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rocking. It was time for the boys to leave by the emergency exit up front. “You go first Tom said, and move very slowly.” Calvan edged along the craft. Tom triggered the explosive bolts on the hatch, and when the smoke had cleared Calvan moved forward, and leaped through to the stony ledge.
    Now it was Tom’s turn. He edged slowly along the craft, knowing now that he should have joined Calvan before he had jumped! Without his weight up front it had started to rock again. He stopped, and took a deep breath, heart pounding like a jackhammer. He edged forward again to the hatch, and leaped clear onto the ledge.
    “Well that was one way to get here, and at least it saved us a climb,” he said with relief.
    Without his weight the craft had stopped rocking again. Slowly it tilted now, and then slipped over the ledge. They both stared at one other, waiting. Suddenly the mountain wall lit up with a flash. Tom counted off the seconds until the noise of an explosion reached them from far below. “Oh well, say goodbye to your hotel” he said to Calvan, sadly shaking his head.
    They had no water, and they were thousands of feet up a steep mountain, trapped on a ledge with night approaching. Neither of them wanted to think about that, as they looked back across the plain they had traveled.
    “What’s that cloud of dust way back there? It seems to be moving this way,” Calvan said. More bad news, the guardians were making their way to the mountain.
    “They can feel our presence,” Tom said, “let’s hope that there’s not a way up to this ledge. It will take them a while longer to get here, but I’m afraid we may not last that long anyway.”
    Night fell , and was more uncomfortable than ever. It was too cold to sleep, and they huddled close to the rock face, shivering. Despite the cold, both boys had started to get thirsty. Dawn saw them at their lowest ebb.
    “Never give up , your numbers not up,” Tom mumbled “there’s always a way and it’s a brand new day,” he said smiling.
    “Yes miracles happen every day,” Calvan said unconvincingly, his teeth chattering with cold.
    Light from the rising sun crept down the mountain, and even at this height, they could feel its warmth. The whole ledge was lit up now as the boys peered over the side, and down into the shadows of the plain. Tom shook his head slowly. The creatures must have been walking all night, and had made lots of progress.
    Then as the light swept down the rock face Calvan saw it merged into a track. Although only a couple of feet wide, there was a flight of steps at its end. These finished at an opening into the rock face. It looked like the entrance to a cave!
    Then a second miracle happened. In the spot where their water had been pumped Tom noticed a small frozen pool of it. It had been so cold in the night that it must have frozen, before it could all drain away. The boys broke some ice off the surface of the puddle and quenched their thirst, although it did nothing to warm them.
    “We keep moving forwards.” Tom said. “Lets climb down into the cave”
    Calvan and Tom descended the path. The slope was a lot steeper than it looked. Once Calvan made the mistake of looking over the side. The drop was so deep that it disappeared into the mist, thousands of feet below. He stopped dead on the spot, his head spinning.
    “You must move,” Tom, said, “we can’t last long on this slope.”
    Suddenly there was a roar like thunder from above. Tom shouted, “Rock avalanche, MOVE!”
    Calvan ran down the path now. Tom pushed him into the mouth of the cave and behind a rock outcrop , just in time as falling rocks exploded like bombs on the ledge behind them.

10 Twins
    Both boys took a deep breath and looked ahead. They were in for another surprise. Staring back at them with sharp beady eyes were two mighty eagles. Tom wondered if he had any magic left. Now was a good time to find out. He leaped up and pointed his finger at the nearest eagle. Nothing