Chapter 9
Jed led the way up the stairs and down passageways to the hidden door by which he had entered.
“There are alarms on all external doors,” he told her. “Once we shoot this lock out, they’ll be activated. Be ready to run. Head for the Cliffs of Ebor.”
He shot out the lock and put his shoulder to the door.
“It won't budge!”
Zarine thrust him away and pushed open the door. “You're as weak as a newborn feral. Let’s go!” she urged, grabbing his arm.
Jed hesitated, then pulled back. “You go. I’ve got a badge to get.”
“What? You’re mad! You’ll never do it!”
There were faint shouts and the sound of running feet inside the palace.
“When they see the door open they’ll never think I’d still be in the palace. It’s the best place to hide.”
Zarine stepped back. “I’m not leaving without you.”
There was no time to argue. He pulled her into an empty storage cupboard where they crouched, hardly daring to breathe. Doors banged. Boots thudded past. Voices shouted. At last there was silence.
“They’ve gone,” Jed whispered. “Come on.”
He slid open the door and they hurried back along the hall.
“Where are we going?” Zarine asked.
“Vexson’s apartment. Where else?”
“How will you get in?”
“The alarms will have woken him. They sound in each of the head elders’ rooms. He’ll come out to see what the trouble is.”
“Are you going to – shoot him?”
Jed stopped so suddenly that Zarine bumped into him.
“I am not a murderer, no matter what they accuse me of,” he whispered angrily. “If I killed Vexson, I would not be fit to rule.”
He looked around at the sound of running feet.
“In here, quick!”
Zarine opened the door nearest them and they edged inside. Jed peered through the gloom towards the bed. It should be Girren’s room, unless things had changed since he left. There was movement on the far side of the room and suddenly light flooded over them.
“What’s going on? Who is it?”
Jed sighed. “Hello, Girren.”
“Jed?” The youth in the bed sat up in amazement. “What are you doing here?”
“What does it look like? Are you going to betray us like your father did?”
“Of course not! We’ve been friends since childhood.” Girren threw off the coverlet and hurried over to them. “How did you get out of the dungeon?”
Jed’s reply was lost in the thunderous knocking on the door. Zarine put her hand to her mouth. They shrank behind the door as Girren opened it.
“Yes?”
“The prince and the girl have escaped. You seen them?” It was Vexson’s voice.
“Me? Of course not.”
“Yet you were up, since you opened the door immediately.” Vexson’s voice was suspicious.
“I heard the alarm.”
Jed, pressed against the wall behind the door, suddenly noticed that the mirror on the wall opposite reflected part of his image. If Vexson should glance across the room they – and Girren - would be done for.
Girren began to close the door as Vexson withdrew. That revealed even more of Jed, but he didn’t dare move. Movement would attract attention.
It was right at the last possible moment that Vexson’s glance took in the far wall and the mirror. With a cry of angry triumph, he slammed the door open and charged in.
“It’s three against one this time, Vexson!” Jed cried.
Zarine slammed the door shut while Girren made a dive for Vexson’s knees. Jed leapt forward and grabbed for the badge as Vexson fell. This time he was successful. He ripped the badge from Vexson’s tunic and backed off.
“Run, Jed!” Girren gasped, trying to keep Vexson from rising. “I’ll hold him – a bit longer.”
Jed wrenched the door open. “You’d better come, too or you’ll be in trouble!”
“Only till you turn fifteen,” Girren sent, as they fled down the hall.
Yes, when he turned fifteen he would truly be able to return and challenge Vexson. He thrust the badge deep into his pocket. The catch was too bent to fasten it properly.
“The Prince of Jeddon will reward you, Girren.”
“Ouch!”
That sounded like Girren had lost the battle. Never mind, he had gained a few precious moments. Vexson was shouting for the guards now. It would be too late to escape via the doors. Jed turned the corner and raced for the TRS. If they could get into a transmod, they would be safe.
As Jed and Zarine burst out onto the Transmod Receiving Station, guards ran from doors on the other end. Jed pulled the pistol from his pocket and sent a ray into the transmod nearest them. Flames licked around its base. Fire alarms wailed. One of the guards dropped his weapon and grabbed a fire extinguisher from the wall, but it was too late for foam. The transmod exploded with a roar. Guards dived for cover. Gobs of foam flung high by the blast, disappeared mid-air as the heat vaporized them. Dark smoke billowed up and hung in a thick cloud near the ceiling. More guards appeared from the other end. Jed fired into the transmod nearest them.
“Jed! Quick!”
Zarine thrust back the hatch of the nearest transmod and tumbled in. The jets began to whine. Jed let off a few more rays, then dived in and grabbed for his harness. Two more transmods were on fire now. It was sure to spread to the others. That should keep them all busy for a while.
“Go!” he yelled.
Zarine was already gunning the jets. The transmod whined and slid forward, quickly gathering speed. Several guards in the exit bay leapt for safety as the transmod skimmed swiftly towards them, the nucleon rays from their weapons fizzing harmlessly skywards. But the roof was slowly closing. Would they make it?
There was a crash and the shriek of tearing metal as the transmod whooshed out from the TRS. Jed ducked as a slit opened up in the hatch above his head, the metal peeled back by the scraping roof. A trail of black smoke funneled out from the tail.
