The Secrets of Starpoint Mountain

by Bill Albert

  Then, smelling death in the air and their excitement still high, the mass of elves descended on the body and tore it to shreds.

  Gallif closed her eyes and let her head fall to pray but she knew the splashes of warm liquid against her face were Tome’s blood. Or worse, she shuddered.

  The only thing more frightening than the sounds of the slaughter were what came afterwards. There were no howls of pleasure from the monsters, no movement or smashing of weapons against stone or body. All she could hear was Maura’s sobs and Gallif prayed for her strength. She tried to swallow, but all she could taste was blood and was sickened by the fact it was not hers.

  “Gallif and friends,” the same voice as before shattered the quiet.

  Gallif’s eyes snapped open and she turned to see a man standing by the closed double doors. She didn’t recognize this man, there was nothing familiar about him, but somehow, she knew she had met him before.

  Despite the fact that the man was thin there was something very towering and commanding about him. He wore blue tinted leather that covered all but his neck and face and a floor length cape hung behind him. He carried a staff with a sparkling globe on it that seemed to change colors and size as he held it.

  He turned and walked towards the aquilus. The elves parted for him like a wave as he approached the one who had killed Tome. It looked down and quivered as if unnerved by the man’s approach.

  The man pulled a dark blue cloth bag from his belt and opened it up. He poured some fine powder from the bag onto his hand and held it out. The aquilus sniffed the powder briefly then cupped its hands under his. The man dropped the powder into the waiting hands and the elf buried its face into the powder and swallowed and inhaled every grain it could get. When it finished, no longer shaking, it stood straight and faced the man.

  He came to Gallif and looked at her closely.

  “You don’t remember me, do you?” he asked as he looked at Gallif. She didn’t answer, but he knew the truth. “That means the powder I put in your drink did its job. Very good. You are too good to kill off hand.”

  He turned and walked closer to Kavelle and looked at her closely. “I never did catch your name,” he said. “But I was in your temple and you prayed with me once.”

  “No,” Kavelle protested. “Someone like you would never get through,” she spat at him.

  He smiled and said, “You may be of some use to me.

  Then he walked to Maura. She was shaking uncontrollably with fear. Gallif tried to move in her direction, but the aquilus that held her in placed refused to budge. The man looked deeply at her as if he hadn’t noticed Gallif’s attempt and finally shook his head. “I don’t know you.” He turned to the captain and said. “Kill her.”

  “Touch her and I’ll destroy you,” Gallif barked with an anger that surprised even her.

  The man turned quickly to look at Gallif and then shook his head. He slowly walked back to her and said, “That is the first mistake I have seen you make.” Gallif fought the urge to look at Maura and stared the man in the face. “Besides,” he said. “You can’t destroy me.”

  “Who are you?”

  “God,” he said simply then added, “At least I will be.”

  The double doors opened as he approached and the entire crowd, dragging Gallif, Kavelle and Maura with them, entered the next cavern.

  This cavern was huge and Gallif guessed it to be nearly two hundred feet in length and height. There were three large lights cast in locations to give artificial sun light. The far walls were covered in frost and showed cracks of ice and the air was warm and fairly dry. She could feel that the ground, however, was still very cool. She heard a creak from a hinge as the doors closed behind them.

  Most of the floor of the cavern had been carefully tiled and row upon row of copper colored plants covered ninety percent of the area. She took a deep breath and realized they were oreg spices.

  Several of the aquilus moved away from the crowd and walked towards the plants but stopped just at the edge of the field. The man walked beyond them, grabbed a handful of leaves off of the plants, and then slowly walked back. Like a pack of hungry dogs, the aquilus watched his every move with mouths watering.

  As she watched, Gallif’s mind was racing for options. Her flame sword was still lying on the floor in the outer room near Tome’s body. The knife was on her thigh again, but if she used it, she would have to be very exacting. She shifted her weight as she took inventory of what she had on her and felt something swinging from her belt. Two things, she thought gratefully.

