The Map Maker's Quest

by Matthew J. Krengel

  “Thanks,” Jackie replied. “Tasker told me to try and include as many details as possible. So I thought we would need a way to see where we are going.”

  They hurried along the tunnel and it seemed to stretch out forever. Finally a second set of steps led them up and a waft of smoke greeted them as they emerged.

  The fortress was quiet when they climbed out of the ground, and Carvin paused just long enough to make sure his repeater was armed and set to stun. The castle grounds were perfectly manicured. Each hedge and flowerbed seemed to have been carefully thought out. In front of their tunnel along the wall was a long low building. Jane heard the huff of horses from inside. Across the grounds and the flowerbeds and between a double row of white stone columns stood a bigger building three stories tall and almost square.

  “I bet that’s it,” Jacob said. Suddenly he crouched and motioned for them to be quiet. Two Adherents stepped out on the paving stone in front of the building and looked around. They seemed to be arguing about something for a time and then they went back inside.

  “Is it clear?” Jackie asked.

  “Wait,” Jacob watched. One of the men emerged from the building leading at least forty armed Adherents, and they marched off until they had vanished out the main gates. “No time like now.”

  Jacob hurried around the corner and motioned for Carvin to cover the building as they ran across the open grass. Jane and Jackie paced alongside him, and Bella held tightly to Jane’s shoulder. They reached the front of the marble building and crouched next to the doors. Inside Jacob heard an argument going on. He motioned for silence.

  “You can’t take the last squad out to the walls,” one voice whined. “Who will watch the prisoners?”

  “They are all locked in and the outer gates are closed,” a second voice answered. “Just don’t open any gates until we return and we can sort out any issues later.” A scrape of boots moving, and Jacob waved them all back. They huddled around the corner out of sight. After a last protest that seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, a third squad of twenty adherents emerged from the building and marched away.

  “Let’s get inside and see if we can free some support,” Jacob whispered to Carvin. He hefted his shield and motioned to Carvin’s repeater. “I’ll block any shots. You knock them out.”

  “I understand,” Carvin replied. They crept around the corner of the building and stopped at the door. Carefully Carvin pushed the door open an inch with the barrel of his gun. Inside was a lone Adherent sitting at a desk and looking nervously at a barred gate that guarded a set of stairs leading down into the ground.

  “Three, two, one, go!” Jacob said. Together they stepped into the entrance, and a look of surprise covered the Adherents face. He scrambled for a pistol but Carvin’s shot caught him in the chest and sent him rolling back into the far wall.

  In a rush their small group entered the main room and barred the door behind them.

  “Here,” Jane said. She grabbed the pistol from the floor and tossed it to Jackie. ”Can you guard the door?” She searched the unconscious Adherent until she found a large ring of keys. Then they tied him securely and tossed him into a closet.

  “I found the armory,” Jackie called. She opened a door across from the desk where the lone watcher had been sitting and pointed inside. Many of the racks were empty but about a dozen of the repeater guns remained and she grabbed two more and handed them to Jacob and Flying Cloud.

  Jacob walked to the iron door, it was cold iron but he knew his sword would pass through it easily. One swing later the lock fell away and they pushed the gate open. Beyond the first gate, a set of steps led down into the ground, and they descended into the depths.

  * * * * *

  Tasker waved his hand to try to clear the smoke but it didn’t help. The battle was just too fierce. He and Puck were crouched atop the hill and things were definitely going poorly for the rebels. Unlike the Adherents in the outer areas these Adherents were well armed and better trained. The dwarves had dug a three-line defensive perimeter, but already the first one had been lost.

  “How long has Jane been gone?” Puck shouted over the dim of the battle.

  “Almost three hours!” Tasker called back. He looked down at the battle. Thankfully a breeze slipped over the carnage and cleared the smoke for a few moments.

  “The second line is holding so far,” Puck said. They both looked down and examined their situation. “We should re-enforce the southern flank. The Adherents have almost made it around the far edge of the defensive line.”

  “The dwarves will handle it,” Tasker said. He motioned to a spindly-armed goblin and gave him the orders. The moment he was done speaking the goblin bolted for the southern section of the hilltop where the few reserves were still waiting. The Adherents had charged the rebel lines three times now, and on the third attack they entered the first row of trenches and forced the rebels to retreat with heavy losses.

  “The cannons are still firing,” Puck said trying to find good in the situation.

  “Direct the crews to drop the shells on the first lines,” Tasker said to another messengers. “Maybe we can make them a little less eager to attack. And give time for our surprises to be launched.”

  “If Jane and the others are still alive,” Puck muttered.

  “They’re alive!” Tasker shouted back at him. He refused to believe anything but success would come from the mission.

  “How long until the giant gets here?” Puck asked curiously.

  “I don’t know,” Tasker replied in a normal voice. “He was too big for the mushroom circles or to use a map so he had to walk. We don’t even know if he’ll make it.” A roar of cannons, and this time the shells landed much closer. Once again a thick smoke began to spread across the battlefield. “That’ll make them keep their heads down.”

