Albrek's Tomb

by M. L. Forman

“I have blocked it from your mind. When you are ready, and when the danger has passed, I will remove the blinders,” Alex explained.

  “We should move on,” Arconn said after a short silence.

  “Yes, yes, we should,” agreed Thrang, and he started marching down the road once more.

  Alex felt certain they would find the city of Neplee before dark, but he didn’t know what kind of welcome they would find when they arrived. He didn’t have to wait long before the answer to that question appeared. A few hours later, the air rang with a sudden whistle and the soft thud of an arrow striking the ground. Thrang stopped in his tracks.

  “Not as friendly as I’d hoped for,” Thrang said in a soft voice.

  “Who are you, and why do you come here?” a voice called.

  “Thrang Silversmith and company,” answered Thrang as he looked around for the source of the voice. “We are adventurers, and have come here by chance.”

  “Go back the way you came, Master Silversmith,” the voice called out. “There is nothing here for you but sorrow and woe. This place is cursed. You must leave before the curse falls upon your party as well.”

  “I will end the curse,” Alex called out as he stepped forward to stand at Thrang’s side. “I will end the suffering of Neplee.”

  “Others have tried before and failed,” the voice said, though it was not quite as commanding as it had been.

  “I must try, even if you will not willingly assist me in the attempt,” said Alex.

  There was a long pause, as if the person who had called out to them was considering Alex’s words.

  “What are you doing?” Thrang questioned Alex in a whisper.

  “What I must,” answered Alex. “We can’t go back and we need help to go on. I must face this evil sooner or later. What other path is open to us?”

  “Advance and be recognized,” the voice commanded, interrupting Thrang’s next question.

  Alex and his friends moved forward.

  When they approached a small grove of trees, the voice called out, “Hold.”

  Alex and the others stopped and waited. For several minutes nothing happened, and then an old-looking dwarf stepped out of the trees and moved toward them.

  “So, young man,” said the old dwarf, looking at Alex. “You say you will end the evil and remove the curse from this city.”

  “I will if I can,” answered Alex.

  “A wise answer.” The old dwarf laughed grimly, and then turned to Thrang. “We welcome you, Master Silversmith, and your company. We will do what we can for you, and aid you however possible. Lord Turlock will wish to meet with you when we enter the city, and question you further about your adventure.”

  “We will be pleased to meet Lord Turlock and answer any questions we can,” said Thrang with a bow.

  The old dwarf did not return Thrang’s bow, but simply looked at them all for a moment, and then motioned for them to follow as he started back toward the trees.

  Neplee, as it turned out, was extremely well hidden, and Alex saw Thrang stare in surprise and wonder at the great stone doors carved into the mountainside.

  “They were made with ancient magic,” the old dwarf said. “In a time before darkness came to Neplee.”

  “Such art has long been lost,” said Thrang. “If it has been found again, word should have been sent to King Thorgood.”

  “Yes, it should have,” the old dwarf agreed but said nothing more.

  Alex and his companions entered a vast hall, its ceiling supported by dozens of stone pillars that looked like giant gray trees. The hall was empty except for a single chair placed near a large fireplace at the far end of the hall. A troubled-looking dwarf sat in the chair, staring into the low-burning fire. As the company approached, he looked up and quickly stood to greet them.

  “Master Silversmith, I am Lord Turlock. I know of you, though we have never met,” said the dwarf, bowing to Thrang. “I ask that you forgive our less than generous welcome, but as I’m sure you’ve seen, these are not happy times in Neplee.”

  “We have seen some of your troubles,” said Thrang, returning the bow. “But tell us, Lord Turlock, what has happened here? Why have you not sent word to Kazad-Syn, or even Benorg? I’m sure King Thorgood would have sent all the aid he could.”

  “Yes, I’m sure he would have,” said Turlock. “But his help would have done us no good, and more of our people would be under the curse that holds us here. But I am forgetting my manners, please, Master Silversmith, introduce your company to me.”

