by D. M. Almond
Their first day followed the river westward until the companions came to a fork in the river. They had a choice to follow the Green Serpent north, where it split off, or continue west.
“We continue west to get to Dudje,” Bipp said.
The party began moving again, but Isaac stood at the edge of the water, staring up the northern channel. Corbin raised a hand, halting his friends and nodded toward the mage.
“What’s he doing?” Logan asked.
Isaac wore a smile fit for a tomcat and pointed at the river. Corbin followed his gaze and saw a large rock jutting out of the river, parting the rapid waves in a spray of white foam.
“What does it mean?” Corbin called over.
“The drowned Paladin’s shield,” Isaac said, as if the answer were obvious.
“Do any of you know what he’s on about this time?” Logan asked.
Corbin stepped forward, squinting at the rock.
Bipp gawked. “All the times I passed and I never even saw it before…”
Suddenly Corbin saw it too. At first he thought the rock was awfully smooth, like any other eroded by the rushing waves. But the longer he stared at it, the more he could make out the faint outlines of filigree that once decorated the surface of the statue. All that was left now was the gnome’s nose and a worn stone hand, closed in a fist, resting on the side of the stone shield.
“It must have been a marker for all those traveling to the great city in ancient times,” Bipp said enthusiastically. Corbin had forgotten how passionate the gnome was about ancient lore. Since they had been to the surface, Bipp had not had many chances to put on his historian hat, so to speak.
“You see it now?” Isaac asked.
“Where the serpent breaks the shield…,” Corbin whispered.
“Look north, and the power of the Healer’s Stone awaits you,” Isaac finished, quoting the words Siribel had scryed during her vision.
“What are you two on about?” Logan asked.
“It’s Siribel’s vision,” Corbin said. “We didn’t tell you all of it.”
Logan scowled, none too eager to hear what was coming next. “There was more than just her ambiguous directions?”
Isaac nodded, still grinning like a fool.
The weight of it settled upon him, and Logan sighed. “Of course. What did I expect?”
“She also saw a way for us to defeat Baetylus,” Corbin said. “At this spot, where the Serpent breaks the shield, she bid us look north. There in the land of shadows you will find the Healer’s stone. Power enough to shatter the Crystal’s grip. Those were her words, the rest of the scrying.”
Logan muttered something unintelligible and kicked a rock into the river.
“This is good news, is it not?” Nero asked.
Bipp shared a worried look with Logan, who shook his head slowly.
Isaac frowned and left the riverbank to join them. “You are not happy that we have so easily deciphered Siribel’s vision?”
“It’s not that,” Corbin said.
“We’ve been up that river before,” Logan explained further.
“Ah, I see,” Isaac said thoughtfully, stroking his white goatee. “That is the path to the ruins of Ul’kor, isn’t it?”
Corbin nodded.
“Surely a tribe of cobolds is nothing we cannot handle?” Nero said.
“More like an army,” Logan muttered.
“In any case,” Isaac said, waving his hand as if he were shooing away a fly, “they are an insignificant obstacle to recovering this Healer’s stone that Siribel foresaw.”
“It’s just the last place any of us ever wanted to see again,” Corbin said.
“How do we even know this Healer’s stone is there?” Bipp asked.
Isaac closed his eyes and held his palm facing north while he muttered some foreign words. His ivory white staff began to radiate around the edges, pulsing with crimson light. Isaac’s voice cracked, extending a high pitched syllable as his eyes popped back open. He snatched his hand back as if it were stung and swooned.
Nero quickly grabbed the old man before he fell over. “Are you okay?”
Isaac wobbled a bit on weak legs and looked at Nero with cloudy eyes. It took a few moments for his vision to clear up. As soon as Isaac saw who held him, he roughly pulled away. “Get your hands off me, you damn robot.”
Corbin was getting more than a little tired of the way the eccentric old man treated Nero. He knew the android was not human, but it did not give the mage the right to constantly treat him so despicably. Still concerned, Nero tried to stop the mage from walking away, but Corbin caught his eye and shook his head.
