Quest for the Sun Gem (16 page)

The four children set to work, cloth torn from Roana’s old petticoats bound around their hands to protect their skin from the rough rocks. Aisha bounded around excitedly at first but soon gave up and flopped on the beach, her tongue hanging out.

The pile of rocks seemed never-ending. They toiled for hours, until their fingertips were raw and bleeding. Sweat and rain dripped down their foreheads into their eyes, and ran relentlessly down the back of their necks. Their shoulders ached and everyone felt that they just couldn’t go on.

‘Just one rock at a time, just one rock at a time,’
muttered Roana as an endless mantra in her head, determined not to give in before the others.

At last they had cleared away a huge pile of smaller rocks and dirt but there was no sign of a cave – just a huge boulder wedged into the cliffside. Using a sharp-edged stone, Saxon chipped a deep hole into the crumbling earth at the side of the boulder, then wedged in the end of a large branch torn from the upturned tree. Using the branch as a lever, Saxon gently wriggled the boulder free from its earthen prison. He worked methodically and slowly, driving the end of the branch a little deeper behind the rock each time, and gently loosening it. At last, with a powerful surge, using all his and Ethan’s weight, the massive boulder broke free and tumbled down the beach with a huge crash.

They all froze at the unexpected noise. Aisha leapt to her feet, barking ferociously, the fur along her back standing on end.

‘Shhh, girl,’ hissed Lily, running her hands down Aisha’s spine to quieten her.

The boulder had left a gaping black hole in the cliff. Saxon peered into it, cautiously hunching his broad shoulders to squeeze through the gap.

He waved to the others to come closer.

‘I think this is it! We’ve done it,’ he exclaimed
joyfully. One at a time they peered through the hole. There was nothing to see except a deep blackness which seemed to stretch back under the cliff for some way, opening to a deeper blackness a short distance away.

Despite their aching muscles and exhausted limbs they jiggled with excitement, thumping each other on the back and hugging.

‘I think we deserve a little rest, and maybe something to eat before we tackle the next challenge,’ grinned Lily, her teeth gleaming white out of the darkness of her filthy face.

‘At least now we can get out of this interminable rain,’ shivered Roana.

One by one they climbed through the aperture and down into the wider crevice beyond. Ethan struck the tinderbox to light the candle. The flame flickered and wavered, casting strange shadows on the rock walls. The deeper shadow at the back seemed to be a low tunnel leading back into the heart of the island.

Saxon held up the candle. In its flickering light they could see a stone archway. Carved in its center was a sun, its stylised rays flaming out in a circle. Roana stretched up to trace the sun with her fingertips.

‘This must be it,’ whispered Roana, her blue eyes shining with excitement. ‘All we need to do now is to follow the secret tunnel all the way up into the palace.’

‘Let’s see if we can build a fire in here, so we can dry off, warm up and have a rest,’ Ethan suggested. ‘I don’t think anyone would see it from outside on this wild night.’

‘Some of the branches under that old fallen tree might not be too wet,’ Saxon agreed.

With renewed vigour, they gathered some twigs and branches and built a fire. It took a few attempts with the tinderbox but eventually they had a small, smoky fire to huddle around inside the cave entrance.

They unpacked some supplies from their packs – delicious crumbly cheese biscuits baked by Saira, and dried fruit, washed down with icy river water.

‘Thank goodness my feet are starting to thaw and my front is toasty warm. But my back is still freezing!’ complained Lily, wriggling even closer to the meagre flames. Small wisps of steam drifted up from their wet clothes.

After their meal they huddled down into their damp cloaks, trying to sleep. Gradually they started to dry off.

Saxon wriggled and squirmed, unable to get comfortable. He threw the last of the wood onto the fire. The flames flared up once more, but soon died away into a pile of smouldering embers.

‘It’s no use,’ he said. ‘I can’t sleep. There’s no more wood and maybe it would be warmer if we started moving. Besides, I just have to find out where the tunnel leads.’

Lily groaned and pulled her cloak over her head. ‘All right, Sax. If we must.’

Saxon leapt up and had a swig of cold river water from the water bottle. The others slowly clambered to their feet and followed suit.