  Thrang quickly introduced the company to Turlock. Turlock bowed to each of them in turn and then called for chairs to be brought for them all. Once his guests were seated, Turlock returned to his own chair, his eyes returning to the fire as if he were alone and deep in thought.

  “I am sorry you have been caught up in this,” said Turlock after a long silence. “I am sorry that we did not see this trouble coming long ago and put an end to it when we had the chance.”

  “You speak of the necromancer,” said Alex.

  “Yes,” said Turlock, his eyes fixing on Alex’s. “We should have guessed, but at the time there was no way to know. He did so much good for the city, we never thought he could become so evil.”

  “You knew him? Before?” Alex questioned.

  “I knew him when he was Nethrom,” Turlock answered in a weak voice, his eyes returning to the fire. “He was gifted in learning, and he had some magical abilities. It was he who learned the ancient magic that hides our city gate. The libraries of Neplee are large, and some of the books in it are very old.”

  “And this Nethrom learned his magic from those books?” Thrang asked in a puzzled tone. “Magical books are uncommon in dwarf libraries, and few dwarfs have ever been able to read what is written in them.”

  “He learned some things in the library here,” answered Turlock, sounding tired. “Including the existence of a hidden cave in the high mountains beyond the city. The cave was supposed to be guarded by ghosts, or magic, or maybe both. Nethrom became obsessed with the story of the cave, and he spent years looking for it. We became used to seeing him go into the mountains for weeks at a time. He always returned in a dark and unhappy mood.”

  “But he eventually found the cave,” Alex coaxed, trying to understand what Nethrom had gone through in his years of searching.

  “Yes, he must have,” said Turlock. “It was summer when he went into the mountains, as he always did. When he came back, he was full of happiness. We knew he had found the cave, but we never guessed what was inside of it, and Nethrom never said.”

  “At first, Nethrom put his powers to good use,” said Kat suddenly, and Turlock’s head jerked up to look at her. “He learned much about healing and the old dwarf magic, and he used this knowledge to help his people and protect the city of Neplee.”

  “Yes,” Turlock whispered.

  “Then, without warning, he changed,” Kat went on. “He no longer helped his people, but demanded payment for his services. If the sick could not pay his price, he would do nothing to help them. It was as if Nethrom was no longer the same dwarf he had once been.”

  “All that you say is true,” said Turlock, a questioning look on his face as he glanced from Kat to Alex.

  “My friend is a seer,” said Alex. “She has felt Nethrom’s presence, or rather, the presence of what Nethrom has become.”

  “A wizard, a seer, and a party of adventurers? Perhaps I should feel hope, but I do not,” said Turlock, shaking his head. “I would advise you to leave this place as soon as possible. We will provide you with horses, but I doubt they will last long against the hellerash.”

  “There are no more hellerash,” said Thrang. “Alex has freed you of that curse already.”

  “You’ve driven them off?” Turlock questioned in surprise.

  “I’ve destroyed them,” answered Alex, turning his own gaze to the fire.

  “Perhaps there is hope after all, but I would still advise you to leave,” Turlock said
, his eyes fixed on Alex.

  “The weather is turning, and we may have to winter here,” said Thrang in a worried tone. “We need to search the mountains for traces of Albrek and his people.”

  “Albrek?” Turlock asked as if remembering something.

  “Our quest is not to destroy the hellerash, or to fight the necromancer who called them back from the dead,” Thrang explained.

  “No, of course not,” said Turlock, smiling in a tired sort of way. “I fear you will find little record of Albrek or his company in these mountains. Legend says that he did stop here during his wanderings, but Neplee was already being built. Not wanting to cause conflict, Albrek moved on.”

  “Then our quest lies farther south,” said Thrang, glancing at Alex. “If the weather allows, we will move on as soon as possible.”

  “I will order that horses be provided for you,” said Turlock.

  “How long?” Alex questioned.

  “How long?” Turlock repeated, his eyes moving to Alex. “How long what?”

  “How long since Nethrom changed?”

  “With the coming of the new moon, it will be three years and three moons,” answered Turlock.

  Standing suddenly, Turlock raised his hand. Several dwarfs who had been waiting nearby hurried forward, bowing to Turlock and waiting for his command.