“Tell us what just happened. Did you see something?” Bipp asked.
“Without a doubt there is something of immense power resting in those ruins,” Isaac said. “Siribel’s vision was spot on. I cannot even see Ul’kor from here, but when I reached out, something cut me off as surely as if I ran face first into a brick wall.”
Logan brooded, fingering his chin.
“What is it?” Isaac said. “Do you boys know something more than you’ve shared with me?”
“When we were on the run from the cobolds,” Logan said, “we found a portion of the castle that was sealed off.”
“That’s right,” Bipp exclaimed. “There was a giant barrier in the King’s Hall, like someone had cut a section of the castle off with invisible glass.”
“And we ran into a strange round stone that blocked off the rear section of the castle,” Corbin said. “Do you remember, Bipp? It had that…what did you call it…High Gnomish writing on it.”
Bipp licked his lips. “You bet. Not like I could forget something like that. It said that the castle was sealed off because of a traitor, some guy named Hublin.”
Isaac took it all in with deep interest, all the while stroking his goatee. “Hmm, what else do you know of this?”
“Nothing,” Bipp said, rubbing his nose. “Until we found the stone, I’d never heard the name before.” Bipp held a finger up in the air. “Ah, but I think I know who might be able to help us! Mayor Fimbas. He knows about all sorts of gnome lore that most of us have never even heard of.”
“He did uncover the mystery behind Beauford’s last words pretty fast,” Logan agreed.
“Then it’s settled,” Isaac said. “We need to contact this Fimbas fellow and see if he can’t give us more information about Hublin and this Healer’s stone. If this relic is as powerful as Siribel foretold, it could be the difference we need to destroy the Crystal.”
Without waiting for agreement, Isaac headed west toward Dudje.
Bipp giggled. “Not like we weren’t heading there anyway before he got all hot and bothered over a rock.”
In the morning they made short work of packing their camp and set out for Dudje. They soon found themselves back on the neat path that ran parallel with the Green Serpent River. The countryside around Dudje was beautiful, with a series of rolling hills that the path worked up and down. The cavern ceiling was high and the entire expanse wide open. When they came to one of the higher crests, they got an eyeful of the gnome mining town.
The place was impressive, a shining beacon in the dangerous lands of Vanidriell. The gnomes had built Dudje right over the river so they could capture the river’s kinetic energy, which they turned into power to light their homes and streets. Nothing in the Kingdom of New Fal came close to it.
Logan found the sight of the King’s Waterfall no less impressive now than the first time he saw it. Overlooking the town of Dudje and the nearby mines, the face of an ancient king was carved right into the high rock wall of the cavern. It was an enormous achievement, with the foaming source of the Green Serpent spewing forth out of the roaring king’s mouth.
When they came to the sloping path bored right through the last set of hills that made up the protective barrier around his hometown, Bipp practically squealed with excitement. The gnome was so elated, Logan would not have been surprised to see him click hi
s heels and start performing cartwheels. As it was, they had a hard time keeping up with him in his jubilance.
“The gnomes knew their business, using the natural elements to create such effective defenses,” Isaac said with respect.
Dudje was surrounded on one side of the river by the hillsides, which became too steep for an army to march up without the gnomes being alerted far in advance. Bipp said they were also riddled with traps. The only way into the town was to follow a winding path that dipped right under one of the hills, a path carved out by expert hands. As they passed through the hill, they came to an open courtyard with the looming walls of Dudje before them.
“Halt! Ye’ve wandered the wrong way, Falian dogs. Turn around and bugger off!” a rough voice shouted from above.
Logan looked straight overhead to a metal walkway bolted into the stone of the hill, where a crossbow bolt was aimed directly for his head.
“Who you calling a dog, Croum?” Bipp happily hollered.
“Wha—” said a gnome looking over the top of the wooden gate in the wall. He straightened his small spectacles, and his eyes grew wide as onions. “Great Thorgar’s ghost, if it isn’t Brillfrilbipp Bobblefuzz himself, come back from the dead for a second time!”
“Better watch out,” Logan warned his brother, taking a long step back into the sanctuary of the hill tunnel.