  Despite the hopeful prediction, the next Adherent attack came soon after. Once again the battle raged across the hillside. Puck and Tasker brought the rest of their reserves down to the center, as it was buckling. After another hour of fighting, the Adherents pulled back to the bottom of the hill and silence once again descended.

  * * * * *

  Jane and Flying Cloud rounded the corner in the dungeon and skidded to a halt. Spread out in three directions before them were great hallways. The center one was filled with cold iron cages. Each one was locked shut. Dozens of figures looked up at them hopefully. As they entered a stunned silence descended across the main hall. Then the voice came from all about, pleading for help.

  “Help us.”

  “Save us!”

  “Please!”

  Jane walked to where another barred gate blocked them from entering and started trying keys.

  “Here,” Jacob said. He motioned her to stand aside and two swings later the lock fell to the ground. They all entered the long chamber.

  Jane walked to the first cage and looked inside to where the first voice had spoken to them. Nearly twenty men and women had been crammed into the area. They looked worn and tired. A young girl about twelve years old walked to the edge of the cage and looked up at her.

  “Help us,” she said. “Please.”

  “We will,” Jane said. She handed the keys to Jackie and then stepped back and called for silence as the volume began to grow. “Please, let me speak.” Slowly the silence returned as every one of the prisoners waited to see what she would say.

  “Each and every one of you has a reason to hate Cain and his Temple,” she said loudly. Her voice carried well in the stone room and the silence was complete except for the sound of Flying Cloud searching for the right key. “We’re not here alone. Thousands of fighters are dug into the hillside outside the city. They’re fighting a desperate battle and are horribly outnumbered.”

  There was a scattering of angry shouts as the prisoners started to emerge from the
cages and gather around them.

  “I was sent here to gather what help I could,” Jane continued.

  “But they have those horrible guns,” someone shouted.

  “We’ll find what weapons we can,” Jane replied. Each time she spoke, the supporting shouts grew in volume.

  “We’re not trained to fight,” someone started to say but he was booed down.

  From the back of the chamber an elderly elf emerged from the group and walked slowly to where she was standing.

  “Lead us onward, girl,” he said quietly.

  The rest of the prisoners seemed to respect the old elf immensely. Immediately all protests ceased.

  “Who are you?” Jane asked curiously.

  “I’m called Old One by those here,” the elf replied. “I think it is a good name.”

  “Thank you for agreeing to help, Old One,” Jane said.

  “What do you want us to do,” Old One asked.

  “Finish freeing everyone here and start searching for weapons,” Jane said immediately. “We must be swift. The force arrayed against Tasker and the others is powerful.”

  Someone took the keys from Flying Cloud and soon all of the cages in the middle hall were open. Jacob walked back to the passage on the right and, using his sword, began opening the dozens of individual rooms that filled the passage. The prisoners in these rooms were in worse shape than those in the center hall. Many had to be helped to their feet. Still Jacob went down the row until he had freed every one.

  “We found another room of weapons,” Flying Cloud said. She waved to Jacob as they emerged from the dungeon wing. “It was mostly filled with muskets but they all work.”

  “Good, arm everyone we can and show them how to work the loading mechanisms on the repeaters and muskets,” Jacob said. He looked over and started towards the last wing of the dungeon. Already a steady stream of former prisoners was starting to emerge.”

  “Jane and Jackie are upstairs,” Flying Cloud said to him. “Carvin is up there also, helping to sort out who can fight and who needs to flee from the city.”

  Jacob went back up the steps and joined the growing crowd in the main entrance. The freed prisoners were ransacking the upstairs of the prison building, and Jacob decided the group was a motley crowd. At least two dozen elves were present and waiting silently with grim faces. A couple of dozen fairies flitted around the room chatting excitedly to anyone who would listen while Bella tried to get them to slow down and listen to her. Humans and dwarves and a large numbers of goblins were present, as well as a few races Jacob was not sure about waiting for Jane to give the order.

  “Look, as soon as we open the door, we’re vulnerable,” Jane called. “Those who are fighting will follow us to the western wall, the rest of you make for the tunnel and find a place in the forest to hide.”

  “Are we ready?” Jackie asked finally. The sun was beginning to dip in the sky. In a few hours they would run out of light.

  “Let’s move,” Carvin said. “If anyone gets left behind now, it’s their own fault.”

  Jane agreed, and they all headed towards the main entrance. Carvin and Jacob threw the locking bar off the door and pushed the doors open. The palace grounds were still empty, and Jane motioned everyone to move.

  “Go,” Jane shouted. “Carvin and Jackie will lead you to the western wall.”

  “Where are you going?” Carvin asked. He grabbed Jackie’s hand, and they took a step towards where the small force of freed prisoners was throwing open the main gate.

  “To deal with a certain leader of the Temple,” Jane said, determined.

  “We should go with you,” Jackie replied. She was torn between wanting to go help Tasker and making sure her sister remained safe.

  “No,” Jane insisted. “These people need a leader and Carvin is it. You go and support Tasker, take out the cannons on the wall and fire on the Adherents. Jacob, Flying Cloud, Bella, and I will deal with Cain. We will end this here and now.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Cain’s Downfall

  Carvin and Jackie started to argue, but Jane’s face was set in stone, and so they stopped and hurried to where the others were gathered. The gate of the castle was closed and a single frightened Adherent was being held by a few grim-looking men.

