by Hylton, PT
Olaf’s eyes widened. “Wait, did you develop a new magic power? Can you be two places at once now?”
“Um, no, but we can split up. Think about it. We don’t need a giant group to visit the inland Stone Shapers. Elliot and a couple others can win them over while the rest of us go free The Foggy Day.”
Elliot nodded slowly. “You know, I think she might be onto something here. Last time we went with a huge group, and we didn’t get far.”
Syd shook her head. “I’m not leaving my brother again. If we do split up, I’ll go with him to the Stone Shapers.”
“No.” Clemens’ voice was firm, and every eye turned to him. He’d been quiet for most of the trip. “I’m sorry, Captain, but that’s just not right. You have a responsibility to your crew. Hell, leaving them for this long was practically dereliction of duty.” He looked embarrassed, realizing he’d gone too far. “If you’ll pardon the expression.”
Syd looked abashed, but she nodded after a moment. “You’re right. My place is with my ship.” She looked at Elliot. “You’ll have to do this one without me.”
“Then I want Abbey.”
Abbey looked up in surprise. “Why? I mean, wouldn’t I be of better use fighting for our ship?”
“You’ve got a quick mind,” he explained. “From what I know about the Stone Shapers, we’re going to need someone who can think fast. I’d also like to bring Hekla.” He paused a moment, then pointed at Clemens. “And you. You were bold enough to stand up to your captain.”
“Do you need any fire magic?” Olaf asked.
Abbey just rolled her eyes.
“It’s settled, then,” Syd said. “We free The Foggy Day from Ammaas, and you convince a tribe of reclusive magic users to enforce justice. How difficult could it be?”
* * *
“This is going to be very difficult,” Elliot grumbled.
The four of them were headed west on the smallest of the Tall Grass Raiders’ wagons. It still felt too large for their group, especially when they thought about how the other wagons must be jam-packed with people.
But speed was of the essence. They needed to reach the inland Stone Shapers as quickly as possible.
According to Elliot, the entrances to the realms of the inland Stone Shapers were no secret. There were multiple spots throughout the region, all of them roughly similar in appearance. Each was a cave mouth built into a hillside, guarded by a burly Stone Shaper.
Not many attempted to gain access to the underground kingdom. Magnus’ Stone Shapers were bad enough. Who wanted to hang out with their supposedly more hardened cousins?
On the rare occasion someone did try to get in, there were three possible outcomes. Most were turned away at the mouth of the cave by the guard. The lucky few who made it past him either came back out a few hours later looking perplexed, or were never seen again.
“Tell me about the last time you tried to get into the caves,” Abbey prompted Elliot.
He seemed a bit disturbed by the memory. “This was almost two years ago. We hadn’t started raiding yet, but we’d seen how bad things were in the villages and we’d heard tales of the tributes paid to the inland Stone Shapers. I took a group from the ekkja, a group of what would become the Tall Grass Raiders, and we went to the mouth of the cave.”
“Were you along?” Clemens asked Hekla.
“Yes, for all the good it did.”
Elliot continued. “The guard at the mouth of the cave asked why we wanted to see the Stone Shapers, so I told him. We needed their help. He allowed us to pass.”
“Lame guard,” Clemens said. “Why even have one if he’s going to let a group of warriors inside?”
“I don’t think he lets everyone in,” Elliot replied. “He checks to see if you have a valid reason, and apparently needing help was valid.”
“What happened in the cave?” Abbey asked.
Elliot frowned. “Frustration. Cold. Confusion.”
“And bats,” Hekla added.
“Yes. So many bats.”
Clemens shuddered.
“We wandered for hours. It was incredibly frustrating. The cave was a series of interconnected tunnels that split off and twisted around and led to dead ends. You can’t imagine.”
“We’ve seen the dumbass way they build their cities,” Abbey interjected.
Elliot smiled. “Yeah, this is like that, but ten times weirder. Every time we thought we were getting somewhere, we’d hit another dead end and have to backtrack. And every time our torches began to die, we’d find new ones. It was like they were purposely screwing with us.”
