Still, he had to try. And he didn’t have much time.
Reaching inside his clothes, he took the notebook out. A bit of pushing and digging later, he had the ring. He took a deep breath, then slipped it on a finger.
— Mother?
— Lorkin!
Relief and worry filtered through to him like muffled music.
— Are you all right? she asked.
— Yes. I don’t have much time to explain.
— Well... get to it then.
— Someone tried to kill me, but I was saved by a woman who is a member of a people called the Traitors. We had to leave Arvice because it was likely someone would try to kill me again. Now we’re heading toward the secret city she comes from. I’m going with her, but there’s a good chance they won’t let me leave the city in case I tell people where it is.
— Do you have to go?
— Yes. She wasn’t supposed to kill the person who tried to kill me. If I don’t speak in her defence they might execute her for murder.
— She saved you and now you want to save her. She paused. That’s fair, but is it worth being imprisoned?
— I think I can change their minds. But it might take a while. In the meantime... the Guild doesn’t know anything about them. I want to learn as much as I can. They have magic we’ve never seen before.
— The magic you went to Sachaka for in the first place.
— Maybe. I won’t know until I get there.
She was silent for a long moment.
— I can’t stop you... You had better be right about talking them into letting you go. Otherwise I’ll come fetch you myself.
— Give me a few years first. And lots of warning.
— Years!
— Of course. You can’t change a whole society overnight. But I’ll try to make it sooner.
— Well... you had better remember to put on the ring now and then.
— Ah, that’s going to be a problem. I suspect they’ll search me. If they find a blood ring, they’ll take it off me. They’re very keen to keep their city’s location a secret, and considering what the rest of Sachaka is like I don’t blame them. I’m going to give it to Dannyl.
— You haven’t spoken to Dannyl yet?
— No. But I will soon. I have to stop him following me, or the Traitors will have to kill him. I don’t suppose you could get Osen to tell him to stop?
— Not right now. I’m in the city.
A movement caught Lorkin’s eye.
— I have to go.
— Good luck Lorkin. Be careful. I love you.
— I love you, too.
He slipped the ring off and stood up. The movement he’d seen was a Traitor slowly making her way along the top of a ravine. Her attention seemed fixed on something below. Lorkin’s heart skipped a beat.
Dannyl had better be holding a strong shield.
Ahead, Unh was casting about, moving in different directions then returning to the same spot. He shook his head, turned and beckoned to Dannyl. For some reason, the tribesman was more inclined to speak to Dannyl now, whenever there was something to report.
“Tracks stop here,” the man said, pointing to the ground. He looked up at the rock wall that loomed over them on one side. “We try there?”
Dannyl looked up and judged the distance. The top of the wall wasn’t too far away. Drawing magic, he created a disc of force beneath their feet. He took hold of the man’s upper arms, and the man did the same with his. They had done this many times already that day, either rising up to the top of a ridge or wall, or dropping down to a ledge or into a valley.
This close, the tribesman smelled of sweat and spices, a combination that was not entirely pleasing, but not too unpleasant, either. Concentrating, Dannyl lifted the disc upward, bearing them with it.
The rock wall rushed past, then fell away as they passed the top of it. There was a narrow ridge along the top. Dannyl moved them to the middle of this before setting them down. Beyond, the high peaks of the mountains cut the sky to a jagged edge.
“If magicians can do this, why don’t they fly over the mountains and find Traitor city?” Unh asked.
Dannyl looked at the man in surprise. The man hadn’t questioned his ability until now. “Levitation takes concentration,” he replied. “The further from the ground you are, the more concentration it takes. I’m not sure why. But the higher you go, the easier it is to become disorientated, and the further you have to fall.”
The man pursed his lips, then nodded. “I see.”
He turned away and began searching the ground. Moments later he gave a huff of satisfaction. He leaned over the precipice, looking down at the Sachakans, who were staring up in puzzlement.
“Trail goes here,” he called. Then he set off along the ridge.
Dannyl waited and watched as the Sachakans took it in turns to levitate themselves and their slaves up the rock face.
“We’re getting further in,” one of the Ashaki said, looking around. “Has anyone gone this far before?”
“Who knows?” another answered. “We’ve been trying to find them for centuries. I’m sure someone must have.”
“I doubt we’ve got that close to them,” a third pointed out. “They’d have tried to stop us by now.”
Achati chuckled and brushed dust off his clothing. “They won’t risk that our Kyralian friend might get hurt. Attacking us wouldn’t bother them, but they don’t dare kill a Guild magician in case it motivates our neighbours into helping us rid Sachaka of our Traitor problem.”
“We’d better stick close to the Ambassador, then,” the first Ashaki said. Then he lowered his voice. “Though not so close that we have to endure the stink of our tracker.”
The others chuckled. Dannyl looked beyond them to see that Unh was standing a hundred strides or so away, beckoning to him. It was obvious the tribesman preferred his assistance to the Sachakans’. I can’t blame him. Though I have to admit, the man doesn’t smell too good. Still, I bet I don’t either, after walking through the mountains for days without a bath or a change of clothes.
He caught up with Unh and they continued on. Soon they had to levitate down the other side of the ridge, then up two more walls. Every time, Unh found the trail again. Time passed and soon the sun was dropping ever closer to the horizon. They entered a narrow ravine. Unh hesitated at the entrance, then indicated Dannyl should walk beside him.
“You keep magic shield on,” he said. “Keep it strong.”
Dannyl followed the man’s advice. He felt the skin down his back crawl as he and the tribesman slowly walked down the middle of the ravine. He glanced back to see the Sachakans following, their expressions grim. They were casting suspicious glances up at the ravine walls.
After several hundred paces the walls began to retreat and the ravine floor widened. Ahead, it became a small valley. Unh let out a breath and muttered something.
Then a crack and a boom shook the air. The sound came from behind them. Dannyl and Unh spun about, then threw up their hands as stones pattered against the barrier that protected them. They backed away. A fog of dust had filled the ravine.