In single file they crawled behind Saxon through the low opening of the tunnel, dragging their packs behind them. The rock fall had brought down the original tunnel roof, leaving only a narrow passageway. Aisha pushed past impatiently to take the lead. She alone did not need to crawl.

After long minutes of painstaking crawling, which scratched their bloodied hands and bruised their knees, the tunnel widened and was high enough to walk comfortably. They all stretched and rubbed their aching muscles.

‘We should be able to move along a bit faster now,’ said Ethan approvingly.

They strode out, happy to be able to stretch their legs, following the bobbing flame of Saxon’s candle as he led them gradually uphill. Weird shadows danced on all sides, looking like black hobgoblins and ghouls.

Suddenly Saxon stopped and Lily nearly knocked into him.

‘There’s a fork in the tunnel,’ Saxon hissed. He peered down each tunnel, holding the candle up high. One tunnel led to the left, meandering slightly downhill, while the tunnel to the right rose steeply straight ahead.

‘Which way should we go?’ asked Lily, frowning.

‘Upwards to the right,’ announced Roana emphatically. ‘The tunnel must climb up to the palace cellars.’

Aisha sniffed the dank air of the right tunnel. The fur on her back stood on end and she pointed straight with her nose, one paw lifted in anticipation. Then she bounded forward, streaking like a ruddy flame away into the darkness ahead.

Saxon nodded and set off up the steep path to the right, the others trudging behind him. Lily whistled shrilly, calling Aisha back to heel. A few minutes later, Aisha reappeared, her tail between her legs, ears down and eyes mournful. Lily fondled her silky
black ears then stroked the soft bundle of fur snuggled into her pocket. Charcoal stretched and purred then curled up to sleep again.

The children started to puff and pant as the path turned into a flight of steep narrow steps that twisted and turned.

‘What’s that smell?’ asked Lily, wrinkling her nose in disgust. A waft of a revolting stench reached the others, who suddenly stopped.

‘Ooooh. I’ve never smelt anything like it,’ said Roana, pinching her aristocratic nose with two long grubby fingers.

‘Smells a bit like Sax after a hard day chopping wood,’ laughed Ethan, nudging Saxon in the ribs.

‘Ha ha. And you smell just like your mother’s roses after mucking out the royal stables,’ retorted Saxon swiftly.

‘Actually, after all our rock moving and climbing, we probably all smell pretty bad,’ said Ethan, sniffing himself loudly and wrinkling his nose.

‘Well, whatever it is I suppose we had better keep going,’ grinned Lily. ‘And let’s hope it doesn’t get any worse. I suppose it’s something dead up there.’ She shuddered.

Aisha’s nose quivered with excitement, tasting the air as if she was a wine connoisseur.

‘Heel, Aisha,’ warned Ethan. ‘I know you. You’re probably just dying to go and roll in whatever disgusting mess there is up ahead.’

Aisha strained forward longingly but obediently trotted next to Ethan. Charcoal crawled out of Lily’s pocket and curled in her arms.

They kept climbing. The smell grew stronger and stronger until they had to cover their noses and mouths with cloth to keep from gagging. Water ran in rivulets down the walls and steps, forming tiny waterfalls and puddles. It was slippery and dangerous.

At last, the steps finished and the tunnel levelled out again. They sighed in relief at the break from climbing, and stopped for a breather.

A small black shadow scuttled up the wall. Then another and another. Saxon held up the candle.

The walls and ceiling of the tunnel ahead shimmered and rippled in the candlelight. Lily blinked in disbelief. Were her eyes playing tricks on her? Was she so tired she was seeing the very rock shiver?

Saxon stepped forward with a sickening crunch. Aisha lunged and barked madly, snapping at the walls.

Huge black and brown creatures scuttled up and down the walls, ceiling and floor of the tunnel, fleeing from the light.

‘Cockroaches,’ said Ethan in disgust. ‘Millions of them!’

‘I’ve never seen such enormous ones,’ groaned Lily, bile rising in her throat, her stomach twisting with nausea. ‘I
hate
cockroaches.’

