‘Where have you been?’ she asked as he came to sit beside her. She tried not to notice how close he was, and as his leg brushed against hers, she desperately tried not to focus on the fact that the last time she’d seen Jack he’d kissed her.
‘Sorry, it took me forever to find the Unfaih scouts. It probably would have helped if Rhyn had warned me they were up in the trees.’
‘But you found them?’ she said.
‘Yeah,’ he replied. ‘There were two of them, and neither seemed happy that the Captain had tricked them with the celebration.’
‘Have they gone to warn Rhyn?’
‘I assume so,’ he said. ‘I’d barely gotten a few sentences out before they were disappearing into the woods. How is our bug going?’
She followed his gaze down to the receiver in her hands. The Captain’s voice was still coming out of it, but he was yet to offer up some concrete information they could use against him.
‘Well, it’s working,’ she said. ‘I haven’t heard anything important yet, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.’
Jack sighed and looked up at the canvas ceiling overhead. ‘We don’t have a lot of time,’ he replied.
‘Yeah, I know,’ she agreed.
They both fell silent, their eyes focused on the receiver as they listened in on the Captain’s conversation. The men were talking about the number of Unfaih warriors at the rift, and listening to them speaking so indifferently about Rhyn’s people made Rowe feel a little sick.
‘Those aerials we took coming in to land show their force is small. If we attack now, we can easily overcome such numbers,’ said the other new arrival.
‘But that’s not their full numbers,’ Ash argued. ‘I saw at least triple that number when I confronted them the other day. Who knows how many more there are waiting on the other side of that rift they guard.’
‘That’s even more reason why we should not be too hasty,’ Denton protested again.
Rowe let out a sigh, they still weren’t giving her anything she could work with, and Jack was right; they were running out of time.
‘Our plan is solid, and it’s going to work,’ Ash continued. ‘Once they see the number of soldiers we are sending towards them, they will have no choice but to bring all their fighters to this side of the rift.’
‘How do you know they’ll catch sight of our troops before we get there?’ Denton asked.
‘They knew I was coming the last time and one of our men went missing in the woods this morning. They have scouts out there who will see our forces long before we reach the clearing.’
The colour drained from Rowe’s skin as she listened in, and she glanced at Jack to see if he was reacting a similar way. Ash sounded like he wanted to lure the Unfaih out, but she couldn’t understand why. Why would he want to fight more of the Unfaih if it could be avoided? Jack’s face was impassive, and his eyes were narrowed on the device in her hands. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but he certainly looked serious.
‘I have also seen the other side of the portal,’ Ash continued. ‘It is at the top of a cliff and would be difficult to defend. They will definitely wish to fight us on Aeris.’
Jack shook his head, his gaze still glued to the receiver. ‘Funny how he didn’t mention that the most pressing reason for keeping the fight in this world is that the Unfaih don’t want the humans anywhere near the Brakys,’ he muttered.
Rowe glanced at him and frowned. Jack was right. Her brother hadn’t mentioned the Brakys, and she wondered how much the two new arrivals really knew about their supposed enemy.
‘And that’s your plan?’ Denton asked. ‘It sounds like it will be a bloodbath.’
‘It will be,’ the Captain spoke up. ‘But not for our side. Ash has made sure of that.’
‘So long as our men wait to enter the clearing until after sunrise we shall win.’ Ash confirmed.
Rowe clenched the receiver tightly at his words. What had her brother planned and why was he waiting until after sunrise to attack? She wanted to yell at the receiver to give her the answers, and she could feel Jack becoming tenser at her side.
‘What do they have planned?’ she murmured to him.
Jack didn’t respond, and his gaze was still narrowed on the receiver. He looked like he was holding his breath as he waited for Ash to go on. None of the other men had spoken either, as they too waited for her brother to continue. Rowe felt her hands grip the receiver so tightly she was worried it might crack.
‘When I went to the rift, I was able to plant a bomb,’ Ash finally spoke. ‘I pushed it into the dirt when they made me drop my gun. It’s small enough that it won’t be seen but powerful enough to do serious damage. It’s programmed to go off at sunrise, and anyone in the clearing when it does won’t survive.’
