The second ship broke off and landed on the opposite side of the valley. Lord Black’s ship never slowed and soon a walled village appeared ahead of them. In the center of the town rose a high tower featuring a dragon top with a lightning bolt coming out of its mouth. It was an exact twin to the one Rondo found in the swamp and a smaller version of the one in the capital ruins.
As Domina began to land, Lord Black came and stood beside Rondo in the front of the ship. “Do you recognize the dragonspire?”
“It’s like the one I found and the one in the capital ruin,” Rondo said.
“Correct. Beside the ones you mentioned, there are two more on the opposite side of the Central Mountains. Along with the girl, these towers are the key to ruling the continent.”
“I don’t understand, Lord Black.”
“You don’t need to. All you need to do is revel in the fact that you are a part of the most ambitious project since the fall of the empire. Quite an honor. Don’t make me regret giving it to you.”
There was a gentle thump when the ship hit the ground. Everyone hastened to reach the town. Lord Black left Rondo to his own devices, flying over the rail with his ring and disappearing from sight. Not wanting to miss anything, Rondo hurried down the ramp and joined Shade, Domina, and Lord Black in front of the village gate.
The wizards could have flown over, but the rest of them were out of luck.
“Shade?” Lord Black said.
“Ready, Boss.”
Shade rose into the air and glided over the wall. A few minutes later the gate swung ponderously open. The slavers hurried through first, their chains tinkling in the dark. Lord Black strode through like he owned the place. The village was eerily quiet. You’d have thought there’d be some guards on duty.
A single straight street ran directly to the tower and Lord Black never deviated from his path. They passed several large buildings, one made of stone. The old man with the dragon staff marched off that way on the trail of a pair of slavers.
The slavers pulled open the doors and entered. They emerged a moment later with an unconscious man between them. One started to clap manacles on him, but the old man shouted, “No, no! He’s my agent. Carry him gently back to my cabin on the ship.”
One of the slavers said, “Korbin told us we get everyone for the blocks. You got a problem, take it up with him.”
“Leonidas, wait. This is quite unacceptable. Without Abelard we never would have been able to deal with the dragons. You must explain to these cretins that he’s not to be made a slave.”
A grimace of distaste twisted Lord Black’s stern features. “Leave that one alone.”
“We don’t take orders from you.” The slaver got busy clapping irons on the fallen man.
“Shade, explain his error to him.”
“My pleasure, Boss.
Shade ambled over to the two slavers. “Fellas, when Lord Black gives you an order, you obey. There are plenty of others for you to take prisoner. Now get lost.”
The bigger of the two slavers straightened. “How about I ugly up that pretty face of yours?”
Shade shook his head. “That’s just rude. We’re all on the same side here and so is the guy you’re trying to chain up. Plenty of coin to go around, right?”
The slaver drew back a fist. Before he could throw it, Shade closed and struck him in the throat with the edge of his hand. The big man fell to the ground clawing at his throat and gasping for air.
Shade turned to the second man. “He’ll live. If I have to argue with anyone else, they won’t, got me?”
The second slaver grabbed his companion and half dragged him away as fast as possible.
“There you are,” Shade said to the dragon worshiper.
“How am I supposed to get my comrade back to the ship now?”
“Don’t push your luck, Alvin,” Lord Black said. “I don’t intend to waste another minute on this.”
Alvin bowed and Shade hurried to rejoin the group.
“I’m surprised you didn’t kill him,” Rondo said.
“The Slavers Guild is still our ally,” Shade said. “Besides, we don’t want to leave any bodies behind and I didn’t plan on carrying him back to the ship.”
Lord Black marched on toward the tower. All around, slavers were breaking into buildings and pulling unconscious people out in chains. They were planning to enslave an entire village. That had to be a first.
