me he was up to something on the bank near that pile of rubble you mentioned.’
‘Did you go round behind them?’ came a voice from somewhere to the side.
‘I wanted to take a shortcut by cutting across that bend.’ The scout didn’t even turn round. ‘Luckily, our haste allowed us to avoid whatever they’d prepared on that side.’
‘They’d assumed it was impossible to get round the chasm without them knowing.’
‘Yes, if they’re stationed in the watchtower with a view of the whole rubble pile, as Zane said, then they’d only prepared for an attack from one side.’ Adam nodded several times. ‘Crossing over the rocks was a good idea,’ he complimented, looking at Cedric.
‘But not mine,’ admitted the commander, looking around. His gaze settled on the dragon standing not far away. ‘Draco came up with that,’ he said, surprisingly without a trace of sarcasm in his voice.
‘In that case, congratulations.’ The black-haired lad turned towards the dragon and grinned. He was about to say something else, but Retfield cut him off.
‘If we have to, can we cross that stretch without being spotted?’ Cedric pointed to an area marked out slightly to the left of their current position.
‘If we stick to the very edge, it shouldn’t be a problem. It’s quite a long way from the tower, and besides, there are still trees along the lake’s shore. If they don’t send anyone from the village to keep watch, we’ll make it.’
‘That leaves us with the third banner.’ The commander bent over the map and studied it intently.
‘They’ve taken up defensive positions, preparing for an attack from the entrance to the Crater.’ Adam tapped three locations with his finger. ‘Logically speaking, the last place they’ll defend should be somewhere around here.’ He pointed to an area at the top of the map, slightly to the right of the lake. ‘This formation ensures, in theory, that no one can get past them and attack from the rear.’
‘So they haven’t realised that it is, in fact, possible to cross the chasm,’ Zane suggested.
