Unicorns' Opal (33 page)

“Watch those hands,” admonished Prince Midge.

“Sorry, little fellow,” apologized Eddie. “I am not used to being around fairies. You should be more careful. Where have you been?”

“I was out checking on the Black Devils,” answered Midge as he finally landed on Eddie’s shoulder. “We thought we would have several days before they got here, but that is not the case. For some reason, they turned towards Trekum instead of continuing to Dubar.”

“They probably sent a raven ahead to look for us,” interjected Jenneva as she rubbed her eyes. “They would have learned of our leaving the town. How close are they?”

.“They are still several hours from the city,” reported Prince Midge as Alex joined the group and helped himself to a cup of coffee.

“We need to get started right away then,” declared Jenneva. “I will make more than enough vibrations for them to hear it where they are.”

“That will still give us several hours,” interjected Alex. “By that time we will be safely onboard the ship.”

“Not if they respond by flying here,” frowned Jenneva as Tanya and Arik joined the group. “They will leave the Dark Riders behind to catch up to us. We need to get into that vault now.”

“Am I still here?” retorted Prince Midge as he leaped into the air. “They will be asleep in minutes.”

Alex called to the still sleeping Rangers and everyone gathered around the table. He explained the importance of starting the plan immediately and the other Rangers nodded solemnly. Prince Midge returned in half an hour and Alex and Jenneva slipped out the door. The Rangers gathered their belongings and prepared to follow Eddie to the ship when Arik noticed Tanya sitting idly at the table.

“Come on, Tanya,” prompted Arik. “We need to get on the ship now. Why are you just sitting there?”

“We need another way to get into that vault,” Tanya said distractedly. “Jenneva will alert the magicians if they are this close.”

“I am sure that Jenneva knows what she is doing,” offered Eddie. “Besides, there is no other option to getting that vault open besides magic.”

“Can you get into the vault somehow, Midge?” quizzed Tanya.

“No,” responded Midge. “I tried. I can fit between the door and the wall, but it does not go through. There are five metal rods that extend between the two. I assume that means five separate locks.”

“Can you show us?” prompted Tanya as the rest of the Rangers gathered around.

Prince Midge nodded and projected the large vault door again. Tanya watched as Midge flew into a crack barely wide enough for him to fit into. He hovered for a moment in front of the bars and then passed by them into the darkness.

“See,” stated Prince Midge. “There is not the slightest opening for me to get through. The door is fairly tight.”

“But acid could eat through the bars,” suggested Tanya. “I saw acid in the corner of this warehouse. What is it for?”

“We use it to age and pit metal,” Eddie said sheepishly. “A very small amount when properly applied will make a metal article appear ancient and valuable. We sell those items to collectors.”

“You could never apply the acid to those bars though,” interjected Alan. “Midge is only the size of a finger and the bars appeared to be deep within the crack he entered. How could you ever get the acid onto the bars?”

“May I have the acid?” Tanya asked Eddie.

“You are most welcome to it,” Eddie replied. “I do agree with Alan though. You will waste more acid than you get on the bars. It will not be enough to burn through even one bar.”

“I will meet you at the ship,” Tanya called as she raced to the far corner of the warehouse.

Tanya grabbed the acid jar and stashed it in her pack. She dashed out the door and immediately slowed to a fast walk as she exited the building. The sky had darkened and few people walked the streets. She furtively hurried to the wall of the Royal Palace where Midge had indicated his entrance had been. She peered up at the tower and did not see anyone present. Skillfully, Tanya tossed a hook onto the top of the wall and climbed up. As she gazed out over the grounds of the Royal Palace, Tanya reversed the hook and lowered the rope on the inside of the wall. Silently, she lowered herself to the ground, retrieved her rope, and headed for the building. Prince Midge darted in front of Tanya before settling on her shoulder.

“Wait,” whispered the fairy. “I saw some men coming. They will round that corner in just moments.”

Tanya nodded silently and edged behind a large tree. She held her breath as three soldiers marched around the corner. The soldiers were not a patrol, but merely three men on the path to somewhere. They talked and laughed as they passed by and Tanya whispered her thanks to Prince Midge.

