For a moment, silence reigned, broken only by the scraping of stones as the other teams joined them. Everyone stepped forward to look into the abyss.
‘Shall we go round it?’ asked someone from the last team.
‘I don’t like this open area,’ said Cedric, who had been staring at the map the whole time, as if it were about to reveal a hidden secret to him.
‘I can go and have a look,’ offered Zane. ‘It’ll take a bit, but it shouldn’t be too much of a problem.’
‘Okay,’ Retfield agreed after a long pause.
The elf merely nodded and disappeared amongst the rocks. The others just exchanged glances and sat down where they stood. Only a few people moved a little further away and scanned the surroundings, trying to spot any potential dangers. Draco sat down near the edge of the chasm and gazed across to the other side. There, too, was a pile of rubble, very similar to the one they were currently in, and beyond that, a forest.
Sheth sat down beside the dragon and, with a sigh, took off his helmet. He seemed weary from the tension and the anticipation of whether something they hadn’t foreseen might happen. They sat in silence for a moment, until the troll decided to break the silence.
‘Not bad reflexes.’
‘Oh, really.’ The reptile gave a wry smile. ‘Years of practice.’
‘Don’t worry about Cedric.’ Sheth stretched out a little and leaned against the rock. ‘He’ll get over it eventually and start behaving more like a human.’
‘You’re starting to sound like Zane.’
‘I hope that’s not an insult.’ The troll almost laughed.
‘Depends on who you ask.’ The dragon glanced to the side, feeling the wind pick up and hearing a rumbling coming from somewhere further down the chasm. ‘Never mind that.’ He waved his hand and lowered his voice slightly. ‘At first I was afraid Cedric would be like his older brother, but now it seems to me that the perpetually stiff Scion is easier to get along with.’
‘You met him?’ The surprise on the troll’s
