You don’t think they’re busy sleeping? I assume they do that during the day.
We’ll find out.
“The charge is set, Colonel,” sounded over Willard’s radio.
“At your leisure, Sergeant.”
Brace yourself, Sindari, I thought.
Parekh trotted out of the cave and climbed up to join the group. The detonator was clipped to his belt.
“Whenever you’re ready, Sergeant,” Willard said.
“Yes, ma’am. Ten seconds.”
Everyone hunkered down on the ice. We were all out of the gully and clear of the blast area, but this was a strange situation set up by a strange enemy, so we expected the unexpected.
When it came, the boom was muffled and not as impressive as I’d imagined. Chunks of ice thudded down inside the cave, while smaller debris shot out on a surge of meltwater.
A magical presence appeared to my senses so rapidly that I gasped.
Willard glanced at me.
“Trouble.” It wasn’t a dark elf. I didn’t know what it was, but its aura was almost as powerful as a dragon’s. “Sindari, that’s more than a beacon.”
Rumbles and scrapes emanated from the cave. They didn’t sound like ice falling.
It blossomed into something more. Sindari trotted to the edge of the glacier to look toward the cave.
Blossomed? Try erupted.
Staying low, I hurried after him. Ominous thumps came from the cave, the ice under us reverberating with each one.
A cloud of dust obscured the entrance, the fine powder wafting out into the clear sky. Something stirred inside that cloud. A huge blocky shape that looked more like a mountain itself than a living being crawled out of the cave on vaguely human-like hands and knees. When the creature rose to its full height on legs made from pillars of rock, it stood almost thirty feet tall and twenty wide.
“Rock golem,” I breathed. “They must have put it back there to guard that entrance.”
“You didn’t sense that behind the boulders?” Willard asked.
It was inert until we triggered the equivalent of a tripwire, Sindari said, with only the slightest magical signature.
“Sorry,” I said to Willard. “It wasn’t activated until we disturbed its resting spot.”
Willard groaned and pulled her rifle off her shoulder.
The massive stone head and its even more massive neck and shoulders swiveled to look up at our team. Red eyes flared with inner light, and the rock golem strode down the gully toward our position.
20
I shrugged off my backpack and dug out grenades. Even if the rock golem somehow hadn’t been magical, I doubted bullets would have done anything to it, but it oozed power in the same way Zav did. I worried that even Chopper and Nin’s enhanced grenades would not be enough.
“I’m throwing some explosives!” I warned the soldiers readying their weapons.
Only Willard, Banderas, and Sabo had magical weapons, but everyone was taking aim.
Willard gave calm orders to back up, fan out, and stay out of each other’s line of fire. “Thorvald, any chance we can negotiate with this thing?”
Something akin to red laser beams shot out of the golem’s eyes and struck the closest soldier—Clarke—in the shoulder. He cried out in pain and tumbled onto the ice, only his carabiner hooked to a rope keeping him from skidding down into the gully.
“No.” I pulled the tab, counted, and threw a grenade.
It exploded as it struck the golem in the chest. At Willard’s order, the soldiers opened fire.
It may not be able to climb the ice to get to us. Sindari crouched on the rim overlooking the gully, poised to spring.
The boom of my grenade echoed from the mountainside, smoke swallowing the top half of the golem. But it soon moved out of it, walking up the slick valley wall, using its huge hands to help maneuver its body up the ice. A hairline crack in its chest appeared where the grenade had hit it, but there was no greater sign of damage.
Gravity and physics shouldn’t have allowed that huge thing to climb up the ice, but magic defied both and propelled the golem toward our group. Bullets pinged off the rock monster’s face and chest. The soldiers’ aim was impeccable, but it didn’t matter. Even Willard’s magical bullets did little to stop it.
“Aim high!” I barked, spotting Sindari running in.
He snapped his jaws at the golem’s legs as it stood straight, having made it to the top. The soldiers backed away, unhooking from the ropes—they dared not remain anchored in place with that thing stomping toward them.
