by Victor Kloss
“Wait here,” Krobeg ordered. “I’ll be right back.”
Krobeg disappeared into the loft. Ben heard a rustling noise, drowning out the faint screams from outside.
“Are you both as confused as I am?” Charlie asked, as he stared up at the loft.
“He obviously needs something from up there before we leave,” Natalie said.
Sure enough, Krobeg emerged from the loft holding an incredible battle axe in one hand. The handle was wrought with intricate engravings, and the head gleamed silver.
“What’s that?” Charlie asked.
It took Ben a moment to realise that Charlie wasn’t referring to the axe, but an item in Krobeg’s other hand.
“This,” Krobeg said, upon reaching the floor, and closing up the loft, “is a map, given to me by my father.”
It was an old folded parchment that looked so delicate it appeared ready to crumble.
“I looked at it once, many years ago, but it made no sense,” Krobeg explained. “And given the relationship with my father wasn’t exactly great, I really wasn’t that interested. Frankly, I haven’t thought about it in years, until you came by a few days ago.”
Ben’s heart leapt up a gear, and he saw Charlie rubbing his hands with excitement, as Krobeg gently laid the map on the floor, and started unfolding it.
“My, it is old,” Natalie said, kneeling down to get a better look.
“Yes, don’t touch it, or it may crumble.”
The map was frayed at the edges, but the colours were still vivid, full of blues, greens and yellows. There was an “X” marked in the upper left corner.
“I don’t recognise any of these places,” Ben said, frowning. He immediately looked up at Charlie, who was staring so intently at the map, Ben feared his gaze might tear a hole through it.
“That’s exactly what I thought,” Krobeg said. “And even now, many years later, I still don’t recognise anything.”
“It’s got to be somewhere in the Unseen Kingdoms,” Charlie said. “This name here ‘Trilthorp’ sounds familiar. I just need a moment to think.”
Krobeg gave an enquiring look at Ben.
“Charlie’s our encyclopaedia man,” Ben explained.
But time was something they didn’t have. A crashing noise came from downstairs, followed by screams, shouts, and clashes of steel.
“Uh oh,” Ben said.
Krobeg stood up.
“Wait!” Charlie said, trailing his finger lightly over the map. “I’m close – I know I am. Just give me a minute.”
Krobeg hesitated, grappling with his axe, his eyes darting towards the door. He was itching to go, and Ben prepared himself to block the big dwarf.
“You can’t help,” Ben said. “I’ve seen the Shadowseekers fight. The axe is not the right weapon, believe me.”
Ben thought his line of reasoning was sound, but it had the exact opposite effect. Krobeg gave Ben a grim smile.
“Not the right weapon, eh? We’ll see about that.”
Ben heard the soft sound of footsteps coming up the stairs – light and nimble. Shadowseeker footsteps.
“They’re coming!” Natalie cried.
“Good,” Krobeg said.
“No!” Charlie said, as Krobeg stepped forwards, his heavy boots crumpling the frail map.
But Krobeg’s legs didn’t destroy the map. They stepped into and through it, like a black hole. With a mighty yell of surprise, Krobeg disappeared into the map, leaving nothing but the tattered parchment remaining.
Ben, Charlie and Natalie gave a chorus of screams.
“A portal!” Charlie said, finding his voice.
Ben glanced up. The Shadowseekers had climbed the stairs and he could hear them approaching the door.
“Go!” Ben said.
Natalie didn’t hesitate. She stepped right onto the map, and vanished, just like Krobeg had.
A slender sword sliced right through the thick bedroom door, and started methodically sawing out the lock.
“Oh dear,” Charlie said.
“Get a move on!” Ben said.
Charlie looked at the map, and hesitated – only for a moment, but enough for Ben to give him an impatient shove, sending a screaming Charlie into the map. Ben took one more look at the door, which was now being shoulder-charged by the Shadowseekers. Huge cracks lined the door, and Ben could make out a dash of purple beyond.