  “What do we do with him? He gave up the instant he saw us coming.”

  “Kill him,” someone shouted from the back of the group and Carvin held up his hands, calling for calm.

  Carvin looked over at the man and scowled. “Tie him up and lock him in a closet. I won’t start the whole-sale slaughter of those who surrender.” There was an angry round of muttering from those gathered. “We’re better than they are!” Carvin shouted. “Those who try to fight us, I leave you to do what you will. Those who surrender or offer to join us, will be welcomed to our ranks. I don’t think Cain’s grip on this city is as strong as he thinks it is. The thought of breaking free from his grip will bring many to our side.”

  Jackie’s heart was bursting with pride as she watched Carvin take control of the mob and begin molding them into a force. Not only that, but he refused to let vengeance and anger rule him even in the face of the horrible events of the last few weeks.

  “There is a small cache of weapons in here,” a voice called out.

  Carvin hurried over to the thick-walled gate house and entered the dim interior. The single guard was tied securely and lay back in the corner of the room with wide frightened eyes. A small room off the gate house was only about five feet square, but it held four racks, each with ten weapons.

  “Pass them out, and let’s keep moving,” Carvin ordered. He already carried one of the repeaters, so he grabbed another one and handed it to Jackie. The rest of the weapons were quickly passed to those waiting outside and then the gatehouse was left behind. The city was unusually quiet. Carvin saw very few people through the first ten blocks. Those people they spotted took one look at the angry mob and fled as fast as they could run. Doors were slammed, and frightened faces glanced out of windows as they passed by.

  “Patrol,” Carvin muttered. He motioned those behind him to wait, but the sheer amount of noise they were making was nearly impossible to hide. Instead Carvin and Jackie stepped around the corner of the building and leveled their weapons. The five Adherents skidded to a halt about fifteen steps away, “Yield!”

  The men of the patrol stared at him incredulously, “We outnumber you five to two. Yield or die.” The leader of the patrol shouted back, suddenly his voice trailed off as the rest of Carvin’s force flooded around the corner. Within a minute the patrol was surrounded on three sides by almost three hundred grim faces.

  Slowly the five laid their weapons on the ground. A few minutes later they were securely tied up and tossed into an alley. The sounds of the fighting outside the city grew louder, and as Carvin rounded the last corner he came into view of the outer wall. It was a massively thick creation of stone and cold iron but it still had a refined look to the finish. Mounted atop the wall, he could see five cannons around the outer gate. As he started down the street, the cannons roared, and the crews working them started reloading.

  “Should we try and sneak up on them?” Jackie asked. She was jogging beside him, and they were still about a hundred yards from the emplacements.

  “We keep moving,” Carvin replied. “Just run for all your worth. Hopefully, we’re on top of them before they realize what’s happening.” He went from a jog to a run. About fifty yards from the wall, he started sprinting as fast as he could. Behind him the rebel force broke into a sprint and shouted a tremendous battle cry that shook the street. The men working the cannons never turned. Later Carvin would understand why. Those operating the cannon had bits of cotton or wax covering their ears and could not hear a single thing. The few men directing the firing did so with hand signals. The cannon posi
tions were overrun immediately.

  “Send groups in both directions along the wall,” Carvin ordered. He sent fifty fighters in each direction with orders to overrun the walls and create positions to defend them. Then he turned to the outer wall and stared in horror. The Adherents were pushing hard on the second line of defenses and had nearly broken the rebels holding them. As he watched, the short forms of Tasker and Puck charged down the hillside leading about four hundred more soldiers. Once more the Adherent army was thrown back to the bottom of the hill.

  “Drop the cannon aim until it is in line with the bottom of the hill,” Carvin ordered. This was something he had trained for extensively while on the Isle of Lakes, and he quickly did the calculations in his mind. “Lower the barrel four inches,” Carvin ordered. He showed the fighters around him how to move the elevation. Carvin grabbed a couple of bits of cloth from a nearby piece of material and handed them to Jackie.

  “You’re going to want this,” Carvin said to her. He jammed two more pieces in his own ears and motioned to the rest of the prisoners. “Eight men per cannon. The rest of you spread out along the wall and shoot anything that moves.”

  The former prisoners smiled broadly and immediately spread out along the walls. The Adherents had placed their reserves within firing distance of the walls. Almost immediately the force on top of the walls start shooting, and the chaos was a grand thing to watch. Carvin would find out later that relatively few Adherents were knocked unconscious or killed by his force, but the chaos they caused was worth more than anything else.

  “Powder goes in first,” Carvin said. He grabbed a bag of powder from the nearby magazine and slid it home in the cannon. After it was securely tapped into place he motioned to another man to help him load the cannon ball. They carefully got it into the barrel. After a few more adjustments Carvin placed the primer and fuse into the back of the cannon and motioned his men clear. A torch waited nearby, and he grabbed it and held it to the fuse. A moment later the cannon roared, and they all watched with bated breath. The cannon ball whistled through the air and slammed home into the Adherents packed along the bottom of the hillside.