“Well, let's hope that he does,” Jergen stated. He sounded a little anxious. “Things are moving quickly now and I have a feeling that Corbin and his witch are at least one step ahead of us. Maybe more.”
He expression was grave as he looked at the king.
“As much as I hate to admit it, we may have been outmaneuvered by those two. I know how large the empire is, but until this moment I hadn't really realized how complex it would be to rule over. I do not envy you and your choices going forward, my friend.”
Shandon smiled grimly and then finished his ale.
“I could whine and say that I never wanted the crown,” he told the others. “But that is irrelevant. I accepted the burden when my father and brother were killed and I will not surrender my position to a traitor like Corbin.”
He looked over at Larin.
“He is no longer my son,” Shandon declared sternly. “I want you to know that. After what he has done to your people, and to Hallic's, Corbin is an enemy of the dwarven empire and I will show him no mercy.”
“Thank you, my lord,” the mage replied. “I cannot imagine how hard it must be for you to accept that, but I do know that it was a struggle for me to stop thinking of Cindra as the innocent child she once was. She is a stranger now and a danger to us all and that is how I see her. But it took me some time to come to grips with that reality.”
Someone cleared their throat discreetly and Shandon looked over to the hallway leading into the main room to see Falder standing there.
“Ah, there you are,” the king said.
“Yes, my lord. Several of the kitchen staff are waiting to bring in some refreshments,” the seneschal told him. “May they?”
“Certainly. Larin here could use something to help him recover his energy. And I'll admit that I could as well. Tell them to enter.”
Falder bowed and looked over his shoulder.
“You may bring in the trays now,” he said loudly.
He entered the lounge and stood aside as four young dwarves wearing white aprons carried silver trays into the room.
They set the trays down on one of the empty tables, bowed to the king and left the room quickly.
“Larin. Jergen. Pieter. Go ahead and serve yourselves,” Shandon said as he got up from his seat. “Let us not stand on ceremony.”
As Pieter stood up, the king grinned at him.
“And leave some for the others,” he warned him. “I'm sure that they will be hungry when they are done with their task.”
Pieter waved off his comment.
“There is always more food,” he said as he walked over to the trays and began removing their covers. “I think best on a full stomach.”
Chapter 23
Shandon and the others were still eating when Hallic, Mel and Walkar returned to the lounge. The mage looked calm, as he always did, but the two rogues had grim expressions on their faces.
The king put down the pastry he was holding and stared at them.
“What is it?” he asked Hallic as the rogue took his former seat. “What's wrong?”
“I think that Lunden and Strake are dead,” Hallic stated, tight-lipped. “The guild-houses in Crystal Main and Orelong have fallen.”
Shandon surged to his feet, while Jergen dropped his knife with a clatter. Pieter stared at Hallic blankly, a fork halfway to his lips.
Falder, still standing at the entrance to the room, simply watched the king, waiting for his response.
“What in the Seven Hells are you talking about?” Shandon exclaimed. “Fallen? To what, treachery?”
Hallic shook his head. He looked weary and angry in equal measure.
“No, not treachery. Walkar could not contact either leader, so instead he focused on the guild-houses themselves.”
He took a deep breath.
“They have been razed to the ground. Both houses were smoking ruins. Well, not the Orelong guild-house. Those ruins were long cold. But the house in Crystal Main was still burning. Whatever happened there, happened recently. We found no survivors as Walkar searched the area, but I do hold out a small hope that some of my people managed to make it to safety. There is no way to know, though, until I get down there and search both areas myself.”
Walkar had remained standing as he had moved to his former position behind Larin's chair. Now he made a polite gesture at the king and Shandon nodded for him to speak.
“My lord,” the mage said, “I detected the remnants of dark magical energies coming from the ruins of both guild-houses. They were not destroyed by conventional means. I believe that Cindra or her agents used magic to burn those houses to the ground.”
He glanced at Hallic and Mel.
“It would have been quick,” he added. “For those who may have died.”
“Small comfort,” Mel said angrily. “Each chapter in those cities housed several dozen people, including families. Children, my lord,” she said as she looked at the king. “Innocents.”
Shandon had been glowering as he listened to them. Now he reacted with fury as Mel mentioned the possible deaths of children.
“Gods damn them!” Shandon roared.
He slammed a fist down on the table, toppling mugs and glasses.
“Have they no shame? No decency? I can understand Corbin attacking me, traitorous though it is. But children?”
“Did that stop them from setting our homes ablaze?” Larin asked him bleakly. “We were just lucky to get our young ones to safety. But if they had died in the fires, I doubt that either Cindra or your son would have felt a shred of remorse.”
Shandon muttered curses as he stood there.
“I must go,” Hallic stated. “I have to see both sites with my own eyes, investigate the scenes for myself. I know that we have to deal with the daemons in Cindercore, but that will have to wait for now. If anyone survived in Crystal Main or Orelong, they may need help and as the leader of the guild, it is my duty to lend them my aid.”
