by T K Foster
Grarrt had always considered Briar a good friend, so even though they had not seen each other for many days his offer to help was indeed sincere, and it was that same sincerity which would prove him to be a most valuable ally.
The five companions moved quietly from the shadows of the corn stalks to the shadows of the hill, all the while blending in with as many other shadows as they could find along the way.
Somewhere in the darkness an animal bleated.
Grarrt led a trail to a particular outcrop where what had looked like a cave from a distance was in fact a cave up close, taking the shape of a simple doorway; beyond its stone threshold the air was black, but warm, and it was awfully quiet.
“It’s awfully quiet isn’t it?” Rod whispered.
Cetra nodded.
“Thisisthebackentwencetothecews,” Grarrt drawled before plunging into the blackness.
Barret turned and shrugged his shoulders.
Briar made to translate but was cut short by Cetra’s excitement.
“I think I know,” she said, “This is the back entrance to the cells, yes?”
“Yes,” Briar affirmed quietly.
“Tally-ho lass,” Rod cheered softly and patted her shoulder.
In they dived, engulfed in ebon, trailing behind Grarrt who led the way. They trod lightly along a declining corridor, each step bringing them closer to pale light emanating beyond shadowed corners and distant doorways. No Humps were encountered, but they ducked and weaved all the same, because Grarrt was excited, and he did so with enthusiasm.
Surprisingly, Billy was easy to find.
“Hewiwbeondispwayinthemainhaw,” Grarrt had abstrusely, yet very accurately informed them all while somewhere deep inside the semi-lit labyrinth.
He motioned for them to stop and crouch down behind a half-wall. The corridor they had come along finished there and branched off both ways, circling around a large cavern opened up by many doorways and more half-walls. This corridor was not directly lit up, but the cavern was; and they remained together in the shadow of the wall.
“Thisisthemainhaw,” Grarrt whispered.
“This is the main hall,” Briar whispered.
Opposite them, across the hall and silhouetted like shadow puppets inside the windowed gap of a half-wall, were two Humps; guards according to Briar’s translation of Grarrt’s drawl. To their left and about three quarters around the cavern’s interior wall near to the guards’ position was a dais.
Billy sat on that dais, cross legged and against the wall, with his chin resting in his hands and his elbows supported on his knees. Both his feet were shackled and chained to one of several metal rings embedded in the stone, and he wore nothing more than red underpants, a pair of white socks, and a defeated look upon his face.
Cetra giggled softly behind her hand.
“Poor Billy,” she whispered.
“Poor Billy’s right,” Barret affirmed, “Poor Billy’s chained to a wall. How are we supposed to get him out of that?”
From behind Briar came a quiet sucking noise, the result of which was a key, produced from between two overlapping folds of skin on Grarrt’s side.
Barret grimaced at the key offered in his direction before gingerly accepting it between his thumb and forefinger.
“What are you, a guard too?” he said.
“No,” Grarrt answered.
“So you just happen to have the key for those very chains, huh?”
“Yes.”
“Why?” Barret cocked his head to the side, “Sounds fishy to me.”
“Itsmine....” Grarrt answered slowly as if confused. He looked at Briar who in turn looked at Barret.
Truth be told, Humps being the simple creatures they are, where as they were in charge and unchallenged and no one need question that else they desire the humiliation of being stripped to their bare essentials and then some, the incredibly elaborate idea of multiple locking systems in conjunction with the even more absurd notion of a separate key for every lock was just too darn confusing and utterly pointless. Upon the assumption that all Humps were true and honest with one another, one lock one key was sufficient.
“What do we do about the guards then?” Barret continued.
“Iwiwdistwactthem,” Grarrt said.
Ok, they were deep inside the belly of a Hump stronghold – lost in there really – and being led by a dwarf Hump with a lisp, intent on freeing the imprisoned boy sitting almost starkers and chained to a stone platform. Success was questionable.
All the same, there was urgency to the matter, excitement in the face of danger, anger toward the humiliation of their young friend, but a delicious and hearty welcome to the challenge that had been set before them. Fear was absent, and yet, failure seemed imminent.
Grarrt moved away and blended in amongst the shadows to their right.
They waited....
....and waited.... and for a fleeting moment they felt as though they had been abandoned.
But then the small shadow appeared in the opposite doorway next to where the guards stood, and it demanded their attention.
Barret took his cue. He circled round to the left, Briar in tow, with Cetra and rod holding the rear. They trod lightly and cautiously through the shadows, glancing in the direction of the guards who appeared to have suddenly gone out of view.
Billy was close.
Billy yawned and rubbed his eyes. He rattled his chains. He stared at nothing and popped his lips.
Barret approached on Billy’s right hand side, pausing at the doorway next to the dais. He held the others back with a raised arm and assessed the floor. The guards had gone. Where? Who knew? Now was the time.
They entered the hall and Billy spotted them immediately, his excitement quietly evident. He got to his feet slowly as they gathered round him. Without a word Barret took the greasy key and unlocked the shackles from Billy’s ankles, taking great care to hold them against clanging onto the stone floor.
Easy.
Too easy...?
Cetra smiled at Billy and slowly averted her gaze.
“We should find his clothes,” she whispered.
Billy blushed.
“Stuff the clothes,” Barret whispered back roughly, “Let’s just get out of here.”
“Yes indeed young comrades,” Rod said excitedly, and believing he finally had something of significance to contribute he added, “I can remember from which way we came.”
“I believe you,” Barret said and lifting a hand to welcome the mouse to the front of the line. For who would question a mouse when it came to seeking direction inside a darkened labyrinth.
Rod perched himself atop Cetra’s right shoulder, favoured for its leading position to which compensation was made toward the awkwardness of her two left feet, and directed his valiant party thus:
Back around the curve of the hall, right at the gloomy corridor they had entered from, past the doorways and shadowed corners emanating pale light, toward a long incline from which they were certain they could see the night sky through a far away opening, their path to freedom, where stars shone and bleating animals bleated.
It was all too easy still.
It was all too good to be true.
So when all of a sudden, just like an eclipse, whence the night sky was blotted from their vision and a tremendous thumping was heard from the path ahead, initial surprise was quickly replaced by a previous anticipation of dreadful events as a mass of shadowed Humps approached and engulfed them in a sea of sweaty black Humpness. There was no time given to hesitation and no time given to thought, they were simply snatched up and whisked down the corridor, back toward the cells where they were all dumped onto a gritty stone floor and locked away.
A few hands later, and after all the metaphorical dust had settled, Barret stood up and shook himself off.
“So that worked!” he said with a large helping of sarcasm.
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR