Delver Magic Book III: Balance of Fate
Page 56
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“It’s got to be around noon,” Ryson said as he inspected the light coming through the cave and calculated the time in his head. “Sy’s forces should already be advancing on the city. They’re going to hit tonight.”
Holli reviewed one of the maps given to them by the dwarves. She looked down one tunnel that led to the east and then up another that followed directly under Connel toward its center.
“Those that will be evacuating will be coming down this tunnel and they will have to turn here. This will send them to the east. According to the map, this tunnel goes due east right to the exit point. Once they’re moving in this direction, they can’t get lost and will have no problem getting out. That makes things much easier. We just have to make sure they make this turn.”
Ryson looked about the rock walls that made up these elaborate caves. He pulled the Sword of Decree and pressed its point into the stone. On the opening to the eastern passageway, he wrote the words ‘Exit this Way, Go to End!’ and an arrow pointing in the proper direction. On the wall that led back toward Dunop he carved ‘Do Not Enter, Danger!’ The sword left deep etchings that were clear for everyone to read.
Holli grabbed several stones and with them created a large arrow on the stone floor off to the side that pointed in the right direction. “Yours is better, but another sign won’t hurt. It will also probably get scattered as more travel this way, but once we get the people moving in the right direction, they will simply follow each other.”
Looking back toward Connel, Holli considered the task ahead of them. She then took another glance at the map that revealed the locations of hidden entrance points into Connel. “Assuming the humans never discovered these two passages, I would suggest that Ryson take this one and Lief, you take that one.”
She pointed to the two corridors as Lief and Ryson stood by her side. “Ryson, yours should come up several blocks northwest of the city center and Lief’s will provide access more to the southeast. You will be several blocks apart and can thus cover more of the city. If you both move clockwise for a half circle and then turn inward and move counterclockwise you will not end up covering the same ground.”
“Works for me,” Ryson agreed.
“I will be waiting for them very near these passageways,” Holli continued. “I will move back and forth to each as fast as I can. Tell the first few that you send to wait for my instructions once they are inside the tunnels. After that, simply tell the rest to follow those that have gone down before them. We should be able to create a constant flow. That will, in fact, be the only way we can get most of the people out by sunrise anyway. May I suggest that you take care in the first people you contact. It is important that they are capable and of strong will. I will most likely choose several of the more competent to assist in offering instructions to those that start moving down the tunnels. If any show panic up on the streets, do not approach them until much later. We can’t afford panic in the tunnels, especially in the beginning.”
“What of those that do not wish to leave?” Lief asked
“Move on and let them stay where they are,” Holli responded firmly.
Ryson was about to argue and Holli sensed it before he spoke a word. “Ryson, we don’t have time to try and convince these people what is best for them. By doing that, you risk the lives of others that are willing to leave. It is not fair to them. If there is time, we can return later, but we deal with that situation after we get as many as we can to safety.”
Ryson didn’t like how that sounded, but deep in his heart, he knew she was right.
“Once the evacuation is progressing and I am confident in the people I have assisting in the tunnels, I will also come to the surface. I will use this passage.” She pointed to a spot at the center of the map. “While you two work inward, I can work from the center out. When we meet, we can then move to points closer to the outer edges of the city. This will be the most dangerous areas and at that point we should move together.”
Ryson heaved a heavy sigh. “I guess that covers everything. We should probably start moving to our positions under the city. We’ll have to separate and be ready to surface when we hear Sy attack the outskirts of the city.”