Dracon and the Edge of the World

by Michael T Payne

  “Maybe we can go back and take that last left?” Katlin asked.

  “Hold on there, boy’o,” Grik walked up next to Satana, “You see that?” he asked pointing at the base of the dead-end rock face.

  Satana knelt, examining the ground.

  “The tracks end here.” she looked up at Grik, then back at Dracon.

  Alyndra moved passed Dracon joining Satana and Grik.

  “There’s a cave behind this rock.” Alyndra announced and put her hand on the rock.

  A cold mist emanated from her hand and the rock. Grik and Satana backed away. It became so cold in the area they could hardly stand it, then, the rock cracked. Dracon moved forward and pulled out his Unholy Reaver, holding it low to his waist. Alyndra stepped aside while Dracon brought his blade forward, in an upward, sweeping motion, into the frozen, cracked, rock wall with a mighty blow. The icy rock shattered inward; the debris fell into a cave. Satana moved passed Dracon to the caves edge and looked in.

  “I can’t see anything” She said.

  Rayna joined her at the caves edge.

  “Really, I can see just fine.” Rayna said walking into the cave.

  Grik moved passed Satana.

  “Stay close to me, girl. Til ya eyes adjust.”

  “Can we at least make a torch?” Satana asked.

  Everyone passed Satana and entered the cave, she was the only one without night vision. Alyndra stopped next to her. She held her hand up and an icicle formed, the top of which had an orb. Alyndra blew on it and the orb lit up with a white light. Then, she handed it to Satana.

  “It’s freezing!” Satana exclaimed, she could feel the cold of the icicle through her leather glove. She almost dropped it.

  “Here, give it to me.” Alyndra chuckled taking the glowing icicle back from Satana before she could drop it, then followed the others into the cave.

  Um’Vec muttered behind Satana making her look back at him.

  “You have something to say? Don’t be a coward, I know Talila was teaching you common tongue, say it again, so I can understand.” Satana dared.

  Um’Vec straightened up, defiantly.

  “Woman have fear of darkness,” he growled, then pushed past her, crouching to enter the cave.

  “Did you just say, I’m afraid of the dark?” She asked, Um’Vec grunted. Satana watched him disappear into the cave, shaking her head in disbelief. She followed, after a moment of chewing her lip and fuming.

  The inside of the cave was narrow with a shallow roof near the opening, making them hunch over to move through it. Grik had no problem walking upright, while Um’Vec on the other hand had to crawl. They came to an open area after a few hundred yards. There were hundreds of openings all around them and overhead. The area was big enough that they could spread out and stand upright once again. Dracon reached up and examined one of the tunnels above him. The inside was smooth like water created the tunnel through years of erosion. They were more like tubes than tunnels.

  “Beware, my lord, spiders as big as a man live in such tunnels, with a hearty appetite to boot.” Grik warned.

  It made Dracon instantly remember Shynda the Drow and the Driders he fought in her caves.

  “Did you hear that?” Satana asked moving closer to Alyndra and the light, “It sounded like whispers.”

  “There!” Rayna said pointing across the cavern to a tubular tunnel at ground level, on the far wall.

  It was a creature, resembling a child in size, that quickly scurried into the tunnel. Grik rushed over to the tunnel grabbing a rock on his way.

  “I’ll bash ya skull in, iffin ya don’t give me my ax’s!” he said sliding on his knees to the tunnels opening, trying to catch the creature before it escaped.

  Dracon looked over at Grik just as he reached the tunnel, it was then he noticed Katlin was standing very close to him for protection. He looked like a frightened child.

  “Give me some room.” Dracon said shrugging his arms and shoulders like he was shaking off an unwanted hug, “If I swing my sword, I’ll take your head, whether I mean to or not.”

  Katlin backed up a few steps, his eyes darted around fearfully.

  Satana was poked in the back of her leg.

  “Ow!” she spun.