“Huh?” Corbin said, just as the crossbow bolt stuck in the ground beside him with a thwang.
“Yay! Bipp’s back!” the two soldiers straight overhead cheered, oblivious that their crossbows had gone off. The pair began dancing a jig, and the gate master laughed heartily, bidding Bipp to wait a moment. He rung a bell in his watchtower, and the tall wooden gates slowly parted to allow them entrance.
In no time at all, a crowd of gnomes gathered near the entrance to the town. They were in bright spirits to see Bipp return home. Many had thought he was dead, especially since the last time he had been seen, he was being chased by an assassin.
“What assassin?” Bipp asked old barber Gromb.
“Pike told us all about it. Said he was a dark Falian, come crawling right out of the shadows of his boat and leapt across the river, chasing after you fellas, screaming bloody murder.”
Corbin’s face turned red and he averted his gaze, focusing on a nearby flowerpot hanging from a window. Bipp laughed so hard the nectar he was drinking came out of his nose. The gnomes clearly didn’t mind, as they screamed “Hoopla!” and laughed merrily.
The din of celebration quieted when the sound of hooves came from over one of the winding hills. Mayor Fimbas appeared on the path astride a royal mule, with armed soldiers at either side. Somehow the mount gave the green-haired gnome a certain regal appeal. Logan noted that the swirling patterns on his forehead seemed to be glowing, and the mayor wore a joyful grin.
“Brillfilbipp, ye’ve returned to us unharmed!” he shouted, sliding off his mule and wrapping Bipp in a bear hug. They both laughed heartily, and when they were finished, Mayor Fimbas set Bipp down again. He turned to appraise the strangers in his midst then cocked his head at Gate Master Croum.
“Have we no rules any longer? What, you see Bipp, so you let in all manner of creatures?”
The gate master looked thoroughly flabbergasted. “B-but Mayor…the last time ye did let the Falian pass through…”
“So naturally you presumed I’d be okay with you letting in an entire gang of them?”
“These are my friends,” Bipp said defensively. “They bring no harm to our town and come on an honorable mission. ‘Sides, only two of them are actually Falian, and you’ve already met Logan Walker.”
Mayor Fimbas had a glint in his eye, and he bowed his head slightly to Bipp. “‘Course I can see only the two of ‘em are humans. I may be old, but I haven’t lost me wits yet, bucko.”
That was an odd thing to say, Logan thought. Odder yet was that Isaac bowed in acknowledgment, looking as if he had just been paid a compliment. Geez, he’s being awfully gracious about it. To think Fimbas would be so narrow-minded as to believe Isaac isn’t one of us just because his skin’s a different color.
“And where is Grubble?” Fimbas said, looking past the companions into the swelling crowd of gnomes and slapping his hands together eagerly. “Come out here so I can see you, ye old cat-liver-sucking weasel!”
Logan felt as if he had been punched in the gut. His lungs suddenly felt shallow, and his heart felt as if someone had stabbed it. The mention of Grubble’s name brought back all his memories of the proud gnome they had journeyed to Ul’kor with. Corbin stared at the ground, and Bipp looked absolutely miserable.
The crowd of gnomes quieted until the only sound was that of heavy breathing. “I see,” Fimbas said, letting his hands fall to his sides.
Logan cleared his throat. “Mayor Fimbas, goodly gnomes of Dudje, Grubblefrop Gilviri was a warrior the likes of which Vanidriell has never seen. He lived a brave life, full of passion and honor. And he died a warrior’s death, in battle, in the name of his people.”
Some of the gnomes had begun weeping, and it was all Logan could do not to join them at the loss of his companion.
“But you can be damn sure that grouchy old bastard took down hundreds of them stinkin’ cobolds before the Valkyries took him to Valhalla, where his wife and he have been toasting in our names e’er since!” Bipp hollered.
The gnomes’ cries quickly turned to cheers, blowing Logan away. Even Mayor Fimbas was spurred by Bipp’s proclamation. Not for the first time, Logan found himself in awe of the gnome culture, which was utterly alien from his own. These people lived proudly and full of passion, throwing their all into everything. Bipp was quickly swept away into the crowd and wooden mugs of scrum were already being poured.
