Orn and Adles continued to talk about their camping trips as the day progressed.

“I have never heard of a swamp goblin, so rivers and streams in the mountain are usually pretty safe to camp around,” Adles replied before trying to come up with another danger of camping in the high hills.

Orn patiently waited for the other boy to come up with one. They had spent the last hour trading dangers they encountered or heard about.

“Oh, I know one you have not heard of,” Adles’ face lit up. “Dead valleys. In the Spine, there are some deep valleys, and they have beautiful pasture at the bottom. But if you walk into them the bottoms of the valleys have a lot of bones. Animals and people, and none of the bones have a mark on them.” Adles pointed to the mining camp coning into view up ahead. “Almost there.”

Orn looked at the group of buildings and tents at the base of the mountain, and nodded.“That sounds like a ghost story. People and animals do not just die.” Orn replied.

“It does sound like a ghost story, but it is true,” Adles replied smiling. “My grandfather even confirmed it. Want to guess what kills them?”

Orn considered the other boy’s words. If his grandfather told him it has to be true. No marks on the bones, so monsters and fighting are out. “Something in the air?” he guessed.

“Yes, and no,” Adles replied. “It is not like it is bad air, just very cold.”

“People freezing in the snow is not a hidden danger,” Orn replied flatly. “It does not count.”

“But what if it was summer and there was no snow when they went to sleep?” Adles said looking smug.

“What? How do you freeze in summer?” Orn watched Adles closely. He has to be exaggerating.

“It gets cold in the Spine, even on summer nights,” the other boy continued. “Sometimes that cold rolls down into the mountains and hills that surround the Spine itself. If there is a reason for it no one understands it. Sometimes cold winds come and anyone at bottom of those valleys freeze to death. There is a trick to telling which ones though.”

“What is it?” Orn adjusted the strap of his bag on his shoulder.

“The trees,” Adles pointed to the mountain they were approaching. “See how they get thinner and scraggly as you go up? Well in those valleys, the trees also get thinner and more scraggly near the bottom.”

“What if it is too dark to tell how the trees look?” Orn asked considering how dark the previous night was.

“You climb and camp on the side of the mountain,” Adles replied flatly. “Better an avalanche you can hear, then the cold taking you unawares.”

...

The mining camp was strange collection of tents and buildings. Along the gravel road the ore carts traveled were small wooden buildings connected by a short boardwalk. The opposite side of the road was filled with tents. People milled about between the tents, but the entire area seemed to be under a cloud.

The depressing state of those near the tents made the pair focus on the shops, not that they were much better. Orn and Adles glanced in windows as they passed only to see empty rooms. The businesses were deserted with only a small merchant's shop inhabited. The clerk inside glanced at the boys through the window before turning his attention to back to moving goods around in the mostly empty shop.

Adles and Orn continued in silence as the state of the camp makes them both uncomfortable. The sound of voices from up ahead, finally broke them out of the near trance they were walking in.

Ahead a handful of ore carts stood waiting at a large wooden building. The ore cart drivers were standing up and yelling. Orn was about to ask Adles opinion when he saw the other boy start toward the group at a sprint.

Unsure what else to do Orn raced to catch up. The other boy drew up short of the crowd just close enough to understand what they were yelling.

“I will ask it again then. What do you mean that was it?” a driver yelled angrily.

“I mean there is no more ore ready to ship today,” a tired looking man replied standing beside the building’s closed doors. “As I said before, we missed the quota today. But we should have more…”

“You said that yesterday,” a driver shouted back.

“Should does not fill my cart or feed my children,” Another shouted.

“I spent days coming up here. If the mine has failed just say so, and we will leave.” the first one added.

“The mine is fine,” the man snapped. “I went down there this morning. There is plenty of ore.”

“Then where is it?” one of the drivers said gesturing around.

“We are just having trouble getting people to bring the ore out,” the man said raising both hands, “I am even recruiting more now, and they will be here any day.”

Orn turned from the crowd to see what Adles made of the scene. The noble student was gripping the hilt of his sword tightly. “Are you alright?” Orn asked staring a the boy’s white knuckle grip.

