Amongst the patchy, misshapen pines, the mangorian army halted and encamped. Feathery fronds of pre-dawn mist draped themselves between the carts, ekwids and recently captured slaves.

It was the first time that Klem, Pendulum and Todd had been able to associate together within the convoy.

After stopping in the early morning the army seemed pensive, undecided. All captives had been roughly unbound and allowed to wander almost freely. Overseers were strategically placed. Screams from the perimeter dulled any fantasy they may have harboured of escape.

All three nursed wounds. Todd caressed his angry swollen wrists. Klem had a badly bruised ankle to compliment his gouged and seeping back, obtained from an overzealous, unprovoked flogging. Pendulums head injury had finally stopped bleeding. The blood had caked the upper part of his cloak.

Sitting around a large campfire made by the overseers, the companions made a sorry sight.

Through dull and bleary eyes Klem turned to the wizard.

"Maybe we would have been better off if you hadn't gone crazier than a rock snake in the grass?"

Todd looked questioningly at Pendulum.

"Ah.Ah. Yes, I may have acted a tad unpredictable at an inopportune moment. I do apologise my young friends but I have not been well. I am sure the reason for my intended pilgrimage to Pride was made clear by the Yakoya?"

"Yes, they did say," Klem replied. "What's done is done I guess. Please try not to drop us in it again or at least give us some sort of warning next time. If we live that long."

"I am sorry." Pendulums head bowed low. "Forgive me."

The young men looked at each other and nodded mutually agreeing forgiveness.

"We forgive you. Now can you get us out of this?" Todd pleaded.

Pendulum sat up straight. His ice-blue eyes regaining some of their spark.

"I may be able to come up with a plan. I left my staff back in the forest. I don't think we are in immediate danger. I have been told that we are likely to be used as labourers back in Mangor to help build monuments to that mad 'Decider' fellow. If they can feed us till then or we don't die of the grips or some such in the meantime. I will see what I can do."

There was little hope of that thought Klem but at least he and Todd had let the old man know of their displeasure. Giving Pendulum a new focus would raise all their spirits and maybe, just maybe they could get out of this horror parade.

Looking away from the fire, towards a diminutive, empty stretch of grassland a movement caught his eye. Small pieces of soil were being projected somehow into the air. At their source, a pile of soil was building. No bigger than a hand, then a plate, then it stopped growing and a furry, silvery head poked out of the mound. The mole raised its snout and sniffed, slowly rotating until it was facing Klem then it stopped. It had no eyes. With one final sniff in Klem's direction, it seemed satisfied and ducked back into its mound and returned below. Klems first thought was food. He half rose as if to run for the mole but it had gone before he had the chance to stand. He could see other mounds around the camp and told himself he would be quicker next time. He turned to Todd. Todd was sleeping soundly. Pendulum had also drifted into sleep.

Later that day the swirls of mist had evaporated into the suns shine. It was a warm, new-leaf day. Still muddy underfoot. Todd, Klem and Pendulum were making the most of not being herded. Resting whenever possible.

Trying to find out anything about the fate of the villagers from Nocton took up the rest of their time.

Back at the campfire the three sat together and compared stories.

All three of them had remarked on an unusual clicking noise, the source of which none of them could make out.

"It seems that we are in a secondary group of captives, your families must be in the first group that was taken to Kingsport. They must now be part of the siege. If they were taken in the forest as you believe." Pendulum had learned this from an equally bedraggled, erstwhile farmer from the Fens.

"All of us recently captured slaves are soon to depart for Pride. The rest of the army is off to support the siege in Kingsport."

The clicking noises shifted upwards in volume.

"I found out that Captain Roper of the Mangorians will be leading us to Pride. He's the one who is ordering the heads of slaves, stuck on spikes along our way. He is not to be messed with and has no mercy for the women and children here." Todd had heard many gruesome stories on his walk around the camp that afternoon. Too many and too gruesome to repeat.

Klem bit his lip.

"I wish I knew what was making that noise. It sounds like an army of grasshoppers sharpening knives!"

The ground began to rumble. The molehill from earlier was still there and as Klem looked in that direction the soil seemed to fall inward. A hole the size of two wagons appeared. And streaming out of the hole were hundreds of knee-high stab-beetles. Blacker than the night with razor-sharp mandibles and a knife-like stinger ready to strike. They crested the hole and stood around its edge as if to guard what came next.

Four hooded figures rose out of the opening on what appeared to be the biggest maggot Klem had ever imagined. Gently the maggot neared the edge and let the figures walk off its blind head and onto the surrounding field. The stab-beetles stood aside for their masters. Then made a protective shield for them to pass towards Klem, Todd and Pendulum. All the slaves around the camp stood dumbstruck.

Not knowing whether to run or gawk, the three stood immobilised.

One of the figures moved forward, gesturing for them not to be scared, they meant no harm. On a thought, the figure threw back his hood to reveal a slightly glowing bald head.

"Thank the trees you are all okay."

Helders' relief was clear. Not as clear as the relief on the other three, though.

