Page 52 of Infala: The Bonding Games
“We’ll be going the wrong way.”
“Yes. But we’ve got a clear line on where they’re going. We just need to keep them in view, and the left is a slightly elevated position. As a bonus, it will make it difficult for others to follow without making their intentions quite obvious. And all we need is to see where the elites go. It will be one of those four smaller cavern areas over there on the right. Once we learn which one, we amble about looking confused like everyone else, then make our way inside to claim the next key.”
“And the others?”
“I will come out swearing a bit to throw them off further. A few complaints, along with the attempt to make it seem like Idon’t want them to see me complaining, will fool those watching us into bypassing that area.”
“A double fake-out.”
“Yes.”
“And you say you really don’t have poker on this planet? Shame. You’d be a natural.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. Now, shall we?”
Ziana gave a sarcastic little curtsey. “After you.”
It wasn’t as bad a route as she’d worried initially. The ground, though covered in tall grass, was nevertheless relatively easy to traverse. The one thing that worried her, however, was the pile of scat Dorrin pointed out.
“We are not alone. Watch your step and stay alert. Away from the safety of numbers, there is no telling if a beast might get overconfident.”
She wasn’t too thrilled with the thought of that, but the cavern the elite teams had wandered off to weren’t all that far. If the cheaters were quick, and if she and Dorrin moved fast once the correct area was identified, they could recover the key and get back to the main group sooner rather than later. Unfortunately, part of that depended entirely on other people’s competence.
To her great delight, Ziana found things going their way. The elites were more circumspect about their actions now, and it seemed the others hadn’t keyed in on their forbidden intel on their setting. When they moved on, walking around a bit to muddy their tracks before heading toward the climb upward to the lava area, no one moved to inspect the area they’d just been.
No one but Dorrin and his human partner.
Just as they’d planned, they crossed back over the stream and made their way to the caverns, picking the one the elites had visited last as their first stop. At first glance it was just an empty space, and not terribly deep at that. But Dorrin led the way tothe back wall and turned, pressing against the stone. The light from outside made them squint, but off to the right was a faint glow. Hidden in the rocks, blocked out from observation by the external light during day hours, was the checkpoint.
“You do it this time,” he said, offering it to Ziana.
She pressed her hand on the orb, just as she’d seen him do. The metal was warm to the touch, and no sooner had she made contact than her identity was confirmed and the second key dispensed. She took it and handed it to Dorrin.
“Safer if we have them all together in the same pocket,” she said.
“Logical,” he replied, tucking it securely away with the other. “Now we must perform a bit for the others. They will find the checkpoint eventually, but it is not readily visible unless you venture all the way to the back. If we can delay them at all, it will be in our best interest. Can you do that?”
“Acting? Oh, that I can do. It’ll actually be kind of fun. Lead the way.”
The pair stepped out, Ziana erupting into a short burst of profanity which Dorrin quickly silenced, his eyes darting around as if making sure no one noticed their altercation. Of course, a few of the teams did, and they were glad those two had helped eliminate one patch of land. It was that much less for them to search. Dorrin and Ziana’s efforts—and failures—would make their own word that much easier. Work smarter, not harder, as they say.
Only, in this case, they were being played. And though they would almost surely find the checkpoint eventually—and be thoroughly pissed off when they realized they’d been duped—by that time the offenders would be long gone.
Dorrin led the way for a little while, walking as though searching but really just keeping them close to the others as they navigated the surprisingly sprawling area, doing all they couldto avoid the beasts they were now certain lay in wait. When they reached the ragged jumble of rocks piled against the cavern’s towering wall, only then did they shift tactics and begin their ascent. There was a small gap between the two sections and that allowed them the opportunity to climb without being observed, at least for a while.
The elites had chosen an easier route, but at this point following them directly would tip them off. There was simply nowhere to hide, and no way to make their continued pursuit seem innocuous. Fortunately, Dorrin’s on-the-fly plan was proving a success, and the two scaled quite a height in no time. Once they were forced to shimmy out to the area that could be seen from below, they were so high above that unless someone was actively looking for them on the rock face, they would go unnoted.
Even if they were seen, following in their path would be both strenuous and time consuming. They had given themselves a surprising lead, and it was theirs to keep or lose. Higher they climbed, the heat increasing as they neared the lava stream and pools of steaming water. It made sense, the hottest part was on the top, the coldest on the bottom. Not exactly creative, but on a thermal level it seemed the designers had taken at least one shortcut.
From their new vantage point Ziana noted that it was also interesting how the lowest level was rather small by comparison. Treacherous, no doubt, but not vast. It seemed the lava and thermal geyser section above was similarly constrained, though they would only know for sure once they’d completed their ascent, and that, to her relief, occurred in short order.
“No way,” she gasped as they hauled themselves over the lip and onto flat ground.
“What?”
“The orb,” she exclaimed, pointing to the floating ball no more than twenty meters in front of them.
Dorrin’s expression was one of shock. He knew they were taking a shortcut and avoiding most of the level’s normal entry point in the process, but this? It was an impossible bit of good luck. He scanned the area for traps and hazards. The large lava stream that fed the lava falls was close by. There were also small streams of lava just past it but nothing they couldn’t easily hop over if they’d approached from the other direction. The thermal springs and geysers were also all situated on the other side of the orb, a gauntlet the others would have to run.
