So as we walked, I explained everything I knew. Zasen and Kanik picked at each detail, extracting more from my memory than I'd realized was possible. I knew the hall, how it angleddown, and the path to the first light. From there, I could walk blind to the girls' hall. I was sure of it!
But I didn't know where Callah was now. She was married, so she wouldn't be in the girls' hall anymore. No, she and Tobias would have their own rooms, tucked among countless others on any of a few dozen halls. In other words, they were all but out of reach.
"How will I find them?" I finally asked.
"They'll find us," Zasen promised. "We have enough people here who speak English now. We'll yell for them if we have to. Ayla, all we need is to get inside!"
"And you might be able to do that," Rymar said. "If you can, everything will end today."
"We have enough people," Kanik said.
But I wasn't sure we did. Then again, more wouldn't help. The halls were dark, they'd be crowded, and inside was nothing like out here. We wouldn't be able to get around them, use camouflage, or blend with our surroundings.
And people would die.
All too soon, we reached the descent that led to the door. It was a slow and gradual slope, completely devoid of trees. The grass grew thick here, running right up to the stone cliff of the mountain's face.
I paused, standing at the top of the hill and looked up. Jagged rocks stood well above me, but not nearly as high as I'd expected. But when I looked back, I realized we were already on the mountain. The Reaper's camp was below us and to the east. Lorsa was to the north. The paths behind us meandered down slowly, proving the hill we'd just come up covered the only world I'd known before - and it was such a small thing compared to the world out here.
"Okay!" Zasen said. "We're going to set everything right in front of the door!" He pointed. "I want archers at the ready. Ifthat door opens for any reason, we need to be prepared for the worst."
"But!" Rymar said, taking over. "They could be willing to negotiate for food. We want to do this peacefully if possible, so do not shoot without good reason!"
"And we will trade out on the lifting," Zasen said, marching his way down toward the door. "Bring the first cart!"
I jogged after him, refusing to be left behind. Kanik and Rymar stayed at the top, armed with bows. I hadn't realized Rymar even owned one, but it could've been borrowed. He had a habit of never making a fuss about such things.
I reached the line between the hard flooring I'd grown up with and the grass I now took for granted just as the first cart pulled up, angled sideways to escape easily if necessary. Immediately, all of us reached into the back, grabbing what we could.
"It needs to be well back from the door," I told them. "Give them space to inspect it, otherwise they'll assume a trap."
"Ayla, grab the head of this deer," Zasen ordered.
I did, taking a handful of antlers while three others moved to handle the weight of its body. It was large, but the elk were even bigger. Pigs, large birds, rabbits, and so much more were among the offerings we'd brought, and most were too big for me to lift on my own.
The whole time, I kept stealing glances at the exterior of that door.
The pile on the ground grew and the cart emptied out, so the next moved into place. I wanted to keep going, but Zasen made me head up and take my turn guarding the ones lifting. When he joined me, I felt a bit better about it, but I kept looking at the way this door was made.
It was heavier and wider than the one for quarantine, but similar in many ways. The latch was made from bolts of metal.A few of them. The hinges on it were massive, proving the thing had to be heavy, and I remembered it as being thick. Sadly, I hadn't paid enough attention to knowhowthick.
"Well?" Zasen asked as the second cart moved out of the way and the teams switched again.
"I want to look at it," I said. "To see if there's a keypad."
"We unload first," he told me. "Then we move everyone else back. Until then, you can look all you want, but do not touch."
"I can do that," I promised.
But on the side? I saw something that looked exactly like the worn number pad I was used to. Every time I lifted an animal from the cart, I recited the code in my head, terrified it might slip away now when we could be so very close: 4-4-6-3.
That could be the number that freed Callah from Hell.
Fifty-Eight
Ayla
When the cart was empty, Zasen had everyone pull back. Kanik jogged down to join me while the Reapers and Dragons discussed what happened next. I knew I should go back and listen, but I was fixated on the door.