The tower door was closed and on one side was a rectangular panel marked with nine runes. Lord Black touched them in a precise order and the door swung open. Inside was a library much like the one in the capital tower. Thousands of books covered every surface. The collection had to be worth many thousands of gold scales. They’d need a lot of help to cart them all back to the ship.
Lord Black ignored the fortune in books and made his way to the center of the tower. There was a round, open space there that appeared totally out of place. Lord Black moved toward the middle of the space.
He’d barely taken a step when a harsh female voice said, “You! How dare you come here?”
Rondo turned to see a stern but beautiful woman with dark hair emerge from the stacks to glare at Lord Black.
“Can it be?” Lord Black murmured. “After all these years, we meet again, Helena. How nice. What’s it been, twenty years since you ran away from the Dark Sages? We can’t let that pass you know. You will have to face your punishment.”
“What do you want here, Leonidas?” Helena asked.
“That’s Most High Black to you, traitor,” Domina said.
Helena’s beautiful face twisted in distaste. “I see some things never change, Domina. Still a mad dog at your age? I hoped time would mellow you. Foolish, I suppose.”
Rondo winced. How would Domina kill her? From the looks of it she wanted to do it with her bare hands.
“Easy, Domina,” Lord Black said. “You know the punishment for leaving the group as well as I do. She must face it the same as any other. You may take her prisoner if you like. Gently, please.”
“As you say, Leonidas.” Domina’s tone was obedient and her expression lethal.
Helena made no effort to run, instead glaring at them all as though already planning her revenge. Whoever she was, she had guts.
Domina raised her hands and whispered in the same hissing tone she used on the ship. A breeze swirled around, rustling through the books.
Helena went rigid. Domina stalked over and belted her in the jaw. Helena collapsed and Domina shook her hand, smiling down at the unconscious woman.
“Feel better?” Lord Black asked.
“Not really,” Domina said. “She’s still breathing.”
Lord Black shook his head and moved to the center of the tower. He pointed at the floor and a glowing white dot appeared. As he traced his finger through the air an image appeared in glowing lines, slowing growing to become a stylized dragon.
When it was finished, Lord Black stepped back and snapped his fingers. The image vanished in a burst of light that streaked up into the ceiling.
“Grab Helena and let’s get back to the ship,” Lord Black said.
Domina flicked her extended finger upward and the unconscious woman lifted off the floor and floated behind her.
When they left the tower Rondo looked back at the fortune in books just sitting there. “Are we coming back for the collection?”
“No time,” Lord Black said.
“All the villagers are chained up or soon will be.” Rondo nearly choked when he realized who he was arguing with. Still, leaving all those books behind seemed wrong.
“I don’t care about a few people.” Lord Black never broke stride as he hurried toward the gate. “It’s the dragons waking up that concern me.”
Rondo had completely forgotten this village was supposed to be protected by dragons. Suddenly the books seemed a bit less important.
“Leonidas!” The dragon worshipper called Alvin was still standing beside his unconscious comrade. “I really
need some help here.”
Lord Black sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Shade, Rondo, help the fool get his friend aboard. Time is running out.”
“Sure, Boss.”
Shade led the way and Rondo ended up grabbing the unconscious man under the arms. He was heavier than he looked. Rondo hissed and grimaced as they joined the line of slavers carrying unconscious villagers toward the ship. He hadn’t become a scholar so he could lug bodies around. If he’d wanted to do that, he’d have found work as a grave robber.
They made it up the ramp and dumped the body on deck. Alvin wisely made no complaint. At least his friend was onboard.
One of the slavers spoke to Lord Black. Rondo didn’t hear what they said, but Lord Black nodded and said, “Domina, we’re leaving.”
The unconscious Helena was nowhere to be seen as Domina took her place at the helm. The ramp was brought back on board and they slowly rose into the air. An exhausted Rondo found a comfortable spot at the front of the ship.
Below them, the dragon statue at the top of the tower looked like it was breathing white fire. It was a beautiful sight. He felt like he’d been part of something important, Rondo just wished he better understood what.
