by Ralan Conley
SUPER SUMMER SALE! Cover and interior illustrations by Jesse Bunch ©Jesse Bunch 2007 A Young Adult to Adult Book From Sam's Dot Publishing
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Excerpt:
Two Zyot guards sat, clubs at their sides, playing some sort of game, at a table in an open area of another large cavern. It was also brightly lit by torches stuck into holes made in the walls. Beyond them was a huge wooden cage, as wide as the cavern and half its length, but barely high enough for the group of Rolans inside to stand.
Most of the prisoners were resting, but some watched the guard's game. One offered running advice, which was completely ignored. Several noticed the prince's group and started pointing and quietly rousing the others.
Despite the attempt to keep quiet, the guards sensed something was wrong and looked up to spy the small troop in the tunnel. They jumped up, grabbing their war clubs.
Gartyn held out a statue and began chanting. Belaf and the warriors rushed the giants, swords flashing, but they looked tiny in comparison to their foes. Behind them the Rolan prisoners strained at the bars of their wooden cage and shouted encouragement as Myla made for the gate, followed by her ever-faithful sword.
She stopped and addressed the weapon. "Keyati, protect the prince!" The sword zipped away to the prince's side while she dashed to the cage's gate. Reaching into a bag at her side, she pulled out the crowbar Gartyn had made and slammed it under the crude locking mechanism. She tugged with all her strength, but the massive locking post wouldn't budge.
Many of the prisoners had gathered at the gate, but they couldn't help. There was no way to get at the post from inside. They shouted at her, "open it," "let us out," "Don't let them eat us."
Behind her the sounds of battle raged as the tiny Rolans and her sword struggled against the huge Zyots. She tried to ignore the sound, to concentrate on the lock. There had to be a weak point. It was a simple sliding timber arrangement, but in the dankness of the cave it had warped, making it next to impossible to move. She strained and cursed, to no avail.
"It's bent too much," she hissed through locked teeth.
The prisoners inside put up a moan, and assaulted her ears with demands to open the gate.
But her words had triggered her mother's voice in her head, and it was the loudest thing she heard. "When life delivers a fender bender, little people must surrender."
The crowbar slipped from Myla's aching fingers. The noises around her turned into a dull, meaningless roar as she stared at the huge timber. It's too big. A little snippet like me could never budge it. She crumpled to the cave floor, her will to fight crushed. All was lost. She shuddered at the thought of Rolans roasting over a pit.
Prince Belaf's voice rang out over the dull roar in her ears, "Myla don't quit. You can do it." But even his voice was mostly drowned out by her mother's verse echoing in her head.
The sounds of the desperate struggle rose behind her. She did not want to look, but her head swiveled involuntarily to behold the two tiny warriors, Juka and Fetzor, swords crossed over the prince's head. Their faces showed the strain of holding off their huge opponent's ponderous war club, apparently, by sheer grit.
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