Chapter 21: Battle for the Legacy
He waited until the dead of night, when the moon was hidden behind the storm clouds and the tension in the valley was at its peak.
Slipping down from the ridge and moving between shadows, he reached the edge of the encampment, just out of sight of the patrols.
He placed his hands on the rocky ground. He didn’t have a shovel. He didn’t need one.
The swampy earth beneath the rocky surface was easier to dig, but he had to move quickly, as the tunnels collapsed behind him in seconds.
Luckily, his constitution allowed him to hold his breath while he moved underground.
He dug for what felt like an eternity, his muscles burning, his focus absolute. Finally, his fingers touched something else: a faint, humming energy.
The bottom of the shield. This was it. The point of no return.
He pushed himself forward, through the last layer of dirt and into the energy field. The world lit up. A deafening, klaxon-like alarm shrieked through his mind and across the entire valley.
"INTRUDER!"
He didn’t hesitate. He burst up through the ground on the other side of the shield, inside the perimeter and near the Labyrinth’s entrance.
He was greeted by the sight of a vast, dark cave mouth and the roar of angry, confused shouts from the army behind him.
"THERE! GET HIM!"