘I promise,’ he said.