  “You will all three serve me,” he said.

  “Never!” yelled Kavelle as Gallif and Maura shook their heads that they would not.

  “You won’t have any choice,” he said. He walked to Kavelle and rubbed one of the leaves under her nose. She stared with hatred at him and didn’t react in any way to the leaves. “Pity that you are human.”

  Gallif watched in confusion as he very carefully, one by one, gave a leaf to each of the aquilus. They quickly held them to their faces, inhaled deeply, and then took several quick breaths. She even felt the elves that were holding her captive shiver in excitement.

  There was another whisper from Gallif’s memory as she watched. She remembered the giant in Primor talking about the way some spices had different effects on different species. Some that tasted good to humans made others ill. She also remembered hearing, at some point, how certain herbs and grasses caused bizarre dreams and images if burned in a certain way.

  That’s how he controls the aquilus, she thought. It’s an addiction!

  She knew that if she were going to make a move to escape it had to be now. She looked at Maura and was glad to see her looking back at her. She willed Maura to understand that she should be prepared and to her great relief Maura nodded. She glanced at Kavelle and could tell by her stance that she was also ready to move.

  There were three elves holding her. She watched and waited until their attention was on the man and his drugs before she moved.

  With a sudden burst of energy she kicked back and broke the knee of the elf directly behind her. As it fell away in pain, she took a step back and brought her arms together. The elves were caught off guard by her move and were pulled forward until they smacked each other face first. Stunned, they dropped to the ground and she was free.

  She pulled the two torches that Jakobus had given her from her belt and clapped them together. Jakobus was as good as his words and the torches ignited instantly in a burning bright blue light. The aquilus, used to traveling mostly at night and in the dark underground were frightened and blinded by the blast and instinctively covered their eyes. Maura elbowed one of her captives and started running towards Gallif. Kavelle dropped two of hers and moved in the same direction. One elf hung on and tried to drag her down, but a swift kick ended the problem. Even the man was caught by surprise and took several steps back while ordering the aquilus to kill them.

  The monsters came rushing forward, but Gallif swung the torches in erratic circles to disorientate them further. Maura and Kavelle stayed behind her and, with Maura’s hand on her shoulder, started to move toward the double doors.

  The man realized where they were going and ordered the aquilus to block them off. Several of them stayed back to attack from one side but most of them took positions between the escapees and the doors.

  “Knife,” Gallif called to Kavelle.

  Kavelle pulled the knife from Gallif’s side and swung it at an approaching elf. It jumped out of reach but didn’t completely retreat.

  “There’s too many,” Maura called as she looked at the blockade between them and escape.

  Gallif kept the lights dancing as she tried to move out. She looked over and saw the man pulling a wand from his cloak and preparing a casting. She reared one of the torches back and, exchanging accuracy for strength, threw it in a very high arc. Even the man looked up briefly as it sailed over him and landed almost halfway down the field of spices. The fire quickly spread
from plant to plant and a wall of flame was soon burning nearly twenty feet in diameter from impact.

  The elves, seeing their beloved addiction in danger, screamed and howled in panic and started running to put out the fire.

  “NO!” the man screamed in anger. Standing between the stampede and the fire he was almost trampled, and his casting was broken.

  “Run,” Gallif said as the three of them sprinted for the doors. Maura made it first and had one partially opened when Kavelle bolted through. Gallif was behind her and tossed the torch into another part of the field before leaving the cavern and Kavelle slammed the door shut behind them.

  Without a word they claimed their weapons from where they lay.

  “We have to go back,” Kavelle said as she picked up the mace. “We can’t let him escape.”

  “We have to get out of here before he closes the doors,” she said. She grabbed Maura’s hand and started running. After a few brief glances at what was left of Tome’s body, Kavelle followed.