‘I’ve never even seen such creatures before,’ shrieked Roana in panic. ‘What are they? Are they dangerous?’

‘No, not dangerous.’ said Ethan calmly. ‘Just disgusting. Well, nothing for it but to keep going, I guess.’

Saxon stepped forward with another sickening crunch of cracking shells. Cockroaches fled from their approach.

One fell from the ceiling into Roana’s hair. She screamed loudly, clawing at her spiky short hair with both hands. Lily reached up and quickly brushed it out of her hair.

A huge black cockroach scrambled up Lily’s leg, tangling itself in her skirts. She squealed, slapping at her legs. It was quickly followed by another, then another.

Charcoal spat and hissed, her black fur standing on end, her white patches gleaming in the darkness. Aisha barked madly, the loud screams and barks echoing up and down the tunnel.

Let’s get out of here,’ screamed Lily furiously. ‘Run!’

No-one hesitated. Saxon led the charge up the tunnel, the candle bobbing and spluttering as he ran, hot wax flying. Their feet slipped and slid on the treacherous floor of slimy crushed insect carcasses.

A few minutes later, they burst out of the tunnel into an enormous cave. A terrible stench hit them like a hot slap in the face. It was much, much worse than in the tunnel, making their eyes water and their stomachs heave, even through the cloth wound tightly around their faces.

The candlelight cast a weak circle of light around them. They stopped. Aisha stood completely still, every hair on her body raised in alarm.

‘I think we need some more light in here,’ said Ethan weakly, his eyes straining uselessly through the gloom. He fumbled in his pack and pulled out some more candles. He lit these from Saxon’s candle, his hands trembling, making the flames wobble.

All four friends held up a candle into the deep blackness of that enormous cave. In the middle of the cave, looming high over their heads, was a gigantic mountain of rubbish. Rotten vegetables, broken furniture, smashed crates, rags, dead animals, bottles, torn paper, offal and sodden filth rose in a towering pile of putrid garbage.

The four children stared in disbelief and horror. In a moment their eyes adjusted to the light and they saw something worse. Something much worse.

The mountain was moving. The mountain was heaving. Rats! Thousands of rats scurried, scuttled and climbed, snuffling at rotting vegetables and tearing at offal.

Then they stopped. With one movement the mountain of rats turned and stared at the unexpected intruders. For a long moment the rats stared at the children and the children stared at the rats, seeing thousands of red eyes glaring through the dimness.

A bitter metal taste swamped Lily’s mouth. She thought she was going to vomit.

Roana moaned and stumbled, clutching onto Lily for support.

Then the rats started to run. Moving as one, thousands of rats ran rustling through the rubbish, straight towards the four children cowering at the tunnel entrance, like a torrent of flood water rushing through a sewer pipe.

Aisha streaked silently towards the onslaught. Snapping rats in her sharp teeth, she shook them fiercely with a loud crack, then tossed the limp bodies aside. Rats ran over her, swamped her, nipped her with their needle-sharp yellow teeth. And still they came swarming towards the children.

Roana screamed, dropping her candle. It rolled in the rubbish, spluttered and went out, smoke spiralling ominously in the dense air. The darkness deepened even more intensely than before.

‘Quick,’ cried Ethan. ‘We’ve got to go back.’

‘Aisha,’ screamed Lily. ‘Come here!’ She ran towards Aisha, whistling and clapping her hands.

Aisha paused in her attack and ran back, shaking off dozens of rodents as she leapt gracefully through the piles of garbage.

‘We’ve got to stop the rats or they’ll follow us,’ yelled Saxon.

‘Think!’ shouted Lily. ‘Think. Don’t panic. Fear is our worst enemy.’

‘Fire,’ Ethan called. ‘We need to make a barrier of fire.’

‘Grab some wood,’ Saxon yelled. ‘Anything flammable. Make a pile in the entrance to the cave.’

All four obediently grabbed wood, paper, barrels and crates and clumsily threw them in a pile, between them and the oncoming horde of rats. Saxon knelt and tried to light the pile with his candle. The damp timber smoked and smouldered, but wouldn’t light. He blew gently, sweat dripping down his face. But still it wouldn’t light.