  Above her, small creatures slid down the tubes and landed on her, two at a time. It was enough to drop her to the ground, she rolled and flailed, throwing them off, only to have them regain their footing and charge after her once again. Before anyone could react to help, the whispers became deafening and the little child size creatures filled the area, running around, attacking the group with daggers.

  Um’Vec swung his arms in a wide sweeping motion, hurling creatures everywhere, keeping them clear of Alyndra. Rayna fought a pair of creatures, disarming the first one and using its dagger against the other. The disarmed creature fled the area, back through a tube.

  Satana took out two creatures, killing them with her mastery of hand to hand combat. She retrieved the dead creature’s daggers.

  “Grik!” she yelled and threw one of the daggers to the dwarf.

  Alyndra raised her hands and a bright light formed just above her head, bathing the area in a white light, creatures squealed and fled, leaving their dead behind. It was suddenly quiet, save for the panting breaths of the group.

  “Deep-Dwellers.” Grik said after a minute, through labored breaths.

  “That means there’s a deathstalker here, somewhere,” Rayna added, “We’ll be alright together but if we get separated, we may lose someone.” She looked at Katlin with a smirk. He moved closer to Dracon, bumping into him. Dracon jumped a little when Katlin bumped into him.

  “Back up,” he growled, “Get yourself together man! Give him one of those daggers!” he snapped at Satana.

  “Come over here,” Alyndra said to Katlin, “Stand with us.” She waved him over to where she and Um’Vec were.

  “There’s a passage over here.” Grik announced to the group.

  Everyone cautiously made their way to where Grik was. To the side of the natural tube, where he chased after the Deep-Dweller, was in fact a passageway, cut into the rock. Rayna moved passed Grik, entering the passageway. The walls were made of stacked stone, man-made, presumably. There were dead torches mounted on one side of the wall, spaced out every twenty feet. Rayna could only see three torches ahead of her before the passageway turned right. She grabbed a torch and lit it. Satana followed Rayna immediately and took the torch from her, then continued passed Rayna without a word.

  “You’re welcome.” Rayna said.

  “After you, my lady.” Grik said to Alyndra. Grik was the last one to enter the passageway, keeping his eye out for any more attacks from the whispering darkness behind them.

  Satana led the way down the hall, lighting every torch she came upon. The hall turned left, then right, a pattern that repeated every hundred feet. Eventually, they came to a large, iron, double door. It was massive, twice the height of a man and three times as wide. The hall ended at the doors and there was no passage around, only back the way they came. Satana walked the length of the door, examining it. It was plain, no decoration whatsoever, heavy wood reinforced with iron. She pushed on the door, testing it. It was like pushing against a wall. It did not budge.

  “It’s warded.” Alyndra announced from behind the group that gathered closer to the door, each wanting to get a better look at it.

  “What does that mean?” Dracon asked.

  “It means magic will be useless.” Rayna answered.

  Um’Vec raised his hands and rushed the doors, slamming his forearms and body against it, trying to burst through. Everyone backed up a few steps while Um’Vec roared and banged himself against the doors in futility. After several minutes Um’Vec stopped and backed up.

  “Door warded.” He said through panting breaths.

  “What did he say?” Dracon asked.

  Grik laughed, joined by the others who were close enough to hear the bugbear’s rough common tongue.


  “He agrees with my assessment.” Alyndra said through her own laughter.

  Dracon smiled and shook his head, then he laughed along with the others.

  “Thief!” Dracon yelled, after several moments of hearty laughter with the rest of the group, “You’re up!”

  The group quieted, each looking around for Katlin. He was gone.

  “Coward!” Rayna growled.

  Dracon walked back down the hall a few feet.

  “Katlin!” he yelled; his voice echoed through the hallway. There was a loud click, then a sound of stone scraping against stone. The double doors creaked open a crack. Dust filled the hall from behind the door, from years of being completely sealed. They could feel the vacuum and rush of air from the opening door. Katlin peaked out from behind one side of the door as the dust settled. His eyes were darting around fearful.