  Gallif had suspected when they came out of the cellar that they had passed through a jump casting and were no longer in Primor. When she saw the cavern with the field in it she became positive. In relation to the entrance there was no way possible a cavern that big could have existed unless they had gone down several stories into the ground. She suspected from the temperature drops and the ice on the walls that they had been transported to the ice fields. She knew if they didn’t get back to the cellar before the cast extinguished itself they would be trapped.

  As they approached the final hall she cursed at the sight of the jump casting. There was a slight, but noticeable, shimmer in the air and she knew it was about to close.

  Kavelle made it first and took a large step through the casting gap. Gallif grabbed Maura by the shoulders forced her on as they jumped through the distorted air and landed hard inside the cellar. They rolled on the floor together and finally came to a stop against a rack of ale.

  They looked back to see the wall return to its normal state with the logic puzzle still in place.

  “Did you know about that?” Kavelle asked.

  “Yes,” Gallif nodded.

  “Why the hell didn’t you tell us?” Kavelle asked with anger.

  “Because after we had a run in with Tasker I suspected someone was listening or watching us,” Gallif said quickly. “I didn’t want whoever it was to know that I was on to them.”

  Despite her anger Kavelle could not argue with Gallif’s reasoning and simply suggested that they get everyone back to the house.

  “What about that?” Maura asked pointing at the puzzle.

  “We’ll go through when we have more people,” Kavelle ordered and they moved outward.

  Being careful to prevent anyone from going to the barn with the mauled corpses they ushered everyone to safety. It was late in the afternoon and shadows were slowly crawling across the estate.

  Once inside, an older woman they had rescued, Bitran’s wife, Kly, started to take control of the situation. She sent one of the dwarves that had been in Arca’s cell to get the local militia. The other dwarf, also a female, she sent to light as many torches as she could. One of the humans, a male servant, she sent to start the task of guarding the barn so it would not be disturbed before the officials arrived. Gallif spoke closely with Arca and, heartbroken, he left to find the nearest dwarven temple and take care of the proper details there.

  After an hour, Kly sat in the kitchen with Gallif, Kavelle and Maura. She explained to them that the wall puzzle had been something her husband had created to hide their family wealth. Behind it should have been some small alcoves with priceless items. They all suspected that, since the casting had ended, their link with the caves was now gone. Kly said she would have the armed militia check it out when they arrived.

  “Do you know where your husband is?” Kavelle finally asked.

  “He left days before they came in,” she said. “He’s hunting in the ice fields and,” she said slowly, “checking the latest crops.”

  “Crops?” Kavelle asked and they all perked up at the mention.

  “Yes. A few years ago he set up a spice farm in the mountains to the northeast of here. Oreg spices grow best in a cold, but dry, climate and he wanted to check them out.”

  “Was it a regular trip?” Kavelle asked.

  “No,” she slowly shook her head as she drank from a warm cup of tea. “He usually didn’t go there, but the last two shipments hadn’t arrived. It was too early for the ice storms so he wanted to see for himself what was happening.”

  “Did he take anyone with him?”

  “A whole hunting party,” she nodded.

  “Anyone here who could show us how to get there?”

  “I’m afraid I have to admit I have no idea where it is at. I don’t get involved in that part of the business that much. Just hosting and spending,” she said looking down and feeling weak. “Brox could,” she finally added. “He’s the partner of the guide my husband usually takes and probably knows the way.”

  “Agil Brox?” Kavelle asked.

  “Yes, that’s him.”

  “I know him. He comes to our temple,” Kavelle said as she stood. “I have to get going right away,” she said to Gallif. “I have to pass the information along and get a party ready to head north. I’ll also need to inform them of,” she stumbled on her words as she suddenly remembered Tome’s fate. “Inform them of our loss.”

  “We’ll join you tomorrow,” Gallif said.

  For a second it looked like Kavelle was going to protest but, instead, quickly excused herself and left. Some of the militia was arriving and she met with them briefly outside the building.

