Chapter 10 - The Plunge

Cable and Ranger galloped as swiftly as the narrow path and fading daylight would allow. Cable couldn’t understand why he felt so fearful; he just knew that he had to get away as quickly as he could. At first the path was clear, and horse and rider made good progress. After about 30 minutes of riding, Cable eased up on the reins and finally dared to look behind him. To his great relief, he saw nothing. So Cable slowed the pace and allowed Ranger to walk.

Presently they came to a stream. Ranger dipped his head and started to drink. Cable then realized just how thirsty he’d become. He’d not had a drink for what seemed like hours. He dismounted and plunged his face into the running water. The coolness refreshed him, and he drank freely. One he finished drinking, he rolled around in the stream and treated himself to an impromptu bath. After his close encounter with those ghoulish hooded creatures, he figured he needed a good cleaning.

As he stood up, he looked over at Ranger. His horse was standing perfectly still, looking toward the woods. Cable listened. Sure enough, he could hear a rustling sound in the direction from which he’d come. He didn’t dare to stop and observe. He jumped on Ranger and frantically looked for a direction in which to flee these relentless creatures.

The path which they’d been on seemed to stop at the stream. The woods were extremely thick, and the travel would be slow if they chose that route. So Cable urged his horse to follow the streambed and run upstream. It was the one route that was relatively free of low-hanging branches.

Ranger didn’t need any urging as he plodded his way upstream. Thankfully the waters were shallow and they could travel quite freely. The footing was tricky, and more than once Cable was nearly thrown from Ranger’s back. Progress was slow as night overtook the forest, but nevertheless the pair managed to stay on the move for a couple of hours.

Finally exhaustion overtook Cable. With every step Ranger took, Cable seemed to nearly fall asleep. They came to a bend, and Cable thought he could make out a small clearing. He pulled Ranger over to the right. Ranger, as though reading Cable’s mind, stepped out of the streambed and up onto a small bed of moss. Cable leaped off Ranger’s back. Without a word, both of them collapsed to the ground. Ranger laid down and looked dead, the way horses often do when they go to sleep. Cable laid down back-to-back with his horse and friend.

“I’ll take the first shift,” Cable said. He figured that he and Ranger ought to alternate being awake and standing guard. Cable’s noble intention was to allow his horse to sleep first. But the fear he felt for the hooded creatures was overcome by sleepiness. His eyelids felt as though they had stones attached to them. Within minutes, both Cable and Ranger were asleep in the midst of the southern woods.

The next sound Cable heard was a whinnying sound. Cable, who wasn’t one to wake up very quickly, told Ranger to quiet down and rolled over onto his back. But the whinnying wouldn’t stop. Cable, sensing that something important must be going on, pried his eyelids open with his thumbs. As vision returned to his still-clouded head, he turned toward Ranger.

The horse was frantic. He was facing the streambed, standing on his hind legs and kicking and making all the noise he possibly could. As focus returned to Cable’s eyes, he realized why Ranger was so hysterical.

Gliding their way over the stream, illuminated by the eerie moonlight, were the two hooded creatures. One approached with outstretched arms coming upstream, while the other approached with a slashing sword coming downstream. The streambed was no longer a path of escape. Their movement was slow, silent, and relentless.

“Come here, Ranger!” cried out Cable. Ranger turned around and planted his feet on the ground. Cable leaped on his back. “Let’s go, boy!” Cable cried out.

Ranger ran headlong into the woods. The branches cruelly lashed at Cable as they felt their way through the woods. One branch grabbed the bow that was slung over his back and yanked it to the ground. Cable let it go; he dared not stop. The ride was horribly and painfully slow. They had to feel their way through in near-complete darkness. The only comfort was that the going had to be just as slow for their pursuers. Cable’s face was bloodied by the many sharp, dead evergreen branches that protruded everywhere. He figured this had to be one of the most miserable nights he’d ever known.

Finally they reached what appeared to be a clearing of sorts. In the dim glow of the still-distant rising sun, Cable could see that they had come upon a path. The path, which was much broader than any they had encountered so far in these oppressive woods, bore off to the left and uphill. Cable rejoiced at the relief from the painful meandering through the woods, and he took some comfort in the approaching daylight. He feared an enemy he could clearly see less than an enemy that was ever-lurking just out of view.

As Ranger loped uphill, Cable could see just how difficult the ride had been for him as well. The poor horse was covered with scratches and bleeding wounds. Ranger had given everything to save his rider, but he had very little energy left. His mouth was foaming; Cable knew he must be extremely thirsty. But still he plodded on. Cable marveled at the devotion of his steed. What a faithful horse.

