Deranged Sovereignty by Slater J. Clifton

Author:Slater, J. Clifton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-03-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15 – Mountain Passes

Arman had the caravan up, packed, and on the trail two days later. Even rested, the path up and out of Ilıca took a lot out of the animals. After trudging three miles through the rolling heights, the land leveled, and the donkeys eased onto a plane. The trek across the smooth ground helped them recover strength.

The recuperation on level ground was necessary as four miles across, the western edge of the flatland nosed into a wall of cliffs. Above the one hundred-and-fifty-foot-tall face, the land rose higher.

Jogging by the caravan guards, ahead of the first string, and by a pair of scouts, the trail master located a break in the rocky cliffs. At the narrow opening, he stopped and inspected the steep path to the limit of the first bend. Seeing no washed-out areas or hoof breaking ruts, he hiked upward following the zigzagging path.

Behind the trail master, the two scouts positioned far in front of the caravan reached the foot of the trail.

“The path twists and I can’t see Arman,” Ylli observed. Then he instructed the other scout. “Signal a stop and call up six guards.”

He was two steps forward when the other scout challenged his orders.

“You want to stop the entire caravan because you can’t see the trail master?” the other scout sneered. “Come on Ylli. This trip is going to be hard enough without you sucking up to the Latian Tribune.”

Ylli was tempted to deliver the messages himself. Then he remembered the trail master had gone ahead alone.

“Just call up the guards and stop the caravan,” he barked before running after Arman.

***

The trail master reached the last turn and walked to where the trek straightened. Behind, the winding trail dropped through the cliff edge. To the front, the road ran straight to a valley in the distance. Arman shivered at the sight. Peaks on either side of the valley glowed white. Although the snow did not extend to the portion of the valley he could see, he knew from experience the snow would be in the higher reaches. Realizing the caravan was far behind him, Arman strolled to a high spot on the side of the trail and peered down onto the flatland.

Although he couldn’t observe the lead string, he could see three-quarters of a mile back. And neither the donkeys at the tail end nor those in the center were moving. Angry at the delay, Arman spun around. Figuring to relieve his stress by throwing a few stones, he reached down and picked up a rock. After chucking it across the trail, he bent down to grab another. The rock smacked into a soft surface and caused the ground to move. The trail master froze.

Men wrapped in light brown robes lay in the soil on the other side of the trail. The tan cloth blended with the dirt with caused Arman to miss them when he reached the top. Now that he had disturbed them, he saw the raiders, but it was too late.

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