Hekla nodded her agreement. “I swear to the sea, that place was a maze with no solution.”
“Eventually we did find an exit; the same one we’d entered through. It seemed impossible, but after wandering for hours, we ended up right where we’d started. The guard told us we’d had our chance, and that it was time to move along. We pressed the point, demanding another chance, but a dozen more Stone Shapers stepped out of the cave. Where they’d come from, I had no idea. After all, we’d just been in there and we hadn’t seen anyone.”
Clemens shot Abbey a worried glance, but the story only made her more determined.
“We’ll find a way through. We have to.”
She’d given up the chance to join her friends in fighting for The Foggy Day. They had to make this work.
It was quiet in the wagon for a few minutes as each member of the party was lost in their own thoughts. Surprisingly, it was Clemens who broke the silence.
“I ever tell you about the time Thunderclap was attacked by a gull?”
Abbey raised an eyebrow. “I can’t say that you have.”
“It was the damnedest thing. It was springtime, when all manner of creatures feel the urge to continue the family line. Sexually. If you take my meaning.”
“I think we understand your subtle innuendo,” Hekla said drily.
“Right. So anyway, we were docked in Algon, preparing to head out toward the Lost Isles, when we saw a pair of gulls flapping around together. This guy Ross—a big, dumb sailor—started throwing rocks at them. One of the gulls started squawking, all angry-sounding.”
“And what’s an angry seagull sound like?” Elliot asked.
Clemens let forth an inhuman squeal that set the other three off in hysterical laughter. “I thought that was the end of it, but the bird kept circling the deck, squawking, shitting on us, and occasionally swooping at one of the crew. The ship set sail and it went with us, still circling and shitting. It kept on for the better part of two days.” He shook his head as if he still couldn’t believe it. “I’ve met men who could hold a grudge, but I’ve never seen one who could stay as angry for two straight days as that gull did.”
“I hope it shit on Dahlia at least once,” Abbey interjected.
“Not that I recall. The crew loved watching that bird. We took bets on how long it could keep up the noise. But the best part was how annoyed Captain Tor got at the gull. He was a man used to controlling every aspect of life aboard Thunderclap, but the gull was beyond his control and it drove him crazy. Maybe we gotta be like that with these Stone Shapers. Buzz around their heads so long they can’t ignore us.”
Elliot nodded. “Perhaps you’re right.”
“What happened with the gull?” Hekla asked. “Did it give up and fly away?”
Clemens shook his head. “On the second day it settled on top of the crow’s nest and Captain Tor had his best archer shoot it. The crew cheered when it landed on the deck. Tor gutted the damn thing and had it stuffed.”
“Suddenly I like this analogy a lot less,” Abbey remarked.
An hour later, Elliot nodded toward a hill in the distance. “That’s it. We’re almost there.”
Abbey watched as they drew nearer to the hill. Before long, the figure of a man became visible. He stood in front of a dark opening in the rock. His arms were crossed, and his face bore no expression. He didn’t even look at them as they approached.
<
br /> Elliot pulled the wagon to a stop and they climbed out. “Here goes,” he muttered. “Bring the torches, your weapons, and anything else you might need for a long walk through a dark cave. If all goes well, we won’t be seeing daylight for a while.”
“That doesn’t sound ominous at all,” Abbey joked.
The Stone Shaper finally looked at them as they stepped in front of him, but he didn’t speak.
Elliot cleared his throat and began in a confident voice, “Hello. We’ve come to ask for your help. The Stone Shaper Magnus has been lying to you and using stone magic to oppress the people of Gren.”
The Stone Shaper met Elliot’s gaze, but he didn’t respond.
After a moment, Abbey spoke. “Will you take us to the Stone Shapers inside?”
For a moment, it seemed he wasn’t going to reply. “No. Each must find his or her own path to the Heart of the Stone. I will allow you to find yours.”