  “Find rooms for our guests,” Turlock ordered. “Make them comfortable and provide them with refreshment. When they are settled, search the city for whatever horses you can find.”

  “Yes, lord,” the dwarfs answered, bowing.

  “Perhaps tomorrow we can speak again,” Turlock said, returning to his chair. “And if the weather holds, you can be on your way.”

  “You have our thanks,” said Thrang, bowing to Turlock.

  Alex and his friends bowed as well and then followed the dwarfs out of the hall. The dwarfs led them quickly and quietly through the city to a series of rooms that had already been prepared. Unlike every other dwarf city Alex had been in, Neplee was dark and quiet. They saw no other dwarfs as they went along, and many of the passageways had no lights in them at all. It was depressing, and Alex began to wonder how many of the city’s people had already been destroyed by Nethrom.

  “What is wrong with this city?” Thrain questioned as soon as their guides left them to rest in a large room where there were several chairs and a fireplace. “In my grandfather’s kingdom, no dwarf city is so dark or so quiet, and guests are always welcomed with feasts and excitement.”

  “This is not your grandfather’s kingdom,” said Thrang, dropping into a chair.

  “This city is like a tomb,” Nellus said, taking a chair close to Thrang’s.

  “They have lived for more than three years in fear,” said Alex, his eyes fixed on the fire. “They have forgotten what happiness is. Now they simply live day to day, while death sits on their doorstep.”

  “You still wish to stay and face the necromancer?” Thrang questioned.

  “I will go with the company,” said Alex without looking at Thrang.

  “Then you think me wrong to lead us away from here if the weather holds,” Thrang pressed.

  “No, I do not think you are wrong,” answered Alex. “Our quest is to find the tomb of Albrek and the Ring of Searching. Staying here is dangerous. We are honor bound to finish our adventure, so I will do whatever you think best.”

  Thrang was about to reply when Arconn broke in.

  “Do you think the necromancer will come looking for you?”

  “I don’t know,” said Alex. “I have no idea how Nethrom, or whatever he is now, will react to my being here.”

  “You don’t really think he would attack you openly, do you?” Barnabus asked.

  “I have no idea. I’ve never faced a necromancer before, and I don’t know how powerful Nethrom has become. I think, if he feels that he is strong enough, he will challenge me,” said Alex. “For now, I’m going to bed.”

  With that, Alex turned and left the large room, heading for one of the several smaller rooms connected to it. Alex chose a room at random and closed the door behind him. He didn’t know what to think or do, and he didn’t know what answers to give to his friends. The necromancer was already aware of him, that much was certain. What the necromancer would do now that they had entered Neplee, Alex didn’t dare guess.

  In the middle of these dark thoughts, Alex heard a sudden popping sound and a loud ding. A geeb appeared on his bed, and for a moment he was too stunned to do anything but stare. When he realized that the geeb could only have come from Whalen, he hurried forward to retrieve the message. Tossing the geeb a small diamond, Alex opened the envelope and began to read.

  Whalen’s letter did little to make Alex feel any better. For the most part it told him not to feel bad about destroying the hellerash because they were already dead anyway. Whalen had little to say about fighting the necromancer, except to give Alex a lot of advice about gathering his power and preparing himself to face the darkness.

  Unhappy with the message, Alex tossed it aside and climbed into his bed. Whatever hope he had felt when the geeb first arrived was gone, and he lay awake in the darkness for a long time before drifting off to sleep.

  When Alex finally did fall asleep, his dreams were as confused and troubled as his waking thoughts were. They jumped from place to place as if he was searching for something, but he didn’t know what. Twice he woke with a start, looking around wildly as if expecting someone or something to be in the room, waiting for him. The second time it happened, he’d even conjured weir lights, sending them around the room to make sure he was alone.

  Lying back on the bed, Alex put out the weir lights and tried to focus on what he was looking for in his dreams. Slowly his mind relaxed, and he felt as if he was lifting off the bed and flying away.

