Close Call by Stuart Hough

 More from Stuart's Iron Age Saga inspired by Ernest Hemmingway – “For Whom The Bell Tolls.”  3^rd Chapter – 3^rd Page – 3^rd line;  

“Ya lo veo”, he said in Spanish. ‘I have seen him,’ speaking from the front of his mouth with almost no movement of his lips in the way that is quieter than any whisper. (I took the liberty of changing the gender and the term “Spanish” to make it fit with my writing).

“Ya lo veo”, she said in her Iberian language. ‘I have seen him,’ speaking from the front of her mouth with almost no movement of her lips in the way that is quieter than any whisper. Uedica didn’t understand what she had said, but understood her intent. It was to be the last time that any of them spoke that night.

The bushes and trees were silhouettes in the blackest of greens. A gentle breeze rustled the trees in the moonlight. The conditions were not ideal to remain unseen. Cinnia scanned for more movement. They crouched in absolute stillness until she was satisfied that the Gods would tip the balance in their favour. Clouds scudded through the night sky. Between them, the ground became ever-more silvery, with stretching, yawning shadows draped across the landscape. Darkness and shadow would be their protector. Sound travelled further and more clearly without the distractions of the light hours. They had muffled everything they wore. Anything metal was dulled with fire soot and wrapped in fabric. The was nothing to chink, rattle or give themselves away with an unnatural sound. Cinnia had insisted that Cai be on a leash. The wolf had looked at Uedica curiously as she first put the rope around his neck. She and he were the group’s biggest liability. She prayed that the usually unruly animal would co-operate.

The wait seemed to takes an age. In their stillness, Uedica recalled Gorsedd’s words. “It may be hard work, but we do not doubt her judgement. Obedience to her decisions will keep us safe”. Uedica had felt rather than seen, the fact that Ferrex was unconvinced. Gorsedd had noted it too, she observed. He had continued to address Uedica. “There is no one better to lead us through the darkness. Cinnia comes into a life of her own, as if she has a higher understanding with the night. Now Uedica had begun to understand Gorsedd’s faith in Cinnia. “Keep one eye on Cinnia and the other on where you’re going.” In their charcoal-drawing surroundings, Cinnia seemed to take on a different, all-seeing form. Her movements were fluid, like the Hefren Herself. Like the slower parts of the river, she flowed gently through the land, moving ever onward, with a graceful, unhurried beauty. They moved forward again, this time in a low-stooping, half-crawl through the long grass. No one dared raise a higher profile than the one ahead. Cinnia had weighed up the risks with her choice of route. She balanced the need for progress against that of discovery. She avoided the hedges with their branches, briars and risks of entanglement and noise. They moved like mist along the open ground, following the subtle falls of the land. She gently moved aside any dry branches that may snap, as they went. Uedica followed.

The lightest of touches on Uedica’s arm got her attention. Cinnia’s eyes widened in silent warning. The whites of her eyes a stark contrast against her soot-blackened face.  No sound was needed. The ‘eyes’ said it all. ‘Pay attention!’ they glared. The sentry had returned. Their group melted into the ground. Uedica smelt its earthy safety. It was their shield along with the darkness. The sentry continued towards them. Ever closer now. Uedica controlled her breathing. She tried to blink away the sweat that rolled into her eyes, despite the chill of the night. They could smell the odour of him, the chink of metal upon metal. The creak of leather. Either of them could have sprung up to drive a blade upwards through his chin. He would have been dead before he hit the ground. She held Cai close to her, praying hard that she could keep his attention. Silently imploring him to mirror their behaviour.

They had made good progress so far. They had time. “Take our risks early.” Ferrex had advised before they set off. “Taking them later, under pressure of time may mean discovery and death for us all.”

She smelt the aroma of the crushed grass and the earth beneath. The land nourished them and their animals. It provided food, shelter and warmth. Now the slightest of its contours were their only protection from view. Uedica’s senses tingled. She felt her hair bristle. Her skin rose in goose-pimples.

Clouds scudded across the moonlit sky. Shadows cast by the moon faded. A light rain began to fall. The sentry cursed and pulled his cloak around him. He turned to walk back to his camp. He would never know how close he came to walking in his own Elysian fields. He would live to fight another day, as would they.

They moved onward, opaque and silent through the Roman lines. They stopped several times again. Any lingering doubts as to their chances of evading the outsiders began to fade. This was the most hazardous part. A drop in concentration, a distraction or over-confidence at this stage would be disastrous. They continued to use the shadows cast by the moonlight and the subtle contours of the land. Once they were content that they had enough distance between themselves and discovery, the change in their demeanour was palpable. They now moved at a slow running pace. Uedica felt euphoric. A release of pent-up energy and release of tension. The grins on the blackened faces of those around her gave her the satisfaction that they shared her feeling.

She thanked the Goddess that was the moon as she travelled through the night, with graceful ease. Her bright, bold glow would guide their path. She asked the goddess to look over Cinnia, to keep her safe, as she had done for them. Colour was now returning to the land in the early twilight. The Great Caer was some 10 leagues to the south-west. They would easily make that.