Clacks sounded as Sindari’s teeth struck the rocky pillar of the golem’s left leg. If his powerful fangs did any damage, I couldn’t see it. The golem slammed a fist down at him.
He sprang to the side, escaping the blow by scant inches. The golem pounded a crater in the ice where he’d been.
Even with his sure feet, Sindari slipped on the treacherous ice and almost ended up falling. Snarling, he whirled around to face his assailant again.
“Stay back for now, Sindari!” I hurled another grenade.
Even though he was magical, Sindari was flesh and blood and could be hurt by weapons and claws. And friendly fire.
The grenade struck, followed by grenades from two other soldiers. I didn’t think theirs were magical.
Beside me, Willard fired a series of shots at the golem’s eyes. My grenade exploded, the glacier trembling under our feet.
Once again, the golem walked on, barely damaged. Clarke had scrambled out of its way, but it was almost to Lieutenant Sabo, who was firing determinedly at it, believing the magical bullets streaking out of his gun would be enough to save him.
“Fall back!” Willard yelled at him, then growled, “Should have had you get the Howitzer for me.” She shook her rifle. “Thorvald, this isn’t doing shit.”
“Here.” I thrust Fezzik at her, drew Chopper, and snatched another grenade out of my pack. “I’m going in. Tell everyone to hold fire, but if you see an opportunity, go for it.”
I ran across the ice, more agile than the full-blooded humans but still feeling awkward, even with the crampons—or because of them. The golem saw me coming and turned away from Sabo. Its eyes lit, and I read the warning in that and dove to the side.
Beams shot out, instantly boring holes in the ice, vapor steaming up. I turned my dive into a roll and sprang up, running toward the golem again. Before it could swivel its head to target my new spot, I rushed between its legs. Behind it, I turned and jumped up, driving Chopper toward its lower back like one of the ice axes we’d brought.
With the mighty swing I took, I expected the blade to sink in several feet. It gouged only a couple of inches into the golem. The thing was nearly indestructible.
It lumbered around, trying to face me, but I stayed behind it. Visions of pulling myself up the golem-mountain using Chopper as a pick washed out of my mind. Instead, I stuffed my grenade in my pocket and sheathed the blade long enough to leap up, catching its arm and swinging my body up on top of it.
The head swiveled toward me, and beams shot out of its eyes as it shook its arm. Dropping flat on the huge limb, I hung on tight. The beams shot over my head, hot enough and close enough that my scalp prickled.
Hanging on with one arm, I drew Chopper again with the other. When the beams disappeared, I lunged up to the shoulder and swung at those eyes.
A crack sounded as the edge of the blade connected. One crimson orb shattered like glass. I didn’t know if the golem needed its eyes to find its enemies, but hoped it wouldn’t be able to shoot more lasers out of them if it lost them.
It didn’t shriek or growl; it simply swung its opposite arm toward me like a club. I scrambled across its shoulder and around the back of its head to avoid the grasping sausage-like digits. The thing was nearly indestructible, but at least it wasn’t fast.
When I reached its other shoulder, I swung Chopper at the remaining eye. It burst, tiny red shards tinkling down to the ice.
&n
bsp; The golem grabbed for me again, but I evaded the grip once more, leaping atop its head. Using my legs to hold on, I drove my blade down into its skull.
Once again, the sword didn’t penetrate nearly as far as I’d hoped. Two fists swung toward me at once. Chopper almost didn’t come free, and one rock hand clipped my shoulder. I cursed at the pain—it was like being hit by a boulder tumbling down a mountainside—but managed to keep from falling off. I caught the golem around the neck, hanging on by one arm as I hacked at the side of its head with my sword.
I was doing damage—shards of rock flew off—but not enough, and I snarled with impatience, worried it would trample on the soldiers while I was working like molasses.
A roar sounded and Sindari, springing more than twenty feet from the ground, landed on its other shoulder. His claws didn’t do damage, but when he bit into the other side of the golem’s head, more shards of rock peeled off.
