“It seems that stone can break stone!” the rogue cried triumphantly before jerking his love to her feet.
The sorceress quickly stepped away from the statue that was making its way toward her. Before it had taken ten steps, however, the knight was once again standing in front of it with his shield raised, blocking one attack after another.
“Gwendolyn, my dear,” Sarena said, turning to her apprentice. “I fear we'll need to attempt casting together again. I don't think the danger will be as great this time. Of course, in truth, neither is our chance of success.”
“Well, I'm willing to try,” the maiden immediately replied.
“Good, my dear,” the sorceress said before crying out to the Telian again. “Darian, you'll want to get well back this time.”
Once again, the knight fell back before his foe. Mistress and apprentice began to chant together, fire slowly engulfing the pair as they stood side-by-side. Again, the ring on Sarena's hand burned with the heat of a thousand fires. Suddenly, she threw her arms out toward their enemy. The maiden followed her example and the flames that leapt from their outstretched arms intertwined and merged to become much more than they would have been alone. The heat blew back into their faces, causing their hair to flutter in its blistering breeze and wilting the vegetation that stood near the pair. Fire burned in their eyes as the power that flowed through them lifted them from the ground.
Suddenly, the maiden screamed in agony. She had done all she could and more. Immediately, her mistress brought the spell to an end. The pair dropped to the ground, landing in the center of a circle of scorched earth. Gwendolyn was conscious and could stand, but it was difficult for her. The stone warrior moved still, but it was clear that the intensity of the flames had done it little good.
“Kilren!” the knight cried. “I need your sword.”
The rogue drew his blade and threw it near the waiting Telian. Darian grabbed up the weapon and asked the Eilian to fill it with the power he needed to overcome his foes. The sword in his hand began to glow with a golden light as his prayer was completed. He then charged the still smoking statue. The gleaming blade sliced through the unnatural creature like clay and, in moments, nothing remained of the stone warrior but chunks of charred and unmoving rock.
The remaining enemy proved more difficult to kill but, with the entire party determined to destroy it, the work was soon done. The swords and scimitar of the knight, the warrior, and the ranger could cut through it and, as the rogue had pointed out; stone could, in fact, break stone. It had taken a great deal of effort – and both Gwendolyn and Erana were slightly worse for the wear – but, the entire band had survived and the battle was over.
Chapter 13: A Passage
It was no longer simply difficult, it had become impossible. There was more to this than her struggling against him. Especially when one considered her current lack of training, coupled with the fact that she didn't even realize he was watching her. Another magic-user was the only logical answer. Why else would he have lost sight of her just as she entered the badlands?
Come to that, why couldn't he see any of the surrounding lands at all? No, she might be powerful – perhaps even comparable to himself to some degree – but she certainly couldn't do that. Not even if she knew exactly what she were doing. She might be able to protect herself from him, at least for a time, but this was well beyond her.
Of course, that raised another and more worrying question: Who in these parts had the power to oppose him like this? The Council of Magic in Innalas? No. There would be no purpose, and they had never prevented him from spying on their lands before. Andor? That old foe had always been full of tricks. But, no. Again, what would be his motivation? Unless, of course, he had managed to put the pieces together. That seemed unlikely, however. On the other hand, who or what else could it be?
Questions without answers were something Galrin didn't like. Right now, the most haunting question was: Is she still alive? There was no way for him to be certain. However, that was a fact he had to make sure his foster-son didn't uncover. He would just have to make sure the question wasn't asked.
Galrin had requested Valrak's presence hours before. Unfortunately, he had been detained by some issue in the field. Still, at least it gave the old wizard time to think. It was best to approach a man like his son with very definite ideas. His mind was too quick to be allowed to rove too far from the current topic. He had a way of considering and then asking rather difficult questions. It took a firm hand to manage him, but Galrin was very close to a match for him.
The old man heard a firm, heavy, and confident stride quickly approaching the door. His son had arrived. That was good; he was prepared. A loud, powerful knock echoed through the chamber.
“Come in, my son,” the old man said.
“You have news, father?” the warlord asked, stepping into the room.
“Of a sort,” the wizard nodded. “Sit down and we'll discuss it.”
“What's wrong?” the mercenary asked, taking a seat beside the old man.
“A terrible headache,” Galrin replied. “But that's hardly a permanent problem. The actual issue is her ability to resist me. It puts a great deal of strain on me.”
“I thought you had a plan for overcoming that,” the warlord replied with a touch of impatience in his voice.
“And so I do,” the old man replied. “However, there is a great difference between coming up with a plan and executing it. This isn't something we can do instantly. Fortunately, her increasing power actually conceals her true potential. That fact should buy us more than enough time.”
“I take your point,” Valrak nodded. “But, the sooner we can execute whatever this plan of yours is, the better.”
“Oh, I most certainly agree,” Galrin replied. “I think I've collected most of what we need. However, this is going to take patience, son. It can't be rushed. All of Areon is the prize and we have to take the time to make sure there are no failures.”
