Chapter 9 - Reunited

Before we can continue the story, we must now go back several hours, to the time of Andres' impulsive dash out of the woods to assist Devlin.  This, of course, was the unwise act that led to several hours of captivity for Andres.  When Cable had seen Andres burst out into the open, he knew that it could only lead to trouble.  He also knew that he should stay where he was, regardless of what Andres had done.  But he couldn't just leave his brother out on the road by himself, could he?  So Cable followed him, knowing that nothing good could come of it, and knowing that The Watcher's orders applied just as much to him as they did to Andres.  However, before doing so, he carefully removed the ring from around his neck and tucked it underneath some leaves near a large stump. 

Cable, like Andres, was bound hand and foot and carried to a remote farmhouse.  He had been slapped and beaten and blindfolded and tormented for what seemed like days, because when you have no idea when a particular trial will end, the difficulty indeed seems eternal.  Still, through it all, Cable remained steadfast.  He gave no indication that he knew anything about the ring. 

Now as we recall, Andres had managed to escape in the middle of the night.  When the man with the crooked jaw--whom we now know as Prince Dor-ko--discovered the escape, his oppression of Cable turned particularly brutal.  Finally, after throwing Cable against the wall, he pulled out a dagger and said, "Boy, if you don't tell me where that ring is right now, I'll run this blade through your heart."  Well, this was too much for even brave Cable to endure.  So he broke down in tears and muttered, "It's in the woods...I got my hand loose while we were riding...I...threw it by the road somewhere...I'll help you find it."

To his great credit, Cable did not tell Dor-ko exactly where it was.  This meant that Dor-ko had to keep him alive, at least until he showed him where the ring was.  But in Cable's mind, he had utterly failed in his mission.

So Prince Dor-ko bound his hands and tied Cable to a leash.  The leash was tied on to Dor-ko's saddle, and thus was Cable forced to march behind Dor-ko's horse.  Cable was terribly weary.  He had not slept for nearly two days.  He was weakened by hours without food.  Many times, he stumbled and fell and was dragged for a few yards, before rising to his feet again.  And throughout the journey, Dor-ko continued to bellow out, "Where did you throw that ring, boy?"  Cable's response--"I think it's just a little bit further up the hill"--was always met with a grunt and with a quickening of the pace.

And so it was that, after about 3 hours of this merciless trudge up the mountain, Cable was on the verge of giving up.  He figured that if he just fell down and gave up, one of two things would happen.  He would either be dragged to his death by the horse, or Dor-ko would jump down and kill him.  In either case, he would be out of his misery in a few moments, and Dor-ko would still not have the ring.  That had to be better than this cruel journey with no end in sight!

Suddenly, at that moment, when he was about to slump down in failure, Cable's world was transformed.  For this is what happened, as though in slow motion.  First, he heard a boy's voice cry out, "Now!"  Then he saw a boy run toward him.  He saw Dor-ko look toward the woods.  He saw a stone fly through the air and strike Dor-ko in the forehead.  He saw Dor-ko grimace, then tumble off his horse onto the path.  He turned back toward the woods and saw that the boy running toward him had a dagger in his hand.  He saw the boy grab the rope that bound him and slice through it.  Then he saw that the boy was Andres!

Finally, Cable realized what had happened--his brother had set him free!  He saw the other boy run out of the woods as well.  Recognizing him as the boy that had set the trap for him, he was amazed to see him take the rope that had fallen to the ground and tie up Prince Dor-ko.  Meanwhile, Andres was jumping up and down and shouting, "We did it!  We did it!"  Cable had never remembered seeing him so excited.  He just wouldn't stop jumping.

While Andres was celebrating and Cable was dumbfounded, Devlin alone was left with a cool head.  He grabbed both boys by the arm and said, "Quick, let's get out of here before Dor-ko wakes up."  At Devlin's urging, the boys dashed back into the woods and re-joined the path.  Andres handed Cable his satchel, and they resumed their trek.

The excitement of the rescue sustained them for awhile.  Andres introduced Devlin to Cable, and the two boys quickly became friends.  They exchanged stories.  Cable marveled at how the hooded man had somehow followed them and set Andres free.  But soon fatigue and exhaustion overcame them.  Cable, who had experienced a more severe beating than Andres, was especially weary.  He pleaded with the other two boys for a chance to stop.  Finally, he just sat down and refused to move.

Andres pleaded with his brother.  "Cable," he said, "the hooded man told us--he was giving us a second chance, but this time we can't fail!  If we stop, that goon with the crooked jaw might catch us.  We've got to keep going!  We can't stop till we reach the hermit!"  As tired as Andres was, he couldn't bear the thought of being Dor-ko's prisoner again.

