Date: Sat, 4 Jan 2014 11:11:56 +1300
From: artcart65@gmail.com
Subject: At Days End Chapter 5

				AT DAYS END


				 CHAPTER 5


				 BY ARTHUR




PLEASE NOTE: New email address;

Artcart65@gmail.com




Kros and Grega watched as the Priests rushed the cabin, it was time to
leave, both boys took fast shots at the fast running line of seven Priests
hitting only two of them but they were not sure if they were dead or just
wounded, they didn't have time to find out before the Priests were too
close for comfort.

Kros turned and, with a smile at Grega, ran for the passage, Grega close on
his heels, once they were both inside the Passage, Kros asked Grega to help
him close the hidden trap door, from behind them at the far end of the
passage, both boys could hear Danil and Davi talking softly.

When Kros heard the click of the lock he turned and ran for the far end
where the others now stood waiting, it was time to find a new home, they
had cut the Priests numbers considerably but there were still enough to
follow if they could find the boys trail.

It took a little time to sort out the packs so everyone could carry what
they would need, without the horses they had to contend with the extra
weight as well as be able to carry their weapons at the ready although,
with the priests now behind them and hopefully unable to find the hidden
door, they had a good chance of making a lot of distance before they were
discovered again.

Kros now had to try to remember where the third hidden cabin was, he knew
it was a good three days ride from this one and in the general direction of
North but that was all, the other alternative was to find their own place,
but that would have to wait until they tried for the third cabin, it would
be a good six or seven days walk without the horses to ride.

For the rest of the day, the boys struggle on, the extra weight of their
packs slowed them down considerably but they kept at it, distance was now
their best tool and they did their best to take advantage of the respite
from the chasing Priests.

That night, the boys camped out in a small copse of trees, well away from
any track that may be taken by those who roamed the wilds, they now had to
be alert for not only Priests but any rogues that may be about, all thought
of boy games was put from the minds of Kros and Danil in favour of safety.

For the next five days the boys worked their way North; at night, long
after working their way in the dark to gain extra distance, they slept
hidden away in either a copse of trees or in a small defile where they
could keep a guard and stay safe from any roving people that may have been
a threat to them, they left the over night camp well before the sun rose,
surviving on only a few hours sleep.

On the morning of the sixth day, the boys found themselves on the edge of a
wide semi stony desert area, Kros could remember this part from the dead
mans description, he now felt a little more sure of his directions to the
last cabin, with certain steps, he led the boys into the stony semi desert,
if he was correct, they would be able to see the new canyon that held the
last cabin by the time they made it to the other side, it would take most
of the day to get close and the rising heat of the sun would slow them a
little, their food and water were now getting low and they could not afford
to wait much past the morning of the next day.

Kros led them into the barren landscape, the packs now a lot lighter than
when they started out, of the Priests, they had seen no sign, much to
Kros's liking, with luck they would now be forgotten and left in peace.

The next 18 hours were no picnic as the small group forced their way
through the soft sands and heat of the day, the last of their limited water
was used as the last rays of the sun sank towards the horizon, it was in
the first light of the next morning that Kros saw the dark outline of a
narrow canyon opening, it appeared to be no more than two men wide.

As the opening was the only one in sight, Kros turned in that direction,
all being well they would find the cabin at the far end of the defile
before much longer, the boys quickened their steps at the prospect of a
roof over their heads from the heat of the day and a little safety from the
hunters.

The almost full noon sun had risen by the time the small group of boys came
to the first line of defence of the hidden cabin, it was a high thick stone
wall, stretching from wall to wall of the defile, it would have taken a
large rock fall or something extraordinary to have built such a huge wall
but the boys were too tired and weary to think of such things, all they
wanted was a soft bed and hot food.

Kros led the boys to the left of the stone barrier, set back into the wall
and hidden behind a large leafy bush was a thick wooden gate, it appeared
to be made from solid tree trunks although it was only a little over six
feet high and three feet wide it was still a heavy and solid gate, Kros
gestured for Danil to help him with the gate, he pulled on a latch that had
a thick rope which went through the poles of the gate, hearing a loud
clunking sound from the other side, Kros and Danil began to push with all
their strength until the gate groaned and squeaked open enough to let the
boys through.

