Chapter 14

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

I yelped and clutched onto Ben as our steed dashed forward. The reins that had lain in Ben's lap dropped between the harnesses and the qasi was allowed to drag us down the road. The path wasn't completely straight, nor was our terrified steed great at straight lines, so that the sled on my side of the wagon veered into the softer, deeper sands. The animal's inconsistent direction meant the tip of the sled dipped into the soft earth and jerked the wagon off course for a moment before the animal ran back onto the road proper.

I glimpsed a group of tents about twenty yards ahead of us and some hundred feet off the road. They were situated near some dunes and some of the piles of sand had been carved into with shovels, leaving holes in the ground. A young man with a tanned face peeked out from one of the holes and for a split second our eyes might. A frightened expression passed over his face before he ducked down.

I couldn't think much of them as we careened down the road. Ben proceeded to climb down the front of the box, but his feet couldn't find footing except on the leather harnesses that strapped the qasi to the wagon. They wouldn't support his weight and he nearly lost his balance trying to lean down far enough to catch the reins.

I caught him, instead, and pulled him against me. "It's not worth it!"

He didn't have time to reply as a group of some half dozen people rushed out of the hole where I'd seen the stranger. Among them was the man I had glimpsed, and he followed close behind a woman of forty with spectacles. Their group raced to the road and made a line in front of us. They waved their arms frantically above their heads and shouted. The qasi was forced to slow down and one in the company grabbed its bit, arresting its movement.

The woman hurried up to Ben's side of the wagon. With the danger over, I was able to get a good look at her. She had brown hair pulled into a tight bun on the back of her head. The woman wore a pair of rough coveralls over a thick brown blouse and heavy brown pants. Boots covered her feet, and the rest of her was covered by a thin layer of white dirt.

"Are you alright?" she asked us.

Ben nodded. "Quite alright, thanks to you."

"We couldn't very well let you careen into the ruins," the woman countered as the crowd backed up to let Ben down.

He hopped off and helped me onto the wonderfully hard and stationary ground. My shaking legs meant I had to lean heavily against him as one of the company brought us a couple of cups of water.

Ben handed me one and took another for himself. I happily sipped on the cool water as he turned his attention to our saviors. "We're fortunate you happen to have been in this area. We've heard there are very few people now who would willingly be around the ruins of the old capital."

The woman smiled. "We couldn't miss out on an opportunity to study the ruins, even if a few of the locals have become spooked by our presence."

Ben lifted an eyebrow. "Study?"

She held out her hand to him. "Allow me to introduce myself and my team. My name is Diana Cobb."

Ben accepted her hand. "Not the famed magikologist."

Diana laughed. "I see my name has finally proceeded me, but yes, I'm that same person. My group and I-" She gestured to the others around her, "-have been excavating parts of the old capital in order to understand the magic of the past."

I leaned to one side and gazed at the hole out of which they had poured. "There's magic down there?"

"You can find magic just about anywhere, but the most interesting spells are those long forgotten and hidden away in the ruins of ancient crypts and on palace walls," she told me.

"Then you're seeking the old palace," Ben guessed.

"The palace was said to have had a plethora of old books and manuscripts on magic," Diana explained as she folded her arms over her chest. "If any survived the storm and these long years, they would be invaluable to the world."

"Should we return to work, Miss Cobb?" the young man I had first glimpsed asked her.

"I think that we have had enough of a break," Diana agreed as she half-turned to him. "But where are my manners? I haven't introduced my second-in-command." She gestured to the young man. "This is Amin Sadiq. He's one of the few locals who will venture out here to help in our digging."

I offered him a smile. "You saved our life."

Amin smiled and bowed his head to us. "It was nothing, I assure you. I merely saw your wagon and alerted the doctor to the trouble. It was she who knew what to do."

Ben turned his face toward the animal who even then still quivered a little. "It's an interesting mystery what spooked our qasi so. I've never seen one so terrified of his own shadow."

Diana smiled at him. "The sands have been known to scare the animals, but if you don't trust this one we can provide you with one of our own."

Ben moved over to the animal's front and stroked the beast's muzzle. The animal's shivering soon stopped and Ben smiled at our steed. "I think this one will suit us just fine, but I thank you for the offer."

I leaned to one side and glanced over at the hole in the ground. With clearer, less terrified eyes, I now saw that a dozen ruined stone columns stuck out from the dunes. There were even a few low stone walls that ran parallel to the river and road.

"Can we go down?" I inquired.

Diana shook her head. "I'm afraid not. The king has expressly permitted only my crew and I from venturing into the depths. All others are forbidden, even guests."

"I wonder that he's allowed you to remain in the country," Ben mused as he studied the untanned skins of those around us. Only Amin was tanned. "I was informed that all foreigners had been removed."

"That's true, but his majesty couldn't find a better team than mine on the island and our funding was very time-sensitive," Diana told him.

"Then we had better let you return to your important work," Ben spoke up as he rejoined us at the wagon. "And thank you all again for your quick actions."

Diana smiled and bowed her head. "It was our pleasure."

We climbed aboard the wagon and Ben gently flicked the reins. The qasi trotted forward, though I couldn't help but notice that it moved to the far side of the road as far from the hole in the ground as it could manage.

I waited until we were well past the dig before I spoke up. "You don't think it was just a fluke that our steed ran off with us." It was more a statement than a question.

Ben shook his head. "No. Qasi are some of the easiest-going creatures and Faris trains his animals to be the best pullers. Whatever spooked our friend here was something unusual."

"Something like a shadow in the sands?" I guessed.

"That would be my assumption."

I folded my arms over my chest and thought back to that dark hole. "I wonder what's down that hole. . ."

A smile curled onto Ben's lips. "We might venture down there."

I cocked my head at an angle and lifted an eyebrow at him. "How?"

He chuckled. "You are speaking with a Dragon Thief who is only semi-retired, after all. Invading a dig site would be an easy task, particularly at night."

"So we have our dinner plans set?" I teased.

Some of his good humor fell away as he nodded at the road ahead of us. "That depends on what happens there."

I looked to where he indicated. The road stretched for some fifteen miles and ended at a group of low hills that huddled together as if for warmth. The river flowed into them and a small forest popped up around the foothills where the water disappeared.

However, something else caught my attention. It was a shimmer of light that stretched a mile above the hills and followed the coastline. "What's that light?" I asked my guide.

"That is the barrier provided by the Thaqiba," Ben told me as he cracked the reins again, and with a little more gusto. "We'll see it's power up close."