  After a long silence Kly finally said, “There are some extra rooms upstairs.”

  “I know,” Gallif said and then stopped after Kly looked at her sharply. “We came to the house first and had to make sure no one was here,” she explained.

  Kly thought about it briefly and then nodded that it was okay. “I’m sorry. It’s just taking a lot to get used to.”

  “We understand,” Maura said and patted Kly’s hand.

  “There are some extra rooms upstairs and I will have Binle draw a bath. You can take any of the rooms you want. When all the servants get back I’ll have fresh clothes sent up to you.”

  Once they were upstairs Maura went in to one of the rooms and looked around. Gallif quickly grabbed as many towels as she could find and went into the bathing area. She sat on the edge of the tub and slowly put her fingers in to test the warmth of the water.

  As the ripple vanished she looked at the glassy surface and saw her reflection. She looked very tired and felt very old. She was shocked to see the marks of dried blood still on her face. She had been so busy she hadn’t thought about where they were from and what they meant. She took her wet fingers and wiped some of the red marks off. She looked at her fingers and was about to clean them when she again caught her reflection in the bath. She stared at herself as old emotions suddenly erupted in her thoughts. Losses, she remembered, those terrible loses.

  “Why do I survive?” she asked in a whisper.

  TWENTY-TWO:

  DEPARTURES

  It had been dark for an hour and Gallif was lying still on the bed in the room she had chosen. She had found a cotton night shirt and pants in the closet. The shirt was several sizes too big and the pants were a few sizes too small, but she wrapped up in them before lying down. Her red hair was cleaner than it had been before, but it was all tossed and tangled into a knot. She had been tempted to go outside to sleep, but there was a great deal of activity and she needed for things to stay quiet. She hadn’t even pulled back the covers and was just staring at the wall. Occasionally her eyes would drift shut, but they would always open again a few moments later.

  There was a light tap at the door and Gallif invited the person to enter. She spoke in a whisper and, after a short pause, the tapping repeated. She called again, a bit louder this time, and Maura came in.
There was a chair on the side of the bed Gallif was facing away from and Maura sat down.

  “I’m sorry,” Maura said calmly. “I couldn’t sleep.”

  “Me neither,” Gallif said. “Do you feel okay?”

  “I’m not sure how I feel,” Maura shrugged. “I really don’t feel anything.” Maura sat in silence for a while. She looked at Gallif’s hair and wished hers would be as long.

  “There’s something else. Something I couldn’t say before.” She paused for a long moment and then said, “Bitran is dead. His body was in one of the back cells.”

  “Oh, my,” Maura’s shoulders fell as she spoke. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

  “They had been through so much and I just couldn’t make it worse. For them,” she added. “I might tell them before we leave or wait until we can bring a body back.”

  Maura was also tired, and the comfort of the chair was taking advantage of her. Her eyes closed and her head started to tilt but she was suddenly jolted back awake.

  “I saw your armor near the bath. One of the servant’s has taken it to be cleaned.”

  “I’m glad. I’ll be needing it again. I just couldn’t look at it with, er, the condition it was in.”

  “I’m sorry I can’t say something to help you,” Maura said softly. “What will you do now?” Maura asked in an attempt to get Gallif to think about the future instead.

  “We’re going to have to go to the ice fields and check out what happened there.”

  “What will you need to get ready?”

  “Winter gear for us and for the horses.” Gallif rolled over and looked at Maura seated on the chair. “We’ll get you as many arrows as we can carry. I’m going back to the inn and do an inventory of everything I’ve got first thing in the morning.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Maura said and with that she sat quietly as they looked into each other’s eyes. “Do you want me to leave?”

  “No,” Gallif said quickly.

  Maura slowly crawled onto the bed and lay with her head on a pillow near Gallif’s. “I’m watching your back,” she whispered as she put a hand on Gallif’s side. Soon they were both asleep