Pendragon - The Soldiers Of Halla Part 20

He grabbed the arm that I had been stroking with and started pulling. It felt as if we were tied to an engine, that's how strong a swimmer Spader was. I relaxed, letting him do the work. With my other arm I held tight to Saangi. We were going to make it. I could only hope that Saangi was still alive.

Seconds later I heard splashing. Spader had broken the surface. He let me go and grabbed Saangi, pulling her forward. I rolled over onto my back to see that we had barely emerged from the tunnel. The sandstone ceiling soared overhead. I rolled back onto my belly and saw that the water spread out to either side of us. Up ahead, rising from the water, was the train track, which meant the water grew shallow. Beyond that was a large, underground cavern that was filled with several other small trains like the one we'd just ridden in on.

Or maybe I should say, like the one that had died underwater.

My feet hit bottom. I walked the rest of the way, gasping for air. Spader pulled Saangi up onto the sandy floor, where Loor was on her knees, waiting, breathing hard. She was okay. Was Saangi? Spader sat her up, holding her chin with his hand. Saangi sat slumped.

"Breathe," he ordered. It didn't sound at all like something that would come from Vo Spader. There was no fun in it. No joke. No sly wink. He was dead serious.

Saangi didn't breathe.

Spader quickly laid her down on her back, pulled her chin up to clear her airway, and clamped his mouth over hers to try and resuscitate her. He gave two deep breaths, forcing her lungs to open up. After the second breath he turned Saangi's face to the side. She still didn't breathe. Spader repeated the process.

I had the fleeting thought that as a Traveler I might be able to save her. Didn't Saint Dane save Courtney from death? It was an agonizing decision. Should I try to save her? But what would that do to the little remaining spirit of Solara? I truly didn't know what to do.

Spader stopped breathing into Saangi's mouth and turned her head again. I knew that if she didn't respond soon, I would have to make a life or death decision. After an agonizing two seconds a Saangi coughed. Water spurted from her mouth, but she coughed. She was alive. I slumped down onto the sandy floor, spent, and about as relieved as I think I'd ever been in my life. Saangi rolled onto her side, taking deep breaths. As I write this now, knowing what happened, I still can't say what I would have done if she hadn't come around. I'm just happy that I didn't have to find out.

Spader looked to Loor and softly said, "I'm sorry." Loor shrugged. "Why?"

"I thought the train would make it back. The water must have killed the engine."

Loor gave him a puzzled look. "You did exactly what you said you would do. You got us here. Perhaps you made it seem as if it would be simpler than it turned out to be, but if you did not do that, I am not so sure that Saangi or I would have gone under the water."

"I definitely would not have gone!" Saangi said, and coughed again.

"Do not be sorry, Spader. Pendragon told us to trust you, we did, and now we are here. You are to be congratulated."

Spader looked at me, not sure how to react.

I shrugged. "Don't look at me."

Spader turned back to the Batu warriors and said, "I am really, really happy that we're on the same side."

"I can say the same for you," Loor replied. That was as close to a compliment as Loor was capable of giving.

I took a few more breaths to get my head straight, then said, "Okay, that was fun. Now how do we get out?"

Loor stood and scanned the large train room that was half underwater. "There," she pointed. "Those stairs lead to a hut just inside the outer wall of Mooraj."

"How are you, Saangi?" I asked.

Loor's acolyte coughed one more time to clear her airway and stood up.

"Ready," she declared.

Amazing girls. Both of them.

Loor led us around the rows of parked trains, headed for the archway. I didn't think there would be any guards around. If they weren't guarding the hut outside, there would be no reason to guard this side of the tunnel. Still, we moved with caution. We followed Loor up the sandy stairs, moving quietly. With each step the stairwell grew lighter. The tunnel we had come through must have been angled upward, because we weren't as deep underground as when we had descended the stairs outside of Mooraj.