He stepped aside and gestured toward the mouth of the cave.
Abbey and Elliot exchanged glances, then she turned to Clemens. “Light ‘em up.”
Clemens lit the torches and handed one to each of them.
They prepared to enter the cave.
Chapter Sixteen
“You have any advice for us?” Abbey asked the guard at the mouth of the cave.
“No.” His voice was deep, and it held a hint of annoyance.
He stared straight ahead, his hands behind his back, holding a stone in each of them. Abbey realized he was trying very hard to act nonchalant, but his frequent glances at them out of the corner of his eye told another story.
That meant there was a chance she might be able to pry a little more information out of him.
She decided to try again. “You know, where we come from, guard duty is pretty much the lowest job you can have. He knows what I’m talking about.” She nodded toward Clemens.
The sailor picked up on her approach and nodded sadly. “She’s not lying. I’ve spent more time as a lookout than I have in a warm bed. I’ve stood guard in rain, snow, blistering heat, and icy cold, you name it.”
The Stone Shaper raised an eyebrow. “Cold? You think you know cold?”
Abbey smiled slightly. They had him talking now, which was a step in the right direction. “I don’t know man, it gets pretty cold on stormships. If you haven’t felt a winter wind on the open sea, you don’t know cold.”
“Ha.” He turned toward her. “You’re in Gren, girl. We invented cold. I’m from the north, where your winter winds would be considered a summer breeze. If a man spits, his phlegm freezes before it hits the ground.”
Elliot’s eyes widened in surprise as he joined in on the show of bravado. “You call that cold? I thought about my mother once on a winter night and the tears froze in my eyes. I couldn’t blink for a week.”
The Stone Shaper chuckled. “Speaking of mothers, mine made sure I was raised as a true Grensman. She didn’t give me a blanket until I was strong enough to rip it away from her. I was ten years old. She gave me a black eye, but I had the first warm night of my life.”
“You had blankets?” Clemens asked. “I’ve heard of those. Coverings for weak southerners who can’t handle the cold, right?”
Hekla had looked perplexed during the entire exchange, but she spoke up now. “It’s so cold in Barskall that...that…” Her eyes brightened as the rest of the sentence came to her. “It’s so cold we have to wear clothes made from thick animal fur or risk being very uncomfortable.”
Elliot shook his head sadly and turned to Clemens. “She means well.”
Abbey sidled up to the guard. “The point is, guard duty is difficult. It’s uncomfortable. And boring.” She touched his bicep and let out a little whistle. “You ever notice how they only put the strongest men on guard duty? They’re the only ones who can handle it.”
The Stone Shaper’s cheeks reddened a bit, but his bicep tightened under Abbey’s hand. “Well, it does take a certain fortitude.”
“And strength of will,” Abbey added. “You have to remain alert at all times, and I’ll bet you go days without a single person trying to get into the cave.”
“More like weeks. And most of them come stumbling out again in a couple hours.”
She lightly caressed his arm. “How about the ones who get through. What’s different about them?”
The Stone Shaper chuckled. “It’s only happened once on my watch, and I’ve been doing this job eight years. But that group was smart. We’re only allowed to give one piece of advice, and they listened to it.”
“And what’s the advice?” She subtly inched closer to him as she asked the question.
He grinned at her. “I already gave it, and I’m not going to repeat myself.”
Abbey patted him on the arm one more time, then stepped back. She’d been hoping for more, but apparently that was all they were going to get out of him. “Thanks. You’ve been a big help.”
The grin never left his face as he watched them disappear into the mouth of the cave.
They made their way down the narrow tunnel of stone, their torches illuminating the way. When they were out of earshot of the guard, Clemens nudged Abbey.
“Damn, boss, that was pretty good. Sometimes I forget you’re a girl under all that fur.”
“Hey!” Abbey objected. “I can bring it when I need to.”
“It?” Elliot asked with a sly smile.
“She’s referring to sexual prowess,” Hekla said.