“We’ve been hit!” Zarine cried, her hands flying over the glowing instrument panel.
“Get as far as you can before we ditch it.”
The city lights fell behind them as Zarine nursed the crippled transmod for as long as she dared. They lost height rapidly and soon treetops were scraping against the underbelly of the transmod.
“There’s hardly any fuel left,” Zarine warned. “We’re going down!”
Even as she spoke, there was a jolt and a crash. The transmod speared from side to side, finally coming to rest with its nose down in a hole. The silence was broken by a tiny tick-tick-tick. One dot of red light flashed from the dashboard.
“Explosion imminent,” Zarine gasped, leaning forward to see. “Let’s get out of here.”
The explosion was made more spectacular by the blackness of the surrounding landscape. Jed and Zarine were catapulted forward by the blast. Blossoms of red danced skywards and fell again in curving arcs. Fiery embers drifted down over them and ignited the surrounding underbrush with a crackle.
“You okay?” Jed gasped, whacking sparks off his clothes.
“I – think so.” Zarine clambered to her feet.
Jed surveyed the flames. “That will give our position away nicely.”
“Why haven’t they followed us?”
“Perhaps all the other transmods exploded – or maybe they are thinking up another way to catch us. They will come soon enough. We must go on.”
He took her hand and they ran through the darkness. Finally, just as Sirin rose hugely orange, they left the plains and passed into timbered, rocky hills.
“Can’t we stop and rest now?” Zarine gasped.
“Not yet.” Jed slowed to a walk. “Soon sunflyers will be out searching.”
“Where will we go, Jed? Will we always have to live in the Desert of Rocks?”
“It’s dangerous in there, though Dirnll seemed like it well enough.” He glanced at her. “I don't think you’d feel the same.”
“Grandfather is there?”
“He was. He came to - look for me. Whether he stayed after I left, I don't know. I have another plan, but I can't tell you about it in case we are recaptured. Vexon could make you talk and betray – friends.”
“I'm a coward.” She shivered and hung her head. “I can't stand pain.”
“Vexson could make the bravest man talk,” Jed assured her. “You are very brave, or you wouldn't have helped me.”
She smiled. “I'll go with you wherever you say, even to the desert. There’s nowhere else for me to go,” she added.
“I won't be forced to live like a feral,” Jed said angrily. “Even in the desert we’ll be hunted down. We must leave Jeddon.”
The buzz of sunflyers sent them both ducking for cover. In the distance was the deeper hum of military hovercraft.
“If we go higher into the mountains we’ll be better hidden,” Zarine suggested. “And maybe we could find some wildfruit.”
“How can you think of eating when our lives are in danger?”
“I’m hungry!” she retorted. “Besides, our lives may very well depend on our strength.”
“All right then!”
He was sorry for his irritation, but had no heart to say so. He was tired of running from Vexson. Sickened by the carnage that had been caused. Upset that Garaan had not helped him, earlier. And yes, he was hungry, too.
The day passed quickly; the few wildfruit they found not enough to satisfy their hunger. Jed would have forced Zarine on through the night, but she fell into an exhausted sleep during a rest stop and he could not waken her. He sighed and settled down beside her to keep watch. It seemed only a few minutes later that he woke, stiff and cold, to the dawn of a new day. Dismayed, he jumped up and shook Zarine.
“Hurry, Zarine! We've wasted a whole night.”
Zarine stretched and yawned. “Regaining our strength isn't a waste. No-one knows where we are, so what does it matter?”
“They’ll soon find us if we don't keep moving,” he warned. “If they get ahead of us we’ll be cut off. ”
“Cut off from what? Why are we going this way at all? If you want to leave Jeddon, we should be heading towards the spaceport.”
Jed was silent. He did not dare mention the starship. There was one more mountain to cross before the plains that led to the valley and escape. It would take them most of the day because Zarine was so slow. Anything could happen in that time.
He grabbed her hand. “Come on.”
He tried to run, but Zarine kept stumbling and twice she fell, almost pulling him down with her. Still he tugged her on, not letting her stop though she wept with weariness. The third time she fell he hunched down wearily beside her. Half the day had gone - half the mountain was traversed. Half the danger eliminated? Probably not. It was better to expect more danger than less, then they would not be caught off guard.
An hour passed in silence, then Jed forced himself up.
“Zarine? We must go.”
She did not answer or move. Undecided what to do, Jed climbed a little higher, trying to see any danger ahead, but there was too much tree cover. He returned to Zarine and shook her.
“Come on,” he coaxed. “We’ll go downhill, now. That’ll be easier.”
They walked for ages before Jed began to recognize his surroundings. This was somewhere near Ranc and Herni's dome. He must make sure they gave the place a wide berth. It was strange that he had not glimpsed the buildings yet. Surely they were just through these bushes, on that flat piece of ground. The acrid odor of damp ashes made him sneeze.
“Jeddon!” He stopped in sudden horror.
“What's the matter?” Zarine sank wearily down to the ground.
He pointed. “That dome! It’s been burnt down! Those people helped me once.”
“Listen!” There was panic in Zarine’s voice. “Someone’s coming!”
A faint rustling increased to running footsteps. Jed pushed Zarine into a gap between the rocks and drew his weapon.