'Straight into Eru-Tovar,' said Hornsbuck with a broad grin, looking at Mika, anticipating his surprise. He was not disappointed.
'Eru-Tovar?' questioned Mika, his eyes wide with surprise. 'u mean this tunnel goes straight into the city itself?'
'That's right,' nodded Hornsbuck. 'Ends up right under an old abandoned temple. Discovered it one night when I was looking for a place to go with a friend. Quiet like, if you get my meaning.'
'I know,' said Mika with a smile, although it was hard to imagine Hornsbuck snuggling up to any woman. Still, the man did have his positive qualities, and once again he had surprised Mika with his ingenuity.
The passage of time was strange and different without the light of day. Mika grew disoriented and he could not tell if he was hungry or tired or how long they had been traveling by the time Hornsbuck called the first halt.
The ceiling and walls had turned from dirt to stone some time ago and now rose in vaulted arches above their heads. The walls were regularly spaced with rounded pillars of stone that flowed into the ceiling, more ornamental than functional. The passage had taken a sharp turn to the right when Mika became aware of a sound, more felt than heard, that reverberated through the tunnel.
A current of cold damp air struck them full in the face as they intersected a new passage. The sound was louder now.
Hornsbuck hesitated for a moment, then turned to enter the new tunnel which was lower still than the corridor they traveled. It was reached by means of a narrow ramp. As they descended, the cold rush of wind grew stronger and their torches flickered wildly and threatened to extinguish. However, once they reached the floor of the new corridor, the draft gentled and the flames steadied.
Now Mika could see the cause of the noise and the damp draft, for on the far left edge of the passageway, which now yawned wide enough for twenty men to walk abreast, there ran a fast-flowing torrent of water that rushed by at a pace more rapid than a man could walk. It flowed in the same direction as they traveled.
Mika approached the water cautiously. It was black and oily in appearance and barely reflected the light of his torch. Mika shuddered, not anxious to draw closer nor tempted to slake his thirst from such a concourse. It looked as though it could suck a man under.
'Nasty, eh?' said Homsbuck. 'Don't like the looks of it myself. That's why I filled my waterskins from the stream before we left. Don't want to wet my gullet from the likes of that. Don't trust water at the best of times, and this,' he said, nodding his shaggy head toward the black water, 'ain't exactly the best of places.'
Mika nodded his total agreement.
They halted briefly beside the rushing water and built a small fire against the far wall, roasting chunks of meat on the ends of their knives. They sliced off generous portions of raw meat for the wolves and then fed and watered the roan.
'Well, at least she doesn't cost too much to feed,' said Homsbuck as he whacked the princess on the buttocks with casual familiarity. 'And I've got to admit that she doesn't talk too much. This spell certainly has its good points!'
Somehow, Mika felt offended on the princess's behalf and spoke up, drawing Hornsbuck back to the fire.
'Why are we eating here? It's so cold and drafty.'
'Figured the draft might wash away the smell of the food,' said Hornsbuck. 'I've always figured that there must be some critters living down here. I don't know what they are, and I've never seen any, but it doesn't hurt to take precautions.'
'Critters? Like what?' asked Mika, the meat suddenly lying heavy in his stomach.
'Don't know,' Hornsbuck said with a shrug. 'Could be almost anything. All sorts of critters like the dark better than the light. Could be kobolds or gnolls or bugbears or trolls or gnomes, dwarves, goblins, or even ores, for all I know. I can't say for sure. I just keep my eyes open when I'm down here, and I don't dally.'
'How long will it take to get to the city?' Mika asked, looking around uneasily at the mention of all the horrible possibilities.
'Two days, two nights,' said Hornsbuck. 'If we don't run into any trouble. I figure that with two of us, it'll be easier to keep watch, although RedTail and Tam should let us know if any thing's on our trail. Leastwise, I hope so.'
So did Mika. They packed up and set out again after their brief respite, following a long, confusing set of tunnels. Mika had only admiration for Horns-buck's amazing memory, for as far as he could tell, the older man consulted no map other than that which he held in his mind.
They had descended to a passage that lay even further below ground than the water tunnel when Mika noticed that it was becoming harder and harder to stay on his feet.
The path was rougher here, the walls and ceiling far less refined than the upper levels, and he stumbled often. It grew more and more tiring, just walking. He stopped for a minute, resting against the wall and felt the fatigue in his legs. Even Tam's tail lay limp between his legs, and he walked with his head hung low.
'Hornsbuck,' Mika called. 'Let us stop for the night. I am weary and would rest.'
'Pah!' spat Hornsbuck. 'You young pups have no endurance. Why, I could walk for many an hour more and never even feel it!' But Mika noticed that he did not argue the point further but set up camp in a matter of moments.
Camp was a rude affair with the roan tethered on one side and the wolves resting on the other. They ate their meat cold and raw and washed it down with water.
Mika lowered the princess to the ground, although Hornsbuck thought it a waste of time, and arranged her neatly along the wall, wiping her hands, wrists, and face with a dampened square of silk, ripped once again from the bottom of her dress.
The closer they got to their destination, the more Mika imagined what she might be like if she wakened.
'I've taken care of her well, under the circumstances,' Mika assured himself, under his breath. 'After all, what do I know about taking care of princesses? It's not like I asked for the job! That damn fool giant went and got himself killed; it's all his fault!'
Tam's dark eyes reflected laughter in the light of the torches, and after a moment, Mika grinned too. Then, lying down on the cold earth, he closed his eyes and slept.
Chapter 19
Something wakened Mika, although he was not sure what. A soft sound perhaps, a whisper of movement, or maybe just intuition. Whatever it was, it caused the short hairs on the back of his neck to rise up in prickles.
He lay there in the dark, for the torch had gone out while they slept. He strained against the darkness, trying to see, but it was hopeless; the dark was impenetrable.
Then it came, the softest sibilance of movement, yet he could not tell where it was coming from. Off to his left, or maybe even behind him.
His hand inched toward his sword, and he hoped that Hornsbuck was awake, too. Yet he could not call out to his comrade without letting whatever was lurking know he was awake…
He closed his hand round the handle of his sword, the metal cold and reassuring, but now there was no sound, no hint that he was not alone. Doubt swept over him and he wondered if he had been mistaken.
Perhaps it had been but a dream. Perhaps, it had been… Pain, excruciating pain, pierced his ankle like two red hot pincers, and shot up his leg, twisting and coursing through his body like fire through dry tinder.
Mika screamed aloud, all thought of silence abandoned as the agony continued to chew its way through his ankle. Lifting his sword, he slashed down at the unseen assailant, once, twice, three times, feeling his blade cut through little or nothing.
Light flooded the tunnel and a rough hand covered his mouth, choking off his screams. Mika thrashed about wildly, fighting the hand, and raised his sword to strike.
'Don't be barmy,' Hornsbuck whispered harshly. 'What's the matter with you? Are you tryin' to call every monster in the place down on us? Quit your noise!'
'My ankle! My ankle!' Mika gasped, doubling over and gripping his booted ankle with both hands, his sword
