Ore Cart

Clara said, "Astra, could you cut those pants that you hacked up into strips and patches and put them into the basket?" Clara grabbed a candle stub, stuck it into the candle-sized grommet in her helmet, and lit it with the fatwood. The candle stunk. While Astra was cutting the strips, Clara placed and took a candle snd placed it on Fred's helmet. Fred said, "Yuck. At least the fatwood is not rancid."

Clara said, "If I had known that I was going to be leaving, I might have been able to get the nice beeswax candles from the Dragon's stash. But we will manage."

Clara planted the candle in Astra's helmet as Astra finished slicing the patches of denim.

"Stay still," said Clara. She lit the candle while Astra stayed still. Astra crinkled her nose.

Clara placed the knife in the basket and looked down - "Fatwood, candles, strips of cloth, bread, water, and knife. The basket is getting full. Let's go!" She extinguished the fatwood round and threw it in the basket, and by the light of the torch, led them to a large boxy cart.

"Get in! You are going up. When you see the landing, get out. Bang on the cart when you are out. Go back a few steps. I will join you in a few minutes."

Fred and Astra placed their supplies in the ore cart and then used both hands and one foot to pull themselves onto the rim and raise themselves over and inside. Astra swung her face to Fred. Fred was shifting from side to side, and his candle was burning well. Fred smiled as his eyes met Astra's.

Both their heads swerved down toward the source of a squeaking noise. They saw Clara spin a crank. She receded as the cart rose into the darkness above. Then suddenly the light below disappeared as the ore cart entered the shaft. Faded gray wood spars covered the rock. She and Fred were now out of sight of the wide but wicked area of the Dragon's domain and headed into the unknown hazards of the mines.

"How long is our luck going to hold out?" Astra whispered.

"The Good Lord knows. Once we get to the top, I will feel a lot better. I am tempted to take a piece of cloth and tie it so that it blocks my nostrils. These candles are nasty."

"Yes. But they are practical. If the candles stay lit and do not fall out of the helmet, it keeps both hands free for carrying food or swinging an axe."

"How is she going to get up here? It looks like there this is some sort of engine that raises and lowers the cart. She was turning some sort of crank, and we go up."

"We will just have to trust her." Astra looked up while Fred fiddled around with a strip of cloth, trying to stanch the smell of tallow. Astra looked down. No noise but the squeak of the engine. Wood plank, rock, wood plank, rock. The Dragazons might be seconds away! Or their escape might not even have been discovered yet.

Fred had fashioned a bandana across his mouth. "Hey, it works! Let me make you one."

Fred reached around Astra's head to tie a knot between her neck and hair, and gently flattened the cloth over her nose and mouth. Astra's heart skipped a beat. It was not quite a hug. Innocent but satisfying. The release from the power of the dragon, the isolation of the cart with someone who was on her side, freedom of movement, and the hope of getting out when all seemed lost for two weeks - the wonderful feeling of freedom flushed her with euphoria as she rose.

Fred sat down and relaxed against one wall of the cart. With the light from her candle, Astra could see the crinkle of a contented closed-mouth smile and a sparkle from Fred's eyes. Fred gingerly but playfully placed his hand on a wall of the shaft, and then pulled it back.

Astra noticed that it was all wood on the walls now, and that there was another squeaky noise directly above them. Then the walls disappeared. Fred and Astra quickly heaved their supplies over the cart wall and pulled themselves out of the cart. They each picked up an axe and banged the handles against the side of the cart.

The cart stopped and then sank. Astra looked, and saw a gray rope sink with the cart. The squeaking noise started again, but she stopped paying attention. She was not really too concerned about the details - the engine got them up here, and that is what mattered.

This part of the cavern was wide. Astra could see Fred walking to another ore cart. She could see the top of his helmet quite clearly, but just the outline of his face. His helmet dipped and then came back up.

"Did you find anything?"

"Just some loose stone."

"Clara said to take a few steps back from the cart and wait. But she did not say how long. I am hoping that when she gets up here, that she will think it safe enough to start explaining a few things. Do you see a crank around here?"

"No, I do not, but these candles are dim. I think that I am more likely to find any crank by banging my shin against it than actually seeing it. I will agree with you on one thing. She needs to know her place and stop giving orders." That was not quite what Astra meant, but she did not comment on it.

"She is direct, isn't she? But I can accept that. It might be easier for me because she is a fellow Aqualarian. And she seems to have thought this through. Let's be wise and follow her lead until we get into Allaria. Besides, you said earlier that it was foolhardy to continue this quest, because the Dragon and the Dragazons were too strong for us. You were right! And do you know why they were too strong for us? They know a lot about us, and we know little about them. I thought that most of the girls that the Dragon had captured had been killed, or would be meek little slaves, clamoring to be freed. The Dragazons have shocked me. We have been fighting blind. If we can get Clara back to Allaria, then we she can tell us all sorts of things. We will know who we are fighting."

"Yes. Clara's knowledge will help us get out of the Dragon's lair. I will be happy to get out of the cave and out of the Dragon's reach. But once we get enough manpower and let martial valor and skill do its work, the Lord shall bless our undertaking."

Astra shrugged, and changed the subject. "I will be happy to see her get up here, so that we can continue."

1. Just as she said that, the squeaks resumed, and the rope started to vibrate a little.
2. Just as she said that, Fred said, "I see a dim light flickering below. Maybe she is climbing up?"
3. An uncomfortable amount of time passed. Had Clara been delayed? Or captured?

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