The hill got increasingly steep for a time, then started to level off. As they crested the hill, Cable saw a strange mound of sorts off to the right side of the path. A small wooden door was embedded in the mound. Just above the top doorpost was a rock with a bronze plaque affixed to it. Cable was intrigued by this strange sight, so he halted his horse and dismounted. A strange smell of smoke seemed to come out of the doorway. Cable started to read the plaque, when suddenly his horse cried out and reared up once again. Cable looked down the pathway again.

He had been too slow. The two hooded figures were already on his heels.

Ranger, without waiting for his rider, took off to the right in an attempt to continue along the path. Cable panicked; he knew his safety depended upon his horse. He ran after him and cried out, “Stop, Ranger! Whoa buddy!” Ranger did indeed stop within seconds, but it was not because of Cable’s desperate cries.

It was because the path led to the edge of a cliff.

Cable stopped at the cliff’s edge and looked down. He could see a river running about 100 feet below, but it was a sheer dropoff. He turned around. The hooded figures continued to draw closer--one with outstretched arms, the other with sword flashing. Cable now realized that he was completely trapped. To his left was a mound that he could not quickly scale. Behind him was a cliff. To his right was more dense woods, and he knew that his bruised and battered horse could not bear to go back in there. And to his front were his pursuers.

Suddenly the hooded figures stopped. A silent moment followed. Ranger, to Cable’s surprise, broke the silence by whinnying and running directly toward the figures. However, rather than running them over, he summoned every last bit of strength and leaped over them and scrambled desperately back down the path. The hooded figures let him pass without giving chase. They evidently weren’t worried about the horse.

It was Cable that they wanted. And now Cable was completely alone.

Cable swallowed hard and tried to hide his despair. “What do you want?” he finally asked, his voice dry and raspy.

“Lay down your sword,” answered the first hooded figure (the one without the sword) in a soft but penetrating voice. Cable obeyed. He had given up all hope of escape at this point. All he wanted to do now was to live, and he figured he’d have a better chance of that if he just complied.

“Now come here,” said the first hooded figure again. Cable took a few steps forward, toward the door that he had been looking at previously. “Look at the plaque,” commanded the hooded figure when Cable reached the door. Again, Cable did as he was told. The plaque read as follows:

In this place
Let the call go forth
That the madness may end.

Strangely, at the bottom of the plaque was King Maximilian’s seal. Cable turned back to the first hooded figure and asked, “What is this supposed to mean?”

“Ah, isn’t it obvious? Why don’t you open the door and gaze in?” Cable once again complied. He opened the small door. Immediately smoke came billowing out. There seemed to be a sharp dropoff beyond the door’s threshold. As Cable looked inside, he saw a bright light flickering. It seemed like it must be a great fire, though he couldn’t see the flames. There also seemed to be some strange sounds coming forth, like distant screams. But again, nothing was clear. All Cable knew was that the place filled him with fear. He shut the door and turned back to the hooded figure, who’d taken a couple of more steps toward him.

“So what is that?” Cable asked.

“Don’t you understand?” replied the mysterious figure. “I am the agent of the king. You may doubt it, but it is so! The call has gone forth, just as the plaque has said. All that remains is for you to obey! The king has summoned you here. You are to go through that door and follow your calling! It is the only way to stop the madness! Now go!”

Cable was repulsed at the idea. He tried to back away, but the first hooded figure reached out and grabbed him. Cable wanted to resist, but all strength to fight seemed to leave his body.

“If you pass through the door, you shall live forever!” declared the hooded figure, his voice calm but eerily urgent. “You have read the plaque. This is what your father has wanted. He has directed your steps here. Now, you must follow his command. Go!”

Cable tried to absorb the words. Finally, he blurted out, “You lie! My father would never lead me to such a place.”

“Then why hasn’t he tried to stop me?” asked the hooded figure. “If he is as powerful as you think he is, then surely--if he didn’t want you here--he would have stopped you. But he has led you to this place. As you can see, the last step of obedience is yours. Now go!”

As Cable stood helplessly in the grasp of the first hooded figure, the second figure who held the flashing sword stepped forward. He opened the door once again and motioned for Cable to enter. Cable tried to get free, but the grasp was as firm as an iron shackle. Cable was pushed closer to the threshold. “If the step of obedience is mine, why are you forcing me!” he cried out. His cries were met with silence. He dug in his heels to no avail.

As he was about to cross the threshold, he cried out, “Father, save me!” As he did so, he thought he could hear a strange laugh come out of the mouths of the hooded figures. Then, in his moment of greatest despair, he felt two arrows whiz by his head. For just a moment, his hands were free. Without looking or even thinking, he rushed to the edge of the cliff, swallowed hard, and dived toward the river below.

Cable did not notice another figure that was also pursuing him. He emerged from the woods and followed Cable over the cliff.