A World Apart The Jake Thomas Trilogy - By Steven A. Tolle Page 0,155

can match Shadow, so that may allow us to escape if the need arises."

"No problem, Dominic." Jake replied.

After a quick meal, Dominic and Jonas mounted up and headed off in the direction of the miners' camp, leaving the rest of the group behind.

…

Night had fallen over the woods as Dominic and Jonas rode up to the mining camp. The camp consisted primarily of tents, with a couple of ramshackle wooden buildings in the center. A rough wooden palisade had been erected around the perimeter, with a makeshift gate in place. The entire camp was surrounded with large torches and fire pits. Standing behind the gates was a group of armed miners with a mismatch of weapons and armor. Several others were on the palisade with bows, arrows notched but not drawn.

"Halt!" One of the men yelled, anger and fear in his voice. "Don't come any closer!"

Dominic and Jonas stopped their horses and sat still, making no threatening movement. Jonas slowly lifted his hand and called out.

"I am a cleric of the One." He said, loudly but calmly. "I am sworn to protect and serve all men in His name. We are no threat to you; we come only seeking information."

"Prove it!" Another voice from behind the gate called.

Jonas embraced his power, his shining form driving away the night. He sat there, unmoving, letting the miners decide the next steps. He heard some murmuring from the men, then the gate was opened just enough to allow a gap for them to ride in.

Dominic went first, the miners stepping back from him, clearly intimidated. Jonas followed, holding onto his power. The gate was quickly pulled closed behind them.

"The last thing I expected to see was a cleric." One of the miners said, a large, bearded man carrying a rusty axe. "Would you be willing to look at our injured, Brother?"

"Of course." Jonas said, sliding off Dontas' back. Dominic was on the ground as well, watching the miners, hand resting lightly on his sword. "Where are they?"

"In the main building." The man said, turning back towards the wooden building. He looked at the other miners. "Back to your posts!" He snapped. The other miners left, mumbling under their breath.

"You're in charge?" Dominic asked as they made their way to the building, gaze scanning the area. "Miners are known to be stubbornly independent types."

"We needed to band together to survive in these woods." The man said. "I am Petrous, leader of this camp. The other miners elected me since I was a soldier once, long ago." He opened the door of the building, revealing ten men lying on the floor, some covered in blankets, all injured.

"Which one is in the worst shape?" Jonas asked as he moved into the room, his shining form brighter than the candles burning, chasing away the shadows, looking closely at the injured men. Petrous pointed to a man near the back, looking dead already, with a vicious-looking wound across his face and one arm hacked off at the elbow, the bandages soiled and reeking of infection.

As Jonas made his way through the wounded, some reaching out for him, begging for help, Dominic turned to Petrous.

"How did this happen?" He asked, nodding towards the men. "Those look like battle wounds, not mining accidents."

"Around a week ago, Niso…" Petrous indicated the wounded man in the back that Jonas was healing "…and Hander were scouting out near the main road. We often go up there to see if there are any threats coming our way. They were in the woods off the road when they saw a group of half-men ride by, heading east. They normally would have stayed quiet and let them pass, since we see the half-men in the woods from time to time, but they noticed something strange. There was an Imp as well, but that was not the strange thing. What made this different was that Niso swore there was a young woman riding with them."

Dominic contained his surprise, only asking. "What happened?"

"Hander, the stupid fool that he was, decided that he had to rescue this damsel in distress." Petrous spat, shaking his head. "He sent a couple arrows into the demon, yelling for the girl to ride towards them. The demon sent the half-men into the woods instead. Niso and Hander turned and fled, riding back here as hard as they could."

"They were almost back when another five half-men and an Imp suddenly came out of the woods to join their pursuers. The demon fried Hander in