  “Shh!” he said, “You are too loud!” he scolded Dracon in a harsh whisper, “This is not a tavern, this is not a place where you should be so loud!” Grik chuckled at first, then laughed outright. Dracon was also amused, “Shh!” Katlin hissed again with more urgency.

  Grik pulled the door open more and walked past Katlin, trying to stifle his laugh to a chuckle, Dracon followed stopping next to Katlin and looking down at him.

  “Well done.” He said then continued into the large doors. The others followed.

  “How did you do that?” Alyndra stopped next to Katlin with a surprised smile on her face.

  “My lady, I must confess something to you…”

  “You’re not a guide at all, are you?” Alyndra asked still smiling.

  “I am not.” He said bowing his head, “It is probably not appropriate for one such as me, to have words with a princess.”

  “I’ll make my own decisions on that regard, Katlin… the thief.” Alyndra said, then followed the others through the door.

  Katlin bowed as she passed, then followed her through the opened double doors.

  Behind the door was a multifaceted round room similar to an octagon, with etchings on gold plates, mounted partially on pedestals, at each facet of the wall surrounding the room. Each had several steps leading up to the golden art that adorned every panel of the room. The gold plates were tilted as if they fell over and were only being held up by the wall behind them. The floor was a tile made from shiny onyx. There were no other doors in the room. Thirty feet above them, circling the room, was another level, thirty feet higher than that, yet another. The pattern continued up out of view into the darkness above them. It seems they were at the base of a tower, that spiraled up into the mountain above them.

  “Look around,” Dracon ordered, “be diligent. We’re looking for a way up.”

  “Dracon!” a voice echoed from way up high, raining down on them like boulders from a mountain top. It shook the room, making everyone steady their footing. Except the low to the ground dwarf. Everyone froze, looking around, expecting falling objects to come from above. The ground stopped shaking after the echo of the voice quieted.

  “Something you wanna tell us?” Satana asked breaking the silence, “We aren’t here by pure happenstance, are we?”

  Dracon looked down at his Unholy Reaver, expecting it to speak to him. It remained eerily silent. Dracon straightened up.

  “I had a dream.” He announced, “This place, or the mountain rather, and a voice, calling me.”

  “Appears to be more than just a dream.” Alyndra added immediately.

  “We aren’t picking up anymore stragglers, unless they shit gold.” Satana ordered, “So what are we doing here?”

  “Or piss better wine?” Grik chuckled.

  “We do as our lord commands.” Rayna interjected.

  Satana snapped her head in Rayna’s direction with a scowl that asked the question, ‘what did you just say to me?’

  “Rayna,” Alyndra spoke before Satana could give a voice to the look on her face, “At this point, it would be wise for you to remain silent until asked for your opinion.”

  “Of course, your grace.” Rayna bowed, not taking her eyes off Satana.

  “Let’s find a way up, unless you propose we run back out of here with our tails between our legs?” Dracon asked Satana.

  “Um’Vec no am afraid, Um’Vec no run!” the Bugbear spoke up from deeper in the room. He had his back to the group while he continued to examine the room for danger.

  Satana stared at Dracon for a moment.

  “I’m not afraid of the dark.” She said defensively, holding her torch up even higher. Dracon laughed.

  “I never said you were?” he chuckled, wondering why she felt she needed to make that declaration.

  “Beggin’ ya pardon, Lord Dracon, but I’m not leavin’, not without me ax’s,” Grik said to Dracon then looked over at Satana, “Iffin’ yer a mind to go, I’ll catch up with ya after, then.”

  “We aren’t leaving you behind,” Satana scoffed, then looked at Dracon, “If you were more forth coming, we could have been better prepared, maybe not drank the night away, on the very doorsteps of some ominous voice that speaks to you in your dreams?”

  “Point taken.” Dracon said after a moment of contemplation, “Spread out, let’s find our gear.”

  They moved about the room in different directions, each on high alert. The art that surrounded the room against the walls had steps leading up to them, the steps were a stark change in color than the floor of the center of the room. It was as though the floor was out of place. The only passageway from the room was the one they came through. None of them could find a way out of the room or a way up to the next landing. Katlin walked from one piece of art to the next, walking the entirety of the room, admiring the golden plates.

