Over the long span of time that the Delvers had lived inside the mountains, they had developed a means of judging time by distance. Certain distances could be travelled within a time period and thus they usually referred to distances as so many “walks”. The company gradually understood that it would be at least eight such “walks” to reach the place where tunnels had been sealed.
‘Where do you go, Farn, when Ulla takes you all to feed?’ Tika asked as they began their second “walk”.
Farn’s eyes flashed in silvery blue discomfort. ‘I cannot say, Tika. They ask us not to tell anyone.’
‘That’s all right,’ she bumped her shoulder affectionately against his folded wing. ‘I do not ask you to break promises. But do you go outside – can you tell me that much?’
‘Nearly,’ said Farn, but he was clearly uncomfortable and Tika changed the subject to reminiscences of his accident with the stone statue at Emla’s House. Farn’s embarrassment over that catastrophe had long vanished in his pride at his accuracy with fire. They still thought it wiser not to mention it in Gan’s presence, but it always brightened Farn’s mood.
Farn had been unlike his usual self Gan had noticed, since their time in the Delver settlement of Amud. He knew the young Dragon was reflecting Tika’s mood, but after Khosa’s enigmatic warning, he had felt unable to question Tika. Mim appeared cheerful enough, although he continued to be the only one of them, other than old Lorak, to wear his cloak, and Ashta seemed even more protective towards the Nagum.
Nolli was clearly very tired by the travelling she had already done in coming to meet them but she dismissed concern for her impatiently. ‘This body will do as I command for a while yet. Please do not waste time thinking of it,’ she had told Gan briskly.
The Delvers of Amud had given them four carts which the Guards took turns pulling. They had also been given ample food to last the two or three ‘walks’ before they would reach the next settlement, Arak. When they halted for the night, Lanni, the female Delver serving Nolli, quickly organised cushions and blankets carried in the storage space beneath the Wise One’s chair. Lanni made a comfortable nest and only then was Nolli helped from her chair. At the first halt, Gan had offered to lift the Wise One. Her escorts were deeply shocked at what they viewed as impertinence, and Nolli herself was irritated by what she called his “fussing”.
The Guards had spread themselves along the line: six walked at the rear, four in the lead with Trem and Drak. The rest walked with the Dragons, still finding it hard to believe that these great creatures could not only speak to human minds but could hear the Guards’ replies. Lorak walked beside Fenj. Gan suspected Lorak of providing the huge old Dragon with something more than conversation, but the Eldest of Broken Mountain Treasury was finding this sort of travel very wearing, so Gan said nothing.
Jeela and the Snow Dragons of Nolli’s escort moved lightly just before the Wise One’s cart. Tika and Mim saw Nolli’s delight as she watched the small Dragons dancing ahead of her. Several Guards surrounded Brin and when the others heard snatches of Brin’s extremely lofty tales, they understood why he had a fascinated audience.
The tunnels had been continuing a downward slope and with a tendency to bear to their right. Now, halfway through their third walk, Gan realised they must be approaching Arak as the number of side tunnels increased, again to their right. Delvers came and went, giving the company curious glances and the Wise One respectful greetings and deep bows.
Arak was a far more populous settlement, a small town in fact, with some of the front rooms of the cave dwellings used as shops. They were shown to higher caves where they overlooked the settlement, and were brought hot tea before they had even set down their packs. A plumply built Delver bustled up to introduce himself as Torim, Elder of Arak. ‘I must make my respects to the Wise One but then I shall return. I would gladly show you our settlement.’
‘I want to see some plants agrowing,’ Lorak growled. Torim looked a little startled but bowed to them all once more and trotted off to where Nolli was installed.
‘A little blunt perhaps, Lorak,’ Gan said mildly.
‘No, no,’ said Fenj. ‘Lorak of the Garden misses his growing things. I wonder if there is a warm pool here. My feet are a little sore.’
‘We will ask as soon as whatsisname comes back.’
‘Torim is his name, and he is the Elder, Tika.’
Jeela reappeared, having gone off with three of the Snow Dragons, the fourth reclined by Nolli’s cave. ‘There are three small pools not far away.’ Fenj and Brin brightened visibly.
‘You certainly seem to like their company.’ Kija remarked. Jeela’s eyes whirred embarrassment.