“And if it is a trap to draw you and others down there?” Falder asked evenly from where he stood by the hallway. “Do you truly think that Cindra would not have left some of her daemons or other followers to watch over those guild-houses, waiting for just such a response? You could be walking into a dragon's den, Guildmaster.”
Before Hallic could reply, Mel looked over at the seneschal and answered him herself.
“Even if it is a trap, my father is right, Falder,” she told him. “Those people in Orelong and Crystal Main are not just fellow rogues. We consider them family. And family comes before all else, when they are in distress.”
The seneschal nodded his understanding.
“I agree,” he said. “But our enemies could be using your loyalty against you. I simply wanted to point that out.”
“Noted,” Hallic told him. “But whether it is a setup or not, my duty is clear.”
He looked at the king.
“I've asked Walkar to take Mel and me to Crystal Main first, as it seems to have been attacked more recently. If there are survivors, they may still be nearby and need immediate help.”
Shandon nodded, visibly pushing back his anger.
“That makes sense,” he replied. “But shouldn't you take more people with you? If it is a trap, you two may need backup.”
“With your permission, Elder,” Walkar said to Larin. “I will remain with Hallic and Mel to give them magical assistance. We have agreed that a small team of people might be able to avoid dangers more easily than a larger group.”
Larin looked much better now that he had eaten something. He looked from Walkar to Hallic and Mel and then at the king.
“There is wisdom in their plan, my lord,” he told Shandon. “I believe that there must be a response to these attacks. What is your opinion?”
The king sat down heavily.
“Aye, I agree. But I do not like it. Not at all. Corbin may not be bright, but his witch definitely is. She could have anticipated just such a response from us, if we discovered that the guild-
houses had been attacked.”
“But that's just it,” Hallic said with a shrug. “How could she know that we would learn of the attacks? There is so much going on right now, so many distractions, that it is more likely Cindra would have believed that we wouldn't discover these assaults for a long time. And if that is so, then the time to get down there and investigate is now.”
“Very well. If you agree to this,” Shandon said to Larin, “then I have no objections.”
“I have complete faith in my colleague and in Hallic and Mel,” the mage replied. “If this is what they want to do, then all I can do is wish them luck.”
Larin looked back at Walkar.
“If you need assistance, call me at once,” he said. “Or if you need reinforcements. With our people staying in the palace right now, I can send you support quickly, should you require it.”
“Understood, Elder,” Walkar replied with a smile.
“Shouldn't you all eat something before you do?” Pieter asked them, looking concerned. “It may be a long time before you get another chance at a meal.”
Hallic and Mel stood up. He shook his head as they walked to the center of the room. Walker moved to join them.
“No time,” Hallic said. “We have to go now.” He looked at the king. “If things go well in Crystal Main, we will Gate directly to Orelong from there. If not, we'll have to play it by ear. We might have to contact you and ask for aid.”
“I'll be waiting,” Shandon assured him. “And I'll have a squad of royal guards waiting on standby, just in case.”
“Thank you. Walkar?”
“I'm ready,” the mage said. “We'll Gate to that small alleyway that we chose earlier.”
Hallic nodded and Mel took a deep breath.
“Here we go,” Walkar said.
He quickly recited a spell and the three of them disappeared with a loud thump of imploding air.
“Falder, would you send one of the guards in here, please?” the king asked. “If I want a squad equipped and ready to go, the order has to come directly from me.”
The seneschal bowed.
“Of course, my lord. I'll be right back.”
He left the room and Shandon looked over at Larin.
“I'm not so sure that this was a good idea,” he told the mage.
Larin sighed and smiled wanly.
“Nor am I, my lord. But Hallic is the head of his guild. He has a duty to defend it and, quite frankly, neither of us had the right to stop him. Let's just hope that we were wrong about it being a trap.”
“Let's hope so.”
Shandon looked at Jergen and Pieter, both of whom were watching him closely.
“I can almost feel the empire slipping away from me and I seem to be helpless to stop it,” he said bitterly. “What other evil acts are my son and that witch involved in while I sit here holed up like an old spider huddled in the center of its tattered web?”
A short time later, Hallic, Mel and Walkar were cautiously moving through the streets of Crystal Main, heading toward the remains of the guild-house. The mage stayed behind the two rogues, scanning the area for any unseen dangers while Hallic and Mel kept their eyes on the rooftops and any suspicious shadows. Their advance was slow and methodical.
“I can smell the fire from here,” Mel said softly. “It's still two blocks away, which means that it's been burning for quite some time.”
There was no wind underground and smoke usually spread out equally in all directions from a large fire.
Her father nodded silently and looked back at Walkar.
“Anything?” he asked.
The mage shook his head.
“Nothing so far,” he murmured. “But that means little. We are still fairly far away from the guild-house. Any hostile magics present might not register at this distance.”
“Understood. Stay alert,” Hallic told him.
“Of course.”
The streets were deserted, but it was moving into the dwarven evening and people might simply be at home having dinner. Or it might be a sign of something more sinister.