Closing the gate was the same performance but eventually it was done, two
thick wooden bars were placed into solid slots to stop the gate from being
opened by anyone on the other side and Kros pulled the rope through the
hole in the wood so it could not be used from the other side, for now the
boys were safe, turning, they saw the outline of the solid stone house on
the far side of the round canyon, the ground underfoot was not soft and
grassy like the other two places but beggars could not be choosers, it was
safe and that's what counted for now.

As they moved towards the cabin, their weary eyes picked up small signs of
rabbits and other wild small game in the dust of the canyon floor, their
meat would not be as fancy as venison but it would be better than nothing,
for vegetables they had to hope there was a good stock in the now familiar
cellar system of the other cabins.

This cabin looked very similar to the one they had left in such a hurry
except for the door, in the front of the cabin there was no sign of any
entrance, to the left of the house and built against the side wall was an
extra wall the same height as the cabin wall and it sat about five feet out
from the side, there was no roof and the three boys could see no use for
it, it was not until Kros led them around the edge of it that they saw it
concealed the entrance to the cabin.

Once again the same lock system was used for this cabin as the other two,
Kros led them inside and they began to look for something to drink, their
thirst had built steadily as the sun rose higher and they were now in need
of a good long drink, this time there was no carrying of water, at the back
wall of the cabin, which was also the wall of the canyon, a small spring
dribbled water into a shallow depression in the stone floor that

was about six inches deep, it then drained the overflow through a hole that
led outside.  It took no time at all for the boys to bury their heads in
the shallow pool to drink, once sated the next thing was food and, even
though they were almost asleep on their feet, they had to eat something
before getting some sleep, with all four working as fast as they could, it
took only half an hour to have a semblance of a meal,
 it was not much but it filled a few holes in their stomachs and was enough
for them to feel ready for bed.

The first sounds of awakening boys came as the first dim light of dawn
broke over the cliff tops, the boys had slept right through the afternoon
and night, with groans and grunts they moved stiff joints and sore backs,
none of them had thought to use either of the beds but had laid down where
they were on the hard floor, they were now paying the price for their
laziness.

It was the sound of a rooster crowing that brought Kros fully awake, the
thought of eggs or lacking them, a chicken that cleared his eyes and made
water fill his mouth, with pushes and shoves at the still half asleep trio,
Kros organised breakfast, once again Davi was to set out for firewood for
cooking, Kros and Danil would clean up the mess from last night and set the
fire as well as check the cellar while Grega went to look for eggs or hens,
in the semi barren canyon, they should not be too hard to find.

Mid morning found the four boys wiping yellow yolk off their chins and
watching the black round pot finish cooking the rough bread Kros had made,
it would do to sop up the last of the egg and grease on their plates, loud
satisfied belches echoed in the cabin to the accompaniment of loud giggles
from all of them, the feeling of safety at last lightening the mood.

For the first time the boys could hear a strong wind blowing outside, Kros
smiled at the thought of the same wind hiding their tracks from any
pursuers, he felt reasonable sure that now they had breathing space, with
their tracks covered and the gate well hidden behind the bush, the priests
would have a hard time finding them, it was time to take stock of their
supplies and check out the rest of the cabin.

After the bread was cooked and the boys had had their fill, they all set
about tidying up the cabin and getting rid of the dust that had built up
since the last time it had been used, once the cabin was mostly clean, Kros
had the boys take out their weapons and check how much ammunition they had
left after the long fight.

Kros knew there were a couple more guns in the cellar, he would have to go
and get them and check on what ammunition was here, the .308 was now down
to only 30 rounds, his .222 had 45 rounds, the .22 still had plenty and he
knew there was a lot more for it in the cabin, their pistols were all ok,
he had the boys start to clean the guns while he went in search of the
weapons hidden in the cellar, one of them would be alright for Danil so
that Davi could have the .22, with a little more practice he was sure the
younger boy would be able to use it to good effect.

After a light lunch, Kros had Grega go out and set some snares, the chance
of fresh meat would be a good change from the meals of the last week or so,
as a last resort they could always catch one of the chickens for dinner.