‘I have not meant to neglect you! Did you wish me to do something for any of you?’
‘Enjoy yourself while you may, hatchling,’ Brin interrupted. ‘But we will thank you to lead us to the pools. My honoured father Fenj admits his feet are a little sore – mine are VERY sore!’
Kija snorted annoyance but followed them without comment.
Tika stood beside Gan, watching them. Ashta and Farn were slowly following the other Dragons, with frequent glances back. Without turning, Gan said: ‘Are they all right? Are you and Mim all right?’ And held his breath for fear he had made an error. But Tika only sighed, didn’t snap at him as he had half expected.
‘It is my fault with those two. I have been trying to accept things inside my head, and in turn it unsettles and worries them. Kija is not too tired, but Fenj and Brin are really weary of this kind of travel.’
He noted she had not referred to Mim, and asked, fearing she would tense again from her apparently relaxed mood: ‘And Mim? Is he still suffering from the cold?’
He thought she would not answer, she was silent so long. ‘Mim is well. I think he will tell you soon.’
Tell me what, Gan wanted to yell but restrained himself admirably. Tika looked up at him and grinned her old grin suddenly, green eyes sparkling. ‘As you said of Mim in the sword practising – you control yourself well Gan!’
He opened his mouth but Torim popped up at his feet, very like a large hopper Gan thought furiously.
‘Shall I take you to see Arak now, Lord Gan? All your company are welcome to join us but many of them seem busy already.’
He smiled as Gan looked towards the centre of the settlement. Most of the Guards were browsing over the goods displayed, both in the cave shops and on stalls laid out in a line through the middle of Arak. He sensed no shielding being used, a freer atmosphere, than he had felt in Amud, and looking down on this small fat Delver, he smiled. ‘We would appreciate a guided tour very much, Elder Torim.’
‘Oh dear me no. Just Torim please. One of you wishes to see our growing things?’
‘Yes. I do.’ Lorak, Mim and Motass beside him, emerged from the dwelling.
Torim was the complete opposite of Serim of Amud. He scarcely stopped for breath as he trotted along beside them. Explanations poured forth as he described how the caves were extended back from the original small holes in the mountain wall. As they whisked down a sharply cornered side tunnel, a tight fit for large Dragons, as Mim commented, Torim agreed.
‘We used some of the rock we excavate to narrow some of the tunnels.’ He looked a little nervous. ‘Discourages unwelcome visitors you know. Oh dear yes.’
Then they were round the twisting turn and stared in silent amazement at a flat stretch of ground. A large field in fact. They realised that glow lamps were helping the light, but that natural light also filled the area. All eyes lifted to the roof and mouths fell open. A clear dome roofed the whole area; at present snowflakes flattened on the panes of which the dome consisted. But even so, late afternoon, Cold Season light, gleamed down into the mountain.
Torim was delighted by their obvious astonishment and began more explanations of watering systems, heating systems, and what plants seemed best suited to this unusual environment. Lorak and Mim began firing questions at the poor Delver, who very soon called over a Delver who wa
s working nearby. Mim and Lorak wandered off with Bikram, instantly involved in gardener’s talk.
Torim looked relieved. He said: ‘There is a tunnel at the far end which leads Outside, so we can adjust the flow of air currents into the growing place.’
‘Are there many such as this in this Domain?’ Gan asked.
‘Oh dear yes. All the settlements have at least two. We have five,’ he added proudly.
‘And how many settlements are there?’
‘Why, there are thirteen settlements the size of Arak. Asat is far bigger, and then there are twenty or so small ones, such as Amud.’
Tika glanced at Gan. The Captain of Emla’s Guards seemed rather stunned by this information.
‘I thought there were only a few of you here,’ he said finally.
‘Oh dear me no!’ Torim threw his head back in delight at Gan’s mistake. ‘There are between fifty and a hundred Delvers in the small settlements, and up to perhaps five hundred in ones like Arak. Asat has the most, but it is the centre of the Domain, you see, so most important.’ He rearranged his belly over his sash more comfortably and beamed at them.
‘So there are around – ten thousand Delvers living inside these mountains?’
‘If you say so Lord Gan! I have no head for numbers. Oh dear no!’ Torim chuckled at the very idea.
