'How did you know about the door?' asked Cato when they were inside.
'I arranged it that way, so the prince and I could slip in and out of the sewage tunnels without anyone's knowing. If you don't look at that piece of stone carefully you'd never know it could be moved. Come on.'
Carpex ducked under the low ceiling, lighting his way with the torch held out ahead of him. Cato followed. Just inside was a small stone platform, with several stained steps leading down towards the tunnel.
'Better shut the door, master.'
Cato eased it back into its frame, keeping the noise from the hinges as quiet and gradual as possible.Then he nodded to Carpex. 'There. Now let's go.'
The steps were dry at the top, but the last few were slimy and Cato trod warily as they descended through a small arch into the tunnel. His nose wrinkled at the stench as they paused in the light of the torch.The sewer stretched out on either side as far as Cato could see by the wavering glow of the small flame. The steps disappeared into the slowly flowing current of fouled water and after a small hesitation Carpex stepped down into the flow. It came halfway up his calves as he headed to their right, in the direction of the current. With a grimace, Cato followed him. The thick atmosphere was filled with the tang of shit and piss and Cato had to swallow hard as he fought the impulse to be sick.
'How far have we got to go?'
'A few hundred paces, master. Then we're beneath the citadel.'
They had waded no more than fifty yards when both men heard a muffled squeal of iron hinges, and they paused to look back down the tunnel. The sound of voices echoed off the rough stonework and a moment later a red glow marked the low arch where the steps led up to the entrance.
'Shit,' Cato muttered. 'That beggar must have found someone.That was quick.The other guard must have alerted the whole town.'
'What do we do?'
'Could you find your way from here in the dark?'
'No.'
'Then we have to go on! Fast!'
They moved on, splashing through the filthy stream in the wildly flaring glow of Carpex's torch.Then behind them came a shout, harsh and immediate in the closed tunnel, and the churning rush of several men coming after the two fugitives.
'How much further?' Cato gasped.
'Not far. Just up ahead, a tunnel branches to the right.'
Cato glanced up and scanned the side of the tunnel.The black mouth of an opening loomed up at the limit of the orange bloom cast by the torch.
'I see it!'
They splashed up to the junction and turned into the side tunnel.
'What now?'
'Follow it for a short stretch, until there's a curve, then there's the spur going towards the old stables of the citadel.'
'Right.' Cato followed the slave as he surged on. The pursuers were lost from sight for a moment, and even the sound of their progress had diminished now that Cato and Carpex were in the new stretch of tunnel. But all too quickly the entrance behind them was illuminated by a growing glow and a moment later the rebels had followed them into the side tunnel. Just ahead Cato could see the tunnel begin to curve, as Carpex had said it would. As they splashed round the bend the pursuers were again lost from view and then Carpex pointed.
'There! See!'
A small passage opened on to the main sewer, perhaps just over half the height of the tunnel they were in. As they reached it Cato glanced in and saw that the spur sloped gently up.
'Where does it go?'
'Directly to the barracks, master. It ends just below a grille.'
'Right.' Cato took the torch from the slave and thrust him into the small opening. 'You first. Go as fast as you can. But you stop the moment we hear the rebels.'
Carpex nodded and ducked down as he scrambled up the tunnel. Cato swung the torch underarm and then lobbed it as far down the tunnel as he could. It flared through the dark air, bounced off the wall in a shower of sparks and then fell into the stinking current, hissed a moment and died, pitching the tunnel into darkness. Cato felt for the rim of the entrance to the side tunnel and bent down to ease his way into it. There was no way of walking, or even crouching, and he went down on hands and knees. There was only a trickle on the sloping floor, but it was covered with slime and small pieces of rubble. Ahead of him he could hear Carpex grunting and scrabbling up the slope. His breaths came in strained gasps and the weight of the chain mail was quickly exhausting him. They had gone perhaps thirty feet when the sounds of their pursuers reached Cato's ears.
'Carpex!' he hissed as loudly as he dared. 'Stop!'
The small passage fell silent as they froze and Cato struggled to control his breathing as the rebels approached the end of the tunnel. The entrance gleamed briefly, and then they had passed it. Cato waited a little longer and then whispered, 'Go.'
On they went, climbing the spur in the pitch darkness, until Cato heard the sound of the rebels coming back down the tunnel. A voice called out and then there came the sounds of men scurrying up the small passage behind them. There was no longer any need for quiet and Cato called out to Carpex.
'They're on to us! Move yourself!'
They hurried forward, ignoring the stench and the muck beneath their hands and legs as they moved on all fours. Behind them, their pursuers, aided by the light cast by their torches, came on swiftly, their grunts and shouts carrying up the narrow tunnel as if they were breathing down Cato's neck. Then he was aware of the faint details in the walls ahead of him and realised that the rebels were closing on him. If they should catch up before Cato and Carpex reached the end of the passage there was no chance of being able to turn and hold them off. All Cato had was a sword. He had glimpsed at least one spear amongst the men following him. They could easily outreach him and he had no room to move to avoid being skewered.
The tunnel began to flatten out and Cato was aware of voices ahead of him. 'Almost there!' Carpex called back.
Cato glanced over his shoulder and saw, perhaps only fifteen paces behind him, the torch of the first of their pursuers, and the grimly determined expression of the man behind it as he scuttled forward.
The voices above them quickly grew louder and then Cato saw a dim shaft of light shining down into the tunnel just ahead. Carpex hurled himself forward to cover the last few yards and then he rose up and grasped the iron bars of the grille above him and thrust. The grille did not budge, and as Cato reached him he too straightened up and pushed with all his strength, gashing one hand on a broken prong. A small trickle of mortar fell on them and then with a sudden scraping rush the grille gave and toppled on to the floor of the room above with a crash. Carpex clambered up, grasping the edge of the hole as he dragged himself up and then rolled to one side. Cato cast a glance down the tunnel and saw that the nearest rebel was almost on him, and had dropped his torch and drawn his sword as he came on, teeth clenched, intent on getting his kill.
There was a sudden roar of surprised voices in the room above and Carpex screamed. But Cato thrust himself up through the hole, heedless of the danger, to escape from the murderous intent of the man coming along the tunnel.With a grunt of supreme effort he drew himself up through the opening. His torso was halfway through when he saw Carpex sprawled on the flagstones beside him. The slave wore a dazed expression and blood was oozing from his mouth. Around them, a crowd of men in blue tunics was closing in, shouting furiously. Several were armed and one leaped forward, sword raised as he made to smash the blade into Cato's head.