Read Online Infinity Ring 05 - Cave of Wonders by Matthew J. Kirby - Free Book Online
Authors: Matthew J. Kirby
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“Well?” he said.
“It’s . . .” Sera said.
Dak waited a minute. “It’s what?”
Sera wiped at something in her eye.
“Are you crying?” Dak asked.
“I GOT SAND IN MY EYE!” Sera said. She’d obviously been pushed too far.
Dak’s voice softened. “Sera, I didn’t mean —”
“Leave it alone, Dak,” Riq said. “She’ll tell you when she’s ready.”
“Has she told
you
?” Dak asked.
Riq looked at Sera. They’d talked a bit about their Remnants back during the Viking siege of Paris. And here they were again. What was it about battles that brought this stuff up? Sera shook her head at Riq, telling him not to say anything.
Well, he sure didn’t like being put in the middle of this.
“Dak, she’ll tell
us
when she’s ready.” Which was the truth.
“You know what? I don’t like secrets!” Dak said. “I need to know what’s going on! It’s like we’re falling apart here, when we need to come together and be a team.”
Riq had to admit the kid had a point. But he still wasn’t ready to say anything about his own problems yet, and apparently Sera wasn’t either.
“Let’s just keep moving, Dak,” Sera said. “Please?”
Dak folded his arms.
Sera touched his arm. “Please, Dak.”
Dak relaxed his frown. “Fine. Okay. Let’s go.”
Riq was glad the two of them had worked it out, at least for now. They picked up their march again, the lights of the Mongol war camp pretty close now. Riq could see shadows moving in front of the campfires, silhouettes he couldn’t quite make out. He heard dogs barking and horses neighing, and the clamor and ring of metal.
Once they reached the first few tents, Riq realized their plan was going to be a lot harder than he’d thought. The Mongol war camp was less like a camp and more like a mobile city. It was huge. And warriors stood armed and ready at every turn.
“I T’S ENORMOUS ,” Sera whispered. There were so many of the round tents, all arranged in a very orderly way. But what amazed Sera were the horses. They were everywhere. Lots of them. More than she could count. It seemed like the horses outnumbered the people five to one. Some of the horses had stuffed dummies mounted on them, as if the Mongols were trying to give the impression of more riders than they actually had.
“Let’s look for Hulagu’s tent,” Dak said. “It will definitely stand out from the rest.”
They snuck in between the tents, through the shadows, moving deeper and deeper into the Mongol territory. With each step, Sera had the feeling that this was the wrong way to go about saving the library. She didn’t think there was any way they would be able to convince Hulagu Khan to do anything. It was ridiculous. She thought they should instead try to find Tusi. She believed they could convince him somehow to help them. He was an amazing scientist, and he simply could not be SQ.
But no one had listened to her, even though she’d been right about a lot of things before.
The men in the Mongol army all wore the same uniform: a long wool coat that crossed in the front, buttoned under the right armpit, and was secured at the waist by a thin hide belt and wide sash. Leather armor was over that, to which scales and rings and other bits of metal had been attached. The women wore clothes pretty similar to the men, except without the armor, and some wore beaded, colored headdresses. They even wore pants like the men, which seemed practical for people who rode horses every day, and it made Sera smile.
The smoke of the fire and the smells of the food they cooked filled the air, and Sera saw that Abi had been right about the diversity in the Mongol empire. The three of them could pretty much fit right in. Their translation devices picked up a few different languages from the snippets of conversation they overheard.
They kept moving. And moving. All the tents started to look the same to Sera, and she wondered if they were going in circles.
“Guys,” Sera said,
“Well?” he said.
“It’s . . .” Sera said.
Dak waited a minute. “It’s what?”
Sera wiped at something in her eye.
“Are you crying?” Dak asked.
“I GOT SAND IN MY EYE!” Sera said. She’d obviously been pushed too far.
Dak’s voice softened. “Sera, I didn’t mean —”
“Leave it alone, Dak,” Riq said. “She’ll tell you when she’s ready.”
“Has she told
you
?” Dak asked.
Riq looked at Sera. They’d talked a bit about their Remnants back during the Viking siege of Paris. And here they were again. What was it about battles that brought this stuff up? Sera shook her head at Riq, telling him not to say anything.
Well, he sure didn’t like being put in the middle of this.
“Dak, she’ll tell
us
when she’s ready.” Which was the truth.
“You know what? I don’t like secrets!” Dak said. “I need to know what’s going on! It’s like we’re falling apart here, when we need to come together and be a team.”
Riq had to admit the kid had a point. But he still wasn’t ready to say anything about his own problems yet, and apparently Sera wasn’t either.
“Let’s just keep moving, Dak,” Sera said. “Please?”
Dak folded his arms.
Sera touched his arm. “Please, Dak.”
Dak relaxed his frown. “Fine. Okay. Let’s go.”
Riq was glad the two of them had worked it out, at least for now. They picked up their march again, the lights of the Mongol war camp pretty close now. Riq could see shadows moving in front of the campfires, silhouettes he couldn’t quite make out. He heard dogs barking and horses neighing, and the clamor and ring of metal.
Once they reached the first few tents, Riq realized their plan was going to be a lot harder than he’d thought. The Mongol war camp was less like a camp and more like a mobile city. It was huge. And warriors stood armed and ready at every turn.
“I T’S ENORMOUS ,” Sera whispered. There were so many of the round tents, all arranged in a very orderly way. But what amazed Sera were the horses. They were everywhere. Lots of them. More than she could count. It seemed like the horses outnumbered the people five to one. Some of the horses had stuffed dummies mounted on them, as if the Mongols were trying to give the impression of more riders than they actually had.
“Let’s look for Hulagu’s tent,” Dak said. “It will definitely stand out from the rest.”
They snuck in between the tents, through the shadows, moving deeper and deeper into the Mongol territory. With each step, Sera had the feeling that this was the wrong way to go about saving the library. She didn’t think there was any way they would be able to convince Hulagu Khan to do anything. It was ridiculous. She thought they should instead try to find Tusi. She believed they could convince him somehow to help them. He was an amazing scientist, and he simply could not be SQ.
But no one had listened to her, even though she’d been right about a lot of things before.
The men in the Mongol army all wore the same uniform: a long wool coat that crossed in the front, buttoned under the right armpit, and was secured at the waist by a thin hide belt and wide sash. Leather armor was over that, to which scales and rings and other bits of metal had been attached. The women wore clothes pretty similar to the men, except without the armor, and some wore beaded, colored headdresses. They even wore pants like the men, which seemed practical for people who rode horses every day, and it made Sera smile.
The smoke of the fire and the smells of the food they cooked filled the air, and Sera saw that Abi had been right about the diversity in the Mongol empire. The three of them could pretty much fit right in. Their translation devices picked up a few different languages from the snippets of conversation they overheard.
They kept moving. And moving. All the tents started to look the same to Sera, and she wondered if they were going in circles.
“Guys,” Sera said,
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