I had already forgotten about our harrowing swim. All that mattered was what lay ahead. The exiles. How many would there be? Was Mooraj full of them? Was this some kind of holding camp for the strangers from another territory?

When we reached the surface, we found ourselves in another small hut made of sandstone. At one time this was probably the work hut for the Rokador who ran the underground railroad. Not anymore. It was abandoned and empty. The four of us crept cautiously up from below and made our way to a window to get our first view of Mooraj. Or maybe I should say, what Mooraj had become.

There were a lot of ways to describe what we saw. Not all of them were good. Not all of them were bad. There was a feeling of total jubilation a and crushing disappointment. Relief mixed with sadness. There was reason for hope, but that was tempered by anger. I guess you could say that what we saw was a mixed bag of truths. I got all of that with one single look.

First off, we weren't looking at a camp filled with exiles. Our search would continue. Still, there was consolation. This camp was filled with other people, which was reason to rejoice. Mooraj had become the home of the Batu tribe. The Ravinians had not committed genocide. They had simply relocated thousands of Batu tribespeople to Mooraj.

Saangi was in tears. Tears of joy. Loor leaned on her arm against the window. I could feel her relief. Their people were alive. That's not to say they were in great shape. I believe this was the Zadaa equivalent of the Horizon Compounds on Earth. Mooraj had become an overcrowded, filthy slum. These once-proud people were sentenced to live in squalor. Even from where we were, it was obvious that this place was a nightmare. Kids ran around wearing nothing but rags. Most of the adults sat staring vacantly at nothing. We saw a fight break out between two men. Over what, I didn't know. It was vicious. The two beat each other b.l.o.o.d.y, and n.o.body made a move to stop them. They all sat quietly watching the mayhem with bored detachment. They were like zombies. No Ravinian guards came to stop the fight. That told me there was no order inside Mooraj. The guards kept them inside, but they were on their own when it came to keeping the peace. With that many people living on top of one another, I had to believe that it wasn't easy. The bigger of the two fighters finally delivered a knockout blow. The little guy fell to the sand, unconscious. The big guy hauled off and kicked him once, then strolled away, leaving the guy to bleed. n.o.body helped the poor guy. n.o.body cared.

When they lived in Xhaxhu, the Batu tribe may have been primitive, but they were industrious. They were proud. They had order. Not anymore. Ravinia had stolen their souls. I guess that's better than being wiped out, but not by much. This was living proof of what Saint Dane had accomplished. On the one hand he had created his superprivileged cla.s.s of Ravinians. Their arrogance and selfishness fed the dark side of Solara. The same could be said for what was happening in Mooraj. The vicious, dangerous environment also fed the dark side of Solara. His control of Halla was complete. It was painful to see what had become of the Batu, but at least they were alive. Where there's life, there's hope. But what of the exiles?

"Stay here," Loor commanded, back to business. "Saangi and I will learn what we can. There must be a reason why there was talk of exiles. We will find out why."

"Can't we come?" Spader asked innocently.

Loor gave him a quick look up and down. "These people are victims of the Rokador. You look like a Rokador. If you come, I cannot guarantee that we can protect you."

"Enough said," Spader said quickly, stepping back. "I like it here just fine."

Loor and Saangi left the hut to explore this new world, leaving Spader and me to wonder what our next move should be. We sat in the shadows of the hut, hoping none of the Batu prisoners would peek in and see a couple of Rokador-looking guys kicking back. That would bring more trouble than we could handle.

"This doesn't mean there aren't any exiles on Zadaa," Spader pointed out hopefully. "It just means they're not here."

I was discouraged. "Maybe. But how do we find them?"

"We will. We have to."

The two of us sat quietly, both lost in our own thoughts. After a few minutes I realized that something was off. I sensed a change. What was it? I looked at Spader. He felt it too. He was already sitting up, on alert.

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's gotten quiet" was his answer.

I don't know why I didn't realize it sooner. Mooraj was loaded with people and that created a natural din. That noise was suddenly gone. Alarms went off in my head.