The first rats reached the puny circle of light cast by the candles.

‘Hurry, hurry,’ squealed Roana. ‘Please light, oh, please light.’

Ethan grabbed a plank of wood and swung wildly at the rodents, smashing them away like cricket balls. Roana grabbed another plank and started swinging too, but there were too many rats and they swarmed past them. Some climbed their legs, nipping and biting as they climbed towards their faces. Aisha barked and leapt twisting in the air, snapping at rats.

Ethan and Roana leapt back over the pile of timber, swiping rats off their bodies with both hands. Still Saxon tried in vain to light the fire.

Lily fumbled in her pack and pulled out a dark brown bottle. She threw it on the pile of kindling and it smashed to smithereens, filling the air with a reek of bitter herbs and pungent alcohol. She threw her candle after it.

Immediately tongues of blue flame leapt up then roared into a fierce fireball. The first rats to reach it sizzled in the flames, unable to escape.

Saxon and the others leapt back, their hair and clothes scorched by the leaping fire.

Saxon grabbed a torch of burning wood and threw it at the loathsome rats. It fell and started another blaze. Soon all four were throwing burning missiles towards the flood of seething rodents.

The fire quickly spread back towards the mountain of rubbish. The rats hesitated then turned and fled, back the way they had come. And so did the five friends, running, stumbling, cursing in the dark as they banged knees and shins on the rocky tunnel walls.

Back through the seething tunnel of cockroaches they ran, back to the steep flight of stairs and back down to the fork where they had first turned off.

It was only here that they eventually paused, breathless and panting. Their throats were dry and parched, their muscles screaming with pain and exhaustion. Tears pricked their scorched eyeballs and their hearts felt as though they were breaking.

Roana slumped to the ground, covering her eyes with her hands.

‘It’s hopeless,’ she muttered through clenched teeth. ‘We might as well go back. We will never make it past those rats.’

‘No, I wouldn’t want to face those rats again,’ agreed Ethan, throwing himself down next to her. ‘Or those cockroaches, for that matter. Uggh!’ He shivered in disgust. ‘But perhaps that wasn’t the right way.’

They all looked up at him, then turned to the other tunnel. The left-hand tunnel meandered gently away downhill.

Ethan stood up and wandered over to the tunnel entrance.

He lifted his candle up to the stone wall and rubbed his fingers over a slight indentation there. The dirt crumbled away and there was a carving. Ethan rubbed harder. A symbol revealed itself – a carving of a royal sun, its rays beckoning welcomingly.

‘You’re right,’ Lily murmured. ‘We did go the wrong way.’

Roana shuddered in disgust. ‘Maybe. But who is to say the other way will be any better? I think we should leave this horrible tunnel and go back into the fresh air. I cannot breathe in here.’

‘We can’t do that, Roana,’ Ethan said gently. ‘We must keep going.’

Saxon nodded. ‘We can’t give up now that we’ve come so far.’

‘We have to find the Sun Sword, and the Sun Gem and Moon Pearl, and the Star Diamonds … and we need to rescue our parents, and your brother, Roana,’ added Lily, ticking the impossibly long list off on her fingers.

Roana sniffled, her head buried in her arms, and shook her head vehemently.

‘I’m sure the other tunnel will be much nicer,’ grinned Ethan. ‘I’m sure your royal ancestors would never have built their secret escape tunnel through a rat-infested rubbish dump. The other tunnel must have been the escape tunnel for the grubby commoners.’

‘No, not an escape tunnel,’ retorted Roana, smiling weakly. ‘I think all the rubbish from the town above must be tossed down through a crevice into the caverns below. A perfect breeding ground for rats and cockroaches! I will have to do
something about that when I am queen.’

The others grinned in relief, the tension broken.

Saxon took a big swig from his drink bottle, dribbling water down his chin in his haste. It was still cold and felt delicious on his parched throat.

‘Cheers, fellow rat fighters,’ he crowed, raising his bottle in a salute. ‘To the best bunch of ratters in Tiregian.’

The others laughed and all smashed their drink bottles together, before taking a giant swig.

