He stood to the wizard's right. Aeris hovered on the opposite side, bobbing lightly up and down.
“Deep?”
Simon looked down at his little friend.
“Yes, master.” Kronk was frowning a bit. “And I discovered something in my journey that I have never seen before, perhaps because I was not looking for it.”
“Really? What?”
“A tunnel. A road really. It spiraled and dipped, running perhaps from the surface and descending even deeper than I traveled to find the lodestone.”
Aeris flew up until he could see Kronk over Simon's shoulder.
“A road? Down that far?”
Kronk nodded silently.
“Made by whom?” Simon asked with great interest.
“The dwarves, perhaps, master. I know they travel with their drilling machines now, but in ancient times they used tunnels to reach their kingdoms. I know this because when the old gods withdrew from this world, the dwarven machines failed. They were powered with magic, after all. No magic meant that they had to travel back to their homes using their old roads.”
“A dwarven tunnel. Hmm.”
Simon's imagination was caught up with the thought of exploring those old thoroughfares, maybe seeing a dwarven city.
“I know that look, my dear wizard,” Aeris said as he peered at Simon in the darkness. “Your curiosity has been tweaked, hasn't it?”
Simon grinned at him.
“You know me too well. Yeah, I'll admit it. It would be an awesome sight, don't you think? An old road built by the dwarves maybe thousands of years ago?”
“Why?” Aeris asked with a dismissive sniff of disdain. “If you want to see ruins, visit any of the devastated cities in this world since the dragons returned. There is no need to search any farther than that.”
Simon sat up and stretched his back, groaning a bit.
“You have absolutely no adventure in your soul, do you know that?”
“Of course not. I am a practical person, as are all of my people.”
Aeris looked at Kronk.
“Even the earthen prefer useful pursuits to exploring old ruins just for the fun of it.”
Maybe it was because of their quiet rivalry, but for whatever reason, Kronk snorted at Aeris' remark.
“That is not always so,” he said seriously. “I found the tunnel fascinating, to be honest. If I wasn't on a mission from our master, I would have taken the time to examine it more closely.”
Aeris rolled his eyes while Simon laughed.
“Good for you, my friend,” he said to Kronk. “You at least have some imagination. I think I'd like to check out this old road. Tomorrow, after Aeris leaves to bring Clara her lodestone, you can direct me and I'll take a peek at it using Magic Mirror. Who knows? If it looks interesting enough, maybe I'll Gate down and take a closer look.”
“Not without me, you don't!” Aeris snapped. “If you do pursue this foolish idea, please wait until I return before you go. You have to have at least one level-headed person with you on such an excursion.”
“Meaning that I am not level-headed?” Kronk growled.
“Exactly.”
“Guys, guys,” Simon interrupted the two before a full-blown argument could flare up. “Relax. If I do decide to go down and poke around, you will both be coming with me, all right?”
Kronk settled down with a quiet grumble while Aeris lowered himself down to the steps with an unsatisfied frown.
I swear that sometimes it's like babysitting, Simon thought with a touch of amusement.
The three of them quieted down again and went back to listening to the serenity of the night.
Aeris set off the next morning with the lodestone, warning Simon again not to leave the tower without him. The exasperated wizard assured him that both he and Kronk would wait for the air elemental's return.
“Does he think that I won't come back if I go anywhere without him?” he asked Kronk after Aeris had left.
“He worries about you, master,” the little guy told him absently as he spread some seeds. They were in the garden, finishing up putting in the last of the spring crops.
“Really?”
Simon wiped his face with a scrap of cloth. He had sewn himself a pair of shorts from an old robe and carried the rag in the waist band. A tingling on his bare shoulders hinted at a burn to come if he didn't get out of the sun soon. The day was clear and hot.
“Well, he should know that I don't need looking after. I can take care of myself.”
“Uh-huh,” Kronk answered in a carefully neutral tone. “You are correct as always, master.”
When the wizard looked at him, the earthen studiously stared at the furrow beneath his feet.
Simon decided not to comment and instead hurriedly helped Kronk finish the planting and headed back indoors, out of the sun.
“You'd think the gods of Light would have at least given me a body that tans, wouldn't you?” he complained to the little guy as he washed up at the kitchen sink. His shoulders stung and had turned a bright red.
“I mean, what was the point in making me this delicate, I'd like to know.”
Kronk picked up Simon's discarded shorts and the used towel and carried them to the laundry basket next to the stairs. The wizard slipped on a clean robe and winced as the cloth rubbed against his sunburned skin.
“Wizards are delicate, master. Brains over brawn is how they used to describe themselves.”
Simon grumbled as he gulped down some water. The well water was always clean and ice-cold.
“Whatever.”
He sat down at the kitchen table and waited for Kronk to jump up and join him.
“Now, describe this underground road for me.”
He picked up the hand mirror and caught sight of his smooth hairless face with its overly-large eyes. His nose was burned too and he sighed.
“Yes master.”
Kronk picked up a pencil and a sheet of paper from the stack Simon always kept on the table. He began to draw and the wizard watched, fascinated.