"We have come to get you out of here. My new friends will take you to Pride. We will travel The Underneath."

At the emergence of the stab-beetles, most of the camp had retreated to a safe distance. Even Pendulum, Klem and Todd had recoiled somewhat. Helder now advanced towards the three as the beetles made a pathway for him. In the distance, a clank of steel could be heard as the camp guards were making ready to advance on the anomaly.

Klem noticed that Helder's new friends were short and squat, maybe only a head taller than Helder. Their most distinguishing feature, however, was their hands. They appeared at least twice as big as his. As they let their hoods drop it was noticeable that their eyes, although friendly, were tiny black pinpricks.

It is good to see you, my friends. I hope your recent circumstances have not been too grave. Helders mind-speak cautiously enquired.

"We will tell you later, it's so good to see you but for now, we better follow you back down that hole you made or rather that worm-thing made. What the heck was that?"Klem replied with nervous wonder.

Ah, The Caster. A very intelligent worm to be sure. Follow us quickly and I will introduce you to the creatures of the underneath, not least my friends here The Digmen, meet Lorus, Campion and Arnum. Helder gestured to introduce his three companions. With introductory nods, Pendulum, Klem and Todd followed.

Unhindered by the tardy camp-guards the group made their way to the opening in the ground. Klem could see that the hole had now a spiral thread around the edge that could be negotiated easily and served as a substantial walkway. The stab-beetles providing an honour guard as they retreated underground. How the clay-like soil had been shaped and formed was fantastic. The caster was skilled indeed. The strange animal was nowhere to be seen but his work was done and done well.

The escape party descended vertically for only a short time until they reached a uniform slope. Above them, the stab-beetles were dismantling the spiral walkway as they descended to make pursuit impossible.

Two strange carts awaited the group. They were grey, like a rock but felt like wood to the touch. With four, stout, grey wheels. There was room for four, two either side facing each other, rubbing knees in the middle. The wheels were securely set on a track made of a similar substance to the carts. With a push, they were off down the slope. In the first cart, Klem sat opposite Helder and Lorus, leaving Pendulum, Todd and the other two Digmen in the second cart. He was pleased to be leaving that camp. The quicker he went the better.

Beside the cart-track was a smaller single, hard-worn track and every now and then a stab-beetle or two would scuttle by. Klem took a deep breath. It was a lot to take in. The underground tunnel felt spacious enough, although there was only a spans width of space above his head. The light came from regularly placed glowing orbs in the ceiling. The noise of the cart and the air rushing past was not too loud, highlighting the precision of the engineering of the digmen and their co-workers. Klem maintained a rush of adrenaline and excitement as Helder included Lorus and himself in his mind-speak.

We are so glad to have got you back Klem. It was my job to see you safely to Pride and I failed dismally. I hope you can forgive me. I should have been aware of the approach of the enemy but got carried away with other things. Klem smiled at Helder.

"We are safe now. Thank you, my friend. This cart ride makes up for the horrible camp. I wouldn't have missed this for anything. You are forgiven. Tell me of The Digmen. The Underneath is amazing."

The Yakoya have always known of the Digmen. Our roots delve down into their kingdom and although rare, my parents have told me of meetings between them. They are careful not to disturb our life-giving roots and we keep them up to date on happenings above. They do not like the above. I am one of a very small number of Yakoya who have travelled the hub. Helder nodded in thanks to Lorus and Lorus nodded and grinned back. They are amazing constructors. Their hub is a wonder to behold. We will be there shortly and you will see. They work in harmony with the casters and the beetles. The casters dig the tunnels and the beetles do the fine work with their 'sharp arm' as they call it. The digmen use their bare hands to do everything in between tunnelling and art. Their homes are a testament to their skill. The light and their clothing are from the glow-moth whose nests you can see above. If you think of the underneath as a wagon wheel it will become clearer to you. The hub is at the centre and the spokes are the tunnels that rise gradually to the rim. This underground hub or wheel near enough covers the whole of The Fenland. The casters can build 'risers' from anywhere on the rim. You can go almost anywhere above by following the corresponding rune symbol from the hub to the surface. For instance, Kingsport is the rune that looks like a triangle.

Klem looked at the walls of the tunnel flashing past and could just make out the symbols every now and then. He began to appreciate the complexity of this seemingly basic society. Who would have thought it? The track which till now had been very straight and angled down started to turn flat then slightly upward. He realised that this was to slow it down and stop its journey. The cart halted on a ridge, an ethereal light filled the tunnel in front.

The cart passengers alighted; Klem and Todd were eager to look over the ridge and ran to the edge. The city shone a ghostly gold. The glow-moths golden light reflected on the white clay walls. A slightly domed roof covered in glowing orbs shone on the homes of the digmen. Each home individually built to suit its owner. Combined to create a honeycomb of interlocked dwellings settled in the bottom of the biggest excavation Klem had ever seen. It was three times the size of Nocton and must have housed more than two hundred homes. With walkways from the edge of a surrounding rim to the top of the honeycomb and ladders to the highest dwellings, it gave a pleasing balance to the city.