Chapter 24
Brigid’s soft breath tickled Yaz’s ear. She’d fallen asleep an hour ago with her head on his shoulder. No sound had emerged from the tunnels in forty-five minutes. Perhaps the hunters had decided to lay siege to their hideout instead of trying to force their way in. That was Yaz’s biggest worry. They had no supplies or way to escape, at least that he knew about. For now he was content to let his companions sleep. Soon enough they’d have to make a move and the more rested they were the better.
Yaz closed his eyes and entered his library. While he had the chance, he might as well review everything he knew about Aqua Kingdom ruins. Shouldn’t take long given how little anyone really knew about the ancient civilization.
He conjured a table and manifested his memory in the form of a leather-bound book. It was all mental trickery, but the trappings of a real library helped Yaz focus. He glanced at his secret room before settling in. The door was bowed and bulging. Soon enough all the pain, anger, and fear he’d hidden away would have to be released. It wouldn’t be pleasant, but he’d bear it. He didn’t have any other options after all.
Satisfied that all was in order he settled into his seat and opened the book. It was written by an imperial scholar that had explored three different ruins and combined his knowledge into a tome he hoped would help others who wanted to follow in his footsteps. Yaz paged through descriptions of various traps and monsters and how best to deal with them. The general consensus was avoidance was best and if that wasn’t possible use magic. Good advice, but useless to Yaz.
A little further on came a description of an Aqua temple and its guardian spirit. They all had one, generally bound to the altar relic, a treasure dedicated to that temple. Yaz swallowed the lump in his throat. There was likely a spirit bound to this temple as well. Hopefully they wouldn’t meet the creature. The only saving grace was that the spirit was bound to the temple and couldn’t move beyond its walls. Good news if there wasn’t an army of bounty hunters waiting for you outside.
The rest of the book was largely historical information of little practical use. Yaz had just finished paging through it when Silas groaned. “Where are we?”
Yaz blinked and was back in the temple. Brigid had taken her head off his shoulder and was yawning.
“In the central temple of an Aqua Kingdom ruin,” Yaz said. “The hunters have given up for the moment. How are you?”
“Better.” Silas rose and stretched. “My energy is mostly restored, though I don’t dare use magic stronger than the light spell until I find a proper catalyst. You guys carried me down here?”
Yaz nodded. “We couldn’t just leave you lying there for the bounty hunters to find. If you two are up to it, we need to take a closer look around. Maybe there’s a back door.”
“You think so?” Brigid sounded so hopeful Yaz didn’t have the heart to tell her no, he didn’t think so.
“Maybe. Silas, can you brighten things up a little?”
“Sure.” Silas touched Wicked and the skull glowed brighter, still less than a lantern, but more than a torch. “That’s the best I can do.”
They set out toward the center of the cavern. If the altar was anywhere, it would be there. Sure enough it came into view thirty paces later. The altar appeared to be made of ice. It sat on a raised dais and a black egg sat in the exact center. That had to be the temple relic. In front of the altar was a deep, clear pool of water.
Yaz knelt, drew the symbol of a water droplet in the air, and scooped a handful of water to his mouth. It was cold, pure, and delicious. He’d never had such a refreshing mouthful of water. At least they wouldn’t die of thirst.
“How is it?” Brigid asked.
“Amazing,” Yaz said. “Make the proper obeisance like I did and try some.”
“O-what?”
Yaz smiled. “Kneel and draw a drop of water in front of you.”
She did as he said and eagerly slurped the pure water.
Silas only had eyes for the black egg. “I could make a fine necromantic catalyst from a piece of obsidian that big.”
“You might summon the temple guardian as well. Didn’t you study this sort of thing during your wizard training?”
Silas finally looked away. “Contrary to what most people think, not all wizards are scholars. My master only had ten books and they all dealt with magic of one sort or another. He didn’t give a damn about any other subject. I fear I inherited that preference.”