Dangling by my arm, I tugged the grenade out of my pocket. I pulled the pin with my teeth, grimacing at the taste of metal, then counted and reached around. It clunked against rock teeth.
Bite it! I mentally yelled to Sindari.
He’d been tearing gouges from the creature’s head and face, but he chomped on the amorphous stone ear sticking out of the side of its head. The golem probably didn’t have pain receptors, but it was startled enough to open its mouth. I stuffed the grenade in.
Get down, Sindari!
I flung myself backward, twisting and hoping to land on my feet. But the ice had softened—maybe I landed on a spot hit by one of those laser beams—and it gave way under my boots. One foot plunged into a hole.
The grenade blew, tearing the golem’s head off. The soldiers let out whoops.
But the creature didn’t fall. It spun around, raising its arms to chop down onto me.
Swearing, I yanked on my boot, but the ice had my foot caught.
Automatic fire opened up behind the golem. A hail of bullets slammed into its back, and it paused. I hacked at the ice with Chopper. It gave, and I yanked my foot free. Bullets slammed into the headless golem’s back. It resumed its downward chop at me, but I was free now and dove to the side. The fists struck only ice.
More bullets rained into it, all of the soldiers opening fire. I jumped up, intending to run out of the way, but the golem and I were close to the edge of the gully. Ice crumbled and gave way. I tumbled down the slope to the bottom, meltwater still rushing past, and landed hard on my back. The golem pitched down right after me.
Again, I rolled to the side. Most of the golem missed me, but an arm landed across my waist like a tree trunk, pinning me. Pain blasted me, but I wasn’t sure if the thing was still animated and attacking or had simply fallen on me. Even while stuck under its arm, I hacked at it with Chopper, chiseling off more pieces from its hulking rock body.
The golem didn’t fight back. It didn’t move at all. Slowly, it dawned on me that the magic of its aura was fading.
I let myself collapse back in the mud and snow. Maybe in a minute, I would try to get out, but the arm had to weigh hundreds of pounds. After having it land on me, walking would not be fun.
Val? Sindari asked. Are you all right?
I hope so. Thanks for the appropriately timed bite.
You are welcome. I was chagrined that my claws and fangs did so little against the golem. It was a pleasure to be of assistance. He looks better without a head.
I concur.
Willard came into view, looking down at me, her dark skin and green-and-brown camo helmet contrasting with the pale blue sky and the white ice rising up all around me. “You always end up pinned under your enemies after a fight, Thorvald?”
“Never more than two or three times out of ten.”
“Those odds don’t seem conducive to good health.”
“It’s why it’s good that I heal fast.” With luck, my pelvis wasn’t shattered, because even my elven blood wouldn’t help me heal from that fast enough to be useful.
“Do you need help up?”
“Possibly. I’d estimate this arm weighs about as much as Dorothy’s house.”
“Looks like it.” Willard waved for a couple of her uninjured men to come help.
While they heaved the arm upward a few inches, I squirmed out from under it. My pelvis did indeed hurt, but I didn’t think any of the bones were broken.
“Is there anything else magical nearby that you’d like to warn us about?” Willard asked. “Preferably more than three seconds before it attacks us?”
“No?” Sindari? I asked silently. Nothing else?
Nothing. Not even a hint of magic.
“No,” I repeated more firmly.
“Good.” Willard gave me a hand up and returned Fezzik. “Next time you order me a magical weapon, get me something automatic. Preferably in a caliber suitable for taking down a paraceratherium.”
“A what?” Even if I’d known what that was, I wouldn’t have been able to pronounce it.
“The paraceratherium is an extinct species of hornless rhinoceros—it’s believed to be the largest land mammal that ever lived.” Willard raised her eyebrows. “Books, Thorvald. Books without dragons in them.”
“Yeah, yeah. You intel people are insufferable. I was just a pilot, remember. As for weapons, I’ll keep your preferences in mind. Thanks for saving my butt.” I liked to think that I could have rolled to the side quickly enough to avoid that blow, but it seemed like a good idea to show gratitude to people who helped out, thus to encourage repeat performances.