“I saw some carvings at an intersection, master. Right along the corners on the wall. Perhaps they were directions, or simply the names of the roads themselves. I do not know. But I memorized them, just in case.”
“Just in case I decided to foolishly explore those roads?” Simon asked, regaining his good humor.
“I would never presume to say something like that, master,” the little guy said as he carefully drew the symbols.
“I know, my friend. But feel free to think it.”
Kronk finished and handed the sheet to Simon.
The writing was blocky with sharp edges and very few curves. It looked...solid.
“Now master, picture two tunnels meeting in a four-way intersection. They are cut square in the rock, approximately ten feet wide and twenty high. The surface is rutted as if carts or wagons had been pulled along it for centuries. The stone is very dark, with a few veins of crystal shot through it.”
Simon was nodding as he studied the writing.
“Is there any light down there?”
“Yes master. Perhaps every ten yards or so there is a symbol.”
Kronk quickly drew a circle, inside of which he placed a hammer, head down.
“These symbols glow, not very brightly, but there is enough light for you to see. They also radiate warmth somehow.” At Simon's inquiring looked, the little guy added, “Dwarves see heat as well as light, master. Very useful for living underground.”
“Interesting. I didn't know that.”
Simon held up the mirror and muttered the Magic Mirror spell. Then he tried to picture the tunnels exactly as Kronk had described them, glancing a few times at the drawings as he did so. When he felt he had a fairly accurate idea of how it might look, he uttered the word of command.
The mirror fogged over and Kronk moved to Simon's side to watch.
“I may not have given it a good enough image,” the wizard told him as the misty surface remained unchanged for a few long
minutes.
“Try to focus on that lighted symbol in your mind, master. It may help the spell find the tunnel.”
Simon nodded silently and stared at the circle and hammer.
“It's working, master!” Kronk exclaimed.
The mist faded from the mirror. Simon watched as the tunnel appeared almost exactly as his little friend had described it. The walls were marked with not just writing, but carvings of small figures, perhaps dwarves, as well as animals and birds. The surface of the tunnel floor was rutted and chunks of rock and gravel littered the road. It looked ancient.
“Good job, Kronk,” Simon said with a grin.
The earthen smiled as well as he gazed into the mirror.
“I am glad I could help, master. If you are going to Gate there though, I recommend casting your Light spell when you arrive. It really isn't very bright, is it?”
It was, in fact, gloomy. Simon could see the location, but it was shadowed and hazy and he had to squint to peer through the semi-darkness.
“Good idea. I'm glad it's locked into my brain permanently. Handy spell that.”
Kronk hopped down to the floor and tip-tapped to the stairs.
“I agree, master. But I think I'll put together a few torches, just in case. Better to be prepared.”
Simon watched him head downstairs.
Practical, he thought. He's always so practical. Thank goodness.
When Kronk returned with a bundle of sticks that he had dipped in pitch and wrapped with burlap, Simon was just locking a few spells into his memory. He wrinkled his nose at the strong smell of tar.
“Will those things burn well?” he asked as the elemental dropped them by the door.
“Yes, master. Bright and long. I have made such things before.”
“Oh. Good. Well, I have the Light spell,” he said, tapping his forehead, “and I've memorized a couple of others that might be useful. Now all we have to do is wait for Aeris.”
He picked up the mirror while Kronk jumped back up to the table and joined him.
The tunnel was still in view and Simon looked at it speculatively.
“What's it like down there? Hot? Cold? Wet? Dry?”
“It is warm, master. The underground gets hotter the deeper you travel, but the depth of the tunnel is not so great that the heat is unbearable for you.”
He stared at the image and tilted his head slightly.
“The air is very dry down there. It might be well to bring a bottle of water with you, master.”
“Yeah, good idea.”
Simon stood up and went to search through his kitchen cabinets. After digging around for a few minutes, he pulled out a thermos and looked at it in surprise.
“Hey, look at this. I didn't even know I had one of these. Hmm, I'm going to have to do an inventory of these cabinets one day.”
“It is a water bottle, master?” Kronk asked as he watched Simon rinse out the thermos.
“Better, my friend. It keeps liquid inside either hot or cold depending on what you put in it.”
He filled the bottle and then crossed the room to grab his small backpack from a cupboard.
“I suppose I'd better have lunch before we go,” Simon said as he slipped the thermos into his pack and dropped it by the door.
“Good idea, master. I will see to the horses while you eat. Aeris should return soon and we will be ready when he does.”
Kronk headed outside and Simon started making sandwiches. He hoped that the air elemental wouldn't take too long. It was almost noon.
By the time Aeris returned, Simon and Kronk had finished their respective tasks and were sitting on the front steps waiting for him. Fortunately for the wizard, the sun wasn't shining directly on him. He'd had enough of it for one day.
The air elemental popped into the front yard and zipped toward the two of them.
“So you did wait. Good,” he said with relief.
“I told you we would,” Simon replied shortly. “Why would you think otherwise?”
“Because, my dear wizard, you get excited when you think you're going on an adventure. I was afraid that you would forget and go racing off into the depths.”
Simon stood up and brushed off his robe.