With a quick check on his spellshooter to make sure it was secure, Ben leapt into the map with a cry of exhilaration.
— Chapter Thirty-Five —
Arcane Dwarves
Ben landed softly on thick undergrowth. He afforded himself the brief glance around the forest, before rolling and pointing his spellshooter up, aiming at the point he had fallen through. There was nothing there, except for a huge tree – no sign of any portal. But Ben kept his spellshooter trained on the spot, holding his breath, heart pounding, waiting for the Shadowseekers to come leaping through.
They never came, and eventually Ben relaxed. He turned and saw Natalie, Charlie and Krobeg do the same.
“Either they didn’t think to step into the map or else they can’t get through,” Charlie said.
“My tavern,” Krobeg said, anguish in his voice. “I need to get back before they destroy it.”
“Your tavern is safe,” Ben said, sitting down on a large trunk that had been felled. “They were after you, not the tavern. Now that you’re not there, they won’t hang around. They will try to find you.”
“Where are we?” Natalie asked, looking up. “This place is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”
Ben knew what she meant, and yet the place seemed strangely familiar. The trees were huge, bigger than anything he’d seen in England. They weren’t all green either; some of them were shades of purple or red, creating a thick, leafy roof, hundreds of feet up. The forest floor wasn’t a simple bed of grass, like home, but a dense undergrowth, full of life – Ben saw bugs, both big and small, and instinctively shook his legs.
“Jimba Forest,” Charlie said, his voice full of wonder.
“Jimba?” Natalie frowned. “That’s from the diary, right?”
Charlie nodded. “Angus, the original director, came here to find a place for the piece of armour he was entrusted with. He met the arcane dwarves and eventually the armour found its way to the Silver Dwarf.”
They all turned to Krobeg, who stood silently, his mouth wide open, staring up at the mighty trees. Ben could almost see the realisation and, with it, acceptance, slowly dawning on the dwarf’s face.
“I can’t believe it,” he said softly. “All this time, I had that map in my loft and I never knew its significance.” He shook his head slowly. “Why, though? Why would my father want to send me here?”
“The arcane dwarves,” Ben said. “We’re now in their domain. I’m willing to bet all the money I don’t have that they are the custodians of the piece of Elizabeth’s Armour.”
Krobeg gave Ben a long, searching look, which he met without flinching.
“You think my father intended me to come here to retrieve the piece of armour, don’t you,” Krobeg said.
“I know that’s what he intended,” Ben said with a small smile.
A brief silence followed, and Ben could see Krobeg slowly processing the magnitude of events. He might be slow, but he wasn’t stupid, and Ben was fairly certain he was starting to believe.
“The question is – are the arcane dwarves still here?” Natalie asked. “Could they still be guarding the armour after all this time?”
“Yes,” Charlie said without hesitation. “Remember the prophesy? The Silver Dwarf shall return and lead them out. I think they’re still waiting for him.”
“Intelligence can’t be one of their key attributes, then. Why don’t they just leave?” Natalie asked.
“Haven’t you read fantasy stories? Prophesies are important things – you don’t treat them lightly, and t
hey always come true.”
“This isn’t a book, though,” Natalie said.
Ben glanced around at the huge trees and dense undergrowth. “If the arcane dwarves are guarding the armour, where can we find them?”
“We need to travel east – that’s what it said in the diary. I’m sure it can’t be far,” Charlie said. “It would be silly for the map to drop us off days away. I bet we’re just outside the arcane dwarf boundary zone.”
“Well, let’s get cracking,” Ben said. He glanced up again at the portal they had come through, checking for dark elves one more time, but saw nothing.
The going was slow, as the undergrowth was so thick. Charlie, with his in-built orientation skills, ensured they were always heading east, but it was rare that they managed to do so in a straight line. There were creatures, both big and small, that they tried to avoid. Even the plants watched them, and Charlie nearly got bitten several times by some of the larger ones.
“What is that?” Ben said, stopping suddenly, with a sharp intake of breath.
