remaining two rowed. “Can you believe anyone escaping through a jakes?” the guard next to the one holding the lantern said with a laugh.
“I think I’d rather die than do that,” lantern holder replied.
“We should be getting close,” the other stated.
With the pack once more across his back, Bart returned his attention to the oncoming boat as he grew still in the water.
“This is a waste of time,” lantern holder stated. “Never heard of anyone living through one of Geffen’s fireballs.”
“I know what you mean,” agreed the other. “Once, I saw him take down a charging bull that had gone mad. All that was left were ashes.”
“Still, the body wasn’t found at the outflow,” lantern holder asserted.
Bart held his position as the boat went past. When they drew closer, he took a deep breath and submerged his head completely so as not to leave any chance of being seen. The boat passed not four feet from where he was hiding. Through the water, he watched as the light came abreast of him then continued past. Once it had moved sufficiently downstream, he brought his head slowly back out of the water.
“Told you so,” the guard was saying.
The boat came to a stop where the fireball had detonated. They were taking a look at the charred walls of the waterway. “No way he lived through that,” one of the rowers commented.
“We better still check all the way to the end,” lantern holder told the others. “With any luck we’ll find something to take back and show the captain.”
Bart reached up to the ledge once again to steady himself. His fingers had begun to grow stiff and sore from where he had been holding on to a very narrow crack in the wall below the waterline to prevent being carried away.
Squeak!
His fingers had encountered a furry body that squealed and scurried down the ledge. Glancing back to the boat, he saw the guards hadn’t paid any attention to the noise of the rodent, and had continued on their way. Bart resumed his journey to find a way out.
He was able to see by the light from the guard’s lantern until they passed around one of the numerous curves in the waterway and disappeared. After that he again pulled forth the Cloak from his pack and used its light to find the way.
Once the Cloak was again secured around his arm, he followed the ledge upon which the rats traveled. The ledge came to a small opening, one much too small for him to pass. Inside the opening, the glow of the Cloak was being reflected off of many small pairs of eyes. With his hopes at escaping through that avenue dashed, Bart continued on.
The ledge extended for another four feet past the rat filled opening before coming to an end. His only hope now was to find the way the guards had used to enter and get out before they returned. Pushing away from the wall, he began swimming once more. Putting everything he had into it, he moved quickly through the waterway.
After only a few minutes of swimming, he heard voices coming from up ahead. He slowed his progress dramatically and slowly inched his way forward. Just up ahead was another sharp turn of the waterway. As he continued forward, the voices grew louder.
“…all the excitement,” a female voice was saying.
“The whole castle is being turned upside down to find the intruder’s accomplices,” said a male voice.
Out of the darkness the voices came. Bart returned the Cloak to his pack in order to conceal the glow. As soon as the pack was closed, he was plunged into absolute darkness.
“I’m glad we could have this time together,” the woman said.
“I’ll be leaving with the others in a couple weeks,” the man said.
“Do you have to go?” asked the woman.
“Yes my love,” he replied. “When he leaves, I must go with him.”
“But…” began the woman.
“Shhh,” the man said. “At least we have now.”
Bart still couldn’t see anyone around. When the talking stopped and the sound of kissing commenced, he knew that whoever the couple were, they had nothing to do with the search for him. Still, caution was ever a hallmark of a good thief and so he left the Cloak in his pack and continued forward in the dark.
The sound of the couple steadily grew louder, then it leveled off for a moment. Bart moved along slowly as he tried to ascertain where they were. Then, he heard them beginning to talk once more and the sound was now coming from behind him. That’s when he realized their voices were coming down one of the jakes-shafts. They must have rendezvoused in one of the jakes above.
Relieved that they weren’t down here with him, Bart opened his pack to retrieve his Cloak. Only, the spell which had caused it to glow had run its course. The Cloak no longer glowed. Closing the pack once again, he slung it across his back and continued swimming down the river. He was disappointed that he no longer had the light with which to see, but at the same time, was glad. Should the situation warrant it, he could now use the Cloak without fear of being betrayed by the glow.
He kept to the right wall and felt along its length as he sought a way out. It was slower than all out swimming, but at the same time he didn’t want to miss a possible exit.
Foot by foot he continued. In the back of his mind was the knowledge that at any time the four guards who had passed him earlier would be returning. He needed to find the way out and fast.
It was during a short pause as he gave his arms a brief break that he noticed the faintest freshening of the air. He had grown so used to the smell of the place that the influx of fresh air was made all the more noticeable. As he tried to determine its source, he detected a faint breeze.
Yes! he silently exclaimed. Where there was a breeze, there was a way out! It seemed to be coming from above him. That subdued his elation somewhat. The breeze could very well be coming down one of the jakes- shafts. But then, it wouldn’t be fresh now would it? If only he had some light so he could be sure.
Raising his hand high, he tried to determine exactly where the breeze was originating from. A moment later he concluded that it was coming down the side of the wall above him. The opening through which it was blowing must be on this side of the waterway. He quickly made the decision that he had to discover if it was a possible way out. Reaching his hand up the wall as far as he could, he failed to encounter any opening that could be the source of the breeze. Wherever it was, it was too far above his head to effectively reach. He quickly realized he’d have to climb to reach it.
From the time he’d spent moving along the waterway, he knew the walls were riddled with cracks both large and small. And the wall before him was no exception. Moving his hand along the wall’s surface, he encountered several cracks which would suffice. Deciding to go for it, he glanced back down the waterway in the direction from which the guards would be returning. Their lantern’s light was not visible. With any luck they’ll not return any time soon.
Reaching out, he took hold of the first crack and then moved the toe of his boot into another. Pulling his upper torso out of the water, he found another toehold for his other foot. Then he reached up and found another crack, pulling himself still further from the water.
The breeze was more discernible now, a good indication it wasn’t too far above him. Once he had a good firm handhold, he would move one of his feet to find a secure toehold. Step by step, he inched his way up the wall.
Then all of a sudden, his hand touched the rocky ceiling above him. The breeze was blowing swifter now, and a moment’s search found its source, a jagged hole in the ceiling roughly two feet by three. It was two feet out from the wall and wide enough for him to pass through, but just barely.
While he held himself onto the wall with one hand, he felt around the inner sides of the opening with the other. There was water dripping through and in places he encountered patches of algae. Despite the slickness of the algae, the interior was uneven enough to allow him to attain a secure handhold and pull himself into it. He glanced back toward where the guards had gone and could now see a dim light being reflected off the walls of the channel. They were returning.
He had no way of knowing if the hole would continue to be large enough for him to pass. But as the guard’s light steadily drew closer, he didn’t have many other options. Deciding to take the chance, he reached out to the
