a cover for a deep, narrow and dark chasm with a stony floor. At one point, there was so little space that they had to walk in single file.
When the ravine opened out again, its walls parted to reveal a Crater. Or at least that was what Draco assumed, seeing the vertical walls, several metres high, towering above him and stretching far in both directions. He couldn’t see all that much, either, because just beyond a small patch of flat ground lay a lush forest. The spreading trees reached with their crowns almost to the top of the cliffs, so that he could see only the ridge of the cliff directly above them.
As he crossed the edge of the Crater, the dragon felt an unpleasant tingling sensation that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, and a strange shiver ran through him. The boy looked up and shuddered even more at the sight of stone claws, glistening with countless runes, emerging from the ridge of the cliff and curving towards the centre of the caldera.
‘Don’t dawdle.’ The voice came from nearby, so Draco turned towards the instructor waiting for them. ‘Your main task is to find and secure three protected positions.’ The instructor didn’t wait for everyone’s attention to be on him. ‘Each one, in a visible spot, is marked with a pennant bearing a shield.’ He pointed to a small, grey rectangle with an embroidered pavise. ‘Securing the position involves replacing the pennant with your own.’ He pointed to an identical one, except that it was embroidered with a sword. ‘In addition, you have five secondary tasks. Firstly, to mark out a safe route from here to the lake, assuming this is the route for the regiment. Secondly, to find and secure a source of drinking water. Thirdly, to designate a campsite for the aforementioned unit near the water source. Fourthly, to prevent the enemy from raising the alarm. The final side task is to gather information on the opposing group’s objectives. Extra points can be earned for mapping the area.