“I will scout ahead,” offered the fairy. “Do you remember the way I showed in the warehouse?”

Tanya nodded and Midge leaped into the air. Tanya hurried across the path and hugged the building as she rounded the corner. Midge’s vision had shown him entering a window, but Tanya realized that the window was too high for her entry, so she searched for a door nearby. The first door that she found would not open and she bypassed it. Going beyond the window Midge had used, Tanya found a second door. She listened with her ear pressed against the door before entering. Inside the door was a large open area with benches and weapon racks. Tanya looked to her left at the window that Midge had used and hurried forward.

Tanya heard voices drifting down the corridors from some distant place, but she could not hear anything that sounded close or menacing. At the end of the large room were three corridors. She looked quickly left and right before darting across to the corridor leading to the center of the building. As she got half way down the corridor, Midge reappeared before her.

“There is a patrol that walks around the inner chamber,” warned the fairy. “If you time it right, you can get past him easily. I fear that if I put him asleep that someone will notice and raise an alarm.”

“You think correctly, Prince,” whispered Tanya. “Fly ahead to Jenneva and tell her to wait for me. I will be there shortly.”

Midge did not reply as he disappeared in the dim light of the corridor. Tanya reached the end of the corridor and peeked around the corner. She heard distant footsteps, but she could not see anyone. She glanced back along the corridor she had traversed and backtracked to a spot where the shadows from the torches created a patch of black near the floor. She lowered herself into the dark patch and waited.

Within a few moments, the footsteps increased and Tanya watched as a soldier marched by the end of the corridor. As soon as he was out of sight, Tanya rose and moved silently towards the inner chamber. Again she peeked around the corner and then dashed to the doorway that she had to pass through. She slid the door open quietly and eased inside. Turning to her right, Tanya stole along another corridor that led to the harem chamber. Moments later, she stood in the harem chamber gazing over the sleeping forms of soldiers. She tread softly to the far corner and slid behind the wall covering. Alex and Jenneva were waiting at the bottom of the steps.

“Why are you not on the ship?” Alex whispered harshly. “You endanger us all.”

Tanya frowned and retrieved the acid from her pack. She handed it to Jenneva.

“The acid should be able to eat through the bars if you can devise a way to place it on them,” Tanya stated softly. “I am sure that you must have a magical method of doing that. Perhaps a low level spell that will not alert the Black Devils.”

Jenneva cocked her head and stared at Tanya for a long moment. Slowly, she nodded.

“I think that might work,” agreed Jenneva. “How slowly can you pour the acid on the door above where the bolts are, Alex?”

“How slowly?” echoed Alex. “I am not sure what you mean.”

“If you can pour it slowly enough,” responded Jenneva, “I can force it around the lip of the door and direct it towards the bars. Too fast and most of it will just drip down to the floor. It will require a very steady hand.”

“My hands are still steady,” retorted Alex. “Just step back and say when to start.”

Jenneva and Tanya moved back and Midge lighted on Tanya’s shoulder. Alex opened the jar and reached high. He placed the lip of the jar against the door and tilted it very slowly. A small trickle of liquid started dripping down the door, causing a small cloud of smoke to appear as it started to eat into the metal. Jenneva’s brow furrowed in concentration as the stream of liquid flowed towards the crack instead of downward. Within moments the crack filled with smoke and Alex turned his head away as he continued to allow the liquid to pour out of the jar.

“It is not good to breath the smoke,” cautioned Jenneva. “Try to hold your breath and we can take a break when you need to breathe.”

“You should return to the ship,” Tanya said to Midge. “Even a small amount of the acid fumes could be harmful to you.”

Prince Midge nodded and darted up the stairs. Tanya looked at the cloud of vapors and shook her head.

“The first bar is severed,” announced Jenneva. “Lower the jar a bit or do you need a break?”

“No I am fine,” replied Alex. “I thought it was getting to me a minute ago, but it is fine now. The vapors seem to have stopped reaching me.”

