Patrick Carman - Land of Elyon 02 by Beyond The Valley of Thorns

Author:Beyond The Valley of Thorns
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2011-11-27T15:24:48+00:00

CHAPTER 16

INTO THE CITY OF DOGS

“Just around the bend and in the clearing,” said Armon, “the forest thins out and the dumping grounds begin. Within them we shall find the wild dogs, their packs grown larger and more violent with the passing of the years.” He paused and sniffed at the air, concentrating, no doubt trying to remember the place as it had been when he had last seen it.

“Take out your weapons and prepare for the worst,” he whispered, unsheathing his own massive sword as quietly as he could. Then he eyed Odessa closely, the two of them staring at one another in the stillness.

“You might be of some use to us here,” said Armon. “It is possible they might see you as one of their own and let us pass through. But there will be no avoiding them. They know we are here.”

We moved down what remained of the path before us, Odessa and Armon striding confidently beside each other at the front. As we came around the one remaining wooded corner the stench almost knocked me off my feet, a gentle breeze carrying with it an omen of what lay ahead.

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It was a good deal as I’d expected it would be, a vast expanse of broken-down houses and mountains of flowing debris. Trails shot off in various directions, the hard earth grooved deeply with wheel marks pooling from the rains. Piles of garbage steamed with the morning sun, and the breeze sent a continual flow of pungent new odors over us.

We walked on, following Armon’s lead, careful to listen for humans or ogres who might be roaming about. It wasn’t long before we were deep in the City of Dogs, and howls could be heard from both near and far. Odessa began to growl as she moved forward with increasing hesitation, her ears pointed and alert for the dogs that might jump out and attack us.

“Where are they, Odessa?” asked Yipes, an arrow pulled and ready to shoot from his small bow.

“They keep moving,” she replied, and I translated to the others. “And there is more than one pack, at least two. Both are tracking us and watching one another.” Then she stopped entirely and looked back at us. “These are both large packs, fifty or more to be sure.”

All at once the sound of growling and barking was all around us, and a moment later we were trapped, one pack of dogs emerging around two garbage heaps to the left of the path, and another pack moving in from the right. They encircled us, row upon row of dogs. They were dripping saliva, some with open wounds and sores around their

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mouths and noses. Others limped weakly in the row farthest from us.

The group of us came together as the wild dogs inched closer. Running would be futile; it would be what they’d hope we would do, so they could separate us and single us out, take us down at the legs, and rip us to shreds one by one.

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