Rowe’s body went cold, and she felt icy tingles creeping up her spine as tears welled in her eyes. ‘A bomb?’ she asked, her voice quivering as it came out.
She couldn’t listen anymore, and she tossed the receiver away from her. ‘They have a bomb planted in the clearing,’ she said, turning to Jack as panic began to grip her heart.
His eyes were just as wide as hers, and he opened and closed his mouth several times as he tried to come up with a response. Instead of replying, he started moving. He darted to the bag at the end of his bedroll and threw it over his shoulder before turning and offering out a hand to Rowe.
‘We have to warn them,’ he said.
Rowe didn’t think twice as she grabbed his hand and allowed him to tug her from the tent. Once they were outside, Jack dropped her hand, and the two of them started racing between the tents towards the trees that lined the camp.
‘Are we going to the Unfaih scouts?’ she asked, allowing Jack to take the lead.
‘I don’t know if there are others,’ he responded. ‘And even if there are, we don’t have time to waste trying to find them. Sunrise isn’t far off, and the Captain will have to mobilise his soldiers soon if they want their plan to succeed.’
Rowe’s stomach plummeted, and realisation seemed to wash over her. They were the only ones who could warn Rhyn’s people, and if they didn’t get to the Unfaih in time, they were all going to die.
‘Can you find the rift in the dark?’
‘Yeah,’ Jack replied. ‘I may not have Sloane’s insane tracking skills, but I’ve been there enough times now. I can remember the way.’
Rowe nodded and fell silent as they continued towards the trees. Jack had spent his time in the camp well. He seemed to know where every lookout point was and they didn’t encounter anyone as they escaped the human settlement. They reached the edge of the camp with ease and disappeared into the woods.
It didn’t take long for the sounds of celebration to fade into the distance, and it became eerily silent as they made their way deeper into the woods of Aeris. Rowe pushed down shivers as she tried to ignore the unnerving silence that permeated the air.
They ran through the woods faster than Rowe had ever run before. She felt fitter after their journey into Ellysia, but not nearly fit enough to keep up with Jack who bounded through the trees with ease. She could tell he was holding back to allow her to keep up.
‘You should go on without me,’ she said, through puffed breaths, after they had been running for about twenty minutes. ‘You’ll reach the Unfaih much quicker. I’m only slowing you down.’
‘I’m not leaving you behind,’ Jack responded with absolute certainty in his voice. He wouldn’t even consider it. ‘Besides, we still have time. The soldiers haven’t left the camp yet. We will make it to the rift together.’
He slowed his pace until he came to a stop. ‘We should rest for a few minutes.’
‘No, we have to keep going,’ she said, pushing past him.
‘Rowe,’ he protested. ‘You’re not going to make it if you keep pushing yourself.’
‘I’m fine, seriously.’
‘You always say you’re fine. You rarely are,’ Jack replied.
&
nbsp; ‘Well, I am this time,’ she said. ‘I might not be able to keep running, but I’m not going to rest until we get there. I—’
Jack grabbed her arm and yanked her to a stop. ‘Don’t take another step,’ he murmured. His words were hurried, and his voice was deadly serious.
Shivers ran down Rowe’s spine as she turned her head slightly towards him. ‘What is it?’ she asked, keeping her feet cemented to the spot.
‘There’s a trap,’ he said.
‘What?’ Her gaze darted downwards, and she searched the ground nervously. All she could see was grass and dirt though. It was dark beneath the trees at night, and she had no idea how Jack could have spotted anything.
‘I can’t see the trigger,’ he said, pointing past her up into the trees. ‘But there are arrows up there that are aimed right at us.’
She followed his outstretched arm and scanned the trees until the glint of metal caught her eyes.
‘Give me a second while I try to figure this out,’ he said.
Rowe didn’t respond and stood completely frozen, not daring to move an inch. Jack didn’t move from where he was standing either, but his eyes were frantically darting across the ground as he looked for the trigger. She wanted to help, but she had no idea what to look for, and she was too scared to move a muscle.