As they returned to their quarters, Farn and Ashta arrived back from the warm pools. ‘Oh dear, I forgot to show you the way.’ Torim looked aghast at this lapse.
‘Don’t worry, Torim,’ said Tika. ‘The Dragons will show us the way if we decide to go there.’
‘Well, if you are sure? I will go and make sure the feast is as perfect as possible. It isn’t everyday we have the Wise One’s presence and Outsiders. Dear me, no!’ And he bustled his rotund self off into the settlement.
‘He’s a jolly sort,’ Sket said.
Gan realised that Sket still followed Tika closely, and realised too that she was aware of it.
‘Go on, Sket, go and see what’s for sale. Gan is here, and Farn. I have my sword. I think I am safe enough!’
‘Well…’
‘Go along, man. Do you think I could not protect her?’ Gan raised an eyebrow in mock sternness.
Sket grinned. ‘You should be able to manage all right Sir, with that there Dragon along of you now!’ And he wandered off as Gan growled.
Nolli attended the feast, but only stayed a short time. She thanked the Arakians for their kind welcome and begged they excuse her, as she needed her rest. As she was helped by Lanni the few but painful steps to the dwelling she had been given, Mim caught her eye. She paused, then said: ‘Give me your arm, Dragon Lord,’ and Mim went to offer her his arm.
Mim remained closeted with the Wise One for a long while, but after the first minutes, Gan saw Tika’s shoulders relax their tenseness, and she chatted cheerfully enough with fat Torim.
Two more walks and another settlement, Akan, the size of Arak, with a female Elder, Monni, as thin as Torim had been fat. She was pleasant and friendly though, as had Torim been – both so different from Serim of Amud. At each place they found the warm pools, some large, some small. Monni told them the Delvers believed the water came from deep inside the ground whence came the liquid rock sometimes, or so they had heard tell in ancient tales.
Tika approached Nolli when they had halted again, presumably it being night-time Outside.
‘Wise One, Fenj suffers, and Brin and Kija are beginning to. Is there any way we can help them, without using the Power?’
‘Nolli,’ the ancient Delver corrected automatically. ‘I fear not. We are taking the most direct route northwards. You will not see Asat, where Healers could perhaps help them without Power.’ She stretched her nearly useless hand towards Tika. ‘We are going to stop at a place, in three walks time. My people do not know of it, it is shown only to a Wise One. It is hidden – but very simply. The tiniest Power, and the correct touch with the correct words, reveals the place. I believe what I will show you there and what I can tell you only there, may give hope to your great Dragons. Such hope may lift them from their tiredness, and urge them on more cheerfully.’
Tika was stroking Nolli’s twisted hand as she listened. ‘I think hope in their hearts will help better than salves for their poor feet. But Fenj was preparing to go beyond when he felt he must journey with us, and I fear sometimes he thinks of that again.’
Nolli smiled, the bright dark eyes amazingly alive in the wrinkled face. ‘I too, was planning to go beyond, but our wishes must be put aside now and we must give all we can to restore balance to the world. If it was just your Outside world,’ she grinned, her bereaved gums pink in the glowers’ light. ‘Then perhaps we Inside would not concern ourselves.’ Her grin vanished. ‘But all the world is affected. We have marked increasing changes throughout this Cycle. So – we must give all we can.’
Khosa leapt between them onto Nolli’s lap. ‘You are an odd little creature!’ Nolli quickly corrected her words as Khosa began to bristle. ‘I mean, of course, oddly interesting. I have not seen your like before. You say you like to hunt squeakers? Have you any friends who would live among us perhaps? We have much trouble with squeakers at times in our food stores.’
Khosa settled herself to her satisfaction and closed her eyes. ‘I have many Kephlings who would come here, if I command it.’
‘Would they be as superb hunters as you are?’
‘All of my children are superb hunters – I train them myself.’
‘Have you many children?’
‘Far too many.’ Khosa wriggled crossly. ‘Always squabbling. I will tell them they are to come here when I return to the Lady’s Estate.’
Nolli met Tika’s eyes, but Khosa said complacently: ‘And I will return to the Lady’s Estate.’
‘Why did you allow Berri to come with us?’ Tika kept her voice low. ‘She teases Kran, and most of the other men now, but I cannot work out why she wanted to come.’