  “They’re all made of gold.” He said breaking the silence. Katlin tried to lift a gold plate with an etching depicting a young man and woman holding hands. It was too heavy for him, “Just one of these, will make us rich.” He said, “If your friend, Um’Vec, will help me carry what we can, I will see to it we each have an equal share.”

  Katlin stopped trying to lift the thick gold plate, propped against the wall like a partially fallen domino, then walked down the steps to the onyx floor, looking at Alyndra hopefully.

  “We need to find a way up there,” Dracon said to Katlin pointing at the landing above them, “Never mind those plates.”

  “Never mind?” Katlin exclaimed, “Did you hear what I said? Its gold? Enough gold to make us rich beyond our dreams! We could become kings, queens!”

  Dracon looked behind Katlin while he spoke in such an animated fashion. Um’Vec walked up to Katlin from behind.

  “Um’Vec find way up.” The Bugbear growled.

  Katlin spun to face Um’Vec who quickly grabbed Katlin by his shirt, then took two steps and hurled Katlin high into the air, screaming all the way. Katlin hit the railing on the second floor and clung to it like a cat. He continued screaming a moment longer, with his eyes scrunched tightly shut, then opened them. His scream slowly faded as he looked around, over the railing of the second floor, still clinging to its edge.

  “I’m stuck, I can’t get down!” Katlin yelled, looking down at the floor below, “I’ll break my legs if I drop from this height. Help me! Look what he did to me!” he sounded like a child.

  “Climb over the edge and see if you can find a way down.” Dracon ordered.

  “By myself?” Katlin was frozen against the railing not daring to climb over and not daring to drop down, “I heard that voice too, he doesn’t want me, he wants you. Why would I ever take that risk? Let him throw you up here!”

  “Coward,” Rayna said then walked over to Um’Vec, “Kneel.”

  Um’Vec looked at her curiously, then at Alyndra, who nodded for him to comply with Rayna’s request. Um’Vec knelt, just slightly, then Rayna took a running start toward him. She stepped on his knee, then his shoulder, then her last foot pushed off his head, using him to spring up as high as she could, toward the second-floor railing. She caught it easily
and leapt over to the other side. She walked along the stone walkway of the second floor to where Katlin still clung to the railing, then grabbed him by his shoulders and hoisted him over the edge.

  “Come on, you coward, now you have an escort.” Rayna growled, “You’re an embarrassment to elves!”

  “I’m not a coward,” Katlin snapped back, “I’m half-elf, if you please, and I’m just not stupid enough to blindly throw my life away. If that is your definition of a coward, well, my lady…”

  Rayna grabbed his collar and jerked it, pulling him closer to her.

  “We aren’t ladies, or lords, we are alive, or we are dead! You are a thief! With more protection right now than you’ve probably ever had in your life, you start doing your part or I will slit your throat and leave you in this place.” Rayna growled in his face, “Now,” she shoved him back, “Disappear, or help me.” she turned away from him and scanned the second floor.

  “Here.” Katlin offered, holding out the dagger Satana gave him, “This would probably be better served in your hand?”

  Rayna gave him a quick glance, then looked down at the dagger in his hand.

  “I’ve got one already.” She said turning her attention to the doors on their right.

  The doors were several feet from the railing. They walked along the stone walkway of the second floor, following the railing around the room. As with the first floor, it was multi-faceted, matching its position, only, instead of gold plates, were doors. Rayna and Katlin approached one of the doors. It was an iron and wood door with no handle. Katlin moved closer and examined the edges of the door from top to bottom.

  “This door does not open like other doors, it slides.” He said pointing at the side of the door that would normally have hinges.

  Rayna moved next to Katlin to get a better look at what he was showing her. There were markings on the door and Rayna used her dagger to clean it so they could see what it was. It was an etching of a young man and woman holding hands.

  “This is familiar?” Katlin pondered aloud.