“That’s a dangerous preference for someone that explores ruins for a living.” Yaz frowned and looked closer at the egg. It had a faint texture. “I don’t think that’s obsidian.”
“What else could it be?” Silas asked.
“I think it’s a dragon egg.” Yaz bounced to his feet and took a step closer. There was definitely a scaly pattern on the egg’s surface. “When a dragon egg ends up in an inhospitable location it goes dormant and becomes as hard as iron. They’ll stay preserved that way until they are taken somewhere appropriate for incubation.”
When everyone had drunk their fill, the little group continued their exploration of the temple. Most of it was empty, but on the far wall they found a door in the right-hand corner. It was designed to look like just another section of wall, but over the years the earth had shifted enough that cracks appeared at the corners.
Yaz worked the tips of his fingers into the crack and pulled. The door shifted a few inches, but whatever made the cracks also screwed up the hinges.
“I’m going to need a hand,” he said.
Brigid grabbed the door below him and Silas above.
“On three,” Yaz said.
At his count they all heaved. The door suddenly gave and they tumbled into a heap on the floor.
“Ow.” Yaz ended up with Brigid’s elbow in his gut and Silas’s foot in his face.
They untangled themselves without doing any more damage and Wicked flew through the door, illuminating a small chamber holding a wooden table littered with objects that glittered in the light. Most of the items – candle holders, plates, a decorative knife – were made of silver. A single gold ring set with a sapphire rested on one of the offering plates and a lone, leather-bound book with a water drop embossed on the cover leaned against the wall. Unfortunately, there were no other exits from the room.
“The temple treasury I’d say.” Silas rubbed his hands together. “There’s enough here to live on for a year. No platinum though, pity.”
“I’ve never seen so much wealth,” Brigid said.
“Won’t do us much good if we can’t get past the bounty hunters,” Silas said. “We’re going to have to explore the tunnels and see if we can find another way out.”
“Maybe not.” Yaz picked up the book and ran a finger over the cover. He opened it and flipped through
the pages. “Here we go.”
There was a map of the temple spread across the center two pages. It showed the entire tunnel complex as well as all the traps. What it failed to show was another exit. One way in and one way out. Ideal for defense, but a pain for Yaz and the others.
“Let me read this,” Yaz said. “Maybe I can find something useful.”
An especially loud crash filled the air. Brigid rushed back out into the temple then quickly returned. “They’re here.”
“Better read fast,” Silas said.
Yaz flipped page after page of the temple book in the hope that there might be something that would save them from ending up prisoners again. What he found was a lot of religious history that didn’t interest him in the slightest. Sometimes knowing this useless information would be stuck in his brain for the rest of his life depressed him, but he didn’t have time to dwell on that now. The bounty hunters would find this room soon enough and when they did it was over for Yaz and his companions.
“You have nowhere to run,” a muffled male voice said. “Surrender and no harm will come to you.”
Yaz snorted. Assuming you didn’t count getting hung at the end of their journey.
“Find anything?” Silas asked. The wizard had stationed himself at the door, ready to use what little magic he could muster as a last resort.
“Not yet.” Yaz returned to his reading.
“Can’t you put them to sleep, like before?” Brigid asked.
“It’s daylight out,” Silas said. “I can feel it.”
“We’re underground,” Brigid said.
“Doesn’t matter to the magic. That spell only works at night.”
Yaz ignored them and flipped another page. He froze. There was a drawing of the altar along with a description of the temple guardian and a warning not to summon it without a water priest present. The spirit would attack anyone present if the proper invocation wasn’t made at the moment of its arrival. It was a distant hope, but maybe they could use it.
“I’ve got an idea,” Yaz said. “But it’s risky. I think we should summon the guardian spirit and try to escape in the chaos. It’s a slim chance and we might end up killed in the battle.”
The Dragonspire Chronicles Omnibus 1 Page 17