Still, Cable could not be persuaded.  He started to drift off to sleep.  Devlin quickly grabbed him by the shoulder and shook him.  Cable mumbled, "Leave me alone."  But Devlin would not be deterred.  Taking Cable's face into his hands, he asked, "Cable, weren't you sent on this mission by someone?"

"Yes," Cable replied groggily.

"Well let me ask you this--would you be sent on a mission that you couldn't complete?  Would you be asked to do something that you really couldn't do?"

"Hmmm..." Cable thought.  "Maybe the man didn't know how weak we really were.  If he did, he wouldn't have asked us."

Devlin would have none of it.  "Actually, maybe you are the one who really doesn't understand.  Maybe the man was the only one who really knew what you could do, if you just didn't give up!"

Cable mulled this over in his head as best he could.  It was a good point.  This Devlin seemed pretty insightful, as far as boys go.  But still, he was tired and just wanted to go to sleep.  Devlin shook him one more time.  "By the way, who sent you on this mission, anyway?" he asked.

Cable replied, "It was a guy that was in the village where we grew up--the village of Corrin."

"How old was he?" Devlin asked.

"Well, it was tough to tell, because he usually wore a hood.  He pretended to be blind.  I think he was maybe 50 years old or something."

"Oh..." Devlin thought aloud.  "Was he about six feet tall?  Did he have a deep voice?"

"Yes, yes, that's about right."

"How long had he been in the village?"

"Our dad said he'd arrived there about 10 years ago.  He'd wandered into town, begging for food.  Like we said, he'd pretended to be blind.  But I think he was just watching us, waiting for the right time to send us on our mission."

"What was his name?"

"Ronaldus."

At this revelation, Devlin started pacing around.  He scratch his head and rubbed his chin and began walking faster and faster while going in circles.  Finally, he jumped and said, "Just as I hoped!  He's alive!  He's alive!"

Andres jumped into the conversation at this point.  "What do you mean?" he asked.  "Who's alive?"

"My father!" replied Devlin.  He seemed to be laughing and crying at the same time.  "Ronaldus is my father!  Dor-ko had said he was dead, but he's not!  He's alive!  And just maybe he sent you here to save me!"

This was just the news that the boys needed to revive their spirits and continue their trek up the mountain.  They could persevere through the fatigue and hunger for a little longer, knowing that their journey was filled with purpose.  The boys wondered at how something that was filled with such difficulty could end up bringing so much joy.

At long last, the boys reached the crest of the hill.  As the sun was rising after a seemingly interminable night, Cable recognized where they were.  They had reached the spot of Andres' fateful dash out of the woods.  Cable cautiously stepped off the trail and found the stump that he'd used as a landmark the day prior.  Sure enough, the ring was still there.

But as he grasped it, he heard an approaching noise.  It sounded like hoofbeats.  The boys immediately stopped and listened intently.  They all reached the same conclusion.  Dor-ko was on their trail once again!  And by the sound of the hooves, he wasn't far behind!

They looked around.  Cable looked off to his left.  For the first time, he saw the sheer cliff that The Watcher had told them about.  The base of the cliff was about 100 yards distant, through yet more woods.  "That's where we need to go!" he shouted.  "That's where the Hermit is!"

"But how do we get there?" asked Andres in a panic. 

"We just run into the woods and hope that we get there before Dor-ko!"  And with that, the boys headed into the woods and away from the road.

The woods were a thick mix of maple trees, pine trees, and undergrowth.  Every step was a challenge.  They were constantly pushing through branches that snapped back into their companions' faces.  At one point, they stopped and listened.  They heard more branches snapping behind them.  Dor-ko was following.

Finally, the boys pushed through the last of the trees and came to the cliff.  They had reached their destination, it seemed, but there was no place to go.  The cliff face was steep.  There was no place for a foothold.  And behind them was Dor-ko.

Then arrows started flying.

Cable shouted, "We're doomed!"  Devlin cried out, "Grab your daggers and get ready to fight!"  But Andres remembered the words of Kylus--"You will find out when you get there".  He looked off to the right.  He saw a branch sticking out from the cliff.

On the branch was an owl...the same owl they'd seen before.

Andres shouted, "Follow me!" and ran to the owl.  Without exactly understanding why, he leaped into the air and grabbed the branch.  The owl disappeared.  And as he did so, two rocks separated, creating an opening in the cliff.  The boys dived into the opening.

The rocks slid back.  The boys were hidden in total darkness.  And as they sat there, they could hear arrows pinging against the outside.  Once again, they had escaped just in time.  But what awaited them now?