That afternoon they were on the move far earlier than expected. The sun was still up, but the shadow of the mountains gave them plenty of shade.
They were all fidgety with excitement and nervousness as they approached the towering rubble.
When they were about a mile from the outer wall, Connor said, “Look at it. It’s way bigger than I thought it would be.”
“Me too,” Andrew agreed. “It’s like the wall touches the sky.”
“What are you talking about? You both stood next to it when you were in the book. It hasn’t changed,” Mr. Miller insisted.
“I know, but it just feels different, doesn’t it?” Andrew said, turning to Connor.
“Yeah it does, and we’re not even there yet!”
Mr. Miller stopped and so did Andrew and Connor. He looked at them and briefly repeated the instructions he had given them just before they broke camp. “When we get to the outer wall, we’re gonna set up camp by the Portal. We’ll go over the plan one last time. I’m sure you’ll both be leaving tonight for the Chamber. We’ll need to be quick when we get there. Got it?”
“Got it,” they agreed.
Kaya led the way to where the men would need to make their base camp and stopped. Under the protection of her Shadow Cloak, she quickly untied the small stick with the white flag that had been on her pack for more than a year. With butterflies in her stomach, she stuck it in the sand for the first time.
Mr. Miller saw the little flag and urgently started fumbling to remove his backpack. It was only halfway off when his knees gave out and he threw-up on the sand.
Andrew and Connor were staring at the little flag when Mr. Miller fell to his knees.
“That’s not good,” Connor whispered to Andrew.
Andrew walked up to Mr. Miller and offered him his hand.
“Thanks, but I’ll be all right,” he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and standing up.
His legs wobbled a little as he walked over to the horses and pulled his waterskin out of a saddlebag. After taking a moment, he turned to the boys, saying, “Let’s get everything off the horses, this is base camp.”
With only the tents and a tack line to set up, they were done in only fifteen minutes.
Mr. Miller gestured with his hand to get Connor and Andrew to come sit with him. When they were all sitting together, he said, “All right, let’s go over the plan one last time. Since we have a guide, the river should be easy to cross. That means it shouldn’t take any more than a day and a half to get to the Chamber. Remember not to go in when the sun is up, it’s always done at night, always. I’ll be right over there sitting in front of the Defender’s Portal and trust me, I’ll see it start up when you enter.
Let’s do it like we agreed. Connor’s going in first, and I’ll have the shield. With that thing on my arm, I’ll be able to defend you like nobody’s been defended in two thousand years. You’ll see, it’s gonna go just fine.”
“What if it isn’t?” asked Andrew.
Connor shoved Andrew, and said in a sarcastic tone, “What could go wrong? The plan is perfect.”
Mr. Miller looked at Andrew, and said, “You already know the answer, but I’ll say it again just so I’ve said it one last time. If things don’t go as planned, then one or both of us,” he nodded toward Connor, “will be dead or dying. It will be up to you to decide what happens next.”
Andrew looked down at the sand, and said, “I’m glad you didn’t talk about this part of the plan before we came all the way out here because I’m not sure I would have come.”
Mr. Miller clapped him on the back, and said, “Don’t worry. This is gonna work. I know it is, or we wouldn’t have come. In two days, you’ll be standing inside the City of Light, the Kingdom itself. You’ll see.”
Andrew raised his head, looked him in the eyes, and said, “I hope you’re right, for all our sakes.” He pushed himself up, and they all stood together one last time.
“Take one waterskin each. You can refill it out of the river. You don’t need to carry anything else but food.”
“What about the tent?” Connor asked.
“The next time you close your eyes you won’t need a tent.”
Connor’s eyebrows went up, and Andrew just shook his head.
“Get the bags we packed last night with your food in it and get ready to go. It looks like your guide is ready.”
The boys had started to go when Andrew dropped his bag, turned around and walked up to Mr. Miller. He hugged him and to his surprise, Mr. Miller hugged him back.
“Good luck Mr. Miller.”
“We don’t need luck Andrew, you’ll see.”
Andrew backed away, and Connor stepped up, holding out his hand. Mr. Miller took it, and the two shook.
“I’ll see you soon.”
“I’ll be the one with the giant shield. Don’t worry, I’ll be there for you and we’ll see this thing through to the end.”
He gripped Connor’s hand tightly and pulled him in for a hug.
The last sliver of the old moon was still shining overhead, and Andrew thought he saw tears in Mr. Miller’s eyes, when he said, “Get going now and be safe. I’ll see you both inside the Kingdom.”