While this canyon did not have the large growth of trees of the other two,
it did have a lot of small scrubby bushes that would provide fire wood but
not a lot of cover if they needed it, there was an escape route but not
near the cabin, if they had to get out in a hurry they would have to make a
run for it as the small tunnel was at the far end on the canyon and hidden
behind some small scrub bushes.

By late afternoon, the boys were tired and ready for dinner, Grega had
snared three rabbits and also collected a few more eggs, Davi had scampered
around and collected quite a pile of loose fire wood, Danil and Kros had
finished the gun cleaning then set about preparing dinner.

The sleeping arrangements were the same as before although they strung a
rope down the middle of the cabin so each had a little privacy, both Danil
and Kros were still too tired for any games, they had a lot of resting to
do before they would be back to their old selves, it had been a brutal
escape and trek to the new cabin.

The next morning, Kros took the boys back to the entrance wall where he
showed them the stones that had been piled up to make rough steps up the
back of the thirty foot wall, it led up to the top where, if you were
careful,
 you could look down onto the very narrow defile they had come through, if
you were very careful and took your time, you would not be seen from below,
the large stones and boulders on the outside were almost impossible to
climb so the barrier was, too the boys mind, almost impregnable from the
outside.

They decided that from tomorrow on, they would have at least one of them up
on the wall to keep watch, they would all take turns for two hours at a
time, even little Davi wanted to do his bit, Kros told him that as soon as
he could shoot the .22 properly he could take part in the guard duties,
Davi took it with good grace but also got a look of determination on his
young face.

Kros glanced at the stern look Davi was giving him.

"What is it Davi?"

"When can I practice with the gun?"

"Well we have plenty of ammo for the .22 so anytime you like"

"Ok, let's start now then."

Kros laughed and then turned to Grega.

"You want to take him for practice first, I want to show Danil the new gun
I have for him and let him practice as well."

"Ok, come on squirt, lets get your new gun and go practice for a while."

Grega clasped Davi by the shoulder in a brotherly half hug and dragged the
smiling boy off towards the cabin, Kros grinned at Danil and they held
hands as they went in the same direction.

The new rifle Kros had found for Danil was another .22, but this one was
loaded from the side with fifteen rounds and operated by a lever
underneath, it also had an extra cylinder on the end of the barrel that
made it almost soundless, Kros had Danil practice with it until the other
boy felt happy with his performance, by then even little Davi was getting
to be quite accurate with his rifle although it still was a little heavy
for him and he had to rest it on a bench or stone to take some of the
weight of his thin arms.

Kros was now happy, all four boys were well armed and had settled into a
routine around the cabin, they were starting to relax and, for the first
time in a long time, they began to relax and enjoy their little home in the
hidden canyon, while in the back of their minds the ever present spectre of
the priests still loomed, they now felt a little safer, even the thought of
the priests exploding black ball things did not worry them too much now
they had the high thick wall between them.

The days settled into a routine, each boy took his turn during the day to
keep watch, there had until now been no sign of the priests, the gathering
of fresh meat and the replanting of the small garden kept them all busy,
every second or third day, one of the older boys would take Davi for half
and hour of rifle practice, he was now good enough that they had little
worry about him.

As time passed and the days got shorter, the boys relaxed more and more,
there had been no sign of the priests so they were pretty sure they were at
last safe and, as the first chill of winter blew down from the high range
of hills to the north came sweeping down, the boys got ready for the long
nights in the cabin.

Kros and Danil had noticed that Davi was giving them strange looks some
mornings, it was usually after one of their pretty active nights together,
it was becoming obvious the smaller boy would have some questions for them
soon, Grega had told them they would have to do the explaining as they were
the ones having the fun, both boys only lifted their eye brows and giggled
as they both blushed.

It was another two days before Davi built up the courage to ask the boys
what they were doing at night when they all went to bed, Grega smiled at
the two boys in a knowing look and left the cabin with his hand over his
mouth as he tried to cover up the widening smile.

Kros and Danil had finally got to the end of their revelations and the
funny look on Davi's face had settled into one of wonder and, as he asked
Kros if it hurt him when Danil did that stuff, Grega came running into the
cabin yelling loudly for them to come outside quickly, saved from the
question of the over inquisitive boy, all three ran for the door, their
rifles clasped tightly in their hands.