  Alex’s thoughts moved out of Neplee and turned north. He felt like a bird, flying back along the path that he and his friends had traveled. Kazad-Syn looked small and inviting as he flew past it, and for a moment he wanted to stop, but he felt an urgent need to go on. When his mind reached the shores of the Eastern Sea, Alex knew where his thoughts were taking him. He moved across the wind-tossed sea into the darkness that hid the dragon.

  “Your thoughts are troubled, young one.” Salinor’s deep, steady voice echoed inside Alex’s head.

  “Yes, I have much to worry about,” said Alex.

  “The necromancer,” Salinor stated.

  “You knew about him?”

  “Yes, but I did not know you would face him,” answered Salinor.

  “I’m not sure I will. Thrang wishes to move on as soon as possible, so I may not face him for some time yet,” Alex explained.

  “Sooner would be better,” said Salinor.

  “I’m . . . I’m not sure I can face the necromancer,” said Alex, expressing the fear that had been nagging at his mind.

  “Doubt can be deadly. Would you run from this challenge?”

  “I would rather face it and free the people of Neplee, but I don’t know how, and I’m not sure that I can defeat this evil.”

  “Caution is one of your more human traits,” said Salinor with a soft laugh. “It may be useful, I would not know.”

  “I want to ask something of you,” said Alex before he could stop himself.

  “Ask something, of me?”

  “If I cannot defeat the necromancer, if he gains control over me, I want you to come and destroy me. Don’t let me be used by this evil,” said Alex in a pleading tone.

  “Yes, I will come,” Salinor agreed slowly. “Though I think there are few things you could not overcome, even though you are still young.”

  “Thank you,” said Alex, bowing to the dragon in his thoughts.

  “You should return now,” said Salinor, a strange smile curling his gigantic mouth. “Guard your thoughts from the prying of the dark one, and look deeper into what your friend Vankin said in his message to you. If I feel the darkness overcoming you, I will come as you have ask
ed.”

  Alex bowed once more, and before he could dream himself back across the dwarf realm to Neplee, he woke with a start. Jumping out of bed, Alex retrieved Whalen’s letter and reread every line of it carefully, pausing on one line that he didn’t remember reading at all.

  ***

  “There’s at least a foot of snow on the ground, and there will be another before we’ve eaten breakfast.” Thrang turned as Alex entered the common room. “If I didn’t know better, I’d ask if you’d conjured up this storm,” he said.

  “Not me,” said Alex, smiling at Thrang. “And Nethrom didn’t conjure it either,” he added quickly.

  “Well, we won’t be moving anytime soon,” Thrang grumbled. “So I suppose we’ll have to wait and see what happens.”

  “You know what’s going to happen,” said Alex. “I will go into the mountains and face the necromancer.”

  “Madness,” said Thrang, dropping into a chair by the fire. “I’ll never understand wizards, not if I live to be a thousand years old.”

  “It is not madness,” said Alex. “It is simply what has to be done.”

  “Very well. I’ll ask no more questions,” Thrang said as he got to his feet again. “Besides, there’s no time anyway. Turlock has asked us to join him for breakfast, and we’d better be on our way,” he said as a guide appeared to lead them back to Turlock.

  Once more the city was dark and quiet, though there were a few dwarfs moving about this morning. Most of them moved quickly away as Alex and the others approached, but a few stayed and silently watched them pass.

  “Our people are not used to strangers,” their guide said. “It has been so long since anyone has come to the city.”

  “Do they fear us?” Thrang asked as they walked.

  “In a way they do,” the guide answered. “The evil one in the mountains has sent his servants among us before. Now, we have trouble trusting anyone, even those we hold most dear.”

  The look on Thrang’s face told Alex all he needed to know. Thrang’s mind had been made up, and even if the weather permitted them to leave, he would insist that Alex try to free the city of Neplee from the curse of the necromancer.

  Turlock greeted the company as they entered a small feasting hall. A large, round table had been set up, and breakfast was already waiting for them. Alex thought Turlock looked tired, as if he hadn’t slept in days, so he waited until they were almost done with their meal before asking his question.