Jenneva did not reply, but continued to concentrate on the stream of liquid. One after the other, the bars yielded to the acid stream directed by Jenneva. Finally she ordered Alex to cap the jar. Alex closed the jar and placed it on the bottom step of the stairs. He placed his hands of the large door and pushed until it slowly yielded. Jenneva grabbed the torch from its holder. Tanya picked up the jar as she followed Alex and Jenneva into the vault room.

The vault was smaller than Tanya would have expected, but it was still a large room. Shelves lined the walls with hundreds of articles on them. Some were wrapped in cloth while others were not. There was an upright cabinet in one corner with a multitude of drawers and Tanya headed for it while Alex and Jenneva examined items on the shelves. The drawers were loaded with jewelry and Tanya scooped handfuls into her pack. Several chests sat in the center of the floor and Alex opened them and pawed through the treasures.

“How do we seal this back up?” Alex asked as he inspected the chests. “Surely we do not want the riches looted by General Mobami.”

“I can put a magical ward on it,” offered Jenneva as she unwrapped items on the shelves. “Who do you plan on saving it for?”

“I should think that the people of Sordoa should benefit from it,” mused Alex.

“They will,” responded Tanya as she moved to inspect the shelves. “They will have clear skies and an end to Sarac.”

“I found it!” announced Jenneva as she held the Golden Horn up to examine it. “Hakim was correct.”

Alex rose and moved to Jenneva’s side to examine the Golden Horn. Tanya stole a glance as she continued filling her pack with items from the chest she was going through.

“Wrap it back up,” ordered Alex as he retrieved the torch from the holder Jenneva had placed it in. “Let’s get on that ship and out of this city before Hagik’s Ravens get here.”

“Or before those soldiers upstairs wake up,” added Tanya. “The sleep spell does not last forever and others may not have decided to retire yet.”

Jenneva nodded and wrapped the Golden Horn in a cloth and shoved it in her pack. Alex led the way back to the stairs and pulled the door shut. Tanya watched curiously as Jenneva wove her warding spell. When she was done, Alex extinguished the torch and led the way up the steps. He peered out into the harem chamber and determined that nobody was stirring. Swiftly, the trio slid out from behind the wall covering and left the room. Alex led and Tanya trailed behind as they wound their way along the corridor to the door leaving the inner chamber. Alex paused at the door as he listened for the sound of footsteps that would indicate the passing guard. He held up his hand for silence and frowned when he heard people talking.

Long minutes dragged by as the trio remained frozen in the corridor. Alex nodded as the conversation drifted off with the footsteps and he waited just a moment before cracking the door and peering out. He opened the door wide and darted across the open area to the corridor leading out of the building. Jenneva quickly reached his side, but Alex frowned when Tanya closed the door and raced into the corridor.

“Your utensils are not properly stored in your pack,” he softly berated Tanya. “That noise could give us away. I thought you knew better. You lead the way so I can watch your back.”

Tanya nodded and led the way along the corridor. She stopped at the intersection of three corridors and peered around the corners. Trying to move so that her pack did not make any noise, Tanya moved swiftly across the corridors into the large entry room and paused at the door to the outside. She listened while Jenneva and Alex caught up and then cracked the door. She heard an intake of breath as she peered into the face of a soldier. Tanya put all of her weight into the door and shoved it into the soldier on the other side. She sprang through the open door as the soldier sprawled on the ground. She swiftly pulled a dagger and shoved it into the man’s eye.

Alex appeared alongside Tanya and picked the dead soldier up. Throwing the body over his shoulder, Alex led the way towards the outer wall where his rope was still hanging from the wall. Tanya stooped and covered the blood spot with dirt before following Jenneva. Alex ordered Tanya up the rope and then told Jenneva to follow. Tanya used another rope to allow them to get down the other side while Alex tied his rope around the soldier’s body. Alex climbed the rope and hauled the dead body up. He unhooked his rope and threw it off the wall with the body. Alex climbed down Tanya’s rope and retrieved it. He untied the rope from the body and stowed it before hoisting the soldier over his shoulder again.

Tanya led the way through the dark streets to the dock behind the Continental Shipping Company warehouse and they boarded the ship. Nobody spoke as Alex dumped the body on the deck of the ship and the captain ordered the lines removed from the dock. When the ship was well out to sea, Alex tossed the body over the side.