“Very well, father,” the mercenary replied. “I feel certain I have the patience required.”
“I hope you do,” the wizard replied, “because this is something only you and I can accomplish together – and both of us must play our parts flawlessly. Remember who our adversary is. Andor is both terrible and great; and it is he that we must overcome.”
“And we shall,” Valrak said confidently.
“I hope so, my son,” Galrin replied.
“Where do we begin?” the warlord asked.
“We start by finding a way to restore my vision,” the old man said.
“How do we do that?”
“By using one of the stones,” the wizard replied, “or something very similar.”
“Even if we could get one of the stones near her,” the mercenary began, “which I'm not sure we can, how could we hide it from Andor? It would be as obvious to him as the dawn!”
“Not necessarily,” the old man said, shaking his head. “I've hidden things from Telian in the past, and I feel certain I can do so again. Andor is truly powerful, but so am I. In my experience, it's easier to hide than to seek. Especially as he knows we're after the girl, but still has no idea why. Since he doesn't know why, he won't be able to figure out how.”
“I hope you're right,” Valrak replied. “It seems like very speculative logic to me.”
“So it is,” the wizard admitted. “But everything has an element of risk. We have to do something. So, it's in our best interest to attack our enemy where he won't expect it.”
“I completely agree with that,” the warlord nodded. “But do you have a specific plan for getting one of the stones in place?”
“In a manner of speaking,” the old man smiled. “Yes, I do.”
“I thought you said there weren't any enemies around,” Kilren said, gently helping Erana lay back on the ground. “I'm pretty sure she's got some broken ribs.”
“I said I didn't see any enemies,” the Telian replied, kneeling down at the ranger's side.
“Thank you!” she smiled. “That's much better.”
“So...” the rogue mused, slowly thinking things through as he spoke. “They were able to hide from the Eilian.”
“Oh, no,” the knight replied, climbing to his feet. “I'm sure they couldn't do that.”
The Telian then stepped over to attend the human maiden. In moments, she too was restored.
“Well, then,” the rogue continued, “what did happen?”
“Oh,” the knight replied, “they just weren't evil.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean,” Darian explained, “that I sense evil. If I concentrate, I can even see it. But, I can't just sense danger. If it's not evil, I don't see or sense anything.”
“But they tried to kill us!”
“That doesn't mean they were evil, lad,” Ian replied.
“Well, maybe not in dwarfland,” the rogue scoffed, “but, around here, trying to kill someone without so much as a warning is considered way up there on the evil scale.”
“Dwarfland?” the bard laughed. “Anyway, Kilren, they were no more evil than a dagger, a sword, or a crossbow. It's not the weapon that's good or evil, but the wielder. Those statues were simply tools. It wasn't Darian's fault we were taken by surprise. In point of fact, it was mine and – forgive me, dear lady – Sarena's oversight.”
“Not at all, my good Ian,” the sorceress nodded. “We should have anticipated it.”
“What do you mean?” Kilren replied. “You two should have expected statues to jump out of the stonework and attack us?”
“In a manner of speaking, lad, yes,” the bard nodded. “Remember what I told you at the tower? We're dealing with a very powerful magic-user. We have to stay on our toes. In this instance, neither I nor Sarena – again, forgive me – showed the forethought we should have.”
“You're quite right to chastise us both,” Sarena nodded. “We can't afford to be that careless a second time.”
“Certainly not,” Ian replied. “Especially considering that we still have to pass through this portal and explore whatever lies beyond.”
“Yes,” Sarena agreed, “and we need to find some place to rest soon. I feel that neither Gwendolyn or I will be up to doing much for the next few hours, at least.”
“I can understand that,” the bard nodded. “That was simply amazing.”
“It was,” the sorceress replied. “I honestly wasn't sure we'd be able to do it again. Given the circumstances, I thought it was worth trying. I managed to control it last time – even with the interference of the fog. This time, it wasn't as powerful but it was easier to handle. In fact, if I had stopped sooner, it wouldn't have harmed Gwendolyn at all. Still, it channels more arcane power than either of us would normally wield. I feel certain we can do it again, but we shouldn't unless the situation is truly dire.”
“I think I agree with you,” the bard smiled. “Now, let's take a look inside and see what we discover.”
The bard stepped quickly to the doorway before chanting briefly to himself in a sing-song voice.
“Alright,” he said, “Captain, Sir Darian, if you'll lead the way, I'll follow a short distance behind and keep an eye out for magical traps. We'll just have to...”
“One moment, Master Ian,” the sorceress interrupted. “Before we delve into this cavern, our bold Telian may want to pick up the fragments of my husband's broken blade. I don't have the strength to fix it now, but I should in time. And we certainly don't want to be a sword short from here on out.”
“No,” he agreed. “That's a fair point. Darian, grab the shards of your sword, if you would.”