“Mayor Fimbas?” Logan called, grabbing his attention. “Sir, I want to introduce you to my brother, Corbin Walker.”
Fimbas gave Corbin a stern appraisal from head to toe. He squinted. “Hmm, looks an awful lot like the Falian assassin I heard chased you boys down on the banks of the Green Serpent.”
Corbin looked as if he had just swallowed a toad. “A simple misunderstanding, I assure you,” he said.
Fimbas bowed his head. “Goodly met, Corbin Walker. And to you as well, mage.”
Isaac bowed graciously and introduced himself. Several gnomes had circled Nero and were inspecting him. The android laughed as if he were being tickled by their poking and prodding. Logan thought it uncanny how easily the gnomes deduced that Nero was not human. Other than looking rather androgynous, Logan had had no idea the thin blond man was an android the first time they met.
“Come now, my friends,” Fimbas said, sternly shooing them away, “leave the tin man be for now. Let us celebrate, and in the morning, you boys can tell me all about your explorations of Ul’kor.”
Mugs were passed around, and the gnomes were already playing instruments. Dancing broke out on the cobblestone streets. Some gnomes sat on the colorful spotted mushrooms dotting the town, kicking their legs to the beat, and all were merry.
“Isn’t it amazing how quickly they can drop their everyday chores and jump into festivities?” Logan asked his brother.
Corbin smiled and clicked mugs with him, deciding they deserved a night of fun after everything they had been through.
“I said, wake up!”
Ice cold water poured over Logan’s face, jolting him upright. His head cracked into the top of the gnome bunk bed, and he fell sideways.
“What’s the big deal?” he groaned, rubbing his throbbing head.
“Been trying to get you out of that bed for an hour now,” Bipp said, water still dripping from his wooden bucket.
Logan kept one eye closed while he surveyed the room with the other. Corbin stood just outside the doorway, and Isaac was discussing something with an armored gnome.
“Geez, you’re not going back to sleep, are you?” Bipp grumbled, dropping his bucket and reaching for another that was set beside the bed.
“
No!” Logan said a bit too loudly, wracking his brain with a stabbing pain. “I’m up, I’m up...ugh.” Something in his stomach gurgled uncomfortably.
Isaac popped his head through the doorway. “Bipp, are we quite ready to go? Lackkle says the Mayor is going to grow impatient.”
“Do you have to shout so loud?” Logan groaned.
Bipp laughed. “Looks like someone can’t handle their scrum, eh?”
“Hurry and get cleaned up,” Isaac said. “You look like a wet dog.”
“Maybe if Bipp hadn’t drenched me—”
Another bucket of water washed over Logan. He stood upright and growled, wringing the excess out of his sleeves and glowering at Bipp. The gnome shot him a toothy grin and scurried out of the room.
Logan fished in his bag for some fresh clothes and combed his hair, all of which took him no more than five minutes before they were on their way.
The five of them were escorted through the streets of Dudje by fully armored soldiers. The gnome town was quite different than anything they were used to. It was built upon stone hills with roads winding up and down. The paths curved higher and higher to the tops of small rounded peaks. All along the charming roads were strange structures, unlike the wooden cabins of Riverbell or the marble city of Fal. The buildings of Dudje were made of brick and something Bipp called plaster, stacked at odd angles like piles of books. Each one of them housed entire families and had separate apartments. Colorful, spotted mushrooms dotted the town, and gnomes were bustling about their business as the companions marched down the road.
“Where are we going?” Corbin asked.
“My guess is to see Mayor Fimbas at the town hall,” Logan said.
“This is a marvelous town you have here,” Isaac said to Bipp. “It has been quite a long time since I saw electricity being utilized.”
Being an engineer, Bipp proudly puffed out his chest at the compliment. “We only use what we must,” he said. “The Green Serpent River’s current is strong. It generates enough power to light up every house and street in Dudje.”