Once outside, the boys looked around expecting to see black priests
climbing over the far off wall, instead all they saw was Grega doing some
sort of dance in the front yard, the overcast sky finally gave them an
indication of what he had been yelling about.

Around Grega and now the three others, white flakes of snow were slowly
falling, it was the first time that Grega, Danil and Davi had seen snow,
for Kros it was just one more thing to think about, he was sure now that
they could stop the look outs, winter was here and the priests would have
other things to worry about.

That night the winter came in full force, the fire was built up and boys
doubled up on their thick skin blankets, outside the wind howled and they
could feel the harsh chill of the north winds that managed to come in
through a crack under the door, Kros was quick to stuff some old clothes
under the door and jump back into the warm bed, they didn't know it then
but, for the next four days they would be house bound as the snow built up
in deep drifts around the house, only the stone wall around the door
stopped them from being totally snow bound.

That first snow storm was more of a novelty to the three boys that had not
experienced it before, after two weeks of heavy snow and high winds, with
fire wood getting harder and harder to find, all four boys began to dislike
the winter with a vengeance, playing in the snow was alright for the first
day or two but weeks of the damn cold white stuff was now beyond a joke,
fire wood was also now becoming a problem as the small scrub bushes got
harder to find.

As the cold really set in and the sky remained heavily overcast, Kros
decided to tear down the heavy wood shelves down in the cellar, leaving
only the bottom boards to protect their food supply from the ground damp,
with careful use the large stack of hewn wood looked as though it should
last most of the winter.

Fortunately for the boys, after the first two weeks of terrible weather,
the day time skies began to clear and a warming sun shone through most
times even though the nights were really cold and crisp but the sky
remained clear and the stars shone brighter than ever.

The short days and long nights seemed to go on forever until, finally, Kros
noticed the days were starting to get longer and the sun just a little
warmer, the long period of winter was also a god send in the form of not
having to worry about the priests trying to find them, Kros smiled to
himself at the thought of the respite from being harried by the black crows
and their minions.

Davi was now a good shot, he had been practicing at every chance when the
days were fine, Grega had come up with the idea of cutting down the wood on
the stock to lighten it for the smaller boy, he was now able to handle the
rifle with a little more ease, Grega had also had Davi lifting small rocks
to strengthen his thin arms and build up his narrow chest, the small boy
was developing a little muscle and could now handle the rifle with little
effort.

As the days grew longer, Kros became more confident that they had given the
Priests the slip, all he had to worry about now was finding a new supply of
ammunition for their weapons after the long running fight with the Priests
last summer, to do this he would have to take the risk of a long trip back
to the mans canyon, for safety he told the others he would make the trip
alone and, along the way he would try to find some horses for pack animals.

After a few hours of discussions with the others, Kros finally won his way,
Grega would be in charge of the new home while he was away, he went to his
worn pack and delved deep into it until he found the last of his coins,
carefully he counted them out, if he used all the gold and silver he should
be able to buy at least one horse and a good supply of ammunition as well
as one or two things for their food supply.

Grega decided that they would start to keep a watch again during the day
time, with only three of them, he decided that they would do a four hour
shift and then set up some empty tins with stones in them along the top of
the wall for the night time when the were asleep.

As the day for Kros to leave grew closer, the last of the snow on the
ground had disappeared and the sun was growing stronger, he began to check
his pack and make sure he had everything he might need, he took extra
ammunition for his pistol and carefully put his coins deep into the pack
for safety.

The day for his departure finally arrived, he checked his pack one more
time then his rifle and sidearm, the three boys followed him to the gate
and, as they opened it for him to pass through, Danil gave him a long tight
hug and a small tear began to fall from his eye, his two brothers put their
arms around him and held him tightly as Kros smiled at the three and then
turned and walked through the partially open gate.

They had worked out that it would take him probably a good two weeks to
make it there and back unless he could find a horse, without one he would
be limited to what he could carry so the horse was the first part of his
plan, without that he would make the trip only to get ammunition and hope
for the best.

Kros took his time leaving the narrow defile, with a thick piece of scrub
tied to his waist to hide his tracks, he worked his way through until he
was out in the open, after checking all around as far as he could see to
make sure their were no eyes watching him, he untied the bush and followed
close to the cliff edge for half and hour so he would leave no direct
tracks to be followed, once well clear of the new hiding place, Kros struck
out over the barren wastes with a light step and a long stride.

