Carack

Carack Ch 5 p2

‘Sancret Master Hugh, why he be a warlock so I do hear and good one and all. I expects as how he’d help you. Folks round Whimpleton do say as how he be in Widnbrea, so he must be some powerful.’

‘Thee means the castle from the mist? Tis but an old wives tale Wampa, thee’ll tell me next thou hast seen a bucca!’ scorned N’zar.

‘It is true, Master ‘zar, it is I tell you, and that’s where Master Hugh should go.’

‘Well?’ Cam asked N’zar.

‘In want of any better suggestion I agree to get as far as Whimpleton, but after that I care not where the boy goes. There ist no proof this warlock of Wampa’s exists, methinks he is a myth along with the buccas. It is my intention to seek revenge on Madron, for it is clear now that he dist destroy N’zim, and also because it is certain that he shouldst not be allowed to rule and ruin the people our homeland further.’

‘N’zar, how do you expect to achieve that on your own?’ asked Cam sighing.

‘Thou wilt not follow me?’

‘You know I would, to the ends of the planet, my friend, but going to the Warlock might not be such a bad idea. He could not be worse than the one we have just escaped from, for that is what I fear Madron is. Hark! Dogs!’ Cam broke off, looking back up the way they had come.

They then all heard the sound of barking on the hillside above them, heading in their direction. Ithout prompting they all jumped to their feet and began to run.A tired Gerent slipping, tripping and sliding as he plunged downward. Quite soon Cam shot off into the trees to their left and then Wampa went to the right, N’zar pulled Gerentwith him and they ran downward for a while more before they also started to lay a false trail to slow the tracker dogs, by crossing and re-crossing their own path. After what seemed an age to Gerent, when he felt his lungs would burst or his legs fall off, he could see between the trees in front that the ground was levelling out into green fields. They had reached the bottom of the hill. N’zar splashed into a small shallow river that bordered the wood and divided it from the field pulling Gerent in with him.

‘Run thee up this river,’ N’zar said pointing up stream, ‘ I shalt be crossing it in several places alongside thee, to confuse the dogs, so have a care thou dost not try to betray us. I shalt be watching thee.’

‘I won’t do anything to help them N’zar.’ said Gerent. But N’zar did not look like he believed this, he gave Gerent a shove to get him moving. Gerent’s anger rose but he did not retort, he felt that this was not the time to quarrel. So he started off up stream as fast as he could, realising that evading the dogs was more important at this moment in time than a stand up argument with N’zar. He stumbled up the watercourse and was soon climbing up the slope of the hill once more, under the trees, when he reached the point where the stream emerged from the hill side and there was no more brook to follow he sat down to wait for N’zar. He looked at his sandals, which were now just sodden pieces of leather, he did not expect them to last long after their soaking in the river. Gerent regretted that he had not put on his trainers, or some other stronger foot ware to go to warn N’zar, but he had not realised at the time that he would be fleeing for his life a few moments after leaving the castle.

‘Come on!’ came N’zar’s voice from above him, ‘thou hast no time to rest!’ Gerent sighed and got up, his sandals slipping around over his wet feetas he climbed up the wooded hillside with N’zar just ahead of him.

Hunger and tiredness were nagging at Gerent but as he was determined not to been seen by N’zar as trying to slow them down he pressed on, pushing his pains into the back of his mind. After a while of climbing diagonally across the face of the steep hill, Gerent could hear the roaring sound of water falling and then they emerged from the trees onto a small rock plateau. There a stream roared out from side of the hill and plunged into a boiling cauldron in a stony gully about below six meters below. It then went on in rapids down and out onto the green plain Gerent had reached earlier.

‘Hither must we wait for Cam and Wampa,’ said N’zar, ‘keep thou out of sight under yon trees.’ Gerent would have been glad to sit in the sun for a while, but was happy to be resting anywhere, and so he went and sat under the shade of a large ash tree that overhung the rock.

‘Do you still think I’d let Madron know where we are?’ he asked N’zar who was keeping a look out.

‘I dost not know thee, or what thee would do. It has been the people that I do know who have done that which I did not expect. Therefore I cannot afford to trust thee. Wampa and Cam I have known from my boyhood, Cam is loyal and Wampa knows when he is better off, but thou, I am prepared for thou to betray us.’

‘I wish you would trust me, I -’

‘Thou forgets that I didst see thee with Madron and Morvah. Tis impossible that any couldst believe thou wert not on their side after the way thou wert fawning over them. Enough! Tis not the time or place to be bandying words. Silence!’ N’zar crouched as he heard the sound of someone approaching through the undergrowth. Cam appeared on the edge of the rock and clasping hands with N’zar, he nodded to Gerent then crouched, catching his breath as they waited for Wampa. Soon he puffed his way onto the plateau and the four of them were all together on the edge of the waterfall. Saying nothing Cam and Wampa each made a bundle out of their cloaks.

‘I’ll go first Master ‘zar,’ said Wampa and he splashed through the stream and disappeared into the undergrowth on the other side.

‘Go with Cam,’ N’zar instructed and Gerent rose to follow Cam who also splashed across the stream, following Wampa’s lead.