David related all that had happened since he had left the group. His plan had been to head back the way they had come, but since Susan had run off that way, he headed off first away from the river so as to skirt the area where she might be. For some time, he debated whether he should simply leave the world, but knowing from the meerkat of Scaltard’s capture, he felt guilty for simply leaving them. Uncertain, he was resting by the river, when he spotted a small weaver bird a few feet away. It didn’t speak to him, but seemed to want him to follow. It had clear amber eyes and he felt drawn to them. They filled him with a sense of awe and peace at the same time.
He followed it some way as it hopped from tree to
rock. It guided him back across the lower ford. and through the rough rocky
terrain. Suddenly, the ground dropped away. At first, David thought it was a
steep ledge similar to the one near where they had encountered the snake. But
as he peered over the edge, he discovered it was more of a pit. At this moment,
the weaver bird flew off, leaving the bewildered David to figure out what was
down there.
The pit was not terribly deep, but there seemed to be
a creature down at the bottom. The edges of the pit were rough enough for him
to scramble down.
In the pit, he found a creature something like a
weasel but more the size of a badger. She was weak but not badly hurt.
He gave her a little water and some small berries he
had found for food. She accepted these gratefully and explained what had
happened.
When Loopel returned from his mysterious
disappearance, she, Akadis and the hare had followed Gelinda’s instructions on
where the others had gone. Rachel had had an uneasy feeling that the other two
were planning something, but had nothing concrete to confirm her fears, and
decided she was just being paranoid. But when they had come to this pit, they
had overpowered her and thrown her into it.
Gelinda, who had been with them at that time, escaped
and was on her way now to gather the … brothers and the rest of the swarm. They
should return any moment.
It was not easy helping the honey badger out of the
pit, but somehow, slowly, they managed it. On hearing all that had happened,
David felt convinced that he couldn’t simply leave the others to whatever trap
Loopel and Akadis had awaiting them. They set off at once.
***
Having caught them up on his side of the story, the
creatures began to discuss their next move. It would take a few days for the
group to reach the next location. So after a hasty lunch, they set off, the
prisoners still under guard.
***
No comments:
Post a Comment