With the faster pace he could set himself now he was alone, Kros was half
way across the barren waste by the time the sun hit its highest point,
instead of walking through the heat of the day, he took an old piece of
brown cloth from his pack and, after half burying himself in the rough
ground, pulled it over himself, now he was almost totally concealed from
prying eyes as he settled down to sleep through the worst of the heat, with
his extra good night vision he would be able to move during the darkness of
night,

For three days Kros moved south, as he got closer to his target, he became
more careful even though it meant slowing his pace a little, it was not the
time to get careless, he still preferred to move during early morning, late
evening and through the night, it was on the fourth night he more or less
struck it lucky although it was also dangerous.

He had been moving over the rolling grass lands at a good pace, he would
walk for two hundred paces then trot for two hundred, this way he covered
the ground very quickly without getting winded or tired, it was a mode of
moving he had used before when wanting to cover a long distance, the pack
on his back was now a lot lighter as his food was gone and he now just
scavenged what he need as he moved, with the run off from winter he had
little trouble for water.

He had been travelling through the night and it was now close to midnight,
as he neared the crest of the next rise, his well trained nose picked up
the faint scent of smoke, immediately he was on his hands and knees as he
crawled slowly up to the top of the rise.

As his head cleared the top of the rise he saw the faint far off glow of a
fire in the distance, it looked no more than a candle light at this
distance but Kros knew better than to take that as a good omen, taking his
rifle from his shoulder, he quickly checked it by feel, after that was done
he secured his pack tighter on his back and began the long slow job of
working his way towards the far off fire.

Bent over double he made his way a quick as he could do safely, slowly more
scents assailed his nostrils and his sharp ears began to pick up dim
sounds, the closer he got the more he heard and smelt.

It was well after midnight before he was lying on top of the last rise
above the camp; below he could just make out the glimmer of the dying
embers of the fire, on the ground around the fire he counted the outlines
of at least eleven bodies, off to one side and tied to a long rope set on
two poles were a large number of horses, all stood as though sleeping on
their feet, as yet he could not see a guard but he was not going to take it
for granted that there was none, the world was too much of a dangerous
place to think it would be easy.

Kros lay down on the rise and watched the camp, the long nights of
travelling had made it easy for him to stay alert during the dark hours, if
he was going to raid the camp for the horses he would wait until the middle
of the early morning hours when most men were at their most vulnerable for
that sort of raid.

When he thought it was about three hours after midnight, Kros began to
crawl his way towards the encampment, he had marked the position of the
guard, the sentry was crouched down close to where the horses were staked
out but he looked as though he was also now sleeping as he hunched down in
the crisp cold of early morning, he was shrouded in a thick hide coat and
his head was buried deep into the large collar, Kros had been able to
ignore the cold from long practice.

Kros was no more than a shadow among shadows as he crawled silently towards
the horse line and the half asleep guard, he knew had had little option but
to put the guard away without a sound, at first he was going to take only
one horse but, as he looked at the tied mounts in the dim light he changed
his plan, if he could get rid of the guard he could take them all and stop
anyone trying to follow him, his plan was simple, get rid of the guard then
cut one end of the rope holding the horse line and race to the other end,
cut that and mount the last horse, he could then lead them all away on the
one rope, if he moved quietly he could be away before anyone knew he had
been there, only the fast dispatch of the guard would make it all possible.

Kros had re-slung his rifle for the long crawl, now as he was less than
five feet from the guard, he drew his large knife quietly and got ready for
the last few feet, as he began the last move, one of the horses stamped its
feet, the guard listlessly lifted his head, seeing nothing he settled once
again into his thick coat, Kros breathed out slowly, he had not realised he
had been holding his breath.

Kros listened and, within seconds, the guard was breathing deeply, he had
gone back to sleep although it was lightly, Kros moved the last few feet
then, with the speed and silence of a striking snake, Kros buried his big
knife deep into the throat of the guard and held on tightly as the man
tried to turn to see who had attacked him, his efforts were useless, he was
dead before he could find his attacker.