“Well, I didn't. I hope Clara was happy to get a new lodestone.”
He grabbed his pack and slipped it over his shoulders and then slung Bene-Dunn-Gal across it.
“Oh she was. I mentioned your plan to check out those tunnels and she told me to tell you to be careful.”
Simon stared at Aeris in exasperation.
“You told her? Oh for... You know how she worries. She has enough on her plate taking care of Nottinghill and her people without fretting about me. Next time, be more discreet please.”
“Yes, oh mighty one,” Aeris said with an exaggerated bow. “How was I to know it was a secret?”
The wizard sighed loudly and closed the front door.
“Never mind. Let's go while I still have the location fixed in my head. Both of you grab hold.”
Kronk jumped up, grabbed the bundle of torches and tucked it under his arm. Then he put his free hand on the hem of Simon's robe. Aeris moved closer to the wizard and grabbed part of his sleeve.
Simon chanted the Gate spell, checked on the elementals one last time and uttered the word of command.
“Invectis!”
As they materialized in the dark tunnels, Simon tripped over some loose rubble and almost landed on his face. He caught his balance just in time and teetered precariously for a minute on his toes.
“Whoa,” he muttered. “That was close.”
The tunnel was warm but not hot and the place was so dry that Simon could feel his nostrils pinching closed as he sniffed the air. It smelled dusty and stale, like an abandoned attic. He didn't much like it.
“Are you all right, master?” Kronk asked anxiously from behind him.
Simon looked around and could barely see the little guy's dark body against the rock-strewn ground in the darkness. He quickly cast the Light spell and a bobbing globe of clear white light rose from his hand to hover a few feet over his head.
“I'm fine, thanks. Aeris?”
“Fine, fine,” the air elemental said absently as he looked around. “I don't really care for traveling under the earth, you know. It feels like the weight above us is going to come crashing down at any moment.”
“Nonsense,” Kronk told him flatly. “These tunnels have existed for millennia and will exist for many more to come, I am sure.”
“Yes? Why don't I find that very comforting?”
Simon let the two of them squabble as he picked his way across the loose rocks and examined the nearest wall.
Kronk had underestimated the size of the place. The walls had to be at least thirty feet high. They were lost up in the gloom beyond the reach of the wizard's globe of light. The tunnel was also wider than the earthen had guessed; twenty feet or more.
There were numerous carvings and pictograms etched into the rough walls. Simon was fascinated as he ran his fingertips over the rock. Tiny figures were cut into the wall, unknown characters, writing of some sort.
He stepped back to get a better sense of the scope of things. The markings extended out of sight in both directions and the wizard was awed at the obvious age of the place.
When he turned and checked the ruts worn into the ground, he tried to imagine how many wagons or carts or whatever kinds of vehicles had used this road over how many years to wear deep tracks into solid rock. He couldn't even guess.
“Do you think anyone uses this path any longer?” he asked the elementals, his voice echoing up and down the tunnel.
They turned from their discussion to look at Simon and then at the road.
“I do not think so, master,” Kronk told him. “The dwarves use their drilling machines to travel, now that magic has returned to the world. But I would guess that they last used it many years ago, since they had no contact with the surface world for thousands of years.”
Aeris rose up and turned slowly in a circle.
“It feels very old, doesn't it?” he asked in a hushed voice. “With all of these fallen rocks, the dwarves must have abandoned this road long in the distant past.”
Simon squatted down and picked up a random piece of stone. He turned it slowly in his hands, small bits of crystal and minerals glinting in the dark rock.
“So which way is up and which is down?” he asked Kronk as he dropped the rock and stood up again.
The earthen pointed.
“That way leads deeper, master. The intersection that I showed you is down that way as well.”
“Okay, let's go,” Simon said. He adjusted his pack and staff more comfortably and began walking, carefully watching the ground to avoid tripping on loose rock.
Kronk skipped ahead, avoiding the rubble with ease while Aeris flew above it, his head constantly swiveling to look right and left.
It took a few minutes, but they finally reached the four-way intersection that Simon had seen in the mirror.
“Overshot it a bit, didn't I?” he remarked dryly as he stood in the center of the road and looked in each of the four directions.
“You made it in one piece, master. That is what matters.”
Simon smiled a bit at Kronk's encouragement.
“And you didn't end up embedded in a stone wall, so there's that,” Aeris added dryly.
Simon looked at him, wide-eyed.
“Wait, that can actually happen?” he asked with a touch of fear.
“Kronk? Would you like to answer our dear wizard?” the air elemental said to the little earthen.
The little guy hesitated and gave Aeris a nasty look. Simon waited, wondering why Kronk was being asked to answer the question.
“Well, yes, master. It has happened. Once or twice.”
“It has? When?”
“Many years ago, I was serving the family of a very powerful wizard. His young son...”
Kronk paused and turned away.
Simon looked at Aeris, whose expression had surprisingly changed to one of pity. He shook his head mutely.
“Forgive me, Kronk,” the air elemental said. “But you are the one with the first-hand knowledge here.”
“Yes, yes. I know.”
Tales from the New Earth: Volume One Page 68