"This isn't good," I said, and stood up.

No sooner did I get to my feet than we were attacked. A dozen Batu had surrounded the small hut and quietly closed the ring around us. When we jumped up, they jumped in. They flooded in through the door and dove in through the windows, screaming. We didn't stand a chance. I feared they would tear us apart, so I yelled, "We are not Rokador! We are not Ravinians! We are friends!"

I don't know if they believed me or not, but it bought us some time. We were both held by strong-armed Batu who at one time were probably Ghee warriors, because they knew exactly how to handle us.

"We are here with two Batu warriors," I called out. "Loor and Saangi. We are friends!"

That seemed to stop them. Or at least confuse them. I took another chance and said, "We are looking for exiles. Do you know them? Are they here?"

That got a reaction too. They were definitely confused.

"We're friends of the exiles," Spader added.

The men exchanged quick looks. Was it possible? Were the exiles living here in this Batu concentration camp after all? I couldn't breathe. I knew the next few seconds would be critical.

"Please," I said. "Loor is our friend. She is looking for the exiles too."

One of the Batu guys stepped forward. By the way he walked I could tell that he was in charge. Or at least as "in charge" as you could be with a bunch of angry, stir-crazy outcasts. He gave us both a long look up and down, sizing us up. He reached out to Spader's ear, and gave it a twist.

"Ow!" Spader screamed in pain. "What was that for?"

"I think he's checking to see if you're a dado," I said.

"All he had to do was ask," Spader shot back, indignant. Then to the Batu he said, "I'm real. See?" He opened his mouth and wiggled his tongue, saying, "Ahhhhh."

The ear-twister turned and strode from the hut. "Bring them," he ordered.

The other Batu instantly obeyed and dragged us out of the hut.

"This is good, right?" Spader called to me.

"I don't know," I answered. They didn't kill us. That was victory enough. At least for the time being.

We were dragged through the dusty, filth-strewn byways of Mooraj. I can't say that I recognized much from my training there. There were so many Batu lying around that there wasn't much chance to see any of the structures. Man, there were a lot of people crammed together in this compound. It was a dirty, overcrowded ghetto. It was h.e.l.l. I didn't know how long they had been held prisoner there, but any time was too long. Everyone stared at us as we were dragged by. I'm sure they thought we were Rokador captives who were about to pay the price for having sentenced them to such a horrible life. I really hoped that wasn't the case.

We were brought to a long, low building that I thought I recognized, but couldn't be sure. We were quickly dragged inside, and I saw that both walls of this structure were lined with cots. It was the Mooraj hospital. It was a nightmare. The smell alone was enough to make you refuse treatment. There had to have been a hundred cots, all filled with people. Many more were on the floor. The only constant sound was that of people moaning in pain and misery. I guess I should have been repulsed, and I was, but the overriding feeling it gave me was anger. This was what Ravinia brought to those who didn't live up to their standards. This is what Saint Dane had directed his followers to create. This was what fueled Saint Dane's version of Solara. Pain, misery, anger. As I looked over the poor victims of Saint Dane's misguided quest, I wondered if my theory was wrong. Maybe there was such a thing as pure evil.

"Look," Spader called out.

Someone had entered the far side of the ward. It was a woman. She stood out mostly because she wasn't dark skinned like a Batu. She wore a light green smock and pants that made her look like a doctor from Second Earth. She knelt next to a bed that held an elderly man, using a damp cloth to gently wipe his forehead. Though she was caring for the sick and wearing clothes that made her look like a doctor, I knew she wasn't. The smock wasn't a doctor's smock. It was the uniform worn by those who were charged with caring for Mr. Pop, the repository that once contained the history of Quillan. The woman had long gray hair, tied back to keep it out of her eyes as she worked.

"Is it her?" Spader asked.

I called out, "Elli?"

Elli Winter looked up with surprise. At first she smiled, but her smile turned dark. She left the old man and came to us.