Adles turned to look at Orn. “Yes,” he muttered before following Orn’s gaze to his sword he. With a sigh Adles slowly let go of the messer. “We. We just need to hurry. The raw ore is usually piled in that building for better separation out here in the light. If it is empty, the mine is all but done for. We have to get in the mine and find what is causing this.”

“So where is the mine entrance?” Orn asked looked around. “I assume it is near by if this is where they bring the ore for processing.

“It is in there,” Adles said pointing at the large wooden building.

They watched as the ore carts slowly turned around, before heading back to the camp. The man at the doors had turned away from them and was locking the doors with a thick chain..

“With the way he is locking the door, I think we may have a problem getting in,” Orn commented pulling Adles back toward the camp. “Unless you want to ask him to let us in, we will have to try to get past that.”

Adles shook his head and turned back toward the despondent camp. “They may try to stop us, if they see us. But we have to get in there.”

“Maybe there is another way in,” Orn suggested and whispered to Adles. “We can check back tonight.”

...

After darkness fell, they searched for other entrances to the mine only to end up back at the front doors.

“So we either find a ladder to reach the shuttered windows,” Adles said pointing at the windows nearly 15 feet in the air. “Or we need to get the key.”

Orn was not looking at Adles, his attention focused on the lock. “What if we can open it without a key?” Orn asked.

“What do you mean?” Adles replied watching as Orn examined the lock.

“I think I can get it open,” Orn replied. It looked a great deal like the one his mother had put on the gate in the back garden after he was hurt by the goblin mother. A lock he learned to pick so he could sneak out.

“How are you going to do that?” Adles asked in a hoarse whisper. “It looks solid to me, and if you try to break it you will make enough noise to send the entire camp running up here.”

“Keep a look out,” Orn said and looked around. There has to be something around here...

His eyes fall on a long splinter of wood sticking out of the barn. It is not what I used before, but the lock was not super sensitive, so it might work.

Using his knife he pried at the wood enough to get the thumb wide piece to break off. Quickly spiting it in half he worked to give it a rough shape, Her goes, he thought and stuck the two pieces in the large key hole.

“What are you doing?” Adles asked staring at him.

“I am trying to pick the lock,” Orn replied slowly trying to feel out the inside of the mechanism.

“With a pair of STICKS?” Adles whispered harshly. “If they catch us out here trying to pick the lock, they will definitely not let us in. That is even if I try tell them who I am. It is probably better if we ask for entrance tomorrow.”

“Do you think they will actually let us in?” Orn asked still focused on the lock.

“Probably not,” Adles admitted grudgingly. “But if I am caught trying to sneak in it will be harder to argue that I am allowed to go in.”

“Then keep watch,” Orn whispered back.

After what felt like and eternity, and having to reshape the sticks a couple times Orn thought he almost had it.

“I think I see someone coming,” Adles said tapping Orn’s back.

“Almost there,” he replied as he felt the lock’s internals start to move.

The click of the lock opening made Orn smile. “I got it.”

“Really,” Adles asked sounding incredulous.

Orn pulled out the two sticks, and twisted the lock open. “See.”

The link on the left slipped out of the lock and the chain started to slide through the rings on the doors. The chain picked up speed as it slid to the ground clacking loudly as each link hit against a ring. They both reached for the chain only to get into each other’s way.

“Who goes there?” a voice came from behind them, and they could hear the sound of someone running up the gravel track.

Abandoning any attempt as stealth, they threw their shoulder against the door and shoved it open. They nearly fell as the door suddenly slid open a couple feet.

Inside, faint moonlight filtered through a couple open shutters, on an empty building.

“This way,” Adles said and raced toward the far wall of the building.

Orn followed quickly, as the yelling grew louder.

“It should be on the far wall,” Adles said as they crossed into the far, and dark half of the building. As he passed into the dark side of the long building Adles slowed noticeably. “Where is it I can barely see anything.”

“What am I looking for?” Orn asked coming along side of Adles.

“A cave or other opening,” Adles replied squinting into the darkness. “Any large hole really.”

“This way,” Orn said grabbing Adles by the elbow and pulling his stumbling forward towards the large crack in the face of the mountain.