Abbey’s cheeks reddened. “Thanks, Hekla. That was very helpful.”
The Barskall woman nodded. “It did make me miss Olaf, though. Why didn’t we bring him instead of this annoying man?” She gestured to Clemens.
Clemens let out a short laugh. “I don’t know, but you and he deserve each other.”
They walked for ten minutes before they came to the first split in the path. The tunnel forked exactly in the middle.
They stopped and Elliot held his torch down each fork, but both showed identical columns of black beyond the limited illumination.
He turned to Abbey and Clemens. “What do you think? It didn’t work out so well last time Hekla and I were down here. You two should choose.”
Abbey was about to tell him both ways looked identical to her when Clemens spoke.
“Actually, I have an idea. You said this place is like a maze, right? I’m pretty good at mazes. I knew an old sailor who was obsessed with them. He spent every penny he had on parchment, and designed these elaborate labyrinths. Most of the sailors made fun of him, but I liked trying to complete them. I learned a thing or two about mazes.”
“Okay,” Abbey said, “so which way do we go?”
Clemens smiled. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Wait, what?”
“I mean, of course it matters, boss. But we have no way of knowing which way is correct, so the best thing we can do is pick a direction—let’s say right. We keep turning right at every opportunity. It won’t be the quickest path, but we’ll eventually work our way to the end of the maze.”
“See, Hekla, that’s why we brought him instead of Olaf.” Elliot looked at Abbey. “What do you think?”
Abbey shrugged. “It’s better than anything I’ve got. Let’s do it.”
With that, she turned down the righthand path and headed deeper into the cave.
* * *
They’d been walking through the tunnels for nearly an hour, their footsteps and the squeal of bats the only sounds, when Abbey noticed their torches had started to burn down.
She was just about to say something about it when they reached a place where the tunnel walls widened. Four unlit torches lay in the middle of the path in front of them.
“Huh,” Abbey remarked as she picked up one of the torches. “That’s a little too convenient.”
Elliot sounded thoughtful when he replied. “Of all the places we could be, all the possible paths we could have taken, they somehow knew exactly where we’d need new torches? Seems impossi
ble.”
Abbey tossed the unlit torches to Hekla, Elliot, and Clemens. They lit them and set the old torches along the right side of the tunnel.
Clemens had been quiet during the journey. He touched the righthand wall as he walked, dragging his fingers along it as if he might forget to take the next right if he lost contact. But he moved quickly and confidently, leading the way and turning right every time they came to a fork, which was frequently.
For Abbey’s part, she was happy not to be in the lead for once. Clemens’ theory made sense, and she was content to let him test it.
At the same time, something felt off about this place. Even before they’d found the torches, she’d had the distinct feeling of being watched. She imagined Stone Shapers waiting just beyond the reach of their torchlight, observing from the safety of the darkness.
It was nothing more than a feeling, though. A few times she had signaled for her friends to halt, but she never heard anything other than the bats and the occasional distant sound of running water echoing through the cave.
Elliot and Hekla seemed to notice something strange as well. They moved more hesitantly than usual, and they held their torches in their left hands and kept their right hands close to their weapons.
Twenty minutes and two more right turns later, Clemens halted suddenly. “You’ve gotta be shitting me. Boss, check this out.”
Abbey trotted up alongside him and saw what he was looking at. “No way.”
Their four torches lay along the right side of the path.
Clemens shook his head in disgust. “This is impossible. Even if we somehow circled back, we’d be coming down the path the other way. The torches would be on our left.”
Abbey grimaced. He was right. They were heading down the tunnel exactly the same way as twenty minutes ago.
“I’m telling you, this is impossible!” Frustration was clear in his voice. “I’ve done a hundred mazes. My method works.”
Elliot grunted in annoyance. “We’re stupid.”
Abbey shot him a look. “Speak for yourself!”
“No, I mean, Clemens is right. This would be impossible, except that this place was built by Stone Shapers. It doesn’t follow normal rules.”