A huge, black cat with sparkling yellow eyes was watching them, less than fifty feet away. It must have been at least twice the size of a lion, and it stood right on the path they had mapped out.
“I don’t know, but I think it’s hungry,” Charlie said, taking an instinctive step back. “I’ve seen that look before; I get it every time I’m about to devour my egg and bacon sandwich.”
“You’re right, I’ve seen it too, among many of my patrons,” Krobeg said.
“It’s a growl,” Natalie said. “I remember now, from the diary.”
“Do you remember if the diary said anything about how to kill it?”
“I don’t want to kill it,” said Natalie, looking shocked. “It’s not evil, just hungry.”
The growl started towards them, its footsteps surprisingly soft, given its size.
“It’s going to rush us, any second,” Charlie said. He had his spellshooter out, but his hand was shaking.
Ben considered their options, fast. It was too late to turn away, and if they ran, he was fairly certain the growl would catch them. He whipped his own spellshooter out.
“Stun it,” Ben said, looking towards Charlie and Natalie. “You’ve both got stunning spells, right?”
They nodded, though not with the sort of conviction Ben was hoping for.
“Natalie, you go first. If that doesn’t do the job, Charlie, you fire. I’ll go last.”
Ben had barely finished speaking, when the growl launched forwards with frightening speed, powering through the undergrowth as if it was no more than a bed of tulips.
“Fire!”
Natalie shot a small, silver spell at the growl. It hit him right on the nose, and created a small shockwave on impact, but the growl didn’t break its stride.
“Charlie!”
Charlie’s spell hit the growl less than twenty paces away. The shockwave was greater, and the growl slowed noticeably, but the dazed look on its face lasted only a moment, and it continued its advance, suddenly lengthening its final few strides.
Ben fired. It was impossible to miss at such a range. The shockwave was greater still, and Ben saw the growl’s yellow eyes roll back, but its sheer momentum carried it on. Too late did Ben realise he wasn’t going to get out the way in time.
A mighty arm swatted him aside. Krobeg stepped forwards and charged into the growl with the force of a raging bull. There was a mighty impact, and they collapsed onto the ground. Krobeg shook his head and got straight back up, but the growl was out cold.
The four of them stared at the mighty animal.
“Well, we didn’t kill it,” Charlie said after a moment.
Ben glanced at Krobeg, appraising him yet again. “That was incredible.”
Krobeg shrugged, looking a little uncomfortable. “I did some wrestling when I was younger. Shall we keep going?”
They went a little slower now, eyes peeled for the larger animals, both on the ground level and above. The growl was big, but Ben was fairly sure there were bigger, more dangerous animals about, and he didn’t want to run into them.
The incident with the growl left them on their toes, silent and alert, and it was at least twenty minutes without incident before they started to relax.
“I wish I had packed a lunch bag,” Krobeg said.
“You sound like Charlie,” Natalie said, stepping delicately over a small log that she knew from experience was actually a living animal.
“I don’t normally go more than a couple of hours without having a drink – and I’m not talking about water,” Krobeg said.
“He doesn’t sound like me,” Charlie said. “Unless you’re talking about a cup of tea? Because I find I need a caffeine dose every couple of hours.”
“I wonder if these arcane dwarves will have anything worthy to eat or drink,” Krobeg said, his eyes twinkling.
Ben was pleased to see some of Krobeg’s old joviality returning. Had he finally accepted his role as a Guardian? Ben liked to think so, but it was too early to tell.
“I’m sure they’ll have something,” Natalie said. “Speaking of which, how are we going to convince them to hand over the piece of Elizabeth’s Armour, assuming they do have it? Aren’t they keeping it safe for the Silver Dwarf?”
“Yes,” Ben said. “I’m still working on that part.”