Kros pulled the knife from the man, as the body fell back onto the dark
cold ground, Kros's eyes opened wide, the sight of the red cross on the
chest of the mans tunic told him all he needed to know, with his breath now
almost at a pant, Kros went to the horse line and cut the end of the rope,
feeling the line go slack, some of the horses began to move back from him,
quickly and as silently as he could, Kros made his way to the far end and
sliced through that rope, with a last big effort, he sprang up onto the
back of the last horse.

At first the horse was a little unsure of its rider but a soothing hand on
its neck soon had the horse calm again, Kros took hold of the rope around
the horses neck and gave it a small tug as he kicked his heels into the
flanks of the horse slowly at a walking pace, Kros turned his long string
of horse to the south, not a sound was heard from the sleeping men as the
horses with their new owner walked quietly into the darkness.

If his position was not still dangerous, Kros would have giggled at once
again deceiving the black crows, he only hoped they liked to walk, when he
was far enough away from the camp that he would no longer be heard, Kros
kicked the horse into a trot, the others followed along in a group behind
them as they felt the pull on their rope.

When the morning sun rose he found himself in very familiar territory, with
his new horses he could be at the canyon for his ammunition before dusk
and, with all the extra horses he would be able to do some trading and
still keep some for the boys and to carry any supplies he could get, all
told he now had eighteen horses, he would only need six, that gave him a
lot to sell off for goods.

There was possibly half an hour of light left as he rode into the canyon,
again he was met by the large man with the rifle, the first words out of
the mans mouth made Kros smile down at him.

"What the hell, boy, did you raid those damn black cows again?"

"Not really, they were sort of sleeping and left them out for me."

"Yeah I can believe that, did they also give you all their gold coins?"

"No, for some reason they kept them safe."

"So what do you want this time?"

"I only need six of these, want to trade the rest off for goods and ammo,
you ok with that?"

The man counted the animals now cropping the grass close to the cabin.

"Hmm, twelve of them eh, well I know where I can get rid of them easy
enough, what did you need?"

"A good stock of ammo for the .308 and the .222, also I think a good supply
of .22 for the boys and some more pistol rounds as well, have you got any
spare food stocks?"

"I can let you have a good supply of tinned stuff, there's no labels on
them so you get what you're given, the ammo is no problem, I'll tell you
what I'll do, for the horses I'll give you all the ammo you want and one
horse loaded with canned stuff, if you want more food stocks you will have
to pay in coin."

"Oh, come on, there's twelve horses there, they got to be worth more than
that?"

"Not too me, I got to get rid of them without the black crows knowing and
that aint easy."

"Now some on, we've done a lot of business with each other, how about, all
the ammo, one horse with tinned goods and one horse with cured meats and
soft goods like flour and sugar, you know I got four mouths to feed?"

"Look, I'll tell you what I'll do, I'll give you all you want but you got
to throw in a couple of gold coins for the soft goods, it's a good deal and
you know it boy."

Kros looked at the man with steady eyes, it was a good deal, the horses had
cost him nothing and a couple of his gold coins which had also come from
the Priests would still leave him with a small bag full of other coins for
emergencies, Kros nodded his head in agreement and slid off his horse,
after tying the rope to a sapling in the front of the cabin, Kros went
inside with the man and began to sort out his newly purchased goods.

As a sign of hospitality, the man let Kros stay the night once all his
cargo had been placed near the door for loading first thing in the morning,
he had had to put out another ten coppers for the extra rope he would need
to tie on his goods but it was little enough to pay for his needs, with
luck he would be back at the new cabin well within the time he had allowed.

Early the next morning, Kros was quickly loaded, he had distributed his
loads between the five horses and would lead them from the sixth, at the
pace he would now be able to travel and, by using most of the night as
well, he should be back at the canyon in a little over two days.

Kros well knew the stranded Priests would not be able to get mounted for a
number of days as it would be a long walk back to the nearest village where
they might obtain new mounts, he was going to make the best of his extra
time.

