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the almost invisible signs on the sacred rock of the mountain. As far as anyone is concerned they’re invisible… although nothing about that Tracker would surprise me. We’ve already seen his abilities at first hand. That’s why I think it’s best to go into the waterfall and hide.” Iruki pointed to the path ahead.
    “Do you mean to cross the waterfall and go up to the lake from the other end?”
    Iruki thought for a moment.
    “No, I think it’ll be better not to try the waterfall itself, but walk into the mountain instead. Inside, hidden there, is the Cave of No Return, a cursed place which my people are forbidden to set foot upon.” Iruki was absorbed in her thoughts: on the one hand she wanted to escape the relentless Tracker, but on the other she had no desire to enter the forbidden cave.
    The Assassin said somberly, “If they aren’t allowed in, it must be for a good reason.”
    She turned and looked at him. With a quavering voice she said: “The legends tell that whoever goes into that cursed cave never comes back. It’s the place where those who have tried to harm the Fountain of Life are doomed to stay for all eternity. At least that’s what my people believe.”
    “And you’re willing to go in there, defying the laws of your people?”
    “I’d rather face an accursed cave than that Tracker and his men. Besides I have a lethal Assassin with me. What could that cave use against us? Rock? We’ll hide in the Cave of No Return. There’s no other option, if we follow the path we’ll come out to the great lake of the peaks and there’s nowhere to hide there. There’s only an endless sea of blue water reaching to the sky, water and more water for leagues and leagues and leagues. We can’t hide there, the shores are practically bare.”
    The Assassin nodded in understanding.
    Iruki took the lead again.
    The two fugitives, following the path, turned into the waterfall, which appeared to swallow them in its roar. Behind the water, hidden in its shade, was an enormous cave which could not be seen from outside, completely hidden by the current of water that fell from the top. They went into it, leaving the roaring waterfall behind. Once they were deep inside, they stopped. The path continued on the other side of the mouth of the cave, going on to the summit.
    Iruki looked at it with doubt eating at her heart. She knew that going to the great lake would leave them unprotected. They would be easy prey for the Tracker and his men. There was no way out other than the one they had come through. She crouched and tried to dispel the fear she felt when she looked towards the cursed entrance. She knew it was an irrational fear born out of legends and tales told by the elders of the tribe, but she could not help herself. Something inside her told her those legends she had been listening to since she was a child had some kernel of truth in them…
    As if he could read her mind, the Assassin said: “Perhaps we won’t need to go too deep into the cursed cave. Most likely the Tracker won’t find the way up here.”
    “You’re right, he probably won’t find the way.” She relaxed a little. “Let’s keep an eye on things and if we see movement we’ll go into the depths of the cave. If not we’ll just stay here.”
    “Meanwhile I’ll gather some wood to make a torch,” said the Assassin.
    “Let’s hope it won’t be necessary,” she said with a half-smile that tried to hide her fear.
    Time went by and night fell. Iruki relaxed in the false safety of their situation. Her body and spirit needed the rest. The Assassin watched the point of access intently from her side. A strange feeling came upon her every time their eyes met. She felt uneasy in her stomach, a mixture of excitement and pleasure she had never known before. The mysterious man who had rescued her from the Norghanians was a complete enigma, a tormented soul she wanted to reach out to. Iruki discovered she wanted to read him, know him and most