‘Come on,’ Lily said more cheerfully. ‘Let’s check out all our wounds. Rat bites can be nasty, not to mention the horrible grazes on our hands from moving all those rocks.’

She dug around in her pack for a herbal antiseptic wash, clean cloth and ointment. She inspected each one of them closely, including Aisha, and carefully washed and anointed their multiple bites and scratches.

‘Well, this time, we really are going to have a rest before we go on,’ she ordered brusquely, glaring at Saxon. He nodded meekly and obediently pulled his cloak around his shoulders.

‘Yes, ma’am,’ he saluted smartly. ‘Perhaps we can have something to eat too, or are we to go straight to bed with no supper?’

Lily giggled. ‘No, food is a fantastic idea,’ she agreed. ‘Mama always said that good food was the best healer.’

At the memory of Marnie and her simple folk wisdom, Lily stopped joking and frowned, fighting back sudden tears.

‘So – another feast,’ said Roana with false cheer, as she started to unwrap some dried fish and berries. ‘Come on, Aisha – I think you are the only one who truly likes this horrendous fish.’

Aisha bounded up immediately, sitting promptly and begging expectantly with her liquid brown eyes. Roana hugged her and gave her a stick of dried fish.

‘Oh, Aisha, what would we have done without you – yet again?’ She rubbed the beautiful dog all over her soft head, as Aisha crunched on the fish in delight.

Charcoal ventured out of Lily’s pocket to nibble delicately on a piece of fish, patting it playfully with her paws.

After some food they all fell into a troubled sleep.

Roana rolled out of her wide four-poster bed and stretched. A roaring fire blazed in the grate,
warming the whole chamber with its cheerful crackling. In front of the fire was her deep bathtub, filled with sweet scented water.

Deep crimson and yellow rose petals floated on the top. Roana stripped off her nightgown and sank gratefully into the warm, soothing water. Her three maid servants knelt at her side.

One gently washed her long golden hair with lavender soap, massaging the soap into a rich white lather. The second poured luscious hot water over her head from a jug, rinsing away the suds. The third girl carefully washed Roana’s feet with a soft flannel.

Roana lay back, her eyes closed, enjoying the luxury of the warm water lapping against her bare skin. One maid servant washed her face with rosewater and chamomile to soften and whiten the skin, while another massaged a creamy lotion into her hair and started to comb it. The comb tangled in her hair and pulled.

Roana screamed with rage and slapped the maid hard across the face. An angry welt rose on the girl’s cheek and her eyes filled with tears before she dropped her eyes, murmuring a barely heard apology. Roana glanced down into the bath.

The crimson rose petals had turned to spots of bright red blood. They spread and widened until
Roana realised she was sitting in a tub of hot, red blood. She screamed and screamed in fright, and jerked awake.

Lily leant over and rubbed her on the arm.

‘It’s all right, you were just having a nightmare,’ Lily grimaced. ‘I had one too. I dreamt of red-eyed rats scurrying all over me. It was disgusting.’ She shivered.

Roana looked around at the three other filthy children, rubbing the gritty sleep from their eyes.

‘Sorry … sorry to wake you,’ Roana mumbled. Her cheeks burned in shame at the memory of striking the poor maid servant in her dream. ‘I thought I felt something in my hair.’ She rubbed her short brown crop ruefully.

‘It may have been one of those cockroaches, or just the memory of one,’ Ethan said gently. ‘Even Aisha was whimpering and shivering in her sleep, with her legs twitching as though she was chasing a hundred rats!’

‘Well, since we’re all awake now, perhaps we should move on,’ Saxon suggested, groaning as he hoisted up his pack.

The others all clambered to their feet, shouldering their packs.

‘Well, let’s hope the left tunnel is actually the
right
tunnel,’ quipped Ethan, flashing a tight smile
at the others. Saxon groaned and slapped Ethan on the back.

At that moment, Governor Lazlac was down at the port. A ship had just arrived from Sedah and the Nine Isles, bringing missives from Emperor Raef. It also brought the latest forceful weapons in the subjugation of Tiregian – thirteen High Priests of Krad.