Kros road at a fast trot for most of the day, just before sundown, he
stopped for an hour to let the horses rest by a fresh clear stream with
plenty of grass, when night fell he would push on at the best speed he
could for most of the night, while he rested he tried to work out how to
not only look after the horses once home but also how to get them through
the bushes that hid the gateway, if he had too, he would tie one of the
horses to the large bush hiding the gate and pull it out, it would reveal
the gate for others to see but he was not prepared to lose the horses once
home.

Kros rode through the night, stopping only for a one hour break in the
early hours of the morning, as he sat while the horses rested, he though
how he was going to get to the ravine without leaving a trail behind him,
it would mean a detour across the desert wastes and then back tracking
along the cliff face where there was solid stone that left no tracks, it
would add half a day to his time but it would be better than having the
Priests find his tracks and attacking them.

The time past until Kros found himself finally on the solid stone
underneath the towering cliffs, he had ridden hard and both he and the
horses were tired, his red rimmed eyes were searching for the opening into
the canyon, the ride across the wastes he had done during the night so he
preserved the horses from the hot scorching sun of the day.

Finally Kros sighed with relief, his aching back and legs as well as his
sore rump would at last get some relief as he spied the narrow opening to
the canyon, with his eyes in a squint he finally got to look up at the top
of the wall of rocks as the lead the train of horses through the defile,
spying a small figure standing on the top of the wall, Kros knew he had
been spotted, the high pitched voice of Davi confirmed his guess as too
which of the boys was on watch.

As it happened, Kros and the boys had to remove the bushes hiding the gate,
Grega suggested that the could replant it the next day, Kros told him not
to bother, they would have to go out again with the horses as soon as the
unloaded them, all they had to do now was find somewhere safe to leave them
as the canyon had little or no grass and the water supply was limited to
what came out of the small spring in the house.

The outflow from the spring had made a small pool outside the cabin and
this had caused a small amount of grass to grow that would be enough for
the horses for the day but they would have to go on a search for a better
place the next day, it was Danil that asked about the escape cave at the
far end of the small round canyon.

"I don't know where it leads." Kros told them." I know it goes through the
cliff, its only a narrow crack, we should be able to get through but the
horses or an adult wouldn't, its very narrow, we may have to crawl for part
of it, I suppose it might be a good idea to have a look, there maybe
something on the other side we can use."

The unloading and unpacking of the horses kept them busy until late in the
afternoon, by then Kros was ready for a long spell in bed, the hard ride
home had really wiped him out, once settled on the bed, Kros closed his
eyes and knew nothing of the rest of that day or the night, it was not
until the sun was high in the morning sky that he could open his eyes, the
long days and nights on horse back had given him aches and pains in places
he didn't even know he had, for the rest of this day all he wanted to do
was rest and recover, the other boys just nodded in understanding and left
him alone.

It was late in the afternoon when he heard the boys running back to the
cabin, Grega was calling him at the top of his voice, Kros shook his head
and smiled as he went outside to watch the boys running from the far end of
the canyon, when they got closer, Kros thought that little Davi looked much
like a ghost, from the top of his head to the bottoms of his feet, Davi was
covered in a fine whitish coating of dust.

Kros waited for the boys to pull up beside him, all three were out of
breath and smiling widely while trying to gulp in lungs full of fresh air.

"We found it, we found it." Danil tried to tell him between pants and
puffs.

"Found what?"

"The next valley, I went through the crack and we followed, it's a really
tight squeeze and you have to crawl for some length but on the other side
is this huge valley, all green grass and tress, there's a small stream with
fish in it and everything." Davi told him with excitement in his young
voice.

"Hey, that's great for us but what about the horses, they won't fit through
a small crack in the cliff?"

"Well I thought some of us could go and have a look around, maybe there's
an outlet somewhere we can use for them, you gotta see it, there's animals
and birds and lots of other things." The excited boy told him.

"Ok, Davi, first thing in the morning three of us will go for a look, one
of us has to stay here just in case those Priests I stole the horses from
come looking for us."

"I'll stay and watch the cabin." Grega told Kros, "You three go and look
around, if you can find an opening into the valley we can take the horses
through, maybe if it's a better place than this we can move everything over
there?"

The other three agreed to wait until morning, they would take enough
supplies for a full day and have a good look around, they promised to be
back before dark and tell Grega everything they see, that night it was a
happy dinner with lots of chatter and expectations for the next days
events.


TBC


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