Trapped

 

Alpen turned to Fallon. “Why don’t they attack?”

“They don’t need to. We’re trapped.”

Alithea held Erthen close to her chest. “They must want us alive.”

That thought had not occurred to either warrior. They were accustomed to the slash of sword and spear.

The Sprint closest to the edge turned slightly, then a cage came into view. Inside the cage a bandit turned then snarled as it used its sharp claws to tear at the web of the cage walls.

Alpen looked back past Fallon to Bebe and Alithea crouched in the cave. Alpen could kill the bandit but not before the quick vicious animal caused a lot of damage and pain. He looked with resignation at Fallon who concurred. Alpen laid his sword on the cave floor and took a step back. When the lithe Fae rider waved her arm, Alpen kicked the sword over the edge. Fallon stood ready to throw embers at the bandit in case they opened the cage.

Without turning Alpen asked Fallon, “Can you understand them?”

“I’m trying.”

“Tell them to withdraw the bandit cage.”

A moment’s thought. “No.”

Putting a lot of anger in his voice, Alpen snarled, “No?” He had agreed to vote but not in battle.

“A warrior keeps his small knife hidden.”

Alpen had not thought of language as a weapon and grunted his assent.

/////////////////////

The Fae rider wanted them to push the playpen to the front edge of the cave but Bebe would not release it until they withdrew the caged bandit. Fallon listened carefully as the Fae discussed the issue among themselves. He expected the Fae to all speak the same language, but these riders used an entirely different set of words than the Fae allies of the Glade warriors. He learned to let the strange words tumble around in his head, allowing them to self-assemble their meaning. As he looked at the movement of a Fae's mouth, a key in his mind clicked and he could understand them. He signaled the others to stay quiet.

The closest Sprint picked up the caged bandit and lowered the twisting, spitting creature below the ledge and out of sight. Fallon waved Bebe to come forward with the playpen. When she hesitated, he reassured her. "They think the babes are a prize." She looked at him with doubt but pushed the playpen forward to the edge.

When the Sprint picked up the playpen, they all held their breath. Suspended off the cave floor, the Fae rider motioned to Alpen and Fallon to come forward. The two came to the edge and scrambled down the rock to the ground, careful to avoid the barbs of the Sprint's legs. Alpen lowered his head slightly as he looked at Fallon, the signal for no sudden movements. Alithea appeared above the cave edge and passed Erthen down to Fallon. Finally, Bebe and Alithea scrambled down the face edge. When the Sprint turned with the playpen above them, Bebe instinctively reached up. Alpen reached to her with a calming gesture.

As the Sprint moved away with the playpen, a Fae rider behind the group flicked out a tendril to indicate that they follow the lead Sprint. The others looked to Fallon, who stepped forward. "Make sure you stay ahead of the Sprints behind us," he cautioned. They could hear the whipping of the creatures' raspy leg barbs following behind them. Hoisting Erthen on his shoulders, Fallon hummed and kissed the boy's legs to help quiet his fears. They set off west through a sandy savannah marked with trees, returning to the ocean by a different route.