‘Do you think it was the Unfaih?’ she asked.
‘Probably,’ he replied, sounding distracted. ‘It’s a smart way to slow an army down—that’s for sure.’
Rowe fell silent again, allowing Jack to concentrate. It looked like there were four arrows pointed in their direction, and she really didn’t want to end up as their target.
‘There!’ Jack said, pointing several feet to the left of them. Rowe squinted as she tried to see what Jack was looking at. All she could see was a slight rise in the ground that kind of looked like a tree root. But as she stared at it more closely, she noticed how the root continued in a straight line towards the tree that the arrows were attached to.
‘Looks like they have some sort of rope camouflaged in there,’ Jack said.
‘Are you sure that’s it?’ Rowe asked.
‘I’m like ninety per cent sure.’
‘So there’s a ten per cent chance I’m about to die?’ Rowe’s voice sounded slightly hysteric.
‘No, there’s a ten per cent chance that the trigger is something else. We’ll be fine. Just watch where you’re going.’
Rowe didn’t find his attempt to reassure her at all comforting. She went to move, but couldn’t bring herself to step forwards. She knew she was safe in the spot she was standing. Sure, there were arrows pointed at her, but they weren’t flying through the air, and she knew they would stay there as long as she didn’t move.
‘Rowe, we have to keep going if we’re going to reach the rift in time.’
Rowe felt frozen in fear, but she slowly managed to nod her head. ‘You’re right,’ she agreed. Her voice came out quiet despite her attempts to sound confident. She was terrified of setting the arrows off, and she couldn’t stop looking at them.
‘Just walk forwards slowly, taking one step at a time. We’ll stop again when we get to the tree ahead.’
The next tree was about ten feet away, which felt impossibly far. But despite her fear, Rowe found herself nodding. She could make it to the tree. She had to if she wanted to save the Unfaih from the terrible fate that awaited them.
‘We’ll go on three. One … two … three…’
Rowe took a step forwards, allowing herself a breath of relief when nothing happened. She went to take another, but as she moved a snapping sound came from below her feet.
She started to look down, but Jack grabbed her around the waist and threw her to the ground. As they hit the hard earth, Rowe heard the unmistakable twang of the arrows firing overhead.
Rowe’s heart raced, but she seemed to be okay.
‘Are you hurt?’ Jack asked.
The question was barely out of his mouth when Rowe began to feel the ground shaking. The dirt cracked, and suddenly it started falling away beneath them. Jack didn’t hesitate as he grabbed her body tightly and rolled the two of them to the side. Moments later the ground they’d been pressed against collapsed into a hole filled with sharply pointed stakes.
Rowe lay millimetres from the opening, with Jack pressed tightly to her back. She was panting uncontrollably and no matter how much she tried to breathe normally, the panic she felt kept consuming her.
‘What is going on?’ she whimpered.
Jack didn’t answer. He leapt to his feet in one swift movement and pulled Rowe to hers. Her whole body was shaking as she stared at him, but there wasn’t an ounce of fear in his eyes.
‘I warned you I was only ninety per cent certain,’ he said, with a small, nervous laugh.
‘Are you really trying to make a joke right now? We were almost killed.’
‘But, we survived,’ he said, with a tight smile.
She didn’t feel as relaxed about the situation as Jack seemed to be. ‘We just set off two separate booby traps within a few feet of each other,’ she gasped. ‘The whole journey from here to the rift is probably filled with them. How are we going to get there?’
‘Very slowly and very cautiously,’ he replied.
Rowe’s eyes were wet with tears as she tried to process the shock and panic of what they’d just been through. And from the sounds of it, that was only the beginning.
‘I don’t have your reflexes,’ Rowe said. ‘And I don’t know what I’m looking for so I can avoid it.’
‘But I do,’ he replied. ‘I’ll go first, and I promise I’ll protect you. Now I’ve seen two of the Unfaih traps, I have a better idea of what to look for.’