They stalked past a large public building, a place where dwarves would normally gather to drink ale and swap tall tales. Such pubs would always be loud and boisterous when hard-working people got together to socialize and let off steam. But now it was deathly quiet and no lights shone from its windows. It was an ominous sign.
“The air feels heavy,” Mel commented. “You may not sense anything, Walkar, but it feels like we are being watched.”
“Perhaps we are,” the mage replied calmly. “I am alert to magical dangers, but there are more mundane ways to spy on us. I leave it to you to discover them.”
“Fair enough,” Hallic said to them both. “Even here in the shadows, the three of us are radiating enough heat to be seen by anyone who is looking hard enough. I wish that we had thought to bring three lined cloaks with us. They would have blocked our heat signatures from any watchers.”
Mel looked ahead. On their left was a blank wall, while the public house loomed over them on their right. Where the building ended, bright light from high streetlamps bathed the area.
“I doubt that we can be seen from here, Father,” she said. “Those lights are throwing off enough heat to confuse anyone watching from a distance.”
Hallic appeared doubtful, but made no comment. Instead, he led them forward and stopped just before leaving the sheltering shadows.
The open area beyond was empty of movement and the trio could just see the glow of the burning guild-house above the houses on the other side of the street.
“There it is,” Hallic stated. “I don't know how long it's been burning, but it can't be more than a few hours. Walkar?”
“Still nothing.”
“Okay then. We'll move around the area to the left. Stay close to the buildings. If we are attacked, at least we'll have a wall at our backs.”
Both Walkar and Mel nodded and Hallic moved slowly into the open.
They walked cautiously along the side of a building looking for any hint of movement around them. It remained eerily quiet as they crossed the space leading toward the burning guild-house and at one point, Hallic motioned for the others to stop.
“This is a trap,” he said softly. “I can feel it. There is no way that it should be this quiet in this neighborhood. Any thoughts?”
“I agree with you, Father,” Mel told him, still watching the rooftops. “Are we wise to walk into the jaws of the beast, whatever it might be, knowing that it is waiting for us?”
Hallic looked past her at Walkar and the mage returned his glance evenly.
“I still feel nothing,” he said. “But that does not mean that there is nothing here. Cindra is powerful, and her command of magic is considerable. She may be able to shield a trap from my senses.”
Hallic looked startled by the admission.
“But aren't you one of the most senior mages that Larin has?” he asked.
“I am,” Walkar replied with a modest smile. “But I am not omnipotent. None of us are. Cindra is something new, a magic-user created from dark powers. To be honest, I do not know her limits, and neither does the Elder. Whatever happens, I will do my best to combat it, but that is all I can promise you.”
“Huh. I suddenly feel less than secure,” Hallic said lightly. “Well, we are committed now, for better or for worse. Let's keep going.”
They began moving again and made it across the street and into more shadows without incident. The narrow alley they found themselves in led directly toward the glow of the fire. The high stone walls of two houses hemmed them in and, far above them, the roof of the cavern that Crystal Main occupied twinkled in the distance. The city had gotten its name from the thousands of iridescent crystals that dotted the cave's ceiling. The glow of the crystals shone down in rainbow colors on the city below, illuminating it gently.
“I'd mention how pretty it looked if the circumstances were different,” Mel murmured.
Hallic follow
ed her glance upward and smiled briefly.
“Aye. It's hard to appreciate beauty when your life might be in danger,” he agreed. “Come along. We have to keep moving forward.”
At the end of the alley, they finally saw the remains of the guild-house across an open square. A fountain was bubbling and dancing in the center of the open space. It almost seemed to be laughing at the angry glow of the tiny flames still flickering among the ruins.
“Damn,” Hallic muttered. “It looks even worse in person than it did on Walkar's mirror, doesn't it?”
“Could any of our people have made it out alive?” Mel wondered, her voice heavy with dread.
“It depends on how fast the fire spread. Walkar?”
“If the attack was magical, it would have spread very rapidly,” the mage replied. “I hope that some of your people survived, but I am afraid that the chances are unlikely.”
Hallic cursed under his breath while Mel watched the smoldering embers through narrowed eyes.
“They will pay for this,” she said, her voice coldly angry. “Anyone involved in this atrocity will pay for this. I swear it.”
She took a step forward and froze as Walkar made an abrupt gesture.
“Stop!” he hissed. “I sense something. Do not move.”
Both rogues became as rigid as statues. Hallic moved his head just enough to see the mage's face.
“What is it?” he whispered.
“It is subtle, but now that I have a line of sight across the square, I can see the glow of hostile magics. There are lines of force crisscrossing the entire area. At a guess, I'd say that they are acting like trip-wires. Anyone crossing one of those lines would activate whatever trap Cindra has planted here. Ah, she's clever, that one. This is a use of magical power that I have never seen before.”
Mel backed up cautiously.
“Can you counter it?” she asked the mage.
He shook his head.
“Not without knowing the exact spell that she used for the trap,” he admitted. “It could be anything. Fire. Lightning. Anything. If you want to search the ruins, we will have to go around and try approaching them from the opposite side of the square.”
The Dwarven Rebellion Page 30