"I'm afraid it is too late. The exiles that came to Zadaa are dead."

Chapter 19.

Help me," an emaciated man gasped from the cot nearest us, holding up his hand weakly to Elli.

"Water," another begged in a raspy whisper. They were looking at Elli as if she were an angel sent to protect and care for them. Did they sense that she was a Traveler? I thought back to the way the gars looked at me as we were riding in that horse-drawn wagon on Eelong. They sensed there was something unusual about me. That's what it felt like here. Of course, it didn't hurt that Elli was a gentle, older woman with caring eyes, who showed them the kind of compa.s.sion that was in short supply around this h.e.l.lhole.

"I'll be back," she said to both of them soothingly. "I promise."

She took both their hands and gently placed them back onto their chests. I don't think I'll ever forget the looks in their eyes. They were like wounded puppy dogs, desperate for any show of kindness. It broke my heart. It was hard enough to see anybody in such bad shape, but knowing the Batu were once proud, powerful people made it that much worse.

"Come," Elli said to us as she made her way through the tangle of sick Batu. As she pa.s.sed the cots, hand after hand went up to her, begging for something. Anything. Elli touched each of them to give whatever solace that might provide. It seemed to help. A little. They appeared more at peace. Elli really was an angel.

She led us out of the horrific infirmary to a small room that was cluttered with trash. There were a few broken chairs, and a table that had empty bottles and cups strewn haphazardly.

"This is where I go to collect my thoughts. Do you like it?" Elli asked with more than a touch of sarcasm. "Make yourselves comfortable."

She gestured to the chairs. I didn't think it was possible to get comfortable in this nightmare ward, but 1 sat. Spader sat next to me. Elli leaned back on the dirty table. She looked tired and sad. No big surprise. I'm guessing she was near sixty years old, but at that moment she looked closer to a hundred. Her eyes were red. She was on the verge of tears. Having so many sick and dying people begging you for help will do that, I guess.

"I don't understand, Elli," I said. "How long have you been here?"

"That's hard to say," she answered thoughtfully, wiping her tired eyes. "There are no calendars or clocks. Time just goes by. But several nights have pa.s.sed. I don't recall how many. Ten? Twenty? I've lost count."

That was odd. It's hard to measure time when you're bouncing between territories, but my own internal clock felt as if the Travelers had only left Solara a day or so before.

"The nights are the worst," Elli continued. "Outside these walls it grows quiet, but in here the sounds of agony never end."

I couldn't imagine dealing with such sadness and despair.

"Why didn't you go to your own territory?" Spader asked.

"I did," Elli answered. "I spent nearly a month on Quillan."

Spader and I exchanged looks. We were both thinking the same thing. Time proved to be irrelevant. Again. It seemed as if Elli had been sent back to a time on Quillan that was further in the past than we had been living.

Elli continued, "There are no exiles on Quillan. At least not anymore. As soon as I arrived, I made my way through the underground, searching for information, just as Press asked. It wasn't easy. Blok controls every aspect of life on Quillan now. Throughout the territory. Most of the remaining revivors have been hunted down and a" She didn't finish the sentence. She didn't have to.

"What about Ravinia?" I asked.

"It is the new government," she said sadly. "Of course, they allow Blok whatever freedoms they wish for. The games are a thing of the past, by the way."

"Well, that's good, right?" I said hopefully.

"No" was her quick response. "It's because there are no people left to wager on them."

Oh. Not good.

She continued, "I did uncover one bit of information. I encountered a revivor who had escaped from a Ravinian prison. He was one of the few who survived. They'd beaten him unmercifully. Apparently the Ravinians are also looking for the exiles."

"Did he know about any exiles?" I asked anxiously.

"He did, and he was nearly killed keeping the secret. He stayed alive long enough to escape and share it with me."

Elli took a deep breath. Emotionally she was in rough shape. It seemed like she'd been through a lot since leaving Solara.

"Were there exiles on Quillan?" Spader asked gently, prodding her to continue.