Rowe still didn’t feel very reassured, but she took a deep breath and nodded at him. Jack had kept them both safe so far, and she trusted him to keep them safe until they reached the rift.
‘You can go back to the settlement if you’re worried,’ he said, looking deeply into her eyes. There was so much understanding and compassion in the way he looked at her, that she didn’t hesitate for a second.
‘No, you’ve never left me behind. I’m not abandoning you now. We can get through this maze of traps together.’
He smiled broadly at her and pulled her in close, hugging her tightly. ‘You’ve got more courage than you know,’ he whispered in her ear. ‘Sloane would be proud.’
One of the tears that had been welling in Rowe’s eyes slowly cascaded down her cheek, and she smiled. ‘Thanks, Jack,’ she murmured, before pulling back and looking at him. His gaze had turned serious, and he gave her a nod before he turned and carefully started to move onwards through the trees.
Rowe became more nervous with every step that she took. Their pace was slow and steady, but Jack had them constantly stopping and retracing their steps whenever he came across another trap. At first, it wasn’t a problem, but as they journeyed closer to the rift the traps became far more frequent, and they were barely making any progress at all. It was going to take them forever to reach the rift, but they couldn’t go any faster if they wanted to stay alive.
As the woods around them gradually began to lighten with the early signs of morning, Rowe had to face a hard truth. They were never going to reach the rift in time. That bomb was going off, and there was nothing they could do to stop it.
Chapter Twenty
Sloane and Kai were well into their second night of riding when they finally reached the base of the Unfaih cliffs. They had ridden without stopping since leaving Joran’s village, but Sloane couldn’t dismiss the feeling that they weren’t travelling fast enough.
Her heart seemed to pulse with an ever-increasing urgency to return to the rift, and Kai seemed to share her concern. Neither of them knew when the humans would attack, but they didn’t want to delay a moment in case they arrived a moment too late.
The lift seemed to take forever as it slowly crawled its way up the side of the cliff face. Clouds covered the night’s sky,
and there were no stars to light up the darkness. Sloane pushed down a shudder as she stared out at the black and empty void below them.
She felt a strange mixture of relief and uncertainty as they neared the village. She was glad to be back, but she had no idea what to expect when they finally returned to the rift, and she was nervous about telling Rhyn they had failed.
When they finally reached the top of the cliffs, they slowly made their way through the tunnel and towards the village square, leading their horses behind them. Neither Sloane nor Kai said a word as they walked along the frozen paths, and yet they both seemed to sense that something about the village was off.
Not a breath of wind could be heard as they entered the large and empty village square, and no plumes of smoke could be seen floating above the houses in the valley. Although it was night, Sloane couldn’t help but feel like the village had been abandoned.
‘Where is everyone?’ Sloane asked, her voice barely louder than a whisper. It felt odd to utter the words when the whole world around them seemed to be holding its breath.
Kai’s eyes narrowed as he stepped further into the square and glanced around at the frozen buildings that surrounded them. No lights emanated from within the frozen structures, and the whole village was cloaked in a darkness so thick it was smothering. The emptiness of the place made Sloane shiver uncomfortably.
‘They must have evacuated,’ Kai said, looking back at her. ‘Rhyn told me he would move everyone to the castellum when the battle neared.’
Sloane’s heart turned as cold as the world around her as Kai spoke. She knew that war was inevitable, especially as the Oblivion Stone they had travelled to obtain could not help them. But she had been hoping they still had time; that it wouldn’t happen so soon.
‘Here,’ Kai said, taking the reins of her horse from her unresponsive hands. He led the animals over to one of the buildings and tethered them to the entrance. ‘We’ll get to the rift faster without them.’
Sloane nodded, not confident enough to try and speak. Her mind and heart were both pulling in completely different directions. She didn’t want anything bad to happen to the Unfaih, but she didn’t want the humans to get hurt either. Now that the battle had arrived, she wasn’t sure how she could pick a side.
The Oblivion Stone (The Liftsal Guardians Book 3) Page 20