The truth was, Ben hadn’t a clue, but he wasn’t going to tell them that. He was hoping that the arcane dwarves would recognise Krobeg as a descendant, and possibly even make the connection to the Silver Dwarf. But it was a forlorn hope, especially as Krobeg, with his ginger beard and large stomach, looked nothing like the Silver Dwarf. The other option was acquiring the piece of armour by brute force, which seemed highly unlikely; after all, the armour was here in the first place because it was so hard to get. Ben’s head kept going round in circles, searching for an idea. He was so intent on coming up with a plan that he didn’t hear Charlie shout, and reacted with some surprise when Krobeg grabbed his shirt and hauled him back.
“What is it?” Ben said.
“Look.”
They were pointing to a series of trees ahead of them that ran across their path. Each tree was painted with a red circle. Underneath, was a peculiar symbol, and underneath that, written in plain English, were the words “DO NOT ENTER”.
“Well, we’re on the right track,” Ben said.
His humour was lost on the others, who eyed the trees warily. Krobeg loosened his axe from his belt, and both Charlie and Natalie drew their spellshooters. Ben did the same.
After some misgivings from Charlie, they continued on, four sets of eyes constantly scanning the forest for signs of life. Ben remembered exactly what Angus said about the arcane dwarves. “They are extremely good at hiding, better even than the wood elves of Lithlorn.” Were they being watched right now? Ben felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise, but every time he thought he saw a flicker of movement, it was gone before he could spot anything.
“They’re watching us,” Krobeg said. “I can feel it.”
“I think you’re right,” Natalie replied. “Let’s not make any threatening movements. Do you think we should put our weapons away?”
“I don’t think it will matter,” Ben said. He might not be able to see the dwarves, but he felt better holding his spellshooter.
Despite knowing they were being watched, they still stepped quietly, as if this would somehow assist them. Ben could hear their breathing, louder even than the rustling trees.
None of them spotted the arcane dwarf who fired the arrow.
The first Ben heard of it was the soft whistling through the air, and then a thunk, as it embedded itself into a tree just in front of them.
Ben gave a start, and he heard Charlie curse and fall to the floor. Ben hurried up to the arrow and pried it from the tree. The head, shaft and tail were all red.
“A warning,” Charlie said, rub
bing his backside. “Exactly the same thing happened to Angus, remember?”
Ben followed the flight path of the arrow, but wasn’t surprised to see nobody there.
“Should we keep going?” Krobeg asked. He didn’t look scared, only doubtful.
“Yes,” Ben replied emphatically. “We’re going the right way. It won’t be much longer now.”
“I hope you’re right about this,” Krobeg said.
“And if I’m not?”
Krobeg looked at him, his eyes serious. “If you’re not, and we somehow get out of this alive, then you’re all banned from my tavern for life.”
Charlie gave a moan. “That’s just cruel.”
“What if I’m right, and we get out alive?” Ben said.
Krobeg gave a hint of a smile. “If you’re right, then it’s free meals all round.”
“Wow,” Natalie said. “So there’s a lot riding on this; it’s not just about saving the world from the dark elves.”
The light-hearted moment was brief, and silence soon resumed. They continued on, apprehensive of where the next arrow might come from. Would they get another warning or would they be the next targets? Occasionally Ben would glance over to Krobeg, looking for signs that he might be cracking. After all, this was a lot for him to take in. Just a few days ago, he had been a successful chef, and now he was a Guardian and descendant of the Silver Dwarf. But though he saw the occasional flicker of concern, there was no sign of fear. From everything Ben had seen of Krobeg these last few hours, he was starting to think Elander’s assessment of his son was completely off the mark.
Ben’s thoughts were interrupted by a sudden movement ahead, and a warning shout from Natalie, who flung her arms out.
Out from the trees stepped a dwarf. He was slender, almost man-like, in appearance. His skin was pale, perhaps from the lack of sunlight, and his long beard was neatly split into three bunches. Ben was relieved to see that he was unarmed, and approached them in a relaxed, almost serene manner.
“Greetings, strangers,” the dwarf said. His voice was neither friendly, nor unkind. His gaze took them all in, but settled on Krobeg the longest.