Nolli sighed. ‘Long time past, I had hopes of Berri. She gave signs that she could grow to be Wise One. But she found intrigue, teasing, and sarcasm more to her taste. She did not know that I watched her, or that I believed she might succeed me.’
‘Is she strong in the Power then?’ Tika asked in some surprise. ‘I had not sensed it in her.’
‘Wise Ones do not have to be strong in the Power, child, that is not their task. But they must care for all other Delvers at whatever cost to their own desires.’ Nolli laughed, knowing Tika’s unspoken question. ‘I paid the price, child, and hard though it was at the time, I was soon glad to have done so.’
Lorak came to join them, a cup in his hand. ‘A sip for you, Nolli?’ he asked.
‘I think so Lorak. Your potion eases my bones quite well.’ She took the proffered cup carefully between her two hands. ‘Did you realise you can heal, Tika? When you touch my hands, the pain recedes. It has nothing to do with the Power.’
Tika stared at her. ‘Really? No, I was not aware of it.’
Lorak squatted on his heels beside them. ‘Old one, I saw growing plants in Arak, but I see no other growing things.’ Tika frowned and waited for him to go on. ‘I mean little ‘uns. Don’t Delvers have little ‘uns? But I saw Delver females with bellies growing babies, so where have you got the children hid?’
Nolli smiled. ‘It has long been our custom, since way before my time, that the instant Outsiders enter our Domain, our young ones are taken to hidden places. Our old tales say a generation of children was lost to Outsiders whom we had welcomed as guests. Since then, they are hidden.’
A great shout of laughter erupted from the Guards settled around Brin – obviously one of his fantastic stories had reached its’ conclusion. The young Dragons and Nolli’s Snow Dragons had also been listening but only Farn seemed to have believed every word. Gan strolled across to Nolli. ‘I did not know Dragons had such powerful imaginations,’ he remarked.
Nolli tutted. ‘I feel sure there is truth in most of what he tells.�
� Then she grinned her toothless grin, adding: ‘but he adds to the truth, I am equally sure!’
Two more walks passed uneventfully. Fenj was plainly tiring, his prismed eyes a dull slate colour most of the time. He made no complaint, replied to any who spoke to him in his usual courteous manner.
They were clearly nearing the northern borders of the Domain of Asat – no local Delvers appeared from the decreasing number of side tunnels. They had been travelling only a short while on their eighth walk since entering the mountain when Nolli called a halt. As the company gathered round her, she indicated a narrow slit of an opening, not the usual kind of tunnel at all.
‘We must travel a distance from our main route now. It is not too far and those who wish, can remain here. But I must go. Tika, Gan, and the Dragon Lord must accompany me. And I beg that you do also, Great Dragons from Outside.’
In the end, everyone followed Nolli. Fenj and Brin struggled through several places where the rock walls seemed to be pressing closer together. There were no lamps set along this passage and, on Nolli’s instruction, the company had unhooked lamps from the main tunnel to light their way now. Khosa sat upright on Nolli’s lap, her eyes shining with excitement. Secrets! She was sure there were secrets to be found, just ahead!
At last the passage widened but as the company crowded up and more light shone about them, it seemed as if a rockfall had blocked their way.
‘All of you must turn your backs!’ Nolli’s youthful voice suddenly commanded. ‘All of you, except the Dragons. And the Dragon Lord must help me now.’
Mim moved between Ashta and Gan, squeezed past Tika and helped Nolli to her feet. They heard Nolli shuffling forward, softly murmured, indistinguishable words in her voice, and Mim’s fluting tones joining with the Wise One. There was a low rumble and a gust of air swept against their backs, but none dared to risk a glance over their shoulders. Again there came the sound of Nolli’s painfully shuffling feet and then her voice: ‘You may see now, what the Wise Ones guard so secretly!’
The company turned. Nolli and Mim stood inside a small, round chamber, on a circular mosaic set with crystal, gold and jet. As Mim held his glow lamp high, they saw niches recessed into the wall. Each niche held a dully gleaming oval shape and Tika gasped, the first to realise what they were. Her hand fumbled at her shirt and she pulled free the pendant taken from Fenj’s collection. Hundreds upon hundreds of them shone back, as hers reflected Mim’s lamplight.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Soul Bonds: Book 1 Circles of Light series Page 25