“Certainly,” the Telian replied, glancing around the area. “Fortunately, it only broke into a few pieces. It didn't really shatter, as it were.”
The fragments of the blade were quickly collected and the party began making its way into the cavern. The warrior and the knight led the band, the bard following just steps behind. As the light began to fail just a short distance beyond the entrance, the rogue was asked to lend his shining necklace to the captain. With this in his shield hand, Tealor marched confidently forward.
A narrow, relatively short hallway had been cut through the cliff-face to connect the entrance to the first of the chambers beyond. The party stepped out of this passageway into a large natural cavern. It was perhaps twenty feet high and had large spikes of stone hanging from the ceiling and rising from the floor. All around them, the rock glistened and sparkled in the golden light of the glowing stone, held aloft by the powerful warrior.
The full extent of the cave was difficult to judge. Darkness concealed the far wall and even those to the right and left were only dimly lit by the gentle glow.
“Where to?” the captain asked, his eyes glancing around the chamber.
“Forward, I suppose,” Ian replied. “I really didn't expect us to find anything like this. I was hoping for something more like a stairway.”
“I agree,” the warrior nodded. “But it may still lead us where we want to go.”
“True,” the bard admitted, “but it may also take us longer than we thought to find the right path.”
“Indeed,” the captain replied. “So, we had better get started.”
The group moved forward a very short distance before the dwarf brought them to a halt.
“I see something,” he said, his eyes focused on the darkness to their left.
“What?” the warrior asked.
“Magic, I think,” the bard replied.
“Can't you tell?”
“I can,” he said. “It's just very, very faint. In truth, I'm not sure if I see it or if my mind is merely playing tricks on me...”
“Either way, we'd better take a look.”
“Agreed.”
The party turned left and began trying to follow the magical aura that Ian believed he could make out somewhere in the distance beyond. The cave through which they traveled was truly immense. At times, they seemed to be a floating island of light swimming through a sea of eternal darkness. The few doubts that lingered in the bard's mind were quickly wiped away as step followed step. He was amazed he had been able to detect whatever it was from such a distance. It had to be something of incredible magical power.
“I'm afraid I can't keep this up,” the bard said suddenly, closing his eyes and lifting his hand to his forehead. “It's about to blind me, not to mention burn my brain out.”
“What do you mean?” the captain asked.
“The spell,” Ian answered. “My own spell. Whatever it is we're heading toward is too powerful to keep looking at. It's like staring at the sun.”
“Then stop,” the warrior replied. “We know what direction to go in and I think I can see it.”
“You can see it?” the dwarf asked with a tone of surprise.
“I think I can,” the captain said, squinting into the darkness ahead.
“I can't,” the bard replied.
“I thought you said it was blinding you.”
“It was, so I ended the spell. Now, I can't see it at all.”
“Hold on,” the warrior replied, hiding the glowing stone in his hand. “You see that blue glow up ahead?”
“I do now,” the bard nodded. “That's amazing...”
“Couldn't it be putting out its own light, just like the necklace is?”
“Yes,” Ian replied, “it could. I mean; obviously, it is. I'm just not sure why. Whatever it is, you can be sure it’s crackling with magical energy. We need to be very careful.”
“Oh, I agree with that,” Kilren said. “In fact, I think we need to be so careful that we don't go anywhere near it.”
“Well, we can't figure out what it is if we don't take a look,” the bard pointed out.
“Well, we can't tell anyone about it if we're dead,” the rogue retorted.
“Aye,” the dwarf admi
tted, scratching his chin. “That's true, too.”
“Sir Darian,” Tealor said, turning his gaze to the young knight. “This is your decision. Ian and Kilren both make very valid points. We can't find out more if we don't investigate; however, if we get ourselves killed, our knowledge will die with us. So, what would you have us do?”
The Telian stood for a moment, silently gazing at the distant blue glow.
“Sarena,” he said, “what's your opinion of the situation?”
“To begin with,” she replied, “I doubt it's any kind of trap. The stone guardians at the doorway were meant to keep anyone from getting this far. You have to keep in mind that it's also very well hidden. Ian was barely able to detect it – even using magic. So, whoever put it here probably expects that it won't be found.”
“So, you think it's safe?”
“Oh,” she replied with a light and merry laugh, “I certainly don't think that. I just don't believe it's a trap. Even if I'm right, it may still be trapped. If you take my meaning.”
“So, we should avoid it, then?”
“I'm honestly not sure, my bold Telian,” the sorceress replied, shaking her head. “However, I think we should be able to get at least a little closer in relative safety. We just need to move slowly and carefully.”
“Alright,” the knight nodded. “Let's move forward a bit and see if we can find out more.”
The party cautiously, and silently, crept toward the soft blue glow. As they drew nearer, they could see that the light was coming from another doorway that had been cut through the stone to connect two chambers. Once again, Ian made use of the arcane power in order to detect magical energy.
The Beasts of Areon (The Chronicles of Areon Book 2) Page 27