With my first step, my pelvis let me know it hadn’t appreciated being hurled down a glacier or having a golem land on it. I stifled a gasp of pain, not wanting anyone to think I would be a liability going forward. We hadn’t even seen a dark elf yet.
I would walk it off. It would be fine.
“You’re welcome,” Willard said. “It was my turn.”
“To save my butt? I don’t think I’ve saved yours recently. You’re not out in the field much.”
Willard raised her eyebrows.
Oh, the magical cancer thing.
“Technically,” I said, “you were only in danger from that because the dark elves wanted me out of the way.”
“I thought they wanted my office out of the way.”
“Because your office sends me out after dark elves.”
“You’re kind of self-centered, you know.”
“I’ve been hanging out with a lot of dragons.”
“That’ll do it.” Willard got on the radio and called for one of the helicopters to return to pick up Clarke, who tried to bravely protest that he could go on, but he had a laser-beam hole straight through his shoulder.
I walked gingerly along the bottom of the gully as I cleaned Chopper and reloaded Fezzik while hoping the pain pulsing between my spine and hip would go away. Willard sent a couple people into the cave to see if the explosion had cleared a route—and to make sure no other enemies were back there.
You are injured? Sindari was watching me.
No.
There’s no need to lie to me about such things.
I thought you might feel pity for me if you knew and insist on letting me ride on your back instead of walking.
Predators don’t feel pity, but I would allow you to lean some of your weight on me while we maneuver across the ice. Tigers do not permit themselves to be ridden like one of your horses. How degrading.
Are there any animals on this planet that you don’t believe you’re much better than?
None that have permitted themselves to be domesticated. A tiger would never allow this. Even a tiger on this backward planet.
I once saw a tiger with a saddle and a rider. I rotated my hips in a slow circle. A sharp pain stabbed me. That was worse than walking. Where was a dragon with healing hands when I needed him?
Now I know you’re lying.
It might have been in a cartoon. I decided not to explain He-Man to Sindari.
As the whir of chopper blades reach
ed my ears, a shadow fell across the gully. Clouds that hadn’t been in the sky earlier were drifting across the sun. Darker, grayer clouds had formed on the northern horizon, hiding distant Mount Baker from view. Below our lofty elevation, clouds had also drifted in over the lower peaks of the Cascades. Hopefully, if any precipitation came, it would fall below us.
“Colonel?” Banderas’s voice came over Willard’s radio. “There’s nothing back here. No cave that continues on. Just a nook that the golem must have been waiting in. Behind it, the ice goes all the way down to the ground. It looks like it was deliberately knocked down, so we could try blowing another hole, but…”
Lieutenant Sabo spoke next. “I think they sealed this off completely and left that present for us.”
“Us specifically?” Willard looked at me.
“I don’t see how they could have anticipated us,” I said slowly, though I wasn’t confident of that. I’d invaded their Seattle lair, so maybe they had assumed I would eventually show up here. “But they would have expected someone to come looking for the missing scientists.”
“Why would they have bothered the scientists at all? Until now, the dark elves were circumspect and didn’t do anything to let anyone find out about their presence here. Now, we’ve got dead scientists and a blasted monitoring device in one night.”
“Maybe they found out we were coming and wanted to get rid of anything that could point to them.”
Her eyes narrowed. “How would they have found out? A spy in the office?”
“You think Gondo or Freysha?”
“I’d be shocked if it was Gondo.”
And I had a hard time imagining the tool-loving elf colluding with dark elves—or any elves colluding with dark elves—but that could all be an act. Just because she was young didn’t mean she was innocent or to be trusted.
“Are those the only new people?” I asked.
“Yes. And the only people in the office who aren’t at least partially human. That doesn’t necessarily mean others couldn’t betray us, but ninety percent of the staff are in the service and have been for years. The civilians are part-time advisors, like you, and don’t know that much.”
Elven Doom (Death Before Dragons Book 4) Page 17
